Kansas in the Great Depression: Work Relief, the Dole, and Rehabilitation

No part of the United States escaped the ravages of the Great Depression, but some coped with it better than others. Ranging widely over all of Kansas s 105 counties, Peter Fearon provides a detailed analysis of the key relief programs for both urban and rural areas and shows that the state s Republican administration effectively ran New Deal welfare policies. Kansas in the Great Depression is an insightful look at how federal, state, and local authorities worked together to deal with a national emergency, revealing the complexities of policy initiatives not generally brought to light in studies at the national level while establishing important links between pre-Roosevelt policies and the New Deal. It reaffirms the virtues of government programs run by dedicated public officials as it opens a new window on Americans helping Americans in their darkest hours.