Dams Sites

The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) constructed Sibley Lake Dam, located about 11.5 miles southwest of Dayton, Wyoming.

Skokie Lagoons is a 190 acre nature preserve in Glencoe and Winnetka, Illinois. The Skokie Lagoons are notable as a CCC work because the project merged the ideas of fixing a pertinent mosquito issue in the area and of developing the area into an escape to nature for the community. The Skokie Lagoons project began in 1933 with with 1100 eager, working men from the CCC (“Start Digging First Lagoon in Skokie Project”). Soon after the Forest Army downsized to 1000 men looking to aid in clearing the area of mosquitoes, which used the weedy swamps as a breeding ground. The...

“WASHINGTON, (AP) – The Works Progress Administration advised Senator W. Warren Barbour, N.J. Rep., today that applications from Morristown, N.J., for allocations for the proposed Speedwell dam and Speedwell Lake bottom construction projects had been approved here and treasury warrants signed for release of the money….The two Speedwell Lake projects would cost $49,614, of which $43,429 would be financed Federally and $6,185 by the town of Morristown. One job stipulates the construction of a completely new concrete dam above the Whippany River bed, and it would mean virtual recreation of the once beautiful Speedwell Lake. As a regular unit in...

The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) created a dam on Spencer Creek in northern the Wichita Mountains of Oklahoma, in 1933/4. The lake was "all inside the game pasture" and the public required a permit in order to visit it. The exact location and status of the structure and lake are unknown to Living New Deal.

The CCC laborers completed the Spring Mill Lake in 1937. The CCC workers also built a dam. The dam has remained in use and is unaltered.

The Works Progress Administration contributed $12,714 toward improvements to a storage dam and several streets in Wrangell, Alaska, between 1939 and 1940.

"Carlsbad Project, New Mexico - The Alamorgordo Dam is being constructed on the Pecos River to supply additional storage for the Carlsbad Project. It is an earth and rock fill type of dam with a maximum height of 135 feet and a volume of 1,700,000 cubic yards. The storage capacity of the reservoir will be 115,000 acre feet. Construction of the dam was started in May 1936 and the river was diverted through the completed outlet outlet tunnel in November. The dam is to be completed by January 1938. Wilfred W. Baker is engineer." "Sumner Dam and Lake lie 250 miles...

Sumner Lake State Park is located northwest of Fort Sumner and contains  large reservoir created by the Sumner Dam in the 1930s. The CCC, the WPA and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation constructed the dam between 1935 and 1939. Other CCC structures in the vicinity include five rock bridges (along the east side of the lake) and two bunkers near the dam built in 1939.

Sunset Lake was one of many lakes the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) created in the Wichita Mountains of Oklahoma, resulting from dam construction projects. The dam, which impounds Headquarters Creek near what was the refuge's headquarters, was completed in 1933 or 1934. Multiple trails and a picnic area can be found in the area of the lake.

The Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA) constructed Thompson Dam in Thompson, North Dakota. Its exact location is unknown to Living New Deal. "The Thompson dam is 10 feet high and 65 feet long. It drains 12 square miles and provides a reservoir of 10.5 acres, 5,400 feet long. It impounds 36 acre feet and was constructed to raise well levels in the district, and engineers report that it already has accomplished this."

Tionesta Lake and Dam were created as part of a multi-site flood control program to protect the city of Pittsburgh and Ohio Valley. Work on project began in 1937 on Tionesta Creek near its confluence with the Allegheny River. The earth and stone dam was designed by Lieutenant James K. Herbert of the Army Corps of Engineers and constructed by S.J. Groves and Son Company of Minneapolis, Minnesota. The project cost approximately $7 million and was completed in 1940, with flood control operations beginning in January of 1941. The Army Corps of Engineers estimates that the lake and dam have...

