Work Relief Programs Sites

The Anthony Township Building in Anthony Township, Pennsylvania was originally constructed as a consolidated school by the Work Projects Administration (WPA). The semi-fireproof brick and tile building featured "four large class rooms, health room, boys and girls inside flush sanitary toilets, drinking fountains," among other things.

Refurbishing of Reading, Pennsylvania's Antietam Dam, which created the Antietam Reservoir, was conducted by the WPA.

The Battle of Antietam took place on September 17, 1862, and is known as the bloodiest day of the Civil War.  General George B. McClellan and his Union forces faced off against General Robert E. Lee and his Confederate Army at Sharpsburg, Maryland.  When the fighting was done, well over 3,500 men were dead, and another 19,000 wounded. Throughout the New Deal period, Antietam National Battlefield received a large amount of attention, funding, and work from the CWA, PWA, and WPA.  The CWA placed a historical survey group there, circa 1933-34; the PWA funded restoration of large buildings and monuments, such...

Built in 1935 by the Civilian Conservation Corps, the Antlers Guard Station was originally used to house project and fire crews. Later on, guard stations lost their utility, because the Forest Service had quicker ways to get to forest areas without these stations. Starting in the 1990s, the Antlers Guard Station was rented out to the public, and in 1991 was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The Puerto Rico Emergency Relief Administration carried out new road construction on Anton Ruiz Road in Humacao.

This frieze on the ceilings of the library's reading rooms depicts "Flowers and Animals" and was funded by the FAP and WPA. The artist is currently unknown to the Living New Deal. The library itself was completed in 1932, but is very similar in design to what soon after became known as the WPA style.

Now one of two spans that carries Florida State Highway 20 across the Apalachicola River, this bridge, which connects Blountstown in Calhoun County with Bristol in Liberty County, was a federal Works Progress Administration (WPA) project. (The New Deal span, the more northerly of the two bridges, now carries westbound traffic only.) The bridge was constructed between 1937 and 1938.

Appalachian State University, then known as Appalachian State Teachers College (A.S.T.C), was substantially improved and developed as part of infrastructure and building construction projects on the institution's campus. Numerous New Deal organizations, including the Civil Works Administration (CWA), Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA), Works Progress Administration (WPA), and Public Works Administration (PWA), provided labor or funding for the numerous projects undertaken at A.S.T.C. during the Great Depression. At A.S.T.C the CWA: conducted landscaping work; provided office help and laborers; repaired buildings; and installed a chlorinator (presumably for a pool). The FERA: constructed a gymnasium and a library; repaired a basement at...

The Work Projects Administration (WPA) constructed a boys' dormitory at what was then known as Appalachian State Teachers College (A.S.T.C.). Work was completed in 1939. Per The News and Observer, "On a hill immediately back of the stadium is the nearly completed 65-room boys' dormitory. Well designed rooms, latest type heating, plumbing will place the brick building at par with the best student housing." The facility, which was located toward the southwest part of the campus, by the coordinates provided below, has been demolished.

A high school facility for Boone, NC was constructed in 1935-7* on the campus of what was then known as Appalachian State Teachers College (ASTC)—now Appalachian State University—by the Works Progress Administration (WPA). The building, known as Appalachian High School or Demonstration High School, is located on Locust Street south of Howard Street. * Note: Some sources date the project to 1938, though a WPA plaque on the building identifies the years as 1935 to 1937. AppState.edu: "Chapell Wilson was first known as Appalachian High School until 1965, when the school was merged into Watauga High School and the building was renovated...

The Dauphin Disco Dougherty Memorial Library, now known as D.D. Dougherty Hall, was constructed by the Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA) at what was then known as Appalachian State Teachers College in Boone, North Carolina. The building was completed in 1935. Historic maps and modern imagery suggest that the building has since been expanded.

In 1939-1940 the Work Projects Administration (WPA) constructed faculty homes at what was then known as Appalachian State Teachers College (A.S.T.C.). The homes were constructed of brick or native stone. Per the university's website, the buildings were "converted later for departmental use and gradually demolished during 1990s." Also known as Faculty Row, the "series of small stone and brick houses built as faculty residences" once lined "Faculty and River Streets."

The Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA) constructed a men's gymnasium at what was then known as Appalachian State Teachers College (A.S.T.C.). Work was completed in 1934. The facility, which was located by the site of the current Varsity Gym, has been demolished.

The Works Progress Administration (WPA) constructed sidewalks on the campus of what was then known as Appalachian State Teachers College in Boone, North Carolina.

The Work Projects Administration (WPA) constructed a stadium and athletic field at what was then known as Appalachian State Teachers College (A.S.T.C.). Work was completed in 1939. Per The News and Observer, the college has "a class one field on which to display their prowess. Naturally, the main item is a 2500-seat steel and concrete stadium. No, the college is not an adjunct to its football team. The sport is just a normal college activity here." The facility, which was located north / east of Rivers Street at what is now the site of Rankin Hall and Edwin Duncan Hall, has...

