Date added: February 10, 2018; Modified: August 26, 2020
The oil-on-canvas mural, “Golden Triangle of Trade,” which hangs in the lobby of the historic branch post office in Medford, Massachusetts, was painted by Henry Billings in 1939. Often mistaken as a work created by the Works Progress Administration’s Federal Art… read more
Date added: February 10, 2018; Modified: August 26, 2020
The historic Medford [Branch] post office in Medford, Massachusetts was constructed with Treasury Department funds in 1937. The building houses an example of New Deal artwork in the lobby. The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places… read more
Date added: January 10, 2017; Modified: July 2, 2020
Works Progress Administration (W.P.A.) workers constructed a new city garage for Medford, Massachusetts. From a W.P.A. Bulletin: Medford’s antiquated city garage built to accommodate horse drawn equipment will be replaced with a new Medford WPA city garage now in construction…. read more
Date added: October 13, 2014; Modified: April 3, 2018
“The Chevalier Theatre was built in 1939 by the Works Progress Administration as part of the Medford High School complex.”
Date added: February 12, 2018; Modified: February 12, 2018
The Federal Emergency Administration of Public Works (a.k.a. Public Works Administration, or PWA) sponsored construction of the North Metropolitan Relief Sewer: sections 105, 106A, 108, 111, and 112 included work in Medford. Edward M. Matz was awarded the contract for section 106A;… read more
Date added: February 12, 2018
W.P.A. project description: “The three projects, which were approved and on which work was started late in the year, provide for the reconstruction of: … East Border Road, from Fellsway East, Maiden to Highland Avenue, Medford, 2,900 feet in length…. read more
Date added: February 12, 2018; Modified: February 12, 2018
The Middlesex Fells Reservation spans multiple towns north of Boston. The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), Civil Works Administration (CWA), and Works Progress Administration (WPA) were each active in developing the area. Massachusetts Metropolitan District Commission annual reports detail the work… read more
Date added: February 12, 2018; Modified: February 12, 2018
The W.P.A. conducted the following work at what is now just Bellevue Pond: 1937 MDC annual report: “Bellevue Ponds, Medford; work was started in the late fall of 1937 on a project for improvement and development, as a recreational area,… read more
Date added: February 12, 2018; Modified: February 12, 2018
A previous iteration of the Wellington [Memorial] Bridge, which carried Fellsway across Mystic River between Somerville and Medford, was constructed as a New Deal-sponsored P.W.A. project. “The completion of the Wellington Bridge, constructed under the authorization of Chapter 365 of… read more
Date added: February 12, 2018; Modified: February 12, 2018
The Middlesex Fells Reservation spans multiple towns north of Boston. Here is a description of a couple of the projects undertaken by the W.P.A. in the park: “Middlesex Fells Reservation; four miles of bridle trails in the Lawrence Woods section of… read more
Date added: October 16, 2017; Modified: February 12, 2018
Wright’s Tower is an observation tower constructed in 1937 under the direction of the Works Progress Administration (WPA). It is located at the summit of Pine Hill within the Middlesex Fells Reservation. The Reservation is spread across several towns just… read more
Date added: February 12, 2018
Description of a project undertaken by the W.P.A. in 1937: “Fellsway Police Station; the area adjacent to the police station on Fellsway West in Medford was developed by the completion of a project started in 1936. A large baseball field… read more
Date added: May 6, 2017; Modified: May 6, 2017
In conjunction with landscaping efforts around the newly completed Medford City Hall, the Works Progress Administration (W.P.A.) widened Salem Street “which passes Medford City Hall [by] 12 feet for a distance of 200 feet.”
Date added: May 6, 2017; Modified: May 6, 2017
The Works Progress Administration (W.P.A.) landscaped the area surrounding Medford’s new City Hall in 1937. WPA Bulletin: “A beautiful building in shoddy surroundings is like a beautiful woman in slatternly dress with unkempt hair. Extensive landscaping by WPA has beautified… read more
Date added: December 11, 2011; Modified: May 6, 2017
“The building is T-shaped in plan and three stories in height, and its over-all dimensions are 180 by 131 feet. It is fireproof throughout, the exterior walls being of water-struck brick and limestone. The project was completed in September 1937… read more