Young girl weaving in Arthurdale. Courtesy of the Library of Congress.
Arthurdale, West Virginia was the first planned New Deal homestead in the United States. It was built during the Great Depression and spearheaded by then-First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt. Today it exists as a collection of private homes and preserved historic structures.
At Arthurdale, residents learned crafts, trades, and skills to earn money for themselves and the community. In 1934, Arthurdale started a weaving cooperative with 9 looms. Instructors from Berea College in Kentucky taught Arthurdale's women to weave, and they produced clothes, rugs, tablecloths and other beautiful functional items. They also spun linen, cotton, and wool. These items were used at home, sold to visitors at Arthurdale's Craft Shop, and shipped across the country. Weaving became so popular that classes were offered to girls in school. Quilting was also a popular pastime.
Today, Arthurdale still has looms that community members use for classes and projects. There is a rich tradition of spinning and loom weaving throughout West Virginia, and this can be seen in the work of contemporary fiber artists, at the meetings of organizations like the Arthurdale Heritage Fiber Guild and the Mountain Weavers Guild of West Virginia, and in the items preserved and displayed by Arthurdale Heritage in their traveling exhibition titled Interwoven: The Fiber Arts Legacy of Arthurdale.
More information about Arthurdale is available here: https://arthurdaleheritage.org/history-of-arthurdale/ and https://arthurdaleheritage.org/history-of-arthurdale/cooperative-community/#spinning