You probably were too young to remember, but in 1930 oil production was a glut. Texas was a giant and nobody would stop. Oil was 10 cents a barrel and nobody was buying and they couldn’t move it so the industry was shutting down. That was the Great Depression: more oil than they knew what to do with and practically free and shut down all at the same time. Maybe things are kind of regulated now with NYMEX and OPEC and the Texas Railroad Commission and all, but at least supply is matching demand.
That’s different. Farmers couldn’t even sell FOOD to STARVING people becuase nobody had any cash. So obviously no one was going to cough up dough for gasoline.