North Carolina Sites

On 8 Dec. 1938, NC State College signed an agreement with the National Youth Administration for the later to build a training center on campus. The college had no input on the design or construction of the center, which comprised a group of buildings. In 1943 or 1944 the college took control of the facility, which was labeled “NYA Buildings” on maps from that time period. The center was demolished in 1959, and it was located on the eastern portion of present-day Miller Field and the Jordan Hall Addition on the NC State University campus.

In 1933, North Carolina State College developed plans for new concrete stands to seat about 16,000 spectators at the existing Riddick Stadium on campus. That same year funding from the Reconstruction Finance Corporation allowed construction of several sections of concrete stands on the east side of the stadium. In 1934, funding from the Public Works Administration (PWA) allowed construction of the final section of the east stands. In 1935, additional PWA funding resulted in construction of all sections of concrete stands on the west side of stadium. The original plans called for concrete stands on the south side to connect...

The Public Works Administration built the “C” Dormitory at North Carolina State College in Raleigh, North Carolina. Today the dormitory is still in service under the name Turlington Residence Hall. Construction of new dormitory building for 400 students: brick load-bearing exterior walls, steel column with bar joist and concrete slab floor construction, and steel roof trusses with Nailcrete slab and slate shingle roof. The interior finish was plaster with wood trim and Bruce random length flooring.

The Public Works Administration funded the construction of the West Barn, East Barn, and Milking Parlor at the North Carolina State University in Raleigh NC. Construction of a dairy plant complex comprising barns, managers residence, and other buildings, on a farm managed by the North Carolina State College. In the 1970s, the site became part of the North Carolina State University's College of Veterinary Medicine.

Two New Deal work relief programs: the Civil Works Administration (CWA) and Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA) were responsible for the construction of a dam impounding the North Fork Reservoir (a.k.a. Burnett Reservoir) north of Black Mountain, North Carolina, part of a massive project to improve the water supply for Asheville. Work at the site also included construction of a chlorination plant and caretaker's house for said. The status of the structures is unknown to Living New Deal. Asheville Citizen-Times: "Begun Under CWA In 1933, Resumed By FERA In 1934 With completion of the North Pork water line project by forces of the...

In 1939 the existing 1859 courthouse was extensively renovated and a new rear addition was added. This work was attributed to the WPA in a 1978 report entitled 100 Courthouses,  A Report on North Carolina Judicial Facilities. The architect for the new addition was A. Mitchell Wooten, who did the Lenoir Courthouse.

The federal Civil Works Administration (CWA) constructed a gymnasium at the old high school for the Oakhurst school district in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina (now within the city limits of Charlotte). The structure, whose exact location is unknown to Living New Deal, no longer exists. "The Long Creek High School Gymnasium was one of eight facilities of its general type constructed in Mecklenburg County under the arrangements outlined above, the others being at the high schools then in the local school districts of Huntersville, Paw Creek, Pineville, Sharon, Oakhurst, Berryhill, and Bain. Only the Long Creek Gymnasium survives from this initial...

The Old Fort Community Building was built in 1937 with aid from the Works Progress Administration. Native river stone was used in its construction. It served as a community center and later an inn. Since 1973 the building has been home to the Mountain Gateway Museum and Heritage Center administered by the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources. The museum interprets the history and culture of the mountain and foothills regions through exhibits and educational programming.

The WPA constructed 91 schools in North Carolina. The former (and now privately owned) elementary school in the southwest N.C. town of Otto was one such school; it opened in 1941.

From volume II of a 1978 report entitled 100 Courthouses, A Report on North Carolina Judicial Facilities: "In 1938 the Works Progress Administration, with Raymond Fuson serving as architect, built a new building in Bayboro." The new courthouse was Neoclassical in style. "The plain interiors echo...the realities of the Depression era when money for decorative frills was scarce".

The federal Civil Works Administration (CWA) constructed a gymnasium at the old high school for the Paw Creek school district in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina (now within the city limits of Charlotte). The structure, whose exact location is unknown to Living New Deal, no longer exists. "The Long Creek High School Gymnasium was one of eight facilities of its general type constructed in Mecklenburg County under the arrangements outlined above, the others being at the high schools then in the local school districts of Huntersville, Paw Creek, Pineville, Sharon, Oakhurst, Berryhill, and Bain. Only the Long Creek Gymnasium survives from this...

