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 recrea- tional areas.

In 1933, the (NPS), the CCC and the State Parks Board (now the Texas Parks and Wild Life) joined forces to design and construct build- ings and facilities in many Texas parks. That year companies #1805 and #1811 arrived at Bastrop and Buesch- er 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 sug- gested 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 struc- ture 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 recogni- tion.”[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 con- servation 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 regener- ate. 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