Louisiana Penal Labor (1930)

In 1930, Transmissions, a New Orleans journal devoted to "the interests of motor transportation" honed in on the use of prison laborers to make highway signage. With the photograph shown above, its editors championed Governor Huey Long's efforts to expand the state's infrastructure without increasing taxes. They captioned the image "Convicts Making Road Signs Reduces Costs." A small guard station and two fencing perimeters can be seen in the distance of the signage yard.

Image above: "Convicts Making Road Signs Reduces Costs." Transmission: A Journal Devoted to the Interests of Motor Transportation and Police Jury Affairs 3:2-3 (February-March 1930). Courtesy Louisiana Research Collection, Special Collections Division, Tulane University Libraries. Current call number is 976.3 (388.105) L891