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The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek


A story of raw courage, fierce strength, and one woman's belief that books can ...
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How did the WPA affect the people in this particular remote area and across the country? Do you think a program similar to the WPA would be a good thing today?

Created: 08/26/19

Replies: 13

Posted Aug. 26, 2019 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
davinamw

Join Date: 10/15/10

Posts: 3442

How did the WPA affect the people in this particular remote area and across the country? Do you think a program similar to the WPA would be a good thing today?

The Kentucky Pack Horse program was implemented in 1935 by the Works Progress Administration (WPA) to create women's work programs and to assist economic recovery and build literacy. How did the program affect the people in this particular remote area and across the country? Do you think a program similar to the WPA would be a good thing today?


Posted Sep. 03, 2019 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
marianned

Join Date: 07/02/15

Posts: 100

RE: How did the WPA affect the people in this particular remote area and across the country? Do you think a program similar to the WPA would be a good thing today?

This WPA program brought limited reading material to the people in this remote area of Kentucky. It also gave purpose to the women who took the books to their customers. Moreover, the women helped others become literate and boosted their education. Some resistance arose, though, because children were diverted from their farm chores. The sociio-economic situation was different enough then was different enough from today that I don’t think a WPA-like program today would work. Moreover, the situation in this country has t become desperate enough for the national government to come togetherness to approve and put together such a program for such a different society.


Posted Sep. 03, 2019 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
annl

Join Date: 04/03/17

Posts: 40

RE: How did the WPA affect the people in this particular remote area and across the country? Do you think a program similar to the WPA would be a good thing today?

As usual when government is too involved, a good concept is watered down in effectiveness. However, it gave folks access to books, and a minority female used this opportunity to become educated and land a job not otherwise open to her. Cussy approached folks in such a constructive manner, as she knew their way of life, she was able to work with them.
It is hard to say how this would work in today’s world. This program was a reach out with resources. Today’s programs seem to be more $ oriented.


Posted Sep. 03, 2019 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
Peg A

Join Date: 04/14/17

Posts: 12

RE: How did the WPA affect the people in this particular remote area and across the country? Do you think a program similar to the WPA would be a good thing today?

If the story is an accurate accounting which it seems to be, the WPA had a great effect on the lives that would accept the program. I would think it impacted the next generation to become literate and aware of a larger world beyond their own backyard


Posted Sep. 03, 2019 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
Maggie

Join Date: 01/01/16

Posts: 434

RE: How did the WPA affect the people in this particular remote area and across the country? Do you think a program similar to the WPA would be a good thing today?

Not only was it a means of education to revive these materials but also some of these people lived in remote places and it was a joy to visit and ask for certain help from these people.


Posted Sep. 03, 2019 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
Tired Bookreader

Join Date: 08/19/11

Posts: 209

RE: How did the WPA affect the people in this particular remote area and across the country? Do you think a program similar to the WPA would be a good thing today?

WPA was an ingenious program that brought self-esteem and money to people who were in need through no fault of their own. The projects only made life better for communities; obviously a lot of thought was used when deciding what the community's needs were. Sidewalks, buildings, services...all with something being paid forward. Could it work now? Not with the selfishness and 'me-first' attitude that is so prevalent.


Posted Sep. 03, 2019 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
Maggie

Join Date: 01/01/16

Posts: 434

RE: How did the WPA affect the people in this particular remote area and across the country? Do you think a program similar to the WPA would be a good thing today?

Not only was it a means of education and enjoyment to receive these materials but also some of these people lived in remote places and it was a joy to visit and ask for certain help from these people.


Posted Sep. 03, 2019 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
patty claire

Join Date: 04/05/19

Posts: 34

RE: How did the WPA affect the people in this particular remote area and across the country? Do you think a program similar to the WPA would be a good thing today?

The WPA had a great impact on some of these people, both the librarians and the patrons that were visited and received books. Cussy was kind and intuitive which enabled her to interact with some of the neediest. Her creative scrapbooks were so thoughtful and brought many of the poorest a little pleasure and helpful information. It is unfortunate that some of the people of Troublesome Creek looked at the WPA as charity and refused what was offered.


