Jerry B. Thomas is the author of An Appalachian New Deal: West Virginia in the Great Depression

Your background is in political sciences and history - what brought a period of economic decline to your interest?
As an undergraduate at West Virginis University in political science and history classes, I became very much interested in American history and pursued the interest in classes with professors Festus Summers, William Barns, and Wesley Bagby. Dr. Summers taught West Virginia History. In Dr. Barns' Recent American History class I especially enjoyed studying the Depression and New Deal era. Dr. Bagby's course in American Diplomatic History addressed critical issues of the day. All of these gentlemen knew how to teach, and they inspired me to pursue history further, eventually leading to my decision to seek a doctorate in history at the University of North Carolina.

Was your treatment of the topic informed at all by your Peace Corps service in the Dominican Republic?
My Peace Corps service provided training in community organizing and so it gave me an added perspective when I came to deal with New Deal era organizing by labor unions and government agencies like the Civil Works Administration or the Works Progress Administration. When later (in writing An Appalachian Reawakening: West Virginia and the Perils of the New Machine Age, 1945-1972) I came to write about the Appalachian Volunteers and Volunteers in Service to America, the Peace Corps experience became more directly relevant, because the AVs and VISTAs followed Peace Corps training models. The volunteers in those programs probably had training similar to what I had as a Peace Corps Volunteer, and because we were similar in ages, I think I had a good understanding of their motivations and goals. In retrospect, it does seem a little strange to me that I went to the Dominican Republic, and young people from other parts of the US came to my hometown.

Why focus on West Virginia?
For a very practical reason. At Shepherd University my focus was on Recent American History, but one semester my colleague who usually teaches West Virginia History went on leave, and I was assigned the course. When I came to the Depression era in my preparations for the course I found few useful sources. I still had my notes from my undergraduate course with Professor Summers, but little else. So, my original purpose was to put together some material for the course and maybe prepare a journal article. Ten years or so later, it turned out to be a book manuscript.

Another reason that kept me focused on WV was that I grew up on tales of the Great Depression as told me by my parents and others of their generation. That's why I dedicated the book to my parents. In the second book, I am interested in the history of my contemporaries.

What sets An Appalachian New Deal apart from less specific treatments of the topic beside their size?
An Appalachian New Deal really filled a void in the historiography of the state. Remarkably, more than a half century after the events, no history of the Depression and New Deal in WV existed, and this was all the more remarkable, because WV had been something of a poster child of the Depression, attracting the attention of the White House even in the days of Herbert Hoover. Later, Eleanor Roosevelt as first lady spent a lot of time in WV, and the national press gave the state's condition a lot of attention. So I thought it a story deserving of historical attention, and I thought a well-researched book on the period would be helpful to students and teachers of West Virginia history and of interest to general readers. I hope An Appalachian Reawakening will fill similar needs.

Could you describe how you went about researching these titles?
I researched An Appalachian New Deal by attempting to read all the relevant secondary literature about the New Deal and about WV in the period. Accounts of the era in other states especially interested me as they provided a basis for comparison with the West Virginia experience. Most important, I engaged in multi-archival research, reading personal papers of anyone in the period that I could find as well as local, state, and federal government records of the period. There were a few oral history records of the period available. I also read a lot of newspapers and journals of the era, a very rich source for finding out what people were thinking at the time. I went about the research for An Appalachian Reawakening in a similar fashion, but more oral histories are available for the later period. I was also able to do more through personal contacts, largely through email.

What constituent issues still merit particular attention at this point?
The issues of the 1930s are still very topical. Now as then, the fate of the coal industry looms over questions about the future and the nature of life and labor in much of the region, though the coal industry employs many fewer than then. Now, as then, we debate taxation, and the depression era tax limitation amendment still impacts public policy. Now, as then, the main topics of public policy are the appropriate roles of counties, municipalities, and the state in governance. Now, as then the other big issues of public policy are schools, state institutions, and roads. And, now, as then, issues of health and social welfare require much attention.

What satisfaction have you derived from the topic?
It was very satisfying to fill a historical vacuum, to make a contribution as a historian, and to have it well-received by professional colleagues and students. Researching and writing An Appalachian New Deal also fed my interest in the general period and helped me to create a course that I called "An Age of Crises, 1917-1945." Similarly, I think An Appalachian Reawakening will fill a gap in state and regional historiography.

How long did it take for you research and write An Appalachian New Deal?
An Appalachian New Deal took about ten years. An Appalachian Reawakening has taken a bit longer, nearly twelve years.

What difficulties did you encounter during the writing process?
Because of the heavy teaching and committee load I carried, during long periods of the academic year I had to put research and writing aside and concentrate on class preps, blue books, and meetings. Most of the research and writing for both books were done during summer months. Also, I tend to be a slow writer, going through extensive rewrites and agonizing a lot over the task. I enjoyed most the research and always took delight in finding new, interesting, and revealing information. Reading other people's mail, which is part of what historians do, can be lots of fun. It's also interesting to meet other people along the way engaged in researching other topics and to share ideas.

Do you have any other projects in the works?
An Appalachian Reawakening: West Virginia and the Perils of the New Machine Age, 1945-1972 nears completion and will be published by West Virginia University Press later this year.

I am also retracing my steps a bit, going back to the New Deal era West Virginia Writers Project, to research material for some talks I plan on the topic.