Alabama Sites

The Civil Works Administration (CWA) built Fire Station No. 9 in Birmingham AL. There is little information about the history of this station. From Google Street View, it appears to have a mid century style of architecture indicating that it might have been rebuilt. The station was designated as Class “A”—"Those needing general minor repairs, having sufficient sound value left in them to justify a thorough repairing, on which buildings was included painting inside and outside where needed, general carpentry repairs, including doors, windows and repairs to floors, or new floors; general repairs to masonry work and plaster or stucco, repairs...

The Works Progress Administration (WPA) built the Flomaton High School Athletic Field in Flomaton. Sponsored by the Escambia County Board of Education, the field spans five acres. The approximate cost was $3,263.

The Works Progress Administration (WPA) landscaped and beautified the grounds of the Flomaton High School. The project was sponsored by the Town of Flomaton.

The Works Progress Administration (WPA) built the Vocational Training Building for the Flomaton High School. The building façade is red brick veneer. The total cost, including landscaping, was $8,312.00, and was sponsored by the Escambia County Board of Education.

The Works Progress Administration (WPA) built seven miles of sidewalks throughout the City of Flomaton. This work was part of a city-wide, streets and sidewalks construction program. The approximate cost of the entire program was $27,200.00. Pictured are WPA crews carrying out paving work on Palafox Street in Flomaton. The work consisted of blacktopping a three-mile stretch.

The Works Progress Administration built an armory in Florence, circa 1937. The armory was called Fort Willingham. The armory was demolished in 1981.  A historical marker at the site reads, "The United States flag that flies at the base of this hill stands as a sentry over the site that was the home of Fort Willingham Armory from 1937-1979. The Armory was named after Dr. Henry J. Willingham, president of Florence State Normal School, and later, Florence State Teachers College for 25 years. In addition to its military functions, the Armory also served as the focal point for community sporting events and...

"FORREST CEMETERY CHAPEL, inside the main gate of Forrest Cemetery, W. side of 15th St. between Walnut and Chestnut Sts., was constructed as a WPA project. It was built by 20 workers who were unskilled at the beginning in this work but who completed it as trained stonemasons. Modeled after an English parish church of the twelfth century, the chapel has been appraised at $25,000, yet the total cost of materials was relatively small. Cement and windows were the only materials purchased; light fixtures, woodwork, and hardware came from WPA woodshops, and stone from a near-by quarry. The doors and...

Originally constructed as an armory, what is now the Fort Decatur Recreation Center was constructed in 1938 with federal funds. The building "was designed by Carolyn Cortner Smith, Alabama’s first licensed female architect." Living New Deal believes the Works Progress Administration (WPA) provided support for construction of the armory.

The Works Progress Administration carried out historical restoration work at Fort Morgan, on Mobile Baywest of Gulf Shores. The fort was occupied by the Army in the 1920s and later fell into disrepair after it was vacated. In 1960 the fort was designated as a National Historic Landmark.

The Works Progress Administration built an armory in Mobile, circa 1937. The structure still serves as the Alabama National Guard Armory.

The Works Progress Administration (WPA) constructed a bridge carrying Frankfort Road across Throckmorton Branch, between Old Lee Highway and E Lamar Ave., in Tuscumbia. Frankfort Road (1819) one of the oldest roads in the Tuscumbia area. The road was also used as Lee Highway / U.S. 72 until bypassed with new alignment.

The Works Progress Administration (WPA) built the Gadsden Municipal Amphitheater in 1935. Built from locally sourced stone, the facility was designed by Alabama architect Paul W. Hofferbert. The WPA cost was $17,316.00. The structure is still in service today and was renamed Mort Glosser Amphitheater. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1988.

The Works Progress Administration built approximately 30 galvanized culverts with concrete head-walls throughout Brewton, Escambia County. These culverts have replaced the old wooden structures throughout the city.

The Geneva High School Vocational and Home Economics Building was the first building built at Geneva High School during the 1937-1938 school year. The City of Geneva purchased the land from P.C. Black, Jim Johnson, Jr., and D.H. Morris. The building was built by the Works Progress Administration. Today the building is still used as History and Fine Arts classrooms.

Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) Camp Co. No. 2421 SP was created at Geneva State Forest in what was previously cleat-cut land, part of a land holding of timberlands owned by the Jackson Lumber Company. The lumber company donated the land to the State of Alabama instead of paying property taxes on land they could no longer exploit.  The Geneva State Forest was originally known as C.C.C. Co. No. 2421, SP-1. The camp was under the leadership of Captain M.G. Denton. According to Robert Pasquill, Jr. book, The Civilian Conservation Corps in Alabama, 1933-1942: A Great and Lasting Good the C.C.C. Co. No. 2421...

"Geneva State Forest was formerly part of a vast land holding of timberlands owned by the Jackson Lumber Company. The lumber company, as was a common practice of the time, clear cut the land. They were left with land that was of little use. Jackson Lumber Company tried to sell the land for as little as 50 cents an acre. They were unsuccessful and ultimately chose to donate the land to the State of Alabama instead of paying property taxes for land they could no longer use. The land transfer took place during the Great Depression. The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC)...

The history of this building is tied very closely with the two people involved in the passage of the most significant legislation of the Civil Rights Movement, the 1965 Voting Rights Act, Samuel Boynton, and Amelia Pitts Boynton Robinson. Samuel Boynton, Charles J. Adams, and others successfully lobbied the federal government for some New Deal money to be used to build a community center in Selma. Boynton had advocated for years for a public restroom facility for African Americans near downtown Selma. Jim Crow laws prevented African Americans from using any of the store facilities including restrooms, lunch counters, and other...

Also known as Coosa River Bridge, what was originally built as Gilberts Ferry Bridge was constructed as a Public Works Administration (P.W.A.) project. Completed in 1939, the bridge carries northbound traffic on Alabama Route 77 from Southside to Rainbow City.

In 1934, the Civil Works Administration started building a modern sports field on January 29 due to the land donated to the city on January 25, 1934, by Oscar Goldsmith, Lawrence B. Goldsmith, Annie Schiffman Goldsmith, Robert L. Schiffman, and Elsie Strauss Schiffman for use as an athletic field or playground for white pupils of the public schools. Due to CWA changes, they could only provide 50 people to begin the project. The area was the first in Huntsville to be lit up for nighttime sporting events, and it cost the city $6,500 to build, thanks to funding from the...

The Civil Works Administration built the Goose Shoals Bridge in the vicinity of Florence, Lauderdale County. The bridge structure is made of concrete and stone and is 390 ft. long.

The Works Progress Administration built an armory in Greenville circa 1938. The structure is currently used as the Butler County Extension Office. The front has been altered to add a portico, but the structure of the original armory and fenestration remain visible. Newspaper items indicate the construction was completed "first of the year" in 1937 although it was still under construction April 1937. The supervisor of construction was Marion Riley.

The Guntersville Armory was constructed in 1936 under President Roosevelt's Works Progress Administration. The project was a collaboration between the WPA and the Public Works Administration. The armory was constructed to house Company E of the 167th Infantry of the Alabama National Guard. Our local congressman, Joe Starnes, a member of the Armed Services Committee, was very influential in a national armory construction program. His perseverance led to the construction of numerous armories across the country as well as our own. After its completion in 1936, the armory was used for drills, training, and classroom instruction. President Roosevelt called the Guard to...

"Guntersville Dam is a hydroelectric dam on the Tennessee River... one of nine dams on the river owned and operated by the Tennessee Valley Authority, which built the dam in the late 1930s as part of a New Deal-era initiative to create a continuous navigation channel on the entire length of the river and bring flood control and economic development to the region. The dam impounds the Guntersville Lake of 67,900 acres, and its tailwaters feed into Wheeler Lake." (Wikipedia)

"According to the CCC Camp Directory for Alabama, Camp TVA-9 operated during the fifth period, which began October 1, 1935, as a soil conservation project supervised by the Forest Service. It was reopened on October 1, 1939, designated as Camp BS-1 during the fourteenth period, working on a biological survey project at the Wheeler Pool Migratory Waterfowl Refuge. The NACCCA database shows Company 3403 establishing Camp BS-1 at Hartselle, Alabama, on October 1, 1939. On October 19, the Decatur Daily reported that the Hartselle CCC camp had reopened with the arrival of 99 men, three administrative personnel, and eight technical...

