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  • AC Brace Arena - Cape Girardeau MO
    Designed by Hal Lynch and J. Carl Jourdan and completed in 1939, this Art Deco style arena has been upgraded and well-maintained through the years. The stage is original.
  • Adams Hall Murals, University of Oklahoma - Norman OK
    The Adams Hall project included a series of murals reflecting different aspects of Oklahoma business life by Craig Sheppard, a fine arts student at the time. The murals "illustrate some of the prominent industries in Oklahoma’s economy, including farming, stock raising, transportation, retailing, banking, oil, mining and smelting."   (price.ou.edu) It is not clear if the murals were funded by the PWA directly or by another New Deal art program.
  • Alamo River Bridge - Brawley CA
    $24,000 was provided by federal funds during the Great Depression for the construction of a bridge carrying Ben Hulse Highway over the Alamo River east of Brawley, California.
  • Alki Playfield Regrade - Seattle WA
    Alki Playfield underwent a regrade, thanks to New Deal funds, in 1934.
  • Amphitheater - Ely NV
    "An outdoor, amphitheatre built near Ely" was a result of New Deal construction in northern Nevada. Further information about this project is needed.
  • Balboa Park Club Sculpture - San Diego CA
    Frederick Schweigardt (1885 - 1948) was a student of the Stuttgart and Munich art academies in Germany, Schweigardt also studied with Auguste Rodin in Paris, where he received first prize at the Paris Exposition of 1913. Schweigardt was named the "official sculptor for the exposition," much to the surprise of San Diego's local sculptors. For the exposition, Schweigardt sculpted a large fountain, "Four Cornerstones of Americans Democracy," for the Hall of Education (now the Balboa Park Club). Schweigardt also sculpted a bronze relief plaque honoring D.C. Collier, director of the 1915 exposition, which can still be seen on the west wall...
  • Balboa Park: House of Hospitality Bas Relief - San Diego CA
    Rose Hanks created this incised plaster relief depicting "Junipero Serra" for the fair.
  • Balboa Park: House of Hospitality Sculpture - San Diego CA
    This 4' high Indiana limestone sculpture and fountain by Donal Hord is titled "Woman of Tehuantepec" and is located in the courtyard of the House of Hospitality at San Diego's Balboa Park.
  • Bath V.A. Medical Center: Entrance Bridge - Bath NY
    A new entrance bridge to Bath V.A. Medical Center over the Conhocton (or Cohocton) Rover was built in 1939, replacing an older one which had been posted as unsafe five years earlier. A lengthy detour was required to leave or enter the grounds. This 1939 bridge is still in use as of 2023. However, the New Deal agency responsible for the construction is currently unknown to Living New Deal.
  • Belt Line Railroad - San Francisco CA
    "The San Francisco Belt Railroad was a short-line railroad along the Embarcadero in San Francisco, California. It began as the State Belt Railroad in 1889, and was renamed when the city bought the Port of San Francisco in 1969. The railroad ceased operation in 1993. The railroad connected the Port of San Francisco to many waterfront docks and to industries and warehouses which were adjacent to the waterfront. It had 67 miles (108 km) of trackage and its general offices were in the Ferry Building. Its function was to switch railroad cars from four major railroads to points along its system...
  • Best Slough Bridge - Wheatland CA
    The bridge carrying Ostrom Rd. over Best Slough in Wheatland, California was 1 of 7 bridges widened in Yuba County, California as part of a $50,000 federal grant during the Great Depression.
  • Big Creek Bridge - Big Sur CA
    A concrete bridge on former State Route 56 (now State Route 1, the Cabrillo Highway) built with federal funds to the tune of $90,000. A date stamp at each end says 1938.
  • BNSF Rail Road street subway - Colton CA
    $70,000 from the New Deal federal government went into the grading, paving and structure of a subway and approaches under the AT&SF Railroad on old route 43 on the south end of Colton.
  • Bridge Street Grade Separation - Minnesota City MN
    The grade separation bridge on Bridge Street, on the south side of Minnesota City, was constructed as a Federal Aid Project in 1940.
  • Burns Creek Bridge - Big Sur CA
    $75,000 in federal funds constructed this steel and concrete bridge over Burns Creek on former State Route 56, now State Route 1 (Cabrillo Highway) in Big Sur, California, near the location of the famous Esalen Institute.
