Civil Works Administration (CWA) Sites

The WPA and CWA conducted extensive work throughout the park, building stone shelters and fireplaces. From contributor Erin Brown: "Hoyt Park is located on the west side of Madison, and is slightly off the beaten path of busy roads and traffic. The City of Madison first bought the land in 1890 as stone quarries. In 1933, the land was officially deemed a state park. It was named after Frank W. Hoyt, the leader of the Madison Park and Pleasure Drive Association, which was a volunteer group that fought to open and maintain recreational areas and parks in and around Madison. Under FDR’s...

Hoyt Park already appears in The Living New Deal site data. However, most New Deal structures at this cherished park are not represented. Therefore, this submission adds five photos of New Deal structures at this beautiful park. Additional photos could be added in the future.

This building was originally built as a public library in 1903. During the 1930s, New Deal workers significantly improved the building. In 1970, the library moved to Court Street. The Hunt Memorial Building then housed the offices of the Nashua School Department until 1991. Since renovations in 2011, the building has been rented for events. Municipal reports from the 1930s detail New Deal work on the site: In his town summary of 1934, Mayor Lucier wrote: "This has been a year of much needed repairs both inside and outside the building. Here, again, federal aid stepped in and grateful thanks are due the...

A small dam in Hurd Park, Dover, New Jersey, was built by the Civil Works Administration.

Hutchins Street Square, a community center, was originally Lodi High School. The CWA improved the girls' gym and tennis courts at the high school in 1934. The tennis courts have now become a large grassy area that is currently used for art shows, the Sandhill Crane Festival, and the July 4 celebration. The girls' gym of 1934 was converted in the 1990s into a senior citizen's center. The boys' gym is now used as a large hall with patio, where dinners and other civic functions are held. A pool separated the boys' and girls' gyms in 1934 and citizens still use...

The federal Civil Works Administration worked to improve the incinerator plant in Greenville, Pennsylvania between 1933 and 1934. The location and current status of the facility is unknown to Living New Deal.

Just before the phase-out of the CWA began in January 1934, the City of Independence applied successfully for CWA funds to build a trio of small dams across the Wapsipinicon at Independence downstream from the city’s mill dam. On further investigation by the county engineer, the number of dams was reduced to two, and later to one. This dam, now known as the Independence Low Dam, spans the river at the northwest corner of Oak Grove Cemetery. The original plans called for multiple three-foot dams constructed of rock and other materials, but eventually a single four-foot dam was constructed of...

"Between 1932 and 1935 communities throughout North Carolina, including Charlotte and Mecklenburg County, benefited from a broad array of public works funded primarily by Washington.  These included ... the building of a grandstand in Independence Park ..." The project was begun by the Civil Works Administration (CWA) but completed by the Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA). Per the latter's description: "In Charlotte at Independence Park, one of the baseball fields has been used for years for Sunday school leagues and business league games. Much interest has always been manifested in these ball games, and attendance especially on Saturday is heavy. No...

The Civil Works Administration funded improvements at the Industrial Home School for White Children, between 1933-1934. The structure appears to be today’s Guy Manson Recreation Center, but very little remains (see here and here). “It can be reported that during the year much very important work was accomplished by the Civil Works Administration. The roadway from Wisconsin Avenue around the buildings was completed; the large porches were repaired and painted; two large store rooms were constructed and a considerable area of the ground graded and converted into gardens with provision for irrigation. Anew tennis court has almost been finished, and suitable fences...

The Civil Works Administration (CWA) provided labor for the improvement of Beacon's waterworks, roads, and sewers.

The fine arts building was reconstructed in 1936, including: removing brickwork to make the building more earthquake safe, installing new columns and beams to carry vertical loads, building a new fireproof starway, rearranging windows to bring in more light, updating the heating system. Most of the construction was done by CWA and SERA labor.

The Civil Works Administration and the Puerto Rico Emergency Relief Administration carried out repair and maintenance work on the Insular Highway between Guayama and Ponce.

Payson Playground, in the Southeast corner of Inwood Hill Park, is one of three playgrounds in the park. The current Department of Parks website says the playground was built by Robert Moses in 1939, but Parks Department press releases from the New Deal period show that the park was originally built in 1934 and completed in 1941. A 1934 press release announced the opening of the playground in August of that year. The release describes the new playground as containing a "Field house, comfort station, play area, basketball courts and the usual playground equipment for children." The labor and materials...

