Civialian Conservation Corps Starts Working

The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was formed on March 31, 1933 in the time of the Great Depression. President Roosevelt signed the Emergency Conservation Act which authorized the formation of the Corps. The program gave the opportunity for unemployed men aged 18 through 23 to work on projects in the nation's forests and rural areas. The Labor Department, the Army and the National Park Service helped administer different aspects of the program starting with the Labor Department, who helped select potential workers. The Army provided transportation, food, uniforms and recreational and medical facilities. All the work projects given to the workers were developed and supervised by the National Park Service.

The Corps had an immediate impact on the terrible economy of the times as thousands of men left the cities to work in camps across the country. On June 5, 1933 a group was sent to Danby, Vermont to start work and between 40,868 men went to work in Vermont CCC camps until 1942 when the program ended. 11,243 of these men were Vermonters trying to support their families. Enrollees of the CCC were paid a dollar a day and their day began at 5:30 AM. It may seem like a little, but back then during the Depression it was alot. They made 30 dollars a month, getting to send 25 dollars to their family and having 5 dollars for spending money. It was a big deal and the men took a sense of pride knowing they had money they could send.

The CCC crew at the Ranch Camp in Stowe, Vermont. 

The Vermont section of the Corps accomplished quite a lot. They built 105 miles of road and 197 bridges, planted 1,122,000 trees, cleared 1,030,624 acres of insect pests and developed many of the parks and ski areas that we enjoy today. Thanks to the Civilian Conservation Corps, we have those roads, bridges, trees, parks and ski areas to use and enjoy. And the program helped the country through one of its hardest times ever.

Sources: http://vermonthistory.org/images/stories/articles/greenmountaineer/aforestarmy.pdf