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  • 16th Street Overpass - Hastings NE
    In September 1935, an enormous highway and grade crossing elimination program was approved by the state Public Works Administration (PWA) officials and was forwarded to Washington for final approval. The large number of projects would amount to a financial outlay of $3,614,500.00 in PWA funds, and an estimated $80,000.00 of the total would be spent on a grade separation at the intersection of Highway 281 and the Union Pacific tracks in Hastings. Although specifics had not yet been shared with the public, it was thought that the project would include an overpass near 16th Street and Kansas Avenue. The highway...
  • 23rd Street Water Main - Fremont NE
    An early Works Progress Administration (WPA) project in Fremont, Nebraska was described as follows: Water extension from Broad street to Nye avenue on Twenty-third street. This included the laying of 1,294 feet of 6 inch water main and the placing of two fire hydrants to improve the fire protection in this section of town. The project provided two weeks' employment for 18 persons.
  • Airport Development - North Platte NE
    The Works Progress Administration (WPA) conducted work at what is now North Platte Regional Airport. "Project 996" involved "levelling land" at the airport.
  • Alliance Municipal Airport - Alliance NE
    Alliance Municipal Airport was enlarged, with several buildings constructed and the landing field extended, by the federal Works Progress Administration (WPA).
  • Ames Avenue Paving - Omaha NE
    The Civil Works Administration (CWA) conducted improvement work on Ames Avenue in Omaha, Nebraska. "Omaha's first completed CWA project is now ready for use ... It is the repaved south half of Ames avenue, west of Twenty-fourth street."
  • Athletic Facilities, University of Nebraska at Kearney - Kearney NE
    Kearney State Teachers College was granted almost $10,000.00 in a WPA grant to improve its athletic facilities. The project was planned to be very “inclusive.” It included improving the current football and athletic field at the college, and leveling and grading the area to the north of the gridiron and practice field, formerly part of the “college farm.” Preliminary surveys called for the moving of much earth, and additional parking space would be among the improvements. Tennis courts and other recreational facilities would also be provided. If costs proved reasonable, the track and bleachers were possible additions to the project. In...
  • Athletic Field - Lyman NE
    The Works Progress Administration (WPA) constructed a "flood-light athletic field" in Lyman, Nebraska. The location and status of the structure are presently unknown to Living New Deal.
  • Auburn Schools Central Offices (former High School) - Auburn NE
    Auburn, Nebraska's central school offices was constructed as high school as part of a federal Public Works Administration (PWA) project. The PWA provided a grant of $59,413 for the project, whose total cost was $132,306. Construction occurred between Dec. 1937 and Dec. 1938. PWA Docket No. Neb. 1301
  • Auditorium - Ravenna NE
    In December 1933, the Ravenna News reported that the city of Ravenna had been approached by the Buffalo County CWA (Civil Works Administration) Board with an offer of a grant for $6000.00 for the purpose of building a city auditorium. As a result of a bequest from a former citizen, William Bohning, in the amount of $5000.00, which was willed to the city for the express purpose of building a city hall, the city of Ravenna would not have to increase taxes in order to raise funds for the city’s portion of the funding for the auditorium. The building would...
  • Auditorium - Spencer NE
    In 1935, Spencer applied for a Works Progress Administration (WPA) grant for the construction of an auditorium. When the town had not heard anything by November, a delegation of representatives of the town drove to Lincoln to speak with Mr. Felton, the state director of the WPA. He assured them that, while the federal government had not yet approved the project, the auditorium project seemed a worthy one, and was likely to be approved in due course. At the end of January 1936, Spencer had its answer: the project had been approved. However, they did not receive a full allocation...
  • Auditorium and Gymnasium - Rulo NE
    At least one source states that this historic combination auditorium / gymnasium building on 1st Street in Rulo, Nebraska was constructed as a Works Progress Administration (WPA) project in 1939. Per The Nebraska State Journal: With a $19,000 WPA grant, Rulo will turn its attention to a new gymnasium and community building. It is to be built of native stone, concrete, and steel and will be 102 feet long and 52 feet wide. The structure will have a basketball floor, 50 by 76 feet in size, a floor which will double for other purposes; stage and projection booth; and locker rooms. It...
  • Bandshell - Melbeta NE
    The Works Progress Administration (WPA) constructed a band shell in Melbeta, Nebraska. The location and status of the structure are presently unknown to Living New Deal, though we believe it to be no longer extant.
  • Bandshell (demolished) - Scottsbluff NE
    The Work Progress Administration (WPA) constructed a bandshell at Central Park—also known as Centennial Park—in Scottsbluff, Nebraska. It was dedicated in June 1936. There is no bandshell in the park today.
