State

Officials with the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department are trying to track down men of the Civilian Conservation Corps, who helped build structures of the Texas State Park system during the 1930s and early 1940s.

A statewide effort is under way to honor those men who made enduring contributions to the park system during a special event planned for March 28-29 at Bastrop State Park, located about 30 miles southeast of Austin in Bastrop County.
The event coincides with the 75th anniversary of the CCC’s creation in 1933, when President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the executive order to put the Depression-era’s young men back to work conserving the nation’s natural resources by planting forests, building parks and other means.

Bastrop State Park was selected as the site for the ceremony because it is one of only six state parks in the United States built by the CCC designated a National Historic Landmark, officials said.

“We really need to find these guys and honor them,” said Janelle Taylor, event coordinator. “We need the public’s help. This group is so humble that unless someone tells them they need to contact me, they probably won’t call.”

About 100 former CCC workers attended a celebration at Bastrop State Park in 2003 for the 70th anniversary.

During previous CCC reunions, Ms. Taylor and others have been collecting oral histories that provide a rich archive chronicling the CCC veterans’ significant achievements so that future park visitors and others can learn about these remarkable men’s achievements.

A total of 30 Texas state parks operated by TPWD bear the distinct mark of the young CCC laborers who erected permanent structures that reflect the National Park Service’s trademark “rustic style.”

By 1935, there were 27 different CCC companies working in Texas state parks, building roads, bridges, swimming pools, dams and hundreds of sturdy, handsome rock-and-timber structures, such as Indian Lodge in Fort Davis.

The 101 companies of young men at 130 CCC camp locations throughout the state developed 56 parks in Texas between 1933 and 1942 before many of them headed off to World War II.

Former workers who wish to participate in the event are asked to call Ms. Taylor at 512-389-4665. To learn more about the history of state parks, visit http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/spdest/findadest/historic_sites/ccc/.