1 2 3 4
  • Oahu Prison - Honolulu HI
    In 1935, a contract was awarded for the construction of additional facilities at the Oahu Prison. “A unit for incorrigibles, and additions to the mess building at Oahu Prison for the sum of $104,389, of which $28,500 was Federal grant.” Today the facility is called the Oahu Community Correctional Center.
  • Pacific Heights Road Improvements - Oahu HI
    The Federal Emergency Relief Administration completed improvements to the Pacific Heights Road, including the “widening, realignment, retaining-wall construction, and drains which now provide one of the most easily accessible and beautiful scenic highways on Oahu.”
  • Paia Spur - Maui HI
    The National Industrial Recovery Administration awarded the “United States Public Works project no. NRH-17-A, Paia Spur, for the sum of $177,717.69.”
  • Pana'ewa CCC Camp - Hilo HI
    The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) built a side camp at Pana'ewa Forest on the Big Island of Hawaii. The Pana'ewa Forest has been heavily developed with the growth of Hilo, the main city on the island, but some small pieces remain, especially as Pana'ewa Rainforest Zoo and Gardens and Pana'ewa Forest Reserve.   The CCC enrollees worked in in the vicinity of this camp and their work included tree planting; building truck, foot and horse trails; construction of foot bridges; installation of fences; seed collection; erosion control and check dams; building shelter houses; “elimination of undesirable animals” ; “eradication of exotic...
  • Piikoi Street Extension - Honolulu HI
    The Public Works Administration (PWA) funded new construction or improvement work for the Extension of Piikoi Street in Honolulu. The PWA grant amounted to $38,700. The work was carried out in 1938. The project, listed as Docket No. TH-1050-F, was part of the PWA’s non-federal projects expenditures for the Territory of Hawaii for 1938-1939.
  • Port Allen Airport Improvements - Hanapepe HI
    Between 1935 and 1941, the WPA contributed $127,000 towards work at Port Allen Airport, mostly runway expansion and improvement (“clearing, grading, and paving,” Port Allen Airport History). At its peak, in 1947, the airport served 37,000 passengers and provided a landing area for 1,100 tons of cargo. Today, Port Allen Airport is “used primarily by helicopter companies for scenic tours” (Port Allen Airport History).
  • Port Allen Harbor - Eleele HI
    The Army Corps of Engineers, the Public Works Administration, and the National Industrial Recovery Administration funded and conducted improvement operations in the Port Allen Harbor between 1934 and 1935. The work consisted of creating a 1,200 foot “rubble-mound breakwater,” and dredging the “harbor basin about 1,000 feet wide, 1,500 feet long, and 35 feet deep; and an entrance channel 500 feet wide and 35 feet deep.” The estimated cost of the work in 1933 was $ 880,000 for new work, of which 200,000 was the contribution of local entities. The estimated cost for annual maintenance was $15,000. In October 1935, about $680,000 were...
  • Post Office - Lihue HI
    The historic post office building in Lihue, Hawai'i was constructed with federal Treasury Department funds. The Mission Revival-style building, which was completed in 1939, is still in use today. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
  • Post Office - Schofield Barracks HI
    The historic post office at Hawaii's Schofield Barracks. The distinctive building, which was completed in 1940, houses an example of New Deal artwork and is still in use today.
  • Post Office Sculpture - Schofield Barracks HI
    The historic Schofield Barracks branch post office contains a 1943 Section of Fine Arts wood carving by Roy King entitled "Primitive Communication." The work can be found in the upper corner of the right side of the retail lobby.
  • Pu'unene Airport Improvements - Kihei HI
    In 1936, the WPA conducted wind studies at the prospective airport. Between 1938 and 1941, the WPA contributed $380,000 to the airport’s construction and improvements. The airport is no longer operational, but remnants of it are now part of Maui Raceway Park.
  • Punchbowl-Makiki-Nuuanu Shortcut - Honolulu HI
    “Among the major projects on which work still was in progress at the end of the fiscal year is the Punchbowl-Makiki-Nuuanu shortcut now nearing completion, which provides another cross-town main artery for residents of Honolulu and will greatly relieve traffic congestion and existing hazards on present cross-town streets.”
