dorothea lange

Dorothea Lange. Circa 1936 - image source

My recent look at the Great Depression, specifically the rural poor affected by the Dust Bowl, led me to Dorothea Lange's extraordinary collection of photographs. Ms. Lange worked for Roy Stryker's team of photographers and the Farm Security Administration (FSA) from 1935-1939 documenting the lives of displaced farmers, sharecroppers and migrant workers. Here are just a few of her photographs that have moved me:

Migrant Mother (age 32). Circa 1936 - image source

Penniless family. Circa 1936 - image source

Fairbanks family tent home. Circa 1939 - image source

Nettie Circa 1938 - image source

On a related note, I'm anxious to dive into "Heartland New Mexico, Photographs from the Farm Security Administration 1935-1943" by Nancy Wood that features Ms. Lange's photographs of Mills, Bosque Farms, and other resettlement areas in New Mexico. My paternal grandfather was a coal miner in nearby Raton, NM, and Ms. Wood's book revisits places depicted in the Ms. Lange's photographs.