Eleanor Roosevelt’s failed furniture business that built the New Deal

Val-Kill Industries

Eleanor Roosevelt National Historic Site in New York holds the story of a furniture business that changed America.

In 1926, Eleanor Roosevelt started Val-Kill Industries at her Hyde Park retreat to help struggling farmers learn traditional crafts like furniture making and metalwork.

The goal was simple: keep rural families from abandoning their farms for cities during the 1920s agricultural depression.

Master craftsmen taught skills while Eleanor promoted sales to high-profile customers, even filling White House orders.

The business failed in 1936, but its impact lived on when Franklin became president and used Val-Kill’s model to create New Deal programs that employed thousands of artists and craftspeople nationwide.

The Stone Cottage exhibit shows how this “failed” experiment became the blueprint for government programs that restored dignity to Depression-era Americans.

Three Women Turned Political Friendship into a Business Venture

Eleanor Roosevelt met Nancy Cook and Marion Dickerman in 1922 while raising money for New York Democrats. The three women quickly became friends and worked together on women’s voting rights and labor laws.

Franklin Roosevelt saw their growing friendship and suggested they build a cottage at Hyde Park for year-round country living. Caroline O’Day later joined as the fourth partner, bringing money to their business plan.

Their shared love for Democratic politics built trust that grew into a business partnership with social goals.

Rural America Faced a Farming Crisis Before the Great Depression

World War I created a boom for American farmers who sold food to Europe, but many took on big loans to grow. When European farming recovered after the war, American farmers faced too much food and falling prices.

This farm slump hit hard throughout the 1920s, with many losing farms across Dutchess County, New York. Franklin and Eleanor watched as local farmers left their family lands to find work in cities.

The rural crisis started years before the 1929 stock market crash.

The Factory Started With Italian Craftsmanship in a Dutch-Named Workshop

The four women set up their furniture workshop in 1926 on the Val-Kill property, using the Dutch word for “waterfall-stream.”

Eleanor asked Greenwich House craftsman Nicola Famiglietti to help find skilled Italian cabinetmaker Frank Landolfa. They built the factory next to Stone Cottage, with Landolfa picking all the machinery.

During winter 1926-1927, the workshop made its first furniture for the Roosevelt family cottage in Warm Springs, Georgia. The women focused on Colonial Revival furniture to keep traditional American craftsmanship alive.

Norwegian Immigrant Brought Museum-Quality Standards to Val-Kill

Otto Berge joined Val-Kill in summer 1927, bringing cabinetmaking skills he taught himself at the Metropolitan Museum.

The Norwegian knew traditional 1700s craftsmanship but often said Val-Kill’s designs weren’t authentic enough.

Nancy Cook handled quality control, creating a fifteen-step finishing process and making workers fill out detailed time sheets.

At its busiest, the factory employed between three and eight men making Colonial Revival furniture. Berge’s skills helped Val-Kill build a good name that brought in wealthy customers.

Famous Customers Helped the Business Take Off

Franklin Roosevelt became Val-Kill’s first customer when he ordered furniture for his Warm Springs cottage.

Henry Morgenthau Jr., who later became Treasury Secretary, placed a big order for his upstate New York country home.

Sara Roosevelt, Franklin’s mother, ordered tables for the James Roosevelt Memorial Library in Hyde Park.

The business held its first show at the Roosevelt townhouse in May 1927, which brought in more sales than they hoped for. These big-name customers spread the word about Val-Kill among New York’s rich social circles.

Workers Made Complete Pieces Instead of Assembly-Line Parts

Val-Kill’s work style stressed “craftsmanship, not speed,” with each worker making whole furniture pieces rather than just parts.

They kept costs down by making simple, traditional designs instead of fancy Queen Anne style pieces. All wood came from Ichabod T. Williams & Sons in New York City to make sure they used good, matching lumber.

Every piece got the Val-Kill stamp, and items made for family and friends got Eleanor Roosevelt’s signature stamp. This way of working valued the pride of craftsmanship over mass production.

White House Orders Came After the Business Peaked

The year 1930 marked Val-Kill’s most successful time despite the Great Depression, with factory growth and hiring of more cabinetmakers.

Arnold Berge came on board in 1934 to run the new Val-Kill Forge, which made pewter mugs, bowls, candlesticks, and lamps. After Franklin became president in 1933, Eleanor kept ordering pieces for the White House.

A separate weaving shop ran under Norwegian immigrant Nelly Johannesen with help from her son Karl. The business tried adding new product lines to survive the bad economy.

The Depression Forced Painful Cuts to the Workshop

Orders dropped badly by the end of 1930, forcing Val-Kill to let go most workers except Landolfa, Famiglietti, and Otto Berge. The remaining years saw few and scattered orders that couldn’t keep full-time jobs going.

Frank Landolfa started making small items from wood saved from the 1932 White House fix-up to stay busy. Money records show the business made small profits most years but lost $13,582 overall on an $18,610 investment.

The harsh reality of the Great Depression proved too much for the small workshop.

Personal Conflicts Led to the End of Val-Kill Industries

Frank Landolfa left after eight years as head craftsman to find steadier work elsewhere. Eleanor Roosevelt and Nancy Cook had a falling out in 1938 about where to take the business.

Otto Berge stayed through 1936 to finish the last orders, mostly making furniture for Eleanor’s cottage changes.

Val-Kill Industries closed for good in 1938, with Nancy Cook’s poor health and ongoing money troubles making it impossible to continue.

The business partnership ended, but the building would soon play a new role in Eleanor’s life.

The Workshop Transformed Into Eleanor’s Personal Haven

Eleanor hired architect Eric Gugler to change the factory into a cottage for herself and her secretary Tommy Thompson. Otto Berge took the tools and Val-Kill name to keep making furniture from his home workshop.

After Franklin died in 1945, Eleanor made Val-Kill her main home, hosting world leaders and continuing her political work there. Arnold Berge kept making pewter items at Val-Kill Forge until World War II began.

The former workshop became Eleanor’s quiet place where she shaped American politics and world relations.

New Deal Programs Copied Val-Kill’s Blueprint Across America

The Works Progress Administration organized over 3,000 craft projects that gave jobs to more than 5,000 artists and craftspeople.

The Farm Security Administration tested cottage industries based on Val-Kill’s philosophy of rural employment.

The Federal Art Project embraced traditional crafts as a way to restore human dignity and help Americans escape poverty.

A contemporary observer noted that Eleanor transformed a “national aesthetic movement into effective government programs.”

Val-Kill’s ideas about preserving rural communities through traditional crafts spread throughout government programs, creating a lasting legacy beyond the workshop’s walls.

Visiting Eleanor Roosevelt National Historic Site, New York

You can visit Eleanor Roosevelt National Historic Site for free at 54 Valkill Park Road in Hyde Park.

The Stone Cottage Visitor Center has exhibits about Val-Kill Industries, her handicraft business that helped shape New Deal policies.

You need advance reservations through Recreation.gov for Val-Kill Cottage tours.

The grounds and gardens are open daily from sunrise to sunset, but the cottage and visitor center close on Mondays and Tuesdays.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

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