Education and Health Sites

The Georgian Revival style elementary school completed September 9, 1939 was described that year as a "school of tomorrow" by the Democrat-Times. The interior was primarily Art Deco and Streamlined Moderne (MDAH) to reflect modern ideas of teaching. Funded by the city and PWA funds, estimated cost was $151,000.

James Madison University's Carrier Library was constructed with the assistance of federal Public Works Administration (PWA) funds. The PWA supplied a $63,000 grant for the project, whose total cost was $140,010. Construction occurred between Oct. 1938 and Sept. 1939. JMU.edu: The library building that is now known as Carrier opened in 1939. Originally named Madison Memorial Library, it was the first standalone library building on campus. The library was only two floors at the time. The first floor for non-academic books and magazines, the second for the main circulation desk and main book collection. PWA Docket No. VA 1255

The first public school for African Americans in Abilene was established in 1890. Located in the 200 block of Plum Street, the one-room school was named the Abilene Colored School. Its first class consisted of 22 students and one teacher. In 1902 the school moved to a one-room structure built at N. 7th and Magnolia, and had two teachers serving 84 students. The Colored School held its first graduation in 1923 at the Macedonia Baptist Church for one student. A five-room school was constructed at 541 N. 8th Street in 1929. That year the student body consisted of 217 pupils. The building...

The Colonial Revival elementary school was designed by James Manly Spain as Proj. No. Miss. 1233-DS, funded by the Federal Emergency Administration of Public Works. Construction began 12/30/1937 and was completed 9/23/1938. The Public Works provided a grant of $42,924 toward the total estimated cost of $95,454 . The "I" shaped brick featured a 1-story front and a 2-story rear portion, which contains the auditorium. Tuscan columns support the recessed front entrance, which features an arched fanlight above the wood double-leaf wood doors. It was converted to a community center in 2012 and is part of the Carthage Historic District.

The Public Works Administration funded the construction of the Carver High School for African American students in Gadsden.

The Works Progress Administration completed George Washington Carver High School in 1941. The building was used by the African-American students in the Karnack school district. When schools were integrated, the building became George Washington Carver Elementary School. Karnack High School closed in 2016 due to low enrollment, and the elementary school students moved to the high school building. In 2019, the old Carver school building appeared to be unused.

Originally constructed as Cary High School in 1938-39 with the assistance of federal Public Works Administration (PWA) funds. The building, which replaced a 1913 school, was built at a cost of $132,000. The building now houses the Cary Arts Center.

The Works Progress Administration (WPA) built an extensive Recreation Center on the grounds of the Utah State Hospital for the mentally handicapped.  The recreation center is popularly known as the "Provo Castle" or Castle Amphitheater. It includes an 800-seat stone amphitheater with attached interior rooms and a grass-covered play area on a 3-acre site.  The original intention was to build a much larger recreational facility for the hospital, but that plan was never realized. The Provo Castle is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is still used for public events.

"Due to the efforts of the members of your Superintending School Committee a number of worthwhile improvements were made on the physical plant. The Castner building was renovated throughout. The development of the school grounds adds much to the beauty and utility of these areas. A very large pro-portion of the expense of this undertaking was met by E. R. A. allotment—making a total of $1200.00 of Federal Funds received by the town as reported by your School Committee. While the labor was furnished by the government, it is necessary to provide the required material from the repairs account. The...

The Works Progress Administration remodeled the Castroville School in 1939 under project number 665-66-2-541. The workmen added a two classroom wing on the northwest side of the building and a two classroom wing on the southeast side of the building. The wings were constructed using rock masonry with wood floors. The State of Texas formed Medina County in 1848. The county erected the first permanent courthouse in Castroville in 1854. When the county seat moved to Hondo in 1892, the courthouse in Castroville was converted to a school. The building is currently the Castroville City Hall.

A new auditorium/gymnasium was added to the existing Catchings school as PWA project 1288. Architects Hull & Drummond designed the alterations and additions. A $9,000 loan and a $9,163 grant were provided. Approval was received 9/13/1938, and construction began 12/8/1938. The additions were completed 11/2/1939 for a total of $20,386. The name of the town was changed to Delta City sometime during the late 1940s.

In 1933-4 federal Civil Works Administration (CWA) "workers in Pittsburgh had helped move the forty-two-story Cathedral of Learning at the heart of the University of Pittsburgh closer to completion." Excerpt from Alberts, Robert C. Pitt, (1986): "December 23, 1933. The federal Civil Works Administration (CWA) announced it was giving a $300,000 labor grant for work on the Cathedral. Pitt contributed $520,000 in materials. Until the program ended on April 30,1934 a force of 1,259 previously unemployed stonemasons, iron workers, plumbers, engineers, and carpenters worked at the site twenty-four hours a week. There were unforeseen complications when it was discovered that the...

