The agency and its 1935 mandate
Roosevelt established the WPA through Executive Order 7034 on May 6, 1935, placing it under the federal relief administrator. The order sought to move people from relief into public projects or private employment and made the agency responsible for coordinating the work-relief program.
It required progress reports, inquiries into wages and working conditions, and scrutiny of delays or projects providing insufficient employment. Central, regional, state and district offices connected funding, recruitment and project administration. Relief became an organized process of providing paid work.
From construction to cultural employment
Projects built and improved roads, bridges, parks and public buildings. Professional and cultural programs also employed people with skills beyond construction. Federal Project Number One supported art, music, theater and writing.
The Federal Writers' Project produced the American Guide Series, combining historical essays, local descriptions and tours for the forty-eight states and other places. The agency's 1937 promotional film We Work Again depicts African Americans in construction, training and cultural work. It records participation through the selective perspective of an agency publicity film.
Reorganization, closure and surviving records
In 1939 the agency became the Work Projects Administration within the Federal Works Agency, retaining the WPA initials. Wartime activities included defense-related projects. A presidential letter of December 1942 ordered closure, effective June 30, 1943, followed by liquidation work.
National Archives Record Group 69 preserves administrative, financial and project files, including records of predecessor relief agencies. Buildings, maps, recordings, photographs and publications provide further evidence of work relief in practice. The archival group's date range consequently extends beyond the agency's own lifespan.