Description
Originally constructed as a high school, what is now Norwalk’s Benjamin Franklin Middle School was constructed with federal Public Works Administration (P.W.A.) funds. The P.W.A. contributed a $407,676 grant for the project, whose total cost was $909,689. Primary construction occurred between Dec. 1935 and Nov. 1937. The building also houses examples of New Deal artwork installed soon after the building’s completion.
P.W.A. Docket No. CT [W]1128
This school has closed and it is now the Crystal Theatre.
Arrangements to see the murals can be made by calling the
Crystal Theatre at 203-847-4850.
Source notes
National Archives: Record Group 135: Public Works Administration; Projects Control Division; Entry 52: Indices to Non-Federal Projects; Report No. 5: Status of All Completed Non-Federal Allotted Projects, page 2.
Phone calls to the Norwalk School District and Historical Society on June 13, 2018.
Project originally submitted by Evan Kalish on May 8, 2017.
Additional contributions by Hans Johnson, July 2018.
We welcome contributions of additional information on any New Deal project site.
SUBMIT MORE INFORMATION OR PHOTOGRAPHS FOR THIS SITE
Would like to see the murals in Franklin Jr, High auditorium walls context. Made a big impression on a 12/13 yr old from Columbus elementary school.