The old adage is true: history repeats itself. Few things prove this better than “FDR’s Brain Trust and the Beginning of the New Deal.”
Running through March 25, 2010, the new exhibit at the New York Historical Society highlights former President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s assembly of advisors—many of whom were professors at Columbia—and the part they played in the creation of the New Deal.
The primary inspiration for the exhibit was drawn from the similarities between the 2008 election and FDR’s election in 1932. Jean Ashton, Curator, Executive Vice President and Director of Library at the New York Historical Society, said that “there was a good deal of speculation among our constituents who were worried about the parallels between Obama and FDR’s situation, the state of the country, and the depression.”
In the years leading up to 1932, FDR accumulated a group of people to help him create his campaign and establish his role as president. This group included the agricultural economist Rexford G. Tugwell, law professor Raymond Moley, political theorist Adolf Berle, and lawyer Samuel Irving , all of whom were on the Columbia University faculty. “‘Brain Trust,’” Ashton said, “was a term coined by a reporter and it sort of caught on. At the time, there was a really profound distrust of intellectuals.”
The Brain Trust made waves. Bringing together all these great minds in the same place led to an explosion of intellectual ferment. FDR’s famous “We have nothing to fear but fear itself” speech was the product of extensive collaboration within the Brain Trust. In addition, and perhaps most notably, the New Deal was conceived and eventually executed by these men.
At first glance, the exhibit does not seem large enough to hold all the information it provides. The background section presents a collage of passionate newspaper articles and posters about the state of the economy and the political events at the time. In the foreground are photos of the members of the Brain Trust, with a note detailing their involvement in FDR’s election and tenure. There are many maps and etchings—one detailing Hooverville, which could be seen from Columbia office windows.
Though the exhibition is small, it is still applicable today. “It touches on issues that people are fighting and thinking about,” Ashton said.
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