The Infinite Dividend: The WPA · Episode 4 of 13 · 30 min
Hidden in Plain Sight: Schools, Pools, Zoos, and Dealey Plaza
The WPA built at every scale, from whole-city sewer systems to a single neighborhood pool or zoo paddock. It put up or improved roughly 125,000 public buildings, including over 4,000 schools and 130 hospitals. Case studies include Oakland's zoo and Woodminster Amphitheater and Dallas's Dealey Plaza, finished in 1940.
Who's who
- Harry Hopkins+10 more episodesWPA administrator who insisted relief come through visible, useful work
- John F. Kennedy+4 more episodesPresident assassinated in Dealey Plaza in 1963
- George Bannerman DealeyDallas Morning News publisher for whom the plaza is named
- John Neely BryanFounder of Dallas who settled the site in the 1840s
Where it happens
- Dealey Plaza, Dallas, Texas+1 more episodeWPA cooperative project with triple underpass, completed 1940
- Oakland Zoo, CaliforniaReceived WPA improvements; moved to Durant Park in 1939
- Woodminster Amphitheater, Oakland, CaliforniaBuilt by the WPA in Joaquin Miller Park
Timeline
- 1935WPA funds enlarge the Oakland municipal zoo's elephant paddock
- 1939Oakland's zoo relocates to Durant Park, now Knowland Park
- 1940Dealey Plaza and its triple underpass are completed
- 1943The WPA is liquidated after building about 125,000 public buildings
- November 22, 1963Kennedy is assassinated in Dealey Plaza
Still debated
The totals are program-level approximations, and since nearly every project was cooperative with a locality, credit between the WPA and local sponsors can blur. The Oakland zoo moved mid-decade, so the scope of WPA work at each site needs care.
← Previous650,000 Miles: The Roads, Bridges, and Airports the WPA BuiltNext →An Easel in Every Town: How the WPA Launched American Modern Art
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