The Great Depression - End of the Great Depression

The WPA

This New Deal program made it possible for almost any one to get a job. The WPA, or Works Progress Administration, put people to work by building schools, hospitals, parks, playgrounds and airports. The WPA also hired artists, photographers, actors, and music composers.

The WPA hired artists to create miniatures of colonial and frontier life.
Artifacts Courtesy SIUC Museum

Dolls
The production of dolls during the Great Depression gave poor unemployed children and women jobs to feed and support their families. In rural Arkansas, girls and women carved figures out of certain trees, usually paw-paw or hawthorn and sometimes, cedar wood or iron wood. They would then tie bundles of cloth torn from old dresses or skirts to the figures and sell them.

Dolls from the Naomi Clark Collection
Artifacts Courtesy SIUC Museum

Fred E. Myers
Fred E. Myers (1910-1950) was a great carver who was not well known outside of Southern Illinois. For many years he mined coal in his home area, but when the depression hit in Southern Illinois, the coal mine closed, and he capitalized on his carving abilities. In 1939 he found a job working as a carver in the WPA project for the Southern Illinois University Museum. During his three-year association with the museum, Myers carved thirty-five pieces which were used for display and educational purposes.

The carving at the right shows a farmer peering off into the distance while his dog stands on two hind legs looking for attention.

Farmer with His Dog

Artifact Courtesy of the SIUC Museum

Painting Courtesy of the SIUC Museum

Painting Courtesy of the SIUC Museum

Walter P. Robinson
This painting by W.P. Robinson describes the hardships of American life during the Depression. It shows a preacher and farmers praying for rain so their crops wouldn't die.
Maude Craig
This painting by Maude Craig shows a church on a Sunday morning with old women, the pastor, and small children.

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The WPA
This New Deal program made it possible for almost any one to get a job. The WPA, or Works Progress Administration, put people to work by building schools, hospitals, parks, playgrounds and airports. The WPA also hired artists, photographers, actors, and music composers.

The WPA hired artists to create miniatures of colonial and frontier life. Artifacts Courtesy SIUC Museum

Dolls The production of dolls during the Great Depression gave poor unemployed children and women jobs to feed and support their families. In rural Arkansas, girls and women carved figures out of certain trees, usually paw-paw or hawthorn and sometimes, cedar wood or iron wood. They would then tie bundles of cloth torn from old dresses or skirts to the figures and sell them.	Dolls from the Naomi Clark Collection Artifacts Courtesy SIUC Museum

Fred E. Myers Fred E. Myers (1910-1950) was a great carver who was not well known outside of Southern Illinois. For many years he mined coal in his home area, but when the depression hit in Southern Illinois, the coal mine closed, and he capitalized on his carving abilities. In 1939 he found a job working as a carver in the WPA project for the Southern Illinois University Museum. During his three-year association with the museum, Myers carved thirty-five pieces which were used for display and educational purposes. The carving at the right shows a farmer peering off into the distance while his dog stands on two hind legs looking for attention.	Farmer with His Dog Artifact Courtesy of the SIUC Museum

Painting Courtesy of the SIUC Museum	Painting Courtesy of the SIUC Museum
Walter P. Robinson This painting by W.P. Robinson describes the hardships of American life during the Depression. It shows a preacher and farmers praying for rain so their crops wouldn't die.	Maude Craig This painting by Maude Craig shows a church on a Sunday morning with old women, the pastor, and small children.