Arizona’s Civilian Conservation Corps in Our National Parks and Forests

In 1933, at the nadir of the Great Depression, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was born. This New Deal program was designed to help unemployed young men learn new skills and earn a dollar a day to support both themselves and their families. CCCers fervently claim that this opportunity gave them the confidence and skills to tackle any challenge; it forever changed their lives. These men built the roads, trails, picnic areas, ranger stations, fire lookouts and public campgrounds that we still use and appreciate today. This presentation provides a brief history of the Great Depression, the CCC program, and its tremendous impact on Arizona’s national park and forest development.

Robin Pinto studies the evolution of Arizona’s cultural landscapes especially early settlement and homesteading, the New Deal and federal work programs, and ranching on public lands. She has a Masters in Landscape Architecture and doctorate from the School of Natural Resources and Environment at UA. She has written landscape histories for Fort Bowie NHS, Chiricahua and Organ Pipe Cactus NM, and Saguaro NP. She headed a team of historians that produced the heritage tourism map, “The New Deal in Arizona: Connections to Our Historic Landscapes.” Plus, she developed an exhibit at the Arizona History Museum in Tucson, “It Saved My Life: the Civilian Conservation Corps in Southern Arizona.”