Roads, Bridges, and Tunnels Sites

Among the work undertaken by C.C.C. Camp Filley was "building 23 miles of truck trails including Jericho Road and Cedar Swamp Road."

The creation of the Cedars of Lebanon State Park in Tennessee was a multifaceted joint project of the Resettlement Administration, the CCC, the forestry division, NPS and the WPA: "Project development began in the fall of 1935, with forestry personnel, along with RA and CCC workers, planting new seedlings of juniper cedar, black walnut, black locust, ash, yellow poplar, and mulberry trees. The crews introduced erosion controls and built roads and trails... The WPA constructed recreational facilities, including picnic areas, overlook shelters on the Jackson Cave Trail, and the original park lodge. Lebanon Cedar Forest was officially opened in September 1937...

The 1935 Town report mentions: Public Service Enterprises Fence Construction Centre Cemetery ERA Project ----- $563.69 employing 13 people WPA Highway Project $260.34 WPA Sewing Project $60.21 employing 2 people

The Cape Vincent Eagle reported that the federal Works Progress Administration (WPA) improved 11 roads in the town of Cape Vincent, New York. "All school bus, milk, and rural mail routes, the roads form an important part of the town's highway system." The project encompassed eight miles of road, and called for "grading, draining, placing base, trimming shoulders and ditches, surfacing and incidental appurtenant work." Roads improved included "Cemetery, leading from Rosiere county road easterly for 1.8 miles."

The WPA improved Center St. and the intersecting Church St. in 1938. These streets run directly in front of the Santa Cruz City Hall, Civic Auditorium and Fire Station No. 1, all PWA projects.

The PWA carried out construction work for Center-Line Road in St. Croix between 1933 and 1934.

The Centerline Road in St. Croix was paved by Civilian Conservation Corps crews enrolled in Camp V-2. The work was completed so that the US President could drive from Frederiksted to Christiansted on a paved road, but mostly for the development of the islands highway infrastructure. The road was built by two teams (originally called gangs). Gang one was lead by Mr L. Alexander and they did the clearing and filling. Gang one numbered about 60 men. Gang two was lead by Charles Schuster and they did the paving and it amounted about 40 men. Contributor note: this information was told to me by...

The Public Works Administration (PWA) provided a grant for the construction of a bridge to carry Central Avenue over the train tracks in Clark, New Jersey ("Picton"). The project was undertaken as part of a larger grade crossing elimination initiative during that era. The PWA provided a grant of $26,230 for the project, whose total cost was $118,963. PWA Docket No. NJ 4162

The Bureau of Public Roads provided funds for the grade separation of Central Avenue and the Central Railroad of New Jersey, in Westfield. New Jersey Board of Public Utility Commissioners: "A "Works Program-State Highway Department" project on which the Board initiated proceedings and on October 2nd, 1935, issued an order to eliminate the grade crossing. Construction started April 13, 1936, and the project was opened to traffic October 9, 1937. Funds from the Bureau of Public Roads were allotted to meet the entire cost of construction. Costs of property acquired and of property damage are shared equally by the State and Railroad Company."

The Works Progress Administration (W.P.A.) undertook reconstruction of the damaged Central Street Bridge at the Sudbury River in Framingham, Mass. in 1938. Town Report, 1938: "The retaining wall on the northerly side of Central Street on the west approach to the bridge over the Sudbury River at that point, which collapsed during the fall of 1937, was rebuilt by the W.P.A. Also various repairs were made to the concrete structure of the bridge itself and two other retaining walls on the east approach to the bridge were rebuilt and repaired." The bridge's superstructure has since been replaced.

Town annual report: The following work has been done under projects, since April, 1934: Central Street, seven men, 1 foreman, five trucks

The Federal Emergency Relief Administration (F.E.R.A.) conducted road improvement work in Dover, Mass., including the reconstruction of Centre Street to remove some dangerous turns.

The Puerto Rico Emergency Relief Administration carried out new road construction on Cerro Gordo in Vega Alta.

According to CCC alumnus Charles E. Humberger, quoted in the Nebraska History journal, “guest cabins were constructed and improvements made at the swimming pool and picnic and recreation area. Roads and trails were improved and drainage structures built. Brush dams were built to control soil and stream bank erosion, and the water supply system at the headquarters area was improved. They also carried out extensive rodent control and soil erosion programs on private property north of Chadron.” According to the city of Hemingford, “, one of Nebraska’s most beautiful, was developed to a large degree, by Civilian Conservation Corporation (CCC) forces…”

The Massachusetts Avenue bridge was built in 1940-1941 by the Army Corps of Engineers with federal funds provided by Congress to the District of Columbia Commissioners.  It was a final step in the completion of the Rock Creek and Potomac Parkway in the New Deal era.  The new bridge replace a low earth-fill causeway over the creek, built in 1901, and a tunnel under the causeway that impeded traffic on the new Rock Creek parkway.  Congress appropriated $360,000 for the bridge under the District of Columbia act of 1939.  Additional funding was added in 1941 to dynamite the old bridge and...

