Overview
From the depths of the Great Depression came one of the greatest investments in the American landscape. The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was one of President Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal work programs. It enlisted unemployed men to work on land conservation and park development projects.
More than 50,000 CCC enrollees served in Texas. They worked six days a week under National Park Service and Army supervision. The CCC constructed parks from the ground up across the state, creating the Texas State Park system.
Today, TPWD manages 28 CCC-built parks. We strive to tell their stories and preserve their historic architecture. The cabins, shelters, trails, bridges and refectories create these parks' distinctive character. CCC parks offer outdoor beauty and recreation, while reminding us of the men and conditions that built them.
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Learn about restoration projects at CCC-built parks, see photos from the archives, and more!
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CCC State Parks
* Indian Lodge is a full-service hotel set in Davis Mountains State Park
Resources
- Websites
- Videos
- Books
- For students: A New Deal for Texas State Parks | EPUB
- Texas State Parks and the CCC: The Legacy of the Civilian Conservation Corps by Cynthia Brandimarte with Angela Reed
- Parks for Texas: Enduring Landscapes of the New Deal by James Wright Steely
- Park and Recreation Structures by Albert Good
- Guided with a Steady Hand: The Cultural Landscape of a Rural Texas Park by Dan K. Utley and James Wright Steely
Gallery
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Tyler State Park Bath House. TPWD photo by John B. Chandler. -
Meridian State Park. TPWD photo by John B. Chandler. -
CCC enrollees in front of Palmetto SP refectory building (1936). TxDOT photo. -
Mission Espiritu Santo at Goliad State Park & Historic Site. TPWD photo by John B. Chandler. -
Longhorn Cavern State Park. National Archives & Records Administration photo. -
Indian Lodge State Park. TPWD photo by John B. Chandler. -
This Lockhart State Park bridge was erected by CCC Company 3803. National Archives & Records Administration photo. -
Dam Footing, Fort Parker State Park, c. 1935. Photo from TPWD. -
Blanco State Park. TPWD photo by John B. Chandler. -
Palo Duro Canyon State Park. TPWD photo by John B. Chandler. -
Constructing the refectory building at Bastrop State Park. TPWD photo by Norfleet Bone. -
A panoramic photograph of construction at Lake Corpus Christi State Park. TPWD photo by Norfleet Bone.
Other New Deal Programs
The CCC had an immediate and far-reaching impact on Texas state parks. Yet other New Deal programs, including the Work Projects Administration, Public Works Administration and National Youth Administration also worked on or at a number of state parks and historic sites.
Did you know that two New Deal agencies (the PWA and the WPA) built the San Jacinto Monument? That WPA funds and labor constructed Bastrop State Park’s golf course and swimming pool? Or that the NYA crafted furniture for Texas State Parks?
Check out photos from the U.S. National Archives capturing some of the non-CCC New Deal work completed at Texas State Parks and Historic Sites.