by Nancy Hoffman

In 1933, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt introduced the social programs of the New Deal to the people of America. Laboring under the economic collapse known as the Great Depression, people needed jobs, many were homeless, and more lived in dire poverty. This was graphically true in rural areas. One such was Scotts Run, a stretch of coal mining land in West Virginia that caught the attention of First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt. She determined to help the people there by re-settling them in a new, self-sufficient community called Arthurdale.

Eleanor Roosevelt had grown up in wealth and privilege, but her life had been full of personal hardships. Energetic and determined as a First Lady, she was a lightning rod for critics who thought that her "pet project" couldn’t work—but she held fast and proved them wrong. To the refugees from the slag heaps, Arthurdale was the answer to their dreams. Here were tidy homes with furniture and indoor plumbing; a place for planting gardens, sending children to school, learning new trades in new industries, and working together for the good of the community. Arthurdale, nestled in the green hills of West Virginia, changed the lives of its first families forever.

Eleanor Roosevelt and the Arthurdale Experiment is the chronicle of an unlikely relationship between a president’s wife, the poorest of the poor, and the dream they shared. It is told through the eyes, ears, and memories of those who were children in Arthurdale. And it is a testament to a remarkable First Lady who never abandoned her ideals or the settlers, even though the government later did.

About the Author

Nancy Hoffman received her B.A. in journalism from Indiana University and her M.A., also in journalism, from West Virginia University. She has worked as a radio reporter and public television producer and now resides in Tennessee with her husband and their two daughters. This is her first book.

“Arthurdale, West Virginia, is the site of an important social-engineering project initiated by Eleanor Roosevelt. Designed to improve the lives of coal miners and their families who were suffering from the economic effects of the Great Depression, the planned community included farms, homes, schools, shops, and medical facilities. The government bought the land with the understanding that the residents would homestead it and repay the loan after achieving a self-sustaining community. The community and others like it were to be models for eliminating poverty. Roosevelt’s pioneering effort in community-building offers an interesting commentary on how government support made a difference in people’s lives but could not resolve their economic or social problems. It was Roosevelt herself who entered peoples’ homes, engaged them in conversation, brought modern educational methods to the school, and made a lasting impression on the people she touched. Hoffman’s debut effort weaves the historical context of Arthurdale with a biographical approach to Eleanor Roosevelt’s life and personality. . . . Black-and-white historical photos illustrate the text. Notes, bibliography, and an index are included.”-- Kirkus Reviews (August 2001)