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If you had family in the Tennessee Valley during the early twentieth century, they were probably having a hard time.
如果你的家人在20世纪初在生活在田纳西河谷，他们可能过得很艰难。
The land along the Tennessee River was degraded by decades of over-farming.
田纳西河沿岸的土地由于几十年的过度耕作而退化。
Poverty was a way of life for rural communities.
贫穷是农村社区的一种生活方式。
Electricity was exorbitantly expensive.
电费贵得离谱。
And that was before the Great Depression!
那是在大萧条之前！
When the nation plunged into crisis, FDR’s government knew that the people of the Tennessee Valley would be among the most affected.
当国家陷入危机时，罗斯福政府知道田纳西河谷的人民将是受影响最大的人之一。
The TVA was established in 1933 to improve the operations of the river, conserve the surrounding area, and improve the well-being of the residents.
TVA成立于1933年，目的是改善河流的运营，保护周围地区，并改善居民的福祉。
But what did that mean for the people living there?
但这对生活在那里的人意味着什么呢？
For a start, it meant electricity.
首先，它意味着电。
Power companies were reluctant to supply rural areas -- the massive amounts of infrastructure required were extremely expensive.
电力公司不愿向农村地区供电--所需的大量基础设施极其昂贵。
The TVA built dams and power plants that helped lift the region out of the dark ages.
TVA修建了水坝和发电厂，帮助该地区走出了黑暗时代。
By the 1990s, over 7 million people were getting power from the TVA.
到20世纪90年代，超过700万人从TVA获得电力。
It also meant huge improvements to the economy.
这也意味着经济的巨大改善。
The TVA established model farms to spread modern farming techniques.
田纳西州建立了示范农场，以推广现代农业技术。
It planted millions of trees to reforest the valley and fight soil erosion.
它种植了数百万棵树来重新造林山谷和抗击水土流失。
It employed thousands of people in construction jobs.
它雇佣了数千人从事建筑工作。
It greatly improved how navigable the river is.
它极大地改善了这条河的通航能力。
And the reservoirs the TVA built are even leisure destinations today, bringing billions of dollars into the region.
TVA修建的水库今天甚至成了休闲盛地，为该地区带来了数十亿美元的收入。
None of this came without costs.
所有这一切都是有代价的。
While many families only felt the positive effects, some 20,000 families had to be relocated as populated areas were flooded -- and it wasn’t just living people who needed to be moved.
虽然许多家庭只感受到了积极的影响，但随着人口稠密地区被洪水淹没，大约2万户家庭不得不搬迁--需要搬迁的不仅仅是活着的人。
More than 20,000 burial plots were relocated, too.
2万多块墓地也被重新安置。
If you have roots in the Tennessee Valley region, there’s a good chance the TVA is the reason your grandparents had electricity.
如果你有家人曾经在田纳西河谷地区，很有可能TVA就是你祖父母用上电的原因。
Did the TVA make your family’s life a little brighter?
TVA是否让你们家的生活变得更美好了？
