FEDERAL GOVERMENTS AND THE ART by Norman Pietan

COPYRIGHTED
by
NORM! P I3TAN
1951
R e p r o d u c e d with p e r m issio n o f th e co p y r ig h t o w n e r . F u rth er rep ro d u ctio n p roh ib ited w ith o u t p e r m issio n .

M M G07ER1IMEHT AMD THE ABTS
by
Norman Pietan
This dissertation has heen approved for final

examination hy the student's Dissertation Committee
whose written approval is on file in the Advanced School.
Dissertation Committee:
Prof. Harold Rugg, Chairman
Prof. Elise E. Huffini, Member of Committee
Prof. Edwin Ziegfeld, Member of Committee
Submitted in p artial fulfillm ent of the requirements

for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Faculty
of Philosophy, Columbia University.
R e p r o d u c e d w ith p e r m issio n o f th e co p y rig h t o w n e r . F u rth er rep ro d u ctio n p roh ib ited w ith o u t p e r m issio n .
, AGKNOmSDOiffiglS
She w riter wishes to express his appreciation and

indebtedness to the many parsons and organisations. sad i s
particular to ths many government works?? gad forms?
government emplcyees, who have a ll contributed to the
study. Although he wishes to thank thoa a l l , ths l i s t
is too long to mention each one individually) special
appreciation can therefore only be expressed to a few.
For indorsation on the Government* s various

Art Programs) tho w riter is indebted to Mr. H Paul
Casamerer of the Fine Arts O m ission for data on that
agency) to Misses Mary LaFallette, Grate Franks and
Elisabeth Hofflin, formerly of the Special Skills
Division of the Resettlement Administration) for th e ir
cooperation in supplying information on th a t program)
one of the most d iffic u lt phases of the research) to Mr.
Adolph Glassgold) former Director, and Mr. Erwin 0.
Christensen, present Curator, for th eir help in explain
ing the compilation and organisation of the Index of
American Design now in the Rational Gallery.
Former Direotor of the Federal Art Project of

TfPA, Mr. Holger Cahill, and former Mid-West Regional
Direotor) Clement Haupers, have both read and offered
helpful suggestions for chapter three on ih e a rt projects*
For information relative to the reoent State

Department Exhibitions of Modem Art in chapter ten) the
w riter is indebted to Professor J LeRoy Davidson of
Tale University and Mr* Lawrence S. Morris, Acting Chief
of the State Department's Division of Libraries and
In stitu tes.
Special mention of appreciation should be made

to Dr. Donald Daugherty and the American Council of
Learned Societies for permitting the w riter to study the
manuscript of th eir extensive study of the UFA cultural
projects.
Dr. Charles Seeger, Chief of the Division of

Masxo and visual Arts of ths Pen American Union, has
generously s u llie d i^ o ra a tic a a i botdi the Federal
Musio Project and the musio program of Special S kills,
both of which he was actively associated with. Reread
and suggested isprovemrats for chapter four*
R eproduced w ith perm ission o f the cop yrig ht ow ner. F urthe r reprod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission.
(2)
For the ohapter on photography end films, the

w riter is indebted to Mr. Soy Stryker, and Mr. Paul Vanderbilt,
Acting Chief of the Division of Prints and Photographs of the
Library of Congress. For inferaatiea on Modern Government
architecture, the w riter wishes to express appreciation to
Mr. A. S. Dearay, Associate Director of the National Park
Service? and to Director Gorton Slapp, and Direotor of la for
mat! cm, W. L. Sturdevant of the TVil
Lastly, the research has been aided by the courtesy

and cooperation of the staffs of the Library of Congress and
national Archives in Washington? the Libraries of Columbia
University and the University of Minnesota? and the Public
Libraries of New York City and San Francisco.
For helpful suggestions on the organisation of the

data into i t s present form, the w riter is indebted to
Professors It* Freeman Butts, George Counts, Talbot Hamlin,
Bichard Hofstadter, Meyer Shapiro, and Edwin Ziegfeld, a ll
of Columbia University* He is also indebted to Professor
Slise E. Buffini, of Teachers College, Columbia, for her
in te re st in and encouragement of the study from the beginning.
The w riter is especially indebted to Professor Harold

Bngg of Teachers College, Columbia* He is .indebted, f i r s t , for
a number of stimulating courses in the area of the a rts in
American lif e which, among other things, served to in terest
the w riter in the general problem of government and the arts*
He is also indebted for the opportunity of being an assistant
in these bourses* Also, the w riter has appreciated Professor
Baggs in terest in the study from the beginning, and his help
fu l suggestions and criticism s during i t s development*
To the s ta ff of the Advanced Sohool of Education of

Teaohera College for th e ir help? and to the several persons
who have helped type and edit the manuscript, especially
Clarena Christensen Bode, William Boyes, and Mrs. Bussell
Ziemer, he expresses his appreciation.
Lastly, and perhaps most important, the w riter

expresses sincere thanks to his family for t h d r help in
many ways, but especially for their consistent encouragement?
without th eir help the study would neither have been under
taken or completed.
While the study would not have been accomplished

without the help of -these and many other persons, the fau lts
and shortcomings of i t are entirely the w riters own and in no
way a reflection upon those who have aided in the undertaking.
Norman Pietan

FOREWORD
. !hie grew out s f & search fcr the answers to
three questions about the role of government in the arts*
( l) That preceded the cultural projects of the Franklin
Roosevelt Administration? (2) What were the actual accom
plishment a of this Administration in the various arts?
(3) What are the prospects for future government participation
in these arts? As the study progressed, many of the answers
to the f i r s t two questions were found as part of the recorded
history of our country* Eut the answer to the third remains
a matter of conjecture and anticipation based on the reoorda
of past government activity in the arts*
The major portion of the study deals with the answers
to the second question, that is with the a rt programs of the
Federal Government during the Administration of President
Franklin Soosevelt* Ths reason for this is two=foldS F irs t,
the work which preceded this administration has been largely
recorded in several other places end i t seems unssessssry to
attempt to repeat them in detail here* Secondly, World War II
cut short most of the a rt projects of ths Roosevelt Adminis=>
tratien* and l i t t l e has been dene in the a rts since*
FEDERAL GOVBBDIEST ALT- TBS ARTS is primarily an
h isto rical survey* Only secondarily is an attempt made at
evaluation of work done on government a rt projects. Tho term
ii
"The Arts* is interpreted to include architecture, painting,
sculpture, theatre, lite ra tu re , photography, and, in fa st,
a ll ffiAuiumg of creative expression milch the government hag
supported or encouraged* Because of i t s scope, the study is
also selective rather than attempting to he all-inclusive*
For example, in fee eeasanity planning program of fee
government, Greenbelt (Maryland) was chosen for stu<fy hero,
whereas other examples of government community planning,
important in fee to ta l picture but not included in detail
here, are Greenhilla, Ohio! Greendale, Wisconsin! Arthurdale,
West Virginia, etc. A complete picture of th is area of
architecture suburban resettlement -*- would make an
interesting and pertinent study in itself* Also, fee study is
one of peace-time arts rather than of war when fee emphasis
changed to a considerable extent from design and construction
for the people to design and construction for the m ilitary and
for destruction*
Although government activity in fee arts includes
fee arts mentioned previously, i t is impossible to draw definite
pigeon-holes and put specific activ itie s under the headings
ârchitecture, sculpture, or painting, for examples Often
government a rt projects have included several e f these together,
as in fee planning of fee government city of Washington, of low
income housing eoamnitie a , ef the dams and recreation centers
of fee SVA, or of federal buildings a t expositions and fairs*
R e p r o d u c e d w ith p e r m issio n o f th e co p y r ig h t o w n er . F u rth er rep ro d u ctio n p roh ib ited w ith o u t p e r m issio n .

iii
Therefore chapter divisions are broad enough to include
the arts collectively as v e il as individually? and our
definition of ths arts broad enough to permit overlapping*
Oliver Sayler points out?
" . . . . a l l of the a rts have a common fcani&inhead in

the human imagination and ....w hatever profoundly
influences one of them is likely to affect the others*
(One is therefore obligated)...* to study the field
of the arts as a whole end to realise th at they fora
an in tricate network of busy canals in close contact
vithceur daily lives? instead of a series of Indivi
dual ruts hermetically sealed from one another? mi
from l i f e . . . . . " -
th is , then? is a study of ths arts? individually and collect
ively? when the government has come to th eir aid.
Since i t is practically impossible to write an
unbiased book, i t seems only fa ir to try to examine areas
wherein bias is likoly to occurs The w riter is a teaeher
end student? so the study has been written? firs t? from the
point of view of education rather than that of economics?
psychology? p o litics or any other major area of endeavor
Secondly? the w riter is also a modern painter end photographer?
cm personal experiences with these creative mediums as cn
studied theory.
Throughout the study the w riter has been primarily
oenoeriied with what was actually accomplished in the arts
1. Oliver M. Saylor? BEYOLT B THE ARTS.

(How York? Brestsnog? 1950} p* v ii. v iii.

ir
rather than with the specific administration or p a litie a l
party in offiee a t that tiaeo That the accomplishments of one
presidential adgdaiatratiea stand out as Esre significant than
any other is a n atter of record* end not the authors pre
disposition toward that administration before a earerul
examination of the record* The enthusiasm the -writer now
hno vwnaTu -Sun ?GGGaipliai]aion/V3 of the Franklin Roosevelt
Administration, as the elisax of government participation
in the arts to date, is an enthusiasm which grew oat of the
study of the quality and quantity of -work done, and was not
a part of the preliminary basic search for those accomplish
ments* The enthusiasm is also that of one interested in the
arts f i r s t , at le a st for purposes of this study, before party
lines or platforms*
FEDERAL GOFERMEHT AND THE ARTS, then is a surrey,
broad in scope but limited and selective in details and
examples* I t is , perhaps, too large in soope to be Included
in one volume, and too great an undertaking for one person to

3
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f * * VU**
perhaps others w ill see f i t to investigate specific areas for
greater o larifieatio s therein, and w ill psrhspg help to correct
any mistakes - unintanticsally made, yet no doubt included
in th is survey*
R e p r o d u c e d w ith p e r m issio n o f th e co p y rig h t o w n er . F u rth er rep ro d u ctio n p roh ib ited w ith o u t p e r m issio n .
V
With it s inau6quoi9Sj this volyae is sa endeavor.
written in the spirit that
K*Our doubts are tra ito rs,

And sake us lose the good s e ft night win
% fearing to attempt*

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Foreword P&g0 ^
Chapter 1 - Early Government Participation in the A rts .... 1

Chapter 2 - unemployment and the WPA. ........ 36
Chapter 3 ** Three Art P r o je c ts ............................................ 62
Chapter 4 - Bands, Folk Songs, and The Federal Music
Project......................................*........ . 129
Chapter 5 - Federal Theatre Projest. ............... 158
Chapter 6 - Federal Writers' Project........................... 190
Chapter 7 - Historic Amerioan Buildings Survey.. 216
Chapter 8 - Government and Modem A r c h ite c tu r e .......... 222
Chapter 9 - Federal Photography and Film s........................ 257
Chapter 10- Federal Art Since R oosevelt........................ 281
Chapter 11- Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 295
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CHAPTER OHS - EARLY GOVERNMENT PARTICIPATION
a n y '- -
Often when people thiak ef government participation
in the.arts* they are inclined to think in terse of aging
the t assayor' money to @strust a naM a l art gallery
in the nation's capital* sad to buy paintings and pieces of
sculpture to be permanently displayed therein* Sons do go
farther and nsaticn the ssrals they have seen in government
post offices, but since those seen interesting though
not-tco-secesaary, the thoughts about government a rt end
there* Actually, i f th is were true th a t post office murals
and the Rational Gallery constituted the whole of our govern**
sent participation in the a rts then there would be l i t t l e need
for th is study, for in truth these are but a minor p art of
the government's a rt programs* As Jacques Barsun points outt
"Fostering a rt is not limited to maintaining a

national gallery of old masters* That is only
transporting a rt from one place to another.
Fostering a rt moans making pppcrtunities for
u io uoo tu iu u i 'v a u iv u va cu ve
The major government a rt programs have been ones in whioh
great. numbers of people have participated* both,as creators
as is ths ease of ths OasaasihyArt Cfsstars i s the late IQjfl*s.
and_ M=ppreeiator8 as in ^ e ease of eeaeertg and plays
1. JacquesBarsun, TEACHES la AMERICA.

(Boston} Little* Brown s Co*, 19^5) P* 1$1
R eproduced w ith perm ission o f the cop yrig ht ow ner. F urthe r rep rod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission.
2
the Federal Mugie and Theatre Projects during the same years.
Oar federal government has tekei^ a sore active endvit& l role
Is the- a r t s t h s n i ^ s t psopla r s a lis s . aud i t i s tsCFpargess-ef
th is beek to a t t e s t to p o in to u t seme o f those areas of
gewsrhssnt participation*
B itrs are two major ways in which the government
cen take part in the a rts of the nation* First) the govern
ment can be in the a rts for Itself* This is when i t sails
tips i the a r tis ts end architects to design national seals and
Symbols? coins and stasis? medals and asauaaati) and classic
federal buildings in order to shew that i t is an established
nation among nations* It is when the government has p o rtraits
painted and statues erected to i t s p o litic a l and m ilitary
heroes? and when i t takes part in international expositions
and fairs to show other nations th at it? too? has achieved
a worthy state of culture. In short? i t is when 1$ government
i t eoncemed with the arts for i t s om purposes*
The other major way in whioh the government can take
part xxi uixc arcs oz uis n&vzozz x* Tuxexx x xvSvvXh ww xv?
the people* Instead of using a rt for ooingj s temps and federal
buildings alone? ths governssnt also provides opportunities
h sriis ths osools o-n 8Dsri~!0 ? th? arts first-hand. as in
ths eaa of a rt laboratories) musical CuuCsrtJs 9 theatre prc=
dnotions and government films* In this kind of program the
sopbasis is not so much on the displaying of tho culture of
the nation as on the nay in which the arts o&n contribute to
the daily lives of The emphasis is also shifted
from considering the final preduet or nwork of a rtn as a ll
important, to considering ths creative process i t s e l f as a
worthwhile experience for all*
For the most p a rt, the record of our Federal Govern
ment participation in the a rts of th is country fa lls naturally
into these two divisions in chronological sequence* From the
early government beginnings up to the depression of 19^ , the
arts were considered important, only as they could fc0 used ty
the government for its e lf in the forms of designs for national
buildings and monuments, the flag and seal, and for coins and
stamps* But with the coming of the depression of 1929 and
the years following thereafter, the government undertook to
establish a rt projects as a means of getting unemployed people
baek to work along with the various other construction end
publie work projects, and thus, indirectly, fostered a vast
program in ths arts for the people* The record of ths f ir s t
division has, for the most part, been w ritten about elsewhere
and w ill only be mentioned briefly here as part one of the
study* The main portion of the book deals with the second
division, uO period since I929, as th at has been, l i t t l e pub
licised to date.
k
:r,^ ***** v.r' - . : r: ,v- " "
S - 1 ____ __
uu xuug no a- u_ a- Ju-wi u xi o_ o vxug&xxujt, itu
* * ._ -1 .JL * _
x n o a cu x u
l i f e Wa ouBlloli expect tu xiuu 3iuSh c re a tiv e WGrk in the "fjuiv
arts** During ths early days the colonists were kept busy
clearing the lend for homes, and in firhtin? Indians* the
states were disputing boundary lineal end the country was
faoing financial hard times and depression* I t is no wonder
then that there wasl i t t l e time for the arts* lh a t was doss
a t th is tine was in iaxe form of u tilita ria n objects and
household c ra fts, such as knitting, eandle making, quilting
and hfflMsade furniture* 5hea were generally of good design
because neoessity demanded that they be kept relativ ely simple*
In fact, these early orafts set a precedent in honest use of
materials and indigenous design shioh is only recently being
re-discovered by modern designers in th e ir rebellion against
the oontinnal borrowing of foreign styles* But, during this
early period* the people themselves had l i t t l e .time for the
sfine arts of painting, sculpture, lite ra tu re and msic*
Citisens of a new nation must f i r s t hat s security and some
leisure before they begin to develop major statements in the
arts* ind sinoe the people had l i t t l e time for the a rts , i t
is natural then that the government, too, would have l i t t l e
ooneem with suoh luxuries*
5
i Bifl fir st mantion of the arts in the government
records was areaolution which John Adams presented to the
Continental Congress sn Marsh 81* !??- is which he suggested
that each colony take se-asuree to establish a soeiety for the
improvement of agriculture. a rts , maufaeiares and comers.8^
However, the ta ra 8n rts8 as i t is used throughout other early
entries in Congressional Journals refers to ths praotieal arts
of candle and harness Baking, end similar oraft 8 ho doubt
that is what Adams had in mind, too, when presenting his
resolution*
, The only other mention of the a rts at that time was
& resolution which took a negative stand against the theatre.
Shis resolution, passed in October of 1773, read in parts
"Whereas frequenting playhouses and theatrical

entertainments has a fa ta l tendency to divert ths
minds of the people from a due attention to the
means necessary for the defense of th e ir country,
and the preservation ef their lib e rtie s , HESOLVED,
that any person holding an offie under the United
States, who shall act, promote, encourage 02* attend
suey plays, shall be deemed unworthy to hold such
office, and shall be accordingly dismissed. 2
In fa s t, then, net only were the arte ignored in ths wvli*S
a t f i r s t , but they were frowned upas and believed to be tin
consuming and te o ra l* I t was only la te r when people had more
leisure, and when new interest in European culture sprang up,
1* JOuEMLS OF xhb C'JijTBTg'IAL C0SSBBS3

(Washingtons Government Printing Office, 19^).) Vol.lt, p.22i;
2. Ibid,. Volume 12, p. 1018
that the fiaa a rts began to oo^ iato theirm m though,
ea an isfe rta tic n basis
PLANNING TM HDBML CITT
The f ir s t of the arts which the gGverassni became
actively interested in was the practical one of architecture*
Between if/ 14, snd llyl the Continental Congress had been holding
i t s meetings in eight different c itie s , and thus the problems
of finding a satisfactory place to meet each time and of trans
porting the records from cns place to another made i t necessary
for ths elected representatives to finally dsoids on a per
manent location for the government* After considerable debate,
the tan mile square area between Maryland and Virginia was
agreed upon, mainly because of i t s eentral location,1 and
President Washington appointed a Frenchman, Peter Charles
LSnfant, to design the plan:'.for the Federal City*
In a very real sense the opportunity to design &e
new seat of government was an architectural chance of a life
time* Ths designer was gives ssly two basic requirements
the area of 100 square miles in which were to bo placed the
President s residence and a building for Congress after
which the designer was "allowed free acope to crsats something
worthy of the great nation 0 ? Hie future." ^ Hsrs was a chance
1* For the record of tie debates on the looatien of Washington,

see CS ANNALS OF C0SS535S, Volume 2, pegs 1750- Mid Volume
6, pages 2585-2589*
2. WPA Federal Writers Project, WASHINGTON, CITT MB CAPITAL,

(Washingtons Govt. Printing Office, 1937/ PP* ~
w ith perm ission o f the cop yrig ht ow ner. F urthe r rep rod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission
7
to lead the new nation in developing & model for other c itie s
to follow, both architecturally and sociologically, i f only
ths dssigner had ths vision P o litically ths Imitsu tJtsbss
had deol&red themselves independent of the European parent! they
had now organised th e ir new p o litic a l unit on this side of ths
* 4-1 cirs-M T* ryfHl GOT18 fel Ini'S 1 Oil a S lid W@I*0 SGff t l lB S ll i S E
th e ir Federal City Here was an opportunity to establish
their architectural indepsndsneo, too, i f they so desired
They already had some good samples of city planning within
th eir own te rrito ry , for many of the New England villages
were organised garden coaaunitles, designed for the practical
needs of security and subsistence on the new continent. 1
Architecturally speaking, these communities were organic, for
they grew out of response of the people to the new so il and
elements, and oould serve as a model for an organic Federal
City as well* However, these garden oonammities were con
sidered crude and naive and not befitting a government oity.
the heart of a new nation The prevailing thought was that the
Capital must be a symbol of the nation! i t must look like other
capitals and be recognised as a capital city
Ihen L!Enfant was chosen to plan the new oity, Jefferson
loaned him plans of such c itis s as Amsterdam. FrsrJcfurt, Milan,
Orleans, Strasburg, and others, but 15Enfant was most interested
i- dssori/bsd Lsîs Mvjiiiord in

his STICKS AND STOHES (Hew iork Bsni and Liveright, l92h)
pp. 21, 22.
in the plan of Paris* So ho made use of that radial plan,
ipith streets outting through the oity like spokes on a wagon
wheel, and then placed ths White House and the Capitol on the
two high points near the center, with an impressive roadway
between* After he had these placed, he fitted the wall and
other buildings into the plan between the radial streets*'''
In a disagreement over some private buildings which inter-
ferred with his oity plan, L1infant resigned and Washington
appointed Andrew E llico tt to carry out the remaining details
of the plan*
There are three major favorable characteristics of
Major LSafant s plan* First, he took advantage of the
irregular topography and placed the Capitol and White House
on small h ills so they could be better viewed from the
surrounding territory* Secondly, he placed important points
of interest, public statues, fountains, and a national church,
far enough apart so the whole would be that of a large, for
mally planned park rather than a commercial city . Through
the combination of these two factors he achieved for the
Federal City the third favorable characteristic, an impressive
dignity* Although i t was a foreign importation rather than an
indigenous plan,not foreign to LEafant, but to th is country
at least L'Snfant s design had a kind of
1* For a record of the planning of the Federal City, see H

Paul Caemmerer, A MAIIUAL OF ISA OHIGIII AITD DE7ELCPHEIT OF
YfASHIHGTON (Washington: Govt. Printing Office, 1939J p* 23f*
9
classic, formal order about i t which made i t look like what
people thought capital c itie s were supposed to be at that time.
Oa the other hand* the plan has now become obsolete.
She city has grown beyond it s original boundaries, and with
the development of commerce i t has also grown beyond the
original concept of a city for government only, In addition,
Washington has become a hodgepodge of eclectic architectural
styles: English Regency White House, Egyptian Obelisk Washington*s
monument, Grecian Lincoln Memorial, Classic Revival treasury
Building, French Renaissance State Department Building, Roman
Rational Gallery of Art, and so on including the Capitol which
has been rebuilt and added to so often that i t , too, is a
mixture of sty les. 1'Enfant, though, was not responsible for
the designs of the buildings. An architect from South Carolina,
James Hoben, won the competition for the design for the White
House, and William ffhomton made the original plans for the
Capitol, with architects Benjamin Latrobe, Ihomas Walter,
Robert Mills and others adding their parts as time went on.
But with L!Infant s Paris-like plan, and the classic styles
used in the Capitol and White House, Washington was, from
the beginning, started on a path of eclecticism in it s design.
So i t is only very recently that any attempt has been
made to deviate from this pattern. The Annex of the Library
of Congress, the Pentagon Building and the Department of
Interior Building are a few of the notable exceptions
R epro duce d w ith perm issio n o f the co p yrig h t ow ner. F urthe r rep rod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission
wherein modern design has been used. Change apparently has
to oome gradually.
That the Federal City has a clean appearanoe about
i t as a city is evidenced by it s spaoious mall, it s near-white
buildings* and it s lack of smoke and large factories* That
i t has a dignity and kind of monumental quality is evidenced
by it s long vistas from which one may view it s classics
exteriors. However, that Washington is lacking in a basic,
organic quality expressive of the land upon vMch it has been
b u ilt, and of the people and their straggle for freedom and
dsnooraoy, is evidenced by it s eclecticism in plan and in
most of the buildings. Washington is a capital city like
other capital c itie s , one which might as well b6 placed in
almost any European country rather than the U.S.A., judging i t
by it s classic architecture and city plan. It is possible,
however, that i t is expecting too much of an adolescent nation
to have developed i t s own city plan and architecture at this
early date in it s history.
SEAL AHD SYMBOLS
In addition to the Federal City, the colonists fe lt
they needed other art devices to help moke their new nation
look lik e one of long standing and authority. So they had
designed a national flag and seal, and later added the designs
for various coins and stamps* The history of the designing
of these government art objects have been adequately recorded
elsewhere, so they w ill be discussed but briefly here. W illis
Fletcher Johnson, for example, in his book the NATIONAL FLAG,
w ith perm ission o f the co p yrig h t ow ner. F urthe r rep rod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission.
explains that thera ar several theories about the origin
of ear flag* including the Betsy Rosa legend, k it scaeludei
that ssr flag was ths outgrowth of ths B ritish led Busga Flag
with its six white stripes dram across the red fie ld , sad
the British Uni ant in the upper, le f t hand comer, to a
oantooi of thirteen white stare in a blue fie ld , tad go a*
The Continental Congress accepted the Stars and Stripes as
the authentic flag for the Gauntry m June ll*, 1777, and in
I79I1 und 1817 other acts of congress added more stars to the
1
blue iId as am states were added to the uni .
The design for the U. S Seal was mainly the work
of a private oitisen, William Barta Congress made the seal
official in 1782, and th is same design of the Eagle with a
scroll in i t s beak and an olive breach and thirteen arrows in

p
i t s slews has lasted to the present time.
The problem of designs for coins was o f a more
practical nature than for the National Seal, Being refugees,
the ooleniatg brought littl money with them, being newcomers
they found no established system of coinage In the uon isna,
nor did they immediately find any gold or silver mines. Ships
io For the history of ths designing of our flag, sss? W illis

Fletcher Johns, THE IA7I0NAL FLAG, (Boat? Eeughton,
M ifflin, I930), also see? JOURNALS OF THE CONTBJMTAL C05GSSSS,
vol.8, and U.S. AHIALS OF CONGRESS* vol.30- .ko8^ ;
vol.32, p.
2 For a description ef the seal and its symbolic meanings, to

gether with the history of its design, seel JOUEbALS OF THS
CONTINENTAL CONGRESS, vol. 5, pp. 517-9, 689-891, and
vol. 22 pa. 338*3^0
perm ission o f the cop yrig ht ow ner. F urthe r rep rod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission
12
brought small quantities of European coins with aaeh new load
of frontiersmen, text that was not enough with which to carry
on ths eossserse s f ths eel^ ies* So harts? usoses? ths QystoSl
of exohange u n til individual colonies began issuing th eir
own treasury b ills and notes* Shortly after the outbreak of
ths Bevoluticaary War* ths Continental Congress began uv o,0uQ
similar paper money for war financing* In the A rticles of
Confederation of 1778* the Continental Congress was given the
right to regulate the values of coins mads both under th eir
cooperative supervision) and under th at of ths individual
states.* Hot long therafter plans were completed fop estab
lishing the f ir s t U S. Mint in Philadelphia in 1792* In
the years following; Each discussion and debate took place
in Congress on ths relativ e merits ef various designs for
coins* For example. Congressmen discussed whether the
figure of the President should be an the coins, or whether
i t should be an eagle, Miss Liberty or something similar;
they debated whether the eagle should have expanded or con
trasted wings, whether Liberty should be seated or standing,
1* See f e l l Garother a, FSlicSIGNAL KOHET, (Hew York, John

Wiley, l930)j pages 17*45> for a more complete report of
the development of early Mexican currency.
fasiag le f t or rig h t, hair fleering or fastened with a ribb ,
sad so 9* The history of the designs for ear eoins is tee

2
ig sad involved to disease here* Suffice i t to say that
Liberty and The Bagla became the dominant d e sip symbols for
oar coins, with 'In God lb Trust the basic motto The major
exceptions have been coins issued in commemoration ef special
historical events, or in honor o? Presidents and other impor
tant historical personages Most notable of the la tte r group,
from the standpoint of d e s ip , have been the Lincoln Penny
of 1$09, deslped by Vi0tor D Brenner? the Washington Quarter
of 1932J the Jeffers Hi eke 1 of 1938, desiped by Palis
SohlagJ and the Franklin Roosevelt Dime of I9I16, desiped by
John Sinnook, Chief Engraver a t the Bureau* Many consider
the la tte r two, plus the Indian head Hiekel, to be the most
successfully desiped minor eoins to date, beeause ths pro
portion of the heads have been so related to the size of the
1. See P*S* a m is OF COHGSBSS, Volume 3, pp* l$*f, 7?0f, 1352f.
2, See? George G* Evans, ILXflSI'SATgD Hitfiv/KI Ui*' lilu U S* 222T

(Philadelphia, Geo* G* Evans, 189h)
David K. Watson, HISTOHT OF AMERICAS COINAGE
(Hew York? G* F ?utnaa6a Sons, I 899 ;
Stuart Mosher, BHI2ED STATES OOMMES)MSIVB GOINS,
1^2-1939 (Hew York? Wsyte Saymond, Inc, I9 U0 ;
Slrner A, Lssis, UW5 AUTHORISING ISSBAHCg OF MEDAl-g AHP
CQMMaMOBAiTIVS C0IHS (WasMagteaS GoveramsnVPrinting
Office, 19^3) to
coins as to occupy the major portion of the coin's circular
gHanat hence they do not look lik e small figures somewhat
le s t is the surrounding space, a do some of the other coins*
Also of in terest from the point of view of sola
design were the Indian Head Penny of 1859# aad ths Buffalo
Hiekel of 1915s the la tte r designed by James Earle Fraser*
Sere the designs were based on subjects which were a basic
part of the early American scene, and therein served as
symbols more representative of ths country a a whole than
special h istorical vents or persons* I t is interesting,
in ths la tte r case, that the bison design came into use
during the Theodore Roosevelt Administration, when in terest
was in the West end the Natural Resources*
Judging the coins and b ills of this country collect
ively, from the standpoint of design, one sees that there has
been very l i t t l e creative or expressive designing so far. In
both our coins and paper b ills , bat especially in the la tte r,
a high degree 0? teehnieal accuracy has been established in
the reperduetics of presidential faces and hoses, ana similar
symbols and figures, but there has been l i t t l e real progress
made in creative coin design. Our coinage is s t i l l is the
technical eraft stags, and has yet to besoms a rt,
A similar situation exists in the ease of our stamps
Bp to 181*7 idie post office department ju s t marked the le tte rs
"paid," but at hUau iuiv nwhvSive stamps ease into use.
w ith perm issio n o f the co p yrig h t ow ner. F urthe r rep rod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission
15
; - The history of the design of our postage stamps
fe lla roughly into three periods She f ir s t stamps ware
those in nhieh the figures ere taken from r.a in tin~S*

sra ef
Washington, Franklin, Jefferson, and other notables, by
such popular p o rtrait painters as Trumbull, Stuart, Vandorlyn,
Ceraeehi and nuudctn* The p o rtrait part wag taken from the
paintings, and the remainder of the designs for the stamps
was added by the engraver aa he hand engraved on metal raid
wood* The second parled is the one which eomes with the
advent of the invention of photography# Designs were then
taken from direct photographs of Presidents, Indians, buffalo,
Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, Capitol, Lincoln Memorial, and
Niagara Falls* The third period is that in whioh, besides
using both of the previously named methods and subjects# the
Bureau of Engraving used subject matter of more general in terest,
such as stamps for the Chicago World* s Fair of 1893s the invention
of the telegraph, the opening of the Panama Canal, and designs
of stamps to commemorate the opening of new te rrito rie s , the
admitting of new states to the union, end other related social

5
and h istorical events*
Throughout uuO ulstcry cf oar pcs^gv S'j&îps, xt tins
boon a rare cceasisi when a designs- is called in from the outside
1. in illu stra te d history of our postage stamps may be found

in the bulletin of the Post Offiee Department# A DESCBIPTIQN
OF UNITED STATES PGS'PiftF STtwpS, 18h?-l9l>6#
(Washingtons Government Printing Office, I9U6) 158 pp#
See also R100 Years of Postage Stamps5* LIFE, June 2, I9I4.7,
pp. 97-100
to oreat a design for a postage StSSpe Usually the design
originates in the Bureau of Engraving end Printing* A
request is made by the Postoffiss B-oparfegnt to the Bureau
to prepare a model for a proposed stamp Sometimes a photo
graph or a rough sketoh is sent along with the request as a
suggestion for the design of the a w stamp? tu t oft the
design originates in the Bureau? also the design is generally
modified -there* I t is only within very recent years that
a rtis ts have hew permitted to submit their designs to the
Postoffioe Department for aeoeptanee as the designs for
stamps The examples of this are the design for the one
cent Four Freedoms" by the sculptor Paul Manship in 19^3*
and the design for the two cent "United Nations" by Leon
Helguera; of the same year
The Bureau has apparently been very jealous of i t s
power# believing that the designing of stamps was such special
ised work that only those who knew the technical process
of engraving the stamps should be permitted to do the design
ing# Most designers admit that they must have some know
ledge of the technioal process involved in the engraving of
stamps; but they do nov oexiev vhat they mnsU; ox necessxvy;
be engravers themselves in order to create a worthwhile design
I t was only through the work of Paul Bsrdanier and the Amerxcsn
In stitu te of Graphic Arts that Manship and Helguera were per
mit ted to submit th eir designs to the Bursas* and finally had
them accepted
perm ission o f the cop yrig ht ow ner. F urthe r rep rod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission.
17
Judged from the point of view of design, the eight
atamo8 most interesting so fa r, in addition to the Manship
and Helguera one3, ars tho e a rlie r os sent Carrier Stamp of
1851, with the eagle in flig h t, somewhat distorted to f i t
into an e llip tic a l shape? the ten oent special delivery stamp
of 1908. with the stylised winged hat of Mercury and the olive
branohj the th irty oent Buffalo Stamp of I9235 the two cent
Red Cross Stamp of 1931? the three cent Golden Gate Inter
national Exposition Stamp of 1939? the eight cent Air Hail
Stamp of 19lii, featuring the modem transport plane in flight?
the three oent CoBsaemorative Stamp in honor of the Centenary
of the Telegraph of I9W1J and the five oent stamp honoring
the United Nations Conference in San Francisco in April 19^5*
These are among the most creatively dOSi^Mwd of a ll stamps
put out hy the Bureau of Engraving up to the time of writing*
Technically the standards for engraving postage
stamps in this country are as good as anywhere in the world,
and superior to those of many nations* But, a rtis tic a lly ,
we fa ll short of a number of nations who subsidise their
leading a rtis ts to design their stamps* In delivery of
mail, our postal system makes use of a ll methods of trans
portation, and lives up to i t s slogan of "speedy, direst end
safe? * but in the use of creative imagination for our stas^
designs we are progressing slowly, ju st as we are in arriving
at ladigenueus designs for the pOauCuiiuco ulSiiiSelvwoo
18
medals m w m m s
Henry Thoreau one wrote th at nations are generally
pfigS00600. with 8an in sans ambition te perpetuate the memory
of themselves by the amount of hamered stone they leave.
An examination of the Congressional Beeords shews that whenever
the government wanted to pay homage to a m ilitary or p o litic a l
here, or to commemorate a victorious battl6 or the signing of
a peace treaty , i t called upon a soulptor or a r tis t to design
the status, medal or monument. Thus the nation has acquired
a considerable number of such memorials, a number too great to
describe here except for a few whose designs are most out
standing.^ Of the government medals to date, most worthy of
mention for their creative design would be the Air Medal,
with the eagle hanging on to a stroke of lightning, and
diving downward, designed by Seulptor talk er Esnccckj the
Merchant Marine Medal, with a stylised eagle confidently
perched on an anchor, designed by Paul Masship? the familiar
Havy Cross, with a miniature galleon on a cross of four
circular arcaj and the United States Tribute Medal to the
City of Verdun, designed by Sculptor John Flanagan, gad
showing two straggling figures, each attempting uo Horn -
1. Henry David Thorean, WALSEM,

(lew York! Modern Library, 93?} P 51
20 See, for example, Stuart Mosher s U. S. COMMEMORATIVE COIBS,

op. cit, or FOSTSIS-S a rtic le , Ths Msdaln in the issue
for June, 1914.5 , pp* 21i5f.
R epro duce d w ith perm ission o f the cop yrig ht ow ner. F urthe r rep rod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission
19
his ground} hut so deslgnedas to f i t into the circular
pattern o? the medal* Shese and perhaps a few others stand
out above the kora lito r a l and sattira listie appsarsnoe of
most medals*'
rf-avri.- Government statues are more numerous than either
medals or meEumeats, A Congressional Act of July 2. IBoq., in
vited each state to contribute statues of two of its leading
citizens to Statuary Ball is Bie Capitol- a room which new
includes statues of Henry Olay from Kentucky, fhom&s Beat
from Missouri} William Jennings Bryan from Nebraska} Robert
Fulton from Pennsylvania} Soger Williams from Bhode island}
Sam Houston from Texas, end so cm* After 1872, the selection
of any work of fine a rts to be placed in the Capitol was le ft
to the jurisdiction of the Joint Congressional Consult*so of the
Library, and apparently this committee did i ts job well}
for to one visiting the Capitol at the present time, i t looks
a s - if not only 8tatuary Sail already has a "fu ll house,* but
the Rotunda} Senate and House connection h a lls, and the "Hall
of/Columns" on the stre et floor of the House wing ae wello"
Is A l i s t of the statues in the Capitol, together with the

sculptors of eaeh, may be found in the COHGBSSSIOMAL
HSCQBS, Tolumo 75, Part 5* Sie statues in Statuary Hall
may be found on pages 3885, 5886: a, l i s t of the busts of
former vice-presidents, located in the Senate Wing, on
page 3883J and a l i s t of the p o rtraits of former Speakers
of the House, in the Speaker's Lobby, an pp* 3887 and 3888*
Reproduced w ith perm ission o f the co p yrig h t ow ner. F u rth e r rep rod uction pro hibited w ith o u t perm ission.
Although most of th government statues hav been
n atu ralistic copies of m ilitary tad p o litie s! heroes? there
are a res? which-stand oat-as more ersativa and expressive than
the rest* Among those might he included Seulptor Clark Mills1
equestrian statue of GeneraLAndrew Jackson, showing fee
determined Geral riding ssa, eaergetie, hors* rearing on i t s
hind legs? William C ouper'aStatueof Longfellow, seated
and in aoadeade gown? auggestive of the poet s pensive and
contemplative moods? Saint-Gaudens1 famous Adams Memorial?
sometimes called the "Statue of Grief?55 or the "Peae of
God?"-because of the veiled female figure? seated pondering
the role of man in history and his destiny? James Earle
Eraser 's massive figures? "Guardians of the Archives"
outside the Archives Building! and Leo Friedlander's -
struggling man and horse? for the Federal. Trade Comaission
Building? in whioh the man symbolises the Commission? end
the horse suggests Trade boing curbed by the Msn*
Government monuments are of three different type si
( l) Ornamental Monumenta? where the structures are aea-
fhnoticnal memorials? like tombstones? mausoleums? and olassio
shrines? and where the: e^shasis is sa ornesentatica rath?r
than u tilita ria n f u a s tia ; (2) Functional Msaumsmts? lik?
football stadiums? libraries? and dams? where each of the
I* For m e a g le ts l i s t of gcversmes.* s ta tu e s and monuments

in the D istrict of Columbia? together with the Seulptor
and Architect of each? the date and cost? seel 3 Paul
Caemasrer? op. cite? pp 3^7- 35!
21
strue-teres*fera a u tilita ria n purpose ia addition to being
a a sa o ria l to the dead? sad (?) Natural or Living Hcaassnts,1
liksrlatLesai Forests, sad Msoatsias a fte r National
Figured, or parks and playgrounds eenotruoted or woods planted
as useful, growing memorials'*
Of the many omaBSBtal mqptiBiiatg eoastrueted by me
Federal Government, four have gained wider recognition than
the others* These are the Washington Monument, The-Lincoln
and Jefferson Memorials, a ll in the District of Columbia,
and Gutzcn Borglums sculptured group on Mount Hashmor in
the Black H ills of South Dakota.
The functional monuments are more recent in concept
than most ornamental ones and oonsiat of two major kinds*
hospitals end dams* There ere over forty r illta r y hospitals
constructed by the National Government as medical centers
for wounded members of the armed forces and veterans, and
then named as a tribute to the one whs had distinguished
himself ia some m ilitary way, as the Walter Seed Hospital
in the Nation-s Capital, named after the army surgeon and
bacteriologist* In this way the structures form the two
fold jruzivizi,<s of providing a kind of ssiussat or a n tic ss
trib u te, while at the same time having appropriated ths
money; to a practical, worthwhile end needed purpose* Hot
monuments in the s tric t sense of the word, in the old fashioned
idea of a shrine-like ornamental structure removed from daily
lif e , those memorial hospitals are monuments in the newer idea
of functional tributes and living memorials*
22
- Sixdlarly, g c m aa m t dams havebeea designed

for iae practical purposesof flood control, navigation,
and poser, end th s , la te r ssssd afsS? sMsyas miS fvu|hs lS
the halls of Congress for their eeastruetioi* Examples of
those are the Wilson, Norris, and Whsaior Dans of the
iSâiigs# Talley. 1
Although not eoastrueted hy the government, The
Franklin D Roosevelt Library a t Hyde Park oould be inoluded
is th is group of functional monuments* I t was built by Pres,
Roosevelt and then presented to the ocuntry as a g if t in
>1^.1, ; Ncitr i t serves both as a memorial to the la te President,
and an archive of his papers, books, le tte rs and documents
for students and historians*
The third group are the eoêaHed wlivingB or natural
monuments. These are works of nature which have been made into
national memorials by being named a fte r persons interested in
their development as national parks and points of in terest
for the people as a whole. These include the Kit Carson
National Forest in New Mexico, the Muir Redwood Grovesin
California, and Mount McKinley National Park in Alaska, .
In addition within ear sa tisa a l parks,-there ars specific

WAnM Al WAaUm aw J maa<3m w *iaJ <Pa Ai
m v m u v m U y7CW >Sp VAAAAQj P 8 S W BM B GU1U H V V U Q . JUGUUQU i U i
persons, as Mount nhiimey near Death Talley in.C aiifom ia,
le These dams are discussed sore at length in Chapter eight*
Based after i t s diseoverer} fay lo r, Long and Evans Peaks in
the Eoeky Mountains, for esmaple, to name but a few. She
a&aaiplgs arc tsa SUSSrcaS * = gvory nstisnsl

park seems to have several*^ Mhat is important ia the idea
of naming natural works for persons, both to help in the
identification of me various peaks, sountains, and plateaus,
and to serve as memorials for those whose pioneer sp irits
helped discover and develop them as part of our national
parks and monuments*
f m t m s w THE FINE AKfS COMSIOH

Similar to Congressional discussions and debate so n
the designs for coins, stamps, statues and the like, were
2
these on pointings and portraits* Sess Congressmen were
concerned about cur lack of what they thought were competent
a rtis ts to carry out these design assignments; others bemoaned
the fact that i t was too cosily to coutiiiuS importing European
painters and sculptors to carry out government commissions}
and s t i l l others f e lt that these relatively unimportant matters
of a rt and design were taking too meh time away from more
sip iiflc sn t matters of stats* B scsu seo fth is la s t group,
1* For a more complete t t s t of national parks and monuments,

and dsssripti& s of the various parts of each, see the
publications available through the Rational Park Service
of the Sept* of Interior in Washington*
2* For the history of government paintings, see the reports of

, the Camnissicn of Fine Arts, published by the Government
Printing Office.
R eproduced w ith perm ission o f the co p yrig h t ow ner. F urthe r rep rod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission.
President Buchanan ia 1859 appointed a Cesaigsiois of Pise
Arts to take care of ju s t such matters* Eosrev?, the eosaia-
S3L*SS "W^S abolished Bis following ymv when Congress refuses
to grant an appropriation of Trhat i t thought was an exorbitant
sun for the work of suoh a commission. For a period of about
forty years, thereafter, the C ec itie s on the Library did
what i t could about certain a rt natters* Upon the reconmenda-
tion of this Committee, a series of the p o rtraits of the
Presidents of the United States were cEmissioned, plus busts
of the vice-presidents, portraits of the Speakers of the
House, and various other paintings and statues for the Capitol
and library of Congress* TJhea something special came up, like
a major monument or memorial, another Congressional Committee
was appointed to take care of the matter.
In 1910 Congress set up the Fine Arts Commission
with an annual appropriation of 10,000 as an advisory agency
for a ll matters pertaining to the arts* In recent years the
duties of the Conmission have been enlarged so as to include
the passing of judgment upon nearly a ll matters pertaining
to a rt wherein the Government is involved* In short, i t has
hocess a kind of control agency for Government Arts*
The act s f I9IQ5 creating the Fins Arts CvE-aissiCEi;
gave the President the authority to appoint "seven well=
qualified judges of the fine a rts . 8 * A look a t the records
1* COIGSESSIOIAL BECQRD, Volume h5> Fart 6, p* 59&>
25
indicates that in general 'well-qualified seemed to mean
safely conservative. The record of the Fine Arts Commission,
though positive in some ways, is not one of fostering
indigenous a rt nor of promoting modern organic architecture,
yet i t has played a significant role in the Government s
art programs.
The purpose of the Commission is reaiiy two-foldj
f ir s t, as a group the members serve to advise Congress and the
President about the design of the works of art with whioh the
Government is concerned# In th is, they have great power,
for i t is a general rule that Congress secures the approval
of th is Commission before passing upon new buildings, bridges,
parka, statues and monuments. Thus they have the power to
approve almost any architectural style although in practice
they have continued to promote conservative styles, and to
ignore both newer architectural trends and lib eral young
architects, as they so desired. Secondly, they provide a
kind of a central coordinating agency wherein various and
diverse government divisions and vj .2ide from Con
gress and the President, can turn for advice on matters of art*
As an example of this advisory function, on July 28, 1921,
President Harding issued an Executive order requiring that the
Commission of Fine Arts pass on the designs of coins and medals
before they were to be struokj and also the designs for statues,
fountains, monuments, parks and public buildings in the
R eproduced w ith pe rm issio n o f the cop yrig ht ow ner. F urthe r rep rod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission.
26
D istrict o? Columbia? Ten years la te r they were even given
the power to control the appearenoe of private buildings which
faced main public buildings or parks. Thus the Pine Arts Com
mission was set up as an authoritarian agenoy with considerable
power. Perhaps the Commission has not made as muoh headway as
we would like to see, yet i t must bd admitted there is some
evidence that Washington has become more unified in design after
th is power had been given the Commission*
The f i r s t major project which the Commission had
to oonsider was the design for the Lincoln Memorial; and
la te r they had final say on the Jefferson Memorial, so the
blame for the eoleotioian of these monuments, together with
other statues, and the continued use of olassic architecture,
must rest to a certain degree with the Fine Arts Commission*
Architecturally there are a few exceptions to th eir general
policy, a few oases where oontempory design has begun to creep

2
in* For example, there is the new State Department Building,
designed in the office of the Supervising Architect, by Gilbert
Stanley Underwood and William Dewey Foster* The architects of
th is building have retained the stately quality of the more
traditional government buildings, but have simplified the design
1* See National Commission of Fine Arts, Twelfth Report,

(July 1, 1929 to December SI, 1934), (Washington;
Government Printing Office, 1936.) p* 134
2* Originally designed for and occupied by the War Department
before the Pentagon Building was oonstruoted in Arlington*
27
so that the building looks mors like a twentieth century
structure* Other Capital City buildings of modem design
include the ianes to ths library of Congress, David D ps,
Architect; the new Folger Shakespeare Library, Paul F Cret,
Architect? the Washington National Airport Building, Howard
Cheneyj Consulting Architect? ana the Postages Building in
Arlington, Georg Bargstrom, Consulting Architect* However,
for the most part, the policy of the Fine Arts Commission has
been cossermtiva and traditional ia i t s selection of designs
for the Capital*
In f&imess, though, i t must he admitted feat the
Commission does not always have free choice in i t s selection
of-works ofart* Sometimes endowment specifications lim it
theOhoioe, as in tho oase of the Freer Gallery of A rt.'
where purohasea are limited to a rt objects of the Far Bast,
and fee Commission has to make its selection in feat area*
The same thing was true of tho Haticnal Gallery of Art, where
Andrew Mellon had donated the money for its construction,
had elected John Bussell Pope as fee architect, and had
specified feat fee gallery be of classic architecture*
After a ll these speuxXôauxvns had coon mado, tssn
1* Although actually a part of the Smithsonian, like the

National Gallery, the'Fresr Gallery of Art else ssbbs
partly under fee jurisdiction of fee Fine Arts Commission,
for they have to express approval of a ll acquisitions
V * A a *. *m m a V * A a ^ -
U9AVAO pUAVUaOOM9
28
Commission of Fine Arts was to be oalled in for i t s approval
0* w*v design bSiOS** 2OH5"vÛ0^1.vil SOUXd b* *jHtt3*s
wi rn n,ng flawds tied, ^>0 Qfvmm*fSl ijifi oOuId d.0 Xzt tl e to ohango
the appearance of the building even had i t wanted to , which
ia Questionable and so the National Gallery stands like a
19h l version Ox tho Capitol Building with the doss diminished
and the windows removed I
One- of tho bvOt parts of the record of a ctiv ities
of tho Coisiiss Ivu wf Flaw oTta lo i t s work in connection with
the recent murals and sculpture for federal buildings in
Washington, though th is is s t i l l somewhat a record of
opposition rather than oooperatian When an Art Procurement
Division was organised in the Treasury Department under the
direction of Mr* Edward Bruce,* contemporary Amsrioan
painters and sculptors were oomaissicned to do murals and
re lie f panels in government buildings* Since o fficially
th is kind of work came under its jurisdiction, the Commission
of Fine Arts had to give some kind of 0*1* to sash piece of
work before i t could be completed in a federal building*

2
But i t is a matte? of record that the Gostsissi disapproved
of a number of the murals both from the point of view of the
1. See th section of Chapter three on the Federal Art Project

-i&ieh deals with the a r t program of the Procurement Division
of the Treasury Department*
2* Grace Ovenayer, (K>vE55HEnx AND TBi ARTS,

(New York* W*W. Morton, 1939J p i<2f
modern techniques used, which they thought wore "out of
hammy -sith hhe classical theme of the capital architecture,"

S*Xvl ^ 0 wiluj nuu BSS.'S'iuwi? VflijbOll "tTlSV thought ^v3 i'uilUUCal?
aver, some of the more lib e ra l sooial-oonmentary a rtis ts
were permitted to work on public buildings anyway, for the
designs were selected by a oeffiaitte of which the represents
tive of the Pine Arts Cosaissien was only one part* Repre
sentatives of the Procurement Division, the designer of the
building, and other architects and a rtis ts also served as
part of the eo n d ttse, thus helping to select the designs,
end often overriding th9 CosBdssions conservative stand*^
As a matter of fa c t, when President Eooeevelt f i r s t sent a
note to the Cosssission suggesting the a rt program for the
Procurement Division of the Treasury Department, he suggested
th at i t be based on a program similar to that of the Mexican
Governments plan of paying a rtis ts plumbers wages to
decorate public buildings* However, the CvZ2u2.ssic22 dis
approved the idea for they thought the Mexican muralists
too " le f tis t," and feared the murals in our federal build
ings might, likewise# be too far in the opposite direction
from the kind of oenservatiga they represented* In spits of
1* Hot a ll of the Procurement Division s a rt work was in

Washington by any means* A considerable uKubcr Oa murals
were for postoffices in a ll parts of the oountry* However,
the Fine Arts Commission passed judgmeit only on the a rt
work in the Capital City*
R eproduced w ith perm ission o f the cop yrig ht ow ner. F urthe r reprod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission
30
the-Commission1a position, soma of the painters whose works
are sort represented in Washington include Georg Biddle,
John Stuart Curry, Bmsst Fisme, W illi as dropper, Leon
E roll, Doris Lee. Henry Yamua Poor, Boardman Robinson,^
Millard Sheets, and Maurice Sterna. Sculptors represented
in government buildings include Michael Lasts, Robert Laurent,

2
Oroasio Maldaralli, and Paul Manship, among others. The
amount of money spent for this kind of art work ranges from
one to three and one-half percent of the to ta l cost c? the
building*^ Thus part of the Cossdssiai s record which relates
to Edward Bruces Fublio Works of Art Program is a positive
one, both in helping a rtis ts of the country, and in helping to
get contemporary and native creative work in our Capital City,
almost despite the Commission5s inner objection to it*
In attempting to suaaari2e the work of the Fine Arts
Commission, i t must f ir s t be stated that i t is approaching its
d ifficu lt task sincerely and wholeheartedly* Even the con
servative attitude i t maintains has in i t the positive factor
1* Charles Beard points oat in AMERICA IN MID-PASSAGE that

idie a rtis ts went a t moral painting with such seat that
Boardman Robinson, for example, painted "16 mural panels
covering 1025 square feet* for the Department of Justice
Building, - page 770
2* For a complete l i s t of murals and sculpture in Washington,

sponsored by the Treasury s Section of Fine Arts, see
th eir Guide, published by the Public Buildings
Administration of the Federal Works Agency.
3* National Comaissian of Fine A rts, FOURTEENTH REPORT,

(January 1, 19^0, to June Ij&W* (Washingtons
* V* - 1* "****"*"0 IClIiM. n . llR
/ TV/ Jl g"'
31
that they are not making hasty decisions, or going off tho
deep snd in extreme faddish stylos of tho present; only to
regret the decisions later* In its reports, the Oossaissioa
stresses that "changes have been gradual, th at their concern
is with permanence, and that "crude and unnatural work in
painting and sculpture a i f accepted for public buildings
might pervert the minds of youth in particular and tho public
in general" - a ll emphasising the quality of cautiousness*
HCmevof I t SaiSw also *50 stated uh^v thsrw are ways in which
the people of this country sight be better served i f the
Commission were more lib eral in i t s point of view*
A more liberal approach to architecture could
result in bettor transacting of the business of government,
especially through buildings designed as human "machines
for living and working in ," rather than as impersonal shrines*
A more lib eral approach to city planning could result in
Washingtons having a more unified plan end appearance
i f its two major parts ** government buildings and commercial
shops - were considered together as parts of one eossunity*
rather than as distinct segments to be fitte d into a plan of
old and depending upon the random space available. In
connection with th is , the Gersaission sight note feat current
Washington needs parking lo ts as well as parks* and slum
clearance (within a stones throw of the Capitol) as well as
Mall landscaping and beautification*
R e pro duce d w ith pe rm issio n o f the co p yrig h t ow ner. F urthe r re p rod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission.
32
Lastly, a more lite r a l approach to painting and
sculpture could resu lt in their being considered together
with the aroM teeturs. as pOA"w Of vlav UmJIXmAIafLS wi
iabellishmant' added la te r, like frosting on a cake* tod,
in a ll areas of a rt, i t seems that both the government
buildings and eity, as well as the country's a rt as a whole,
would be better serwed i f the Fine Arts Commission would
concern its e lf more with living, creative expression of our

Hvaa rn nflsrt nnl-fcnj*fig of fcrifi pastl or a t least work
hand in hand together with the paste
NATIONAL GALLERY OF ART
The olisas of government in a rt for its e lf 1 is
reached with the National Gallery of ATtt* Here i s a rt for
cultural display en masse! Hot only is the architecture for
th9 gallery of imported design, but the whole in terio r is
mostly composed of foreign paintings and seuiptureo Taking
the major galleries as a whole, where the American and
British paintings are generally grouped together as on, in
proportion there is only about one gallery of these to every
six galleries of Italian Paintings, five of French, and as
and ne-half of Flemish and Butch, The Melica Ccllsctica,
1, One more major way in which the government uses a rt for

cultural display is in national and international expositions
UUU
A
ARJ.1
------
aXjoit - - X - V I - vx Xtuooo
1 I--A X -.--.
uao ucou
X - - V . X X -
quoi a*
Buildings and exhibits a t the New York World* s Fair and
the Sen Francisco Pageant of the Pacific, both in 1939-40
TKs June, IQJQ issue of the ARCHITECTURAL FOEUM is devoted
entirely to excellent photography and captions of these twO
l a i i 0 |

CUU
.2 .U 1U A U U O B OWhlO USA
XV-
UUD S 'O U Q l R A VIWTOSUU19UW
, x - i V-.-s__
W V U M A W M 13
tiona to each. See, also. George Jackson, A HISTORY OF CENTENNIALS,

