Federal Writers' Project – Life Histories/2021/Summer/105/Section 15/Lolly Bleu

Overview
Lolly Bleu was born on the Gulf Coast of Texas in the late 19th century. Her exact date of birth is unknown. Bleu was interviewed by Barbara Darsey of the Federal Writer's Project on November 29th, 1938 on a small farm in rural Venus, Florida.

Personal Life
Bleu's exact location and date of birth is unknown but both her and her husband grew up in poor, farming families on the Texas Gulf Coast. The Bleu family eventually moved as squatters to an abandoned plot of land in Venus, Florida after hearing rumors of the rich farmlands. They found an old farmhouse on this land and converted it into their new home. Bleu was a mother of 13 children in total, one of whom, Edie, suffered from a developmental disorder. Edie required special attention from Bleu including assisted feedings of a special diet she created after receiving little access to doctors. Bleu always valued education, however, she never pursued degrees, enjoying country life more. Bleu had high hopes for her children’s education as she pushed them to make a long 2 mile walk from their rural farm to the bus stop every day. Furthermore, Bleu encouraged her daughter's to take any courses they could find, including business and stenography.

Besides being a farmer, Bleu found enjoyment in sewing quilts and canning some of the produce grown on their farm. When the family needed money, she sold her handmade goods. In addition to this source of income and money brought home by the kids, Bleu's husband, who's name is unknown, relied on work assistance from FERA after the Great Depression hit. Bleu was fond of the government's help. But she firmly believed that women should stay out of politics, leaving all voting up to her husband's decisions. Despite both being roughly in their 50's, Bleu and her husband were quite healthy. Bleu attributed this to farm work and long walks into town. Furthermore, she noted that she studied food values and made sure to feed her family a balanced diet. Bleu's cause, location, and date of death are all unknown.

Gender Roles
After widespread devastation hit the United States during the Great Depression, household members had to adjust. Many families moved into cheaper shanty towns, called Hoovervilles. Others relied on finding more sources of income. Many times, the responsibility for this task fell on women. In fact, between 1930 and 1940, the number of married women in the labor force increased by nearly 50 percent. The stereotype that men made the money and women focused solely on caring for the home began to vanish as women's work outside of the home reflected dire economic need. For example, impoverished mothers had to prioritize their family's finances at times by selling whatever they could make at home. In short, "flexibility and creativity" defined women's actions during this time.

Access to Education
“People are moving to farm areas not because there are explicit market-based employment opportunities available there, but because the farmland offers some other means of subsistence ." This observation perfectly sums up human migration throughout the Great Depression. Families were desperate to find land in areas that were not only cheap to buy but cheap to live at in the long run. Despite people spreading out into rural farm areas, schools did not follow with them. In fact, by 1934 almost 20,000 schools nationwide had closed down due to exorbitant administrative costs . This crisis affected poorer southern areas, such as Venus, Florida where Bleu lived, more intensely with many schools forcing children to pay tuition . Mothers were unable to provide their children with much education as they were already juggling responsibilities like family doctor, providing 24/7 healthcare to their families, free of charge, to save money. In order to combat this, the New Deal policy, created by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, included organizations to assist in making work education more accessible. For example, the Civilian Conservation Corps was chartered to provide young men with environmental conservation work.