None.
Most records created by Texas state agencies are not copyrighted and may be freely used in any way. State records also include materials received by, not created by, state agencies. Copyright remains with the creator. The researcher is responsible for complying with U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17 U.S.C.).
Some of the maps are too large to photocopy.
Researchers are required to use gloves provided by the Archives when reviewing photographic materials.
The Texas State Parks Board was created in 1923 (Senate Bill 73, 38th Legislature, First Called Session) to investigate prospective park sites in the state, to report to the Legislature with recommendations, and to solicit and accept donations of land for state park purposes. The State Parks Board was initially composed of five members, appointed by the Governor with the approval of the Senate to six-year terms, and they were to be state officers. The number of board members increased to six in 1937 (Senate Bill 484, 45th Legislature, Regular Session). This board was to begin locating sites for the establishment of the state parks system. It later directed and managed state parks, except the historical parks that were managed by the Texas State Board of Control or several separate commissions. The Parks Board was also charged with locating, designating, and marking historic grounds, battlegrounds, and other historic sites in the state, and erecting markers and monuments at such sites. The board also had the authority to create rules and regulations as necessary to carry out its duties.
The primary function of the board between 1923 and 1933 was to acquire lands for parks through donations. In 1933 the board received federal aid through several New Deal programs, making possible the development of 31state parks by 1941. Most of this work was done by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) in conjunction with the National Park Service (largely through its Emergency Conservation Work program), additional work was done by the Work Projects Administration (WPA) and National Youth Administration. The CCC work in Texas began in June 1933 and ended in 1941. The CCC developed 56 parks in Texas. Most are still public parks including 31 parks in the state park system.
In 1949, the state historical parks were transferred from the State Board of Control to the State Parks Board, except for the San Jacinto Battlefield, the Battleship Texas, and the Fannin Battlefield, which were still controlled by their respective commissions--the San Jacinto Battlefield Commission, the Battleship Texas Commission, and the Fannin Battlefield Commission (House Bill 120, 51st Legislature, Regular Session). In 1963, the Texas State Parks Board and the Texas Game and Fish Commission were merged to form the Texas Department of Parks and Wildlife (TPWD) (House Bill 21, 58th Legislature, Regular Session).
(Sources: Enabling legislation;
The files document the acquisition of park lands, the development and maintenance of the state park system in Texas by the Texas State Parks Board, and the work of the board with the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), the Work Projects Administration (WPA) and other federal agencies at individual state parks. Types of records are minutes, correspondence, memoranda, reports, master plans, CCC camp application forms, field notes, contracts, agreements, deeds, blueprints and drawings, speeches, papers, publications (including newsletters, bulletins, circulars, articles, reports and brochures), press releases, clippings, photographs, handbooks, maps, and project files from work by the CCC and the WPA including correspondence, memoranda, reports, notes, job (construction) application forms, routing sheets for map and plan approvals, invitations to bid, list of jobs to be performed, bills, estimates of project costs, job clearance reports, job completion reports, inspection reports, field notebooks (survey notebooks), and maps and plans. Dates covered are 1901-1902, 1905, 1908, 1917, 1925-1963, with the bulk dating 1933-1949.
Correspondents include the director of the State Parks Board, Frank Quinn; the assistant secretary of the Board (later auditor and also chief accountant), E.B. Camiade; chief architect (and later district supervisor), Norfleet Bone; other Parks Board staff, including the auditor and managers at various state parks; the Civilian Conservation Corps; the Work Projects Administration; the National Park Service and other federal agencies; various state agencies; businesses; universities; and the general public.
Topics include the development of the Texas state park system and of the individual state parks; the acquisition of park lands by purchase or donation; Civilian Conservation Corps work at state parks; development of park lands and facilities at the park including construction of facilities, maintenance, inspections of sanitary facilities, and transfers of furniture and equipment between parks; building improvements and additions (such as building water wells and septic systems, adding portable latrines, upgrading roads and parking areas, and making improvements or additions to shelters, rest rooms, picnic areas, or park facilities); recreation at state parks; deed titles to park lands; leasing park land for grazing or oil and gas exploration; legislative appropriations; proposed legislation; purchase of land for Big Bend National Park; purchase of equipment and supplies; contracts; bonds; publicity; visitors comments on park conditions; receipts and expenditures; taxation; and routine administrative duties of the parks staff. Also covered in these files, to a smaller degree, is work done at state parks by the Work Projects Administration and the National Youth Administration. The bulk of the work documented at individual state parks is that done by the various CCC camps.
