AC Brace Arena – Cape Girardeau MO
Designed by Hal Lynch and J. Carl Jourdan and completed in 1939, this Art Deco style arena has been upgraded and well-maintained through the years. The stage is original.
Admiral Coontz Armory – Hannibal MO
The Hannibal Armory is constructed of rock that was obtained from a local quarry that also was the source for the adjacent Clemens field baseball field. There is a locked room that was previously used for arms, but the majority… read more
Affton High School (Former) – Affton MO
Affton High School was built by the PWA in 1935-37. The school has since been sold and repurposed into an extensive senior living center (The Village at Mackenzie Place). The old high school is at the front of the complex… read more
Alley Spring, Ozark National Scenic Riverways – Eminence MO
At Alley Spring, the CCC constructed many trails, rock walls, 11 buildings, campgrounds, roads, restored the mill including replacing the floor, and diverted the slough adjacent to the mill to insure that it did not silt in. The CCC unit… read more
Arrow Rock State Park – Arrow Rock MO
WPA workers were active in the park from 1934 to 1937 and built several structures during that time, including a triple arch stone bridge, a look-out shelter, an open picnic shelter, and a grave shelter.
Audrain Medical Center Nurses Home – Mexico MO
This nurses home was built in 1936 by the PWA on the Audrain Medical Campus to house nurses who worked in the hospital, and probably also nursing students. It is on the south side of the Medical Center.
Babler Memorial State Park – Wildwood MO
“On August 20, 1930, Jacob Babler and his younger brother Henry Babler gave 868 acres of land to the State of Missouri, to be named the Dr. Edmund A. Babler Memorial State park. These were difficult and trying times in… read more
Barretts School – Manchester MO
When constructed by the WPA in 1937-39, Barretts Elementary School was a two room school built of limestone. The school has been extended several times since then, but the original WPA construction is still used as the school kindergarten today.
Baskett Wildlife Research and Education Center – Ashland MO
This densely forested area in the 30’s was marginal land having been logged and overgrazed. This prompted the purchase of these marginal farms which were nearly bankrupt and the formation of the Baskett Wildlife Research and Education Center, a function… read more
Bayless High School – St. Louis MO
“This high school is planned so that when the need arises additions may be made. The present building is T-shaped in plan and two stories in height. It provides seven classrooms, teachers’ rooms, a principal’s office, a chemical laboratory, a… read more
Benjamin Allen Hall, Lincoln University – Jefferson City MO
Benjamin Allen Hall is named after an early 20th Century Lincoln University president and was built as a dormitory by the PWA in 1936. It served as housing for black legislators who could not find rooms at hotels in Jefferson… read more
Bennett Hall, Lincoln University – Jefferson City MO
This large 3 story brick building overlooks the east side of the Lincoln University campus and was “named in honor of Private Logan Bennett of the 65th U.S. Colored Infantry, who contributed money for Lincoln’s founding.” It was built in… read more
Bennett Spring State Park – Spring Hollow Township MO
“Bennett Spring State Park is located in Bennett Springs, Missouri, approximately 12 miles (19 km) west of Lebanon on Highway 64. The park was established in 1923. It is centered around the spring that flows into the Niangua River and gives… read more
Benton High School – Benton MO
The WPA constructed Benton High School in 1937. It was used as a high school until 1957, and then as an elementary school until 1970, after which it was put to community uses before being closed. It is a long,… read more
Blanchette Park – St. Charles MO
Blanchette Park is a large park overlooking the Missouri River Valley in northern St. Charles which was the first Missouri State Capital. The WPA’s work in the park included a swimming pool, lake, walks and fences, and remodeling of Memorial… read more
Bleachers & Surrounding Wall – Fredericktown MO
Tall rock wall with periodic columns for strength that is capped with concrete. It surrounds 3 sides of a large baseball field. One of the corners has a curved façade. The structure was completed with funds and labor provided by… read more
Bois D’Arc Elementary School – Bois D’Arc MO
Bois D’Arc Elementary School was constructed by the WPA in 1935-37.