EXPOSITIONS AND WORLD'S FAIRS,fLincoln, NflbrnaknS Wnlmagftr.,HrlnkmBTi
ln-zr\\ "
- V . , * > 77 , .
,
33
cue o? the hasio donations to the gallery, does include a
few paintings by early United States painters Copley, Savage,
Stuart, Trumbull ana sfegi = gad the Ghosts" "ale eellcotien,
on loan to the gallery, contains a small group, but nona of
these are the work of any recent painters* Aside from these
exceptions, there is l it t le evidence of my creative painting
and sculpture from this country ia the gallery, which is
supposed to be the nations shrine of art* Instead the
museum stands as cne which would be sore appropriate in a
capital city in Europe where the collections would be nearer
to their original source* One possible exception to this
is the case of the oolleotion of prints from the TfPA s
Index of American Design, now housed in the Haticnal Gallery*
Fine as that i s , and indigenous, i t is a collection of repre=
dueticns of our early crafts,* and is not either creative
painting or sculpture in the usual sense* Thus American a rt
in the national Gallery is almost a thing unknown* Perhaps the
nearest the gallery comes to anything indigenous is its
Tennessee and Usrseit marble, Indiana limestone, and American
fhoed oaki
A great deal could be said about the National Gallery,
but the main point seems to bs th at, icsrcssiT'o as e, u u a a u a
1. See Chapter three.
54
to yiQIIo
v *- tf*
V.- T,QT^
,itr'n
O** nnl Tao'f.Tovi V<s5 ?+V h i-PGi.A
VV-.*.. a.
4.
1->-iii wO C. UiUC
National Gallery. Wiat Lewis Mumford says about- galleries
and museums in general is true of th is gallery as vails
"Into the ausQUiu come the dic.iccta membra of other

| flV lJ a 4*V AM A ltl A n A L V AM AWA *1 j W . l j * u a M 1
A c u iu S f w w iiu i V UJ.OU1QO) u o iw i v j. v x x x itiG iu a s a A ll
that had once been a living faith and practice is
here redueed to a separate specimen; pattern, or
form. For the museum, the world of a rt has already
bean oreateds the future is restricted to a duplics-
tion of the perfected p a s t..the one thing that the
museum cannot attempt to do is to supply, a soil for
living a rt; a ll that i t can present is a pattern
for reproduction. To the extent that an insincere
or imitative art is better than no a rt at a ll, the
Imperial Age marked an advance $ to the extent,
however, that living art is as fresh a gesture of
4-V* m 4 mU 4-V .1 1 - I .4 ^ 1 ...
u itu o p x ix u j uiit> iu u o o u m uw uoooou o .j,i o u v jj jl eu-u
that the age had no fresh gestures to make; on
that score, i t was a failure, and the copying of
period furniture and the design of period archi-
teoture vrere the livid proofs of that failure."
This does not mean that we are to discard the past,
but to see i t in perspective, in relation to the present and
the possible future.
Ironioally, the National Gallery was constructed at
a time just following ths government's greatest a rt program

2
for the people, the PA four a rt projeots. But because of
the provisions set forth by Mellon in establishing the Gallery,
ths results of th is v ita l program had to be ignored and the
Gallery constructed in the tradition of the government using
art for its e lf , for cultural display, in the age of eclecticism.
1. Lewis Mumford, op. cite , pp. 149, 150.
2. Chapters three - six.
35
Thus the National Gallery of Art stands in the Nation* s
Capital; not a= the heart of the Nation5:: a rt activities?
but as a fin al tribute to the age of great fortunes;
conspicuous display; end cultural sslf-ceageiousness* It
stands as a memorial to this age, even though i t was
constructed in a new era which had outgrown these nine
teenth century traits, and had organised one of the most
democratic art-for-the-people programs ever attempted*
36
CHAPTER 2 - TOffiMELOMBST.fllD 1HB WPA
The record of government participation ia the arts
1 ^|Art^nArf A* nf
tilxs arts themselves in the United States First was the period
of honest, simple design in the handmade furniture and early
dwellings of ths pioneers. These colonists were busy s i earing
land, fighting Indians, and building homos so they had l i t t l e
time either for government or for a rt. Both were simple
ffiirily sid cr>*"TW

MTT^jjy 5,ffG,j.v5 !E3i0 goYsrzm^n't) yrs. * nsccssETy
organisation for proteotion and order; ths arts and crafts
were organic with their designs growing out of the needs of
the people a t the time and the unpretentious use of available
m aterials.
Following this f ir s t period was a second one of
rebellion against the simple and unadorned design of the early
pioneers* I t was the time when great fortunes were being
amassed, and when social position and prestige depended upon
the importation of foreign styles and "culture* I t was ths
period of exploitation and eclecticism. People began moving
westward into new te rrito ry where more natural resources
were to be had for the taking. Farm land, mines and forests
were there for those who had the frontier s p irit to defy
hardships and get there firsto In agriculture i t was the
period of cutting down the forests and using the soil for
37
a ll i t was worth, as is lata? years the ir.eriesas destroyed
the buffalo to make my for cattle* la mining aad la forestry
i t m s the period of taking a ll there m s aad then noviag on*
Taking what they eouid from those resources, there m s l i t t l e
concern for tho futureI tho future was always "more aid better
in the West* This m s the period of ruthless exploitation of
the natural resources of the niaeteeath century which the
generations living now are beginning to pay for in soil
erosion, depleted forests, diminishing lumber supplies, and
limited minerals in the mines* But who was to care about
the future as long as the present supplied eueh great fortunes,
a t least to a ruthless few* Wealth became power, and to display
th is power and position works of a rt were imported wholesale*
In the a rts, the period was one of change from the
simple, meaningful home crafts of the early pioneers to the
importation from Europe of the so-called "fine a rts ," and the
mass-produotion of in tricate decoration and ornamentation*
I t was the period of change from honest design whioh grew out
of organic frontier needs to the period o? more leisure, of
interest in That was called "culture," and the accompanying
oaispieuous display of wealth* In architecture too, i t was
ths period wherein the architect was no longer a craftsman work
ing directly with the buildlrs, ta t rather a kind of white
collar executive whose only contact with the workmen was
38
thr5s^h on pAps?? TH @rts of wi3 pssplp thessslves
had disappeared or were ainimsd| th Rmeuraing pieoaR
and staplers of grandmother's time were moved to the a ttio ,
to he replaoed by plush pillows and g i l t frames, and foreign
importations*
With this superficial attitu d e toward the arts
generally, i t was natural that government in terest in the
arts a t this time should also he mainly for show and display*
I t was tho period described in chapter emo, where the plan for
the federal city was imported from Paris and where the designs
for the government buildings were based on accepted classical
styles* I t was the period when i t was thought America was too
young and adolescent to produce any creative ta le n t, so the
designs for many statues end memorials were imported from
Europe* I t was the period of government using a rt for its e lf
and not as a v ita l p art of the lif e of the people.
The third period was one of rebellion against th is
eclecticisms In the a rts i t was the period of several creative
native a rtis ts maintaining, that th is country was grown up
enough to be producing its own art* Although i t is d ifficu lt
to point out where the groundwork begins in this movement
for an indigenous a r t, we know i t was aided by such a rtis ts as
Louis Sullivan and la te r Frank Lloyd Wright in Arthiteeture,
Walt Ihitagn in Literature. Isadora Duncan in the Dance,
Charles Ives in Musi?; Albert Pinkhaia Fydar in Fainting;
39
Alfred S tiegiits in ruSttWAMpiiy> sad 'ey several ethers*
this third period has been characterised 'fay many features?
hat one of the most significant is the a t t e s t to find the
same kind of honesty is d e sip as was praotioed in the early
arts and crafts of the pioneers* She ss$hasis wgs cm native
d e sip , not because of a sense of glorified nationalism, bat
because these creative artists believed i t was honest for us
to d esip aooording to our needs and materials at hand instead
of borrowing the remnants of other eultures and past styles
which were no longer a strong part of ua* At least i t was
beginning to be more of an emphasis on the arts for the people*
Government interest in art for the people was not
something whioh grew out of this eultural climate in a natural
way* The government was forced into the position of having
to help artists of a ll sorts back to work during Ms threes of
the depression of 1929* And i t was beoause o f M s that
there was developed one of the most democratic srt^for^ths*"
people programs ever attempted*
* * * * * * * * *
1* For a history of Modem Art ia the United States, one which

attempts to trace tho roots underlying the Modem Movement
as well as to present the stories of those who played important
parts in its development* see Jerome Mellauist, THE EMEEGMOE
OF AH AMERICAS AST, (Hegr York? Scribners Sens, 1 9 ^, !1 pp.)
Hhea the degressl base. la 19Qt i t h it hard.
Witness!
"Between October & and 29, shocking things happened

in the stook market* Prices of stooks and bonds
tumbled precipitously* Panic seised the people who
had boon speculating in stocks! sons said too million
Americans had been drawn into the mad orgy of trying
to get something for nothing. Most of these speculators
lost a ll that they had made in the 1920s s. Cmed men,
made poor oversight, killed themselves* Fear and be
wilderment spread over tho country* Tho people began
to save what sonsy they had, withdrawing i t from basks,
and buying only necessary goods* The business of stores
and factories dwindled and orders to wholesalers and
manufacturers declined* One by one the factories
closed! a general end rapid fa ll in the production of
goods resulted* Such unemployment prevailed as
America had never known before* The normal figure of
2. 000.000 for lie prosperity year of 1929 became
5.000.000 in 1930..* 12, 000,000 in 1932**and was
variously estimated a t 13, 000,000 to 17, 000,000 when
President Heoaevelt went into office*8 *
At this lew ebb in our nation s history, during a period in
which we were helplessly drifting along, a period characterised
by nwe are not going anywhere! we are merely on the way, 8 new
hope appeared for the people when a President, Franklin
Roosevelt, spoke confidently in his inaugural address cm
March iu 1933s Hie only thing we have to fear is fear
its e lf ." The assurance with which i t was spoken, and the
friendly tone, mads those who heard ths speech feel that
something would bs dens to right the situation! the reeord
afterwards showed that something was dene.
1, Sarold Rugg, FQOBDAHOBS FOR AMERICAS EDPCATIOH,

(N'T? Yo?rr* World Baat? C0e, lyh?) ps JKS.'
"One third of a nation*"the lowest thirdj th e ir's
is the record o f hardship and poverty In Europe i t was

i*ppypi>-o1 Tir t n o 1 rv<ror rn* wl fif r,Vt vn'r>^ o r' a>'i wVia v**l 4- rVt=
opportunities too few, and le ft for the newer nation across
the Atlantio. With new hope they b u ilt homes and founded
Colonies? not Europe's aristocrats, but its poorer people,
seeking freedoms they could not find in the old country. As
their communities grew and the nation grew, some achieved
wealth and power, but some also remained a part of the lowest
third here. Meanwhile others immigrated from foreign nations,
and while the population as a whole increased, so, naturally,
the lowest third also grew in numbers expanding with them the
nation's problems of malnutritidn and ill-housing. It is
th is group which has oome to include the "Starvation group"
and part of the "poverty group" of our nation's families.*
1. In a study made by Miss Hildegarde Xneeland, in 1935 and

1936 for the National Resources Commission, she divided the
entire population of the country, approximately 29,400,000
families, into five major classifications according to
their consumer incomes:
Name of Group Number of Families Average Income

Starvation group 8,000,000 Less than $750
Poverty group 11,000,000 |750 to $1,500.
Comfort group 8,000,000 $1,500 to $3,000
Luxury group 1.585,000 $5,000 to 5,000
. . . fs j-sf s
ur- AAA _ .- _
*___
__
Viearcny group ouu5uwu ux* uvw
Quoted from Department of Agriculture b u lletin , TOWARD FARM

SECURITY, op. o it., pp. o, 4, 5.
42
.And i t is th is group whioh forms the breadlines during
depressions because of unemployment, the groun which "the
best people" accuse of being
"unpatriotio, of trying to get something for

nothing, lhat oan the worker without a job say
to the landlord when he comes to oollect the rent?
...M a t we have been doing is putting the burden
. pn:the unemployed. We have told them to be p atriotic
and to submit meekly to whatever comer, taking what
l i t t l e is offered, lettin g their humility prove, by
some strange yardstick, the measure of th eir loyalty
to the oountry. In a word, we have asked them to be
better oitiaens than th e ir landlords..."*
So i t is th is lowest third of the population whioh has needed
help help whioh never seemed to oome u n til after the finanoial
orash of 1929. Unemployment had been in the increase so that
by January, 1930, there were about 4^000,666 persons Without
work. By December of that year the number rose'to ehout
7,000,000 and by the early part of 1933, th is number was
doubled*
Of major importance for th is study were the WPA
Federal Art, Music, Theatre and Writers1 Projects which gave
work to thousands of unenployed creative persons of the nation*
But in order to understand th eir significance, they must be
studied in relation to the greater re lie f programs of which
they vfere a part *
1* Harry L* Hopkins, THE REALITIES OF TOEffLCffHBEIT, (Washingtons

Government Printing Office, 1937), pp 16, 17.
2. Figures from government bulletin; FINAL REPORT OH THE W A
PROGRAM, 193b-45, (Washingtons Government Printing Office,
1946), p. 2.
b3
The first* sieger awempv est any r casonAb*y large
seal to curb the mounting unemployment problem came in 1932}
tinder th Hoover Administration, with the creation of the
Emergency Belief and Construction Acts Through this Act
300,000,000 of Federal funds were made available for loans,
through the newly-oreated Heconatruotion Finance Corporation,
to State and local governments to supplement th eir re lie f
funds* Under Bio ERCA, public work projects were begun by
State and looal governments, but since sufficient funds were
not made available for major construction work, the work on
these projects was of a piece-meal character whioh included
such activities as sprucing up parks and patohing roads,
giving the projects the term" leaf-raking*" I t was only
after the Federal Emergency Belief Administration was created
on May 12, 1933, that sufficient funds were made available
for major construction work, inoluding housing projects,
hospitals, lib raries, pest offices, highways and
bridges, thus taking the projects cut of the "leaf-raking
category* Unfortunately, this term was carried over into
the 7?PA Projects, end lingered long after i t s usefulness*
With the creation vf FBaAy Cvaa?6S3 appropriated an
original f5C0,G00,C00 and continued la te r additional appropriations
44
until the end of 1935* Out of the FERA grew the Resettle-
"cut Administration program to aid the rural lower third of
the population, and the Federal Surplus Relief Corporation
to help boost farm prioes by removing oertain crop surpluses
from the market; and out of FERA also grew the Civil Works
Administration3 Publio Works Administration, and 'Works
Progress Administration to help provide employment for the
urban lowest third, and to help the national economy as a
whole through increasing the consumer purchasing power of
the people* In explaining the government's position in
creating these aganoies, re lie f administrator Harry L.
Hopkins said?
"For the very life of business, the mass of people

must be able to buy, for mass production is the
heart of the system...Unemployment has an economic
as well as a human aspect. Beyond what we owe to
the unemployed, we owe i t to our national economy
to make the maximum use of the energies which millions
of unemployed are now compelled to waste* The American
Nation cannot go forward to the heights of economic
1. The Federal Works Agency bulletin, FINAL STATISTICAL REPORT

OF THE FEDERAL EMERGENCY RELIEF ADMISTMTIQfl.'(Washington;
Government Printing Office, 1942}, states that;
"Through the FERA, Federal funds totaling v3,CS8,000,000 were

granted to the states; these grants financed a major part of
the total cost of re lie f given to unemployed persons and
their families from May 1933 when agency was created until
the end of 1935 when its liquidation began: More than
20,000,000 or about 16 percent of the to tal population of
the Us Se received re lie f under the programs conducted by
emergency re lie f administrations when these programs reached
their peak in January', 1935..
(Freface III)
h5
woll-keisg on which i t has a right to live unless

i t s manpower is used* The conservation of oa?
hussar* rssourcGs should be our guiding principle*
I t is of greater importance, evef ,thas Sie conservation
of our physical resources* Indeed, the fcrmor w ill
automatically include the latter* 55the Federal
SoversMent eflffliot refuse re sp c rsib ilitr Sot providing
jobs to those tdiom private industry d9es not hire*a*"*
So on June 16, 1933# the Federal Government created the Publie
Works Administration, under the authority of the National
Industrial Recovery Act, to give work to the unemployed on
major construction projects* PSA was sot a building agency
in its e lf , but mads loans to State and looal governments, and
to individual builddrs for construction purposes* Because
FRA was slow in getting started, a temporary agenoy, the
Civil Works Administration was organized 4ta ova tta
unemployment emergency for the winter months of I933 and 193b
The CM, oreated in November, 1933# different from FWA is
that i t was operated as a Federal program wfaersin construction
was under the control of Federal GWA authorities* However,
CWA did aid local and State govsmmento is soso oosstmotics
projects* Major construction work of CM consisted in the
building and repairing of 2555000 miles of stre ets, highways,
and roadways, and in the construction of 60,000 public buildings,

g
about half of vhieh were sehcclg*
1* Harry L* Hopkins, op* o i t ., pp* 16, 18
2* Figures from FINAL BEPOBT os the WPA program, op* cit*, p !;*
minor Woy, especially in SWYork uu other larger cxttos
A few of these had been orgenized under the womens re lie f
nrfdnn-hn of PRPA.sneh
iT,=' "v ' ~ ^ ~ * - - r "*
an handicraft a ctiv itie s,*' minor a rt
- " ..................... "
and s isie projects, and sisewra aid serviceg.and these were
put into action under the CWA section of FERA* In most oases
thouo cultural progr&mc.j^-jtae e= cymphcyy ooaocrts. dr&raatie
productions, and painting projects,*fir sponsored by state
and local agencies after they had been started by CIA
directors* Actually these programs were more closely related
to the H?A Recreational Projects than to the major 1PA arty
Music, and Theatre Projects; for the emphasis was on amateur
production and musical participation rathsr than on professional
competence* The few professional a rtis ts ; Bsi3ician3 and drama
directors who were employed served as leaders for the local
citizen s work rather than as professional performers* In
this way the program was also szmilar to some of the work of
the Special Skills Division of the Resettlement Administration;
especially in i t s recreation program; where the arts were
employed as a means of helping people to get acquainted with
one another in the new government housing csumnnitles cstab
lished by that agency* Most significant; in terms of lasting
quality, of the CIA cultural programs was the Public Works of
Art Project whioh CIA operated under the Procurement Division
of the U S Treasury Department* I t la te r became a permanent
part of the Treasury Department*
hi
When CIA was ended in April, I93h, the records were
turned back to the Federal Emergency Belief Administration,
and served as a basisnfor the establishment of the "works
Administration a JfSSiT IsbO^T VA 6 eO O^Ti jf
wliere C?BL le ft off* Wk tfaa f ir s t established as the Works
Progress Administration, through Exeoutive Order So# 70^,
but four years later was incorporated in the Federal Works
Agency, under the Presidents Reorganisation Flan of 1959,
and was renamed Work Projects Administration, s t i l l retaining
ths same sa il le tte rs , WTA, however
Under the large organisation, the Federal Works
Agency, there were organised more than forty separate divisions,
including the Public Works Administration, the United States
Housing Authority, the Public Buildings Administration, and
the Publio Roads Administration# I t was the duty of Wk to
work as coordinator for these various agendas# WPA's
responsibility was for the "honest, efficient, speedy, and
coordinated execution of the work re lie f program as a whole,
and for the execution of that program is such manner as to
move from the re lie f rolls to work on such projects or in
private employment the maxims number of persons in the
shortest time possible, 8,1
1. FHIAL REPORg cm W?A, op# cit, p* ?.

Ua
nPA projuotg vtuao Uuuor three major classifications
as far aa sponsorship was coneeraedi a few were sponsored only
by ths Federal Government, some were sponsored by ths States
with Federal
planned and sponsored by city , village, county or township
govornmenta with the aid of tho Federal Government* Before
the pla for a projset were aoe-sptsd, ths sponsor had to
show not only the estimated cost* the amount and kinds of
labor required, but the proportion of the expenses whioh th is
sponsor wss prepared to take oare of; In addition, ths
sponsors had to agree that they would complete the project
should the UFA not be able to do so She sain faetor in
accepting or rejecting each projeot, though, was whether
or not i t provided work for the needy persons who were un
employed and available in the local community* For this
reason some Wk projects were held up u n til others had been
completed*
Since fPA was established as part of the Government's
Emergency Belief program, i t s main purpose was to give employ
ment to workers idio could not find jobs* Heed and employability
were ths primary c rite ria in giving people jobs* Heed was
based on to ta l family income and resources as compared to
estimated minimum budget for a family of a given size in &
particular locality, and employability was largely a matter of

b9
physical fitaesa and health. la addition to those two,
other c rite ria governing 1PA easplcyffisat word liid.ts.tioa of
employment to one person in a family! lim itation to those
ore? 16 years of age (raised to 18 years in July 1938).*
exclusion of persons who ju s t moved into a oosmmity for the
purpose of getting 1PA jobs, and exclusion of those serving
at the tine in penal or es?res id anal institutions? plus
additional lim itations impGsod by "Ongrsss? including the
restriction of aliens and Communist or Bundist party mcmte rs .
The Wk differed from private employers in th at its purpose
was to aid workers only u n til they could find jobs elsewhere,
whereas private industry attempted to keep i t s workers ones
i t had hired them.
The extent of projeots and work carried on under
the WPA program was such th at i t is d iffic u lt to comprehend.
Donald S. Howard explained th is in a study which he did for
the Bussell Sage Foundation on 1PA and re lie f!
HAn enumeration of a ll the projeots undertaken and

completed by the Wk during i ts lifetime would include
almost every type of work imaginable. These projects
have ranged from the conatruotion of highways to the
extermination of ratsj from the building of stadiums
to the stuffing of birds? from the improvement of
airplaas landing fields to the making s f Braille
books? from ths building of over a miHion of the now
famous privies to the playing of the worlds great
symph<siise Projects have varied, too, from mosquito
control to the serving of school lunches! from the
beautification of cemeteries to beauty treatments to
improve -Sse morale of patients in hospitals for the
mentally ill? from the repair of library books to the
building of libraries! from the teaching of handicrafts
50
to the teaching of Spanish to members of the country*g

armed forces? from the rendering of housekeeper
service to needy families to mopping up th eoastiy<=
side after roarings flooding rivers* Dae might
further oontraot sewing garments and rip-rapping
levee s? draining swamps sad painting murals? repairing
wharves and maiding children* s teeth? leadership in
recreation and reeeastruetiea of bridges? sealing
abandoned mines and teaching illite r a te adults 18 f@aS
and write? and planting trees and planting oysters*
So vast have the IPA*a achievements been that attempts
to present them in quantitative terms only stagger ths
imagination*.* *
Although the work of the flPA included such a variety of a cti
vities? i t can be roughly divided into eleven major divisions
carried on during its eight years of existence* These are*
(l) the Division of Engineering and Construction? (2) the
Division of Service Projeots? vhich included the Federal Art
Projects? (3) the Division of Training and Reemployment? for
the training of workers for defense industries? (H) the
Division of Finance, responsible for the records on a ll
h?A funds? (5) the Division of Employment? regulating a ll
nploymeat activ ities from e lig ib ility of workers to th eir

0 ?^
dismissal? (6) the Division of Management? including
administrative functions of organisation and operation;
*
*6 T\ U Cl rs* ***S
A/U4AttitA UQ iivncJ.Vj
TSDk ATTT1 OTTV3DAT DT?T TT7T? PftTTHT
fptns in* v*. j
(Sew York! Russell Sage Foundation? 1543)?p 126T
2* Since government ssglsyees have no legal right to strike?

this Division included the regulation of fa ir labor employ
ment practices and establishing of policies to protect the
workers from discrimination and unfair treatment.
R e p r o d u c e d with p e r m issio n o f th e co p y rig h t o w n e r . F u rth er rep ro d u ctio n p roh ib ited w ith o u t p e r m issio n .
51
(7) ths Division of Statistics.' (8) the Division of Research,
asking studies concerning unemployment, public works, and
1PA services? (9) thb Division of Investigation, to be on the
lookout for dishonest practices on 1PA projects? (10) ths
Division of Information, responsible for news releases,
pamphletsf a rtic le s, oto.? and ( ll ) the Legal Division. The
last four divisions were organised only in the Federal head
quarters of TiPAS a ll othe functioned in Stata and regional
offices as well.
Booause of the soope of ffiA, complete studies conId
be done on any of the above mentioned divisions* For purposes
of th is study, however, i t scans most important to examine
ths Division of Service Projeots, îieh ineluded the four
a rt projeots, somewhat in detail, and to mention briefly the
work of the Engineering and Construction Division, because of
its architectural program.
Examined in reverse order, the Engineering end
Construction Division included work in the construction or
improvement of public buildings, streets end highways,

/4 -r-i 14 W Art **AA*<t(Sn<M n* *
VO I U 4 I & g V i 9 G b U i l U U a A
AJ L & J .A *! J XJ _ _ Zi AX-. ___________d.1 J______*!

i v X w w f &UU A S rU A X A U X 7 9 lU i V JU U O C A V G b A V U UA A1G, UU'S*A
resources. During the eight years of i t s existence, about
35, 06k publio buildings were constructed and improvements
52
. __ .... j, fie nr*l.

* tr . . ... <
nvt v wcauxy uw OMtiUûg u t u i u i u g i # 10 0Q9 81^X9 OF
kind cf architecture was used? pleas were based on topography)
local neads, and existing architectures Of these public
buildings. 6.059 new schools were b u ilt ?nd'*2; lJ 2 wc. *
impreved; mors than 1.000 libraries} 2-500 hospitals and
15)000 auditoriums and gymnasiums were constructed or
improved.
In a ll) about 651)037 miles of streets and highways
war constructed) and 5)95>000 linear feet of airport
runways laid? together with 1. 129*000 linear feet of tpjd
strips* About 350 new landing fields were b u ilt and nearly
700 improved; 1)192 new airport buildings treat up during
n?A5s eight years %and 2)82y were improved* One could |0 OS
listin g the quantities of construction which 1PA completed,
but that seems unnecessary) since even these few examples
cited seem enough to prove that more was accomplished than
11leaning ea shovels as was popularly implied. Foes of the
works progress also carried over the term leaf-raking' from
pre-Herr Deal days, gad coined their ewa"ditch digging) to
signify th sir criticisms of 1PA work as worthless and to
imply that -workers were getting paid for doing nothing. 1
1. Figures for construction projects taken from the President's

message to Congress on OPERATIONS AND BPL0?MEHT OF THE fiRg
PROJECTS AvlSNISSItAflOH, (Washington* Govsmmsau rrinving
Office, 19hh)s Table 2, ppe 6*10? and from !PA Final Report)
Op. c it.) Sable XVI) pp. I 3I-I33
R e p r o d u c e d w ith p e r m is s io n o f th e co p y rig h t o w n e r . F u rth er r ep ro d u ctio n p roh ib ited w ith o u t p e r m issio n .

53
ilxalat tuo? 6 naa uu wasting Gx any liii Cxi n?A projects would
be as ridiculous as to in sist th ere are no workers in private
industry who ever go out for a cup of coffeos Hswgvs?, in
either oase. the results do not go to b drastically the
worse for its la order to deterging to what degree there
was wasting of time on the projeots, 1SPA Administrators
secured the eoopsri,tica, of t a aatioaal civic- planning
orgauisatlGas, like the American Municipal Association,
National Aeronautic Association, the Society of Planning
O fficials. American Institute of Architects; end the
American Engineering Council, These organisations made &
Nationwide survey of 7,737 eeasnnitieg in a ll sections of
the eountry They found substantial vidsace to shew
R.that the workers generally give an honest day's

labor, that the workmanship is good and frequently
equal to private work, that the improvements are in
the great majority of oases badly needed by th9
communities and yet beyond local resources without
the Federal pay checks to the workers#8
For further proof of the record of physical accomplishments
of the Bsgineering and Construction Division of the WA, one
need only look a t the s ta tistic a l tables in the bulletins
"Operations end Ssploymsnt of the KPA" and "Final Report on
the 1PA Program. 1955-^3sH both quoted Stos previously, d
1. Reported by Harry L, Hopkins in M IS THE 'AMERICAN HAY?*

(nashingtcaJ Government Printing Office. 1935 j pp. 12, 13
R e p r o d u c e d w ith p e r m issio n o f th e co p y r ig h t o w n e r. F u rth er rep ro d u ctio n p roh ib ited w ith o u t p e r m issio n .

5k
then i f uu6 is n 't Cuuviu66$, lo t him keep track Ox the numbers
of tiiws ho sees *1S?A* in itia ls in building foundations and
cornerstones, public sidewalks sad street cartings? briugss?
AaTim. gpw.dst?fids; gwd -ewggft owfl 1t u t i aw pisntsi lUvsn
to th9 cynic, a ll these must add up to sore than ftlcaning on
shovels*
Although Wk was e ritie issa to seas uogrtg is practi
cally a ll of its projects? the Major negative criticisms wore
directed at the Division of Service Projeots, for this
group contained the controversial Art and 'theatre Projects#
This is understandable since government participation in a rt,
other than snatcaioally-aoeuratc statues, and in theatre,
other then historical pageants, has been the subject of
adverse criticism throughout the flatten s history.
The Service Projects Division was f ir s t established
to provide work for professional, technical, and clerical
workers of both sexes who were -unemployed, and for the
group of unskilled and semiskilled women who needed work but
couldn't find employments The work wag f ir s t divided into
three general classifications? (1) Public A ctivities Projects,
(2) Heaearch and Records Projects, and (3) Welfare Projects#
Tho Welfare Projeots were, in the main, Sewing,
Gardening end Canning, School Lunoh, and Public Health
Projects, a il examples of the Roosevelt Administration
55
P - . I _ A. l - _ l _ i l ---------- !------ II
/V 4 L * V jr V i lQd./.fc&g) U V VV U 9d>^ W U OA ttOA S330 ^* U U L L
tuv Ol|ut jfGT8 of H?A, nOlWMi Oa tuv Svtulig Projects pjfOduGSd
382. 800.000 garments which war distributed by local sponsor
ing flgsnaias to needy men. women- end children, sr>d about
117. 800.000 shoots- towels- pillowcases, hospital gowns end
general household articles? Seme Projeots used cotton pur
chased by ths Government, to relieve the aotton surplus* gad
made i t into mattresses for needy families. ThesS iaattrsss
Baking projects, however, *Vere olosed out by the WPA in
deference to the objections of private manufacturing interests,
Through the Gardening end Canning Projeots, community gardens
war? planted and cared for, and then nearly 85, 000,000 quarts
of food were canned and 11,1^50,000 pounds of food were pre
served through the drying process, for distribution to needy
families in their hoses. Working cooperatively with the
Gardening and Canning Projeots, yet for most of the fiPA s
eight years a separate project of 1PA, was the School Lunch
Program* Prepared under the general supervision of dietetic
sports, more than 1,237,009,000 lunches were prepared and
served to undernourished school children. In extreme eases
of Ealnoarishsent, cod-liver o il and extra a ilk and fru it wore
provided for the children. The Public Health Projects f ir s t
1 WPA Final Ssport, op. it., p. 63.
56
provided jobs for doctors, dentists, and nurses who were on
re lie f ro lls , and in addition provided medical aides for
doctors and nurses in hospitals and in general public health

- I . T5 X -A X t.- 1- - J* XV- TS.V1 A - TT- ~ 1 XV T\ J _ - X .. >_____ A
iiv ix e i e i g Ox a? vx guv i u v . u u uQa<iii x iv jtz u u s nad xu
the administering of tests and immunisations, part was in
dental and medioal clinics, and part even included the
malaria control work of draining mosquito-breeding swamps*
The second division of the Service Projects consisted
of Researoh and Records Projectsa These, in turn, contained
two major divisions, one devoted to Social and Economic
Surveys and the other to Researoh Assistance Projects?
Survey Projects were organized to aid Government agencies,
at looal, State, and Federal levels, in collecting essential

i
data for their work* Of th is, the Final Report of UPA gives
as examples!
n0..A complete inventory of housing fa c ilitie s in 6!+

c itie s was made under the technical direction of the
Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Coisaeroe, th is inven-
t c - - = U-K hV,r-.v!*V, V , 1 WWs -.-TT.w=
u n til i t covered more than 200 cities* A national
health survey, earried on under the direction of the
Dhitsd States Public Health Service and employing
5,000 workers, secured data on the health conditions
and medical eare in 775,000 fesdlies* A -series of
detailed studies was made of the displacement of
1* This work was carried Qn in cooperation with the Engineer

ing and Construction Projects* In a ll, 15,268 miles of
ditches were aug and new pipe laid for mosqumo control
s** o su u k..y |M> UU4WO v i t v w w u c V1UVVUU VA
improved*
57
writers by machines is different trades. Aoooplete

invtory of business enterprises was made for the
Census Etorsaa. City planning was aided by many
surveys* suoh as the important land use survey mads in
Chicago. Analyses of industrial accidents and diseases
supplied the factual basis for more equitable eD ispensation
procedures and medp possible narc effective aeasui'eg
of prevention. The sponsors of these UFA projects
rrera obliged to publish the findings of the surveys*
supervisors employed by the W?A were sometimes given
oharge of the preparation of such reports.*
The Research Assistance Projeots provided professional and
technical workers to assist in scientific and technological
experimentation and scholarly research in tax-supported
universities and colleges. Clerical workers wore also pro
vided to a ssist in the records and in some cases manual
workers to help with routine laboratory tasks. She research
was carried on under the direction of the faculty members*
and nearly every state university in the country received aid
from WPA researoh projeots.
In cooperation with the Social and Econamio Surveys
end the Research Assistance Projects, Wk sponsored a Histori
cal Records Survey Project* Administratively, this was the
fifth division of Federal Project Ho. One which included the
four arts projects, and whioh w ill be disoussed shortly.
Evaover, since the purpose of ths Historical Survey was more
allied with the other research surveys, i t is included with
1. iSPA Final Report* op. c l t . , up. op, oo.
R e p r o d u c e d w ith p e r m is s io n o f th e c o p y r ig h t o w n e r . F u rth er re p ro d u ctio n p roh ib ited w ith o u t p e r m issio n .

58
them here." The Historical Records Survey was operated in
every county throughout the Ration end consisted in locating

g
organising# and cataloging h isto rical records of Stats*
scanty# sity end village governments, "oat included wash
records as those of early churches, family manuscripts, and
special early hooks sad newspapers# More than a thousand
inventories of these records were published for the use of
students and historians* Records of special historical
value were photographed or preserved in some similar manner
to prevent loss or destruction* Dr* Luther H* Evans was ths
Rational Director of the Historical Records Survey*
The third division of the Service Projeots consisted
of the Public A ctivities Projeots, inoluding the Education
Units, and the famous four a rt projectsthe Art, Music,
Theatre and Whiters* Projects, popularly known as "Federal
Ho* 1*" These were the WA projects which received the
1* In fact, although ths Historical Records Survey was aotually

begun as a seotion of the Federal W riter's Project, i t was
changed to a separate division in November 1956, mainly
because of differing purposes, and conflict arising therefrom#
2. Federal Government records were not included in this survey

as they were a part of a separate division, the Survey of
Federal Archives* For further information on th is survey,
see*: Philip W. Hamer, MANUAL OF THE SUBSET OF FEDERAL ARCHIVES,
(Wash* WA mimeographed bu lletin, Feb. 1936, 31 pp.) For one
of the results of the survey, see* Federal Writers1 Project,
OUR FEDERAL GOVERNMENT AND HOWII TORES, (Hew York*- Hastings
House, 1939, 23)4. gp*J
greatest public response, and toe moat oentroversiai dis
cussions, despite the fact that together they received less
than three-fourth^ of one per-esat of a ll TSPA approprlaticaigs
wluvv *iiuov fvUIT p* v j wva mTv O* msjcr s ip ific s s c s to s.
study of the Federal Government* s a rt programs, they will be
disouaaed individually in the next four ohaptera*
But before going Into th e fe a r a rt projects indivi
dually, mention should he made of the unusual insight of
government leaders to turn an eoeaomie depression into a

#*** *1 j Ve[**.* ^ 'T P aa.!* JU' ffwi.nn**
M lH M a a u w v t M 4 w v a* v m * C a i u S u U A w v m T o * V } *H>I * J
L, Hopkins stands out as the government offioial most
responsible for this achievement* I t was he who sensed the
potential of putting painters, masieians, and writers back
to work @i cenmunity projects* I t was he who organised these
projects and saw them through the f ir s t hard years.* ind i t
was he who accepted much of the blame himself for project
failures, and shared much of their success with his co-workers,
making him one of the few people who could have tackled such
a oodles and controversial program, and have the country some
out the better for it* To Harry Hopkins goes much credit for
ths far reaching effects of this constructive cultural Maelstroms
1* Harry Hopkins was administrator for IPA tress. July 1935 through
Deoember, 19380 He was succeeded by Colonel Francis Go
Harrington, in charge through Septs I9hO, and he was followed
in turn by Howard Hunter, October I9U0 u n til April I9lf2|
Francis Drydan, April to July 19^2; and Major General Philip
w : i..i m l, m b
cA w uugi w *j w v 'w w t y -
- Sea mention ehatld be a&de, tee? about the change
in government philosophy which cam about with the Franklin
Soose?#lt Administration, for the Federal Art Projeots could
coma about oily with this change* Porhaps best summed up as
"planning for the people* as contrasted to the e arlier
laissoE faire or "le t government mind i t s cran business and
the people theirs" of e a rlie r days* th is newer philosophy
was really a three-fold one whioh committed the government
end the people to ( 1) planning* ( 2) cooperation, and ( 3)
solf-discipline* The f i r s t of these, planning or design was
best explained in President H@ose?@lt>s f i r s t inaugural
speech whan he said?
"...ffhere there is no vision the people perish.*.The

money changers have fled from th e ir high seats in the
temple of our c iv ilisatio n . We may nor restore that
temple to the ancient truths. She measure of the
restoration lie s in the extent to which we apply
social values more noble then mere monetary profit**
These dark days w ill be worth a ll they cost us i f
they teach us that our true destiny is not to bo
sdnistersd unto but to s in is te r to ourselves sad to
our fellow men..."
In this same speech, he explained the philosophy of cooperation
to be carried out under his administrations
"In the field of world policy I would dedicate this

Fatten-to ths policy of the good neighbor,**ths
neighbor who resolutely respects himself and, beoause
he does so felpisets the rights of others ths
neighbor who respects his obligations and respects
ths sanctity of his agreements in and with a world
of neighbors**We cannot merely take but we sust
give as well.**" *
1* CQHGBBSSItm RECORD, Vol. 77s part 1, pp. 5s 6*
R epro duce d w ith perm ission o f the co p yrig h t ow ner. F urthe r rep rod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission.
Ths third p art of th is program of "planning for ths people,"
aotually extends the phrase to "planning HTH and for the
people," for i t involved a new oeneept of freedom based ca
the important factor, discipline* unlike the e arlier rugged
individualism of exploitation and "do what 1 want, when I
want,* this eonoept of freedom demanded a regard for another's
right to also "do what ha wants, when he wants." Freedom was
no longer license, hat involved a sooial responsibility.
President Eoosevelt explained his b e lie f in th is kind of
diseipline when he said in the saso speech, as he took his
f i r s t oath of offiee as President,-
" If we are to go forward, we ssist move as a trained and

loyal ersy willing to sacrifice for the good of a ecsaea
diseipline, because without such discipline no progress
is made, no leadership becomes effective...Tilth this
pledge taken, I assume unhesitatingly the leadership of
th is great army of cur people dedicated to a disciplined
attack upon our cossacn problems..." 1
Thus, with the government committed to a policy of
"planning with and for the people," and with leaders in govern-
ment who had the vision to a t t e s t to carry out such a policy,
the ground work was laid for establishing projects for
putting the country's creative talent back to work along
with oarpenters and brick-layera in a nation-wide attack oa
the majo? unemployment problems
1* CQBSEgSSIom gEOOHP- Yols 7?, part 1, pp5 5, 6.

I
62
CHAPTER S' - THREE ART PROJECTS
Whenever a government assumes the role of guide or
sponsor of the country1s art, i t is always faoed with the
problems o f - i i w B t h e one hand there is th
problem of, the degree .to whioh the government is responsible
to helpthe indiyidualoreative genius who is attempting to
prove h i8 worth end, add his, part to the nationfis growing
culture* On the other hand, there is the problem of the
degree to whioh i t is responsible to help the average ,
person to ejqserienoe. and enjoy that oulture, to, provide
fa c ilitie s so every one who wants to oan express himself
in some medium and oan also understand and appreciate the
oreative expression of others*
Since there were no major art projeots sponsored by
the Federal Government before the Franklin Roosevelt adminis
tration, these problems were virtually ignored up to that
time* However, when cultural programs were organized as
part of this Administrations large Emergency Relief Program,
these problems v/ere faced in some form or other by the dir
ectors of the three major government art projects! (l) the
Public 'works of Art project, established under ths Treasury
Department, (2) the Special Skills Division of the Department
of Agriculture's Resettlement Administration, aid (3) the
Federal Art Project, established under n?A

6?
ggBLIC WORKS OF ART PROJECT ^
Established under a great of a million and a g a r te r
dollars frea ths Civil Works A d aiaia tra tic ste ths Procurement
Division of the Treasury Beparêatj theBaMieWorks o rA rt
Project attempted to provide opportunities for the individual
creative a r tis ts of ts country by establishing competitions
for the ^decoration and embellishment15 of public buildings with
muralsj statues* and sculptural re lie f panelso A rtistic
ta le n t was the prime requisite for employment on th is projeot)
rather than need for work by unemployed painters and sculptors*
as in its case of WPA* This factor cast be taken into account
when attempting to evaluate the results of the project* That
i t was established as a professional project rather than a
r e lie f program means that i t s products should corns up to a
different standard) boo? than that used for judging f?A and
Special Skills a rt work*
The idea far PlfiP may be said to have originated
with A rtist George Biddle* former school and college friend
of President Roosevelt* Biddle had been impressed to learn
th a t the Mexican government was hiring the country's leading
moralists* like J o s s Glsmsats Grosso sad Bingo Rivera* to
work a t carpenter's and plumber's wages while painting ismfalg
on public buildings* So he wrote to the President* suggesting
a similar program for this country* Mr* Roosevelt too thought
h mo gjjoccl idssLj 2s*i*b s. soIjs Mr- L*
Assistant Seorwtary o f the Treasury* Soon Mr# Biddle and
Mr# Bobert were brought together# and the foundation was
laid for the new art program* The Pab lie forks of art
Project was began on December 8# 1935# with Edward Bruo la
oh&rge, and Forbes Watson as Teohnioal Direotor* This project
lasted only about h a lf a year# u n til ths nest May 20th# when
the CIA. funds ran out* After that# Mr* Bruoe was retained in
the Procurement Division# and by the following October had
reorganised the work of the project into a similar progress#
th is time under the sole sponsorship of the Treasury Department
itse lf# thus changing i t s statue from a r e lie f aganey#
although actually PffAP had never been thought of or run as
a r e lie f program* The new program was called the Section of
Painting and Seulpture# a t it le whioh i t had from 193^ when
i t was oreated# to Ootober 1958# i&en i t was ohanged to the
Section of Fine Arts# and made a permanent part of ths
Procurement Division of the Treasury Department* Mr* Edward
B* Bowan was assistant teohnioal director, and la te r succeeded
Mr# Brue as director* The a rtis ts were chosen by competitions
thick wore divided into two classes# national end regional*
When fee nrise amounted to l5#000 or more, the contest was
national in scope# open to a ll a rtis ts of the country# end
a national committee selected the winning design* Ihen fee
prise was in smaller amounts than I ? #000# then the contests
wsrs cpsa caly to a rtis ts s f ths region in which the building

65
was located wherein the art was going to he placed. Winning
designs were then selected "by a regional or local committee.
In addition to painting and sculpture, sometimes competitions
were held for wood carving, metal work, ceramics, and prints,
to he placed in public buildings, especially post offices and
libraries throughout the country. Money for the competitions
came from a reserve fund, apart from the cost of the buildings
themselves, but were usually figured at about one per cent
of that cost.
Grace Overmyer, in her book GOT/BHHMEHT A1TD CHS ARTS,
pointed out that
"During the four years (193^1938) of its lif e as

a temporary u n it, the Section of Painting and
Sculpture held seventy-nine competitions, in
which 4,8jk a r tis ts submitted designs. Three
hundred and seventy-five individual contracts
were completed, and awards were made totalling
$537,166. 1,1
Every state in the Union had some work done under
one of the three consecutive art programs of the Treasury
Department, with the major work being done in Federal Buildings
in Washington, D. C,
Some of the most familiar artists whose works are
now represented in these federal buildings, like the Department
1. Grace Overmyer, op. c it ., p. 103
of Justice* and Fostoffice buildings, are painters George
Biddle, John Stea&rt Gurry, Braest Flense, l i l l i a a Gropper,
Lsea E roil, Boris Lee, Henry Yarnum F oot , Boarfesa Eobinsca,
H illard Sheets, end Sculptors Lge fnedianaer, Michael Lasts,
Hebert Laurent, Orensio Maldarelli. and Haul Maaship*
At f i r s t glance, i t might Appear
a rt programs should corns under the jurisdiction of the Treasury
Department, but since th is division of the government has
traditionally been in charge of the e x tr a c tio n of public
buildings, the role of seeing th at these buildings be
"decorated end embellished5 naturally f e ll in line ra th the
construction program.
The greatest ^tehisveasnt of the Procurement Division
Program was the In terest that i t aroused both in our oan
native a rtis ts and in their interpretation of the Amerioan
scene* Foreign themes and classical myths were replaced by
local or regional landscapes, painting of persons of note,
or of various occupations end people a t work* Sometimes the
subject matter beeame more important than the design its e lf ,
but even so, i t TuS SUtJ GCt matter îloh the people kaevr and
not Super*imposed tlismss from abroad*
The major aim of rf/LP, as was said before, was "the
decoration and embellishment" of public buildings* This idea
of decoration added to a building after i t has been completed
p erm ission o f the cop yrig ht ow ner. F urthe r reprod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission.
67
î
ia perhaps good as a secondary measure to provide oppor
tunities for painters and sculptors to have th eir mirks
displayed end appreciated But lie more forward-looking
designers, architects, sad a rtis ts new Relieve i t is a
sounder policy to have both architects and a rtis ts work
hand in hand in the original designing, so that whoa murals
and sculptures are used they w ill he an integral part of the
building its e lf , instead of an applied afterthought for the
sake of decoration
H&? was c ritic ised for employing recognised a rtis ts
rather than those who wore unemployed end perhaps less well
reoognised. I t was believed by some too that the recognized
a rtis ts were ohosen for th e ir prestige value in order to make
fee project more generally acoeptable The saj or factor to
remember a t this point is that PitAP was primarily a pro
fessional project rather than a r e lie f one. As such i t did
succeed, for fee f i r s t time in government history, in per
mitting a few of the more modern a rtis ts to have th eir chance
a t creating a rt for public buildings# In fact, some of these
murals and pieces of sculpture stand out as notable otem
porary exceptions in otherwise classical and eclectic
surroundings#
68
THE jpECIil SKILLS DIVISION
The governments attack on the unemployment question
was not something centered in the Labor Department, or any
other special division of the governments It was a program
whioh made use of praotioally every government department,
inoluding agrioulture as muoh as any other. Is part of
it s efforts to put people baok to work, and at the same
time to attempt to raise thie living standards of the "lower
third of the nation s population, the Department of
Agrioulture had oonstruoted - with r elief labor some low
oost housing communities as part of it s Resettlement Admin
istration program. These "Greeribelt Communities were
designed as model garden communities, and a group of
artists and oraftsmen were organized to help design and make
the furniture, textiles and ceramics for these homes, and
in general to help make them both substantial and livable.
This group of artists and craftsmen was called the "Special
Skills Division," and was organized in September, 1935, by
Rexford Tugwell, then Administrator of the Resettlement
Adiiuni strati ono
1. Discussed more at length in Chapter 8,

GOVERNMENT AND MODERN ARCHITECTURE
A painter. Adrian Derabash, was appelated as Dir
ector of the Division, and other sp ecialists were selected
to d irect the work in the various arts? for example, Dr*
Charles Seeger was in charge of music, Srete Franks directed the
weaving, Elisabeth Hofflia the in te rio r design, and TShitney
Atehley the ceramics, to name but a few* Mary I&FolIette
served as liaison, and was la te r in charge of market research*
With the exception of the ten per-cent of the personnel who
made up administrative s ta ff of the Division, most of the
workers on the project were taken from re lie f ro lls , in
aocordanoe with the Belief Appropriations Aot of 1935*
However, workers were seleoted for th e ir a b ility in a speoifio
fie ld , including their previous experience or training, or
both*
One unusual feature of the Special Skills is that
i t was a ll housed in a single u n it, which contained the nec
essary workshops end laboratory# Thus the "fine" and the
"applied" arts went hand in hand and were not separated parts
as is often the case* For example, the woodworkers and
furniture craftsmen b u ilt frames, models, and exhibitions
for the artists? end they, In turn, designed functions,!,
durable modem furniture for the craftsmen* In many cases,
the workers were talented both as designers and craftsman*

70
Although Speoial Skills as a ll one unit, it s scope
as a federal art project is perhaps best understood if we
examine, individually, the four major sub-groups which com
prised it* these were the Artist, Craft, Some Furnishing,
and Reoreation Groups*
The work of the Artist Group consisted mainly of
paintings and sculptures, murals, lithographs and prints,
drawings and illustrations, dealing with the problems of
rehabilitation and resettlement, and involving both the land
and the people* Its aim was to interpret, graphically, the
program and progress of the Resettlement Administration* The
work of this Artist Group may be divided into five classifications*
"(a) Historical - illustrations of the record of RA,

and lithographs on American history, designed as
a permanent part of the Resettlement program*
(b) Educational - exhibits on resettlement activities

for circulation to schools, colleges, and galleries,
and for world s fairs and expositions, and national
meetings and conferences; educational posters on
RA work; and art guidance given in planned communi
ties to schools, cooperative agencies and recrea
tional programs*
(c) Illustrative - illustrations and format work on

all resettlement outlieations; this includes
collaboration with the Information Division on
photography xor the publications*
(d) Expressive - murals and paintings for community

centers end housing units on government projects*
(e) Miscellaneous - architectural and design renderings,

pictographs, and other art work not included in the
above classifications*"
71
Soulpturo was included with the Craft Group since
i t seemed to he olosely allied to the other work in this group,
to oarving, metal work, oeramios, tex tiles, and wood-working*
The activities of the Craft Group may be roughly divided into
four classifications?
"(a) Technical and Research advisory service.
1. Testing clays, woods, stones, and other

natural products found on Resettlement pro
jects for possible economic development,
building purposes, or other community uses.
2. Testing and experimenting with materials for

speoial building and construction uses, wall
and floor finishes, oarving, sculpture,
ceramics, and special wall construction for
mural treatment, and so forth*
3. Cost and market researches. This covers

markets for all materials used in furniture
development, and materials for products of
the laboratory designed for quantity production.
GO Miscellaneous design and advisory services. Design

ing and styling of various items for direct use by
other division of the Resettlement Administration
in carrying cut its programs: offioial signs,
markers, insignia, symbols, and so forth.
(c) Designs and products for housing projects in colla

boration with architects end planners*
1. Miscellaneous designs for communities, including

park and playground equipment, practical details
for homes and community buildings, street
markers, flag pole bases, and so forth.
2, Sculpture for parks and community buildings*
72.
3. Patterne of curtain, rug and upholstery

material are woven, some as guides for the
v ^ ebsaranity weavers, and others as samples of
materials upon which manufacturers submit
bids, in oonjunotion with the house furnish
ing program*
(d) Supervision of community activities, and guidance in

oarving, modelling, wood-working and weaving*"
Significant of the work of the Craft Group, as of the
Special Skills Division as a whole, was it s decentralization,
the "grass roots" quality* Take the weaving section for
example* The major work in weaving was done in the various
Resettlement communities. There any woman who wanted to
could take part in the weaving - (and men, too, i f they wished) -
provided there was an available loom. When there was a great
demand for the looms, a schedule was worked out so they could
be shared, and various persons could use them at different
times. A supervisor was in charge of each community's
weaving room. She had charge of the equipment and supplies,
and taught weaving to the other women of the community who
were interested in i t . Each community financed its own
weaving program, paid the salary of the supervisor, and
bought its looms and equipment. The yam was paid for out
of a revolving fund by the workers as they used it* The
weaving section of each community was a local project, under
1. U. S. Department of Agriculture, RESETTLSIBKT AKJHISmilOK,

FIRST AHRUAL REPORT, (aashingtom Government Printing
Office, 1936] p. 90
73
local control* In Washington, in the Speoial Skills offices,
Grets Franks, director of the weaving section, and her one
assistant, made suggestions as to types of equipment and
yams, and gave technical assistance whenever requested.
They made samples of materials for upholstery fabrics,
draperies, bed spreads, and so forth; and they visited
individual communities for a short time, when requested, to
wr,rk with the supervisors and weavers. They did not,
however, superimpose directions and regulations from above.
They served more as consultants, offering help when requested.
The director and the assistant were the only persons of the
weaving seotion of Special Skills paid by the Federal
Government, Community supervisors were paid, and their
Y/orkshops finanoed, looally. This is another example, as
in the TVA, of the Federal Government providing a central
agency as a kind of "yardstick" to cooperate with and guide
local projects and activities when requested,
sfnat was true of the weaving section-the process
of decentralisation, of government helping the people to help
themselves was true of the other Art and Craft Groups, of
the Ceramics, ifusie and Drama Sections, and in fact of the
Special Skills Division as a whole.
It should be noted here, too, that ail groups of the
Special Skills Division cooperated with government agencies
R e p r o d u c e d w ith p e r m is s io n o f th e co p y rig h t o w h e r . F u rth er r ep ro d u ctio n p ro h ib ited w ith o u t p e r m is s io n .

