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  • Macombs Dam Park Playground (demolished) - Bronx NY
    The New York City Parks Department Press Release for October 14, 1935 announces the opening of a new playground at the site of what was later called Macombs Dam Park, with some or all of the following amenities: wading pools, handball courts, basketball courts, jungle gyms, swings, slides, seesaws, and other outdoor gymnasium equipment. Macombs Dam Park was not a New Deal creation; it was first opened in 1899 and was famous for its athletic fields (see history). But the press release confirms that at least one playground was added to it by the Parks Department during the New Deal. Later...
  • Madison Avenue Paving - New York NY
    The Works Progress Administration (WPA) assisted in the paving of Madison Avenue from 59th St. to 82nd St.
  • Madison Barracks (former) Improvements - Sackets Harbor NY
    The federal Works Progress Administration (WPA) conducted road and building improvement work at the old Madison Barracks in Sackets Harbor, New York.
  • Madison Square Station Post Office - New York NY
    The Madison Square Station post office in New York, New York "was built in 1935, and designed by consulting architects Lorimer Rich for the Office of the Supervising Architect." (Wikipedia) Professor Dolkart of Columbia University School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation tells us that "Madison Square Station is a Modern Classical structure with an important interior layout, modeled after that of a bank (it was published in the architectural press at the time)." (Dolkart) Wikipedia states that "...the building is a two-to-three story building clad on its main façade with "Dakota Mahogany" granite....The main facade features six two-story Doric order piers and pilaster...
  • Madison Square Station Post Office Murals - New York NY
    The interior of New York's Madison Square Station post office features eight tempera-on-plaster murals entitled "Scenes of New York" (1937-1939), commissioned by the Treasury Section of Fine Arts funding.  Four panels are found on each the right and left wall of the post office lobby, surrounding the central postal clerk counters. Professor Dolkart of Columbia University School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation notes that seven of the eight McLeary murals represent different New York City neighborhoods. In each neighborhood shown, someone is depicted doing a mail-related activity: "Lower East Side (reading a letter to a group); Broadway (carrying a letter); Central Park (reading...
  • Madison Square Station Post Office Reliefs - New York NY
    The exterior of the Madison Square Station post office sports five bronze reliefs above its main entrance (on 23rd St.) known, collectively, as "Communication." Three were cast by Edmond R. Amateis and two by Louis Slobodkin in 1937, with funding from the Treasury Section of Fine Arts.
  • Madison Square: Admiral Farragut Statue Restoration - New York NY
    The Works Progress Administration (WPA) worked to restore the Admiral Farragut monument in Madison Square during the mid-1930s.
  • Mahoney Playground - Staten Island NY
    The land for Mahoney Playground was acquired in two parts in 1933 and in 1961. Parks announced the opening of a new playground on the first half in 1937, with "a fully equipped small children's section besides facilities for handball, basketball, horseshoe pitching, paddle tennis, shuffle board and Softball for older children and adults. Here, too, benches and shade trees are also provided." Although the 1937 press release does not mention the WPA or other New Deal agencies, researcher Frank da Cruz explains here that almost all New York City Parks Department projects between 1934 and 1943 were carried out with...
  • Main Post Office Addition - Mount Vernon NY
    The historic (and current) main post office in Mount Vernon, New York was originally constructed in 1915. The building received an extension as part of a New Deal project completed in 1937 with federal Treasury Department funds. Work was overseen by contractor Arc Engineering Corp. and consisted of constructing the extension as well as remodeling of the building.
  • Main Post Office Murals - Flushing NY
    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 that the murals were funded by the Civil Works Administration through the Public Works of Art Project, administered by the Treasury Department, in 1933-34, though further confirmation of this is needed.
  • Main Street Improvements - Smithtown NY
    "The original Smithtown Railroad Station was built in 1872, when the LIRR was extended to Smithtown. A new railroad station was built in 1936 while a Works Progress Administration (WPA) project was underway to eliminate the grade-level crossing on Smithtown's Main Street." (Harris et al.)
  • Maine Central School - Maine NY
    Maine, New York's Central School was built in 1940; its construction was enabled by the provision of federal Public Works Administration (PWA) funds. The building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
  • Major Avenue Grade Separation (no longer extant) - Staten Island NY
    A railway-crossing bridge carrying Major Avenue was rebuilt ca. 1936 as part of a massive grade separation project along what was then the South Beach Branch of the Staten Island Railway. The line has long since been abandoned (as the line was discontinued in 1953) and the space beneath the bridge has been filled in. The Public Works Administration (PWA) provided a $1.46 million grant for the $6 million grade crossing elimination project, which included work elsewhere in Staten Island and even in Manhattan. PWA Docket No. NY 4926.
