Start Year: 1932

The old downtown post office and federal building in Long Beach, CA, was built in large part under the New Deal, contrary to the date and name on the cornerstone. The building was planned and started under the Hoover Administration and the cornerstone laid in late 1932, but before construction was far along, the Long Beach earthquake hit in March 1933. There is some dispute over whether the quake did major damage to the unfinished structure.  Certainly, everything had to be checked out and some damaged material removed before construction could resume.  The building opened in September 1934. The design is Classical...

The former Phoenix Federal Building and Post Office (now owned by ASU) was designed by Phoenix architectural firm Lescher and Mahoney in the Spanish Colonial Revival style. Construction had begun in 1932, before the advent of FDR's presidency (and thus prior to the New Deal); however, the building bears a 1935 cornerstone, which places it well within the time of FDR! Wikipedia explains: "A site was chosen in 1931 and Phoenix architects Lescher and Mahoney were commissioned to design a six-story building that was intended to house all of the federal services in the city. Construction was begun on the foundations....

Improvements to Lincoln Park (Los Angeles, CA) were carried out by the Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC) in 1932-33. According to the 1932-33 Annual Report of the Los Angeles Board of Park Commissioners, "Two hundred lineal feet of walks were built, and 5,075 feet of redwood curbing used to define the older walks. A fire break, 1,500 feet long and 30 feet wide, was built along the north end and east side of the park, protecting the grounds from fires from adjacent vacant land. Catch basins were installed to control the water from rains that wash down from the hills surrounding the...

The Department of Justice Building is part of the Federal Triangle, first proposed by the McMillan Commission in its 1901 report on planning Washington DC. The Federal Triangle is a 70-acre area east of the White House, between Pennsylvania and Constitution Avenues.  The plan called for replacing a 19th century residential and commercial area with monumental buildings in the Beaux Arts style of the early 20th century.   The Federal Triangle plan finally moved forward under the 1926 Public Buildings Act, directed by the Treasury Department (which handled federal buildings until superseded by the Federal Works Agency in 1939 and General...

While the overall  design of the Department of Justice building conforms with the dominant Neoclassical theme of the Federal Triangle, it is distinguished by Art Deco architectural elements and the use of aluminum details.  The entrances feature 20-foot-high aluminum doors and interior stair railings, grilles, and trim are done in cast aluminum. Sculptor C. Paul Jennewein was selected by the architects  to create a unified design concept for the building's exterior and interior spaces, designing 57 sculptural elements from monument statues and bas-reliefs on the exterior to interior Art Deco torcheres and light fixtures.  (GSA) The dating of Jennewein's work is uncertain,...

The Renaissance-revival style post office in Oroville CA was begun under President Herbert Hoover in 1932 and completed under President Roosevelt in 1933.  It is not known what portion of the funding came from the New Deal, but possibly less than half. The exterior and interior of the building are still in fine condition with original detailing. The supervising architect of the Treasury Department at the time was Frederick Meyer, but there may have been a local architect involved in the project, as was often the case.