Conserving the labors of the Great Depression
By: Jack Enochs
In the early 1930s during the Great Depression, President Franklin D. Roosevelt created a public works
organization known as the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) in an effort to put men to work, to conserve the
nation’s natural resources and create public recreational areas.
In 1933, the National Park Service (NPS), the CCC and
the Texas State Parks Board (now the Texas Parks and Wild Life) joined forces to design and construct buildings and facilities in many Texas parks. That year companies #1805 and #1811 arrived at Bastrop and Buescher State Parks in Texas to transform the over-cut pine forest into a scenic wonder by seeding, transplanting
and clearing the tangle of brush and fallen timber. These men enrolled for a six-month period and were paid
$30 per month, with $25 of the monthly wage being sent back home to the CCC worker’s family.
The architect of Bastrop State Park, Arthur Fehr, followed National Park Service design principles that suggested harmony with the surrounding landscape of rolling hills and pine forests and use of native materials
for construction. The stone cabins at
Bastrop appear to blend in with the
surrounding landscape. The same
design elements were followed for
dams, bridges and fences. Bastrop’s
Refectory is a showplace of CCC
craftsmanship. Cedar, oak, walnut
and pine indigenous to the park and
red sandstone quarried nearby come
together in an attractive stone structure featuring carved mantles, roof
beams and handmade furniture . [1-3.3] image [2]
Bastrop State Park Refectory
1933
The Refectory looks today as it did 82 years ago,
thanks to the conservation efforts of its many care
takers.[6]
Bastrop State Park Refectory
2015
“In 1997, Bastrop State Park
was awarded National Historic
Landmark status, due largely to
the enduring craftsmanship
and landscape work done in
the park by the CCC. It is one
of only seven CCC parks in the
nation with this recognition.”[4]
The Bastrop County Complex Fire
In 2011, Texas had the warmest summer for any
U.S. state since 1895 even surpassing the 1930s
Dust Bowl. Bastrop, TX had three months of 100°plus days, quickly drying the area. On September 4,
high winds knocked over brittle, drought-stressed
trees into power lines, igniting the most destructive
wildfire in Texas history. The fiery monster burned
for days, ultimately destroying 32,400 acres in
Bastrop County, killing two people and burned
down 1,696 residential and commercial structures.
The fire now raging and out of control was racing
toward Bastrop State Park as evacuations took
place and emergency crews moved to the area.
[7-8-9] [10](image right)
As the wild fires were baring down on the edges of Bastrop State Park, the race against time to conserve the
labors of our forefathers was becoming evermore intense as the raging inferno was fast approaching . Many
historical structures, including: cabins, bridges , overlooks and the Refectory that the young men of 1930’s
CCC built with their bare hands, now lie in the path of uncertain doom.
Hundreds of brave men and women risked their lives in effort to save the historic stone cabins and over looks as their focus shifted away from the out of control wall of fiery Loblolly Pines that surrounded them.
Satellite and aerial images show the devastation to the park and surrounding landscape.
Over 90% of Bastrop State Park was affected, significantly impacting the Lost Pines ecosystem.
With the exception of a few roofs on the overlooks, all the historical buildings built by the hard working men of the
CCC were saved by the bravery of all who fought to save them.
Recovery efforts of thousands of acres of land and wild life
Fast forward four years and you don’t have to look far to see that the loblolly pines are making a comeback
at Bastrop State Park. Natural regeneration along with volunteer planting efforts is helping the park return to
its previous glory. Even though over 90% of the park was damaged by the wildfire, only 30% was heavily
burned. Previous prescribed fires reduced the litter load, reducing the intensity of the wildfire in these areas.
Prescribed fire continues to be utilized to reduce fuel loads and restore habitat for wildlife.
While it will take decades for significant groves of loblolly
pines to regrow, this living laboratory is regularly visited by
students and scientists as they study the fire’s effects on
birds, mammals and vegetation. This recorded research will
be valuable for years to come in predicting regrowth rates.
[12]
President Franklin D. Roosevelt created the start of a conservation movement that continues to this day . The young
men of the CCC literally paved the way for this generation
to learn from and to teach the importance of conserving the
labors of the past and creating new ideas of sustainability.
82 years of conservation has gone into Bastrop State Park , with the natural understanding and respect
that even Earth will recycle and renew itself as long as the human race protects its resources to regenerate. It will always re-display its stunning beauty. We all need to unite side by side and stand in the foot
steps of our forefathers’ labors, to continue the legacy of hard work and conserving the natural resources
of not just Bastrop State Park, but the whole world.
Circa 1933
Bastrop , TX [13]
Circa 2013 Bastrop, TX
Works Cited : Jack Enochs
[1-3.3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civilian_Conservation_Corps
[2] Image http://tpwd.texas.gov/state-parks/bastrop (overview)
[6] Image http://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/tx1036.photos.214533p/
[4] http://tpwd.texas.gov/state-parks/bastrop/park_history
[7-8-9] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bastrop_County_Complex_fire
[10] images http://www.spartnerships.com/newsletter/tgi%209-9-11/tgi.html
[12] https://tpwd.texas.gov/publications/pwdpubs/media/pwd_br_p4505_0043p.pdf
[13] image http://www.gpb.org/american-experience-civilian-conservation-corps