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  • Irving Junior High School Stands - Pocatello ID
    The athletic field stands at Irving Junior High School in Pocatello, Idaho were constructed by the Civil Works Administration (C.W.A.).
  • Jackie Robinson Memorial Field - Pasadena CA
    “When Franklin D.Roosevelt was elected in 1933, his Works Progress administration (WPA) put Pasadenans to work on park, flood control,and utility projects.They improved Brookside Park for the Chicago White Sox,who set up spring training there.”   (www.pasadena.edu) The stadium mentioned is today known as Jackie Robinson Memorial Field, dedicated to the famous baseball player who grew up in Pasadena and attended Pasadena Junior College, today Pasadena City College (also the site of New Deal projects). One of many features within the Arroyo Seco park system that were built by the New Deal, including trails, public bathrooms, parts of the Rose Bowl, the...
  • Jefferson High School Stadium and Athletic Field - Portland OR
    Collaborating with the Portland Public Schools, the Works Progress Administration (WPA) built a 1000 seat stadium for Jefferson High School in the summer of 1941.  The $14,000 project (1941 dollars) consists of an uncovered structure with restroom and concession facilities built in the rear.  The Oregonian, Portland’s morning newspaper, noted when the stadium structure was dedicated in October 1941 that the adjacent athletic field was also a WPA project, completed over the previous two years. Jefferson High School is notable as the high school of the historic African American community of north Portland.  Also worth noting is the 'mascot' of the...
  • Jelsma Stadium - Guthrie OK
    "Jelsma Stadium, constructed by the WPA, was selected by ESPN as No. 13 Best High School Stadium in the nation, in 2008. Lawrence Jelsma was a business and civic leader in Guthrie during the 1920s and 1930s. With his encouragement a $14,500 bond issue was passed and, together with funds from the WPA, this stadium was able to be built at a cost of $48,500. Unfortunately, Jelsma did not live to see the first game played here, as he passed away in 1934 at the age of 1941 from pneumonia. The amazing thing about this stadium is the 30-foot high native sandstone...
  • Jim Thorpe Stadium Complex - Shawnee OK
    Between 1936 and 1939 the Federal Works Progress Administration (WPA) built the Jim Thorpe Stadium Complex at Shawnee High School in Shawnee, Oklahoma. In 2010 Shawnee voters approved a $3 million bond issue in order to renovate part of the complex. As a result the WPA-constructed rock wall and a sandstone clubhouse that had been built later were demolished. Hamquilters Waymarking webpage for the Jim Thorpe Stadium describes it in the following way: "...This stadium...is built with steel reinforced concrete and brick. It stands 24 tiers on the field side. All of the stadium windows have been covered with wood. The lower windows...
  • John Marshall High School: Athletic Facilities - Los Angeles CA
    John Marshall High School is an iconic building in the Los Feliz district of Los Angeles. Walt Disney and his family lived across the street from the "Collegiate Gothic" structure, and from 1927-1940 operated his Disney Studios and Animation School just one block away (Marshall High is the brick building visible in the background at center in this picture of the original Disney Animation Studio, c. 1939). At the same time Disney was producing his most well-known cartoons and films, WPA laborers were down the street installing Marshall High's concrete bleachers and pavillion, which are still used by students today. These WPA-built bleachers and...
  • Joseph Pritchett Field Improvements - Huntsville TX
    Pritchett Field is a historic football stadium at Sam Houston State University. The first football game at Pritchett Field was on October 6, 1912. The Work Progress Administration constructed stone bleachers on both sides of Pritchett Field in the 1930s. In 1967, the stone bleachers on the east side were removed. Pritchett field is currently the home field of Sam Houston State women's soccer.
