• Ben Franklin School (former) - Shawnee OK
    The Federal Works Progress Administration (WPA) constructed the former Ben Franklin School in Shawnee, Oklahoma during the late 1930s. The Living New Deal suspects that, like Washington School, another New Deal construction Project in Shawnee, the New Deal building replaced the older Ben Franklin School building which had been constructed in 1904. The description on the Waymarking webpage for this site reads as follows: "This is a two-story brick school with a flat roof and concrete coping. The entrance is slightly recessed with a concrete block surround. All windows have continuous brick sills. On the first level, north of the entrance are...
  • Fairview Cemetery Wall - Shawnee OK
    New Deal work relief labor constructed the stunning stone wall on the west side of the Fairview Cemetery in Shawnee, Oklahoma. Per one source, in 1936, the Works Progress Administration (WPA) built the wall. A newspaper article from 1934 suggests the ivil Works Administration (CWA) paid laborers to develop the wall. The wall, which is approximately 1320 feet long, runs north to south along the east side of N. Harrison Avenue. The cemetery itself was established in 1897 and spans nearly 80 acres on the eastern side of the City of Shawnee. The Waymarking webpage for the cemetery wall describes it...
  • Horace Mann Elementary School Additions - Shawnee OK
    In 1940 the Federal Works Progress Administration (WPA) helped finance the expansion of Horace Mann Elementary School. The WPA-additions included a classroom and an auditorium. A report that ran in The Oklahoman on October 13, 1940 notes that in the process of constructing the additions, laborers first demolished the 1907 foundation that had been left when newer Horace Mann Elementary was built in 1927. Hamquilter's Waymarking web page for Horace Mann Elementary describes the additions as follows: "As was common under the WPA, an addition (in this case, a classroom/auditorium addition), was constructed in 1940, perpendicular to the original school. As is the school, this...
  • Jefferson Elementary School Additions - Shawnee OK
    In 1934 additions to Jefferson Elementary in Shawnee, Oklahoma were built with the support of the Federal Public Works Administration (PWA). The building's cornerstone that is located to the left of the entrance says that this construction project was the first Federal Public Works project in Oklahoma. The additions included an auditorium and more classrooms. These were much needed add-ons to the one-story building that had been hastily constructed on the site of the original Jefferson Elementary in order to replace the one that had been built in 1904 but had been destroyed by a tornado in 1924. A catalogue of Pottawatomie news...
  • Jim Thorpe Stadium Complex - Shawnee OK
    Between 1936 and 1939 the Federal Works Progress Administration (WPA) built the Jim Thorpe Stadium Complex at Shawnee High School in Shawnee, Oklahoma. In 2010 Shawnee voters approved a $3 million bond issue in order to renovate part of the complex. As a result the WPA-constructed rock wall and a sandstone clubhouse that had been built later were demolished. Hamquilters Waymarking webpage for the Jim Thorpe Stadium describes it in the following way: "...This stadium...is built with steel reinforced concrete and brick. It stands 24 tiers on the field side. All of the stadium windows have been covered with wood. The lower windows...
  • Johnson School (former) Renovations - Shawnee OK
    The Civil Works Administration (CWA) conducted a renovation project at what was then known as the Johnson school northwest of Shawnee, Oklahoma in 1933. The location and status of this facility is unknown to Living New Deal.
  • Municipal Auditorium - Shawnee OK
    "This large brick auditorium with a seating capacity of 3000 was built with a WPA grant of $61,363 and the proceeds of a $75,000 municipal bond issue. It was constructed in 1936 and has been the meeting place for Shawnee citizens for decades, at sporting events, concerts, movies, dances, conventions and the like. The high-ceiling, gymnasium-like auditorium has concrete bleachers along three sides and a full stage on the north end. The two building wings have offices and are the home of the Shawnee Senior Center and the Shawnee Economic Development organization (COEDD). A cornerstone to the left of the main entrance shows...
  • North Broadway Avenue Sewers - Shawnee OK
    The Civil Works Administration (CWA) conducted a project "laying sewer pipe in the new storm sewer lines being installed on North Broadway" to preclude flooding along the street in Shawnee, Oklahoma.
  • Shawnee Adult Learning Center Additions - Shawnee OK
    The Shawnee Adult Learning Center is part of Shawnee's public school system, and was formerly Woodrow Wilson School. In 1940 the Federal Works Progress Administration (WPA) added two-story brick additions to the north end of the Woodrow Wilson School which had been built in 1928. The WPA additions consisted of an auditorium and a cafeteria. According to a report that ran in The Oklahoman in October 1940, a WPA payment of $28,000 was pending for the construction of the Woodrow Wilson School additions at the time. In the 1980s the school housed all Shawnee 6th graders. Later it became an Early Childhood Education Center....
  • Shawnee Fire Station (former) - Shawnee OK
    In 1938 and 1939 the Federal Works Progress Administration built the Shawnee Fire Station at 1950 N. Park Avenue. According the Waymarking webpage for the former fire station, the building, which is evidently occupied, is now half-obscured among residential homes of a similar architectural style. The Waymarking webpage for this site reads as follows: "This fire station, located among homes of its era, fits in so well, it's easy to miss. It is constructed of yellow brick and was a valuable benefit to the residents of Shawnee in 1938. The building is about 42 x 42 feet and has a hipped roof,...
  • Washington School (former) - Shawnee OK
    A plaque on the corner of the vacant Washington school in Shawnee, Oklahoma says that the building was a project of the Federal Emergency Administration of Public Works, which was the New Deal program that became known as the Public Works Administration (PWA). The Oklahoma Historic Preservation Survey, however, lists the school as a WPA property. The construction project was completed in 1937. During the 1980s, the school housed all Shawnee fifth graders. In the late 1990s, the building was shut down and boarded up. The description for Washington School on Waymarking.com reads as follows: "This is a two-story brick building with a one-story wing on the...
  • Woodland Park Improvements - Shawnee OK
    In the mid-1930s the Federal Works Progress Administration (WPA) provided support for the construction of a 495 ft. long rock wall, several rock picnic benches, two full-sized tennis courts, and a large bathhouse with pool in Woodland Park. The Waymarking webpage for this site describes the improvements and the contemporary condition of the facilities as follows: "The bathhouse is 143 x 116 with an extended central wing with the main entrance. This is a one-story building with uncoursed native sandstone walls, with beaded mortar. The flat roof has been covered with green aluminum in later years. At the center of the building, there is a dogtrot...
  • Woodland Veterans Park Improvements - Shawnee OK
    The Civil Works Administration (CWA) worked to improve Woodland Veterans Park in Shawnee, Oklahoma, installing new concrete walks and constructing tennis courts.