Hooverville Explorer Slides Shanty Town Stories
Life in a Hooverville
Imagine This...
"If you had to build a house out of cardboard boxes and scrap metal today, how would you make it stand up to the rain?"
Cardboard
Scrap Wood
Rusty Metal
What was a Hooverville?
1
Shanty Towns
Crowded settlements built by homeless people during the Great Depression.
2
The Name
Named after President Herbert Hoover, whom many people blamed for the crisis.
3
Location
Usually built on public land, near garbage dumps, or close to water sources.
"Hooverville in Seattle, 1933"
Resourcefulness in Crisis
Families had to be "architects of survival" using whatever they could find.
Tin Cans
Flattened and used as "shingles" for roofs to keep water out.
Tar Paper
Tacked onto cardboard to make it semi-waterproof.
Crates
Wooden fruit crates used for flooring or sturdy walls.
Hoover Blankets
Old newspapers used as insulation or bedding.
Your Mission: Design a Shanty
In your groups, you will create a blueprint for a Hooverville shelter. You must use at least three different "scrap" materials in your design.
Planning Sketching Justifying
Shanty Town Blueprint and Guide Cardboard Castle
Hooverville Design Challenge • Survival Blueprint
Name:
Date:
Project Objective
Imagine it is 1932. Your family has lost their home and must build a shelter in a local Hooverville. Use the grid below to sketch a blueprint of your shelter using only scrap materials.
Blueprint Sketch Area
Scale: 1 square = 1 foot
Material Inventory
Scrap Material Purpose (How is it used?) ____________________ ______________________________ ____________________ ______________________________ ____________________ ______________________________ ____________________ ______________________________
Weatherproofing Plan
How will your shelter stay dry during a heavy rainstorm? Describe your design choice:
Teacher Reference: Hoovervilles
Context for the "Cardboard Castle" Challenge
Why call them "Hoovervilles"?
The name was coined by Charles Michelson, the publicity director of the Democratic National Committee. It was a political jab at President Herbert Hoover. People used the term to mock the President's perceived lack of action. Other related terms included:
Hoover Blankets: Old newspapers used to keep warm.
Hoover Flags: Empty pockets turned inside out.
Hoover Leather: Cardboard used to patch holes in worn-out shoes.
The Realities of Shantytown Life
Despite the harsh conditions, Hoovervilles often developed their own community structures. Some had "mayors" or unofficial leaders. The largest Hooverville was in St. Louis, which at one point had its own church and social organization.
Demographics
Residents were not just "drifters." Many were former middle-class families, factory workers, and veterans who had lost everything.
Health Issues
Lack of plumbing and sanitation led to frequent outbreaks of disease, though some towns tried to maintain clean public wells.
Discussion Prompts
A. Why would a family choose to live in a Hooverville instead of moving to a rural farm? (Cost of travel, hope for factory work returning)
B. How does naming a "city of misery" after a leader change how the public views that leader?
C. Where did residents get materials like scrap metal or wood? (Dumps, abandoned construction, shipping docks)
Penny Pincher Slides The Penny Pincher
Scarcity and Soup Kitchens
A Difficult Choice
"What would you eat if your family only had ten cents to spend on dinner for everyone?"
10¢
Total Budget
4-6
People to Feed
1
Meal to Make
Key Term: Scarcity
What it means:
"When there is not enough of something to go around."
During the Depression, money was scarce.
Jobs were scarce.
Food on the table was often scarce.
Supply < Demand
Inventory Level: Critical
Breadlines & Soup Kitchens
Who ran them?
Charity groups, churches, and sometimes even famous mobsters like Al Capone ran soup kitchens to help the hungry.
The Wait
"Breadlines" were often blocks long. People would wait for hours for a piece of bread and a cup of watery soup.
The Menu
Menus were simple: watery soup, stale bread, and maybe coffee. It wasn't about flavor; it was about calories.
Simulation Time
You will be given a 1930s Price List and a limited budget. Can you feed a family of five for a whole day?
Rules: No going over budget. Must include breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
Soup Kitchen Sim and Recipes The 10-Cent Dinner
Budgeting for Survival in the 1930s
NAME: ___________________________
DATE: ___________________________
Scenario:
It is 1934. Your family has exactly 10 cents left for tonight's dinner. There are 5 people in your home. Use the price list below to plan a meal that fills everyone's bellies without spending a single penny extra.