On April 7, 1900, the Austin Dam, built in the 1890s across the Colorado River in Austin, Texas, failed catastrophically during a flood killing 47 people. The dam was rebuilt starting in 1909, but was destroyed again by flooding in 1915. The City of Austin was unable to raise funds to repair the dam until 1938 when Congressman Lyndon B. Johnson persuaded the Public Works Administration to finance rebuilding the dam at a cost of $2,300,000. The dam was renamed Tom Miller Dam for a former Austin mayor. Tom Miller Dam was built between 1938 and 1940 atop the remains of...

The Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA) constructed a dam impounding the Tongue River at Bathgate, North Dakota. Its exact location and status are unknown to Living New Deal. "To provide water for the school for the blind, a dam has been thrown across the Tongue river at Bathgate with a drainage area of 171 square miles. It is 86 feet long and 10 feet high with a 12-acre reservoir reaching upstream 13,200 feet and holding 39 acre feet of water."

The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) impounded Turkey Creek with three dams, creating fish pools, just north of the creek's confluence with West Cache Creek. The collective area of the lakes was about two acres.

James V. Turner Reservoir in East Providence, Rhode Island (with spillover into Seekonk, Massachusetts) was constructed with the aid of federal Public Works Administration (PWA) funds. "Turner Reservoir was created in 1935 with the building of the Turner Dam, which the City of East Providence used for their drinking supply until the 1960s. Turner Reservoir is now open to the public for recreation." (ExploreRI.org) The PWA supplied a $178,000 loan and $66,781 grant; the total cost of the project was $245,608. Work occurred between May 1934 and June 1935. (PWA Docket No. RI 2003)

ParkRec.nd.gov: "Established in 1934, Turtle River State Park was one of a number of new parks built in North Dakota under President Franklin Delano Roosevelt's "New Deal" programs. ... In 1935, a CCC transient work camp, SP-5, was built in Larimore. It initially housed 185 young men, along with their commanding officers. They were assigned to build a new park nearby, originally called Grand Forks State Park. CCC construction projects in the park included bridges, roads, parking areas, foot paths and a number of stone and log buildings, many of which are still in use today. One of their notable achievements was the...

According to the West Virginia Department of Commerce: “Construction of Tygart Dam started in 1935 and was completed in 1938. It was one of the first Public Works Administration (PWA) projects initiated to reduce unemployment through the construction of massive, labor intensive projects. Veterans, as well as men from Taylor, Barbour, Preston and other surrounding counties, were given employment preference. At its peak in May of 1936, 1,701 men were employed. The pay was set at 45 cents per hour for non-skilled labor and $1.10 for skilled at a maximum of 30 hours a week. Tygart Dam is currently operated by...

Tyler State Park was developed by CCC Company 2888 from 1935-1941: "Set into the Piney Woods of East Texas, Tyler State Park reflects two major park development efforts. The first, directed by landscape architect Ben K. Chambers, involved extensive forest reclamation and land rehabilitation that included tree planting, development of a road system, and construction of a dam and lake. Architect Joe C. Lair oversaw the other effort, which focused on the development of essential park buildings. Particularly noteworthy, the architect’s designs represent a clear break from the National Park Service rustic style so often used at CCC parks, including many...

The Works Progress Administration (WPA) or Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), possibly both, completed the dam and Lake Kunkal in 1939. The 25 acre lake is impounded by an earthen dam. There are also concrete steps on dam's south face.

The Bureau of Reclamation constructed the Vallecito dam and reservoir in 1938-1941, with assistance from the WPA, as well as from enrollees at the nearby CCC camp. "The Project constructed Vallecito Dam to manage the flow of the Pine River partly for local irrigation needs and partly to address Ute water claims based on the Hunt Treaty of 1868 and ratified by a Federal Court decision in 1930." (www.co.laplata.co.us)

Teh Public Works Administration (PWA) built the Vasona Lake and dam in Los Gatos California. The dam is part of a local park and still part of the local water system. Built in 1934-35 as stated on the plaque at the top of the dam. PWA project 6051. 

