Works Progress Administration (WPA) Sites

"Lake Yosemite, despite its vast shores and native sands is entirely man-made, right down to the splendid beach you might call your summer home away from home. The water, of course, rests in an artificial reservoir that once provided the city of Merced with its drinking water, but now serves as the lifeblood of this area's ag industry. What might come as a surprise is the fact that the sand for the main beach at Lake Yosemite was hauled from the Merced River in Cressey by a team of Works Progress Administration workers. The local WPA program also created restroom facilities, new piers,...

The Lakeside School was built in 1918 in Chisago City, MN. The original school was not built with an auditorium or anywhere for entertainment, plays, etc. and after 30 years the gymnasium in the school had fallen into disarray and many schools in the area refused to play in the gym that had a narrow floor, low ceiling, and no room for spectators. In 1934 the WPA selected Chisago County among 13 other counties to receive a WPA project. The school board submitted an application for federal aid in August of 1938 to make improvements to the school. In September...

The Works Progress Administration (WPA) built the Lakeview Road Bridge in Stillwater OK. From waymarking.com: "The WPA constructed large amounts of roadway infrastructure during the last half of the 1930's, including thousands of bridges and culverts. This bridge on West Lakeview Road, about 5 miles west of Stillwater, crosses Dry Creek. The bridge has seen a lot of wear and tear and the concrete guardrails are broken in several places, with sections missing. The bridge on both sides of the road has imprints of the WPA shield with the year 1939, and one place on a guardrail pillar, there is evidence that...

The federal Work Projects Administration worked to improve Great Neck, New York's Lakeville Elementary School during the late 1930s. One modest project called for general carpentry improvements and painting at this building and Great Neck's "domestic science cottage."

Carlsbad Current-Argus: "Local employees are now engaged in ... refurbishing Lakewood school at Lakewood. ... Second story of Lakewood school will be removed, a new roof and teacherage - will be built, and rooms will be redecorated."

The Lamar Boulevard Bridge over Shoal Creek is a reinforced concrete bridge built by the Works Progress Administration (WPA) under project number 65-1-66-2822 in downtown Austin. The bridge has a 40 foot wide roadway and is 145.5 foot long on the downstream side and 187.83 foot long on the upstream side. The project employed an average of 70 workers. The WPA cost was $33,133 and the sponsor cost was $27,649. The bridge is still in use and is configured with four lanes - two northbound and two southbound.

Lamar Porter Field, a ballpark, was built by the WPA in 1937 and has been hosting amateur baseball ever since. It was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1990.

A Paterson landmark dating back to 1892, Lambert's Castle was originally home to the Lamberts, a wealthy family that owned area silk mills. The building fell into disrepair in the early twentieth century, was purchased by the city of Paterson for $125,000 in 1925 and in 1928 transferred the title to the Passaic County Parks Commission. The Works Progress Administration (WPA) helped to expand and build up the grounds in 1940.  According to a WPA press release, “A picnic area developed by WPA which adjoins the tower is one of the most popular improvements at Garret Mountain. The tower itself was...

WPA Bulletin, 1937: "I wish to thank you in behalf of the Rehoboth Garden Club and myself for the work done by the WPA workers in grading the land at the junction of Bay State Road and Winthrop Street in the Town of Rehoboth. They have done a fine piece of work, and it is very neat, and a great improvement. The Townspeople have been very pleased by it, and it is causing them to take an interest in improving the roadsides." The land is likely Redway Plain.

In the 1936-37, the Works Progress Administration (WPA) helped the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) build the stone observatory (later visitor's center) at Land's End on the western tip of Grand Mesa. It was built in the Rustic Style popular in the early 20th century, of heavy basalt stone from the mesa and rough timbers. Grand Mesa is the largest flat-topped mountain in the world, around 500 square miles in area and 10,500 high.  It is entirely within the Grand Mesa National Forest. The observatory was shuttered when we visited, but not permanently closed, we hope.

Merchant Joseph Landa purchased the property that bears his name in 1859 to build gristmills powered by water from the Comal River. During the 1890s, the Landa property became known as Landa's Pasture and was a popular picnic spot. Landa's Park was established by Joseph's son, Harry Landa, in 1898. Excursion trains from San Antonio and Austin brought tourists to Landa's Park, which was hailed as one of the most popular resorts in the Southwest. In 1927, Harry Landa, sold the property to Jarrett Investment Company, which operated the park until it defaulted on its loan due to financial losses...

According to a book on Joplin by Leslie Simpson, "In 1933, WPA workers cleared out the slums and created Landreth Park, which boasted a swimming pool, a playground, a tennis court, and flower gardens."  WPA work at the park included the construction of an elegant stone entrance at NW Murphy Blvd.

