Work Relief Programs Sites

Ashland's water system was greatly expanded during the 1930s as a result of federal assistance. Work included: High St.: The federal Civil Works Administration (C.W.A.) extended the water main system along High Street in 1933. The Works Progress Administration (W.P.A.) constructed wells there in 1935. Union St.: The Works Progress Administration (W.P.A.) extended the water system along Union St., E. Union St., and W. Union St. starting in 1935. Metropolitan Ave. (W.P.A., started 1935) Olive St. (W.P.A., started 1935) Cedar St. (W.P.A., 1937) Tri St. and Eliot St. (W.P.A., 1937) Prospect St. (W.P.A., 1937)

The Works Progress Administration (WPA) undertook an extension of the water system in Oak Ridge, Louisiana during the Great Depression. Public utilities projects, including such water supply and purification systems, accounted for ten percent of all WPA spending during the period. The Oak Ridge water system project in the Morehouse parish employed 37 men.

The Civil Works Administration (CWA) worked to improve the water system in Clearmont, Wyoming. Cassity: "At Clearmont, the water main was repaired at the same time the streets were resurfaced, and the laying of four hundred feet of water pipe on Big Horn Avenue improved the water pressure for the residences." It is unclear whether this refers to a project in Sheridan, as there is a Big Horn Avenue in Sheridan though not in Clearmont. Cassity refers to a similar project in Sheridan in the subsequent sentence.

The federal Works Progress Administration (WPA) conducted sizable construction work to improve and expand the water system in Fulton, New York. The work employed 75 men for three months; 4,000 feet of 12-inch pipe and 800 feet of 8-inch pipe were laid.

The Civil Works Administration (CWA) improved the water system in Greybull, Wyoming. Cassity: "As for running water, Greybull's experience was repeated at a number of other communities. CWA workers replaced a wrought iron water line on Third Avenue with cast iron pipe and replaced 2,200 feet of pipe on Greybull Avenue: “This change of pipe was badly needed and the change of pipe has helped to greatly improve the Greybull Water System."

The WPA allocated $11,000 for city water system improvements in Hardin, Montana in August 1938.

Cassity: "In Jackson, Mayor C. W. Huff put workers on an ambitious project to expand and supplement the town’s water system."

Big Timber Pioneer reported in late 1935 that: "The first works progress project in Flathead county is to consist of renewing 6,600 feet of water mains, which will complete the city water system, according to Mayor Bruckhauser of Kalispell. The WPA will furnish the labor and the city the materials."

"Some of the early projects implemented  included ... lowering the water lines in Monticello to make the water cooler and help retard leakege."

"Olympia will improve their water distribution system with a WPA grant of $3,777 ..."

A WPA press release from Dec. 1937 reported that "Two Poulsbo projects, one for sidewalks and the other for water system improvement," received $5,919 in WPA assistance.

A WPA press release from Dec. 1937 states: "Don G. Abel, State Director of the Works Progress Administration today announced approval of a $148,458 project to improve the water distribution system in the Kenwood district, in Seattle. More than 200 men taken from relief rolls will have about eight months employment, Abel stated. The district affected lies between 15th avenue NE and Lake Washington nnd north of E 85th street to E 155th street. The project calls for excavating, laying pipes, installing fire hydrants and necessary tunneling and backfilling. No additional taxes or assessments will be placed on property holders as...

The Civil Works Administration (CWA) worked to improve the water system in Sheridan, Wyoming. Cassity: "Sheridan installed a new water main on the north side of town, replacing 2,650 linear feet of 4 inch wood pipe with 6 inch cast iron pipe, and noted with satisfaction the result: “improving water system and providing employment for needy citizens.”" In the previous sentence Cassity identifies this as an accomplishment of a similar CWA project in Clearmont: "the laying of four hundred feet of water pipe on Big Horn Avenue improved the water pressure for the residences." It is unclear whether this refers to a...

A WPA press release from Dec. 1937 reported that a water mains project in Wenatchee was allocated $50,355 in WPA funds.

The Works Progress Administration built a water tank in Melba, Canyon County.

The federal Works Progress Administration (WPA) constructed the historic water tower in downtown Americus, Georgia. Completed in 1936, the water tower still stands today. It is located on the north side of East Lamar Street between Lee and Prince Streets.

The Works Progress Administration built a water tower in Carnegie OK, in the mid-1930s. Contributor note: The water tower "does not appear to be in use today. Small barred windows are located on the East, West and North sides, with a door on the south which is covered by plywood."

