Post Office Mural – Hopewell VA
The Hopewell post office contains a noted 1939 oil-on-canvas mural by Edmund Archer entitled “Captain Francis Eppes Making Friends with the Appomatox Indians.”
Post Office Mural – Luray VA
The Luray post office mural, titled “Luray 1840,” was painted by Sheffield Kagy in 1939. The work was commissioned by the U.S. Treasury Section of Fine Arts.
Post Office Mural – Orange VA
The oil-on-canvas mural “Upland Pastures” was painted for the historic Orange, Virginia post office by Arnold Friedman. The work was commissioned by the Treasury Department of Fine Arts.
Post Office Mural – Rocky Mount VA
The historic post office in Rocky Mount, Virginia houses an example of New Deal artwork: the mural “Life in Rocky Mount,” painted by Roy Hilton. The work was commissioned by the Treasury Section of Fine Arts.
Post Office Mural – Smithfield VA
The oil-on-canvas mural “Captain John Smith Trading With the Indians” was painted by William Abbot Cheever in 1941. The mural, which hangs in the lobby of the Smithfield, Virginia post office, was restored in 2009.
Post Office Mural – Strasburg VA
Strasburg, Virginia’s historic post office houses a New Deal mural titled “Apple Orchard.” Painted by Sarah Blakeslee in 1938, the work was commissioned by the U.S. Treasury Section of Fine Arts.
Post Office Mural – Stuart VA
The historic post office in Stuart, Virginia contains a 1942 Section of Fine Arts mural by John E. Costigan entitled “Receiving Mail on the Farm.”
Post Office Mural – Virginia Beach VA
During the Great Depression the federal government commissioned a mural upon completion then-new post office in downtown Virginia Beach. The work by John H. R. Pickett was completed in 1939 with funding from the Treasury Section of Fine Arts, and… read more
Post Office Murals – Tazewell VA
The Tazewell post office contains two murals by William H. Calfee completed in 1940 with Treasury Section of Fine Arts funds.
Post Office: Calfee Mural – Petersburg VA
“Agricultural Scenes in Virginia” is one of two murals created for the Petersburg post office under the auspices of the Treasury Section of Fine Arts. The oil-on-canvas work depicts two primary agricultural crops of Virginia: tobacco and peanuts. It was… read more
Post Office: Lewis Mural – Petersburg VA
“Riding to Hounds” is one of two murals created for the Petersburg post office under the auspices of the Treasury Section of Fine Arts. The work, which depicts Virginia fox hunting, was painted in 1937 by Edwin S. Lewis.
Prater School (former) – Haysi VA
The former Prater school in Haysi, Dickenson County, Virginia, was constructed as a New Deal project. Satellite and Google Street View imagery suggest the building is still extant, if largely abandoned. In 1940, W.E. French, who directed the Federal work… read more
Prince Edward County Courthouse – Farmville VA
The historic Prince Edward County Courthouse in Farmville, Virginia was constructed between November 1938 and November 1939 with the aid of federal Public Works Administration (PWA) funds. The building, located between Main St. and South St. south of W. 3rd… read more
Prince William Forest Park – Triangle VA
Prince William Forest Park was developed by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), with help from skilled workers of the Works Progress Administration (WPA), from 1935 to 1942. It was then known as Chopawamsic Recreation Demonstration Area (the name was changed… read more
Reagan National Airport – Arlington VA
The first Washington DC airport was built during the New Deal. Long known as National Airport, it was renamed for former President Ronald Reagan in 1998. Most locals still refer to it by its former name. Construction began in 1938,… read more
Roaches Run Waterfowl Sanctuary – Arlington VA
In 1934-35, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) helped develop Roaches Run Waterfowl Sanctuary out of the marshes along the south shore of the Potomac River. Roaches Run is located at the north end of National Airport, which was developed a… read more
Roanoke Veterans Administration Hospital – Salem VA
The Roanoke Veterans Administration (VA) Hospital Historic District, currently known as the Salem Veterans Affairs Medical Center, is located at 1970 Roanoke Boulevard, Salem, Virginia, within Roanoke County. The city boundary of Salem and Roanoke extends through the medical center’s… read more
Roanoke-Blacksburg Regional Airport Improvements – Roanoke VA
Opened on it’s current location in 1929, the Roanoke Regional Airport began operating with two dirt runways and a single small hangar. In 1937, with the condition of the airport deteriorating, the City of Roanoke bought the property. Using funds… read more
Robert Russa Moton Museum – Farmville VA
Robert Russa Moton Museum occupies the former public high school of the same name in Farmville, Virginia. Located at the intersection of South Main Street and Griffin Boulevard (Ely Street at time of construction), the school was constructed as the… read more
Sanitary Sewers – Fairfax VA
A sanitary sewer construction project in Fairfax, Virginia was undertaken during the Great Depression with the aid of federal Public Works Administration (PWA) funds. The PWA supplied a $44,956 grant for the project, whose total cost was $100,088. Work occurred between… read more
Saunders Station Post Office (former) – Richmond VA
The historic Saunders Station post office at 1635 W Broad Street in Richmond, Virginia was constructed in 1937-8 with Treasury Department funds. The building was sold in 2015 to private interests, while the post office relocated a few properties away.
