Ohio Federal Writers' Project

Description

This photograph shows the Memorial Building at Baldwin Wallace College in Berea, Ohio, in Cuyahoga County, on April 13, 1937. Originally named Baldwin College, this institution of higher learning was founded in 1845 by John Baldwin. Like Oberlin College, Baldwin was one of the first colleges in Ohio to admit women and African Americans. Baldwin-Wallace is associated with the Methodist Church. In 1913, Baldwin College merged with nearby Wallace College, uniting the two schools' resources. This photograph is one of the many visual materials collected for use in the Ohio Guide. In 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the Works Progress Administration by executive order to create jobs for the large numbers of unemployed laborers, as well as artists, musicians, actors, and writers. The Federal Arts Program, a sector of the Works Progress Administration, included the Federal Writers’ Project, one of the primary goals of which was to complete the America Guide series, a series of guidebooks for each state which included state history, art, architecture, music, literature, and points of interest to the major cities and tours throughout the state. Work on the Ohio Guide began in 1935 with the publication of several pamphlets and brochures. The Reorganization Act of 1939 consolidated the Works Progress Administration and other agencies into the Federal Works Administration, and the Federal Writers’ Project became the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio. The final product was published in 1940 and went through several editions. The Ohio Guide Collection consists of 4,769 photographs collected for use...

Record Contributed By

Ohio History Connection

Record Harvested From

Ohio Digital Network