Lines of those who were unemployed, homeless and hungry stretched for blocks at many urban “soup kitchens.”

The Depression, which started with the stock market crash of 1929, hits hard in St. Paul. Families are torn apart as men leave to find work elsewhere or simply to reduce the number of mouths to feed. Never have the crowds been larger or the opportunity greater as the Mission responds.

Photos courtesy of the Union Gospel Mission and the Minnesota Historical Society.