Erica Colston
As we continue to learn of the great individuals from years past, we honor them
accordingly in order to immortalize their exceptional deeds. American heroes among the
likes of Martin Luther King Jr., George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, as well as
countless others, have been memorialized for their contributions to our collective
history. However, others yet remain to be recognized, such as Franklin Delano
Roosevelt and Lyndon Baines Johnson, for their equally noble efforts in lifting
communities out of technological obscurity.
With the initial commercialization of electricity in the 1930’s, rural communities
were considered unprofitable and entirely ignored while urban cities enjoyed this new
privilege. In order to combat this, Franklin Delano Roosevelt ensured the passing of the
Rural Electrification Act, which served to encourage cooperatives to spread the
wondrous benefits of electricity throughout the nation. However, the effects of this act
would not be felt in the Texas Hill Country until several decades later, during the
congressional term of Lyndon Baines Johnson, who actively campaigned to bring
electricity to his home. Rural electrification in Texas could not have been made possible
without the consequent efforts of these two former presidents and should be
memorialized through a statue of their likenesses engaged in a handshake, thereby
representing their kindred goal to bring the 20th century to the entirety of America,
regardless of any one community’s fringe location.
In the 1930’s, electricity was a still a fairly recent invention and nowhere nearly
as prevalent as today, with our computers and smart phones constantly utilizing electric
power at astonishing rates. For 90% of rural Americans, conditions were unsanitary, air
conditioning nonexistent, and running water fabled. America was held in the cruel grip of
the Great Depression and change was desperately needed, especially for those who
thought electricity a mythical luxury available only to those lucky few who resided in the
city. Electric companies had no financial reason to service rural areas due to their low
density and, therefore, low profitability. At this point, it was obvious to farmers that if
rural communities wanted electricity, they would have to service themselves by forming
cooperatives. But the question remained; where would the money come from?
On May 11, 1935, President Roosevelt issued the executive order that
established the Rural Electrification Administration, allowing the federal government to
issue loans to non-profit cooperatives, who otherwise could not afford to maintain their
facilities and, as a direct result, 90% of American farms had access to electricity in
within two decades. As was many of Roosevelt’s New Deal policies, profitability was not
the main concern, but rather the prosperity all of Americans, including those living in
destitute conditions.
In spite of this remarkable statistic, the Texas Hill Country was still among the
last of rural communities to receive electricity. In 1937, Lyndon Baines Johnson made
rural electrification his top priority in his campaign for Congress, disappointed that “there
[were] hundreds of farm houses all over Central Texas where the smoky lantern and the
stifling kerosene lamp [were] still the chief the sources of illumination . . . .” He even
personally contacted President Roosevelt to broaden the restrictions on admission to
REA programs to include even more sparsely populated areas, such as the Texas Hill
Country. In addition, he urged companies to construct dams on the Colorado River in
order to take advantage of untapped hydroelectric power. In 1938, he convinced 3,300
residents to support him to form the Pedernales Electric Cooperative and managed to
acquire a loan of 1.3 million dollars from the REA to finance it.
While Lyndon Baines Johnson was arguably one of the most influential
individuals to contribute to the electrification of rural Texan communities, he could not
have accomplished this feat without the help of the Rural Electrification Administration,
which was largely established through the efforts of Franklin Delano Roosevelt. The
effects of their endeavors in bringing the 20th century to every corner of America were
astounding and continue to be relevant even today, considering the prevalence of
electricity in our daily lives. In order to celebrate their accomplishments, Roosevelt and
Johnson should be remembered through the erection of a monument demonstrating
their combined efforts to better the lives of all Americans, perhaps within Johnson City,
where the headquarters of the Pedernales Electric Cooperative reside. The results of
their enterprises are ubiquitous, and it is nearly impossible to imagine our lives today
without the staggering advantages of electricity.
Bibliography
Holly, Derrill. "LBJ Honored as Power Pioneer." Electric Co-op Today. National Rural
Electric Cooperative Association, 30 Aug. 2011. Web. 18 Oct. 2015.
<http://www.ect.coop/newsmakers/co-op-news-newsmakers/lbj-honored-as-powerpioneer/33323>
Franklin D. Roosevelt: "Statement on Signing a Rural Electrification Bill.," September 22,
1944. Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project. Web.
18 Oct 2015. <http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=16560>
Klein, Andrew R. "Rural Electrification Act (1936)." Encyclopedia.com. HighBeam
Research, 01 Jan. 2004. Web. 18 Oct. 2015. http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G23407400263.html
Crowell, Ed. "THE POWER BROKER: Lyndon B. Johnson." Bluebonnet Electric
Cooperative. Bluebonnet Electric Cooperative, 11 Feb. 2014. Web. 18 Oct. 2015.
<https://www.bluebonnetelectric.coop/Community/News/articles/2014/THE-POWERBROKER-Lyndon-B-Johnson>.