  • Kearney High School Athletic Field & Stadium - Kearney NE
    Construction of the concrete “stadium” at the Kearney High School athletic field on West 21st Street was designed primarily to provide dressing rooms for the high school athletes, but also provides seating for a large number of sports fans. It was built on the north side of the track, and measured 76 by 37 feet in size, costing $15,500.00. The stadium and locker room building was in its final stages of construction in December 1938, and Kearneyites were excited that their students would, for the first time, have the benefit of modern, convenient sports facilities. Plans for the stadium were prepared...
  • Kezar Pavillion and Stadium - San Francisco CA
    Erected a one story reinforced concrete addition to present training quarters and reconstructed old wooden seats to concrete framing. This work of increased the facilities for football and basket ball games. With a seating capacity of 60,000 it is well patronized for conventions and intercollegiate games.--Healy, p. 57.
  • King Stadium - Las Vegas NM
    "King Stadium is a WPA project originally built to house equestrian events for the U.S. Calvary. Today, the stadium rests in near ruins. Luna Community College hopes to renovate the stadium and hold events - possibly rodeos - there, once more."
  • Lafayette Field - Shelton CT
    Friday, February 16 - "About 100 CWA men are working on Lafayette Field. The football field will have a cinder track around it, and a baseball diamond will also be laid out. The fields will be surrounded by at least 1500' of fencing." Lafayette Field is located behind the old Lafayette High School.
  • Laguna Ball Park (demolished) - Santa Barbara CA
    "During the dark days of the Depression, Santa Barbara gained more than its share from the Federal program known as the Works Progress Administration...Another local WPA gem, the grandstands, fences and outbuildings that graced the grand old Laguna Park baseball stadium was, in 1970 unceremoniously plowed under to make way for a parking lot for the city’s fleet of buses and administration buildings. ...Designed by the acclaimed local architect Winsor Soule, it was a full-sized stadium built in a small-sized city in 1938. Bigger than Ebbets Field or Wrigley Field, Laguna Park was a place where minor league teams associated with...
  • Lamar Porter Field - Little Rock AR
    Lamar Porter Field, a ballpark, was built by the WPA in 1937 and has been hosting amateur baseball ever since. It was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1990.
  • Landry Memorial Stadium - Amesbury MA
    In the first half of the 20th century, the Amesbury High School was located on Main Street in the town of Amesbury, MA. In 1938 the school was selected for the construction of an athletic stadium by the Works Progress Administration. The original high school burned down in 1964 and was rebuilt on Highland St. Now the property on Main Street is home to the Amesbury Middle School. The stadium was constructed with an odd and peculiar design that can best be described as a bowl structure built into the side of a small hill. On two opposing sides there are...
  • Lane Field Baseball Stadium (Former) - San Diego CA
    "Lane Field is a former baseball stadium located in San Diego, California. The ballpark was home to the San Diego Padres of the Pacific Coast League from 1936 through 1957. The ballpark was located in downtown San Diego, at the end of West Broadway near the waterfront. Broadway bounded the park to the south (first base). Its other two close bounding streets were Harbor Drive (third base) and Pacific Highway (right field). There were various buildings to the north (left field) between the ballpark and Ash Street. Before it was called Lane Field, the stadium began its life as a U.S. Navy...
  • Lawrence-Dumont Stadium (demolished) - Wichita KS
    Lawrence-Dumont Stadium, originally Lawrence Stadium, was a baseball stadium built by the Civil Works Administration (CWA) in 1934. Home to minor league baseball and National Baseball Congress tournament for many years. It was demolished in 2018 to make room for Riverfront Park.
  • Legion Field Improvements - Birmingham AL
    Then known as Municipal Stadium, Birmingham's Legion Field was improved by the federal Works Progress Administration (WPA).
  • Leon High School Stadium and Playground - Tallahassee FL
    "A new concrete stadium and playground at Leon High School in Tallahassee was completed through the combined efforts of the WPA, the City of Tallahassee, Leon County, and the local Junior Chamber of Commerce."
