Transcript
Most importantly, CCC laid the cornerstone of modern recreation tourism in West Virginia through the development of the state’s first recreation areas and parks.
Dave Caplinger: It seemed that they didn’t have the wherewithal to follow through that initial purchase and develop facilities until the Depression hit and the Civilian Conservation Corps came along and provided that avenue for development that the forest was kind of waiting for.
Mike Smith: We wouldn’t have much of a park system today without the work that was done during the 1930s by the CCC. Almost all the parks in the state, the original parks, had their beginnings at that time. And many of them, the main structures of the parks still date from that time.
Narrator: Architecture, it is said, should speak of its time and place, but yearn for timelessness. The work of the CCC epitomizes this sentiment. Fshioned from materials found in nature, the handcrafted furnitures, rustic log structures, metalwork and stonework found across West Virginia, has become part of the cultural landscape. A legacy written in wood, stone and iron that stands as a testament to the CCC craftsmanship and creativity.