The athletic field stands at Irving Junior High School in Pocatello, Idaho were constructed by the Civil Works Administration (C.W.A.).

The Civil Works Administration (CWA) worked to improve the conditions at Island Park in Green River, Wyoming. Cassity: "In Green River, Island Park was leveled with traditional cut and fill methods to raise the low spots so that flood water from Green River would no longer stand, and this was followed by installing lawn, roads, and paths."

Now known as the J. J. Byrne Playground, this was one of five "model playgrounds" designed as templates for further playground development by Robert Moses and his team after Moses assumed control of the New York City Parks Department in 1934. J. J. Byrne Playground is located within Washington Park in Brooklyn. When it opened in August 1934, the playground contained handball courts, two "bo-uijo courts," and a wading pool and play area for small children. It also contained a unique recreation building now known as the the Old Stone House of Gowanus. The NYC Parks website describes the structure as...

J. P. Elder Middle School Annex (originally part of the North Fort Worth High School), was one of the school district's existing schools that received landscaping by the CWA/WPA during the New Deal. At this school, a lengthy sandstone retaining wall and a terrace were constructed by the CWA in 1935. The terrace included a fountain that had three cast stone lion heads. The landscape features were designed by Hare and Hare and constructed under the supervision of the city's park department.

This small triangular park at the intersection of 8th Ave., Horatio St. and Greenwich Ave. in Greenwich Village is one of New York City's oldest parks. It dates back to the 19th century. In 1934, it was renovated by the Department of Parks, which announced that the area had "been designed principally for the use of mothers and infants and will be provided very generously with shade trees and benches." The NYC Parks website further explains that during this renovation "seventeen pin oaks were planted on the perimeter, the shower basin was replaced by a new wading pool, and new...

The Civil Works Administration (CWA) developed Jackson Town Square in Jackson, Wyoming. Cassity: "Jackson’s Washington Park, the town square, was significantly improved with excavation to level the ground, replacing the removed soil with loam for seeding grass and shrubbery."

The Civil Works Administration and the Puerto Rico Emergency Relief Administration carried out new road construction on Jaguar Road in Gurabo.

The Civil Works Administration and the Puerto Rico Emergency Relief Administration carried out new road construction on Jagüeyes Road in Aguas Buenas.

The Civil Works Administration (CWA) constructed a jail in Dubois, Wyoming. The location and status of the project is unknown to Living New Deal.

Newton, Mississippi's James H. Eason Field, formerly known as O'Keefe Airport, was dedicated November 12, 1934. O'Keefe was instrumental, as a federal Civil Works Administration (CWA) employee, in bringing several CWA-funded airports to Mississippi. The then-cost of the project was $12,000.

The Federal Emergency Relief Administration and the Civil Works Administration carried out “repairs and renewals” work at the James Madison School (renamed Edith Williams School) on St. Thomas.

The Civil Works Administration and the Federal Emergency Relief Administration funded improvements at the Janney Playground in Washington DC. The work consisted of building one or more new shelters.

The Civil Works Administration carried out new construction on Javilla Barrio Salto Road in San Sebastian.

The Jess Norman Post 166 American Legion Hut is a historic clubhouse at 222 South First Street in Augusta, Arkansas. It is a single-story rectangular log structure, with a gable roof and a stone chimney. It is fashioned out of cypress logs joined by square notches, and rests on piers of stone and wood. It was built in 1934 with funding from the Civil Works Administration for the local American Legion chapter, and is architecturally unique in the city. It is still used for its original purpose. (wikipedia) "The CWA approved $1,779 for the project, of which $1,120 was earmarked for...

Outdoor theater, seating capacity of 350. "The theater was built by the Civil Works Administration (Project Number 5) and was dedicated on 22 April 1934. That same year, the park commission reported that the 'CWA funds not only provided much needed relief to the unemployed, but also gave to the citizens of Berkeley a new means of cultural recreation.'"

Three 15' x 7.5' frescoes by David Park on the themes "Art," "Civilization," and "Nature." The frescoes surround the main entrance. The murals were done as part of the Public Works of Art Program (then funded by the CWA).

The Civil Works Administration (CWA) worked to improve Johnson County Airport outside Buffalo, Wyoming.

