|
1930s
We all think of the Great Depression when over 1,000 banks crashed and unemployment rose to record levels and the Dust Bowl when farmers left their drought destroyed farms to look for work on agricultural fields in the west. But, what we can also think of is the ingenuity and the inspiration that were products of the depression. Money was scarce, and people turned to their neighbors and community to find support and encouragement.
-
Sliced bread became available in grocery stores and bakeries.
-
Tums antacids were invented to eliminate heartburn.
-
Fun with Dick and Jane books were written.
-
Marathons, bike marathons, mustache growing contests, tree sitting, and other events began to fill free time and offered an escape.
-
Birdseye frozen vegetables were available commercially.
-
Scotch tape was invented.
-
The VA was established on July 21st, 1930.
-
Work began to build the National Parks including Mount Rushmore and the Hoover Dam.
-
Massive structures known “skyscrapers” were built including the Empire State Building, the Chrysler Building, and Rockefeller Center.
-
La Crosse changed during these years as well. The city felt the Depression most significantly in 1932 and 1937. But during this time, the sanitary sewer project and Isle le Plume sewage disposal was completed, a second causeway connecting the north and south sides was built, electric streetcars were replaced by buses, and the bridge crossing the Mississippi River collapsed and was later replaced.
-
People had more free time as they could not work and the Municipal pool was built in 1938.
-
Schools were getting overcrowded so Longfellow and Emerson schools were built.
-
The Concert Band was established by the City of La Crosse to provide free music for people to enjoy during evenings in the summer at various parks.
-
And on July 21st, 1930, the La Crosse Community Trust, now known as La Crosse Community Foundation was established.
-
So know you know, La Crosse Community Foundation have been around since sliced bread!
| | | |
| | | | |