Shenandoah National Park – Shenandoah National Park VA
“Between May 11, 1933 and March 31, 1942, ten CCC camps were established within, or on leased land adjacent to, Shenandoah. At any one time, more than 1,000 boys and young men lived in camps supervised by the Army and… read more
Shenandoah National Park: Big Meadows Campground – Shenandoah National Park VA
One of the first CCC camps in the park, (Camp N.P.-2), was established at Big Meadows. Some of the CCC camp structures remain. The CCC also created many of the structures that make up today’s Big Meadows Campground. CCC works remaining… read more
Shenandoah National Park: Big Meadows Lodge – Shenandoah National Park VA
“Big Meadows Lodge is on Skyline Drive in Virginia’s Shenandoah National Park, and 75 overlooks along the 115-mile-long National Scenic Byway provide valley vistas. The lodge was built by the Civilian Conservation Corps and local laborers in 1939 from stone… read more
Shenandoah National Park: Lewis Mountain Campground – Shenandoah National Park VA
“Located south along the drive from Big Meadows, Lewis Mountain Development Area sits on a plateau approximately 3,400 feet above sea level east of Lewis Mountain and consists of a picnic grounds, lodge and eight cabins (having 15 overnight units),… read more
Shenandoah National Park: Skyline Drive – Shenandoah National Park VA
“The Skyline Drive follows closely the course of the Appalachian Trail and extends the entire length of the Shenandoah National Park, along the crest of the Blue Ridge Mountains, nearly 100 miles. It will eventually be extended almost 500 miles… read more
Sherando Lake Recreation Area – Lyndhurst VA
The Sherando Lake Recreation Area was constructed in the George Washington National Forest by the 351st Company of the Civilian Conservation Corps in 1933. Consisting of a main lower lake and smaller upper lake in the Appalachian Mountains, the Sherando… read more
Sidewalks – Lively VA
The federal Works Progress Administration allotted $2,397 for the construction of sidewalks in Lively, Virginia in November 1938.
Skyline Middle School – Front Royal VA
Also known as Warren County High School, Front Royal’s Skyline Middle School was constructed as a federal Public Works Administration (PWA) project ca. 1940. The building has since been extended. LivingPlaces: “This impressively sited, Classical Revival-style, brick school building stands… read more
Stafford Training School – Stafford VA
“Built in 1939 during the Great Depression by the Public Works Administration on eight acres of land purchased with private donations from black citizens who had formed a “county league” for that purpose, the Stafford Training School was the only… read more
Terrace Park Girl Scout Cabin – Big Stone Gap VA
In 1938, the Bullitt Park municipal park was founded along with the building of a log cabin by the National Youth Administration (NYA). The building was a collaboration of the Richmond District Girl Scouts and the NYA boys, and was used… read more
The Pentagon – Arlington VA
The Pentagon is the headquarters of the United States Department of Defense and the largest office building in the world. It was constructed from August 1941 to January 1943 in order to centralize the administration of the U.S. armed services… read more
The Pentagon: Access Roads – Arlington VA
The Pentagon is America’s Department of Defense headquarters and the largest office building in the world. It was constructed from August 1941 to January 1943 in order to centralize the administration of the U.S. armed services during World War II…. read more
Turner School (former) – Clinchco VA
The former Turner school in Clinchco, Dickenson County, Virginia, was constructed as a New Deal project. Satellite and Google Street View imagery suggest the building is still extant, if largely abandoned. In 1940, W.E. French, who directed the Federal work… read more
U.S. Coast Guard Station – Alexandria VA
According to WPA records in the National Archives, in 1941 WPA labor was used to “Improve grounds at the U.S. Coast Guard Monitoring Station, including constructing fences; clearing trees, brush, and undergrowth; appurtenant and incidental work.” Exact location and current… read more
U.S. Experimental Gardens – Arlington VA
According to WPA records in the National Archives, in 1939 WPA labor was used to “Construct and rehabilitate water and sewer facilities, and roads, improve grounds, at the United States Experimental Gardens in Arlington County Va.” Exact location and current… read more
U.S. Naval Magazine and Naval Torpedo Factory Improvements – Alexandria VA
The index to WPA projects at the National Archives includes the following description of WPA efforts at the magazine and torpedo factory: “Rehabilitate buildings, roads, and walks at the Naval Magazine and Naval Torpedo Factory of the Navy Yard; Rehabilitate… read more
University of Virginia: Alderman Library – Charlottesville VA
“The attendance at the University of Virginia had risen to 2,700 students and the accommodations for the library in the rotunda building had become entirely inadequate. The university, accordingly, secured a loan and grant from the P.W.A. and erected the… read more
Virginia Commonwealth University: Monroe Park Campus Improvements – Richmond VA
The Richmond Professional Institute (RPI) was an educational institution established in 1917. It eventually merged with the Medical College of Virginia to become the Monroe Park Campus of the Virginia Commonwealth University. In the 1930s, as the Richmond Professional Institute,… read more
Virginia Museum of Fine Arts – Richmond VA
The historic Virginia Museum of Fine Arts building was constructed as a federal Public Works Administration (PWA) project during the mid-1930s: PWA Docket No. 3551. Short and Stanley-Brown: “Before the erection of this art museum, the city of Richmond had… read more