Oregon’s Legacy: The New Deal at 75

Beaver Hall
April 18-August 17, 2008

2008 marks the 75th anniversary of the inauguration of the New Deal, a series of programs that resulted from legislation President Franklin Delano Roosevelt initiated as soon as he took office in March 1933. Most Americans do not personally remember the Great Depression which prompted Roosevelt to enact the New Deal legislation, but we are living with its legacy.

New Deal legislation changed American life in dramatic ways. In the 1930s, no Social Security system existed. Before federal housing legislation provided a mortgage system that enabled great numbers of Americans to become homeowners, that luxury was one only 40 percent of what Americans could afford. Before federal banking laws helped stabilize the banking industry, bank failures were so common that many Americans would not trust banks with their money. New Deal programs addressed these issues through federally legislated social and economic reform.

The New Deal also included programs that provided jobs for the unemployed and destitute during the 1930s. Today, many older Americans fondly remember participating in those public works projects, including dams, rural electrification, airports, parks, public buildings, such as schools and libraries, roads, tunnels, bridges, and trails, many of which are still used today. Art produced under the Federal Art Project serves as a visible reminder of the New Deal in schools, museums, post offices, and at Timberline Lodge. Many people cared deeply about the work they did painting, blacksmithing, working with wood and stone, and in other mediums for public works projects. Having a job also brought workers self-respect and confidence that had been lost during years of unemployment.

This exhibit briefly summarizes the programs and focuses primarily on the tangible remains of what was built by the New Deal. The artifacts gathered here commemorate the thousands of workers who participated in the Public Works Administration, Works Progress Administration, Civilian Conservation Corps, and other public works programs of the New Deal.