7fc-
outside the Resettlement Administration as well as with other

S4 ^ * 4 m4 a w m 4 4 4* Ovs a a 4 G1 i4 1 T w a a a a m a* 4*a /4 a v ^ a a 4 a*I T t4
U .iy 4 0 4 U u o J.H iu i h/j^\>wAcva. w.tk.*.*.l.Q w w v ^ i w w v l U i i j J o v i a x x ^ tu v u
the Section of Painting and Sculpture of the trrocuremsnt
Division of the Treasury Department; designed the cover for
the yearbook, and similar activities, for the Department of
Agriculture; arranged an exhibit for the National Housing
Conference for the Department of Commerce; designed and
supplied advisory services on lighting equipment for the
Sural Electrification Administration; and designed work
for both the Federal Emergency Relief Administration and the
These came agencies assisted the Special Skills Division,
and especially the Department of Commerce, which made available
to the pottery unit of the craft group the Ceramics labora
tories of the Bureau of Standards.
A major activity of the Craft C-roup was the designing
and construction of housefurnishings and equipment in close
alliance with the Home Furnishing Group. The basic aim of
the Home Furnishing Group was to provide simply-designed,
well constructed furniture at low prices for the families in
Resettlement projects. In these projects, the government
was trying to help low income families who had very lit t le
money to spend on furniture, and would therefore be unable to
obtain inexpensive and substantial furniture without the help
of HA.
75
- fo begin tlp-:~
Biviai' of Special S m iso o c ^ e ra tea w ith the Hanagwent
Division to determine thsfU rnitureneeds of people on fee
A&sinisiraticnprojeota* The Hose Furnishing Group then
do aignodthefarnitttrojirith affiphaaia upon durability and
ain$>lleity rather than on furniture styles* After th is, the
Group Bade arrangements for Its construction os* purchases
tested the woods and other materials used; end arranged for
i t s distribution*
The designs for the furniture varied from project
to project end commraity to bcsssanity, end were designed in
eaisult&tloa with arohiteots and planners of the respective
coaaanities* Also considered in the designing were climatic
conditions; arehiteeturaldesign, and the occupations; needs,
habits, sad choices of project families* (hi th is basis the
furniture designs were drawn up and te s t pieces constructed
in fee Group's woodworking 3flOp bpouirXuavxOus nrs
on fee basis of these te s ts , and then contracts dram up
with essmercisl manufacturers fo? the production of the
fomiwire* The Special Skills Division reserved the right to
inspect the furniture a t any time earing the manufacturing
process* In the contracts i t also planned, i f possible,
th a t deliveries of the f&mitur* would be made shortly a fte r
the completion of each community project* Cooperating with

%
:is l 3H22i;,i SSrths He=5rFs?Sis>li2g p?ejets
were the la tio n a l Association ofF urniiure Bsoufacturersj
the latio n a l Retail Association, sad the Southern Manufac
turers Association. but the Division I ts e lf assumed the
major responsibility of seeing th a t the Resettlement families
got the hast possible value in th eir furniture for the modest
amounts of money they oould spend* ,
Together with the furniture designers* the Home
Furnishing Group had a landscape designer who worked with
local planners in designing areas to be planted and arranging
for planting trees and shrubs on the Esssttltmeat projects*
. Demons tr a ti cm houses were constructed on several
projects to provide opportunities for the people to see what
oould bedcss in furnishing th eir own hemes pleasantly and
tastefully on a limited budget* serving an edueaticsal aim
as well as a home furnishing one*
The fourth group of Spsoial Skills was what sight
be oalled the Reoraaticm Group, consisting of the Hu3ie and
Drama Sections* They were designed with the purpose of
getting people interested in group projects and thereby
getting them to know one and another better* is the asss
implies, people helped by the Resettlement Administration
were "resettled" from th e ir impoverished farms to b etter ones,
as parts of planned communities end'regions* Thus as they
R epro duce d w ith perm ission o f the co p yrig h t ow ner. F u rth e r rep rod uction pro hibited w ith o u t perm ission.
strangers to one another to a great extent, tad there ms
not the existing community-life to bo found in traditional
tesna# So the recreation group was formsd to help people get
acquainted with one another, end thereby to arouse ocassinity
interest and oreate cooperative ooaansanitjr s p irit.
In both lusio and Drama, the attempt was to have the
people of the effiSEunity develop their ran programs. In th is,
the aim was to have them be both participants and spectators.
TheMusio and Drama 8eotiansvorkodin a way similar to that
of tiieileaving?Ssotion;^!the idireotras in Washington did
what they ooald to help get amatwr theatre productions and
vocal and instrumental groups started in the eommmities by
the%eople themselves* Their purpose was to guide these
workers whenever called upon, and to help them in whatever
way they could# Was th is not, then a rt become democratic?
Through th s ir osn work in local H-sio and drssa groups, and
in the small painting and sculpture workshops, the people
became interested in the creative work of professionals, and
their epnrasifttian of the arts greatly increased. But th is
came about, not from semething imposed upon them by others,
but from within themselves through their can creative attempts.
The Special Skills Division had a short life# It
was created in 1955, and the major blow to it s lif e came In
perm ission o f the cop yrig ht ow ner. F urthe r reprod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission.
1937 'sfcea ho more mcaev was appropriated* A few persons were
on its ro lls u n til la te as Hoveaibsr 1938 to wind up the a ffa irs, .
but its major a ctiv itie s were ended smiths before* About
twenty-six months seems the most accurate estimate of it s
lif e by those who worked on the Division-1 Yet during those
two years and two months a to ta l of 31 eomsinitiss were
helped by the Special Skills a rt and craft groups Others
were plained for la te r, but wore not carried out as Special
Skills Division V7e*S CircleCl before they could be completed* In
these 31 oonnrunities, ranging from Skyline Farms in Alabama
to Austin Acres in Minnesota, and from Part-Time Farms in
Arizona to Cherry Lake Farms in Florida, a to ta l of 81 a rt
and oraft projects were organized, including} 16 music groups,
13 drama groups, 10 demonstration houses, 10 landscaping units,
8 weaving groups, 6 a rt exhibitions, 5 oossranity building
deooration projects, 5 general c ra ft groups, h a rt groups,
3 major ceramics "roues- snd one woodworking unit* This
seems a fa irly good record for the short time Special Skills
was in operation Skeptics w ill perhaps say, judging only by
figures and numbers as skeptics often do, that this is not a
1. Exact dates of the Speoial Skills Division seem uncertain*

Perhaps records which would give more accurate d|teg were
among those tans of FSA records destroyed after HA was
taken ever by Farm Security Administration*
79
very tig record for the number of specialists employed
in Washington to direct the various a rt and craft groups.
However, there are two factors which these skeptics over
look when they see only numbers: f i r s t , as the workers
themselves t e l l one, the Division was ju st gathering
momentum when the appropriations were stopped. Their work
was getting to the point wherein they were just beginning
to see re su lts. And, secondly, the cooperative community
sp irit which was developed even in th is short time, and is
s t i l l in evidence in the communities, cannot be measured.
The interviews the author had with Greenbelt residents

1
substantiated the fact of good community s p irit.
Although the Special Skills Division was abolished
before i t had a chance to prove its realworth, i t le f t in
its wake two guide posts for the future. I t showed the
advantages of having the a rt and craft work combined in a
single u n it, instead of separate divisions, as is the general
policy. Eiis points the way for possible similar units com
bined to include whole government departments rather than
small agencies within the departments - or possibly, and better
yet, a Federal Department of Education and Art. Secondly, the
Division has shown evidence to disprove the old false assertion
I . See Chapter 8.
80
and has sheen that
the government can aid in helping the people to help theft*
L^ v e d idtheut-V (#6iliJ^'";their lives* Special Skills
is :w; of t e e iodeistf' g d s t, grass roots programs which
vhOBe influence is s t i l l f e lt in the Greenbelt communities#
and whose general design s t i l l stands as a guide for future
a rt programs* "
i;::' - - r - : / y . , . '-.vW'-v. f- V 'S -'H
Z ' C ' : ' 7 Z : , . ; v; VT;. :> " Z Z , '\ z : I . Vi i i - . a i i f t

ia.a .fccriUrS Cccxa?Q. z i ,L;a;r:;iis 3Giovia; Z Z .
L.;v ^ ; KUv C7 :; Vi - / i : c, _
: 'a 'a 'a j i'-;- i zi. y::Zzzz.^Z zzz -zz sh e z z iz c z - z z Ir t.-, Xs.rd'-*
; r i : I L".\.... . V."'-7 z'^ZZzZz;
- V
v.v:: C
Z ; 'tZ 7 '\ '~ Z V s-'v -
. <: h ..
a '':
t t : ;. "
. - -
I, - ^ > ;s - ^
\ ,
~
:: " >: - .if

- ' V V . a
' V
j \ ... . .
11 "V-- V." * :' : v '
81
1
THE FEDERAL ART PROJECT OF THE W?A
While the Publio Works of Art Project of ths Treasury
Department was designed to employ reeegnised sad accepted
painters and sculptors to decorate the public buildings with

p
murals and sculptures the 7iPA?s Federal Art Project was
organized as a re lie f measure to put unemployed a rtis ts back
to work regardless of whether they were recognized talen t or
not* In additions the Federal Art Project succeeded in pro
viding opportunities for the average person to experience
and appreciate creative expression and thus beoame the f ir s t
1* The author is deeply grateful to Hr* Donald Daugherty and

the American Councl 1 of Learned Societies of W a s h i n g t o n .
D. C, for the privilege of using th eir manuscript study
A HISTOEI OF TEE CULTUEAL PROJECTS OF TEE WORKS PROGRESS
ADMINISTRATION* for information on the Federal Art* Music,
Theatre, and Writers' Projects, and the Historical Records
Survey The study was made under the direction of Dr.
William ?# McDonald, Professor of History a t Ohio State
University, for the Council? end for the sake of brevity,
i t w ill be referred to , here, as the "Council Study.
Quotes are from the pages of the manuscript, and naturally
w ill not correspond to the pages of the published study.
This Council Study served both to confirm certain facts
about the WPA Projects which this w riter had found but
had not been able to substantiate thoroughly, and to point
out certain new ideas which th eir more extensive study
brought to light for him* For th is , end other help on
ths cultural program on the TfrA the w riter of th is volume
wishes the Council Study to be given fu ll credit and
sincere thanks.
2* The term a rt as used here is a kind of misnomer* Actually

i t refers to the graphic and p lastic a rts , like painting,
and sculpture, though the a isie , theatre, and w riters'
projects were also often considered part of the WPA Program.
However since the. term was used o fficia lly on the 1PA to
desicnate the painting and sculpture work, Federal Art
Project" w ill be used here in the same manner.
82
nation^wido Srcgrsa of government in a rt for the people
rather than in a rt for itself*
In anaddress a t the opening of an exhibit of smplos
of a rt workdone on the WkP Holger Cahill* National Director
of the Federal Art Project, explained the underlying philo
sophy of the program in this way!
"The organisation of the projeot has proceeded on the

principle that i t is not the solitary genius but a
sound general movement which maintains a rt as a v ita l
functioning part of any cultural sches* Art is not
a matter of rare, occasional masterpieces* ins
emphasis upon rare raotcrpisoGs is a nineteenth
century phenomenon* I t is primarily a collectors
idea and has l i t t l e relation to m a rt movement**
In a genuine a rt movement, a great reservoir of a rt
is created in many forms, both major and mimor*n
The Federal Art Project may be said to have had some
of i t s beginnings in the PHAP of the Treasury Department as i t
took over a number of mural and graphic arts divisions of the
state projeots when the f i r s t Treasury Program was disbanded.
However, the emphasis changed from a project for the individual
professional a r tis t to a r e lie f project in which a l l but ten
per cent of the workers had to be taken from re lie f ro lls ,
according to TIPA regulations* Thus, one of the major adminis
trativ e problems of !?A was adjusting the jobs ts the talent
an hand, whereas under PSAP the jobs came f ir s t and workers were
than selected whose talent seemed to best f i l l the needs I t
1* lolgsr Cahill, AMERICAN DESIGN, ('Newark, N, J B, Newark

maeum, November 6, 1956) pp* 6, 7*
is interesting to note that slightly less than one-half of
the to ta l number employed on the Sederal Art Project worked at
painting and sculpture; the others were employed as a rt teachers,
craftsmen, and workers in the more practical arts of poster
maWag.and copying for the Index of American Design. _
Since there had to he some way to lim it the project
to persons whose major -work was in some field of a rt, those
applying for employment on the Project were asked to bring
samples of their, work, which were examined by a local committee
of citizens,who were actively engaged in the a rts hut were not
on re lie f,, After the committee had examined the work, and
interviewed the applicatns, these applicants were classified .
according, to their a b ilitie s and to the kind of work available
in that community at that time. Whenever they could arrange
i t , national and regional directors attempted to have as much
local control as possible. Elis was especially true on the
easel painting and sculpture sections of the Project where
the work was supposed to he designed to f i t local and community
needs. However, in the mural section and the Index of American
Design, more suggestions were sent out from the National Office
for the purpose of greater uniformity throughout the country
on these undertakings.
In charge of the project was Mr, Holger Cahill, a
man well qualified for the job because of his b elief in a rtis ts
and a rti of the present day* Although he sag interested in- -
f o lk a r t, and did not minimis fee a rt of the past; his main
in terest was in the oreative expressi of the preset* He
explained th is b elief in an introduction to a Museum of Modem
A rt oatalog on feo WPA Projects
^ " I f f e e mis. stream of American a rt is to oentinue,

he (fee lining creative a r tis t) mast be given a
ohanee to develop and to assume fee leadership which
belongs to h is is. MBVUMM gVMVrl SOTV?i*V<U>*W9 An a rt
tradition may bo said to have existence only as i t
is created anew by sash generation* Mo matter -shat
the snseus collections to ll us about fee past, i t is
ia the work of present day a rtis ts th at we mast look
for the living tradition.**al
In ths 1?A hierarchy was Harry Hopkins as Administrator,
Jacob Baker as Direotor of fee Professional Projects (which
inoluded fee four a rt projeots), and Holger Cahill as Director
of the Federal Art Project* Mr* Baker had fee over-all and
d iffic u lt task of getting the work organised a t a period when
there was much skepticism, concerning the employment of a r tis ts ,
actors and musicians by fee governments After he had succeeded
a t th is , he resigned in 1936, end was succeeded by Mrs* Ellen
Woodward* Mr* Cahill had fee job of relating fee so-called
8finew and ftuseful arts on fee project* Administratively he
was qualified for fee job since he was neither radical or con
servative, and thus was acceptable both to fee young a rtis ts
1* Holgsr Cahill. Introduction to ?HW HORIZONS IN AMEBIGSE

AST, (Hew YorkS Museum of Modem Art, 1936) p* 28*
R epro duce d w ith perm ission o f the cop yrig ht ow ner. F urthe r reprod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission.
85
saee, and he those who-had already become
sseowshat accepted aad paireni&ss. Hig Rrlghthand-oanw in
Washiagtm fwa Thossas Cs Parker., naoss o fficia l t i t l e was
Assistant Director of PAP. Also assisting Mr. Cahill was
Miss Mildred Holshaaer who had the saj or responsibility for
getting exhibitions organised for the Projeet, and Mr. C.
Adolph Glassgold who had the major responsibility for dir*
eeting the Index of American Design.'*' Some practising
a r tis ts , however, were called in to direct state projected
and in many eases directed some of the most active a rt
programs. Increase Robinson, a painter, directed the
highly successful Chicago Project for sons time, end was
sueoeedad by a sculptor, George Thorpe9 A painter, S.

g
MacDcoald-Wright, directed the Southern California Project,
and another painter, Hobart Bruce Inverarity, the Washington
State Project. Also in the central states, Sylvester Jerry,
painter, was in charge of the project ia Michigan,- Harry Jones
and Bob White, painters, in lowaj Andre Boratko, painter-
sculptor, in South Dakota! and Clement Hampers, paints?, ths
1. Daniel Dgfssbash? .might, also he si&itioned here. He helped

Mr. Cahill organise Community Art Centers in states outside
North Carolina, although a t f i r s t he was o fficially director
of Centers for that state only. Later he was mads coordinator
of Federal Sponsored Community Art Centers for a short tin s.
2. Where they developed a new process of mosaic.
86
HisBvSCts projects M?e HgUperg wag .180 Htidsegt Pegi<3l&l
Directors Supervisors of special units on the projeet were
often practising a rtis ts because of the technical qualifica
tions needed for suoh positions
Although ene of the early organising bulletins of
the 1PA* divided the a rt projeet up into ten miscellaneous
categories* and la te r added two sore* the Council Study had
divided the work into three larger aajo? divisions* ( l) Art
Production* which included local painting* murals* sculpture,
graphic arts* and handcrafts* (2) Art Bdueaticn* including
art teaching* lectures* a rt centers* and exhibits* and (3)
Art Research* devoted mainly to the Index of American Design#
This emphasis on ths larger divisions is actually in line
with one of the basic aims of the Projeet its e l f - th a t of
integrating the arts* and considering them ZX 2*sla*tu.CH to
eaeh other rather than as separate nnits For th is reason*

J*h* *>#% J jw t amh AMA mmaJ V.a m a a1#iA^
1 lires. 1??A, Bulletin 29 * S upplssst Bo# 1* September

30, 1935* Section 9B.
87
ix t- n m v m -
(a) BASIL PAIBIXEG. Perhaps cm of the te s t ways is
which t get as idea of the range of work painted on the easel
painting divisions now a t this late date when the project
is over and noat paintings disposed of, is to look a t a l i s t
of some o f the painters employed in th is division during i t s
active years* To name several, the l i s t would include an
impressive roster of our contemporary paintsrst Arnold Blanch,
Aaron Bohrod, Louis Bcuchc', Raymond Brsiaia, Paul Cadma,
Pan! Clemens, Stuart Davis, Adolph Defan, Joseph De Martini,
Stuart Sdie, Sid Possum, Karl Fortess, David Fredenthal,
Harry Gotlieb, Louis Guglielmi, Abraham Harriten, Joe Jones,
Morris Kefater, Karl Khotha, Yasuo Kuniyoghi, Edward Laning,
Doris Lee, Julian Levi, Jack Levine, Ed Lescendowski, Eugene
Ludins, So MacDcnald^right, Loren Maolver, Walter Quirt,
Louis Eibak, Increase Robinson, Miron Sokols, the three
Sc^v?S Papkes^! * Ks1au2Ii ^ ^ ^ ~ . a~*
Santos Zingale.^ And there is no Soubt but that ia addition
Actually i t has been d ifficu lt finding out isiat painters

did work on the projects Ives in th e ir short biographical
sketches in HBQ IS AMERICAS AST, EC""5 Cl 'SjiC mwviv
l i s t of painters do not mention th eir work on the Federal
Art project* whatever the reason, whether they hated to
admit ever having been cm.re lie f, whether they did not
consider uhv pro jsct part of th eir professional training
or exhibiting- or whether they ithiilj Erls pBtroiis
and dealers might not approve of th e ir sassociaticnB with
ths Hew Deal and nthat man in the white Ecuse, the faet
remaina that many a rtis ts do not now want to admit asso
ciation with th is goveraaent a rt progress The above l i s t
of painters was obtained from talks with various painters,
project o fficials, and from 1PA reports
R epro duce d w ith perm ission o f th e co p yrig h t ow ner. F urthe r rep rod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission.
to th e s e p a in te rs one could go 'trough l is ts of more of
our osatssôrary a rtis ts and find that a surprising number
of these shea we now seasides important were previously
associated with the !?A# But names alono do not t e ll the
story# What these a rtis ts painted while being paid by the
Government is of equal importunes#
One of the moat common of a ll criticism s of the
paintings on the Federal Arts Project and the murals and
sculpture too, for th at matter, was that the paintings were
morbid," "ugly," and "on the depressed sido." Magazine
artie le s and newspaper editorials alike bemoaned the faot
that the government was spending money to get beauty and was
getting everything else but* However, a careful examination
of the purpose of the Projeot and the persons employed on i t ,
reveals that such criticism is not valid* In the f ir s t plaoe,
the Project was set up as a re lie f measure to put a rtis ts
back to work,at the only work they really knew- in order
to earn enough for three square meals a day end a plaoe to sleep
for them and their families* I t seems strange to some people,
but a rtis ts end their families get ju s t as hungry as anybody
else, and ju s t as worried over where the nest meal was coming
from* So i t was as a re lie f measure to help them get along
u n til private business and industry oould absorb th eir talents
89
j&s'fe tk FftdftPftl Art ProjftOt WftS formftd, ftBd BOt SS ft
professional a rt project as those e ritie s seam to indicate
In the second place* the criticism is not a fa ir one to the
a rtis ts employed on the Projeot Instead of hypocritically ,
trying to paint a kind of beauty which they neither saw nor
f e lt a t the time* as ths c ritic s seemed to want* those a rtis ts
were painting That they knew Was not th e ir experience of
yesterday that of unemployment and uncertainty of the days
ahead Was i t not natural thou that they should be expressing
something of these feelings of insurity and fear which were
so prevalent? When these a rtis ts were painting breadlines*
unemployment, hunger* strikes* and dosed shops* they were
painting what they honestly knew and felt* a sound basis for
any art
The surprising thing about the easel paintings on
the WPA Federal Art Project is not th at there were some whioh
were on the depressed and morbid side = that was naturally
to be expected Rather i t is a wonder th a t there were not
more paintings of that kind than there actually were The
surprising thing is the amount of paintings which were hopeful,
positive, sonstrustivs statements of lif e and faith I t was
as i f the days of uncertainty and fear were over and the govern
ment, through temporary help* had given them a new lease of
life Hot only were a r tis ts painting sosnss of broken down
90
V VWJ f
UMMV w *
l ,
VJ w. e ltfflfi?
<, Vm ^5
....... 5r#S &1.20 O
.. fîtlE
>rWEo
scenes of happy people lining together, of new crops and
hardest s. of re-building and eensiruetiea, and a Bnsw deal.9
The large numbers of paintings which were in the positive
vein, together with the negative ones iMeh were expected as
honest statements of insecure people, seem to prove th at,
given a ohanoe, the people w ill come through on th eir ownj they
seem to prove that when government enters a rt for the people,
both benefit.
In attempting to evaluate the to ta l amount of easel
work done on the Projeot - approximately 109,000 items,1' - there
was a complete range from good to bad, and a certain percentage
whioh was mediocre. This is both understandable and natural
in an undertaking of such proportions. Nearly a ll groups of
any kind would include this range, from a small private
painting class to an auditorium fu ll of professional painters.
But ths range is especially understandable when the ss^hasis
on the projeot was need of employment rather than professional
standards, beyond a minimum degres. The important thing is
not the range as muon.as the fact that despite the handicaps
of sis s f the Projeot, inadequate studio space and supplies,
and re lie f regulations, such of the a rt produced was of high
1 Not counting ths approximately 11,300 fine print designs

completed on tho Project as w ell.
91
calibre* la- feat* several a rtis te no* see to-ag?*?1 that
some of the best professional painting in the country, during
the nineteen th irtie s , was produced-on theTfPA.
There are two important indirect accomplishments of
the Easel Division which should be mentioned* The f i r s t of
these is the interest-it created in the looal American soene*
In a sense, i t may be said that this Division of the Federal
Art Projeot was the f i r s t important step in landscape and local
oolor painting on any major scale in the history of this country*
The subjoot matter of these paintings was best described by
Director Holger Cahill*
fiTh skies of California, the quiet spaoes of middle

western farming country, the remoteness of a fisher
mans shack on the coast of Maine, are a few instances
of a true exploration which has l i t t l e or nothing
to do with personal idiosyncrasies end a great deal
to do with personal expression in a profound sense*
A fi vuh poetry of the so il has appeared, with a
marked freedom from form ula...11!
Since the greatest number of a rt production divisions
were in the c itie s , where most of the unemployed painters and
sculptors were, the majority of the work done had to do with
urban scenes and urban problems, however, many attempts were
also made to interpret the rural scene whenever possible. In
short, the a r tis t was encouraged to paint his own iooality
wherever th a t happened to be. Mr. Cahill explains 13PA s
position on this matter when he wrote that Federal sponsorship
1. Holger Cahill, Introduction to HE? HRQI20HS IP AMERICAN

AET, op. c i t ., p. 35*
92
Rgav * r ti a ts s n opportunity for work as a rtis ts

regardless of whether they lived i s a Goissuniiy which
h ad alig h t cognizance of the function of fee a r tis t,
or in tho large urban eenters where the a r tis t at
i le ast had reoognitiln, i f no employment*
I t is eoaoeivable that in the big urban canters

professional prejects for a rtis ts might have been
organised without federal sponsorship in view of the
faot that previous work programs did re su lt in sons
such activity* However, a rtis ts employed on projects
in itia te d under sponsorship an th local level would
not have enjoysd the backing of a nationally planned
program. The likely resu lt in tho largo urban centers
would havs been the employment of a small numbs? of
highly professional artists* A rtists living in small
towns and rural communities would in a ll probability
"tc 'bh-
erh/3i,*'9 oouXti
work aa artists* This could only have served to glut
the already overcrowded urban centers, and to deprive
the smaller communities of work which they needed*
The cultural condition which grew up during the nine
teenth and early twentieth centuries, making a rt the
plaything of tho sophisticated and the over-privileged
few, would have been aggravated by the Government
Projects for the artist*
Only sponsorship an the Federal level could break

th is pattern, and make i t possible through nationally
directed employment of a rtis ts to bring to the publio
in under-privileged areas the awareness of the a r tis t s
function end the normal place of a rt in daily living**!
Thus the projects sise, on the one hand, served as
. a handicap in matters of organisation, administration, and
a rtis tic standards! on the other hand, i t served to make tie
project more democratic, and also more v ita l through oreating
new in terest in a ll phases of American lif e and a ll parts of
the Amerioan scene*
1. Holger Cahill, BBCOBD OF PROGRAM OPBB&TIOK AED ACCOMPLISHMENT,

national nPA Art Program Final Eeport, 1945* typed dopy, p4o*
93
sg;-. fit tBthtSvint!Brsst;ln=ih.82looal^B19.:,,
which the Easel Painting Division in p a rtie u la r, and Art
Production Section in general, ereated, there is another
indirect accomplishment iihieh ahoali be mentioned, Out of
the necessity of a rtis ts working together in community work
rooms, producing paintings and murals, sculpture and craft
objects for publio buildings and in stitu tio n s, grew a guild
like situation - not of apprentice and master of former days,
but of persons of varying degrees of talen t vorldng together
and sharing both teohnio&l and inspirational experiences in
the varying a rt mediums* Thus, the a rt projects developed tie
s p irit of working together for the oause of painting and
expression father than the struggle for exhibitions, one-man
shows and top-billing of the ocetmereial professional a rt
worlds*
(b) MURALS* Eaturally th is same general s p irit of
cooperation earried over to the Mural Painting Division of the
Projeot. Perhaps the s p irit was even more prcncunesd on this
division than for the Easel Division due to the fact that
Eairals themselves are more sooial,n sometimes combining the
talents of more than one a r tis t, and usually enlisting the
9h
itsrest-:f :*bSte,-lcsal :siti*sas ...t&are :.tha asasuLis. bjfos;/ r-
executed* Indiaoussing the Mural Painting B iv isie n o fth e
Projeot, the national Director feinted out that*
"During the painting the a rtis ts usually work in public

places where people congregate? Mitral painting is sot
jj a studio a rtj by i t s w ry nature i t i s social. In i t s
groat periods, i t has always been associated with the
rrvajOxpressiGa of social meanings, the esperieaef,history,
ideas, sad beliefs of a coi;ysaiaity*.,!!l
The saiae factor shioh helped to asks mo imiral
dirisian sore social than the easel diviaien, also helped to
aaka i t more limited. Boat ssirals sere in sohoolsj lib raries,
and other public buildings, and thus i t was more d iffic u lt to
secure suitable wall space for them than i t was pieces of
canvas for the paintings* Another factor which accounts for
i t s limited sise l a the fact that there are less muralists
in the country than painters. In faot, many of the murals
were painted by regular easel painters who wanted to try their
hand a t that medium. In a l l , about 2,500 murals were completed
throughout the country on the WA project#
There is tho same range in quality on the murals as
there was in the easel paintings, or on any of the other WPA
creative projects for that matter, some were poor, some
mediocre, and some very good. No doubt the very best group
1* Holger Cahill, Introduction to HEWH0RI20HS IS AMERICAS AST,

op. c it , p 32*
95
sailS Wo saSrals by Arthur and Aibsrs
Sunqulst in the Library of the University of Oregon at Sugeno
fhes m rals seem to ecaMne tfie best of sairal quail tie s 5 tbs
dssige ls sush that tho siralg geos to remain a part of th# two-
dimensional wall without either appearing f la t and dally or
protruding out into space, tho figures are not struggling
aa i f to destroy the wall surface as in many marals, the oolors
are war,subtle browns, oohres and tans for the most part
so that the marals seem a p art o f the wall and hallway:
wherein they are looated, and the subjeefe are eenstruotive
statements, somewhat philosophical, rather than negative
expressions of conflict and strife* E ntitled "Development
of the Sciences" end"Developaent8 of the Arts," the murals
are similar in that they both include a humbled figure at
the base of the treey around which are other figures repre
senting progress in these areas of human development. In
the former, the humbled figure represents "humanity arising
to the erect position of a thinking being," and in the la tte r
i t is symbolic of the '"universal huBn aspiration to create
things .Of b e a u ty ^ sssf.ij'" :'
v>: Othsr -intsresting marals on the projeet might include
for example, the circular ones in the Sound Tower a t Port
Shelling, Saint Pauly Minnesota? the abstract morals ty
Jerome Eamrorfaki ia th c Sorthrup iiamorial A uditoriuaj>fthe....
96
&lisgfltg?Fi6 maasaotaj and the f s? s r a l e ,
a f i fty four paneled, 2,I.lQ0 foot groups on BMajor Influences
i s Civilisation, in the 8amuel Tildea Sigh Sehool in Brooklyn*
Mssv;others
m
eould be mentioned m well* A number of ssra lig ts
wan prises and awards for th e ir work which was done uhil
they wars employed on the UFA Mural Division* For ejcsmpleS
BThe Sold Modal of the Architectural League, the high

est award for sural painting in this country, was gives
in 1936 to James Michael Newell for his series of fresco
murals, sxhe Growth of Western Civilisation, for the
library of the Evander Childs High Sehool in Hew York
City* This Is hks only tin s the League's Golu iioum
has been awarded in the past ten years* Edward M illm t
and Mitohell Siporin, two gifted young a r tis ts , whoso
talsata as asnral painters were developed in the Illin o is
a rt project, wca a i2?,000 sural award for the St* Louis
postoffice, which they completed with distinction in the
spring of 19^3I Anton Rerregier, a mural painter and
supervisor on the Hew York a rt project, wca the largest
single commission awarded by the Section of Fine Arts,
tho 26,000 San Franoisoo Po3toffioe mural? Robert
Groabaoh, who gained recognition through a 1PA sculpture
eosa&gsiea for housing projects, wag awarded a I 16.000
commission as the resu lt of a competition held by the
Section of Fin Arts of Wki sis of seven other sculptors
who was honorable mention in th is sam competition were
- ---. 5J? had Cvvm pi*Q j owv 52up*vj555e maTijf" OX uiiO u6 b l morals
and sculptures done for the Section of Fine Arts though-
: out the oountry are by former project a rtlsts al
Aside from the generally high quailiy of tho ssrals
themselves, and the humanitarian concept unde?lying the whole
UFA program - helping the people in a ll walks of life u n til
they were again able to help themselves on other factor
makes the Mural Division significant, and that is the freedom
1* Holger cahill, flSCUKP OF PROGRAM OPERATION, op* oit, p9 kB
97
szsrsspics which thc:painters had even whils working far
the Gevensaeat ca these federal projects* la the f i r s t place,
th is freedom permitted the s r a l i s t s to work is any mnaer which
was natural for them, rad thus the raaralg rang a ll the way fre s
re a listic scenes to abstract compositions. But even acre
important, is terms of government sponsorship o? the a rts,
was the faot that freedom included chase of subject matter
too, and thus the range therein is from local pastoral scenes
to social propoganda* In the la tte r oase, however, i t was the
a r tis tfs ora choice to paint that propoganda, and not something
either^ eongielledor ncoess&rily enoouraged by Project o fficials
or any one else* TMs is iBôrtant, for i t marks the f i r s t
tt^gO Terrawt has ea^loyed aaralists on any such
for propogends purposes end
p o litic a l ends.'Bhea the Federal Art Project norals were
serial: sr p o litical propoganda, as some of them were, i t was
because,feat.was.the a r t i s t s ssa idea, and not an assignment
from some o fficial in Washington
(c) SCDLPxuBE. Smaller than either the Easel or
Mural Divisions, the Sculpture Division of the,Federal Art
Project was nevertheless a substantial, part of the program*
98
*>I.y M*A~ A<M*n* vonn t*4s. 1 n a*ce a n n r n Y ijs

WP. iMa
. -rwe -'v
J VT-ntVi
I - WWW 4 derate
mvuiw n f : .
sculpture COBjplsljOdj wU'u IBSSy of th.GSG were sma.ll statues
or figurines. Expanse involved in the materials and equip-
isssiv for^s SuS sud o^nusic sculPûrs w^ro til# fEvoi*g
in limiting the Division*s program.
Previously the government had ignored oreative
sculpture almost entirely. Except for a few minor exceptions,
when Congress voted to have a statue erected i t wanted a
photographic likeness of the m ilitary or p o litic a l hero -
Washington, Jefferson, Jackson, Grant, Lee - so that the
problem beoame one for a technical craftsmen rather than a
oreative a r tis t. Under the r??A, oreative sculptors were
permitted, for the f ir s t time under federal government
sponsorship, to delve-beicw surface appearances and oreate
soulpture concerned with the expression of underlying forces.
Like the easel paintings and murals, the range in
the sculpture division, even though i t was muon smaller in
number of persons employed than either of the other two,
extended from some near-photographic work car the^ one hand to
1^ W g%y An 4*
Via>
- <M.W. j. fiAm wa11
. 4*4 1
forms; from slip-shod techniques to masterly oraftsmanshipi
and from simple carving to deeply-moving oreative work, ind
like the easel paintings sad murals, each piece o | sculpture
m s t be studied and judged individually, so that i t is d iffic u lt,
99
4 -*> I TA Tt f f S w ^" ^ W *i w r w 1! ~i y> | u m i 're - 'j '^ l* * S - U l p l l i r .
projeot <a a nation-wid basis* to can, however, point out
a few examples of work vMsh seem significant expressions
i s the sculptural medium* Certainly worthy of mention in
terms of relating the soulpture to the surrounding architec
ture was Heins W&rnekes series, ^Mother sad C h ild / "Young
Man/ "Penguin/ and "Bears P lay in g / for the Harlem Housing
Project a t 155th Street on tho Harlem River in Hew York City.~
Th Housing Project was completed through PWA funds, sad
architect Archibald Manning Brora permitted Heins Warneke
to work with him during the designing of the project so that
the soulpture beoeme an integral part of the housing plan
rather than decoration added later* Luckily, too, the
sculpture its e lf seems to haw an organic quality of having
grown outrof the stone. Together iiiiv strchitoctiirs slid sou Iptur
Itlend into one* Another example of 1PA sculpture which was
related to i t s supporting architecture. was tho scries of s t s s
panels interpreting the Preamble to the Constitution which
Lenore Thomas did for the eosmmity sohool a t Greenbelt,
1. Actually there may be seme;.debate as to whether Warneke a

sculptures were done for the Treasury Department or for
n?A since they were accomplished through a WPA grant to
the Treasury* At any ra te , they are considered here as
worthy government sculpture procured through 1PA finds*
100
Jfexyloxdk rHer:-larger.- -*Mether7an&; (Mid*- seulpkure fofc
publie drinking fountain in the community center expresses the
affirmative feeling for family lif e which was a b aaio p art
of Idie philosophy underlying the planning o fth e garden
ooBffiunity.
Warneke's "Penguin* and "Bears Playing* mentianad
above remind one of Richard O'Eanlcm1s animal and bird sculp
tures, done on the California WPA a rt project, and of Beniamino
Bufaaoa red granite "Ssal" from the same project* Though
rather light in mood, a ll seem to be competent soulpture in
terms of honest use of the stone medium* Chi the same project
were Conoetta Scaravaglioni and Donald Hord who won the
$1000 prise of the American Academy of Arts and Letters for
a monumental pieoe of sculpture* Mention should also bo made
of the consistently high creative quality of Alfeo Faggl's
work cnthe Hew York Project* Of the wood soulpture, some

m 4 A a w * <m >**a il*
w-. V* AUSV4 v s t8JLU*vXl \i&xs nAiWtPA SCAi R5 i 9 S? VSiiVtJU,
roosters in walnut byLynn Wolfe, carved on the Colorado
project*
Examples of FAF soulpture, which expressed some of

'M a 1A<WiA -W A a 4 m **4 mVlA 4*. a I m Aa i.M O M
w -u u w jw 4MUUAU fiWVUd tiu p wwr t y
Goodelaan's pathetic "Homeless," Raymond Bermades's quiet
-"Mother and Child," and surprisingly enough the forlem
"Guitar Player" by & thirteen year old student, Jan Orelioh,
Tort City# Each of those three, selected a t random sad the
many others in varying parts of the country which should be
gives credit i f time and space permitted - seem to convey
those feelings coraicm to considerable numbers of people dur
ing the depression years and the pre-W?A project days# They
express insecurity, but not without hope, and discouragement,
but not without faith. In short, they were, like the paint
ings and murals, honest expressions of the people into had
once more found a place in the work-o-day world, but who well
remembered the yesterdays of unemployment end poverty.
(d) GRAPHIC ARTS# The major work of the Graphic Arts
Division of the Federal Art Froject oonsisted of posters and
p ris ts , si though soma work was dans in saps, medals snd
dioramas# The posters which were made on the project ranked
a ll the way from lettered guides for project workers in the
workshops to well designed and professional looking postars
advertising Federal Theatre Flays end Federal Music Project
Concerts# As a rule, these fosters had considerable appeal
because industrial and ocmercial advertising had made the
pester and the signboard popular by the time of the projeot#
102
Daring the Project's major years, there mere usually between
four and five hundred a rtis ts working on posters at a time,
tad by May of I9I1O they had finished in a ll approximately 1, 600,000
posters from 30,500 varying original d e s ig n s . 1 Most of these
posters were reproduced through the silk screen, or "sorigraphy,
process. In fact, this process for color reproduction can be
said to have been developed on the IPA Federal Art Project,
The Graphie Arts Division also included work in
photography* By September, 1958, Wk liste d 555>126 photo-

2
graphs taken cn the Project, but the majority of them were
records of various Project accomplishments and persons at
work, rather than creative photographic statements. There
were a t least three places, however, where significant
oreative work wa3 produced in photography, In lew York City,
Berenice Abbot taught classes in photography and produced
enough worthy photographs to form a book, nChanging Mew York.
In Florida, Florence Hasdsll produced a portfolio of photo
graphs of Seminole Indians? and in San Francisco a small
group of photographers worked to produce, among other things,
a 6 2 33* mural on The Modern City, framed by the Architec
tural Elements of the PreFire Dm** for the assessor's office*
In addition, a few motion pictures were produced cm WPA,
1* Council Study Manuscript. P. 812,
C js* ..p U
ft.I XLU.U r!.i
LfrX*
103
specifically of tbs 'W -to -d o -it" type, like "From Tree
Trunk to Head** (the story of wood soulpture), nThe Making
of a Mural," and "The Making of a Mosaic." For the most part,
the photographic work was a p ic to ria l record of various !?A
a c tiv itie s, rather than expressive creative statements.
As an aid to a rtis ts on the other Divisions, the
Graphic Arts Section maintained a technical laboratory wher
experiments were carried on to te st the effects of heat and
lig h t an canvas, the lasting qualities of various pigments,
and similar technical problems* For the most part, though,
the work of this Division centered around posters and the silk
screen process.
(e) HAHDCRAFTS. Most problematic of the five
sections of the Art Production Group of the Federal Art
Project was the Handcraft Division, devoted to ceramics,
weaving, _blook=printing, and toy and furniture- ~-skirg
a c tiv itie s. Designed as a project to put talented crafts-
men in these areas back to work u n til private industry could
again employ them, the Handcraft Division instead turned out
to be a kind of make=shift section, made up very often of
persons who were ifuicOjd off 'tils Lliii*p and Sculpture
Divisions for various reasons* lack of Equipment, especially
lack of kilns for ceramic work, was another handicap. But
id +
tn g th'q man car1 mhiS mis i 1111 mMiw uiija iiwncmr^^ u ix YAtSstyii
somewhat of a failure sore the nan-ecmpetiti vO G&SB3 of tts
Wk and the misunderstanding among supervisors as to the aims

gad goals of thig D iv is io n s
Written into the early organisational aims and goals
of the Government1s large Emergency Relief program was the
olause vihich said, in essence, that while putting people
back to work the government was not to establish projects
which would in any way compete with private industry* This
paradox of having to make jobs for people, yet having to make
them the kind which oould not be objectionable to private
business concerns, proved to be something of a handicap to
many projects, and to the Handcraft Division among these*
In furniture production, for example, designs often had to be
limited to childrens furniture or kihds wfaieh were not avail
able on the market* Even designing and constructing fum i-
i*ux*v ior *uA3 govsnuasay's ivrT^wSv nousi^g prOj 5cusj mixs
Special Skills Division of the Resettlement Administration
did for a short time in the Gresnbelt cocsiunities, was con
sidered a threat to the private furniture manufacturers*
Because of ihis clause, much of the work on the Handcraft
Division became impractical busywork* Thus i t is understand
able that the workers were often not as interested in what
they were doing as i f they had been working on furniture and
105
other craft work which seemed to them more practical or
worthwhile, or in which they could feel some pride,
She other hig problem which Regional Directors of
the project had to face in their attempts to enliven a
declining Handcraft Division was in the misunderstanding and
misinterpretation of the aims and goals by local project
supervisors. Some of these supervisors were only interested
in the end products being produced, and cared l i t t l e about the
creative experience of the workers as they made these products.
This is best explained by an example, the Milwaukee Handcraft
Project.'*' This particular project was not originated on the
Federal Art Project, but was turned over to PAP o fficials
after i t had gone too far in the wrong direction for them to
change i t . So while not reflecting on PAP o fficials, i t
explains one of the problems they faced in administering the
Handcraft Division. On this Milwaukee Project most of the
designing and creative work was done by a small group of
supervisors, many of whom were not even eligible for re lie fj
uôse persons acm any empi.oyecL on uiio project unuer one
re lie f regulations were put to work stamping out the block
prints on tex tiles, and carrying out the patterns for toys
1. She writer is here indebted to A rtist Clement Haupers, former

Eegional Director of the JAP for the Midwest area, for his help
in clarifying the issues of ''art production" versus "art education."
Some state and local directors did not see the Federal Art Project
as a large program in art education, and were only interested in
the product instead of the creator despite the fact that the whole
MPA was organized primarily to help people.
which local supervisors had created* la short, the workers
became part of a factory-like situation instead of part of a
creative craft progress# Of course i t is true thav as a con-
sequence the te x tile prints and the children's toys produced
on the Milwaukee Project were of high quality in terms of
design* nut On uxie onher hanu, uney werc pronuced an nne
expense of human values, and specifically at the expense of
thinking of workers in meohanistic rather than organic terms*
In th is the Division came near competing with private industry,
in a way, by attempting to use commercial systems of produc
tion, yet lacking the productive drive, teohnioal equipment,
and "know-how" of faotory te x tile printing and toy making* I t
tried to approximate machine standards of production on a hand-
oraft basis* That i t did not actually compete with private
enterprise, however, is certainly true, for the products were
not sola, out turned over to schools, g alleries, and lib ra rie s,
ju st as other Art Productions Divisions a rticles were* So, in
i t s own way, th is section helped the Art Education Division by
creating a wider audience for te x tile s and craft products. And
i t is true than products made on th is Project were widely used
by schools for a l o n g time thereafter*
In summary, i t can be said that- the most important
contribution of the Handcraft Division was th at i t added its
10?
small part to the IPA's broader aim of helping to si dsn
tho country's a rt and craft horizons by promoting general
public interest in them. Perhaps even in i t s other problems
and failures the Division succeeded in th is aim.
AST EDUCATION
The major aim of tho Art Education Section of the
Federal Art Project was to develop awareness, understanding
and appreciation of tho oreative arts* This aim was accom
plished in a variety of ways, but most successfully through
the varied program of the government sponsored Community Art
Centers, where the people could actually participate in varying
expressive media.
(a) COMMDBITf ART CEBTBRS. The idea of small intimate
centers for art and creative expression, organized in towns and
villages throughout the nation, was given real impetus by the
Federal Art Project. Previous to IPA, a rt galleries had been
primarily private collections of 801d Masters** housed in
impressively remote buildings and limited to larger c itie s
or recognised istropolitan ^cultural areas. 8 But under 1SPA,
local citizens organized art classes and exhibits in unoccu
pied stores, baraa, garages and basements, thus making them
R e pro duce d w ith pe rm issio n o f th e co p yrig h t ow ner. F urthe r re p rod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission.
lite ra lly Community Art Centers in &modest and unassuming
way
IPA cannot be given credit for the origin of the
Community Art Center idea in th is country, for a few individuals
had earlier made attempts at organizing small galleries as an
integral part of the life of a locality as, lo r example,
Mrs Thomas Parker's Center at Richmond, Virginia, in the early

1a _
1930's# However, 1PA can he given credit for expanding the
idea on a nation-wide hasis, and giving i t an extensive proving-
ground for demonstrating its worth# By 1941, when th at phase
of the program had reaohed i t s peak, WPA had organized 103 art
2 3
oenters representing every section of the country; and to
the time of writing a few of these s t i l l exist, notably the
Negro Southside Art Center in Chicago, the Sioux City Art
Center in Iowa, and the People's Art Center in St# Louis#
On the other hand, IPA cannoo oe blamed for
the recent change in definition wherein
1# Mr. Parker initiated and developed the Communit Art Center

program for n?A and was o fficial director of i t for the
greater part of its life
2 Holger Cahill, RSCORD OF PROGRAM OPERATION, op cit, p 10
5# See Append!:-: C for a l i s t of the 53 art centers organised

on the project through the year 1938
109
privately owned galleries have takes over the ttcsatsrfi t i t l e
M t have limited their programs and functions to a sophisticated

i
e lite . la taking over oaly the t i t l e , these galleries have
missed the most fundamental part of the ffik centers, th e ir
democracy - with a small "dl
The WPA Community Art Centers were established on
the b elief that the arts should be a v ita l part of the daily
lif e of the community, and that the centers should be the
headquarters for bringing together a rtis ts and public. An
essential part of th is was that everyone was welooaej laborers
an their way home from work, secretaries and stenographers,
business men, housewives, teaohers and children, - every one.
This democratic principle, put into.aotian an FAF Art Centers,
was carried out as irell as the Federal Music and Theatre
Projeots through free or low-priced concerts and plays.
I t was also in action on the governments Resettlement
Administration program, where the arts and crafts were con
sidered parts of the every day lif e of the people instead
of mere museum pieces, though on a smaller scale than IPA.
The Community Art Center bulletin explained th eir democratic
aim in this ray t
1 This does not inolude the Chicago, Sious City and St. Louis
galleries ju st named, for those are public, and are s t i l l
run pretty much an the 13PA Art Center philosophy*
no
l t has l?sgiatly 'been observed by students of

contemporary American culture that people is
large seotiona of th is country have had few
opportunities to study and enjoy the visual a r ts ...
The Federal Arts Projeot of the Works Programs
Administration has endeavored to correct this
unequal distribution of oultur&l advantages
through the organisation of community a rt centers
in regions and lo calities where no such agencies
previously existed* In establishing these centers,
i t ia the objective of the Federal Art Projeot not
only to provide the public with opportunities to
participate in the experiences of a rt, but also to
Jd i.b a A iI amU Pam am4<s 4>n amA
uavaud. n w ia VM w jo u cm w igugi culls* cm w
teaohers certified or eligible for Works Program

employment. 1
WPA1a Art Center program aimed at making a rt more
democratic in four ways* ( l) I t attempted to establish
centers few creative expression in communities where art
was virtually unheard of previously; (2) I t attempted to
create general interest in the arts for various economic
levels of the population through free admissions and
specially planned exhibits; (3) I t tried to interest the
public in a rt of other times and periods by beginning with the
contemporary work of the locality and working "outward" from
there? and (ii) I t attempted to bring in more peopls by widen
ing i t s program to include froa art classes and lectures, and
its range of activities to include camera clubs and similar
related areas of interests
x. nra Jfixusaauji sronsumj uUimuiuXx aaT uim'iiitai, (Wash; rjrA

Technical Series, Art Bulletin Ho. 1, October 8 , 1937) p<> !
ill
To what degree the Art Center program succeeded in
uliss m.Ijuji- i'h jLs diI'T iuu 1 L bo KiiuY/e Hoi# only did "bns Osirfesrs
vary in th eir interpretation of the program, they varied in
their ability to funotion actively as part of the lo cality ,
varied in the leadership qualities o? th eir directors, and
thereby varied in th eir longevity# In some cases funds for
the Centers 7/ore drastically out before the Project ended,
and in other oases looal oitizens and organizations continued
financing the Centers and their programs v/ithout federal help
for some months after 1SPA was abolished and before war began#
Despite these differences, we do know the Art Center program
was an active and v ita l one#
One of the most positive contributions of the Community
Art Centers program was what might be considered a by-product,
namely the development of new display techniques which were
usually ones of sis^ licity of design and construction# Organ
ized as a relief measure, most of IPA's funds had to go for
wages, for putting people back to work, and thus there were
practioally no funds for renting big buildings, or construct
ing elaborate displays# Ihen Art Centers were organized, they
were usually in buildings winch, pnvats ousmess did non ears

vcrt*i4 rt4- 1 "?vi **} a aa n 4*V * 4* r*r w f lw ir rsw _
U*> A V<U U GAU Wii .AAA H iU lV l U WAAV A U ll \J H UO V* j WiiWOA/S
"What displays and exhibitions there were had to be designed
and constructed at a minimum cost, and thus elaborate deooration
112
and Ornamentation WES, of SOSSSSity, eliminated; The rSStilt
was a banificial one in that most of the exhibits had a sim
p lic ity of presentation, and thereby a kind of honesty as well,
somewhat unknown in the same way in most larger private and
publie museums and galleries before-and since!
In addition to the exhibition programs, the a rt centers
usually sponsored free a rt classes in four areas* drawing end
painting, handcrafts, designs, and history and appreciations At
cno time over 5,000 persons wore enrolled in art classes,'*- yet
this says nothing about what was actually being taught nor
what people got from the classes, for these are not easily
measured and therefore cannot be readily evaluated. Although
one of the main aims of these classes was to in terest the
public in a rt, and thereby indireotly to influence them
toward becoming better consumers, surprisingly enough they
received considerable caustic criticism from a rt schools and
teachers who thought the WA classes were competing with them*
For the most part, these charges were false because Projeot
requirements demanded that students must have been unable to
pay for private lessens and instruction boro?o they could iicwCo
IPA do.2g3* Therefore WPA s rt elstssos rrors zio^
1, Figures for month of January, 19^2, from IPA, FINAL KBPOBf

op* c i t ., p I33.
Aotu&lly perhaps the reverse was more true for IPA classes
did help to develop more in te re st is a rt on a nation-wide
basis, end thereby more then likely helped the a rt schools,
instead of hindering them, by promoting desire for the further
study of a rt.
Though not a part of the Community Art Center programs
in a s tr ic t sense, the classes a t IPA s forward-looking
Design Laboratory in Hew York City received similar severe
criticisms for competing with private a rt schools. In the
case of the Design Laboratory, the criticism was even more
unjust than th at of many Center classes, for not only were
the olasaos limited to students who could not afford private
a rt study, but in addition the Laboratory classes emphasised
design whereas most private a rt schools were (and are) s t i l l
teaohing "drawing and painting from s t i l l lif e and pose."

h a n a 4 m 4>U a a -f1 A 4 1 V a 4 >
T JaiL<viav4ji; vuxwja wiiS V
&.S.A ju.vii v i u i'-VAi'-ivp
based i t s program on that of the Bauhans of pre-nazi Germany,
and emphasised esperisentatiea with both materials and
techniques, working toward industrial design instead of por
t r a i t painting or stereotyped Cvj4Lu03Tv*&X illu stra tio n .
Although the complaints of competition with private
galleries and sohools hurled against the Art Education division
of the Project were generally unfounded and unfair, that doss

. jlZ n z ~ 2 rs _____ _______
uv w w h u ua ovuo vvuiiJAeuuuo n o io u .\i u j uo axaoa'V
was sometimes emphasised a t the expense of creative espr-assien?
work of foreign a rtis ts and "Old Masters'5 was stressed in
"appreciation" classes a t the expense of the living* though
sere controversial native artists? handcrafts were sometimes
taught as fibuaywork, instead of creative crafts and so on.
In the to tal picture, i t is hard to arrive at an evaluation of
th is division, for i t is nearly impossible to measure the
results cf such a diversified eduoation program. Perhaps
only the future oan give us a clearer answer in terns of both
a wider, more a le rt, appreciative public for a rt and of a
broad group of oreative a rtis ts who were given a chance to
"try their hand a t a rt and discover th eir talents via PAP.

a *
Stravinsky's and Picassos have been expected to turn
up in American slums where a ll the cultures of the
earth cro ss-fertilise each other. They never have.
They have been too busy learning the cloak and suit
business under the driving necessity of hunger, but i t
does not follow they never w ill. Given a box of IPA
paints and a comer of a bask yard in Hew Yorks Fast
Side, with the wash fluttering humbly overhead, a
youngster w ill bo off on the great symbol (Indian) of
the American Continent. Or given an upright piano in
the Henry Street Settlement, end a few drums and thunpers,
the African faces and Mediterranean faces and Kordie
faces w ill open together in an intent and devoted music.
She -diols story of the Federal Arts Projects w ill not bo
in u n til this generation of youngsters gross up with the
memories of water colors and drum rhythms and theatres
and ballet dancers underneath,.the darker and more unhappy
memories of its childhoods1
1. Archibald MaoLeish Unemployed A rts, FQEFUHE,

May 1937, p. 116,
115
ART RESEARCH
Tho--third major division of the IPA Federal Art
Project was the Art Research Section* This consisted for the
most part of one projeot, the index of Americas Design^
(a) INDEX OF AMERICAN DESIGN. While employad on the
WPA, te x tile designer Ruth Rosts s and some o f her co-workers
got the idea that some record should be made of the design
end oreftsmsnship of early a rt and handcraft objects* From
this idea grew the Index of American-Deaip* In her own
designing, Miss Reeves had gone baok to these early designs
for inspiration, not to imitate or copy the early designs
although they were often good in themselves, but to use them
as a basis for developing designs more appropriate for our
times* Credit for devising the recording techniques for the
Index belongs to Suzanne Chapman, whose work with the Boston
Museum gave her an ideal background for this problem. Inciden
ta l to the Index, but not an actual part of i t . one might also
1. The t i t l e of the Index, as 'American Design," is unfortunate,

for as C-raco Overwer pointed out i t implied that the hand
crafts of the Latin American countries and Canada were also
ineluded, whoreas actually i t was limiteG to the Baited
States, and included a record sample sf some ssrly graft
work done in but thirty-five states. Perhaps Frank Lloyd
Wright's term Uscaian" would be best when referring to
products of the United States, onoe the term came into
popular usage. At le ast, i t seems more honest.
116
mention the UFA* s Restoration Unit of the Public Buildings
Projects. She purpose of this unit was the restoration and
rehabilitation of old fo rts, city gates, old homes, and other
sites where parts of our early history had been enacted, and
the preservation of them for future generations.
The Index its e lf was a collection of accurately
rendered drawings and paintings in color of early wood, metal,
stone, glass and textile crafts. Its aim was;
" ...to compile material for a nation-wide p icto rial

_/ survey of design in the American decorative, useful
and folk arts from their conception to about 1890 .
I t sought specifically!
1. To record material of h isto rical significance

which has not heretofore been studied, and
which for one reason or another stands in
danger of being lo st.
2. To gather a body of traditional material

which may form the basis of an organia
development of American Design.
3. To make usable source records of th is

material available to a r tis ts , designers,
manufacturers, museums, lib raries, and
art schools.
fy. To give employment to painters, graphic

a rtis ts , photographers and commercial
a rtis ts who might not otherwise find
employment,
Hath Reeves was in charge of the project when i t was
f ir s t organised in November of 1935 * She retained that position
1. UFA, IHDEX OR AMERICA!? DBSIGII MARTIAL. (Washington! HPA,

mimeographed bulletin, llovember 3 rd, 1938), p. 1 .
R eproduced w ith perm ission of the co p yrig h t ow ner. F urthe r rep rod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission.
117
for only a b rief time, after which Constance Rcurks and C
Adolph Olassgold were made co-director 39 In the sunaar of
1936* Mr* Olassgold was made National Co-ordinator of the
Index, a position which he held during the major portion of
the Index* He was suooeeded in August, I9I1Q, by Benjamin
Knotts*
Since the Index was a part of the WPA Art Projeot,
the workers were from the ranks of unemployed artisans* They
included the persons who showed speoial aptitudes in copying
and Illustration work, and those who were hot creative enough
in their own right to paint on the easel or mural painting
units* Of the la tte r group, some turned out to be good Index
workers beoause of th eir a b ility to reoord surface details even
though they could not do creative designing themselves* Some
of th is group, however, according to Mr* Olassgold, were not
very oompetent, and needed a good deal of assistance and super
vision* As part of the re lie f program, those workers were
retained on the projeots, however, u n til they could get work
elsewhere* In the early part of the projeot, many plates were
not done very carefully, and Mr* Glasagold had to go over them,
mark their defeots, and send them back to be redrawn* Accuracy
was important on this project because of i t s historical emphasis.
The record of accomplishments of the Index of American
Design is a record of both success and failure* Its success was
118
twofold* In addition to making a comprehensive, illu stra tiv e
record of the design of our early handcraft a rtic le s, the Index
stimulated an interest in the design qualities of these early
objects* ind seoondly, i t helped at least indireotly to foster
an interest in contemporary arts and crafts, partly because i t
made people more aware of design in the objects around them in
their daily life* Looking at its sucoess in terms of numbers,
the Index functioned in thirty-five states, and produced in a ll
about 21,765 drawings and plates, vdth about 7,000 of them being
photographic reproductions* These drawing plates were the
record of early stone-craft, m etal-oraft, woodworking, glass-
work, and textile-making* They consisted in the recording of
both the design themselves, and in many cases of the applied
decoration on these objects* The attempt was to try to repro
duce the texture of the material, of the stone, glass, fabric,
metal or wood, as accurately as possible, together with the
design and deooration, and to do a ll of these in natural oolors*
The paintings and drawings of glass were of hand
pressed and blown vases, flasks and b o ttles, dishes and glasses,
and ships carved in bottles* the illu stratio n s of stoneware
1* Reports from a few states were not received for the fisc al
year 1945, so the number is accurate only up to that time*
The major reason for the lack of index work in the other
thirteen states was lack of artist-craftsmen on re lie f ro lls
at the time in the Southern and Great Plains Regions*
R e pro duce d w ith perm ission o f the co p yrig h t ow ner. F urthe r rep rod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission.
vases, and other pottery, She woodworking plates included
carved hmitu?e, mostly chests, chairs, cupboards, elocki,
and spinets, end such a range of hen&e&rved a rticles as to
include weathervanes, cigar store Indians, ships figureheads,
tavern signs, religious figures, tool and oene handles, butter
molds, toys, and wildfowl decoys. Drawings on metal-working
were mostly those of andirons, kettles and heating pans,
door-knobs sad knockers, lamps and candle sticks, carved
iron fences and gates, flatiron stands, weathervanes, tools,
and religious carvings. The Ind^ te x tile plates were the
records of handmade quilts and coverlets, hooked and woven
rugs, homespun linen and cotton goods, embroidered samplers
and mourning pieces, comhusk dolls and doll clothes, end
various kinds of costumes. Thus in variety of articles
recorded, and number of drawings completed, the Index of
American Design was a suocess* In addition to th is, i t was
successful in creating a popular in terest in a rt and hand
c ra fts, Workers not only went to museums and libraries for
records of these early objects, but found a considerable
number of them in private collections in homes where they wars
considered family heirlooms. Through emphasising the design
qualities of these objeots, and especially the simplicity of
some of the best objects, the Index stimulated popular interest
R e pro duce d w ith perm issio n o f the co p yrig h t ow ner. F urthe r rep rod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission.
120
in them ae a rt to supplement the sentimental attachment which
the people already had for these objects* Through publicity
the Index received in such magasines as House and Garden*
Home Beautiful* Fortune* Readers' Digest and Coronets the
psepl became interested in the recording, and findings, of
handcraft objects, end in the Federal Art Project as a Thole
as well as in the Index itse lf# *' Interest was also created
through exhibitions of Index Work in museums throughout the
country's Notable examples were the exhibitions "Emblem of
Unity and Freedom," "Pennsylvania German Designs," and "I
Remember That" (drawings of interiors of a generation ago),
a t the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York*
Although almost 22,000 drawings were made and con
siderable interest in art aroused through the project, the
Index may be said to have failed in one of its fundamental
aims* One of the original ideas, as explained by coordinator
Adolph Glassgold, was that the illu stratio n s were to be pub
lished to fora a library of reference material to be U3ed by
1* Of a lliP A 's cultural a c tiv itie s, the Index of American