Huntington Avenue intersects but also passes under Massachusetts Avenue in Boston at Symphony Hall; the Charles H. Innes Memorial Underpass has a bronze plaques identifying it as a WPA project.

Charles R. Adams Park is a 32-acre public city park located in southwest Atlanta, Georgia. The park is surrounded by the neighborhood of Cascade Heights. Construction of the park began in the mid-1930s, and the dedication ceremony took place in 1940. The park used county funds, federal relief money and Works Progress Administration labor to construct many of the facilities and landscape features. William L. Monroe, Sr., a noted Atlanta landscaper, is credited with the design. "The property consists of a 32-acre designed landscape including passive greenspace, a lake and stream, and active recreational and community facilities. The...

A Boston Public Works Department report cited Federal Emergency Relief Administration (F.E.R.A.) labor as conducting the following work: "Warren and Charlestown Bridges, repairs to fender piers. Retaining wall at Charlestown Bridge repaired."

The July 18 1938 Bangor Daily News reports on roadwork in this sparsely populated town near the Canadian border. "The towns of Dennysville and Pembroke have no WPA projects, although a number of WPA workers from these towns are employed on the Moosehorn game reserve in the Baring area. Road construction is carried on along the road from Baring to Charlotte. This, in unimproved sections, is very narrow, with hardly sufficient width for the passage of two automobiles. When completed, a "through" road of splendid construction will prove a short-cut to Calais from residents of Charlotte and Pemmbroke as well...

Stockton, California’s Charter Way railroad underpass was constructed with the aid of federal funds during the Great Depression. The underpass is still in use today. "At Charter Way, U. S, 50, crossed at grade a total of eight separate railroad tracks, one of the Western Pacific and seven of the Southern Pacific, all within a distance of five hundred feet. Design studies were made to determine the most satisfactory structure for the problems involved, which included the separation of the highway and eight railroad tracks and the maintenance of accessibility to adjoining improved property. To this end an undergrade...

Among the challenges in constructing the final link in Oregon's Highway 101, the state's bridge engineer responded by designing Chasm Bridge on Neahkahnie Mountain. Using Bureau of Public Roads funds and design advice from the National Parks Service, workers completed the bridge in 1937. An information plague located at a viewpoint on Neahkahnie Mountain describes the project, writing: "Built on the sheer face of Neahkahnie Mountain, this 59-foot reinforced concrete deck girder is a major engineering feat! Designed by Glenn S. Paxton, the bridge features stone masonry on its face and railings, which extend nearly uninterrupted around the mountain." Chasm Bridge is also...

A Boston Public Works Department report cited Federal Emergency Relief Administration (F.E.R.A.) labor as conducting the following work: "he Chelsea Viaduct was repaved and a guard rail constructed."

"The park’s history is tied to Camp Morehouse, a Civilian Conservation Corps camp that was located nearby, and a company of young men who began construction of the park in the 1930s. The Morehouse Enterprise reports June 8, 1933 that CCC Company 1491 under the command of U.S. Army Capt. Ralph L. Ware had arrived in Bastrop via train from Camp Beauregard. The company included 188 enrollees from Morehouse and surrounding parishes. The men would be stationed at Camp Morehouse about 12 miles north of Bastrop  on land owned by the Crossett Lumber Co., where they planned to build a lighting plant,...

Milwaukee's Cherry Street Bridge was constructed as a Public Works Administration (P.W.A.) project in 1940. "The Cherry Street Bridge is a bascule bridge that crosses the Milwaukee River just North of downtown. The 214-foot total length includes a 103-foot draw span. It was built in 1940 and is notable for its stainless-steel Moderne bridge houses."

In 1935-36, the Works Progress Administration (WPA) repaved a segment of Chesapeake Street NW, from Nebraska Avenue to Fort Drive.   The work was part of the $949,496 WPA allotment for DC roadwork for fiscal year 1936.   The work is likely still extant, but invisible and paved over.        

Works Progress Administration (W.P.A.) labor reconstructed the Chestnut Hill Ave. bridge across Millers River in Athol, Massachusetts. WPA Bulletins: Sept. 1936: WPA skilled bridge workers rebuilding the Chestnut Hill Avenue Bridge, Athol, which was damaged by the Spring flood.   Oct. 1936: Chestnut Hill Avenue Bridge, Athol, ravaged by the Spring floods, is being reconstructed by WPA and will soon be opened to traffic. Forty unskilled and 18 skilled workers are employed on this project.

Delaware utilized substantial federal resources in developing and improving its road network during the Great Depression. Among the dozens of projects undertaken by the federal Civil Works Administration (C.W.A.) during 1934 was construction along Chestnut Hill Road in Newark. An average of 1,410 were put to work each week during 1934 as a result of the CWA's road, sidewalk, bridge, and other related infrastructure efforts in Delaware.  

