The Case:
History Detectives searches for connections between a collection of unusual paintings and the largest job creation program in America's history.
FDR’s New Deal work programs will put more than 8 million back to work. And not everyone is laying roads and mixing cement – the program also employs over 40,000 in various arts projects. This unprecedented harnessing of artistic talent will create thousands of paintings, sculptures and murals for public buildings across the country. But today, nearly a third of this artwork is missing. What happened to these important pieces of our nation’s history?
Evelyn Cook of Molalla, Oregon, has inherited some paintings that may be part of this lost work. Created by her aunt, Thelma Johnson Streat, she believes they were mural studies commissioned by the WPA in the 1930’s or 1940’s. The color illustrations depict contributions of African Americans in the fields of medicine, transportation and industry.
Did any of these studies become murals and do any of Streat's murals still exist?
Related Content
Feature:
Technique:
Technique:
Technique:
Related Links
Explore
-
Also in Depression and WWII: 1929-1945
Spanish Civil War Eulogy
What can this faded document tell about a US volunteer fighting in another country’s civil war?
-
Also in Depression and WWII: 1929-1945
Lindbergh-Sikorsky Fabric
How do the signatures on this patch of fabric connect Charles Lindbergh to another first in flight?
-
Also with Elyse Luray
Calf Creek Arrow
Is this arrow found in a bison skull just another hoax or an incredible archeological discovery?
-
Also with Elyse Luray
Cromwell Dixon Plane Fragment
What could this faded scrap of fabric tell us about the first pilot to conquer the Continental Divide?
-
Also with Elyse Luray
Muhlenberg Robe
Was this robe torn off during a fiery sermon to rally congregants to the cause of the Revolutionary War?
-
Also in this episode
Japanese Balloon Bomb
Is this scrap of fabric evidence of a secret wartime attack on the United States' mainland?
Comments
This is a place for opinions, comments, questions and discussion; a place where viewers of History Detectives can express their points of view and connect with others who value history. We ask that posters be polite and respectful of all opinions. History Detectives reserves the right to delete comments that don’t conform to this conduct. We will not respond to every post, but will do our best to answer specific questions, or address an error.