- City:
- Phoenix, AZ
- Site Type:
- Parks and Recreation, Lodges, Ranger Stations and Visitor Centers, Shops and Auxiliary Buildings
- New Deal Agencies:
- Work Relief Programs, Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC)
- Started:
- 1934
- Completed:
- 1938
- Quality of Information:
- Very Good
- Marked:
- Yes
- Site Survival:
- Extant
Description
South Mountain Park in Phoenix AZ was developed for public recreation by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) from 1933 to 1940. One the main works done by the CCC was an entrance station complex that included a museum, administrative offices, caretaker’s house and entrance kiosk. The museum and office building was completed in 1934 and was the first permanent structure in the park; the residence and kiosk were added in 1937-38 (NNDPA 2012). The entire complex is the present Ranger Station at the park entrance.
The ranger station is a remarkable stone structure, built of flat, dark stones and projecting roof timbers, while the residence is a stuccoed, Pueblo-style building and the kiosk has walls of large rubble stone. The National New Deal Preservation Association report on Arizona notes that, “The early buildings were designed by Park Service architects to reflect a romanticized version of Hopi Pueblo construction. Those constructed after 1937 imitate early Papago-Pima adobe construction style. The design and choice of building materials were intended to harmonize with the local surroundings.” (NNDPA 2012)
Source notes
"The New Deal in Arizona: Connections to Our Historic Landscape," The New Deal in Arizona Chapter of the National New Deal Preservation Association, 2012.
https://content.library.arizona.edu/cdm/singleitem/collection/NewDeal/id/195/rec/39
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Mountain_Park
Site originally submitted by Richard Walker on April 9, 2022.
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