Park Roads and Bridges Sites

Colonial Parkway is part of the National Park Service's Colonial National Historical Park. It is a scenic 23-mile parkway that links together Virginia's Historic Triangle of colonial-era communities: Jamestown, Williamsburg, and Yorktown. Different portions of the parkway were built between 1930 and 1957. In the 1930s, the US Forest Service and the National Park Service used Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) workers to built the parkway.

The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) constructed the 23-mile Rim Rock Drive from one end of the Colorado National Monument to the other.  It is a remarkable road that winds along the top of the cliffs, with spectacular views of the Colorado Plateau countryside below. Construction of the road was a risky undertaking, with three tunnels through the cliffs, the longest of which is 530 feet.  Apparently, the Works Progress Administration (WPA) also participated in the construction of the road and the Public Works Administration (PWA) provided funding to the National Park Service for the road, but that needs further confirmation. Rim Rock road...

The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) carried out major work at Colossal Cave and the surrounding park north of Vail AZ (now a suburb of Tucson, but far to the east in the 1930s). They improved access for visitors to the cave itself, built a large visitors'/administration center, laid out a campground and picnic area, opened roads and trails and built a water supply system.  The Arizona State Park Service oversaw the work. Work inside Colossal Cave included widening the entrance and passageways, installing rock walkways and handrails, and added lighting and a water pipeline. This work was done in 1934-37 by...

The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) carried out major work at Colossal Cave and the surrounding park north of Vail AZ (now a suburb of Tucson, but far to the east in the 1930s). They improved access for visitors to the cave itself, built a large visitors'/administration center, laid out a campground and picnic area, opened roads and trails and built a water supply system.  The Arizona State Park Service oversaw the work. We know that CCC workers built roads and trails in the park.  They almost certainly built the main road up to the visitors' center, plus the parking lot and...

Cove Lake State Park, originally planned as Fort Mountain Park, was the third joint effort of the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), and the National Parks Service (NPS). The initial 668-acre park was built along the banks of the lake created by the Caryville Dam (1936). The dam was built to minimize the flooding to Caryville from the Norris Dam (1933-1936) project down stream. Even with the Caryville Dam, some 70 structures including the First Baptist Church and a high school were demolished. In addition, Tennessee Highway 63 and US Highway 25 (Dixie Highway) required relocation....

Crescent Lake National Wildlife Refuge was created in 1931 under the Hoover Administration, but was not improved until President Franklin Roosevelt came into office in 1933. The refuge lies on the southwestern edge of the Sand Hills of Nebraska and it 45,000+ acres include one of the great wilderness areas of the NWR system. According to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, “The earliest government actions on the Refuge were tree planting and small construction projects by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) and the Works Projects Administration (WPA). The CCC built several buildings still in use today at the Refuge headquarters....

Established as the Cuivre River Recreation Demonstration Area in 1934 by the National Park Service. Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) Company 3771 built roads and structures throughout the park. The park was turned over to the state of Missouri in 1946 to become Cuivre River State Park. The park features many CCC structures still in use such as a one-lane stone bridge, a stone picnic shelter, and group camps. The structures are included in 2 National Historic Districts.

The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) conducted extensive development work at Grand Canyon Village, including construction of a stone culvert at Village Loop Drive just west of its intersection with Center Road, and north of parking Lot C. CCC Walking Tour: "Civilian Conservation Corps crews installed this culvert and made many roadside improvements in the area from 1933 to 1937. This culvert has required little maintenance over the last 65 years."

The Daniel Boone Homestead is a 579-acre park with multiple historic structures including the birthplace of famed pioneer Daniel Boone. The site is owned and operated by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission. The National Youth Administration (NYA) played a key role in the development of the site. Over 100 NYA workers graded the landscape, built roads, trails, fences, and campsites, installed picnic tables and planted trees. They excavated the Daniel Boone Lake, constructed the Wayside Lodge, and a few of the most skilled workers assisted in the restoration of the homestead. Architect G. Edwin Brumbaugh and landscape architect Markley...

The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) developed recreational facilities for Del Norte Coast Redwoods State Park, near Crescent City, California.  Del Norte Park was one of the newly-formed State Park Commission's first acquisitions c. 1930.   According to Engbeck, "CCC Company 1903, working out of Camp Prairie Creek, built a park entrance road, a campground and day-use picnic area, and coastal access trails." While Engbeck doesn't specify, the only campground in Del Norte Coast Redwoods is at Mill Creek, east of Highway 101 and it has a two-mile entrance road; both are surely the work of the CCC. It was closed when we...

