Military and Public Safety Sites

The federal Works Progress Administration (WPA) worked to renovate the old Municipal Building in Pennsauken, New Jersey in 1936. The project was completed with no direct expense to local taxpayers. The exact location of the old building is unknown to Living New Deal; it was demolished in 1986.

Illinois's old Camp Butler was improved as part of Federal Project F-87 by the federal Civil Works Administration (CWA) ca. 1933-4. "The general scope of the project covered improvements to buildings and grounds, landscaping, drainage and minor construction."

The Works Progress Administration (WPA) built ammunition magazine and made ground improvements to the Camp Conley in Point Pleasant WV. "In 1940, the Works Progress Administration built a new ammunition magazine, modernized the buildings and grounds, and constructed tent floors. " (McDaniel, "Camp Conley") It is possible that this is the site of the 1957 armory at Ohio River Road and University Lane. True extant is unknown.  

The Works Progress Administration completed drainage system improvements at Camp Conley in Point Pleasant WV. Construction began on the camp in 1927. Named for Wiliam Gustavson Conley (1929–33) in 1929. The state police used the camp to train in 1928 and 1935. In 1935, the guard applied to the WPA for drainage improvements. The camp was used twice by Governor Homer Holt as a refugee camp there for 1933 and 1937 flood victims. The Camp Conley appears in the property maps in a subdivision of housing dating to the 1940s to 1950s. The site appears no longer extant.

The Works Progress Administration completed upgrades to the drainage systems at Camp Dawson in Kingwood WV. Guard. Camp Dawson was established in 1909 when almost 200 acres were acquired along the Cheat River, just south of Kingwood in Preston County. Fell into disuse ca. WWI to ca 1928. In 1928 when it was revived as a training site for the West Virginia State Militia.  

"Between 1935 and 1940, Massachusetts and the federal government, primarily using Works Project Administration funds, constructed 63 buildings (all but Buildings 102 and the old Williams Hospital have since been demolished) and two, 500-foot (150 m) wide turf runways at Otis Field. The project was the largest WPA project in state history, employing over 600 workmen. In 1938, Governor Charles F. Hurley dedicated Camp Edwards, named after the former commander of the 26th Infantry Division, Major General Clarence Edwards." (Wikipedia) WPA Bulletin: The Bourne WPA Notional Guard Camp Project is the largest undertaking of this kind in the country. It is twenty-three square...

Illinois's old Camp Grant was improved as part of Federal Project F-88 by the federal Civil Works Administration (CWA) ca. 1933-4. The work involved "the rehabilitation of the target range, repairs to the road leading to the target range and general repairs, painting and plumbing, to the buildings on the 3200-acre military reservation known as Camp Grant, near Rockford. This project carried a quota of 66 workmen."

The Works Progress Administration (W.P.A.) conducted the following work at the former Camp Hartell: "Construct training facilities and improve grounds". Official Project Number: 265‐3‐15‐70 Total project cost: $54,689.00 Sponsor: U.S. Army, Corps of Engineers, North Atlantic Division

The Works Progress Administration (W.P.A.) developed the national guard camp at Camp Keyes in Augusta, Maine. Project information: “Develop National Guard Camp” Official Project Number: 165‐1‐11‐54 Total project cost: $16,383.00 Sponsor: War Department

The Work Projects Administration (WPA) undertook development work at an unidentified location in or near New Brunswick, New Jersey. As two projects were sponsored by the War Department, Living New Deal believes these projects to be involved with the development of Camp Kilmer, an installation that straddled Piscataway and Edison, within two miles of New Brunswick. Rutgers University's Livingston Campus resides on part of the old Camp Kilmer site. WPA Official Project Numbers: 713‐2‐128 ("Improve and rehabilitate buildings, systems, and facilities"), and 13‐2‐22‐92 ("Repair and rehabilitation of building)

Camp Mabry, named after Brigadier General Woodford H. Mabry, the Adjutant General of Texas from January 23, 1891 to May 4, 1898, is the headquarters of the Texas Military Forces. The original 90 acres was donated to the State of Texas in 1892. The first construction at the camp included a mess shed and a parade grandstand. By 1911, Camp Mabry had expanded to more than 385 acres. During World War I the United States Army used the camp as a training site and built several barracks and administration buildings. Works Progress Administration (WPA) projects under the sponsorship of the Adjutant...

