Resettlement Administration (RA) Sites

In 1934, the Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA) provided about $400,000 for a homestead project in Putnam County, West Virginia, “Red House Farms” (soon-to-be called “Eleanor,” and not to be confused with the nearby town of Red House).  Red House Farms was one of three New Deal homestead projects in West Virginia, the others being Arthurdale and Tygart Valley Homesteads.  The goal of these homesteads was to provide a fresh start for rural Americans devastated by the Great Depression. A United Press article described the town’s beginning in May 1934. In addition to 150 homes, “Construction of the 1,728-acre tract includes...

"Greenhills, Ohio is one of only three 'Greenbelt Towns' built in the United States. The other two are Greenbelt, Maryland and Greendale, Wisconsin. The three towns had their start during the Depression Era. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt created a program to build new suburban communities as part of his New Deal plans for the country. The overseeing department was the Resettlement Administration which later became a part of the Farms Security Administration. The building of these towns provided much needed jobs for those in the trades (brick layers, plumbers, carpenters, electricians, etc.), as well as people not in the trades...

A cooperative community founded under the New Deal's Resettlement Administration: "The town of Roosevelt was established by the federal government—one of the many planned cooperative communities created under President Roosevelt's New Deal during the Great Depression. Originally called Jersey Homesteads, the name was changed shortly after President Roosevelt's death. Among these planned towns, Roosevelt was unique for three reasons: it consisted of a triple cooperative of industry, farm, and retail; the settlers were all Jewish garment workers from New York City; the flat roofed architecture and other features of the homes were inspired by the European Bauhaus movement. Another interesting, though...

A 35-unit subsistence homestead community, located 5 miles north of Tupelo off the Natchez Trace consisted of modest, one-story frame houses. Twenty of the units remain, and are owned by the National Park Service since transfer in 1940, and were used to house park personnel until recently. A man-made lake and recreation area was constructed in the community, although the dam broke in the 1960s and nothing remains of that feature. First initiated by the Division of Subsistence Homesteads, the project was completed by the Resettlement Administration. The original plans called for 25 units, industrial-type homesteads, and in 1934, Tupelo Lumber...

"The Tygart Valley Homesteads was a project of the Federal Subsistence Homesteads Corporation, created by the Roosevelt administration during the Great Depression. The idea was to provide a new start for unemployed farmers, miners, and timber workers. This was one of three resettlement projects in West Virginia, the others being at Arthurdale and Eleanor. Initial funding in the amount of $675,000 was allocated by Congress on December 21, 1933, to acquire land in the Tygart Valley. A committee of local citizens was organized and, by 1934, land had been acquired at Dailey and Valley Bend, 10 miles south of Elkins. The...

The small, rural community of Bosque Farms lies about 18 miles south of Albuquerque and was one of the New Deal resettlement communities. The community's own website describes that history: "...In the 1920s, Otero sold his land in small lots to individuals, but due to the depression, which began 1929, the people were unable to make the payments. Otero repossessed the land, and in 1934 sold 2,420 acres to the New Mexico Rural Rehabilitation Corporation. The resettlement area was eventually taken over by the Federal Resettlement Administration (part of President Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal) in 1935 and named the Bosque...

"WPA workers leveled sites for 750 homes in the Village of Greendale, an experimental "garden" community built from 1935 to 1938. The WPA's labor intensive work using horses, carts and plows contrasted with the modern technology used by skilled craftsmen employed under the Resettlement Administration. The RA built an electric rail line to bring skilled Milwaukee tradesmen to the Greendale site." (www4.uwm.edu) "Greendale was originally developed in 1936 as part of President Franklin Roosevelts New Deal in the wake of the Great Depression. With the purchase of 3,400 acres of farmland southwest of Milwaukees city limits, the federal governments Resettlement Administration had...

"Originally called "Westmoreland Homesteads", Norvelt was established April 13, 1934, by the federal government as part of a New Deal homestead project. With 250 homes, Norvelt provided housing, work, and a community environment to unemployed workers and their families during the Great Depression. It was renamed “Norvelt" in 1937 in honor of First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt and her interest in the project... In April 1934, federal officials acquired 1,326 acres (5.37 km2) of farmland in Mount Pleasant Township, and announced construction of the Westmoreland Homesteads. Following Division guidelines, local architect Paul Bartholomew designed the planned community’s buildings and its overall layout. On...

Norvelt is located in southwestern Pennsylvania. "Originally called 'Westmoreland Homesteads,' Norvelt was established in 1934 by the Federal government as part of a New Deal Homestead Project. With 250 homes, Norvelt provided housing, work, and a community environment to unemployed workers and their families during the Great Depression. It was renamed 'Norvelt' in 1937 in honor of First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt and her interest in the project."

"In 1934, under the Resettlement Administration, federal and state agencies united to buy 5,000 acres of this submarginal land to develop a recreation area. The Civilian Conservation Corps, as well as the Works Progress Administration, helped construct the site while providing much needed jobs. Four camps along with day-use and picnic facilities were built and the park opened to the public in 1937."