During the Great Depression the Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA) and Work Projects Administration (WPA) helped to develop and complete the old Watauga County Hospital, whose construction had begun at the beginning of the 1930s. The building was later known at Appalachian State University's Founders Hall, and was dedicated as Watson-Brumit Hall on Sept. 18, 2021.

"As early as 1924, published accounts of plans for the Appalachian Trail called for it to extend to the summit of Maine's Katahdin. Later, although some (notably Myron Avery) urged that the Trail continue to Katahdin, the scarcity of existing trails, the lack of hiking clubs to assume the maintenance of the new trail, and the remoteness of the land along the proposed route combined to discourage an extension beyond New Hampshire's Mt. Washington. But, in 1933, following a two-year survey of possible routes, a location for the Maine section was developed by using existing trails and logging roads, as...

The Civilian Conservation Corps completed the final link of the Appalachian Trail in Carrabassett Valley near Sugarloaf Mountain, on August 14, 1937. A plaque near the site reads: "In honor of the men of the Civilian Conservation Corps who, from 1935-1939, contributed greatly to the completion of the Appalachian Trail in Maine and who, on August 14, 1937, near this spot completed the final link of the entire 2,054-mile trail. Dedicated August 14, 1987 by the volunteers of the Appalachian Trail Club."

The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) had a camp at Steamboat Creek from 1933 to 1941. It was a US Forest Service camp serving Umpqua National Forest.  The enrollees made many improvements along the North Umpqua River, including campgrounds, trails and bridges. One of the campgrounds developed by the CCC was Apple Creek along the North Umpqua River and Highway 138.  It is a small, plain campground without special features. Apple Creek Campground was closed when we visited in 2022, probably a carryover from the pandemic. The entrance sign is covered in black plastic, which may be protection against winter deterioration, but the...

"n 1937, the Merced City Council applied for a Works Progress Administration project to construct a new park -- a park that would cost about $41,000 total, with the city providing $9,800 and the federal government $30,800. Included in the new park would be seven acres of lawn, more than a mile of water pipe, demolition of the grandstand and bleachers in the old park's athletic field, a new fence, pens for animals and birds, duck pond, and deer shed, along with trees, shrubs, flowers and landscaping... The project required 590 man-months of labor, according to G.E. Winton, the city engineer at...

Appleton (West) High School has served as a high school in Appleton, WI since September, 1938. It was built by the Works Progress Administration.

Works Progress Administration (W.P.A.) labor repaved Appleton St. in Holyoke, Mass.

With WPA support, Cal Peters painted several murals for the University of Wisconsin-Stout campus, circa 1935-1936. This 7' x 20' oil on canvas is entitled "Perrault's Trading Fort." It depicts a trading post on Red Cedar River at the future site of Menomonie, Wisconsin. The mural is located in Room 315, Applied Arts, Choir Room, University of Wisconsin-Stout.

The federal Works Progress Administration (WPA) worked to develop Aptos Playground in San Francisco during the Great Depression.

The Works Progress Administration (WPA) built the mile-long Berkeley Aquatic Park on the bay front south of University Avenue in 1935-37.  It was created as a water park for water skiing, canoeing, sculling and model yacht racing, and is still used for practice by collegiate rowers and for water sports. The park lies between the freeway (Interstate 80) and the former Southern Pacific Railroad tracks (now Union Pacific).  Tidal gates under the freeway keep the water level constant and refresh the basin with water from San Francisco Bay.  The aquatic park project grew out of the Eastshore Highway, a feeder road for the...

Although the New Deal is best known for creation and construction, the Civil Works Administration (CWA) also put unemployed people to work demolishing obsolete structures. In the winter of 1933-34, CWA crews took down the old Aqueduct Bridge, a canal bridge built in 1843 that closed in 1923 when the nearby Key Bridge opened. An abutment of the bridge still remains, overlooking the Potomac Boat Club boathouse.

Aransas National Wildlife Refuge is a 114,657-acre, federally protected area at San Antonio Bay on the coast of Texas. The refuge was established by Executive Order 7784 on December 31, 1937 by President Franklin D. Roosevelt as the Aransas Migratory Waterfowl Refuge. The name was changed in 1939. It was created under the Bureau of Biological Survey and is administered today by the US Fish and Wildlife Service (created in 1940 from previous agencies). The refuge was set aside to protect the breeding grounds of migratory birds and the vanishing wildlife of coastal Texas. In particular, Aransas was the focal point of...

"During the Great Depression, the federal government established the Works Progress Administration (WPA) to employ Americans in a series of public construction projects. Almost 19,000 New Yorkers labored on Staten Island. They built sidewalks through wooded areas that were supposed to eventually have roads laid through them. Many of these planned roads were never built, but the sidewalks remain in many of the island’s parks, including this one. Remnants of unfinished roadbeds for Eyelandt and Collins Avenues run through or near the park as well."

