Massachusetts Sites

Works Progress Administration (W.P.A.) labor constructed a gym for the former vocational school in New Bedford, Massachusetts. WPA Bulletin: Building materials salvaged from WPA Demolition Projects are used in the New Bedford WPA construction of the Vocational School Gymnasium. Many skilled workmen are busy on this project. The location and status of the facility is unknown to Living New Deal.

The W.P.A. conducted repair and improvement work on numerous civic facilities in Newton, Massachusetts, including at the former Waban / Lower Falls fire station.

"Beginning late in November considerable work was accomplished with Civil Works Administration forces employed on forestry work in the Wachusett, Sudbury and Distribution sections."

From the Wachusett Mountain Ski Area website: “The first skiing trails on Wachusett Mountain were cut by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the late 1930's (Pine Trail 1934; Balance Rock Trail 1937).”

"In the 1930's the Works Progress Administration (WPA) undertook a series of improvements including the construction of the loop road around the summit ." A 1937 WPA Bulletin reported: In 1934 Waitt's Mount in Maiden looked like a quarry-workers' nightmare. It was a huge, bald and jagged granite ledge whose slope was covered with twisted, stunted trees and tangled underbrush; probably the most useless piece of land in this section of the state. Today the Mount is a beautifully terraced park which commands a 15-mile panorama of metropolitan Boston. The park, built by the WPA, has landscaped slopes, shade trees, rustic...

WPA Bulletin, 1937: "Residents of Lynn consume 2,854,464,350 gallons of city water a year and from the same reservoir system the town of Saugus uses 333,542,250 gallons during the same period. Last week a WPA project started which will improve the purity of the water supply by clearing and grubbing 40 acres along the northerly shore of Walden Pond and cleaning out a half dozen tributary brooks which feed into the pond. When the land is cleared 25,000 three-year-old white pine seedlings will be planted. Most of these trees will be taken from the 2,200-acre Lynn Woods Reservation and will...

Walk Hill Street in Boston, between Hyde Park Ave. and Harvard St., was reconstructed as part of a Public Works Administration (P.W.A.) project.

A 1939 article cited work the WPA had been accomplishing in Stoughton, Mass. "They ... are now about to start the finishing work on laying out and rebuilding of Walnut Court as a town way. The street has been widened, tons of stone have been dug out and all that remains is the filling of holes and getting the top surface ready for the tar, which when applied and covered will put that piece of highway in fine condition."

The Federal Emergency Relief Administration (F.E.R.A.) conducted road improvement work in Dover, Mass., including the reconstruction of a 500-foot stretch of Walpole Street. "he raising of the grade of Walpole Street at the brook near the Zinsser Estate has greatly improved conditions there."

Walton Field in Wakefield, Massachusetts "was improved in the 1930s as part of the WPA program."

W.P.A. project description: "The three projects, which were approved and on which work was started late in the year, provide for the reconstruction of: first, Wampatuck Road from Furnace Brook Parkway to Chickatawbut Road, Quincy, a distance of 4,800 feet ... All these roads will have a width of 30 feet and have a 5-inch bituminous concrete surface on a 12-inch gravel base. Also, an 8-ft. wide, 2-inch bituminous surfaced walk will be constructed adjacent to and for the whole length of each road. Work will include excavation of earth, rock and ledge, installation of drainage systems, filling and grading, loaming...

"This War Memorial Building serves the city of Holyoke as a community center. The ground floor contains a large room for dances and entertainments, a kitchen, and a men's lounge in addition to the various service rooms. The first floor is entered through a portico and includes a lobby, an auditorium with a stage and dressing rooms, the memorial hall, a lounge, cardrooms, a billiard room, women's lounge, and offices for the commission and custodian. The second floor has the auditorium balcony, the organization rooms, and two offices. The construction is fireproof and the...

