Public Works Administration (PWA) Sites

The Public Works Administration (PWA) announced a number of projects in May 1937 which were designed to improve or eliminate conditions in schools that might be regarded as hazardous to students’ lives. Weeping Water was given a grant of $49,594.00 toward a total project cost of $107,000.00 to try to alleviate safety hazards by building a new school. The project began in August 1938 and was completed in September of 1939. PWA Docket No. Neb. 1062. The building is located on W O St and has since been expanded on its east side into a much larger educational complex.

Syracuse's old College of Medicine building, now Weiskotten Hall of State University of New York Upstate Medical University, was built during the Great Depression. Its construction was enabled by funds provided by the federal Public Works Administration (PWA). The PWA supplied a $825,000 loan for the project. The building's cornerstone was laid by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on September 29, 1936. The building was dedicated November 22, 1937. SYR.edu: "A loan of $825,000 was given to SU for construction of a Basic Sciences building for the College of Medicine by the federal Public Works Administration (PWA). In 1949, Syracuse was selected by...

This gymnasium was a PWA project (docket #1052-D), labeled as a high school but now part of the Weiser Middle School campus.

The Works Progress Administration spent $1,500,000 for miscellaneous alterations, additions, renovations, grading, and landscaping of grounds at hospital and institutions to New York's Charity Hospital. In addition, a nurse's home and a power plant were constructed at the hospital in the 1930s with the assistance of the Public Works Administration (PWA). Originally named Penitentiary Hospital and located on what was then known as Blackwell's Island, the first hospital was built in 1832 to serve the prisoners housed at Blackwell's Penitentiary. After the hospital was destroyed by a fire in 1858, architect James Renwick, Jr. designed a new building to be called City Hospital, on...

"This new building has 70 rooms, accommodating 750 students. There are 17 standard classrooms, 4 conference rooms, 6 laboratories, and an industrial-art shop. Besides these, the special rooms are a library, music room, auditorium with balcony and stage, cafeteria also used as a study hall, 3 conference rooms; a gymnasium for boys and another for girls, which, by means of a sliding partition, can be made into one large room; library convertible into a study hall, apparatus room, special exercise room, girls' rest room, lockers, and shower rooms. The miscellaneous service rooms are 2 rooms for teachers, 5 for officers,...

A previous iteration of the Wellington 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 the Acts of 1933 as a Public Works Administration Project, is a fine example of a public improvement made possible through Federal aid." "National Industrial Recovery Project Mass. State D-1, P.W.A. Docket No. 4478. Furnishing and installing lighting standards, cables and other materials on the Wellington Bridge in Somerville and Medford"

Wells Hall was built by the PWA in 1938 to house the library, and is named after the university's first librarian, Edwin C. Wells.  Currently, it houses offices for Communication, Theatre, Modern Languages, Mass Communication, and TV and radio stations.  It has a brick façade with concrete elements that blend with the buildings throughout the campus.

Wells Junior High School (originally the third high school facility) in Wells, Maine was constructed as a New Deal project; the facility was built with Public Works Administration (PWA) funds. The PWA provided a $40,909 grant for the project, whose total cost was $91,890. The facility, located at the north end of the present educational complex, has since been dramatically expanded. This building was designed by the architecture firm Miller & Beal, Inc. of Portland, Maine. Two other schools used the exact same design: Cape Elizabeth High School in Cape Elizabeth, Maine (now known as Cape Elizabeth Middle School) and Tewksbury...

On October 27, 1938, the City of Austin accepted an aid package from the Public Works Administration for the construction of bridges and extensions of storm sewers not to exceed $132,300. One of the projects the city used the money for was to widen the bridge on West 24th Street over Shoal Creek. The original concrete bridge was built in 1928. By the mid-1930s, the narrow bridge was no longer adequate for the cars traveling between downtown and the new suburbs west of Shoal Creek. In order to widen the original bridge, the abutments and piers were extended to support new...