  • California 20 - Marysville CA
    $5,000 in federal funds were used for grading and surfacing 1 mile of California Route 20 (formerly CR 15) from the Southern Pacific RR underpass to the east end of the city, during the Great Depression.
  • California Route 113 - Robbins CA
    2.5 miles of California route 113 (formerly 87) from Robbins south was surfaced under a federal grant totaling $20,000.
  • Calvin Coolidge Bridge - Northampton to Hadley MA
    In March 1936, the Connecticut River Valley was inundated by one of the most severe floods in recorded history. The water level reached over 12 feet above flood stage and carried huge chunks of ice down the river. The raging water and ice knocked out dams, washed away homes, and lifted bridges off their footings, including the bridge that connects Northampton to Hadley via Route 9. This was and is a heavily traveled route so immediate reconstruction of the bridge was imperative. The Massachusetts Department of Public Works requested and received funds to rebuild the bridge from the federal government through...
  • Camanche School (Inundated) Improvements - Camanche CA
    The WPA contributed $101 in order to "Improve Comanche School." WPA Project 65-3-2463, Application date 10-24-35. The town was founded in 1849 during the gold rush. Rich mining at nearby Cat Camp, Poverty Bar, and Sand Hill brought its population to a peak of 1,500. The town was inundated by the construction of the Camanche Dam by the East Bay Municipal Utility District EBMUD in 1963.
  • Cargo Terminals - Wilmington CA
    As part of a group of 8 public works projects in the LA area South Bay, according to an article in the Los Angeles Illustrated Daily News reported: "No. 7 - New cargo terminals in Wilmington, $831,000; will employ 210 - 300 men for from 18 to 20 months." It is unknown if the buildings still exist due to constant development of the port.
  • Carl Schurz Park: Catbird Playground - New York NY
    An August 1935 Parks Department press release lists what is now Catbird Playground in Carl Schurz Park as one of seventy-three play areas developed in the preceding year with "city, state and federal relief funds." The release describes this park as having play areas designed for mothers and infants and adolescents. The playground was designed by Gilmore D. Clarke and opened on June 20, 1935. It was further renovated in 1965 and 2000. Although neither source identifies which federal agencies were involved, researcher Frank da Cruz explains here that New Deal park projects developed before August 1935 would have been financed by...
  • Carlos Gilbert Elementary School - Santa Fe NM
    The Atlas of Historic New Mexico Maps, produced with assistance from the New Mexico Humanities Council and the New Mexico Chapter of the National New Deal Preservation Association, lists a number of New Deal schools in Santa Fe. Agua Fria, Carlos Gilbert, Cerrillos, Chimayo, Galisteo, Harvey Junior High, and part of Wood Gormley were all New Deal projects or constructed with the help of New Deal funds. Capshaw and Golden contain New Deal art only.
  • Central Park: Model Boathouse - New York NY
    The Model Boathouse on Conservatory Lake in Central Park was designed and built by Robert Moses' “force of relief workers” (www.kermitproject.org).
  • Chino High School Building - San Bernardino CA
    "Construction of Chino High School Bldg. This project consisted of the erection of three units one story stucco High School Building. Unit #1 is 191' x 25'5", consisting of one sewing room, girls' rest rook, waiting room, fitting room and two offices. Unit #2 is 140'3" x 28' and consists of drafting room and two offices, typing room, bookkeeping room, work room and supply room. This building replaces the old condemned High School Building which was unsafe for school purposes. The new Bldg. is earthquake resisting and will make the residents who have children in High School rest easier than...
  • City Terrace Park - Los Angeles CA
    City Terrace Park was planned in 1931 but the park space wasn't completed until 1933, when crews of workers from the Works Progress Administration* finished cutting into three and a half acres of rugged hillside, creating terrace space for the new city park. * While sources cite the WPA, the agency was not established until 1935. 1933 efforts may have been undertaken by a predecessor agency, the Civil Works Administration (CWA). Construction crews terracing designated park land. Arizona red sandstone from the demolition of the former Los Angeles County Courthouse (1891-1936) was re-used in construction of park features. Original 1931 park plans as...
  • College of Marin Unnamed mural - Kentfield CA
    This 9 x 16 foot oil on canvas by Maurice Del Mue was completed in 1937 for the College of Marin science building. It remains in the original location.
