Grayson County TXGenWeb

Civilian Conservation Corps
Sherman, Grayson County, Texas

The Civilian Conservation Corps, aka CCC, operated nationwide 1933 - 1942 as an attempt by the national government under President Franklin D. Roosevelt's administration to relieve unemployment during the Great Depression. The Department of Labor was in charge of selecting recruits from among the unemployed. The War Department was in charge with enrollment, physical examinations, transportation to conditioning camps, providing food, clothing and shelter during the reconditioning period and finally transporting the recruits to work camps. (Porter, Maj. John A. Porter, Q.M.C. "The Enchanted Forest". Ft. Lee, Virginia: Army Quartermaster Museum. Viewed December 7, 2019) Recruits were primarily young, unmarried men, ages 17-25 and from a family on relief, who lived in work camps, receiving $30 per month, with $25 being sent directly to the family, as well as food, medical care and other necessities. Assignments to states was random, so workers in Texas came from all over the country. Participants performed heavy, semi-skilled, outdoor labor. The young men were allowed to enroll in classes held at the camp or local high schools, earning credits from elementary level to college level.
The camps list on "Civilian Conservation Corps Legacy" indicate they were racially segregated, indicated by a "C" following the company number, i.e. Lufkin Camp #838-C. The letter "V" indicated a company composed of military veterans, i.e. Canyon Camp 1821-V. The letter "V" indicated a company composed of military veterans, i.e. Canyon Camp 1821-V. "VC" was probably used to indicate companies for veterans of color. In some states there are company numbers followed by the letter "X"; that indicates a mixed race company, but there are none of the type listed in Texas.
The camp in Sherman, designated as an "SCS" camp #856 established June 19, 1935 and indicating that the camp was dedicated to soil conservation work, was located one mile east of town. The camps of 200 men were supervised by the United States Army. Men that were enrolled to plant trees were called the "tree army".

Eugene Hall and Earl Blanton reported for duty at the CCC Camp near Sherman in mid-December 1933; the 2 men were Whitewright's quota of new enlistments. (The Whitewright Sun, Thursday, December 21, 1933)

In the heat of the summer of 1938 Ulner Hershel Green of Bowie, steward of the CCC canteen, nervously made his first telephone call when ordering a case of soda water.

In April 1939 the sixth anniversary of the CCC was observed at the Sherman Camp. The men had helped terrace over 7,000 acres of farm land, sodded over 4,000 acres, built 126 miles of fence, designed 28 stock ponds and spillways.

The news about the Grayson County youths enrolling in July 1939 suggests that the CCC Camps were racially segregated.

With the advent of World War II, the economy began to prosper and resuled in the end of the Civilian Conservation Corps program in 1942.