The Civilian Conservation Corps

The Civilian Conservation Corps was established by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1933 as part of the comprehensive relief effort during the grim Depression years. Three million men were involved in the CCC during its ten-year existence. In South Carolina, the CCC carried out a wide range of conservation work, including reforestation, erosion control, the development of public recreation areas, and wildlife habitat improvement. Nearly 50,000 young men and war veterans were provided employment, learned job skills, and furthered their education in South Carolina CCC camps. During the hard times of the Great Depression, there was little money for building materials and heavy equipment, so ingenuity, hard work, and simple hand tools were the order of the day. Small sawmills and stone quarries supplied the camps with natural building materials located nearby. The foundation of the South Carolina State Park System was laid by the CCC with the development of its first seventeen parks, and the corps built many of the beautiful structures enjoyed at state and national parks.

South Carolina · United States