The Works Progress Administration (WPA) developed a municipal baseball park in Arcata, California, just north of the City Hall.  The work was first approved in 1936, finalized in 1937 and then completed in 1938 (WPA funding was greatly reduced in 1937 and then pumped up again in 1938). This is full-sized ball park, with a grandstand behind home plate, has been upgraded over time, but the entrance and barrier behind the grandstand appear to be original (wood).  The bleachers, lights, field and fencing all appear to be much newer.  It is still in use (and hard to view because the fencing...

The Work Projects Administration (W.P.A.) constructed the Arch Hurley Conservancy District building in Tucumcari, New Mexico in 1940. "Construction of the High Street office building took place in the summer and fall of 1940. A photograph at the ACHD office, dated July 9 of that year, shows “Manufacture of cement cinder blocks by W.P.A. men. These blocks are to be used in the construction of the new administrative building."

Arch Rock Tunnel is one of three tunnels built by the Works Progress Administration (WPA) along the Feather River Highway in northeast California.  The tunnels were the final pieces in the construction of the Feather River highway (highway 70) by the State of California (1928-37). Arch Rock tunnel is the southern-most tunnel of the three and the shortest. The tunnels were blasted through solid granite in and around Grizzly Dome. Rock from the tunnels was used for rock safety walls along the highway.

The Civilian Conservation Corps' Indian Division (CCC-ID) did archeological excavation and stabilization work at several sites of ancient indigenous ruins across Arizona in the 1930s.  A Navajo Indian CCC mobile unit was formed under a joint program between the Park Service and the Indian Service (later the Bureau of Indian Affairs) to work under the supervision of an archeologist on stabilization work on pre-Columbian ruins in Chaco Canyon, Navajo, Tonto, Wupatki, Aztec Ruins, Montezuma Castle, and Gran Quivira national monuments (Paige 1985, p. ?) It is likely that CCC enrollees also built the main visitor trail at the monument, but that needs...

Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) enrollees from the Mt. Elden Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) camp near Flagstaff worked at Walnut Canyon National Monument from 1938 to 1942.  One part of their work was assisting with the stabilization and restoration of dwelling units in the cliffs of Walnut Canyon.  Walnut Canyon is an important site of cliff dwellings left by the Sinagua people, who occupied the site c. 1125-1250 C.E.  There are a couple hundred dwelling units tucked into the cliffs on both sides of the canyon, but the focus of the archeological work was along the Island Trail, which the CCC built...

The Archer School Gymnasium was built by the Works Progress Administration (WPA) with funding from the Federal Emergency Administration of Public Works, as part of the New Deal Project 1189. The building was restored (with ADA updates) beginning with fundraising efforts in 2003. Construction commenced in 2007 and completed in 2011, and the building dedicated. It now serves as a multi-purpose center for the City of Archer. The condition of the Gymnasium Building is excellent; however the school was demolished in 1972. (New Deal Project 1189 also remodeled the auditorium of the school into classrooms.)

Arches National Monument was established in 1929 with only 4,500 acres and enlarged dramatically to over 33,000 acres by President Franklin Roosevelt in 1938 (Arches became a National Park in 1971).  Some of the first improvements to the monument were made by workers of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC).  CCC camp NP-7 was established in nearby Moab UT in April 1940 and lasted until March 1942, one of the last in the country to be closed. CCC 'boys' worked on roads, trails and erosion control, and notably a headquarters building and bridge over the wash that often blocked access to the...

"The Recreation Hall in Arco, Idaho was constructed in 1937-38 as a Works Progress Administration project. The building was built as a gymnasium and was constructed of basalt. The project was a challenge to the WPA masons because the basalt could not be shaped into regularly shaped blocks. Instead irregular stones were mortared together and then small “seams” were traced into the mortar to give the appearance of tightly fitting stones. The building was renovated (including a new roof) in the 1990s and now includes city offices in addition to recreational facilities. On June 8, 1948, President Harry S. Truman greeted...

The Civil Works Administration carried out repair and maintenance work on the Arecibo Lighthouse Road in Arecibo.

The Civil Works Administration carried out road improvement work in Utuado. The work consisted of widening the curve for the road to Arecibo.

The Civil Works Administration and the Puerto Rico Emergency Relief Administration carried out repair and maintenance work in Arenales Altos in Isabela.

The Argos Izaak Walton League clubhouse and attendant (former) fish hatchery were constructed by the Works Progress Administration (WPA) in 1935 to 1937. The fish hatchery in Argos, Indiana had "a capacity of 375,000 fingerlings annually."The facility is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. "This building of glacial stone and the surrounding 17 acres of fishing ponds and structures are a tribute to natural aesthetics, an idea important to the League who made this building their clubhouse. The Argos Izaak Walton League was established in 1929 in response to concern for the conservation of natural resources, fish and wildlife...