Several of the state parks discussed in this finding aid are no longer in the state park system. These include Beeville State Park, Frio State Park, Gonzales State Park, Mackenzie State Park, and Normangee State Park.
To prepare this inventory, the described materials were cursorily reviewed to delineate series, to confirm the accuracy of contents lists, to provide an estimate of dates covered, and to determine record types.
These records are organized into eight series and four subseries by State Archives staff:
(Identify the item and cite the series), Texas State Parks Board records. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.
Lisa Hendricks, June 1996
Laura K. Saegert, June 2005, June 2006
Accession numbers: 1996/102, 2005/041, 2005/147, 2006/376
These records were transferred to the Archives and Information Services Division of the Texas State Library and Archives Commission by the Texas Department of Parks and Wildlife on May 3, 1996; October 22, 2004; June 3, 2005; and June 19, 2006.
The Texas State Parks Board was created in 1923 to investigate prospective park sites in the state, to report to the Legislature with recommendations, and to solicit and accept donations of land for state park purposes. It later directed and managed state parks, except the historical parks that were managed by the Texas State Board of Control or several separate commissions. The minutes document the actions of the board beginning in 1933 when the Board received federal aid and was able to create a system of state parks through the work of federal relief agencies, primarily the Civilian Conservation Corps. The files consist of minutes and alphabetical indexes to the minutes. Agenda and attachments are not present. Dates covered are 1933-1963. The board met monthly on a regular basis. Topics covered in board meetings include land acquisition issues; construction, maintenance and operation of state parks; work done by the Civilian Conservation Corps, the Works Progress Administration or the National Youth Administration at various state parks; the Big Bend land purchase program; highway improvements made at specific parks; major purchases of the agency and for each park; budget and appropriations; pending legislation and other issues of interest; personnel issues; and routine administrative affairs. The minutes were bound at one time and the pages numbered sequentially. They were unbound several years ago for microfilming by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.
There are two alphabetical indexes to the minutes. One is titled
These records are arranged into two groups - Minutes and Indexes. The minutes are arranged chronologically by meeting date, as received from the agency. The indexes are arranged by index type, with the entries in alphabetical order, as received from the agency.
(Identify the item), Minutes, Texas State Parks Board records. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.
Accession number: 1996/102
These records were transferred to the Archives and Information Services Division of the Texas State Library and Archives Commission by the Texas Department of Parks and Wildlife on May 3, 1996.
None.
Most records created by Texas state agencies are not copyrighted and may be freely used in any way. State records also include materials received by, not created by, state agencies. Copyright remains with the creator. The researcher is responsible for complying with U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17 U.S.C.).
None.
Lisa Hendricks, June 1996
Laura K. Saegert, June 2006
The files document the development and maintenance of the state
park system in Texas by the Texas State Parks Board and the work of the board
with the Civilian Conservation Corps, the Work Projects Administration and
other federal agencies at individual state parks. Records are correspondence,
memoranda, reports, and inventories, dating 1933-1962, bulk 1937-1949. The bulk
of the records are correspondence files of or about operations at individual
parks. A small amount of correspondence concerning the operations of all parks
and the functioning of the agency is present. Accompanying the park
correspondence are reports of operations, inspection reports, inventories,
reports of concession sales, and similar topical correspondence files.
Correspondents include the director of the State Parks Board, Frank Quinn; the
assistant secretary of the Board, E.B. Camiade; chief architect (and later
district supervisor), Norfleet Bone; other Parks Board staff, including the
auditor and managers at various state parks; the Civilian Conservation Corps;
the National Park Service and other federal agencies; various state agencies;
businesses; universities; and the general public. Topics include acquiring deed
titles to park lands, leasing park land for grazing or oil and gas exploration,
legislative appropriations, proposed legislation, purchasing land for Big Bend
National Park, purchase of equipment and supplies, contracts, bonds, publicity,
visitors comments on park conditions, receipts and expenditures, taxation,
building improvements and additions (such as building water wells and septic
systems, adding portable latrines, upgrading roads and parking areas, and
making improvements or additions to shelters, rest rooms, picnic areas, or park
facilities), and routine administrative duties of the parks staff. Additional
files on individual state parks can be found in the series
These records are organized into two subseries by State Archives staff:
(Identify the item and cite the subseries), Correspondence and reports, Texas State Parks Board records. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.
