Description: Dated 1936, this photograph shows Works Progress Administration (WPA) workers constructing Bethel Road in Bethel, Ohio, a village in Clermont County. A note on the photograph's reverse reads "W.P.A. Project Making Fill Bethel Ohio 1936." This photograph is one of the many visual materials collected for use in the Ohio Guide. In 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the Works Progress Administration by executive order to create jobs for the large numbers of unemployed laborers, as well as artists, musicians, actors, and writers. The Federal Arts Program, a sector of the Works Progress Administration, included the Federal Writers’ Project, one of the primary goals of which was to complete the America Guide series, a series of guidebooks for each state which included state history, art, architecture, music, literature, and points of interest to the major cities and tours throughout the state. Work on the Ohio Guide began in 1935 with the publication of several pamphlets and brochures. The Reorganization Act of 1939 consolidated the Works Progress Administration and other agencies into the Federal Works Administration, and the Federal Writers’ Project became the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio. The final product was published in 1940 and went through several editions. The Ohio Guide Collection consists of 4,769 photographs collected for use in Ohio Guide and other publications of the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio from 1935-1939. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B11F04_05_001
Subjects: Road construction; Road construction workers; Dump trucks; Ohio--History--Pictorial works; Federal Writers' Project
Places: Bethel (Ohio); Clermont County (Ohio)
 

Description: Reverse reads: "Greene County, Oct. 13, 1936. State 14-29-478- WPA 5181. Wilberforce University near Xenia, Ohio. View of portion of 3/4 mile road under construction." This photograph depicts two men working on road construction outside Wilberforce University in Wilberforce, Ohio. Wilberforce University is located on US 42, three miles from Xenia, Ohio on land that at one time occupied the Tawawa Springs summer resort. In 1856, the Methodist Episcopal Church established Wilberforce University near Xenia, Ohio, to provide African American access to a college education. The university was the first private black college in the United States. Its founders named the institution after William Wilberforce, a prominent eighteenth-century abolitionist. A number of African-American Ohioans attended the school during its early years. During the American Civil War, attendance declined as many students enlisted in the Union army. Wilberforce University closed in 1862. In 1863, the African Methodist Episcopal Church acquired ownership of the university. Under the direction of Daniel Payne, a bishop in the African Methodist Episcopal Church, John Mitchell, the principal of a school in Cincinnati, and James Shorter, an African Methodist Episcopal pastor from Zanesville, Ohio, Wilberforce reopened its doors. The institution operated as a private university serving the African-American community for the next twenty-four years. In 1887, the State of Ohio began to provide Wilberforce with funds to help finance the institution, brought to an end the university's exclusively private status. The state also helped the university create a Normal and Industrial Department that eventually evolved into Central State University. Wilberforce University has experienced steady growth throughout the twentieth century. During the last decades of the twentieth century, the institution built a new residence hall, a student health center, a recreation and sports facility, and an administrative center. The university offers more than twenty degree programs and has exchange programs with universities around the world. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B13F01_040_001
Subjects: Road construction; Wilberforce University; Central State University (Wilberforce, Ohio); Ohio--History--Pictorial works; Federal Writers' Project.
Places: Wilberforce (Ohio); Greene County (Ohio)
 

Description: Reverse reads: "Miamisburg, Ohio, A group of W.P.A. workers repaving street" WPA workers are seen here repaving a road in Miamisburg. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B09F06_007_001
Subjects: Miamisburg (Ohio); Road construction; Road construction workers
Places: Miamisburg (Ohio); Montgomery County (Ohio)
 

Description: Reverse reads: "Building New Street -Krick Road North of Third St. Dayton, Ohio May 15 1936 FOR OFFICE FILE ONLY DO NOT REMOVE FROM FILE 6-8x10 prints for Mr.Derivan Sept.30,1936" Krick Road can not be found today. However, the photo was probably taken facing east, back into the city of Dayton. Part of the city is visible on the horizon. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B09F05_023_001
Subjects: Dayton (Ohio); Road construction; Road construction workers
Places: Dayton (Ohio); Montgomery County (Ohio)
 

Description: Front side reads: "Sept.21,1936,6-8x10 prints to Soldier Home.Neg.furnished REX PAVER IN OPERATION" Reverse reads: "Dayton Ohio" A Rex Paver aids in road construction in Dayton, Ohio. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B09F05_005_001
Subjects: Road construction; Road construction workers
Places: Dayton (Ohio); Montgomery County (Ohio)
 

