Architectural Survey, Census of Old Buildings

About the Project

The Works Progress Administration (W.P.A.) was established on May 6, 1935 by Executive Order 7034 to coordinate the work relief projects supported by the United States Government. Taking over responsibility for the programs of the Federal Emergency Relief Administration, which went out of existence at the end of 1935, it became the lead agency in the federal government's efforts to provide work assistance for the unemployed during the later Depression years. An independent agency at first, on July 1, 1939, it was made a part of the new Federal Works Agency and its title was changed to Work Projects Administration. It was abolished on June 30, 1943, and finally liquidated a year later.

The Work Projects Administration for Connecticut, through its main offices in New Haven and district offices in other major cities, provided many “Works Programs” such as highway work, reforestation, and rural rehabilitation; by November 1935 over 15.000 persons were on the rolls, and by the end of March, 1936, 28,671 persons were at work on 963 different projects in Connecticut. However, those WPA records held by the State Archives relate almost exclusively to the Writers' Project and associated “white collar” activities, described in United States. One of these is the Architectural Survey, Census of Old Buildings.

This "census" (State Archives Record Group 33:28) was an outgrowth of the compilation of material for the guidebook Connecticut: A Guide to its Roads, Lore, and People (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1938; CSL call number HistRef F 100 .F45 1938). Elmer D. Keith, who had edited the important Colonial Dames books on historic Connecticut houses, had overall responsibility for the project. Using the Colonial Dames books, Edgar L. Heermance's The Connecticut Guide: What to See and Where to Find It, published by the Emergency Relief Commission, and visits to each town by members of his small staff, he compiled form reports providing descriptions of nearly 5,000 buildings, most illustrated with photographs. Although most of the fieldwork was completed by 1937, work continued beyond that. Some photographs show damage resulting from the 1938 hurricane; a few reports include photos of the house before and after the hurricane, and batches of survey forms and photographs continued to be sent to the State Library by the WPA New Haven office as late as the spring of 1942.<.p>

The original Building Survey Form Reports (FW-6), with attached photographs, contain architectural and historical data on individual houses and other buildings. Some include sketches of interior and/or exterior architectural details and/or a brief history of the building. The forms are arranged alphabetically by town; thereunder by number. The State Library has two sets of the survey, one of which is available for reference use. Other sets were deposited with the Antiquarian and Landmarks Society and the Connecticut Historical Society.