Lakes and Ponds Sites

Moran State Park was created in 1921 when Robert Moran, shipbuilder and former mayor of Seattle, donated more than 2,700-acres to the state for a park. Like many state parks at the time, it was not well developed for public recreation until the coming of the New Deal. Most of the trails, roads, bridges, and buildings in the park were built by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) during the 1930s. The CCC typically used native materials on site to construct the many stone and wooden shelters and buildings. The Moran State Park website offers a few more details on its History page: "In...

Earth dam, now partly destroyed, that until recently impounded a lake originally of 17 acre. Constructed by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) between 1934 an 1935.

Approx. 3-4 acre lake impounded by earth dam at west end. Constructed by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) in 1934.

Roughly 1.5-acre lake impounded by earth dam with riprap, concrete outlet. Constructed by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) in 1935.

" was originally created from the Morris Sheppard Dam, a project of the Brazos River Authority and the Works Progress Administration. Construction was begun in 1938 and completed in 1941. The dam is 2,700 feet long and 190 feet high. The construction is unique with buttressed arched wings on either side of the nine spillway gates rather than the usual filled concrete." (Wikipedia)

WPA funded the construction of a dam and bridge north of the town of Mountain Lake, Minnesota. The dam created what became Mountain Lake itself. The original bridge, with 1938 WPA plaque, is still in use, though now for pedestrians only.

The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC)'s Camp Fernow, which housed Company #183, was stationed at Natchaug State Forest in Eastford, Connecticut. The camp was established June 29, 1933 and was discontinued May 28, 1941. Among other projects independently listed on other pages, work included: "tree planting, 8 miles of truck trails, improvements to the Forest Ranger's house, and construction of the Eastern District sawmill, a sawdust and plainer shed, a warehouse, a machine shop, and the 3 lumber sheds that supplied the entire eastern half of Connecticut."

This Tennessee state park was developed by several New Deal  "on land bought from residents who could no longer farm the land due to erosion." (wikipedia.org) "Three New Deal agencies, the Works Progress Administration (WPA), the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), and the Resettlement Administration, assumed responsibility for the park's initial planning and development. Like other early state parks, the Resettlement Administration relocated property owners from unproductive and overused farm land; the CCC and WPA began land replenishment and park construction. The CCC concentrated its efforts on reforestation work and instigated land stabilization programs that included the introduction of the Japanese vine...

Navajo Lake in Kane County, UT is a natural lake formed by a prehistoric lava flow.  The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) added a dike to raise the lake level and extend the recreational boating, swimming and fishing season.  This is one of several projects undertaken by the CCC in Dixie National Forest during the 1930s, under the supervision of the US Forest Service.

In an effort to beautify the area around a pond in Neshotah Park, the City of Two Rivers had rocks hauled to the park over a period of about three years. In late October 1938 50 WPA workers were transferred from other work in the city to finish the park project. A contemporary newspaper description outlined the scope of the project: "The pond will be lined with the rocks and several elevations provided so that the water will cascade from an outlet rock cap to a pool several feet below and will then go to a lower pool several feet below...

CCC-built structures at New Germany State Park, that are still in use today, include a recreation building, cabins, and picnic shelters. According to the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, “Today the Recreation Hall (Rec Hall) is the site for many reunions, weddings, and other special events.” The CCC transformed Swauger’s Lake into what is now New Germany Lake. Swauger’s Lake was used for powering a mill and making ice. The CCC drained the lake and cleared it out of logs & stumps, making it safe to swim in. It was then stocked with fish. Other work performed at New Germany State Park...

The Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA) constructed Niagara Dam in Niagara, North Dakota. "In Grand Forks county the largest dam is the Niagara township dam on the north edge of the city of Niagara, which is across a coulee. It forms a reservoir 2,640 feet long covering 11.3 acres with 17 feet of water at the dam site. It impounds 96 acre feet of water and is 21 feet high with a 496-foot fill. The drainage area is 2.5 square miles. It will serve as a recreational center."