The WPA was involved in constructing facilities and improving the grounds at Camp McQuaide after it moved south from its former Capitola location. "In 1926, the 63rd coastal artillery regiment moved from Santa Cruz, California, to an area just east of the town of Capitola. Its camp was named for Major Joseph P. McQuaide, who was born in 1867 and graduated from Santa Clara University. He served as Chaplain of the California National Guard in the Spanish American War and World War I, and died March 29, 1924. By 1938, noise from target practice annoyed Capitola residents, so a more remote...

The Works Progress Administration (W.P.A.) conducted the following work at buildings at the facility later known as Camp Rell and now Camp Niantic: "Paint, shingle roof, and repair windows". Official Project Number: 165‐15‐2095 Total project cost: $4,984.00 Sponsor: Quartermaster General's Department

"One of the most significant WPA projects in Rapid City was Camp Rapid. Construction of permanent buildings began on June 25, 1934 and one year later, Executive Order 7034 allowed the WPA to begin hiring men to take part in the construction of the headquarters building. James C. Ewing, an architect from Rapid City, designed the brick and reinforced concrete Administration Building and Project 956 began in 1936 and was completed by the end of the year. The original buildings main floor consisted of a reception area with a vault and was surrounded by four offices, one of which was...

Two different WPA projects involved improvements at Camp San Luis Obispo, a National Guard Training camp, formerly Camp Merriam, originally constructed in 1928. WPA Proj. No. 165-3-2634, September 17, 1936, Total sponsor and Federal funds $4,494, Months to Complete 5, Average Employed 29, "National Guard Training Camp. Move and reset frame structure, construct new footing at National Guard Training camp near San Luis Obispo, San Luis Obispo County. State owned property." WPA Proj. No. 165-3-3528, October 5, 1936, Total sponsor and federal funds $19,892, Months to complete 22, Average Employed 90, "Construct an open air theater including excavation and do other work...

The former Camp Simms in the city's southeastern quadrant housed the DC National Guard rifle range prior to World War II.  In 1936, Work: A Journal of Progress reported extensive Works Progress Administration (WPA) improvements to Camp Simms: "Transformation of the National Guard Rifle Range at Camp Sims, from an ill-equipped, obsolete military adjunct into a model rifle range, is one of the many accomplishments of relief labor under the Works Progress Administration in the District of Columbia. One of the first tasks undertaken by WPA labor at Camp Sims was that of raising the level of practically the whole site. Coincident...

Now the site of the US Department of Energy's Brookhaven National Laboratory, Camp Upton (near Yaphank, New York), was originally "created in 1917 to house and train soldiers for the United States." Camp Upton and its surroundings was the site of New Deal activity throughout the Great Depression. Four CCC camps based at Camp Upton during the summer of 1934 were involved with, among other things, "the clearing of scrub oak, the planting of trees suited to the type of soil ... the building of fire lines and fire breaks and construction of emergency water holes for fire fighting." (2) The CCC...

The WPA and FERA built the "Hostess House" at the recently opened Camp Williams National Guard training site in 1935. From the National Register of Historic Places: "This public works-sponsored building is an example of the Period Revival/ English Tudor style. It is a 1-story building with a broad steeply pitched gable roof. The plan is basically rectangular and there are two projecting gables placed off-center on the principal elevation. Marking the location of the main entrance, these gables are slightly off-set and serve to emphasize the asymmetry of the English Tudor design. Half-timbering, another trademark of the English Tudor style,...

The WPA conducted a large-scale reconstruction project at the Cape May Naval Air Station, located at the easternmost part of Cape May. A thorough history of the installation can be found at Abandoned & Little Known Airfields (airfields-freeman.com). There are few traces of the New Deal- and WWII-era installation remaining, though an abandoned runway is still visible. The facility is now the U.S. Coast Guard Training Center. Cape May County Gazette wrote in 1936: “One of the finest WPA projects granted this section is the rebuilding of the U.S. naval Air Station at Cape May, on which work has already been started....

