Fall is the perfect time to venture out to one of South Carolina’s beautiful state parks. The Palmetto State boasts a wide range of flora, fauna and geology to experience. From the mountains to the piedmont to the coast, there’s something for everyone within a short drive of home. Of our 47 state parks, members of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) built or improved 16 parks between 1933 and 1942.
The CCC was a part of the New Deal signed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1933 to combat the staggering 25% unemployment rate for all men during the Great Depression. This voluntary work program for single men between the ages of 17 to 28 provided an opportunity to earn money, travel and be of service to the country through meaningful hard work. Although the program was intended for all men to serve, camps were segregated by color after much protest by Southern states.
Before he was president, Roosevelt created a state version of the CCC as New York’s governor. It proved to be wildly popular. He believed a nationwide CCC would not only help dig families out of poverty in hard economic times, but empower men to find new meaning and possibly a new career. The work, Roosevelt thought, would enable Americans — no matter their economic status — to get closer to nature and alleviate many societal problems.
Corps members helped with a wide range of projects, including reforestation, building dams, erosion prevention, constructing fire towers, enhancing trails and building park infrastructure. Enrollees had their food, housing and medical care covered in exchange for $30 a month, of which they had to send $25 home to help their families.
In the evenings, most camps offered educational opportunities. Ninety percent of all enrollees participated in these learning opportunities over the course of the program, with more than 40,000 illiterate men being taught to read and write. Should a CCC member decide to join the military, he could enter at a higher rank. Many men went on to do great things because of their foundation in the CCC.
One such man was Park Circle resident Michelle Long’s grandfather, Thomas B. Long Sr., who quit school in eighth grade to help support his family. He jumped at the opportunity to join the CCC, and after helping build Edisto Beach State Park, he joined the Navy and became a diver who repaired ships during World War II. Following the war, he came back home to work at the Charleston Naval Shipyard. Through the CCC, Thomas created a future for himself and his family that would likely not have been possible otherwise.
As economic conditions began to improve during the early 1940s, enrollment dropped because men were able to find higher paying jobs closer to home. Low enrollment coupled with men volunteering and getting drafted for World War II led the CCC program to end in 1942.
In the first two years of the CCC program’s success, the U.S. Park Service estimates that the value of work completed in State Parks alone generator over $27 million and 20 years of advancements in park development. More than 3 million men went through that program and planted over 3 billion trees, built over 3,000 fire tires and made countless other contributions to our national and state parks. During one of the hardest times in our nation’s history, leaders turned to investing in preserving our natural resources for generations to come.
The following are state parks built with support from the CCC. I encourage you to get a state park pass and enjoy the fruits of previous generations’ labor:
- Aiken State Park
- Barnwell State Park
- Cheraw State Park
- Chester State Park
- Edisto Beach State Park
- Givhans Ferry State Park
- Hunting Island State Park
- Kings Mountain State Park
- Lake Greenwood State Park
- Lee State Park
- Myrtle Beach State Park
- Oconee State Park
- Paris Mountain State Park
- Poinsett State Park
- Sesquicentennial State Park
- Table Rock State Park
Toni Reale is the owner of Roadside Blooms, a unique flower, plant, crystal, rock and fossil shop in Park Circle in North Charleston. Formerly a geology Instructor at the College of Charleston for over a decade, she still remains passionate about environmental issues and interesting topics in science and nature. roadsidebloomsshop.com
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