Design received more favorable publicity as a whole than
any other* Apparently its concern with craft articles
of an earlier day gave the program a conservatism
acceptable to periodicals which were not as open to
more ourrant a ctiv ities like FAP's murals or Federal
Theatre' 8 "Living Newspaper" for example*
121
scholars, designers, and manufacturers. The published Index
was to have been made readily available to persons interested
in examining the sources and development of our early handcraft
design. Careful data sheets were prepared for each drawing,
shwoing 11the type and material of the object, the date of making,
and the locality from which i t came, the names of the maker aid
of the original owner where these were obtainable.111 These data
sheets, of importance for the individual drawings, were primarily
intended as part of the complete, published Index. That the
index was never published was due largely to the expense in
volved in color printing, Congressional appropriations for
PAP were for the purpose of putting people back to work, and
were not sufficient to undertake any other ventures. Although
some consideration was given to having the Index published,
the cost of color printing over 21,000 plates, exclusive of
photographs, at approximately $500 per plate, made the venture
prohibitive. Apparently there was also some difference of
opinion among Project officials about the advisability of
having even parts of the Index published at the time, result
ing in the negative decision. However, this failure of not
having the Index printed is not a permanent one, for the entire
collection of plates is now housed in the ilational Gallery of
Art in Washington, and can be published at a future date.
1, Index Manual, op. c i t ., p. 3 .
2. At time of writing, The MacMillan Co. has just published a

volume of Index plates selected by Mr. Erwin Christensen,
curator of the Index at The Ilational Gallery.
122
Perhaps ether p late; sill-he added tic xnc mcLvA in vuO' future,
too, naking i t s record of researoh of arts and crafts more com
plete and more up to date.
Although there Brer & number of minor aims end goals
which the Federal Art Projeot established during its years of
existence, tkore were fear major alas which were established
from the beginning* Stated briefly these were* (l) To provide
work for the unemployed so as to conserve a rt sk ills. (2) So
widen the a rt horizons and promote general public interest in
the living arts. (3) So work to integrate the arts and do away
with the superficial categories of "fine" and "useful11 arts*
Aid while attempting these three, the Project had as aim number
(If) the negative factor that i t was not to compete with private
enterprise. *
In attempting to summarise the work of the Federal
Art Project as a vhole, i t mast be admitted th at the Project
was a success in at least three of i t s four basic aims* In the
f ir s t place. FAP did provide work for tbs unemployed a rtis ts cs.
a scale which skeptics f ir s t thought was impossible* Sot only
were jobs provided for the practical a rtis ts , like sign painters
]. See WPA; AOC-OMPLISHMESTS OF THE WPA FEDERAL ART PROJECT,

(Washington? WPA, mimeographed bulletin, April 1, 1939) p. 1*
123
and poster makers- but for tbs whole range of talen t ire s
th craftsman to the expressive easel painter* I t should bo
noted here too, that in providing work for th unemployed
a rtis ts the policy of no discrimination was followed very
carefully* This meant no discrimination because of race, color
or creed, and also was interpreted to mean no discrimination
against young people because they had not had much previous
a rt training or experience*
In the second place, FAP helped to widen a rt horizons
and promote general public in terest in the living a rts through
it s local programs in the ossmsunity a rt centers. This part
of the program alone proved the value of a federal program
where the government enters a rt for the people rather than for
its e lf , and w ill no doubt serve as the basis on which to
construct federal a rt programs of the future* I t is d ifficu lt
to realise th widespread in terest in a rt which the Federal Art
Project fosterod, considering the small cost of the to tal
project. Even the fact that newspapers and magazines were strong
in th eir criticism of the paintings and murals shows that there
was public in terest rather than indifference. The fact remains
th at in terest in the living arts of the country was greatly
aided on a nation-wide seals by the Federal Art Project.
Thirdly, FAP activ ities did not oompete with private
a rt schools and museums except in a few isolated cases due to
misinterpretation of Project rules and regulations In fact,
i t helped provide a rid er audience for these private a rt agencies
instead*
As to its fourth aim, attempting to integrate th arts
and do away with the "fine and useful" a rt categories* i t mist
be admitted that sincere attempt ras made is that direction,
especially as evidenced by some of the work is the Handcraft
Division and the inclusion of the Index of American Design.
However, Projeot Directors admit that PAP had only really
gotten started in that direotion and s t i l l had considerable
way to go toward achieving the aim to th degree they desired*
In fact, they admit that the projeot would have gone farther
toward successful achievement of the other three aims as well had
i t been given a longer life span.
The most significant part of the Federal Art Project
was its Art Education program which gave impetus to the Gomminity
Art Centers idea in this country, and helped create new interest
in creative expression cm a nation-wide basis* Though not as
successful perhaps as both the Music and Theatre Projects in
terms of numbers of people who were members of the "audiffi.cs,
i t s results wore more far reaching in terms of making a rt more
democratic, than was originally imagined* Hot only did FAP
widen the audience for native a rt through the murals and
sculpture in schools^ libraries and other public places (which
R e pro duce d w ith perm ission o f the cop yrig ht ow ner. F urthe r rep rod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission.
is s t i l l somewhat in the tradition of government in a rt for
its e lf ) , out i t provided opportunities for the people to
experiment with various creative mediums in the a rt laboratories
of the Community Art Centers. And in these same centeis, through
exhibits, lectures sad organised display techniques, the people
were introduced to creative a rtis ts working in the same way on
a professional level, thus helping to develop greater under
standing and appreciation.
She Art Hesearch program, through the Index of American
Design, proved to he more satisfactory as a h isto rical record
than many had thought possible at the beginning when the primary
concern was getting craftsmen back to work at something where
they could earn three square meals a day. But i t was the Art
Production section which was most controversial of the three
major divisions of PAP. Considered by some writers in magazines
and newspapers to have been a kind of renaissance in the art of
the United States, the work of this section was considered by
others as a gross waste of the taxpayer's money. The truth,
which is often the case in such matters, no doubt lie s somewhere
between the two extremes. le t when compared to the government's
eclectic art programs of the years before 1929 , perhaps i t was
near to being a renaissance at that. If the project was too
short-lived to be a major "new birth" of native a rt, at least
it was long enough to prove of considerable more worth than
126
the cost to the nation.^- At least i t was a momentuous transitory
experiment following the decades of cultural "borrowing from Europe,
and preceding the hoped-for period of government 11yardstick 11
leadership in the country's arts of the future.
Since controversy accompanied the Art Production Division
during most of its active lif e , i t is not surprising that controversy
also played its part even after the entire WPA Federal Art
Project had been declared finished. In the spring of 19Ml
magazine and newspaper articles announced that the government

O
had sold "several thousand earnest easel paintings"'" to a junk
dealer in lew York. Life magazine even went so fa r as to say
in the a rtic le 's headline that "Canvases which cost government
$35 , 000,000 are sold for junk,"- and only in small type la te r
explained that what was sold was a sample o fth e work produced
on the Federal Art Project during i t s eight years of existence...
at a to ta l cost of $35 j 000,000. Realizing that even over a
year after the Project was abolished FAP was s t i l l considered
a p o litic a l football, nine recognized a rtists^ wrote a le tte r
1. See Appendix D.
2. lime, March 6 , 1954, p. $ 6 .
4. Peter Blume, Philip Evergooa, Robert Gwathmey, Frank

Eleinhols, Julian Levi, Katherine Schmidt, Moses Soyer,
3erenice Abbott, and Jo Davidson.
R eproduced w ith perm ission o fth e co p yrig h t ow ner. F urthe r rep rod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission.
127
to the a rt editor of the Herr York Times. SiMpfeLii? ts straighten
the reoord* Part of their le tte r follows?
fiTh recent sals of sons iP i easel paintings and sural

sketehe3 (by the Procurement Division of the United
States Treasury) as surplus property, hag evoked
comment in some periodicals, which we, the undersigned
a rtis ts , feel misrepresents th purpose and achievements
of the I S k Art Projects* As a rtis ts we were well
acquainted with art project work in lew York City and
throughout the country, end wo should like therefore to
bring some facts to the attention of tho public through
your columns?
I t las been estimated that tho Government spent

S35,000,000 on its art program, in eight years, a sum
which may seem large, but is in fact about one-third of
one per cent of the appropriations for work programs during
the period 1935-19^3 Th9 American publio got, in addition
to a rt teaohing, oenarunity art centers, poster and allied
a rts services to practically every municipality in the
country, some 700,000 works of creative art (easel paint
ings, murals, architectural sculpture, prin ts, and the
Index of American Design plates). Since two-thirds of
the project personnel was engaged in teaohing and art
services, these works of a rt cost the American people
about f 17 apiece* We may add that th is figure by no means
represents the true value of the a rt produced.
Further, the work recently sold at auctions as surplus

property is but a small fraction of one per cent of the IPA
Art Project's production in oreative art* A few easel
paintings and murals, including sketches and unfinished
works, were on hand when the project came to an end in the
spring of 19^3 These following long established Government
routine were turned over to the Procurement Division* But
wnat of til 7u0,000 VuVKo ox arv axreaay preserved m
museums, libraries and public buildings throughout the
The picture which has been presented to the American

people is therefore a badly distorted one. The truth is
that from the training school of the UFA project have come
many of cur ranking easel painters, while rebirth of the
mural and ?r&hic arts must be credited to this agency.
More than that, the impetus of the I'/PA art project
created the new, vast, popular audience for a rt in
America;, which is one of the most hopeful portents
on the art horison today. 2o have brought spout such,
a renascence is surely worth $35000,000. ^. ,,'L
So the Art Production Division ended as i t began, the
subject of comment and controversy. But i t le ft behind, in
addition to the experiences with art and understandings of it
which the people gained through the Art Education Division,
700,000 v/orks of art in public and quasi-puolic institutions,
for future generations to view and evaluate. The range of
these 700,000 paintings, murals, and pieces of sculpture is
complete enough, both in content and technique, so that most
people should be able to find some to their liking. Perhaps
they may even like more than they think they do, as long as
they do not know i t was produced on i'lPA1.
1. Hew York Times, April 3 0 , 19-&.
R eproduced w ith perm ission o fth e cop yrig ht ow ner. F urthe r rep rod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission.
129
CHAFxM k - 3MDS. FOLK SOHGS, AHD THE SûERAL MUSIC PROJECT
At the present time, nusic is perhaps the most popular
and.widely accepted of a ll the a rts, like architecture, i t enters
into th.o r'sc2?*^jr 6Tcr^r0!i6 ( sit-lisr bv vpv of ?!*odio
and phonograph, or hy way of singing in the shower or whistling
while we work. However, this has not always been true to the
degree i t is now. Ho doubt people have always whistled and
sung at times, but before the radio and phonograph there was
not the opportunity to listen to music of others ercept at
church or spscicil concerts. At thnt tins icucic ?. nizior
part in the peoples daily lives, therefore, i t is not hard
to imagine that the government showed very l i t t l e interest in
music either. In fact about the only interest the Federal
Government took in i t u n til the Franklin Roosevelt Administration
was in m ilitary bands and the national Anthem.
The Continental Congress organized fife and drum corps
in order to recruit marines as early as 1775 > snd- from thfese
corps the marine band was la te r organized. It was o fficially
accepted as part of the Federal Government about 1801, for at
that time the marine band was asked to play at a Hew Year's
Fay reception given by President and Mrs. Adams at the TJhite
House. Tire band has been functioning actively since, and p a rti
cularly during the twelve years from 1830 to 1392, during which
time i t was under the direction of the 'March Sing," John Philip
Sousa,
130
.. Ihe. two other United States Military Banda* the United
States Arsy and Navy Bands, ware organised much later. In fact,
the Amy Band is a direct descendant of the band of the Expedi
tionary Forces, formed by General John J . Pershing at Chaumont,
France, during the First World la r.^ The Navy Band was organised
as late as 1923 , and was made a permanent institution in the
Government by Congress in I925 . Both Army end Navy Bands now

2
number approximately ninety musioians.
Following the organisation of these two, Congress
deeided we needed a National Anthem and on March 3 , 193d
passed a resolution declaring the "Star Spangled Banner as
the nation's official song# "Hail Columbia" had been considered
the unofficial National Anthem from 1798 u n til Francis Scott Key
wrote ihe "Star Spangled Banner" during the War of 1812, and had
i t published in 1821, After th at i t became popular, and was
accepted unofficially as the nation's number one song even
1. WASHINGTON, CITT AND CAPITAL, o p .eit., p. 1J0.
2. During World War II , smaller air force and service bands and
orchestras were organized, and the various branches of the
armed forces helped to sponsor different kinds of concerts,
as well as talent shows and movies. The United States
Treasury Department also sponsored musical and dramatic
radio programs to help promote the sales of bonds and war
stampsj but here, unlike the Federal Music Project, the
emphasis was on the military and war, rather than peacetime,
creative expression.
131
before Congress declared i t o fficially as the national Anthem
in l95i Neither of the two songs however were ever commissioned
by private patriotic organisations or by the Federal Government.
The Government's interest in music, prior to WPA, has
been almost entirely in military bands. One notable exception,
however, was the organisation of the Music Division of the Library
of Congress wherein a ll kinds of musical scores and manuscripts
were collected and housed. At the present time, the collection
is the largest of tho musical libraries of tho United States, and
in the number and value of its ancient and modem books, scores
and manuscripts, i t ranks today with the music section of the
Royal Academy of Berlin, founded in the seventeenth century,
and the British Museum, which dates from the middle of the
eighteenth.*
To the Music Division of the Library of Congress there
was added, in 1925, the Chamber Music Foundation, g ift to the
government by Mrs. Elizabeth Sprague Coolidge- The Foundation
includes a 1100,000 Chamber Music Hall, in a courtyard of the
Library, and provides an endowment for a music festival in
Washington every other year, at which time a prise is awarded
for an original composition in Chamber music form. Every four
years a prize is awarded for the best chamber music composition
1. Grace Overmyer, op. c i t ., p. 151.
for four stringed instruments. In addition to Mrs. Coolidge's
g ift, a Nicholas longworth foundation was established in 1933.
to provide for annual chamber music concerts; and a few years
la te r Mrs. Mathew Jofcn Mittal gave four Stradivarius violins
and the sum of $100,000, for their maintenance, which wei*e to he
used at the chamber music concerts and festivals. Ihe only credit
the government can take in establishing these foundations is in
accepting the gifts a sth e y were presented. lever did i t attempt
any active non-military program on its own u n til an Archive of
American folk song was organized la te r in the Library of Congress;
and, more recently, the Wk program where music was considered
secondarily at least as part answer to the re lie f problem.
Although the government's record in music has been
nearly blank u n til the la st twenty-five years, there is the
one positive factor, in this record that at least the federal
leaders had not been building a collection of eclecticism as in
the other a rts. Ihus when the government did sponsor a major
music program in the 1920's , i t started one that was a kind of
"grass roots" project, the Archive of American folk Song.
ARCHIVE Of AHEBICAK DOLE SONS.
Originally started as a part of the Music Division of
the Library of Congress, by Carl Engel in 1928, the Archive of
133
jtinerioea Folk Song was f ir s t - collection ef folklore sad
minstrel songs mostly from th period of 1880-1890# Robert
W Gordon was the f ir s t Archivist of th is h isto rical collection#
Five years la te r, in 1933? was named honorary
curator of the Collection and together with his son Alan started
an a tour which was to take them tens of thousands of miles
through three-fourths of our states, and the West Indies, and
was to result in a collection of both written and recorded folk
lore and songs, which extended in rcngc to include sp iritu als,
blues, Negro "sinful songs, and work songs of prisoners in
Southern camps# In explaining their work, Alan Lomas wrote*
"These records were made in the fie ld , th at i s , where

the singers lived or worked# Fiddlers, evangelists,
cotton piokers, housewives, convicts, school children,
miners, hoboes, lumber jacks, old timers - a cross
? section of America sang into our field microphones,
and were reoorded on our aluminum or acetate disks#
v; .They-told us stories, gave whatever songs they knew
or could remember - songs that in many cases came out
: of t h r past 50> 100 years, even 300 years ago - songs
that were made up yesterday, and others which say be
the folk stu ff of the future.##John A. Lomax and 1#.#
in the summer of 1933ms.de a collecting trip through
thenegro prisons in the South to record the rhythmical
work songs which had been forgotten, in the sain, out
side the prisons#.#"!
Although the Archives of the American Folk Song has
always been a part of the Library of Congress since i t s beginning.
1# From the introduction to LIST OF BECOKDED SOIGS IS ABCHI7BS

OF AmSPJCAII FOLK SONG# (WashingtonS Library of Congress, 1942),
p* 2.
the? government ageneies have aided in the collection end
classifying of the songs* The Music Section of the Special
Skills Division,^ for example, lent i t s help and support, as
did the TSFA. The Special Skills Divisionwas able to help in
the building of the Archives in a very real sense* As a part
of the Department of Agriculture, i t could offer opportunities
for finding and recording folk songs of rural life through the
Department s Extension Division and i t s program of Resettlement
Communities* Then, too, the Director of the Music Section of
Special Skills, Dr* Charles Seeger, had long been a champion
for our folk music, and though never an o ffio ial part of the
Arohive he deserves a good deal of credit for his contributions
to the Government's growing collection* Speoial Skills also
helped to issue the first"Provisicoal Check-list of Discs" in
the Arohive in January, 1937* The 7TPA, together with the HYA,
helped in the cataloging of the l+,000 records in the collection
up to that time, and prepared the three volume "Check-list of
Recorded Songs in the English Language in the Archive of American
Folk Song" up to July, I9I1.O* Through the combined efforts of
these agencies, the collection included about 8,000 ballads and
songs by April 19^5, and therein ineluded songs of most nationali
tie s and occupational groups* Bon A* Botkin, former chief sf
the Archives, in writing of the results of this collaboration, said*
1* In the Resettlement Administration of the Department of

Agriculture*
155
~:r~r"(Qae-l)ân-te-hear-not only of child ballads and

mountain fiddle tanas, bat also of .1ooks sbw
Orleans Jazz, h illb illy bands, Holiness church
music, union songs, boogie woogie; not only of
texts and tunes, but also of d esu B tsn tary records
giving the singer's cements and experiences!
of coal mines, turpentine workers, sponge
fishermen, and Okies, of Finnish, Servian,
Russian and Polish, as well as Haitian, Cajun
and Spanish - American folk music..like
Emma Ouseabury, about 120 of whose songs are
in the collection, the Archive seemed to have
made a resolution to learn a ll the songs in
the world!9!
Mr, Botkin also best explained the philosophy of the
Arohive of Amerioan Folk Song, when he said i t was a program to
acquaint the people with their wealth of spoken and sung ballads
and tradition, a program nto give back to the people what belongs
to them.9^
SPECIAL SKILLS, AMD OTHER MOSIC GROUPS
In recent years, since the establishing of the Folk
Song Archives, there have been organised several unofficial
Government groups, made up of employees of various federal
departmentse Volunteer orchestras have been organized in the
Department of Agriculture, Procurement Division of the Jrsasury,
Bureau of Internal Sevenue, Bureau of Engraving and Printing,
19 Library of Congress, QUARTER!!? JOURNAL of Current Acquisitions,

(Washington! Government Printing Office, June 19^5), P*
2. Ibid p* 6?.
136
Government Printing Office, and Federal Housing Administration*
In addition, the Department of Agriculture, Government Printing
Office, and Interstate Commerce Costissien, saeh hare a vocal
chorus group, as well as some lesser known end ssailer division
groups* The Federal Government does not sponsor these groups
but permits the use of government auditoriums free of charge
for concerts, and contributes sometimes to incidental expenses*
About the seme time th at some of these organisations
were started, following the depression, there was organised a small
federal projeot in music as part of the Speoiai Sid 11a Division
of the Besettlement Administration* As was mentioned previously,
th is group was under the direction of Charles Seeger, and had
as its major aim the developing of oommunity music programs in
rural sections of the country, especially in connection with
the planned garden communities constructed by the Department of
Agriculture* I t was hoped that through these community musio
and drama programs families who had ju st moved into these garden
villages would get to know one another much quicker* And, of
coarse i t was also hoped that these programs would further the
drive for grass roots music, end other similar a rt programs.
Although l i t t l e has been written or published about th is group,
i t was a highly successful undertaking despite it s short life*
The philosophy back of the Music Section of Special Skills can
perhaps best be expressed as helping the people to find th eir own
R epro duce d w ith perm ission o fth e co p yrig h t ow ner. F urthe r rep rod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission.
137
migio* nftsidugton took ie in itia tiv e by #adiag a Bsisioiaa-
educator into the various rural areas and resettlement oossnunities,
but there i t s jurisdiction intentionally stopped Once this
musician arrived in the area* he or she f ir s t survsved the
community end its musical resources, and attempted to work
from the musical level he found there* Often times the
directors found H illbilly bands, and could work with them in
community sing programs, singing the songs the people already
knew, and sometimes teaohing a couple of new ones* Sometimes
they were able to recruit enough persons together to fora rural
bands, and one place the Special Skills music director helped
sponsor a prise fight, together with the towns b all club, in
order to get both ballplayers uniforms and musical instruments
for the band with the proceeds* And sometimes these musical
directors had to approach their work indirectly, supplying music
for local projects, such as bringing in music for b&okground at
a fashion show where girls displayed th eir hsnd=made drosses
which thqy sewed from colored food and flour sacks* In a ll cases,
however, the Speoiai Skills musicians attempted to start in with
the musical interests and needs of tn community snd to ork
from there* rather than to coins from Washington Trith the idea
of ^bringing culture to the stick s, as could happen in a program
where the officials had less vision* Though essentially a small
federal projeot in terms of numbers of persons employed, expenses,

>
m
rm
* 4:V<n M
** 4r>
* nnawa+i w av*A
M MU WVV* ----VMM UVUH7OW *i 1 AZ A
4 TJQdm *. *
3
pioneer work in developing grass roots programs, and there is
m
m b X V1 m. m
ma*mJS am* *J> *t*A* J*Â** IMm
ma am
m*a a *1?am A*Xm
**A
muCA ij U Oc x e t u u o u xiOiii x u w acu uuc t/xinc u w a c s x u x xuuux
music and a rt programs.
Following shortly after this smaller program, came
the Government's biggest, musical venture, the Music Project
of the WPA.
3TOBHAT, MUSIC EEOJlQg

T ma ii *a - mJ . j it* , r i u . ; j r.r * - l . . - { * , * * -
iii it ii jJCix y u cti i/ci' m e x l i b u iiu x x u n e ii', A ider xectiib
became more music conscious than ever before. During the earlier
periods of eclecticism there had been the desire for a carved
grand piano in every parlor, whether anyone played i t or not.
la te r on this was replaced by the upright "player" piano,
which anyone could play by putting in a slotted ro ll of paper
containing the melody, and pumping the pedals to force a ir
through the slots. In many homes, th is was supplemented by
the early hand-wind phonographs, with the cylindrical records.
Soon these were followed by the electric phonographs with the
was disc records, and the wonderful new invention of the radio.
By that time too, the motion pictures had adopted music as an
integral part of their sound programs, and soom the music industry
had become big business in this country. For this reason, when
the depression came the music industry could not escape the
panic any more than other business, and during the early
1930 *s an estimated 25,000 musicians -were out of work because
of technological unemployment. When the government organised
meat problem, thanks to the vision of Barry Hopkins and others,
a music project was organized to help these thousands of a isicim s
u n til they could again find work in private buslnesso Like the
Art Project, the Federal Music Froject work may be divided into
three large groups* Musio Production, Music Education, and
Music Essoarchs Judging the accomplishments of IMP as a whole,
it s one major contribution was in the realm of music education
where people in a ll parts of the country had the experience of
sharing in the world of good musio, many of them for the f ir s t
time* Yet th is feat was accomplished as much through the
Production Division as through Music Education*
MUSIC PKODTJCTIOH?
Faced with the problem of putting unemployed musicians
back to work, government leaders a t the time seemed to understand
the morale building power of musio, and f e lt that i f they could
get bends, orchestra? and vocal groups organised throughout the
country, i t might have an uplifting psychological effect on the
people during these dark depression days. Attempting to accomplish
these two objectives a t once, a conductor, Dr. H ikolai/ Sokoloff,
of the Cleveland Symphony Orchestra, wa3 asked to d irest the
Believing in the potential of the Projeot. other professional and
prominent musicians offered their services and the latio n al
Advisory Board included such distinguished musicians as Dr.
Walter Damrosoh, Olin Downes, George Gershwin, Dr* Howard
Hanson, Edward Johnson, Dr* Hans Kindler, Frederick Stock,
Leopold Stokowski, Madame Olga Stokowski, Lawrence Tibbett, and
Paul Whiteman. In addition, Dr. Sokoloff had William Mayfdrth
as his able Assistant Director of the Projeot, and Mr* Mayfarth
was the actual administrator for about a year in 1938- 39
(a) PUBLIC CONCERTS DI7ISI0H* There was organised a
division of the Projeot to get musical groups started and ready
for public concerts* Soon the work of the Public Concerts
Section included programs by symphony orchestras, ensemblef,
string quartets, chamber music ensembles, light and grand opera
0G23p5Hl$5> COul SOloXS't^ uHd Ijh O u trS Hd &SuaC6 O rch^^t-i
and bands.
One of the biggest undertakings of this section of EIP
was the group of twenty-two symphony orchestras organized through
out the country and mostly in places where no regular symphony
orohestras had existed before. These included the Brooklyn
Symphony? Bridgeport (Connecticut) Symphony; Buffalo (i!*Y)
Symphony; Commonwealth Symphony (Boston); Hartford (Connecticut)
iin
Symphony? Huntington (if* Ya*} Symphony- Illin o is Symphony
(Chicago); Los Angeles Federal Symphony; Minnesota Wk
Symphony (Duluth); Hot York City Federal Symphony; North
California WPA Symphony (San Franeisoo); Oklahoma City
Symphony; Philadelphia Federal Symphony; Pittsburgh Federal
Symphony; Portland (Oregon) Philharmonic Symphony; Hhode
Island IPA Symphony (Providence); Springfield (Mas3.) Symphony;
State Symphony (Boston); Syracuse (N.Y.) Symphony*. Utah Stats
Symphony (Salt Lake City); Wisconsin Symphony (Milwaukee); and
WPA Symphony (D etroit). These orohestras served as means for
putting back to work over 1,900 musicians, who had been unemployed,
in addition to providing public concerts for the people from coast
to coast, many of them free, and the re s t at nominal prices.
In addition to the 22 symphony orohestras, the Publio
Concerts Section included, by January of 1939, 90 small orchestras
employing 2,075 musicians; 68 bands employing 653, 15 chamber
music ensembles m tk 111; musicians# 33 opera and choral units

I
employing 1,100? and one soloists unit employing 10? This doss
not include of course music teachers and others employed in
different divisions of the Project? i t is only those actively
employed on the Public Concerts programs. And yet numbers
themselves do not give a very adequate picture of the work of
1. Figures from Council Study manuscript, Music Freycciij pp 7> 8#
th is division, Qi iu iaCttt of any other part o? the 7-PA'g
cultural programs They t e l l nothing. for example, of the net
lease on life which the musicians got when they were put baok
to work again after having stood in breadlines along with unem
ployed bricklayers and other kind of workers* Nor do the numbers
themselves t e l l about the v ita l, first-hand musical experience
of the people as a whole who participated as audience in these
concerts Oftentimes concerts were free and were given in
parks, band shells, churches and auditoriums,but sometimes a
small admission fee was oharged, especially when there was
rent to pay on a theatre, h a ll, or auditorium. How vast the
audience was for FMP concerts, there seems to be no record
In one month alone, January 19l|2, nearly 6,000 concerts were
given for about 2,1+00,000 persons. But again that says nothing
of the variety and depth of the musical experience of th9 people
who attended, nor of the variety of the types of music presented.
I t te lls l i t t l e of the role of the Public Concerts Section in
making music more democratic through a program for putting
unemployed HrAS3.Q2. v back to work.
The symphony orchestras were perhaps the most successful
part of the program of the Public Concerts Section, p artly because
of the number of orchestras organized on EMP; partly because of
th e ir having been established in various parts of the United
States where classical music had never before been given a chance
w ith perm ission o f the cop yrig ht ow ner. F urthe r rep rod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission.
ii+3
tn SSOfipt vlg ylt rttuly* ailu pjtriily qrhurh ^nH^g -bmm
not the association of ^polities3 with the symphony orchestras
that there was with some musical comedy productions, and with
rjpyhq of ^rio FsdsiTs.X &nd Tlisîirs Pro^GOu^s
On the other hand, opera was perhaps the least success
ful part of the program of the Public Concerts Seotion. Opera was
presented much less frequently than one might haws imagined,
due mainly to the large expense involved in sets, costumes and
lighting* The few operas which were attempted on FMP were
revised so as to make them shorter in length, and simplified
in terms of sets and production. Of these, the most suocesBfhl
from the point of view of the audience were those which were
narrated between scenes by a story reader, for through this
teohnique the amateur opera audience seemed to feel it s e l f more
a part of the productions
(b) SfiDIQ AN5 HE'CORDiiiG SEiji.'XUi'i A section for radio
programs and recordings was organized on the Federal Music Project
so that parsons in remote areas of the country, where the large
12212.1:3 00*1Id 220l; qO to COJICSrtSj CCllld hs,76 id26 OppC*
of hearing good music as well as the larger metropolitan areas.
Most of the radio programs were fifteen minute transcriptions
consisting of from ten to twelve minutes of music, and from three
to five minutes of commentary and explanation of the music pre
sented These programs wore primarily educational in aim,
iWi.
attempting to help build understanding and appreciation of a
variety of the best of the world's musical lite ra tu re . They
included both vocal and instrumental compositions, as well as
both modem and classical* The transcription3 were usually sent
to local radio stations to be used as fill-in s on -their broad
casting schedules* As an example of the scope of the program*
during the month of January, 19^2, Federal Music Project workers
presented 112 radio broadcasts*
( 0) COMPOSER'S FORUM LABORATORY* A unique experiment
in the history of music in this country was organized in the
Music Production Division? i t was a laboratory designed to give
composers a chanoe to have their musical compositions performed,
called the Composer's Forum laboratory* Held in larger c itie s
throughout the country - Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, D etroit,
Los Angeles, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Rew York, Philadelphia,
Oklahoma City - the forum was designed to give contemporary
American Composers^ a chance to present th eir works to the
public, to hear their own compositions being performed, end to
1* nk composer is an American, i f by birth or choiee of permanent

residence, he becomes identified with American life and in s ti
tutions before his talents have had their greatest outlet!
and through his association and sympathies he makes a genuine
contribution to our cultural development....John Tasker Howard,
OUR AMERICAN MUSIC, (Hew York. Crowell Co*, 193&), Introduction,
p. XX
learn the reaction of the audience to these compositions. After
the perfomnoa of a composers work by a 1PA musical group, the
composer took the stage to explain the composition and his point
of view, and to answer any questions whioh members of the audience
may have asked. In th is way, i t not only provided a chance for
the public to hear a program of more than one composition by
each composer, and in some cases entire programs made up of
the works of one composer, but gave the composers a chanoe,
after hearing th e ir compositions, to rework and revise parts
with which they were not satisfied . Never before had composers
been given an opportunity like th is, and especially not those who
were s t i l l relatively young and unknown. After i t opened in
October, 1935* the New York City Composer's Forum Laboratory alme
presented the works of 103 composers. A l i s t of but a few of these
would include. Marion Bauer, Nicolai Berea osrsky, Marc Blitz stein,
Ernest Blooh, Carlos Chavez, Aarcn Copland, Henry Cowell, Ruth
Crawford, Paul Crsston, Ross Iss Finney, Mildred C-ardnsr, George
Gershwin (in memorlam), Howard Hanson, Roy Harris, Charles Ives,
Robert McBride, Sam Morgeastern, f a lte r Piston, William Sehuman,
Roger Sessions, Elie Siegmeister, and Y irgil Thomson. Since the
WPA was ended, Columbia University has p artially taken over this
New York Laboratory, and every so often has Composers Forums.
The great conductor, Serge Eoussevitzky, once wrote!
Âlthough a ll m sical a rt derives from the ssae
fundamental sources? i t s manifestation in each
country is in accordance not only with that
country s spiritual riches? but also with i t s
natural riches - its mountains? its rivers? i t s
fe rtile lands.8 1
I t was one of the aims of the Federal Music Project to give our
ooaposers a chance to express themselves about our land end our
people? ju st as i t was one of the aims of the Art Project to give
painters? sculptors and moralists their chance. But unlike the
other artists? the musical composers had the problem of getting
their works performed. For fhis reason the Composer1a Forum
Laboratory was organised for both composers who were reoognized
and for those who were s t i l l young and unknown. In connect!on
with th is desire to help unrecognised talent to get it s break?
the Federal Music Project provided a plan whereby any composer
could submit a musical manuscript to an audition board consisting
of recognized musicians in each locality who were not on re lie f.
I f they thought the work had sufficient merit? they arranged for
a rehearsal of i t with a Project Orchestra where the composer
could hear i t and make changes i f desired. I f the orchestra
conductor and nssicians liked the composition after the rehearsal?
they arranged for a public performance of i t . 7*1thin the f ir s t
year, T3PA orchestras had prformed more than 1,500 compositions?
not including popular songs or dance music, by 5^0 United States
eoBCQssfl.
1. *
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t j. u s s ^ 5
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S h u 5 th ? O iig h p u b l i c C0UC6 5 , ? 6 d i u p r O g r s s a g a n d r e O O r u '
ings, the Federal Musio Projeot produced lite ra lly smusic for the
millions." I n s o doing, they helped put hack to work thousands
of composers and s isie a l performers* in n.r rrcnuc*uicu
Division, offioials faced a problem not envolved on the Art
Production Division of that Proj set* Store were few lim its
on the numbers of a rtis ts who could be employed on easel and
even sural projeotsi either the number of su raliats was quite
limited, or else enough available mural spaoe was found for the
painters, thus not oreating a problem* But when i t came to
musical g ro u p s, that was a different matter* The requirements
of an orchestra or band are somewhat limited* There can be
only a oertain proportion of violins or French horns, and
onoe these positions are fille d the remaining musicians have
to be employed in other parts of the project. So two other
major divisions were organised, the Music Education and Musio
Besearoh seotions* These included, in addition to musicians who
could not be plaoed elsewhere, specially trained music eduoators
and librarians*
MUSIC EDUCATION
In attempting to esplain the underlying principles of
the Music Education Division of PMP, one is reminded of a
Foundation!
" it is now generally believed by educators th at some

practical proficiency in the a> Is is advisable for
ewery hums being* The geniuses say he fen, but
almost every eae ia potentially a musician.' To
leave the talent undeveloped is bad for us. To
develop i t in every one is to sh ift the emphasis
of musical education from the isolated genius,
destined for the concert stage, to the groat
numbers who, i f properly educated, frill constitute
his sympathetic and understanding audience." 1
Making use of th is idea that every one is potentially dpsician
to SCE3 UUU combining i t with the idea th at great misio
is composed only when there is a fever able "climate of appreciation"
for i t in the people, Projeot o fficials tried to develop a democratic
program in onsic* For one thing, susic classes were for mad. In
addition to instrumental classes where young and old alike could
learn to play instruments of th eir choice, classes were also
organised in musioal composition and music appreciation, the
la tte r designed to help listeners understand and enjoy music
they were new getting to hear through the Public Concerts Section.
Although the average monthly attendance at these classes was over
]jj0,000, i t is reported that in January 19if2, 174,917 persons
enrolled for musical instruction. As on the Art Project, music
classes were limited to those #.o could not otherwise afford
private instruction, so as not to compete with private music
schools and teachers. Then, too, classes were always organised
for groups and were never individual instruction, in order to
1. John Erskine, "Hew Id9as in Musio Education," from Oliver

M. Saylors REVOLT IH THE ARTS, o p .o it,, pp. 261, 262.
w ith perm issio n o f th e co p yrig h t ow ner. F urthe r rep rod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission.
3it9
avoid any private exploitation of the Musio Education Division
by "rugged individualists*"
For another thing, musio lib raries were organized to
supplement the work of these classes and to serve as an aid in
promoting general in terest in musio. But most significant
from the eduoation point of view were the few scattered attempts
a t aommunity music programs* Although perhaps these were the
least organized part of the ih ole Musio Eduoation Section, the.
attempts to get people interested in musio in terms of th e ir own
communities was the healthy, grass roots kind of program attempted
earlier an the Special Skills Division* The sim ilarity between
the two is not surprising for Charles Seeger was in charge of the
Musio Section on Special S kills, and was also engaged in organ
izing some of the BSP* s music education work* One reason why
th is community program was so limited was due to the fact that
Mr. Seeger wa3 brought into the Project too la te , and then was
too occupied as a liaison man to have time to develop th is phase
of the Projeot in a way he would liked to have done.^ Credit for
developing the general music education phase of the project is
also due to Dr. Earl Vincent Moore and Mr. George Foster. Ihen
1. Had Dr. Seeger been brought to the Project sooner, there is

no doubt but that the work dens in recording the Folk Songs
of the country would have been carried on more actively too.
He fought hard for the recognition of folk music on the Projeot,
but joined the administrative sta ff too late to get i t in "on
the ground floor."
Dr# Nikolai Sokoloff r e s i s t e d as Director of the Federal Musio
P r o je c t i n A ugust of 1939# ke -was succeeded hy Dr# Moore for the
fo llo w in g school year., u n t i l June* 19^0, while the la tte r was on
ioavo from h is r e g u la r d u tie s as Director of the University of
Michigan's School of Music# During this time, a sincere attempt
was maue a t d ev eloping a v i t a l music eduoauton program , a program
which took into consideration the musical interest levels of
the communities and proceeded frcm there# Earlier, the attitude
had heen more that of ^taking music and culture to the people#
However, Dr# Moore's term of office was too short to enable him
and his s ta ff to aooomplish a ll they wanted to# He was succeeded
by Mr. Foster for the remaining three months of the Projeot a
existence* Dr# Sokoloff had emphasized concerts and professional
programs during the time he was director, while his successors
stressed the broader music education program which included
concerts and programs, but emphasized the audience as well as
the performance.
As i t was the aim of the community a rt centers of the
Art Froject to provide opportunities for any one who wanted to have
experience with clay and paint, and to provide at the same time
opportunities for sharing in and enjoying the creative expression
of others, similarly i t was the aim o f the Music E ducation B iv is io n
to provide opportunities for the public to try their hand at
playing instruments and composing, and a t the same time providing
151
opportunities for experiencing the best is the musical exprsssios
of the present and the past* All of this as accomplished under
the f ir s t basic Wk requirement* putting people to work.
music research;
In addition to helping a l i t t l e with the collecting
and recording of folk music for the Archive of Polk Song, dis
cussed earlier in th is chapter, the Music Researoh Division
attempted an index of our composers and compositions. What was
completed of i t , before Wk was ended, consisted of four sub
divisions*
l . An alphabetical l i s t of composers with

biographical information giving date and
place of b irth , music education, current
plaee of residenoe, and so forth.
2. An alphabetical l i s t of compositions by form,

giving date of composition, performance time,
and previous performances, and indicating
whether composition had been published or was
s t i l l in manuscript form.
> Program notes, excerpts from reviews by

reputable c ritic s .
A
lie Motes of a marinal nature, namely in the form
of Americana, "showing the derivation of folk
tunss, legends, settings, and so fortho*' I
fforthwhile as this Index of American composers was,
carried on under the direction of Harry Hewes end Margaret Kerr,
i t was not completed before w?A was ended. The part which was
1. Council Study. Music Projeot manuscript, p. IiO.
152
com pleted was tu rn ed over to th e Music D iv isio n o f th e L ib ra ry
o f C ongress,
A nother m usic re s e a rc h p r o je c t o f a s o r t was th e group
of "Music C o p y ists11 who were c o lle c tin g a l i b r a r y o f m u sical
com positions f o r th e u se o f V/PA o r c h e s tr a s and m u sic ia n s,
$he c o p y is ts and a rra n g e rs employed in t h i s s e c tio n tra n sp o se d
and tr a n s c r ib e d o ld e r com positions on which th e c o p y rig h ts had
e x p ired , and s te n c ile d and d u p lic a te d them. In th e two y ear
p e rio d from J u ly , 19'iO to 1942, th ey copied over 425,000 pages
of m usic, and arran g e d about 4,400 p ag es, work of t h i s sectio n ,
a ls o in c lu d e d , in c id e n ta lly , copying of some sc o re s o f o ld f o lk
songs f o r th e A rchives.
Perhaps i t i s a misnomer to c a l l th e work of t h i s
d iv is io n "Music R e search ," f o r in r e a l i t y i t was more a d iv is io n
devoted to c le r i c a l work and copying th an to re s e a r c h . However,
th e term was used h e re in an attem p t to show th e r e l a t i v e
d iv is io n s o f th e fo u r 1IPA p r o j e c ts , and in a sense th e work of
th is d iv is io n was s im ila r to the "Index: o f American D esign" in th e
"Art R esearch" D iv isio n .
Along w ith th e many m inor aims and o b je c tiv e s o f th e
v a rio u s s e c tio n s and d iv is io n s o f th e f e d e ra l Music P r o je c t,
as a vhole* (1) to provide work for unemployed musicians and
music educators; (2) to develop programs and units of work
which would not compete with private industry! and (j) to help
promote in terest in the arts in general and music in particular.
In attempting to provide work for unemployed musioians,
the project officials had to f ir s t be suro there were enough
musicians in any locality in order to organise a projeot there.
Qnoe started, the projects had far reaching effeets in the
local community musical lif e . What these projects did for the
people as a whole in developing a new nation-wide audience is
one thing! but what they did for the unemployed musicians was
another. Dr. Sokoloff, the National Director, reported^ that
when the project was f ir s t begun the morale was very lew and
musicians were as skeptical of the work as the New Deal opponents
were. They seemed to 'fe e l that they were l!failures about to sta rt
fiddling for food. However, when they were assured that Project
officials were striving for quality work and were expecting the
musicians to sake a contribution to ths lif e of th sir own eoisami-
tie s through the re lie f work, the morals rc-S= Oaee again they
fe lt like professional people back on the job instead of re lie f
laborers.
1, Wk) THB EHDEBAL MuSIG PROJECT, ^

(Washington! WPA Bulletin, 193) P 9*
w ith perm ission o f the cop yrig ht ow ner. F urthe r rep rod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission.
15k
JiiiiitoêgidtaAietf'8 -.governing smplcymsnt of parsons ca
the Musio Projeot, there -was one which seemod to cause mors trouble
than the others* This was the system of audition te sts which a ll
persons were required to pass before being employed: Ih ils i t
did help to keep standards higher than they might otherwise have
been, i t was not quite true to WK procedure in placing competence
before need in an agency set up primarily to help a ll those unem
ployed* Soever, since i t was the f i r s t program of it s kind in
the history of our government, i t is not surprising but that some
problem of this sort should occur* Perhaps i t is more surprising
in the long run that such a large Projeot could be run as
effectively as i t actually was, or that Projects of this sort
were organized at a ll; Projects wherein people were put baok
to work at their own kind of work rather than a ll employed at
manual labor for which thousands were unsuited* On the WK
Projects, employment was given on on individual basis whenever
possible, and in this i t is the f ir s t program cf i t s kind in cur
history* This is best illu stra te d by a minor example, an exper
ience which the Director of the national Theatre Project had
when she was attending a rehearsal of an original score which
the orchestra was playing fcr one of Federal Theatre's product!ansi
nI spoke to the conductor of the flu te motif,

1So fleeting that you always want more* The
conductor said, ' I t was composed th at way. Our
155
f lu tis t has a tremor.-, of the lip , sad cannot;sustain

for mors than a few bars*8 1
This in terest in the individual was one of the important under
lying features in the success of the many varying projects; a rt
and otherwise; of the Franklin Roosevelt Administration.
In attempting to carry out its seoond broad objective,
the negative one of not competing with private industry, the
Federal Musio Projeot worked in three ways* F irst i t aided
young composers, and musicians whom private industry had not

way
oared about end henoe was not in any/Using talent which was
in demand* As soon as private industry, wanted to hire a WPA
worker, i t was glad to release him and help another in need
instead* Secondly, the music education division helped to
encourage music listening and helped to develop larger audienoes
for commercial programs and concerts, as well as for those of
1JPA. Thirdly, the concerts which Wk did sponsor were designed
for those who couldn't afford the price of commercial concerts
and re c ita ls, and were therefore not taking persons away from
them* The general range of prises for Wk concerts was from five
cents to a dollar, and many were free* When the orchestras were
f ir s t organised on the project, there was some severe criticism
and intense antagonism in places where similar musical groups
already existed* However la te r on, as they saw that the project
1* Hal lie Flanagan, AKE8A, (H6w York* Duell, Sloan &Pearce,

lohnl oao
156
wasxcrsating nsw in tsrsst in K is io , aiid was th u s a c tu a lly helping
Hie professional m sioians in s te a d , th e antagonism simnered down.
That the Federal Music Project succeeded in i t s iMrd
major aim. helping to expand the public's in terest in music- and
the a rts , there is no doubt# For one thing, the Musio Projeot
was aooepted more favorably by press end public alike than either
the Art or Theatre Projects# There are several reasons for this#
For one thing, the public m s more ready to aocept musio as a
respectable government projeot than they were the a rt and theatre
projects, whioh they regarded suspioiously as being more radical.
Secondly, most of the musio played a t public eonoerts was safely
conservative# There was practically no contemporary music played
at these concerts# Then, too, no misie was used which could be
interpreted as "p o litic a l, whereas some of the Art Projeot
murals and theatre Project plays dealt with social and contro
versial subjects# Because the Music Project was so widely

Q A A A ttfA ^ . ef 4*Vn AS - X AJ AV,-<
At-jj - ' 1JLi S jfvtMw *uv uiiv uVttaA auUACUUO
a t concsrts counted altogether as one group equalled mors
than h alf the population of the United States# Br Sokoloff
said that "music has no social value unless i t is heard.'5 and
made that the basis for projeot work# Yarious local groups,
like boards of eduoaticm, local music clubs, and various civic,
social and fraternal organisations helpsd to sponsor local concerts
and units of the Musio Project. Son cosammities continued the
157
syjspaffliy O rch estras a f t e r was a b o lish e d . such th e B u ffa lo ,
Oklahoma, and Utah Symphonies.
Certainly there has never been the in terest in music
in a ll the years preceding Wk as the Federal Music Project
managed to oreate in the nation in i t s short years. The h isto ri
cal record proves that government's in terest previously was
practically nil Yet vflian the government was forced to become
interested^ through solving the worst unemployment problem i t
had faced, the resu lt was widespread. Our f ir s t music project
achieved its basic aims* But what of the next?
H..Unless the people themselves w ill want to pay

for the services of the musicians living among them
the problems of the musicians' future are not solved.
All of this music belongs to the nation. Whether i t
. presages the creation of a public and an audience;
whether i t is establishing the ground work for a native
musical tradition, rests with the future. Certainly i t
has disclosed a desire for music and a creative musical
talent that was not anticipated when the Federal Musio
Projeot came into existence.1 1
1, WPA, THE FEDERAL MUSIS PBQJSCI, op. e i t . , p, JO.
158
CHAPTER 5 - MURAL THEATRE PROJECT
Of a ll the MPA Projects the most v ita l, most
ezciting, and in many ways the most educational was the
Bederal Theatre Project, But i t was also the most controver
sia l, and ironically enough, the shortest-lived.
Before lederil Theatre was organized, in August 1935>
the government had taken practically no interest in the drama.
In fact, on October 16, 1778, a resolution was passed in the
Continental Congress which prohibited government o fficials from
attending stage performances of a ll kinds. But apparently the
resolution was l i t t l e regarded, for i t is not mentioned again
in the early records of Congress.
About ninety years la te r, in 1866, Congress
appropriated a sum of money for the purchase of Pord's Theatre
in Washington, where President Lincoln was shot the year
before. However, instead of making i t a living theatre as
a memorial to the Emancipator President, the building was
converted into another museum for state documents and no
159
longar haa anything todo w ith th e th e a tr e ex cep t t o r e t a i n
the name. Aside from these minor incidents, the theatre was
1
ignored by lie government u n til 1935*
finea th e r-ecisrai xne&ijre r r o j set; was organized. on rtPii,
the government was only indirectly interested in th e theatre.
The f ir s t oonoera was creating more jobs to put people back to
work. This was explained by Willson Whitman when he wroteS
nWhen Uncle Sam undertook to cure the depression by

putting people to work, i t was assumed by many that
the jobs must be of that penitential nature usually
considered suitable for persons in economic d istress.
Let them saw wood, dig ditches or shovel snow. That
there might be no universal need for work of thi3
nature, or that some unemployed persons might lack talent
for sawing, digging or shoveling while possessing other
potentially useful accomplishments, was not always con
sidered. Yet New York has not wood to saw, Los Angeles
no snow to shovel; and both places, i t was discovered,
had people who, given the proper tools for ditch digging,
could only pretend to use them. They could pretend
because idiey were actors. 2
The same idea was explained by Harry Hopkins when he was trying
to organize the four a rt projects, and to get Hallie Flanagan
to be National Director of the Federal Theatre Project. At this
time he saidS UI dont know why I s t i l l hang on to the idea that
1. In July, 1935, one month before Federal Theatre was begun.

Congress granted a charter to the American National Theatre
and Academy, a non proxxv oorporavxen, navxng no capxeax
stock, for the purpose of !!the stimulation of public interest
in "the drama as an a rt belonging to the theatre and to lite r -
a* j n
W MUN4
i 4 - V.-* aw4<m.im3 nw A-V>r\
V ilU i M y UW
Aa
H/S31 ViAJ Vjr
?
VJ-4
AS *
gj.1V O UUJjV VU-lVk U11V Q u u v aj' e
( CONGRESSIONAL RECORD, Volume 79, Part 7, P 7607). However,

th is has as yet had very l i t t l e influence on a national scale.
2. Willson vMtman, BREAD AND CIRCUSES, A Study of Federal Theatre.

