CCC Camp – Leeds UT

Description

In 1933, a Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) camp opened in Leeds, UT, at the site of a Dixie National Forest Service ranger station. Stone from Silver Reef, a nearby silver mining ghost, was used to construct the camp’s four administrative buildings, which are now the only surviving CCC camp structures in Utah.

According to the Washington County Historical Society, “A large crowd attended the dedication of this camp on November 11, 1933. The American Legion conducted the program and the Dixie College Band played the music. […] Leeds, a town of less than 200, more than doubled with the opening of the camp. Two hundred young men from all over the country resided and worked at Camp #585. Townspeople were reluctant at first about the impact the camp would have on local life, but support grew as the CCC camp clearly provided a boon to the struggling economy of Leeds. The community became even more accepting as the men worked on local projects, like a swimming pool, in their off-duty hours. […]

“The Leeds CCC Camp was closed in 1942, and most of the wood frame buildings were removed by 1950. These included the barracks buildings which were to the west past where the freeway now runs. […] The remains of the CCC camp were recorded as an historic archeological site in 1989 as part of a survey for cultural resources near 1-15. […] The Leeds CCC Camp Historic District was added to the National Register of Historic Places (#1993000062) on March 4, 1993.”

The Leeds CCC crews completed the Oak Grove Campground in Pine Valley, UT.