Imagine a society where more than 25% of the population was unemployed. This is what it achieved during the Great Depression (“The Great Depression”). During the Depression, unemployment rates were the highest they had ever been. There is still much speculation about the exact cause of the Great Depression. Most historians agree that it was a series of events, one after the other, that plunged our country into chaos. Some events had more impact than others. These events caused pandemonium among the public, which made them even more disproportionate in trying to save themselves from bankruptcy. The three major events that caused the Great Depression were the stock market crash of 1929, the banking crisis, and public overreaction. Although a semi-popular idea, it is too simplistic to consider the stock market crash of 1929 as the sole cause. of the great depression. The “Roaring Twenties” were a time when business boomed. Businesses expanded exponentially with the growth of the new nation. Eventually, businesses grew faster than demand grew, so it was a bubble just waiting to burst. Corporate profits soared, while wages gradually rose, widening the distribution of wealth. By concentrating wealth in a few hands, it limited economic growth (“Economics Essays: Causes of Great Depression”). Middle-class families were introduced to installment plans, which allowed them to buy something and pay for it later. This led them to believe that they could afford to purchase items that they could not, and therefore were unable to pay for their items. This was similar to the problems created by banks by being too lenient in granting loans. The stock market at that time was doing extremely well. It... middle of paper...... clashed and ultimately led to the worst depression in American history. The depression had been building for years and was not preventable in hindsight. We have fixed the issues to prevent this from happening in the future. Works Cited Ganzel, Bill. “Bank failures during the Great Depression of the 1930s.” Bank failures during the Great Depression of the 1930s. NP, 2003. Web. May 4, 2014.Pettinger, Tejvan. “What caused the Wall Street Crash of 1929?” » The economy helps. N. p., November 5, 2012. Web. March 3, 2014. Senator, Daniel J. “Stock market crash”. PBS. PBS and Web. March 1, 2014Unknown. “Economic Essays: Causes of the Great Depression.” Economics essays. Np September 28, 2012. Web. March 4, 2014.Unknown. “The Great Depression.” UShistoroy.org. Independence Hall Association, nd Web. March 3. 2014.