Above: Part of an article from the Medford Mail Tribune (Medford, Oregon), May 17, 1937, p. 2, highlighting some of the WPA's work in the state, including Northbend Airport, road construction in Josephine County, and "The expansion and beautification of Grants Pass municipal park." The WPA was very active in Oregon, creating 2 million articles of clothing, serving almost 10 million school lunches, constructing or improving 5,000 miles of roadway, installing 346 miles of new water lines, and much more (Federal Works Agency, Final Report on the WPA Program, 1935-1943, Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1947, pp. 134-136). Image above courtesy of newspapers.com, and used here for educational and non-commercial purposes.
Above: One of many WPA-produced writings about Oregon, 1935-1943. Other titles include, An Oregon Almanac for 1940; Auburn: Ghost Town; Fire Prevention in Portland; History of Portland's Women's Club; and Oregon: End of the Trail (part of the American Guide series). Image courtesy of Hathitrust.
Above: A WPA recreation project for children in Oregon, ca. 1935-1943. Image courtesy of the National Archives.
Above: The description for this photograph, taken between 1935 and 1943, reads, "Oregon - Rhythm Band. At this Children's Play Center in Oregon, part of the WPA Recreation Program, the children find the rhythm band a very interesting activity." Photo courtesy of the National Archives.
Above: Part of a newspaper article from the Statesman Journal (Salem, Oregon), November 10, 1938, p. 6. Not only were WPA music classes popular, but so were WPA music performances. For example, in January 1942, 20,000 Oregonians attended music shows put on by the WPA (Federal Works Agency, Final Report on the WPA Program, 1935-43, Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1947, p. 134). Image from newspapers.com, used here for educational and non-commercial purposes.
Above: The most famous of the WPA projects in Oregon, Timberline Lodge, ca. 1938. Photo courtesy of the National Archives.
Above: In this audio clip, we hear President Franklin Roosevelt give an address at Timberline Lodge, September 28, 1937. The transcript for this speech can be viewed at the American Presidency Project, here. At 3:25 in the audio, FDR says, "This Timberline Lodge marks a venture that was made possible by W.P.A., emergency relief work, in order that we may test the workability of recreational facilities installed by the Government itself and operated under its complete control." Recall that the U.S. Government is supposed to be, "We the People," so it makes perfect sense that we control some of our own recreation. FDR's speech was aired on the Columbia Broadcast System (CBS), and is used here for educational and non-commercial purposes.
Above: Part of an article from The News-Review (Roseburg, Oregon), October 15, 1940, p. 1, highlighting a boost in money for the New Deal's National Youth Administration. Image from newspapers.com, used here for educational and non-commercial purposes.
Above: The Oregon State Capitol, funded by the New Deal's Public Works Administration (PWA), ca. 1938. Photo courtesy of the National Archives.
Above: American Indians in Oregon benefited from a large influx of New Deal money and legislation designed to preserve their land (and return some that was taken); help them start businesses or run successful farms; have a greater level of self-government; and improve their infrastructure (hospitals, schools, roads, etc.). The photo above is most probably from a CCC land-grading project. There were also New Deal-American Indian land projects to reduce soil erosion, prevent wildfires, and irrigate. Photo from the U.S. Office of Indian Affairs, Indians at Work, July 1, 1936, p. 31.
Above: The Oregon section of a map from LIFE magazine, January 4, 1937, highlighting New Deal projects across the nation. Image scanned from a personal copy, used here for educational and non-commercial purposes.
Here were (and are) some more New Deal benefits for Oregonians:
Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC): Between 1933 and 1942, in Oregon: 1,317 bridges constructed (foot, horse, vehicle); 276 fire lookout houses and towers; 49 million trees planted; 681,000 man-days fighting wildfires; and much more (Perry H. Merrill, Roosevelt's Forest Army: A History of the Civilian Conservation Corps, 1933-1942, 1981, p. 166).
Civil Works Administration (CWA): By January 1934, there were 27,000 formerly jobless Oregonians working in the CWA, creating or improving all sorts of public works in the state (Works Progress Administration, Analysis of Civil Works Program Statistics, June 1939, p. 18).
Public Works Administration (PWA): By 1939, at least 170 large-scale infrastructure projects (bridges, dams, buildings, utility plants, and more) were completed in Oregon, and another 121 were under construction (Public Works Administration, America Builds: The Record of PWA, Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1939, p. 285).
Work Division of the Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA): To control the spread of typhus, the FERA helped exterminate rats in Oregon, 1934-1935. Typhus, like bubonic plague, is a bacterial disease transmitted from rats (and other pests) to humans via fleas (Federal Emergency Relief Administration, The Emergency Work Relief Program of the F.E.R.A., April 1, 1934 - July 1, 1935, p. 80).
Section of Fine Arts (SFA): The New Deal's SFA commissioned artworks, for public benefit and appreciation, in the Oregon towns of Burns, Eugene, Grants Pass, Newberg, Ontario, Portland, Salem, St. Johns, and Tillamook (Final Report, Section of Fine Arts, Public Buildings Administration, October 16, 1934 to July 15, 1943, p. 23).
Rural Electrification Administration (REA): In February 1940, Guy M. Buford, president of the Benton-Lincoln Electric Cooperative (western Oregon), said: "Most farmers know--to their sorrow--what it is like to do without electricity. For decades electricity was denied rural people for the simple reason that they lived in the country. The denial was an old, old story. The coming of the Rural Electrification Administration in 1935 changed the story. For the first time farmers no longer had to beg for electricity. With the REA, they could get electricity through their own efforts. The dead-end sign on the road to the future was removed" ("190 Miles Wires For REA Project Started at Once," Corvallis Gazette-Times (Corvallis, Oregon), February 21, 1940, p. 1).
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