“Decide what you want, decide what you are willing to exchange for it. Establish your priorities and get to work.” - H.L Hunt. Spindletop was the first big oil strike in 1901, it gave a new shape to the state’s future. In fact, during World War II,Texas produced twice as much oil than Nazi Germany and Japan did combined. Oil didn’t change Texas overnight. You trusted me to find out What story should be told? After reading the documents that you gave me I decided I would do school funds,minorities in West Texas , and divorce rates. To begin with, I would like to talk about school funds. I have read in the document, that you gave me that the legislature set aside 1 million acres of land as an endowment for the university of Texas. Later on, the legislature added another 1 million acres to the land. People didn’t think that the land was worth very much. But oil was discovered in 1923 when oilmen decided to look for oil. By 2008, the land had produced $4.4 …show more content…
billion in oil and gas. The money was split between Texas A&M and university of Texas. One-third of the profit was given to A&M while two-thirds was given to the university of Texas. The schools used their money to get better scholarships, better teachers, technology, more housing options, and supplies. Furthermore, the second topic I would like to talk about is the minorities in West Texas. Oil booms in Texas created an abundance of oil-field work that blacks and Mexican-Americans could not get. So, blacks and Mexican-Americans got heavy, hot, dirty, and unskilled work/jobs. Oil prosperity created an abundance of these types of work/jobs for blacks and Mexican-Americans. I have read an excerpt of the life of Willsie Lee Mckinney.Willsie Lee Mckinney, an African-American, moved to Midland, Texas because of their high wages.The wage was a $1 per hour of domestic work. The money that Willsie made had impacted her life, she was able to go back to school now that she had made money. Another important, topic I would like to talk about is the divorce rates in Texas.
I read that 1.6 out of 1,000 people were divorced in the 1930s. Wildcatters, rig builders, roustabouts, and others rushed into oil fields looking for work. That meant that oil workers had to leave their wives with the children for months and months at a time. That is why the divorce rates were very high in the 1930s. Husbands would move away to go to work and not bring any of the family. Most of the times husbands or wives would file a divorce so they could focus on their job instead of their family. In conclusion, Oil impacted social change over time, which helped us grow as a society. If you took my proposal into consideration I would really appreciate it. My proposal is going to have all of the factors of Oil and how oil has change our state. After reading the documents that you have given me I was able to answer question “What story should be told”. As H.L hunt always said “money is just as way of keeping score”. - H.L
Hunt
When we see Texas, we remember today mainly for its BBQ, Football and Black Gold, Texas tea. However, there is much more than just the usual itineraries that we find in most other states as well. Molly Ivins in her essay “Is Texas America” categorically states that, “Here's the deal on Texas. It's big. So big there's about five distinct and different places here, separated from one another geologically, topographically, botanically, ethnically, culturally and climatically” (Ivins). This is a true belief from Molly Ivins of how huge Texas was and how the demographics changed in each geographical location in Texas. The population of Texas and the demographics are two essential factors that include many important parameters in deciding the history of any state. The presence of many ethnic groups further adds to the diversification of
"BROWN, HERMAN," Handbook of Texas Online (http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/fbr86), accessed November 30, 2013. Published by the Texas State Historical Association.
The books “Fertile Ground, Narrow Choices” by Rebecca Sharpless and “The Path to a Modern South” by Walter L. Buenger paint a picture of what life was like from the late 1800’s to the 1930’s. Though written with their own style and from different views these two books describe the modernization of Texas through economics, politics, lifestyles and gender roles, specifically the roles of women during this era.
Calvert, Robert A., Arnoldo De Leon and Gregg Cantrell. The History of Texas. 4th. Wheeling: Harlan Davidson, Inc., 2007. Print.
...neth M. Goldstein, and William G. Howell. "Chapter 20 The Social and Economic Milieu of Texas Poltics." Understanding American Politics and Government. Texas ed. New York: Longman, 2010. 690-93. Print.
finally the opportune moment for individuals to build a stable family that previous decades of depression, war, and domestic conflicts had restricted. We see that this decade began with a considerable drop in divorce rates and rise in marriage rates, which is often assumed as the result of changed attitudes and values. However, this situation cannot be only just attributed to women’s
In the 1940's, there was a population growth of 19 million, which doubled the rise of the 1930's. However, in 1957, America experienced a "baby boom", and by 1957 the population increased by 29 million. "The rising birthrate was the dominant factor affecting population growth" (text, 847). Along with the escalated birth rate was an upsurge in divorces due to problems with separation and infidelity. " In 1945, more than half a million marriages were dissolved" (Bailey, 147).
Texas went through a great amount of political change from being dominated by the Democratic Party during the 1960s and 70s, from the Republican Party taking over in the 80s. One of the big reasons for this change was due to the political party’s views. Throughout this essay I will discuss the changes of the political stances in Texas as well as the present day factors that affect America.
