The Civilian Conservation Corps In Nevada: From Boys To Men (Wilbur S. Shepperson Series in Nevada History)

226 Pages·2006·2.37 MB·English

by  Renee Corona Kolvet

Kolvet The
NEVADA HISTORY/ENVIRONMENTAL HISTORY
&Ford CiVILIaN
It
From The Civilian Conservation Corps in Nevada: Nh CONSERVaTION

Ne
“I didn’t know anything about Nevada. . . . It was just a name to me.
EC
When I first saw Nevada, well, I tell you my heart almost sank. We came Vi CORPS Nevada
aV iN
by rail. ... The main line of the Southern Pacific comes through Hazen,
I
DL
Nevada, but there was a little splinter line off of Hazen that ran to Fal-
aI
The Civilian Conservation Corps in Nevadais a The Great Depression of the 1930s
lon, because they had a little ‘tooterville trotter’ that ran from Reno to
N
based on extensive research in private manu-
Fallon. Well, they pulled us on the siding out there at Hazen, and there had a devastating impact on sparsely populated
script collections, unpublished memoirs, news- C
we sat, in the middle of the afternoon. And we looked out the windows o Nevada and its two major industries, mining
papers, CCC inspectors’ reports, government
and saw nothing but old white alkali flats and the scrubby brush here N and agriculture. Declining demand for precious
documents, and other sources, as well as on in-
S
and there. ... We sat there for about two hours before they got an en- metals closed most of the mines. Even prior to
terviews with CCC veterans and personnel. The E
gine to haul us all into Fallon. Once we got there, it was fine. That’s a R the national economic collapse, nature and
book also includes period photographs depicting
V overgrazing had rendered thousands of acres
the Nevada CCC and its activities. beautiful little town.”
a
in the arid state unusable. However, thanks to
This is the first comprehensive history of the T
I Nevada’s powerful Senate delegation, Roose-
Nevada CCC, a program designed to help the na- O
velt’s New Deal funding flowed abundantly into
tion get back on its feet, and of the “boys” who N
the state. Among the programs thus supported
did so much to restore Nevada’s lands and re- C
was the Civilian Conservation Corps, a federal
sources—and who in the process became men. o
R program intended to provide jobs for unem-
Renée Corona Kolvet is a research archaeologist P ployed young men and a pool of labor for essen-
S
tial public lands conservation and rehabilitation
for the Desert Research Institute in Las Vegas.
projects.
She has published numerous articles and field F R O M B O Y S T O M E N
In all, nearly 31,000 young men, most of
reports on Nevada archaeology.
them from outside the state, were employed
Victoria Fordworks for the University of
in fifty-nine CCC camps throughout Nevada.
Nevada, Reno, Cooperative Extension; she was
These “boys,” as they were called, went to work
formerly an oral historian for the University of
building and improving roads, fences, irrigation
Nevada Oral History Program.
systems, natural habitats, and flood control sys-
tems on federal rangelands, military reserva-
tions, parks, forests, refuges, and water districts.
The men were able to learn valuable skills on
the job, through vocational courses, and in a for-
University of Nevada Press mal education program intended to help them
find employment when the economy improved.
Rural communities near CCC camps reaped addi-
10 ISBN 0-87417-676-X
tional benefits when local men were hired as
13 ISBN 978-0-87417-676-6
Art Credit Rye Patch Dam, 1938: Camp Lovelock foremen and when the camps purchased sup-
enrollees built the parapet wall and laid riprap over
R E N é E C O R O N A K O LV E T plies from local merchants.
the earthen slope of the dam (front); and compacted
backfill behind the parapet wall (back). Courtesy Nevada A N D V I C T O R I A F O R D
Pershing County Water Conservation District.
Kolvet.FM(24) 6/12/06 12:26 PM Page i
The Civilian Conservation Corps in Nevada
Kolvet.FM(24) 6/12/06 12:26 PM Page ii
Wilbur S. Shepperson Series in Nevada History
