WPA-funded animal sculptures have been moved from the CCC camp on American Island to Main Street in Chamberlain. A squirrel and coyote were placed outside the Chamberlain Swimming Pool, and two eagles sit on either side of the Avenue of… read more
Completed in 1936 as a Works Progress Administration (WPA) project, what is now known as Amsden Lake was developed as a reservoir during the Great Depression. The dam “was built at a cost of $207,000 of clay faced with stone. The Federal… read more
"The Aurora County Courthouse is a flat roofed rectangular three story poured-in-place concrete building constructed in the Art Deco and Art Moderne styles. The facade and sides are symmetrical with seven bays on the front and five bays on each… read more
At Badlands National Park (formerly Badlands National Monument), WPA and CCC workers constructed buildings, created parking areas, made road improvements, and installed utilities. These crews helped develop the park that so many tourists and vacationers enjoy today.
The Works Progress Administration (WPA) built the Baltic School in Baltic SD. The structure served as a public school. Its current use is unknown. A building plaque reads: “WPA project number 3883.”
The Federal Emergency Relief Administration was associated with the construction of a large stone hangar, since demolished, at Black Hills Airport, also known as Clyde Ice Field.
"One of the most significant WPA projects in Rapid City was Camp Rapid. Construction of permanent buildings began on June 25, 1934 and one year later, Executive Order 7034 allowed the WPA to begin hiring men to take part in… read more
"Canyon Lake Park was developed around the 1890s by the Upper Rapid City Company, who planted the Lombardy poplar trees that still line the roads of the park. Dr. Valentine McGillycuddy was a partner in the company that planned to… read more
The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) maintained a camp on French Creek east of Custer State Park in South Dakota from 1934 to 1941. It was officially camp SP-3 (meaning State Park #3). The recruits worked on projects in region under… read more
The striking municipal auditorium on Main Street, Hill City, South Dakota was constructed by the Works Progress Administration (WPA) in 1938. Originally 50 feet x 100 feet, this poured-concrete building has since received additions on its north and south sides. The… read more
“The new city hall is three stories and a basement in height and houses all of the municipal offices, including the police, health, and water departments, as well as the judicial offices, a jail, a garage, and an auditorium seating… read more
Situated in the center of the 700 block of Main Street in downtown Spearfish, South Dakota, the Spearfish City Hall is set back from the street with two large fir trees covering most of the front facade. The City Hall… read more
A three-piece fresco was painted byEdwin Boyd Johnson in 1936 for Sioux Falls’s brand-new city hall. The work is still extant and housed in the Commissioners Room.
"There were nine PWA-financed courthouses constructed in South Dakota during the Depression era. Although designs were not standardized, most were three or four story buildings designed in variations of the Moderne styles. Building materials and finishes included brick, stone, concrete,… read more
This stone building was erected in 1936 with WPA funds as the local community center. It currently serves as the local library and sits next to the police station on Main Street.
