History of Oklahoma City - Pre World War II

Pre World War II

The new city continued to grow at a steady rate until December 4, 1928, when oil was discovered in the city. Oil wells popped up everywhere, even on the south lawn on the capitol building, and the sudden influx of oil money within the city and throughout the state greatly accelerated the city's growth. While those who had made money during this early oil boom largely escaped the Depression, the majority of Americans and Oklahomans were not so lucky. By 1935, rural migrants and unemployed workers had built a massive shanty town (or "Hooverville" after president Herbert Hoover) on the south bank of the North Canadian River. The river often flooded, bringing disease and misery to the people living there. As part of the "New Deal", the Works Progress Administration and Civilian Conservation Corps greatly reduced the level of the river to prevent flooding (a move which would later become a problem for city leaders stuck with a nearly empty river) and built one of the first experiments with public housing in the country.

A municipal-owned Elm Grove camp built in 1932 and which offered better amenities to residents who paid $1 a day or donated eight hours or labor. The camp was eliminated in 1933 because of a fear that it would attract more homeless residents to the city. A May Avenue Camp continued to exist in 1939.