Sustainable Arthurdale: A Reevalution of a 1930s Planned Community

The Great Depression affected Appalachian towns with severe economic distress and dislocation. This research focuses on a New Deal experiment in sustainable housing initiated by Eleanor Roosevelt. Early in her husband’s administration, she championed the design and construction of the planned community of Arthurdale, West Virginia. Composed of single-family homes built during three phases with a central complex of shared services, the planned town of Arthurdale has retained connections to several original residents and maintains a strong sense of community and belonging. This research explores the community design components—particularly the innovative education system—of Arthurdale, coupled with the sustainable features inherent in the houses and its approach to sustenance farming, and considers the impact on the long-term success of the residents. For this work, a mixed-methods approach was used with an initial quantitative survey and a subsequent focus group. Survey results indicated that themes of sustainability, community, and education were values that were uniquely shared by original town residents and subsequent generations. These values can affect contemporary models of sustainable community development.