In the first half of the 20th century, the Amesbury High School was located on Main Street in the town of Amesbury, MA. In 1938 the school was selected for the construction of an athletic stadium by the Works Progress Administration. The original high school burned down in 1964 and was rebuilt on Highland St. Now the property on Main Street is home to the Amesbury Middle School. The stadium was constructed with an odd and peculiar design that can best be described as a bowl structure built into the side of a small hill. On two opposing sides there are...

Montana's Big Timber Pioneer newspaper reported in 1938 that 40 WPA laborers were "doing a $40,000 job of tree painting, landscaping, road oiling, leveling and general beautification" at what was then known as the Montana School of Mines, now Montana Tech of the University of Montana. Most evidence of such renovations is long gone, but one rock wall we observed looks suspiciously like WPA work. WPA employment was vital to the welfare of unemployed miners around Butte, Montana during the Great Depression.

"Lane Field is a former baseball stadium located in San Diego, California. The ballpark was home to the San Diego Padres of the Pacific Coast League from 1936 through 1957. The ballpark was located in downtown San Diego, at the end of West Broadway near the waterfront. Broadway bounded the park to the south (first base). Its other two close bounding streets were Harbor Drive (third base) and Pacific Highway (right field). There were various buildings to the north (left field) between the ballpark and Ash Street. Before it was called Lane Field, the stadium began its life as a U.S. Navy...

Birmingham's Lane Park was the site of substantial work relief efforts on the part of multiple New Deal agencies: the Civil Works Administration (CWA) and the Works Progress Administration (WPA). Historical marker: "The land was also used for the Allen Gray Fish Hatchery (fed by Pullen Springs), a stone quarry, a complete baseball diamond, and a golf driving range. Several of the stone structures were erected by the WPA. Two hundred acres are now the home of the Birmingham Zoo (est. 1954) and the Birmingham Botanical Gardens (est. 1962)." A CWA/Alabama Relief Administration project was soon after launched to fully develop the...

A 43' x 20' oil mural was painted on the steel fire curtain in the auditorium at Lane Tech High School by artist John Edwin Walley. It was installed in 1936 with funding from the WPA's Federal Art Project and restored in 1997. One commentary on the mural says this: "The imposing Native American figure called "the lean Indian," painted on the steel fire curtain of the school auditorium, was the first of many artworks to be commissioned for Lane Tech, then all male, during the New Deal years. The school had moved to a new building in 1934, and Lane's principal...

Among several other New Deal artworks at the Lane Tech High School are these carved mahogany bas-reliefs in the school library. These 15' x 6' reliefs were carved by sculptor Peter Paul Ott, with assistance from wood workers Conzelman, Meuzenmeier, Sarner, Ericksen and McGrory. The reliefs were completed between 1936 and 1938 with support from the WPA Federal Art Project.

Among the many Federal Art Project (FAP) funded artworks at Lane Tech High school is a four-panel fresco in the auditorium, "Teaching of the Arts," painted by Mitchell Siporin in 1938. Each panel is 15' x 3'6." From A Guide to Chicago's Murals (2001): "Four vertical panels mounted between the exterior doors of the Lane Tech auditorium describe the teaching of the humanities. They were painted when the school was all male. In each, Mitchell Siporin portrays the figure of a mentor or teacher standing behind that of a young student. For literature, a wise-looking older man with his arm outstretched gently...

Among the New Deal artworks at Lane Tech High School are several frescoes in the school lunchroom, each depicting a different period of "Epochs in the History of Man." These large (12' x 14') frescoes were painted by Edgar Britton in 1937 under the Federal Art Project (FAP), a branch of the Works Progress Administration (WPA).

Two 14-foot figures titled "Boys Rising From the Sea" were created by Charles Umlauf under the auspices of the WPA Federal Art Project.  These sculptures are placed in front of the school.  They are part of a group of New Deal artworks that embellish Lane Tech College Prep High School

 During the 1930s, Langdon Park was upgraded as part of a larger Capital Parks improvement program undertaken by the Public Works Administration (PWA), Civil Work Adminstration (CWA), Works Progress Administration (WPA), and Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC). A Washington Daily News article from 1936 described New Deal work in the park: "Wading pool built; new walks, picnic groves and parking area completed." In this case, the improvements were most likely done by the WPA, which was at work on a million-dollar program of parks renovation in 1935-36.  Langdon Park today contains a swimming pool and pool building, basketball courts, tennis courts and as...

The Works Progress Administration (W.P.A.) conducted improvement work on many of Montpelier's steel bridges, including painting the Langdon Street bridge in 1935.

The Works Progress Administration (WPA) built an addition to the Langston Elementary School in Langston OK. The structure is currently not in use. 

The WPA demolished and reconstructed Lankershim Elementary School.

