Parks and Recreation Sites

Chico's Bidwell Park is one of the largest municipal parks in the United States. It follows the course of Big Chico Creek for several miles into the foothills.  The park land was originally donated to the city early in the 20th century by the widow of Chico's founder, John Bidwell. New Deal agencies made several improvements to the park in the 1930s. It appears that State Emergency Recovery Agency (SERA) workers did road gravelling in the park, and worked on bathhouses and repair of the superintendent's residence–SERA was funded in part by the Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FEMA). At the upper end of the park, the Works Progress Administration (WPA)...

With Proclamation 2175, June 15, 1936, President Franklin D. Roosevelt created the Bienville National Forest in Mississippi.  This proclamation was part of FDR’s overall effort to create more national forests in the eastern United States. As with other national forests, the goal of Bienville was “to produce the greatest amount of good for the most people… Fire protection gives the timber a chance to grow so as to produce a merchantable crop; trees are being planted where former logging practise (sic) did not leave the land in a condition to re-seed itself; grazing will be regulated so as to coordinate...

The Works Progress Administration completed landscaping and grading work in Bienville Square in Mobile.

During the Great Depression of the 1930s, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) installed a camp at Big Basin, California's first state park (1901), and built a variety of facilities for public recreation.   Big Basin was saved through the efforts of Sempervirens Club (now Fund), as one of the last and largest groves of giant coast redwoods left in the Santa Cruz Mountains. CCC men built the park headquarters (1936), an amphitheater of redwood logs, campgrounds, other park buildings and miles of trails, and probably roads and water lines, as well. For 75 years, those facilities remained virtually unchanged (one footbridge across...

A recreation area was constructed in the Biloxi Unit of the DeSoto National forest, including a bath house with water from an artesian well, and nine picnic areas with graveled paths. Tables, chairs and cooking pits were planned from brick or stone, and a picnic shed of “native materials” was under construction. The site was dedicated in June 1937. Located ¼ mile east of old Hwy 49 and 23 miles south of Wiggins, the site was constructed by camp 10, a CCC camp comprised of African Americans. The area cost approximately $14,000 and included the bath house with native cypress...

The National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form for the former Big Elk Guard Station (now a camping residence for seasonal rent) tells the history of the garage/storage shed located nearby: "A Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC)-built Garage/Storage Shed, erected ca. 1938, lies about 50' east of the cabin. This rectangular, single-story building measures approximately 18' x 16' feet in plan and approximately 8' 6" feet from the top of the corner boards at the eaves to the ground. The building has a medium-pitch gable roof with wood shingles and exposed rafter ends. The exterior walls are composed of horizontal "double-run molding"...

"The Big Horn Academy Historic District includes the Big Horn Academy constructed in 1916 of rusticated sandstone and the Cowley Gymnasium/Community Hall built in 1936 of lodgepole pine logs. In 1936 the Gymnasium and Community Hall was constructed adjacent to the Cowley High School as part of a Works Progress Administration project." The log gym lies behind the old school building, which presently houses school district administrative offices.

From 1933 to 1935, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) planted 304 acres of “white pine, Norway pine, Scotch pine, and jack pine.”

"Big Meadows Guard Station was constructed between 1933 and 1935 by the Civilian Conservation Corps, (CCC) to provide a residence for Forest Service fire patrolmen stationed in that area. In 1964, the Forest Service no longer needed the use of the cabin. The cabin is 900 square feet, single story and consists of 1 bedroom with a closet, 1 bathroom, a living room and a kitchen with a service porch. The original cabinets, living room and bedroom flooring and bath fixtures remain. The interior has been slightly modified. The exterior is constructed of redwood board over 1 X 8 diagonal...

The present Big Oak Flat Road was constructed by the Bureau of Public Roads (BPR), with Public Works Administration (PWA) funding, between 1935 and 1940.  It is one of  three main roads into Yosemite Valley, along with El Portal road and Wawona road. Big Oak Flat Road is the main entrance road into Yosemite from the north, designated as state highway 120. At Crane Flat, highway 120 follows the Tioga Road toward Tuolumne Meadows and over Tioga Pass.  Big Oak Flat road splits off to head south toward Yosemite Valley.  Highway 120 from Groveland (west of the park) to the park...

