Dams Sites

From the Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs: "CCC features at Douglas include a picnic pavilion, administration building, stone culverts and well maintained water holes."

"The East Barre Dam was one of four flood damage reduction projects constructed in Vermont by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s. Construction was overseen by the Corps’ North Atlantic Division. The construction costs of East Barre Dam were not calculated separately because of accounting procedures, but instead lumped together with the construction costs of Waterbury Reservoir, Wrightsville Reservoir, and the Winooski River Local Protection Project. The construction costs of these four projects totaled $13.7 million. Following completion, East Barre Dam was turned over to the State of Vermont for operation and maintenance. The project provides flood protection primarily to...

The Works Progress Administration built the spillway at the Elm Lake Dam in Frederick SD between 1936 and 1938. The dam at Elm Lake was originally built both to provide a recreation destination and to create a water source for the city of Aberdeen, SD. It still serves this purpose today. The work on Elm Dam included an earthen embankment, low level outlet, concrete-lined primary spillway, and earth-cut auxiliary spillway. A ten-span bridge was also built over the approach channel to the primary spillway.

The Epping-Springbrook Dam was the "largest earthfill dam in the State. Constructed as an FERA and WPA project, it was completed in 1936. This bulwark on STONY CREEK has created a lake covering 180 acres, which, including a strip of land around the water, will be made into a State park devoted entirely to recreation." The exact location and current status of the project is unknown to Living New Deal, though we believe the dam to be no longer extant.

"Fontana Dam is a hydroelectric dam on the Little Tennessee River in Swain and Graham counties, North Carolina, United States. The dam is operated by the Tennessee Valley Authority, which built the dam in the early 1940s to accommodate the skyrocketing electricity demands in the Tennessee Valley at the height of World War II. At 480 feet high, Fontana is the tallest dam in the Eastern United States, and at the time of its construction, it was the fourth tallest dam in the world." (Wikipedia)

Fort Loudon Dam is one of many New Deal dams built by the Tennessee Valley Authority: "In the mid-1930s, TVA drafted its "unified plan," a series of long-term goals that called for the construction of a series of dams along the Tennessee River to provide a minimum 9-foot (2.7 m) navigation channel along the entire length of the river, control flooding in the Tennessee Valley, and bring electricity to the area. The Fort Loudoun project was initially known as a the Coulter Shoals project, named for a site identified by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers 6 miles (9.7 km) upstream from the...

Fort Necessity National Battlefield in Fayette County, Pennsylvania, preserves the site of the Battle of Fort Necessity. "In 1935-37, a Civilian Conservation Corps camp was located at Fort Necessity. The Corps constructed barracks and other support buildings at the site of the present day administration and maintenance facilities. The Fort Necessity Memorial Association had hoped the CCC would repair and restore the tavern, but very little, if any, of this work was actually done by the Corps. The Corps planted trees, constructed small dams, built bridges, culverts, picnic areas and roadways. The buildings were razed, but many of the other structures...

Fort Niobrara NWR - Valentine NE Fort Niobrara Wildlife Refuge was established by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1912 by Executive Order.  The principal aim was to protect bison and elk herds which had dwindled almost to extinction under the pressure of market hunting in the 19th century.  It was created out of the old frontier Fort Niobrara and today covers almost 20,000 acres of grasslands and riparian forest in Nebraska. In October 1933, the CCC began work in the refuge. A number of projects were identified, including a big game fence measuring twenty-one miles, a seven mile four-wire stock fence, fire prevention...

A historical marker explains the CCC's role in developing the Fort Parker State Park: "In August 1935, construction of a state park began here on the former town site of Springfield under the direction of the Civilian Conservation Corps. The group assigned to build Fort Parker State Park was Company 3807(C), an African American CCC Camp. From 1935 to 1942, the park company constructed park buildings, roads and facilities, erected a dam across the Navasota River, and reconstructed old Fort Parker. Located nearby, old Fort Parker was rebuilt in preparation for a Texas Centennial observance in 1936, and was the first...

The Public Works Administration funded the construction of a dam on the Frazier River. The dam was part of the Denver water supply system.