1934 Price List
<table class="w-full text-sm"><tbody class="divide-y divide-stone-200"><tr><td class="py-2">Loaf of Bread (Day-old)</td><td class="py-2 text-right font-mono">2¢</td></tr><tr><td class="py-2">Potatoes (1 lb)</td><td class="py-2 text-right font-mono">1¢</td></tr><tr><td class="py-2">Milk (Small Pail)</td><td class="py-2 text-right font-mono">4¢</td></tr><tr><td class="py-2">Onions (2 large)</td><td class="py-2 text-right font-mono">1¢</td></tr><tr><td class="py-2">Lard (for frying)</td><td class="py-2 text-right font-mono">1¢</td></tr><tr><td class="py-2">Cabbage (Small head)</td><td class="py-2 text-right font-mono">2¢</td></tr><tr><td class="py-2">Beans (Dry, 1 lb)</td><td class="py-2 text-right font-mono">3¢</td></tr><tr><td class="py-2">Soup Bone (from butcher)</td><td class="py-2 text-right font-mono">1¢</td></tr><tr><td class="py-2">Coffee (Grounds)</td><td class="py-2 text-right font-mono">2¢</td></tr><tr><td class="py-2">Sugar (Small scoop)</td><td class="py-2 text-right font-mono">1¢</td></tr></tbody></table>
Chef's Note:
You must choose at least 3 items to make a real meal!
Your Shopping List
Item 1: ________________Cost: ____¢
Item 2: ________________Cost: ____¢
Item 3: ________________Cost: ____¢
Item 4: ________________Cost: ____¢
Item 5: ________________Cost: ____¢
TOTAL SPENT: ____ ¢
What are you cooking?
Describe your dinner here (e.g. "Onion and potato soup with bread")...
Reflect:
How did it feel to have to say "no" to certain items (like milk or sugar) just to afford basic food? If you did this every day, how would it change how you feel about dinner time?
"Poor Man's Cookery"
1. Poor Man's Meal
Ingredients: Potatoes, Onions, Hot Dogs (if lucky)
Peel and cube potatoes. Slice the onions. Fry them both in a large pan with whatever fat (lard) you have until they are soft and slightly browned. If you have a single hot dog, slice it very thin to spread the flavor to everyone.
2. Milk & Crackers
Ingredients: Milk, Stale Bread or Saltines
This was a common dinner when the stove couldn't be lit. Break old bread into small pieces in a bowl. Pour a small amount of milk over it. Sprinkle with a tiny bit of sugar if available. It fills the stomach and helps kids sleep.
Flour Sacks and Fun Slides Flour Sacks and Fun
Children of the Depression
Did You Know?
"During the 1930s, many kids wore clothes made out of empty flour sacks."
Flour
The Material
The Clothing
Growing Up Fast
Schooling
Many schools closed because they couldn't pay teachers. Over 2,000 schools stayed shut in 1933.
Working
Kids as young as 10 left school to shine shoes, sell newspapers, or work on farms to help their families.
"Adult Responsibilities"
Kids weren't just "kids" anymore. They were vital partners in the family's survival team.
Playtime with Zero Pennies
Without money for toys, kids used their imaginations and "junk."
Button String
Spinning a button on a looped string to make it "buzz."
Corn Husk Dolls
Dried corn husks tied together to make people and animals.
Tire Rolling
Racing old tires down a dirt road with a stick.
Hopscotch
All you needed was a piece of coal or chalk and a flat spot.
Reflection
"If you could only keep ONE of your current toys or pieces of technology, and the rest were gone... how would you spend your Saturday?"
Turn and talk to your neighbor.
Then and Now Comparison The Sack Suit
A Story of Resilience from 1935
"When the flour companies saw that moms were making clothes out of their sacks, they started printing patterns like flowers and stripes on them so the kids wouldn't be embarrassed."
Ten-year-old Arthur stood in the kitchen as his mother measured a large cotton sack. On the front, in faded blue ink, it said "Gold Medal Flour - 50 LBS." To Arthur, it wasn't just a bag; it was about to become his new school shirt.
"I soaked it in lye and scrubbed it three times, Arthur," his mother said, seeing him eye the blue label. "The words are almost gone. And look—I found two buttons from your father’s old coat for the collar."
During the Great Depression, nothing was wasted. When the flour was used to bake bread, the cotton sack became a dress, a shirt, or even underwear. Arthur didn't mind. Most of the boys in his class were wearing sacks, too. Some still had the faint outline of a brand name across their backs.
After his mother finished sewing, Arthur went outside to meet his friend Leo. Leo didn't have a ball, but he had a "sock-ball"—a bunch of old socks rolled up and tied with string. They spent the afternoon playing catch in the alley. Arthur didn't have a bicycle or a radio, but as he ran after the sock-ball in his new flour-sack shirt, he felt lucky. He had a shirt, he had a friend, and tonight, he knew there would be a potato on his plate.