  • Puueo Bridge - Hilo HI
    Puueo Bridge, crossing the Wailuku River and connecting Puueo and Keawe Streets in Hilo, Hawaii, was constructed with the assistance of federal Public Works Administration (PWA) funds in 1938. The PWA contributed a grant of $45,000 to the project, which cost $113,730. Construction on the bridge began Jan. 19, 1938 and was completed Oct. 8, 1938. The project, listed as Docket No. TH-1062-DS, was part of the PWA’s non federal projects expenditures for the Territory of Hawaii, 1938-1939.
  • Quarantine Station (demolished) - Honolulu HI
    What is now Sand Island consists of mostly reclaimed land. During the early 20th century it was known as Quarantine Island. Substantially enlarged during the F.D.R. era prior to World Was II, on it was the federally managed U.S. Quarantine Station, which was likewise expanded with an array of new buildings during the 1930s using Treasury Department funds. (The island has been significantly expanded since that time as well.) A large block of new construction was undertaken in 1938-9: "Five new buildings were completed and equipped at the quarantine station---a hospital detention building with 23 bedrooms, 2 dining rooms, and a kitchen; a 10-room attendants' quarters; a large...
  • Roosevelt High School - Honolulu HI
    Honolulu's Roosevelt High School was constructed in 1935 with the aid of federal Public Works Administration (PWA) funds. P.W.A. Docket No. 2633 T. H.  
  • Roosevelt High School Athletic Facilities - Honolulu HI
    The Federal Emergency Relief Administration funded the construction of the Roosevelt High School athletic facilities: “Another major operation concluded during the year consisted of the completion of a concrete stadium and the Roosevelt High School athletic field with facilities for track and field activities, football, baseball, and other sports, together with necessary flood control and drainage walls and other general improvements.”
  • Schofield Barracks - Schofield Barracks HI
    Schofield Barracks is a U.S. Army installation. According to a National Park Service report, circa 1940-1941, “Using WPA funds, military engineers and architects continued expanding Schofield Barracks and created a new Hickam Field on the edge of Pearl Harbor."
  • School - Halaula, Hawaii HI
    The Public Works Administration (PWA) funded new construction or improvement work for a school in Halaula, on the Big Island. The PWA grant amounted to $13,500. The work was carried out in 1938. Listed as Docket No. TH-1068-F, the project was part of the PWA’s non-federal projects expenditure for the Territory of Hawaii for 1938-1939.
  • Sea Wall - Lahaina HI
    The Public Works Administration (PWA) contributed funding for the construction of a sea wall in Lahaina, Maui, during the 1930s. The PWA gave a grant of $8,184 and the cost of the completed project was $18,186. The project was begun and completed in 1938. The exact location of this sea wall is unclear; several parts of Lahaina possess a sea wall, including along Front Street. However, one tourism site writes: "The Lahaina Harbor is in front of the old courthouse, which is a visitors center with knowledgeable and free walking maps. For the Lahaina Seawall—a must-do side-trip—walk over to the prominent Lahaina...
  • Seawall - Hilo HI
    The Works Progress Administration (WPA) constructed a seawall east of Hilo in 1939. The 2.5-foot-thick structure was credited with saving the Pu‘umaile Home / hospital; the seawall "withstood the severe pounding of the angry waves ... lessened the force of the waves and the hospital was safe." Images of Old Hawaii: Some incorrectly suggest that the hospital washed away by the 1946 tsunami; however, it was spared. “The (sea)wall itself was undamaged, and buildings sheltered by it were undisturbed except for minor damage by flooding.” (Wiegel) The exact location and status of the seawall is unknown to Living New Deal.
