Parks and Recreation Sites

The museum, located in a 1939 CCC building, opened during the Ninth Annual CCC Festival on November 5, 1994. You will see displays of CCC memorabilia, photographs and examples of CCC workmanship. Big Band music and President Roosevelt's Fireside Chats play in the background. A video of original CCC footage takes you back to the 1930s. There was also a totem pole that was installed in the museum at the time (since removed). The CCC developed eight state parks in Florida: Highlands Hammock, Myakka River, Hillsborough River, Gold Head Branch, O'Leno, Fort Clinch, Torreya and Florida Caverns.  

During the Depression, the WPA spent $465,000 for buildings and other improvements at the fairgrounds. Which exact buildings were WPA and their current status is unknown to the Living New Deal.

The Civil Works Administration (CWA) conducted work in 1933 to construct what is now known as Johnny "Red" Floyd Stadium at what was then the Middle State Normal School (Teachers College)—now Middle Tennessee State University. The facility has been enlarged multiple times over the years.

What is now Flushing Meadows-Corona Park, often known simply as Flushing Meadows, is a large park in Queens containing a wide variety of athletic facilities, a botanical garden, a museum and more. The site, which used to be a dumping ground, was first developed as a park in the late 1930s under the direction of Robert Moses in order to serve as the site for the 1939 World's Fair. In December 1938, the Department of Parks published a press release describing many of its ongoing projects, including this one: "In addition to the projects already listed, city funds have been secured for...

The WPA did extensive landscaping in the park in 1936, including redoing the tennis courts and surrounding retaining walls.

NYA plaque found at entrance of roadside park on TX-6 in Foard County, approximately 3.3 miles south of Crowell. Found a unique octagonal picnic table, a regular picnic table, and rock around garden at base of trees.

Folger Park on the south side of Capitol Hill was named for Charles J. Folger, U.S. Secretary of the Treasury from 1881 to 1884. Part of the original L'Enfant plan of Washington DC, the park was significantly improved in the late 19th century – probably at the same time it was renamed. Folger Park was substantially redeveloped under the New Deal, with funds provided by the Public Works Administration (PWA) in 1935 and work carried out by Works Progress Administration (WPA) relief labor in 1936.  This was part of a sweeping program of parks and playground renewal across Washington undertaken by...

"On the north shore of Lake Ponchartrain, this 2800-acre park encompasses the remains of a nineteenth-century plantation, Fontainebleau, named after the Parisian forest... The plantation was converted to a park beginning in 1938, one of Louisiana’s first state parks. Originally called Tchefuncte State Park, it opened in 1943 as Fontainebleau State Park. The State Parks Commission hired landscape architect William W. Wells to design the master plan, which was partially implemented by the Civilian Conservation Corp. The plan included group campsites, numerous Creole-influenced brick and rustic wood buildings, a beach, and a picnic area with an open-air shelter. An access road...

"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)

The index card text: 7' rock masonry fence around football field. Rock masonry stands with timber seats. Ticket office rock masonry with concrete floor. Playing field - grading - fills - drainage and sodding. Replace lighting system from old location. The 7' fence around the field and two ticket offices (one at each entrance) still exist. The stands have been replaced with new metal ones. The lighting system also appears newer.

This rock wall and the concrete stone seating steps that are built into it were constructed by the Federal Works Progress Administration (WPA) in 1940. The rock wall is approximately three feet high and it surrounds a playing field. They are intact, but heavily overgrown with grass.

"Jones County, Hamlin - Construct football and baseball fieds, grandstands and bleachers, rock walls and gravel drives in city park; federal funds, $16,706; sponsor's funds $5,504; workers 48."

"NYA Projects in Area Approved. One hundred boys and young men are to be employes in five counties. Allotment was $1,024 per month, and the jobs are expected to last from three to six months. Projects approved and allotments made with work starting August 5, are: Memphis, Hall County, 20 boys on a school project, including a grandstand and football field."

From the city of Somerville website: "A native stone gymnasium and football stadium with seating and fence were built for the Somerville Independent School District by the WPA during the Depression and finished by 1939 ." Text from the state historical marker at the stadium reads: "Emerging from the Great depression, the Somerville School Board partnered with the Works Progress Administration (WPA) to build a football stadium. Known as 'The Rock,' the stadium was designed by Travis Broesche in the rustic style of architecture, using native stone and petrified wood. It was completed in 1940. A crew of around 100 local...

Salt Lake City acquired the Forest Dale golf course, formerly the Salt Lake City Country Club, in 1935. The inclusion of the above photograph in the National Archives WPA records suggests that the WPA conducted work on the clubhouse depicted in the photo, but more information is needed.

The federal Work Projects Administration (WPA) helped to develop Forest Hill Park ca. 1939-1942.

