CCC Camp 1814 - Version 2

Slide 1:

CCC Camp 1814: P90 Erin Mitchell Linden-Kildare High School Gail Dorgan – Teacher Linden, Cass County, Texas Picture courtesy of Sarah King Johnson

What Was the CCC?:

What Was the CCC? The Civilian Conservation Corps [CCC] was a public work relief program from 1933 to 1942 that provided unemployed workers jobs relating to the conservation and development of resources in rural areas . http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/spdest/ findadest/ historic_sites/ccc/media/images/ ccc_logo_100.gif http://www.shenandoahmusic .com/spiritofccc.jpg http://www-tc.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience /media/uploads /films/heroImages/ccc_film_landing.jpg http://www.militarymuseum.org/CCCMuseum.html

Company 1814 Background :

Company 1814 Background Organized June 6, 1933, at Fort Logan, Colorado, as a forestry camp Transferred to Groveton, Texas, as a forestry camp on December 1, 1933 Transferred to Austin, Texas, to maintain Zilker Park in April 1934 Ordered back to Groveton, Texas, in October 1934 Transferred to Linden, Texas, on June 4, 1937, to begin work on project p-90 Records from the Association of Retired Conservation Service Employees (ARCSE) record the camp as TX-SCS-18 and company #3817. www.forttours.com/pages/hmcass.asp

CCC Camp 1814 location Approved:

CCC Camp 1814 location Approved on May 24, 1935, Captain Fred E. Gillard of the CCC and Mr. E.T. Nagle of the Soil Erosion Department of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) approved a 12 Acre site, owned by Cal Williams, west of the fairgrounds in Linden for the camp’s location. In august 1935, The Linden Chamber of Commerce and several local businessmen provided Williams with $50 to cover the loss of the crops he had to plow up, fences that had to be moved, and a reduction in cash rental for the loss of crops and pasture land to the renter. Williams donated the use of the land to the CCC Camp beginning January 1, 1936. Present day location of CCC Camp 1814 Historical marker Of Camp 1814 Photos by Erin Mitchell

Drawing for CCC Camps:

Drawing for CCC Camps On June 12, 1935, representatives from 7 towns in Northeast Texas met in Lindale, Texas, to draw for white or colored camps. Drawing committee consisted of President O.R. Taylor, secretary I.U. Nelson (and drawer), judge S.I. Henderson, mayor C.R. Newland, and attorney T.D. Sunsing. Linden, Madisonville, Marshall, Mt. Pleasant, and Jacksonville drew white camps. Nacogdoches and Winsboro drew colored camps. Cass county Sun June 20, 1935

CCC Camp 1814: P 90 :

CCC Camp 1814: P 90 Co. 1814 – ccc Linden, Texas 6-09-1939 Picture courtesy of Sarah King Johnson S.D. Roberts – Commanding officer L.B. Blanton – 2 nd in Command Dr. L.P. Tenney – Camp Surgeon James R. Wilson – Educational Advisor A.J. Hicks – Project Supervisor

Camp enlistment requirements :

Camp enlistment requirements There were three types of enrollees: Junior – between 18 and 28, on a relief roll or a member of family on relief roll, and come within the quota allotment of his county. Veteran – must be a veteran of the war, with no restrictions to age. Local experienced men – chosen by CCC and may or may not be on the relief roll, no age restriction except that they must be at least 18 years old. 16 experienced men were allotted to each camp. The Cass County Sun – July 18, 1935

Reassignment as a Veterans’ Camp:

Reassignment as a Veterans’ Camp On August 15, 1935, the camp was changed from a Junior CCC Camp to a Veterans Camp Camp housed World War I Veterans who were to receive $30 per month for their work Approximately 250 World War I Veterans were housed at CCC Camp 1814 WWI Veterans from Canyon, Amarillo, El Paso, San Antonio, Temple and Hillsboro were mobilized at Linden. Officers and experienced men arrived at CCC Camp 1814 from Taylor and Huntsville CCC Camps. Cass County Sun 15 Aug. 1935

CCC Camp 1814’s first cooperator :

CCC Camp 1814’s first cooperator On September 5, 1935, the first cooperative agreement for soil conservation work was secured with R.E. Blankenship. Blankenship’s land was then mapped and a soil erosion survey completed. CCC Camp 1814 presented Blankenship with their plan for soil conservation for his approval. After securing his approval, the plan was then sent to CCC offices in Lindale, Texas, for official approval. The Cass County Sun Sept. 15, 1935

CCC Camp 1814 projects:

CCC Camp 1814 projects The following projects were completed within a 20 mile radius of Linden, Texas,: 35 miles of road constructed 25 bridges built 75 rock dips and fords built 147 miles of telephone line connecting fire lookout towers with each other and Texas forest service personnel 3600 man days spent in the suppression of or fighting fires in and around the community Assisted with building terraces and clearing pastures for sodding with Bermuda grass

Closing of Camp 1814 :

Closing of Camp 1814 On September 25, 1939, word was received by the Texas forest service from the U.s. forest service in atlanta, georgia, the ccc camp 1814 (P-90) would close on September 30 “due to the completion of the work within the authorized travel time from this camp, as approved by Civilian conservation corps director fechner’s office at Washington, D.c.” The closing of the camp was ‘not due to local conditions, but to a general plan of conservation set up in headquarters in Washington.” CCC Camp 1814 was transferred to Arizona on October 4, 1939. The camp at linden was abandoned . Cass County Sun 5 Oct. 1939

