During November 1940, Norwich, CT was still in the grasp of the Great Depression which had commenced nearly seven years earlier. Europe was already embroiled in World War Two and the U.S. was still a year away from the attack on Pearl Harbor that would mark this country’s entry into the war.
It was in this atmosphere that a young photographer Jack Delano arrived in the city of Norwich. Employed by the Farm Services Administration, his mission was to travel to cities, small towns and rural areas of this country documenting the everyday lives of Americans. Destined to become one of the nation’s premier photojournalists, Delano spent part of November 1940 creating a portfolio of images of the city of Norwich.
You can view these photographs on the library’s Flicker site. Here is the link to the Norwich 1940 album.
There is also a short video of some of these photos of Norwich by Jack Delano.