  • Liberty Field - Sedalia MO
    Liberty Field is a large baseball field with wooden stands that surround home plate.  It is reputed to have been the first or one of the first baseball fields west of the Mississippi with lights for night time baseball.  It is still in use and in good condition.
  • Lynchburg City Stadium - Lynchburg VA
    This ballpark (also known as Calvin Falwell Field) was built with the assistance of WPA funds is currently home to the Lynchburg Hillcats, a Minor League baseball team. "The ballpark project began in 1936, after the city purchased 28 acres of land ... for $30,000. City Stadium was completed in 1939, thanks in part to a $100,000 grant from the Works Progress Administration. The city contributed the remaining $190,000."
  • MacKenzie Field - Holyoke MA
    Mackenzie Field is located in Holyoke, Massachusetts, next to Holyoke High School. In 1938, the concrete bleachers on the 1st base side of the field are a WPA project done at a cost of $35,392.
  • Majors Stadium Entry (former) - Greenville TX
    The state historical marker erected at this site describes the still standing arched entryway to the now demolished Majors Stadium as having been built by the Works Progress Administration in 1940.
  • Manning Bowl (demolished) - Lynn MA
    The former 17,000-seat Manning Bowl was constructed by the federal Works Progress Administration between 1936 and 1938. The facility was demolished in 2004. WPA Bulletin, 1937: "At 10 o'clock Thanksgiving Day morning football teams of the Lynn Classical and Lynn English High Schools will be the first to use the huge Lynn WPA Municipal Stadium now under construction. The stadium will not be finished at that time, so the game must be considered as a pre-dication event. We recommend the contest to all who can possibly attend. In addition to seeing how far work has progressed on this splendid recreational site...
  • Market Street Fields Bleachers - Troy OH
    According to the Troy Daily News, the Works Progress Administration constructed concrete bleachers for football seating at Troy's athletic park.
  • Marlow High School Stadium - Marlow OK
    "The Marlow High School stadium was completed by the WPA in 1936. Unfortunately, most of the construction no longer remains, with the exception of four arches which still stand at the entrance. The original stone marker shows "BUILT BY WPA 1936." Two granite markers have been laid in the wall which read "W.P.A. 1936" and "PARK BOARD J.E. SHIELDS / CLYDE FERGUSON / JOHN C. FISHER" The four original arches have wood fencing installed in them, to form a wall at the entrance of the stadium. The Marlow High School "Outlaws" play their Division 3A football here on Friday evenings during the school...
  • McCoy Stadium - Pawtucket RI
    One of Rhode Island's largest sports venues, McCoy Stadium was built between 1938 and 1940 by the City of Pawtucket. It was co-designed by Thomas E. Harding, the city engineer, and Mark Linenthal, associate engineer. Home to the Pawtucket Red Sox, it is named for Tom McCoy, mayor of Pawtucket at the time of the stadium's construction. Renovated in 1999. The stadium is currently home of the Pawtucket PawSox. "Presidents Roosevelt and Truman both visited during the 1940s to see the product of the federal building they'd funded."   (Pahigian)
  • McElroy Park Stadium - Jamestown ND
    President Roosevelt toured Jamestown, North Dakota in 1936, The New York Times reporting: " saw a new $17,000 auditorium more than large enough to hold the town's population, a current WPA project. It faces a stadium that was begun as a CWA operation and completed, together with an ornamental fence on the property, as an FERA project." The facilities were in what is known now as McElroy Park. The exact location of the stadium within McElroy Park and its present status are unknown to Living New Deal, though it might be what is now known as Jack Brown Stadium.
  • McLean Stadium (former) Improvements - Lexington KY
    The since-demolished McLean Stadium of the University of Kentucky was one of many structures that was either constructed or improved with the assistance of federal New Deal funds. "Although unable to secure funding for expanded seating," Eric Moyen writes, the university's Athletic Council "did secure the city of Lexington as a 'project sponsor' for the construction of a press box and running track at the football stadium. The WPA approved a grant in excess of $20,000 for construction, and Lexington paid the remaining $7,000." The site today is known as Stoll Field, the name by which McLean Stadium had been known from...