(I. ew Y qv* Oxi or a unxversxx-jf P re s s , 1 9 3 7 ,jp*
on August 27, 1935s the Theatre Projeot began with Hallie Flanagan
as Director; our government s f ir s t attempt at developing a
theatre for the people*
The basic aims of Federal Theatre; like those of the
Music Project, seemed to fa ll into three large classifications.
F irst, FTP was organized, like a ll W A projects, to provide

2
work for the unemployed. Secondly, also like HPA policy in
general, i t was to present productions which would not compete
with the private Commercial theatre. And thirdly, taking advan
tage of the situation of unemployed actors being given work through
Federal Theatre plays, the project aimed a t adding its part in
promoting general in terest in the theatre arts and dramatic
literatu re for the public as a whole. Previously the theatre
in th is country had been almost the exclusive property of a
minority group.
In attempting to carry out these three basic aims, the
Theatre Project developed a broad underlying philosophy. Since
there was some doubt at the Projects beginning on the part of
1* Hallie Flanagan, APJ&IA, op c its , pp. S, Q*

2. Actually the problem of unemployment was greater for actors
and musicians than most other groups, for in addition to the
general economic slump, they suffered from technological un
employment due to the development of the phonograph and radio,
and movies, as well as from the fact that the arts are always
considered luxuries and therefore the f ir s t to go in time of
stress.
161
Administration foes as to the competency of actors who were
down and out. federal Theatre desired to make it s workers feel
that they were needed and were doing worthwhile work, 'forkers
on the Project v/ere considered as professional people now working
for the government, instead of r e lie f laborers. In fact, perhaps
federal Theatre went too far in it s insistence on the professional
rating for its employees. Before a person could he employed on
federal Theatre, as on the Music Project, he had to present
evidence of previous employment in the Theatre to an audition
board. This measure was intended to lim it the Project to theatre
people rather than a project for persons who had the theatre as
a hobby, and in this measure did achieve its purpose. However,
this restriction ruled out college and educational drama workers,
with the exception of those who were chosen as regional directors,
an unfortunate situation since these people are the ones who are
regularly working to build an understanding of and appreciation
for good drama in their own sections of the country.
The insistence on professionalism did result in many
high quality productions on federal Theatre. But more than M s
it helped to discover new - and competent - talent. In fact,
Willson Whitman pointed out, in his study written when the Project
was in fu ll swing, that when the history of Federal Theatre is
written, i t w ill perhaps give more credit to the finding and
developing of talent in people who had not previously had the
opportunity to use i t , than to standards o_ quality 01 production,
(a generalization not as true on some other art and handcraft
projects),
162
records of audience participation, or any other Project asoos-
plishacnte Be that as i t say, the records indicate that young
people were given a chance on Federal Theatre, ju st as young
composers were on the Musis Project* And through the policy
of trying to prohibit the nstar system - with its counterpart,
top hillin g - Federal Theatre developed a general s p irit of
working together for the good of the play, rather than pulling
separately for self, often ending in all-around unified productions*
Part of the philosophy underlying the a c tiv itie s of
Federal Theatre was the belief in the division of control between
local and Federal Government although in actual practice the
control was to a considerable degree Federal* The National
Director wanted local projects to select and present their own
plays} yet she insisted th at they comply with standards which
waiM outlaw those of a cheap or vulgar nature* In fact, Mrs*
Flanagan was so concerned with the work in the local areas that
during the early part of 1957 she moved the National Headquarters
for FTP from T/ashington to 701 Eighth Avenue, New York City, where
she took over the directorship of the NYC project in addition to
retaining her directorship of the National Projeot* In the
selection of plays and in its general production policy Federal
Theatre aimed from the very beginning at demonstrating th at the
National Government could subsidize a theatre on a nation-wide
scale and yet keep i t free from p o litical censorship* I t is true
that in the selection of plays a kind of censorship takes place,
set up ty a o r^ ,r a rtis tie and teehaieal production standards!
but Federal Theatre wanted ho p o litic a l coercion to regulate
these standards* Yet, surprisingly enough i t was th is id e alistic
aim which became a determining factor in the drastic attacks of
the opposition and eventually led to the abolition of the projecto
Believing that the theatre could be a means of eduoatian, and
that through i t facts could be dramatically presented to help
the people.understand, Federal Theatre developed the experimental
productions which were attacked on the grounds of being p o litic a l,*
and were largely responsible for the early abolition of the
Theatre Projeot before any of the other three a rt projeots of 73PA.
Although Hallie Flanagan m s National Director, subor
dinate directors were chosen for each region, and for lo c alitie s
within eaoh region* Often the regional directors were from the
educational rather than the commercial theatre* This was not
because of any prejudice against the la tte r group, but because
they wers generally not interested in the work a t the salary the
government oould afford, compared to the private money-making
theatre* Mrs* Flanagan f e lt that one of the obstacles to complete
suceess of the Theatre Project was the fear of these regional
directors to try something new, preferring instead to take the
path of least resistance* However, being a director of the
Project at any level was a d iffic u lt task for, as W k Administrator
Harry Hopkins pointed out, no matter what they did someone fe lt
they were doing wrong.
1&
R**slf you try to hold down wages, you*II be accused of

uni -'bus ting end of grinding down the poor? i f you pay
a decent wage, you111 bs competing with private industry
and pampering a lo t of no-accounts! i f you scrii
product! costs, theyl l say your shows are lousy and
i f you spend enough to get &. good sh , th ey 11 shy
you' thv tSA^paySi*!^ . Dont forget tuay
whatever happens you l l be wrong.R 1
According to TiPA regulations, at least 90 per c t of
the workers i t s projects were to be taken from re lie f ro lls .
A good idea from the point of unemployment, this measure pre
sented d ifficulties to fPA directors in casting th eir plays.
Whorcas professional producers can f ir s t pick a play and then
cast i t , WPA directors had to find a play that would f i t the
actors they already had available. When professi al n -re lie f
actors were permitted on the project to help in the producti
of my play, their salaries were no higher than the regular pro
je ct employees, and oare was taken so that no one would be classi
fied as re lie f or Rn -relief actors. Another 1PA ruling per
mitted ly one member of a family to hold down a job on TRPA
projects, so when teams acted Federal Theatre productions,
they worked for e salary. I t is interesting to note th at in
analysing the workers on Federal Theatre, Wills Whitman found
that a majority fa ll into the two classes of youth and old age.
" ...th e rank and file of WPA workers, i f they can bo

said to differ at a ll from ordinary people, do so by a
predominance of two types. There are workers These
quietness of manner and look of gentle defeat suggest
that they Jack the aggressiveness, perhaps ruthlessnsss,
1. Hallie Flanagan, op. c i t . p. 26.
R epro duce d w ith perm ission o f the co p yrig h t ow ner. F urthe r rep rod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission.
165
that may "oe one condition of commercial success,

These are apt to he the older people, i f one remembers
that in the commercial world today age hernias at thirty-
five. Then there are young people whose extra, alertness
and independence could conceivably he a handicap in those
commercial pursuits which demand of the beginner complete
submission. It is the older workers, their needs blandly
disregarded by the business world, who must constitute the
group permanently in need of r e lie f. But i t is the liv ely
youngsters who give to the r e lie f enterprises their confi
dence, their radical reputation and their determination to
continue...
It is interesting to note too, that labor organisations
w p i c p p - . i p r . n l h r fo T r'v rn n l tr f.otrrtTr? Rc f ta v o T f7,Vio*sf.T*o -n n v f.T tr
because through it s employment of those in need, HP relieved
the unions of the cost and responsibility of caring for them,
and partly because HP employed those who, when not working,
could be used as a threat of labor available against unions out
on strike. Then, too, the regulation that only those who had
worked in the professional theatre be employed on the project
meant that most of the workers were union menbeia
One of the most d ifficu lt problems facing theatre Project
o fficia ls was the problem of dismissal, then appropriation funds
were cut, some workers had to be laid off every project. I f the
most competent were dismissed on the grounds that they would be
more readily employed by private industry than others the projects
themselves would suffer. Just as good buildings cannot be con
structed wdthout reliable labor, and health programs cannot be
uj.j.xiDOii hJ&x wacul) O p. Cxu

T HI, 4 J., . - ' A.
la . 3 p_ .
plays cannot be piOaGuoOu W
JLthout dependable actors, designers and
technicians. On the other hand, i f the least competent were die-

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be even less$dr than before they worked on WPA for then they
would have indirectly been labeled incompetent. The same
Congress that had helped to create WFA, through its Emergency
Relief legislation, naturally had the poser to cut i t s appro
priations, or liquidate the projects as i t saw f it j yet i t was
the project directors who had the problem of making the dismissals.
Although the directors themselves were sympathetic with the workers
there was nothing they could do when the appropriation cuts were
made. After having found some security on 1PA following months of
no work at a ll, i t was natural workers should protest being dismissed
unless private industry could offer them something in turns^ Not
1, An example of thes9 dismissal protests was one delivered by a young

cciorea war veveran wiio nan been working on the iiiving Newspaper^
I ve got a silver plate in my forehead, he began, and maohine
gun slugs in sy arm and in ny leg. I t cost 5*000 to k ill a man in
the war, and they were w illing to spend th at to k ill me in l$)17 o
New they a re n 't willing to spend a measly 83=86 a week to keep 22
alive I He continued with facts and figures. .inccr-iG**tax evaders
being mentioned in the public- press should, he suggested, have paid
mere than Congress was saving on the Federal Theatre. Across the
street the towering Chrysler building paid not one cent of taxes
because the ground on which it-stood was the property of Columbia
University. Rioh men werecleverly dodging th eir duty to the
government. And they call us rad icals,5 he concluded. They say
we a re n 't hundred-percent Americans i f we dont want to starve.
Well, I want to say before I stop that I ve got a stake in this
country. % grandfathers alive yet, on the Sioux Indian reserva
tion in South Dakota. My people were in th is country f i r s t l . . .
(Quoted from Willson "Whitman, op. c its , pp. 118, 119)
167
vuily had thsy *Oluld n 1-i.ijijXw fiuSHClnl SS0U?1 uwt vh^1hfid
also found, perhaps in a greater degree, the kind of security
that comes from having new hope* The number of workers employed
rtr* 5*aâu1
mi f yUw* u-
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to 7,100 in June 1939? when the Project was abolished by Con
gressional order. This made an annual average of 10,000 persons,'*
who supported sn average of four dependents at a to ta l cost of

-i o
iU6 , 207,779 or the approximate cost of one battle shipi1-
And what did the people of our country get instead of
this battleship? In numbers, about 30,l|.00,000 persons^ got to
see over 63,700 performances of 1,200 plays and paid baok almost
12,000,000 in admissions.^ At the time Federal Theatre was closed,
i t had reached the point where admissions were paying for a ll
production costs except labor. No other project of this kind
can boast such financial returns. At Federal Theatres oonolusien,
j. iiv6Fttg6 ngurea or FrOjootia 4 yogtFs#
2. See financial statement of Federal Theatre in Hallie Flanagan's

AS5KA, op. c i t . , pp. 1+35> 1+36.
3. Assuming persons attended each performance only once.
1+. At f ir s t a great many productions were given free since this

was in line with the original plans. However, even after the
Projeot started charging admissions to help meet expenses, a
certain number of free seats were supposed to be provided for
underprivileged persons and groups.
168
i i j o T tagnm la llioludsd bound production books, 228 books of
press clippings, 21 filing cabinets of souroe material for living
newspapers, publications, pictures, posters, 6,860 printed volumes

AAYimnj
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11%UVi X a i e,I,a'V iU Q i l j
g ifts from authors and publishers.n However, to understand the
real part which IPA's Theatre had in our developing cultural
pattern, one has to look beyond mere numbers of plays written and
performances given One has to look again at the aims and goals
and see to what degree they were achieved.
Its f ir s t aim was to provide jobs. Since the Project
was finanoed through Congressional appropriation of the people's
money, Frojeot officials believed that a ll parts of the country
should have some share in the productions. Although New York had
the most unemployed actors, playwrights, and designers, i t did not
seem fair to the National Director that they should have the
majority of WA productions, especially since New York already had
uIlC aUYHuo.gG3 OX E h~6JLa CloYo XGpod. COiuQldX^ClEX *Cxl68,'ijr6o 0 W02*K
was provided in over two=thirds of the States, thus making i t a
National Theatre in the real sense of the word
Sines WA had available large numbers o? persons to
choose from in casting plays, there was often the opportunity to
1. Eallie Flanagan, op. c i t . , p. pc9*
169
select those which required a large oast, thereby giving SjipAoymsms
to more people, and permitting them to experiment with productions
which the commercial theatre had sometimes refused because of con
siderable salary expenses*
Because New York had the most available theatre workers,
naturally their scope of productions was also largest. New York's
Federal Fneatre was divided into five major units! ( l) the popular
price theatre, where new authors had a ohanoe to present their
original plays; (2) the experimental theatre, where both old
and new plays were presented in new ways} (3) the Living News
paper, using theatre as an educational medium to present facts
dramatically; (!+) the Negro Theatre; and (5) the tryout theatre,
wherein commercial managers, by helping to pay part expenses,
could try out plays that they would normally not want to take a
risk on. I f the plays succeeded the managers could take them
over comnercially, and i f they failed there would be less loss:
than the manager would have to bear alone. However, the tryout
theatres were soon abandoned because i t was feared that managers
would exploit the workers by only paying Federal Theatre rates

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the productions.
1. In evaluating the WPA's cultural program during its active

period- Archibald MacLiesoh wrote in FORTUNE. May 1937; in
an a rtic le entitled Unemployed Arts!" "By and large the Arts
Projects have been given a freedom no one would have thought
possible in a government run undertaking. And by and large
that freedom has not been abused." (p. 168).
170
In providing work for the needy, Federal Theatre
naturally gave jobs to playwrights, designers, and stage tech
nicians as well as actors. Even those only p artially-skilled
were given employeesi# uu>LJ.d-LIig \di 3Uu*w Ufuu u models end
miniature sets which served as working models for the director,
cast and crew. In the case of playwrights, many young persons
were given their f ir s t chance, especially in the popular price
theatre in New York although this was true in other productions
throughout the country as well. Negroes were given a chance too,
which they had nevefytad before. Federal Theatre attempted to
find Negro playwrights and give them an opportunity,but i t did
not re s tric t Negro productions to th eir own authors, or limit
their plays in any discriminatory way.* In fact, two of Federal
Theatres most expressive productions were Orson Welles' oolored
Macbeth," set in the West Indies, and the Negro h it "Swing Mikado."
The la tte r was so successful i t was taken over and continued by

i. ^ ^ r . N * i . ' n> * H * %
o i l s 3 G 6 r3 .X i lU S l C ir T v j6 u * u w ilv ii ro u S T c ^ X X U S a 'iirS n o S ctCwXXoilSCl*
To encourage young and unrecognised talen t, playwright
contests were held for CGC workers* college students? and writers
who had had a minor break with a short run of a play but who
needed another boost. Hone of the work produced for those contests,
however, proved to be very significant although the original idea
seemed good.
1. Project rules contained the provision that there was to be no

discrimination whatsoever on account of race, color, creed or
p o litic a l beliefs, and that a fine of 1,000 or imprisonment
up to a year, or both, would be imposed for any violation.
In addition to providing work, Federal Theatre had as
one of its basic aims the presenting of productions which did not
compete with those of private industry. Prom its beginning i t
was destined to be a non-commercial theatre. As Harry Hopkins
explained: " Its got to be run by a person who sees right from
the sta rt that the profits won't be money p ro fits.11'*' The major
way in which Federal (Theatre could present plays and not have
oueiil Cuiiijjcwo wxwi CGimiioxCacijLpi vuuuuxuuo wao vw uoc ivo lauxxxuxco

1 1 . AU mm >.. J>li> mm l I h mm MMA 1 mm1 A. n H AM n *i n n +A 11 A A 4 4*n -P mm 1 1 1 H
to present educational drama rather than mere entertainment. Thus
the "living Newspaper" was developed.
LI7IU5 NEWSPAPER. The "Living Newspaper" was designed
to present the facts about such major problems as slums and i l l
housing, rural poverty and farm re lie f, e lec tricity and power
plant ownership, and syphilis, in productions like "One Third of

2
A Nation", "Triple-A Plowed Under", "Power", and "Spirochete."
The facts were so organised that when presented in simple settings,
lighted with descriptive lighting, and acted by those who fe lt
the intensity of the problems, the result was drama of high
calibre. The technique which the living N ew spapers d e v e lo p e d
to good advantage was the method of p r e s e n t i n g th e f a c t s in
1. Eallie Flanagan, op. c i t ., p. 20
2. A living Newspaper on foreign affairs en titles "Ethiopia" was

planned but was never produced because of a ban by the State
Department,
172
f r i f r w g p M ftw r ~ u lfu i 5 ; U S ?? s i-O r is S s O C i l l U E S l i s '^ S *
artic le s, feature sto ries, cartoons and illu stra tio n s. In a ll
cases, however, Mrsc Flanagan pointed out th at great care was
frglrcm -rrt ch B Q k 21 iih.0 SCCUTcLCV OX* fôt bsin?* - gpii "he
document opinions with evidence, so that the productions would
stand f ir s t as educational drama rather than p o litical propaganda.
As to the entertainment value of these experimental productions,
as well as their educational potential, one need only note that
before fcweropened in Few York City about 60,000 people had
bought tickets for i t . ThiB response proved thepeople wanted
something more from the theatre than to be amused, something more
than to leave the theatre oontented. As the National Director
pointed out. To go away satisfied is not what the theatre patron
wants. He wants to go away stirred up, one way or another - either
by subject matter, virtuosity of performance, provooative production,
or, preferably, by a ll three.

rpt. _ - jl x i , . x * i a t*
Alw w *MMM. *** SAUWJ C kM V U V i W<1 W UV XA4JLA Cl WA Cb
Nation," was later awarded a Guggenheim fellowship perhaps says
something about the calibre of Living Newspaper creative produe-
tions, as does the fact th at four other Federal Theatre writers
were swarded Rockefeller Foundation Fellowships.
Somewhat ironically, i t was Federal Theatres Living
Newspapers and educational drama *> productions which competed
1. Bailie Flanagan, op. c i t ., p. a+p*
173
legs with 'nxxvs.'cs industry txiBH sziy otusrs *'wlii.oli X@d to i.ts
sharp and drastic endings Congress seemed to object to seeing
facts presented dramatically, especially when these facts seemed
to oast a favorable light on the philosophy of government held
by the Executive Branoh, a philosophy opposite to the views of
a majority of the members of Congress a t th at time* Thus an
antagonism developed against the project as a idiole because of the
Living Newspaper productions*
The National and Regional Directors considered somewhat
naively perhaps that Federal Theatre was above party politios*
They considered i t as an expressive art rather than a tool for
p o litical propaganda* And i t is true that although controversial
subjects were presented, they were not presented as the creations
of one p o litic a l party as opposed to another} rather they were
presented as subjeots whioh were thought to be educational for
a ll the people, created by the more lib eral members of a ll parties*
But since they expressed, in essence, the philosophy of the New
Deal, drastic, opposition arose end Federal Theatre was ended*
Not wanting to compete with the Commercial Theatre, FIS
actually cooperated with i t instead by increasing public in terest
in plays ju st as the Music and Art Projects broadened public
in terest in those areas* I t was, as Hallie Flanagan pointed out,
more like the public libraries which interested persons in books,
and thereby aided bock sales rather than competing with book
publishers* Tr there was any competition with private industry,
i t was perhaps with the movies father than Broadway* s productions*
The movie producers thought that Federal Theatre* s low prices
resulted in half a ndllien of motion pictures1 weekly hundred-
million patrons going to 1FA productions* I t did not matter
that in the one case they were seeing living drama; in an
industry where box office re c e ip ts a re too often the governing
factor* one would expect severe criticism of anything which

; \ ' } l O T V .
threatened even a small portion of its monopoly*

r - . -r : ^ i - .?,!: <1. V .t r:< .rr
I t was rather d iffic u lt assignment for Federal Theatre
to put thousands of unemployed back to work on dramatic productions
and yet try not to oompete with any other form of entertainment
production. But while attempting to fu lf ill both of these aims,
Federal Theatre achieved its third , that of promoting an in terest
in the arts nationally. That Federal Theatre reached thousands of
persons in this country who had never before seen living drama, at
prices they could afford, presenting a wide range of productions
at a generally high a rtis tic standard, is a record which made i t
cue of the high points in the to ta l development of our Nation* s
culture to date. In promoting in terest in the theatre, an attempt
was made to consider local interests first* The amount and kind
of workers available, the characteristics of the regies, the
175
ami lam li'cy nr any local writers x inpo* - 6r oc?i>!i drsd
important in solo eting th plays It was Federal Theatre's poliey
to develop loeal productions rather than te send in touring road
shows^ In addition to th fact that each play was accepted in
view of local interest for i t , i t was also true that each play was
considered as a separate unit in its e lf , demanding a new oreative
approach rather than following a out and dried routine method of
production sent out from National headquarters* Often some of the
most severe oriticism of WPA productions camefromlocal workers
on the projects? however, th is was regarded as a healthy sign
by Regional and National Direotors because i t proved th at the
workers were free from p o litic a l pressure and could express th e ir
opinions freely* In addition to f t i s , since most of the criticism
had to do with production features whioh these workers knew f ir s t
hand, i t showed sincere in terest in the work, rather than a general
attempt at gold-bricking*
Sons of the most outstanding productions, from the point
of view of local interests and needs, were in the Negro theatre
in Harlem Taking their own major problem of discrimination,
1 This regulation had its advantages in a tte s tin g to promote

'grass roots drama, yet i t now seems evident that i t would
have been better to supplement the local productions with
professional road shows to give the people in a ll parts of
the country the opportunity of sharing in the best the Project
had to offer, and to help raise the standards of production
and appreciation at the local levels* ~
176
Hfiyl wr,-i dii'sotor6 uTSSSltsd to a juaSu SmuI buGS bS lo ll GS pGSSlblS
a treatment of the issues involved, by designing sueh plays as
"Turpentine" and "Sweet Land," In reporting on these, Willson
Whitman said?
Turpentine went out of its way to he fairj its

white men were not conscious oppressors, the real
v illiin was colored, and i t ended on a note of incre
dible optimism. But i t contained such pearls of white
speech as Kill the black bastards! and You can't trust
a nigger who looks a white man in the eye* A b etter and
b itte re r play, Sweet Land went farther in bringing on the
stage sheeted Klansmsn to order the burning of a colored
war veteran* There are parts of the country where such
dramatisation would bo regarded with horror as tending to
foment raoial s trife , and even in Harlem one shuddered
le st a stray Southern Congressman be in the house. But
i t seems reasonable to suppose that the production of
such plays by a Negro group, under white direction and
with white patronage, is equivalent to lancing a boil.
Perhaps i t was racial good nature, but i t was noticeable
that in the Lafayette Theatre during presentation of such
plays as 'Turpentine' there was less tension than in a ll-
white audiences at Living Newspaper productions downtown.
There was laughter but no hissing, generous but not hyster
ic a l applause, indicating th at the audience was content to
rest the case as presented by the a c to rs ,..." 1
Thus, local problems and interests often served as the basis for
2
some of the most moving productions,
i t is an interesting fnev that Federal iheatre became
unusually popular evei though i t was not commercially advertised
1, Willson whitman, op. c ite . pp 85, 64.
2. I t is interesting to note hero that although 7{PA did not sta rt

the local production of "Lost Colony" at Eonoake Island, North
Carolina, i t did aid the annual presentations by designing the
theatre for the productions* The theatre was constructed by
the CCC, but some of tho sewing for i t was done by the local
itFA Sewing Froj so us. This was au example of Federal Theatre
aiding a local project already established.
177
to any great degree a t all* there.ws no sioney f oostly
advertising campaigns. I t was the audience its e lf which did the
advertising* Each person who liked a production advised his
friends to see its a t prices thsv both could afford* Many
times drama oritios of the major papers were favorable in th e ir
criticisms of Wk Productions; oven though the newspapers they
represented were often hostile since Federal Theatre was a part
of the Hew Peal which they despised. One c ritic wrote that WPA
Theatre brought the theatre back to the people again; another
wrote of the audience that " its faoe is not frozen, i t is not
sitting on its hands, when i t hisses i t is not self-conscious,
and when i t cheers i t means i t . I t is young, lively, and I
suspeot, hard up."I At one time an experiment was tried in opening
one play - Sinclair Lewis anti-Faacist l t Cant Happen Here" -
simultaneously on 21 stages in 18 different citie s from coastto
coast. In each case the production was designed for local
s u rj. vv aa u a u u s a y y u n u w is : iu c u o g ro c ? uu
which the play succeeded or did not succeed, therefore, varied
with the locale.
As part of i t s work in bringing entertainment to the
imaki a &aL.
j G a jlu 0% u k.. n .
tjiit? --- .. __ 0, jt\ iwA ji kk.k ^
peupiSj iiiA iiy Oa ryaersi mi. . _ j... _ o _ ... A .i.. ^
__.
Grt; 2 pruuuuUloas
toured prisons, hospitals, and mental institutions. Wardens
1. Biehard Lockridgo of the Hew York Sun, quoted in Willson

Whitman, op. c i t ., p. 71*
178
faltfit iH.Glzfi.lG Cu& CH"u up after GTGi J pcrrormeuivvi
(and) that fear o? deprivation of the right to attend a play
aoted as a deterrent of disorder* .And psychiatrists in asylums
reported that dramatic performances, particularly to music? had
the effect on many patients of changing the focus of attention
from the inside to the outside world** Also in it s accomplish
ments, Federal Theatre was given credit by the Police Department
of Los Angeles for helping to curb juvenile delinquency in th at
oity. Svsa for its therapeutic and orime-preventian values alone,
there is the possibility that Federal Theatre was worth one
battleship*
Judged from the standpoint of a rt quality, Federal
Theatre's productions often rated a high score* The National
Director understood, as few drama directors seem to understand to
this day, that stage designing is not, to use her words, a fora
of interior decoration, and dramatic productions not a re a lis tic ,
peep-hole view of life* Through her capable leadership the philo
sophy of creative productions,-presenting an organised expression
of the essence of lif e , rather than re a listic copying of incidents
in lif e ,radiated to Regional and local directors* Federal
Theatre had the advantage of not being able to spend great
sums on lavish settings] the result wa3 that their sets usually
had a quality of sinnplicity, one of the qualities needed in great
U n iii* _____ * i. - n?o

UMAAi V * V/ft U J . U < S9
a rt. Mrs* Flanagan told her designers that.although th e ir funds
wore limited, their imaginations need not be. One of FTP* s
designers, Howard Bay, the designer of R0ne Third of a Nation,n

m an 4"Ar Vtftn Aifi a I* TTm44*a<4 a AJ4
* S B 5^ \v== u -'|r UVM Vi S V i && Qw w l
suoh commercial shows as nShowboat,n ^Carmen Jones, n0ne Touoh
of Venus,11 and nUp in Central Park,
The range of kinds of plays produced on Federal Theatre
was also an interesting ooumentary on its work in promoting in ter
est in the arts* During its four years, they produoed over 1,200
plays which inoluded an extensive classic c y c le / a religious
cyole, musioal comedies, modern plays, American History plays,
Living Newspapers, dance drama, vaudevilles, pageants, puppet

2
shows and circuses*
One other factor in helping to make Federal Theatre
productions popular with National audiences was the cooperation
i t received from theatre professionals. Both George Bernard

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for production throughout the country at a small royalty fee. .
In addition to this? as was pointed out before, dramatis critic s
in considerable numbers were friandlv to the Protest. Whan

V V '
criticising production flaws, thsy generally kept in mind Federal
Theatres potential, and were for i t in the long runo Tshen i t was
1. One reason for the great number of classical plays presented

was the economic factor! there were no royalties to payo
2. For the complete production record, see Hallie Flanagan, op.
c iv ., pp. ytfJijC'
180
being investigated by Oungreggional Cuaasittseg, leading e ritis s
were some of the f i r s t to come to its rescue* together with major
aotors and producers both on Broadway and in Hollywood*
A ii0 r 0 a 6 W O S U p p lO u S Il'y a i SC U IV l'U iO S 'rnllG u 13110 F@doi*slJ.
Theatre sponsored but which have been l i t t l e publicized* These
nor ims Magazine and the Radio Divisions of the Project* The
Project's magazines* "Federal Theatre and Continental Theatre
Bulletin were designed to serve as a means of communication be
tween national and local offices, and between the Project and the
public* The f i r s t magazine, Federal Theatre was mimeographed
to begin with, end later printed from November 1935 to June 1937*
making a to ta l of eleven issues* This was followed by four
mimeographed issues of the "Continental Theatre B ulletin. After
th at the project printed two issues of "Theatre Abroad" which
were a kind of reference bulletin on foreign theatre productions*
The Radio Division of the Federal Theatre project was
under the direction of Leslie Bvsn Roberts* The Project reoeived
free tins on the a ir and offered good educational and entertain-
znsni; progrsias in Qi'ton iiho progrstnis rrsrs rscordsd snd

rvtnw n rt**1
? V inrt r Vi o w / im a -rV Vwr 1 n rn T -l
u* m u u v a IIVA V WU V t vua vhw vqo U vj * w v ** u n iiv u
th8y had time that was not in demand for commercial programs*
ihsy Ti0i*8 called the "Federal Theatre of the Air" programs, and
were f ir s t heard in March, 1936* The American Council of Learned
Societies Study pointed out that the most notable programs were
181
4:no ^Command F^ri orinEiic^,f is Yihicri pisys sirsrs draniRliigsd. ^hicb,
had boon selected by c ritic s and the audience; "Epic of Ars rica"
in which events and persons of our history were dramatised; and
hM2 Against Death," a series of plays about sciences
Although Federal Theatre reached more people than any
other dramatic group or organisation in the history of our country,
was generally praised by c ritic s and professionals alike, and
in its own way did more toward fostering the development of the
modem movement in the a rts, i t was ended abruptly by Congress
for reasons that were mainly p o litio a l. The major critioisms
leveled against Federal Theatre were these four, (l) There was
always doubt as to the worth of the people on the Project since
they had come from re lie f ro lls, (2) There was suspicion as to
details in the using of.funds appropriated.1 (3) I t was c r it i
cized for not making money for the Governments - ridiculous
charges since i t was set up as a work re lie f measure like a ll the

-4 -1 T3TD A T3CTII J A1STA / | ,\ T .I, 4J ____ ' _,
V 'J ilt? A mUU v 'i . u jJ Iw jw w w w V ~T / ^ n ag w v a o -iu v i 9U by o v /u io
to be politically dangerous and was labeled both un-American"
and "Communistic.
1. IxamplssS one c ritic questioned the jewsiry a piano player

was wearing at one performance, wondering how a person on
1PA could afford such luxuries, whereas she happened to be
a person from the audience pinch-hitting for the regular
pianist who was ill? one newspaper questioned the employing
of fandancers on WPA and presented a page one picture which
i t called "Federal Fan Dancer No. 1, although upon investi
gation i t was found no fan-dencers were 6ver on Federal
Theatre, nor did they ever sponsor that kind of entertainment.
182
Perhaps the most ironic 'thing about Federal Theatre* s
ending was that those who killed i t "never saw the plays*" In
its own way i t was like the burning of the Social Studies school
textbooks in the early Uo*s by persons who "hadn* * read the hooves.
In its offioial capacity as investigator of the Federal Theatre
Project* the House Comaittee to Investigate Un-American A ctivities
never saw one play whioh i t was condemning.
The charges of "Communism were those most often repeated
in criticising the Project and became a stereotyped label for
Federal Theatre* The witch-hunting began on April 20, 1936,
when Senator Davis of Pennsylvania expressed his own prejudices
of Hallie Flanagan and Federal Theatre on the floor of the
Senate, and then quoted an outline of a le tte r from the Federal
Theatre Veterans League which charged that?
"The Federal Theatre project is primarily used for the

dissemination of communistic propaganda.
(a) The selection of the plays is designed to teach
the American public communistic a ctiv itie s.
(Examples cited* Triple A Plowed Under, Class of
'29, Sawa, Dance of Death, Ethiopia)
(b) Communistic lite ra tu re is distributed and taught.
(Examples citedS Communistic literatu re in publi
city department, bulletin boards, communistic
meetings are held during business hours).
I I . Incompeteney rules the project. Most of the employees

are persons who were not previously engaged in the theatre*
I I I. I t is therefore respectfully submitted;
1* For a documented account of this dark spot in the history

of Educ. in the U.S., see Harold Rugg, THAT MM MSI UEDERSTAND,
\fli T . --- Aviti Tv___T .l
yyuui9UftVj T\
JJurtUl; )$ yjj
\ r-r* ~~
pp# 1 " 1 " 11
183
(a) Thatthe Federal Theatre project be thoroughly

investigated*
(b) That Mrs* Flanagan be dismissed as National
Direotor.
(o) That Mr* Barber be removed as direotor of the
City of New York (Posted 'ed ito rials of the
daily worker')
(d) That a ll Communists be removed from the theatre
projeot end transferred to projects where they
oannot successfully advocate the destruction of
our Government*
(e) That the theatre project be placed in lihw IlSilClG of
persons who are experienced in the theatre*
\( */ TViafc
nmlir
nnnnla t1 -rVia 4*V
r --r A iA A-t-r*A
- >10 ar
r n n l (w/gd the
J -**----
theatre.
(g) That the theatre project be used to produoe a rt,
eduoation, and drama, and not to disseminate
communistic propaganda*" 1
To counteract these oharges Senator Robert Wagner of New York
presented, a few days la te r, a telegram he reoeived from theatre
professionals which reads!
New York, N.Y., May 1, 1936
Hon. Robert F. Wagner

Senate Office Bldg.
"Undersigned deplore recent aspersions on directors

of the Federal Theatre projeot and point to careers of
Hallie Flanagan, national director, and Philip W. Barber,
New York City Director, as proving they particularly
fitte d to lead this worth-while American enterprise#
Mrs* Flanagan, f ir s t woman granted Guggenheim fellowship,
which given for her distinguished original work in theatre
production, Grinnell College and Harvard* Foundation
specifically asked she study methods dramatic production
foreign countries, which she did, to enrichment American
Theatre# For 9 years she directed Vassar College exper
imental theatre, which work brought her wide acclaim* She
has long been exponent for production American plays m
American Way# Many Federal Theatre h its in New York are
convincing answers to recent ridiculous oharges of ineca-
- s- A. - . TTJ J JL. _n - X .- 0*1__ - .t-v
^9U0UV09 pWi AAU KlflU UU i i i i ' ES r * ti UIi*=
etic understanding of unemployment problem as another prime
1 vwiirjumi.ijiijij iujvvxu^^ -rrvwii rtA

rtM W n T in flT A W tt
uvj njTai !.u yp PP < / * / yOyOo
184
requisite 'ot position slis nolds# Hr* 3arocr long associa

ted with progressive theatre movement, and it was under his
immediate supervision that Hew York Federal Theatre developed
such outstanding theatrical successes as Macbeth, Murder in
the Cathedral, Chalk Dust, and Triple A Plowed Under. Ur-'
gently request you read brilliant records to Senate and
offset charges read by Senator Davis.
Helen Hayes, George Kaufman, Philip Merivale,
Theresa Helburn, Brooks Atkinson, Lee Shubert,
Clayton Hamilton, Sidney Howard, Henry Chanin,
Raymond Massey, Heywood Broun, Joseph Hood Krutch,
Dorothy Dunbar Bromley, Uollcott Gibbs, Kelcey
Allen, Lawrence Larger, Arthur Polloch, Austin
Strong, John Howard Lawson, John Chapman, Malcolm
Cowley, Edward Essd,**^
However, this defense of Federal Theatre was not enough after the
opening gun of antagonism had been fired. The press took upthe
battle-cry, and in Washington political prejudice grew until in
the fa ll of 1938 the House Committee to Investigate Un-American
Activities, under Chairman Martin Dies, had hearings at which
volunteer witnesses testified against the project. But in line with
the traditional biased action of this Committee, they would not, on
the other hand, permit certain persons to testify who favored the
0
project/' and would not print a brief prepared by Federal Theatre
officials answering the major charges. The foregone conclusion of
1. GOUGHBSSIOHAL RECORD. Vol. 80, i'art 6, p. 6/93.
2. Section 13^, part a, of the Rules of both the House and Senate
gives Congressional Committees the power !,to require by subpoena
or otherwise the attendance of such witnesses and the produc
tion of such correspondence, books, papers, and documents, to
take such testimony and to make such expenditures...as i t
deems advisable.11 In short, they can demand to hear witnesses
whom they wish to testify, but need not hear from any witnesses
mJioh choose not to*
185
ar ooavincd that a rather large number of the

employes2 on the Federal Theatre Frcject are either
member s of the Comimnaist Party or are sympathetic
with tho Communist Party. I t ia also clear that
certain employees f e lt under compulsion to join the
Workers Alliance in order to retain th eir jobs. 1
This investigation was followed by one held by the
sub-committee of the House Committee on Appropriations in April
and May, 1939s under Chairman Clifton A. Woodrunu Here, too,
the conclusions were foregone against Federal Theatre for, accord
ing to the National Director, the Committee had paid investiga
tors to search the projects for evidences of communism.
To answer these charges, Hallie Flanagan te stifie d that
to her knowledge there was no circulation of any ccsmusistic
propaganda. If there were Coammists on Federal Theatre, dir
ectors had no way of knowing i t since WPA rules and regulations
prohibited any investigation of or discrimination against persons
for racial, religious or p o litic a l reasons. However, when the
Relief Act of 1938 prohibited the employment of any aliens cm
Governmsit projects, Federal Theatre promptly dismissed a ll who
were not U. S. citizens. Hallie Flanagan pointed out that only
two Russian plays nan oeen presented out of the to ta l 1,200,
and these two were both satires on the present Russian Dictator
ship. In addition, more religious plays were presented than any
other type, and she wondered i f that was eoisaunistico TJhen they
4 :4 T.Tq t t i m i o T FM n c o f f t w f'nv* V iov* at* rT ia X bt fT T L -.--i-
- ----- V- - A M - - ..W . W v ..v o g j , GM-l IX lO C iU iO
le E a lllG F lo Jla g S U s Gp C i t e * p o 3^W*
R epro duce d w ith perm issio n o f th e c o p yrig h t ow ner. F urthe r rep rod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission.
186
'txiidtCi" hsr uuggvnkcmm *cJ.loM5iw.pe uii3 investigators xergot to
m entis that her major praise was of the Moscow Art Theatre
which preeeeded the Russian Revolution by several years.
During the middle of June the Senate Committee <m
Appropriations held its investigation, and unlike the House
Committee the Senate permitted Federal Theatre o fficials, for
the f ir s t tin s, to present th eir evidence to counteract tte
oharges? i t was a t this investigation th at the 7/PA Theatre won
its f ir s t victory. However, when the matter of appropriations came
up on the floors of the House and Senate at the end of June, the
opposition was too great and the prejudices were too deep-seated.
The opposition in the House was led by Representatives John Taber
of New York and Everett M. Dirksen of Illin o is , although Repre
sentatives Casey, Geller, Coffee, Geyer, Sabath, Voorhis, Deu^sey,
Oliver, O'Day, Fay, Norton, Sirovich, Marcantonic and Ford
defended i t . In the Senate the fight against Federal Theatre was
led by Senators Robert Reynolds of North Carolina and Rush Q*
Holt of West Virginia, while Senators Adams, McCarran, Mead and
Pepper worked to save its Fsderal Theatre was killed on the
th irtie th of June, 1939, end thereafter no Government money was
to be spent for theatre projects although the other Art, Music,
andW riters Projects were continued for some time la te r.
The final reason given for the ending of Federal Theatre
was th a t i t had become too expensive for the Government and was
187
was ridloulous for the reasons? First, the total appropriation
for the four art projects, less than three-fourths of 1% of a ll
WA projeots, was not out after Federal Theatre was abolished*
And secondly, by the time i t was ended, the theatre project was
paying a ll it s expenses but labor costs, a record superior to
almost any other YsPA project in returning actual funds. The
real reasons for ending FTP, therefore, were political! ( l)
Federal Theatre did not discriminate against llGgroos and other
minority groups as some Congressmen thought i t should} (2) i t
presented controversial subjects whieh made people think - and
thinking people in their voting d istricts might be dangerous for
certain Congressman during their p o litica l careers} and ( 3 )
Federal Theatre contained some unions, and cooperated with others,
and that made i t ûn-American in the eyes of these same Congress
men. Thus, Federal Theatre died as i t had lived, struggling,
eventful, and dramatic!
As a final brief resume, the record seems to indicate
on the negative side that Federal Theatre over-emphasised the
professional theatre at the expense of the amateurs* This was
partly, of course, because i t was a r e lie f agancy and was created
to put unemployed th e a tr e people back to w ork. Federal Theatre's
record does not indicate that i t either aided or even cooperated,
to any considerable degree, with school and college theatres or
188
community and Little Theatre groups which were already luncuica-
ing* In this respect the drama section of the Special Skills
Division of the Resettlement Administration was mare successful,
for in i t a ll local groups were invited to contribute their part
to the Community theatre. The aim of Special Skills was more on
developing local oreative expression than on imitating professionals;
this was not time of the WPA Theatre where the emphasis was prim
arily professional.
On the positive side i t must be admitted frankly that
even in it s four short years of existence IPA's Federal Theatre
contributions cannot be dealt with adequately in as brief a study
as th is. However, at lea st it s influence on the professional
theatre in particular and the nationwide theatre audience in
general should be mentioned in summary. I t was "grass roots"
theatre for i t got to great numbers of people at prioes they
could afford; and in so doing was a courageous project attempting
to search for and present the truth, and to load in a movement
against minority discrimination. I t helped to awaken an interest
in idie art of the drama, both native and foreign; and helped
promote the Modem Art cr Expressionisiic movement in the theatre
more than any wPA project. It provided work for professionally
unemployed and gave unrecognized talent a chance. All th is, and
more Federal Theatre accomplished at the cost of one battleships
Playwright Paul Green called Federal Theatre "the most important
thing ever to occur in the history ox American drama."
189
As to the future, when people w ill no doubt be having

*4Q
0 as 1 rT i!1V* 4 - rt nn 11 Tart #
*<VP vt aAh) wama PaJaM aI 4<1aaJ<mA
# wj *iv. w u.*>X UV ^4 wuuw* ii'CfVU j.Wi utOi O i&UOi tti. tiiiASttVAV*
O v*1 ^ * **4? W a * W r* v i T T V in n + r ^ f a r-v/^rrr rM4* r*ff*
needoj perhaps our next one w ill grow out of cultural and spir
itu al needs*
190
CB&PIER 6 - FEDERAL WRITER3' PROJECT
UShen the government enters art for the people, as
contrasted with government is art for its e lf- i t does so
essentially as as agenoy of educations In fact, properly
undarstood, government in a democracy IS education.'*' Sinco
i t is based on the consent of the people, this consent can only
be really given when the people fir s t understand.
One place where this was brought out clearly was in the
TfilPA s Federal Writers' Project, for i t was more a program in
understanding the country, through the many and varied books
published about the land and it s people, than i t was a program
of creative expression as in the other three Projects. Like
the other Projects, the FWP grew out of the government's Federal
Emergency Relief Administration (FERi) program begun in 1933*
And like the other Projects, it s record of achievements mount up
despite it s short period of existence, even though these achieve
ments are more in the line of research documents than creative
writing.
During the fir s t organisational years, FERA o fficia ls
were having a d iffic u lt time finding work for unemployed writers,
except for some iconographies, various governmental reports, and
a few human interest stories for the papers. Putting writers to
1. Harold Rugg, MERICAH LIFE ASP THE SCHOOL CURRICULUM,

(jtcrrr York* fr.rra IQXA^ -n-
191
work w&s not easy at a time miOH j CCts h.Xd 12.1*5^* 'ZO DC CI'CC.'UCD.ji
but a due to the solution of the problem was found in a writing
project being undertaken in Connecticut* The State Planning
Board there was sponsoring and directing the writing of a
Connecticut guide, a combination of past history and present-
day record of li f e end resources* After i t was started, the
Connecticut Board received funds from FERA and CIA to aid it s
work, and the guide was completed and published by May, 1935*
From the Connecticut Guide grew the idea of a guide
for every state - especially after Michigan decided to follow
Connecticuts example by having a state guide written in honor
of it s Centennial Celebration in 1935* Thus developed, as the
basic production ofTHPA s Federal Writers Project, the Amerioan
Guide Series which included a book on every state of the Union,
plus one each on Alaska, Hawaii and Puerto Rico, and scae regional
and city guides* The Guide Series was, therefore, actually begun
on FERA* but the great maioritv of the work was completed under
7SPA, except for a few of the state and city guides which were
completed under state and local supervision and sponsorship after
August 1939 ^hen the Writers' Project ended.
AMERICAN GUIDE SERIES;
The writing of the American Guide Series'* became the
one major aim of the Federal Writers Project because i t was
I. Again a misnomer for, like the "Index of American Design i t implied

Canada, Mexico and South America as well as the united States and
i t s possessions.
192
believed that nothing could be of greater benefit to the public
than helping a eountry to know and understand it s e lf) although
the original purpose of the Project was naturally putting unem
ployed writers back to work. Once i t got under way, though,
Project o fficia ls found that some states had praotioally no
unemployed writers while other states had many, especially those
with large metropolitan centers. O fficials were thus faced with
the problem of maintaining professional standards for the guides
in states with few writers. They also found i t d iffic u lt to
secure from the r e lie f rolls enough people with a high degree of
competence to help with the research and the preparation of the
manuscripts on th is kind of undertaking. To help solve the
problem, the percentage of non-relief workers on IWP was raised
from IPA s regular 10% to 25$.
The problem of maintaining a set standard for the various
guides throughout the nation brought about greater centralisation
and control in the national office in Washington than was true of
the other three creative Projeots. Consequently, the Writers'
Project had the largest national sta ff of the four projects,
which consisted of about 75 persons at the height of the project.
Shs Imsrioan Cousoxl oS Lg&rz&d Booist?i0 s ' Study oxplsdnsd i;h0
need for this large a group in the central office by pointing out
that
193
"The responsibility of the national technical project

was fourfold! ( I ) editorial? ( 2 ) technical; ( 5 } research;
and (if.) coordinating. Primarily as a iiaisGa between
the state end the sponsor? on the one hand, and the pub
lish er, on the other, the national technical project
served as a publication o ffice. As suoh. it s duties
were to undertake a ll tasks connected with the making
of the guides? except actual publication These tasks
included planning the contents and treatment; preparing
instructions on the gathering? organisation and writing
of the field data? reading? cheoking, and approving oopy;
typography? maps? end illustrations; contracts? printing
schedules? and proof-reading. For th is purpose i t was
necessary to maintain a sta ff not only of editors but
also of research workers and technical experts in such
special fields as art, architecture, folklore, labor,
raoial groups? Negro affairs, e tc ., whose combined
responsibility was to set and maintain uniform national
standards of accuraoy, form, and style." 1
Miereas the direction of the other three projects - Art, Music,
and Theatre - was aimed primarily at the local soene so that the
major a ctiv ities were undertaken by the people of the community
in art centers, and at least as spectators in the musical concerts
and theatrical productions, on the Writers' Project the direction
was reversed. FfP aimed at bringing research data from the local
scene through state and field offices to the National center for
rewriting and editing. State offices were responsible for co llect
ing the data and getting the basic organisation for the individual
guides? but the main responsibilities for getting the manuscripts
edited and in finished form were with the Director endhis staff
XU c* VAAAViW .ili ildolixjifc.jUAlo
1. Council Study, manuscript on Writers' Project, pp. 5* 6.
19k
In charge of the National Office and Director of the
Federal Writers' Project was Mr. Henry 6 . Alsberg. Formerly he
had been employed <21 FEBA, in eharge of writing government
reports, but when the Writers' Project was organised he was trans
ferred to WPA to direct that agency. Mr. George Crcnyn worked
closely with Mr. Alsberg on the editing of the Guide Series,
end had the t it l e of Associate Director of FWP. The Assistant
Director of the project was Heed Harris, and in addition numerous
other pcoplo contributed editorial servicee in the various ereaea
For example, Roderiok Seidenberg helped with the editing of
articles on Architecture and Art; Darel HeConkey with data on
Cities; Bayard Schindel with Maps? Katherine Kelloek with Tours;
Edward W. Barrows with Looal Guides} Mary L. Barrett with Essays}
and Charles D. Wood with Final Copy. Others were called in as
special consultants} this group included, to name but a few,
Charles Seeger on Music; Benjamin A. Botkin on Folklore, Sterling
A. Brown on Negroes, Stella Hsnan on Pnblie Welfare and Legis
lation, Edwin M. Williams on History, and Leonard Abbott on
Literature and Bibliographies. Special consultants and Contri
buting Editors were called in to help with the Guides at a ll
levels of production, local, state, and National, but again
i t must be repeated that in the final analysis major responsi
b ilit ie s for editing and organizing the Guide Series rested with
195
Director Alsberg and his stars zn wannan^'cciii nct^s-ver, witj.s
by no mesne i s intended to minimise the big problems of collecting
sad organising data into fir s t rough-draft fora by conscientious
local sid state project workers A ll contributed their part to
achieve the completed American Guide Series.
What came to be knows as the "American Guide Series 8

2
of the Writers Project actually consisted of five divisions#
the last four a ll being an outgrowth of the fir s t, (l) the
forty-eight individual State Guide a, plus three extra for Alaska#
Hawaii# end Puerto Rico# (2) one hundred and sixty-five Local
Guides# consisting of city and county guides, and including
special points of interest in the cossunity, such as missions#
fir e departments# Academies# place names# pictorial panoramas#
calendars of annual local events,etc.; ( 3 ) approximately twenty-
three Sectional and Regional Guides including vacation guides#
hiking trails# motor tours, and recreational advantages of differ
ing sections of the country? (4) Fourteen volumes of Folklore,
including tales# legends, and folk stories# and (5) Seventeen
1. Sir. Alsberg resigned in the spring of 1939 as Director of FWP#

and was succeeded by Mr. John D. ilswscm.
2. Figures for these various divisions were obtained from lis t s

of actual publications of Federal Writers5 Project as found ini
Assn. of Research Libraries# CATALOG OF BOOKS BEPBESfflTED BY
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS PRINTED CARDS,(Conn Arbor, Mich., Edward
Bros*# 1943# vole 47# PP 112-125) and Mary Burnham and Regina
Goldman, Editors, CUMULATIVE BOOK HIDES (Hew York. H. W. Wilson,
1938-43, 43-45, (54-47) For a complete l i s t of above publics-
uiwuo avC cLppCZlcLLX
Social Ethnic Volumes? including information ca Indians? Negroes?
Armenians^ J , and various other cultural and racial groups*
Thus* the State Guides were planned and started first? but when
the data gathered became too encompassing to be inoluded in them,
the Local and Regional Guides were started in many localities? and
the Folklore ana Social Ethnic volumes also organised* In a sense?
then? these other four groups were by-products of the State Guides?
but they were not alone in this* Two other kinds of publications
also grow out of the search for data? although they are not
accurately considered a part of the American Guide Series? -
namely ( l) Creative Writing? and (2) Scientific and Technical
Publications* The Creative Writing amounted to but one volume?
"AMERICAN STUFF*n The reason for th is was mainly because neither
the Federal Government nor private publishers wanted to take the
risk of publishing manuscripts by previously unemployed writers?
even though project workers had stories? essays? and poems printed
in neriodioals while working on the Project* The Scientific end
Technical Publications on the other hand, amounted to 17 books
ranging in content and area from American Wild Life in New York
to Journalism in California. In addition to .these? b-3 volumes
of an elementary Science Scries were produced on the Pennsylvania
Project,'* and about 150 miscellaneous Research Monographs? Pamphlets,
li See Appendix E? Part 5*
Special Reports and Monthly and Annual Publications. Shis la st
group included bulletins on Unemployment, Relief, Youth, Migration,
Vocational draining. Public Health, Public Roads and Construction
Work, Recreation, Rural Poverty, and various other general pro
blems in the form of surveys, research studies, s ta tis tic a l
reports, etc# Thus, the publications of the Federal Writers5
Frojeet consisted of the 270 volumes of State, Local and Regional
Guides, Folklore, and Social Ethnics reports which oombined to
form the American Guide Series, plus the creative writing volume,
Amerioan S tu ff, and the 210 or more scientific snd technical
books and bulletins, a to ta l of over ijBO publications. This does
not include, of oourse, the unknown number of novels, plays, and
miscellaneous manuscripts turned in to FVSP s National Office, but
never published.
To attempt to describe and explain in a few short para
graphs what i t took the W riters5 Project 2?0 volumes to record in
i t s American Guide Series is- needles to sa^-

jr but
- merely
~ -to
J
scratoh the surface. However, since the State Guides follow a
somewhat regular pattern, and since the other volumes have special
tr a its worth noting in terms of government sponsorship of the a rt

A'P ^ r r 'i n. v * r > - t o * r n r m <mr\ 1 s o w? 1 1 V s /I t
VA <1 * \S rS * . WUWU UM U*. W W WM if ^ kXW UWUUUWVii Mk A, V
>^ AJT
here.
1. See FINAL REPORT ON WA PROGRAM, op. o it,, Appendix Bs

pp. .
19 8
(a) STATE GUISES. Seven of the State Guides,* plus
Puerto F.ico. were selected at random and compared for content and
organisation. In each case, the Guides contained four major parts;
(l) General Background, (2) Cities and Towns, ( 3) Sours, and
(if) Appendices, which included State Chronologies, Bibliographies,
etc.**
She fir st part of the State Guides, "She General Back
ground," consisted of chapters on the following topics in most or
a ll of the volumes; She land and the People. Agriculture and
Irrigation, Archeology and Indians, Arts (Architecture, Music,
Painting, Sculpture and Theatre), Conservation and Recreation,
Education, Ethnic C-roups, Folklore, Geology end Topography,
History, Industry and Commerce, labor, Plant and Animal Life,
Public Welfare, Badio and Press, Sports, and Transportation.
She states varied in their interpretation of the fir st chapter,
She Land and the People, for some preferred to call it "Hew York
Countryside," "Georgians at Home," "Cross Section of a Threefold
State," "Sloe Illinoisan," "She Land Itself," and "Oregon Yester
day and Today," but by and large the remaining chapters of the
General Background part of each guide fe ll into the above classi
fications.
1. Hew York, Georgia, Tennessee, Illin o is, Minnesota, Utah, end

Oregon - a ll selected from open shelves to represent a differ
ent area of the country, except the Minnesota Guide 'which was
selected because of the i/riters familiarity with it as his
home state,
2. ith the exceptions of Utah which, in addition to the above,

had.a special part devoted to its two national Parks, eight
national Monuments and Great Salt Lake.
199
The i*1j cb. "Gitig d Towns" explained and described
a few of the leading metropolitan areas of the varying states i n ,
terms of major points of in terest, population numbers and char
a cteristics, altitude, transportation service, tourist accommo
dations, rscroation f a c ilit ie s , and information service. In
short, eaoh part contained minor guides to the leading c itie s
and towns. In terms of numbers of c itie s and towns included in
the State Guides, of the 8 guides selected, New York end I llin o is
tied for f ir s t place with each describing 18 of it s c itie s . Oregon
was next with 11 artioles on c itie s and towns, and Tennessee followed
with 7 Minnesota and Georgia eaoh had descriptions of 6 cities*
Utah had U and Puerto Rico 3 .
The parts of the State Guides dealing with "Tours"
consisted of outlined routes which led through some of the major
points of interest in each state, with brief descriptions of
both the route and the stopping places along the way. These
1 VWJVO llUi V VWUA.Ui5U iV i UVUi iO ua *Ji Vlii
although in some oases they ineluded other means of transportation.
In numbers of tours outlined in the 8 Stats Guides, New York
again led with UU guides to interesting places in the state, said

_ j ; j .v -? r j ,_ x u ____ ____ j___ ________________ ~x.t - ___
Vi'tJ,Uii tU> SttUUIilL ttHsLL y j WliVS pjLUS jiiUSy S2iiLLJ.tU* aSUuiUiiS
on Mount Hood Recreation Area, Crater Lake National Park, and the
Oregon National Forests. Minnesota ranked close to Oregon i f one

AAV, "<>/>r! 1C
v> A! -, 1 V
}MV4*UM**T\
UUiioiUd Kf\J, VilV J. J OpOUlQl VttiiOO U1 xyo um VUîl WilV iivi.
Arrowhead Region* together with the 20 motortours in other parts
200
of that Stats* 11 liny is liste d 22 tours* Georgia. i7 I'giuicggoc
16 and Utah 10, but in addition Utah had an extra section devoted
to it s National Parks and Monuments, places where most of it s
tourists naturally go first* .And Puerto Pico liste d tours
of it s major points of interest.
The Appendices of eaoh State guide varied, depending
upon the amount of material about the State already in print, the
numbers of great men and women who had been bom or raised there,
and the number of items included in i t s chronology! however, each
Guide contained a state map located in a pocket in the back, and
eaoh guide also contained a number of photographs which helped to
give a better understanding of the state and it s resources, both
natural and human.
While the Federal Art, Music and Theatre Projeots were
trying to develop local interest in the arts throughout the country,
the Writers Project was gathering information about these same
lo c a lities and organising them into the .nmsrican uuiac ocn os, of
which the major group was the collection of State Guides* During
the preparation of these State Guides, much more data was collected
frhftw could bs conveniently or dssir&bly included in i/hosfl volumes*
Therefore some of the material was organized into volumes canter
ing around a particular section or region of the country* Most
of the latter group crossed state boundary lines although soma
201
were devoted entirely to an important section within a particular
state, lik e the Berkshire H ills of Massachusetts.
(b) LOCAL C-UIBFS, She city and town volumes came to be
known as the Local Guides, and by the time WPA w e ended, 165 of
them had been published. One of the most interesting of these
Local Guides was the SAI FRAICISCO volume, a 531 Pago guide to
the Sunset City, Divided into four major parts, this guide
attempted (l) to introduce the "Gateway of the west" in terms
of San Francisco's people and it s location on the bay; (2) to
present "The City" and it s growth from Frontier and C-old Rush
days to the present metropolis; ( 3) to illu strate the city 's
cosmopolitan character, with it s old "Lords of the Hilltops" and
its more recent Chinatown, Latin Quarter, Embarcadero, and
Golden Gate, in "around the World in San Francisco"; and (A)
to introduce the harbor, islands, and peninsula points of
interest "around the bay." To give a better idea of the beauti
ful location and other advantages which are San Francisco's, the
Guide contains about one hundred photographs, most of which were
taken on the WPA Projects. These photographs are grouped into
eight divisions; (l) The Bay Region, Today and Yesterday; (2)
Industry, Arts, Learning; {3 ) San Francisco's By-Gone Days; (A)
Downtown; (5 ) Street Scenes; (6) The City's Sighî; (7) Across
the Bay; and (8) Ilorth and South of the Golden Gate. In addition
the Guide contains eleven waps oi jjcui Prancisco, its VBTjrisg
smaller communities within the city lim its, and its surrG'uTidiig
territory. It must he admitted that the writers on the SM
ITIANCISCO CHINE had one of the most picturesque and cultural
cities to write about; hence it is no wonder the S.P. Guide is
hoth interesting and beautiful. Yet most of the other l6ty guides
were equally interesting, each in its own way. One of the out
standing features of this Local Guide Series is that each volume
is an attempt to introduce the special characteristic's of the
city or town, whether large or small. Some Guides emphasized
mainly the city's past history, others its present advantages
and s t i l l others its potential for the future. Some stressed
the city's cultural heterogeneity, others its cultural "oneness.
But a ll were attempts to present a positive picture of the city,
yet to do it in as fair and honest a manner as possible.^
(c) SECTIONAL AND REGIONAL GUIDES. Even after the
material had been organized for both the State and Local Guides,
there was s t ill much which was le ft over. In collecting data for the
Guides, workers on the local projects had done such a conscientious
job that data piled up in reams in regional and National Offices,
Some of this material was then organised into Sectional and
1. Another good enample of the attempt of the Writers' Project

CCjCiil. (XJ.2ir picture of each city is the 1^11 page volume
on the Nation's Gapital, WASHINGTON. CITY AND CAPITAL, in
which its slums and eclectic art are included with the
careful description of the beauty and charm that are also
Washington's.
203
Ro-*lon"1 G u i d e O s .6 xsjiid10 ox is 'sn volume oxi THE
MINNESOTA ABHOBHEAD COUNTRT. la addition to ths description of
th is serene and peaceful} though dense natural tin terlaid country}
*fe{)127, S GP *hl"iG Ma g h | n CllVUTlS. ST?d
million Iron Ranges, along the Worth Shore of Lake Superior,
through the Chippewa and Superior National Forests, and on the
impressive Gunflint Trail* One part of the book explains the
general baokground history of this part of the aTheatre of
Seasons State from early fur-trading times to the naturalists
and sportsman s hunting ground of the present day. Another
seotlon of the book is devoted to c itie s and villages within
th is upper northeastern seotion of Minnesota. The book s k5
photographs show the Arrowhead Country with it s rocks, forests,
wild li f e and thousands o f lakes, plus a l i t t l e of it s c itie s ,
conzneroe} and industries.
Similar to the large area books, like MINNESOTA ARROYiHEAD
COUNTS?, some of the Sectional and Regional Guides included
vacation and sports books lik 9 TOTTER SPORTS AND RECREATION IN
T'Hh! BEBKSHlSESp sud cross oouiiijry *ferips liks UcS? OHS"
***v Vi WV,<Vlk VIAV>VVU J

lnA/,T4 M
MMItV U V
w*M4. A1av wjr
Im1pU.Lva4 1a V11V
a4 **4** am TT 53
VftjIiW V ll w
Highway No. One from Maine through the eleven Atlantic Coast
States to Florida and Key West. Like the Local Guides, the
Sectional and Regional volumes included work from a ll oarts of
1. For a complete l i s t of the Sectional and Regional Guides,

see APPENDIX E, Part 2.
aoU
th e country? sad in some cases more t h a n cm f r o m partioulai
section or region.
(d) FOLKLORE. Part of the over-all design for the
'Asarices Guide Series" worked out in Writers' Project headquarters
in Washington, -was to include a section in each State Guide on
folk legends and tales. But once data urns oollected i t was dis
covered that, like other kinds of material found? the quantity
far exceeded the space le ft available in the original guides
for such topics. However sinoe the folklore was a ll authentic,
and seemed too valuable to discard, some of i t was gathered
together in what amounted to fourteen separate folklore volumes.
These volumes eovered a ll parts of the country, although six of
them were from and about the south. One of the volumes? THESE
ARE OUR LIVES^ actually came nearer creative writing than folk
lore, for i t was the recording of interviews with people in a ll
walks of lif e in the South, but organized so that the essays
read like dramatic fiction . On the other hand, there was a ring
of simplicity and sincerity in these essays which made them seem
prepared for the Froject workers who made the interviews and wrote
them up in this book, stated as the purpose of the folklore section
of F??P that?
1. Federal Writers' Project, THESE ARE OUR LIVES, (Chapel HillS

Univ. of North Carolina Press, 1939? U21 pp.
2* See Chapter Nine.
205
^MQTari B*i a 'CQ uolIut&U Oil 'j'_"'!-:'jL' i*H'riMrH Him

their fam ilies, farm owners and their fam ilies, cotton
m ill villagors and thoxr fam ilies, persons and their
families in service occupations in towns and c itie s ,
and persons and their families in miscellaneous oecu
pdUiLU Ui; OUVU RQ iu u iu v iA u ^ i u&j^L&.A..ug) a lA O U A U g a VW* L/Vii
TJUTTlOSS O f 4*f^n_a W0j*V ^.o 2 S01i|*S lidXX

give an accurate, honest, interesting, and fairly compre
hensive view of the kind of lif o that is lived by the
majority of people in the Southo^ It is extremely impor
tant that families be fairly selected, that those which
get along well or fairly well be solscuod for avones ss
well as those that make a less favorable impression* The
sub-normal, the normal, the above normal, a ll should have
stories written about them* 2
Many of the books in th is folklore group were frankly legends
and ta les, like OLD NEffBUgf TALES (Massachusetts) and GHM3Q YA YA
(Louisiana), and one was a collection of lia rs' ta les, GOD BLESS
THE DE7IL1 (Tennessee), Together they formed a chapter of the
country's folklore which would not have been recorded at the time
or as a collective group had i t not been for the WPA. The
largest end most publicized folklore project was perhaps that of
Kentucky, but i t was not too well organised and therefore not
nearly so v ita l or in^portant as some of the smaller and less
publicised projects. Included in the latter group would be
M ?3 c Marn nm BuohS2!E2!s S siT udy v f Okl".hvH, f i d d l s tu 0 3 $ th O u g h
v>av7*av iwlish,dj th* foilclors vsoidc of boiili *b!ho szid
Music Projects in New Mexico.
1, (hie is herein reminded of the publication LAY Iff BURDEN DOW

of this series, a folk history of slavery which said in the
introduction. 'Everything I t e lls you am the truth, but they* s
plenty I cant t e ll you," p. IX (Chicago. Univ, of Chgo Press,
19U5, 286 pp) (Edited by Benjamin A. Botkin.)
2, THESE A5S OUR LIVES, op, c i t . , p. i|17, Ul9.
206
/ A \ (jn n T A T O T irsIT /i h t\i n t i j. _ _ _ _ _ _i> _ A i _ * _ a

" \ b v v J -R J -* flA U W A V Vi*UlgJ3>Jg ix B xagxs g fo u p O i T o IH B B B
whioh grew out of the wealth of material gathered primarily for
the State Guides, was the collection of seventeen Social Ethnic
SGOJfge wl% OX ullO a^ ivv3Aw u w s v g p u uu aUi^l'XUOU XHOJ.OU
five to the Negro, two to Italians, one eaoh to the Armenians,
Italians and Jews, one to the Swedes and Finns together, and
one miscellaneous publication on the Intercultural A ctivities
in Chicago* A typical example of this group was the CAVALCADE
OF THE AMERICAN NEGHQ, a publication prepared on the I llin o is
Writers' Project in I9U0 in honor o f the Diamond Jubilee Expo
sition of the Negro* The book recorded in honest manner their
struggle "for enlightenment*1 and "toward freedom," and presented
almost humbly their singular contributions to the developing
cultural amalgamation of the U.S.A.
Thus concludes the brief introduction to the American
Guide Series and the books which grew out of i t . Perhaps another
time students w ill evaluate the Guides individually and in toto
and w ill then be able to give a more complete picture of them*
Meantime cue is inclined to admit that here was a courageous
undertaking in the f ir s t place, and a job well done*
As was stated previously, there were two other kinds
of publications which grew out of the search for data for the
American Guide Series, but miich were not actually considered a
part of it* These were the 210-odd Scientific and Technical
R epro duce d w ith perm ission o f the cop yrig ht ow ner. F u rth e r rep rod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission.
207
Publications* and the one volume of creative writing, iJESICAU
STUFF, As to the former, a glance at Appendix E to. 11 show the
range in content and form better than an attempted explanation
here* As to the la tter, i t was the only volume of the Federal
Writers' Project whose primary purpose was creative expression.
AMERICAN STUFFS
Strangely enough, while the other three WPA projects -
Art, Musio, and Theatre - were working hard to get creative state
ments produced in painting and sculpture, musio and drama, the
Writers' Projeot did practically nothing for the cause of creative
writing in th is country. This was not because Project o ffic ia ls
were not interested in creative writing, but rather because there
was the problem o f publishing which was not involved in the other
Projects. The government appropriated money for putting writers
back to work but did not appropriate any for publication costs,
and thus sponsors had to be found who would publish the work
produced on the Project. Ihen i t came to the State and Local
Guides, States and Cities were interested in sponsoring their
own books. But when i t came to other kinds of work - novels,
stories, or poetry = no one wanted to risk sponsoring these,
especially since they were the works of previously unemployed
writers. There were some sections m the American Guide Ssriss
which approaohed the level of good creative writing, both in
203
saood sad technique, but these ncre incidental to the large?
purposes of descriptive and documentary writing.
There was another reason why l i t t l e creative writing was

J M. . M. r 4 4*nWn ! ID'rSrt e a f i f . QwW-ia nl 1 44 V>f* V
*Wrniw r%rnr4 friaWunri
UVU@ Vil tlA4U^7&0 iiUJVWUS C
vi. A. g
AA U-Llie^ VUUUpU WiAC*WAA
naturally became Government property, few of the writers cared
to turn in to the government those stories which they thought
might later become a h it elsewhere. Project Director Henry G
Alsberg explained this by saying?
"The top security wage of one hundred and three dollars

and fifty oents a month would scarcely compensate a
w riter for a best-seller, or a successful Broadway play,
or even the motion picture rights to a mediocre product
in these categories. 1
Consequently, most of the creative work was done in off-time,
and AMERICA!? STUFF was actually a collection of work written
this way. The volume contains both poetry and prose, and
includes work by w riters from practically a ll sections of the
country. Most significant, perhaps, in terms of professional
oreative writing was Richard Wright's autobiographical sketch,
The Ethics of Living Jim Crow, gad Sterling Brown's poem

^ A 1 *| nv*~. t 4*^ IT a w i'v
axa m o yww iu uuge uaioi n i vu ou*a
Wuu n____ i._j_ t i . n vi u i. i_j wa

'Wja wu-
tu&o ai7
also included sixteen prints by the Federal Art Project.
V I iO T U T n A W RVTTVV. (V * m r Y /w lr! V i W r i .
* wvks,* M*< IU AVV, a * 4 VJ vv y ** * * y \ *W" w Q
Press, 1937, foreword, pp. v i, v ii.}
239
7 Is evaluating the work in AMERICA STUFF, Director
Alsberg explained;
nIn this book the reader tr i ll find comparatively

XXbUXS Vv 1OiiAXAiWl liilH O l O X ^ 0 o iS 5 ej IxijljjuO 60HO
A *
UA ii"
M a h a *
iiigjAASA
sasfV tA 'M ft*5 swiv*aw w**v
g S g tU w A w ^ ^ M
-rV.s * 1 4 n 4.ai &UU9UUQW
tions of emotion. "his is the American Scene to the
lif e , very often as i t appears from the roadside ditoh,
the poverty stricken tenement shs>ck^ the roliof stations
The style is sometimes crude, the technique often perhaps
inexpert or diffuse; but there is sincerity in i t , a solid
passionate feeling for the lif e of the less prosperous
m illions..." 1
Although there was published only th is one volume which
can be classified as creative w riting, the Project was s t i l l a
major help to creative w riters. Through providing jobs for these
unemployed novelists, poets, and playwrights on the cooperative
reporting and editing project of the AMERICAN GUIDE SERIES, i t
gave them financial security so t i n t they could continue th eir
own creative work on the side. While the Guides were produced,
writers were also meantime given a chance to prove th eir worth
in other, more expressive forms of writing.
Judged as a whole, perhaps the greatest single attribute
of the project was i t s cooperative aspect. I t was a cooperative
venture in the best positive sense* Writers on the local scene
were gathering data, organising i t into rough d rafts, and sending
i t to Washington. The national Offiso v/erkers were re-writing and
editing the material, returning i t for better organisation and
slarificatio n , for the addition of more data, or the elimination
l, iw rnuT riw b 'Imtpv t v jj .o - -; j
210
mA _---------_ aX I X Jb' . fiflttt 4 iU a Ut a 4 w ta h a a a m 4*4 m ii m i w a m a (i a 4*

Gl S u m 9 O x 4.0S iilU O WW> iiujgvu nog e*- *->C1!!U iiiW u w c jj * v w o g o s>i
working together to achieve the collection of guides of our states*
c itie s and regions.

