Unknown Sites

The Public Works Administration (PWA) funded the construction of the 138th Infantry Regiment Armory in St. Louis MO. Completed in 1937, the armory building has been converted to office space. Excerpt from Missouri Armories: The Guard's Home in Architecture and History: "On May 15, 1934, the City of St. Louis approved a bond issue to fund improvements; $15 million of the bond issue, plus a 30 percent grant from the PWA, made construction of the $1,347,000 armory possible... This armory is a large two-story building with a monitor-type roof over a large parade hall." The Missouri National Guard declared the building...

Seventy-Fifth Street Elementary, which opened in 1922, was rebuilt with funding from the Public Works Administration (PWA) in 1934. The reconstruction and renovation of Los Angeles schools damaged by the 1933 Long Beach earthquake was the single largest PWA funded program in the country, totaling ~$34.7 million (LA Times, May 23, 1937).  It was overseen by the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) and proceeded in two cycles, 1934-35 and 1935-37. The first cycle began in Spring 1934, lasted 21 months, included over 130 schools, cost ~$10,000,000 (30% funded by PWA grants), and employed ~3,000 workers. The second cycle began in December...

In 1935, the federal Works Progress Administration (WPA) undertook a large road repair project in the borough of Queens. Particular emphasis was placed on fixing washout-damaged stretches of road; holes were filled in and the streets were smoothed, surfaced, and reconditioned. Roads improved as part of this project (WPA Official Project No. 65-97-9) included the stretch of 78th St between Roosevelt Ave and Broadway in Elmhurst. Today, this stretch of road is only partially extant as a result of the development of Elmhurst Hospital.  

Abraham Lincoln High School in Los Angeles, CA was built with funding from the Public Works Administration (PWA) in 1936-38. The original Lincoln High School, located across Lincoln Park Ave, was subsequently demolished and converted into athletic fields. The new campus's PWA Moderne-style buildings were designed by architect Albert C. Martin and built by the Dell E. Webb Construction Company. These include the tile-roofed auditorium, administration, and home economics buildings, which all survive. The provenance of the bas-reliefs on the exterior of home economics building and auditorium—titled "Home Economics" and "Speech," respectively—is unclear, as is that of the mural pictured here....

The New Deal carried out reconstruction and ground improvements.

Ackerman Island was an island in the middle of the Arkansas River. In the early 1900s the land had been developed as an amusement park, but by the late 1920s it had fallen into disuse. Works Progress Administration workers widened the Arkansas River by removing the island and sculpting it in as part of the riverbank. According to visitwhichita.com, "The baseball field survived for a while after the closing of the amusement park. By the 1930s, flooding had become a problem along the river, causing the Works Progress Administration to recommend getting rid of the sandbar to widen the river. As...

In 1938, the Works Progress Administration (WPA) partially funded and built a new school in Acton, CA. The first wing at the current Acton Elementary School is the work of the WPA.

Adams Elementary School was built in 1936 with funding from the Public Works Administration (PWA). The design was by local architect K.C. Schaub. It is a long, single-story, brick Moderne structure with subtle bas-relief columns and minimal decoration. The Adams School is still in use today.

Designed by Edwall James Baume, the original five units and garden courts at Addams Elementary School were built in 1934 with Public Works Administration (PWA) funding. Addams is one of six LBUSD schools built in the aftermath of the 1933 Long Beach Earthquake that were designed in the Period Revival style instead of WPA/PWA Moderne. The 1933 earthquake destroyed hundreds of schools throughout Southern California. “On August 29, 1933, Long Beach citizens approved a $4,930,000 bond measure for the rebuilding of schools. Applications for approximately thirty-five schools were filed with the Works Progress Administration (WPA) and Public Works Administration (PWA); federal...

A public swimming pool in Adel IA was built by the Works Progress Administration in 1935. One of the earliest municipal pools constructed in Iowa, the facility was around for a good share of historical events – war, environmental disasters, and cultural and economic changes. “When the pool was completed,” states Allison McNeal of the Dallas County News, “it was quite an attraction to residents including the fact that it had covered restrooms and a bathhouse, uncommon for the era.” The WPA project also provided unemployment relief for area residents. Over time, the pool faced a lack of upkeep as well as...

From 1933 to 1937, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) created a canoe route from east to west across Admiralty Island with multiple shelters, trails and a bear-watching tower at Pack Creek. The CCC Canoe Route is on the National Trust Registry of Historic Places.  The documentation form for the canoe route provides these details: "Work on Admiralty Island began in 1933, with three CCC crews totaling 23 men. By 1934 four shelter cabins had been constructed. In 1935 crews built the trails, more shelters, and installed a dam at the outlet of Beaver Lake to make it navigable to LakeAlexander. By 1936...

