The stock market crash of 1929 sent the American economy into a dangerous downward spiral and the effects were felt around the world. But how did the Depression play out in Central Oregon? Alastair Morley Jaques shares stories of Central Oregonians who endured the Great Depression at the Redmond and Downtown Bend Libraries. The presentations are free and open to the public and part of the Know 1930s series. The series, in support of the High Dessert Museum’s recently opened Art of a Nation exhibit, runs throughout the month of May.

Friday, May 13, 2016 | 4:00 p.m.
Redmond Library

Saturday, May 14, 2016 | 2:00 p.m.
Downtown Bend Library

Jaques spent months researching 1930s Central Oregon. With the help of Deschutes County Historical Museum he was able to dig deep into the histories of both Bend and Redmond. “Within a narrative framework I’ll be relating interesting facts and anecdotes that bring into focus how strange and far away the towns we live in can seem from the distance of less than a mere century in the future,” says Jaques about his upcoming presentations. He looks to dispel the common misconception that everyone suffered the crushing hardships of the Great Depression. “While this was true in some places in America, the people who lived and worked in Central Oregon's high desert in the 1930s, a place where the last western frontier was still very much a living memory, were often so accustomed to hardships and making the best of limited resources, that the Great Depression often did not seem to effect them nearly so severely as in other parts of the nation and the world,” says Jaques.

Alastair Morley Jaques is a seventh generation Oregonian with extensive roots both east and west of the Cascades. He studied Theater Arts and American Literature at the University of Oregon and the Evergreen State College. He is well known to audiences for his portrayal of America's master of the macabre Edgar Allan Poe. In addition to his work on the stage and screen, Alastair has lectured extensively on American history, literature and folklore and is always happy to help young and old learn about the fun, strange, and wonderful facts of their region, their state and their country.

For more information about this or other library programs, please visit the library website at www.deschuteslibrary.org. People with disabilities needing accommodations (alternative formats, seating or auxiliary aides) should contact Liz at 312-1032, lizg@deschuteslibrary.org.