Tvi t f %Vjfi r. ^V*J i~j T = ftf* "nVtw T?fir! gT=C. 1
j"4t C W T4: St*Of
ti-ii UUiialiCU V W i. (iliv UV ili V >VW ViU V VilW ll*AWV*U
Project as a whole, no conclusion is more accurate or apt than
that which the American Council of Learned Societies drew after
their long and detailed study of the Yff>A Cultural Program?
There waB much in the program of the Writers Project

that was hackwork; there was also much that was in
spired in the Guides, the folklore studies, the life
h istories, and the social-ethnic program. The Writers1
Project held up the mirror to America, and, i f the glass
refleoted, not only lakes and oceans, mountains and
valleys, c itie s and highways, rich and poor, black and
white, but also the W riters Project its e lf , with a ll i t s
faults and virtues, the image was so much the more authentic
and complete. 1
* * * * * * * * * *
The Depression of 29 came, and in i t s wake came an
administration of designers who had both the courage and vision
to approach and attack i t , believing with th eir President that
the only thing they had to fear was fear itself* So they created
agencies and outlined programs in practically a il levels of work

T
rt V * /Vv\1 r. 1 T T A .? T
? vV v A VkA^ Vi*i ATI V.V7
GU--U. A V i. puvv* J.A Viii C*< R M S vi Jm v wv W i4 a * . V uy w-v
economic sltugt* lo t the least of these programs were the cultural
ones which were created on <?&, and not the least of these persons
cn
211
helped by th e New Deal were the a r tis ts . the musicians and
playwrights, painters and poets who were, for the f i r s t time
in our government's history, considered as citizens worthy of
employiSoEii a lo n g w iu n kc Hiasv^s sh u c a r p e n v e r s , la r m e r s , auu.
ditchdiggers. At the time of the four Projects, one student
of our oulture wrote*
. . . American a rtis ts have ooms out of the alloys of

Bohemia and are nofr trudging the highways of the
American continent. They are shaking hands with
farmers, workers, technicians, politicians, teachers;
they have seen a 'sla n t ray of (jiick, Adbrican light*
leading toward new vistas; they are painting American
s tu f f an the walls of American buildings, acting
plays before audiences who can pay only 50 oents for
a theater seat, furnishing music to farmers and workers
in school buildings paid for out of publie taxation. 1
Like employees in private industry, there were workers
an 1PA, in the a rt projects as in a ll others, who took advantage
of the situation, who leaned on shovels and reoeived an honest
day's pay for less than an honest days work. But, also like
employees in private industry, there were those who worked
overtime without extra pay because of th eir devotion to th e ir
work and their desire to prove their worth on the projects. In
short, the ^?A was a good cross-section of the kinds of people
that make up our vast and heterogeneous population, the talented
and the limited, the honest and the underhanded, the good end the
bad. Thus the to ta l - both in terms of people and productions -
was not either a ll black or pure white but that kind of healthy
neutral grey which bespeaks a ll things human.
1. Eduard
1
C. Lindeman, Farewell to Bohemia, --nSurvey
-
Graphic,
, , - - *, u
-
jjo C .V /
R epro duce d w ith perm ission o f th e cop yrig ht ow ner. F urthe r rep rod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission.
212
And Htw PillngS hfUiMsU, culd. ukjJlgS that Sp0 tiiS prOuUutl!
of humanss Wk was both damned and glorified. I t was declared
politically putrid and p o litic a lly pure* economically unsound
and eoOTioiidcally expedient, socially decadent and socially pro
gressiv. I t was said to be made up only of 'impractical
dreamers an the cue hand, and "nothing but ditoh-diggers" on
the other. And in the final analysis perhaps Wk was a l i t t l e
of each of these extremes and a lo t of the middle ground whioh
was between*
On the negative side, the TfiPA four a rt projects were
oritioized for.
(1) Nurturing the mediocre in the arts by employing those
a rtis ts whoa private industry would not hire (despite
the fact th at private industry was not hiring anyone
a t the time);
(2) Producing work which was unsuitable for display in
pubiHiO .institutions, worn *vmcn was unanoctiujLe,
(3) Permitting directors tc set the standards of what was
accepted and presented rather than local committees
and a rtis ts themselves:
(4 ) Controlling the projects through censorship and pro
paganda; and
(5) Spending money which, could have been better spent elsewhere.
I. These criticisms are based partly on Grace Oversyer e chapter

"Government 'Interference* With Art?", pp 206f, end partly
on c ritic a l reviews of the project from periodicals published
was active.
R eproduced w ith perm ission o f the cop yrig ht ow ner. F u rth e r reprod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission.
ons has only to go to the records of the Project themselves#
Facts have a m y of crushing rumors when facts 'are honestly
On the positive side, a survey of 7*737 c itie s and towns
indicated that 95*9$ of the communities questioned indicated that

1
the four a rt projects were both worthwhile and desirable# This
attitude was reflected in an open le tte r which Lewis Mumford wrote
1. The National Appraisal Committee, made up of a number of leading

societies and organizations interested in the problems of unem
ployment, sooial planning, and similar social a c tiv itie s, made
a survey in April, 1939 of the work of the T3PA program called
"U.S. Community Improvement Appraisal. The report liste d the
following results to ten questions in the survey of 7*737
ooonunities of the nation*'
Affirmative* Affirmative,
: ( l) Were improvements and (WPA {% of to ta l) but qualified?
services badly needed? 93.7 5*7
(2) Were they of benefit to the
oomnunity? 96#8 2.2
(3) What has been the quality of
workmanship? 8lw6 12#3
(If) Are public ra c illtle s constructed
under WPA of permanent value? 90*0 8e5
(5) Have educational a ctiv itie s been
worth while? 95.6 2.5
(6) Have public health activ itie s been
worth while? 95.3 3.0
(f) Have recreation activ itie s been
worth while? 91.1 4*0
(8) Have non-coastruetlen activ ities
other then education, public health,
and recreation (in short, the a rt
projects) been worth while? 95*9 27
(9) Has the program developed lone
range community planning? 73*7 19#6
(10/ Has work re lie f advanced the commun
ity improvement program? 95*2 32
(vfashington* National Appraisal Committee, April, 1959* 2 pp
2ll*
fee President Roosevelt is 1936. a b rief part of whieh lollcwsi
"fhaae projeots have given the a rtis t a hoas? and they

have planted the seed of the fins a rts, hitherto raised
under glass in afew metropolitan hothouses* in every
village 25.w ^52 CCHH* tb *uuw1rating soils thau
have become sour with neglect and opening up new areas
for cultivation.
The actual achievement has been astounding* not less
in quality than in volume. A great mass of talent* some
of i t the best our generation has produced, has for the
f i r s t time been put regularly to work in the service of
the community. 1
Bat in the final analysis the only valid ocnclusicns
to be drawn from the 73PA a rt projects are those one gets from
going directly to the projeots themselves, to the records now
organised in the Rational Archives; to the people who worked
on the projeots and who again were able to buy bread for their
families because of these projects* to those who directed them
and created new roles for the arts in the daily lives of our
people. But most of a ll the valid conclusions are those one
gets from the work le f t behind, the paintings and sculpture,
musical compositions and American Guidos, and the memories of
concerts and plays for those who had never before experienced
2
either. Only by going to the individuals -to those who created
1. Sq Republic, Dec. pG* 1936* PP*> SoJ-p.
2. For appraisals of the 1?A cultural program by persons on the

project, and leading a rtis ts dn the varying fields of creative
expression, ss6 the bulletin "Hearings on 3. A B ill to
Provide for a Permanent Bureau of Fine Arts" of the Senate
Subcommittee on Education and labor. (Wash* Government
Printing Office, I938, Bulletin 59727&21? ppj
215
sad to the products of their labors-can one begin to get tbs
feci of the four art projects which were designed to f u l f i l l
physical needs but which also went far in fu lfillin g cultural
end spiritual needs as w ell. Thus i t must be admitted that!
"the nation has gained sore from these projects than

any others the government has attempted. The gain has
been spiritual and not economic; and in a country as
dedicated to the eocuomo motivation as America has
been for centuries, i t is d iffic u lt to 'sell* the spir
itu al ideal. Nevertheless, the wrA art projeots have
been sore effective than any other medium in teaching
people the value of art as an intimate, daily rea lity ,
not an isolated thing confined to art galleries or
music h a lls, but a something one lives by and with
and needs in order to liv e happily. 1
1* T. P. C&lverten, "Cultural Barometer," Current History,

October 1938, pp. k 5 t ^6.
216
CHAPTER 7 - HISTORIC AMERICAN BUiLDiKGs S'JSVBi
For some time prior to 1933 there had been a oonoem
on the part of historians and some government o ffic ia ls over
the si os' destruction by decay and the rapid demolition by fir
of some of our important architectural structures. However,
i t was not u n til 1933 ^hen the opportunity presented it s e l f
and something could be dcme about i t . During the latter part
of that year Charles S. Peterson, Chief of the Eastern Division
of the Branch of Plans and Designs, presented to the Director
of the National Park Service of the Department of Interior a
plan whereby Federal R elief fhnds could be used to secure
unemployed architects, draftsmen and photographers and put
them to work at reoording examples of historic architecture
throughout the country. The plan proved readily acceptable,
and by December 1st the Director of the National Park Service,
the Secretary of Interior, end the Federal R elief Administrator
had a ll approved i t , and a National Advisory Board was established
to go ahead with the work. Leicester B. Holland was appointed
Chairman.
The Advisory Board divided the nation up intc 59
d istric ts. Later this number was increased to 71 d istricts
since the cooperating American Institute of Architects had
their chapters divided in that manner, and thus the program
R e p r o d u c e d w ith p e r m is s io n o f th e c o p y r ig h t o w n e r . F u rth er re p ro d u ctio n p roh ib ited w ith o u t p e r m issio n .

was aided on the local level by using a pattern already estab
lished. The Architect's Institute nominated a local architect
whose interest in the Survey and whose experience qualified him
to carry on the work' in charge of each of these divisions. The
Secretary of the Interior then o ffic ia lly made the appointment.
One of the f ir s t duties of the local officer was to
contact local Civil Works Administration offices and secure
unemployed architects, draftsmen bug . photographers. Meantime
he also secured the aid of local architects, historical organi
sations and interested persons in the community, and together
they considered the local architectural structures and decided
which they thought most worthy of recording. These choices were
organized on index cards, one copy of which was retained and one
forwarded to Federal headquarters in Washington. There in the
Hational Park Service of the Department of Interior the final
choice was made, based on (l) the h istorical significance of the
building, and (2) the danger of it s destruction. Once a structure
was decided upon, the local officers were given the go-ahead
signal and measured drawings and photographs were made. When the
d istrict officer was satisfied with the work, he 'would send it
on to Washington. There it was also reviewed, and i f unaccept^
able i t was returned for corrections. If acceptable, the records
were then turned over to the Library of Congress for cataloging
and administering. The structures are marked with a framed docu
ment, indicating that they are part of the national survey.
218
There were two maW bums
American Buildings Surveys These were (l) to put unemployed
architects and related workers hack to work during the depression,
and (2) to secure a record of our early and disappearing archi
tecture, or, as Secretary of Interior Harold L. Ickes stated i t ,
the "conservation of national historic resources." In the f ir s t
aim, the Survey was olosely allied with the CWA, FWA, I5PA and
other r e lie f organisations of which i t was a part. In the second,
i t was olosely allied with the Index of American Design of the
Federal Art Project since both were established for the purpose
of recording in graphio form, either through drawings or photo
graphs, the record of our early design in the handcrafts and
architecture.
Like fee Index of Aasrican Design, the HABS covered a
wide range. Because of the foresight of project o ffic ia ls, the
Survey was not limited to public and government buildings aid
included a ll kinds su:types ox svrucuures Vi'men might at some
future time help to explain life in the present and the past.
As an indication of the wide range of structures included in tbs
Survey, here are a few taken from a much longer lis t in an HABS
handbook' academies, aqueducts, arsenals, asylums, bams, black
smith shops, breweries, cemeteries, churches, com cribs, court
houses, covered bridges, fences, hospitals, Indian villages, ja ils.
National Park Service, nlSiOmC AMeRiCAm BUILDINGS SURVEY,

(W a sh in g to n . Govto Printing Office, 1936, p* i i i )
219
libraries, lighthouses, logging camps, m ills, missions, orphanages,
parsonages, pigeon houses, railroad stations, schools, smokehouses,
stables, to ll houses, towers, town h a lls, viaducts, and windmills,
ir. short, HABS is a graphic record of our country's architectural
and building structures.
The Survey v/as fir s t organised in 1933 with funds made
available by GHA. At that time a ll States except six in the
northwest were included, and these were le ft out because of
winter climatic conditions and because of the relatively few
architects unemployed there. Later some work was done m inese
states also. At the height of its program under CM, in February
of 1935 there were about 772 persons employed. However, it was
not long after the program was actively under way when the order
came to cut OVA appropriations. So ten percent of the staff were
laid off weekly, ana on May 1st the program was o ffic ia lly ended.~
Although it had been in existence but a few months, HABS had
apparently proved it s worth for the sixteen states of Alabama,
Arkansas, California, Florida, Georgia, Illin o is , Louisiana,
Massachusetts, Hew Hampshire, Hew Jersey, Hew York, Ohio, Pennsylvania,
Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin, went to work and secured
emergency re lie f funds. Thus about 300 persons were either
kept on the project, or were put back to work once more. In
some cases State and County funds were used to continue the
1. The approved CM budget for the Survey amounted to a total of

6 Jl Jl Q AAA
H < T T w ,vuyi
( *T~ - - .- - H rT&_V..V.
\A tauxU ilclX
f->___ ------------- -Ji
tL 0 ^ 1 V l U C , UJJ# U 1 V 1 ,
..
jJ CJ
220
growing collection of historic architecture* And aomatiaBs
private contributions were made, often % practising architects
who were interested in the project or by the owners of buildings
which were being included in the records* Because of this local
in terest, the National Park Service aided some programs, and
during 193*4- and 1935 some PWA and WPA funds were made available
to carry on where CWA had le ft off* One of the most generous of
the Pub lic Works allotments was made in 193^4 to provide for the
completion of the work of recording the prehistoric Pueblo
architecture of Acoma in New Mexico.
At fir s t the Survey was rather uneven since some states
had few unemployed architects and draftsmen, and others had many.
But later some of the states with inadequate staffs were supple
mented with others from the ranks of those with more unemployment,
and in the final analysis the picture was somewhat evened up*
Universities and schools of architecture became interested in the
educational value of the Survey, and not only contributed funds,
administrative services, drafting space and supplies, but even had
students doing thesis and research work on i t .
Although some local work was continued after that time,
EABS o fficia lly came to an end on the plat of March in 1941*
At that time the records covered 2,693 structures which had been
measured and drawn in 23,765 sheets of uniform size. In addition
there were 3*696 structures which had bean recorded on 2p,357

221
photographic negatives* In a great majority of 0=305 the subjects
773ro both drawn and photographed, but counting the two separately,
the total recorded is 6,339 buildings or structures. It was the
fir s t major step on the part of the Federal Government in the
cataloging and preserving of the countrys historic architecture.
Although there is much work le ft to be done in years to come,
the Survey stands as an important beginning in the recording
of these architectural treasures. And i t also served to create
an interest in looal architecture at the time. Owners of buildings
and the community in general were educated to the historical value
of many structures which they had paid li t t l e attention to before.
In short, the Historic American Buildings Survey prepared the
fir s t volume in the Federal Government's architectural history of
the nation.
1. National Park Service, HISTORIC AMERICAN BUIUIHGS SURVEY -

Catalog to 19hl, (Washington! Govt Printing Office, I9UI, p.v)

222
rn J A D f ln ? 0 Q . /lA Itt? 'D iftffrn tm i\m V fin U W i 'D r U T ^r*-?!T?T7-

v iiA i i . s i t 0 ** U vv ax u'tn L E ii'i a jm ir m /J /fla ii a c a j J I I 1 ViUL!L>
Pros the time idien the White House and Capitol were
constructed or parts or practically every known European classic
style to the prosent time whan government dams and powerhouses
are considered among the nation's groatsst indigenous art, a
basic change ha3 bean brought about in the government's attitude
toward architecture* However, this change has not come about
through government leadership* Rather i t has resulted in the
government finally catohing up with a newer concept of archi
tecture which had been developing on it s own in the country
during the past half century, through the efforts of our most
creative architects, notably Prank Lloyd Wright and his students*
Centering around the term "organic, the new concept states
that the form of a building is determined by the function i t is
to perform rather than by any predetermined style, and involves
the relating of architecture to the land on which i t stands in
suoh a way that the two become one* It is , in essence, the
marriage of the man-made buildings with the natural landscape
the expression of the honest purpose of the structure*
Of a ll the government buildings, both in Washington
and throughout the country, there are few which can even coma
near the concept of "organic=M This is especially true of the
major Federal buildings whioh have nearly a ll been constructed
R e p r o d u c e d w ith p e r m issio n o f th e co p y r ig h t o w n e r . F u rth er rep ro d u ctio n p roh ib ited w ith o u t p e r m issio n .

225
in the- tradition of noble shrines* However, there are three
notable exceptions which have been designed with the new vision.
All located outside Washington, these three are the National Park
and Forest Structures, the ureenbelt Communities, and the govern
ment dams and powerhouses like those of the Tennessee Valley
Authority.
NATIONAL PARK AND FOREST STRUCTURES.
Anyone who has spent time visiting the Hanger Stations
or the various Observation and Look-Out Buildings in our National
Parks and Forests, or has stayed in th e government-built lodges
and cabins, knows that there is a certain "feeling about them
which is seldom found in the more oomercial lodges or observa
tion platforms and curio shops* The feeling is th at of "naturalness.
I t seems almost as i f the structure had grown up in tho forest or
on the rooks, rather than having been man-constructed there* But
this feeling is not accidental; i t is a ll part of a greater design
of the National Park and the National Forest Services*
I t ig the policy of both these government agencies to set
aside as parks tho so-called primitive areas in our forests and
among our rocks, mountains, and other natural resources in various
parts of the country. These are areas of the wilderness type which
have not been exploited or made commercial by man. I t is to pre
serve these natural conditions for the people as a whole that
R e p r o d u c e d w ith p e r m is s io n o f th e co p y r ig h t o w n e r . F u rth er re p ro d u ctio n p roh ib ited w ith o u t p e r m issio n .

22l*
both National Services are dedicated* It is part of ths policy
of planning for the people of recent years to counteract the
exploitation of the nineteenth century*
With this intent to keep the natural landscape free
from man s commercialism, tho recreation buildings and earaping
fa c ilitie s were designed so as to seem as i f they were an integral
part of the natural wilderness. In the forests, like the Superior
National Forest of Northern Minnesota, for example, the buildings
are usually made out of the natural logs with fireplaces and
sometimes floors made from the rooks found there* In the parks,
lik e Zion National Park in Utah, for example, the Ranger Stations
and lodges are usually made almost completely out of the natural
rock so abundant there, with natural timber used for woodwork and
roofs* In these buildings the architectural 'styles i f such
a term can be used to describe these organic buildings vary; that
i s , the plans, sizes and shapes vary to f i t the particular location
needs* The designs, for the most part, originate in the areas
in which the park is located, and "only broad controls are exercised
from the central office*- In this way the local architects are
given a wide latitude in their designing, and can well relate
the buildings to the natural scenery which they know well* This
accounts for the variety in the structures* The directives from
the National Cffica only help mai ntain the uniformity in using
1* Communication from the National Pork Service explaining the

architecture of park structures*
R e p r o d u c e d w ith p e r m issio n o f th e co p y r ig h t o w n er . F u rth er re p ro d u ctio n p roh ib ited w ith o u t p e r m issio n .

225
the native materials ana thus relating building to site# There
is something anonymous about the designs of these buildings, and
in a way they are a li t t l e like the cooperatively construoted
cathedrals of the Old World where no one architect or builder
stood out above tho others# Despite their variety in size and
plan, these government park and forest structures have the same
feeling about them, the feeling of being an organic and integral

1
part of the natural landscape wherein they are located# This is
government architecture at it s best. It i s only unfortunate that
i t is in these scattered examples and in this very small part of
the government's total building program that such organic design
appears#
Architecture is no longer just buildings, box-like rooms
collected together in a olassio exterior shell# They are build
ings FOP. PEOPLE in a specific environment, for a special purpose
at this particular tins in history# Whether those buildings be
government structures or private houses, the principle remains
the same# Modern architecture includes in it s plans a speoific
concern for the people who arc going to use the structure and
for the topography of the land on nilioh i t is constructed#
In addition to the various National Park and Forest lodges,
ranger stations, recreation buildings and camping f a c ilit ie s , the
government undertook in recent years two other major projects in
1. Ssg Albert H. C-ood, PAIS AND EBCREATION STHFCTOHSS,

^ i i w M Q V I u i i i i i i u u il * Vf ' g v x i - l c e , ^ VQ i o J
R e p r o d u c e d w ith p e r m is s io n o f th e co p y r ig h t o w n e r. F u rth er rep ro d u ctio n p roh ib ited w ith o u t p e r m issio n .

226
organic architecture. These are the Greenbelt Communities of
the Department of Agriculture, and the reconstruction of the
Tennessee Talley. However, neither of these can he understood
merely by looking at the houses and dams and calling that archi
tecture; the architecture of these projects is an integral part
of a greater "design for living" and must be viewed as such.
fiBBENBSLT COMMODITIES;
Sightly viewed, the Greenbelt Communities are government
experiments in community planning. Once before in the government's
history the people entered the area of community planning; this was
in the establishing of Washington as the Federal City. At that
time, the people f e lt they had a tradition to uphold for their
seat of government had to look like a capital city. Therefore,
a European planner was brought to this country to lay out a plan
for the city based on that plan of Paris, as the Capital of France.
Thus the f ir s t attempt at community planning was unsuccessful
as an organic development. I t was not u n til about a hundred and
thirty-five years la te r that the government took its second major
attempt at community planning. This time i t was on a minor scale,
in a way, since i t was a community planned for average persons
rather than for government dignitaries. Then, too. i t was to be
a community devoted to daily living rather than an "impressive
shrine for the ages." So i t is natural then, because of the
difference in basic purpose, that these tv;o government-planned
R e p r o d u c e d w ith p e r m issio n o f th e co p y rig h t o w n e r . F urth er rep ro d u ctio n p roh ib ited w ith o u t p e r m issio n .
227
ocmssunities should be differentl however. i t is significant that
in the second attempt that an organic design was developed rather
than a foreign plan borrowed and superimposed.
I t is often thought that community planning based on
the GreenbeltMprinciples is another radioal "New Deal experiment.
Yet upon examining the record, we see th at gar&en-citios of th is
tvne date back to near<fftayflower days in early North America;
Lewis Mumford pointed this out when he wrote*
"Nowadays we have begun to talk about garden cities*

and we realise that the essential elements in a
garden-city are the common holding of land by the
community* and the cooperative ownership and direction
of the community its e lf . Tfe refer to a ll these things
as i f they represented a distin ct achievement of modem
thought* but the fact of the matter is that the New
England village up to the middle of the eighteenth
oentury was a garden-city in every sense that we now
apply to that term, and happily its gardens and its
harmonious framework have frequently lingered on, even
though the economic foundations have long been overthrown. "1
Thus we see that community planning in i t s present day form
as a specialised branoh of architecture combined with sociology
was really undertaken in e arliest colonial dsys in th is country*
and only recently developed to f i t our growing needs.
lh a t, then was the Greenbelt idea? In the f ir s t place,
a greenbelt community was one in which the traditional bound ary
between city and country was abolished so th at the two became one.
Each community was surrounded by a broad area of farm and garden
land which served a twofold purpose! (l) I t established a control
1 f s * ''t - v * JL. _ -7

228
Oyer- the surrounding land to provide for future expansion and
to preheat inv-asl.cn of undesirable industrial and commercial
enterprises? and (2) i t enabled the people to be in close con
ta c t with the lead for health tad sp iritu al reasons Part of the
greenbelt area surrounding the community was used by fulltime
farmers, and in some oases for demonstration work in soil con
servation and for0station. Part of the area was also used for
allotment gardens for residents of the community, where they
oould raise their fru its and vegetables if they desired. In
addition to these, part of the area was used for parks, play
grounds, and reoreational fa c ilitie s .
The Greenbelt Community program, together with several

1
other low-oost housing projects, was organised as the division
of Suburban Resettlement, in the broader Resettlement Administra
tion fbr the main purpose of
" ...th e planning and designing of four suburban

communities to provide adequate her .ring for moderate
income families (51,200 to |2,000 per annum) at a
minimum cost and in a healthful and pleasant semi-
rural environment. 2
1 In addition to the three Grscnbelt towns, the Resettlement

Administration constructed about lo l other low-cost housing
projects, combining in them the best principles of land
u tilizatio n , healthful living conditions, ana poverty
eradication. Most notable of these perhaps are the
Arthurdale Community a t Reedsville, West Virginia? and
Eighstown Project, Highstown; Msw -Jersey.
2. Resettlement Administration, F irst Annual Report, o p .c it., p.lij.
R e p r o d u c e d w ith p e r m is s io n o f th e c o p y r ig h t o w n e r . F u rth er rep ro d u ctio n p roh ib ited w ith o u t p e r m issio n .

as part of the bigger Emergency Relief Appropriation Aot, i t had
a second purpose of providing re lie f -work, Shis purpose was
established by the President when he sat up the four following
basic requirements for each suburban project!
B(.l) that there should be a local need for the project;

(2) that re lie f labor should be used;
( 3) that the project should be useful and of permanent
public benefit; and
(^) that money given by Congress for national re lie f
eventually should be returned to the United States
Treasury. 1
The third broad purpose of the Suburban Resettlement
Division, and thus of the Greenbelt projects, was to provide an
opportunity for demonstrating better community planning.
The four suburban communities planned by the Resettlement
Administration were as follows* Greenbelt Project at Berwyn,
Maryland, about thirteen miles from Washington, D. C.; Greendale
Project at Milwaukee, Wisconsin; Greenhills Project at Cincinnati,
Ohio; and Greenbrook Project at Sound Brook, New Jersey. The
la st project was stopped in its early stages by a decision of the
United States Court of Appeals for the D istrict of Columbia in
I936 . In addition to these projects, the Suburban Resettlement
Division completed eighteen other similar projects which had been
started in the Department of Interior, under the former Division
of Subsistence Homesteads; after the work of that program was
transferred to the Resettlement Administration in June, 1935*
1. Resettlement Administration, F irst Annual Report, op.eit. p. 44,,

230
A considerable amount of research -as d o e in the one
hundred largest United States c itie s and industrial areas before
the sites were chosen for these greenbelt communities* Such factors
as population growth* ra ts of general prevailing wages, numbers
of persons employed in factories of various sorts, records of
re ta il sales, numbers of persons employed in the re ta il industry,
the diversity of occupations, and similar s ta tis tic a l data were
studied for a ll these c itie s before any of them were considered#
Fnen a few were selected whioh seemed desirable from these stand
points, then this group of c itie s was studied farther by indus
t r i a l engineers and social workers to examine p o ssib ilities for
future growth of industries and of population, present housing
conditions and possible future housing needs, and general labor
policies* Since the building of the greenbelt communities was
to be partly re lie f work, i t seemed desirable to locate thess
communities, i f possible, where enlightened labor policies

-.I*-. J
VJi-LB U3U.w
Once the citie s were selected which best seemed to
ju stify the needs for the f ir s t greenbelt communities==-Gincinn&ti,
Milwaukee and Washington then s staff of city planners, architects,
engineers and technicians, end sociologists began working to choose
the desirable locations near these c itie s, and to sta rt preparing
plans and specifications for the new developments-
Some of the final main factors to be considered in rela
tion to these selected c itie s were* the accessibility to employment

251
and the number of jobs that, could be reached within a givsi Mss
and at a given cost; the topography and natural features of the
land} preferring land that was gently rolling} that had woods and
small streams for parks and playgrounds, ana contained good soil
for gardens and farming; the availability of sewers, water} gas,
end electricity; the cost of the land and the problem of acquiring
i t in the required numbers of acres*
The development of the three communities Greenbelt,
Greenaale, and Greenhills followed the same general trend, with
specific differences determined by local needs and conditions.
For purposes of this study only one garden community Greenbelt,
Maryland - w ill be examined in d etail." This community was
selected partly because of the wider variety of material avail
able for study on the project, and partly because of the author's
fam iliarity with the community its e lf . However, i t is safe to
assume that although each of the three communities ha3 i ts own
distinct qualities ana characteristics, the generalizations made
concerning the basic planning and designing of Greenbelt, Maryland,
can be applied directly to the other two.
Greenbelt. Maryland, located twelve end five-tenths miles
from the heart of Washington, 3). C, contains about 12,259 acres.
1. For data on the other two see, for example, the Architectural
Forum for May, 1938, pp. ki5'&k} and Resettlement Adminis
tration, F irst Annual Report*
R e p r o d u c e d w ith p e r m issio n o f th e co p y rig h t o w n e r . F u rth er r e p ro d u ctio n p roh ib ited w ith o u t p e r m issio n .

and 8,1,39 aores for the surrounding agricultural belts The town
its e lf is in the shape of a semi-circle, the center of which is
devoted to stores, movie, post office, sad community building,
and includes parks and part of an a rtific ia l lake. The community
building serves as an elementary school in the daytime, and at
night as a meeting place for conducting community business,
social activ itie s, end for adult education classes.
Sinoe the community was planned from the very beginning
and was b u ilt in an area free from any existing street plan, the
usual gridiron system oould be avoided. By having only a few
major streets, and having them follow the natural contours of
the land, considerable savings were made in road and u tility
construction. These streets divided the residential section of
Greenbelt into seven major areas or superblocks, and the
secondary streets leading into each superblock were mostly
asau-sna svrsevs wiVu iiuule traxfxo. For aucitional safety
for pedestrians, and especially the children of Greenbelt, under
passes were constructed wherever footpaths crossed one of the
maior streets. Each superblock was designed to be about five
or six times the size of m ordinary city block and to resemble
a small park with the dwellings, usually about 100, grouped around
its edge. This informal plan, i t is interesting to note, was not
entirely new with the greenbelt idea of the Roosevelt Administration,

f o r la n d u sa g e o f th e e a r l y New E n g lan d T i l l a g e s !
"The ineouality in size and shape of p lo ts shows always

that attention was paid to the function the land was to
perform, rather than to the mere possession of property*
Thus, there was a difference in sise between home lo ts,
whioh were always seated in the village, and purely
agricultural tracts of land, whioh were usually on the
outskirts^ and in Dedham, for example. married men had
home lots of twelve acres, while bachelors received only
t3XiiW
MX1
Although C-reenbelt resembled the New England garden-city
in basic land usage, i t cannot be oalled a garden-city in the true
sense of the word, for then i t should have had its supporting
industries and occupations within walking distance of the workers'
homes instead of their having to commute to nearby Washington for
employment. Frederick Gutheim pointed out in his a rtic le ,
"Greenbelt Revisited,"^ that these local industries were part
of the original plan for Greenbelt, but selfish interests pre
vented th e ir being included. As in the ease of the discontinuing
of the Greenbrook Project, in hT6w Jersey, we have another example,
for the record, of rugged individualism versus planning for the
people.
The greenbelt community plan did not end when the sites
for the buildings were chosen* Part of the work of the planning
1* Lewis Muaicrd, op* cit*. p* 22.
2* Frederick Gutheim, "Greenbelt Revisited," Magazine of Art,

T o T O io tn r'
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2&
committee was to see that the buildings tied in with the natural
topography, as well as to see that they were designed as pleasant

- .. a * fTH. ..
n m c u ic sia i noin.es IOr w orkers m uiis vv? iiiuwud y r a w t ? ? i i i a
houses were b u ilt with careful consideration for a maximum of
snnshine5 a ir, and open space for their occupants, and to meet
high standards of ventilation, sanitation, durability, fire
prevention, and low upkeep costs.
In Greenbelt, Maryland, there were constructed living
units for oop families, consisting of three types* 57^4- row
houses, one and two stories, containing from four to seven
rooms? 306 two-story apartments of from one and a half to three
rooms? and 5 experimental detaohed houses, b u ilt to te s t pre
fabricated plywood constructions These units were completed
and occupied in 1938. recent years about 1000 temporary war-
housing structures were added to the existing 885, thus increas
ing the community's population from the originally planned-for
number of about 3,000 to approximately 8,000 persons. This
increase in population has so over-taxed the fa c ilitie s of the
community center and shops that at the time of writing, plans
are being made to enlarge i t and provide adequate fa c ilitie s for
a ll.
The architecture of Greenbelt varies, not only in the
size of the structures, but in th eir appearance as well. Seme
of the houses have been designed with fla t roofs smile others
have sloping cnos, some are ta lle r end longer than others, etc-
Eowever, the pattern of window grouping has been the same for a ll
and thus serves as a unifying feature. The reason for the difference
235
in appearance of the structures is partly to eliminate the monotony
sometimes found in row houses, end partly to relate each structure
in the best possible way to the topography. The buildings are
constructed of brick, end in most cases are white so that the
to ta l appearance of Greenbelt- with the well-kept lawns between
the clean-looking buildings, is one of a neat, planned, livable
community. The designers to be given major credit for the
planning of Greenbelt are5 J , S. Lansill, Director of Suburban
Resettlement; Dale ITalker, Toms Planner} Douglas Ellington and
Reginald Wadsworth, Architects; H. 3. Bursley, Engineering
Designer; and Wallace Richards, Coordinator. Just as the build
ings were designed with the aim of trying to relate them to the
land, so too, the sculptural works for the buildings were designed
with the aim of having them seem to be a natural part of the
structure. For the Elementary School and Community Building
(which was designed by August Seider), sculptor Lenore Thomas did
a series of panels on the Preamble to the Constitution. These
heavy panels are located near the base of the building so that
they appear to be part of its foundation. Then too, they are
low enough so the children can study and enjoy them while at
school. Miss Thomas, While working on a WA art project, also
did a massive sculpture of a mother giving her child a drink,
I Or UUO voiluw S -L'-liiA AliS StfUJ-p UUiWJ UvSLJiilOU Kitili
the clean appearance of the community its e lf , helps to give
C-reenbslt its oualitv of unified desisn.

One cannot understand the real situation which exists
in Greenbelt unless one also studies a lit t le about the people
who nov; live there, as well as the architecture and the town
plan. Since it was designed as a pleasant home for low-income
families, one con understand, in comparing it to regular drab
low-rent dwellings and dismal slums of our major c itie s, that
before the community was opened there were 9>000 family applica
tions for the 885 available dwellings. Among the many factors
considered of families applying for living quarters, one of the
fir st, of course, was income; only families were admitted whose
incomes were between $1,200 and $2,000. To provide leeway for
families already living in Greenbelt, a twenty-five per cent
increase in income is permitted before they are asked to move,
and these families whose income had increased could move into
any larger quarters which are vacant should they so desire.
Since 75$ of the bread-winners at Greenbelt work for the
government, and since half of them have college degrees, it
is not infrequent that their incomes increase beyond the leeway
permitted that they are asked to move, thus providing place for
others whose incomes have not reached the Greenbelt maximum,
Greenbelt is really a one-occupation, one-class, one-
age-level town. Although 25$ of the residents are manual workers,
the town consists mainly of young, white-collar office workers. One
advantage of this is the cooperative community spirit that has
developed. Since its construction less than a docen families have
been evicted from Greenbelt because they did not f it in with the
community lif e .
Because of the similarity in incomes, Greenbelt is a
v i iL
/
y j ,
T
- .ii v _ 'y J l i
i. w J i t J --S* u U
u j. iv SO | i/i-C
_ rvW.-W.. wJ i ....
residents are a ll rentes, Bent in Greenbelt ranges from $18 a month

237
for a one room apartment- to $41 for a row House consisting of seven
rooms; the average rent is $31. Heat and hot water is included in
the rent; hut electricity is ertra averaging from $2.25 to $3-25
per month for each family, as is water, 20 cents to $1.20, and
garage rent, $1.00 or $2.00.
It must he kept in mind here that there is a potential
danger in one-class communities of this sort since they may tend to
ran counter to our concept of democracy with its opportunities for
economic mobility. Further community project planners would have
to carefully weigh this problem along with the others.
Greenbelt is a young community; young in history, and
young in the age level of its citizens. The average of the head
of the family there is 31 years. In his study of C-reenbelt from
the sociological point of view, Uilliam H. Form found out that the
highest percentage of persons in Greenbelt were those under five
years of age, 19$ were under five; 17p, the ne:et largest group,
were between 25 and 29 years; 13$ between 30 aacl 34; U$ between
5 and 9; 8$ between 20 and 24; 8$ between 35 39; 7$ between
10 and 14; and so on."*
More important than the numbers of persons in Greenbelt
are the attitudes of the citisens. In his study william Form also
1. Figures from Uillian H. Form, THE SOCIOLOGY OF A '2'IIF COLLAR

SU3U53: G5FZFFE1T, IhulYLAlTD, (Unpublished manuscript Fh.D,
Thesis, University of Maryland, 1944) p. 6l, Table I, Figures
were ror i.940.
238
found out that 89$ were very favorable in th eir attitude toward
Greenbelt! * these voioed complete approval, and 3^9$
voiced approval with reservations. la addition to these 7.5$
expressed mixed feelings! &

>Tp mild dislike! *7$ complete dis
approval! and.l$, no comment.'*' Dr* Form explained the varying
attitudes in th is ways
The reasons for the to ta l endorsement of Greenbelt vary.

The most recurrent theme was that the town is_ a. . h- o- n lth v
place for children to grow. The cleanliness of tho town,

the good houses, friendliness of neighbors are other
reasons given...The comments made by the third of the
people #io have reservations concerning the town are more
interesting. A few complained that the town is too dead,1
that i t does not have enough competitive s p irit, that i t
does not have enough cooperative s p irit, that shopping
fa c ilitie s are inadequate, e t c .... The next largest group
of those with reservations include those who objeot to
the inadequate transportation fa c ilitie s to Washington.
In a sense, their reactions are not against Greenbelt,
]jut against the problem of transportation common to a ll
suburbs in the vicinity. An equal porportion, almost five
per cent, objeot to the town because they do not like the
cooperatives or the way they are ru n ... A few object to
the architecture, in particular to the row-house arrange
ment. They prefer the isolated, single-dwelling type of
house, which would enable them to have more privacy. 2
This is bom out by interviews which the author had with
the f ir s t seven citizens of Greenbelt he met, while walking down
one of the side streets of the tows os a Sunday foreseen in May,

lol
__ A . T Vv/i
- ..V
1
* v V ll
Yt ff AVA
(M V W *. VV U
A VAr*
\^WV VV
1. William H. Form, op. cit , Table 23A, p. 3&
2. Ibid., pp. 363, 3&x.
259
"lost civic minded place I've eve? lived...place where

the l i t t l e guy gets listened to when he wsnts to spout off
A ether anything is done about i t or n o t. (9 years a
resident of Greenbelt)
nAs far as renting goes, we couldn't do better u n til we

can buy our own home... I think this is the general
opinion here| else thsy'U move." (resident for 7 years)
Most everyone is happy h e re ... the location is ideal;

people wouldn't take the long trip out here from work
every day i f they didn't like the atmosphere. " (3 years
a resident of Greenbelt)
"Wonderful home." said a retired bachelor who lived in a

one-room apartment. "We have every comfort, but no
luxuries. The average family doesn't expect luxuries*
However, the up-keep here during the war hasn't been
very good." (8 years a resident)
"Greenbelt is ideal for family l i f e . . . ny sain criticism

is the lack of churches." (5 years a Greenbelt resident)
"You can 't beat i t for the kids, but there is nothing
doing for the grown-ups. Most of the reoreation fa c ili
tie s are for teen-agers rather than for us young married
oouples. We are too far from town... We need more movies,
sto re s... the co-op is the only s to re ... and more recrea
tion." (resident for 2 years)
"I wish we had more sto res... especially grocery stores.

The co-op was planned to serve 3.000 but that wasn't
adequate. I t is urgent now with the other new houses.
They should have expanded long ago." (resident for 8
years)
In his study, Dr. Form also found that the four major
criticisms of Greenbelt were similar in nature to the criticisms
of the Hew Deal in general. They were*
"(l) doubting the constitutionality of the Government

to build and operate such communities,
(2) the extravagant cost of emstruction as an example
v*
jgj
n a o u g x u ^ OA.pc<iiux uui'O j '
R e p r o d u c e d w ith p e r m is s io n o f th e c o p y r ig h t o w n e r . F u rth er r ep ro d u ctio n p roh ib ited w ith o u t p e r m issio n .

a*0
(3) the interference1 of Government in a realm that

was considered traditionally the right of private
industry and,
(10 fear that this was a scheme to introduce socialism
seditiously* 1
However, to attempt to evaluate Greenbolt in any way i t seems
best to reexamine the aims of RA in establishing i t and see to
what degree they were achieved*
As one of its aims, Greenbelt was to provide work re lie f.
Of this the Architectural Forum said*
Begun in 1935? completed three years la te r, the project

provided a to ta l of 8 million direct man-hours of work
re lie f. But in fu lfillin g this f ir s t function, a blow
was dealt to its demonstration of the economics of
community planning and to the low cost of its housing*
The Farm Security Administration estimates th at, by
using hand construction methods to up the man-hour to ta l,
by spreading work over a three-year period and by hiring
unskilled re lie f labor, the cost was increased from 9
to 111; million. Hence, a fa ir appraisal of the second
and third of Greenbelt's purposes must needs disoount
the cost of r e lie f . 2
Figured in terms of dollars and cents, there may be some question
as to the advisability of employing re lie f labor on community
development projects. Yet, i f one considers the choice between
work re lie f and dole for the thousands of unemployed - for i t
was ssmma'ueci .hav ^,500 of vlie approxismueiy 5?G00 persons wno

2 JLt. - -J . L _
___
___
___Xi_
_ ___
___
___
___
___
___
___
__ 11 - JL
.1
___
__ - 1- - - A
--
n y i i c u uu. uiao w v a a'vaaw 99 uu
admit that 6ven the economic picture is changed somewhat. In
budgetary terms, Greenbelt could perhaps have been constructed
o4; j_0o<? Isibor smploysd 1.2is1;5cL of rslxsf
1. William H. Form, op. cit, pp. 25, 26.

o_ i *nio. p-AO,

2l
workers? many of whom were unskilied* But in terms of helping
to raiso tks living standard of part of the nation's lower th ird ,
which was ono of Resettlement Administration's basic aims, i t is
significant that unemployed labor had a part la carrying out this
aim as well as the aid to potential renters of Greenbelt' 3 housing
units* Perhaps the darkest side of the project was the economic
onej yet even that is not completely black when a ll the factors
are considered* Raising the standard of living of even the
relatively small number of persons employed on the project, plus
those who Igter came to live at Greenbelt, had its minor effect
on our to ta l economy, through increased consumer purchasing power*
Then, too, the developed community and the buildings constructed
added to the economic value of the property as well as to the
surrounding land, a factor usually not considered as part of
the economics of Greenbelt* This s t i l l does not mean that
Greenbelt was not expensive; i t was* But i t also does not mean
that one look at the oost sheet can determine the success or
failure of the project* Even in terms of the re lie f labor
employed, to say nothing of the families who came to live at
Greenbelt la te r, there was the psychological factor of having
the workers who were taken off bread lines and given employment
once again feel they were a necessary parv of our democracy,
a factor not added in the dollar and cents columns, yet one which
must be considered as part of the evaluation of Greenbelt, sines
one of its aims was nrovidine work re lie f.
2+2
Another aim of the project was to provide low-oost
housing* Of this i t may he said that although Greanbelt s ront
is not as low as was originally desired, since they have the
factor of the ?li+ million investment to be considered, yet i t is
a great deal lower than most private rental units of equal size.
In addition to th is, Greenbelt has the healthful garden-city
atmosphere which most low-rent dwellings do not have. Perhaps
i t is no wonder, then, that Greenbelt has always had a long
waiting l i s t , and that residents hate to move once they have
beoome a part of the oommmity.
The third aim of Greenbelt was to demonstrate better
community planning. In summarizing the advantages of Greenbelt
as a town planned from the very beginning, as Frederick Gutheim
saw them when he visited the development again after a few years
absenoe, there is this to sayI
"in the necessities of living, and many of its luxuries,

the people who live in Greenbelt are richer than those
who live on Park Avenue. The Greenbelt kids, a t least,
have the opportunity for normal, healthy growth. They
are richer than the families who live in our best
suburbs, for they share a kind of socially balanced,
democratic living that hardly exists any longer except
perhaps in the town-meeting country. And they are
richer than the inhabitants of the slums and the to-be-
slums that increasingly fringe our c itie s, because they
live in a physical and social equilibrium that has not
been matched in ten years of housing and planning efforts.
These are assets that load the scales heavily in Green-
belt* s favor when we balance the costs and the advantages
resulting from its construction, or when we measure its
success as a huuQX-UQ
1. Frederick Gutheim, op. c its , p. 18
R e pro duce d w ith perm issio n o f th e co p yrig h t ow ner. F urthe r rep rod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission.
2*3
Ths real value of a demonstration ccsHonity is in its
influence upon other, similar developments in the future* In
analyzing this situation, Talbot Hamlin wrote:
"The charming arrangement of Greenbelt, Maryland...

has had but l i t t l e influence in speculative com
munity design despite its manifest advantages. This
is because any change for the better in systems of
land usage or in the basic space distribution of
building areas would obviously tend to make many
existing buildings obsolete and destroy or lessen
th eir salability or income-producing p o ssib ilities.
So such fisueriitientR
. r- ------- ... are
... . made
onlv
- -.- v rarelv? there" are
not yet enough of them to affect the unimaginative
person's picture of what a suburb or what a city is,
The new experiments frequently look to him strange:
he cannot at once appreciate,their real human advantages,
and he tends to shy away..."'1'
I t is true that as yet Greenbelt and its siste rs, Greendale
and Greenhills, have not had much influence in other community
plans, partly because, as Hamlin points out, we are not yet
alert enough to appreciate their fu ll values, and partly per
hops because our citizens have been concerned more with war
and destruction than with peace and healthful living in these
years since Greenbelt was established. However, that i t w ill
serve as a guidepost for future developments based on the
garden-city idea seems quite evident.
"Greenbelt, originally built wholly by the Federal

rLnTTrj'wrvn'*/-**'^ >.* ^ rt c*r; ftn 1 TvOT*+e
m 'v t v j. u m v u v , x j.\s y y vi O UlO najX* V s* h f w v t i v%
j w*. v .tv
structure of a new community can best be created by

public action the streets, recreation fa c ilitie s ,
sewer and 'water systems, nark areas, schools and other
public services (including as well, the overall plan
for the community); what parts can be constructed by
orivate business and builders most of the houses
1. Talbot Hamlin, "The Trend of American Architecture",

HAHPHRS, January 19^2; n. 165 ,
themselves* commercial establishments, sad business and
professional services; ssd what parts can be provided
by a rio se partnership of public and private agencies
the public transportation system, the marginal community
f a c ilitie s , and future industrial developments Within
th is framework can be found the guiding principles for
future free-standing s a te llite towns that can be built
virtually independent of action by the Federal government...
when I revisited Greenbelt I saw not one Greenbelt, but
the many that live in the hearts of men of hope and
vision. I saw the Greenbelt of the present, but also
the fhture Greenbelts* We must find ways to create
them if we are to realize the promise of modern l i f e . 1
In short, these three greenbelt developments experi
ments whioh have stood the te st on most basic counts may serve
to answer some of the major questions being asked about low-rent
housing today, and may lead the way to further organically de
signed ooranunities and decentralization tomorrow. Lewis
Mumford explained th is '
"lo see the interdependence of city and country, to

realise that the growth and concentration of one is
associated with the depletion and impoverishment of
the other, to appreciate that there is ju st and har
monious balance between the two this capacity we
have lacked. Before we can build well on any scale
we shall, i t seems to me, have to develop an art of
regional planning, an a rt which w ill relate city
and countryside in a new pattern from that which was
the blind creation of the industrial and the te rri
to ria l pioneer. Instead of regarding the country
side as so much g rist doomed to go eventually into
the metropolitan m ill, we m at plan to preserve and
develop a ll our natural resouroes to the lim it. I t
goes without saying th at any genuine attempt to pro
vide for the social and eoonomic renewal of a region
cannot be constrained to preserve vested land values
and property rights and privileges, indeed, i f the
land is to be fully loved and cared for again we
must recover i t in something mors than name only.
1. Frederick Gutheim, op. cit#, p. 20.