  • Beatrice Municipal Auditorium - Beatrice NE
    This striking two story Art Deco building in Beatrice was constructed by the PWA in 1939-40. The National Register form for the building states: "Compared to other WPA/PWA Art Deco auditoriums in Nebraska..., the Beatrice auditorium is quite exuberantly decorated with Art Deco detail. In place of the more common geometric and stylized motifs such as zigzags and chevrons, the motifs for the auditorium focused on agricultural motifs of corn cobs and sheaves of wheat to more artistically represent themes important to a medium-sized farming community, and reminiscent of the agricultural motifs found throughout the Nebraska State Capitol." (NRHP)  
  • Bell Street Improvements - Fremont NE
    An early Works Progress Administration (WPA) project in Fremont, Nebraska involved "grading and gravelling on Bell street shoulders in Fremont from First to Fourteenth street. This project provided three weeks' employment to 14 persons."
  • Benson Station Post Office - Omaha NE
    The historic Benson Station post office in Omaha, Nebraska was completed in 1941 with Treasury Department funds. The building is still in service.
  • Bessey Ranger District Construction and Reforestation - Halsey NE
    The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) reforested "20,000 acres of drifting sand hills and expanded Bessey Forest Nursery producing 30 million saplings for reforestation." The CCC also "constructed a public campground and picnic area, shelter house, bath houses, and a swimming pool in the park."
  • Box Butte County Fairgrounds Improvements - Hemingford NE
    "Projects completed by the WPA included ... improving the Box Butte County Fairgrounds (BX04-026) ..."
  • Brainard School - Brainard NE
    In 1935, Brainard was given a grant of $24,000.00 from the Public Works Administration (PWA) for the construction of a new school. The total cost of the school was estimated to be $52,000.00.
  • 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. Constructed in 1938-1939, the now-free bridge originally featured tolls.
  • Bryan Park - Valentine NE
    Just east of the Bryan Bridge across the Niobrara, the Veterans Conservation Corps completed a little park on 1.46 acres of ground purchased by the state for park purposes. A driveway was built at the east and south corner of the bridge. In the canyons and timber at the river’s edge, a footbridge was built, tables constructed, an oven built of concrete, and underbrush cleared away. Nearby residents considered the park one of the outstanding beauty spots of the state, taking advantage of the natural resources of the site for a marvelous park.
  • Buffalo County Fairgrounds - Kearney NE
    In the early 1930s, the Buffalo County Fair was in dire straits. It went broke and was taken over by the County Farm Bureau, and thence was taken over by the newly formed Buffalo County Fair Board. In 1936, the old grandstand blew down in a storm. It appeared to many that the County Fair was becoming an extinct entity. Plans for a new and improved Buffalo County Fairgrounds were announced in February 1937. Buildings were planned for construction that would total a financial outlay of approximately $25,000.00 and included two horse barns, a double hog shed, two cattle sheds, a...
  • Burt County Rural Public Power Co. Transmission Lines - Bertha NE
    In February 1937, officers and directors of the Burt County Rural Public Power Company met in the Burt County Courthouse to sign a loan contract with the Rural Electrification Administration (REA) for $275,000.00 to build 263 miles of transmission lines. Bids for the construction of the lines would be advertised within weeks, and it was expected that nine months of construction would be required to finish the project. Still, as soon as sections of the electric line were built and farm homes were wired, the current would be turned on for their use. Power was obtained from the Elkhorn Valley...
  • Canal Headgates - Loup City NE
    The National Youth Administration (NYA) conducted the following project in Loup City, Nebraska: "Asa a part of the NYA improvement project on the state park here new headgates are being installed on tho supply canal which takes water from the Loup river." The location and status of this project are unknown to Living New Deal.
  • CCC Camp - Ravenna NE
    In July 1934, the Kearney Daily Hub announced that a Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) Camp would be developed at Ravenna. The camp would be responsible for soil erosion projects in northern Buffalo County and southern Sherman County. Two hundred young men would build land dams, terrace fields, plant trees, and do other conservation work on the land in this portion of the state. They would also be responsible for improving the lake. The camp would be set up at the state lake site at Ravenna. At first, a temporary camp was set up with tents. If the camp was to be...
  • CCC Camp - Valentine NE
    The Omaha World-Herald announced in the June 13, 1933 edition that Nebraska’s sixth Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) Camp was approved in Washington D.C. and that it would be located near Valentine. Officials arrived in September to make arrangements for the establishment of the camp at the Federal Game Preserve, three miles east of town (the present Fort Niobrara National Wildlife Refuge). The camp, as planned in 1933, would consist of seven buildings to provide comfortable quarters for the 200 men and camp officers who would reside there. The camp, designated for soil erosion projects, would house young men in barracks measuring...
  • Cedar County Fairgrounds - Hartington NE
    In August 1938, the Works Progress Administration (WPA) gave Cedar County a grant for the improvement of the county fairgrounds at Hartington. The grant amounted to $8,040.00.
  • Central Park Fountain - Alliance NE
    NHRP Nomination Form: "The City of Alliance Central Park Fountain was constructed on the corner of 10th Street and Niobrara Avenue in Alliance, Nebraska in 1935. The Fountain, an octagonal concrete structure which features tiers of water patterns and electrically controlled colored lights, was assembled with the combined efforts of the Works Progress Administration (WPA) and crews from the City of Alliance. The Fountain occupies a prominent location in Alliance's Central Park along an original county and now city, thoroughfare. From the time of its first use in 1935 to the present, the Fountain has been a source of beauty and community...