"Penderlea Homestead Farms, located in northwest Pender County, North Carolina, was the first of 152 homestead projects developed in 1934 under President Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal. The purpose of the homestead projects was to provide penniless tenant farmers, bankrupt farm owners, and unemployed ex-farmers during the Great Depression with a means of making a living. Providing for self-sufficient rural communities also eased the burden of over-crowded cities. n 1934, Hugh MacRae, prominent Wilmington developer and agriculturist, proposed to the Division of Subsistence Homesteads, U.S. Department of the Interior, that a homestead project be established in Pender County... In May of1935, the Resettlement...

"Perry School is located on the south side of Laurel Mill-Centerville Road (SR 1436) 1.4 miles northwest of the Centerville community in Franklin County, North Carolina. Centerville is a small incorporated community of approximately 100 people that lies twelve miles to the northeast of Louisburg, the seat of Franklin County... The school, made up of four buildings spanning the construction period 1941 to 1963, an athletic field with fencing, and brick gate posts erected by two graduating classes. In 1941, the county built the campus’s frame Colonial Revival-style school using funds from the Public Works Administration (PWA), part of Franklin Roosevelt’s...

The federal Works Progress Administration contributed to the early development of Pettigrew State Park.

The federal Civil Works Administration (CWA) constructed a gymnasium at the old high school in Pineville, North Carolina. The structure, whose exact location is unknown to Living New Deal, no longer exists. "The Long Creek High School Gymnasium was one of eight facilities of its general type constructed in Mecklenburg County under the arrangements outlined above, the others being at the high schools then in the local school districts of Huntersville, Paw Creek, Pineville, Sharon, Oakhurst, Berryhill, and Bain. Only the Long Creek Gymnasium survives from this initial round of construction." (cmhpf.org)

The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) contributed to the development of Pisgah National Forest.

"The Works Progress Administration constructed the Greenville Airport in 1940 on land that was jointly owned by the city of Greenville and Pitt County. A Civil Pilot training Program operated from the airport until it was leased by the United States Navy on May 1, 1942 to be an outlying field of Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point. The field was under utilized until November 30, 1942, when it was announced that it would be upgraded by the Civil Aeronautics Administration."

The Police Department headquarters in Thomasville, North Carolina was originally built as the community's city hall and municipal building during the Great Depression. Construction of the Art Deco-style building was enabled by the federal Public Works Administration (PWA), which provided a substantial grant ($45,818 of the project's $118,344 eventual final cost). Construction occurred between June 1937 and March 1938. A National Register of Historic Places registration form discusses the building: "The Raleigh firm of William C. Olsen and Associates, Engineers and Architects, designed the building. Albert L. Haskins Jr. was the architectural associate, and Olsen was the consulting engineer. When City Hall...

The historic post office in Beaufort, North Carolina was constructed in 1938 with federal Treasury Department funds. It is home to four New Deal murals by Simka Simkhovitch—"Criss Wright," "Goose Decoys," "Mail to Cape Lookout," and "Sand Ponies"—all painted in 1940 for the Treasury Section of Fine Arts.

The historic New Deal post office in downtown Boone, North Carolina was constructed in 1938-9. The building, which houses an example of New Deal artwork, is still in use today.

The Gastonia post office was completed in 1935 with the assistance of funds provided by the federal government. It is also the site of Francis Speight's 1938 mural, "Cotton Field and Spinning Mill," painted for the Treasury Section of Fine Arts and available for view in the lobby.

The post office in Hamlet, NC, was completed in 1941 with funds provided by the Treasury Department. It is also the site of Nina de Brennecke's three carve mahogany bas relief sculptures--"Dewberries," "Drilling," and "Peaces"--completed in 1942 under the Treasury Section of Fine Arts and viewable in the lobby.

The historic post office in Lincolnton, North Carolina was constructed with federal Treasury Department funds in 1937. The building houses an example of New Deal artwork inside.

