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Oil Boom Churches<\/p>\nLONGVIEW, Texas (KLTV) – When was a church, not just a church?<\/p>\n
Look no further than the East Texas Oil Boom for the answer.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not just the economic story,\u201d Allysah Boyd, assistant manager of East Texas Oil Museum said. \u201cBecause you hear all about the derricks, you hear about the roughnecks and just the big population change… but you don\u2019t think about the community that was already there and how they were affected.\u201d<\/p>\n
For scholars like Boyd, bringing up different points of view connects the past to the present.<\/p>\n
Oil Boom Churches<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it\u2019s easier to relate,\u201d Boyd said. \u201cYou\u2019re not just reading something out of a history book, you\u2019re sitting there learning first-hand accounts of all the small stories that took place.\u201d<\/p>\n
While the East Texas oil boom certainly boosted the economy, she\u2019s most interested in how it affected people.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe went from 500 people to almost 10,000 people, so it opens up a lot of chaos,\u201d Boyd said.<\/p>\n
According to her research, the city\u2019s infrastructure didn\u2019t allow for the influx of people — so some buildings became dual purpose — like churches.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt brings a lot of people looking for jobs, but also brings in an increase in crimes,\u201d Boyd said.<\/p>\n
And so that\u2019s why many churches also became jails.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe actually had the Texas Rangers come in and I think it\u2019s documented that in an old Baptist church they put almost 300 people chained up into the church because of what was going on,\u201d Boyd said.<\/p>\n
And aside from increasing crime, there was also increasing diversity.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo many people of different backgrounds were coming in and I thought it was really interesting there was a Jewish synagogue during that time period as well,\u201d Boyd said.<\/p>\n
And the churches themselves even participated in the boom.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s an image with five derricks surrounding the church and how they were affected by the oil boom. The actually found oil under the church,\u201d Boyd said.<\/p>\n
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How the Oil Boom impacted East Texas people, their churches<\/p>\n
If ya can\u2019t beat \u2018em — join em!<\/p>\n
The lecture covering the oil boom and church will be held on Tuesday, September 29 at the Longview Public Library at 5:30 p.m.<\/p>\n