“The CCC assigned to Custer State Park had the objective of making nature more enjoyable and accessible to the public. Recreational improvements in the state’s largest park included the construction of dams at Horsethief Lake, Stockade Lake, Center Lake and… read more
“[Custer State Park] grew rapidly in the 1920s, acquired additional lands; during the 1930s the Civilian Conservation Corps made many park improvements. CCC men laid out campgrounds and picnic areas, built a massive park museum, miles of roads, sturdy bridges… read more
“The CCC assigned to Custer State Park had the objective of making nature more enjoyable and accessible to the public. Recreational improvements in the state’s largest park included the construction of dams at Horsethief Lake, Stockade Lake, Center Lake and… read more
“The [Custer State Park] grew rapidly in the 1920s, acquired additional lands; during the 1930s the Civilian Conservation Corps made many park improvements. CCC men laid out campgrounds and picnic areas, built a massive park museum, miles of roads, sturdy… read more
“The Civilian Conservation Corps built the Peter Norbeck Visitor Center as the park museum during the winter months of 1934-35. The young men of Camp Lodge, ages 17-25, created a structure that blends into the surroundings. They used their talent… read more
“The [Custer State Park] grew rapidly in the 1920s, acquired additional lands; during the 1930s the Civilian Conservation Corps made many park improvements. CCC men laid out campgrounds and picnic areas, built a massive park museum, miles of roads, sturdy… read more
“The Wildlife Station Visitor Center is located on the Wildlife Loop Road and provides guests with a place to stop, stretch their legs and visit with park staff about the prairie habitats of Custer State Park or find out where… read more
"The Davison County Courthouse is a flat-roofed, rectangular, four-story, reinforced concrete building with a Minnesota Sandstone veneer constructed in the Art Deco style. The front and sides are symmetrical. A stone foundation rises to just below the level of the… read more
Several New Deal agencies contributed to the construction of the Deerfield Dam in the vicinity of Hill City and the Black Hills National Forest, SD. Construction began before the Roosevelt Administration, continued during the New Deal, and finished after World War II…. read more
“The historic amphitheater was constructed in the Dell Rapids City Park in 1936 as a project of the Works Progress Administration (WPA).” Presently listed to the National Register of Historic Places, the “structure continues to be a popular focal point… read more
“Stretching back almost a century ago, the residents of Dell Rapids beat the South Dakota heat with a dip in the Big Sioux River. An historic quartzite bathhouse, built in 1934 as a Civil Works Administration project, is the only… read more
"R. L. Bronson, secretary of the Rapid City Chamber of Commerce, first propositioned the idea of a Dinosaur Park to federal agencies after visiting the Chicago Century of Progress Exposition and viewed a mechanically operated reproduction of a brontosaurus. The… read more
"There were nine PWA-financed courthouses constructed in South Dakota during the Depression era. Although designs were not standardized, most were three or four story buildings designed in variations of the Moderne styles. Building materials and finishes included brick, stone, concrete,… read more
The Works Progress Administration built the spillway at the Elm Lake Dam in Frederick SD between 1936 and 1938. The dam at Elm Lake was originally built both to provide a recreation destination and to create a water source for… read more
This walnut relief entitled “The Building of Grand Crossing” by Laci de Gerenday with Treasury Section funding in 1940. It originally hung in the 1936 post office and federal courthouse across the street.
Constructed by the Treasury Department in 1938 as a post office and courthouse. It is still in use by the U.S. District Court for the District of South Dakota.
The court house and post office was constructed in 1895 and an addition was added in 1932. In 1941, federal funding supplied the building with a new elevator.
WPA crews conducted restoration work at the site between 1935 and 1938. From the Library of Congress: “In 1937, the fort was restored as a WPA project. It has been placed on the National Register of Historic Places, but today… read more
WPA crews built the South Dakota Governor’s Mansion in 1936 in the capitol city of Pierre. In 2004, it was purchased and moved 175 miles to Rapid City, but in 2013 was sold at a foreclosure auction. It remains privately… read more
This building was part of the Harding County High School in Buffalo, SD, until its demolition at some point between 2013 and 2016. This small school serves the entire county, for all grades, and has a total enrollment of less… read more
"The Harney Peak Lookout Tower was built by Camp F-23, Doran to replace the old wooden structure. Over 7,500 rocks had to be hauled up the mountain on specially built horse-drawn sleds. Everything necessary was sledded up or carried by… read more
"The Hughes County Courthouse was designed in the Public Works Administration Moderne style with Art Deco features by the architects Hugill and Blatherwick and constructed by the Henry Carlson Company, all out of Sioux Falls. This governmental interpretation is a… read more
A WPA municipal building on Main St. in Java, South Dakota. It is now used as the Java Public Library.
This bathhouse was built by the WPA in the 1939. It still stands today along the shore of LaBolt Lake, in Grant County, South Dakota. Much of it is in disrepair but it still stands as a nice tourist attraction…. read more
"There were nine PWA-financed courthouses constructed in South Dakota during the Depression era. Although designs were not standardized, most were three or four story buildings designed in variations of the Moderne styles. Building materials and finishes included brick, stone, concrete,… read more