  • Senior Core Building - McKinley High School, Honolulu HI
    “The Works Progress Administration (WPA)–financed Senior Core Building, constructed in 1939, sits off the corner of the quadrangle. Designed by Ossipoff, it presents a more modern and Island-oriented interpretation of Spanish forms, which complements the original school core. Its cast-stone transom panels by Margarite Blasingame depict Hawaiian motifs and the inset, single-stacked lanai/corridors, which wrap around the makai sides of the pavilion plan, afford protection from trade wind–propelled showers and maximize classroom ventilation. The lanai's terra-cotta-trimmed railings depict taro, breadfruit, and papaya.”
  • Sewer Lines - Wahiawa HI
    The Public Works Administration (PWA) funded new construction or improvement work on sewer lines in Wahiawa on Oahu. The PWA grant amounted to $59,850, and the work was carried out in 1938. The project, listed as Docket No. TH-1076-F, was part of the PWA’s non-federal projects expenditure for the Territory of Hawaii for 1938-1939.
  • Sewers - Wailuku HI
    A large sewer construction project in Wailuku, Hawaii was undertaken with federal Public Works Administration (P.W.A.) funds in 1934-5. The P.W.A. supplied a $158,000 loan and $52,757 grant for the project, whose total cost was $192,986. P.W.A. Docket No. T. H. 2789
  • Stone Wall - Kahului HI
    Relief workers of the federal Work Projects Administration (WPA) constructed a low wall along West Kaahumanu Avenue (then Main Street) in Kahului, Maui in 1939. The wall, which is about 100 yards long, originally formed part of the boundary of a school campus.  It is marked on one end with the initials WPA and 1939.
  • Tax Office Building (former) Hale Auhau - Honolulu HI
    A Public Works Administration grant of $97,795 funded new construction work on the Tax Office building in Honolulu. The work was underway in 1938. Listed as Docket No. TH-1035-DS, the project was part of the PWA’s non-federal projects expenditure for the Territory of Hawaii for 1938-1939. The building, also known as Hale Auhau, which translates as “tax house,” served as the headquarters of the Department of Taxation. Designed by Henry Stuart, architect for the Territorial Department of Public Works, the building is representative of the Mission Revival or California Mission style. Architects of that era designed numerous public buildings in...
  • Territorial Circuit Court Building - Lihue HI
    "Graceful and handsomely proportioned, the Territorial Circuit Court Building (1938) in Lihu'e was designed by Harry K. Stewart. This PWA project beautifully integrates the Hawaiian and Spanish Mission revival styles."
  • Territorial Hospital - Käne‘ohe HI
    The PWA built several facilities for the Territorial Hospital complex. Initially, the hospital accommodated patients from the Oahu Insane Asylum, founded by King Kamehameha IV in 1866 on the Iolani Palace grounds in Honolulu.1 The Territorial Hospital expanded and later became the Hawaii State Hospital.4 "On January 6, 1930 the Oahu Asylum closed and the U.S. Army moved the 549 patients to the new Territorial Hospital in Kaneohe. Even at its opening in 1930, the newly named Territorial Hospital was over-crowded, Overburdened facilities have been the situation ever since. It was not yet been possible for the Legislature to provide sufficient appropriations so that adequate...
  • U.S. Post Office and Office Building Additions - Hilo HI
    Designed by Henry O. Whitfield in 1915, the U.S. Post Office and Office Building underwent a large expansion during the New Deal. "In 1936 the Treasury Department designed two 3-story wing additions for the main (south) side of the building. These were constructed in 1937-38 forming a "U"-shaped peristyle court. These wings have three floors used for office space and contain open circulation balconies on the first and third floors. The exterior walls facing the court contain 2-story columns with doric capitals which support a lanai above. All the roofs are tiled, with ornamental downspouts used in the court. The courtyard,...
  • University of Hawaii at Manoa: Andrews Amphitheater - Honolulu HI
    "The lava rock Andrews Amphitheatre at the University of Hawai'I (1935) was designed by architect Ralph Fishbourne with Professor Arthur R. Keller serving as the consulting engineer. The University covered the $5,213 cost for materials while the FERA paid for the labor."