Accession numbers: 1996/102, 2005/041, 2006/376
These records were transferred to the Archives and Information Services Division of the Texas State Library and Archives Commission by the Texas Department of Parks and Wildlife on May 3, 1996 and October 22, 2004; and June 19, 2006.
Lisa Hendricks, June 1996
Laura K. Saegert, June 2005, June 2006
Records are correspondence files of the Texas State Parks Board and consist of incoming and outgoing letters, memoranda, an order book, and reports, dating 1937-1962, bulk 1939-1945. Correspondents include the director of the State Parks Board, Frank Quinn; the assistant secretary of the Board, E.B. Camiade; chief landscape architect (later district supervisor for east Texas, then park planner for the Board), Norfleet Bone; other Parks Board staff, including the auditor and managers at various state parks; the National Park Service; various state agencies; and the general public.
The bulk of the files are the memoranda (carbon copies of
memoranda in tablets) of E.B. Camiade (1941-1945), topical correspondence files
of Camiade (1941-1945), and the correspondence files of Norfleet Bone
(1945-1962). Other files contain scattered correspondence largely filed by date
but not assigned to any specific individual. One set of files, labeled
The memoranda are outgoing from Camiade, mostly to executive director Quinn on various issues concerning overall board policies or procedures as well as current issues or situations either in the main office or at specific state parks. Some memos are to other park staff, mostly park managers at various state parks. Topics covered include acquiring deed titles to park lands, leasing park land for grazing or oil and gas exploration, legislative appropriations, proposed legislation, purchasing land for Big Bend National Park, purchase of equipment and supplies, renovations or repairs at park facilities, contracts, bonds, publicity, gasoline rationing, use of parks by military personnel for rest while on training maneuvers, and personnel issues.
The topical correspondence files cover the same period as the Camiade memoranda books, 1940-1945, bulk 1940-1944. These are correspondence files of Camiade and consist largely of outgoing letters of Camiade to the executive director, park managers or other staff. Other recipients of these letters include State Parks Board members, federal or state agencies, legislators, and the general public. Also present are copies of memoranda to several staff members, the sender of which is unknown (signed name is not legible); drafts and/or printed copies of directives from the executive director; copies of outgoing letters of other staff with Camiade copied in; a few copies of incoming letters, generally to the executive director copied to Camiade; a few drafts of meeting minutes and supporting documents; contracts; and property inventories. Topics covered include war bonds, gasoline rationing, leases for cattle grazing, use of parks by military personnel, legislation, appropriations, publicity, rules and regulations, and routine administrative issues, such as property concerns, personnel, and applicants for park manager jobs.
The correspondence files of Norfleet Bone consist largely of
copies of his outgoing correspondence with park managers, the executive
director and other park staff, and to a lesser extent, some with universities
and businesses. Some incoming letters, especially in the latter years, are
present. Topics covered include landscape work; master planning; repair work
needed; purchase of equipment; and building improvements and additions (such as
building water wells and septic systems, adding portable latrines, upgrading
roads and parking areas, and making improvements or additions to shelters, rest
rooms, picnic areas, or park facilities). Also present in Bone's files is an
order book for supply requests and a report book with general reports from his
visits to parks in the district he supervised. Many of his letters to park
managers discuss his recent visit, note changes made and repairs or other
improvements needed. There is also a file of correspondence concerning a
lawsuit brought against the State Parks Board regarding profits from oil and
gas leases at Tyler State Park. Earlier files of Norfleet Bone that document
his role as the landscape architect with the National Park Service's Emergency
Conservation Work program during the work done through the CCC at various state
parks can be found in the series
Files are arranged by record type, then either topically or by correspondent. The memos files of E.B. Camiade are filed in chronological order, the remainder of the correspondence is in reverse chronological order. Arrangement was done by State Archives staff following a rough pattern of arrangement by agency staff.
(Identify the item), Administrative correspondence, Correspondence and reports, Texas State Parks Board records. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.