The federal Civil Works Administration (CWA) undertook improvement work at the former Johnson County Courthouse in Paintsville, Kentucky: "Interior Remodeled, Including Electric, Water, and Heating Systems." The exact location and status of the former courthouse is unknown to Living New Deal.

The Civil Works Administration (CWA) conducted a renovation project at what was then known as the Johnson school northwest of Shawnee, Oklahoma in 1933. The location and status of this facility is unknown to Living New Deal.

The present Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling is the site of the former Anacostia US Naval Air Station and the former Bolling Air Field, both founded in 1918.  Bolling Field was absorbed into the Naval Air Station in the 1940s and a new Bolling Air Force Base constructed just to the south in 1948.  Those facilities were merged again in 2010, and the joint base is currently home to several functions, including a naval facility, a large heliport and a Secret Service base.   From 1933 to 1942, New Deal agencies were busy at the two older facilities, making improvements of various kinds....

The present Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling is the site of the former Anacostia US Naval Air Station and the former Bolling Air Field, both founded in 1918.  Bolling Field was absorbed into the Naval Air Station in the 1940s and a new Bolling Air Force Base constructed just to the south in 1948.  Those facilities were merged again in 2010, and the joint base is currently home to several functions, including a naval facility, a large heliport and a Secret Service base.   From 1933 to 1942, New Deal agencies were busy at the two older facilities, making improvements of various kinds....

All 17 schoolhouses in Framingham, Massachusetts were painted, remodeled, and/or repaired with federally funded labor during the Great Depression. At the former Jonathon Maynard School the Civil Works Administration (C.W.A.) graded the land behind the school and built a new playground (1933-4). The W.P.A. conducted work at the site as well, including the installation of new bathroom facilities in 1937.

From NYC Parks: "Sauer Park is one of nine playgrounds that were built by the Parks Department through the War Memorial Fund, and were opened simultaneously on July 15, 1934. The War Memorial Fund was established in 1921 with $250,000 collected by the Police Department, and by 1934 the fund—never spent—had grown in value to $350,000. Seeking additional open spaces for children, Parks Commissioner Robert Moses obtained a legal ruling which permitted use of the fund for playground development. The properties were intended to honor the memories of individual soldiers who gave their lives in combat. The Fund was transferred to...

The sign on this park says Josephine Caminiti Playground. The NYC Parks website also refers to it as Alstyne Playground and notes that it was formerly known as Corona Playground. The land for this park was purchased by the City in 1930. The press release announcing its opening in October 1934 described the new facilities: "A new playground for small children will be opened at Corona Avenue and 102nd Street in the Borough of Queens. The area includes a recreational building outdoor play apparatus. A unique feature of this playground is its oval, concrete surfaced roller skating rink around the...

The Civil Works Administration (CWA) built the Josey Boy Scout Lodge in Huntsville in 1934. Huntsville native and self made millionaire Robert A. Josey donated $5000 for the construction of a Boy Scout lodge in 1933. "The material for the construction was donated by J. P. Gibbs of Gibbs Brothers and Co. and included treated logs and stones from local forests and quarries. Lewis. E. Meekins of Austin was hired as contractor to build the log cabin style lodge. The structure was designed by architect Mike Mebane and based on a scale model made by the Scouts themselves." The lodge has five rooms,...

Oxford, Massachusetts's old Joslin School—since demolished—received assistance from numerous New Deal programs during the 1930s. In 1933 the Civil Works Administration (CWA) graded a playground at the rear of the school and built a sidewalk from the school to Main Street. The school grounds were further improved and graded during 1934 utilizing funds provided by the federal Emergency Relief Administration. Improvements were continued under the Works Progress Administration (WPA) with particular attention devoted to the "Joslin School Grove." The WPA constructed an athletic field for the school in 1936. Finally, the federal Public Works Administration provided a $21,000 grant for...

The Civil Works Administration (C.W.A.) conducted improvement work at Maynard's former High School / Junior High School building (later Fowler Middle School), including painting the interior of the auditorium. The Work Projects Administration (W.P.A.) conducted further work in 1941. All school buildings in the town "on the exterior have been completely renovated by having the windows weather stripped, puttied and painted. The interior... are now being repaired with W.P.A. labor by installing new celotex ceilings where needed, replacing plaster ceilings that were beyond repairs, having the hallways, classrooms washed and painted. These repairs have added consiterabl to the appearance of our...