As thousands of migrants moved across the countryside, looking for opportunity, work, and salvation from hunger, poverty, and restlessness, the White House realized that the burgeoning need for new roads, and that the drastic rise in unemployment nationwide could be remedied with one simple fix. Thomas Lewis ironically points out, “the Depression only increased federal highway funding as politicians came to see the direct connection between highway construction and employment” (Lewis). President Roosevelt’s New Deal programs, which included the Public Works Administration and the Reconstruction Finance Administration, worked through the Bureau of Public Roads to funnel hundreds of millions of dollars to road-building projects annually. Between 1933 and 1940, the New Deal was responsible for “more than $1.8 billion in road construction and millions of man-years of employment” (Lewis). This success in legislation provided new roads for America and jobs for the Americans who needed them most. Inevitably, the money paid to workers was reinvested in roadside establishments as tourism boomed following the road’s completion. In this time of transition, the illuminated message of neon was a beacon of hope, representative of the road from poverty to success. Neon Nevada recounts, “the boldness and brightness of neon stood out in the outsized landscape of the American West and suited our brash belief that anything is possible and opportunity awaits all” (Laufer/Swan). The newfound security and confidence regarding the future of the country was promoted through the glowing roadside signals, selling a precursor to the American Dream that would become the signature of roadside displays nationwide following the conclusion of World War II.