Big Pool opened in Garden City KS in 1922. The Works Progress Administration added a bath house and a children's wading pool.

"Big Ridge State Park was one of five demonstration parks developed by the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) in cooperation with the National Park Service and the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) as an example of public recreation development along TVA lakeshores. The structures on the park reflect the craftsmanship and stonework of the CCC. Along the trails you may see remnants of the  homes and farms that existed here prior to the birth of the TVA."   (https://tnstateparks.com) This park was actually part of the greater Norris Project. "Civilian Conservation Corps Company 4495, which was originally based in Loyston, began work on Big...

"The Big Shaheen Cabin is the only log cabin built by Civilian Conservation Corps workers as part of the Admiralty Island Canoe Route. Situated on the east shore of Hasselborg Lake, the cabin was intended to serve as a lodge. Originally, it was the only enclosed building along the canoe route. Built for recreation, it is still used for that purpose and has not been substantially altered since its construction in 1935." "The Big Shaheen Cabin is the only cabin that was part of the Admiralty Island Civilian Conservation Corps Canoe Route. It was constructed with horizontal logs about ten inches...

"Dramatic views off of the 200-foot bluff and from the CCC-built loop road are among the featured attractions of this 382-acre park. Early morning or sunset, joggers, walkers and cyclists circle the loop, enjoying these views as they exercise. An elaborate Fourth of July fireworks display is one of the largest in the region. Other activities include picnicking, nature study and sightseeing." CCC construction: Entrance Portals, Park Road 8, Culverts, Bridges, Concession Building (currently park offices), Keeper’s Dwelling, Stone Pavilion, Restrooms, Picnic Tables, Stone Steps, and Retaining Walls. An amphitheater was designed, started, but not completed. A Stone Pump House and...

The Department of Parks announced the opening of this new playground on Bedford Ave. on October 14, 1935. As researcher Frank da Cruz explains here, almost all New York City Parks Department projects between 1934 and 1943 were accomplished with New Deal funds and/or labor. After its inception in 1935, the WPA quickly became the main source of relief funds and labor for the NYC Parks Department. In a 1939 study, The Works Progress Administration in New York City (pp. 101-102), future Columbia University professor John Millett describes the WPA's deep involvement: “The city Parks Department planned all work-relief activities in city...

Originally constructed as the Lumberton City Armory-Auditorium, what is now the Bill Sapp Recreation Center was constructed by the federal Works Progress Administration (W.P.A.). Postcard: "The Lumberton City Armory-Auditorium is one of the most handsome and best equipped buildings of its kind in North Carolina. It is the home of the famous Lumberton Coast Artillery Company and the war-time organization Home Guards."

Billinghurst Junior High school named after long time Reno superintendent of schools (1908-1935), Benson Dillon Billinghurst had improvements made during the New Deal Era consisting of two new double tennis courts and a rock and cement retaining wall around the school playing fields. The rock walls are there today, but the tennis courts are now basketball courts. The school is no longer there. The site has become part of a large public park in the middle of Reno.

The lookout buildings were constructed between 1936 and 1938 by members of Company 2515 of the CCC. The cabin was used for lookout workers until the early 1980s and can now be rented by guests.

Black Butte is a cluster of peaks in the Shasta National Forest. In the 1930s, the CCC built trails up to the summit as well as the Black Butte lookout tower. The tower was destroyed by a storm in 1962. Another was built in 1963 but removed to another location in 1973.

"The Black Canyon of the Gunnison was established as a U.S. National Monument on March 2, 1933. It became a National Park on October 21, 1999. During 1933-35, the Civilian Conservation Corps built the North Rim Road to design by the National Park Service. This includes fives miles of roadway and five overlooks; it is listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places as a historic district."   (https://www.hipcamp.com) Funding was provided by the PWA and Emergency Conservation Work.

