Dorothea Lange, in California sitting on top of a car with giant camera.(February 1936)
Interesting Facts, Goals and Achievements
Born May 26, 1895, in Hoboken, New Jersey as Dorothea Margaretta Nutzhorn.
Dropped her middle name and assumed her mother's maiden name (Lange) after her father abandoned the family when she was 12 years old.
Developed polio at age seven which left her with a weakened right leg and a permanent limp.
During the Great Depression, Lange studied and photographed the unemployed and homeless people. Her work captured the attention of local photographers and led to her employment with the federal Resettlement Administration (RA), later called the Farm Security Administration (FSA).
Lange's best-known picture is titled "Migrant Mother." The woman in the photo is Florence Owens Thompson, a 32 year old homeless mother of 7 children.
