WPA Posters

When making your New Year’s resolutions this year, why not take some advice from the New Deal? Many of these WPA posters offer maxims that are just as relevant today as they were 75 years ago. To name a few: "See America," "Spare Our Trees," “ Keep Your Teeth Clean,” and “ In March, Read the Books You’ve Always Meant to Read."

The 48 posters selected for this set come from the Library’s collection of over 900 WPA posters. (WPA meaning first Works Progress Administration, then Work Projects Administration.) The project evolved from a New York City effort and eventually spread to at least eighteen states and the District of Columbia. The original silkscreen, lithograph, and woodcut posters were produced between 1936 and 1943 as part of one of the first U.S. Government programs to support the arts. The posters, typically 22 x 14 inches in size, promoted exhibits, community activities, and health, safety, and educational programs.

The Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division preserves the original posters and offers the digital copies to ensure their wide availability.

For more information and to see the rest of the collection, visit:
www.loc.gov/pictures/collection/wpapos/