Cost of Living

 Feature Story Contents

1. Industry Avondale Industries, Inc.

2. Schools Schools on the Westbank.

3. Women  Women and Industry

4.  Media Different Types of Media during the war

Story #1

In the late 1930's Avondale Industries, Inc. was founded. The original name of the company was Avondale Marine Ways, Inc. It was a small barge repair company. The founders were James G. Viavant, Harry Koch, and Perry N. Ellis. The company soon expanded into the construction of river boats and new barges to keep workers busy. As the U.S. entered World War II, the government took control of raw materials.  In 1941 one of the owners asked President Roosevelt if there was anything the company could do to help. The president asked the company to build tugboats.  The company's first major order was four tugboats. Government contracts increased and Avondale expanded into new facilities at the Harvey Canal in 1946 and the name was changed to Avondale Shipyard. The shipyard built a large number of tankers, drilling barges, and other workboats during the war.

 

Story #2

During World War 2 schools on the Westbank of Jefferson Parish were segregated by race.  Whites went to white schools and blacks went to black schools.  There were six schools on the Westbank.  Four which were for the white students and two which were for the black students.  Consolidated Elementary and high and Westwego were for blacks and Gretna elementary, Marrero, Westwego Grammar and Barataria Elementary were for whites.  By the 1920’s the students in the isolated sections of the Westbank needed transportation because they lived so far away from the schools.  Students were transported by a Samson truck with a bus body to pick the students up.  By this time there were 3,000 students attending the schools. In 1936, Lemuel W. Higgins, who our school is named after, a native and lifelong resident of Jefferson Parish, was named Assistant Superintendent of schools. 

The salary for black teachers was very low compared to white teachers.  For example, black teachers with four years of experience was paid only $1,490 and white teachers with four years of experience salary were paid $4,500.  

The population during World War 2 from the 1940’s and 2009 has increased dramatically.  A couple of years later in the 1950’s, workers were starting construction for road and bridges.  This helped the Westbank residents to drive to schools.  Soon after roads and bridges were built, the Westbank’s population started to increase. Because of post World War 2 growth on the Westbank, Jefferson Parish now had four high schools. First West Jefferson High School was established as an all boy school.  On August 28, 1968 L.W. Higgins High School was established as an all girl school.  John Ehret High School opened in 1974, followed by Helen Cox which was established as a middle school when first opened and in 2004 became a senior high school.  L.W. Higgins High School serves about 1509 boys and girls.  Higgins has about 52% females and 48% males. Also, Higgins has 67% Blacks, 28%Whites, 5% Asian, 5% Hispanic, and 1% American Indian/Alaskan Native.

Story #3

Women made up roughly 25 percent of the nation's workforce during World War II. Approximately 90,000 women became WAVES (Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service) during World War II, representing 2.5 percent of the nation's total strength. This was the first time in history that women put their feet in men's shoes on a regular basis.

            Women took jobs traditionally done by men. They worked in Avondale Shipyard producing cargo ships, tankers, and draft vessels for the government for $2.00 a week. Women also found jobs in lodging and railroading, which were two industries that previously hired men only. Whereas, in the 1940's the men were paid a lot more for doing the same exact jobs.

            Congress created the WAAC (Women's Army Auxiliary Corps) in May of 1942. President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed a bill authorizing the Navy, Coast Guard, and Marines to accept women. WAAC later became WAC (Women's Army Corps). Women in the military often served as typists and file clerks, freeing male recruits for other tasks. When the women showed that they were capable of performing any task, that's when the military started to assign them varieties of positions.

Story #4

There were four newspapers in New Orleans originally: The New Orleans Times, The Picayune, The State, and The Item. In 1914, The New Orleans Times and The Picayune combined, creating The Times-Picayune.  During the war there were three papers: The Item, The States and The Times-Picayune. Initially, there was morning news and evening news.  In 1962 The States and The Item merged to create The States Item. Now, The Times-Picayune was the morning news and The States Item was the evening news.
Time Magazine was very popular during World War II.  Time Magazine came out with an edition for every part of the war.  After the Pearl Harbor events, Time introduced a new part of the magazine called “The U.S. at War”.  Another big impact of media during World War II was radio.   Radio made getting information around the world quicker and easier.  The radio kept people that were living during the war more informed.  Roosevelt kept the public informed with announcements every week.  During World War II televisions weren’t common, but movie theaters were.  One theater in New Orleans that was very popular was the Saenger Theater on Canal Street.  News reels were played before the movies began, some times for over two hours.
Propaganda was one of the main elements that won Uncle Sam the war. Posters and flyers were sent all around the United States.  It made the citizens angry and excited to defeat the Axis Powers.  The media used propaganda to manipulate different situations through out the war. Cartoons were popular as well.