“In Tecumseh, city fathers painted an American flag on the water tower built by WPA. With proper maintenance, water towers built in the 1930s are still being used.” --Leaning on a Legacy

“Rural Oklahomans became accustomed to seeing water towers built by WPA. Often the tower was the tallest structure in town. Waurika received a water tower built by WPA.” --Leaning on a Legacy

The WPA began construction on a "new elevated water storage tank" for the town of Taylor, Texas in early 1936. Replaced in 2009 and dismantled soon after, the old water tower resided just south and west from its replacement on the north side of West 12th Street in Murphy Park. 2009 satellite imagery accessible through Google Earth shows both locations.

The Work Projects Administration (WPA) constructed a distinctive octagonal, concrete water tower in Barnard, Kansas. It was located east of Main Street between Church Ave. and Mills Ave. Conflicting sources state that the water tower was completed in either 1937, 1941, or 1942 (with historic articles seeming to suggest the latter, per Barnard Banter). Articles, Google Street View, and satellite imagery suggest that the historic water tower was demolished and replaced with a new structure at the same location in 2013.

According to an index of WPA projects in the National Archives, the WPA constructed a sewage disposal plant, sedimentation tanks, a sludge digestion tank, and dripping beds in Lorton in 1936. In 1938, the Washington Post reported that funds were allocated for the PWA to conduct further improvements. Exact location and status of project unknown, but the facility could now be the site of the Norman M. Cole, Jr. Pollution Control Plant, Virginia's largest such facility.

Works Progress Administration (W.P.A.) workers constructed Leominster's original water treatment facility, which has been drastically modernized on multiple occasions in the intervening decades. WPA Bulletin: As a public health safety measure the Leominster WPA has constructed a large water filtration plant on Monoosnock River . Many skilled and unskilled workers were employed on this project.

"With several WPA projects completed work has been started at Cisco on a $30000 water treatment plant, that city's most important public works undertaking. Forty-five men are employed on the project During construction the city Is using raw water from Lake Cisco." The location of this project is presently unknown to Living New Deal.

The Water Utility Well No. 7 in Madison Wisconsin was constructed in 1939. The project proposal began in 1938 and was completed a year later by McCarthy Well Company. The construction of the project experienced several delays due to weather and other complications. Upon its completion, it began to provide the surrounding area, mainly Bluff Village with clean and sanitary water. Initiation and partial funding for the project was provided by the WPA of Madison. The original well constructed in 1939 contained a 135,000 gallon reservoir along with a well capacity of 2,100 gallons per minute. Inside the well house...

Meridian voters approved a $200,000 bond issue for improving the water works in 1939. It was projected to begin July that year and provide employment for 300 men for a year. Improvements were proposed to include “new five-million-gallon reservoir on the hills south of Meridian, Gravity flow through a new 24-inch main to the downtown section. Several new 16-inch mains to major outlying districts of the city. At least one addition to the pumping station to increase capacity. Adequate pressure to decrease fire hazards” (1939, p. 9). Although they had expected to receive a federal grant of $100,000 toward the cost,...

The federal Works Progress Administration (WPA) financed construction of a water works plant for the town of Pagosa Springs, Colorado. Part of the plant houses the San Juan Historical Society Museum. Free water is still offered from a spigot along North 1st Street elevation.

The Works Progress Administration built a 60” pipe, water purification and supply system in Birmingham, in 1936. The exact location and current condition of this project is unknown to the Living New Deal.  

From 1937-1939, Greenville undertook improvements for the water works and sewage disposal, including building one new pumping station. Bids for pumping stating equipment were opened June 1937, and work began in late June to remodel the existing waterworks building constructed c. 1896. Water mains, storm drains and sanitary sewers were added, along with a new pumping station constructed 1938. Approximately $140,000 was approved for the improvements scheduled for 1937. The water plant was located at 806 West Union Street, and other locations are unknown. The project provided employment for 128 men, and took 12 months. A later WPA project 40,026...

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Civilian Conservation Corps (C.C.C.) combined efforts to construct the Waterbury Dam in Waterbury, Vermont during the Great Depression. On November 3 and 4, 1927, torrential rains created a disastrous flood that paralyzed Vermont. Little River’s rising waters drove the valley residents to their roofs and isolated the hillside farmers. Fifty-five people in the Winooski Valley lost their lives, and property damage was estimated at $13,500,000. A second flood occurred in 1934. These events spurred a plan by the US Army Corps of Engineers to built a set of four dams in central Vermont from...