  • Major Deegan Expressway (Mott Haven section) - Bronx NY
    Constructed as the 'westerly approach' road in conjunction with development of the Triborough Bridge, the Mott Haven component of what is now the Major Deegan Expressway was enabled by the provision of New Deal funds. The Public Works Administration supplied a $2,434,500 grant for the project, whose total cost was reported in one document as $5,084,543. The construction, which occurred from 1937 to 1939, forced the relocation of residents who lived along the route between E 134th and E 135th Streets. The New York Times (Apr. 30, 1939): The approach, which is officially called the Major William F. Deegan Boulevard, was hailed by the speakers...
  • Manhasset High School - Manhasset NY
    "This school is situated on a 22-acre lot, rolling in character, and overlooks Manhasset Bay. The grounds are arranged for football and baseball fields, archery, junior playgrounds, tennis courts, and landscaped areas. The building is not symmetrical in plan. It contains seven classrooms of the types used in the best modern schools and also a large greenhouse where flowers are grown and transplanted into the school gardens by the pupils. It is of fire-resistant construction with special interior finish. The exterior walls are brick, trimmed with stone. Its over-all dimensions are 312 by 144...
  • Manhattan Bridge and Flatbush Avenue Improvements - Brooklyn NY
    Among the traffic improvement projects in Brooklyn undertaken by the WPA and described by the New York Times in 1941 was that which impacted a major traffic artery connecting Brooklyn and Manhattan: the Manhattan Bridge and Flatbush Avenue Extension. The work would " Brooklyn-bound automobiles during the evening rush hours and for a greater diffusion of traffic ..." One notable "hazardous reverse curve and steep grade" was eliminated entirely. The WPA also added additional traffic lanes, removing "heavy granite walls and balustrades" so to ease a major traffic bottleneck. Along the Flatbush Avenue Extension three safety islands were added between Lafayette...
  • Manhattan Criminal Court Building - New York NY
    The criminal court building in Manhattan was constructed with the assistance of the PWA in the late 1930s, for a cost of $14 million.  Construction began in 1938 and was completed in 1941. The site, once known as Collect Pond, was formerly occupied by an 1894 Criminal Courthouse and prison – known as 'The Tombs".  That name is sometimes still used for the present building. The seventeen-story building is composed of four towers, with the tall center tower done in the step-back style popular in the 1920s and 30s. The facade is granite and limestone and the windows and spandrel form long, unbroken, vertical bands. The...
  • Manhattan Municipal Building Improvements - New York NY
    New York's 1 Centre St. Municipal Building received improvements as part of the New Deal, including new elevators installed in part by Public Works Administration (PWA) funds.
  • Marconi Park - Jamaica NY
    Parks acquired what is now Marconi Park "on February 15, 1938, for the benefit of the adjacent P.S. 40 (William Wordsworth School) and the South Jamaica community. The playground opened on June 26, 1939, under the administration of Mayor Fiorello H. La Guardia" (NYC Parks). On June 30, 1939, the Department of Parks held official opening ceremonies for the park, attended by Mayor LaGuardia and Robert Moses among others. The press release announcing the opening described the work done on the site: "South of the school, the one block square area developed to care for older children and adults has been provided...
  • Marcourt Drive Improvements - Chappaqua NY
    The federal Work Projects Administration worked to improve Marcourt Drive in Chappaqua , New York during the 1930s. One project, which cost about $7,300 (of which the WPA contributed about $4,500) was described by the WPA in its project rolls: "excavating, draining, and surfacing; constructing base and headwalls; and performing appurtenant and incidental work including installing water mains, hydrants, and valves."
  • Marcus Garvey Park Improvements - New York NY
    "Marcus Garvey Park is one of the oldest public squares in Manhattan. Central to the life of Harlem for more than 150 years, it has served as a meeting place for neighbors, a front yard and play area for schoolchildren, and a holy place for members of local churches. Known as Mount Morris Park for more than a hundred years… Parks Commissioner Robert Moses, with the help of the Federal Works Progress Administration, installed playgrounds and a system of stone walls, terraces and stairs that remains in place today. In the mid-1960s the park again underwent dramatic changes. The City constructed a...
  • Margaretville Central School - Margaretville NY
    Margaretville Central School in Margaretville, New York was constructed with the aid of federal Public Works Administration (PWA) funds. The building bears a 1939 cornerstone, and a "Federal Emergency Administration of Public Works" (PWA) plaque.
