During the Great Depression, the federal government organized the Civilian Conservation Corps to provide useful employment for thousands of citizens and to develop and save the nation’s natural resources under the management of U.S. Army personnel. The young men of Civilian Conservation Corps Company 808 contributed a major part to building Platt National Park, where they defended, protected, and preserved natural resources for future generations. CCC workers built roads and nurseries, landscaped parks, planted trees, and conserved the countryside. For their work they were paid $30 per month, of which $25 was sent home, and they also received housing, food, medical and dental care, and educational benefits. Company 808 was part of a nationwide corps of three million members, and their park serves countless thousands of visitors each year.