Marked Sites

The Works Progress Administration (WPA), the Federal Emergency Relief Admn (FERA), and the Civil Works Admn (CWA) built multiple facilities in McClain Rogers Park in Clinton OK. The Highway Patrol Building was one of the structures built with New Deal help. Contributor note: "This building has also been referred to as the Public Restrooms Building, but the National Register application calls it The Highway Patrol building, as it was occupied by the Highway Patrol from 1941 forward. It is located just south of the main entrance to McClain Rogers Park on S. 10th Street. At the current time, because of some papers seen in the...

CK McClatchy Senior High School in Sacramento CA was built in 1937 with aid from the Public Works Administration (PWA) of the New Deal.  The school was designed by the local architectural firm of Starks and Flanders, which designed other landmark buildings in downtown Sacramento, including the Elks Temple, the U.S. Post Office, and the Courthouse. Ground was broken on May 20 and the school dedicated on September 19, 1937.  The school bears the name of C.K. McClatchy, the late editor and owner of The Sacramento Bee and a powerful figure in Sacramento and Central Valley politics during his life. The school included...

The McFadden Cabin was built by a City Park benefactor in the 1920's as a recreational facility for New Orleans Girl Scouts (still in use today).  The WPA made improvements as part of its many works projects in the park, which had been recently expanded when the New Deal came into being. A plaque was placed in the stonework at that time.

This former home/headquarters to the first Superintendent of Dupage Forest Preserve, Robert L. McKee, was constructed with the assistance of the Works Progress Administration (WPA). The limestone quarried for this building was done by McDowell Grove CCC Camp workers. The building is currently vacant and in disrepair.

An elementary school built in the Mission Style in 1909, McKinley Park School had its playground rebuilt under the Works Progress Administration (WPA) and Public Works Administration (PWA) programs. Walkways around the building were also built. Today the playground is a parking lot and the school houses an arts center.

This building was originally known as W. P. McLean Junior High when it opened in 1936. It was designed by Fort Worth architect Wiley G. Clarkson and built by James T. Taylor with financing through the Public Works Administration (PWA). The one- and two-story Mediterranean Revival design included Art Deco motifs. Fort Worth's tremendous growth in the post-World War II years resulted in the school beginning transformed to R. L. Paschal Senior High School  in 1955. The 1930s school has been greatly obscured by successive additions to the high school.

Restoration and preservation of the John McLoughlin House, dating from 1846, advanced in several ways during the New Deal era. The Civil Works Administration (CWA) funded local architects to document the house in 1934 as part of the first Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS). Over the course of several years, CWA and Works Progress Administration (WPA) workers provided the labor for house restoration efforts and landscape improvements at its site on Center Street.  Public Works Administration (PWA) funds supported the effort as well. Subsequently, the Secretary of the Interior designated the McLoughlin House a National Heritage Site on February 19,...

In 1851, Dr. John McLoughlin formally platted Oregon City reserving land along the city's prominent bluff for use as a park and naming that public amenity the Promenade. For decades, the Promenade's minimally improved walkway provided a view of the city's downtown, nearby neighborhoods, and rivers. That changed in 1936 when plans were made to improve the Promenade using skilled and unskilled Works Progress Administration workers. The plans involved three related projects: a stone and concrete pathway, the Grand Staircase, and Singer Falls. John L. Franzen, Oregon City's city manager and a registered engineer, designed all three integrated projects. The stone and...

Auditorium used for theatre, performances, concerts, and school and city activities. It is still used today. First referred to as "Junior College Auditorium", then named "McNeese Main Auditorium", and later "F. G. Bulber Auditorium." The building was the first building completed for the then new McNeese Junior College.

Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) enrollees from Company 841 built Meadowlark Lake Dam in 1936, creating both an essential infrastructure project and a community recreation site. While little information exists on the architectural methods used in construction of the dam, the structure “required significant engineering, planning, coordination, and work hours” (Cassity, 74). The dam is located in Bighorn National Forest, where it remains a prominent feature. Today, people utilize the lake created by the dam for picnics, swimming, and recreation.   .

The Works Progress Administration renovated the Medina County Courthouse between 1938-1940. Excerpt from the historical market installed at the Medina County Courthouse: "Between 1939 and 1942, changes to the courthouse were made, including the addition of two two-story wings. Stone for the new wings was secured again from limestone deposits on the Decker Ranch. The classical revival courthouse exhibits some influences of the Italianate style. Prominent features include the rusticated stone walls, classical portico over the entryway, a broken triangular pediment, and stone hood molds.

Burlington Memorial Auditorium, located near the Mississippi River, was built by the Works Progress Administration and opened in May of 1939. It was first used as a U.S. Naval Reserve Training Center and by the supply company of the 136th Medical Regiment of the Iowa National Guard. Today, the Auditorium serves as an entertainment venue. It is owned by The City of Burlington, IA and managed by Burlington Riverfront Entertainment.