Fremont Lake, north of Pinedale, Wyoming, is a large natural lake created by glacial scouring and a terminal moraine that has been expanded by the construction of modern dams.  Today, the lake is about 12 miles long and 1/2 mile wide.  It lies entirely within the Bridger-Teton National Forest. In the 1930s, a concrete and rubble stone dam was built that raised the level of the lake by 2 feet.  Relief workers from the Civil Works Administration (CWA) and Works Progress Administration (WPA) participated in the construction of that dam. We do not know exactly which years the work was done. A...

"During the Great Depression in the 1930s, the Federal government purchased much of the land used for charcoal production as part of a national project to reclaim marginal lands. This project provided jobs and improved local economies by developing recreation sites called recreation demonstration areas. Two Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) camps were built at French Creek and operated until the early 1940s. The camps built two dams, two group camps, several tent camping areas, beaches, roads, picnic areas, and started the restoration process for the historic core of Hopewell Furnace." "The National Park Service built five Recreation Demonstration Areas through CCC and...

The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) impounded French Lake on West Cache Creek within the Wichita Mountains national Wildlife Refuge. The dam is equipped with a fish run. The 42-acre lake led into a series of seven fish lakes created by the CCC along West Cache Creek leading into Lost Lake.

"Chain Lakes Project - Montana - Contract for the construction of Fresno Dam across the Milk River has been awarded but no work will be done until the spring of 1937. The dam, for storage and flood control purposes, is of the earth and rock fill type. It will be about 80 feet high and 2,000 feet long, and will contain 1,870,000 cubic yards of material. The storage capacity will be 126,000 acre feet."

The Friant Dam is one of three major dams in the giant Central Valley Project in Northern California, along with Shasta and Folsom, built by the federal Bureau of Reclamation. Initial funding for the CVP came through the Emergency Relief Appropriation Act of 1935. Friant was aided by funds from the Public Works Administratin (PWA).  The concrete dam, which impounds the San Joaquin River, is 320 feet high and 3,500 feet long at the crest.  The reservoir, Millerton Lake, holds about one-half million acre-feet of water at capacity. The chief purpose of the dam is irrigation water supply.  Water from Millerton Reservoir is shipped...

Garzas Dam, a hydroelectric generation facility, was constructed as part of a large rural electrification plan undertaken by the Puerto Rico Reconstruction Administration, a New Deal agency. Construction began in 1935 and it included "the reservoir, hydroelectric plant, and three minor river diversions.”

The Civilian Conservation Corps built a camp, dam, stone overlook, and other structures in General Butler State Park (Butler Memorial Park) in Carrollton KY.

Nebraska's Loup River Public Power District was developed during the 1930s with the aid of multiple massive federal Public Works Administration (PWA) fund allocations. One large component of the project is the diversion dam, also known as the Genoa Headworks, that diverts water from the Loup River into the project's canal system. It is located about six miles southwest of Genoa at the coordinates provided. It began allowing water into the canal in Nov. 1936. Loup.com: "Loup’s hydroelectric system begins ... southwest of Genoa along Highway 22 at the Headworks diversion structure. Water from the Loup River is diverted into the District’s...

The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) developed Gramma Lake by constructing this dam—one of many the CCC created in Wichita Mountains National Wildlife Refuge—in 1936-7. The dam was a "rock and earthen project." CCC camp No. B-F-1 was responsible for this dam's construction, which was underway in 1936 and completed in 1937 or 1939 (depending on source; the lake is also sometimes spelled "Grama").

The idea for the dam was originally proposed by William M. Clapp in 1917. Feasibility studies were performed in the 1920s, and a final report in favor of the dam was presented to Congress in 1931, but work on the dam did not begin until President Franklin D. Roosevelt promised federal support in 1933. The Public Works Administration began work on the dam in 1934. "Grand Coulee Dam is a gravity dam on the Columbia River in the U.S. state of Washington built to produce hydroelectric power and provide irrigation. It was constructed between 1933 and 1942, originally with two power...