[
Records are correspondence and reports files of the Texas State
Parks Board, the bulk being outgoing letters of the central office staff to the
various parks. Files include correspondence, reports, contracts, deeds,
brochures, bills, and inventories, dating 1933-1959, bulk 1937-1949.
Correspondents include the director of the State Parks Board, Frank Quinn; the
assistant secretary (later auditor) of the Board, E.B. Camiade; other Parks
Board staff, including the managers at various state parks; the Civilian
Conservation Corps (CCC), the National Youth Administration, Work Projects
Administration, the National Park Service and other federal agencies; various
state agencies; and the general public. Topics covered include grazing on state
park lands, CCC work at state parks, disposition of CCC camp structures,
contracts (for operation of concessions, work at park, equipment leases, etc.),
land transfers, deed titles, bonds, visitors comments on conditions at parks,
inspections, repairs and improvements at parks (camping areas, facilities,
roads, etc.), receipts and expenditures, sanitary conditions, legislation,
publicity and tourism, concessions sales and fees at various parks (admission
fees, food, boat rentals, camping fees, bait purchases, etc.), gasoline and
rubber rationing during the World War II years, local events at or concerning
the state park in the community, applications for jobs (mostly letters
concerning the park manager hired), the purchase of land for Big Bend National
Park, and routine administrative duties of the parks staff. Correspondence and
reports files on individual state parks can be found in the series
The files are arranged into four groups. The bulk of the files (found in groups one through three) are outgoing letters of the Parks Board central office staff to the various state parks, the majority from the Board's auditor/assistant secretary, E.B. Camiade to the park manager or other local park staff. Groups one, two, and four also contain some incoming and/or outgoing letters with either the Executive director or other Parks Board members, the managers at the state parks, state and federal agencies, businesses, the general public, or others. The files in group one (1935, 1937-1944, bulk 1939-1941) are incoming correspondence from or about the park to the board and outgoing correspondence mostly with the local park staff. Accompanying the correspondence for most parks are various topical reports, including inspection reports, inventories, and status of concessions accounts. The files in group two (1941-1945) consist of outgoing correspondence from Camiade and other state office staff to the park manager and others. Most letters are to the park manager. The files in group three (1943-1950, bulk 1944-1949) consist mainly of outgoing correspondence from Camiade and other state office staff to the park manager and others. Some incoming letters from the park manager, government agencies, the general public and others are present. The topical reports filed separately in group one are filed with the correspondence in this group of files. The last group (1935-1959) consists of a small number of files on a few parks, largely incoming correspondence to the Board from the National Park Service, also deeds, reports, and maps.
A few of the files in group two were extremely moldy and eaten away by rust. These records were photocopied on acid free paper and the originals were destroyed.
Files are arranged into four groups of parks by State Archives staff. Each group is a separate filing unit within these records covering different, but overlapping, date spans. The records are further arranged in alphabetical order by the name of the park with each group. Correspondence within most folders is arranged in reverse chronological order.
(Identify the item), State parks correspondence and reports, Correspondence and reports, Texas State Parks Board records. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.
The files document the development and maintenance of the state
park system in Texas by the Texas State Parks Board and the work of the board
with the Civilian Conservation Corps, the Work Projects Administration and
other federal agencies at individual state parks. Types of records are
correspondence, memoranda, reports, speeches, papers, publications (including
newsletters, bulletins, circulars, reports and brochures), press releases,
clippings, time reports, directories, and maps. Dates covered are 1908, 1917,
1926, 1931-1961, bulk 1935-1941. While much of the correspondence of the board
is in the
These records are arranged roughly as received from the agency. Materials within the folder are usually in chronological order. Materials from a later accession were added to the arrangement by State Archives staff.
(Identify the item), Administrative and subject files, Texas State Parks Board records. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.
Accession numbers: 1996/102, 2005/041, 2005/147, 2006/376
These records were transferred to the Archives and Information Services Division of the Texas State Library and Archives Commission by the Texas Department of Parks and Wildlife on May 3, 1996; October 22, 2004; June 3, 2005; and June 19, 2006.