The Works Progress Administration constructed a series of fish ladders along the Penobscot River around 1936. According to the Bangor Commercial newspaper, the flood of 1936 hadn't damaged the concrete structure that had just been poured. The Veazie Dam was originally constructed by the Penobscot Mill Dam Company in 1835 as part of the vast lumbering operations that were growing up in Maine in its early years. Lumber mills that utilized water power lasted up until the 1880's. The Bangor Electric Light & Power Company acquired the mill and dam complex in 1888 for use as an early hydroelectric plant. The...

The federal Works Progress Administration (WPA) constructed what was then known as Willow Park (now Victor Crowell Park) in Middlesex, New Jersey. Work began in December 1935. Among other work, Ambrose Brook was dammed "by a concrete-cored earth fill into a seven-and-a-half acre lake with an average depth of seven feet. A sluice gate was constructed for drainage and flood control." Shrubs and trees were planted, and picnic tables and benches constructed. The WPA installed swing sets as well. Roads on the north and south shores of the lake were paved, and "an attractive stone grotto" was erected "at the entrance...

The Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA) constructed Vigness Dam in Grafton, North Dakota. "Under construction in Walsh county is the Vigness dam at Park River. It curbs the Park river with a 60-foot fill nine feet high. Its 19-acre reservoir will be 10,560 feet long. Its capacity will be 133 acre feet from a drainage area of 450 square miles. The height of the water will be nine feet at the dam."

"One of Georgia’s oldest and most beloved state parks, Vogel is located at the base of Blood Mountain in the Chattahoochee National Forest. Driving from the south, visitors pass through Neel Gap, a beautiful mountain pass near Brasstown Bald, the highest point in Georgia. Vogel is particularly popular during the fall when the Blue Ridge Mountains transform into a rolling blanket of red, yellow and gold leaves. Hikers can choose from a variety of trails, including the popular 4-mile Bear Hair Gap loop, an easy lake loop that leads to Trahlyta Falls, and the challenging 13-mile Coosa Backcountry Trail. Cottages, campsites...

In June 1933, using a design by architect Robert H. H. Hugman, workmen from the Civilian Conservation Corps, began building walkways and bridges along Walnut Branch, a small tributary of the Guadalupe River, and lining the slopes of the waterway with curving stone retaining walls. Dams crossed by stepping stones, low falls, and quiet pools were built along the natural course of the waterway that passes along the edge of the city's downtown. The park eventually fell into neglect during a severe drought in the 1950s, though the main spring never dried up. Fear that mosquitoes breeding in the small ponds...

In December 1934, Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA) labor was busy building two water conservation dams in Brown County northwest of Ainsworth. The dams were built on the farms of Mr. L. D. Crawford and Mr. Fred Wallenstein. Five additional dams were planned for other farmsteads in the Buffalo Flat section of the county. The applicant paid for materials and the labor was funded by the reemployment office.

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...

"Watts Bar Dam is a hydroelectric dam on the Tennessee River ... one of nine dams on the main Tennessee River channel operated by the Tennessee Valley Authority, which built the dam in the early 1940s to provide flood control and electricity and to help create a continuous navigable channel along the entire length of the river. The dam is the technical boundary between the ... Watts Bar Lake— which it impounds— and Chickamauga Lake ..." (Wikipedia)

Construction of the 1,950-foot earthen dam (embankment), gatehouse, spillway and outlet channel commenced in 1933 and was largely completed in 1935; the spillway gates were finished between 1937-1939. The concrete gatehouse was stamped with the year "1934" and "USIS" (Indian Irrigation Service). The purpose of the dam and reservoir is to impound much needed East Walker River water for agricultural use on the Walker River Indian Reservation. The dam project is a good example of the New Deal at work on Indian lands. Approximately $130,000 of the project was financed by the Public Works Administration (PWA). Weber Dam and Reservoir was...

The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) impounded West Cache Creek with multiple dams above Lost Lake, in Wichita Mountains National Wildlife Refuge. This created a series of lakes, or "fish pools," downstream of French Lake. The project is discussed in Lawton News-Review: The next project listed for this camp will provide one of the most desireable improvements, aside from the construction of the larger lakes. It embodies the construction of seven fish culture pool dams on West Cache creek, extending over a distance of three miles from Lost Lake to Forest Headquarters. These pools will serve to keep live water running...