Spanning what is now known as Forest Hills Blvd., the historic pedestrian bridge at Forest Hill Park in East Cleveland, Ohio was constructed with federal Works Progress Administration (WPA) labor. "Spanning 347 feet across a deep valley in the Dugway Brook watershed, the 48-foot-high pedestrian bridge was intended to nestle in the hilly landscape of the Heights (the westernmost foothills of the Appalachians) on Cleveland's east side. Designed by Wilbur Watson and Associates in 1939 with consulting architects F. B. Walker and A. D. Taylor, Forest Hill Park Footbridge was built in 1939-40--the work of more than 1,000 men toiling for two...

"On the Hoosier, the CCC crews fought fire, planted trees, developed habitat for fish and wildlife, constructed roads, bridges, campgrounds, and lookout towers. During the early days of the Hoosier National Forest, the CCC served as the primary work force for a skeletal crew of foresters. A CCC camp, located in Kurtz, not only built the lookout tower at Hickory Ridge and Dutch Ridge, but also the one at Trinity Springs. They reconstructed the Tower Road, the Maumee Road, and the old Dutch Ridge Road (now State Road 446). The rock to build the roads was quarried from what is now Blackwell Pond....

"The Huron-Manistee National Forests are two national forests combined in 1945 for administration purposes and which comprise 978,906 acres (3,960 km2) of public lands, including 5,786 acres (23 km2) of wetlands, extending across the northern lower peninsula of Michigan." (wikipedia.org) "There were 11 CCC camps on the Huron National Forest and 25 on the Manistee National Forest. The Manistee men built the Chittenden Nursery at Wellston to supply seedlings for planting." (www.foresthistory.org)

"CCC camps supervised by the Forest Service on the Shawnee National Forest were Camps Dry Hill, Kedron, Hutchins, Simpson, Eddyville, Cadiz, Hicks, Delta, Tamms, and Pomona (an all-black enrollee camp). Men from these camps were instrumental in the relief and clean up work required by the 1937 Ohio River flood disaster."

In 1935 and 1938, the WPA helped with Blister Rust control efforts. Local reports from the time give the following details: 1935 Blister Rust Control FINANCIAL STATEMENT Total cost of work $383.92 Paid by State 83.92 Paid by town $300.00 Area covered 361 acres Currant & gooseberry bushes destroyed 12,546 W.P.A. Federal funds expended $1,019.05 Area covered 1,362 acres. Currant & gooseberry bushes destroyed 35,644 1938 Blister Rust control Town Program: Crew cost (Paid by town) $299.60 Foreman cost (Paid by state) 74.00 Total expended $373.60 Received from town $300.00 Expended from town funds 299.60 Balance due town .40 Area covered (acres) 211 Currant and gooseberry bushes destroyed 59,084 W.P.A. Program: W.P.A. funds expended $1,983.67 Area covered (acres) 1,586 Currant and gooseberry bushes destroyed...

Forest Park is one of the largest municipal parks in the nation, just larger than Central Park in NYC. It was the site of the 1904 Worlds Fair and the WPA projects in the park transformed it and brought it up to date, including much clearing of brush in places where it had become overgrown. In places, it truly was and still is a forest. Projects included: roads through-out the park, handball courts, tennis courts (now the Davis Tennis Center), draining lakes that had been constructed for the World's Fair and which had filled in and had debris-filled to an...

This WPA project included the headquarters building and multiple hatchery ponds. The hatchery became one of the largest producers of fish for the state's waterways.

In 1936, WPA crews expanded the Forest Park Golf Course from 9 holes to 18 holes.

On July 16, 1935, the Department of Parks announced that the Forest Park Golf Course in Queens had been "entirely rebuilt with new greens and tees in line with the most modern golf architecture." A later press release confirmed that this, and work on other golf courses, had been done with "relief funds provided by the C.W.A., T.E.R.A. and W.P.A." The course is still popular and has been named the "best New York City golf course" by Golf Guides USA.

"This structure houses rare and beautiful plants, trees, and flowers, and is an important unit of the general park improvement program for St. Louis. The steel frame of the building supports structural glass panels on its vertical surfaces which are reasonably hailproof, and the horizontal roofs are metal covered. Great care was taken with the lighting, which was carefully studied with a model of the building before installation. The interest of the public in the displays is so great that more than 1,000,000 people have visited the 'jewel box' since its opening. It was completed in May 1937 at a construction...

In September 1941, the WPA completed the reconstruction of Victory Field in Forest Park in Queens. The press release announcing the completion of the work described the project: "This 12 acre athletic field dedicated to the unknown soldier of the first World War, replaces the former inadequate facilities which consisted of a cinder running track overcrowded with dirt surfaced baseball diamonds. The new development will provide a well rounded recreational area for the use of all the residents of this section of Queens. The entire field is enclosed by double fencing consisting of an outer wrought iron picket fence separated from a...

"Named for the historic mining district, the Crown King Ranger Station includes numerous structures and buildings built by the Civilian Conservation Corps between 1934 and 1938. The office and residence were designed in the Bungalow/Craftsman style with timbered gables and wide front porches fronted by square columns on pedestals. The buildings were designed according to standard Forest Service plans. Each complex is unique however -- modified to make use of local materials and to adapt to the landscape itself. Horsethief Basin facilities were funded by the Public Works Administration as part of a large recreation project for Phoenix residents. CCC...

