Unmarked Sites

Described as “the largest hotel in the world,” Wilmington Hall and Wilmington Hall Annex were temporary war-housing facilities for shipyard war workers in the Wilmington-San Pedro area of Los Angeles. In 1942-43, the federal government constructed five temporary wartime defense housing projects operated by the Housing Authority of Los Angeles (HACLA) under the Lanham Act of 1940 for $13.5 million. With the United States Housing Authority (USHA) and military merging housing efforts into the Federal Public Housing Authority (FPHA) in early 1942, Wilmington Hall was partially started as a New Deal project. The 39-acre development was made up of 70 total...

Wilmington Park Elementary School in Wilmington, CA was remodeled with funding from the Public Works Administration (PWA) in 1935. The school's main building was reconstructed by the Pacific Realty and Building Company for $74,483. 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...

The Public Works Administration (PWA) funded the construction of an addition for the Wilson Elementary School in Logan, Utah.   The PWA Docket number was 1004-R (Utah). The architect of record was K. C. Schaub. The old Wilson School has been replaced by a new structure in recent years.

In 1940, additions to Wilson Middle School (formerly Junior High School) in Pasadena, CA were completed with Public Works Administration (PWA) funding. The additions included the main building’s PWA Moderne southern wing—which housed a home economics department, general science rooms, laboratories, visual education room, and additional classrooms—as well as the physical education building located behind the main building. The 1933 Long Beach earthquake necessitated the rehabilitation of 27 schools in the Pasadena Unified School District at a total cost of ~$3.3 million. Grants from the PWA financed 27% (~$900,000) of the rehabilitation; the sale of school bonds covered 40% (~$1.3 million);...

The National Youth Administration built the Wilson Park Community Building in Bedford IN. Originally a shelter house, now (2022) a community building, features high-quality stone work including a large fireplace visible in pictures on the City of Bedford web page.  

The Works Progress Administration (WPA) built the Wilson Park Entrance in Bedford IN in 1936. According to Ron Bell writing for Times-Mail, the WPA added "new entrances at Otis, Thornton and Wilson parks "

"The Winslow High School, with a modern building costing nearly $175,000, had no satisfactory grounds for athletic contests. The lot upon which the High School was built was very uneven, a brook and gully running through the middle. The town had raised a fund for grading the lot and upon completion of the grading for the Building and tennis courts, there was only $2,300 left for grading the remainder of the four acre lot. This was inadequate and no work had been done other than some fill being placed by local manufacturing companies and others using it as a dump. When the...

A former salmon hatchery in Aroostook County. One of many projects that have been neglected by the state. The March 11 1938 Bangor Daily News in an article "Aroostook WPA Crews Will Be Increased To 1200 by March 20" notes that "At Winterville, where a fish rearing pool is under construction under the sponsorship of the inland fish and game department the crew will be augmented by 40 men from Eagle Lake, Wallagrass, and Winterville." A WPA job card notes that "Located on Birch River at Winterville - Salmon Fish Hatchery built by the WPA and sponsored by the Maine...

In 1937, the Works Progress Administration (WPA) installed an additional intake pipe with headwall and appurtenances at the river gauging station at the foot of Wisconsin Avenue along the Potomac. The US Geological Survey has had a recording station at this spot since 1935. The current gauging station appears to be in the spot described in the WPA records.

In 1935-36, the Works Progress Administration (WPA) made improvements to the stretch of Wisconsin Avenue NW, between Massachusetts Avenue and River Road, in the Cathedral Heights and Tenleytown neighborhoods. “The concrete roadway of Wisconsin Avenue NW., from Massachusetts Avenue to River Road, was covered with asphaltic surface as a salvaging project and it is expected that this treatment will prolong the life of the pavement for many years.” This project was of a nearly $1 million WPA  program to upgrade and repave districts streets fiscal year 1936. This WPA roadwork is probably not discernible today due to subsequent road maintenance, repairs and alterations.