Posted Sep. 03, 2019 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
rivkahh

Join Date: 05/04/15

Posts: 35

RE: How did the WPA affect the people in this particular remote area and across the country? Do you think a program similar to the WPA would be a good thing today?

The program made a real difference both to the mountain people and the "book women" like Cussy. The program gave these people the opportunity to read books and magazines otherwise unavailable to them (and even receive reading instruction in some cases) and must have been a high point of their week. A program like this might indeed be more difficult today in this country, however, there are in fact similar services operating in other countries today, like Luis Soriano's Biblioburro initiative in Colombia.


Posted Sep. 03, 2019 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
gerrieb

Join Date: 09/03/19

Posts: 208

RE: How did the WPA affect the people in this particular remote area and across the country? Do you think a program similar to the WPA would be a good thing today?

THe WPA was of benefit to those that would accept what it offered. It provided services and jobs to often overlooked groups. The connections the “ book women” made in the far flung communities that were devoid of basic necessities might well have provided an inroad for other social programs to come. However, many Unions protested the WPA as it refused to pay the level of wages that the private sector did. The WPA was criticized for wasting money because the projects often cost many times that of a private company while often this was necessarily a result of hiring more workers . As I recall when the WPA was started in 1935 unemployment was 20% when it was ended in 1943, as production for the war effort increased the rate of unemployment was around 2%. While much can be learned from history it is often overly simplistic to transplant an idea that worked in one specific time and plop it down in another. While the Federal One part of the WPA ( the section that dealt with the Arts ) might be more easily adapted to work today.


Posted Sep. 04, 2019 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
mildas

Join Date: 05/11/16

Posts: 40

RE: How did the WPA affect the people in this particular remote area and across the country? Do you think a program similar to the WPA would be a good thing today?

The WPA was a way to educate and incorporate people into the work force. Because people were so receptive to books they learned to accept Cassy as a librarian and her blueness did not matter. She was good at her job and knew how to get the right book for each patron.
I do not think this program would work today. Today people have television, videos, video games. CDs, phones, kindles etc. and books are no longer the sole available entertainment. You can download a book from the library without leaving your home. This is both good and bad but it is reality.


Posted Sep. 04, 2019 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
reene

Join Date: 02/18/15

Posts: 497

RE: How did the WPA affect the people in this particular remote area and across the country? Do you think a program similar to the WPA would be a good thing today?

The WPA was a program that brought aid and money to communities that had little. It was a way of getting books to people who had never seen a book. The book women often provided books to the little schools that existed. Women were able to get a job, regardless of color. It also provided socialization for families that lived so far away that they may never see a neighbor. One problem with the program was it required that a worker take a "poverty oath" which would require them to remain poor and in the control of the government. Many miners would rather face the dangers of the mine.


Posted Sep. 04, 2019 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
lesleyf

Join Date: 05/14/11

Posts: 119

RE: How did the WPA affect the people in this particular remote area and across the country? Do you think a program similar to the WPA would be a good thing today?

The work done by the WPA (only one of several organizations attempting to save America and Americans from the devastation of the Great Depression which the federal government saw as necessary) was a terrific way to put people to work and help people learn in a time of fabulous devastation. We must NEVER make remarks about historical events without a good strong understanding of the times and the people in those times. Many, many people found a way to feel that they mattered by getting real jobs - across the country - building dams, repairing railroads, digging caves out so people could explore them, seeing and acting in theatre. The list of projects developed to make people feel human is quite long and, like the diseases that caused horrible damage before vaccinations, all but forgotten today.


Posted Sep. 09, 2019 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
alycet

Join Date: 04/23/12

Posts: 182

RE: How did the WPA affect the people in this particular remote area and across the country? Do you think a program similar to the WPA would be a good thing today?

WPA projects in my opinion brought a lot of literacy to the people isolated in the mountains. The projects also preserved a lot of history that would have bene forgotten otherwise. Would love to see something like this today. It would give employment to some who have been unable to find work. It could bring advantages of modern city life to less fortunate.


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