Excerpts from Samuel Koenig/Rodnic on Ethnic factors

The Federal Writers' Project was created in 1935 as part of the United States Work Progress Administration to provide employment for historians, teachers, writers, librarians, and other white-collar workers. Originally, the purpose of the project was to produce a series of sectional guide books under the name American Guide, focusing on the scenic, historical, cultural, and economic resources of the United States. Eventually the new programs developed and projects begun under the Federal Emergency Relief Administration were absorbed by the writers' project. The materials for Connecticut reflect areas of interest developed by the project, especially rural and urban folklore, including individual narratives and life histories and studies of customs of social and ethnic groups.