1934 News and Interesting Tidbits


Alcatraz " The Rock " Opens
The Prisoners that are considered the most dangerous are sent to Alcatraz " The Rock " because it is considered to be one of the hardest prisons in the world to escape from due to the strong tides





Bonnie and Clyde Killed

Bank robbers Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow were ambushed and gunned down with over 100 rounds of ammunition by police in Black Lake, Louisiana.
Following the deaths of Bonnie and Clyde slain in Louisiana by federal agents, their bodies are being transported back to Texas and are to be buried in separate graves in different parts of Dallas. They were inseparable in life committing robberies and murders side by side across the nation but in death Bonnies mother has stated Clyde took her daughter away from her but she will take her daughter back in death against bonnies last wishes.


Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow were notorious during the great depression years as outlaws, they were featured in newspapers through out the country because of their escapades robbing banks , small stores and gas stations. They became notorious not because they robbed and killed so many but because of the authorities inability to catch them. Many thought them as heroes because of their status as a modern day "Robin Hood" but reality is they killed ordinary people and did not "Give To The Poor".


While researching for this piece I came across one of Bonnie Parkers Poems and I have included a few of the verses below this was written just a short time before her death


1934 Bonnie Parker



You've read the story of Jesse James--

Of how he lived and died;

If you're still in need

Of something to read

Here's the story of Bonnie and Clyde.



Now Bonnie and Clyde are the Barrow gang.

I'm sure you all have read

How they rob and steal

And those who squeal

Are usually found dying or dead.



There's lots of untruths to these write-ups;

They're not so ruthless as that;

Their nature is raw;

They hate the law--

The stool pigeons, spotters, and rats.



They call them cold-blooded killers;

They say they are heartless and mean;

But I say this with pride,

That I once knew Clyde

When he was honest and upright and clean.



They know that the law always wins;

They've been shot at before,

But they do not ignore

That death is the wages of sin.



Some day they'll go down together;

They'll bury them side by side;

To few it'll be grief--

To the law a relief--

But it's death for Bonnie and Clyde.






Italy Wins 1934 World Cup
Italy wins the 1934 World Cup played in Italy defeating Czechoslovakia in the final 2-1







Ford Offers White Wall Tires
The Ford Motor Company offers the option for white sidewall tires on its new cars at a cost of $11.25 per set








Work Begins On Volkswagen Beetle
The work on first prototypes of The Peoples Car what became the ( Volkswagen Beetle ) was started by Ferdinand Porsche but it would take until 1936 before the first prototype was completed








Lindbergh Baby Kidnapping
Some $5000 dollars from the ransom paid in the Lindbergh kidnapping is recovered out of ( $50,000 ) and a man is in custody with ongoing investigations by federal authorities







Income Tax Returns
Senate votes to make all income tax returns subject to public inspection in the hope of stopping TAX Dodging






US Refuses To Join League of Nations
In Geneva the League of Nations had hoped that the U.S. would cooperate and become a member. However, President Roosevelt and Secretary of State Cordell Hull refused to get involved.






New York Slum Clearance
The most ambitious slum clearance in New York City has been agreed today by the PWA ( Public Works Administration ) and New York City with 20 acres on a 12 square block area in Williamsburg identified for the building of low cost housing and is estimated that it will house 2,500 families in two and three story apartment complexes when completed. This project is part of a larger project for slum clearance and low cost national housing countrywide which is estimated at costing in excess of $150,000,000. This type of project will be repeated in major cities across America bringing much needed work and providing better living conditions for many tens of thousands of inner city dwellers.







Soviet Union Stalin Purge
Josef Stalin begins a purge of real and perceived enemies and the head of the Communist Party in Leningrad, Sergei M. Kirov, is one of those assassinated






Germany Adolf Hitler Purge
Adolf Hitler orders a purge of his own political party, assassinating hundreds of Nazis whom he believed had the potential to become political enemies in the future later known as the Night of the Long Knives.




All Uniforms Forbidden In Turkey
In Turkey all uniforms were forbidden – even Boy Scout uniforms from other countries. Also prohibited were Nazi brown uniforms and Fascist black military dress.







Dust Bowl Midwest
A huge dust storm moving from the Midwest,The dust storm was 1,500 miles long, 900 miles across and two miles high, covering almost one-third of the country. Farmers lost large amounts of Topsoil .
Congress pass the Jones-Connally Farm-Relief Act putting a larger number of products under the control of the Agricultural Adjustment Administration ( AAA ) who were charged with delivering farmers from the woes of the Depression by slashing production and increasing prices, but the agency did nothing for the farmers affected by the Dust Bowl and was repealed 2 years later.

During this year Oklahoma experienced a ravaging drought with temperatures reaching 117 degrees, killing both animals and humans. The cotton crop was only in fair condition. Pastures, crops, and orchards were scorched. Two thousand five hundred livestock were being bought a day by the government to prevent them from starving, however 30,000 beasts have already succumbed.




Securities Exchange Act
President Franklin Roosevelt signed the Securities Exchange Act , this was in response to the 1929 stock market crash which was a major factor in the great depression years of the 30's. Up till that point the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) had been operating with little or no government control and the creation of the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) was hoped to restore investor confidence in the market .







1934 prices
A new Studebaker Truck $625.00
A Gallon of Gas 10 cents
Potatoes 18 cents for 10 pounds
Cottage in Fitchburg Massachusetts
6 room cottage all improvements on 1/2 acre
$2,000






Sir Oswald Mosley
Sir Oswald Mosley and Black-Shirt fascist followers were put on Trial. They were arrested and charged of “riotous assembly” after a fascist meeting on October 9.






Loch Ness Monster
More reports are coming in from Loch Ness in Scotland where they make the strongest Whisky on earth from tourists and locals of sightings of the Loch Ness Monster. It is described as a sea serpent estimated at over 50 ft long and the secretary of state for Scotland has forbidden the capture or shooting of the creature.







West Coast Longshoremen's Strike
The West Coast Longshoremen's Strike begins when Int’l. Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) union workers demand a 6hr working day, more men on each gang, lighter loads and an independent union shutting down seaports in Washington, Oregon and California for 3 months. .

On July 5th The San Francisco Mayor Angelo J. Rossi, unleashed the city’s anti-union police department on the workers and Police fired into a crowd of strikers killing 2 men and wounded 109 in what is know as "Bloody Thursday".

On July 14th following the heavy handed use of force on striking Longshoremen a general strike is called in San Francisco which lasted 4 days.

Following the general strike the Labor Council voted to terminate the general strike and recommended that the Longshoreman's unions accept arbitration of all disputed issues. When the National Longshore Board put the employer's proposal to arbitrate to a vote of striking longshoremen, it passed in every port except Everett, Washington.






Dillenger Killed
Dillenger escapes from a police cordon in Northern Wisconsin and manages to stay free for quite some time but is eventually shot and killed in Northern Wisconsin
John Dillenger Public Enemy number ONE career was finally ended during a shoot out with FBI agents who had been waiting outside a local Cinema following a tip off.








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