Wikipedia: "War Memorial Park is a public park in West Bridgewater, Massachusetts. It is located south of the town center, bounded by River Street, Arch Street and the Town River. The park was established in the 1930s and was constructed in part with funding from the Works Progress Administration. ... The park was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2008."

Works Progress Administration (W.P.A.) workers constructed War Memorial Park in West Bridgewater, Massachusetts. From a W.P.A. Bulletin: The historic home of Capt. John Ames, built in 1774 in West Bridgewater, featuring "Pulpit Rock" where Rev. John Keith in 1663 preached his first sermon to settlers in this country, is being converted by a WPA project into a five-acre park and beauty spot.

"The following work was done by the W. P. A.: At the Ward Street Station, for the transfer of sand, etc., hoppers were reconstructed, and the ramp renovated."

Works Progress Administration (W.P.A.) labor constructed repairs at the educational facility at the food of S. Ward St. in Worcester formerly known as the Ward Street School. WPA Bulletin: WPA has employed 70 men during extensive repairs to the Ward Street School, Worcester. Work included installation of blackboards with frames and mouldings, washing of wall surf- aces and the painting of all walls, ceilings, corridors, partitions and other sections of the building which needed attention.

The Works Progress Administration (WPA) funded the labor to construct a sidewalk along an unknown distance of Wareham St. in Middleborough, Mass. in 1937.

In 1929, the developer of the future Warner Mountain Ski Area, Henry Cairns, purchased the area from a man named James Strike. Cairns, having owned a farm in the area, decided to carve slopes into this mountain, located on the eastern side of East Mountain State Forest in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. The trails emptied out into Cairns farm, which became known as the G-Bar-S Dude Ranch; this stood for the nearby Great Barrington Sports. The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was employed in the area to carve two trails into the slopes: the more advanced and difficult Taconic Trail and the more...

A Boston Public Works Department report cited Federal Emergency Relief Administration (F.E.R.A.) labor as conducting the following work: "Warren and Charlestown Bridges, repairs to fender piers." Warren Bridge was demolished in 1962.

Works Progress Administration (W.P.A.) laborers constructed a water-storage hole for fire-fighting protection purposes, with respect 25 farms in outlying Billerica, Mass.

1939 MDC annual report: "Contract No. 128, P.W.A. Docket No. Mass. 1516-F — Mass. State Project No. D-203, was made with M. DeMatteo Construction Company of Roslindale on October 18, 1938 for the sum of $187,617.50, and was accepted by the Federal Emergency Administration of Public Works on October 20, 1938. The work on this contract comprised the furnishing and laying of about 11,000 linear feet of 36-inch steel water pipe for reinforcing Southern High-service Pipe Lines to Milton, Quincy and the Dorchester District of Boston." "The work on this contract was completed on October 6 at a total expenditure of $223,377.59." The W.P.A....

A water main construction project in Brookline, Mass. was undertaken with the assistance of federal Public Works Administration (PWA) funds. PWA Docket No. MA 1759

Works Progress Administration (W.P.A.) laborers constructed water mains in Mansfield, MA.

A water main construction project in New Bedford, Mass. was undertaken with the assistance of federal Public Works Administration (PWA) funds. PWA Docket No. MA 2038

A water main construction project in North Andover, Mass. was undertaken with the assistance of federal Public Works Administration (PWA) funds. PWA Docket No. MA 1990

A 1939 article cited work the WPA had been accomplishing in Stoughton, Mass. "The water main projects are employing upwards of 30 men and this project has given steady work to a similar number of men and a few more since last spring."

A water main construction project in Wakefield, Mass. was undertaken with the assistance of federal Public Works Administration (PWA) funds. PWA Docket No. MA 1746

A water main construction project in Worcester, Mass. was undertaken with the assistance of federal Public Works Administration (PWA) funds. PWA Docket No. MA 1712

Works Progress Administration (W.P.A.) constructed water pipes in Clinton, MA.