  • Maria Hernandez Park - Brooklyn NY
    Originally known as Bushwick Park, this land was first developed as a park in the 1890s. During the New Deal, the WPA and the Department of Parks did a major renovation and reconstruction of the park. A press release announcing the park's reopening on August 13, 1941, described what had been accomplished: "The first steps in the modernization of the park to serve the needs of all age groups were taken in 1936 when a one-half acre playground was built in conformity with a development plan for the entire park… The renovation and reconstruction of the remaining six and one-half acres, provide...
  • Marine Air Terminal - Flushing NY
    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 division"). The airport was constructed between 1937 and 1939 and dedicated in March 1940. At the time it was among the most advanced airports in the world. The 1939 WPA Guide to New York City (p.567) describes the new project: "The seaplane division is designed to accommodate regular transaltlantic airplane travel and will be used by Pan American Airways, Air France Transatlantique,...
  • Marine Air Terminal Mural - Flushing NY
    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 was completely painted over by the Port Authority of NY and NJ in the 1950s during the Red Scare, but was restored in 1980 and in 1995 the building was declared a historic landmark."   (kermitproject.org) Flynn and Polese report that the mural was completed in 1942.
  • Marine Park - Brooklyn NY
    Marine Park is the largest public park in Brooklyn. It surrounds the westernmost inlet of Jamaica Bay. The City acquired the first parcels of land in Marine Park in the 1920s and expanded the area in the 1930s. This park was extensively developed by New Deal labor and funding. A July 30, 1936 Department of Parks press release announced the opening of new facilities at the Marine Park, including immediately "three baseball diamonds, two football and soccer fields and one-half of the oval-shaped bicycle and roller skating track." To be constructed in total were "ten baseball diamonds, four football and soccer...
  • Mariners Harbor Playground - Staten Island NY
    An August 1935 Parks Department press release lists Mariners Harbor Playground as one of seventy-three play areas developed in the preceding year with "city, state and federal relief funds." The release describes this park as having play areas designed for mothers and infants and older children. NYC Parks reports that the playground opened on "December 10, 1934 with a basketball/volleyball court, a playground, and a spray shower. The site name was changed several times over the years, to Mariner’s Playground in 1996 and to Harbor Playground in 1997, before its original name was recently reinstated." Although neither source identifies which federal agencies...
  • Mariners' Harbor Railway Station (abandoned) - Staten Island NY
    A new Mariners' Harbor railway station was constructed during the mid-1930s as one link in a massive grade separation project along what was then a freight and passenger railway (the North Shore Branch of the Staten Island Railway). Developed as a two-track, island platform facility, it was located off Van Pelt Avenue to the west, and featured an entrance at Van Pelt Ave. as well as a pedestrian bridge and entrance at the west end of the platform, between Erestina Place and Maple Parkway. The station has long since been abandoned, and the pedestrian bridge structure is no longer extant. The Public Works Administration...
  • Martin Luther Playground - Brooklyn NY
    The New York Times reported in 1941 that, as part of WPA efforts, Brooklyn would receive six new playgrounds, located at: "Third Avenue and Thirty-fourth Street, Second Avenue and Fifty-fifth Street, Fort Hamilton Parkway and Fifty-second Street, Albany and Foster Avenues, Park and Nostrand Avenues and Eastern Parkway Extension and Fulton Street." Martin Luther Playground is the second site referenced. According to New York City's Parks Department website, Martin Luther Playground, so named in 1987, "was originally acquired by the city in 1907. The property was expanded in 1940 and was opened to the public on June 5, 1942."
  • Martling Avenue Improvements - Staten Island NY
    The federal Work Projects Administration put many men to work starting in 1935 with a number of Staten Island street repair and maintenance projects along roads throughout the borough. Roads paved included the stretch of Martling Avenue (then known as "Martling's Lane") between Manor Rd. and Slosson Ave.
  • Mathews-Palmer Playground - New York NY
    NYC Parks states that this small park was acquired by the City in 1936-1938. It opened to the public on April 16, 1937. The press release announcing the opening explained: "the new playground has see-saws, swings, jungle gym, garden swings, slides, sand tables, play houses and game tables for chess, checkers and backgammon, and also benches and shade trees." The site was eventually renamed Mathews-Palmer Playground "after park and community advocates May Mathews and Alexandra Palmer." Although these sources do not mention the WPA or other New Deal agencies, researcher Frank da Cruz explains here that almost all New York City Parks...
  • Matteawan State Hospital (former) Improvements - Beacon NY
    The Civil Works Administration (CWA) provided labor for the improvement of what was then the Matteawan State Hospital (now Fishkill Correctional Facility) in Beacon, New York.