In the United States, for the last four decades, from Richard Nixon to Ronald Reagan through the two Bush Presidencies, the Republican Party won the White House by amassing large margins among white voters (Lizza.) The state of Texas has been reliably Republican since the 1970s and there are various elements to Texas political culture that can be narrowed down to three essential ideological trends: economic liberalism, or faith in the free market economy, social conservatism, or favoring traditional values and moralism, and populism, or promoting the rights and worthiness of ordinary people (Texas Political Culture.) As a result, the dominant political mood in Texas favors low taxes, minimal government services, and policies that are pro-business. This phenomenon is not static, however, since changing demographics in the state are causing changes in the profile of Texas in reference to electoral politics, among other major issues. This paper will explore different perspectives about the changing demographics of Texas, and where they might lead the state politically, and will present a variety of viewpoints regarding this complex subject.
The expansion of agriculture and railroads helped form Texas’s present economy. The invention of the steam engine not only allowed people to move across the country in 7 days, instead of 6 months, but it also allowed crops and livestock to be carried to markets and places where they would be sold anywhere in the country. They could be moved to another farm in Texas as well. Since it’s such a large state, railroads were a necessity for travel, and general transportation. The railroad-building boom lasted 40 years. The production of cotton in Texas introduced some of the first slave-based cotton farms, and was the dominant crop for a very long time. After this event, Texas’s economy was forever changed.
A divorce was almost unheard of in the 1960's unless there was truly a good reason. Today, women work for themselves, make their own money and raise a child all by them selves.
He was a prime candidate and was well respected by his associates. Nevertheless, his journey to becoming governor was not an easy one and there were many who opposed his ideas. His main concerns consisted of the railroad and the well-being of all Texans. As he traveled around Texas he gave his speech and revealed his standings to the many potential voters. These were the most difficult speeches he had to give as he was speaking to two audiences, the press and the local citizens. He also knew that many of the people who had heard of his idea for railroad reform were frightened by the thought. He hoped to justify his reasoning to them. Every speech that he gave consisted of the ideas he strongly supported throughout his life and political career. He was sure to use the fact that he was a native Texan himself to empathize with the people. The first belief was of course the need for reform of the railroad. He focused mainly on his plans to form a commission for the railroad and dividing its control. His minor points consisted of three secondary importance’s to him. He wished to reform the public education system to comply with the Texas Constitution. At the current time, school terms only lasted about four months where as in the Texas Constitution it specifically required terms of at least 6 months. Hogg, a strong believer in the Constitution wanted to follow the laws that had
Oklahoma's oil and natural gas industry is giving us unstoppable progress for energy solutions, but the other parts of the nation are still searching for theirs. While providing jobs for the thousands of people who live in Oklahoma, the oil and natural gas industry not only donates to America's petroleum production, but it also produces millions of dollars for our state’s economy, schools, and roads. Making new headways in our industry every day, artificial technology, scientific breakthroughs, adequate new exploration, and drilling methods took place. Without these upgrades, we would not be able to extract oil and natural gas from challenging fields more efficiently than we can now. As capability rises, environmental impact will continue to go down. In 1897, a tower of surging oil divided the Bartlesville sky. Oklahoma's preliminary drilling swaged badly, brought forth by the federal controls on wellhead prices of natural gas applied to interstate commerce in the 1950s. By 1982, oil prices hit an all time high of $37.60 per barrel. Furthermore, the number of progressive drilling rigs in Oklahoma also hit a record of 882. The total quantity produced from the soul and natural gas industry in Oklahoma reached about 40 billion dollars in 2007. Also, through the gross production tax, oil and natural gas producers and royalty owners gave more than 2 billion dollars to Oklahoma used for teacher retirement, public schools, wildlife management, bridges, roads, and state colleges. Petroleum remains an indispensable Sooner State industry. Natural gas continued to grow in the early 1990s despite of the entire staggering bust that was caused by the plummeting world crude oil p...
The funding of public education has long been an issue for the state government of Texas. Starting before Texas was even a state, public education funding was at the forefront of politicians’ minds. In 1836, one of the reasons Anglo-Texans wanted to become independent from Mexico was Mexico’s lack of a public school system (An Overview of the History of Public Education in Texas, 2016). This drove the desire of President Mirabeau B. Lamar of the Republic of Texas to create legislation that would grant public schools land (A Brief History of Public Education, n.d.). This act set aside four leagues of land per county for the use of free education centers and thus began the funding of public education by the state government (An Overview of the History of Public Education in Texas, 2016). In the last 177 years, the Texas Legislature and the Texas Education Agency have created numerous acts and laws regarding the funding of education, but it has been in the last 50 years that this topic has become highly contested, resulting in several lawsuits and endless efforts (by the school districts) to equalize the distribution of funds to Texas school districts (Texas School Finance History, n.d.). In sum, the complex issues and policies that surround the funding of public education are derived from a combination of the legislature, bureaucratic agencies, and local governments in the form of school districts.
" Oil is the life blood of our modern industrial society. It fuels the machines and lubricates the wheels of the world’s production. But when that vital resource is out of control, it can destroy marine life and devastate the environment and economy of an entire region…. The plain facts are that the technology of oil-- its extraction, its transport, its refinery and use-- has outpaced laws to control that technology and prevent oil from polluting the environment…" (Max, 1969). Oil in its many forms has become one of the necessities of modern industrial life. Under control, and serving its intended purpose, oil is efficient, versatile, and productive. On the other hand, when oil becomes out of control, it can be one of the most devastating substances in the environment. When spilled in water, it spreads for miles around leaving a black memory behind (Stanley, 1969).