North Hi Mount Elementary School was constructed in 1934-35 with funding from the Public Works Administration (PWA). It was designed by local architect Wyatt C. Hedrick in a Spanish/Mediterranean Revival style. The picturesque building is complimented by a beautiful stone… read more
North Junior High School, renamed Franklin Middle School during the 1980s, was a WPA project constructed during 1942. The building was demolished at the end of 2010 (or very early 2011) and the Mary P. Martinez Elementary School was built… read more
“North Side Senior High School is another excellent example of the monumental high schools constructed in Fort Worth prior to World War II. Its location atop a bluff adds to its impressive presence on Fort Worth’s North Side. With the… read more
The historic Northgate Station post office was constructed from 1936-7 with federal Treasury Department funds. The building, which housed an example of New Deal artwork, is still in service.
The historic Northgate Station post office housed an example of New Deal artwork: “Good Technique – Good Harvest,” an oil-on-canvas mural by Victor Arnautoff. The work, which was commissioned by the Treasury Section of Fine Arts, was completed and installed… read more
In 1930, the landscape architecture firm Hare and Hare of Kansas City, Missouri completed a master plan for the Fort Worth Board of Park Commissioners. A key component of the plan was the linkage of the city’s major parks with… read more
The WPA constructed a large stone terrace as well as undertaking numerous other improvements at Oakland Lake Park in 1937-38. The Fort Worth Park Department’s 1937-38 Annual Report elaborates: “A WPA project is working in this park at the present… read more
The Oakland-Merlin Overpass is a 1,759 foot long overpass that currently carries Malcom X Blvd (formerly Oakland Ave.) over the Dallas Area Rapid Transit Railyard near downtown Dallas, Texas. The Texas Highway Department and the United States Bureau of Public… read more
In 1934, the Public Works Administration approved a loan of $4.2 million for a school building program in Fort Worth. Oaklawn Elementary School was one of the schools constructed from 1935 to 1936 through funding provided by the PWA. Architect… read more
The federal Works Progress Administration (W.P.A.) conducted improvement work at Tyler, Texas’s Oakwood Cemetery during the 1930s.
The Works Progress Administration (WPA) built a a 2,517-foot-long rock wall on three sides on the perimeter of the Oakwood Cemetery in Cisco, Texas. According to the Texas Historical Commission, “The general landscape of the cemetery is traditional with granite, limestone, marble,… read more
Construction through the Works Progress Administration (WPA) began in 1935 with 18″ stone quarried from a nearby ranch and was completed in 1937. This building housed the Volunteer Fire Department downstairs and City Hall upstair until the 1970’s. Walls are… read more
Various sources reference the construction of the old, now abandoned high school gym as being done under the WPA. Local people refer to it as the Rock Gym referring to the rock on the school and surrounding wall that was… read more
This old jail served Somervell County for 50 years, before it was closed by the state for not meeting modern jail standards. Built in 1934, funded as a WPA government project during the Depression, as a replacement for the first… read more
Excerpt from a 2014 National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form: “Originally designated as a pauper’s burial ground in 1839, little documentation of the historic layout of the Potter’s Field Cemetery exists prior to 1935. A 1935 map illustrates a grid… read more
A new $17,800 school building at Olfen, Runnels county, was dedicated 3/26/39. The modern six- room structure was completed March 22. Attending the dedication was E. C. Grindstaff, county school superintendent; John C. Becker, architect who designed the building; the… read more
Buff Brick building with tower above the entrance with the name “Oliver School”. Decorative cement work around the entrance. The plaque at entrance says: “FEDERAL EMERGENCY ADMINISTRATION OF PUBLIC WORKS FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES HAROLD L…. read more
In 1934, The Civil Works Administration built a latrine and wading pool on land in the Olmos Creek floodplain. The City Council of San Antonio named the area Franklin Fields in 1940, presumably in honor of President Franklin Roosevelt. The… read more
The PWA provided funds toward the construction of a new Orange County Courthouse in 1936.
