One of the highlights of the collection arriving this week is an NRA labeled dress (made out of a wild textile! check it out here!).
N.R.A. in this context stands for National Recovery Administration.
The National Recovery Administration was one of many programs initiated by president Franklin D. Roosevelt to help the country cope with and recover from the economic impacts of the Great Depression. In this case, a collaborative effort between government and privately owned businesses to reduce competition and garuantee fair wages, fair labor practice, and price of goods across industries.
The program was initiatied in 1933 and declared unconstitutional (and subsequently ended) in 1935. Businesses who "Did Their Part" and voluntarily participated in the program displayed a Blue Eagle insignia on their businesses and products to indicate a certain level of patriotism and solidarity with workers.
The Blue Eagle label found on some garments sewn during that interval is therefore incredibly helpful with dating! We can narrow an item's age to a 2 year window. The interesting history, dating certainty, and relative scarcity of NRA labels makes them highly desirable for the collector of early American vintage.
Read more about the National Recovery Administration!
See more examples of NRA labels here!
additional sources:
https://sammydvintage.com/vintage-style/union-labels/