Miners also faced dangerous working conditions, from explosions and tunnel collapses to lung diseases from inhaling coal dust.

Coal companies would establish mines, often in remote areas, then build up camps or towns around them and financially exploit their workforce. Coal was discovered in Kentucky in the late 18th century, and by the early 20th, coal had become one of the state’s primary commodities. 1930s Kentucky was also the site of the “Harlan County Wars,” which were fought between coal mine operators and unionized miners in southeastern Kentucky. Despite the New Deal programs, the United States economy didn’t recover its pre-depression size until 1939. Its many agencies, including the Works Progress Administration (WPA) and the Civilian Conservation Corps, provided jobs for artists, writers, librarians, construction workers, firefighters, and foresters, among others. The New Deal combined a series of financial reforms and regulations designed to address monetary policy with a public works program designed create jobs. In the United States, the economy began to slowly improve starting in 1933, thanks in part to the New Deal program, which was created under President Franklin D. It caused a sharp drop in employment rates, wealth, and stability for many people. The Depression was a severe, worldwide economic crisis that began in 1929. The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek is set in the eastern Kentucky mountains during the final years of the Great Depression.

The book of woman of troublesome creek