Fern Nesson takes us on the road following the original WPA Guidebooks. Follow along as she re-enacts these journeys, discovering what’s old and what’s new.
Pre-Civil War firefighting in New York City was done by volunteer groups who built and equipped their own neighborhood firehouses. In 1865, when the city created the Metropolitan Fire Department (MFD), it acquired these buildings and hired distinguished architects to… read more
“I am in earnest – I will not equivocate – I will not excuse. I will not retreat a single inch – and I will be heard!” William Lloyd Garrison, “The Liberator” Boston was the center of the pre-Civil War… read more
The Lower East Side is likely the most colorful and diverse neighborhood in all of Manhattan and it inspired equally colorful descriptive language in the New York City Guide. First home to many immigrant groups “straight off the boat,” this… read more
The New York City Guide has lots to say about New York’s impressive harbor. Foremost among the sites that it describes are the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. One is little changed, the other almost totally transformed. It is… read more
Abraham Lincoln once greeted Harriet Beecher Stowe saying, “So you’re the little woman who wrote the book that started this great war!” A similar claim can be made for Thomas Paine and the American Revolution. Good writers can do that…. read more
In an absolutely masterful piece of writing, the anonymous writer of New York City Guide described Coney Island in profusely colorful, engaging language. It is hard to imagine that any writer could have done it better: “CONEY ISLAND, the sand bar… read more
Attitudes change over time. What once seemed “progressive,” can now be seen as truly repressive. This is certainly the case with the Carlisle Industrial School for Indians. The Carlisle School was founded by U.S. Army Colonel Richard Pratt in 1873…. read more
One of the great pleasures during a New York winter is a visit to the Metropolitan Museum. Not content to display its immense and broad collections in the simple, airy rooms of most museums, The Met has gone to great… read more
The state guides use two different sizes of type: 12-point type for major sites, 8-point for byways and places of less importance. But it is often these 8-point type blurbs that prove the most interesting. A perfect example is the… read more
Thomas Jefferson is one of our most interesting, brilliant, and complicated historical figures. A polymath who authored the Declaration of Independence and founded the University of Virginia, a philosopher and political scientist of the highest quality, a naturalist, an inventor,… read more
By Fern L. Nesson There’s not much to see in Watertown, Massachusetts, a quiet suburb of Boston on the banks of the Charles River. The Massachusetts guide mentions a few historic houses and historical markers memorializing the first settlement in… read more
By Fern L. Nesson and Sasha Wolfrum, October, 2020 One of the most charming aspects of the WPA State Guides are their sections on culture. Aside from the requisite essays on geography, economy, and history, the authors were free to… read more
By Fern L. Nesson Even in the depths of the Great Depression, Nantucket drew tourists for its quaint, but stunning beauty. Here’s what the Guide had to say: “Nantucket is an experience. The steamer rounds Brant Point Light and comes suddenly… read more
By Fern L. Nesson In 1939, the North Carolina Guide unflinchingly described the plight of Blacks in the state. Twenty-nine percent of North Carolina’s population was Black, down from 50 percent before the Civil War. The decline was no mystery;… read more
By Fern L. Nesson, June, 2020 In these days of pandemic and civil unrest, lay-offs and economic insecurity, anxiety and depression, the WPA Guides can be a source of comfort. The Guide’s writers would have related to our pain, as it… read more
Fern L. Nesson, April, 2020 An Introduction: On The Road With the WPA’s American Guide Series The Massachusetts State Guide devotes an entire page to the Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge and it urges a visit. Rightly so. “Mt. Auburn… read more
Fern L. Nesson, April, 2020 An Introduction: On The Road With the WPA’s American Guide Series The American Guide Series, produced by the Federal Writers’ Project is one of the most well-known WPA projects. Written as a collection of travel… read more
The American Guide Series by the Federal Writers’ Project have a lot to say about the Civil War, none more than Virginia where the greatest number of battles were fought from the first land battle at Bull Run in 1861,… read more
By Fern L. Nesson I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came… read more
Whaling in Massachusetts ceased in the early 20th century, but the wharves, chandleries, captains, and customs houses remain, offering scenic and fascinating reminders of the trade. In 1939, the writers of the Massachusetts State Guide took a great interest in… read more
The American Guide Series, produced by the Federal Writers’ Project, is one of the most well-known WPA projects. Written as a collection of travel guides, the series included recommended tour routes as well as essays on the history and culture… read more
The American Guide Series, produced by the Federal Writers’ Project is one of the most well-known WPA projects. Written as a collection of travel guides, the series included suggested tour routes as well as essays on the history and culture… read more
Check out our latest map and guide to the work of the New Deal in Washington, D.C. It includes 500 New Deal sites in the District alone, highlighting 34 notable sites, and includes an inset map of the area around the National Mall which can be used for self-guided walking tours.
Take a look at our previous guides, equally comprehensive, covering key New Deal sites in San Francisco and New York City.