The State of Texas allocated $50,000 for the construction of the Goliad Memorial Auditorium and the United States government allocated $20,000. The Works Progress Administration added $5,000 to build sidewalks, parking areas, and roads and to grade and fill the athletic field and provide floors under the stadium for a clubroom. The building has an auditorium with a large stage, a lobby designed to serve as a museum area, and exterior stadium seating for 1200 spanning the east elevation. Architects Raiford L. Stripling and Samuel C.P. Vosper designed the auditorium with a flat roof, high octagonal window openings, and sculptural embellishments...

Memorial in Muskingum Park, Marietta, Ohio commemorating the first permanent American settlement in the Northwest Territory in 1788. Memorial includes a statuary group created by Gutzon Borglum, sculptor of Mount Rushmore carved in local sandstone by WPA workers, landing esplanade on the Muskingum River built by WPA, and four pylons on Front Street topped with eagles also sculpted by Borglum at the North and South entrances to the park. Borglum did not attend the 1938 dedication because he (correctly, it turns out) disagreed with the decision to execute the sculpture in sandstone rather than bronze. Project is underway to restore...

The WPA conducted extensive work on Memory Grove Park, or Memory Park, including landscaping, building rock walls, cutting paths, and so on.

The Works Progress Administration (WPA) completed work at the Menard Elementary School in Menard. At the site, there are two WPA markers that contain the same information—"Works Progress Administration 1938-1940." One of the structures is a school building and the other is a gymnasium; one plaque resides by the entrance to each. There has been extensive modernization to the entrances and they now have a new metal roof. A rock wall surrounds the perimeter of the property, but there is no WPA marker on the wall.

The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) built many shelters and cabins in Alaska during the 1930s, including this one. The Mendenhall Glacier shelter is located at the intersection of the Trail of Time and the East Glacier Trail. The Forest Service visitor brochure for the Mendenhall Glacier notes that, "used by early visitors, this shelter is located next to the old footpath to the glacier, which includes part of the path you are hiking today. At that time, it was just a three minute walk to the toe of the glacier from here!" The shelter used to overlook the glacier, which has retreated up the valley...

"The most interesting site though was the 700 acre Mendocino Woodlands State Park located in the Jackson State Forest about 8 miles east of Highway One. The site is long, narrow and steeply sloped. See map of camp 1 above. The first building encountered is the dining/recreation room. The kitchen has a high, beam ceiling with a skylight, and off that central space there are two dining areas each with its own stone fireplace. From the kitchen, double doors lead out onto stone steps and an outdoor eating area. This building and all of the others at the camp were built...

In 1934, the Public Works Administration (PWA) approved a loan of $4.2 million for a school building program in Fort Worth. Rufino Mendoza Elementary School (then called Denver Avenue Elementary School), built in 1910, received a new auditorium wing between 1935 and 1936. The Works Progress Administration (WPA) under the direction of Hare and Hare of Kansas City landscaped the school grounds from 1935 to 1937.

Meridian Hill Park is a formal, landscaped park in the Columbia Heights neighborhood, with terraces, pools, balustrades and a large cascade in the Italian baroque style. It is, in many people's estimation, the jewel of the District parks system.   Land for the park was purchased in 1910 and construction began in 1912, but was never completed.  In 1935-36, the PWA stepped in to fund completion of the park by providing a grant of $145,000. A 1936 article in the Washington Daily News described the work being done: “Cascades completed and placed in operation. South terraces graded; top soiled and seeded; shrubs and...

"The Santa Barbara Armory, Work Projects NO. 4256, 7013, and 9073, was sponsored by the City of Santa Barbara and constructed for the 2nd Battalion of the 144th Field Artillery, California National Guard. The work involved the construction of a complete armory plant consisting of two units. The main building is a one story ell shaped structure with two wings having a total floor area of 28,790 square feet including the basement. The Gargare Building, the second unit, has approximately 4800 square feet of floor space and consists of one story and a basement.   "The auditorium section of the Main...

From the Kresge Art Museum website: "Originally intended for the Bessemer Courthouse boardroom in the Upper Peninsula, Natural Resources of Northern Michigan was given to Frances and Walter M. Berry sometime in the mid 1940s in appreciation for their years of local and statewide community service. The mural hung in the Caspian Community Center where Berry worked before becoming the Director of the Federal Emergency Relief Administration. In 1957, the Berrys donated the mural to the Michigan State University Museum, where it now hangs in the Auditorium on the second floor. Natural Resources of Northern Michigan depicts an amalgamated view of...

The PWA constructed a large gymnasium, auditorium, and additional classroom space with entry hall at Knob Noster Middle School in 1939, at a cost of $40,296.

Three very large New Deal murals hang in the auditorium of the Royal Oak Middle School. The first two,  "The Naming of Royal Oak" and "The Value of Arts, Culture, and Science," were painted by Andrew Maglia. The third, "Career Paths," was painted by Bronislaw Makielski.   Maglia worked on the first two paintings, then bowed out for lack of funds; when funding was renewed, Makielski was commissioned to complete the project.  Apparently, Makielski was substantially aided by his brother on the third mural. The murals were commissioned by the Federal Arts Project of the Works Progress Administration (WPA), though exact information about...

