The Works Progress Administration project 65-1-66-2583 removed the streetcar rails from Houston and Commerce Streets in downtown San Antonio in 1940. San Antonio streetcar service began on June 22, 1878. San Antonio’s streetcar system reached its peak at ninety miles… read more
The Works Progress Administration (WPA) hired local workers to build the Stephenson High School. The school replaced an older facility that no longer met the needs of a growing population the surrounding area. Dedicated in 1939, the new structure was a… read more
The Sterling County Courthouse was built in 1938 with assistance from the Federal Emergency Administration of Public Works under docket number TEX 1585-F. It has “wonderful Art Deco details of the local sheep and cattle-ranching enterprises and the ubiquitous cactus.”… read more
This stone pavilion was constructed by the WPA in 1934-1936. After many years it was in danger of collapsing into a nearby creek, until the city recently moved the entire pavilion 25 feet to a more secure location.
Stinson Field was established by the Stinson family at this location in 1916. The family were accomplished aviators and had been running a flying school at nearby Fort Sam Houston prior to leasing this 500 acre plot of land from… read more
Stoddard Hall was constructed with federal Public Works Administration (P.W.A.) funds. “The first Stoddard Hall was the original state dormitory at TWU and was completed in 1908. The current building was completed in 1936 and now is home to the… read more
The Stone Cottage in Addison, Texas, originally called the Addison Community Building, was built by the Work Projects Administration (WPA) between 1939 and 1940 as the permanent meeting place for the Addison Home Demonstration Club. The official project number was… read more
A large sewer construction project in Houston, Texas was enabled during the Great Depression byfederal Public Works Administration (PWA) funds. The PWA supplied a grant covering nearly half the total cost of the project ($310,053 of $676,777, not adjusted for… read more
The works Progress Administration manufactured 18″, 24″ amd 36″ diameter reinforced concrete pipes on site, dug trenches and installed the pipes underground for a storm sewer system in Luling. The official project number was 665-66-1-161.
Alamo Stadium (previously submitted) was about to open in 1940 when the City of San Antonio applied for WPA funding to improve the streets in the surrounding neighborhood of the stadium. Streets were widened and repaved and simultaneously were developed… read more
The Works Progress Administration (WPA) conducted street paving work in Cleveland, Texas in 1935/6.
The Works Progress Administration (WPA) conducted street paving work in Liberty, Texas in 1935/6.
The Works Progress Administration (WPA) paved streets on the south side of Palestine, Texas in the fall of 1940. Some of the streets paved were Angelina Street, Michaeux Avenue and Highland Avenue. The WPA used an iron ore base with… read more
By 1923 only about five miles of Tyler’s 130 miles of street were paved and most residential streets remained unpaved. A bond for street paving passed in 1925 by Tyler provided funding for continued street paving, some of it in… read more
From the Forest Service website: “Stubblefield Lake Recreation Area was built in 1937 by the Civilian Conservation Corps as part of one of President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal programs. Just an hour north of Houston, in the Sam Houston… read more
The campus of Sul Ross State University was greatly developed during the 1930s as a result of efforts on the part of several New Deal agencies, including the Public Works Administration (PWA), Works Progress Administration (WPA), Civil Works Administration (CWA)… read more
Among the numerous construction and improvement projects undertaken at Sul Ross State University during the Great Depression was the construction of the original outdoor theater at Kokernot Lodge by the Civil Works Administration (CWA). Per the El Paso Herald-Post: Earliest… read more
Sul Ross State University, named for former Texas Governor Lawrence Sullivan “Sul” Ross, was founded in 1917. The university built Lawrence Hall, also named after Sul Ross, in 1938 to be a dormitory for 116 female students. The Public Works… read more
A men’s dormitory was one of multiple residence projects constructed at Sul Ross State University as a result of New Deal efforts by way of the Public Works Administration (PWA). The PWA supplied a $36,000 loan and $15,886 grant for… read more
A series of 14 stone cottages, later known as the “rock cottages,” was among the multiple residence projects constructed at Sul Ross State University as a result of New Deal efforts by way of the Public Works Administration (PWA). The… read more
The Sulphur Creek Bridge is a three span steel stringer bridge that carries U.S. Highway 281 over Sulphur Creek in Lampasas, Texas. W. W. Vann & C0. built the bridge in 1934 under the direction of the Texas Highway Department… read more
