It was the Great Depression. Early 1930s. United States. More than a thousand mortgages a day were being foreclosed on. Hundreds of thousands of families were losing their homes each year.
Times were hard for everyone. Especially hard for farmers. But neighbors found a way to push back and help their friends in a very creative way. They called it a penny auction.
BIG NEWS! This podcast has won Gold in this year’s Signal Awards for best history podcast! It’s a huge honor. Thank you so much to everyone who voted and supported.
And please consider signing up for the Stories of Resistance podcast feed on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Spreaker, or wherever you listen. And please take a moment to rate and review the podcast. A little help goes a long way.
The Real News’s legendary host Marc Steiner has also been in the running for best episode host. And he also won a Gold Signal Award. We are so excited. You can listen and subscribe to the Marc Steiner Show here on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.
Please consider supporting this podcast and Michael Fox’s reporting on his Patreon account: patreon.com/mfox. There you can also see exclusive pictures, video, and interviews.
Written and produced by Michael Fox.
Transcript
Michael Fox: It’s the Great Depression. Early 1930s. United States. More than a thousand mortgages a day are being foreclosed on. Hundreds of thousands of families are losing their homes each year.
Times are hard for everyone. Especially hard for the farmers. See, it’s also the dust bowl. Intense drought. Huge dust storms roll across the midwest. And for farmers, a couple of bad seasons can break you. You borrow some money to pay the bills. And when you can’t pay it off, the banks foreclose. Auction off your property. And you’re out. Your home. Your furniture. Your land. Your means of survival.
Your family packs into the car—if you have one—with whatever belongings don’t belong to the bank, and leave. Everything lost.
But sometimes, neighbors stood up and helped out for their friends in a very creative way. They called it a penny auction, because that’s what it was. See, when the banks put the farmers’ homes and land and belongings up for auction, the neighbors would arrive already committed to keep the price low. They would only bid a penny or two per item. And then they would give it all back to the family. Standing up for their friends in hard times.
And they were serious. In an old black-and-white picture of a penny auction from the 1930s, a noose hangs from the rafters of a barn—a clear threat against those who might come and mess up the plan, and force up the bid to make off with their own bargain deal.
Penny auctions were held across the country, but in particular across the Midwest, during these hard times. Community solidarity in the face of foreclosure. Neighbors standing for each other, standing up to the banks and the powerful, in creative ways. Standing for each other under dark times, against all odds.
Thanks for listening. I’m your host, Michael Fox. I feel like these stories from the past are so important to remember. Remember and to help find inspiration today.
This is episode 76 of Stories of Resistance. If you don’t already subscribe to the show you can follow the links in the show notes. Stories of Resistance is produced by The Real News. Each week, I bring you stories of resistance and hope like this. Inspiration for dark times. And please, if you like what we do, rate us, leave a comment or a review, and help us spread the word.
As always, thanks for listening. See you next time.
This post was originally published on The Real News Network.