FDR's Fireside Chat on the Drought and the Dust Bowl (2:46)
On September 6, 1936, in one of his famous fireside chat radio broadcasts, President Franklin Roosevelt describes the conditions he observed firsthand on a tour of the many states devastated by drought.
Speeches & Audio (7)
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FDR's Fireside Chat on the Drought and the Dust Bowl
FDR's Fireside Chat on the Drought and the Dust BowlAudio Clip (2:46)
Audio Clip (2:46)
On September 6, 1936, in one of his famous fireside chat radio broadcasts, President Franklin Roosevelt describes the conditions he observed firsthand on a tour of the many states devastated by drought.
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Franklin Roosevelt Praises the Boy Scouts
Franklin Roosevelt Praises the Boy ScoutsAudio Clip (1:30)
Audio Clip (1:30)
In 1941, on the 31st anniversary of the incorporation of the Boy Scouts of America, President Roosevelt addresses the organization.
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FDR Dedicates Will Rogers Memorial
FDR Dedicates Will Rogers MemorialAudio Clip (1:37)
Audio Clip (1:37)
In August 1935, American humorist Will Rogers was killed in an airplane accident near Point Barrow, Alaska. In a radio broadcast on November 4, 1938, from Hyde Park, New York, President Franklin Roosevelt pays homage to Rogers and dedicates a memorial in Claremore, Oklahoma.
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FDR Asks Congress to Declare War on Japan
FDR Asks Congress to Declare War on JapanAudio Clip (7:47)
Audio Clip (7:47)
On the day after the December 7, 1941, attack on Pearl Harbor, President Roosevelt tells a joint session of Congress that the United States must take up arms in response.
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Franklin D. Roosevelt on the Liberation of Rome
Franklin D. Roosevelt on the Liberation of RomeAudio Clip (1:51)
Audio Clip (1:51)
In a broadcast to the nation, on June 5, 1944, President Franklin Roosevelt tells Americans that, with the fall of Rome, the first of the Axis capitals "is now in our hands."
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FDR War Report to Congress
FDR War Report to CongressAudio Clip (1:58)
Audio Clip (1:58)
See this moving video of President Franklin D. Roosevelt's speech to Congress describing the United State's circumstance and the Nazi's eventual downfall.
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Franklin Roosevelt Returns From Yalta
Franklin Roosevelt Returns From YaltaAudio Clip (3:41)
Audio Clip (3:41)
In February 1945, "Big Three" leaders, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Winston Churchill and Joseph Stalin, met at Yalta to discuss the reorganization of post-war Europe. In an address to Congress on March 1, 1945, President Roosevelt reports the achievements of the gathering.
Videos (21)
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The Rise of Cornelius Vanderbilt
The Rise of Cornelius VanderbiltVideo Clip (3:47)
Video Clip (3:47)
Discover how a steamboat captain built a railroad empire.
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FDR: A Voice of Hope
FDR: A Voice of HopeVideo Clip (4:06)
Video Clip (4:06)
Elected in 1933, Franklin D. Roosevelt was a reassuring presence for many Americans through the trials of the Great Depression.
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Dust Storms Strike America
Dust Storms Strike AmericaVideo Clip (2:48)
Video Clip (2:48)
Families were driven out of the once fertile Great Plains by massive dust clouds--one that rose to 10,000 feet and reached as far as New York City.
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Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal
Franklin D. Roosevelt's New DealVideo Clip (1:54)
Video Clip (1:54)
How did President Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal get the American economy back on track, and which components still have a major impact on today's society?
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Hoover Dam
Hoover DamVideo Clip (4:09)
Video Clip (4:09)
Built during the Great Depression, Hoover Dam was a marvel of engineering and labor.
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Black Blizzard
Black BlizzardVideo Clip (2:56)
Video Clip (2:56)
On May 9th, 1934 a giant storm rose up out of the great plains. A menacing wall of soil and dust headed east across the land, thick enough to block out the sun.
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Tennessee Valley Authority - Nature's Power Harnessed
Tennessee Valley Authority - Nature's Power HarnessedVideo Clip (3:00)
Video Clip (3:00)
In the early 1930's, few people had greater reasons to be angry with mother nature than the residents of Tennessee River Valley. Every spring brought on an onslaught of rain which totaled six feet each year. In a Modern Marvels video, discover how the valleys power was tamed and harnessed.
