The New Deal

Photo courtesy of San Francisco History Center, San Franciso Public Library

This year (2008) marks the 75^th anniversary of the New Deal social programs created under former President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s administration. To commemorate this historical anniversary, the Art, Music & Recreation Center, Business, Science & Technology Center, Government Information Center, and San Francisco History Center are currently showcasing three exhibitions on the New Deal, highlighting historical photographs, illustrations, books, and ephemera from the San Francisco Historical Photograph Collection. To learn more about the New Deal, its origins and impact on the U.S. economy during the Great Depression, check out the Encyclopædia Britannica Online:

1. Go to the SFPL Home Page and select “Articles & Databases.” You will need a San Francisco Public Library card to access the databases from outside the Library.

2. Under the Categories side bar on the left, select “Encyclopedias & Dictionaries,” then “Encyclopædia Britannica Online.”

3. In the search box, enter the phrase “new deal.”

The first link presents an overview of the New Deal while the right-hand column features historical photographs, videos, and artwork from this significant chapter in U.S. history.

The Encyclopædia Britannica Online contains a wealth of information including magazine and journal articles, photographs, maps, illustrations, audio files, videos, high-quality Web sites, other forms of interactive multimedia, and more. You can browse through a list of alphabetically arranged topical subjects or run keyword searches on a topic of your own.