  • University of Hawaii at Manoa: Crawford Hall - Honolulu HI
    Crawford Hall, also known as the social sciences building, was constructed with Public Works Administration (P.W.A.) funds in 1938.
  • University of Hawaii at Manoa: Gillmore Hall (former) - Honolulu HI
    "The original Gilmore Hall was constructed in 1935 and was funded, in part, by the federal Public Works Administration. Gilmore, the agricultural building, was built on the edge of campus, at an angle to face both Hawaiʻi Hall and Farrington Hall between the main campus and the campus farms. The building was distinctive with its green and blue roof tiles, hand-made by pressing clay around the thigh to form arches." The New Deal-era facility has since been replaced.
  • University of Hawaii at Manoa: Miller Hall - Honolulu HI
    "Miller Hall, originally known as the Home Economics Building, was built in 1939 and formally opened with a ceremony on March 15, 1940. The architect of the building was John Mason Young, a professor of engineering at the University. The building’s contractors were Walker and Olund and the overall cost of the construction was $68,000. In addition to Territorial Funds, federal funds were provided by the Public Works Administration totaling $34,000."
  • Upolu Airport Improvements - Hawi HI
    Between 1935 and 1939 the WPA maintained, expanded, and improved Suiter Field (now Upolu Airport). Upolu still operates today as a small regional airport.
  • USS Lamson (DD-367) - Bikini Atoll
    USS Lamson (DD-367), Destroyer, was built with federal Public Works Administration (PWA) funds. The vessel served during World War II, and sank during the atomic tests on Bikini Atoll in 1946. Today, it is popular diving location.
  • USS Tucker (DD-374) - Bruat Channel, Vanuatu
    U.S.S. Tucker (DD 374), Destroyer, was built with federal Public Works Administration (PWA) funds. The vessel served during World War II and was lost in the waters of the Republic of Vanuatu, 1944. The shipwreck is currently turning to reef.
  • USS Vincennes (CA-44) - Solomon Islands
    USS Vincennes (CA-44), was built with federal Public Works Administration (PWA) funds. The vessel served during World War II and sunk at the Battle of Savo, 1942.  It was re-discovered by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen.
  • USS Yorktown (CV-5) - North Pacific Ocean
    The USS Yorktown (CV 5) Aircraft Carrier, commissioned by the U.S. Navy, was built with federal Public Works Administration (PWA) funds. The vessel served during World War II and was lost in the Battle of Midway, 1942. Her wreckage was discovered by Robert Ballard in 1998, located in the North Pacific Ocean, approximately 1,300 miles W/NW of Hawaii.
  • Waiale’e Industrial School for Boys, Improvements - Oahu HI
    The Public Works Administration (PWA) funded additions and improvement work for the Boys’ School (also known as the Waiale'e Home for Wayward Boys or the Waiale'e Industrial School for Boys) on the North Shore of Oahu. The PWA grant amounted to $61,364. The work was carried out in 1938. The project, listed as Docket No. TH-1033-F, was part of the PWA’s non-federal projects expenditures for the Territory of Hawaii for 1938-1939.
  • Waikele School - Waipahu HI
    The Public Works Administration (PWA) funded new construction or improvement work on a school in the Waikele neighborhood in the City and County of Honolulu. The PWA grant amounted to $74,700, and the work was carried out in 1938. The project, listed as Docket No. TH-1091-F, was part of the PWA’s non-federal projects expenditure for the Territory of Hawaii for 1938-1939.
  • Waimano Home (former) Dorms - Pearl City HI
    In 1935, a contract was awarded for the construction of support buildings and dorms at the Waimano Training School and Hospital (WTSH), originally named the Waimano Home for the Feeble Minded. The facility was originally an incarceration facility for individuals with developmental disabilities. The contract, listed as Public Works Administration Docket No. T. H. 8029, included “a new unit for boys at Waimano Home, Pearl City, for the sum of $177,341, of which $53,200 was a federal grant.” These auxiliary buildings have been slated for demolition as of 1999, but current status of the structures is unknown to the Living New Deal. The...
1 2 3 4