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Marion Post Wolcott
Marion
Post
Wolcott
is
best
known
for
the
more
than
9,000
photographs
she
produced
for
the
Farm
Security
Administration
(FSA)
from
1938
to
1942.
She
was
the
first
woman
offered
a
full
time
FSA
appointment. Born
in
Montclair,
N.J.
her
mother,
Marion
"Nan"
Hoyt
Post,
was
an
ardent
activist
for
progressive
causes
working
with
Margaret
Sanger
the
founder
of
Planned
Parenthood.
Before
Wolcott
became
a
government
photographer,
she
was
at
first
a
teacher.
Moving
to
New
York
City
in
1936
she then
earned
her
living
making
photographs
for
magazines
and
newspapers.
Initially
she
worked
freelance,
then
as
a
staff
photojournalist
in
1937... Read More
and
1938,
Wolcott
broke
gender
barriers
in
the
newspaper
darkroom.
Then
she
worked
for
the
Farm
Security
Administration.
She
covered
thousands
of
miles
of
the
United
States
with
her
camera
to
document
and
publicize
the
need
for
federal
assistance
to
those
hardest
hit
by
the
Great
Depression
and
agricultural
blight.
Wolcott
also
contributed
120
color
photographs
to
the
FSA
when
Kodak
provided
early
samples
of
Kodachrome
film
to
the
staff
for
experimentation.
Drawing
on
her
social
concerns
and
her
artistic
vision
to
illustrate
issues
that
needed
redress,
Wolcott
produced
an
extraordinary
number
of
images
and
her
occupation
challenged
many
social
morés
about
the
propriety
of
young
women
living
away
from
the
family
home
and
traveling
on
their
own.
Her
artistry
and
perseverance
have
inspired
many
articles,
books,
and
exhibitions.
-
Library
of
Congress
5 Items