Dells of the Eau Claire County Park has significant New Deal resources in the areas of recreation, conservation, landscape architecture, and architecture thanks to the work of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC). Between 1935 and 1942, the CCC greatly enhanced the park as it designated and constructed the north park entrance; constructed two small trail-side shelters, a set of stone steps, a stone stairway, a foot bridge, a pumphouse, an overlook, and the Combination Building. These resources are still extant and contribute to the historic character and significance of the park. The CCC also designated parking areas with massive boulders;...

The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) prepared Dry Lagoon State Park for public use. The work was carried out between 1933 and 1937 by Company 1903 at Camp Prairie Creek, from where the CCC worked on state parks all along the north coast of California. The CCC enrollees built a park boundary fence and demolished the remains of the derelict Dry Lagoon Farm (Dry Lagoon had become a meadow and marsh after being drained for farming in the 19th century). They returned the area to a more native landscape by planting rhododendrons, ceanothus and other coastal vegetation and clearing the beach of...

WPA Proj. No. 646-02-2-300, $2,200, June 7, 1938. "Make improvements to the City Park in the city of Parlier, Fresno County, including constructing restroom with utility connections, wading pool, swings, sand boxes, and other recreational facilities; grading and oiling roads; landscaping; removing and transplanting trees; and performing appurtenant and incidental work. City-owned property. In addition to projects specifically approved." Total Federal and sponsor funds $3,100, average employed 19. During a February 2018 site visit, the WPA built toilets appeared to be non functional. Newer toilets were located on the other side of the park. There was no wading pool and swings. Most likely,...

The East Bay Regional Parks District (EBRPD) was formed in 1934 and acquired land for parks from the East Bay Municipal Water District in 1936.  The first parks were Tilden, Sibley, Temescal and Redwood in the East Bay Hills behind Berkeley and Oakland CA.   The New Deal provided extensive aid towards improving the new parks for public recreation, working with the Parks District's first general manager, Elbert Vail. Overall, the New Deal agencies spent roughly $3 million on the East Bay parks, about double the tax funds available to the EBRPD over the same period  (Stein 1984, p. 18) Even before the parks...

The East Bay Regional Parks District (EBRPD) was formed in 1934 and acquired land for parks from the East Bay Municipal Water District.  The first parks were Tilden, Sibley, Temescal and Redwood in the East Bay Hills behind Berkeley and Oakland CA.   Even before the parks were acquired, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) set up camps in the hills and operated in the parks for the entire New Deal decade, 1933-42. The first camp was in Wildcat Canyon at the present site of the Nature Center. The first road built by CCC work crews was the Loop Road at the center...

East Potomac Park rests on an artificial peninsula created with dredge spoils from the Potomac River by the Corps of Engineers.  The park opened to the public in 1912 and was largely developed in the 1920s. After a flood in 1936, Work: A Journal of Progress reported that the Works Progress Administration (WPA) had done “extensive grading and drainage work” to repair flood damage on the "Speedway," the road circling East Potomac Park. That same year, Work also reported unspecified improvements conducted by the WPA to the Washington Channel off Hains Point.  That might have included rip-rap along the channel for erosion control,...

Ecola State Park offers one of the most widely recognized views of the Pacific on the Oregon Coast. Development of the four miles of coastline for park began in 1934 with the work of CCC enrollees from CCC Camp Saddle Mountain (#1258). A number of CCC workers from Company #1258 were located in the 450-acre park from fall 1934 through the spring of 1936. During that time, under the direction of the National Park Service, they completed improvements including an access road, a water system, and a picnic area. They also constructed new trails through rugged terrain and engaged in forest...

Eighth Lake is one of the Fulton chain of lakes in the southwestern portion of the Adirondack Park in  upstate New York.  State route 28 passes along the lakes as it crosses the park.  The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) established a camp between 7th and 8th Lakes in 1933 – named Eighth Lake camp (S-58), and started on forest clearance and navigation improvement projects between the lakes. The CCC 'boys' also started work on the 8th Lake Campground (which abuts 7th Lake, in fact) in 1933; but they had to leave for less harsh climes as winter set in. The next...