This classic one room schoolhouse received repairs courtesy of the Works Progress Administration (WPA). WPA Proj. No. 65-3-3714, December 24, 1935, $1,344 "Repair & paint Grammar school building excavate court & playground." The land was donated to the school by Andrew Cathay in 1879. Thanks to a community effort, when the school was threatened with demolition because of the expansion of the current elementary school, it was moved a mile to the town park. The building still exists and is kept in original shape. Occasionally, it is used to demonstrate older teaching methods to local students. There is an E. Clampus Vitus memorial in front...

The historic Cato-Meridian Central School building was constructed ca. 1939-40 with the aid of federal Public Works Administration (P.W.A.) funds.

A 2012  Nation Register of Historic Places Registration Form describes the restroom structures built by the Works Progress Administration circa 1935: "Behind the school, near the southwest and northwest corners of the property are two stone privies. Thought to have been constructed in the 1930s, possibly with funding from the Works Progress Administration, the two small buildings are identical in design. The small rectangular buildings are of rubble stone construction with a plain wood door centered in one long wall. The roof is side gable with wood shingles and exposed rafter tails." After a health department inspection, "The school’s trustees also...

The Cave Springs Public School is a K-12 school in rural Oklahoma. The main building was constructed in 1926. The WPA added this gymnasium in 1939: "This 'Y' shaped building measures 112' by 135' and is constructed from cut and rusticated, randomly laid native stone. The roof is gabled with cross gables and arched over the gym... The walls of the gym were constructed of double rock of about 18 inches in width. Concrete inlays create false arches on the front facade of the structure... The WPA's construction of the building has provided the community with an exceptional community resource... Massive double...

From Our Mark on This Land (2011): "If you have driven, hiked, or slept in the Chisos Mountains, you have experienced CCC history. In May 1933, Texas Canyons State Park was established; it was later renamed Big Bend State Park. Roads and trails were needed for the new park, and the CCC provided an ideal workforce. A year after the park was established, 200 young men, 80 percent of whom were Hispanic, arrived to work in the Chisos Mountains. The CCC's first job was to set up camp and develop a reliable water supply. The CCC boys faced many challenges, living...

“In 1935 CCC Camp Conner was established at the present site of the Shenipsit Forest Headquarters and CCC Museum." What is now the CCC Museum was originally the camp office and officers' quarters. "The Museum is located in the only remaining CCC barracks building in the State and pays homage to the dedicated men who worked in Connecticut camps. The museum features a large collection of tools, equipment, photographs, and memorabilia from the former Camp Conner and 21 other camps in the State.”

Elementary school built in 1935 with funding from the Public Works Administration and Proximity Manufacturing Company for the White Oak New Town mill village community founded by the Cone Mills Corporation, then among the largest denim manufacturers in the world. Still in use as an elementary school today.

Contracts for the construction of two high schools in Cecil County (Cecilton and Chesapeake City) were awarded to the Lang Brothers of Baltimore by the PWA in December 1938.  The $136,190 contract for the Cecilton high school called for "a two-story and part basement semi-fire proof, consolidated school building to accommodate 450 pupils." According to The Cecil Democrat, the contract called for "modern heating, plumbing, and electrical work." The facilities were as follows: Basement: A cafeteria, kitchen, boiler room, fuel storage room, and storage room. First floor: Six classrooms, a teacher room, an auditorium with stage and dressing rooms, and bathrooms. Second floor:...

The Cedar Avenue Complex was constructed in 1938 with funding from the Public Works Administration (PWA). It began life as a county civic center in Lancaster CA, forty years before that city was incorporated (1977).   It included a library, memorial hall, courthouse and sheriff's office, as well as an older jail from the 1920s.  The simple Art Moderne (Art Deco) design was by Los Angeles County architect Edward C. M. Brett.   The Cedar Avenue Complex was successfully nominated for listing on the National Register of Historic Places in the 1990s. The entire complex was renovated by the city in 2014 and...

The Public Works Administration funded the construction of the Cedar City High School in Cedar City, Iron County School District. Docket # 1033-R (Utah).

This large, adobe-built gymnasium is attached to the rear of a 1920s, four-room brick school house in the nearly non-existent community of Cedarvale, New Mexico. The gym was erected by the WPA between 1935-36, under WPA Official Project #s 65-85-402 and 165-85-2081. Both buildings are on private property.

The Public Works Administration (PWA) funded the construction of the Centennial Building in Port St. Joe FL. Past Use: Auditorium/Gymnasium. Present Use: Civic Center. The 1996 National Register documentation notes that the Centennial Building has been the site of centennial celebration of the signing of Florida's first constitution, which ran from December 7th to December 10th, 1938. The building was dedicated on December 7, 1938. It was also used for other political events and civic functions. Also fund raising events, such as the Fireman's Ball and the March of Dimes President's Ball, have been held in the building. It has sometimes been used for community Fourth of July and...

Originally constructed as a training school, what is now the Center for Hospitality Management at East Stroudsburg University was one of four buildings constructed as a New Deal project. Work was sponsored by the Public Works Administration (PWA).