  • Downing Street Playground - New York NY
    The Downing Street Playground was built circa 1935 with the help of the New Deal. The agency involved in funding or completing the work is unknown to the Living New Deal. During his tenure as Parks Commissioner, Robert Moses used New Deal funding and labor to build public park facilities, yet rarely credited the New Deal agencies that supported the projects. Because he prohibited the placement of New Deal plaques and corner stones, we have few sources that tie public parks in New York to New Deal agencies. However, several of Moses’ statements reveal that during the 1930s most of...
  • Dry Creek Bridge - Brownsville CA
    One of 7 bridges in Yuba County that were widened with a federal grant of $50,000 during the Great Depression was the bridge carrying New York House Road over Dry Creek near Brownsville, California.
  • Durgan Bridge - Downieville CA
    Federal efforts provided $35,000 for the construction of the bridge and approaches to the Durgan bridge, a pratt through truss bridge over the North Fork of the Yuba River on Nevada Street in the former mining town of Downieville. The project was launched as part of a group of federally funded infrastructure projects in 1935 but it was not built until 1938.
  • East Side Elementary School (demolished) - Nampa ID
    The PWA built this six-classroom elementary school in 1937 (docket #1093-RD). It remained in use until 1997, when it was demolished. The site is now East Side Park. Note: the Nampa School District history linked below indicates that the WPA built the school, while the record is found in the PWA archives with a docket listed.
  • Evan Hewes Highway - Holtville CA
    27.5 miles of road shoulder along Evan Hewes Highway were oiled under a federal project totaling $50,000 during the Great Depression. The project spanned the road length between the Highline Canal to the East Side Sand Hills. The road used to be known as California Route 27; it was originally a plank road.
  • Fair Park: Hall of State Mural - Dallas TX
    The oil-on-canvas mural "Texas of History," a ten-panel behemoth, each 30' x 80', was painted by Eugene Francis Savage as a New Deal project.
  • Feather River Highway - Rock Creek CA
    Federal funds helped grade 2.5 miles of the Feather River Highway and bridges at Rock Creek, Tobin, & Storrie within the Plumas National Forest.
  • Fire Lookout Tower - Camdenton MO
    This classic fire lookout tower has the stairway extending to the ground with encircling wire for safety. There are extensive forest service buildings immediately adjacent to the tower. It was completed in 1942 with funds and labor provided by the federal government.
  • Foothill Boulevard Cutoff - Sylmar CA
    A 1934 issue of California Highway & Public Works magazine reported that 3.53 miles of road from Tunnel Station on the San Fernando Road to Olive View Hospital (formerly Sanitarium) was constructed between Dec. 1933 and Oct. 1934 northwest of San Fernando to finally complete former state highway 4 within the Los Angeles area. A reinforced concrete bridge across the Southern Pacific Railroad was constructed along with a bridge across a spur track to the Hercules Powder company plant. Federal aid for this portion of road and the bridges was $281,000.
  • Fort Homer W. Hesterly Armory - Tampa FL
    "Fort Homer W. Hesterly is a historic building at 522 North Howard Avenue in the West Tampa section of Tampa, Florida. An art deco style building. It took ten years to find an occupant for the building, once a premiere venue. It is now home to the Tampa Jewish Community Center & Federation. Performers have included Elvis Presley, U.S. President John F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King, Jr., Tom Jones, The Animals, James Brown, Buddy Holly, Andy Griffith, Pink Floyd and the Doors. Many graduations and weddings have been held at the Fort. The National Guard used the armory until 2005. The...
  • Fort Tryon Park - New York NY
    Fort Tryon Park was built during the Depression era with the goal of providing public green space for upper Manhattan. John D. Rockefeller Jr. donated the land and provided most of the financial support for the construction of the park’s amenities. The infrastructure within and around the park was completed with work relief labor at the cost $300,000. The work consisted of building roads, storm drainage, and lighting. It was likely completed with the aid of the Civil Works Administration (CWA), the Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA), or the Temporary Emergency Relief Act (TERA) The New York City Park Department Report to August 1934 states...
  • Fourth Avenue Grading - Big Timber MT
    Big Timber's Pioneer newspaper reported in 1936 that the "grading of Fourth avenue" was one of several projects in the community that was attributable to the New Deal.
  • Fresno Avenue Grade Separation - Stockton CA
    $20,000 was provided by federal funds for the construction of a grade separation railroad bridge over Fresno Avenue.
  • Garvey Avenue - Monterey Park CA
    $46,000 was spent by the Federal Government in grading and paving 1.6 miles of Garvey Avenue through Monterey Park, from Atlantic Blvd to New Blvd which defines the borders of the city limits.
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