  • Maurice Park - Maspeth NY
    Maurice Park, also known as the Frank Principe Park, was constructed by the Department of Parks and the WPA in 1940. The November 1940 press release announcing the opening of the new Park described the WPA's work in detail: "Every square foot has been well utilized in this intensively developed tract which was formerly the property of a privately owned Water Company. Acquired by the City in 1937 for unpaid taxes and assessments totaling $358,817.00, the property was placed under the jurisdiction of the Department of Water Supply. Because the pumping station was inactive the Park Department, in February 1939, succeeded...
  • McCarren Park Improvements - Brooklyn NY
    The sizeable McCarren Park in Brooklyn (Williamsburg) dates to the early 20th century, but received several additions in the 1930s with New Deal support. The best known of these is the WPA pool that opened in 1936.  But the Department of Parks also announced the reconstruction of the park's play facilities in August 1935 and the addition of sixteen handball courts and a roller skating rink in December 1936. As researcher Frank da Cruz explains here, almost all New York City Parks Department projects between 1934 and 1943 were accomplished with New Deal support. From April 1935 on, the WPA quickly...
  • McCarren Park Pool - Brooklyn NY
    The New York City Department of Parks & Recreation explains that: "McCarren Pool was the eighth of eleven giant pools built by the Works Progress Administration to open during the summer of 1936. Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia attended the dedication on July 31, 1936. With an original capacity for 6800 swimmers, the pool served as the summertime social hub for Greenpoint and Williamsburg. The building’s vast scale and dramatic arches, designed by Aymar Embury II, typify the expansive and heroic spirit of New Deal architecture. The pool was closed in 1984 but in 2005 the site was resurrected as a performance space,...
  • McClean Avenue Grade Separation (no longer extant) - Staten Island NY
    A railway-crossing bridge carrying McClean Avenue was built during the mid-1930s as part of a massive grade separation project along what was then the South Beach Branch of the Staten Island Railway. The line has long since been abandoned (as the line was discontinued in 1953) and the space beneath the bridge has been filled in. Traces of the bridge structure can be seen by way of the different cement used along the 100-foot stretch of McClean between Conger St. and Railroad Ave. The Public Works Administration (PWA) provided a $1.46 million grant for the $6 million grade crossing elimination project, which included work elsewhere in Staten Island and...
  • McKeever Road Improvements - Cape Vincent NY
    The Cape Vincent Eagle reported that the federal Works Progress Administration (WPA) improved 11 roads in the town of Cape Vincent, New York. "All school bus, milk, and rural mail routes, the roads form an important part of the town's highway system." The project encompassed eight miles of road, and called for "grading, draining, placing base, trimming shoulders and ditches, surfacing and incidental appurtenant work." Roads improved included "McKeevers, between St. Lawrence county road and Riverview county road, 2.6 miles."
  • McLaughlin Park - Brooklyn NY
    A June 1936 press release from the Department of Parks announced the opening of a newly reconstructed playground at the site of what is now McLaughlin Park. It contained a girl's playground "fully equipped with play apparatus, basketball, volley ball and paddle tennis courts." In October 1936, the Department announced the completion of the "reconstruction of the entire park. The area to be opened includes a wading pool and a large boys' playground with a soft ball diamond." Although the announcement does not mention the WPA or other New Deal agencies, researcher Frank da Cruz explains here that almost all New...
  • Mead Library - Buffalo NY
    Mead Library in the Lovejoy neighborhood of Buffalo, New York was constructed in the 1930s by the federal Works Progress Administration (WPA). "After the Erie County Library Board selected the Mead Library as one of several Buffalo branch libraries to be defunded and closed, the Lovejoy neighborhood and Councilmember Richard Fontana took steps to keep Mead open as a community resource. Today Mead continues to loan books, host weekly meetings of such groups as the Homemaker’s Society and offer free internet access, entirely through the work of volunteers. This industrious and collective spirit is very much in keeping with Mead Library’s roots:...
  • Mellett Playground - Brooklyn NY
    This Sheepshead Bay playground was constructed in part using WPA funds. The New York City Parks Department writes: "This parcel of land was vested in the City of New York in 1938 and transferred by the Board of Estimate to Parks in 1940. The playground opened to the public on June 5, 1941, as the 423rd playground in New York City’s parks system, funded in part by the New Deal-era Works Progress Administration (WPA). The playground contained a separate pre-school children’s section with a sand pit, seesaws, slides, swings, and a shower basin, and a surfaced area for adults and adolescents that...
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