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Harnett, Frank (audio interview #1 of 1)
INTERVIEW DESCRIPTION - This short interview, which focuses on conditions in Long Beach during the Depression. The audio quality of the interview is good.
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- 2020-10-21
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- *** File: cbfharnett1.mp3 Audio Segments and Topics: (0:00-4:14)... Harnett's family moved to Long Beach from Kent County, England in 1889. They purchased a 5 acre ranch at 2481 Atlantic Avenue, where Harnett was born and raised. He was the youngest of 14 children. He attended Burnett elementary school from 1903 to 1911 and Poly High School from 1911 to 1915. After he graduated, he went to work because "money was short then." In 1916, he enrolled in Oregon State College but left 1918 to enlist in the Naval Reserve Flying Corps. He was stationed in Seattle until the end of WWI. Then he returned to Long Beach to work at the family owned Long Beach Milling Company. He stayed for 7 years and became assistant manager by the time he left. He enrolled in Chiropractic College and when he graduated, he began a practice in Long Beach. In 1929, he closed his chiropractic practice and went to work for the city's newly organized Recreation Department where he worked to develop the city's recreation programs. (4:14-10:18)... When the Depression hit, Harnett's $200 a month salary was reduced. He wasn't worried that his job with the Recreation Department might be eliminated because he believed that city government would survive even when local businesses were failing. In 1932, he became assistant director of the Recreation Department. His salary was $350 per month. The city manager again reduced city salaries by fifteen percent because many Long Beach residents could not pay their property taxes. The city acquired several pieces of undeveloped property during the Depression and developed most of it as city parks. Also during the Depression, the Recreation Department paid some of its employees $.35 an hour and the funds to pay some of these employees came through the WPA. His brother was the City Engineer and he hired 375 WPA workers to build a stadium on the north side of Signal Hill. (10:18-14:45)... There are a few skips in this segment that interrupt the audio. In 1935, Harnett received a $100 allowance from the city to attend an National Recreation Association conference in Pittsburgh. He drove his family to Pittsburgh pulling their 16' trailer. The drive was difficult and the road conditions were poor. It seemed to him that Long Beach was much better off during the Depression than other cities he visited while traveling across the country. He does not recall seeing very many bread lines in Long Beach. Most of the lines that people stood in were for jobs or to get tools to work on public works projects. He showed the interviewer a Ralph's grocery ad from August 14, 1932 to illustrate the cost of food during the Depression. He believes that Long Beach was better off than other cities because of the oil boom of the 1920s. Not only did individual citizens benefit from oil production, so did city. Some of the oil wells in Long Beach were located on land the city owned. Some of the revenue from this oil production was used to finance new programs like those in the Recreation Department. (14:45-18:03)... The city continued to fund the Recreation Department during the Depression years. Although many people felt that the Recreation Department was a luxury given the economic climate, others felt that the department was an asset to the community. It was a diversion from economic hardships and provided classes and activities at little or no cost. One reason the Recreation Department was successful was the work of Clyde Doyle, the president of the commission that oversaw its activities. Doyle was a local attorney who was later elected to Congress. (18:03-20:12)... Leaders of the Long Beach Recreation Department were invited to meetings in different parts of country dealing with recreation. (20:12-21:09)... There are interruptions in the recording during this segment. The biggest problem facing Long Beach city government during the Depression was the lack of revenue. The city acquired property as a result of tax delinquencies, but it was hard to find money to buy equipment and pay personnel. The Recreation Department often used employees from other city departments to help with their programs. (21:09-25:12)... Beginning in 1931, the Recreation Department organized Monday Night Programs, which provided music, singing, and dancing free to the public. These programs were particularly popular with retired people. The department sponsored a Townsend Picnic in 1938. Dr. Francis E. Townsend proposed a plan to mitigate the Depression by providing pensions to older people and he organized clubs to advocate for this plan. Townsend organized several picnics at which he talked about his program. Long Beach parks also hosted picnics organized by "state societies" that attracted people from different states; they gathered to visit with people from back home and renew old friendships. End of tape. *** File: cbfharnett2.mp3 (0:00-0:46)... Harnett does not remember any serious problems in Long Beach during the Depression. (0:46-1:53)... During the Depression the Long Beach Recreation Department provided free programs for people who could not afford to pay for other social activities. (1:53-6:07)... There is an interruption in the recording during this segment. The 1933 Long Beach earthquake was not the first one Harnett had experienced. Some of the Recreation Department's programs had to suspended because its facilities were damaged. The department played an important role in rebuilding Long Beach after the earthquake since many of its facilities were damaged; WPA workers helped rebuild parks and other local facilities after the earthquake. (6:07-10:32)... The success of the Recreation Department in Long Beach was a result of the hard work of college-educated employees that initiated and developed many of it programs during the Depression. Many of those people were hired through the WPA to do jobs for which they were overqualified. Even though WPA wages were meager, these people worked hard on Recreation Department projects. And these Recreation Department jobs were more stable than many others available during the Depression. (10:32-12:06)... Even during the Depression, Long Beach continued to attract tourists and serving them was another source of local jobs. There were also jobs with the city and in oil production. Gas stations, for example, catered to the needs of motorists visiting the city. Vacationing and tourist activity continued during the Depression and there were also people traveling to seek work. The beach was a inexpensive place for recreation (12:06-14:14)... When the 1932 Olympics were held in Los Angeles, the Long Beach Recreation Department was involved in constructing Marine Stadium as the venue for rowing competition. They also built bleachers for the audience and a boathouse. The races drew a large crowd to Long Beach. (14:14-18:07)... Harnett doesn't think there will be another Great Depression because laws regulating the economy have been changed. In general, he supported many of Franklin Delano Roosevelt's New Deal programs during the Depression and thought they were necessary at the time. He believes, however, that these programs began the move toward socialism that the country seemed to be taking at the time of the interview. End of tape.
- SUBJECT BIO - Frank Harnett was head of the Long Beach Recreation Department during the Depression and oversaw the development of many of its programs that served local residents who couldn't afford other recreational activities. The programs employed WPA workers and other professionals who could not find work in other areas. Harnett attended national conference about recreation to talk about Long Beach's program and learn about programs in other cities. This single interview focuses on Harnett's experiences in the Depression although he also talks about his background, growing up in Long Beach and going away to college. The interview was conducted by a student in a CSULB history course that focused on the Depression. TOPICS - family background; schooling; chiropractic practice; Long Beach Recreation Department; Recreation Park; the Depression; WPA jobs; Clyde Doyle; and Dr; Frances E; Townsend;the Depression; Long Beach Recreation Department; 1933 Long Beach earthquake 1932 Los Angeles Olympics and rowing races in Long Beach; Franklin Delano Roosevelt and New Deal programs; and Long Beach city governme
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