"Nichols Park is a municipal park developed between 1938 and 1941 by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) and the National Park Service (NPS). The park is located two miles south of downtown Henryetta in Okmulgee County, Oklahoma... Beginning in October 1938, the CCC constructed a handful of buildings, as well as a number of smaller resources including culverts, picnic tables, water faucets and fire pits in the park. With the 1910 dam on the west side, the CCC concentrated their construction efforts on the long sides of the lake with development occurring on nearly opposite sides of the lake... The...

"Norris Dam State Park is a state park in Anderson County and Campbell County, Tennessee, in the southeastern United States. The park is situated along the shores of Norris Lake, an impoundment of the Clinch River created by the completion of Norris Dam in 1936. The park consists of 4,038 acres (16.34 km2) managed by the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation. The east section of Norris Dam State Park was developed in the 1930s by the Civilian Conservation Corps as a "demonstration recreational project" of the Tennessee Valley Authority. The CCC built a lodge, several rustic cabins, and an amphitheater. The...

"Zoo Lake was originally known as Northeast Lake. It is located in the northeast quadrant of Oklahoma City, on Grand Avenue, east of Martin Luther King Blvd. This is a 68-acre lake which is a mecca for bird watchers and fisherman... The lake and the dam were constructed by the WPA in the 1930s. The dam is located on the north side of the lake, and the coordinates shown above are from the dam. A rock spillway is located just south of the dam. In the 1940s, the lake was used for swimming, and folks would come from all over the...

The Works Progress Administration (WPA) made improvements to Oakland Lake, a New York City Parks Department property in the Bayside neighborhood of Queens. The WPA "lined the brook feeding Oakland Lake with blocks, and later, the brook and a small pond leading into the lake were filled. In 1941 officials from the Sanitation and Health Departments worked with WPA workers to fill in nearby wetlands in an attempt to control the mosquito population. Three thousand people were put to work at nine Queens sites laying pipes, digging drainage ditches, and filling in and grading low areas." The Brooklyn Daily Eagle described...

Cow Creek Dam, also known as Osage Lake Dam, was one of many dams the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) created or improved in the Wichita Mountains of Oklahoma. Per The Lawton Constitution, Aug. 1933: "Another dam is under construction on Cow creek, one mile east of Panther creek dam. This dam will be about 30 feet high and 100 feet in length, and will make a lake three or four time as large as Post Oak lake. Workers are excavating the lake site." Cow Creek Dam impounds Osage Lake. (Panther Creek Dam is also known as Burford Lake Dam.) Per The Anadarko Tribune...

CCC Camp #1592 did extensive work in Ouabache State Park, including, among other things, building shelters and the Kunkel Lake. Today, the park offers a tour of CCC structures. In 2014, a new statue commemorating the CCC was installed in the park.

3 CCC camps were actively involved in the park's development from 1933-1942. In addition to repairing the pond and building Parker Dam, the CCC cleared beaches and bought a bathhouse and other bathing facilities. They also carried out extensive reforestation efforts, and built miles of roads, trails and bridges. Some traces of the CCC camps still remain.

The Pawnee bathhouse was built by the WPA in 1939: "The Pawnee Bath House, a WPA (Work Projects Administration) project built of hand-cut native stone with terraced stairway and landscaping, including a three acre lake for swimming, was originally intended to not only bring needed jobs for the area, but to also provide recreation for Pawnee and the surrounding communities. The project was an immediate success with the Grand Opening featuring a water carnival and dignitary visitation to include the Governor of Oklahoma along with the US WPA project coordinator. The bath house and swimming hole was a popular spot for...

The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) made extensive recreational improvements on Mt. Nebo, the highest and southern-most peak of the Wasatch Mountains.  The CCC teams worked out of three camps: F-9 at the south end of the Mt. Nebo Loop, F-3 at Hubble Canyon and F-40 near Provo, from 1933 to 1938 – and possibly to 1941 when the last camp closed. After building the Mt Nebo Loop Road (Scenic Byway), the CCC enrollees created campgrounds, picnic areas and trails. Not all this work can be identified precisely, but some can be verified from reliable sources. Payson Lakes Guard Station was built in...