On October 27, 1938, the City of Austin accepted an aid package from the Public Works Administration for the construction of bridges and extensions of storm sewers not to exceed $132,300. One of the projects the city used the money for was to build a bridge on West 29th Street over Shoal Creek. On December 27, 1938, the city accepted a bid of $48,983.44 from Yarbrough Construction Company for the job. The job was accepted as completed on June 29, 1939. The city installed a brass plate on the bridge to acknowledge the contribution of the PWA, but the plaque...

On October 27, 1938, the City of Austin accepted an aid package from the Public Works Administration for the construction of bridges and extensions of storm sewers not to exceed $132,300. One of the projects the city used the money for was to build a bridge on West 34th Street over Shoal Creek. On December 22, 1938, the city accepted a bid of $19,411.63 from Rex D. Kitchens for the job. The city accepted the job as completed on April 20, 1939.

BridgeHunter.com attributes the 3rd Street Bridge in Cleveland, Ohio as having been constructed with the aid of federal Public Works Administration (P.W.A.) funds.

Then known as the West Chester State Teachers College, West Chester University of Pennsylvania benefited during the Great Depression from a large construction project enabled by the federal Public Works Administration (PWA). The PWA provided a $240,924 grant for the project, whose final cost was $770,533. Construction occurred between February 1938 and May 1939. (PWA Docket No. 1873.) Seven buildings were constructed on the campus, including a library addition, dormitory, laundry, and heating plant. The present status of these structures is unknown to Living New Deal.

The elimination of railroad track grade crossings in Allendale, New Jersey, became a matter of public safety during the 1930s. The Public Works Administration provided funds for two crossings in Allendale, including that at West Crescent Ave. “The new crossings at West Crescent Avenue and West Orchard Street were achieved by making excavation cuts, regrading the roadbeds and building overpasses for the railroad tracks. The work was done under supervision of the Erie Railroad, the , and and public utility commissioners.”

This suburban Des Moines elementary school was constructed in 1939 under the Federal Emergency Administration of Public Works. In 2018 it was adaptively reused as the Phenix School Apartments, which provides live-work space to artists.

In 1938, the PWA built this large white-painted school with modern deco elements on the front façade. It is currently in use by the Jefferson City public school system.

West End Middle School in Nashville, Tennessee was originally erected as a High School with the assistance of funds provided by the Public Works Administration (PWA). West End was constructed in Colonial Revival style, with 35 classrooms, 8 of which were science labs. The "horizontal, three-story central block" and "soaring 122-foot high cupola" was described as a west Nashville landmark (Van West, 2001, p. 103). The building also contained a library, cafeteria, gymnasium, and auditorium with 63x28 foot stage. It was converted to use as a middle school in recent years.

The Public Works Administration (PWA) funded the construction of the Free Public Library building on Santa Clara Street, near Webster, in the city of Alameda. The project cost a total of $32,826 and was completed in July 1936.  There is a cornerstone with the date 1936 but not credit to the PWA (but there may be a plaque inside). The building is reinforced concrete, designed to withstand earthquakes, and the design, by Carl Werner, is Renaissance Revival, which was quite popular in the early 20th century – though the red tile roof evokes Mission Revival architecture of the interwar period.  The interior...

The Public Works Administration (PWA) provided a $50,000 loan and $40,909 grant for construction of a school in Freehold, New Jersey. Total cost of the project was $65,608. Then known as the West Freehold School, the facility is now the Freehold Township Elementary School, and has since been expanded. PWA Docket No. NJ 1054

At a cost of approximately $28,000, the Historic West Linn City Hall was completed in July 1936 with funds provided by both a Public Works Administration (PWA) grant and loan. Local voters approved a bond measure to reimburse the loan in 1936. The structure served as city hall from 1936 to 1999 when civic offices moved to their current location. Incorporated in 1913, West Linn waited thirteen years for construction of its first city hall. New Deal funding allowed the city to achieve its goal of a designated building for city business. Designed by the Portland architectural firm Claussen & Claussen...

The elimination of railroad track grade crossings in Allendale, New Jersey, became a matter of public safety during the 1930s. The Public Works Administration provided funds for two crossings in Allendale, including that at West Orchard St. “The new crossings at West Crescent Avenue and West Orchard Street were achieved by making excavation cuts, regrading the roadbeds and building overpasses for the railroad tracks. The work was done under supervision of the Erie Railroad, the , and and public utility commissioners.”