Laura K. Saegert, June 2005, June 2006
The files document the acquisition of park lands, development and maintenance of the state park system in Texas by the Texas State Parks Board and the work of the board with the Civilian Conservation Corps, the Work Projects Administration and other federal agencies at individual state parks. Files include correspondence, reports, proposals, master plans, CCC camp application forms, field notes, contracts, agreements, deeds, maps, blueprints and drawings, photographs, brochures, printed materials, restaurant menus, clippings, and press releases dating 1901-1902, 1905, 1917, 1925-1961 with the bulk between 1935 and 1949. Topics covered include the acquisition of the park by purchase or donation; development of park lands and facilities at the park to include construction of facilities, maintenance and improvements, inspections of sanitary facilities, and transfers of furniture and equipment between parks; and publicity of the park, such as the park opening, history of the area or facility used in the park, addition of new facilities, or other topics. Correspondence is between the Texas State Parks Board, generally the executive director (mostly Frank Quinn), and park managers, staff engineers and staff architects. Other correspondents include land owners (usually local officials as opposed to private citizens or businesses), the National Park Service, the Civilian Conservation Corps, the Office of Sanitary Inspection, and the Army Corps of Engineers.
Also present are a group of files for potential state parks and a
group of files concerning Big Bend National Park. The potential state parks
files consist largely of correspondence, maps, and proposals to create state
parks. Most of the parks in this group did not become state parks. The files on
Big Bend National Park consist generally of correspondence about early
acquisition efforts to acquire land for a national park and publicity files on
the park (largely clippings). Land for Big Bend was acquired by the Parks Board
through a land purchase program, see a separate finding aid for the bulk of the
Big Bend files,
Not all topics are present in all parks. Project files for CCC
work in several state parks can be found in another series,
These records are arranged into three groups as received from the agency, with some alphabetical arrangement done by State Archives staff: State parks files, Potential state parks files, Big Bend National Park files. Within the first two groups the files are arranged alphabetically by park name, then by topic. The Big Bend files are arranged by topic.
(Identify the item), Acquisition and development files, Texas State Parks Board records. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.
Accession numbers: 2005/041, 2005/147, 2006/376
These records were transferred to the Archives and Information Services Division of the Texas State Library and Archives Commission by the Texas Department of Parks and Wildlife on October 22, 2004; June 3, 2005; and June 19, 2006.
Laura K. Saegert, June 2005
These files document park development and construction activities of the Civilian Conservation Corps in Texas state parks, the CCC's involvement with the Texas State Parks Board, and the Board involvement with the National Park Service's Emergency Conservation Work system. Files date from 1933 to 1944, the bulk covering 1934-1941. Types of records present include correspondence, memoranda, telegrams, job (construction) application forms to the CCC, routing sheets for map and plan approvals, invitations to bid, list of jobs to be performed, bills, estimates of project costs, job clearance reports, job completion reports, inspection reports, field notebooks (survey notebooks), and a few maps and plans. Correspondents include the State Parks Board staff, on-site National Park Service staff and staff at the NPS regional office and its Washington Office. Topics include CCC camps and CCC work at the parks. Project files are present for several parks and individual files are present for specific projects, such as park roads, overnight cabins, fire hazard reduction, office buildings, topographic surveys, water lines, etc.
Additional files on park development that include some CCC camp
applications and/or correspondence are in the series
The U.S. Congress created the Civilian Conservation Corps in 1933 at the request of President Franklin Roosevelt as an emergency program devoted to the care of natural resources. The program provided jobs and income to young men and served as an instrument for preserving natural resources and developing state park lands. Men were initially recruited by the U.S. Labor Department from the lists of families registered at state welfare agencies. They were to be 17 to 25 years of age. Jobless veterans from World War I were soon added to the CCC enrollment and were housed in separate camps. Recruits were enrolled for six-month periods and pay was $30, with $25 of that sent back to their families. The average enrollee was 20 years old and served two six-month terms. Black enrollees were usually segregated, especially in the south. The War Department fed, clothed, and housed the CCC workers in 200 man companies assigned to either the U.S. Agriculture Department (efforts in forest and soil conservation districts) or the U.S. Department of the Interior (included park development under the National Park Service). Most camps were devoted to soil-conservation and erosion-control projects, but 25 camps worked to develop parks. The U.S. Army assigned a lieutenant and captain to each company. The companies lived in camps set up at the sites of their projects. Each camp also hired "locally experienced men" (LEMs) as skilled craftsmen and instructors. The NPS employed professional architects, landscape architects and engineers for each site to design improvements and supervise construction. The State Parks Board provided the land for the park (usually donated land) and a park manager.
