The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), part of Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal, aimed to combat soil erosion and promote conservation following devastating floods in 1933. By July 1, 1933, the goal was to enroll 250,000 young men to participate in extensive conservation efforts. The CCC not only planted over 2 billion trees but also created and enhanced access to parks, constructed buildings, and tackled forest fires. Despite its aim to benefit human needs rather than purely ecological preservation, the impact of the CCC remains evident in many U.S. landscapes and parks today.
In 1933, the Ohio River spilled over, flooding Louisville, Kentucky. Franklin Roosevelt blamed soil erosion and forests lost to the timber industry, which were among the reasons conservation was one of the new president's top priorities.
The goal was to have 250,000 teens and young men in camps around the country by July 1. The CCC didn't just plant billions of trees. They fought fires, created and added access to state and national parks, and put up telephone wires.
Ecology was in its infancy as a science, and much of the work was done with the aim of benefiting humans instead of preserving or protecting plants, animals, and waterways.
Over 80 years after the program ended in 1942, the CCC's fingerprints are all over the US' parks, from the billions of trees planted to trails hikers use every day.
Collection
[
|
...
]