1. Photographs of the Port of Corpus Christi in the 1930s

The Port of Corpus Christi was founded in 1926, at a moment in which Nueces County was a major cotton producer (harvesting more than 100,000 bales per year). In 1930, oil was discovered in Nueces County, and by mid-decade, oil had overtaken cotton as the port’s top export.

Loading and unloading ships was dangerous and difficult work, and it was often unsteady, as US ports tried to keep wages low by treating dockworkers (also known as longshoremen and stevedores) as temporary workers and pitting them against one another. The relationships between workers and employers were often contentious.

Workers’ attempts to improve US waterfront working conditions included, among many other conflicts, major West Coast strikes in 1916 and 1934, as well as a strike in Galveston in 1920 -- during which the governor of Texas declared martial law and sent the National Guard and Texas Rangers to occupy the city.

Below are photographs of workers at the Port of Corpus Christi during the 1930s.

SOURCES:

"Port Dockside 1930s," Corpus Christi La Retama Public Libraries Digital Archives, Collection F4 Box 7 Folder 7.02 Item 12

"Port Dockside 1930s," Corpus Christi La Retama Public Libraries Digital Archives, Collection F4 Box 7 Folder 7.02 Item 7

“Dockside 1930s,” Corpus Christi La Retama Public Libraries Digital Archives, Collection F1 Box 12 Folder 12.04 Item 3