The Queens Branch of New York City’s Independent Subway was extended during the 1930s with the aid of federal Public Works Administration (PWA) funds. The first extension was completed in 1936. On April 21, 1937, four more subway stations opened… read more
The Queens Branch of New York City’s Independent Subway was extended during the 1930s with the aid of federal Public Works Administration (PWA) funds. The first extension was completed in 1936. On April 21, 1937, four new subway stations opened… read more
The Queens Branch of New York City’s Independent Subway (IND) was extended during the 1930s with the aid of federal Public Works Administration (PWA) funds. On December 31, 1936, eight new IND subway stations opened in Queens, extending the subway… read more
The Queens Branch of New York City’s Independent Subway was extended during the 1930s with the aid of federal Public Works Administration (PWA) funds. The first extension opened in 1936. On April 21, 1937, four more subway stations opened in Jamaica,… read more
The Queens Branch of New York City’s Independent Subway (IND) was extended during the 1930s with the aid of federal Public Works Administration (PWA) funds. On December 31, 1936, eight new IND subway stations opened in Queens, extending the subway… 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 New York City Parks Department website provides a brief history of Jacob Riis Park: “260-acre Riis Park, stretching over a mile on the western section of the Rockaway Peninsula, was acquired by the city in 1913. In 1914, the… read more
The WPA provided assistance in repairing and otherwise improving the One Hundred and Fourth Field Artillery / 172nd Street-Jamaica Armory in Jamaica, Queens. The building is no longer extant.
The paving of the 3.5-mile stretch of Jamaica Avenue between 168th St. and 225th St. in Jamaica, Queens was first undertaken as a nearly-half-million-dollar WPA project during the 1930s. WPA Official Project No. 65-97-11.
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. The project included the construction of an addition to what was the Registers Building… read more
In early 1942, the WPA began work on a new park and playground to be operated jointly by the adjacent P.S. 40 (Samuel Huntington School) and the Department of Parks. A press release announcing the start of construction described the… read more
The federal Works Progress Administration worked to conduct repairs and alterations to several civic facilities in Queens as part of a $300,464 project begun in 1935. Facilities improved included the “Jamaica Storage Sheds” at 132nd St. and 150th Ave. The… read more
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
On January 4, 1938, the Department of Parks announced the opening of a new playground: “In Queens, at 34th Avenue between 96th Street and Junction Boulevard, the new playground has slides, swings, see-saws, sand table, shuffleboard and handball courts. A… read more
This large park in the Middle Village neighborhood of Queens provides a wealth of leisure and recreational attractions to local residents. Before it became a park, “it was used variously as a farm, a cemetery, a source for peat moss,… 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 NYC Parks website explains that: “In May 1934, after closing P.S. 38, the Board of Education transferred the property to Parks. Parks opened Laurelton Playground on August 23, 1935 in service of the local community. Parks acquired two small… 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
On July 28, 1937, the Department of Parks announced the opening of “five playgrounds, constructed by the Department of Parks with relief labor and funds,” noting that “These playgrounds are five of the twenty-four sites in neglected areas selected by… read more
The Department of Parks announced the opening of this WPA playground in Queens on August 9, 1939: “The land was acquired at the time the Board of Estimate approved the modified plan for the Atlantic Avenue Improvement, the playground was… read more
Located in College Point, this green space on the East River is built on the grounds of an old mansion. It was originally known as Chisolm Park: “In 1930 the City of New York acquired the mansion and its grounds… 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
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… 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
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… 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 NYC Parks website explains the provenance of this modest playground in Queens: “Between 1935 and 1938, Parks leased this property from the Gorbess Realty Corporation. In April 1938, the City of New York purchased one parcel of the property… read more
The building housing FDNY Engine 274/Battalion 52 in Murray Hill, Flushing, was constructed in 1939 by the Work Projects Administration.
In Sept. 1941 the New York Times described a playground being constructed by the WPA in Queens at “Forty-Fifth Avenue and Twenty-first Street.” This site, Murray Playground, is still in use today. New York City’s Parks Department writes: “The City… read more
The Works Progress Administration (WPA) constructed additions to the drill hall at the Naval Militia Armory in Whitestone, New York. “The only active, federally-recognized Naval Militia with continuous, unbroken service to the Country and State for more than a century… read more
“While a supervisor, Louis Schanker did several murals for the WPA. A series of 11 murals was done for the TB wards’ dining room […] at the Neponsit Beach Children’s Hospital in Rockaway Queens. The official pictures, taken for the… read more
NYC Parks describes the origins of this playground in Queens: “This public space was acquired by the City of New York by consolidation on January 1, 1898, and transferred to the Department of Parks in 1917. It was not developed… read more
This WPA relief map of the NYC Water Supply System is now on display in the Queens Museum of Art. The information plaque displayed with the map reads: “For the 1939 World’s Fair, city agencies were invited to produce exhibits… read more
Originally formed as the result of glacial action during the Ice Age 15,000 years ago, Oakland Lake is a kettle lake, part of the Alley Pond Park system in northeast Queens. It is surrounded by glacial boulders and is fed… read more
The NYC Parks website explains that the park’s name comes from the fact that “Queens’ last one-room schoolhouse occupied this site from the time of its construction in 1879 until its demolition to make room for a public park in… 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.