Once known as the Wish-I-Ah Healthcare & Wellness Centre, this nursing home was built in 1928 as a sanatorium for tuberculosis by Fresno County and was sold to become a private care center for the aged when T.B. virtually disappeared in the 1940's. The WPA got involved in February 1936 by hiring a "graduate nurse from relief roll to assist Supt. and Medical Director of Wish-i-ah Sanitorium, to assemble data and keep records pertaining to tuberoulin as a diagnostic measure." WPA project 0412-345 $525. The WPA also engaged in construction work "on Co. Rd. to Tuburcular Sanatorium near Auberry. To improve...

Woodburn Hall was the first home of IU's School of Business (now the Kelley School of Business, located in Hodge Hall). Woodburn now houses the African Studies and Political Science departments. It  also contains two murals by Thomas Hart Benton.

The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) conducted extensive development work at Grand Canyon Village, including the construction of a modest wooden bridge across Bright Angel Wash that can be found along a path between the railroad tracks and Village Loop Drive, about 300 feet down hill (but inaccessible) from Coulter Hall. CCC Walking Tour: "The CCC built two bridges across this normally dry drainage leading to the railroad tracks. The remaining bridge dates to 1937. A close look reveals that some of the timbers have been replaced recently, including adding metal beams underneath."

The Civil Works Administration (CWA) improved the Woodlawn Cemetery in Westbrook ME Excerpt from the town 1933 report, "WOODLAWN AVENUE GREATLY IMPROVED BY C.W.A. PROJECT The three miles of avenues in Woodlawn were given a coat of gravel during the winter. This project was arranged for by Mayor Jordan and heartily approved by the Cemetery Trustees, and is the most important improvement ever made in the Cemetery. The project gave employment to a large number of men and trucks and was completed within the time allotted for the work and somewhat below the estimated cost. The spreading of the gravel in winter and the dragging and...

Woodlawn Lake Park began as a subdivision development outside of San Antonio in 1887. The developers constructed a dam across a creek on the property to create a lake which soon became a resort area. The City of San Antonio acquired the property in 1918 and a citizen's group constructed restrooms and a playground and planted trees. A bond package in 1928 allowed for the construction of a pool and community center. In 1935, the Works Progress Administration (WPA) built two masonry bridges in the park. One still carries vehicular traffic into the park. The road over the second bridge was...

Construction on Woods Pond Beach was performed by CCC Co. 1124, located in Bridgton. According to the 1937 1st District CCC yearbook, "The camp has been very fortunate in having a number of ideal lunch ground sites located within easy working distance of camp. To date five of these have been constructed, and are being enthusiastically used by visitors and residents alike. The most rustic is located at Willis Brook, Bridgton. The shelters on this lunch ground are roofed with hand hewn shingles." CCC Yearbook

By the time Franklin Delano Roosevelt was inaugurated president in 1933, the United States was suffering the worst economic collapse in its history. In order to stimulate the economy and lessen unemployment, Roosevelt started the Public Works Administration (PWA) and, eventually, the Works Progress Administration (WPA). The WPA completed a wide variety of public works projects, ranging from building sidewalks to painting public murals. One of the most significant WPA projects in Newburyport was the World War Memorial Stadium built in 1938-39. Large portions of the stadium still exist, and it stands as an excellent example of the living New...

The building was originally constructed as the Works Progress Administration (WPA) District Offices In Tallahassee, the WPA or PWA funded numerous civic projects, including the Leon County Jail, Leon High School, the Leon County Health Unit, the Leon County Armory, an addition to the old Florida Capitol, and the Dining Hall at Florida State University. Numerous other projects in the North Florida region were also completed, including the Apalachicola River bridge between Blountstown and Bristol, the original John Gorrie Memorial Bridge between Eastpoint and Apalachicola, improvements to the Jefferson County Jail in Monticello; a new main post office in Perry;...

The Bandon Fire, which burned the majority of the town on September 26, 1936, displaced a number of the city's residents from their destroyed houses. The Works Progress Administration (WPA) promptly responded to a request for emergency housing by using WPA workers to construct 36 cottages. Despite the temporary nature of the original emergency housing, one still remains in the NE area of Bandon. While the demand for alternatives to the tent city that housed displaced residents was great, the emergency housing units were developed explicitly for those households on relief. Bandon residents who were employed were directed to the Federal...

This Works Progress Administration outhouse was relocated to the county historical society property. It was built in a shop, moved to the original site, and installed by WPA. WPA programs like the Indiana Community Sanitation Program directly affected an astounding number of people. WPA built 125,791 outhouses for the state of Indiana (paying $4 million in wages) and more than 2 million nationwide.