Located between Pendleton and La Grande, Oregon, near the summit of the Blue Mountains along Interstate 84, Emigrant Springs State Heritage Area offers an interpretation of the significance of this location on the Oregon Trail as it provides camping, picnicking, and hiking opportunities. While land acquisition for the park area began in 1925 and continued for nearly fifty years, significant improvement of the park for day use activities took place in the mid-1930s. A Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) camp was located at the site and assigned to the State Park Commission. From 1935 to 1937, CCC enrollees improved the area...

Photo caption, UVM: "This view shows Ethan Allen Park drive as seen from the pinnacle. This drive is being constructed with 8" telford stone sub base, 4 inches of stabilized sand and stone base and 1 1/4 inch of armor coat wearing surface covered with a thin layer of washed sand. There is a little over one mile of this type of pavement sixteen feet in width which has been constructed under the WPA project."

"Locally, the 1,000-acre F. Gilbert Hills State Forest in Foxboro, once surplus farmland, now welcomes about 40,000 visitors a year long after the CCC installed roads, improved trails and constructed buildings on the site."

A 2.1 mile segment of road was built in 1933-34 between the Fall River Road entrance and the junction with Trail Ridge Road in Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado, completing a key link in the park's highway system.  The work was performed by the Bureau of Public Roads (BPR) with financing by the Public Works Administration (PWA) in the amount of $32,000 and incidental labor by relief workers from the Civil Works Administration (CWA) and Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC).  Fall River Road was the original entrance on the park's eastern boundary for access to Horseshoe Park.  Fall River Road was extended by...

Fort Mahan, in NE Washington DC, was a part of the Civil War defensive ring of forts circling the capital. The site was transformed into a park in the 1930s by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC).  The CCC tasked Camp NP-11-DC (National Arboretum) with transforming a hillside site into a picnic grounds.  A HABS Survey Report provides details on the CCC improvements to the park and their current condition: “... In creating the grounds, the enrollees filled a borrow pit dug to provide fill for other area projects, channeled a spring, cleared trash and dead trees and brush, and graded the entire...

Fort Mountain State Park in northern Georgia was constructed by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) during the 1930s. Part of the Cohutta Mountain Range, the park gained its name for a stone structure located along a mountaintop in the area.   The park officially opened in 1936. The CCC built the park’s infrastructure and constructed many of its facilities such as the lake and recreational buildings. CCC work crews also did forestry work and made hiking trails. “One of the most notable contributions by the CCC,” according to Georgia State Parks and Historic Sites, “is the large stone fire tower that stands...

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...

Fort Tryon Park was built during the Depression era with the goal of providing public green space for upper Manhattan. John D. Rockefeller Jr. donated the land and provided most of the financial support for the construction of the park’s amenities. The infrastructure within and around the park was completed with work relief labor at the cost $300,000. The work consisted of building roads, storm drainage, and lighting. It was likely completed with the aid of the Civil Works Administration (CWA), the Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA), or the Temporary Emergency Relief Act (TERA) The New York City Park Department Report to August 1934 states...

The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) is primarily responsible for building the Fort Worth Nature Center and Refuge (FWNC&R) which is located just inside the city limits of Fort Worth, TX. CCC Company 1816, Lake Worth Camp SP-31-T served in this area from 1934-1938. It's projects planned and supervised by the National Park Service included roads, bridges, bridle paths, nature trails, picnic areas and stone shelter houses.

Frank Newhall Look Memorial Park was constructed between the years 1928 and 1930, as the result of a large one hundred and fifty acre land grant from Mrs. Fannie Burr Look who was the wife of the late Frank Newhall Look. At the time of construction Mrs. Look provided the land and the money needed to develop the land, and she established a trust fund so that the park could be kept up and maintained for future generations to enjoy. The original park contained a variety of paths, ponds, streams, gardens, and sitting areas to enjoy nature. There were also...

Sequoia National Park and Kings Canyon National Parks were created separately, but because they are contiguous they are administered today by the National Park Service (NPS) as a single unit. Sequoia was the third national park, created in 1893, while Kings Canyon became a national park in 1941, under the administration of Franklin D. Roosevelt.   During the New Deal of the 1930s, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) did extensive work in both national parks, building campgrounds, trails, roads, ranger stations and other facilities.  More specific information is needed on these projects.  

Description of a project undertaken by the W.P.A. in 1937: "Gerry's Landing, Charles River Lower Basin; a project for the improvement of this area was started in 1936 and completed during the year. Extensive improvements were made which involved work of grading, loaming and seeding grass areas, filling of low lands, construction of gravel walks, service roads, etc."

