Boomtowns & Busts
This term describes a town that rapidly grows due to an oil discovery but declines when the oil runs out.
What is a boomtown?
This famous 1901 oil discovery marked the beginning of the Texas oil boom.
What is Spindletop?
When a product like oil is scarce but demand is high, prices tend to do this.
(What is increase?)
This movement aimed to allow women the right to vote in elections
What is Woman's suffrage?
Oil led to the growth of this type of urban area, where oil company offices and refineries were based.
What is a city?
This early 20th-century boomtown became known as the "Oil Capital of the World."
What is Beaumont?
The discovery of oil at this site in 1930 led to one of the largest oil booms in U.S. history.
What is East Texas oilfield?
The oil industry led to job creation in these two industries
transportation and manufacturing
The Populist Party mainly represented the interests of these two groups who struggled with debt and low prices.
Who are farmers and workers?
Many rural Texans moved to oil towns in search of these. (What are jobs?)
(What are jobs?)
The oil boom led to housing shortages in boomtowns, leading people to live in these temporary shelters.
What are tents/shacks?
The first major oil strike in Texas occurred in 1894 in this region.
What is Corsicana?
The boom in the oil industry led to the rise of this new mode of transportation, replacing horses and trains.
What are automobiles/cars?
Progressive reformers worked to improve these two major societal issues in Texas cities.
What are sanitation and working conditions?
This type of energy, generated from oil and gas, became widely available in Texas homes.
(What is electricity?)
After the oil boom ended, many towns suffered from economic collapse, becoming known as this.
What is a ghost town?
Oil towns and Cow towns both went through these cycles
What are boom and bust cycles?
When the supply of oil increases but demand stays the same, the price of oil usually does this.
What is decrease?
The nationwide ban on the manufacture, sale, and transportation of alcoholic beverages, primarily driven by concerns about alcohol-related social problems.
What is prohibition?
Texas oil was crucial for fueling these military vehicles, used heavily in World War I.
(What are tanks and airplanes?)
Over-drilling in boomtowns often led to a drop in oil prices, causing these economic downturns.
What are busts?
This Gulf Coast city became a major refining center due to its proximity to offshore oil fields.
What is Houston?
The major shift to using oil for military purposes started during this war
What is WW1?
Reformers helped pass child labor laws to stop young children from working in these dangerous places.
What are factories and mines?
Texas women contributed to the war effort by working in these two key industries.
(What are factories and agriculture?)