Federal Writers' Project – Life Histories/2015/Fall

Two English 105i classes for the social sciences have looked at the lives of southerners during the Great Depression. Partnering with the Documenting the American South Project, students have published individuals' life histories during the depression. Classes have engaged in archival research with material from the Southern Historical Collection at UNC’s Louis Round Wilson Library.

Project
Using the archives at the University of North Carolina's Wilson Library, students examined the life of one individual profiled by the Federal Writers' Project. These individuals ranged from farmers to fisherman to thieves and well beyond. Using FWP interviews,students not only documented the life of these individuals, but also examined the social, political, and cultural contexts surrounding each individual's life during the Great Depression. Below are the links to the student projects.

Sections
English 105i.018

English 105i.020

Additional Resources
Federal Writer's Project, 1936-1940 at UNC's Wilson Library