PWA approved project X1373 for a college dormitory for the HBCU Alcorn State University 9/16/1938. Construction began 12/18/1938 and was completed 8/19/1939. The Colonial Revival brick building is extant and remains in use. Architects Carl L. Olschner and Edgar Lucian Malvaney designed the dormitory and Flint-Jordan Construction Company erected the hall. The cost was $63,636.

Aldama Elementary School in Los Angeles, CA was rebuilt with funding from the Public Works Administration (PWA) in 1936-37. The main building, which combines elements of PWA Moderne and Mission Revival styles, was remodeled by architect Howard Schroeder and contractor Arthur Pinner Jr for a total of $55,548. The reconstruction and renovation of Los Angeles schools damaged by the 1933 Long Beach earthquake was the single largest PWA funded program in the country, totaling ~$34.7 million (LA Times, May 23, 1937).  It was overseen by the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) and proceeded in two cycles, 1934-35 and 1935-37. The first...

In 1936-37, a boys' gym was built on the campus of Alexander Hamilton High School in Los Angeles, CA. Designed by architects John C. Austin and Frederic M. Ashley, the single-story PWA Moderne structure survives as the "North Gym" directly east of the track/football field. Construction totaled $31,871 and was partially funded by the Public Works Administration (PWA). The reconstruction and renovation of Los Angeles schools damaged by the 1933 Long Beach earthquake was the single largest PWA funded program in the country, totaling ~$34.7 million (LA Times, May 23, 1937).  It was overseen by the Los Angeles Unified School District...

In 1941, an unknown artist created a marble sculpture of Alexander Hamilton for Hamilton High School in Los Angeles, CA. Completed under the auspices of the Work Projects Administration Arts Project (WPAAP), the 6 foot 10 inch high sculpture depicts a young Alexander Hamilton dressed in knee breeches, a vest and a long coat. It is located in the main entrance foyer.

Alexandria Avenue Elementary School in Los Angeles, CA was renovated with funding from the Public Works Administration (PWA) in 1936. Designed by architect C. F. Skilling, the PWA Moderne building—including the attached auditorium—feature Mission Revival elements. Note the tile roof and archway above the front entrance on Oakwood Ave. The reconstruction and renovation of Los Angeles schools damaged by the 1933 Long Beach earthquake was the single largest PWA funded program in the country, totaling ~$34.7 million (LA Times, May 23, 1937).  It was overseen by the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) and proceeded in two cycles, 1934-35 and 1935-37. The...

In 1936, the Works Progress Administration (WPA) made improvements to Algin Sutton Recreation Center (formerly Manchester Park) in Los Angeles, CA. The project included improvements to the swimming pool and community buildings, grading of athletic fields, and landscaping of the grounds. As of 2025, it appears the original bath house survives facing onto W 88th St (albeit renovated/modernized). The pool has been relocated slightly north and the athletic fields have likely been replaced since the New Deal. Algin Sutton Recreation Center was one of 43 public parks in Los Angeles improved by the WPA under a project approved in February 1936. The...

In 1938, the Public Works Administration (PWA) provided funding for the construction of a boys' gym at Alhambra City High School in Alhambra, CA. The plans had been prepared by architect John Walker Smart, and Steed Bros. won the construction contract.

In 1935, the Works Progress Administration (WPA) renovated a science building at Alhambra High School in Alhambra, CA. Funding also came from the Los Angeles County Relief Administration. Twenty-five laborers and 12 skilled tradesmen were employed on the project.

The Work Projects Administration (WPA) built the Aliso St Viaduct in Los Angeles, CA, between 1940 and 1943. Constructed as a "link in the express highway system envisaged for the Los Angeles metropolitan area," the 2,787-foot viaduct crosses the Los Angeles River as well as city streets and rail lines to connect today's Santa Ana (US 101) and San Bernardino (I-10) Freeways ("Aliso Bridge nearly Ready," LA Times, Nov 8, 1942). Originally, the lanes of the highway were separated by Pacific Electric tracks running down the center of the viaduct. The state, county, and city provided $291,000 each; the Santa Fe, Union...

