The New Deal and 1930s Texas

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The New Deal and 1930s Texas

• Essential Questions
• Describe civil rights movements and identify its
  key leaders, such as LULAC
• Analyze the political, economic, and social
  impact of the Great Depression on Texas
• Identify ways Texans have adapted to and modified
  the environment

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The New Deal Begins

• 1932 Franklin D. Roosevelt won the presidential
  election, with almost 90 of Texans supporting
  him.
• 1933 FDR starts reform programs called the New
  Deal to get America back to work and out of the
  Great Depression.
• The First 100 Days he orders all banks to close
  to determine the strongest to stay in business.

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The New Deal Begins

• Vice President John Nance Garner, a former Texas
  congressman, helped push New Deal programs in
  Congress.
• Another Texas congressman, Sam Rayburn, became
  Speaker of the House.
• He proposed the Securities and Exchange
  Commission (SEC) to restore confidence in the
  stock market.

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New Deal Programs

• FDRs New Deal created agencies to deal with many
  problems from the Depression.
• Alphabet Agencies - government agencies that came
  to be known by the first initials of their names.

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New Deal Programs

• FERA (Federal Emergency Relief Administration)
  gave funds to states and local agencies for
  unemployed people
• CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps) provided
  outdoor employment for young men and helped
  preserve resources
• NYA (National Youth Administration) hired high
  school and college students to perform clerical
  and maintenance jobs.
• PWA (Public Works Administration) built bridges
  dams, schools, and other structures of value to
  the state.
• WPA (Works Progress Administration) hired
  600,000 Texans during the Great Depression

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New Deal Programs

• New Deal programs tried to slow down soil erosion
  to help farmers in the Dust Bowl regions.
• New planting and contour plowing techniques
  helped farmers protect the topsoil from blowing
  away.
• The federal government also paid farmers to plant
  trees as windbreaks and reduce production of
  crops in effort to drive prices up.

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• 100th anniversary of Texas independence in 1936
• Celebration held at Fair Park in Dallas (where
  annual State Fair is located)
• Exhibits highlighted Texas History and proudly
  displayed examples of Texas products and culture
• Also, the San Jacinto Monument was erected on the
  battlefield to the east of Houston and various
  museums built

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1930s Governors Sterling and Ferguson

• Miriam Ferguson defeated Ross Sterling in 1932
  for governor
• 2nd term as governor was controversial
• Fired many TX Rangers
• Used pardon power to release criminals
• Asked FDR to lend farmers money to help make up
  for lost income from low cotton prices

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1930s Governors Allred and ODaniel

• James Allred 1935
• Reorganized TX Rangers
• Helped found Board of Pardons and Paroles
• Created retirement systems for state employees
• W. Lee ODaniel 1938
• Sales manager and radio host
• Wrote unofficial state song Beautiful Texas
• Unable to deliver on many of his campaign
  promises

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African American Rights

• Dr. Lawrence Nixon
• African American Texan physician who presented
  his poll tax receipt and tried to vote in the
  Democratic primary, but was turned away
• Filed suit to win the right to vote Nixon v.
  Herndon (1927)The Supreme Court justices
  declared his rights under the 14th and 15th
  amendments had been violated

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Mexican Americans Rights

• League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC)
• Founded at Corpus Christi in 1929 with Ben Garza
  as the first president
• Worked for Mexican American rights in court
  system, hiring, and education
• The School Improvement League was founded in 1934
  to improve school facilities for Hispanic children