In October 1935, the Works Progress Administration (WPA) opened a “production for use” plant in Glendale, CA. Initially the plant’s workforce consisted of 12 men and women. When operating at full force, 100-150 men and women were employed canning, baking, dehydrating fruits, processing meats and cereals, repairing shoes, and manufacturing clothes. The structure that housed the relief center is extant at 700 Ivy Street.

Three hundred and seventy-three men and women were employed at the Works Progress Administration (WPA) relief center in Santa Monica, CA when it relocated from Twelfth St to the former Lorbeer laundry building on Main St in October 1937. It appears the structure that housed the relief center on Main St is still extant, but confirmation is needed. When the state refused to continue providing materials in early 1938, Los Angeles County suspended WPA sewing projects and discharged 5,000 women. Santa Monica proposed to take over, with the mayor claiming, “We will continue operation of the sewing room for Santa Monica...

In the 1930s, a Works Progress Administration (WPA) sewing room was set up in Fire Station No. 12, built prior to the New Deal in 1929, in Long Beach, CA. The building was not used as a fire station until 1936, due to lack of funding.

The Works Progress Administration (WPA) sewing room in Los Angeles’s Exposition Park neighborhood provided jobs for workers, most of them women, during the 1930s and early 1940s. These sewing rooms focused on producing garments for men, women, and children often relating to public relief efforts. At the time, Exposition Park was a predominantly Latino neighborhood, though by the 1950s and 1960s, the area began to see a growing African American population. In 1940, the sewing room came under scrutiny after Black workers raised concerns about mistreatment by project forelady Minnie Robinson. Over two months, employees reported biased behavior, overly harsh supervision,...

In 1936, a Works Progress Administration (WPA) sewing room opened in North Hollywood, CA. The project employed approximately 200 women, who sewed dresses, shirts, and other necessities. Most of the clothing articles were for under-privileged children. The women were paid $55.00 a month for their work, with skilled workers earning slightly higher. The building in North Hollywood, which housed this sewing room, has since been demolished. This was one of many sewing rooms established across Los Angeles county.

As of January 1938, 60 women were employed at the Works Progress Administration (WPA) sewing room in Los Angeles, CA located at the Sawtelle barracks (today's West Los Angeles VA Medical Center). The precise location of the sewing room is unknown. When the state refused to continue providing materials in early 1938, Los Angeles County suspended WPA sewing projects and discharged 5,000 women.

As of January 1938, 94 women were employed at the Works Progress Administration (WPA) sewing room in Venice, CA. When the state refused to continue providing materials in early 1938, Los Angeles County suspended WPA sewing projects and discharged 5,000 women. It appears the structure that housed the sewing room is still extant, but confirmation is needed.

The WPA sewing room project at the Metropolitan Methodist Church in Washington, DC was located at the southwest corner of C Street NW and John Marshall Place (John Marshall Place no longer seems to exist, but most likely ran north to south on the western side of today’s John Marshall Park). Reporting on Eleanor Roosevelt’s visit to the sewing room on July 6, 1936, the Evening Star noted that “1,300 women are employed in two shifts on making garments which are later distributed among W.P.A. relief clients.” Between 1935 and 1943, WPA sewing room workers in Washington, DC made over 1,350,000 items...

The Works Program Administration (WPA) operated one of the largest shoe repair shops in Los Angeles, CA in 1936. The shoes were repaired at an average cost of 34 cents with eighty-five men and women working in two shifts, repairing 150 to 350 shoes a day. The shop only repaired the shoes of those on public relief, so this project did not interfere with private industry. The Los Angeles Times reported that upwards of 13,000 pairs of shoes had already been repaired in the shop by February, 1936.

A Works Progress Administration (WPA) allotment of $118,232 was approved in July 1939 for street improvements and additional sidewalks and gutter construction. A large sidewalk was constructed to access the Weatherford Municipal Power and Light plant, completed in 1940. The city had applied for PWA funding to construct the new electric plant, however, the plant was not approved due to lack of funds for a high number of projects submitted by Texas. The city constructed the new plant with revenue bond funds. The sidewalks leading to the building were stamped with Works Progress Administration. Both the sidewalks and the former...

Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) enrollees from Camp Applegate built this community kitchen shelter in 1935-1936. The Wrangle Gap campground became a popular recreation spot on the newly opened Forest Road 20 that was completed by CCC Camp Applegate enrollees the same year. The Community Kitchen Shelter is the only remaining CCC constructed amenity at the campground. With its stonework and peeled log construction, the rustic shelter and kitchen facility is an excellent example of the design and craftmanship employed by CCC workers in the region's forests. The community kitchen shelter at nearby the McKee Bridge picnic area is another stop...

Yacht Basin No. 2 was part of a large-scale New Deal redevelopment of the Washington Channel and Southwest Waterfront area.  The Diamond Construction Company started building the basin in 1938, supervised by the Army Corps of Engineers. The basin was completed t in 1941 and leased to the Yacht Club in 1942.  The location of the new Yacht Basin #2 was described as “downstream of the fish wharf, at the foot of Tenth and H Streets SW” (Evening Star, May 26 1938). Further, it was said to have “570 feet of street frontage,” slips for about 100 vessels, and included the area of...

The Yamhill County Clerk building in McMinnville, Oregon was originally constructed as the town's post office with funds from the Treasury Department during the New Deal. The stately building was constructed in 1935.

Twelve miles long, County Road S-3 connects Highway 78 and County Road S-22 at Christmas Circle in Borrego Springs. According to the curator at the Julian Historical Society, this was a Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) project.

The original 32-acre tract that established Yaquina Bay State Park was donated by the United States Department of Commerce, Lighthouse Service on September 1, 1934. Shortly after, Civilian Conservation Corps workers from CCC Camp Newport began development of the site. Located on the north shore of Yaquina Bay, with access to the ocean beach and views of the jetty, the park offered scenic amenities given its distinctive location as well as its historic landmark. The wooden Yaquina Bay Lighthouse, active from 1871 to 1874, served as a focal point for the new picnic area developed by CCC enrollees. They also laid-out...

Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) enrollees made many improvements at Yosemite Village and Curry Village at the east end of Yosemite Valley, in the heart of Yosemite National Park. At the time, these were known as the Old Village, New Village and Camp Curry. At Yosemite Village, the CCC teams installed log curbing, laid out new paths, and planted ferns, trees, and shrubs around the administration building, new hospital, residences, and Yosemite Museum. Some of the landscaping was done with native plants transplanted from various places outside the valley.  CCCers placed flagstones around the telescopes in front of the museum. Under the direction of...

The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) completely reconstructed the public campgrounds at the head of Yosemite Valley, which are today known as the North, Upper and Lower Pines campgrounds. There had long been camping all over Yosemite Valley, but it had been an unrestricted free-for-all with cars driving across meadows and people camping wherever they liked. The damage to the valley's meadows and streams had been extensive before the National Park Service (NPS) brought a halt to the anarchy.   First, the NPS restricted camping to designated campgrounds at the head of the Valley in the late 1920s.  It then implemented a new...

In 1940, the Works Progress Administration (WPA) installed sewers on Young Street, Pennsylvania Avenue, and Fairlawn Avenue in the district's southeast quadrant. The precise location is unknown, but these are probably storm sewers installed that connect to the outfall visible just downstream of the Anacostia Recreation Center. This work was part of a massive New Deal era program for Washington of sewer construction, separation of sanitary and storm sewers, and sewage treatment at the new Blue Plains facility in order to clean up the badly polluted Anacostia and Potomac Rivers.

This building allowed all city functions to be carried out in a single location for the first time, and included a council meeting room, a large public meeting room, a police station with jail cell, and city offices. This was the first public building built under the Civil Works Administration in Ottawa County.

Workers from the Civil Works Administration built the rustic-style Zilker Club House out of native Texas limestone in 1934, originally as a Boy Scouts of America hut. The clubhouse and the surrounding 30 acres of land were used by the Scouts for activities and Scout meetings. The clubhouse resides on a hill top and has a panoramic view of the Austin skyline. The clubhouse is now rented out for parties and receptions. The clubhouse is a contributing building to the Zilker Park Historic District. The district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on May 23, 1997.