Motor Freight Trucking Management Unemployment wasn't that high, percentage reported but, there were millions of men unemployed, just not counted. Ominously, the distribution of wealth, 24,000 families owned just about everything and the bottom six million didn't do so well. This distribution ratio of 1 to 250 meant that most American families owed money on everything they almost owned. With the use of excessive installment buying industrial and retail sales were great but it was all on credit. People were buying things they couldn't afford.

The great stock market crash of 1929 was a big surprise.  You might note that stocks reached a all time high before tumbling down and down to the financial catastrophe you call the crash.

Prosperity was everywhere, clerks, dock men, drivers and even the guy sweeping the sidewalk.  Optimism.  Everyone could get rich, just buy some stocks, even if you had to use (margin) credit to get on the bandwagon to wealth and prosperity.

The guy digging a water well hole owned stocks, the barber and all the businesspeople had their hand in the money pie.

But, beneath the surface, lay disturbing economic facts even though most of them were left unnoticed until it was too late.

Unemployment wasn't that high, percentage reported but,  there were millions of men unemployed, just not counted.  Ominously, the distribution of wealth, 24,000 families owned just about everything and the bottom six million didn't do so well.  This distribution ratio of 1 to 250 meant that most American families owed money on everything they almost owned.  With the use of excessive installment buying industrial and retail sales were great but it was all on credit.  People were buying things they couldn't afford.

The public was caught by surprise by the crash and even the economic expert economists, both private and government were caught off guard and the entire U.S. economy failed.

Nine million savings accounts vanished as the banks were failing by the thousands.  Over 85,000 businesses failed and went under, wages dropped to 10-25 cents an hour and breadlines formed and the great depression loomed to cover the world.

After the crash, 14 million were unemployed.  The economists were sure it could never happen but, many thought it would be a permanent depression.   This is the time when America made a hard left and started learning about Marx who promised to cure unemployment and then Keynes solving the depression.

We've been here before.