Description: Dated ca. 1935-1943, this photograph shows the Baldwin Homestead, built 1817-1820 by William Baldwin. The photograph's caption reads "William's father, Joseph, traded his Virginia Tannery for the original 120 acres in Moorefield Township; to which William later added about 2000 acres. At William's death, the estate was inherited by his father, and at the later's death by his eldest son, Judge Samuel Vance Baldwin, and at his death, the present site was inherited by his eldest son, William Baldwin, Esq., deceased, whose daughter and her husband have been the owners since 1924. The present owners, together with their daughter and grand-son, (sixth generation) occupy the homestead during the summer. This photograph is one of the many visual materials collected for use in the Ohio Guide. In 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the Works Progress Administration by executive order to create jobs for the large numbers of unemployed laborers, as well as artists, musicians, actors, and writers. The Federal Arts Program, a sector of the Works Progress Administration, included the Federal Writers’ Project, one of the primary goals of which was to complete the America Guide series, a series of guidebooks for each state which included state history, art, architecture, music, literature, and points of interest to the major cities and tours throughout the state. Work on the Ohio Guide began in 1935 with the publication of several pamphlets and brochures. The Reorganization Act of 1939 consolidated the Works Progress Administration and other agencies into the Federal Works Administration, and the Federal Writers’ Project became the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio. The final product was published in 1940 and went through several editions. The Ohio Guide Collection consists of 4,769 photographs collected for use in Ohio Guide and other publications of the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio from 1935-1939. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B01F10_040
Subjects: Architecture; Houses; Summer; Architecture
Places: Moorefield Township (Ohio); Clark County (Ohio)