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Our greatest task is to put people to work. This is no unsolveable problem if we face it wisely and courageously. It can be accomplished in part by direct recruiting by the Government itself, treating the task as we would threat the emergency of war, but at the same time, through this employment, accomplishing greatly needed projects to stimulate and reorganize the use of our national resources.
CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps)--A public works project, operated under the control of the army, which was designed to promote environmental conservation while getting young, unemployed men off city street corners. Recruits planted trees, built wildlife shelters, stocked rivers and lakes with fish, and cleared beaches and campgrounds. The CCC housed the young men in tents and barracks, gave them three square meals a day, and paid them a small stipend. The army's experience in managing and training large numbers of civilians would prove invaluable in WWII. Wisconsin was a beneficiary of the CCC; one of the organizations many local projects was trail construction at Devil's Lake State Park.
—Franklin D. Roosevelt 4 March 1933
In 1939 the CCC was made part of the Federal Security Agency. Beginning in 1940, greater emphasis was placed on projects aiding national defense. Against President Franklin D. Roosevelt's request, Congress abolished the CCC in 1942.
This environmental program put 2.5 million unmarried men to work maintaining and restoring forests, beaches, and parks. Workers earned only $1 a day but received free board and job training. From 1934 to 1937, this program funded similar programs for 8,500 women.
The CCC taught the men and women of America how to live independently, thus, increasing their self esteem.
Thank God for President Roosevelt and his C.C.C. I shall never forget you." -Robert L. Miller