The Works Progress Administration (WPA) built the Carmel Firehouse in 1936-1937. Carmel has used a volunteer fire department since 1915. The architect of record was Milton Latham, supervised by Bernard Rountree. The stone-clad facade is multi-hued and meant to echo the abundant use of stone in buildings around Carmel-by-the-Sea. There were 4 bays for firetrucks in the original building with a fifth bay added later. This firehouse appears to be used primarily for emergency vehicles now. The second floor was accessed on the west side of the structure via a steep stairway, part of the original structure, and included fire poles from the...

Now: New Mexico Veterans' Center "The New Mexico Veterans' Center (formerly Carrie Tingley Hospital) was partially funded with WPA funds in 1937. The buildings were left vacant in 1981 when the Hospital moved to Albuquerque. In 1983 the Veterans' Administration and the New Mexico Legislature provided funds for renovation of the buildings and the establishment of the New Mexico Veterans' Center." -Phyllis Eileen Banks The "Turtle Pond" outdoor sculpture was commissioned from artist Eugenie Shonnard in 1937.

The current Castro County Courthouse was constructed in large part with labor provided by the federal Works Progress Administration (WPA). Text from the state historical marker reads: "This site was set aside as the Dimmitt town square in 1891, the year Castro County was formally organized. Temporary court facilities were set up in J. N. Morrison's office while the first courthouse was built. An ornate two-story structure, it burned in 1906 after being hit by lighting. A brick courthouse with a central dome, built in 1908, was dedicated at a community picnic. It served until the 1930s, but was razed to make...

W.P.A. improvements to the former Cavalry Armory building, which Living New Deal believes to be the facility at 270 Goffe St., include: Paint interior and exterior of Cavalry Armory building Official Project Number: 65‐15‐1947

The Central Fire Station in Ada, Oklahoma, was constructed by the Public Works Administration (PWA), under the supervision of architect Robert F. Ferguson, consulting engineer George Taylor, and contractor Arney Harbert. It is a two-story stone block building with four overhead door vehicle bays. A tall hose tower is located on the building's south side.

"This building is part of a project which also included the addition of two new wings of approximately 16,500 square feet to the existing city hall, its renovation, the wrecking of an old fire station, and the construction of concrete walks and drives. The fire station occupies one fourth of a city block and is provided with wide entrances on two streets. It is two stories in height and contains space on the ground floor for fire trucks and equipment, a recreation room, and offices for the fire chief, fire marshal, and the radio broadcasting unit. The second...

Works Progress Administration (WPA) project No. 3544 started 10/05/1935 included 3 additional fire stations. WPA funding supplied $13,495.01 and the sponsor $9,513.78 for payroll, materials, and equipment. Hook & Ladder, adjacent to L & N Depot, on Main Street. The Central Fire Station construction was begun 04/20/1937 with an expected cost of about $10,000. The formal opening of the new fire station was July 1 when the old Hook and Ladder Company hall was vacated with the final departure of a parade of equipment and personnel to the new station on Main Street. The new station was 46 x 71 feet,...

Greenwich's Central Fire Station was constructed in 1937-9 as a New Deal project. The Public Works Administration (PWA) provided a $119,250 grant for the project, whose total cost was $326,788. PWA Docket No. CT 1274. CTHistory: "In February 1936 the Board of Selectmen recommended “the appointment of a paid fire chief who shall have charge of all fire departments within the town, the appointment of a 15-man force to be on duty at all times in the Central Fire Station, installation of an automatic fire alarm system to be housed in the Central Fire Station.” In addition $45,000 (over $700,000 today) was approved...

Hilo, Hawaii's Central Fire Station was constructed during the late 1930s with the assistance of federal Public Works Administration (PWA) funds. The PWA contributed nearly half the project cost by way of a grant of $35,100; the final cost of the project was $71,919. Construction on the station began in November 1938 and was completed September 1939.