SeriesEditor Michael Green
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The Civilian Conservation Corps in Nevada
From Boys to Men
Renée Corona Kolvet and Victoria Ford
Foreword by Richard O. Davies
University of Nevada Press Reno & Las Vegas
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This bookis made possible in part by a
grant from Nevada Humanities, a state
program of the National Endowment
fortheHumanities.
University of Nevada Press, Reno, Nevada 89557 USA
Copyright © 2006 by University of Nevada Press
All rights reserved
Manufactured in the United States of America
Design by Omega Clay
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Kolvet, Renée Corona.
The Civilian Conservation Corps in Nevada : from boys to men / Renée Corona
Kolvet and Victoria Ford ; foreword by Richard O. Davies.
p. cm. — (Wilbur S. Shepperson series in Nevada history)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN-13: 978-0-87417-676-6 (hardcover : alk. paper)
ISBN-10: 0-87417-676-X (hardcover : alk. paper)
1. Civilian Conservation Corps (U.S.)—Nevada—History. 2. Young men—
Employment—Nevada—History. I. Ford, Victoria, 1946– II. Title. III. Series.
S932.N4K65 2006
333.75'1609793—dc22 2006012658
Thepaper used in this book meets the requirements of American National
Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper for Printed Library
Materials, ANSI Z.48-1984. Binding materials were selected for strength and
durability.
First Printing
15 14 13 12 11 10 09 08 07 06 5 4 3 2 1
Kolvet.FM(24) 6/12/06 12:26 PM Page v
To all who served and those
who shared their memories
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CONTENTS
List of Illustrations ix
Foreword xiii
Preface xvii
Acknowledgments xix
Introduction 1
Part I|The Nation, Nevada, and the New Deal
1. A Nation Brought to Its Knees 9
2. Nevada Fights Back 18
3. TheCCCProgram in Nevada 30
4. Outsiders and Small-Town Folk 39
Part II|CCC Contributions and the Legacy Left Behind
5. Rehabilitating the Public Domain: The Grazing Service CCC
Program 53
6. Irrigating the Desert West: The Bureau of Reclamation’s
CCC Program 70
7. Developing National Wildlife Refuges: The Fish and Wildlife
Service Program 83
8. Building Playgrounds in the Desert: The National Park Service
and the CCC 96
9. MilitaryExpansion in Hawthorne: The Navy and the CCC 109
10. Building Ranger Stations and Mountain Parks: The National
Forest Service’s CCC Program 120
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viii Contents
11. Controlling Erosion Along Nevada Waterways: The CCC and the
Soil Conservation Service 133
12. The CCC Legacy in Nevada 146
Appendix: Compilation of Nevada CCC Camps and Their Supervisory
Agencies 155
Notes 165
Bibliography 181
Index 189
Kolvet.FM(24) 6/12/06 12:26 PM Page ix
ILLUSTRATIONS
Figures
Vocational courses offered at Camp Tuscarora|4
National CCC director visiting Hoover Dam, 1937|12
Enrollees wearing army surplus uniforms (Charles Maak cartoon)|13
Acompany of men disembarking at Battle Mountain, 1935|15
Congressman Scrugham at the dedication of Cathedral Gorge State Park,
1935|19
Ely men signing up for jobs at Camp Lamoille, 1933|20
President Roosevelt, Senator McCarran, and other dignitaries touring
Nevadaby rail, 1938|25
Recruits awaiting a train to Fallon, 1938|31
Camp Newlands baseball team wins 1936 state CCC championship|47
Camp Hubbard Ranch baseball players|47
Amateur boxerssparring at Camp Indian Springs|49
Camp Mill Creek enrollees on the road to Spike Camp, 1936|58
Commanding officers and staff of Camp Twin Bridges, 1939|59
Construction of Whitney Ranch Road in lower Moapa Valley|62
Camp Mill Creek crew digging a well near Battle Mountain, 1936|63
Windmill, redwood water tank, and trough built by Camp Mill
Creek|63
Grazing Service inspecting a cattle guard built by Camp Mason Valley,
1940|64
Rock drift fence over Mount Como in the Pinenut Range|65
Camp Cherry Creek preparing to fence range allotments|65
Abandoned ditch in Fernley with Camp Carson River stamp|71