Maryland Sites

Mitchell Jamieson painted this mural "Tobacco Cutters" in 1938 for the Treasury Section of Fine Arts in what was previously the post office.

The public library building in Upper Marlboro used to be the town Post Office, built in 1936 – one of  1,100 post offices built by the U.S. Treasury Department as part of the New Deal.  Today, it serves as the Upper Marlboro branch of the Prince George's County Memorial Library System.  The building is a good example of  the Colonial Revival style of architecture used often in the eastern states under Louis A. Simon, Supervising Architect for the Treasury Department.  A large mural painted for the post office by local artist Mitchell Jamieson still hangs on its interior west wall. 

This 16' x 6' oil on canvas entitled "The Old Tavern" was painted by Nicolai Cikovsky in 1937 for the former Silver Spring Post Office, under the auspices of the Treasury Section of Fine Arts. When the old post office closed down in 1981, the mural was moved to the Silver Spring Public Library – which itself relocated in recent years to Wayne Avenue.

The Works Progress Administration (WPA) repaired dikes around the town reservoir in 1935.

This retaining wall was built by the WPA in 1938. It has been holding residents' front yards in place for three quarters of a century.

"By the early 1930's, it was evident that we were outgrowing our original fire house with swing out doors. In the mid 1930's plans were drawn up and approved to build a new firehouse in Riverdale. This new structure was built in 1937 using federal public works funds and was designed to house the fire apparatus of the time, plus a town meeting hall was incorporated into the plan for the second floor over the firehouse. During subsquent years it has been necessary to build several additions onto the existing firehouse."

Formerly named the Rockville Academy, this building now houses a private business. The current building replaced an even older building in 1890. It was remodeled by the WPA in 1935, when it was turned from the Rockville elementary school into a Library Association building.

Built in 1798, the Rossborough Inn is today the oldest building on what is now the campus of the University of Maryland College Park. The WPA was involved in extensive renovation and improvement of the Inn in 1937-38 including: "Improve and restore Rossborough Inn, including tearing out and rebuilding old work, altering interior, painting, constructing new additions, installing plumbing and electrical facilities."   (National Archives) "Articles in the University of Maryland archives reveal that WPA grants funded renovation of the building starting in 1938. The Dec. 14, 1937, issue of the Sun reported that the WPA approved $19,042 for renovation, and the...

Savage River State Forest is the largest state forest in Maryland. It offers the following: “Biking trails, boat launch, cross country skiing, campsites, fishing, flat water canoeing, hiking trail, historic interest, hunting, picnic, riding trails, shelters, snowmobiling, white water canoeing” (https://dnr.maryland.gov/publiclands/western/savageriverforest.asp). With CCC labor during the Great Depression, “Thousands of trees were planted in the state forest, and considerable timber-stand improvement was accomplished. Many forest fires were brought under control” (https://www.dnr.state.md.us/centennial/CCC_History_Part_II.asp).

Sligo Creek Elementary School in Silver Spring MD – the former Montgomery Blair High School – was built in 1935 with funding from the Public Works Administration (PWA). A 1939 report by the PWA provide details: "The building contains 13 classrooms, a special English classroom with a stage, administrative offices, a conference room, laboratories for science and biology, a library, rooms for music and domestic science, and a cafeteria for the students. The school was named for the Postmaster General of President Lincoln's Cabinet. The construction is steel frame with reinforced-concrete floor slabs, exterior walls of red brick trimmed with limestone and wood,...

Sligo Creek Parkway is a landscaped, two-lane roadway in Montgomery County MD that runs parallel to Sligo Creek and the Sligo Creek Trail.  It begins at Maryland Route 650 in Takoma Park, travels through Silver Spring, and ends further north at MD 193.  The Works Progress Administration (WPA) did extensive work on the parkway in 1935-36, including: "building drains along existing concrete roads, ditch digging, laying storm drains, creek cribbing, footbridges, masonry headwalls; clearing, grubbing and seeding park land; building a running track, foot paths, playground equipment, drinking fountains, and shelters."   (Maryland Historical Trust)

This building was built by the WPA circa 1938-1939, and was the high school for Princess Anne, Maryland, for many years. Today, the building still serves the public as the Somerset County Office Building.

The Works Progress Administration (WPA) conducted improvement work, including painting, at School No. 70, later known as Southern High School. The school was located on the south side of Warren Ave. in the Federal Hill neighborhood of Baltimore. It has since been converted to an apartment building. Maryland WPA Project #15.

