• Bartlett Middle School - Porterville CA
    This school was built as an elementary school with funding from the Public Works Administration (PWA) in 1938.  It later became a junior high school and was named for William Pitt Bartlett, a Porterville benefactor. The building is single-story and the design by W.D. Coates is Moderne (Art Deco). The main building front still looked unchanged as of 2009, except for probable window replacement. There are new aluminum windows on the small building on the south, and new aluminum doors on the back side. There have been at least 2 additions for new classrooms since it was built.
  • Hwy 190 - Porterville to Camp Nelson - Porterville CA
    The WPA built the road from Porterville east to Camp Nelson.
  • Olive Ave. Widening - Porterville CA
    Porterville received funds for the widening of Olive Ave. among other local projects.
  • Olive Street Elementary School - Porterville CA
    A 1940 edition of the Fresno Bee reported that Porterville had received $15,000 from the federal government for the Olive School Building. This was apparently a Works Progress Administration (WPA) project, finished in either 1940 or 1941. The New Deal portion of the building is now used as an annex to a newer school building.
  • Porterville City Hall - Porterville CA
    The Porterville City Hall was built in 1939 with funds from the Public Works Administration (PWA).  It is a one-story Moderne (Deco) building with horizontal window opening and elaborate design elements between the windows. According to some long-term residents of Porterville, the City Hall building was constructed in stages because it took two city bond measures to complete the project; so the date on which construction began is unknown to us.  Porterville city records say it was completed on September 13, 1939 and this is confirmed by a truly unique PWA plaque (pictured below).  A new north wing was added to the City...
  • Porterville Fire Station - Porterville CA
    The Public Works Administration (PWA) funded a new fire station for Porterville in 1937.  This building replaced the original fire station, which was on an adjacent lot and where the new City Hall was constructed (also a New Deal building). The fire station is a one-story, Moderne building with minimal decoration (vertical ribbing), with four bays for fire engines.  It was designed by W. D. Coates. The New Deal fire station is still in use.
  • Porterville Post Office - Porterville CA
    This building was actually one of many post offices built by the Hoover Administration in response to the Depression in what can be seen as an example of Hoover anticipating the New Deal in a limited way. However, it was completed under FDR as a WPA project and FDR's first Treasury Secretary is listed on the cornerstone.
  • Putnam Avenue Bridge - Porterville CA
    This concrete bridge across Porter Slough was built under the New Deal by the Works Progress Administration (WPA). A 1941 date stamp is clearly visible (see photograph). The bridge is a 4-span concrete Tee-beam bridge. The span length is 29.9 feet and the total length is 68.9 feet. There is another New Deal bridge across Porter Slough at Leggett Ave., built in 1937, also likely by the WPA.
  • Woodville Farm Labor Center - Porterville CA
    This farm labor housing center was included in the 1944 Museum of Modern Art exhibition, "Built in USA 1932-1944."