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Lot 189
[GREAT DEPRESSION]. Unemployed Apples 5¢. Bronx, NY: Bronx Fruit Distribution Association, n.d. [ca early 1930s].
Sale 1069 - American Historical Ephemera & Photography
Lots Open
Aug 19, 2022
Lots Close
Aug 30, 2022
Timed Online / Cincinnati
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Estimate
$100 - 200
Price Realized
$563
Sold prices are inclusive of Buyer’s Premium
Lot Description
[GREAT DEPRESSION]. Unemployed Apples 5¢. Bronx, NY: Bronx Fruit Distribution Association, n.d. [ca early 1930s].

11 1/4 x 16 3/4 in. letterpress broadside (some wrinkling to paper, toning to edges).

The apple seller became a symbol of economic hardship in Depression-era cities. Surplus apples that farmers struggled to sell were given to unemployed men, who sold them on the street for 5 cents each, holding signs like the one featured here. This practice was common enough across US cities that it was depicted in political cartoons from the era including in the New Yorker and the Chicago Daily News.   

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