The Works Progress Administration improved roads in Williamsport, Maryland. A photograph shows improvements made at Vermont St. and Salisbury St. Maryland WPA Project #6.

The CCC built an administrative building, a pavilion, and a restroom at Swallow Falls State Park. All are still in use. The CCC boys also planted trees, performed fire suppression work, and engaged in other projects throughout the area. Visitors to Swallow Falls State Park can camp, hike, picnic, and swim; but extreme caution should be used when swimming due to wet rocks, several waterfalls, and strong currents. There are, however, calm areas to swim, for example, the usually-gentle and more sandy Tolliver Falls area. Swallow Falls is one of the most beautiful parks in the country, and a living testament to...

A plaque at the entrance to Taylor Park reads: “Taylor Park, Developed by the Burgess and Commissioners of Keedysville, In Cooperation with the Work Projects Administration, 1940.” According to records held at the National Archives, the WPA’s work included “excavating; grading; surfacing; constructing base, walks, drives, paths, play and parking areas, refreshment stand, shelters, tennis and horseshoe courts, and sidewalks; erecting flagpole; installing playground equipment, park lighting system, and sanitary facilities; landscaping; planting trees and shrubs.”

This PWA building was used as a fire station until the 1960s, when Company 19 moved into a new fire station on the same block. The original building still seems to be standing next door to the new station, and may be what is now the Olde Friends Antique Show. According to the Bowie Fire Department's history page: "In 1936, after much discussion, site searching and deliberating, Mr. Isaac Kimmel sold his vegetable garden plot on 9th Street, adjoining his store to the Fire Department for $700.00. Again progress and plans were under way to get financing for the construction of...

Around 1938, the PWA extended Tubman Hall through the addition of two east and west wings, thus creating an H-shaped plan. "Harriet Tubman Hall opened in 1921 and is the oldest building on the campus of Bowie State University. Named after the leader of the Underground Railroad and heroine to the African American race, this residence hall is known for having a strong sense of community. It currently houses approximately 162 female students. Tubman is very cozy and personal and it cultivates an environment that fosters the development of healthy, well-rounded young women."   (https://www.bowiestate.edu) The PWA also enlarged Banneker Hall around the...

"This bridge is in the north section of Baltimore. It connects the vehicular traffic on the eastern and western sides of the Jones Fall valley and crosses the Pennsylvania Railroad. It is approximately 1,375 feet long. The roadway is 40 feet wide with two 7-foot-10-inch sidewalks. There are two main arch spans, each 230 feet long, and three 30-foot arches near each end. It is faced with granite, constructed in the same manner as the Hilton Parkway bridges... The project was completed in January 1938 at a construction cost of $601,414 and a project cost of $603,322."

Baltimore's third custom house was designed by the firm Hornblower and Marshall and completed 1907. The building was improved several times during the New Deal era, with notable projects including the addition of new passenger and freight elevators. The GSA notes other improvements.

This large office building in the Suitland Federal Center –also known as Federal Office Buildings #3 – was constructed by the Public Building Administration (a branch of the Federal Works Agency) in 1941-1942 to be the headquarters of the U.S. Census Bureau, which remained in the building until 2007. Unfortunately, due to deterioration, the building was demolished a few years after that. 

According to WPA records in the National Archives, WPA labor was used in 1935-41 to: "Make improvements at the University of Maryland…by constructing agricultural buildings including barns, silos, storehouses, sheds, and similar structures, and performing appurtenant work; Make improvements at the University of Maryland at College Park…by constructing modern buildings, making additions to and remodeling existing buildings; Construct and improve buildings and facilities at the University of Maryland…includes constructing apiary, cottages, retaining walls, gateways, roads, curbs, parking spaces, and walks; installing plumbing, heating, and electrical facilities, underground electric lines, telephone cables, and campus lights; excavating; backfilling; landscaping; planting; seeding; Construct...

The PWA, in addition to the WPA, was involved in building the University of Maryland campus. From the United States Community Improvement Appraisal: "The University of Maryland has been the beneficiary of funds furnished by the United States Government through the Public Works Administration in connection with the construction of a new Women's Dormitory and an Arts and Science Building at College Park, the remodeling of a Dairy Manufacturing Building at College Park, and the reconstruction and equipping of tho old University Hospital in Baltimore for use as a Dispensary. Without the financial assistance given by the Federal Government in connection with...

Mitchell Jamieson painted the mural “Tobacco Cutters” in 1938 for the Treasury Section of Fine Arts to hang in the former Upper Marlboro post office. The building is now the Upper Marlboro branch of the Prince George's County public library.  The mural is located over the circulation desk.

