• Beltsville Airport (former) - Beltsville MD
    In 1941, the Works Progress Administration  (WPA) conducted improvement work on a grass airstrip at Beltsville MD. The Washington Post reported in April that “clearing, grubbing, grading, draining, construction of runways, seeding and installation of lighting facilities" had begun.   Two hangars were slated to be constructed, as well, but probably were never built – since they were still not present at the site in 1945, according to Abandoned and Little-Known Airfields website. In 1980, the airfield was decommissioned and bulldozed. The site is now part of the giant Henry Wallace Beltsville Agricultural Research Station and occupied by USDA Animal and Plant Health...
  • Henry A. Wallace Beltsville Agricultural Research Center - Beltsville MD
    The Henry A. Wallace Beltsville Agricultural Research Center, or BARC, is a unit of the United States Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Research Service. BARC is the largest agricultural research complex in the world. It was founded in 1910 and greatly expanded under the New Deal.  Several New Deal agencies were involved in this massive  project, presumably working under the direction of the USDA's Bureau of Plant Industry (which later became part of the Agricultural Research Service). To begin with, the Public Works Administration (PWA) purchased the land and paid for clearing, drainage, water lines, roads, walkways and an irrigation system.  The...
  • Henry A. Wallace Beltsville Agricultural Research Center: Log Lodge - Beltsville MD
    The Log Lodge at the Henry A. Wallace Beltsville Agricultural Research Center was constructed by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) from pine and white oak logs harvested on-site.  Construction of the lodge was started in 1934 by the Works Progress Administration (WPA), but little advanced when work halted. It was completed in 1937 by the CCC. "Construction of the lodge was started in 1934 by the Works Progress Administration, but work stopped when the structure was four logs high. It was completed in 1937 by the CCC. The building was modeled after lodges in Yellowstone National Park. All logs and lumber used...