  • Memorial Field - Concord NH
    In 1934, town officials resolved to use $2,500 of CWA money for constructing bleachers at Memorial Athletic Field. In 1940, more bleachers  from nearby were moved and set up at Memorial Field.
  • Milne Stadium - Albuquerque NM
    Milne Stadium was a New Deal project built in 1939. -Aurelio Sanchez
  • Montclair State University: Sprague Field - Montclair NJ
    The federal Works Progress Administration constructed an athletic field between 1936 and 1937 "to care care of track, football and baseball." This facility is believed to be the original iteration of Sprague Field, which was inaugurated in 1937.
  • Morganfield Legion Park Development - Morganfield KY
    Works Progress Administration (WPA) helped develop Morganfield Legion Park in Morganfield, Kentucky.  The WPA relief workers built a recreation hall (known locally as the "Legion Hut"); a pool and pool house; tennis courts; playgrounds; and a football stadium and field (for Morganfield High School).  These were built in 1936. The city of Morganfield, the local American Legion, and the public school district all sponsored the project.  We do not know when the park was originally set aside or what, if any, improvements had been made before the WPA arrived. Much of the WPA work at the park is still in place. The...
  • Municipal Ballpark (demolished) - Aberdeen SD
    Aberdeen's Municipal Ballpark, a.k.a. Pheasant Park, was constructed in 1936, competed as a Works Progress Administration (WPA) project. The facility rebuilt in 1954 and demolished in 1975. The exact location of the since-demolished ballpark is unknown to Living New Deal.
  • Municipal improvements - Auburn ME
    The Lewiston Evening Journal reported that by 1935, a combination of the CWA, FERA, and ERA had completed numerous work projects in Auburn Maine: A two mile hiking trail along the Little Androscoggin River called the Baker Mill Trail was started. An athletic field was built at the Walton Elementary School along with shrubs and landscaping. The interiors of the Webster Grammar school, Webster Jr. High, Lake Street school, & Washburn school were painted. The roof was repainted at the Chamberlain school. At Edward Little High School, the windows were replaced. The roof of the city building was repaired, floors refinished, & both the interior and...
  • Municipal Stadium - Waco TX
    Waco, Texas's Municipal Stadium was constructed in 1936 as a federal Public Works Administration (PWA) project. The stadium is located at the northwest corner of S. 15th St. and Dutton Ave. The PWA provided a $39,000 loan and $16,000 grant; the total cost of the project was $58,133. Construction occurred between May and October 1936. (PWA Docket No. TX 6075)
  • Municipal Stadium (demolished) - Rock Hill SC
    "The WPA contributed to construction of the American Legion Municipal Stadium on Cherry Road, an open-air stadium accompanied by a stone building that housed the entrance to the stadium; a plaque on the building commemorates the contribution." (sc.gov) Believed to be located near the intersection of Cherry Road and York Avenue, the stadium was demolished in 1984. (rhhs65)
  • Municipal Stadium (former) - Harrison NJ
    The federal Works Progress Administration (WPA) constructed a municipal stadium in Harrison, New Jersey. Work on the facility began June 1, 1936. The exact location or status of the facility is unknown to Living New Deal.
  • Mustang Bowl - Sweetwater TX
    In March, 1939 the federal government approved $65,000 for a new football stadium in Sweetwater, Texas. Texas Senator Tom Connally and U.S. Representative from Texas Clyde L. Garrett received credit for getting the project signed off. The Works Project Administration built the stadium in 1939. The Mustang Bowl seats 7,500 in the bleachers and 9,500 in the tiered concrete embankments around the end zones. The bleachers were originally wood sitting on grass, but were changed to metal on concrete in 1972. Other improvements over the years include new restrooms and press box in 1959 and new concession stand, restrooms and railings...
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