Vocabulary Check
Lye: A strong chemical used for washing and making soap.
Resilience: The ability to recover quickly from difficulties.
Then and Now
Comparing your daily life to Arthur's life in the 1930s
Name:
Date:
Childhood: 1930s
Childhood: Today
Both
Consider these categories for your diagram:
Clothing
School / Work
Toys / Fun
Food
Secret Signs Slides Secret Signs
The Hobo Code of the 1930s
A Silent Language
"Can you figure out what a drawing of a cat on a fence post meant to a traveler in 1932?"
Answer: Kind Lady Lives Here
The Need for Stealth
Safety First
Travelers needed to know which towns had unfriendly police or dangerous "bulls" (railroad guards).
Finding Food
Signs pointed the way to generous families who might trade a meal for work.
Top Secret
Traveler's Rules:
Don't be seen marking the sign.
Use chalk or charcoal.
Keep it simple.
Decoding the Code
"Good Road to Follow"
"Bad Water"
"Work Available"
Today, we call these "Hobo Signs."
Code Breaker Challenge
You are a traveler in 1932. Use the "Hobo Symbol Key" to decode the messages around the classroom and write your own secret warning.
First: Practice the official code.
Then: Invent a NEW symbol for a modern classroom danger.
Hobo Code Breaker Kit Hobo Symbol Key
Safe & Helpful Signs
Kind Lady / Food
T
Tell Pitiful Story
Religious Group
Good Place to Sleep
Warning & Danger Signs
Police Nearby
Danger / Hostile
Dishonest Person
Mean Dog
Your Task: Code Maker
The travelers didn't have cell phones. They communicated by scratching these symbols into fence posts, tree bark, or brick walls with chalk or a sharp rock. On the next page, you will practice decoding and then create your own modern symbol.
Code Breaker Challenge
Practice decoding and symbolic communication
NAME: __________________
Part 1: The Message
You find these three symbols scratched into a fence near the train station. What is the message telling you?
Translation:
Part 2: Modern Symbols
Invent a NEW symbol for a modern traveler (like a student). What is a "danger" or a "safe spot" in your school? Draw it and explain it below.
Draw Symbol Here
Meaning of Symbol:
Why it's important:
Museum Curator Slides Museum Curators
Artifacts of Resilience
Grand Opening
"Today, our classroom transforms into a museum of the 1930s, and YOU are the curators."
The Curator
The person who researches, selects, and explains the items in a museum.
The Placard
The sign next to an object that tells its story and history.
Our Core Theme: Resilience
re·sil·ience
"The ability to bounce back, adapt, and stay strong when times are hard."
Evidence in our Artifacts:
Creativity in scarcity
Helping neighbors
Making do with what you have
Exhibit Guidelines
Step 1
Object Setup
Place your artifact (or drawing) clearly on your desk. Make it look like a real exhibit!
Step 2
Placard Placement
Place your "History Makers Placard" next to the item so visitors can read the story.
Step 3
Gallery Walk
Half of us will be 'curators' and stand by our objects, half will be 'visitors' and learn.
Sharing Your Knowledge
"Welcome to the ________ Exhibit. This object represents ________. It shows resilience because ________."
Practice your introduction now!
History Makers Kit National Museum of American History
EXHIBIT: DAILY LIFE & SURVIVAL (1929-1939)
Artifact Name
Estimated Year
Location of Use
Historical Significance (What story does this object tell?)
Write 4-5 sentences explaining how people used this item to survive or find joy during the Great Depression...
Evidence of Resilience
Curated by: __________________________
Instruction: Complete the placard, then cut along the heavy black border to display with your artifact.
Assessment Rubric
Artifacts of Resilience Project
Criteria Exceptional (4) Proficient (3) Developing (2) Historical Accuracy Artifact and placard show deep research into actual 1930s conditions. Artifact is representative of the era with minor inaccuracies. Artifact is vaguely related to the era but lacks specific details. Theme: Resilience Clearly explains how the object shows strength and adaptation in scarcity. Mentions survival or hardship but connection to 'resilience' is thin. Mentions the Depression but does not address the human response. Curatorial Voice Placard writing is professional, clear, and engaging for museum visitors. Placard provides facts but lacks a professional museum tone. Placard is incomplete or difficult for visitors to understand. Presentation Curator speaks clearly and knowledgeably about their item during walk. Curator can answer basic questions but relies on reading the placard. Curator is unable to explain the item's significance to visitors.
Final Reflection Prompts
1. After seeing all the artifacts, what is the most surprising thing people did to survive?
2. How did community (sharing, codes, soup kitchens) play a role in resilience?
3. If someone 100 years from now was looking at an artifact from OUR time's resilience, what would they find?