The Black Hawk State Historic Site, at the intersection of the Rock and Mississippi rivers, was an important site for Native American of the Sauk and Mesquakie tribes long before European settlers forced them off the land. In the late 19th century, the site became part of an amusement park known as the Watch Tower Park. In the 1920s, the amusement park was demolished and the site became the Black Hawk State Park. It was designated as a historic site in 1987. In 1933, two hundred CCC boys moved to the site and constructed the rustic Watchtower lodge, still in use today....

From the Plumas National Forest website: "Black Mountain Lookout is situated on the eastern edge of the Beckwourth Ranger District, 10 miles from Highway 395, near Milford, California. The lookout was constructed in 1934 and is a great example of Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) architecture. The C-3-type lookout is situated on a single story 10 foot tower and is extremely well-preserved. The lookout offers striking views of Honey Lake to the north, and Last Chance Creek to the south. The rental is available from Memorial weekend through October. The fee for an overnight stay is $60."

The current campground was once the site of the Swift River CCC camp #1177 built 6/19/1935. The nearby Conway Library notes an art exhibit by CCC members in 1936: "Blackberry Crossing is unique in that is was a CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps) Camp during the 1930's. There is a self-guided tour of the old camp within the campground. The campground has 26 sites that are available on a first come, first served basis. There are hand pumps for water and vault toilets. A short walk from the campground is the Albany Covered Bridge, The Nanamocomuck Ski Trail, and the Boulder Loop...

"Camp Stuart's enrollees built fishing access for disabled veterans of World War I along several pools of the Blackledge River. This was one of the earliest attempts to provide fishing access for the handicapped."

The waterfront area of Blackstone Park in Providence was a WPA project. However, the photograph below comes from an archive of FERA projects, indicating that agency's potential involvement as well.

In 1933, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) achieved considerable infrastructural and land management improvements at the formerly-named Blackwater Migratory Bird Refuge near Cambridge Maryland. Maintained by the U.S. Biological Survey, the refuge covers an area of 8,241 acres, including marshes and waters where black ducks and blue-winged teal breed and mallards and pintails concentrate. The site is also refuge to a variety of shorebirds and other wild animals. In a December 1933 press release, the U.S. Department of Agriculture outlined the role played by CCC workers at the refuge: “C.C.C. camps were established…with a view to making the refuges more attractive...

The Works Progress Administration built the Blaine Stadium and Fieldhouse in Ponca City OK in 1936-1937. The stadium is built with rusticated stone. It is still used by Ponca City High School football. It was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1988. According to the Oklahoma Landmarks Inventory Nomination for the Blaine Stadium, the stadium project created "wages for 32,000 man-hours of labor into the local economy, helping to revitalize the mainstreet hit hard by the decline of the oil industry and of the value of agricultural products."

Blanchette Park is a large park overlooking the Missouri River Valley in northern St. Charles which was the first Missouri State Capital. The WPA's work in the park included a swimming pool, lake, walks and fences, and remodeling of Memorial Hall in the park.

Blanco State Park is located in historic Blanco, Texas. The park offers camping, hiking, fishing and swimming and scenic views of the Blanco River. In 1933 local landowners donated just over 100 acres for the park. The CCC worked here until 1934; this was one of their first projects. CCC construction in the park includes: "Park Road 23, Culverts and Bridges, Retaining Wall and Steps, Stone Walks, Stone Dams, Picnic Tables, Rock Seats, Benches, Picnic Table and Bench Combinations, Camp Stoves, Rock Wall, Concession House-Café (currently a maintenance building), Concession Building (currently the group pavilion), and Pump House (no longer in use)....

The Federal Writers' Project's guide to New York State explained: "Bleecker Stadium, Clinton Ave. between Swinburne Park and Ontario St., with a field house of Georgian Colonial design, was built by the WPA. It seats 10,000 and has two baseball fields, a football field, a quarter-mile track, jumping and vaulting pits, and tennis courts." "The stadium opened on Thanksgiving Day 1934. The clubhouse was built in 1940 under the Works Progress Administration..."   (wikipedia.org)

Blenheim Park was founded in 1922. In the late 1930s, Works Progress Administration (WPA) workers made improvements to the park.