“The theater originally was constructed in 1930 and expanded and renovated in 1937 using Texas Centennial funding. The architect for the 1930 project was Harvey P. Smith, who was joined by George Willis and Charles T. Boelhauwe to design the… read more
The Sweetwater Hospital in Nolan County, eventually renamed Simmons Memorial Hospital, was the first official hospital in Sweetwater, Texas. The Public Works Administration (PWA) funded the construction of the SweetWater Memorial Hospital in 1936. Sweetwater Hospital was an L-shaped one-story… read more
The Works Progress Administration (WPA) built a swimming pool and bathhouse in Swenson Park in Spur TX. The pool was built between 1935 and 1937 and closed in 2009. A WPA marker in front of the bathhouse reads: “Works Progress… read more
The Work Projects Administration (WPA) constructed a pool in Pearsall, Texas. The entrance to the pool area is marked. Rock wall, rock decorations at edge of pool, and rock wall on one side of pool filtering equipment. The pool is… read more
The 285,000 gallon concrete pool was started August 25, 1936 and completed a year later. It was officially dedicated in 1938. Total cost of construction for the pool, walkways, rock house for living quarters for the caretakers, showers, concession room,… read more
Per the Odessa American, 1939, the Public Works Administration (PWA) supported the financing of the construction of the former public swimming pool in McCamey, Texas: The new swimming pool at McCamey opened June 2, 1939. The new $50,000 swimming pool… read more
The University of North Texas’s Marquis Hall was constructed with federal Public Works Administration (P.W.A.) funds. “1936 was also the date when construction started on a new library building. The first library, now known as Curry Hall, had been opened… read more
Sycamore Park received extensive improvements with assistance from the WPA and the NYA. Pictured here is a WPA shelter and drinking fountain built in 1935-36. The structures were designed by Hare & Hare of Kanas City, Missouri. The Fort Worth… read more
When the school for African American students burned in 1935, Belton sought a federal grant from the Public Works Administration (PWA) to replace the school and repair and renovate three other schools. PWA project [W]1431 for a grant of $13,590… read more
The Works Progress Administration built the Taylor County Agriculture Building in Abilene, Texas between 1938 and 1939. The building then became the Taylor County Welfare Office for a number of years. The building’s current use is unknown. Anecdotes tell that… read more
The University of Houston’s old Industrial Building, now known as the Technology Annex, was constructed with the assistance of the Work Projects Administration, a New Deal agency. Houston, a history and guide: “Newest of the units is the INDUSTRIAL BUILDING… read more
Tenison Park is in the divide of East and West Grand Avenue. On the site there is a rock bathroom (in need or restoration), a rock trash container, and a small rock bridge, as well as rock-lined drainage ditches.
The historic Terminal Annex Federal Building in Dallas, Texas was constructed during the Great Depression with federal Treasury Department funds. The building, which houses examples of New Deal artwork inside, was constructed in 1936 and is still in use today.
The Terminal Annex Federal Building contains two oil on canvas murals by Peter Hurd: “Pioneer Home Builders” and “Airmail Over Texas.” They were painted in 1940-1941 with funding from the Treasury Section of Fine Arts. From an entry on the website… read more
The University of North Texas’s Chilton Hall was constructed with federal Public Works Administration (P.W.A.) funds. The P.W.A. provided roughly $209,000 for the construction of it and Chilton Hall. “UNT received PWA grants for two more dorms, one for men… read more
Texas A&M’s old creamery building was constructed as a federal Public Works Administration (PWA) project during the Great Depression. The building, whose exact location on campus is presently unknown to Living New Deal, has since been demolished. The PWA supplied… read more
Thanks to a Federal grant from the Public Works Administration of $108,000 awarded in 1938, East Texas State Teachers College (now Texas A&M University–Commerce) was able to build the East Dormitory for Girls (now Henderson Hall). Henderson Hall is now… read more
In 1934, East Texas State Teachers College (now Texas A&M University–Commerce) requested $123,000 from the Public Works Administration (PWA) to build a dormitory for male students. A few months later, the PWA approved $106,000 for the project. The college added… read more
In 1938, when it was still called Texas A&I College the WPA provided funds and workers to reconstruct bleachers and fence at the athletic field, construct dressing rooms, pave campus drives and beautify grounds. Texas A&M University-Kingsville grew out of… read more