Laurel Sites

"Practically every two-lane highway in Eastern Montana was built with the help of WPA funds, said Jon Axline, a historian with Montana's Department of Transportation. ... Other examples include Highway 87, from Billings to Roundup, and the old Frontage Road, south of the interstate between Billings and Laurel."

"The WPA also funded the Mossmain railroad overpass at the East Laurel exit. The design was meant to be aesthetically pleasing as well as functional, Axline said. The bridgework remains pleasing to the eye, despite the removal of its decorative concrete guard rails, he said."

The Works Progress Administration (WPA) built a 1,500,000-gallon reservoir north of Laurel, Montana. The project was completed in 1936. "Heading the list of completed WPA projects in Laurel Is the $14,000 municipal water reservoir which will go Into use at the termination of the curing period for the cement this week. The reservoir Is located a mile and a half north of Laurel and combines both scenic and practical value. It is situated on a low hill overlooking the entire Yellowstone valley. The bowl is ellptical in shape, finished in reinforced cement with a quarter-inch steel underframe." A USGS map from the 1950s...

"Along the Yellowstone River, the Civilian Conservation Corps put up the buildings at Laurel's Riverside Park as a place for workers to stay. The site later housed World War II POWs who supplied labor for the surrounding farms. Six of those log cabins were moved away from the park to the east end of Laurel, where they still remain, Easton said."

The WPA allocated $29,514 toward street improvements for Laurel, Montana in August 1938.

Big Timber Pioneer reported that an $18,000 grant was made to "school district No. 7 of Yellowstone county for building school additions" in Laurel. The school in question was most likely what was then Laurel High School at 410 Colorado Avenue, which opened in 1908. That building now houses Laurel School District Administration offices.