West Peru Grammar School was built in December 1936 with the help of a $11,000 PWA loan. The school contained all eight grades plus the kindergarten, for which there were three teachers and a teacher/principal. Once the West Peru Grammar School was open other area schools began to close and send their students to West Peru. From 1938 to 1942 all seven of the other town schools closed. Over the next few decades the school was enlarged several times to meet the needs of the growing student population. In 2004, Peru merged with Dixfield, Canton and Carthage, in School Area District...

This structure was built by the PWA in 1934-5 as the Post Exchange and Utility Building. It now houses the Academy's Directorate of Public Works. A 1939 PWA publication described the building as follows: "This structure is one of several provided for the Military Academy by the Quartermaster Corps of the Army with P.W.A. allotments. It is 291 by 137 feet in over-all dimensions and four stories in height. It contains the post exchange, a commissary department, five offices, a file room; and six storage, receiving, and issuing rooms. The foundations, columns, and floors are concrete, exterior walls above grade are...

The University of Michigan's West Quadrangle was constructed during the Great Depression with the aid of federal Public Works Administration (PWA) funds. " proposal including a grant from the Federal Emergency Administration of Public Works of the federal government was acted on by the Regents by mail vote in July, 1938. The proposal contemplated the completion of the residence hall development of which Allen-Rumsey House was the first unit and the construction of another residence hall to accommodate medical students. This expansion was made possible by an outright grant of 45 per cent of the project cost by the federal government....

1939 MDC annual report: "A traffic circle was constructed at West Roxbury Parkway and Centre Street, West Roxbury. The work was performed under P. W. A. Docket No. Mass. 1510-F, Massachusetts State Project No. D-207."

Then known as West Texas State Teachers College, the campus of what is now West Texas A&M University (WTAMU) was greatly impacted by the New Deal. Notably, multiple sizable construction projects were accomplished with the aid of Public Works Administration (P.W.A.) funds. Many students were involved with various New Deal agencies: In the 1930s, "Frustrated by the parsimony of the Texas Legislature, WTSTC leaders turned to the federal government for help. By conservative estimates, approximately 25 percent of the student body worked for such New Deal agencies as the National Youth Administration (headed in Texas by Lyndon B. Johnson), the Civil Works Administration and...

The Public Works Administration funded the construction of facilities for the West Virginia State University (former West Virginia State College) in Kanawha County. The West Virginia State University was founded as an African American college.

The Public Works Administration funded the construction of a campus building for the New River State College in Montgomery. The University was renamed West Virginia Institute of Technology in 1941. Due to declining enrollment, the university moved to Beckley in 2015. The former Montgomery campus is now vacant. The exact location and condition of this facility are unknown to the Living New Deal.

The Public Works Administration (PWA) funded the construction of two additions on the northern and southern ends of Women's Hall, housing women’s dormitories at West Virginia University in Morgantown. (Project W. Va. 485.) The building is still in service today as a residence hall, under the name Stalnaker Hall. The brick structure was built in 1918, and PWA-funded additions were completed in 1935-1939. It is designed in Neoclassical Revival style. Stalnaker Hall was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.

One of two schools constructed with 45% funding from Public Works Administration, the West Ward school had 16 rooms and a capacity in each for 40-45 students. A library/conference room was upstairs. The two buildings constructed at the same time by the same architects and builders cost a total of about $205,500. The building was demolished in 1994.

"According to a Maryland Historical Trust report, "Westbrook Elementary School (1939) is an important architectural landmark in the history of Montgomery County and its public school. It is the only Federal Public Works school in the county. A plaque in the school's main hall identifies the building as a project of the Federal Works Agency, Public Works Administration and includes the names John M. Carmody, Federal Works Agency and Franklin Delano Roosevelt, President of the United States." Also, according to the school's history page (https://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/schools/westbrookes/about/westbrookhistory.aspx) Westbrook was built with the assistance of WPA labor."