In 1935, two years after the Long Beach earthquake caused significant damage to the campus, a new classroom building was constructed with Public Works Administration (PWA) funding at Altadena Elementary School (now Altadena Arts Magnet School) in Altadena, CA. Built of reinforced concrete and consisting of 14 classrooms, the structure combines elements of the PWA Moderne and Neoclassical styles. It is extant in the southwest corner of campus on E Calaveras St. A kindergarten was also constructed; its status is unclear. The Long Beach earthquake necessitated the rehabilitation of 27 schools in the Pasadena Unified School District at a total cost...

Anacostia Park is one of Washington DC's two largest parks and recreation areas, along with Rock Creek Park.  It covers over 1200 acres along the Anacostia River from South Capitol Street SE to the Maryland boundary in NE.  The New Deal improved the park in major ways, after the Capital Parks system was put under the control of the National Park Service (NPS) by President Franklin Roosevelt in 1933. New Deal public works agencies developed such key features of the park as Kenilworth Park and Aquatic Gardens, Langston Golf Course and Anacostia Pool (see linked pages). Besides those major elements, improvements included,...

In 1936, the Public Works Administration (PWA) provided $69,036 for the construction of a swimming pool in Anacostia Park (about $1.3 million in 2020 dollars). The pool was built by the BZ Contracting Company of New York and completed in early 1937. It was reported that, “The new pool will accommodate about 500 swimmers” (Evening Star, January 24, 1937). In 1949, Anacostia Pool was the scene of fighting when black youths attempted to use the facility, which was formally not segregated but, in practice, used exclusively by whites. A pro-segregation group was irritated when white members of the “Young Progressives” handed...

The Angeles Crest Highway in Los Angeles County, CA was constructed between 1929 and 1956 by the California State Division of Highways (today’s Caltrans) with help from the federal government via the U.S. Bureau of Public Roads (today’s Federal Highway Administration). During the New Deal, the Bureau of Public Roads (BPR) itself received funding from the Public Works Administration (PWA) as well as the regular federal budget. The approximately 27-mile section of the Angeles Crest Highway from the head of the Arroyo Seco to Cedar Springs was built between 1933 and 1940. Work on the 2.5-mile section from Cedar Springs to...

Angeles Mesa Elementary School, which opened in 1917, was renovated with funding from the Public Works Administration (PWA) between 1934 and 1935. In January 1934, the PWA allocated $9,380,000 to the Los Angeles Unified School District for the rehabilitation of schools damaged in the severe 1933 Long Beach earthquake.  One hundred and thirty schools would benefit from the system-wide loan and grant, with 2,500 men to be employed in rehabilitation work over 21 months. Upon receiving news of the PWA allocation, Board of Education member Arthur Eckman told the Los Angeles Times, “I am sure that every member of the board agrees with...

Artist Adrien Machefert painted a mural, "Pilgrim's Harvest Festival," at Ann Street Elementary School in Los Angeles, CA. He was funded by the Federal Arts Project (FAP). "Adrien Machefert, a man past fifty, was born in San Jose, California, and started drawing for San Francisco newspapers at the age of seventeen. Following fourteen years doing portrait and landscape painting on the Island of Majorca, Mr. Machefert returned two and a half years ago to California and has since been working for FAP most of the time" (Wells, p. 22). Machefert's other New Deal–funded murals in the region include "All Nations" at Ninth...

A two-story addition was made to Aragon Avenue Elementary School in Los Angeles, CA with funding from the Public Works Administration (PWA) in 1936-37. The eight-room addition was designed by architect Marcus P. Miller and built by Jones Brothers for $65,280. The reconstruction and renovation of Los Angeles schools damaged by the 1933 Long Beach earthquake was the single largest PWA funded program in the country, totaling ~$34.7 million (LA Times, May 23, 1937).  It was overseen by the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) and proceeded in two cycles, 1934-35 and 1935-37. The first cycle began in Spring 1934, lasted 21...

There is a record card in the National Archives saying that the Public Works Administration (PWA) funded construction of a golf course at the Arizona State Teachers College in Tempe (now the Arizona State University).  It is unclear what kind of golf course is meant and where it was located, and the picture shows students putting behind a campus building – not a golf course at all.  There was a true golf course built northeast of the ASU campus, but apparently much later.  Further information is needed to verify the history of this golf course.

The Arkport Central School in Arkport NY is a K-12 public school that is still in use. The Public Works Administration made two grants, of $63,000 and $9,654, against a planned cost of approximately $192,000.