Prior to colonial settlement, the area of Granville State Forest was inhabited by the Tunxis Native American tribe. In the mid-1700s, English pioneer Samuel Hubbard purchased the land for farming and pasturage, and the river that runs through the forest is now named the Hubbard River. The property was bought and owned by Tiffany and Pickett Lumber Company near the turn of the 20th century. In the 1920s, the Commonwealth obtained the land from the lumber company but little improvements were made before the CCC Camp was established. The Civilian Conservation Corps began work on Granville State Forest in 1933. CCC...

Great Smoky Mountains National Park occupies large areas of western North Carolina and eastern Tennessee. The park’s creation was a decades-long process, including advocacy in the late 19th century; legislation signed by President Calvin Coolidge in 1926; and donations and land acquisitions from small donors, the governments of North Carolina and Tennessee, and charitable organizations, such as the Laura Spelman Rockefeller Memorial Fund. Once the park’s existence was firmly established, funding from the Public Works Administration (PWA) and labor from the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) made it both accessible and accommodating to the public. President Franklin Roosevelt dedicated the park on...

Multiple New Deal agencies worked to develop Green Brook Park in Plainfield, New Jersey beginning in 1933. The project involved the construction of a 1.55-acre artificial lake (which could be converted into an ice skating rink during the winter); the stocking of said lake with fish; the building of a footbridge across the brook; grass seeding; small dams to create modest waterfalls along the brook; paths around the lake and through the park; construction of a baseball diamond; and the planting of more than 2,000 trees, shrubs, and other plants.

The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) constructed the dam at the south end of Green Fall Pond in Voluntown, Connecticut.

The Works Progress Administration (WPA) conducted several projects at the "U.S. Naval Storage Area," now known as Naval Support Activity, Crane, outside Burns City, Indiana. Projects included work at the dam impounding Greenwood Lake: Improve conservation dam and surrounding banks. Cost: $56,190. Sponsor: Commandant, 9th Naval District, U.S. Navy. WPA Project No. 265‐2‐52‐21

The Puerto Rico Emergency Relief Administration reinforced the Guajataca Dam in Isabela, between 1933 and 1935.

"Guntersville Dam is a hydroelectric dam on the Tennessee River... one of nine dams on the river owned and operated by the Tennessee Valley Authority, which built the dam in the late 1930s as part of a New Deal-era initiative to create a continuous navigation channel on the entire length of the river and bring flood control and economic development to the region. The dam impounds the Guntersville Lake of 67,900 acres, and its tailwaters feed into Wheeler Lake." (Wikipedia)

The Civil Works Administration (CWA) developed what is now the Hackensack Meadowlands Conservation and Wildlife Area in Carlstadt, New Jersey. NYTimes: "The Federal Government is cooperating in the important mosquito extermination program in the Hackensack meadows where a grant of $93,000 is giving work to 600 men. By the construction of dikes and tide gates large swamp areas are being drained and a considerable portion of land is being reclaimed."

Hanging Rock State Park was developed as a federal Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) project during the 1930s. "Many facilities in the park were constructed by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) between 1935 and 1942. A concrete and earthen dam completed in 1938 impounded a 12-acre lake, and a stone bathhouse, diving tower and sandy beach also were built. Other facilities constructed by the CCC include a park road and parking area, a picnic area and shelter, and hiking trails. In 1991, the bathhouse was added to the National Register of Historic Places." The Works Progress Administration (WPA) is also cited in some...

The Hansen Dam in Los Angeles, CA was constructed in 1938-40 as part of an enormous flood control project in Los Angeles County. Located at the confluence of Big and Little Tujunga washes in the San Fernando Valley’s Lake View Terrace neighborhood, the $11,000,000 project was completed under a contract between the Army Corps of Engineers, the Los Angeles County Flood Control District (LACFCD), and the Works Progress Administration (WPA). $2,300,000 came from the Emergency Relief Agency (ERA). The project was overseen by Lieut. Col. Edwin C. Kelton of the Corps. The project hired WPA workers and contracted the Guy...

The land that makes up Harold Parker State Forest was formed by the action of glaciers thousands of years ago, and the area has undergone numerous man-made changes since then. The Pentacook Indians were the first people to reside on the land and they called this place home for a few thousand years before it was settled by colonial English farmers in the 1650s. By the mid-nineteenth century many people abandoned the land for agricultural purposes, and moved closer to the towns of North Andover, Andover, North Reading, and Middleton, and the forest area reverted to a more wild character....