A manned fire station in the San Bernardino National Park. The supervisor said that the site was once a Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) camp. However, no structures from the original camp survive except for a crumbling square concrete foundation near the outdoor workout area.

"The Forest Theatre is a stone amphitheater structure built into the hillside on the eastern edge of the UNC-Chapel Hill campus and contiguous with Battle Park. Outdoor drama was first performed on this site in 1916 to celebrate the tercentenary of Shakespeare's death. ... Forest Theatre was rebuilt with Work Projects Administration funds in 1940 and further improved in 1948."

The annual report of the Forestry Division of the Park Commission for the year ending December 31, 1934 reads: "This branch of the Park Department was helped greatly by the Federal Relief Projects; the C. W. A. during the first four months of 1934, with six tree workers and number of laborers for woods clearing, and again under the E. R. A. from the middle of September to the end of the year with two tree climbers. On all this work the Park Department maintained its own foreman and furnished the truck and driver, also all tools, equipment and materials were...

The gym was constructed in 1933 by the Emergency Relief Administration. It is no longer extant. An historic photograph is available at the Southern Arkansas University site or the Southwest Archives site. The elementary school was built on the former site of the gym.

"Fort Abraham Lincoln State Park is located seven miles (11 km) south of Mandan, North Dakota. The park is home to On-A-Slant Indian Village, the blockhouses and the Custer house. President Theodore Roosevelt signed the deed to the land to the state in 1907 as Fort Abraham Lincoln State Park... In 1934, the Civilian Conservation Corps built a visitor center, shelters, and roads. They also reconstructed military blockhouses and placed cornerstones to mark where fort buildings once stood, as well as replicating Mandan earthen lodges. Additional reproductions have since been built on the site creating a replica Mandan village, called "On-a-Slant Village."...

Fort Belknap was originally constructed in 1851 as one of the frontier defense posts in Young County, Texas. It was abandoned in 1859, and over the years, dismantled for the materials, with the exception of two buildings (National Park Service). In 1936, the State of Texas, with supplemental money from the Federal government through the WPA program, reconstructed buildings on the original foundations as part of the Centennial celebration (commemorative plaque on entrance gates, National Historic Landmark, National Park Service). The corn storage building was partially standing, and the powder magazine was still intact. The corn storage building (now used as...

Extensive rock work was done from locally quarried limestone, building the Grand Staircase, fireplaces, patios, lily ponds, fencing, and other landscaping items. The site is that of Fort Belle Fontaine, a historic fort initially established on a bluff on the south side of the Missouri River by the French, but important in the War of 1812. The last night of the Lewis and Clark expedition was spent just below the bluff, west of the Changing Rooms. Eleanor Roosevelt visited in 1939. The development was done in part to encourage youths to the Missouri Hills Home for boys.

Fort Bunker Hill was a part of the Civil War ring of forts defending the capital. The site was transformed into a park in the 1930s by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) as a park for a recently built suburban neighborhood. Sadly, it has been abandonned by the city park authorities and left in an overgrown and dilapidated condition. A HABS report details the CCC development of the park: “By the end of 1935, CCC work had begun at the site with Camp NP-11-DC planting trees and constructing walks.  Work at the site continued into at least early 1937.  This Camp and...

The Civil Works Administration (CWA), Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA) and Works Progress Administration (WPA) performed structural renovation and historic restoration work at this site. Casper Star-Tribune, 1934: "Dedication of the new traps today at the Izaak Walton league park near the old site of Fort Caspar will afford the Casper public opportunity to view extensive Improvement work carried on there for several months as a CWA project. Progress made in construction of a spacious, rustic lodge of logs, and a fence of the same material, and the planting of hundreds of trees and shrubs will be open to inspection. When...

Picnic pavilion and meeting place. The pavilion was built in the 1930s by the Works Progress Administration. It was the only structure at the newly donated 10 acre park at the time. The community subsequently built a baseball field at the park and in 1976, at also added the replica of the 1837 Fort Christmas. The community has always used the pavilion as a meeting place for community events. The pavilion has been renovated and preserved by the community. 

The Civilian Conservation (CCC) helped the National Park Service reconstruct Fort Churchill in the 1930s. Fort Churchill was an 1860s army post built along the Overland Emigrant Trail, which was abandoned in 1869 when its usefulness had passed. Afterward, it fell into ruin. “On behalf of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR), Senator McCarran and Congressman Scrugham secured a CCC camp to restore the historic site. During the summer and fall of 1935, Camp Fort Churchill constructed a campground and a day-use area and built a number of park buildings. Pleased with the restoration and new facilities, the DAR presented...

Originally constructed as an armory, what is now the Fort Decatur Recreation Center was constructed in 1938 with federal funds. The building "was designed by Carolyn Cortner Smith, Alabama’s first licensed female architect." Living New Deal believes the Works Progress Administration (WPA) provided support for construction of the armory.