Woodson County Wanderings

Yesterday marked the first time in quite awhile that I made a field visit to a CCC project location. The destination was Woodson State Fishing Lake located a few miles southwest of Yates Center, KS. With the family in tow and a small lot of period photos to help identify construction and camp activities, we set out on a brilliantly sunny, breezy, late January afternoon.

Kansas Wildlife & Parks brochure PDF 

What a beautiful, secluded location! Tucked into a small valley in the oak filled hills of the Cross Timbers region, the 75+ year old lake still shines like a jewel. Despite the nice day, we had the place to ourselves.

Woodson State Fishing Lake looking northwest from CCC quarry locale.

Two CCC companies (Co. 1715 and 1709) were initially responsible for carrying out the lake construction, while a third (Co. 2735) worked here in the latter stages of the project, bringing it to a successful conclusion. The photos in my collection primarily depict the work of Co. 1709 from the earliest phases of construction to lake impoundment.

Mule teams and Caterpillar power (note Camp Woodson in background).

Lake Fegan dam and spillway from quarry locale.

A common decorative style using local stone to create columns and a castellated wall along the dam drive was employed at Lake Fegan where sandstone blocks form a row of columns on the downstream side of the dam and a decorative and functional castellated wall on the impoundment side.

Woodson State Fishing Lake- decorative stonework along dam road.

I have not always been successful in relocating remnants of CCC camps, even when having maps or photographic evidence of their locations. Camp Woodson was by comparison, fairly easy to identify with several landmarks tying historic photos to existing remains starting with a fireplace and chimney standing in a pasture adjacent to the lake property. Other areas of sandstone blocks, brick piers, brick and stone rubble, and scattered evidence of roads and other camp features were noted across the same short grazed pasture. Visible evidence of Camp Woodson was more limited on the lake property where thick stands of native grass and scattered thickets and trees obscured visibility. Additionally, it is clear that developments associated with the activity of the lake over the past 75+ years have impacted the remains of the former camp, but enough remains of the camp to warrant more formal documentation and mapping to record visible features. Interestingly, Camp Woodson was one of those early Kansas camps where boxcars were relied upon for some of the camp buildings (at least early on). I was pleased to see several instances of correlation between my period photographs and the modern landscape.

Fireplace and chimney of former CCC camp building.

My son and his big find- the flagpole base inscribed "CCC, Co. 1709, 1934".

Photo of Company 1709 at retreat (note flagpole and chimney).

Lake Garnett, Camp Anderson, and Civilian Conservation Corps Co. #1715

 Photo of Company 1715, July 9, 1935

Source: Anderson County Historical Society collection (Merritt McDonald donation)

I finally had a chance this week to stop by the Anderson County Historical Society in Garnett to spend some time researching. I was met by longtime ACHS president Dorothy Lickteig who had mentioned in previous correspondence with her that they did have some photos of the CCC camp in their collections. While I spent the afternoon looking through Garnett area photos, pulling photos of the lake and camp, and scanning them, Dorothy graciously copied relevant notes from ACHS history publications highlighting the project from the perspective of the local paper.

The project itself involved the construction of a dam to form Lake Garnett, located on the north side of town. The lake and surrounding park property continues to be a center of recreation for the community today and was recently nominated as an "8 Wonders of Kansas" in the customs category.

PDF of Garnett's "8 Wonders of Kansas" nomination

Besides the lake, the location includes a number of New Deal era resources constructed by WPA and NYA crews in the late 1930s after completion of the lake including a swimming pool, football stadium, shelterhouses, restrooms, and picnic tables, of local stone and concrete creating a great rustic look to the park development.

Company 1715 came to Garnett in November of 1934 from the project near Toronto where work was ongoing to construct what is today called Woodson State Fishing Lake. The Garnett project received the support of former governor and then longtime U.S. Senator Arthur Capper whose hometown was Garnett. The work on dam construction was largely complete in the latter half of 1936 with other work wrapping up in late summer 1937.

