News
“Invest in the human soul. Who knows, it may be a diamond in the rough.” This famous quote by the educator and civil rights activist Dr. Mary McLeod Bethune (1875-1955) is inscribed on the pedestal of her statue, recently installed… read more
The Lungs of Our Land In 1937, in a letter to the nation’s governors, President Franklin Roosevelt wrote: “Forests are the lungs of our land, purifying the air and giving fresh strength to our people.”Forests played a major part in… read more
Joblessness and homelessness during the Great Depression led the federal government in 1935 to demonstrate how modest, well-built homes could improve the lives of ordinary Americans if these homes were located, designed and managed to promote “family and community life.”… read more
The Association of the Old Inhabitants hosted a video luncheon talk with Peter Sefton. Sefton discussed the history of the District of Columbia’s Recorder of Deeds Building and its architect Nathan Wyeth. “Mr…. read more
Creativity and Conscience Congress funded the Federal Theatre Project primarily to provide jobs for unemployed theatre people during the Great Depression. But WPA administrator Harry Hopkins and the FTP’s dynamic director Hallie Flanagan had a much broader mission: to create… read more
In 2020, the Living New Deal NYC Chapter began a collaboration with the NYC Parks to install new signage at New York City public facilities that were built in 1930s by New Deal agencies. Limited evidence remains today of the… read more
Compared to the New Deal’s overall expenditures, the budget of the WPA arts projects was laughably small, and the Federal Theater Project’s was even smaller—a mere tenth of one percent. But the Federal Theater, begun in 1935 under the bold… read more
President Franklin Roosevelt had a remarkable ability to rally the nation using the mass-communication media of his time. He crafted intimate “Fireside Chats” to reach Americans in their homes by radio, but in this pre-television era FDR also needed compelling… read more
Charles Epting, President and CEO of H.R. Harmer, will be showing his collection of mail and other postal history from the era of New Deal to the Royal Philatelic Society in London. During the New Deal era, Postmaster General James… read more