The [then-]North Texas State College‘s Orchestra Hall was constructed with federal Public Works Administration (P.W.A.) funds. The building (also known as Music Hall), which was located at Chestnut St. and Ave. C, has since been demolished and replaced. The P.W.A…. read more
Located behind the Dance-Gymnastics Laboratory Building, the outdoor swimming pool (and accompanying brick entrance building) was constructed between 1928 and 1940 by the W.P.A. The W.P.A. contributed $25,000 toward the project. While the building is still extant, the pool itself… read more
The Works Progress Administration supported Paleontologist Roland T. Bird in the excavation of Sauropod footprints near West Verde Creek in southern Bandera County, Texas. The workers cleaned out the tracks and removed debris from the excavation area. The project number… read more
Palmetto State Park is located on the San Marcos River between Luling and Gonzales, Texas in Gonzales County and is administered by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. The park consists of 270 acres of land purchased from the City… read more
“PALO DURO CANYON STATE SCENIC PARK. Palo Duro Canyon State Scenic Park, in Armstrong and Randall counties twelve miles east of Canyon on Texas Highway 217, covers 16,402 acres of scenic geological strata and formations that are estimated to be… read more
A 3-story Moderne building with Renaissance Revival elements. Constructed between 1940-42 by the Work Projects Administration and designed by architect Preston M. Geren, Sr., of Fort Worth, Texas By 1931, Palo Pinto County offices were overcrowded. In 1939, the county… read more
“The Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum opened its doors to the public in 1933. It was a hit with the public, who soon began donating artifacts to the museum from the area’s past in addition to their financial contributions. In 1941, Walter… read more
Harodl Bugbee completed two murals for the museum. “The Cattlemen” was completed with funds from the PWAP in 1934. “Ranch Headquarters” was completed in 1940 with support from the WPA Federal Art Project.
Ben Carlton Mead completed two New Deal murals for the Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum. One, “Coronado’s Coming” was painted in 1934 with funding from the PWAP. Another, “Antelope Creek Focus” was painted in 1940 with funding from the WPA Federal Art… read more
The Works Progress Administration (WPA) built the Paris Junior College Gymnasium in Paris TX. An article about the PJC Stadium being built by the WPA the article states that: “The same administrative force that constructed the main building and is… read more
The Works Progress Administration (WPA) built the Paris Junior College Main Building in Paris TX. An article about the PJC Stadium being built by the WPA the article states that: “The same administrative force that constructed the main building and is… read more
The Works Progress Administration (WPA) built the Paris Junior College Stadium in Paris TX. A 1941 article published in the Paris News provides details about the new project: “Construction of Noyes Stadium, a $100.000 athletic’ plant for Paris Junior College, begins Monday… read more
The “Jefferson Lions Club Swimming Pool [was] located at the extreme west end of West Whelan Street, one block west of Highway 59 North, also known as North Walcott Street. The site today is occupied by the Jefferson Independent School… read more
Park Road 4 is a 15.5-mile, two-lane scenic parkway that extends west from U.S. Highway 281 and terminates at State Highway 29 to the west of Burnet. It travels through Longhorn Cavern State Park and skirts the eastern edge of… read more
Fountain, center of Park Square, c. 1935, A WPA project, the fountain exhibits Art Moderne motifs, with stylized volutes and fluting ornamenting its basically plain mass. It serves to continue the public function of the square, and thus contributes to… read more
Two buildings were constructed by the PWA on the campus of what was then the Patti Welder High School in 1936 and 1939 to serve as the town’s junior high. This part of the campus was originally known as the… read more
A paving project in Seagraves, Texas was undertaken in 1938-9 with Public Works Administration (P.W.A.) funds. The P.W.A. provided a $49,000 loan and $40,090 grant for the project, whose total cost was $87,229. P.W.A. Docket No. TX [X]2330
Several projects at the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas (now Texas A&M University) were undertaken with New Deal assistance. “An extensive paving program was also started with New Deal funds of $10,500.” Begun in 1934, this most likely involved… read more
The Works Progress Administration built the Penelope Rural High School, School Dist. 8. The one-story brick building bearing white cement decorations at the top was completed in 1940. It houses eight classrooms, a gym-auditorium, offices, storerooms, and a locker room.
Before the State of Texas built its first numbered Farm to Market Road in 1941, the 8.8 miles of Farm to Market Road 623 between Pettus and Mineral was logically referred to as the Pettus-Mineral Road. In 1939, the Works… 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.
