Timothy Kelly - Hope in Hard Times

Hope in Hard Times

Hope in Hard Times

Norvelt and the Struggle for Community During the Great Depression

Timothy Kelly
Margaret Power
Michael Cary

The Pennsylvania State University Press

University Park, Pennsylvania

Library of Congress
Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Kelly, Timothy, 1960 , author. | Power, Margaret, 1953 , author. | Cary, Michael D., 1950 , author.

Title: Hope in hard times : Norvelt and the struggle for community during the Great Depression / Timothy Kelly, Margaret Power, Michael Cary.

Description: University Park, Pennsylvania : The Pennsylvania State University Press, [2016] | Includes bibliographical references and index.

Identifiers: LCCN 2015050848 | ISBN 9780271074665 (cloth : alk. paper)

Subjects: LCSH: Norvelt (Pa.)History. | Norvelt (Pa.)Social conditionsHistory. | Planned communitiesPennsylvaniaNorveltHistory. | New Deal, 19331939PennsylvaniaNorvelt. | Depressions1929PennsylvaniaWestmoreland County.

Classification: LCC F159.N88 K45 2016 | DDC 974.8/81dc23

LC record available at http://lccn.loc.gov/2015050848

Copyright 2016
The Pennsylvania State University

All rights reserved

Printed in the United States of America

Published by
The Pennsylvania State University Press,

University Park, PA 16802-1003

The Pennsylvania State University Press
is a member of the
Association of American University Presses.

It is the policy of The Pennsylvania State University Press to
use acid-free paper. Publications on uncoated stock satisfy
the minimum requirements of American National Standard
for Information SciencesPermanence of Paper for
Printed Library Material, ansi z39.481992.

Frontispiece: Lois and Jean Schlingman, painting
their house, ca. 1942. Photo: Lois Weyandt personal collection.

Figures

Maps

Tables

Many people assisted in the research and writing of this book, and we want to recognize many of them individually.

Many former and current Norvelt residents shared their memories of living in the New Deal community, and we list them in the bibliography. They provided vital insights into the lived experience of the homesteads, and were unfailingly generous with their time and memories. We would especially like to thank Earl Saville and Lois Weyandt for their unfailing generosity, for sharing their memories of life in Norvelt, and for opening their archives to us. We are very sorry that Earl died before this book was published.

The librarians at our home institutions offered guidance and support throughout the project that proved vital to our progress. At Saint Vincent College, Br. David Kelly, OSB, Denise Hegemann, and the rest of the library staff guided digital searches, lent materials from the stacks, and in many other ways helped with our research. Marlo Verrillas interlibrary loan wizardry made resources available almost instantly. At Seton Hill, Eileen Moffa worked to acquire interlibrary loan items quickly and cheerfully.

The staff of the National Archives and Record Administration in College Park, Maryland, was efficient and professional, and allowed us to gather critical documents and architectural drawings. In Chicago, at the Great Lakes Region branch of the National Archives, Glenn Longacre proved to be especially supportive of our research. Donald Davis at the archives of the American Friends Service Committee in Philadelphia guided us expertly through materials in their possession. Harrison Wick, archivist at the Indiana University of Pennsylvania Archives, graciously remained after normal hours to locate materials and provide digital image copies, and the friendly staff at the University of Pittsburgh Library were also very helpful. Elaine de Frank at the Coal and Coke Heritage Center, Penn State University Fayette, generously opened the centers rich archives on mining, miners, and the patch communities to us. We are especially grateful for the numerous interviews with miners and their families she made available to us.

At Saint Vincent College, we want to acknowledge the crucial role that Fr. Rene Kollar, OSB, played in supporting the work at every stage. He opened the monastery guest house for Margaret Powers visits to the region to work on research and writing and underwrote Tim Kellys expenses for critical research trips to Washington, D.C., and Philadelphia, as well as for conference presentations to share the work at important stages. The Faculty Development Committee awarded support on two separate occasions that expedited research and writing.

Saint Vincent College history majors offered key assistance to us at various stages in the project. Regina Brinza provided critical research assistance in the summer of 2011 in various archives and digital media. She unearthed important documents and accompanied two of the authors on a tour of Arthurdale, West Virginia. Stevie Kiesel, Bethanne Dishler, Zara Wallace, Johnny Sigg, and Casey Wertz worked diligently to transcribe oral interviews from recordings that we provided to them.

We want to offer special thanks to the editors at Penn State University Press. Patrick Alexander showed early interest in the book and offered a contract that provided a welcome boost. Kendra Boileau participated in a very productive meeting in January 2012 that helped to set the direction for the next few years of work. Most important to this project was Kathryn Yahners consistent support and extraordinary patience as we worked through the early drafting process, many revisions, and final editing.

This work was collaborative throughout, and we worked through all of the rewarding and stress-inducing experiences that inevitably arise among those working together on a project to produce such a volume. We know that our collaboration produced a stronger and richer work than any one of us could have produced alone. But the project also makes demands on those not directly engaged in the research and writing, such as family and friends. It is important to note the sacrifices that they have made throughout this projects long germination.

Tim: I would like to acknowledge the material and emotional support that my children, Caitlin, Erin, and Eamon, have offered consistently. Though they did not participate directly in the books production, they endured long discussions of its contents, and their patience and encouragement were vital throughout. They have come into adulthood during these Norvelt years. Kim has extended even greater patience and support, enduring endless discussions of details too minute even to make it into this volume. She has been gracious enough to remain interested in the project through many years, and has allowed it to roam around in our lives for far longer than either of us imagined when it began.

Margaret: I would like to thank Arthur, Joanne (deceased), John, Patrick, and Sheri Boyle for the hours of conversation about Westmoreland County and the unstinting hospitality they offered me as I conducted research for this book. I would also like to thank Joan Chandler for her suggestion for the book title. I am also grateful to David Montgomery, who shared his deep knowledge and insights into the U.S. labor movement with me. Had it not been for my mother, Flora Margaret Power, I would not have participated in this project. After falling and breaking her hip, she was hospitalized in Westmoreland County Hospital. The other patient in the room, with whom I briefly spoke, was from Norvelt. My conversation with her and the certainty that I would be making frequent visits to the area to take care of my mom, led me to undertake this project. I am very sorry my mom is not alive to witness the publication of the book; she would have been so thrilled by it! Melinda, my sister, was a great source of support during the writing. She kindly accompanied me to Saint Vincent College when I conducted research for the book and when Tim, Mike, and I met to chart it out.