Originally constructed as Thomaston's high school, what is now the Center School was constructed between 1938 and 1939 with federal Public Works Administration (P.W.A.) funds. The P.W.A. contributed a $129,375 grant for the project, whose total cost was $286,068. P.W.A. Docket No. CT 1019

In 1934, the Federal Emergency Relief Administration (F.E.R.A.) furnished the cost of labor for the construction of a playground behind Center School in Hatfield, Massachusetts. The 35-man project cost the Town of Hatfield only the price of materials for the project ($982), while the federal government paid for the labor (3,028). The Center School itself was constructed as Hatfield's middle school in 1914. The building much later became the Western Massachusetts Regional Library and, as of 2016, has been vacant for about 10 years. It appears that the playground was demolished at some point as the aerial view of the site shows...

Built in 1939 as a public school in Holmdel NJ. Excerpt from the July 27th 1939 Red Bank Register: "Nearing completion at Centerville in Holmdel township is a new public school, the construction of which is being done entirely by WPA mechanics The Holmdel township board of education is supplying most of the materials and the WPA is supplying the labor, sand, gravel and concrete." Today the building is used for professional offices.

Central Elementary School in Union City, Tennessee was undertaken by the Public Works Administration (PWA) during the Great Depression. The PWA Moderne building, with a distinctive blend of classicism and Art Deco style, was designed to stand out from the more conservative architecture of Union City. Local reformers celebrated its "fireproof construction, circulation flow, ample light and air, structural insulation, sound proofing, sanitary floors, attractive furniture, drinking fountains, modern plumbing, and its auditorium," (Van West, pg. 114). The total federal cost for school construction reached $105,000, while student workers trained in wood- and metalworking by the National Youth Administration (NYA) furnished...

This two story brick high school building was constructed with funding from the PWA in 1936. It was designed by architects Knecht, McCarty, and Thebaud, Inc. of Grand Rapids, and Ralph L. Bauer, Architect of Traverse City. It now houses Central Grade School.

"During the depression years (1938-39) the Central Grade School in Anchorage was built in Art Deco design, as a PWA (Public Works Administration) project of the Roosevelt Administration." (ed.gov) The building was located on Fifth Avenue between F St. and G St. It is no longer extant. PWA Docket No. AK W1023.

A WPA press release from Nov. 1937 reported: "More than 150 schools have been repaired and the grounds improved and landscaped , and five brand new schools in the state were erected entirely by WPA with a small percentage of sponsored funds," among which was a new school in Kirkland, Washington. The precise location and the present status of the school building are unknown to Living New Deal. One story published in 2011 states that the WPA school constructed in Kirkland no longer exists.

The present Central High School building in Philadelphia was constructed as a New Deal project. The Public Works Administration (PWA) provided a $1,084,950 grant for the project, which was undertaken in 1937-1938. PWA Docket No. PA 1549. C.W. Short and R. Stanley-Brown: The first Central High School in Philadelphia was built in 1838 and was the oldest high school in the United States outside of New England. It was replaced in 1844 and in 1900. This project replaces that erected in 1900. The building provides an extensive administration suite including a doctor's office, an infirmary, 28 classrooms, a lunch room for 1,000, a faculty...

Downtown Grand Forks, North Dakota's historic Central High School building received an auditorium constructed with the assistance of the federal Works Progress Administration (WPA) during the 1930s. The building has since been expanded with further additions. Federal Writers' Project: "CENTRAL HIGH SCHOOL, 1st and 2nd Aves. N. between 4th and 5th Sts., has an auditorium unit constructed entirely without windows. It was the first public building in North Dakota to utilize indirect lighting throughout. It was erected in 1936-37 with WPA assistance at a cost of $275,000, and includes a pipe organ, the gift of the Grand Forks Music Association."

The addition of an auditorium and gymnasium, since demolished, was completed for the 1924 Central High School building, along with improvements to the athletic field and athletic building. Architects N. W. Overstreet and A. H. Town designed the additions in 1936. Public Works Administration project 1148 was approved 7/21/1936 for $34,363 grant. Construction began 12/21/1936 and was completed 11/18/1937 for a total cost of $78,366.

Central High School was built in 1931. The Works Progress Administration (WPA) added a "school room equipment." The WPA cost was $3,085.66. The WPA also did work on the football field and grounds improvements. The WPA cost was $4,750.76.

The WPA built the music hall at this high school. This hall still functions as a music classroom, as well as a storage space for textbooks.

The Puerto Rico Emergency Relief Administration carried out repair work to the Central High School in San Juan.

The no-longer-extant Central Islip State Hospital "was the largest psychiatric institution ever to exist in the United States." Two WPA projects at the hospital involved the following: 1. "Painting brick walls of various buildings of institution, $23,557." 2. "Removal of old wood floors and installation of tile floors at institution, $9,755.46."

The former Queens Central Library, located at 89-14 Parsons Blvd., "opened in 1930 and was expanded with WPA funds in 1941." "The current Central Library is a product of its era. In the mid-1960s, instead of renovating the existing library at 89-14 Parsons Boulevard, officials chose to build an entirely new structure at 89-11 Merrick Boulevard, six blocks east. The older building was recycled as a courthouse. Its facade has since been incorporated into an apartment building called the Moda."