The federal Works Progress Administration contributed to the early development of Pettigrew State Park.

"Pickwick Landing Dam is a hydroelectric dam on the Tennessee River in Hardin County, in the U.S. state of Tennessee. The dam is one of nine dams on the river owned and operated by the Tennessee Valley Authority, which built the dam in the 1930s as part of a New Deal-era initiative to create a continuous navigation channel between the river's mouth and Knoxville, and bring economic development to the area. The dam impounds the 43,100-acre (17,400 ha) Pickwick Lake and its tailwaters are part of Kentucky Lake." (Wikipedia)

The CCC worked to develop Pittsfield State Forest during the 1930s. From BerkshireWeb.com: "In the 1930s, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) planted large tracts of spruce and red pine on the former grazing land. They also constructed roads, dams, and buildings. The land, which had remained in private ownership, was then sold to the state. Many of the forest's present buildings date from the CCC era, including the ski lodge with its enormous stone fireplace." From the Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs: "The renovation of this administration building is a victory in the effort to preserve the rustic CCC...

Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) enrollees at Pokagon State Park created a series of three fish rearing ponds, originally with dams between them, fed by an existing spring. They were completed in 1935 and used to assure Lake James would be well stocked with desirable fish. Many state parks in Indiana had such fish rearing ponds, most of them constructed by New Deal agencies.  With changes in conservation practices, the ponds were left to languish, but remnants are still visible in the winter months. The former ponds are not marked.  Only two sites in the park are marked individually as CCC; but the...

Post Oak Dam, which impounds Post Oak Lake, was one of many dams the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) created or improved in the Wichita Mountains of Oklahoma. Per The Anadarko Tribune (1934) "Post Oak dam is about miles north of Indiahoma and is near the old quartz mine and beautiful Elk Mountain Falls ... The Post Oak dam is 25 feet high by 100 feet long and is a delightful place to swim. An old miner's log cabin nearby has made this a popular overnight camp for Boy Scouts." Work was begun June 15, 1933 and completed in August 1933.

Prince William Forest Park was developed by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), with help from skilled workers of the Works Progress Administration (WPA), from 1935 to 1942.  It was then known as Chopawamsic Recreation Demonstration Area (the name was changed in 1948).  RDAs were meant for getting inner city children out into the country to enjoy the benefits of nature and outdoor recreation. The New Deal programs built permanent structures, including the park headquarters and five cabin camps, extensive roads and trails, and five recreational lakes.  Almost all these improvements are still in use today.  The National Park Service, which operates...

The lake and reservoir: Quanah Parker Lake was created by the impounding of Quanah Creek by Quanah Parker Dam: a ca. 1935-6 project constructed by the Civilian Conservation Corps. The lake has a surface area of 89 acres, with a capacity of 905 acre-feet.

Among the extensive work conducted by the Works Progress Administration (WPA) in Morton County, North Dakota was the following: "An artificial lake was located for water recreation southeast of Glen Ullin." The location and status of this project are unknown to Living New Deal.

Rocky Mountain National Park was established in 1915 to preserve a spectacular section of the highest peaks of the Rocky Mountains.  Several new additions to the park have been made over the years, until it reached its present size of 415 square miles. The park saw considerable recreational development in the 1920s under the National Park Service (NPS), but it benefitted enormously in the 1930s from the New Deal.  Most notable of the New Deal agencies was the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), but the \ park also gained funding from the Public Works Administration (PWA), road work by the Bureau of...

"Rita Blanca Lake’s heyday began when the Works Progress Administration came to town in 1939. The W.P.A. was formed by the government on the heels of the Great Depression to help create jobs for the unemployed in communities around the nation. The Rita Blanca Lake Project was established in 1939 and newly hired workers began again on fortifying the spillway and dam in order to create that lake that had long been a dream of W. J. Blair so many years ago. According to “A Tale of Two Counties”, the dam was of compacted earth-fill to contain the rainfall runoff...

