Feature Article

RED DEER PLUNGES INTO DEPTHS OF DEPRESSION: 1933

Written By: Michael Dawe
Published By: Red Deer Advocate Centennial Book
Article Used with permission. © Copyright Michael Dawe and the Red Deer Advocate, 2007
2007-01-01

In October 1929, the stock markets crashed and an incredible world-wide economic depression set in.

For the next three years, the economy spiralled downwards as more and more people lost their jobs, businesses went bankrupt, and farms were lost to foreclosures.

At first, a number of public works projects were initiated by governments to create some badly needed jobs. A grand new courthouse was constructed in Red Deer.

A new water reservoir was constructed on the northeast corner of Michener Hill. Roads were upgraded and gravelled.

There were also a few attempts to create new businesses.

The Dench Cartage Co. opened a distribution warehouse on Gaetz Avenue north. The National Fence Co. built a $15,000 fence factory.

However, the fence factory remained largely idle because of a lack of orders. The CPR, Red Deer’s largest employer, laid off many a fits staff. Radio station CKLC stopped broadcasting.

The provincial government disbanded the Alberta Provincial Police force and their duties in Red Deer were taken over by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

The community struggled to cope with the growing numbers of unemployed and destitute. The city, with some assistance from provincial and federal government grants, paid “relief to the neediest.”

A man and wife were paid $4 per week, with a payment of 50 cents to $1 for each child.

Even with the plunging prices of many goods, this was barely enough to cover the cost of groceries, leaving almost nothing to pay for fuel, rent and clothing.

However, the premise was that the relief would only be temporary payments.

Moreover, there were several in the community, facing tight economic times themselves, who complained about "idle relief recipients" who "hung around the poolrooms" and "wasted the tax payers' money."

While there were minimal funds available for families, there was next to nothing available for single unemployed people.

The little that was available was only given to "bonafide" local residents.

However, large numbers of transients began travelling through Red Deer looking for work. Their numbers reached staggering proportions.

The police chief estimated that as many as 150 unemployed men were passing through the City each day.

There were no Jobs for them, but many went door-to-door to see if there might be some small chore or household task they could do.

The townspeople often responded by at least providing them with something to eat.

Many of the job seekers arrived in Red Deer as hitchhikers on freight trains.

Inevitably, there were several tragic accidents as the men jumped off or climbed onto the moving boxcars.

The worst accident occurred in North Red Deer in June 1933 when three exhausted young men from Regina fell asleep on the railroad tracks and were run over by a freight train.

The city police did their utmost to ensure that jobless men did not linger in the community.

Until they moved on, many of the men camped in a “hobo jungle” in the willow brush along the railroad tracks on the southern edge of the city.

Some, particularly in cold weather, were allowed to spend the night in the police station and, in the morning, were given a meal if they promised to leave the city.

In a one-month period, the mayor reported that well over 500 transients had been accommodated by the city.

As grim as things had become, the community rallied as best it could.

The Service to Others Club was formed to provide meals and essentials to the destitute.

An Emergency Relief Appeal Committee was established. Although a seemingly ambitious $1,500 fundraising goal was set, nearly $1,800 was raised.

Also, while things were bad, they were not as bad in Red Deer as they were elsewhere in Western Canada.

Central Alberta never experienced the dust-bowl conditions of the prairies to the south.

Local farmers were always able to harvest a crop.

The city of Red Deer remained in better financial shape than most other cities.

The publicly owned utilities provided a steady income.

Also, because the city had aggressively reduced its debt load since the early 1920s, money that would have otherwise been spent on interest payments was available for operational expenses and relief payments.

Moreover, ratepayers were given some relief in the form of property tax cuts.

Red Deer began to develop a national reputation as an “economic miracle.”

Government officials and financiers flooded the city administration with requests for information as to how the city was managing to accomplish such wonders.

This article was written by Michael Dawe for the Red Deer Advocate’s Centennial Book. The Heritage Community Foundation would like to thank Michael Dawe and the Red Deer Advocate for permission to reprint these materials online. Please visit the Red Deer Advocate online.The images in the article are part of the collection of the Red Deer Archives. Please visit them online.