LIVINGSTON — In this photo from the 1930s, a work crew is seen converting an old chicken coop into residential housing in Livingston. The sign on the side of the building reads "USA WPA Work Program." WPA refers to the Works Progress Administration, a program founded under President Franklin D. Roosevelt with the passage of the Emergency Relief Appropriation Act...
LIVINGSTON -- In this photo from the 1930s, a work crew is seen converting an old chicken coop into residential housing in Livingston.
The sign on the side of the building reads "USA WPA Work Program." WPA refers to the Works Progress Administration, a program founded under President Franklin D. Roosevelt with the passage of the Emergency Relief Appropriation Act of 1935 to address the ongoing effects of the Great Depression.
According to pbs.org, "of all of Roosevelt's New Deal programs, the WPA is the most famous, because it affected so many people's lives. Roosevelt's vision of a work-relief program employed more than 8.5 million people. For an average salary of $41.57 a month, WPA employees built bridges, roads, public buildings, public parks and airports."
The acronym came to stand for "Work Projects Administration" when it was renamed by the federal government in 1939.
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