The Central Fire Station at 104 Beretania Street, in Honolulu, Hawaii. This firehouse was built with the assistance of funds from the New Deal's Public Works Administration (PWA), 1934-1935. P.W.A. Docket No. T. H. 2633-7

Sometimes mis-attributed to the Works Progress Administration (WPA), the historic former Central Fire Station in Saco, Maine was constructed with federal Public Works Administration (P.W.A.) funds. The P.W.A. contributed a $27,000 grant toward the project, whose total cost was $60,928. Construction occurred between Aug. 1938 and Mar. 1939. PWA Docket No. ME W1022. "he Central Fire Station has been a significant landmark in the Saco community from the very beginning. The brick firehouse, designed to reflect an ongoing heritage from an earlier tradition of civic service and public safety, well served its role from its construction until January 2011, when a...

Altona, New York's Central School was constructed during the 1930s with the aid of federal Public Works Administration funds (PWA Docket No. NY 1236). The building was designed by Plattsburgh architect Alvin W. Inman. The former school is now part of the Altona Correctional Facility, a medium-security institution, with the building serving as "the central administrative and school building." (Wikipedia)

The Public Works Administration contributed $35,000 for the construction of a new auditorium and gymnasium for David Anderson High School. Ground was broken for the project on December 9th 1937 and the structure was dedicated on October 3rd 1938. The total cost of the project was $70,000. The general construction contract went to the George H. Whike Construction Company of Canton Ohio. The building has since been renamed and currently serves as a juvenile court.

The federal Works Progress Administration (WPA) conducted construction and other improvement work at Charleston Field, today the joint military-civilian airfield site of Charleston Field and Charleston International Airport. "During the 1930s, airport operations expanded to keep pace with advances in general and commercial aviation being experienced throughout the country. Despite the Great Depression, the Federal Government stepped in to assist the city with modernizing the airport. In 1935, the Works Progress Administration literally poured $313,000 into the airport. Workers paved one 3,500-foot-long runway (1,100 m) and constructed a second 3,000-foot one (910 m). The project also improved upon the existing...

According to a wayside marker at the current Chestertown Firehouse (see photo and source note 1 below), the Chestertown Town Hall, at 118 N. Cross Street, was Chestertown’s firehouse for forty years (1938-1978). The old Chestertown Firehouse was one of 325 new firehouses built by WPA workers between 1935 and 1943. And, in addition to these new constructions, WPA workers engaged in hundreds of other projects to repair or improve existing firehouses (Federal Works Agency 1946). There can be little doubt that thousands of fires across America have been responded to, and put out, thanks in part to facilities built or improved...

The W.P.A. conducted repair and improvement work on numerous civic facilities in Newton, Massachusetts, including at the former Chestnut Hill fire station.

The historic Childress County Courthouse in downtown Childress, Texas was built with the aid of federal Public Works Administration (PWA) funds. The PWA supplied a grant of $101,250 toward the project, whose total cost was $223,635. Construction occurred between November 1938 and November 1939. The New Deal building replaced a 1891 courthouse. PWA Docket No. TX W1472.

The Works Progress Administration completed repairs and renovations for the City Fire Station, Parkersburg. The exact location of these facilities is unknown to the Living New Deal.

The historic Alpine City Hall was constructed in 1936 as a New Deal project with Works Progress Administration (WPA) labor. It included meeting rooms, an assembly room, public library, jail and fire station. The architecture is a melange of New England Colonial and Renaissance Revival styles, with a bell tower and entry flanked by capped stone pilasters and urns and topped off with a sunburst under the archway.    The Utah State Historic marker, placed in 1992, declares: "...this building represents the significant impact of New Deal programs in providing both jobs and public facilities. It is one of over 240 buildings constructed...

Omro's current city hall/administration building was originally a theater constructed in 1937: "One of the few buildings in Omro’s downtown built during the Depression years was this fine late Art Deco-style movie theater, which was built using federal W.P.A. funds. Although simple in design, the massive buttresses that line its sides give it a monumentality that is unusual for such a small building. During World War II shell casings were manufactured in the basement by the Speed Queen Corp. while movies were being shown in the theater above. Later, a ladder factory occupied the basement. In 1966, the City remodeled the...

The federal Works Progresss Administration (WPA) constructed Pineville's historic city hall and jail; the building is still in service.