U
She main objection to keeping our natural resources in

the hands of the community, namely, that private capital
is more sealous at exploitation, is precisely the reason
for urging the f ir s t course. 1
And i t may be that the Greenbelt Communities w ill prove to bs
erne important fray of relating city and country, end buildings
and land, fbr tho greatest good for a ll.
IEHME3SSB VnLLST AuT50Rlxf;~
As the Greenbelt Communities were attempts at organic
architectural design in terms of community planning, so the dams
and powerhouses which the government constructed in the Tennessee
Talley were organic architecture which related to the larger pro
gram of the reconstruction of an entire eroded river valley. Thu3
these dams and powerhouses cannot be understood as organic archi
tecture unless other parts of the TVA are understood along with
them.
Perhaps no government project has the right to be called
'grass roots as much as the TVA. In this project, the planners
went directly to nature and the people living in the valley for
their basic designj they studied the region as one unified whole,
and out of that grew the organic project which includes the dams
and powerhouses. True, the plan started as a navigation project,
1. Lewis Mumfora, op. cit. pp. 206, 20?.
2. Actually, practically a ll of the government dams are worthy of

consideration as good functional architecture. Those of the
Tennessee Talley have been selected here because of th eir part
in the broader program of revitalising an entire valley.
R e p r o d u c e d w ith^ p erm issio n o f th e c o p y r ig h t o w n e r . F u rth er rep ro d u ctio n p ro h ib ited w ith o u t p e r m issio n .

people in the valley soon realised-that -men something is done
about the river i t automatically follows that something is also
done about the land when the river overflows its banks, i t
takes the topsoil along with i t on its course, When trees or
sod are planted to retain the topsoil, part of this erosion is
decreased, and the river and land do not fight each other as
before. I t cannot be denied that what effeots the river also
effeots the land. So in constructing the dams in tho Tennessee
Valley, nature was considered as a whole. Water and land, minerals
and forests were a ll part of a unit to be controlled and used to
brighten the lives of the people who had lived there.
The philosophy behind the establishing of the Tennessee
Valley Authority may best be described, perhaps, as "sustain the
yield. The exploiters had come and le ft the valley bare. Then
Congress created an agency to rebuild the region at the present
time and to plan for fu ll yield in the future. But no matter hor?
great was the reforestation, flood control and navigation project,
and land-usage program, the underlying factor was always people.
1. Surveys of the Tennessee River, for navigation purposes, were

authorised as early as 1321;, by Secretary of War, John Calhoun.
In I9 G0 a report was made which included dams and flood control
together with navigation. The f ir s t dam, Muscle Shoals, wa3
begun in 1917, and was later renamed the Wilson Dam. Finally,
in 1953 the Tennessee Valley Authority was created.
2. For a creatively written "Story of the Valley" see, Harold Sugg?

NOWIS THE MOMENT. p a g e s 25 =33 .
for the future a ll these were aimed at bettering the litres of
those who lived in the valleys For i t was believed that when you
raise the standards of living of a people, you increase th eir
understanding of the ideals of democracy and give them greater
in terest in working for those ideals, and defending them i f need
be.
The term Authority is perhaps a l i t t l e misleading,
for i t implies more power than the TVA actually had. Its only
real authority was to oondemn property whioh private individuals
refused to s e ll, end then acquire i t for use in regional redevelop
ments, the same kind of authority granted any city or state
government. Aside from th is, the power granted the TVA was always
governed by the consent of Congress, and even more, regulated by
the people of the valley. The governing body of the TVA was a
board consisting of three members appointed by the President with
the consent of the Senate. Among their duties was the handling
of a ll employment of persons connected with the Valley projects.
This is unusual, for generally the employment of persons on
government projects is handled by the Civil Service Commission.
In this ease; the TVA assumed responsibility for the promotion or
discharge of porsons on its projects instead of passing i t an to
another agency.
In looking at ths records of the TVA, i t is interesting
to note that there is no specific design or plan which can be

called "the plan of the TV=" There are scries ci minor plans
and projects growing out of the needs of the people and the resouroes
of the valley rather than one major plan, surarimposed Like the
great oathedrals of old, the dams and major structures of the TVA
were mainly communal projects, end no one designer or architect
can be given oredit for them. I f any persons are to be singled
out for major responsibility, then perhaps Roland Anthony Wank,
as Principal Architect, and Theodore Bissell Parker, as Chief
Engineer may bo given crodit for combining art and science into
a unified projeot. Since the aim of the TVA was to consider the
watershed as a whole, then i t is no wonder that the technicians
subordinated th eir individuality in order to contribute coopera
tively to the greater unity of purpose* We have toother example
of grass roots planning wherein these technicians worked hand in
hand with the local farmers in such matters as crop rotation,
fe rtiliza tio n , soil rebuilding, and similar areas wherein they
could give the faresr advantage of their specialisation* Techni
cians were chosen for work on the projects because of th eir
specialization, but i t was also imperative, before they could be
hired, that eaoh one believed in the basic aims and ideals of the
TVA and was willing to work cooperatively with other specialists
as part of the greater unified project. 'This b elief in the pro
jeot is best explained by the fact that many of the members of
its staff le ft jobs with higher salaries in order to join the TVA*
architectural designs the Architectural Forua had this to say,
in its issue of August, 1939s which i t devoted to the TVA'
nThi3 is the important thing about regional planning*

a ll activities are inescapably interlocked, and no
action can be isolated* The tremendous job of the
planner, who must be a collective entity, not an in
dividual, is to makea ll elements in the program work
to effect a predetermined result* This is the asst
exciting and significant fact in TVA.fi 1
In addition to real cooperation among the members of i t s staff,
the Authority also cooperated with various other federal agencies
and experiment stations in order to better serve the people of
the area*
In short, then, the aim of TVA is planning for the regiaaj
the Authority functions as the planning body instead of employing
a special division of planning, or adopting a plan devised in
Washington or elsewhere*
Of the many accomplishments of the TVA, much could be
written. There is the story of electric Pwmsr CiJj.v. tho 586 , 000
consumers in the valley who are served by this largest power

2
producing project in the United States* Another story is that
of the 1,350,000 farmers in the TVA area helped with soil con
servation and other problems through tho demonstration farms
and the allied experiments in new fe rtiliz e rs , contour planting,
1* Architectural Forum, nTVAn, August, 1939? P 78=
2* Fiepiran listed in th is section were obtained from Mr. Gor ion

Clapp, Director of TVA, and Mr* W. F* Sturdevant, Director of
Information*
R e p r o d u c e d w ith p e r m is s io n o f th e c o p y r ig h t o w n e r . F u rth er rep ro d u ctio n p roh ib ited w ith o u t p e r m issio n .

30
aoil rejuvenation, and modem slsctrioe.1 poser ec-iipmcnt* 'Then
therg is tho story of the 153 *200*000 small trees and seedlings
which, have been planted on eroded land as part of the reforesta
tion program, and the allied work done in connection with develop
ing minerals le ft in the region after the earlier period of ruthless
exploitation* Or there is the area of eauoation to be written
about, the schools and libraries constructed, end the related
area of recreation with the 27 new parks constructed along TVA
lakes and the lookouts and observation platforms located therein.
However, for the purposes of this study, the line must be drawn
some place and merely the story of the architecture of the dams
and buildings discussed further here.
I t wa3 Louis Sullivan, "father of modem architecture,"
who was struggling during the period of exploitation and eclec
ticism of the late 1800*s to throw off the borrowing of foreign
styles and to design a native architecture for the people* Devot
ing his life to this cause, his work was ironically enough virtu
ally ignored by any building program in which the government had
a part u n til the Chicago orld!a Exposition of 1893 when he was
commissioned to design the Transportation Building. Though s t i l l
not accepted even after this building, his influence was widely
1. S s s i ' TVA! BECBBAIIOH DEvELOHHESiT OF THE TEME5SEB RIVER SYSTEM,

(Washington! Government Printing Office, 19^0, 99 P?)
251
f e lt, however, and his profound concept "form follows function1*
became the basis for the TVA dams. Based on this idea that the
function of a building should necessarily determine the ultimate
form i t is to tnlro rather than a Rirnprtrmncert

- ' jj, ' farolrrV. ctrlo
. . . . . . . - wwv. .. w_ ,------^ ^ w? +ho v
powerhouses and dams became some of the greatest modern architect
ure in the country today. Planned f ir s t as part of a greater
engineering and flood control project, the dams became architect-
Cue wuuugii wucxi' xaotsrcboxii^ uruuuruxuus cuiu sorucoui'ux uesjiga*

^ 4.1. - i m* J A_ 4. .1 ~ J - 4.. _A ^ n ._
Just as in the case of our grain elevators and globular gas tanks,
artists find in their simplicity an aesthetic quality worthy of
high praise. Serving the functional need in the best possible way,
with the least concern for added "decoration", good design was
secured for the dams even though the project may not have attempted
to concern it s e lf with art at a ll. In explaining the simplicity
of the dams, Dr. Hamlin wrote:
"Even economy in building becomes not the cheapening

of a conception in order to gorge some individuals
pocketbook but rather a creative search for those mater
ia ls and methods and those arrangements of parts which
shall enable the social benefits to be most widely dis
tributed. So in the great dams of the Tennessee Valley
Authority...there is a creative economy at work; and
the superb sweep of the IJorris Dam shows how the gradual
simplification of parts and the necessary economy in
materials and labor have led to magnificent beauty. So
i>00 t>xis pov/Oxmoiisss -likb oiiS.ii s.v usxciisjnstx^s. ows x/.nexx*
compelling effect to that quality of neatness of finish,
of exouisite study of detail, which controls even their
-IT i - ill
DfUCiAjLeO ^ wcu w o ,
1. Talbot Hamlin, op. ci t . , pp. i66-lo7.
One o f the g r e a te s t c r e a tiv e problems which confronts
us today is to coordinate science and art into a unified product*
In the TVA ws have a major example of one way in which this een
be done* In an analysis of the creative aspects of TVA, Harold

1
Russ, in NOWIS THE FOMENT, points out that the dams are now a
major part of our indigenous art* In a b rief analysis of the
technical problems of designing the dams, R. L, Duffus wrote*
"No two dams were preoisely alike, for no two sites oould
be identical, but the same research, planning, and con
struction staffs, in many cases the same skilled workers,
and very often the same machinery could be used on a series
of nnmg - provided, of oourse, that they were timed for th is
purpose...In the main river, for obvious reasons, there
cannot be muoh storage of waterj the banks are too lew, the
adjoining land too valuable* The dams in the tributaries
serve this purpose* There are thus two types of dams*
those in the main river relatively low and long? those in
the tributaries usually higher*..and shorter* The tributary
dams have no locks* Hie main-river dams have concrete
spillway sections and, with the exception of iheeler,
earth and rock -fill abutment sections. The tributary
dams such as Norris, Eiwassee, Douglas, and Fontana, are
a ll concrete. But in a sense these dams are a ll one big
dam - with compartments. This big dam is operated cn a
basis of constant weather forecasts? constant measure
ments of precipitation and run-offJ swift decisions as
50 linen ana in wnat quaniiuiss wausr is to oe released
or held back* Flood-control as former Chief Engineer
Parker said, is the most d ifficu lt and exact operation.
The excess water mast go down-river at a tins when i t w ill
do the least harm. I t must go down anyhow when the reser
voirs are fu ll. The reservoirs therefore must not be fu ll
when flood water is likely to come along. I t isnt easy
and never w ill be." 2
1* Harold Rugg, op* cit*, pp* 33? >4
2* P.* Le Duffus, and Charles Srutch, TEE VALLEY AND ITS PEOPLE,
A Portrait of TVA, (Hew York Alfred A. Fnopf, 19^)
pp. 81 and 93, 9I4..

253
In a ll. the TVA operate:? twenty-six daffies although only sixteen
of those were built by the Authority's Of greatest importance,
architecturally is the fact that those dams combined to form the
pattern for a flood and erosion control project whioh osn be
applied to other Talleys# Although i t cannot be copied exactly
and retain the organic qualities which made TVA architecturally
great, yet the basio design can be modified. The main idea
uof unified development, of governmental decentrali

sation, of reliance on the energy and in itia tiv e of the
pecfle residing in an area, of nonpartisan cooperation
for the common good, can certainly be widely applied.
There is no reason why i t should not be applied in the
Missouri Valley, for instanoe, despite the wide differ
ence in climatic and other conditions between tho Missouri
and the Tennessee. A nor; sort of governmental agency has
been invented.*.It has worked with b rillia n t success. l?hy
not expand it s use? 1
Important as the designs for the dams and powerhouses are for a
study of government art sad architecture, i t must again be re
peated that they are but part of a greater Rplan for the people.
They are but part of an undertaking whose scope is almost over-
whelming merely to comprehend.- The dimensions of the dams can
be measured, the water capacity calculated, the power estimated,
the acres of reforestation totaled, and the numbers of farmers
counted who were aided through the TVA. We can talk about flood
1. New York Times editorial, January 7, 19^5*
2. As was pointed cut by Clarence Lewis Hodge, TEE TEKIIESSEB

VALLEY AUTHORITY. A National Experiment in Regionalism,
(Washington! American University Press, 1938, 272 pp.)

25b
controls electrical power, coat car farming, end a rtistica lly -
designed dams, but the story of the Tennessee Talley Authority
goes deeper than a ll of these* I t goes to the people themselves,
to their cooperative planning; to their faith in themselves end
in their own planning*
i!Engineers can build us great dams, but only great

people make a valley g reat* There i s no technology
of goodness. Men must make themselves spiritually
free...Democracy is a lite r a l impossibility wivnouv
faith that on balsnco the good in men far outweighs
the o v il. Every effort to cherish the overtones of
human imagination in music, painting, or poetry rests
upon that same faith , makes that same assumption- And
so i t is with what wo have been soeking to do in this
valley. To ca ll i t 'm aterialistic' answers nothing.
The rock upon which a ll these efforts rest is a faith
in human beings. 1
The part of the TVA most d iffio u lt to comprehend and describe
i s that part which cannot be measured. It is tho change in
human lives and the faith which the people found through
government rebuilding an exploited area. The Tennessee Valley
has become a peaceful valley; peaceful because man ha3 cooperated
with nature for their mutual good and with the future in mind.
The government has been a patron of architecture almost
since it s beginnings. 7?ith the building of the Capitdl City it
1. David B. Lilienthal, TVA, DEMOCBACY ON THE MABCH,

(Hew York! Harper and Bros*- I 9 I1J4 ) pp. PTR- POn

255
C n V C rC d V hC Z ~ X C lu O h CL u C u C C 9 e u iv h x iu a u u v ii eL udxugL u y x yo
buildings ever sinoe. Unfortunately} for the most part} this
has been eclectic architecture} and i t is only relatively recently
that any attempt has been made to introduce the modern idiom into
the government's construction program. Several attempts have
been made* since 1933s at what might be called semi-modem archi
tecture in several of the buildings constructed under the various

1
r e lie f programs, WPA, CWA, and especially FWA. In fact, inter
esting studies could be made of the growth of modern architecture
in our government from the eclectic buildings in Washington,
through the gradual change in designs for post offices, light
houses, government prisons, arsenals, armories, FWA's schools,
libraries, auditoriums and airports, and other recent examples
in various parts of the country. But that architecture which
lives up to the concept of ORGANIC, which is thorough in its
attempts to relate structure to land so that they become as one,
that architecture in the government s history is largely limited
to three main examples. In the National Park and Forest Services,
the buildings are of that kind which might be called rough and
rugged for in their use of natural materials of the parks and
forests they retain the honest feeling of those materials* Is
tho Greenbelt Communities, the housing units were more plain
1. See C. ?; Short, and E. Stanley-Brown, PUBLIC BUILDINGS, A Survey

of Architecture under the FWA, 1933 to 1939? (Washington? Govern
ment Printing Office, 1939? ^97 PP), end also. Division of In-
format!-mi, Public Works Administration, AMERICA BUILDS, The Record
of PWA, (Washington. Government Printing Office, 1939? 298 pp.)
R e p r o d u c e d w ith p e r m is s io n o f th e c o p y rig h t o w n e r . F u rth er r ep ro d u ctio n p roh ib ited w ith o u t p e r m issio n .

256
and simplified in an attaint to relate them to the largo ssai-
oircular pattern in the rolling and not-too-wooded country h ills .
In the architecture of the TVA, the dams are of that almost
extreme simplification needed for functional design of this
sort* In a ll three oases the designs varied as the purpose
varied. Thus they become functional, modem architecture at
some of its best. No longer second-rate copies of bygone days,
these are solutions to problems in th is country, a t the present
time in history. But most important of a ll, they are designed
not as remote shrines, but as structures made FOR PEOPLE. Again
here is "planning for - and WISH - the people" in i t s best con
structive manner.

257
CHAPTER 9 - FEDERAL PHOTOGRAPH? AMD FILMS
Yihen he fir s t took the oath of office as President
of the United States* Franklin Roosevelt dedicated himself end
his associates to cooperate with the people in a d iscip lin ed
attack upon our common problems*11 Foremost among these problems
was unemployment* and an (x't'ijS.CiC was launched against i t in a ll
walks of life* resulting in the cons traction of low-cost housing;
programs of conservation, reforestation and education; and the
cultural projects of the V3PA, to name but a few.
As his co-workers, President Roosevelt had in the
Department of Agriculture two men of vision. They were Henry
Wallace and Rexford Tugwell, Secretary of Agriculture and Under
secretary respectively. To this team were later added Roy Stryker
and Pare Lorentz, and with this line-up i t was natural to expeot
some creative projects to grow out of the attempt to put people
baok to work, just as art projects were being organised in other
government departments. After the Resettlement Administration
was organized in the Department of Agriculture in April 1935s
three creative projects were developed as part of it s broad
program. Two of these have baon discussed earlier* the art
program of the Special Skills Division in Chapter 3* snd the
Greenbelt Communities in Chapter 8. The third of these was a
tw ofold program in photography, a kind of "Portrait of America,"
and some documentary films.

258
FARM SECURITY PHOTOGRAPHS
Although the TtPA had a minor unit in photography} it s
work was mostly in the area of recording work on the projects*
A li t t le creative photography was produced, as in Berenice Abbot's
book "Changing New York" and Florence Randall's portfolio on
Seminole Indians, but i t was in the Resettlement Administration,
and it s successive agency Farm Security Administration, where
photography got it s biggest boost in the history of our government.
As director of RA, Rexford Tugwell brought to tho agency
a former Columbia University Colleague of h is, Roy Stryker, and
put him in charge of the photography division. Having the vision
to see in this period of human and so il erosion the source
material for creative statements, these two o fficia ls began putting
unemployed photographers to work. Not only were they attempting
to photograph the tragedy of the times, tragedy expressed asJ
n 'The people's a ll leaving the farm. You can't

get anything for your work, and everything you buy
costs high. Do you reckon I'd be out on the high
way i f I had i t good at home?'. . . 'People has got
to stop somewhere. Even a bird has got a n eat'..." *
They were also attempting to show the constructive side of the
story when the government came to the aid of these people. Not
long after the photography division was organised a group of
documentary photographers like Walker Evans, Dorothea Lange,
1. Dorothea Lsnge and Paul 3. Taylor, AS AMERICAN EXODUS

(New York. Reynol &Hitchcock, 19397 PP# 35 1^1
R epro duce d w ith perm ission o f the co p yrig h t ow ner. F urthe r reprod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission.
Arthur Rothstein, Russell Lee? Ben Shahn, Garl Mydsns. Marion
Post, John Vaehcsi, and Paul Carter joined its Although the
sise of th9 staff varied according to the budget, there were
never more than sis photographers at any one time; yet iheir
work made history!
Not so long after the photography division was organised,
Resettlement Administration was abolished in favor of another
agency, Farm Security Administration. The work on the photography
unit was continued for some time on the la tte r agency. In fact,
most of the collection of 100,000 photographs were taken cm F3A,
so that they became known as Farm Security photographs. However,
they were begun an RA, and credit for the idea and the early
beginnings goes to the Resettlement Administration, together
Tiith the credit for the Greenbelt Communities and the Special
Skills work.
There are three ways of evaluating a photograph! (l)
for its news value as a record of the moment; (2) as a record of
more timeless quality, for the future as well as the moment; and
(3) as a rt, interpreting the subject as well as recording i t . The
work of the Photograph Division fa lls into a ll threo of these
classifications. Some photographs were taken for th eir immediacy
52ld HS'rsS TS-lUBj "tO sllOH "bh.0 i~nv*V n* ?>9 S 9 *b1j1 A y p SuTS.-*
tion, for newspaper stories, bulletins, and periodicals# But
most of the photographs were taken for the purpose of recording
a sympathetic and accurate record of the American scene, not
260
cmly for car understanding today, bat so that coming generations
w ill be better able to plan the future because they more clearly
understand the paste Because the photographers worked for a
sympathetic reoord as well as an accurate one* many of the photo-
graphs have the quality of art^, and thus enter the third category*
The 1939 S. Camera Annual devoted a considerable section to the
work of PSA photographers, and there are few books on tho land and
the pooplo, published in recent years, which do not include at
least some work by these photographers*
Since SA and later B'SA, was ooncemed with helping the
rural lower third of the nation, the work of the photographic
section was documenting their living and working conditions* The
integrity with which these photographers did their work is -the
outstanding trait of the entire collection; they worked as
social scien tists, trying to understand the poverty of the people
and the land, and then worked as artists trying not only to record,
1
but to interpret i t honestly and sympathetically* This was not
done just by "moving in and setting up" as a more commercial
photographer might do. Instead, FSA photographers stayed in
the community for a while during which tins th9y got to know
the people, and tho people them* when they had talked to the
1, This is similar to the work of the Federal Writers5 Project

of the W A ; wherein sympathetic writers attempted to record
and interpret living conditions of the people in it s publica
tions like THESE ABB CUB LIVES. See Chapter 6*
261
people, learned about their hopes and disappointments, and ob
tained their confidence, then was the fir s t that mention was
made of photographs. When the people fin a lly learned about the
project, they cooperated very well for they trusted the photo
graphers. Thus in the ISA collection one feels that both the
photographer and the camera "know11 the people and the land they
are recording. The result is a creative yet authentic "Portrait
of U.S.A." during the 1930's* In it are photographs of joy and
sorrow, slums and circuses, field s of ta ll corn and miles of
waste land, lumberjacks and cotton pickers, church-goers and
side-show barkers, plus a ll varieties of occupational and
nationality groups. It is one of the greatest collections of the
l i f e of the nation ever undertaken, and a credit to the conscien
tious and creative photographers who worked hard for it s achievement.
Credit is also due the Department of Agriculture o ffic
ia ls , namely Henry Wallace, Sesford Tugwell and Hoy Stryker for
their foresight in planning such an undertaking. Hot to be forgotten,
too, is the important work of the laboratory technicians who did
the fine job of developing and printing these photographs. To
that anonymous group goes equal eredit with the photographers for
their quality craftsmanship. Together the photographers and the
laboratory technicians have produced photographs which, fir s t ,
are technically accurate, but which also have the quality of
art. The latter is largely because of the sympathetic attitude
with which the photographs were made; they have the quality of
262
!!reeling for and of the people hoyend being an accurate analy
tic a l kind of pictorial record.
Almost a ll photographs, in a sense, are accurate re
cordings, The distinguishing feature of creative photographs
is th a t the photographer has had the insight to anticipate the
intensity of the mood of tho subjeot the intensity of the
person's feelings and thoughtsand then succeeded in recapturing
i t when i t happened. I t is assumed that to begin with the photo
grapher had some degree of technical proficiency in handling both
camera and lighting, and that he knew something of p icto rial
composition. I t is in the step beyond th is the step of knowing
when to click the shutter, and where to be while doing i t that
makes photography oreative, and that made a considerable number
of FSA photographs significant creative expression. FSA photo
graphs were honest documentation, but they were understanding
interpretation as well.
The aim of tho photographic groun of RA's Information
Division was, as Harold Bugg recorded i t through talking with
project photographers*
, .to reveal the state of the nation in terms of the

land and the people.s.to show lew Yorkors to 'I'exans
and Texans ta Haw Yorkers. .to show steel workers what
a Louisiana share-cropper looks like, what kind of
house he lives in , how he works, what he wears, how he
plays, and the problems he's up against so when a
b ill to aid share-croppers is up before Congress and
the Pennsylvania senators support the b il l, the Pennsyl
vania voters w ill say 'Q.H.'s.sIhe Idea is to substitute
R e p r o d u c e d with p e r m is s io n o f th e co p y rig h t o w n e r . F u rth er rep ro d u ctio n p roh ib ited w ith o u t p e r m issio n .

265
y>g.. ffly luAfilh|im gtiTtS mlti g. G-tjSuspO & SofiXtS

of keeping the country working together} unified, cooper
ating. 1
IShat did they accomplish in th is attempt to record a
social p o rtrait of the H. S. A.?
nThe colossal job of recording the ever-changing lif e of

the American land and its people can, of course, never be
completed. Already the existing coverage is a magnifi
cent socumenv, varies as weavher anu topography TErXSSj
S.3 crops and yields vary, as men vary, end races of men.
In the files are pictures of corn fields in Iowa that
would make a farmer's mouth water, pictures of dust and
drought that would dry anybody's throat; bucolic pictures
of rural peace, te rrib le pictures of rural poverty. I t
can be said without exaggeration that, neatly mounted
an gray oaptian oarde in Washington, our time on the
land is already becoming history. The most permanent
and the most fleeting, the most gay and the most tragic
the cow barn, the migrant's tent, the tractor in the
field and the jalopy on the road, the weathered faces
of men, the faces of women sagging with household drud
gery, the faces of children and the faces of animals;
the homely furnishings of North Carolina farm house,
the farmer's overalls, his tools, the share-croppers'
rags, and the factory-farm's tractor fleet they are
a ll here, photographed in th eir context, in relation to
their environment. In rows of filin g cabinets they wait
for today s planner and tomorrow s h isto rian . 2
Once before in i t s H isto ry th e government hau Deen o ffe re d a
collection of photographs, tho Brady Collection on tho Civil War
for 25,000, but had turned i t down since Congressmen fe lt that
1. Harold Sugg, NOWIS THE MOMENT, op. oito, p. Ijh
2. From Editor Edwin Rossham's notes about the FSA photographs

in Sherwood Anderson's HOME f(Mi} (New York. Allianoe Book
Corp., I9U0) p. lUU
2&
th ttgOVrn5M5lt ought not to Spend mSSnaf On. ihj

So i t was not u n til the Resettlement Administration that the govern
ment took a major step in sponsoring photography True, some
quality photograpns wsro uons oy tunous govsnuuSiit EgGuciGS
notably the Bureau of Reclamation of the Department of In terio r,
and the Forest Servioe and Extension Service of the Department
of Agriculture, but most of those wore taken to illu s tra te bulle
tin s and yearbooks rather than to capture graphically a social
record of the United States as FSA did.
There were other beginnings in government photography,
but FSA provided the f ir s t major beginning of quality oreative
il v i b
rVM
m p
R
TMO f if lG
IWiW>4 W
G rtftlA Ana W t*S
W V iA n
****
F SA
a w*
w M
oW
o c e o l 't r e * ? .
*>*w w v w i wwy
the 100,000 photographs and negatives were turned over to the
Prints and Photographs Division of the Library of Congress
There they are now public property The rows of file oases of
prints may be examined by anyone, and duplicate copies can be

i
secured at reasonable cost for the service. That there w ill be
other photographic divisions again sometime, there seems no
que avian vvnevnsr vney w in come as separate divisions of
TtUriuus 0v~giT:IT;rr;'t agcHClcS Kiid utspc^tuiiulta$ OV USuS? a
Cuii'tix*u3-XuCd Federal Department of Art, i t is too early to gay,
that w ill depend upon the vision of our people in government.

T3i4* **
T?CSA
#44
Vt/.TV.** *Ty*i/\/3rr
a UAf V GkM VMVtj w*
4*V*a uvvvt
VV4 AV4 WiUO n u i a j
1. CONGRESSIONAL RECORD, Volume 3, Part 3, p 2250.
265
end have shown that i t oan be accomplished over niHd SlBuVo pPLS*'S3:Ti
politics* In short, they have written the f ir s t chapter in the
reoord of Federal Government end photography*
DOCUMENTARY FILMS
Jugt as the FSA photographs were made with the aim of
recording accurately and syBwathetioally the low=incoms people
and their working and living conditions, two documentary films
were produced with the aim of promoting understanding of the
problems of the people and the land, and of what was being done
about these problems* Designed as creative educational films
they were based on the b elief that anyone interested in the work
of the Resettlement Administration had a right to know of its
activities*
Producing films as a means of education for the people
is not something which was originated during the Franklin
velt Administration as is often believed* Though i t is true that
the emphasis was changed in the films produced during this admin
istra tio n , so that they became creative expression as well as
tools for disseminating information, the government had been pro
ducing films for several years before* As early as 1926 the
Bureau of Mines of the Department of Commerce had prepared lij.0
reels of motion pictures, and by 1951 the Department of Agrioui=
ture had prepared 586 reels* Since then both Departments have
greatly increased the numbers of th eir films produced, and other

governments ever growing film library* In fact, to date almost
every department and bureau has taken some part in produoing
government rums*
Sinoe the government films differ in basic purpose,
they also differ greatly in the degree to whioh they achieve that
purpose* Soma were designed to show the public hcsr to do specific
things like growing vegetables, repairing motors, fighting forest
fire s , e tc ., some were designed to explain the governments work
in different departments and bureaus, like films on national
Parks, Indian A ffairs, national defense program, etc*; some were
designed to state the governments position on foreip. aid domestic
a ffa irs, and so on* Because of th is, some of the government films
naturally seem better than others when judged from the standpoint
of creative photography, direction, film sequence and story devel
opment* Yet, when viewed en toto, as liste d in a recent U* S
Government Films catalog, one sees a wide 6nough range to indicate
that the federal government has been active in using the films the
pasv 25 years*
One important change come about in the pssSoossvelt
period of government film production* This was the change toward
complete government sponsorship, as contracted with many earlier
films, which were made with the financial aid of private industry,

267
and inns became propaganda tools for special in terest groups.
Typioal of this earlier kind of film was "An Amerioan in the
Making,n produced by the Department of Comaeroe, under Secretary
Herbert Hoover, isith the cooperation of the U. S. Steel Corpora
tio n . The film te lls the story, in the words of Representative
Maverick, of a European peasant
'who came to th is country where ha became a glorified

Amerioan by getting a job with the United States Steel
Corporation at Cary, Indiana, and was supposed to have
learned how carefully the souls and lives of the men
were safeguarded by the Steel Trust. He went to night
school and got interested in the pretty teacher, married
her, and a t la st reports, though this was before the
Steel Trust laid off some 80 percent of i t s employees,
was in the process of living happy ever a fte r. 1
Other early government films were produced similarly with different
private agencies collaborating. In most of the more reoent films
the various government departments have assumed f i l l responsibility
for the films, and have thereby had a freedom of expression not
achieved before.
Most significant of a ll government films, from a crea
tive point of view, were the documentaries produced by the Reset
tlement and Farm Security Administrations of the Department of
Agriculture. They were w ritten, directed, and produced by a
cooperative group of creative a rtis ts , and unlike most instruc
tional films go over into the area of creative expression instead
1. From a speech on government films given by Rep. Maverieh in

the House. Mav 6. 1Q7Q. COliGRFISSIOMAT. RT5f!0T?Ti* Vnl. fin. P.** A
ppe 6735-6.
268
of remaining ins hosr-io-do-ii typo.
ihe documentary film has been called "a new use of the
1
motion picture for sooial analysis. Just as there is a differ
ence between photographs which are mere records and those whioh
have a feeling about them as well, so there is a difference be
tween motion pictures which are newsreels and those whioh are
dooument&rv films.
v In his book. Documentary
... ... - ^ lm- Paul Rotha
g
explains this?
The newsreel s job is to present in simple descriptive

terms and within the minimum of time the events of the
day, in itemized form without bias or special viewpoint.
Documentary's task, on the contrary, is the dramatization
and bending to special purpose of actuality, a method
that demands time for thought and time for selection.
Often, i t is true, the subject-matter of Newsreel is
dramatic in its e lf , such as the launch of a liner or events
relating to a po litical c risis, but the cinematic approach
to this material by the newsreel cameramen and editors is
stric tly descriptive and seldom creative." 2
In a way "The March of Time" is a kind of popular documentary film.
The Federal Government s f ir s t documentary film was pro
duced by BA in 1936. Entitled "The Plow That Broke The Plains,"
i t was a dramatization of the story of the disintegration of the
great grazing section of the country from the time when i t was
an endless expanse of grass, through the time of the plowing
under of this land and its resultant drought and dust storms,
1. Definition of documentary fi lm by the Film Library of the

Museum of Modem Art, as quoted in Paul Botha, DOCDMMTAE?
FILM, (New York: W. W, Norton, 1939, p. 18)
2 Ibid, p. 9i
269
and ending with the work of the Resettlement Administration and
the U. S. Department of Agriculture in rehabilitating the area
again*
The photography i s , of oourse, one of the main features
of any documentary film. One cannot understand the significance
of a film unless one sees i t . However, as a temporary substitute
a portion of the script of "The Plow That Broke The Plains'* is
reproduced here, partly because i t is creatively written in
its e lf , and partly because i t portrays the mood and feeling of
the film better than any description of i t could.
"THE SCENARIO BT SEQUENCES
" Sequenoe 1* Grass? 'F irs t there was grass a

treeless wind-swept pcntient of grass a country of high
winds and sun without riv ers, without streams, and with
l i t t l e ra in .1
"Sequence 2. C attle. Then came the c attle. Up
from the Bio Grande in from the rolling p ra irie s, Down
clear from the eastern highways the cattle rolled into the
old buffalo range An empty, inexhaustible pasture an
unfenced, unchartered range, a thousand miles long, With
the southern plains for winter grazing and the mountain sweeps
for summer gm ing i t was & cattlemans paradise. Fortunes in
beef! Railroads brought the markets to the edge of the plains
land syndicates poured cattle into the grasslands from the world
over*Cattle syndicates and land speculators followed the steers
into the grasslands by 1886 not an acre was unclaimed.--More
cattle the railroad brought the market closer and i t brought
th e sheepman and d irt farmer=I
"Sequence 3* The Homesteader! the plowman followed
the herder and the pioneer found the plains. Land in the West!*
land in the la st frontier new land for the new populations.
l60 acres of Government land free homesteads for farmers by
steamship, r a il, and wagon trains they poured in , The f ir s t
fence-and the la st of the ires rangei* And came the reaper as
the plowman harvested. Free land in the Vfest 320 acres of
Government land 100,0G0 new farmers in a year a half million
3.n d60,d9r
-Frcgrsss csjns i;c ths * And Tritih.
rains the harvests were bountifulo
270
"Sequence !+. Warning. 'Many were disappointed

as the rains failed and the sun baked the lig h t soil . They
fought "theloneliness and the hard years-but the rain failed
them and -they moved on. There mas fresh lend in the West
w a m w am ^ mn f* r\ v4-V\ AV> _ . rvrr- V r*. . . ervw fV r*
vuva w n w g uiw. w mww *>m * v . w > * - -
the tskins and there was a new dav coming and a golden day for
the plains a day cf nor; causes now p ro fits and new hopes. 1
Sequence 5* War? 1Wheat w ill win the war I Plant
wheat! Plant the cattle ranges plant your vacant lots
plant wheat! Wheat for the boys over there! Wheat for the
Allies! Hheav for .no Brinish? iineav ior the *ranch? Wheat
for the Belgians? Wheat w ill win the war!
Sequence 6. Speculation? 'Then we reaped the
golden harvest then we really plowed the plains. We had
turned under millions of new acres for war wheat. We had the
manpower. We invented new maohinery. The World was our market?
And the rains held on. By 1$23 the dd. gi^GbSOlehuds llad wCCCiuO
the now iflie&tlands 1 But speculations led to a crash, while
"Sequenoe ? Drought: '- once again the rains held
off and the sun baked the earth. But this time no grass held
moisture against the winds and the sun . This time millions
of acres of plowed lands lay open to the sun. 1930 the worst
drought in the history of the plains? 1931--the rains held
off and the machinery rusted . 1932 no seed to plant
no land to put i t in . 1933 ^ s t i l l the rains held off
end then the high winds and the sun took to ll from the plowed
acres turned to the sun-and then the high winds came. 1
Sequence 8. Dust storms. 'High winds whipped across
oaoe fe rtile acres, bringing death and disaster bringing havoc
to farms, tragedy to human beings. 1
Sequence 9= Devastation! 'Baked out blown out
r,vid Tr**fr" I
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f)
w
* < r c , Jr.h~' r
j vvm g
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d irt farmer fought the worst drought in the history of the

country their cattle starved on the barren land or died in
sandstorms. Their homes turned to a nightmare of swirling dust
day and night th eir farms were buried under tid a l d rifts and
their lands turned to desert wastes. Many le ft, but many stayed
u n til stock, machinery, homes, cred it, food, and finally, even
hope were gone. For 6 years they fought sun and wind and watched
th e ir homes blow away u n til finally they le ft the plains by
thousands. Once again they headed west in 1935 ovn 30*000
refugess h it the road out of the drought country every summer
month and headed for the la st border the Pacific. Nothing
to stay for nothing to eat nothing to hope for. Homeless -
penniless and bewildered looking for a stoppisig place they
joined the great an y of the highway. No place to go and no
2?1
p to si;op"*210 more frontiers-

no more land ".heir homes
on four wheels-their work in the fields in' the towns-
along the highways* No more frontiers except the great new
frontier of reconstruction. Frontier of rehabilitation for
damaged lands and for damaged lives. ^00,000,000 acres
the Great Plains seemed inexhaustible, but in 50 years we
turned the grass lands into the dust bowl 1 i! 1
In well-designed form, Pare Lorentz and his associates - Paul
Strand, Ralph Steiner, Virgil Thomson and others - presented the

Mm**.
Q Cfcg^Gb WA
4> V\a 1a baw
V A 4V
/4
O U VA V i
4V*V*a
4 .V V W iV
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4rViA V*nf'f*olA
w v * j. y
through the homssteader and large-scale wheat farmers, the drought
and dust storms - to the work of the Resettlement Administration
in rebuilding this area.
In his analysis of the film, Paul Rotha, himself a
documeatalist, said that i t is more commentary than human action,
and more a story-wi^tacked-on-ending than a living production.
However, The Plow That Broke The Plains is notable for two
major reasons! F irst, i t was the governments beginning attempt
aii documsnuarjr film, i . a high standard in creative liork end
quality of production to guide those which came la te r. Secondly,
i t combined the work of a number of creative a rtis ts , each impor
tant in his own right, into an organized expressive whole, a
work oi a rt. Cooperating wih Faro LorenuZ, who uiu vhe creative
writing of the script and the able directing of the film, was
V irgil Thomson who composed an original musical score which was
lo From the program notes of the premier performance of the

1- -i J
-U-
. v ill, _
__v C tr \-7 i.
A J. a v u*iw .j.v n Q i u v b v * a-aa m <?,c .u j . ai ) vuu vu u ta j
as quoted in the CONGRESSIONAL RECORD, Vol. 80, part 6,

pp. 6885, 688h.
272
performed by soloists from the Metropolitan Opera Association
and instrumentalists from the New York Philharmonic Orohestra
under the baton of Alexander Smallens. Paul Strand, Ralph
Steiner and Leo Burwits made the photography more than mere
technically-oompetent reproduction.
Shortly after "The Plow That Broke The Plains was
finished? Resettlement Administration, was disbanded- but the
documentary film division, like the other photography division,
was retained in i t s suocessor agency, Farm Security Administration*
Under FSA a seoend film "The River" was produced.
Since the documentalists had the opportunity of improv
ing on errors made in the f ir s t film, "The River" is perhaps the
better film of the two. I t is the story of the Mississippi River
and its trib u taries, and the land bordering these rivers. I t is
the story of exploitation and erosion, of tr60s cut down snd
land washed away. And finally i t is the story of the work of
the Department of Agricultures RA and FSA, and of the T7A in
reforestation, soil conservation, and flood control. Typical of
i t s script is this short quotes.
"s..There is no such thing as an ideal river in Nature,

but the Mississippi is out of joint?
Dust blowing in the W est.flo o d s raging in the E ast,,.
We have seen these problems growing to horrible extremes.
When f ir s t we found the great valley i t was forty percent
forested.
Today, for every hundred acres of forest we found, we have
ten le ft.
Today five percent of the entire valley is ruined forever
o0,2!*i0UHjU2*2,l U29*
275
Iw8nty*fivs
w *Bsrcsnt of til fcoogoii
* has boon shoved by
tS
old river into the Gulf of Mexico.
Today two out of five farmers in the valley are tenant
farmers*ten percent of them share croppers, living
in a state of squalor unknown to the poorest peasant
M TV
.AWjjw6
-
And we are forcing th irty thousand more into teaaney and

cropping every year.
Flood control of the Mississippi means oontrol in the great
Delta th a t must carry a ll the water brought down from two-
thirds the continent.
And control of the Delta means control of the l i t t l e rivers*
and the groat arms running down from the uplands. And
the old river can be controlled.
We had the power to take the valley apart...we have the
power to put i t together again. 1
In evaluating "The River as a film, the Museum of Modern
Art said.- "With a ly rical commentary now classic* th is visualiza
tion of one of the most dramatic chapters in our history has coma
o
to he considered a masterpiece of the screen. And documantalist
Paul Rotha said;
"Pare Lorentz s second film.The River was a far

more important film that 'The Plow That Broke the P lain s.
I t had some of the same faults* lack of human beings,
d iffic u lt music, and again a tacked-cn end with the
propaganda message...Pat The River' has a bigness about
i t that was truly American, and a sentimentality that
caused the commentary to dwell over and repeat fascina
ting place-names. I t had moments of romantic quality
which 'The Plow lacked, and sequences of v isu a ls..
such as the rain-sodden tree stumps...for which tbs
cameramen deserve their credit. I t did more to secure
the popular recognition of the documentary film in
America than any other picture. And, above a ll, i t
played its part in the expression of the awakening need
for social reconstruction in the United S tates. 3
1. Script of lhe R iv e r; p r in te d as poetry in* Philip Van Dcrsn

Stsra, Editor, THE POCKS'? COMPANION. (Hew York. Pocket Books,
Inc., 1942) and quoted therefrom, p. h-lii.
2. Iris Parry, TBE DOCUISITAH? EEEM 1928.19^5, (Hew York; Museum

of Modem Art. 19^-5) P* 11
y/ 3. Paul Rotha, op. cit*, p p . 262, 263
Pare Loresnts -was Virgil Thomson, who composed the music for
"The River as he did for the preceding film. The photography
was by Willard Van Dyke, Stacey Woodward, and Floyd Crosby*
Although The Plow That Broke The Plains and The
River were the only two films produced under RA end PSA their
influence was far-reaching. They paved the way for five major
peace time documentary films to follow, four in the Department
of Agriculture and one for the Rational Youth Administration.
They -served to establish Pare Lorentz as one of our leading
documentalists, and led to his third production, The City in
1939'* And "The Plow" and "The River" set the pace for a number
of American wartime documentaries, produced mainly under the War
and navy departments and the Office of War Information, which
included work on both the home and b attle fronts*
A complete study in i ts e lf could be mde on government
films, and perhaps w ill bs done someday. Over a thousand motion
pictures have been prepared, both silent and sound films, by the
Department of Agriculture, Office of Education, Civil Asr unauvxc s
1. This film was directed by two photographers on former government

films, Ralph Steiner and Willard Van Dyke, but used the scenario
written by Lorentz? i t was produced by the American In stitu te of
Planners instead of the Resettlement Administration, but tied in
with the la tte r agency in that the producers chose scenes from
RAs Gresnbelt, Maryland, for th e ir examples of good city planning.
"The City" was made under a grant from the Carnegie Corporation#
The commentary was by Lewis Muaford, and the musical score by
Aaron Copland.
w ith perm ission o f the cop yrig ht ow ner. F u rth e r rep rod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission.
merits, in addition to numerous slidefilms for use by the public.*
After RA produced "The Pier? That Broke The P lains,1' that agency
sras taken over by the Farm Security Administration of the Depart
ment of Agriculture, and "The River" was produced by FSA. Follow
ing th is, the Department of Agriculture cooperated with the Rural
E lectrification Administration to produce "Power and the Land"
in 191+0. In this film, documentalist Joris Ivens took his crew
to the farm of William Parkinson in Ohio, there to photograph
the record of human advantages brought to the farmers through
the government s cooperative ru ra l-d e c trific a tio n program#
Although i t was a before-and-after story of the effects of
electricity on the farm, i t was also a moving record of people
who live on the land, who plant end cultivate and reap the crops
there. Like "The Plow" and "The River," Power" brought together
a group of creative a rtis ts . With director Jo ris Ivens (who had
previously produced the privately-sponsored documentary films
"Spanish Earth" and "The Four Hundred Million") were w riter Edwin
Loeke who did the script; musicologist Douglas Moore who composed
the score! and photographers Floyd Crosby and Arthur Oraitz. It
1. See, for example, recent catalogs o f I U.S. GOVERMEjfT FILMS,

(New York 205 Castle Films, JO Rockefeller Plasa) and U.S.
Department of Agriculture, SLIDEFILMS, (Washington? Government
Printing Office). For information on government films, write
to the Chief of Visual Education Section, U.S. Office of
Eduoation, in Washington.
276
included a commentary by post Stephen Vincent Benet- read l]y
William P. Adams* An example Benet*s commentary, to show the
mood of this film, are these lines#
: "This is good land#se

Not the best and not the worst,
But i t has raised five kids,
And th a t's good work for any land#. ,
Kids are ju st about the best crop there is#6ir
The same year that "Power" was produced in the Department
of Agriculture, some of the same creative a rtis ts cooperated to
produce another documentary, "Youth Gets a Break" for the National
Youth Administration. In th is film, also, Douglas Moore oomposed
the music and Floyd Crosby did th9 photography, assisted by Balph
Steiner, Norman Moskovitz and George Jacobson. The f i l s was
directed by W. F. Watts, based on a script by Kenneth White and
edited by Jay Leyda. "Youth Gets a Break" showed the progress
made by SYA in providing vocational training for unemployed
youth whose lack of experience excluded them from work in skilled
trades. I t also showed FYAs progress in curbing delinquency
through the wholesome life provided youth in NYA communities.
The following year the Department of Agriculture produced
three more documentary films, (l) "The Home Place," the h isto ri
cal record of farming in America, from colonial days to the pre
sent, including its architecture and physical aspects, and its
supplementary spiritual qualities! (2) "Harvest F'or Tomorrow,"
1. "Tins," October lU, 19^0, p. 115
277
the graphic record of the change from depleted soils to their
restoration with scientific fe rtiliz e rs , phosphates and limes?
and (?) "The Land,* the story of Amerioan agriculture in the
period from 1931 to 19^ 1 , including the story of share-cropping
and migrant labor, eroded and deserted farms, and the work of
the Agricultural Adjustment Agency in helping the farmer back
on the land and stabilizing farm prices* The second of these
films, "Harvest For Tomorrow" was photographed by George Ortlieb,
directed by Edgar Peterson II and narrated by another important
documentalist, Robert J . Flaherty, with music by Richard Amell*
The number of war documentary films produced by various
government dep 3 and divisions is too numerous to include

1 _
here* However, even such notables as these six* war Comes
to America," "The Hegro Soldier," "War Town," "The True Glory,"
"Fury in the Pacific," and "To the Shores of Iwo Jima," have
th eir beginnings in the Documentary Film Section of the Resettle
ment Administration*
The government's documentary film program, especially
those films produced in the Department of Agriculture, were
critic ised ea two major counts? F irst, being educational in
nature, i t was fe lt that they were attempts to educate the people
towards the "Hew D6al" philosophy* This was the same kind of
1* See Ir is Barry, op* cit*, and other Museum of Modern Art Film
Library publications*
2?8
C3?ii*i.C!i3iu vshlch nclS alsUvd r *uh6 blYlUg NcjsSpap}?11 pjfOuUOljlGuS
of the !PAfs Federal Theatre Project* a k in d of criticism vMoh
does not distinguish boiweon p r e s e n tin g facts in a dramatic
m anner f o r cc L U c a tx u ii p u r p o s e s * a n d u x s ijo r iix z ig la c u s m uhe sb ib s
way for propaganda purposes. Both "Living Newspapers" and the
documentary films were careful to check on facts before present
ing them, and rnst honestly be evaluated as educational films
and dram rather than those for p o litical propaganda.
Secondly, the documentaries were criticized for com
peting with the private film industry. This was like the c r it i
cisms of the four art projects of the TJPA wherein they widened
the art horizons, and yet were considered foes of private a rt
and music schools, orchestras, theatres and motion picture
companies. The charge is equally unfair in the documentary
films for their aim was different from privately mads films,
and therefore the products differed, too. Documentary films
are primarily educational? they are designed to present facts
about certain area of life in an interesting wayo Private
films &rs p r im a r il y v n te rta x n x n g * sn u gxh qcu necessarily
c o n c e rn e d rfith. fa c v so nhen f a c t s a r e p r e s e n te d ^ th e y can be
distorted at w ill for the sake of the movie plot. Thus documen
tary films and private productions supplement one another rather
then compete. I t is , in a sense, like private colleges and state-
endowed universities working together in a large field which
279
neither can adequately handle alone, Because of th eir basic
purpose# there is room for both private films and government
documentaries,
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Designed as part of the governments "disciplined attache
on the problems of the depression - unemployment, drought# poverty,
i l l housing, malnutrition, and dejection - the Resettlement Admin
istration and its successor Farm Security Administration began pro
grams in rehabilitation and resettlement of the nation1s rural
population* Seeing in th is constructive program the potential
for both a combined historical record and significant creative
statements, RA o fficials organized the group of sensitive
photographers and the documentalist group of film-makers, and
put them to work on the job. That th e ir productions were limited
was due to the fact that government appropriations were also
limited, That they succeeded in producing, individually and
together, an unequalled "Portrait of America" in the 1930* s is
a matter of actual record which the photographs and films them
selves can readily verify.
In addition to the documentaries, and other informa
tional films, the government has taken an in terest in the film
industry in one other way. Congressional investigation committees
have been watching i t rather carefully the past few years because
280
of i t s mcnooolistic tendencies* In I9UI the Temporary National
Economic Committee reported that not only are the majority of

2 J
the films in this country produced by five major companies, and
3
three s a te llite ones, but the distribution and even exhibition
of these films is largely controlled by the five major companies*
Although the outcome has not yet been determined in the government's
a n ti-tru st charges against these companies, i t is keeping a watch-
flil eye on the motion picture industry in i t s efforts to help
maintain open and free competition in a democratic society*
One other phase of the governments in terest in photo-*
gr&phy needs mention is passing* That is its part in helping to
prepare and present photographs and films, in addition to magazine
a rtic le s, radio programs and the lik e, for the United Nations
Information Organization* Designed to promote greater under
standing between nations, and of the work of U.S., the Organiza
tion makes use of the various creative a rts, and our government
contributes its part to the program* Although the Organization
is in i t s infancy and has not gone far yet in i t s a rt programs,
yet i t has in i t a potential worth developing*
1. See* Temporary National Economic Committee! THE MOTION PICTURE

INDUSTEf A PATTERN OF CONTROL,{Washington! Government Printing
Office, TNEC Monograph No 45, 194-1) 92 pp*
2* Paramount, letro-Goldsyn-Mayer, Twentieth Century-Fox, Earner

Brothers, and P.adieICeith-Orpheuru
5* Universal-International, Columbia, and United Artists*
281
OSflgm- lO - fSBBRsX ART SINCE BOOSBTOT
World fa r II brought to 6 close a ll the a rt and cultural
projects of the Roosevelt Administration whioh had heon organized
during the depression, and so o fficially the study ends in 19^5
with the untimely death of President FDR in April, However,
since that time two events have taken place in the area of
government and the arts whioh should be mentioned in passing. One
of these, negative in nature, is the the State Department s reoail
of an exhibition of modem American Art from abroad. The other,
positive and oonstruotive, is the United States participation in
UNESCO, the United Nations Eduoational, Soientifio, and Cultural
Organization.
STATE DEPARTMENT EXHIBITION 19
As part of its program in international understanding
and foreign a ffa irs, the Department of State attempts to see that
other nations receive as complete and accurate a picture of life
in the United States, and of the aims and policies of our govern
ment as possible. One of the methods i t uses in presenting this
pioture is the Yoice of America program in international broad
casting. Another is to send exhibits of photographs, paintings,
and other visual aids to show different phases of life in this
country.
28 2
;During the war and shortly after, the State Department
cooperated vri. till Office of liar Information in sending eighteen
exhibitions to Central and South America and to Europe* These
consisted principally of prints, photographs, and architectural
and city planning displays, with some paintings* Although they
were usually well received, there was always some question as
to why there ware not more paintings included, and especially
more contemporary ones* Our envoys often reported pleas fr<
abroad for our modem a rt, for the "most advanced currents in
nl
Amerioa today* In response to that general plea, William
Benton, Assistant Seoretary of State for Public A ffairs, had the
Offioe of International Information and Cultural Affairs prepare
an exhibit of modem U. S. a rt. J LeHoy Davidson was put in
charge of organizing the exhibition, and with the help of persons
representing public and private organisations ouch as the National
Gallery of Art, Museum of Modem Art, Graphic Arts Society, LINE
Magazine, and Denver Museum of Art, organised a representative
group of modem oil paintings into an exhibit called "Advancing
American Art."
Since the government had to pay more in the long run to
borrow paintings than to buy them, the la tte r course was taken*
The maximum period that a rt can be borrowed is s is months, so
in loan exhibitions of this sort travelling around the world
they would have to be returned twice a year causing much repacking,
1. Seport by Edward Alden Jewell, NEWYOBS TIMES, April 13, I9I4.70
reshaping End izisurssio cheirgos* ssci soon susoiEi'cisg vO more ^nss
the cost of the paintings* Mr* Da-vidson thought i t vdser to
help the a rtis ts instead of continually paying packers and shippers,
and the paintings were purchased at a to ta l of iky^ GOO for the 79
in the group. In terras of the calihro of a rt represented, plus
the fact th at many a rtis ts reduced their original price because
they believed in the venture and wanted to cooperate, the State
Department got a good buy. In some cases a rtis ts of note wore
represented by one of their lesser works, but in other cases
some a rtis ts were represented by some of their best recant paint
ing. Judging the exhibition as a whole, i t was a good cross
section of our contemporary a rt, ranging from the reasonably
conservative paintings of Reginald Marsh and Louis Bouche,
through those of som9 of the American Masters" John Marin,
TCalt Kuhn, and Max TiTeber, to the abstractions of Stuart Davis
and Arthur Dovss^ The group included the works of I4.3 a rtis ts .
Because ox i t s 3izo the exhibition was divided into
two p arts, one of whioh was sent to Europe and one to Gentral
America. Tne n rs v group had oeen exhibited in Paris and was
currently sa exhibit at Prague when i t was recalled. The other
group had been exhibited in Cuba, and then moved on to Haiti
before i t s tour was cancelled and the paintings returned to this

AAtin
V W W tM S * j V
1. For a conrolete l i s t of the painters and painting? included in

th is exhibition, see Appendix F.
284
Reasons for the reoall center around the terms "ignor
ance1' and p o litic s." A prejudice against modem a rt in general*
in unenlightened charters* played i t s part in the a ffa ir, and
politicians took advantage of the situation for th eir private
purposes* The ever recurring attack on modern art seems to have
mounted again this time after an a rtic le was published in the

P .K m a fh r
W W 4 U V M Jf
IA S .
W i
*!O

ll7I AW W UV
A
WA
t* T.fifUT
W W VU
U o f p a . ^>i>M
v t AW Wj VA U A U U
"V a * . MV aUf aWa J. .
A W t4 A
Bought These Paintings." This was followed by a "persistent
campaign of derogation" in the Hearst Press, labeling the paint
ings "un-American" and "red," and using the State Department

1
exhibition as the basis for a general assault on modem arte
Much of the criticism was on content and aubj act matter, and
was not oritioism of the esthetic qualities of the paintings,
however.
Soon the b a ll was rolling. The aoademic American
A rtists Professional League joined the Hearst papers in the

2
attaokj Fulton Lewis J r. had his say, and President Truman
labeled the paintings "scrambled egg a rt." Attacks followed,
for p o litical purposes, on the Administration, State Department,
and personalities within the Department. Lastly organisational
riv a lries vnthin the Government added the fin al blow, and the
division was disbanded.
1. As reported in Edward Alden Jew ell's column in the HEWYORK TIMES