Collins Pond Dam is the most important of all the dams constructed by the CCC in Harold Parker State Forest. This dam is connected to a large retaining wall that surrounds the pond and it impounds a large quantity of water. The dam is currently is poor condition and it is not clear who is in charge of monitoring or repairing the dam. Many people were contacted in an effort to get information on the dam (North Andover Directory, North Andover Conservation Management, Massachusetts Office of Dam Safety and Removal, and the Department of Conservation and Recreation). However, it was difficult...

The Public Works Administration (PWA) funded a major increase in the height of the O'Shaughnessy Dam, which creates Hetch Hetchy Reservoir.  The dam had been completed by the city of San Francisco in 1923, after years of controversy over flooding the magnificent Hetch Hetchy Valley, the smaller twin of Yosemite Valley.  This was the height of the dam-building era in America. When San Francisco sought to expand the reservoir's capacity, the PWA provide funding for the project, which was completed in 1937-38. The dam was raised by 86 feet and the width of the dam enlarged at the same time.   "In...

"In 1935, the National Park Service purchased Hickory Run to create a national recreation demonstration area. These areas were placed near large urban centers to provide fresh air recreation for lower class urban dwellers. In 1936, Works Progress Administration workers arrived and began building roads, trails, fire roads, water lines and the group camps. In 1939, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) established Camp NP-6. The CCC camp was adjacent to the current campground by the CCC Dam. A playground and open field now occupy the site where 200 young men had their camp. In 1945, the Hickory Run National Recreation Demonstration...

The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) drastically impacted New Jersey's High Point State Park. In 1933, when "the CCC boys first arrived at High Point Park, they found a relatively undeveloped 11,000-acre parcel of land. ... By the time the CCC boys were done working eight years later, they had built 25 miles of roads, two lakes, repaired the badly damaged forest, fought forest fires, cleared trails, built campgrounds and shelters, and partially completed an athletic complex. The park, as visitors enjoy it today, is largely the fruition of their efforts."

"Hiwassee Dam is a hydroelectric dam on the Hiwassee River in Cherokee County, in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is one of three dams on the river owned and operated by the Tennessee Valley Authority, which built the dam in the late 1930s to bring flood control and electricity to the region. The dam impounds the Hiwassee Lake of 6,000 acres, and its tailwaters are part of Apalachia Lake. At 307 feet, Hiwassee Dam is the third highest dam in the TVA system, behind only Fontana and Watauga." (Wikipedia)

Hoover Dam, originally called "Boulder Dam", is the anchor of the entire Colorado River water storage and management system.  It lies in Black Canyon (not Boulder Canyon) at the southern tip of Nevada, on the Arizona border, and creates the massive Lake Meade reservoir, the largest in the United States.  It was the first high-arch concrete dam in history, becoming the model for thousands of dams built round the world.  It was constructed under the US Bureau of Reclamation by a joint venture of 8 construction companies (called "The Six Companies"), led by Henry Kaiser and including Bechtel Corporation, Utah...

In 1934 the Civil Works Administration (CWA) constructed a 22-foot-high dam, 348 feet long, impounding what became known as Hope Community Lake, southwest of Hope, North Dakota. It was originally a 17-acre lake, 4,100 feet in length with a capacity of 140 acre-feet. The lake was also stocked with a million fish. "Hope, N. D.—Hope Community lake is the name which has been selected by the board of directors for the body of water, created by the CWA dam built across a branch of the Maple river in Carpenter township." The project was located near the McCollough farm and was described as...

In the early 1930s, at a meeting of the Huntsville-Walker County Chamber of Commerce, it was suggested that a park be built around Huntsville. The Chamber of Commerce took the proposal to the Texas State Parks Board. The board required that the community provide the land for the park. Twenty thousand dollars in bonds would have to be sold by Walker County to pay for the land needed. In early 1936, the bond issue passed with more than four to one in favor of selling the bonds. From 1937 to 1942, Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) Company 1823(CV), an experienced company of...

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