CCC Craftsmen Built Bastrop State Park in the 1930s

Civilian Conservation Corps crews arrived in 1933. They turned nearby red sandstone and local timber into cabins, roads, trails, and a refectory. The young men were part of a Depression-era work program. What they left in Bastrop feels more like a small village made for the woods.

Architect Arthur Fehr followed a National Park Service style meant to fit the land. Inside the refectory are carved mantels, hand-hewn roof beams, and handmade furniture. The park opened in 1937. It became a National Historic Landmark in 1997.

Bastrop is one of seven CCC-built parks in the country with that honor. Some historic cabins can still be reserved through TPWD. The 2011 fire swept through much of the park. Firefighters protected the CCC buildings, so the old stonework still stands beside a forest growing back.