CCC Camp 1814 Timeline:

CCC Camp 1814 Timeline April 5, 1933 – President Franklin Roosevelt launched the Civilian Conservation Corps Program as part of a national recovery organization under Executive Order 601 May 30, 1935 – Linden CCC Camp location approved June 10, 1935 – Progressive banquet held at American Legion Hall in celebration of securing a CCC Camp for Cass County June 12, 1935 – Drawing in Lindale for White or Colored camp June 20 & 28, 1935 – Meeting with local farmers to discuss CCC work July 18, 1935 – call for experienced men for camp July 25, 1935 - Captain, Lieutenant and 6 construction workers arrive in camp and have unloaded material for the construction of the barracks and camp buildings – camp expected to be operational in 3 to 4 weeks for company

CCC Camp 1814 Timeline:

CCC Camp 1814 Timeline Aug. 1, 1935 – Soil erosion savings and reforestation work/program expected to start Aug. 15, 1935 – camp changed to a Veterans camp Aug. 22, 1935 - $50 paid to Cal Williams for losses caused by camp ’ s location with 250 Veterans expected to arrive and be ready to work on Aug. 31, 1935 Sept. 5, 1935 – R. E. Blankenship named first CCC cooperator And Citizens of Linden invited to meet camp personnel and to hear the scope of the work to be done, both by the camp and by land owners May 28, 1937 – CCC Camp P-90 established by a small detachment June 4, 1937 – Camp 1814: P90 officially occupied the Linden camp Sept. 28, 1939 – received word Linden ’ s camp to close Oct. 4, 1939 – Camp 1814 transferred to Duncan, Arizona

Historical Importance of CCC Camp 1814 :

Historical Importance of CCC Camp 1814 Over 1500 men received specialized vocational training in the camp Increase in the value of blocks of timber made accessible to market by CCC roads constructed Better fire protection due to better communication between fire lookout towers and the forest service and the building of forest protection roads to make prompt suppression work possible Increased community and public focus on the forestry industry in Cass county and surrounding areas Soil conservation practices to aid local farmers Photo by Erin Mitchell

Visual Credits :

Visual Credits Slide 1 – Photo courtesy of Sarah King Johnson Slide 2 - www.tpwd.state.tx.us/.../images/ccc_logo_100.gif ; http://www.shenandoahmusic.com/spiritofccc.jpg ; http://www-tc.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/ http://www.militarymuseum.org/CCCMuseum.html Slide 3 – www.forttours.com/pages/hmcass.asp Slide 4 – Photos by Erin Mitchell Slide 5 – “Cass County Wins White CCC Camp.” The Cass County Sun . 20 June 1935: A1. Slide 6 – Photo courtesy of Sarah King Johnson Slide 7 – “C.C. Wants List of Local Experienced Men for CCC Camp.” The Cass County Sun . 18 July 1935: A4. Slide 8 – “Linden CCC Changed to Veterans Camp.” The Cass County Sun . 15 Aug. 1935: A1. Slide 9 – “R.E. Blankenship Becomes CCC First Cooperator.” The Cass County Sun . 15 Sept. 1935: A2. Slide 11 –“Linden CCC Camp.” The Cass County Sun . 5 Oct. 1939, A1. Slide 12 – Photo courtesy of Sarah King Johnson Slide 13 – Photo courtesy of Sarah King Johnson Slide 14 – Photo by Erin Mitchell Slide 15 – Photo courtesy of Sarah King Johnson Slide 16 – Photo Courtesy of Sarah King Johnson

Bibliography:

Bibliography “ ccc camp building nearing completion.” the cass county sun . 1 august 1935: a3. “CCC Camp location approved for linden.” The Cass County Sun . 30 may 1935:a1. “CCC camp ready to start work.” the cass county sun .” 5 September 1935: a1. “C.C. wants list of local experienced men for ccc camp.” the Cass County Sun . 18 July 1935: a4. “Civilian Conservation Corps.” retrieved 24 September from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/civilian_conservation_corps “The Civilian Conservation Corps.” Retrieved 17 November 2010, ffrom http://www.arscse.org/nCCC.htm “Civilian conservation corps at linden – linden, cass county, texas.” retrieved 27 January 2010, from http://9key.com/markers/marker_detail.asp?atlas_number=5067012616 “History of the Linden ccc camp.” the citizens journal: 60 th anniversary edition . 1939. “Linden ccc camp.” the cass county sun . 5 October 1939, a1. “linden ccc changed to veterans camp.” the cass county sun . 15 august 1935: a1. “list of local experienced men complete.” the cass county sun . 25 July 1935: a1. “lost from camp site; repaid by linden business people.” the cass county sun . 22 august 1935: a3. “patman’s washington paragraphs – ccc camps.” the cass county sun . 28 June 1935: a1. “r.e. blankenship becomes ccc first cooperator.” the cass county sun . 15 September 1935: a2. “250 world war veterans to arrive Thursday at ccc camp.” the cass county sun . 22 August 1935: A3.