The Works Progress Administration converted a stable building into a facility that housed the Health Center and the Board of Health in Mobile. The exact location and condition of the structure is unknown to the Living New Deal.

The Alabama state archive has a photograph showing the construction of an addition to the High School by the Civil Works Administration (CWA). With the help of the city clerk, we've located the old high school which has been torn down. The photos here show an old gymnasium that might have been a New Deal project given how common towns requested help with gym construction during the New Deal period.

The Works Progress Administration built an annex for the Hillman Hospital in Birmingham. The Works Progress Administration (WPA) built an annex for the Hillman Hospital in Birmingham. Adjacent to the hospital stands a new clinic, also built by the WPA.  

The Works Progress Administration carried out landscaping and beautification work on a street in the Homewood, a suburb of Birmingham, circa 1936.

The Public Works Administration funded the construction of the historic Houston County High School in Columbia.

This oil-on-canvas mural "Harvest at Fort Payne" was painted by Harwood Steiger in 1938. The mural was originally in the post office, then moved to the DeKalb County Courthouse in 1980 after a new post office was built. In 2001, it was moved to Hunt Hall which is part of the Hosiery Museum. “Steiger, of New York, admitted he had never been as far south as Fort Payne when he received the invitation to produce a mural there. Steiger did make a trip to Fort Payne within a month and found the postmaster most helpful as he prepared his sketches. The...

The Works Progress Administration (WPA) built a one-mile portion of State Highway 11 in the vicinity of Atmore. The highway facilitated agricultural trade across the border with Florida and it was graveled and asphalted by the WPA. Pictured is a portion of the new highway section built by the WPA.

The Emergency Administration of Public Works funded the construction of the Auditorium/Gymnasium at J.U. Blacksher High School.

The Works Progress Administration built a new jail in Carbon Hill, circa 1937. The exact location and condition of the structure is unknown to the Living New Deal.

The Works Progress Administration built the Jasper City Hall, circa 1937. The exact location and condition of this facility is unknown to the Living New Deal.

The 16-story Jefferson Hospital was completed in 1940 and opened in February 1941. Financed with a PWA grant and Reconstruction Finance Loans, the 575-bed hospital had 11 operating rooms, maternity section and all-electric kitchens. It was renamed Jefferson Tower in 1979 and is part of the University of Alabama at Birmingham Medical Center.

Built as the U.S. Court House and Custom House from 1932 to 1934, this building was Renamed the John Archibald Campbell United States Courthouse in 1981. A 1939-1940 New Deal construction project involved the extension of the building to the west.

Kinston High School, located in Kinston, Alabama (Southwest Coffee County) was built by the Public Works Administration (PWA) in 1939.

Birmingham's Lane Park was the site of substantial work relief efforts on the part of multiple New Deal agencies: the Civil Works Administration (CWA) and the Works Progress Administration (WPA). Historical marker: "The land was also used for the Allen Gray Fish Hatchery (fed by Pullen Springs), a stone quarry, a complete baseball diamond, and a golf driving range. Several of the stone structures were erected by the WPA. Two hundred acres are now the home of the Birmingham Zoo (est. 1954) and the Birmingham Botanical Gardens (est. 1962)." A CWA/Alabama Relief Administration project was soon after launched to fully develop the...

Then known as Municipal Stadium, Birmingham's Legion Field was improved by the federal Works Progress Administration (WPA).

"Little River State Forest is an Alabama state forest in the counties of Escambia and Monroe. The forest is approximately 2,100 acres (850 ha) and sits at an elevation of 161 feet (49 m). The forest had its beginnings in the 1930s, when the property was deeded to the state. In 1934, during the Great Depression, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) began work to create a state park at the site. Many current structures date from the CCC period, including the office building, a cabin, pavilions, a nature trail, and a 25-acre (10 ha) lake. The site is managed and maintained by the...