Florida's Great Depression began before the 1929 stock market crash, as economic hardship gripped the state in the wake of a burst land boom. As a popular country song quips, "somebody told us Wall Street fell, but we were so poor we couldn’t tell."

When President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Works Progress Administration (WPA) arrived, it didn't just rescue Florida's economy, it reshaped the state. This presentation explores how the WPA created everything from seawalls, parks, and murals to large-scale revitalization efforts like the dramatic transformation of Key West from near-abandonment to iconic destination. Join us to discover the lasting impact of New Deal ingenuity on Florida's cities, culture, and infrastructure.