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The Great Depression had a tremendous impact on the people and the environment of Ann Arbor and Lower Town. While Ann Arbor's unemployment rates of 10 to 15 percent during the Depression were well below national averages, this was little solace to those who lost their jobs or saw their hours dramatically cut. The Depression was a difficult time for many in Lower Town, as can be seen in the letter of Mrs. Peter Stone to Mayor Edward Staebler. People turned to both public and private agencies for help during the Depression. The Second Baptist Church served as a major relief agency, providing food and clothing.
The city government tried several programs to assist the unemployed, appealing to both homeowners and businesses to hire Ann Arbor residents as well as embarking on a campaign of civic construction with the help of the federal Works Progress Administration. The impact of these programs can still be seen in Ann Arbor in the many WPA markers stamped in the sidewalks. Members of Second Baptist Church, a predominantly African American church at the corner of 4th Avenue and Beakes Street, provided relief in the form of clothing and money to cover the cost of food and rent. Those seeking relief were required to fill out this application.
This letter from Mrs. Peter Stone, and the response from Mayor Edward Staebler, demonstrate the impact of the Depression on one Lower Town resident. Mrs. Stone's letter shows the attempts and difficulties that met single women during the Depression. Mayor Staebler's response explains the agencies put into place early in the Depression to mitigate the effects of unemployment, but also shows their limited effectiveness.
Letters like this urged businesses to hire the unemployed, as did this flyer.
These letters show the attempts of the city government, early in the Depression, to achieve private solutions to the problem of unemployment. These programs were largely ineffective. Regular jobs rarely showed up, and requests for home maintenance tasks averaged less than eleven per day. Eventually, the city itself, with the help of federal programs, employed many people at a variety of jobs: cleaning up and improving parks and playgrounds, building a new sewer system, and building roads and sidewalks.
