• Horsetail Hill Road - Madison ME
    The August 24 1933 issue of the Independent Reporter lists 7 CWA projects for Somerset County, including $8,000 for the Horsetail Hill road from 12 corners all the way to Cass Corner in Cornville. A February 15, 1934 article adds some history.. From Clarks corner to Parkers corner, a large number of rocks to be used in the road were being taken from a former stagecoach stop called Deansville Depot. In clearing out the land for farming, an area next to the Bagley road was a dumping ground for large rocks and boulders and became the place to gather to...
  • School Athletic Field - Madison ME
    An article dated Jan. 11, 1934 speaks of New Deal assistance for the town, including the construction of a new athletic field: “Madison High School is to have one of the finest athletic fields in the state of Maine, thanks to the personal efforts of First Selectman James H. Thorne. Mr. Thorne saw the need of a modern athletic park at the local high school and through his efforts the Government has consented to forward more CWA funds to this town for the purpose of improving Alumni field. Several thousand dollars will be expended and about fifty men will be employed...
  • Sewers - Madison ME
    Community notes of April 25, 1935 document that FERA was involved in constructing sewer lines on Thomas and Heald Streets in a project that employed 34 men for several weeks. The Thomas St sewer pipe was 10 inches and the Heald St. pipe is 12 inches.
  • Somerset Residential Care Center - Madison ME
    During the Great Depression the Federal Emergency Relief Administration (F.E.R.A.) funded the labor for the construction of what is now known as the Somerset Residential Care Center, in Madison, Maine. When constructed, the facility went by a different name: the "town farm." Town farms were once the means by which rural towns in New England cared for or warehoused (depending on the local conditions) the elderly, the mentally handicapped, disabled, transients, etc. The community notes from April 11, 1935 notes that "Work started Friday forenoon on the two weeks' ERA project, painting and repairing the buildings at the Madison town farm. There...
  • Street Lighting - Madison ME
    The May 31, 1934 issue of the Illustrated Daily News reports on New Deal help with installing street lights in Madison, Maine. Powerful Street Lights Mounted on 31 Ornamental Poles Illuminate Madison New Street Light System Recently Installed Under Direction of E. W. Adams Extends From Hunnewell Corner to M.C.R.R. Crossing -- Real Credit To Town   An important epoch in the history of Madison Improvement was brought to completion of Monday evening May 21st with the turning on for the first time of the new ornamental street lights which have been in the process of installation since last November, the powerful lights giving...