• Barton Heights Cemeteries Fence - Richmond VA
    The Barton Heights Cemeteries in Richmond, Virginia are "encircled by a fence erected by the Works Progress Administration in 1935."
  • Brook Field Park Swimming Pool - Richmond VA
    The Works Progress Administration (WPA) constructed Richmond’s Brook Field Park Swimming Pool in 1938. The pool was a segregated one, operating exclusively for the African American people of the city, as was normal practice in the Jim Crow era.   Made out of concrete, the pool’s physical dimensions were listed as 185 x 60 feet by 2 and a half to 11 feet deep. Like other WPA pool projects, the Brook Field Park Swimming Pool included the most modern equipment of the day, including a circulation pump and filter system as well as water treatment tools and a series of floodlights....
  • Holden Rhodes House Restoration - Richmond VA
    The City of Richmond, Virginia utilized Civil Works Administration funds to restore the Holden Rhodes House, a ca. 1840 Greek Revival granite house. An inappropriate addition of a two-story wraparound porch was removed and new porches constructed. In addition, handrails were restored to the steps leading to the house.
  • Oregon Hill Parkway and Retaining Walls - Richmond VA
    From the National Park Service's Discover Our Shared Heritage Travel Itinerary for Richmond: "The Works Progress Administration built the wide drive and stone retaining walls along Oregon Hill Park in the late 1930s, and the city rebuilt these in 2007 after substantial damage from tropical storm Gaston." The retaining wall at the location below was completely rebuilt using original stones, according to Corman Construction, the contractor on the project: "Due to the park’s historic nature, the existing stone masonry wall had to be meticulously dismantled stone by stone, cleaned, and reinstalled on a new retaining wall, consisting of a cantilevered concrete...
  • Parcel Post Building (former) - Richmond VA
    The historic former Parcel Post Building at 1100 E Main St. in Richmond, Virginia was originally designed by Marcellus Eugene Wright, Sr. in association with the Richmond architectural firm Lee & Smith & Van der Voort. According to some sources designs were drawn up during the Hoover administration, in 1929. Begun as a four-story facility, a work order mid-construction enlarged part of the building, which became six stories tall. It is likely at this point in the construction process (ca. 1934-5) that Public Work Administration (P.W.A.) funding became involved in addition to standard Treasury Department funds; two photos of the facility...
  • Parcel Post Building (former): Cadmus Mural - Richmond VA
    The former Parcel Post Building in Richmond, Virginia housed multiple examples of New Deal artwork: murals by Paul Cadmus and Jared French, respectively, which were commissioned by the Treasury Section of Fine Arts. Paul Cadmus's work was a mural with respective titles: "Pocahontas Saving the Life of Captain John Smith," "Walter Raleigh," and "William Byrd." Believed to be removed from the Parcel Post Building in the 1960s, the mural was found rolled up in storage in Philadelphia. Since restored, the work is now housed in the library at the Lewis F. Powell Jr. United States Courthouse, which is next door to...
  • Parcel Post Building (former): French Mural - Richmond VA
    The former Parcel Post Building in Richmond, Virginia housed multiple examples of New Deal artwork: murals by Paul Cadmus and Jared French, respectively, which were commissioned by the Treasury Section of Fine Arts. Gerard French’s work was a mural: "Stuart’s Raiders at the Swollen Ford," featuring companion portraits of Jeb Stuart, and John Pelham “in wings attached to either end of the scene.” Believed to be removed from the Parcel Post Building in the 1960s, the mural was found rolled up in storage in Philadelphia. Since restored, the work is now housed in the library at the Lewis F. Powell Jr. United...
  • Saunders Station Post Office (former) - Richmond VA
    The historic Saunders Station post office at 1635 W Broad Street in Richmond, Virginia was constructed in 1937-8 with Treasury Department funds. The building was sold in 2015 to private interests, while the post office relocated a few properties away.
  • Virginia Commonwealth University: Monroe Park Campus Improvements - Richmond VA
    The Richmond Professional Institute (RPI) was an educational institution established in 1917. It eventually merged with the Medical College of Virginia to become the Monroe Park Campus of the Virginia Commonwealth University. In the 1930s, as the Richmond Professional Institute, it received significant support from the WPA: "When the Great Depression hit and RPI continued to receive no state support, the federal government stepped in to fill the gap. With the help of the Works Progress Administration, many of the buildings were renovated during the depression. In fact, Dr. Hibbs was quoted as saying, That if it had not been for the...
  • Virginia Museum of Fine Arts - Richmond VA
    The historic Virginia Museum of Fine Arts building was constructed as a federal Public Works Administration (PWA) project during the mid-1930s: PWA Docket No. 3551. Short and Stanley-Brown: "Before the erection of this art museum, the city of Richmond had no building suitable for the exhibition and storage of works of art. The structure is placed on the grounds of the soldiers' home and the area surrounding it has been landscaped with lawns and planting. The building is fireproof and is approximately 120 by 134 feet in plan. It is constructed of steel and reinforced concrete and the exterior walls are faced...