McComb Sites

Burglund Heights, a public low-income housing complex for African Americans, was begun January 17, 1940. Thirteen buildings were planned to house 76 families, at a projected cost of $231,670. M. T. Reed Construction Company built the units. Work crew included 300 mechanics and laborers. The units were proposed to address inadequate living conditions for both black and white families in McComb, including lack of indoor toilets, running water, and houses in dilapidated condition. Construction was scheduled for completion August 1, 1940 and occupancy began September 1 with an average monthly rental of $11.00 including rent and utilities. The two-story brick units...

Preliminary work on one of the largest earth dams to be constructed by the Civilian Conservation Corps enrollees in the south began with the clearing of the site for a 540-acre lake along the Tangipahoa river. Excavation began July 1, with work on the dam construction planned for mid July. Plans called for a barrier of 100,000 cubic yards of earth, spillway 300 feet wide and 800 feet long. The work was on Highway 48, five miles southwest of McComb. Engineer was George Long supervising the local crew of the Civilian Conservation Corp enrollees. Lake Tangipahoa was adjacent to the...

McComb's municipal auditorium/city armory/gymnasium on Virginia Avenue served as the armory for Company L, 155th infantry from 1938-1940 (MDAH/Historic Resources Inventory). Constructed by the Work Progress Administration between 1936-1938, the facility was destroyed by fire in 1952. Work on the field house was begun in July 1936, and within a few weeks, the gymnasium and armory components were added. Work was suspended December 1936 when the facility was 30% complete. A February 1937 news item indicated "work will be resumed on the long stagnated combination Field House, Gymnasium and Armory building" (To resume work, p. 1). A. J. Spradlin was...

Percy Quin State Park was cleared and constructed by the members of the camp at Percy Quin, established August 16, 1935 (CCC Legacy). The park opened in 1939 after 4 years of construction, and was the 9th of 10 state parks built by the CCC in Mississippi. The rustic pavilion was completed in 1938. The lodge and group cabins were brick, in a Colonial Revival design, atypical of most CCC constructed state park facilities. Lake Tangipahoa, part of the state park, was reported to have been constructed by Works Progress Administration in 1936 (Clarion-Ledger).

Preliminary plans for White Acres for white tenants was planned for South McComb in January 1940. The proposed unit was project Miss. 3-2, comprising 15 residential buildings and one administration/service building, and housing 84 families. Construction was by J. K. Fraser with a cost of $203,400. Architects were Landry and Matthes. The project involved razing existing structures, and grading, landscaping, plumbing and electrical work for the new structures. The two-story brick units are still in use.