Plans for the parks were developed by on-site NPS staff and submitted to the NPS and State Parks Board for approval, with final approval for building plans given by the NPS regional office. Building plans had to conform to the master plan for each park. The designers for the NPS wanted the structures built within the parks to adhere as close as possible to the land and not be an intrusion into the landscape. Structures were built of native materials and finished with simple tools. The construction style used in the park facilities became known as "NPS Rustic." Unskilled workers under the direction of design professionals and LEMs quarried their own stone and worked their own timber. Woodshops were set up in a few parks, including Bastrop State Park and Palo Duro Canyon to produce furniture for use in parks throughout the state.
A common park structure in many state parks was the central "refectory" building. This was a group shelter with toilets, a kitchen, a patio and a large fireplace. These were generally one-story structures that often included an observation cupola above the roofline. Other structures built at the parks included concession buildings, pavilions, cabins, boat houses, bath houses, bridges, fences, boat docks and piers, and dams. Native building materials (limestone, sandstone, timber, etc.) were used to construct the park structures. Several of the NPS architects modeled their designs after local historic examples, such as pioneer log cabins, European-immigrant architecture or pueblo buildings.
Work at the parks also included landscape improvements made to the park lands, such as reclaiming over-cut or burnt-out woodlands with soil erosion prevention measures and extensive tree plantings, building dams to impound scenic lakes and to enhance soil conservation, and plantings of flora and other measures to improve erosion control. Unusual CCC work done at state parks included building the world's largest swimming pool over a natural spring at Balmorhea State Park and reconstructing the ruined mission complex of Mission Nuestra Senora del Espiritu Santo de Zuniga at Goliad Historic State Park.
The CCC work in Texas began in June 1933 and ended in 1941. The CCC program declined as the economy recovery nationwide in 1942, in large part due to the diversion of budgets and manpower to World War II. The CCC developed 56 parks in Texas. Most are still public parks including 31 parks in the state park system.
(Sources:
These records are organized into two subseries by State Archives staff:
(Identify the item and cite the subseries), Civilian Conservation Corps files, Texas State Parks Board records. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.
Accession numbers: 1996/102, 2005/041, 2006/376
These records were transferred to the Archives and Information Services Division of the Texas State Library and Archives Commission by the Texas Department of Parks and Wildlife on May 3, 1996; October 22, 2004; and June 19, 2006.
None.
None.
Maps are too large to photocopy.
Lisa Hendricks, June 1996
Laura K. Saegert, June 2005, June 2006
These files document park development and construction activities of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) in Texas state parks, the CCC's involvement with the Texas State Parks Board, and the Board involvement with the National Park Service's Emergency Conservation Work (ECW) system. Files date from 1934 to 1942. Types of records present include correspondence, proposals, memoranda, telegrams, CCC camp application forms, reports, photographs, publications, handbooks, job applications, clippings, and inventories. Correspondents include Norfleet Bone, chief landscape architect of the State Parks Board, other Parks Board staff, on-site National Park Service staff and staff at the NPS regional office and its Washington Office. Topics include CCC camps, CCC work at the parks, inspections of landscape work at the park, inspections of proposed land to be added to existing parks or to be acquired for a new park, closure of CCC camps, and revisions to CCC and ECW handbooks.
Files are remain in the order received from the agency.
(Identify the item), Correspondence and administrative files, Civilian Conservation Corps files, Texas State Parks Board records. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.
Accession numbers: 1996/102, 2005/041, 2006/376
These records were transferred to the Archives and Information Services Division of the Texas State Library and Archives Commission by the Texas Department of Parks and Wildlife on May 3, 1996; October 22, 2004; and June 19, 2006.
