By the mid 1930's, Taos County, primarily an agricultural area, was experiencing economic, education, health, and land-related problems. Local, state, federal and non-governmental agencies and organizations undertook studies of the area, hoping to find solutions to some of the problems. The Taos County Project, spearheaded by the University of New Mexico in 1940, with major funding from the Carnegie Corporation, sought to establish ways of relieving the "submarginal living conditions of Spanish-speaking communities such as Taos. Another project goal was to discover and implement a workable form of agency cooperation and coordination on the county level. Federal agencies participating in the Taos County Project included the Soil Conservation Service, Forest Service, Indian Service, National Youth Administration, Works Projects Administration, Farm Security Administration, General Land Office, and Grazing Service. Local representation included the County Health Department, the County Library Program, the Civilian Defense Council, educators, the Extension Service, the Red Cross, police, and interested laypeople. A tangible result of this project was the formation of the Taos County Cooperative Health Association in 1941, to carry out a health program for low income farm families in Taos County.
From the guide to the Papers on Taos County, New Mexico, 1937-1953, 1940-1944, (University of New Mexico. Center for Southwest Research.)
