The indelible stamp of the New Deal can be seen across American in the public works projects that modernized the country even as they provided employment during the Great Depression. Tennessee, in particular, benefited from the surge in federal construction. The New Deal not only left the state with many public buildings and schools that are still in active use, but is conservation and reclamation efforts also changed the lives of Tennesseans for generations to come.
In Tennessee’s New Deal Landscape, Caroll Van West examines over 250 historic sites created from 1933 to 1942: courthouses, post offices, community buildings, schools, and museums, along with the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the Cherokee National Forest, and the dams and reservoirs of the Tennessee Valley Authority. He describes the significant and impact of each project and provides maps to guide readers to the sites described.
West discusses architectural styles that are often difficult to identity, and his lively narrative points out some of the paradoxes of New Deal projects-such as the proliferation of leisure parks during the nation’s darkest hours. In highlighting these projects, he shows that Tennessee owes much not only to TVA but also to many other agencies and individuals who left their mark on the landscape through roads, levees, and reforested hillsides as well as buildings.
An invaluable resource for travelers as well as scholars, this book reveals a legacy of historic treasures that are well worth preserving.
The Author: Carroll Van West is projects manager for the Center of Historic Preservation at Middle Tennessee State University. The author of Tennessee’s Historic Landscapes, he most recently edited the volumes Tennessee History: The Land, the People, and the Culture and the Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture. He is also senior editor of the Tennessee Historic Quarterly.