These files document park development and construction
activities of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) in Texas state parks and
its involvement with the Texas State Parks Board. Files date from 1933 to 1944,
the bulk covering 1934-1941. Types of records present include correspondence,
memoranda, telegrams, job (construction) application forms to the CCC, routing
sheets for map and plan approvals, invitations to bid, list of jobs to be
performed, bills, estimates of project costs, job clearance reports, job
completion reports, inspection reports, field notebooks (survey notebooks), and
a few maps and plans. Correspondents include the State Parks Board staff,
on-site National Park Service staff and staff at the NPS regional office and
its Washington Office. Extensive project files are present for a few parks
(Bastrop, Buescher, Garner, Mackenzie, and Tyler) and individual files are
present for specific projects, such as park roads, overnight cabins, fire
hazard reduction, office buildings, topographic surveys, water lines, etc. Some
additional parks are represented but have only one or two folders. It is
unknown where the rest of the project files are located. Some CCC educational
and training materials are present in the files of Bastrop-Buescher State
Parks. Early work done in the Bastrop State Park also included work done at
Buescher State Park (in Smithville), so those files are a set. Work at these
two parks also included WPA funding, so some WPA documents are filed with these
project files. Additional WPA materials on these parks can be found in the
series
The files are arranged by State Archives staff in alphabetical order by park name, then either topically or numerically by job number (arrangement varies with park and was not altered by archives staff).
(Identify the item), Project files, Civilian Conservation Corps files, Texas State Parks Board records. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.
Accession number: 2005/041
These records were transferred to the Archives and Information Services Division of the Texas State Library and Archives Commission by the Texas Department of Parks and Wildlife on October 22, 2004.
The records document work done by the Texas State Parks Board in
conjunction with the Federal Works Agency's Work Projects Administration
(formerly the Works Progress Administration - WPA). A few documents also
reflect a project done through the Public Works Administration. The Federal
Works Agency was administered under the National Park Service. Project
proposals submitted to the WPA by the State Parks Board request federal
financial assistance and detail estimates and specifications of work proposed
for the development of several state parks. Records include correspondence,
memoranda, project proposals and applications, summary sheets of costs,
estimates, descriptions of materials used, and progress reports. Dates covered
are 1933-1942, bulk dating 1935-1942. Correspondents include State Parks Board
staff, regional National Park Service staff and the WPA. The bulk of the
materials document work done at Bastrop State Park, Caddo Lake State Park, Fort
Parker State Park, and Lake Brownwood State Park. Also present are WPA project
proposal files with correspondence for WPA projects in Brownwood, Texas, part
of a set of files marked
The Works Progress Administration was established as a national agency on May 6, 1935, by an executive order of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The name of the agency was changed to Work Projects Administration on July 1, 1939, when it was made a part of the Federal Works Agency. It was established as a relief measure during the Great Depression and lasted until it was phased out in 1943, after it was rendered unnecessary by increased employment and reduced relief rolls. Governor Miriam Amanda Ferguson issued an executive order establishing the Texas Relief Commission in March 1933 to deal with unemployment problems in Texas. The commission used Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA) funds, enabling Texans to participate in various early New Deal programs such as construction and white-collar projects of the Civil Works Administration and the camp programs of the Civilian Conservation Corps. The establishment of the WPA helped 600,000 persons in Texas to provide subsistence for themselves and their families. According to its regulations anyone employed by the WPA had to be the economic head of his family and had to be certified as destitute on the rolls of the Texas Relief Commission. People of both sexes and of all races were employed. WPA wages in Texas ranged from forty-five to seventy-five dollars per month.
The WPA activities in Texas were varied. Projects included artwork, archaeological investigations, a paleontologic-mineralogic survey, the American Imprints Inventory (survey of holdings in libraries), the Texas Writer's Project, the Federal Music Project, and various construction activities, some of them in state parks. Construction projects included parks, swimming pools, highways, bridges, stadiums, and other public buildings, and, during the period of World War II, centers for all branches of armed forces personnel.
(Source:
These records are arranged by State Archives staff in alphabetical order by park name.
(Identify the item), Work Projects Administration project files, Texas State Parks Board records. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.
Accession numbers: 1996/102, 2005/041
These records were transferred to the Archives and Information Services Division of the Texas State Library and Archives Commission by the Texas Department of Parks and Wildlife on May 3, 1996 and October 22, 2004.
None.
None.
Most of the maps are too large to photocopy.
