1930s 1939 John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath is published 1935 Annual Crop and Livestock Report values Monterey County agriculture at $22,824,312 1930s Iceberg lettuce becomes the number one Salinas Valley crop (continues into the 1950s) Ice-bunkered railroad cars means fresh produce can ship nationwide 1936 Monterey Airport opens 1932 Construction of Bixby Bridge completed 1937 Scenic Highway 1 opens SIX MONTHS AFTER INITIATING THE FORCIBLE RELOCATION of Japanese workers from California farms to internment camps during World War II, the Bracero program was launched to address this labor shortage. Created by President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s executive order in 1942, the Mexican Farm Labor Program placed nearly five million Mexican workers in seasonal agricultural and railroad jobs under the Bracero program. This influx of labor into Monterey County helped the ag industry increase annual production from $70 million to $160 million in 22 years, but also increased discrimination and dangerous working conditions. The Bracero program left behind a legacy of two decades of cheap labor, increased legal and illegal immigration. In 1964, it was abolished. Courtesy of the Monterey County Historical Society; Pat Hathaway Collection The County of Monterey recognizes the Bracero legacy with Bracero Workers History Recognition Week every September.
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