Curated OER
The New Deal: The Works Progress Administration
How did American begin to come out of the Great Depression? Viewers will be intrigued to find one of the answers in this presentation, which details the Works Progress Administration. The slides detail various parts of the WPA with...
Curated OER
American Lives in Two Centuries:What Is an American?
High schoolers decide what it means to be an American. In this historical perspectives lesson, students read Crevecoeur's "Letter from an American Farmer," and interviews with everyday Americans from the Works Progress Administration....
Curated OER
The Great Depression in North Carolina: Experiences of the People
Middle schoolers explore the Great Depression. In this research skills lesson, students interpret historical evidence presented in primary and secondary sources. Middle schoolers write their own WPA interviews after they...
Curated OER
The Federal Theatre Project
Students research the Federal Theatre Project and assess its accomplishments. Working in groups, they identify both successes and failure of the project and record their findings on a chart. Students explain the credibility of the...
Library of Congress
Loc: Prints and Photographs: Wpa Posters
Showcased is an exhibition of 926 posters (1936 -1943) from the Federal Art Project poster division at the Federal Art Gallery. The posters were designed to publicize a variety of events, from community activities to education in...
Digital History
Digital History: African Americans and the New Deal
Article discusses why African Americans supported Franklin Roosevelt despite the slight gains in civil rights offered by the New Deal.
George Washington University
Eleanor Roosevelt Papers Project: National Youth Administration
A good overview of the National Youth Administration and its goals in helping young people during the Great Depression. Of interest is the information on how invested Eleanor Roosevelt was in the development of the program.
Wikimedia
Wikipedia: New Deal
Describes in great detail what Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal program was, its objectives, and what happened over the years it was in place.
PBS
Pbs: American Experience: Riding the Rails: Timeline of the Great Depression
This timeline of the Depression begins in October of 1929 and highlights significant statistics or events, sometimes month by month, through November of 1940 when Roosevelt is re-elected for his third term. From bank collapses to dust...
Other
Webster's World of Cultural Policy: New Deal Cultural Programs
Detailed explanation of the cultural programs provided by the New Deal and the Second New Deal, including such things as the Works Progress Administration, the Federal Art Project, the Federal Music Project, the Federal Theatre project,...
![Mnhs: The Wpa Federal Art Projects in Minnesota, 1935 1943 [Pdf] Article](https://d15y2dacu3jp90.cloudfront.net/images/attachment_defaults/resource/large/FPO-knovation.png "Mnhs: The Wpa Federal Art Projects in Minnesota, 1935 1943 [Pdf] Article")
Other
Mnhs: The Wpa Federal Art Projects in Minnesota, 1935 1943 [Pdf]
An exhaustive look at the arts projects funded by the WPA Federal Arts program in Minnesota. These included music, writing, and pictorial projects throughout the state. This PDF file includes pictures and extensive footnotes.
Other
Employment and Training Institute: Wpa Milwaukee Handicraft Project
Article on a WPA program in Milwaukee which provided work for unskilled women laborers. Great resource for students of all ages.
Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History
Gilder Lehrman Institute: History Now: The Wpa: Antidote to the Great Depression?
[Free Registration/Login Required] A good assessment of the Works Progress Administration and its contribution not only of providing jobs for the unemployed during the Great Depression, but for the lasting improvements it made in the...
Other
Nypl Digital Gallery: National Youth Administration Collection
Find a series of photographs showing young people employed by the National Youth Administration as part of the Works Progress Administration during the New Deal. The photos have brief explanations and give information about the...
Other
Nypl Digital Gallery: Changing New York: Photographs by Berenice Abbott
See photographs taken by Berenice Abbott as part of the New Deal's Federal Artist Program. Her project was entitled Chaning New York. Find information about Abbott as a photographer and read information about each photograph.
Oklahoma Historical Society
Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture: National Youth Administration
Read about the goals of the National Youth Administration and the educational camps it funded during the Great Depression.
State Library-Florida
Florida Memory: Zora Neale Hurston and the Wpa in Florida
An account of the African-American writer Zora Neale Hurston and her experiences in Florida while working on the WPA. Includes a complete piece by Hurston entitled "Turpentine," photos and lesson plans.
OpenStax
Open Stax: Franklin Roosevelt and the New Deal 1932 1941: The Second New Deal
Examines the legislation enacted under Roosevelt's Second New Deal, and how the New Deal as a whole affected women, African Americans, and Native Americans.
Library of Congress
Loc: Today in History: April 8: Works Progress Administration
The Library of Congress' On This Day site gives an overview of the Works Progress Administration with links to information about various projects within the WPA available on the Library of Congress site.
Oklahoma Historical Society
Encyclopedia of Oklahoma: Federal Art Project
As part of the Works Progress Administration, the Federal Art Project's goal was to provide employment to artists who would be educators and creators of public art. Read about the legacy of the Federal Art Project in Oklahoma during the...
Library of Congress
Loc: The New Deal Stage: Federal Theatre Project (1935 1939)
An extensive collection from the Federal Theatre Project, part of Roosevelt's Works Progress Administration, which provided funds for the arts during the second phase of the New Deal. Find play scripts, posters, and stage and costume...
University of Oklahoma
Congressional Archives: Archives of the Great Depression
This site covers many aspects of the Great Depression and the New Deal programs meant to address the terrible economic issues.
Columbia University
Columbia University: Harlem Hospital Wpa Murals
Painted during the Great Depression and funded under the Works Progress Administration/Federal Art Project these murals carry with them a history worth noting.
Calisphere: University of California Libraries
Calisphere: Great Depression: Building Bridges, Dams, Power Plants
Primary source material on California during the Great Depression and how unemployment affected the building of the infrastructure including bridges, dams and power plants.