• Bidwell Bowl Amphitheater - Chico CA
    The Bidwell Bowl amphitheater sits along Big Chico Creek on the California State University, Chico campus.  It was built by the Works Progress Administration (WPA) in 1938, no doubt in conjunction with improvements the WPA was making in Bidwell Park at the time (just upstream). The campus website provides the following information: "Built as a WPA project in 1938, the amphitheater known as the Bidwell Bowl was one of many ventures in Chico that created work for people during the depression. Located on the bank of the creek, next to the Physical Science building, the Bidwell Bowl had been used for various...
  • Bidwell Park Improvements - Chico CA
    Chico's Bidwell Park is one of the largest municipal parks in the United States. It follows the course of Big Chico Creek for several miles into the foothills.  The park land was originally donated to the city early in the 20th century by the widow of Chico's founder, John Bidwell. New Deal agencies made several improvements to the park in the 1930s. It appears that State Emergency Recovery Agency (SERA) workers did road gravelling in the park, and worked on bathhouses and repair of the superintendent's residence–SERA was funded in part by the Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FEMA). At the upper end of the park, the Works Progress Administration (WPA)...
  • Chico Municipal Airport - Chico CA
    The Civil Works Administration (CWA) worked on the Chico airport in 1934 and the Works Progress Administration (WPA) improved and finished the work in 1935. The specifics of what they did are only partially known to the Living New Deal. WPA job cards at the Fresno Public Library describe some of the work completed by the WPA: "WPA Project No. 65-3-1920, Application date 9-25-35, $12,365 'Airport Improvements.' Presidential Letter #866 - 10-24-35 - Rescinded $12,365 Project Rescinded. O.P. 115-03-4508 Takes the place of the above project - See application folder for accepted G.A.O. Description" "WPA Project No. 65-3-1920, Application Date 11/5/35, $12,365, 'Continuation of...
  • Citrus Avenue Elementary School - Chico CA
    The Romanesque Revival style Citrus Elementary School was built in 1936 in a residential area north of downtown Chico. It was financed through a bond issue and a Public Works Administration grant which provided 45% of the total cost.  The building remains in good condition with little modification, but the school yard is now gated and the windows shaded, no doubt out of security concerns. There is a name plate with the date of construction, but nothing indicating the role of the New Deal. "This 1936 project is an L-shaped stuccoed school building. It is a single story structure with a continuous...
  • Silver Dollar Fairgrounds - Chico CA
    The Works Progress Administration ( WPA) built several of the features in the Silver Dollar Fairgrounds: a grandstand, two sides of the Education building, and a barn for all sorts of stock animals.    The Silver Dollar Fairgrounds is home to the Third District Agricultural Association and has a fair every Memorial Day week.  Butte county fairs go back to the mid-19th century, off and on, and came to be sponsored by the Third District Agricultural Association after it was formed in 1935. The fairgrounds hosts other events throughout the year, particularly open car races on the Silver Dollar Speedway.  The Gold Cup...
  • Sycamore Pool - Chico CA
    Sycamore Pool is a large, beautiful, outdoor swimming facility built on Big Chico Creek at the One-Mile Recreation Area of Bidwell Park in Chico California.  Hence, the pool is also known as One-Mile Pool. he creek was dammed by the city in the 1920s, but the pool was cemented and finished out by the Works Progress Administration (WPA) in the 1930s, as part of several WPA improvements to Bidwell Park.   There are tile depth markers every six feet or so along the pool's edge. The lifeguard chairs look original, but that is uncertain. A bridge across the dam was built later using state Land & Water...