- Richard Bedford (R.B.) Bennett replaces King as P.M. in 1930
- Bennet promises work for all, $20 million for emergency funds and to deal with foreign trade policies
- His policies did little to help the economic conditions in Canada
- Bennett set up relief camps for single unemployed men
- Men worked cutting brush and building roads for $0.20 a day
- Dissatisfaction with Relief camp life lead to the ON-TO-OTTAWA TREK
On-To-Ottawa Trek
- In 1935 thousands of men fed up with B.C. Relief camps board trains bound for Ottawa to protest to the government
- As the men moved east, they were joined by new men
- They wanted economic reforms (minimum wage, unemployment insurance)
- They were stopped in Regina by the RCMP (a riot broke out where many were injured and one police officer lost his life)
Regional Effects
The West
- Economy was dependant on wheat; unfortunately drought and grasshoppers destroyed crops in the 1930’s
- $1.60 a bushel in 1929 for wheat to $0.38 in 1932
Central Canada
- Cut back production in factories that produced farm machinery
- Small businesses were hit really hard—many bankruptcies
- Large corporations still managed to record profits in all but one year during the depression
Maritimes
- Did not benefit from boom in the 1920’s therefore economic decline did not seem so severe
- Depended on exports of fish, timber and coal
- These markets declined therefore there were layoffs and reduces work hours
Newfoundland
- Desperate conditions
- Not yet part of Canada—no government relief from Canada
- Nfld. Government went into debt
- British commissions took over the government
Canadian Culture in the 1930’s
Canadian Radio Broadcasting Commission (CRBC) 1933
- Created to counteract American domination of the airwaves
- Encouraged development of Canadian programs
- Became the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) in 1939
