The New York Times wrote the following in 2003 in a retrospective article of New Jersey-based artist Michael Lenson: “[Mr. Lenson] moved to Newark and applied at the W.P.A. office on Halsey Street … Soon, Mr. Lenson was designing and… read more
The Works Progress Administration (WPA) contributed to the development of what of 35th Avenue, extending it from Prince to College Points Boulevard (then known as Lawrence Street), in anticipation of the 1939 World’s Fair in Flushing.
Parks acquired this property by condemnation in the mid 1920s. In December, 1935, the Department of Parks announced the opening of a new playground on the site. The press release announcing the opening explained that it, and the other 12… read more
The Works Progress Administration (WPA) contributed to the development of what is now College Point Boulevard, prior to the advent of the 1939 World’s Fair. Then called Lawrence Street, WPA efforts involved “the widening and paving of [this] important approach… read more
“The Flushing Armory is a historic National Guard armory building located in the Flushing section of the New York City borough of Queens. It is a brick and stone castle-like structure built in 1905–1906, designed to be reminiscent of medieval… read more
Flushing High School was built in the early 20th century. In 1938, the school received four murals funded by the WPA’s Federal Art Project.
The federal Works Progress Administration worked to conduct repairs and alterations to several civic buildings in Queens as part of a $300,464 project begun in 1935. Buildings improved included the historic Flushing Town Hall on Northern Blvd., which at the… read more
Francis Lewis Park sits at the base of the Bronx-Whitestone Bridge in Queens. The park was named after an American “merchant, patriot, and signer of the Declaration of Independence”(nycgovparks). Researcher Frank Da Cruz has compiled evidence of the WPA’s key… read more
The Jackson Heights Station post office of Flushing in Queens, New York “is a historic post office building located at Jackson Heights … The original section was built in 1936-1937, and was designed by architect Benjamin C. Flournoy (1876-ca. 1939)… read more
The historic Jackson Heights Station post office houses an example of New Deal artwork: “Development of Jackson Heights,” a Section of Fine Arts-commissioned mural by Peppino Mangravite.
The sign on this park says Josephine Caminiti Playground. The NYC Parks website also refers to it as Alstyne Playground and notes that it was formerly known as Corona Playground. The land for this park was purchased by the City… read more
In 2002 New York City’s Parks Department wrote: “March’s Capital Project of the Month is the restoration of Kissena Lake. It will be undergoing a $1.77 million restoration project, funded by Council Member Julia Harrison, beginning this spring. It is… read more
The extensive Kissena Park was first established in the early 1900s and now forms part of the “Queens Corridor” park system. In addition to building a golf course at the east end of the park in the mid 1930s, in… read more
This golf course at Kissena Park in outer Queens was one of several golf courses created with federal funding under Robert Moses’ tenure as Parks Commissioner. The Department of Parks first announced the opening of the course in August 1935…. read more
Construction of New York’s LaGuardia Airport was among the largest undertakings of the New Deal’s Works Progress Administration (WPA) and included both today’s main airport (then the “landplane field”) and what is now the Marine Air Terminal (then the “seaplane… read more
The New York City Parks Department website details the history of Lawrence Triangle, a 0.14-acre park in Flushing, New York. “In July [1938], the Flushing Garden Club presented the land to the Flushing Hospital to be used by hospital patients… read more
The post office contains a massive set of murals by Vincent Aderente that wrap around the interior of the lobby. The murals depicts scenes from the early history of the twelve communities served by the Flushing Post Office. Some sources suggest… read more
Construction of New York’s LaGuardia Airport was among the largest undertakings of the New Deal’s Works Progress Administration (WPA) and included both today’s main airport (then the “landplane field”) and what is now the Marine Air Terminal (then the “seaplane… read more
The Marine Air Terminal contains the largest WPA mural ever painted. “Flight” measures 12 feet (3.7 m) in height and 237 feet (72 m) in length. Artist James Brooks completed this mural depicting the history of flight in 1940. “It… read more
The Memorial Field of Flushing opened in November, 1934 in a ceremony attended by Mayor LaGuardia. The press release announcing the event described the extensive work carried out with New Deal support: “The land for the Flushing Memorial Playfield was… read more
The building housing FDNY Engine 274/Battalion 52 in Murray Hill, Flushing, was constructed in 1939 by the Work Projects Administration.
The original P.S. 2 school building in East Elmhurst, Queens, was constructed during the mid-1930s as a Public Works Administration (PWA) project, likely from 1934 to 1936. Funding for the school was part of a larger PWA grant allotted for the building… read more
This photo shows WPA Federal Art Project artists giving members of the Paragon Boys’ Club a lessons in mural painting.
The WPA undertook a $940,000 project aimed at improving the campus of Queens College during the 1930s. The description for the project is as follows: “landscaping; draining; constructing roads, sidewalks, parking areas, athletic fields, field house, bleachers, and tennis and… read more
The federal Work Projects Administration undertook a large road repair project starting in 1935 in the borough of Queens. The streets, many of which in New York City were still unpaved, were repaired; particular emphasis was placed on fixing washout-damaged… read more
New York City’s Parks Department writes: “Once known as the “Pauper Burial Ground”, “Colored Cemetery of Flushing” and “Martin’s Field”, this site was renamed in 2009 “The Olde Towne of Flushing Burial Ground”. “The Queens Department of Parks acquired this… read more
The Works Progress Administration (WPA) constructed a “seventy-five-acre parking field … for the city north of the World’s Fair grounds.” 1,950 men worked on the parking lot project, which occupied land north of Roosevelt Ave. The site was on what is now the parking lot… read more
Check out our latest map and guide to the work of the New Deal in Washington, D.C. It includes 500 New Deal sites in the District alone, highlighting 34 notable sites, and includes an inset map of the area around the National Mall which can be used for self-guided walking tours.
Take a look at our previous guides, equally comprehensive, covering key New Deal sites in San Francisco and New York City.