The historic post office in Louisburg, North Carolina was constructed with New Deal funds and completed in 1937. The building, which houses an example of New Deal artwork, is still in service.

The post office in Red Springs was completed in 1939 with funds provided by the Treasury Department. It is also the site of John W. de Groot's 1941 murals--"Battle of Little Raft Swamp," "Coming of the Scots," and "Peace--Work and Knowledge"-- completed with funds provided by the Treasury Section of Fine Arts and viewable in the lobby.

This 1940 post office, constructed with funds from the federal government, is home to Maxwell B. Starr's 1942 mural, "Building the First House at Siler's Crossroads," paid for by the Treasury Section of Fine Arts and available for view in the lobby.

The Southern Pines post office was completed during the Depression with funds provided by the federal government. It is also the site of Joseph Presser's mural, "Southern Pines Idyll," painted in 1943 for the Treasury Section of Fine Arts.

The historic post office in Warrenton, North Carolina was constructed in 1937 with federal Treasury Department funds. The building, which houses an example of New Deal artwork, is still in service.

The Williamston Post Office opened in 1939, and was built with funding from the Treasury Department. It also houses a mural by Phillip Von Saltza depicting the Wright Brothers' first airplane test flight.

The Transylvania County Administration building at 101 South Broad Street in Brevard, North Carolina was originally constructed as a New Deal post office. The post office was one of several similar Federal/Greek Revival-style facilities in western North Carolina. Per The Transylvania Times: "On Aug. 3, 1938 bids were received on 10 sites available in the downtown Brevard. A lot on the corner of Broad and Morgan streets was purchased from Mrs. Beulah Zachary for $4,000 on May 5, 1939. Groundbreaking took place on May 6, 1940. The Post Office began operating from the building in January 1941." "The building served as the...

The historic New Deal post office in Canton, North Carolina is privately owned.

This post office building was constructed by the Treasury Department in 1939. At the time, the town name was Leaksville, but during the 1960s, Leaksville merged with two other communities to form the present town of Eden. When the current Eden post office was opened in 1991, this post office was shut down. The building still appears to be in good shape but seems to be empty. The Section of Fine Arts sculpture that was originally installed in this building, now hangs in the new Eden post office.

The old post office in Franklin was built with New Deal funds in 1935. The building now houses the Macon County offices of Veterans Affairs and Emergency Services.

The old post office building in Madison was constructed with New Deal funds in 1940.

The old post office in Marion, NC was built with New Deal funds in 1936. It now houses the McDowell County Library.

The historic post office building in Newton, North Carolina was constructed with federal Treasury Department funds in 1937. The post office has since relocated and the historic New Deal-era building now serves as the Old Post Office Playhouse.

The historic post office building in Roxboro, North Carolina was constructed during the Great Depression with Treasury Department funds. The building, which opened in 1937, has since been re-purposed. A New Deal mural still hangs in the lobby of the building, which now houses the Piedmont Community College Educational Opportunity Center.

The plaster relief titled "Unity" was created for the historic post office building in Marion, North Carolina, now the library. The relief has been moved from above what would have been the Postmaster's door and placed on the wall of what was the basement of the post office, now the lower floor of the library.

The mural "Early Summer in North Carolina" was painted by Jean Watson in 1940 as a federal Treasury Department Section of Fine Arts project for the old Madison, North Carolina post office. The mural was relocated to the lobby of the new postal facility in the community.

New York artist Allan Gould completed this oil on canvas mural, "Gathering Tobacco," measuring 5'8" by 13'7", in 1938, on a $650 contract from the Treasury Section of Fine Arts. From historian Anita Price Davis' 2008 book New Deal Art in North Carolina: The Murals, Sculptures, Reliefs, Paintings, Oils and Frescoes and Their Creators: "Artist Allan D. Gould drew on Roxboro's agricultural prowess for the mural he prepared for the Roxboro Post Office. His mural Gathering Tobacco shows workers stripping, tying, and grading tobacco outside a barn where tobacco is dried" (p. 146). The mural still hangs in the lobby...