The early development of Gilbert State Park included a complex of stone buildings designed by L.D. Cox. A CCC camp was located here in 1933-41, and workers substantially increased the park’s facilities, constructing a tourist camp, shelters, and more than twenty wood-frame cabins with wavy-edged siding. Cabins were built in three different plans and two sizes, accommodating either four or six people. The smaller ones were modest, while the larger cabins had more elaborate interior finishes. The CCC program also included construction of dams, a wildlife refuge, a pond for waterfowl propagation, a deer yard, walks, roads and bridle paths,...

Winchester.us: "Ginn Field was laid out as a playground and three tennis courts were built. The other main project at that time was grading the field, accomplished by the WPA in 1938-40. The work of improving the field also included continuing the road from Manchester Field, building a road leading out to Bacon Street and creating a walk leading from tennis court to train station at Wedgemere, building an 800-foot-long stone retaining wall, and installing 360 feet of drain pipe at the field and more drains in 1942 to carry off water which made roadway impassable in rainy weather."

The federal Bureau of Public Roads (BPR), funded by the Public Works Administration (PWA), built the 15.7 mile Glacier Point Road from Chinquapin Flat on the Wawona Road to Glacier Point, 1933-35. This project was part of a complete overhaul of Yosemite National Park roads carried out under the New Deal in the 1930s. The Glacier Point Road replaced a primitive saddle road built in the 1870s. Surveys for the route were done in 1930-31 and grading began in 1932. Then, funding for the project became available through the National Industrial Recovery Act, which created the PWA.    "The new road was to...

Raquette Lake is the largest lake in the southwestern portion of the Adirondack Park in  upstate New York.  It is famous as the site of some of the earliest and grandest of the "Camps" established by wealthy New Yorkers in the Gilded Age of the 19th century – which were, in fact, grand summer homes owned by families like the Durants, Vanderbilts, and Morgans). The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) Eighth Lake Camp, established in  1933, did improvements to the state campground at Golden Beach on the southeastern flank of Raquette Lake, which the Department of Conservation had created in 1929 (on...

The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was extremely active in Grand Canyon National Park throughout the New Deal. The CCC enrollees worked under the direction of the National Park Service (NPS) and some of the projects were funded by the Public Works Administration (PWA).  The first CCC camp was established on the South Rim, where Company 819 started working on improvements to the facilities around Grand Canyon Village, the main visitor center for the park, c. 1933-1937. The CCC enrollees built a stone wall along the Rim Trail, the Kolb Studio stairs, the Community Building, rock pillars on Navajo Street, and various paths, culverts,...

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...

Guernsey State Park is built around the Guernsey Dam and Reservoir, constructed in the 1920s as a U.S. Bureau of Reclamation project along the North Platte River in  southeastern Wyoming. In the 1930s, the Bureau worked with the National Park Service and the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) to develop the area around the reservoir as a recreational park. The land is owned by the Bureau and managed by the state of Wyoming. The CCC developed the park's recreational facilities from 1934 to 1937, working out of two camps: Camp BR-9, on a bluff north of Guernsey Dam, and Camp BR-10, about a...

Guy W. Talbot State Park, also known as Latourell Falls State Park, entered the Oregon State Park system in 1929 when the Talbot family donated 125 acres of land adjacent to Latourell Falls. Significant development of the park, however, began in 1933 when Civilian Conservation Corps enrollees from nearby CCC Camp Benson initiated work. CCC projects improved the park during the second period of the CCC (October 1933 to Arpil 1934), the third period (April to October 1934), and the fifth period (April to October 1935). As noted in a report completed in 1946 under the supervision of the Oregon State...

New Deal relief workers were instrumental in developing the old Kern River Park – now called the Hart Memorial Park.  The workers came from the State Emergency Relief Administration  (SERA) before 1935 and the Works Progress Administration (WPA) after that. (SERA was, in turn, funded by the Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA)) Kern County  bought 338 acres of the old Baker Ranch in 1921 to create Kern River Park. After 1927, John Oliver Hart took charge of improvements to the park.  The most important developments at the park occurred under federal funding in the 1930s.  As Gilbert says: "Park projects that were...

The Works Progress Administration (WPA) conducted multiple projects in Highland Park in Pittsburgh. "In Highland Park, WPA workers built stone steps throughout the park and modernized the main zoo building." Another article notes that the WPA built a "rhino quarters" at the zoo in 1939.