"Wheeler Dam is a hydroelectric dam on the Tennessee River between Lauderdale County and Lawrence County in the U.S. state of Alabama. It is one of nine dams on the river owned and operated by the Tennessee Valley Authority, which built the dam in the mid-1930s as part of a New Deal-era initiative to improve navigation on the river and bring flood control and economic development to the region. The dam impounds the Wheeler Lake of 67,070 acres (27,140 ha) and its tailwaters feed into Wilson Lake... Construction work on Wheeler Dam began on November 21, 1933, the second major dam construction...

The CCC operated in the Whipple Dam area from 1933 to 1941. In addition to other improvements throughout Whipple Dam State Park, "in 1935, the CCC dismantled the old dam and constructed the existing dam and bridge."

"Between 1933 and 1941, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) had a work camp at Owl’s Gap (S-60-PA), east of the park. The corps members built pavilions, roads, beach and restrooms during this period. In 1935, the CCC dismantled the old dam and constructed the existing dam and bridge. In 1987, the 32-acre park day use area was designated the Whipple Dam National Historic District. This entry on the National Register of Historic Places recognizes, protects, and preserves the work site of one of the Depression-Era's most important relief programs, the CCC. The CCC work was performed to guidelines embraced by the...

The main purpose of these dams (and others) on the Muddy River is flood control and protection of downstream decreed agricultural land owned by the Moapa Indian Reservation and/or private water users in Moapa Valley. The White Narrows Dam No. 1 also impounds water during wetter years and/or off-season useage. Dam No. 2 is located within the Reservation while Dam No. 1 and its reservoir are at the edge but mostly outside of the Reservation boundary. Dam No. 2 was built by the Civilian Conservation Corps - Indian Division (CCC-ID) in 1935 under supervision of the Office Indian Affairs and...

Along with a dam, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) constructed a shelter and bathhouse in Whitewater State Park. The design of these quartzite  structures “reflects the area’s German heritage.”  

Multiple New Deal agencies: the Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA) and the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) participated in constructing Whitman Dam in Sarnia Township, Nelson County, North Dakota. The impounded lake provides a bucolic setting. "The Whitman dam in Sarnia Township required the raising of the county highway six feet and the installation of a box culvert 8 by 12 feet, large enough for boats to pass through as the spot will be used as a recreational center. Water at the dam site will be 14 feet deep with the reservoir 13,200 feet long covering 56 acres and storing 220 acre...

New Deal crews of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) and Works Progress Administration (WPA) conducted extensive work at Wichita Mountains National Wildlife Refuge. The refuge began in 1901 when part of the Comanche-Kiowa-Apache Indian Reservation was set aside as a National Forest. The area was transferred in 1935 to the Bureau of Biological Survey to become a wildlife refuge under the New Deal. The 59,020 acre refuge hosts a rare piece of the past - a remnant mixed grass prairie, an island where the natural grasslands escaped destruction because the rocks underfoot defeated the plow. It provides habitat for large native...

The Wild Horse Dam and Reservoir was originally constructed in 1937 by a New Deal agency, believed by Living New Deal to be the CCC. "The reservoir was initially created in 1937 by the construction of Wild Horse Dam. In 1969, a new concrete single-angle arch dam was constructed by the United States Bureau of Reclamation for the Bureau of Indian Affairs... The original 1937 dam was left in place and is still partly visible. The newer dam doubled the size of the reservoir."

Wilson Dam was completed in 1924. It is "the largest conventional hydroelectric power-generating facility in the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) system... When Roosevelt inspected in January 1933, he related that he was impressed with the size of the operation and found it twice as large as he had imagined. He also stated that he wanted to put the facility to work for the good of the region, its people, and future generations. Roosevelt ended the controversy over the future use of the properties at Muscle Shoals in May 1933, when he backed Norris' plan as part of his New Deal...