In 1933, the Public Works Administration allotted $15,000 for the construction of an Upper Potomac Interceptor extension. The Evening Star described this project in its September 3rd (Sunday Star) edition: “This will complete the last link of a sewer located along the north shore of the Potomac between Rock Creek and the District line to intercept sewage discharging directly into the Upper Potomac. The section to be built is in the line of Newark street between the Chesapeake & Ohio Canal and Conduit road .” In 1934, the District awarded a contract for the work to the Peter D’Amato Construction Company,...

The Walter Reed National Military Medical Center began life as the National Naval Medical Center under the New Deal. Congress appropriated the funds in 1937 and President Franklin D. Roosevelt selected the site in Bethesda, Maryland.   Architect Paul Cret designed a magnificent Moderne building with a tower that still delights (though much obscured by subsequent additions to the complex).  Construction began in 1939.  FDR laid the cornerstone of the famous tower on Armistice Day 1940, and the center opened soon thereafter (probably some time in 1941, not 1940 as most sources say). According to the official Center website, "The President’s vision was to...

According to National Park Service photograph records at Antietam National Battlefield, PWA project number FP 420 (probably occurring between 1934 and 1936) was the repair of the War Correspondents Memorial Arch--a national historic monument--at what is now Gathland State Park. This appears to be one of several PWA-funded repairs of Civil War-related structures and sites in Frederick and Washington counties during the Great Depression. A wayside marker near the Arch describes its origin and unique design: “This stone Arch, the culmination of (George) Townsend’s architectural endeavors, was built in 1896 a permanent memorial to newspaper correspondents, artists, and photographers of the Civil...

Washington Monument State Park was first developed by the CCC, circa 1934-1936. The CCC built a number of structures in the park, but the most well-known is the Washington Monument, the first completed monument to honor George Washington. The monument was first built in 1827, by the townspeople of nearby Boonsboro; but by 1934 it was in near-complete ruin. The CCC demolished what was left, and rebuilt the monument to its original specifications. This relatively small park is a good location for hiking (the park’s hiking trail is part of the Appalachian Trail), picnicking, and is “an ideal site for spotting...

The WPA installed water mains around Takome Park, Maryland, including along Saratoga Avenue (now part of Maryland Route 320).

"According to a Maryland Historical Trust report, "Westbrook Elementary School (1939) is an important architectural landmark in the history of Montgomery County and its public school. It is the only Federal Public Works school in the county. A plaque in the school's main hall identifies the building as a project of the Federal Works Agency, Public Works Administration and includes the names John M. Carmody, Federal Works Agency and Franklin Delano Roosevelt, President of the United States." Also, according to the school's history page (https://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/schools/westbrookes/about/westbrookhistory.aspx) Westbrook was built with the assistance of WPA labor."

In 1938, the New Deal’s Public Works Administration (PWA) awarded a grant for the construction of additions to Bruce High School (present-day Westernport Elementary School) in Westernport, Maryland. George F. Hazelwood of Cumberland, Maryland won the contract to build the additions with a bid of $79,940. We don’t know the exact amount of PWA money that went towards the project, but the additions were part of a larger school improvements initiative in Allegany County, where the PWA put about $491,000 (45%) towards the total $1,092,000 required. Thus, the amount of PWA grant money that went towards the Bruce High School additions...

The Williamsport Community Building at Byron Memorial Park, in Williamsport, Maryland, was constructed by WPA workers in 1938. The building is still used today, highlighting once again the enduring value of WPA projects.

The Williamsport Memorial Library was built with the assistance of the WPA in 1936-1937. The library is a memorial to 14 Williamsport High School students who lost their lives in 1935, when the bus they were riding in was hit by a train.

This beautiful structure, the Williamsport Town Hall, was built by the WPA in 1939.

Winter Quarters Log Cabin was built by the WPA in 1940, and continues to serve the community today. From the Pocomoke City Government website for the cabin: “Are you looking for a quiet and beautiful setting for your next retreat, wedding reception, company meeting or conference?...Our rustic log cabin was built in the 1940's offers a full kitchen, handicap accessibility, ample parking and easy access from highway Rt 13 & Rt 113.  The interior features a beautiful fireplace and tables/chairs for up to 50 persons.  The log cabin faces the unspoiled Pocomoke River with adjacent public docks and a boat ramp. There...

According to the index of WPA projects at the National Archives, WPA crews both helped improve the water system and constructed sidewalks in the Woodside Park subdivision.