 C.C.C. Camp Anderson Under Construction, October 26, 1934

Source: Anderson County Historical Society collections

Lake Garnett Construction- Clearing Location.

 Source: Anderson County Historical Society collections (Kenneth Knouse donation)

 Lake Garnett Shortly After Completion (note C.C.C. camp in background)

Source: Anderson County Historical Society collections

Lone Star Lake- "dream of Douglas County sportsmen and citizens"

 1937 Aerial showing Lone Star Lake construction

Work on a 1,400 foot long, 45 foot high earthen core dam that would eventually create a nearly 200 acre lake began in August 1934. No less than four CCC companies were stationed here over a period of more than 5 years including Co. #2734 in August 1934, Co. #1764 in October 1934, Co. #767 in November 1935, and Co. #1728 in October 1936, although not all companies were assigned to the project at one time. Co. 767 and 1728 were comprised of African-Americans, two of only five such companies involved with projects in Kansas. A Lawrence Journal World account dated July 27, 1940 read "Fishermen stormed Lone Star Lake this morning at the official opening of the new Douglas county resort".

Lone Star Lake was originally the conception of a private group who sold cabin lots to fund purchase of the necessary property. The property, minus the cabin lots, was turned over to Douglas County when additional acreage became necessary for the impoundment and the county issued bonds to cover the purchase. A visit today will bring you to a quiet lake nestled in a wooded valley just a few miles southwest of Lawrence. The property is maintained by Douglas County Public Works; fishing by Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks.

KDWP- Lone Star Lake

The original CCC camp area occupied an upland edge overlooking the valley where the lake was constructed. Today this area is part of the lake campground.

Oblique angle aerial photo (view NW) showing Lone Star Lake

construction. Note CCC camp in foreground.

Where I Met The CCC

 

In July 2008 I was introduced to the Civilian Conservation Corps during a visit to Scott State Park north of Scott City, KS. The lake itself was a project initiated by the State of Kansas as an enhancement to a new state park. The lake was opened to the public in June 1930 to much fanfare and the park was a source of pride locally and a popular attraction in the region.

In early August 1933 torrential rainfall in the Ladder Creek basin overwhelmed the impoundment and the west end of the dam failed when the spillway was undercut by floodwaters. The popularity of the young lake and state park created a groundswell to repair the dam that rose to the highest levels of state government. Governor Alf Landon quickly recommended that the project be included among others being proposed elsewhere in the state and by the end of August the Scott County News Chronicle led with a the headline "C.C.C. Workers To Be Here Soon". Company 731 arrived during the third week of October, establishing Camp McGinnis on the west side of the lake, a short distance southwest of the spillway.

The photo above is a picture I took from the caprock overlooking this camp location. Concrete footings/slabs, landscape modifications, and a well are visible at the location today and the camp was recorded as an archaeological site (14SC326) as a result of my visit. According to newspaper accounts, many of the camp buildings were adobe. Grass and soil were excavated locally, combined with a suitable amount of water and the mixture pressed into blocks. A number of western Kansas camps are noted to have used this technique for building camp structures and other buildings.

Interestingly, this camp and project are not among those listed for Kansas, probably in part due to the short notice leading up to establishment of the camp. A report in the Colby Free Press Tribune dated 10/11/33 notes that a number of camps would established in the region between October 1st through the 15th including one at Atwood, KS. Company 731 eventually made it to Atwood in May 1934 after completing the repairs on the dam at Scott County State Park. I believe the company was diverted from its intended original destination and was reassigned to Scott County to answer the public demand for a quick, cost effective solution to a devastating situation.

It was while trying to find corroborating evidence of local reports about a CCC camp at the park that I became interested in the work done elsewhere in the state and realized that there had been relatively little done to tell the story of the contributions the CCC made throughout the state. In this case the efforts of the CCC saved a regional attraction of significant historical interest that has since continued to be a jewel in the state park system. The CCC is one significant chapter in the history of Scott County and Scott State Park.

Scott State Park

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