The Civil Works Administration (CWA) constructed "concrete stands" at Bloomington High School in New Jersey, 1934. The location and status of the project is presently unknown to Living New Deal.

The Federal Emergency Relief Administration and the Civil Works Administration completed improvements at the Bloomingdale Playground in Washington DC, between 1933 and 1934. The work consisted of the following improvements: “Graded, completed drainage and water service system; fencing and 3-story recreation building 25 percent complete.”

Public Works Administration (PWA) funded the construction of an athletic field at Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania in Bloomsburg PA. Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania, then known as the Bloomsburg State Teachers College, benefited during the Great Depression from a large construction project enabled by the PWA. The agency provided a $184,604 grant for the project, whose final cost was $584,097. Construction occurred between January 1938 and July 1939. (PWA Docket No. 1866.) Four buildings were constructed on the campus, including a gymnasium and shop/storage building. The present status of these structures is unknown to Living New Deal. According to the Bloomsburg University Archives, "The...

Public Works Administration (PWA) funded the construction of the Centennial Gymnasium building at Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania in Bloomsburg PA. Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania, then known as the Bloomsburg State Teachers College, benefited during the Great Depression from a large construction project enabled by the PWA. The agency provided a $184,604 grant for the project, whose final cost was $584,097. Construction occurred between January 1938 and July 1939. (PWA Docket No. 1866.) Four buildings were constructed on the campus, including a gymnasium and shop/storage building. According to the Bloomsburg University Archives, "During the Depression the only money available for campus construction was from...

Public Works Administration (PWA) funded the construction of the Navy Hall at Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania in Bloomsburg PA. Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania, then known as the Bloomsburg State Teachers College, benefited during the Great Depression from a large construction project enabled by the PWA. The agency provided a $184,604 grant for the project, whose final cost was $584,097. Construction occurred between January 1938 and July 1939. (PWA Docket No. 1866.) Four buildings were constructed on the campus, including a gymnasium and shop/storage building. The present status of these structures is unknown to Living New Deal. According to the Bloomsburg University Archives, "Navy Hall,...

Public Works Administration (PWA) funded the construction of a shop/storage building at Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania in Bloomsburg PA. Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania, then known as the Bloomsburg State Teachers College, benefited during the Great Depression from a large construction project enabled by the PWA. The agency provided a $184,604 grant for the project, whose final cost was $584,097. Construction occurred between January 1938 and July 1939. (PWA Docket No. 1866.) Four buildings were constructed on the campus, including a gymnasium and shop/storage building.  According to the Bloomsburg University Archives, "The Shop and Storage building was built in 1938 to house the majority...

Public Works Administration (PWA) funded the construction of the Tennis Courts at Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania in Bloomsburg PA. Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania, then known as the Bloomsburg State Teachers College, benefited during the Great Depression from a large construction project enabled by the PWA. The agency provided a $184,604 grant for the project, whose final cost was $584,097. Construction occurred between January 1938 and July 1939. (PWA Docket No. 1866.) Four buildings were constructed on the campus, including a gymnasium and shop/storage building. The present status of these structures is unknown to Living New Deal. According to the Bloomsburg University Archives, "A set...

The Works Progress Administration (WPA) constructed the stone gymnasium structure at Blowing Rock School. It was one of many educational facilities constructed by the WPA in Watauga County. The WPA also constructed a "well-planned" playground. The school facility has since been largely demolished and replaced, though the WPA gymnasium still remains.

Description of a W.P.A. project: "Blue Hills Parkway; in the early spring of 1939, work will be started on the construction of a bituminous concrete walk from Kahler Avenue to Canton Avenue. The major items of work are the construction of 6,900 linear feet of 6-ft. wide bituminous concrete walk, regrading, loaming and seeding of 920 linear feet of 9-ft. wide planting space and 4,600 linear feet of 5-ft. wide planting space."