CCC Craftsmen Built Bastrop State Park in the 1930s

In 1933 the National Park Service, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), and the Texas State Parks Board teamed up to build Bastrop State Park. The CCC crews were young men given jobs during the Great Depression. They built stone cabins, a refectory (a large dining hall), roads, and trails using local materials: cedar, oak, walnut, pine, and red sandstone quarried nearby.

Architect Arthur Fehr followed National Park Service design rules meant to blend the buildings into the landscape. The refectory has carved mantelpieces, hand-hewn roof beams, and handmade furniture. The park opened in 1937. It is now one of only seven CCC-built state parks in the country with National Historic Landmark status, which it received in 1997.

The stone cabins are still available to rent through TPWD. They are kept in period condition. Staying in one gives you a direct look at Depression-era craftsmanship. The 2011 wildfire damaged much of the forest around the park, but firefighters protected the CCC structures.