The bridge carrying what was then known as Ocean Highway (presently known as County Road 621, or Ocean Drive) over Middle Thorofare was constructed as a Public Works Administration (PWA) project, as part of the largest New Deal construction effort in Cape May County, New Jersey. The bridge is still in use today. State.NJ.us: "In 1934 the county government created the Cape May County Bridge Commission as a means to apply for Federal Emergency Administration Funds to build bridges on the Ocean Highway and to bring to completion the promotional tourist route from Atlantic City to Cape May. The Ocean Highway bridges,...

Wright's Tower is an observation tower constructed in 1937 under the direction of the Works Progress Administration (WPA). It is located at the summit of Pine Hill within the Middlesex Fells Reservation. The Reservation is spread across several towns just north of Boston, MA with Wright's Tower being located in Medford, MA. Note that there was a major refurbishment of the tower in 2008.

In 1938, artist Andre Boratko painted these murals in Milaca's new town hall with funding from the WPA.

Under project number 665-66-2-153, the Works Progress Administration (renamed the Works Projects Administration by the time the project finished) built a new school in Milano, Texas between 1938 and 1940. The school had eleven classrooms and a combination auditorium and gymnasium. Per the Austin American Statesman: "Milam county received a WPA allotment of $43,098, and will match it with $38,578, employing 100 workers, to construct a new school building at Milano with 12 classrooms and gymnasium."

Retaining wall that borders the Artists' Trail in Mill Creek Park. Built by the Works Progress Administration between 1935 and 1936.

Stitt Pavilion was constructed by the Works Progress Administration in 1938. Still in use.

The WPA (and possibly CCC) conducted extensive work to create Miller Park from 1935 to 1936. From the Intermountain Antiquities Computer System (IMACS) report: Site 42SL000711 is Miller Park, a historic public park, with seven built features, in Salt Lake City, Utah. The features consist of a stone double staircase (F-01 ), a stone platform wall and culvert (F-02), a stone bridge (F-03), two stone benches and stairs (F-04, a stone bench and raised platform F-05), a metal bridge (F-06), and stone retaining walls (F-07). Two maintained walking trails run along the east and west sides of the park. The park...

The Public Works Administration funded the construction of the Milroy Park Club House, which serves as a community center in Houston TX. 

The post office in Mineola was built in 1936 under the Public Works Administration (PWA) program and was designed by architects at the U.S. Treasury Department. It continued to be used as a post office until 1998. It is now the Mineola Historical Museum.

Sections of Minnesota Ave. between Lincoln and Bird Avenues, are stamped with WPA 1941 stamps.

The school contains two 6' x 24' murals "Civilization Through the Arts and Crafts as Taught to the Neophyte Indians" and "Mission San Francisco de Asis." They were painted by Edith Hamlin in 1936-37 with funding from the WPA Federal Art Project. Betty Willey and Jay Risling assisted. Hamlin retouched the murals herself in 1973. Both murals were originally located in the school library.

The Georgian-Revival building that houses the MS FWC is owned by the state of Mississippi and was  constructed in 1936 by the Works Progress Administration (WPA). The state has the right to terminate the lease on the "highly valuable piece of land" on which it sits. Concern has been expressed among some historic preservationists that the changes may present a threat to the building at some point in the future.

Public Works Administration W1205 funded construction of a two-story brick Neo-Classical dormitory for what was then known as Harrison-Stone-Jackson Junior College. A loan of $64,000 and a grant of $52,364 toward the total estimated cost of $116,364 was approved 8/26/1936. Construction began 3/16/1937 and was completed 3/24/1938 at a total cost of $117,473. Architect was Vinson B. Smith, Jr. and the builder/contractor was Newton & Schmoll. It contains 62 rooms and was the only major structure built on the campus during the Great Depression. Historic renovations were made in 1974, and renovations and remodeling for a board room addition was...

The Works Progress Administration built the Mitchell Street Bridge over the San Antonio River between 1935 and 1937. The steel stringer style two-lane bridge is still in use for vehicular traffic.

The Public Works of Art Project (PWAP) and the State Emergency Relief Administration (SERA), along with local sources (Rotary Club and City of Anaheim), funded a sculpture of actress Helena Modjeska. The sculpture was created by Eugene Maier-Krieg in 1934 and resides in the northeast corner of Pearson Park in Anaheim, California. Modjeska was an actress who first immigrated to Anaheim, CA from Poland. She went on to stardom as a Shakespearean actress, regularly touring the country. But she returned to Orange County often for vacation and eventually purchased property in the area. The front of the statue portrays Modjeska...

From the Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs: “The administration building and four log cabins built by the CCC at Mohawk Trail were featured in Albert Good’s 1938 book, Park and Recreation Structures, as outstanding examples of CCC rustic design and are still used today.”