Federal Writers' Project WPA Guide to Colorado

Annotation

During the 1930s in the United States, the Works Progress Administration developed the Federal Writers Project to support writers and artists while making a national effort to document the countrys shared history and culture. The American Guide series consists of individual guides to each of the states. Little-known authorsmany of whom would later become celebrated literary figureswere commissioned to write these important books. John Steinbeck, Saul Bellow, Zora Neale Hurston, and Ralph Ellison are among the more than 6,000 writers, editors, historians, and researchers who documented this celebration of local histories. Photographs, drawings, driving tours, detailed descriptions of towns, and rich cultural details exhibit each states unique flavor.The WPA Guide to Colorado, not surprisingly, emphasizes the natural beauty of the Highest State. With a landscape ranging from alpine mountains with lush forests to arid deserts with massive sand dunes and a history that includes a rich Native American presence as well as booming mining and agriculture industries, the WPA guide shows how Colorado has earned the moniker the Colorful State.