The Civilian Conservation Corps built recreation facilities at the Robber's Cave State Park. "Located four miles north of Wilburton on State Highway 2, Robbers Cave State Park, originally Latimer State Park (name changed in 1936), encompasses more than eight thousand acres and includes three lakes and many tourist amenities... In 1933 Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) Company 1825 was organized and located at the state game preserve. In 1935, under the supervision of the National Parks Service, the State Parks Division took control of the area. Between 1935 and 1941 CCC Company 1825 built a bathhouse, cabins, trails, group camps, shelters, and roads....

"During 1935 the pond in the Rufus Putnam Memorial Park in Rutland was developed as a swimming pool under the provisions of said Chapter 346 of 1934 in co-operation with the town under the Federal Emergency Relief Administration, which provided about $1,500 for labor in addition to the $3,860 expended by the Water Division for labor and materials. The pool has an area of about 1.6 acres, a maximum depth of 6.5 feet and a shallow sand beach, 140 feet long and 30 feet wide to a depth of 3 feet."

Located on Blue Beaver Creek, "Rush Lake Dam was built by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) in 1934." The dam and lake are one of many developed by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the Wichita Mountains National Wildlife Refuge.

Sabino Canyon Recreation Area is in Coronado National Forest at the northeast corner of Tucson AZ. At the behest of the city of Tucson and Pima County, it was developed out of former mining and grazing land in the Santa Catalina Mountains by New Deal agencies, which built roads, dams and recreational facilities.  Relief workers hired under the Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA), Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), and Works Progress Administration (WPA) all contributed to the park's improvement.  A major recreational lake never materialized, as funds ran out in the mid-1930s and, beside, dams in the desert quickly fill with sediment...

According to Big Timber Pioneer newspaper, Sacajawea Park in the town of Livingston, MT was one of 55 public parks 'built or improved' by the WPA in Montana between fall 1935 and Sept. 1938. The construction of Sacajawea Park involved a diversion of the Yellowstone River, creating a lake "that provide habitat for waterfowl. An arched stone bridge built by the WPA separates two of the ponds creating Sacajawea Lake." In addition to other "extensive improvements," WPA labor built a "lighted turf athletic field; and a spacious hard-surface tennis court area." Swimming and boating facilities were also provided.

The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) completed Hominy Ridge Lake between 1937 and 1938. The lake is around 11 acre and is impounded by an earth dam.

From the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation: Before 1935 York Lake did not exist. It is man-made. It was created out of a swampy wetland, built as part of the New Deal’s Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), a U.S. Federal Government conservation program. The CCC improved the nation’s natural and human resources and created opportunities for the public to recreate and appreciate a healthy outdoor experience. From 1933-37 the 196 Company CCC, whose nearby camp site off Route 183 just south of here, once supplied 200 men a season to work in the state forest. Formerly unemployed men then earned a dollar-a-day,...

The colossal Santee Cooper Project in South Carolina was enabled by a $31 million grant-loan by the Public Works Administration (PWA), "the most expensive PWA project on the East Coast." A state law enabling the project was passed years before work was able to begin thanks to court challenges. The dams, lakes, and electricity created by the project have had immense positive long-term impacts on the state. The project entailed the clearing of 160,000 acres of land using manual labor, mostly utilizing Work Projects Administration (WPA) labor; constructing a dam to impound Lake Marion; constructing a power station and a dam...

"...the vast New Deal flood-control project (1938-42) that dammed the Tallahatchie River and created Sardis Lake, an artificial reservoir that covered hundreds of square miles in western Lafayette and eastern Panola counties. The dam itself was a giant, mile-long mound of earth, one of the world's largest, with sculpturally modernist steel and concrete elements framing the spillway and the water level control towers" (Hines, 1996, p. 112). Later, the Sardis State Park was added. The site was renamed the John W. Kyle State Park and Dam, though the name Sardis Lake is still used as well.