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Arthurdale, West Virginia

Arthurdale is an unincorporated community in Preston County, West Virginia, United States. Arthurdale was named for Richard Arthur, former owner of the land on which it was built, who had sold the land to the federal government under a tax default.

Arthurdale was the first of many New Deal planned communities established under Franklin D. Roosevelt's administration. It was intended to take impoverished laborers, farmers and coal miners and move them to a modern rural community that would allow them to become economically self-sufficient.

The idea for such a self-sufficient community originated when Eleanor Roosevelt learned through her friend, Lorena Hickok, of a plan to relocate a group of West Virginia coal miners to a nearby farm with the intention that they could combine subsistence farming with simple industries to reclaim their economic footing. Mrs. Roosevelt was so passionate about the concept that she brought it to the attention of her husband, who decided to place the project under the direction of the United States Department of the Interior.

Construction and growth

Construction began at the end of 1933 and from the outset it was clear that the Arthurdale community had become one of Eleanor Roosevelt’s chief priorities. She intervened with Interior Secretary Harold Ickes and with others to insure that the Arthurdale homes were built with modern necessities such as insulation and indoor plumbing. For some time she acted in the capacity of a micro-manager for Arthurdale, contacting people who could help bring jobs to the community, raising money and awareness, even monitoring the budgets with a close eye.

While Eleanor Roosevelt saw Arthurdale as an exciting new chance for the government to provide destitute citizens with the foundation for successful, self-sufficient lives, the project soon faltered on budgetary and political grounds. The cost of constructing and maintaining the Arthurdale community far exceeded what the government had anticipated and the idea of federally planned communities had never sat well with right-leaning conservatives. To its critics, it smacked of socialism, but Eleanor Roosevelt remained firmly committed to seeing Arthurdale succeed.

In 1938 Franklin Roosevelt delivered the only high school commencement address of his Presidency at Arthurdale. Eleanor Roosevelt continually visited the area, attending graduations, dances, and other gatherings, but always monitored the progress of construction as well. When the community failed to attract industry, Eleanor Roosevelt arranged for General Electric to open an operation there. Although General Electric did not stay for long, several other industries such as vacuum, faucet and tractor manufacturing as well as military supply industries tried to set up shop in Arthurdale with only the Sterling Faucet company having a long term presence. Additionally, most families found it impossible to cultivate sufficient crops to feed themselves, and many remained dependent on the relief system.

Decline and cancellation

By the late 1930s, Arthurdale had lost support in much of Washington, and even though Eleanor Roosevelt had chosen it as her pet project, she could not disuade Congress and the president’s cabinet from abandoning the project. As the United States transferred to a war economy, Arthurdale and the ideas it stood for became less relevant. In 1941, Arthurdale was returned to private ownership and property was sold to the homesteaders and speculators at a loss.

Although the venture is considered by many to be a failure, Eleanor Roosevelt always felt proud of her role in attempting to develop a self sufficient community. Most of Arthurdale's residents considered themselves far better off than they were prior to moving to Arthurdale. They felt that the modern government built homes offered them a higher quality of life then most others in the Appalachian coal fields at that time. The stable life that Arthurdale offered permitted many of the towns children to pursue educational goals and many of the homesteaders descendants went on to become successful professionals.

Eleanor Roosevelt returned to Arthurdale for the last time in 1960 to speak at the dedication ceremony of a new Presbyterian Church. The community itself continues to exist today, with many of the original structures still in use more than seventy years later. A non-profit organization was formed in 1985 and purchased several buildings. Arthurdale Heritage, Inc. continues to preserve and restore the town.