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CONFRONTING A NEW WORLD: SEVIER COUNTY, 1950-1975
n 1950 the census showed that there were 12,072 people in Sevier County, down slightly from the 12,112 of 1940. These figures seem to indicate that there was basic stability in the county. A closer examination, however, reveals that the rural sections of the county had lost some people; Richfield had grown by more than 600 people during the decade—from 3,584 in 1940 to 4,212 in 1950. Businessmen and civic boosters hoped to continue the growth of the more urban areas, as Americans in general were looking to enjoy post-war prosperity. Nationally, the economy was vibrant. Locally, Republican conservatives were backed by most of the county's residents. Private enterprise was primed to take over from the New Deal. By 1950, with Roosevelt dead and World War II over, the Republican county commission candidates, Edwin Sorensen and Lawrence W. Jones, were unopposed. In 1952, Republicans Jones and Kendrick Harward ran unchallenged as well.1 The year 1950 and the dawning of a new decade saw the United States embroiled in another war, however, officially termed a "police action," on the other side of the globe against North Korea. Soldiers 213