Bollinger School (former) – Scopus MO
This school building is a WPA project from 1937. It has rock work that is particularly well-done, though rather spare. The walls are predominately dark river rock with lighter colored rock under the eaves, at the corners, and surrounding the door and… read more
Bragg City School – Bragg City MO
This small linear school was constructed as a PWA project in 1937. It features two gabled ends with a carved rock symbol of a lamp of knowledge. It is very similar to other schools of similar size in Missouri and… read more
Briar Fire Lookout Tower – Briar MO
This fire lookout tower outside Briar was a New Deal project completed in 1936. It is a typical design that is intact including stairway extending to the ground. Access is restricted by a surrounding high chain link fence topped with… read more
Broadway State Office Building – Jefferson City MO
This state office building was constructed in the Art Moderne style of Carthage marble in order to complement the state capitol which is north of the Broadway building. It was partly constructed with WPA funds.
Brownville Bridge – Brownville NE to MO
Brownville Bridge, which carries U.S. 136 over the Missouri River between Nebraska and Missouri, was constructed as a Public Works Administration (P.W.A.) project. Completed in 1939, the now-free bridge originally featured tolls.
Brush Creek Flood Control – Kansas City MO
Pictured is some of the remaining original paving installed by the WPA along Brush Creek as a flood control project in 1935. The project has a controversial history due to its relation to political machine boss Tom Pendergast’s Concrete Company…. read more
Callaway County Courthouse – Fulton MO
The courthouse has an art deco design and includes light fixtures and the external façade. The use of a stylized “u” that looks like a “v” was widely panned at the time. In addition to the plaques for the present… read more
Carnaham Memorial Gardens – Jefferson City MO
This sunken garden is chiseled out of the hill adjacent to the 1871 Governor’s Mansion that overlooks the Missouri state capital. The gardens were started in the late 1930s by the WPA. Work included extensive rock wall work. There is… read more
Carr Square Village – St. Louis MO
Large development of 2 and 3-story apartments just west of downtown St. Louis, interestingly just east of the up-coming and infamous Pruitt –Igoe public housing complex. Carr-Square Village is still in use, a testament to its forethought and sound construction…. read more
Carter County Courthouse – Van Buren MO
The Carter County Courthouse was a very early project ofthe Works Progress Administration, no. 168. Completed in 1936, it includes not only the courthouse itself, but the grounds and the surrounding native rock wall. This is the only native rock… read more
CCC Camp Smokey, Roaring River State Park – Cassville MO
CCC Company 1713 established Camp Smokey in Roaring River State Park in the 1930s and used it as a base from which to make extensive improvements throughout the area. The large CCC camp itself is still remarkably well-preserved. The camp… read more
Central VPA High School – St. Louis MO
This WPA school was built in 1936-1937 as the Southwest High School. It is now the Central Visual and Performing Arts High School. This school has been added onto multiple times and the front of the original building is not… read more
Chaffee Public Pool – Chaffee MO
This pool was designed by architect Wesley Bintz and constructed by the Works Progress Administration between 1937 and 1939 for $31,000. It is one of two above-ground pools designed by Bintz in the state of Missouri (Fayette has the other),… read more
Cherryville School – Cherryville MO
The Cherryville, MO school project is on the east side of route 19, just north of route 49. The school and gymnasium were more recently built, with funds and labor provided by the Works Progress Administration (WPA). The school is… read more
City Hall – Brentwood MO
“Brentwood is a suburb of St. Louis, a short distance west of the city, and had a population of 2,819 in 1930. Its new city hall is erected in a residential district and provides space for a council chamber, offices… read more
City Hall – Kansas City MO
“Kansas City has a well-studied plan for its civic center and the city hall block in area and consists of a rectangular base six stories high from which a tower rises to a height of 429 feet above the basement… read more
City Hall – Sullivan MO
Sullivan’s municipal building was completed by the Federal Emergency Administration of Public Works in 1937 and served as City Hall, police department, and jail as well as the town’s auditorium. While the police department has moved, this New Deal building… read more
City Hall – Vanduser MO
WPA crews built the wood frame Vanduser City Hall in 1936, with a federal contribution of $9664.
City Hall Auditorium – Salem MO
The city hall auditorium in Salem was constructed in 1940 as a PWA project, designed by architect Ernest Friton. This 3-story building includes office space and a city auditorium, and is presently in use.
City Hall Murals – St. Louis MO
A 1990 St. Louis City Hall History Brochure contains the following description: “The murals inside the Market and Tucker Blvd entrances were painted in 1934 by Carl Bonfig, who was described as a decorator. He was paid $1.37 an hour… read more
City Hall Sculptures – Kansas City MO
Artist Carl Paul Jennewein created a series of fountains flanking the walkway to the PWA city hall entrance, descending to the south away from the city hall with a winged horse followed by shells and fantastical creatures. C. Paul Jennewein,… read more