  Federal Public Works Administration funds were used to construct a span for Westchester Avenue over the Bronx River during the 1930s (Docket No. NY 1376 R). In one photo caption it is called "Bridge at Whitlock and Westchester Aves."; Whitlock Avenue lies west of what is not the Sheridan Expressway. The span has since been modified and has otherwise lost its Art Deco character. The 6 subway line travels on an elevated train bridge above this Westchester Avenue span.

Westerly High School was constructed as a federal Public Works Administration (PWA) project. Construction occurred between February 1936 and October 1937. The PWA supplied a $201,807 grant; the total cost of the project was $449,156. The New Deal structure has since been added to. (PWA Docket No. RI 1075)

The McKee Building on the campus of Western Carolina University was built in 1938-39 as part of a six-building expansion of what was then Western Carolina Teacher’s College. The North Carolina General Assembly appropriated $110,000 for a new training school for teachers in 1937. An additional $90,000 came from a Public Works Administration grant. The brick structure has been refurbished and it currently houses several academic departments at Western Carolina University. Some of the original woodwork and chalkboard remain. It is named for Gertrude Dills McKee, first woman elected to the N.C. Senate. She served in Raleigh from 1931-1948 and was also...

"Simpkins Hall is located just west of Sherman Hall, on the campus of Western Illinois University, and opened in 1939.   The building at that time was called the “Training School” or “Lab School.”  It was here that Western student teachers, under supervision, practiced teaching in classrooms with actual students.  It served as a training school, until the school moved to Horrabin Hall in 1968.  Today Simpkins Hall houses the Department of English and Journalism. ...What is historically unique about the construction of Simpkins Hall is that it was built during the Great Depression, a time when unemployment was rampant and construction...

"The new Western High School replaced, on a greatly enlarged scale, a high-school building was that destroyed by fire in the winter of 1935. It occupies the same site as this former building. The building is three stories and a partial basement in height and is approximately 300 feet square. The auditorium, which is 96 by 110 feet, occupies the core of the structure and is entirely surrounded by corridors from which open the classrooms and laboratories. The auditorium is on the first floor. It seats 1,300 on this floor, and its balcony, which is entered...

Western Kentucky University received money from the PWA for the construction of the Kentucky Building and of Cherry Hall in the late 1930s. WPA and PWA assistance also helped build a new music building. Henry Hardin Cherry Hall, named in honor of the then-recently deceased president of Western Kentucky State Teachers College (now Western Kentucky University), was project number KY 1043-R of the Federal Emergency Administration of Public Works. The building was dedicated in September 1937, the month after Dr. Cherry's death and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1979. The architect was Brinton B. Davis. The contractor...

Formerly the Westfield State Sanatorium, what is now Western Massachusetts Hospital was constructed as a New Deal project with Public Works Administration (P.W.A.) assistance. The P.W.A. supplied a $364,275 grant for the project, whose total cost was $1,002,217. Construction occurred between Jan. 1936 and Dec. 1937. PWA Docket No. MA W1155.

Western Michigan University's Speech and Hearing Building, originally the Health and Personnel Building, was constructed during the Great Depression with the assistance of federal Public Works Administration (PWA) grant money (PWA Docket No. 1825). The PWA supplied a grant of $77,725; the total cost of the project was $165,681. Work occurred between 1938 and 1939. "Western still had no dormitories, so it was decided to build a combination Union building and girls' dormitory, which was finished by the fall of 1938 and named Walwood Hall. A men's dormitory, Vandercook Hall, was also built plus a student health and personnel building. Both of...

Western Michigan University's Vandercook Hall was constructed during the Great Depression with the assistance of federal Public Works Administration (PWA) grant money (PWA Docket No. 1590). The PWA supplied a grant of $128,160; work occurred between 1938 and 1939. "Western still had no dormitories, so it was decided to build a combination Union building and girls' dormitory, which was finished by the fall of 1938 and named Walwood Hall. A men's dormitory, Vandercook Hall, was also built plus a student health and personnel building. Both of these were partly built with Federal money as P.W.A. projects." (Yearbook)