Masters Theses

Date of Award

12-1985

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science

Major Professor

Clinton B. Allison

Committee Members

Kermit Blank, Carl Murphy

Abstract

The Great Depression was a traumatic experience for the American people. As a result of the economic collapse in 1929, all institutions were strained. The Depression severely tested the schools. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of the Great Depression and the New Deal on the schools in McMinn County, Tennessee, in the 1930s.

Sources consulted included former students, teachers, administrators, and elected officials of the 1930s. After research in newspapers, local, state, and federal documents, school records, old photographs, and many oral interviews, the story was pieced together telling of events in McMinn County some fifty years ago.

Although the Depression forced severe cuts in education budgets, McMinn County schools never closed during the 1930s. They were among the most stable institutions in the county. However, teachers and students knew want. Students went to school without sufficient books and supplies and without enough food or clothing. Many one-room elementary schools were replaced by the consolidated graded schools. Some curriculum innovations took place. The transition from horsedrawn to motorized transportation for pupils took place in the 1930s. Cafeterias were added to the schools.

Significant relief began with the administration of President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1933. The New Deal alphabet agencies—CWA, TERA, NYA, CCC, WPA, PWA, TVA— provided many projects that were useful to the McMinn County schools. Badly needed school buildings were constructed, additions were added to existing buildings, and repairs were made.

The schools were a source of identity and pride; they served as the glue that held the communities together during the hard times. The cooperative community spirit helped the schools not only to endure but to succeed. The help the New Deal gave to the school system brought needed improvements and kept the schools from degenerating further. A legacy of concern came from the difficult times. The school accepted a much broader role in the lives of students than it ever had before.

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