Built 1938-39 under the Flood Control Act of 1936, following catastrophic local floods in 1935, and still in use. Federal cost was $1,910,000. C.C.C. built a camp nearby for the construction workers,

In 1936-37, a two-story, 23-room building was constructed at Arlington Heights Elementary School in Los Angeles, CA with funding from the Public Works Administration (PWA). Architect Roland E. Coate designed and the Atlas Construction Company built the PWA Moderne building—including an auditorium wing—for $165,200. The reconstruction and renovation of Los Angeles schools damaged by the 1933 Long Beach earthquake was the single largest PWA funded program in the country, totaling ~$34.7 million (LA Times, May 23, 1937).  It was overseen by the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) and proceeded in two cycles, 1934-35 and 1935-37. The first cycle began in Spring...

The W.P.A. constructed an armory in Chinook, Montana. Official Project Number 65-91-1602. According to local newspaper articles, the new armory was initial used as a civic center for various community events, as well as a jail, and office space for the neighboring Blaine County Courthouse. Today the building still serves at the Blaine County Courthouse Annex as well as the Chinook ambulance barn.  

The city of Columbus approved a bond issue to construct the city's portion of a Works Progress Administration (WPA) financed armory. The architect was R. T. Smith. Columbus purchased a site for the new armory and civic center in the business district. By summer of 1941, the armory was under construction. The Works Progress Administration supplied $45,000 toward the $65,000 building. The armory was a 4-story Art Deco building completed 1041-1942. It has been in use as a convention center since 1987.

The Works Progress Administration (WPA) allotted $30,379 to construct a new National Guard Armory in 1938. N. W. Overstreet and A. H. Town were architects for the two-story, reinforced concrete Art Deco style building. The lower floor was devoted to Battery A of the 114th Field Artillery and regimental headquarters, battalion headquarters, instructors’ office, classroom, caretakers’ office and other rooms occupied the second floor. Work began in December 1938 and required seven months of construction. WPA workers also had to demolish two buildings at the site prior to construction beginning. The total cost was $38,453.17, with costs above the WPA allotment...

The 9.2-mile concrete Arroyo Seco Flood Control Channel in Los Angeles, CA, was constructed between 1935 and 1940 under the auspices of the Works Progress Administration (WPA). Prior to channelization, the Arroyo Seco seasonal river was notorious for flooding. The flood control project was undertaken to limit damage to surrounding communities and to allow for construction of the Arroyo Seco Parkway connecting Los Angeles to Pasadena. (In fact, excavation of the channel provided material for rough grading of the parkway.) Sponsored by the city of Los Angeles—with planning and construction overseen by the L.A. Board of Public Works—the channelization project was...

One of the oldest freeways in the United States, the Arroyo Seco Parkway (today’s Pasadena Freeway) is an 8.2-mile road connecting Los Angeles and Pasadena, CA. It was built by the California State Division of Highways (today’s Caltrans) in three stages between 1938 and 1953, with the first two stages completed during the New Deal. The first 6-mile stage was built between 1938 and 1941; the second 2.2-mile stage (also known as the "Southerly Extension") was built between 1940 and 1943. There is some dispute about the sources of funding, but we know the federal government contributed via the U.S....

In 1936, the Works Progress Administration (WPA) constructed an auditorium for Central School in Baldwin Park, CA. With over 600 seats, the auditorium was used for both school and civic activities. The Moderne (Art Deco) structure is simple and unadorned, its concrete facade suggestive of early Brutalism. The auditorium served as an auxiliary meeting space after Central School was converted into Baldwin Park's first city hall in 1958, and as a storage facility after city hall was relocated in 1978. Since 2007, the renovated auditorium structure has served as Baldwin Park's Arts and Recreation Center (ARC). In addition to a dance studio, arts...

Ascot Avenue Elementary School in Los Angeles, CA was rebuilt following the 1933 Long Beach earthquake with funding from the Public Works Administration (PWA). In 1936, the main building was remodeled by architect A. C. Munson for a total of $44,780. Extensive additions were made to the campus in 2023-25, however Munson's 1936 PWA Moderne building appears to survive at the rear of campus; it is only visible from E 45th St due to the construction of new buildings on E Vernon Ave and Ascot Ave. The reconstruction and renovation of Los Angeles schools damaged by the 1933 Long Beach earthquake...

The Ashland Elementary School in Ashland KS is an elementary school built in 1937 with Public Works Administration funding. This is a two story red brick building with a flat roof and parapet. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and it is still in use.

The Astoria Health Center was one of nine New York City Department of Health centers built by the Works Progress Administration (WPA). Construction of the four-story brick facility began in September 1936. Located in the Astoria neighborhood of Queens, the health center was intended to serve residents of Astoria as well as Long Island City.