Artifact+Collection

1. **__Pictures from the Great Depression.__** The Great Depression was when the nation suffered a dramatic decline in the economy. Most believe this was the cause of the US stock market crashing in 1929. Because of this, unemployment rose to very high levels and this caused a chain reaction in other countries as well. This was the longest and most widespread depression of the 20th century. Construction was virtually halted in many countries. [|__Farming__] and rural areas suffered as crop prices fell by approximately 60%. Can you imagine being placed in this situation where your family suddenly could not provide? This would be the question posed to students to accompany the photographs of the people involve with the great depression. These pictures tell their own story and it would be interesting to hear what students would have to say about the appearance of the people in these photographs. We would show these pictures to the students to help them appreciate the living conditions of the time.

2. **__Navy Coat and Mess Kit.__** After the depression and the attack on Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, Americans needed to buckle down and conserve things such as metal and clothing in order to insure that the troops had adequate supplies to win the war. The people even had drives in order to collect as much as they could to get to the troops. Eventually, people were not allowed to buy fancy clothes in order to keep the troops clothed. How did this work out for an economy that was already hurting? Cloth items were used for military clothing only. Therefore, people on the home front sometimes went without. How would this make you feel? This is a US Navy Pea Coat that belonged to my Uncle who survived the Pearl Harbor attack. This coat survived Pearl Harbor and was even present when the Marines raised the flag atop Iwo Jima (Historical and economic twist). The mess kit is an example of the final products of a metal drive. Some people stripped parts from their cars to support this cause. What businesses thrived during the war? What businesses struggled?

These articles are genuine and very precious to me. I only wish they could talk. They look like these images.

3. **__American and Japanese coins.__** Keeping with this same timeline and theme the next artifact is in the form of money. Any economic system around the world would not be able to sustain without some form of currency to maintain its population. The coins that I have are both American coins that are from the WWII era and currency from Japan that is called Yen. The United States during WWII needed to conserve its resources to continue to fight the war. To do this even the money that we used changed. Not necessarily in appearance, so much as in the material that it was made from. In 1943 American forces needed the metal normally used in coins to manufacture bullets. Do you think it would have been weird to have all of your pennies melted down to make bullets? What do you think this did to the economy? Once the copper pennies were collected they were made into bullet casings so the US Mint Service coined the same looking penny only out of steel. What did this do to the value of the coin if a penny was made from “cheap” material? When the pennies kept getting mistaken for dime because of their shiny new material they went back to a thinner copper. The Mints tried to collect these pennies and destroy them but I have managed to collect some authentic ones. I would have these next to current pennies to denote the differences. Yen is the next form of currency to show you. These coins are very ornate and different from our version of money. Right now the Yen rate is about 80 Yen equal to one American dollar.

= 4. __Coon Skin Hat__=



Coon skin hats are a product made from raccoon fur. Early pioneers used to make clothing, blankets, and much more out of animal fur. One of the most well-known uses/ times of trade for fur in the United States were during the “Fur Trade”. During the early colonial time in the United States, pioneers would trade fur. This "Fur Trade was one of the first big economic out breaks in the new world. Trade routes were developed throughout the country which allowed for economic growth.

=__5. Early Colonial Inventions__ =

These three inventions give insight into early American development of technology and also aide in describing the impact of inventions on business productivity during the early development of the United States. This first image is a picture of Eli Whitney’s cotton gin which was used to separate the cotton and produced the material much faster than before when it was done by hand. The second image is the “Franklin Stove”. This invention was made to decrease smoke and increase heat to replace the traditional fireplace. It was invented by Benjamin Franklin. The final image is a picture of an early American telephone.