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Franklin D. Roosevelt's Personal Strength
Franklin D. Roosevelt's Personal StrengthVideo Clip (3:21)
Video Clip (3:21)
How did Franklin D. Roosevelt's flexibility and charisma help him tackle the challenges of his presidency?
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Golden Gate Bridge: Voters Decide
Golden Gate Bridge: Voters DecideVideo Clip (4:07)
Video Clip (4:07)
Why did some people initially think the Golden Gate Bridge was a dangerous idea?
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Brother, Can You Spare A Dime
Brother, Can You Spare A DimeVideo Clip (2:00)
Video Clip (2:00)
Allison Moorer sings the Great Depression anthem, "Brother, Can You Spare A Dime."
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The Ballad of Roosevelt
The Ballad of RooseveltVideo Clip (2:14)
Video Clip (2:14)
Danny Glover performs a Langston Hughes poem inspired by unfulfilled promises to the poor.
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Franklin D. Roosevelt's First Fireside Chat
Franklin D. Roosevelt's First Fireside ChatVideo Clip
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Migrant Mother Photo
Migrant Mother PhotoVideo Clip (3:06)
Video Clip (3:06)
The Migrant Mother image is one of a series of photographs that Dorothea Lange made in February or March 1936 in Nipomo, California.
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Franklin D. Roosevelt's Last Presidential Term
Franklin D. Roosevelt's Last Presidential TermVideo Clip (1:54)
Video Clip (1:54)
Franklin D. Roosevelt's capable handling of two major crises--the depression and WWII-- earned him a legacy as one of the greatest U.S. multi-term presidents.
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Hoover Dam: True Giant
Hoover Dam: True GiantVideo Clip (4:23)
Video Clip (4:23)
The awe-inspiring Hoover Dam was built in the 1930s from enough concrete to create a two-lane highway from Los Angeles to Boston. How long did America's largest, man-made reservoir take to complete?
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Franklin D. Roosevelt's Second Presidential Term
Franklin D. Roosevelt's Second Presidential TermVideo Clip (1:31)
Video Clip (1:31)
After Franklin D. Roosevelt was reelected in one of the greatest landslides in American history, he had a surprisingly shaky second term.
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National Recovery Administration Created
National Recovery Administration CreatedVideo Clip (2:06)
Video Clip (2:06)
Established in 1933, the National Recovery Administration (NRA) was a key component of President Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal program designed to combat the effects of the Great Depression.
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Franklin D. Roosevelt Denies Communist Agenda
Franklin D. Roosevelt Denies Communist AgendaVideo Clip (1:35)
Video Clip (1:35)
Find out how Franklin D. Roosevelt responded to being called a communist by his detractors during his 1936 presidential campaign.
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Franklin D. Roosevelt Creates Social Security
Franklin D. Roosevelt Creates Social SecurityVideo Clip (1:38)
Video Clip (1:38)
Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Social Security Act as part of his New Deal efforts to rescue flailing Americans from the devastating effects of the Depression.
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The Men Who Built America: The Every Man
The Men Who Built America: The Every ManVideo Clip (2:23)
Video Clip (2:23)
Henry Ford went against his investors and believed that there should be an automobile that was affordable to the working class.
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Franklin D. Roosevelt: The World War II Years
Franklin D. Roosevelt: The World War II YearsVideo Clip (3:50)
Video Clip (3:50)
Examine President Franklin D. Roosevelt's role in World War II. Find out how he led the United States from isolationism to victory.
Photo Galleries (5)
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Soup Kitchens and Bread Lines
Soup Kitchens and Bread Lines(10 Photos)
10 Photos
As the United States slipped into the economic turmoil of the Great Depression, millions of Americans turned to soup kitchens and bread lines for their daily survival.
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The Dust Bowl
The Dust Bowl(13 Photos)
13 Photos
In the 1930s, agricultural damage coupled with drought and windstorms, resulted in severe storms and destruction in the region that became known as the Dust Bowl.
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New Deal Programs
New Deal Programs(14 Photos)
14 Photos
In the 1930s, President Franklin D. Roosevelt launched an ambitious series of social programs and legislation known as the "New Deal," designed to lift the United States out of the economic downturn of the Great Depression.
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Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin D. Roosevelt(20 Photos)
20 Photos
See pictures from the life and presidency of Franklin D. Roosevelt.
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Herbert Hoover
Herbert Hoover(16 Photos)
16 Photos
See pictures from the life and presidency of Herbert Hoover.
Interactives (1)
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Inside WWII
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