New York City Never Stops Eating

When the Federal Writers’ Project (FWP), the literary arm of the WPA, closed down in 1943 — after a prolific few years that saw hundreds of publications issued — massive amounts of research materials and unfinished manuscripts were put away,… read more

A Bridge into the Forest: The CCC in Ohio’s Shawnee State Forest

Shawnee State Forest, a 63,118-acre preserve bordered by the Ohio River in Southern Ohio, began with a 5,000-acre purchase in 1922. By far the largest of Ohio’s forests (making up nearly one-third of the entire Ohio State Forest system), the… read more

New Deal Murals Spur Controversy

Hot on the heels of widespread demands to remove Confederate monuments come calls to remove or destroy New Deal works of art believed by some to be racist. WPA murals in the lobby of San Francisco’s George Washington High School… read more

Clabe Wilson and the WPA

My grandfather, Clabe Wilson, was an Iowa farmer. During the slump in farm prices after WWI, he lost his farm. Clabe, my grandmother Leora, and their seven kids ended up in the small town of Dexter. He hired out to… read more

Women and the Art of Treasure Island

“I am quite open and unashamed in my liking for expositions—“ President Franklin D. Roosevelt, opening broadcast for the Golden Gate International Exposition on Treasure Island, February 18, 1939 Thanks to FDR, at least six of the American expositions of… read more

WPA Model of San Francisco Restored at Last

As I was scanning photos of New Deal public works at the National Archives in College Park, Maryland, I was startled to run across one that showed the dedication in 1940 of an enormous wooden model of San Francisco. WPA… read more

A Firebreak Runs Through It

In the wake of the most catastrophic wildfires in California’s history, Donald Trump accused state officials of shoddy forest management and recommended that the state’s dying forests should be raked. “Very important,” he said, to take care of the forest… read more

Exhibit: “New Deal Picture Stories” – The Photography of Arthur Rothstein

“New Deal Picture Stories” – The Photography of Arthur Rothstein will be hosted by the Canessa Gallery, located at 708 Montgomery St. San Francisco, CA.Opening Reception: Friday, December 7, 2018. 6:00pm–9:00 pm. Arthur Rothstein (1915-1985) is recognized as one of America’s premier photojournalists. Rothstein became the… read more