The Making of a WPA Inventory

The New Deal cared a lot about books--producing, consuming, maintaining them.


The New Deal cared a lot about books–producing, consuming, maintaining them.  SourceWordPress, 2010

I recently completed a new project for the Living New Deal: a list of about 1,500 writings, created between 1935 and 1943, by the Federal Writers’ Project and the WPA Writers’ Program. The writings include both published and unpublished items, and the titles came primarily from two sources: a list compiled by a Florida book seller in the 1970s and a list created by a private firm working in collaboration with the Library of Congress in 1987. Our list, which also includes contemporary scholarship, is organized alphabetically—by state and then by title—and uses a similar (but even more basic) style as the sources listed above. The goal was to make it reader friendly.

 

I learned two things while I was working on this project. First, creating an inventory of 1,500 writings is somewhere between less-than-fun and merciless torture. The second thing I learned is that the writers of the WPA wrote on a stunning variety of topics – even more topics than I had thought. We’re all familiar with the popular American Guide Series, detailing attractions and history in all states and select cities. But consider some of these other titles, which speak to local interests and idiosyncrasies: National Guard of Wyoming, Wisconsin Circus Lore, Churches of Roanoke, Baseball in Old Chicago, Recreational Activities: Christmas Tree Ornaments, Winter Hikes, Air Raid Warden’s Manual, Seminole Indian Canoes, and Gumbo Ya Ya.

 

And, really, this list has plenty of room to grow. For example, we could add research reports by WPA workers (traffic studies, disease studies, hydrographic surveys, etc.); books transcribed into Braille by WPA workers; or inventories of church records created by the WPA’s Historical Records Survey to name a few. Or our list could evolve into a larger “New Deal Inventory” that would include reports and writings by the Civilian Conservation Corps, the Federal Emergency Relief Administration, and more. How large could such a list grow? 3,000 items? 4,000? 10,000? Perhaps one day we’ll have a list of every report, publication, manuscript, bulletin, and inventory made by FDR’s alphabet soup of agencies. Check out what we already have in our Bibliography.

Brent McKee is a Living New Deal Research Associate (the first, in fact!) and a core member of the LND team. He lives in West Virginia.

Berkeley High School: Braghetta Bas Reliefs on G Building – Berkeley CA

The G Building of Berkeley High School sports a large group of cast stone bas-relief sculptures on the exterior.  The artist was Lulu Braghetta, who worked under the auspices of the Federal Art Project (FAP) of the Works Progress Administration.  The reliefs were installed in 1940.

Building G was originally part of the Industrial Arts and Sciences buildings and the Braghetta bas-reliefs portray scenes pertaining to science and the industrial arts. Some have figures (including one woman) and others are representations of carpentry, electricity, motors, engineering and machining.  They decorate all sides of the building

City of Hope: Guston & Kadish Mural – Duarte CA

Philip Guston (born Philip Goldstein) and Reuben Kadish painted a large mural for the Los Angeles Tubercular Sanatorium in Duarte, CA, the site of today’s City of Hope. Completed in 1936, the mural was funded by the Federal Art Project (FAP). It is located in the Visitor Services Center.

“This T-shaped painting surrounding a doorway includes more than 30 nude and semi-nude figures depicting the sweeping progression of human life. To the left is the energy and hopefulness of youth, while on the right the scenes are of decline and disappointment. Connecting the two sections is a group of figures over the door representing the arts. The mural was in part inspired by Luca Signorelli’s fresco series at the Orvieto Cathedral in Italy (1499-1504). The building was originally a library, and then spent many years as the John Howard Grace Graphic Arts Building. In June, 1998, the new Visitor Services Center opened and conservation work on the mural completed by Edwardo P. Sanchez of the J. Paul Getty Museum in collaboration with private conservator Aneta Zebala and her assistant Marisa Kuizenga” (Dunitz, p. 339).

Guston painted New Deal murals in Georgia, Washington, D.C., and New York (Dunitz, p. 367). Kadish would end up heading San Francisco’s FAP mural division (Dunitz, p. 372).

Myer Shaffer also painted a mural for the Sanatorium library in 1936, but it was subsequently whitewashed.

Thomas Jefferson High School Mural – Los Angeles CA

In 1937, Ross Dickinson painted “History of the Recorded Word” in the Thomas Jefferson High School library (Los Angeles, CA) with Works Progress Administration (WPA) Federal Arts Project funding.

The mural is comprised of four panels, each 10′ by 5.5′. The panels depict the history of printing, with subjects including hieroglyphs, manuscripts, and modern printing. After six months of research, Dickinson painted the mural in five weeks.

According to the Los Angeles Sentinel (one of the most influential African-American newspapers in the Western United States), “Dickinson was employed as an art teacher at the Art Center School of Los Angeles and needed to devote time as a muralist at several schools including Jefferson High and San Pedro High, to make ends meet. He applied for a grant to paint the mural.

“Dickinson’s mural is a tour de force,” the Sentinel continues, “because of its contextual sensitivity to the surrounding community. Not only did it complement Jefferson High’s Streamline Modern style, but it also complemented the intellectual and social prowess of Central Avenue’s Golden Age. Less than a mile away from the school’s entrance was the vibrant ambience of Los Angeles’ Black intellectual, social, political and artistic community.”

South Gate Community Center Murals – South Gate CA

These tempera murals depicting the “History of Printing Through the Ages” were created by Suzanne Miller with FAP funds. There were originally five panels in this series; two have been destroyed, but the murals depicting the history of printing in China, Egypt, and “Modern” times remain.