Lisa Hendricks, June 1996
Laura K. Saegert, June 2005
The records document work done by the Texas State Parks Board in conjunction with the National Youth Administration (NYA), a federal relief agency. Records include correspondence, approved job submissions, cost estimates, bills of materials, notes, and inspection reports. Dates covered are 1940-1942. The bulk of the materials document work done at an NYA mill at Bastrop State Park that produced furniture for other state parks. Other parks mentioned in the files are Inks Lake State Park and Stephen F. Austin State Park. Correspondents are primarily Paul Roesle, chief architect of the State Parks Board, with the Texas NYA office. Some correspondence between the Parks Board's executive director, Frank Quinn, and the NYA office is also present.
The National Youth Administration (NYA) was established on June 26, 1935, and operated until 1943. It was initially under the auspices of the Work Projects Administration (WPA), although its administration was essentially independent. In 1939 the NYA was transferred to the Federal Security Agency, and in September 1942 it was placed under the direction of the War Manpower Commission. The purpose of the NYA was to provide education, jobs, recreation, and counseling for male and female youth between the ages of sixteen and twenty-five. Financial need was a criterion for participation in both the student aid and out-of-school programs, the two most successful NYA programs in Texas. The student-aid program provided financial assistance in the amount of six dollars a month for high school students, fifteen dollars for those in college, and an average of twenty dollars per month for graduate students. In exchange the students performed part-time jobs, usually as clerks or maintenance workers. The out-of-school work program provided jobs for young people who had dropped out of school or who had graduated and were unable to find employment. Participants worked part-time for wages of ten to twenty dollars a month, generally on highways and roadside parks, playgrounds and schools, recreational parks, and public buildings all over Texas. Parks the students worked on in Texas included Bastrop State Park and Inks Lake State Park. The agency was voted out of existence by Congress in 1943. The overall effect of the NYA in Texas was beneficial. Between 1935 and 1943 more than 175,000 students received assistance that enabled them to complete their education, and more than 75,000 were employed in the out-of-school programs.
(Source:
These records are arranged as received from the agency.
(Identify the item), National Youth Administration files, Texas State Parks Board records. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.
Accession number: 2005/041
These records were transferred to the Archives and Information Services Division of the Texas State Library and Archives Commission by the Texas Department of Parks and Wildlife on October 22, 2004.
Laura K. Saegert, June 2005
The records document work done by the Texas State Parks Board at
the San Jose Mission in cooperation with the National Park Service, the Texas
Highway Department, the city of San Antonio, and the San Jose Mission Advisory
Board as part of their efforts to make improvements to the mission and its
grounds. Records include correspondence, plans, drawings, details,
specifications, invoices, reports, publications, clippings, a map and a
photograph. Dates covered are 1937, 1939, 1942-1958, the bulk dating 1950-1958.
The records document several improvement projects, primarily the addition of
curbs and sidewalks, landscape design, and construction of an amphitheater.
Correspondents include the State Parks Board staff, manager of the mission
facility, National Park Service, Texas Highway Department, local officials,
contractors, and business owners. Additional files on the mission can be found
in the series
Mission San Jose y San Miguel de Aguayo was founded in 1720 by
Father Antonio Margil de Jesus, a prominent Franciscan missionary, on the banks
of the San Antonio River. The mission was named for Saint Joseph and the
Marques de San Miguel de Aguayo, the governor of the Province of Coahuila and
Texas at the time. San Jose, as it became known, was the largest of the
missions in the area, becoming known as the
In 1941 the San Jose Mission became a State Historic Site, and later that same year, a National Historic Site. It was governed for several years by an advisory board composed of representatives from the National Park Service, the Texas State Parks Board, the Catholic Church, the County of Bexar, and the San Antonio Conservation Society. These entities undertook several projects to restore portions of the mission and add improvements to the complex. The mission grounds were operated by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department from 1941 to 1983. On November 10, 1978, San Jose Mission became part of the San Antonio Missions National Historical Park and is now governed by the National Park Service. The church within the mission complex is still an active parish.
(Sources: National Park Service online article,
These records are arranged as received from the agency.
(Identify the item), San Jose Mission project files, Texas State Parks Board records. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.
Accession number: 2005/041
These records were transferred to the Archives and Information Services Division of the Texas State Library and Archives Commission by the Texas Department of Parks and Wildlife on October 22, 2004.
Laura K. Saegert, June 2005