The Lapeer State Home and Training Facility was used as a house for the mentally feeble and those suffering from epilepsy or other medical conditions. Originally established in 1895, it was previously known as both the Michigan Home and Training School, as well as the Oakdale Regional Center for Developmental Disabilities. Spanning hundreds of acres, it also became known as Oakdale, made up of a number of buildings similar in operations to that of the Lapeer State Home and Training Facility. The Lapeer State Home and Training Facility was created by the state of Michigan to help make advances in...

Woonsocket, RI: A Centennial History, states: The Woonsocket Call of September 28, 1935, reported that "work was started on the first five WPA projects in Woonsocket, giving employment to 300 men." Logee and Larch Streets and Rhodes Avenue were graded; Thomas Street was paved; and Cass Park athletic fields were completed.

Two murals in the Larchmont, New York Public Library were painted under the auspices of the WPA by Thomas H. Donnelly (1893-1971), an American scene painter, who lived in nearby Valhalla, New York and was known for his landscapes and winter scenes. The murals that have hung for the last 73 years in the Larchmont Public Library were commissioned by the Larchmont Women’s Club. “The Manor House” depicts Larchmont’s oldest building and one which gave this affluent village, Larchmont Manor, now a suburb of New York City, its name. The farmhouse, originally built by New York City attorney Peter Jay Munro...

According to National Archives microfilm purchased and researched by Santa Cruz County library staff, the WPA surfaced Larkin Valley Rd with crushed rock and fuel oil in 1935.

The Works Progress Administration (WPA) reconstructed Las Flores Elementary School (today's Las Flores Home Education Independent Study Academy) in Bellflower, CA, following the 1933 Long Beach earthquake.

The Works Progress Administration built the Latimer County Courthouse in Wilburton. Contributor note: "The Latimer County Courthouse is located at the intersection of N. Central and W. Ada. This is a beautiful two-story rock building that is painted a cream color. The gutters and downspouts are painted in a contrasting terracotta color which adds to the effect. The windows for the most part are 8-pane fixed units. There are recessed double-door entrances on the south and east. The courthouse has three bays with the center bay slightly projected on the east, and having a higher roof line. To the left of the...

A Works Progress Administration (W.P.A.) Bulletin details the following project undertaken by the W.P.A. in Newton: "Flood damage by two brooks which formerly went on rampages during spring floods has been eliminated by construction of masonry walls for a mile and a quarter in Cheesecake brook and for 830 feet in Laundry brook."

Now the Anderson-Murphy Community Center. It is a 17,964 square foot building constructed in 1927. This building served as the National Guard Armory before being purchased by the City for use by the Parks & Recreation Department. According to an index of WPA projects at the National Archives, the WPA improved and repaired the Laurel Armory in 1935.

In July 1935, the Laurel School Board sponsored a proposal for a new athletic field adjacent to the school grounds. The land had been used as a school “park”, but since the school had no athletic field to speak of, the Board proposed to procure 6,000 cubic yards of dirt from the nearby borrow pit of the State Highway Department and level the yard. Thirty men were given employment as a result of this Works Progress Administration (WPA) project.

Set back from Main Street (US 25) this building is a former school with a historical marker in front indicating it was the site of the 1826 Laurel Seminary which opened in 1858. Became a Common School 1870-1884, private to 1893, common public school before the original building was replaced with the existing building. (Historic name undetermined)

A Works Progress Administration (WPA) project in the amount of $22,000 was allotted to 2 Laurel schools in 1940. One project was to complete plastering and ceiling, drainage and landscaping of the Frank G. Wisner Activities building for Laurel High School. The building was a two-story Art Moderne designed by N. W. Overstreet and A. H. Town completed 1939-1940.

Works Progress Administration (W.P.A.) labor developed Laurel Hill Cemetery. WPA Bulletin, 1937: Eventual income of $450,000 to be derived from the sale of burial lots, will benefit this city when WPA work projects on Forest Hill and Laurel cemeteries are completed. Almost 200,000 square feet of waste land are being transformed into a fine cemetery by the work projects.

"Beginning in 1935, the Federal Emergency Relief Administration began purchasing sub-marginal agricultural and forest land so that it could be converted to better use. In 1936, the National Park Service was given the responsibility of the Recreational Demonstration Areas. Laurel Hill was one of five areas in Pennsylvania and targeted for restoration and reforestation, and organized group camping and day picnicking. Beginning in 1935, with cooperation of the Pennsylvania Department of Forests and Waters, men of the Works Progress Administration (WPA) and the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) began building roads, trails, bridges and recreational facilities. Two CCC camps, SP-8 and SP-15 arrived...

"A chiseled stone plaque marks the WPA-built wall along the Laurel Run Creek in Parsons section of Wilkes-Barre. ... This WPA-built retaining wall helps keep Laurel Run Creek in Wilkes-Barre within its banks."

The Works Progress Administration (WPA) paved Laurel Street in Hartford, Connecticut, between Farmington Ave. and Capitol Ave., in 1937.