A rsr-i T I X . s ~1*q !ts*7 .
__r-------- / /
a.1 a
-- -
n r. UU -Pa-s. I U . t
- -
* J
an
S '* Jf
tn liR
2. Broadcast over Mutual, Feb. 5, 19h7
285
Within the State Department opinion was divided as to
what action to he taken* Finally i t was decided, as a ta ctica l
maneuver, to saerifioe Exhibition 19 "ADVANCING AMERICA ART" in
hopes of saving larger sections of the Stat8 Departments cultural
program* Congress held a hearing on the subject, but the State
Department never completely explained the value of modem a rt,
especially in exhibitions of this sort for international good
w ill, nor adequately presented the evidence to show the suooess
of the exhibition program abroad* Being more culturally mature,
the Europeans found Exhibition 19 both interesting and stimulating
toils conservative and reactionary persons in this oountry objected.
Incidentally, before the exhibition was sent abroad, i t was shown
for months a t the Metropolitan Museum in New York and received
generally favorable comment in the press, and in some oases high
praise. Be that as i t may, Congress .cut the appropriations for
the entire Office of International Information and Cultural
Affairs, had the paintings reoalled and placed in storage, and
finally decided to declare them "war surplus" and sell them*
The 'Whitney Museum, always a friend of American Art, put the
painting b on display where sealed bids wore taken.
The 79 o il paintings comprising this exhibition in
"Advancing American Art" were originally intended for government
embassies and legations abroad when the tour was completed*
Instead they were sold by the TTar Assets Administration, most
286
4* 4*A 4 fcrg.Wft 4 4*4 >.3 ft Vi/I A'f'I'iiiT* TUI i l l 3 n i^ a ^ i ASTC3 A rt

a 1 UilViU UW O i i i VD1 uJb {MM W UMW* |>MW4iXW A U ii A tiMVihVUW ****.<**
were given p rio rities by a 95$ discount as required by WAAfs
regulations* Together with these 79 o il paintings were 38 water
colors whioh the State Department had from an earlier exhibit
to the Far East* making a to tal of 117 paintings sold* Originally
the government paid $55,800 for the entire group! they were sold
for $80,000 making an increase of over 9!?t. 000 over the original
purchase price of this controversial a rt an increase of $2h,0C0
despite the 95$ disoount regulation of WAAl Most were purchased
by institutions on the fa ir value" bid principle wherein they
paid a price determined on the basis of the lowest acceptable
non-priority bid and an o fficia l appraisal. Thirty-six paintings
were purohased by the University of Oklahoma, and the same number
by Alabama Polytechnic Institute* Ten were purohased by the
University of Georgia, six by the University of Washington, end
five by the Department of P u b lic Instruction in Honolulu, Hawaii.
Three veterans purchased five paintings and the remainder went to
various other universities, colleges, high schools and public
museums. Six institutions had bid for the entire collection at
a "fair price" value.
Although a bid of *10,000 was made for one painting alone,
John Marin s "Seascape, by the City Art Museum of St. Louis, the
highest pries actually paid for any painting was $5,000 for Marin5s
other painting in ths collection, his "Sea and Boat" whioh went to
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287
the Washington County Museum of Fine Ants a t Hagefstossn* Mary
land* Five paintings sold for 2,GOO each* These were Jack
Levines expressionist "Horse," to the University of Oklahoma;

If- *; V * A ? H ___??i -___________i L~*
r m A ii a u i w S d u w u u c u aia -u s eau v y iu o A ? u v n u u ^ d i a uha V '^ r S J . tJ y j
Max Webers exciting "Conversation," to the University of Washing
ton; plus two by Yasuo Kuniyoahi, his moody "Deserted Backyard."
which went to the Department of Public Instruction in Honolulu,
and his "Circus Girl Resting," to Alabama Polytechnic Institute*
This la st painting was the "chief target for the most acrimonious
of the Congressional attacks on the State Department's cultural

1
program."" Other paintings by Walt Kuhn and Max Weber brought
between 1,000 and 2,000 along with paintings by Stuart Davis,
William Gropper, Louis C-ugliemi and Paul Burlin* Individually
and as a group, the prices paid for the paintings proved their
worth despite certain Congressmen's opinions to the contrary*
But raiat is more important, they proved the financial soundness
of the investment in international understanding even though the
prices cannot explain the educational and spiritual value involved.
A ~ - S- 4 ~ _ --------- J----
**j. v vuu vAOdu y
v u ai u v i u u io w u iu U u txiii5 uuuiiUi'.V
we are finally beginning to develop work that is indigenous* When
we sent exhibits to foreign fairs and expositions in the past, i t
was always a rt work which was a second-rate copy of the kind of
thing Europe had been doing. Finally, partly through the WPA,
1. NEWYORK TIMES, -June 25, 19^8
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288
the government became in ter 0128 of the work being pro-
duoed in this country by a rtis ts who had been bom and raised
here* The work was different from that of Europe, and being
different was f ir s t thought to be immature and naive* But before
long i t was realized that the difference explained rather that
we were beginning to achieve a oultural maturity, and the govern
ment was proud to present WK paintings a t both the San Francisco
and Now York World's Fairs in 1939* But then the war came and
the art projects were scrapped and virtually forgotten* And
after the war their achievements were s t i l l largely forgotten,
except for some scattered spots like the State Departments
Office of International Information and Cultural Affairs where
the exhibition of modern paintings was organized and was among
our f ir s t indigenous art ever sent abroado i t was a significant
step forward in the growing history of government participation
in the a rts, and its recall stands, in the light of th is history,
an unfortunate blunder*
Hot only was the exhibition significant in that i t
p r S S c H ijr d SCv ana mauurs &r*s for the f ir s t isiine osi

_________J_
_J l.v
LIC h C U iiv U UL iusa that the United
States can produce works of the sp irit along with automobiles and
chewing gum* When the exhibit was on display in Cuba one Havana
c ritio said. rtAt last we can see somethin ! X. mJ*

C JJX i X U VX
-
O iiS
289
country which sends 113 refrigerators*R In the realm of inter=
national understanding, the State Department's n3xhibition 19n
was doing its part, along with the Voice of America in a different
medium, at a nominal cost compared to practically any other govern
ment activity, (How far, for example, would the !+9,000 spent on
th is venture in international cultural exchange go towards snoot
ing one je t bomber for international combat?) Though admittedly
not the best exhibition which could be assembled for the purpose,
no exhibition ever i s , s t i l l i t was a good cross section of
indigenous painting and therefore some of the best art to repre
sent us abroad. Its recall is a matter of misunderstanding about
the art and of uncertainty as to our role in international coopera
tion and understanding,
UNESCO
Tfhile the unfortunate incident of the recall of an
exhibition of our modem art from abroad is a black mark on the
record of government in the arts since the Roosevelt Administration,
there is a bright side as well for since 19U-5 we have been actively
cooperating in UNESCO, tho United Salicns Educational, Scientific
and Cultural Organization for international understanding and
world peace.
Although s t i l l in its infancy stags, UNESCO has started
on an active program for the purpose nof advancing, through the
1. PH, op. c it.
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290
educational and scientific and cultural relations of the peoples
of the world, th 8 objectives of international peace end of the
oora on welfare of mankind* Organised at a meeting in Tendon
the f ir s t two weeks in November I9h5, UNESCO has since had two
general assemblies, the f ir s t in Paris in November of I9I4.6
and the other during the same month a year later in Mexico City*
At these la st two meetings the representatives have worked out a
program of cooperation centering around six larg9 areas* (l) Recon
struction, (2) Comnunication, ( 3) Education, (M Cultural Inter^

2
change, (5) Human and Social Relations, and ( 6) Natural Scienoes*
Of these, Conmunication, Education, and Cultural Interchange are
most directly related to the government5s role in the arts.
UNESCO's program in Communication centers around the
removal of obstacles to the free flow of ideas on an international
basis, end the extension of the physical fa c ilitie s to countries
where they are new limited and inadequate. On the creative level
i t is attempting to establish a Production Unit which would produce
1. Department of State, "TEE DEFENSES OP PEACE, Documents

Relating to UNESCO," (Washington* Government Printing Office,
19U6) Part 1, p. lU.
2 For the complete record of the program plans of UNESCO ses

the two reports of the United States Delegation, especially
pages 87-120 of the F irst Session Report and pages 9-30 of
the Second Session. (Department of State Publications 2821
and 3062 published by the Government Printing Office in 191+7
and Ifl+S respectively*)- - ^
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291
and distribute papers ana periodicals* books* films* and
conduct a world-wide radio network for the purpose of inter**
national exhange of ideas and creative expression* Related
to these are the proposals for a cooperative system govern
ing international copyrights* for an inter-library loan
system among the existing libraries of the world and the
establishing of libraries where none now exist, and for a
book coupon scheme or similar device in order to permit the
free exchange of books and periodicals in countries with
varying currency standards*
The program in Education includes some work in
the area of art education* but canters more largely around
broader areas such a3 a comprehensive revision of textbooks
and teaching materials in as attempt to correct national and
regional misunderstandings* and the publication in I9J4.7 of a
volume entitled "FUNDAMENTAL EDUCATION: COMMON GROUND FOR ALL
PEOPLES" as the f i r s t attack in a world-wide campaign against
ignorance and illiteracy* In addition* plans are being made
for promoting the teaching of international understanding in
1. Related to this* mention should be made of the film program

of the United Nations as well# Its fir s t film* a vwo-reei
documentary* "The People's Charter" has already been released*
Produced by a Frenchman, Jean Benoit-Levy* (Director of UN's
Visual Information Section) and three American g irls, (Marion
Dix* Lora Eays and Rosalind Perlman) the film depiots the aims,
founding, problems and development of UN* A second film,
"Maps We Live By" is now being completed by Canada's National
Film Board, and others w ill follow latero
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292
schools and through adult study groups? and for conducting
educational seminars on special phases of the problem at various
timess
Most directly concerned with the creative arts is UNESCO5
program of Cultural Interchange* One of its early resolutions
declared!
(1) "that the freedom of the creative a rtis t to accomplish

his proper purpose as an a rtis t in any nation is a
matter of concern to the peoples of a ll nations? and
(2) "that UNESCO, aoting for and cm behalf of the peoples
of a ll nations? w ill take such measures as are open
to i t under its Constitution to protect and defend the
freedom of the a rtis t wherever'it is put in danger* 1
As part of its program in international understanding through the
arts? UNESCO organized, at its f ir s t session in Paris in a
Central Exchange to work in the Visual Arts, Music? Literature and
Theatre* This Exchange seeks to!
*(a) encourage and arrange for the direct exchange of

students? teachers? and creative a rtis ts and take
practical steps for the purpose;
(b) encourage end fa c ilita te v isits of students? teachers
ana artxsVa o ctner countrj.es;
(c) Publicize schools or institutes? of an international
character? in the arts, including those offering
short-term and summer instruction as well as longer
courses;
(d) encourage international festivals in the arts;
(e) encouraee the exchange of exhibitions and of musical
and theatrical performances;
(f) encourage inismaticn&I organisations in the holding
of conferences brinsina creative a rtis ts together*' 2
Is Sepor u oi vne U* 3* Delegation? jÎSoT SESSION? uj^kSCO

op* sit*? pp, 116, 11?.
2* lbid p* lly .
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293
la some of these general aims definite action is being taken;
a proposed study is under way of the programs of comaunity and
government support of the a rts, and another on the role of
education in the arts# In the area of literatu re a volume is
now being completed, "ANTHOLOGY OP CREATIVE WRITING UNDER AXIS
OCCUPATION" and a volume is projected on "THE PHILOSOPHIC PRINCIPLES
OF HUMAN RIGHTS." A major project in the translation of the great
books of the world is being considered in order to a&ke them
available to a ll nations. An International Theatre In stitu te
has been organized to carry out the theatre portion of the aims
of the Central Exchange listed above, and an International Music
In stitute is being established. The la tte r intends to study and
record folk music and lore, and to study methods of preserving
native art and culture. Taken as a whole, UNESCOs Cultural
Interchange aims a t helping the a rtis ts to obtain tools and
materials whenever needed, and at securing a world-vd.de circula
tion and distribution of products of creative a rtis ts in a ll
mediums, both original end reproductions. I t aims a t interna
tional understanding through the creative a rts.
The United States has taken an active part in the organi
zation meeting of UNESCO in London and the two sessions in Paris
and Mexico. We have pledged our support to the organization,
although our action on the recall of the State Department Exhibi
tion of modern paintings may make other nations wonder about our
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2&
sincerity* Let us hops that was but a mistake from which we
have learned the lesson, a mistake we do not intend to le t
happen again.
Being in its infancy, UNESCO has i ts future ahead of
it And part of that future w ill depend upon the we$r in which eaoh
member nation uses its arts, i t s science and education, for in ter
national understanding* I t depends upon this beoauee we know
r'that since wars begin in the minds of men, i t is in the minds

1
of men that the defences of peace must be constructed."
le Preamble to UNESCO*s Constitution, "DEFENSES OP PEACE,

Op. cit, p. 13.
295
CHAPTER 11 - CONCLUSION
With the inclusion, of the State Department exhibits
on Acdern Art which were recalled, and the early participation
of the tJ. St, in UNESCO, the record of Federal Government and
the Arts in this country ig brought up to the present time*
And therein this study ends* However, in recent years a series
of v ita l local art programs have been springing up in various
parts of the country, and sinoe these w ill no doubt have an
important effect on future government art projects, i t seems
important to mention them here before closing.
Let us take music, for example. In addition to the
regular high school and city bands, many communities are organic
zing workingmens symphonies and small concert orchestras. Others
have formed a oappella groups, community choirs made up of singers
from, most of the major churches, farm womens choruses, glee clubs,
and some barber shop quartets. Many of these same communities
have joined one or another of the major national concert bureaus
and thus have programs by professional musicians at various times
during the year. The revived interest in square dancing and
amateur talent contests has fostered an interest in folk songs
as wello And there are various other musical activities too
numerous to mention here. The point is that there is consider
able interest in music throughout the country, especially as one
thinks in terms of the local level.
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The same thing is true in dramatics. Over ana shove
the regular grade school, high, school, and college productions,
many community groups are putting on plays for the fun of i t .
In some States, particularly in ilev; England, the summer theatre
has become an active part of the Sation* 6 total theatre program.
Though generally privately owned and operated, some of these
are lite ra lly community theatres wherein the citizens of a ll
sizes and professions join together to put on the show. Some
places the community changes the theme and unto on an annual
circus, pageant or water carnival, out the important thing is
that these become events in which a great many people of the
community actually take a part. Ir. some parts of the country,
like the Midwest and ilorthwest, the summer season is taken up
with baseball leagues, recreation programs, and outdoor sports
like fishing and swimming, so that the community and l i t t l e
theatres become fa ll and winter evening projects. Some state
universities are sending their own productions out on road tours
of the state, and some are offering their services to help organise
and direct l i t t l e theatres in towns and villages where the c i t i
zens are making an attempt to get them started. The extent to which
this interest in community theatre, and the similar interest in the
other a rts, has been brought about because of the ilPA and other
government art projects of recent years is hard to say. But
the fact remains that there is again a growing in terest.
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Similarly with painting end sculpture* We are seeing
a rapid increase in small community art oentera, and herein one
can definitely sec that they are similar to those organized on
the W L in the 1930's* Sometimes they arc in quarters made
vacant by draft boards and veteran's organisations* Other times
they are in former barber shops, county fa ir buildings, basement
rooms of the grade or high school, and in one place a room of
the local hospital has become the c ity 's art workshop. Not only
th a t, but some towns are now sponsoring annual art festivals and
sidewalk shows in addition to an active yearly program of classes,
regular exhibits and experimental art laboratories like those
on WPA.
And so on through the other arts. I t would be d iffi
cult to estimate the number of creative writing groups throughout
the country which meet regularly to discuss each member's la te st
attempts. Perhaps not many of their works are ever published*
but the important thing is that these people are having the
creative experience of writing. And in addition to these group39
there are the many study groups which devote their time to reading
and discussing the creative writing of others* One could also
mention the numbers of young people these days who are designing
and building their own homes, the number of camera fans and the
clubs being organized, and so on. Some communities are mors
enthusiastic about one of the arts than the others, and some are
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sponsoring several activities depending on the interest and
leadership there. The important thing is that we are in the
midst of a vital national program in each of the arts without
most of us realising it . This brings us hack to the role of
the government, Any future government program in the arts w ill
have to make use of these local groups as the oasis for federal
aid i f the program is to he one for the people.
In conclusion let us re-enamine a statement made in
the first part of this study. There are two major ways in which
a government can take part in the arts of the nation: (l) it
can enter art for its e lf and its own purposes, or ( 2) it can
foster art for the people. In the early history of this country
our Federal Government used the arts for its own ends, as in the
case of government buildings, coin end stamp designs, public
statues and paintings, national anthems, and the like, Uhile
this was usually not a very vital program, at least in our early
half-hearted interest there was not the danger to the arts that
we have seen in recent years in totalitarian countries through
out the world where the governments have been and are using the
arts for their own propaganda purposes. This is quite a differ
ent thing. Since this debasing of the arts has not been a part
of the U.S. Government programs to dat^ the problem has not been
discussed in this study. Yet it is important for us to keep it in
mind and make certain that it does not happen at any time in the
future. The government can aid its artists or it can control them, -
assuming here, of course, that it is not ignoring then.
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It can provide them--writors- painters. composers? architects?
designers? 'with the opportunities to go ahead and make their
own creative expression in their own honest way? in the same way
that it endows scientists so that they can go ahead on their
experiments without fear that their results might conflict with
theories of the Stato. Or the government can hire the artists
to paint and write and compose political propaganda to farther
its own ends? in which case the artist's freedom is lost* There
is nothing more important to a creator than the right to design
his work as he honestly sees i t . Tihen this is taken away from
him? the inspiration part of his art is gone. Art then becomes a
tool rather then a way of life . So in any program wherein the
government is using the country's arts for its own end? the
important thing to be concerned about is that they are not made
nationalistic'1 in the sense that they become political propa
ganda* Free art w ill add to both the nation s and the world*s
culture? controlled art w ill only add to the government's
temporary power.
Then there is the other kind of government art program
wherein the government enters the arts for the people. This
happens when the local programs are not sufficient in themselves
and need financial and coordinating aid. Foreign nations have
found this to be true and have established government departments
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300
i
and ministries for that purposes In this country several
recommendations hare been made for an office or bureau of the
arts in Washington, but no definite action has been takon in
that direction to data.^ The suggestion which seems to have
received the most general support so far is a b ill to establish
a permanent Bureau of Pine Arts, presented by Representative
Coffee and Senator Pepper in the Seventy-fifth Congress. Though
never passed, the Bill stands as a possibility for an art program
to carry on where 7/Pa left off. Designed primarily as a pro
fessional program, the Coffee-Pepper B ill attempts to change the
emphasis from the relief program of 7/PA to a regular government
1. This study has not attempted a comparison of what other

nations have done to support their arts. For an outline
of the art programs of 57 other nations, in addition to the
United States, see# Grace Overmyer, op# c it9, pages 219*3$).,
2, TJhen 7{pA appropriations were cut and the projects ended, five
b ills were introduced in the Seventy-fifth Congress in the
year 1937-33 to carry on the work* Two of these, the UeGranerv
B ill (H.P..8132) end ths Siverich Bill (5.J. Res.671) were
designed to create a Bureau of Fine Arts in the Department
of Interior, snd the former in the Office of Education of that
Department. The Moser B ill (H.R 7606) intended that the
Office of Education should become a collection and information
center for the fine arts. Tha Gasque Bill (H.R.1512) and the
Coffee-Pepper B ill (HoRe3239) and S23296) .rare designed to
establish a permanent Rational Bureau of Fine Arts. Although
none wore passsd, artists and art groups greatly supported
the last mentioned as a possible future successor to 7/PA.
301
program existing or. a permne-.it oasis. rhe B ill includes pro
visions for a commission of seven members, one of whom is the
Commissioner and the others are sub-commissioners in charge of
the six divisions; Architecture, Dance, Graphic and Plastic
Arts, Literature, Music and Theatre. It provides for regional
offices to help carry out the program on a. national scale, and
includes such provisions as a no-discrimination clause, another
which gives artists the right to join unions, and in general
attempts to set up a program v/hich puts the artists on a pro
fessional level in our society.
As one looks back on the major government art programs
to date, those of the Resettlement Administration and the OTA, it
seems that their greatest single contribution was in their over-all
educational program. Properly understood, they were projects in
which the people had opportunities to participate in the arts
along with the professional painters, musicians, and dramatists.
They provided opportunities for the people to experience creative
expression themselves, and therein helped in the understanding and
appreciation of the creative work of others. Because of this
educational emphasis, the writer would like to suggest when the
time cones so that the local art programs feel they need and want
a central coordinating agency a Department of Education and
the Arts in the President's Cabinet. Here it would have the pov;er
and authority to carry out a vital program on a national scale,
similar to the Department of Agriculture with its Extension Service.
Herein local offices would be organised in communities as needed,
and these local offices would serve as information centers where
community art groups could come for help, or through vhich they
could exchange services and form a strong related community art
and recreational program.
The Department also y:culci combine an extensive program
in the arts with the work in general education, a plan followed by
most foreign nations including most of the South American Republics,
a ll the Scandinavian group, most continental European Countries,
and several other parts of the world,'1.
In malting such a recommendation, the writer is aware
of the danger involved in the old adage "federal aid means
federal control." he were fortunate in the JPA and the Resettle
ment Administration programs to have had, for the most part,
directors and leaders who fully realised the importance ox the
local creative scene, and who served the local, groups in carry
ing out their own programs rather than attempting to impose
regulations from national headquarters. It is easy to see that
without this same kind of leadership, such a Department could
become a control agency which could, for example, determine the
specific kinds of painting and music which would be acceptable
in the State. Or it could become an agency for the dissemination
of political propaganda for the party in power. The Secretary of
such a Department of Education and the Arts would have to be one
who was an educator in the true sense of the word. He would need
both vision and integrity for such a program would demand the kind
1, In C-race Oversyer's book, op. e it ., she has an outline report

of the art programs of 58 nations and kZ of these have combined
their official department of art with that of education or
public instruction.
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of vision which would base the program on the -grass roots"
philosophy exemplified in such earlier projects as the SVA and
Special Skills Division, and it would take the kind of integrity
which every true artist knows when he must make his own expression
in his own way without compromising to the patronising demands of
a specific political, economic, religious or social group.
Properly organized and operated, such a Department in
the Presidents Cabinet could take a leadership role in the
intellectual and cultural life of the nation. It could, for
example, through local offices conduct surveys of the creative
resources and needs of each community, working through the local
offices, ana could provide exchange exhibits and programs for a ll.
It could sponsor grants and scholarships for the talented persons
who could not afford further training without such help. It could
arrange for exchange exhibits and concerts on an international scale
and thus make its contribution to world peace through the greater
understanding of peoples brought about by mutual appreciation of the
best of the cultures of each. In fact, such a Department could
help local communities to cany on the most vital program of
related arts this country has ever, seen, and could help in the
bigger problem of world unity. However, it is not the purpose
of this study either to predict the future of Jederal Government
and the Arts, or to make a detailed proposal. Its purpose has
been to record what has happened in the past and to the present
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304
time, Shis record has presented some of the early arts, some
of the active and nation-wide programs in the 1930 s and Drought
us up to,the, time of writing when the Government is doing lit t le
in the arte hut when local art groups o? a ll types are quite
active.
As we wonder what will come next, it is important to
remember that the worth of any program local, state, or national
is in what it can do for the individuals irho make it up. Future
art projects, like those of the WPA, can help us only i f we take
an active pert in them, while they were organised for the pur
pose of getting unemployed artists tack to work, perhaps the next
program w ill he organised on a different basis and for the pur
pose of aiding the country s cultural end spiritual needs. Every
one is creative to some degree. He can at least he an appreciator
in the audience, but better s t ill can be both creator end appre
ciator. If he joins those community groups which best f i l l his
interests and needs he w ill, in turn, be contributing to a
stronger local program. And as the local programs become so
strong that they need more equipment and desire none coopera
tion between groups, then perhaps government offices on the local,
regional end national levels, - again similar to the Department of
Agricultures Extension Service - could be established to serve their
part in the total picture. Future federal programs, to be democratic
and free, must be based on the local ones. But it must be kept in
mind at a ll levels of the national program, and at a ll times, that the
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305
importance of any program is in what i t does to help each
individual become a mors worthy person*
M sm isss
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I
irrsnrjLS. k
Fellesisg is S ccp? s f tig ÔstlvacuurB vulva iu 9 mriwr

sailed (i) to ftrim s who mm is the govonr*b at tfca Mai
ef the beginning of the study sad were associated in gcss way
with gtmofflnsat participation in ths arts* and (2) to persons
fcrssrly associated îth gevomuaeat art prom ts es-i divigieng
hat who l&tsr le ft govsmEeit gerrioo, for ssss ressm or others
Although tte r o s ie s t to m guoabioaaairo m a generally not
good5 those who did reply wero geaercas is tfesi? respeses
end cseause of their Mai help the stadjf eeta in s far less
inasoaraeits than i t otherwise would haves
mss2L sgggEsas? s a asss
* **aa gy Sens** Pietsa
Sorsaasat Frojiot*
I Projest Beginnings*
As Origin of the Project*

Is Was sotso isdi?i4sal in or cat o f the government*
rospasibl for the idea of the project? I f go*
ploass give nan* gad address i f possibles
2* Did sose groap or organisation fir st petition for
the project* ear fir s t spaao? i t hefer the
goêrnamt took i t over? I f go* what gresp?
3* % ss? s=3 p rsv ies gsvsrssont b ill or
project Meh forsed th baefegremd of* er
sorvsd as a starting pedab for the project?
a Ceagrossicaal SeeslHbi* or Mil?
bo Esosutifc Order ?
& Dogartzsatal frejso t?
d Other?
i*> Wo&e say b& gl?m ts tiio Sato zc? th beginning
sf ths prsjsstf
So Mas sf ths frojoots

lo Hhat was ths ua&rlying philosophy upm whlefc the
projesb tras bassd?
II
2 lh a t rs rs th s goals eat g?i?J~et s

a Seale f tss lasifi&alfi?
as Semis ftr the cr- greap as a molt?
II rrojtet Aoeengiisssaatgi
As A M n istratim of the Projects
is who were the pespl Is digest eharge s f the
project?
2s low wore- workers ehegsa to help oa the prcjeet?
fora er^ speolfio qualifications d e ed e d ?
3 l e t m s the project flaa&eed?
I* I k s there mg outside iatsrferm co fey othor
gfnsHt o fficials s f degsrfcrsts; fey pslitloiaasp
or persons eatsid the project? I? go* what kind?
5 fas the project publicised or advertised? I f
whea sad her?
6lho er what faeters brought the projeet to m **mI?
fbyf Whea did this happen?
B Projeet AchieveEsatgl
! So what degree eta i t fee said that the project
aehisved the goals set up for i t in the beginning f
both individual gad group ge&Is?
2 fhat were seae of the ofestaoles that prevented
achieving ee^ lete suooess on those goals?
3 iaat m s the range or seope o f the project in*
a People who benefited trm it?
fes Period of tins?
Ss Geographical area er pendens of ecantry?
d h fie ld of th i artel
Whieh of &eg were included i s the project*
sad i s i t my or my?
Architecture (Interiors; ffcznitare)
Cerasics
Cessanity Planning
Creative liltin g end M tsratars
Lsausoepisg
Moassn Banes
<sa., . _
Painting and Bsr&Is

Bict^raghy
SOttltrs^
fhsatrs
Wsafiag end tostiles
fVlvtao e\acs
* s*svs w^ u v e c ;'J W C i
R e pro duce d w ith perm issio n o f the co p yrig h t ow ner. F urthe r rep rod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission.
in
ewe#w5#iS ws i t * H>v mh
'Mu w m v fe#a> w j w v W wa *M y ww
faults? s c-? whisk helps support 115
thesis that*
%*fe9 gpfeg 0C3? Hgr0St the doHoorabio ideal
vhm tte y are predaeefi % end ef the peepl for
tlmfy fl** atlgf*eti* aw!
5. feat trara the m jer eritieigas of the project*
as gathered f r s or?espadat#j asgasiaa aafi
ness srtielss# eeasaiatorg* e to .l So feat
degrse ror they eafeasdsd?
in . Cfioolasitt*
A. Geaelugieas of the Presents
1 M ^ x ll U _ ______
A9 w ^ iia p r v jr e * 09 9&AA9U g r a s s r e e e g i
Se fe a t degree did i t aetaally get te the
people i t wa aiseS te help!
2i feald the spericase of this- projot saflsm
or dwy the criticism most offes hpled at
govonuaaat participation in eduoaticn* the
arts, or general social planning* aFED3BIX*
iXD MEalS flDBIL COITSGL?* fey?
3. fe a t basis principles* a t work & th is prejeet*
have greater isalieatio as for a sto^y of the
historioal roserd of ear SBDS8&L SOvSHHHSf I P
THE MTS?
B. Implications for fee l&tarei

1* fe a t saggssti of things *to dos and *not to
do* oooid he learned from th is project end
applied to another projest ghsald there he
giailar eaea estahlished in the Mature?
S@ Boss fee experience of fe is protest add up to
fee feot that i t is b e tte r fer fee gewaraasab
to tas sa astiv pert in fostering fee arts
of fee sonstry* or fer fee geverassat to age
fee policy of Mssos M r# ? *3hy?
rr
MmDiS. B
gggsgrexgjgg ggB gntgg
tm rteori of Federal STOraagat appropriations far

spoaitifsia cad fairs within tMs antry is as follows?
1876 HaladaXnhfU Itma.ti<wftl (fcmtw**l
Sxpositicn - 2,183,18lu59
188k - Is? Orissa*; Lealsign* World** Is& a'trisl sad
Cett^ Bmaosities 11, 650, 000*00
1895 Chieego, Illin o is * World*a Colssbies S ^ eg itiea
3,ii0,5i9*6k
1^5 = Atlanta, Georgia * Ostto States mH Ii#is*ri*l
Esaositica 200,000.00
j ^nrm.a r-.__
___
___
___
___
___
___
___
___
____
___M .. JL *
Srpsitis a I 150, 000*00

I898 Oasha, Nebraska feaagsMissigaipgi S ^ o s iti
*0,00000
1901 Buffalo. lew York - Paa kmrt&m IsnsitiB
I 1, 015, 000.00
1901 Chariest, Sooth Carolina Smith Carolina
International State and West Indian Imposition
I 250,000sCO
19& St* Louis, Missouri Loui@isa Porohase Espogitiea
i 11,128,500*00
1905 Portland, Oregon Leeis &Clark Exposition
i l|85,000*00
1907 Jagtea, Virginia Jaseatowa for-Centennial
Exposition # 8,650,000*00
19&9 Seattle, lashingt i^ska-Yakaa-Pasifie
ispositioa 600,000*00
1915 Sen Bisgo - Peassa California Exposition
1915 Ss Press* see Panss Pa-slfia Isgoaiil
1919 St* Leals - Industrial Arts and Crafts I s o s i t i
1933 Chieego Century ef Progress I 1,000,000*00
1935 Saa Bi@g Exposition
1936 Cle-wland, Ohi Great Lekos ispesitt
1936 Dallas fesas Csntsssialf sad Greats? fisag tad
rsioissricsa Ssroositioa tgjUQljOGQeOO
1939 Sas. Prgasisse^ Golden Gate Istsraaticsal
SSSQgiti = 5&,93C'yC'v5vV0
1939 O Kwf York Worlds Ffti? (World Of fessrrecr)
I 9,0G0,009*09
fhe record f r a 1876 to 1909 Is from the Bspost of the ocsr&ttoo
@ Gspeacoc ef the lens of Bepresentatites, presented In fen
SiUgS 5i July 27, 1321, &ud quoted frsaa tbs wsagrogsxPStgl 25?
71* 61, Pert 5 PPs 4$68, ^369* Figure a gfter~19G9, uhea ss&il**
able, a? frm Geo Jacks, ep cito, go 98?
R e pro duce d w ith perm issio n of th e cop yrig ht ow ner. F urthe r rep rod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission.
7
APPSBIS S
ipa c c r a m m e m
fha saje? Cessssnity Art Centers. organised nader *

Federal Art P reset o f Wk ag through 1938, gad reeepigea
as public a rt sse a a a a t that tis s i
"Alabaaa BirsLnghan Healey Sehool Federal Art Gallery

Mobile Mobile Federal Art Gallery
Arisma Phoeais Phesais Federal Art Gallery
California Sabraasnto Saorsearto Art Center
D. c, VhaMayfewit Shi ^s*s Federal Art Salleiy
Florida Bradenton Bradsntea Federal Art Gallery
Daytona Beach Daytona Beaeh federal Art Center
Jacksonville Jacksonville Federal Galleries
Jacksonville legre Federal OSi3>3.'w
Key le s t Key West Federal Art Center
Vlaai Miaai Federal Galleries
le v Sfysa Bev feya* Federal Art Center
Ooala Ooala federal Art Center
Fsnaaoola Pensaoola Federal Gallery
StPekersbarg St Petersburg Federal Galleries
leva Sionz City Si (Rue City Society of Fine Arts
Sioux City federal Art Center
Mcntana Butte Batts Art Center Association
Butte federal Art Center
lev Mexico Melrose Melrose Federal Art Center
Sosvell Bosvell federal Art Center
San Migusl San Miguel Art Center
Hsv York Hev York Brooklyn C sssaity Art Center
Conteanorary Art Center
Harlea Ccossmity Art Center
Queanshoro Csssmity Art Ccntor
North Asheville Asheville Art Center
Carolina Greensboro Greensboro Art Center
Balelgh Baleigs Art Center
Oklshc Blaekvell Blaebrell Federal Art Gallery
vleTOsors Oiareaere Federal Art Sallsry
Sklahena City andeipal iMditorlwa FedsArt Gall
Salsa falsa federal Art Center
A w aaam Salsa Salsa Art Center Association
Salon federal Art Center
Sesth Beaufort Beau?ort federal Art Canter
S? Ills Srssnvill# federal Art O eter
Assesses SfcsttsssGgs C5ivrs*y f Sharsaasosa
Federal ir e Sailesy
feassille Bai'rsrgity of Sens Federal Art
Sallawr
I so ld s I-e Heyae Federal Art Center
Morris Andersen Ocssty Fsdsral Art C eta?
Utah Salt Lake City ^ Stats Inst* ef Fins i ts
ftah state Art Center
Virginia Abingdon Abingdon Federal Art Center
Big St<sas Cap Mg Stone Sen Federal Art Gallery
Lyaebbarg lynehtrarg Federal Art Center
Washington ggâ %c4sas& Federal Art Ceater
Spokane Art Center Association
^siag Lorain Larasde Federal Art Center
Ssseastle Heseaetle Federal Art Gallery
M w taa Bivertaa Federal Art Gallery
EookSprlng# Sock Springs Federal Art Gallery
Torringta ! a j t e s Fsdsral Art Callery* 1
1 L ist is f t m Laurence ? Coleman? TBS MOgBSg g-AHSSMCA

(aashingtcaS Aseri.ga Assoeiati of Maseans? 19^?
Volume 3 , page hh3)
711
iBBHBgP
Sie following charts are frea a statessat by Mrs Sllea

S Woodward, Assistant Administrator o f 1PA, to Ssnato Sub*
e s s d tte s on Education and Labor, in which she liste d tbs
above figures as operating eosts of Federal Project l e i 1,
to March 9, 193B* tor further explanation of oosts of Federal
lea 1, see ^Hearings <a Senate B ill 33?&i5 f the Subecffisdttee
Sdneatisa end Labor, (Washington! Soverrussnt Printing
Office, Bulletin 59727a 1938, pp. 67-70).
Chart 1 ' -
Bwwwmtii cost
Project Bsc ley- tabor Hen- Total Total
sent labor Monthly Cost
M oral a r t ...... 3,622 m*1o T fc jo " IW.OO i$&o,?ie
Federal B a s i c . . . . 10,055 91.20 3.10 95*00 950A75
Federal theater*. 8,786 99.00 11.00 110.C0 966,1*60
Federal w riters.. 3,023 90.21; 5.76 96.00 290,208
Bjgtorieal records 2,740 M l 4.15
M MM
^00 227.US)
Total Federal
Bo, 1. . . . . . . . . 28,176 93.28 6,62 99.90 2,8!k873
Chart l l
kan-year o'o'gt"'
Project Bnploy- Labor Hon- Total Total
Esrtt labor Annual cost
Federal art 3,622 tl,18U lO $75*60 f l ,260 I U,563,720

Federal s i sie= ..10,005 1, 09W }0 U5-60 l,lljO 11,1405,700
Federal theater# 8,786 1,16S,G0 132,00 1 ,3 3 l i Ca? CSa
Federal -writers., 3 ,0 ^ 1, 082,88 69,12 1,152 12A96
a I . / fS** t.A (ftA AA /
Historical records. 2,7LC' qy.w yyo A A1.A
Total Federal
flOs A,.., 20,176 1, 119.59 w J a 11 77 W O !.<?
33,.' ivj+fv
m i
Chart III
Sstistted istisated
Project B>?l<gr- average annual
seat isssg i sslsiy
salary cost
Federal art*........... .**. 1 2,800 f 20, 2^,600

Federal sasie*................ 2,500 25,012,500
Federal theater********* 2,560 21,963,000
Federal writers*..***.*. 2,500 6,952,900
Historical records*.*.*.i. 2,7*40 2,000 5^30,000
feta l Federal He* 1 ....28,176 2jb68 69,552,000
Add estisated nealabor cost
Add administrative cost

(10 percent of present project c o s t)..**.*...
Total..................
--
n
i
PUHJCASIOS OP 18PA EBD1BAL WBI8BBS* PBOJBCf.
PAKt OHS - LOCAL GUIDES
la addiMcn to the Bt&ieuuid&g, m s following Local Saidai

were completed m the WFAWriters* Projest in the varicns states*
la eases where no Local Guides are listed for a state, i t does
not seen that state produced no ether publications then i t s State
Guide* 8oss states concentrated more m publications in other
areas Regional Guides, Folklore, Social Ethnic Areas, and
Seientifle end Seelmiaal topics.
ARI20KA Mission San Savior del Eae Pepago

ABKASSAS forth L ittle Book
CALIFOEIIA Alaanao fer 59*era (San Franeiseo)
Festivals in M Franeiaoo
Los Angeles
Old West (8an Bernardino Ccanty)
San Diego.
San Franeiseo
Santa Barbara
COHHECTICOT Bistory of HilfOrd
DELAWARE Sew Castle
FLORIDA Key f is t
Planning a Florida Vacation
Seeing St, Angustins
GEORGIA Atlanta
Augusta
Savannah
Washingten-SIlkes
IDAHO Idaho Encyclopedia
Idaho Lore
lours in Eastern Idaho
H IH iO IS Baseball lit Old Cwivngv
Cairo
f t - t
Galeie
lauveo
Prineeies
ISDIfflA
ion. Burlington
fiadap ftapjflg
DahUfUi
Isth srv illc
McGregor
Yaa Suren County
I
EMBAB leaps cs ts Prairte (sareisg 4a Kessas)

Lamed City
Selina
mmm Centennial History of University of Louisville
Henderson, lose of indubca
Load of Brsathitt
Lndngton
Military History. of-lentaefcy
Old Capital gad Fksnkfort
L0UI6U91 3m Orleans
mm Aagasta-Hallcwoll on the Eeauebee
u m im US fatal. Aoader^r
m sim sE Sfs Albanian Straggle
Altsaassk for Bostonians
Auburn
Berkshire B ills
Boston Looks Soarrard
Fairhavsa
Eor&oe Man Biography
Massachusetts Place Hanes
Sadbarg
m<mm lerttereatem High School, Detroit
inmsou Bohodin Flats
Legging Seai (Grand Bapida)
St* Cloud
MISSISSIPPI
BISSGUBI
mum Copper Camp
Montana Profile in Pictures
TSBmm Alaanae for lebraakans
Calendar of Bebraska insnal Events
Lincoln
Military History of Hebraaka
Sebrasfca Pl&ae lanes
Printing Cases to Lincoln
Old Bsllves
mm
m stm m xm Bends fhat Built lev Hssnshiro
m u m sm Bergen county
Dasellss
Sitertaiaisg a la t is i (loag Brsneh)
M rlssa fir e Fighters
Matswsa
Haree Sesnehip, Middlesex County
fee Jersey r refile in Hoturos
Old Prissstaa Ssighbors
Princeton Fire Fighters
Sidgefield Park Fire Department
u
n Hcnieo Calendar of
lin T Q S Albasy
Magaao for Hew Yorker (City)
Bstohese County
Maritime Sister? IYC
Vnr York City
law York U m i (eity odueatiai fa c ilitie s)
Sew York-City' Ptaerasa.
Private Burial grounds# leteeotady O^mty
Beehester _nd Monroe County
Saratoga county Cesoteries
Stag? of 'Fir* Seas* Susan County
HOKE CAKOLKA Hew Barth Carolina Grew
Hew They Began (ri&ee lass at Horth Carolina)
Baleigh
lOBfH DISOli Sissark
OHIO SeantiM Biwer
Chillieethe Jffld Boss County
Cincinnati Childhood of the City
Cincinnati - Seng Life
Cinoinnati - Shey Built a City
Ciaoinnati * Youth
Findl&yand Hancock County
IP<3 t . sad Ssndnsty County
Lake County History
Lake County Landaarks
Luna, and Allen County
Martins Ferry Seaquieentennial
la tieaal Bead
Springfield and Clark County
fueeam as County
Srhgna and Champaigns County
Warres and SruHbnH County
Sanesuille and ibskizigan County
OKLAHOMA Calender of Swats in Oklahoma.
Labe? History of Oklahoma
falsa
0BEGOI Fira Prevention in Portland
F^BSYLYABIA Bid for Liberty (Philadelphia)
Education Buildings i s Feangylresia
Sri County
Floods of J ehastcsa
Humttty Sosioty {Brewer County}
lyceaing County
HerthsEptsa Canity
rssnsyiwnia Cavalcade
Pl&sss to Plav (Allegheny County)
Philadelphia
Ssadisg Fire
mm isl h s
CUXB3H& SeaHforfc sat Sea Islands
Car Sdatii Carolina* Sodagr *ra Yesterday
Palsgtta Pioneers
Palssetta Piass Hsses
Shoaaa Green Clessnsoa* Hraer
mm mm Bsugl&s County
SeaJjjR fearlead Mesorial
Hesesteaders* Mefbsrses County
Mitehsll
Herrs
Pioneer H W x ll
Prairie feraera* lin er County
sodbustars
South Dakota. Place lease
TmSSSBS
SSHS Beanmeat
Corpus Christi
Denison
Houston
Old V illita
Baadolph Field
SenJ&tcaie
mm Originaof Utah Place Basse
Prove* PioneerBenin City
VEEKON?
V1E5IHU Jefferson's Alberaaol# County
Old Dominica in Pictures
Prince K illian
Sussex Ceanty
i& sm m s
ib s ih b m iu Bulltoun County
fir s t Census* Has?shira County
Historic Heaney
Smoke Hole and it s People
m scessii Portage
Shoretrood
fs a s is
^t.ASgA
tries T|
fsbbso n m
liSHHHOI, b . e Car Federal Gcvsrassat
Car Kkshisgtsi
Washington* City and Capital
R e pro duce d w ith pe rm issio n o f th e cop yrig ht ow ner. F urthe r re p rod uction prohibited w ith o u t perm ission.
m i
B a t fgg ~ gggicgii- *gg g g g g g a s m s
Angler's Sails (Washingtca, DC tad fie ia iw )

Custer State Park, Black B ills (South Dakota)
Death falley (California)
Here's to Hew Ikglsnd
Hikes in tho Berks! (Massachusetts)
Her so Shoe ir a i l (Psansjl-raaia)
IntracestsI Waterway (lorfolk to Hoy West)
Lske Brie (Ohio Ifcitera' Project)
Miisiesota Arroshead Country
M iisiiiiggi Calf Coast _________
Monterey Peninsula (California)
Meter fra ils in the Berkshire Hills (Msissaehusetts)
Mount Hood (Oregon)
Her Bngland fturrieane
Oeean Highaay (Hew Jersey to Florida)
Oregon Trail
Skiing in the Bast
8panigb*Aaerieaa8eng and Gaae Book. (Heir Mexico)
Square Dancing in Illin o is
Three Hikes Through Hssahiekcn (PesnsylTOnia)
U, S One (Maine to; Florida Higtsray)
whaling Masters (Massachusetts;
U nter Sports end Bere&tion in the BerksMres (Mass*)
PAST IHSEi.- fOIZLCBg
Bundle of Troubles (Sorth Carolina)

Sod Bless the Bovili (lia r 1a ta les, Tennessee)
Guabo YaYa (Louisiana)
lo ssier Tall Tales (Indians)
Hebraska Folklore
Heir Hampshire Stories
Old Heehury Tales (Massachusetts)
Slare H arratitts
South Carolina Folk Tales
Stories of Hoe Jersey
Sales, of Pieseer Pittsburgh
fagge are ear Maes
figacaeia Circus Lore
Wisconsin Indian Place Legends
past fobs o socm , g sm c
(Shs) ipaehe ( M m )
&ra@sign In Massachusetts
m
FAHMWR. m zm s If^SC (ftat).

Cavaiesde of American f egroaa (Illin o is Project)
Druaa and Shadows (Georgia Costal Hegroes)
(She) Bepi (Ariseaa)
Inter-American A ctivities in Chicago
Italians of Sew York City
Italians of Sawa -
dewish Fasiliee in Sew York City
land o f Sakoda (Aasiniboine Indians* Montana)
Legends of Mighty Sieux (South Dakota)
(fhe)Havaho (Arissaa)
legro in Virginia
Hsgrees of Hsfcraska
(The) Pepago (Arisen*,)
Surrey of Segreea in L ittle Rook (Arkansas)
Swedes and linns in Sew Jersey
f a s t p h b - s c i m i F i c a h d tb c e h ic a l2
A frican Guide Manual

American Wild Life (Sew York City)
Mrds of the World (am York City)
Bibliography on Labor (lew York City)
Catalog* iaerlean Guide Series
Conservation Education (Pennsylvania)
I lia Index (Hew York City)
Soneiaking Catalogues (Pennsylvania)
Journalism in California
Models for the Blind (OMo)
Psrsnt-Ye&chers Services to Education (Pesn^ylvsaia)
Plant Life* Braxtsa County (West Virginia)
Radio in Bdaeatiea (Pennsylvania)
Reptiles and Aaphlbloas (Hew York City)
Statutes Relating to Public Welfare (Wiseensin)
Whos Who in tho Zoo (Hew York City)
lisseaain Sashroeas
lleag&tary Soignee SerlesS (Peansylrsaia)
A ircraft of Co
Frogs
Eats Gold
/ a.
v c u av u w Ladder of Clouds
Dress of Stars Life in an Ant H ill
JW
Bteggsfagy gel6sS6...ggr^S* (S ea t )
Light of the World Eossane of Eabto?

Lighbdsg aad B laetrleity gala
Looking. a t the Mom tkf?, Slaeitrs tad leebergs
Lord* of the OH West Stones
Luaber Story of Bees
Making Assriea Story of Olay
Measy Story f Coal
Hoti Pietsres Story of Capper
Oil and Gas Story of Glass
Orsbards in a ll Seasons Story of Gropes
Oysters Story of Iren and Steel
ra p ? flwittifi44 a VaM as
Hgeme Television
Plasties Trains Go Gy
Hadis ........ Trip ea Isay Waters
Hayea, Sylcn and Glass Fibers Warshipa
find) Water and Air
p a st m m m m isik h g
issrieaa Staff*
1* This lis t ecapiled treat Asm* of Soseareh Libraries)

CAfilflG QF BOSS SEEBISgmG LXBB&Sf OF GdGBSS PHI5TB)
GAEDS) (A&n Arbor, Hehigaat Bdmrds Sres X9U? Tolas# 2i7
pp 112-125), and Mary Baxmhaa and Segim Geldssa, editors,
CUUUUTHS BOGI ISBSS (Bee TerW H*W.Wilg 1933-19^2,
l ^ l f e X9*4539!a7)*
gee, also, F2HH mOISS OFW l PSSG3AI, op, e it

Agpeasts B, gpo for aefiitioaal gsaog?aphs5
balletissj f=psrt gad perieiisals ssisarsirio and
teskiioal tepiee*
m
E&BSfTLT
siAfE DSFARTMsra sm B iT icsj *advahchg m s i m abt
Fellesing la a ecaplets l i s t of the 79 o il paintings by

10 a r tis ts , purchased ^ the Stats Department for the exhibition
Âdvaneisg Assrieaa Art" as part of-the pre-gras to sead aedssa
g it thread ee an isi-sraatienal geodaill tear Congress had the
paintings recalled ia April 1^7* fhe l i s t is firm State Depart-
a t files*
PABBBB PA31T1I& FDHCM PBICE
1* Avery, Mlltea Fish Basket $ 500

2* Basietosj U llis s FlORer lead 550
b Bsarla,:Ias9 At Five ia the Afternoon 300
4* Ben-Sion Perpstaal Destructor 600
5* Ben-Sion She Strangled free Uoo
6* Ben-Zi Sad o f Don quixete 500
7* Beeth, Ceserea Clean 300
8. Braehe, Leais Msspeth, ttOs 300
9 . Boache, Leeia Gallery K 500
10* Brsiaia, SsymmA Her Lever s Batura 550
U* Storm* Byron S t ill Life ia Bed, le lle v
sad Green 350
12 la rlin , real lews. free 'Sms i,0 O O
13* Constant, George Book Crabs 250
Croford, Baltten Wing Fhbneation 5oo
15* Crasfferd, Balaton Plane Eredaetion 600
16* Davis, Stuart free sad B1 600
17* D&vis, Stsart S till Life with Flowers 1,000
18* deDieeo, Julio Boetamal Family 500
19* csDiego, Jalio m ie? S tiff tesrp -rd Action 500
20* i s Knrsiffi, J Sssph fhe Bavin 625
21* Devs, Arthur Another Arrangement 600
22* Dove, Arthur Grey Greens li00
2p* Dresss, hêesT S fu fra y IwG
Bresea* Weraer lad a Dark fheught Cane ^ 0
?* Sz- sbs, Wwasr Gaiety ia. u ses of Distress 350
26* Svergood, Philip Girl end-Cook m
27* Svergood, Philip fhselat Leader 650
AA Sr.t'tllKn-
g ^ p le IsSQ
Cropper, W illies they Fought to the Last Man 1,125
30* Sreppsr, l i l l i a s Hogg 375
31* GsgHsM , 0* Leais Ssbsgy Bsit 750
32* G eglleM , 0 Lsais fanessatg 500
33* Gustin. Philip Portrait of Shsusah 7B0
AUA
34 Guatbssey, Rebert Workers ca the Isssd 1 Sou

35* GwatlsBsy. Eebsrfe Working 8GQ
it . . . x i _ u a -
jis* xy$ H ill Isa lego m
37 Hartley, Margdsn leges 300
38 Hartley, Marsdes Whales Jav, Dogtcm 600
S Hessrd,' Charles
Eantor, Morris
Ulo lis is h e lts , freak
fhe Medaga
Afternoon
flo ral
g
J50
i& K leiahelts, frisk Bask ligh t 450
itf* Saha, Wait Pine at fiv e Oclock
!* lu te, Walt S till Life vith Bananas 1*353
k5* Sesiyeshi, lasso Deserted Brickyard $eo
lt-6* Kuniyoshi, Yaguo Circus Girl Heating 700
U7 Levi, Julian 8 tm Life 800
1|8* Levi, Julian Wasteland Laageg 500
1(9* Lanina, Jack: Horse 1.500
30* MaeXvsr, Lorn Blue Landscape m
51* Maria, JeSa Sea sod Boat 2.500
52* Maria, John Seascape 1,200
Marsh, Reginald Lifeguard 600
% Morris, George Shipbuilding Composition 200
55* Morris, George lev Bigland Church 550
36 OKeeffe, Georgia Saall H ill near Aleade 1,000
37* OKeeffe, Georgia Cos Cob 1,000
58* Perelra^rX* tie e Abstraction
59* Prestcpino, Gregorio Bevspaper 800
60 Prestopino, Gregorio Trolley Car 900
6l* Rgttaef, Jhrahaa Tolios Table 808
62* Eefregier, Anton Bad of the Conference 300
Shahn, Ben Banger 875
Shahs, Boa Eassesace 750
65. Sheelar, Charles Boneyard 750
66* Spruce, Bverett Owl on Rocks 195
67 Spruce, Everett Shfkuy 220
68* Spruce, iverett Canyon at Bight 220
69. Tseh&ebasev, Sahusi Pish 300
70* Tsehaobasov, Bahua Choir Beys 300
71 tgehaehasOT, lahna Mother and Child 300
72* la tk ia s, frssk lis PerturBx'S OS Ola f u u u 508
Weber, Mas FTuit sad Wine 1,2)0
1 : Weber, ~sz ^ r m w * w e * M Am
* t* v v a wu !,6C0
75 Weber, Mas Two sage 1,200
?6* flls e a , Sol Eishsrasn Wharf 300
77* Zerbe, Karl fhe Qvlg 5 wW
78* Serbs, Karl Clem and Ass 850

79 Kerbs, Karl Around the Lighthouse 500
m u
ttmnt
m m sxam mtistb n ieb m im m m
F oll^ isg is a ta tls of fee aetnal auabers of profoasioa&l

a rtists, isnsieisns, asters, writers, ate* in -the United States
at the tiae of the Sixteenth latieaai Census in 191*0$
DETAILED OCCUPATIOS FOB EHFLOIS) PBRSOSS (U.S.)
Occupation feta l u~~

ai%gU WOBBB
A ll Occupations 1*5,166,083 2^,027,905 11,138,178
frozsssioaal and 2eai-

Professional Workers 3$5*ot|8 1*857,387 1,1*69,661
Professional Workers* 2,881,592 1,511,118 1 ,3 7 0 M

Actors and Actresses 11,692 6,931 I*,761
Arehitaots 20,376 1*77
Artists and Art Teachers 51,985 m 17,507
Authors, Editors A Reporters 70,059 51,55 18,536
Authors 11,806 8,02c 3,786
Editors A Reporters 58,^ 3 1*3,503 m,750
Musicians A Susie Teachers 1,<56 69,800 59,1*56
Teacher3, not included
elsewhere A County
Agents 1, 130,001 53,561 nem
Teachers 1,019,760 ^7,716 772,$!*
Daaeers, Ssaeing Teachers,

Chorus Girls U235 2;1S3 Q.ft22
Shctjsan 5^33 4,1*93
Designers and Draftsman IGO.QS Qls8g) O 1AE
7 ? ^ /
Designers &**& 13*M ;* 6 n
Pidtogjfgphsrs 33*701 ^,078
Sablo quoted fresS n*8a Begartsoat of Cesseroa? KiHuAxIoH.

?eluss 1X2$ The Labor Peres, fart 1? UeS*
Ssrssarj-, Sixteenth Census, 19l*Q (nashingiea$ Sororassnt Printing
Offies, ge 75)

FEDERAL GOVERMENTS AND THE ART by Norman Pietan

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COPYRIGHTED

R e p r o d u c e d with p e r m issio n o f th e co p y r ig h t o w n e r . F u rth er rep ro d u ctio n p roh ib ited w ith o u t p e r m issio n .

This dissertation has heen approved for final

Submitted in p artial fulfillm ent of the requirements

She w riter wishes to express his appreciation and

For indorsation on the Government* s various

Former Direotor of the Federal Art Project of

For information relative to the reoent State

Special mention of appreciation should be made

Dr. Charles Seeger, Chief of the Division of

For the ohapter on photography end films, the

Lastly, the research has been aided by the courtesy

For helpful suggestions on the organisation of the

The w riter is especially indebted to Professor Harold

To the s ta ff of the Advanced Sohool of Education of

Lastly, and perhaps most important, the w riter

While the study would not have been accomplished

R e p r o d u c e d with p e r m issio n o f th e co p y r ig h t o w n e r . F u rth er rep ro d u ctio n p roh ib ited w ith o u t p e r m issio n .

. !hie grew out s f & search fcr the answers to

three questions about the role of government in the arts*

( l) That preceded the cultural projects of the Franklin

Roosevelt Administration? (2) What were the actual accom

plishment a of this Administration in the various arts?

(3) What are the prospects for future government participation

in these arts? As the study progressed, many of the answers

to the f i r s t two questions were found as part of the recorded

history of our country* Eut the answer to the third remains

a matter of conjecture and anticipation based on the reoorda

of past government activity in the arts*

The major portion of the study deals with the answers

to the second question, that is with the a rt programs of the

Federal Government during the Administration of President

Franklin Soosevelt* Ths reason for this is two=foldS F irs t,

the work which preceded this administration has been largely

recorded in several other places end i t seems unssessssry to

attempt to repeat them in detail here* Secondly, World War II

cut short most of the a rt projects of ths Roosevelt Adminis=>

tratien* and l i t t l e has been dene in the a rts since*

FEDERAL GOVBBDIEST ALT- TBS ARTS is primarily an

h isto rical survey* Only secondarily is an attempt made at

evaluation of work done on government a rt projects. Tho term

"The Arts* is interpreted to include architecture, painting,

sculpture, theatre, lite ra tu re , photography, and, in fa st,

a ll ffiAuiumg of creative expression milch the government hag

supported or encouraged* Because of i t s scope, the study is

also selective rather than attempting to he all-inclusive*

For example, in fee eeasanity planning program of fee

government, Greenbelt (Maryland) was chosen for stu<fy hero,

whereas other examples of government community planning,

important in fee to ta l picture but not included in detail

here, are Greenhilla, Ohio! Greendale, Wisconsin! Arthurdale,

West Virginia, etc. A complete picture of th is area of

architecture suburban resettlement -*- would make an

interesting and pertinent study in itself* Also, fee study is

one of peace-time arts rather than of war when fee emphasis

changed to a considerable extent from design and construction

Although government activity in fee arts includes

fee arts mentioned previously, i t is impossible to draw definite

pigeon-holes and put specific activ itie s under the headings

^architecture, sculpture, or painting, for examples Often

government a rt projects have included several e f these together,

as in fee planning of fee government city of Washington, of low

income housing eoamnitie a , ef the dams and recreation centers

of fee SVA, or of federal buildings a t expositions and fairs*