Portland’s morning newspaper, The Oregonian, announced in late January 1936 that the city’s Seawall Railing was nearing completion, bringing with it a harbor line that was “beautified and protect(ed).” The ornamental, reinforced concrete railings added 3 ½ feet to the harbor wall along a stretch of the Willamette River from Jefferson Street to the Steel Bridge.  Approximately every 100 feet, heavy bases had been added to allow for ornamental light standards along the wall. Federal relief funds provided by the Public Works Administration (PWA) provided $60,000 for the completion, employing approximately 100 Works Progress Administration (WPA) workers. Planning for the harbor...

"This bridge is part of a street construction program undertaken to allow traffic passing through the city to bypass the congested business area. The project consisted of the construction of approximately 11,300 feet of highway connecting Roosevelt Avenue at one end with Houghton Avenue at the other, the construction of a rigid frame bridge at State Street with ramps up to State Street, and the construction of the Watershops Pond Bridge illustrated on this page. This bridge has steel girders and concrete spans with hung arches and stone facing on concrete piers and abutments resting on pile foundations. The total length...

Relief workers from the Works Progress Administration (WPA) and the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) helped carve out and construct the Waterside Theatre at Fort Raleigh National Historic Site on Roanoke Island. The theater has undergone renovations and changes over the years but is still very much in operation. Waterside Theater is home of the long-running play “The Lost Colony," written by Pulitzer Prize-winner Paul Green, a native of North Carolina.  The story of the mysterious lost colony of Roanoke has been running consistently, though not entirely uninterrupted, since 1937.  WPA Federal Theater Project (FTP) actors took part in the original performances. As FTP historian...

The W.P.A. conducted extensive improvement and development projects at the former Watertown Arsenal. Project details: "Rehabilitate and make general improvements to buildings, utilities, facilities, and grounds" Official Project Number: 165‐2‐14‐363 Total project cost: $641,063.00 Sponsor: Commanding Officer, Watertown Arsenal, U.S. Army "Make general repairs and improvements to buildings and grounds" Official Project Number: 165‐24‐2005 Total project cost: $107,860.00 Sponsor: Commanding Officer and Board of Selection "Construct additions to buildings at Watertown Arsenal" Official Project Number: 165‐3‐14‐263 Total project cost: $67,884.00 Sponsor: War Department "Construct additions to existing buildings, rehabilitate and modernize buildings, utilities, and facilities, and improve grounds" Official Project Number: 165‐3‐14‐265 Total project cost: $111,100.00 Sponsor: Commanding Officer, Watertown Arsenal, U.S. Army "Recondition...

A stone airport hangar at Watertown Regional Airport in South Dakota was constructed by the federal Civil Works Administration (CWA) during the Great Depression. The exact location and status of tis structure is presently unknown to Living New Deal.

The federal Works Progress Administration (WPA) conducted defense improvement work at the Watervliet Arsenal during the 1930s.

The federal Work Projects Administration (WPA) constructed a waterworks system in Evarts, Kentucky ca. 1940.

"Nevada is a desert state. This has been the controlling fact of the state’s existence since white men arrived. Many of the New Deal programs tried to stretch the available water. No other field serves better to demonstrate the enduring impact of the Roosevelt programs on Nevada. The state has lived off New Deal water ever since. Besides the Humboldt reclamation program (reclamation is the use of irrigation to convert desert to farmland) already mentioned, there were dozens, then hundreds of drought relief projects—the drilling of wells, the development of springs, the building of dams. By Oct. 22, 1934, the Nevada...

In 1940, the Works Progress Administration reconstructed Monaca's waterworks with locally quarried stone. The project cost $50,000. A marker on the building identifies it as "W.P.A. PROJECT NO. 21284."

The historic Liberty Grove school was constructed 1934 by architect James Manly Spain in a one-story Colonial Revival style. CWA funds provided $22,000 toward the $32,000 school building. The award for the construction contract was to be submitted by the CWA board. In 1939, the Liberty Grove school was part of PWA project W1183 to fund construction and improvements for five Hinds County schools. Liberty Grove school received funding to construct a gymnasium and four additional classrooms. A bond issue for $21,000 was set for October 18, 1938 and approved. PWA funds for all five schools was $151,986 loan toward...