"Life Histories" were written about ordinary people from across the United States in the midst of the Great Depression by interviewers employed by the Federal Writers' Project (FWP), a part of the Works Projects Administration (WPA). The main objective of the WPA was to provide work for persons who were out of work --- the unemployed. The FWP provided work for writers and editors. A companion project, the Federal Arts Project (FAP), provided work for artists and for theater. The people interviewed in this book lived on ...
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"Life Histories" were written about ordinary people from across the United States in the midst of the Great Depression by interviewers employed by the Federal Writers' Project (FWP), a part of the Works Projects Administration (WPA). The main objective of the WPA was to provide work for persons who were out of work --- the unemployed. The FWP provided work for writers and editors. A companion project, the Federal Arts Project (FAP), provided work for artists and for theater. The people interviewed in this book lived on Edisto Island, South Carolina, one of the Sea Islands on the Atlantic Coast about 35 miles southwest of Charleston. Chalmers S. Murray, a district supervisor, conducted all but one of the interviews. Chal was an experienced newspaper man who later became a respected novelist, journalist, and short story writer. The other interviewer, Margaret Wilkinson, was a middle aged, single mother of a teenaged son. Later, she was a case worker for the Social Security Administration. During World War II, she was a volunteer "spotter," searching the Charleston skies for enemy warplanes. After the war, she earned a private pilot's license. These life histories were written without the use of recording equipment. The interviewers took notes as people spoke and wrote the stories afterwards. Fictitious names were used for places and people. "Edisto" was called "Etiwan," for example. As a result, the stories are not true "oral histories" as the term is used today. Despite these shortcomings, the stories offer glimpses into what life was like on Edisto Island from 1860 to 1940.
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Add this copy of Life Histories of Edisto Island, South Carolina: to cart. $32.63, good condition, Sold by Bonita rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Newport Coast, CA, UNITED STATES, published 2017 by CreateSpace Independent Publis.
Add this copy of Life Histories of Edisto Island, South Carolina: to cart. $61.13, new condition, Sold by Bonita rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Newport Coast, CA, UNITED STATES, published 2017 by CreateSpace Independent Publis.
