Petersburg National Battlefield Development – Petersburg VA

Description

The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) and Works Progress Administration (WPA) conducted numerous projects at what is now Petersburg National Battlefield, as detailed in Wallace and Conway’s “A History of Petersburg National Battlefield,” developing infrastructure, creating illustrations for the museum, and even serving as park guides.

“CCC Company 1364 arrived from Camp Meade, Maryland, early on the morning of July 13, 1933, and established a camp, Camp MP-2, in the Fort Stedman area of the park.”

“Since the establishment of the camp in the park in 1933, most of the work of clearing underbrush, road building, sodding, and tree planting was done by the CCC. The average monthly strength of the company at the park during 1938-1940 was 194 enrollees, all white veterans. A daily average of 133 worked on various projects in the park, and beginning in October 1938, one foreman and 39 enrollees operated a side camp in the Richmond National Battlefield Park. In its final days the camp, which had been redesignated as CCC Camp Va. NP(D)-3, had an average daily working strength of 139. Of this number, 103 were turned out daily for work in the park and at Camp Lee.

After the closing of the camp, the CCC equipment was transferred to Camp Lee, and until the end of the war the buildings were put to use by the army. In November 1946, the army withdrew from its use of the CCC camp and several of its training areas on park property. During 1948 the buildings were sold, with the park retaining some which were located beyond Fort Stedman, and others were removed from the view of Fort Stedman. Not until the fall of 1948 were the last vestiges of the camp on Hare Hill removed and the area restored to its original appearance after 15 years of use by the CCC and the army.”