Description: Road construction in Allen County near Cairo, Ohio. The photograph depicts a new road being constructed with a base of gravel and mud. Flanking the unfinished road are road posts. On the horizon are buildings and trees in the distance. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B12F03_006_001
Subjects: Roads--Ohio--Allen County--Design and construction; Road construction industry--Ohio; Allen County (Ohio)--History--Pictorial works.
Places: Cairo (Ohio); Allen County (Ohio)
 

Description: A road construction near a stream in Ohio. More information needed. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B12F03_029_001
Subjects: Roads--Ohio; Dirt roads--Ohio; Roads--Ohio--Design and construction; Road construction; Ohio--History--Pictorial works; Federal Writers' Project
Places: Ohio
 

Description: This is a photograph of men working on road construction in Eaton, Ohio. This construction was most likely a part of the Works Progress Administration project, a government office that hired unemployed Americans to work on various government projects from April 8, 1935 to June 30, 1943. In the first six months that the WPA existed, more than 173, 000 Ohioans, including both men and women, found employment through this program. More than 1, 500 unemployed teachers in Ohio found work through the WPA teaching illiterate adults how to read. In twelve separate counties, primarily in southeastern Ohio, more than twenty-five percent of families had at least one member working for the WPA during the late 1930s. By the end of 1938, these various workers had built or improved 12, 300 miles of roads and streets and constructed 636 public buildings, several hundred bridges, hundreds of athletic fields, and five fish hatcheries. WPA employees made improvements to thousands of more buildings, roads, and parks within Ohio. WPA artists also painted a number of murals in Ohio post offices. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B12F03_003_001
Subjects: Streets--Ohio; Dirt roads--Ohio; Road construction workers; Road construction; Ohio--History--Pictorial works; Federal Writers' Project
Places: Eaton (Ohio); Preble County (Ohio)
 

Description: Dated September 1937, this photograph shows Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) boys working on a new parking area in John Bryan State Park near Yellow Springs, Ohio. A note on its reverse reads "Camp Bryan - S.P. 16 - Co. 553. Yellow Springs, Ohio. September 1937. Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) boys working on new parking area in John Bryan State Park near Yellow Springs. Work includes grading, draining, seeding, planting, and building roads. Photo by Federal Writers' Project Office Copy" The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was a work relief program established as part of President Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal that employed young men, ages 18-25 and later expanded to ages 17-28, with jobs in the natural resources field. This is one of the many visual materials collected for use in the Ohio Guide. In 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the Works Progress Administration by executive order to create jobs for the large numbers of unemployed laborers, as well as artists, musicians, actors, and writers. The Federal Arts Program, a sector of the Works Progress Administration, included the Federal Writers’ Project, one of the primary goals of which was to complete the America Guide series, a series of guidebooks for each state which included state history, art, architecture, music, literature, and points of interest to the major cities and tours throughout the state. Work on the Ohio Guide began in 1935 with the publication of several pamphlets and brochures. The Reorganization Act of 1939 consolidated the Works Progress Administration and other agencies into the Federal Works Administration, and the Federal Writers’ Project became the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio. The final product was published in 1940 and went through several editions. The Ohio Guide Collection consists of 4,769 photographs collected for use in Ohio Guide and other publications of the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio from 1935-1939. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B10F11_002_001
Subjects: Road construction; Road construction workers; State Parks--Ohio--Pictorial works. & reserves--Ohio--1930-1940
Places: Yellow Springs (Ohio); Greene County (Ohio)
 

Description: Reverse reads: "Montgomery County,Dayton,Ohio Removing Car Tracks and Repaving S.Brown St. Aug.20,1936 6 prints for Mr. Derivan,Aug.30,1936" WPA workers are seen in this photo repaving South Brown St, most likely near the University of Dayton. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B09F06_005_001
Subjects: Dayton (Ohio); Road construction; Road construction workers
Places: Dayton (Ohio); Montgomery County (Ohio)
 

Description: Reverse reads: “Greene County, near Cedarville, Ohio, Oct. 13, 1936, State 14-29-478 WPA 5181 – Stone crusher furnishing crushed stone for Wilberforce University road job.” View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B06F09_002_1
Subjects: Road construction; Wilberforce University
Places: Wilberforce (Ohio); Greene County (Ohio)
 

Description: Original description reads: "Preble County, Eaton, Ohio, Sept. 11, 1936. View of work on road." View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B11F01_019_001
Subjects: Roads--Ohio--Design and construction; Road construction workers--Ohio--Eaton
Places: Eaton (Ohio); Preble County (Ohio)