Works Progress Administration (WPA) conducted the following work in Plymouth, Massachusetts. WPA Bulletin: Additional Parking Space for the thousands of visitors who annually visit historical Plymouth Rock will be provided with the completion of this WPA Water Street stone sea-wall.

The Civil Works Administration (C.W.A.) constructed water mains in Maynard, Massachusetts, including along an 850-foot stretch of Parker St. in 1934. It and the Federal Emergency Relief Administration (F.E.R.A.) conducted repairs at the town's pumping station that year. Work was continued in subsequent years by the Works Progress Administration (W.P.A.).

Ashland's water system was greatly expanded during the 1930s as a result of federal assistance. Work included: High St.: The federal Civil Works Administration (C.W.A.) extended the water main system along High Street in 1933. The Works Progress Administration (W.P.A.) constructed wells there in 1935. Union St.: The Works Progress Administration (W.P.A.) extended the water system along Union St., E. Union St., and W. Union St. starting in 1935. Metropolitan Ave. (W.P.A., started 1935) Olive St. (W.P.A., started 1935) Cedar St. (W.P.A., 1937) Tri St. and Eliot St. (W.P.A., 1937) Prospect St. (W.P.A., 1937)

Works Progress Administration (W.P.A.) workers constructed Leominster's original water treatment facility, which has been drastically modernized on multiple occasions in the intervening decades. WPA Bulletin: As a public health safety measure the Leominster WPA has constructed a large water filtration plant on Monoosnock River . Many skilled and unskilled workers were employed on this project.

"This bridge is part of a street construction program undertaken to allow traffic passing through the city to bypass the congested business area. The project consisted of the construction of approximately 11,300 feet of highway connecting Roosevelt Avenue at one end with Houghton Avenue at the other, the construction of a rigid frame bridge at State Street with ramps up to State Street, and the construction of the Watershops Pond Bridge illustrated on this page. This bridge has steel girders and concrete spans with hung arches and stone facing on concrete piers and abutments resting on pile foundations. The total length...

The W.P.A. conducted extensive improvement and development projects at the former Watertown Arsenal. Project details: "Rehabilitate and make general improvements to buildings, utilities, facilities, and grounds" Official Project Number: 165‐2‐14‐363 Total project cost: $641,063.00 Sponsor: Commanding Officer, Watertown Arsenal, U.S. Army "Make general repairs and improvements to buildings and grounds" Official Project Number: 165‐24‐2005 Total project cost: $107,860.00 Sponsor: Commanding Officer and Board of Selection "Construct additions to buildings at Watertown Arsenal" Official Project Number: 165‐3‐14‐263 Total project cost: $67,884.00 Sponsor: War Department "Construct additions to existing buildings, rehabilitate and modernize buildings, utilities, and facilities, and improve grounds" Official Project Number: 165‐3‐14‐265 Total project cost: $111,100.00 Sponsor: Commanding Officer, Watertown Arsenal, U.S. Army "Recondition...

A waterworks construction project in Georgetown, Mass. was undertaken with the assistance of federal Public Works Administration (PWA) funds. PWA Docket No. MA 1551

A waterworks construction project in Paxton, Mass. was undertaken with the assistance of federal Public Works Administration (PWA) funds. The P.W.A. supplied a $70,000 loan and a $26,000 grant for the project, whose total cost was $90,540. Construction occurred between July 1934 and June 1935. PWA Docket No. MA 1164

"Many visible reminders of the  work are still in use. They include Fall River's Wattuppa Pond reservoir ..."

The federal Works Progress Administration (W.P.A.) conducted drainage work along Waushakum Ave. in 1935.

Town Report, 1938: National Youth Administration An average of 35 young people from needy families have been given part time employment by this branch of the W.P.A., on various worthy and useful projects. The boys have improved the land at Waushakum Pond purchased by the town for a bathing beach; have graded and improved town playgrounds, and since Sept. 21, 1938, have been continuously employed in clearing up the effects of the hurricane damage in the parks and playgrounds. The girls have acted as helpers in the Nursery schools.