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Unemployed Dock Workers in the Hamburg Harbor District (1931)

As the world economic situation worsened, unemployment rose rapidly in industrial cities that produced non-essential finished goods for export. In Solingen, known for its high-quality steel knives and scissors, the unemployment rate reached 16.9 percent, whereas in Münster, a city with a large civil servant population [Beamtenstadt], it hovered around 5.8 percent. Hamburg, the largest port in Germany and the second largest in Europe, was severely affected by weakened trade and falling industrial production. Unemployment in Hamburg reached 28 percent in 1932.

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Unemployed Dock Workers in the Hamburg Harbor District (1931)

© Bundesarchiv
Bild 102-11008
Photographer unknown