Delaware utilized substantial federal resources in developing and improving its road network during the Great Depression. Among the dozens of projects undertaken by the federal Civil Works Administration (C.W.A.) during 1934 was filling and paving work done along Chestnut Street in New Castle. An average of 1,410 were put to work each week during 1934 as a result of the CWA's road, sidewalk, bridge, and other related infrastructure efforts in Delaware.  

The Federal Emergency Relief Administration (F.E.R.A.) reconstructed a mile-long stretch of Chestnut Street in 1934-5. From 25 to 60 men were employed for six months. The project was undertaken at a cost of $17,322, for which the federal government contributed $11,322.

Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park preserves two civil war battles. The park was established in the late 19th century. During the Depression, the "Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park had four camps at its disposal. Troops at these facilities performed a variety of missions, including construction of roads, fire trails, bridle paths, as well as landscaping, tree surgery, and erosion control." The last CCC camp in the park closed in April 1942.

The CCC was extensively involved in development of the portion of the Chickasaw National Recreation Area formerly known as Platt National Park: "Originally known as Sulphur Springs Reservation, and later renamed Platt National Park, the park was established in 1902 through an agreement with the Chickasaw and Choctaw Nations and the federal government... Though a number of landscape elements in the Platt District relate to the early period of the park’s establishment, the majority of historic landscape resources relate to the period 1933-1940. During this period, NPS professionals planned and designed extensive park infrastructure which was constructed by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC)....

Description of W.P.A. projects: "Chickatawbut Road, Braintree; work will be started in the early spring of 1939 on the general improvement and beautification of the Chickatawbut Road entrance to Blue Hills Reservation. Work will include tree removal, clearing, excavation, rip-rapping of brooks, rubble wall construction, fence relocation, road drainage, resurfacing of surface road, grading, loaming and seeding and all incidental work." "Chickatawbut Road at Granite Street, Braintree; improvement and beautification of this entrance to the Blue Hills Reservation."

In the 1890s, the city of Chicopee purchased a tract of land along Cooley Brook for the creation of a reservoir, which later took place in 1926. Nearly a decade later during the Great Depression the area was selected for expansion and the creation of a state park by the Civilian Conservation Corps The CCC operated Camp 1156 in Chicopee, Massachusetts from 1935 to 1937. The camp that resided in Chicopee was near Cooley Brook Reservoir where Chicopee Memorial State Park is located today and housed about two hundred young men. CCC workers conducted efforts throughout the Chicopee Memorial State Park...

"It was the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), a product of President Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal, that turned Charlton Flat and Chilao into prime recreation areas. A CCC camp was set up at Charlton Flat in June 1933, and another one at Chilao six years later. The young and energetic lads of the CCC built an elaborate campground and picnic area at Charlton Flat, and a campground, ranger station, and maintenance facilities at Chilao. It was their labor that erected the fire lookout on Mount Vetter in 1935, and built fire roads and trails all over the back country. Seldom...

"Chiricahua National Monument was constructed by a single Civilian Conservation Corps camp, NM2A, between 1934 and 1940. These young men reconstructed the Massai Point Road and built the trails, campground structures and visitor center, the lookout on Sugarloaf Peak, and the exhibit building on Massai Point. The buildings were assembled from boulders or blocks quarried from native welded tuff (hardened ash) found in the surrounding mountains. Designed in the National Park Service Rustic style, the buildings sit low and close to the landscape mimicking the surrounding rock environment and have been screened with native vegetation. A CCC exhibit in the...

The November 1935 issue of California Highway & Public Works reported on New Deal work in the country of Honduras. "PRESIDENT ROOSEVELT has approved a program of bridge construction work on the route of the Inter-American highway in Central America, the U.S. Bureau of Public Roads in charge of activities on the highway announces, Congress in June 1934, appropriated $1,000,000 to meet such expenses as the President in his discretion may deem necessary to enable the United States to cooperate with the several governments, members of the Pan-American Union, in connection with survey and construction of the proposed Inter-American Highway, As...

The PWA completed this bridge across the Choptank River at Cambridge in 1935. In 1987, a more modern bridge was built, rendering this bridge superfluous. The steel spans were removed, and the two sides now serve as fishing piers.

A low masonry headwall rises above a sidewalk on the west side Chorro Street in a residential area south of downtown San Luis Obispo. Spanning a small creek, the Chorro Street Bridge was constructed under a WPA street and drainage improvement project. In 1939-40, the WPA paved eight blocks of Chorro Street between Pacific and High streets. This followed an earlier improvement of a different section of the street in 1937. The wall (14’-long, 32”-high, 20”-thick) is made of square-cut stone laid in regular courses. Embedded in the center is a sandstone tablet documenting the WPA project. The stonework continues below the street...

The CCC carried out road and trail construction in the Chugach National Forest.

An 8'7.5"-span stone arch bridge on Church Road, in Holland Township, New Jersey, was widened by the Works Progress Administration (WPA). The structure is/was located approximately 240 feet east of the intersection with Amsterdam / Crab Apple Hill Road.