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Category: FSA/OWI

Lights, Power, Action!

Posted by: Kristi Finefield

American poster artist Lester Beall was hired to design posters to garner support for the work of the Rural Electrification Administration (REA) in the 1930s. The REA was launched by President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Executive Order in May 1935, and then supported by Congress’ passage of the Rural Electrification Act in May 1936. At the …

A Few of My Favorite Things

Posted by: Jan Grenci

My latest Flickr album – A Few of My Favorite Things – will be my last. I’m retiring from the Library after 34 years. I’ve had the privilege of working with the collections of the Prints & Photographs Division and seeing a lot of great, memorable images. I’ve been able to share many of them …

Come Fly With Me – Part Two

Posted by: Jan Grenci

Last week, we started a compare/contrast journey through Washington National Airport in Arlington, Virginia via photographs taken by Jack Delano in July of 1941 for the Farm Security Administration and by me in April of 2024. Our journey concludes this week with four more picture sets. First up is an exterior shot: Let’s return to …

Come Fly With Me – Part One

Posted by: Jan Grenci

In July of 1941, Jack Delano photographed Washington National Airport, in Arlington, Virginia, for the Farm Security Administration. The airport had opened a month earlier. Earlier this month, I went to the airport to try to replicate some of Mr. Delano’s photos. I concentrated on what in 1941 was known as the waiting room and …

Posters Working Together

Posted by: Jan Grenci

I love to keep an eye out for photos from the P&P collections that show posters being displayed. I then search the poster collection to see if we have a copy of the actual poster. Here are some of the better examples from the World War II era. A 1942 poster by Jean Carlu, produced …