  • Central Park Improvements - Alliance NE
    "Projects completed by the WPA included ... improving the city park (BX01-067) ..."
  • Chadron State Park - Chadron NE
    According to CCC alumnus Charles E. Humberger, quoted in the Nebraska History journal, “guest cabins were constructed and improvements made at the swimming pool and picnic and recreation area. Roads and trails were improved and drainage structures built. Brush dams were built to control soil and stream bank erosion, and the water supply system at the headquarters area was improved. They also carried out extensive rodent control and soil erosion programs on private property north of Chadron.” According to the city of Hemingford, “, one of Nebraska’s most beautiful, was developed to a large degree, by Civilian Conservation Corporation (CCC) forces…”
  • City Auditorium - Fremont NE
    "Located just west of the John C. Fremont City Park, this brick auditorium, with Art Deco style detailing, was built by the Works Progress Administration (WPA). The building is still used by the schools and local community. Despite infill of the upper level windows it is considered potentially significant for its association with the WPA." (Nebraska State Historical Society)
  • City Auditorium - York NE
    Constructed by the WPA in 1940-42. "In August of 1938 a $90,000 bond issue was approved by more than 60 percent of voters. As those votes were being canvassed, the rumblings of war could be heard coming from Europe. Germany was being warned by Great Britain, France and Russia about the consequences of entering Czechoslovakia. Before the construction of City Auditorium could be completed, the initial goal of providing work for the unemployed would be supplanted by labor shortages due to the war. But, in July of 1940 there were 227 York County workers enrolled with the WPA. That month, after a long...
  • City Hall - Ainsworth NE
    On July 25, 1935, the Ainsworth Star-Journal announced that plans were in the works for a new city hall. The Ainsworth City Council had tentatively approved plans for the new building, drawn by Architect J. F. Reynolds of Lincoln. A bond election was required in order to apply for the Public Works Administration (PWA) grant program, and a petition was quickly circulated to ask the city to hold the election. Of those asked to sign the petition, 97 signed without question and only one refused outright. The new city hall building already had a great deal of support, having been...
  • City Hall - Crete NE
    Crete, Nebraska's historic City Hall was constructed in 1939 with federal Public Works Administration (PWA) funds. The building is still in service. The PWA supplied a $19,975 grant for the project, whose total cost was $44,109. PWA Docket No. NE 1452
  • City Hall (former) - Grand Island NE
    The Work Projects Administration (WPA) constructed the then-new city hall in Grand Island, Nebraska. The building was dedicated in a ceremony on June 14, 1940. The city hall has since relocated and the stately, Deco-detailed New Deal building now houses a mix of public and private operations.
  • City Hall & Fire Station - Kearney NE
    Kearney made an application for funding for a city hall in 1935, however the bond issue failed and the Public Works Administration (PWA) money was never allocated at that time. In 1938, Kearney was given a grant from the PWA for the construction of a new city hall, however the project would once again have to undergo a bond issue election, which meant that a political campaign was quickly initiated by the proponents of the project. Petitions for the special election were submitted within two weeks of notification of the grant, signatures having been largely obtained by Kearney firemen who...
  • City Hall and Auditorium (former) - Superior NE
    The historic former City Hall and Auditorium building in Superior, Nebraska was constructed between June 1936 and February 1937 with the assistance of federal Public Works Administration (PWA) funds. The building, which, as of 2012, was awaiting renovation, is located at southeast corner of 5th Street and Commercial Avenue. The PWA supplied a $32,727 grant for the project, whose total cost was $75,939. PWA Docket No. NE 1053
  • City Hall and Library (old Cass County Agricultural Society Auditorium) - Weeping Water NE
    Originally constructed as the Cass County Agricultural Society Auditorium, Weeping Water's striking city hall and library building was constructed with a $40,000 Works Progress Administration (WPA) grant. Construction was completed in 1938, though the building was not formally dedicated until Aug. 1940. The Bouncing Czech: "The auditorium served the fair and the community until a new fairgrounds was built north of Weeping Water in 1967. The building was then sold to a travel trailer and camper dealer. The dealership closed in the early 2000's and the building was left to deteriorate. It was renovated and is again used as a community...
  • City Hall Improvements - Gordon NE
    The Works Progress Administration (WPA) constructed improvement work at the then-city hall in Gordon, Nebraska, which Living New Deal believes is the same Community Building in which the current city hall currently resides.
  • City Park Development - Grant NE
    The Works Progress Administration (WPA) conducted substantial development and improvement work at Grant City Park in Grant, Nebraska. "Among the benefits revealed by this inventory of accomplishments by WPA workers are the five-acre park constructed in Grant, the new playgrounds, five new tennis courts, new band shell, and four horseshoe courts and as well as an outdoor theatre."
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