Valentines Day 2009

Northern VA Chapter 13 celebrated Karl Landstrum's 100th birthday at the Old Country Buffet.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY KARL !!!

Pictured left to right are: Karl's daughter, Karl, and Joan Sharpe.

Here is a tribute to a few CCC boys that I have heard about from various sources.

1. James Emerson "Bud" Shaw:   James was born and raised in Portage, PA.   He was not doing good in school, and when he asked his mother if he could sign up and join the CCC's, she approved.   He served at the camp in Pavia, PA.   There he learned a lot about building and different tools.   They were very good and helpful to all the young men & he enjoyed what they did and made many new friends.   As a group they were responsible for clearing and building Blue Knob State Park which is still there and is used a lot for a Boy Scout Camp.
   
   He had just served 3 years and was still in his uniform when he met a young lady at a roller skating party given by her high school class.   Two years later he (20) and Naomi (18) were married and have enjoyed 65 years of life together.   Later "Bud" re-enlisted and spent 3 or 4 months at Quantico, VA where they were clearing for the Marine Base and the park.   "Bud" is now in a nursing home in failing health.
   
   Written with fond memories of the past by his Loving Wife, Naomi Inman Shaw - Christmas time 2008.
   Naomi is a church friend of Norma Burnette.
   
   
2. James Inman:   Naomi Inman Shaw recalls that her older brother by 6 years joined the C's when he was 16 or 17 for the 3 summer months of school vacation.   He was stationed at Albuquerque, NM.   Naomi still has the hand made purse made by the Indians that he sent her.
   
   
3. Elmer Robert:   Elmer's parents were divorced, and were so poor that Elmer would take his little red wagon and picked up tin cans.   They lived in NJ.   Elmer joined the Cs and served at Cour de'Alene, ID.   He was a Marine during WWII, and married in 1945.   His widow was volunteering at the Culpeper, VA Museum the day I met her and got his story.

Prince William Forest Park, VA - - Sept 27, 2008

Annual National Meeting of CCC Legacy

The meeting was held with several partners:
1) the National Park Service, 2) National Public Lands Day, and 3) the modern Corp Network.

Among the 15 CCC boys in attendace was Donald Halverson.   Don was born in MT in 1918, and graduated high school in 1937.   His first experience with the CCC was at Camp Roy where they cleared trees for an artillery range at Ft Lewis, WA in 1937/38.   After that he spent a year at Camp Sunshine Point (NP8) Mt Ranier, WA.   There he helped clear trails before starting a clerical position in the park's service office.   He took every correspondence course offered while he was in the CCC.   When he left the CCC he started his college education at the University of WA.   His education was interupted by WWII.   Don said "most of the CCC boys were immediately made temporary Corporals (Squad Leaders) when they joined and for most, their performance soon made that rank permanent."   After the war, he finished his degree in Geology, and worked for Texaco for his entire career.   He felt comfortable joining the CCC because he had an older brother, Glenn, (born 1916) that joined the CCC in ID.   Later, Glenn transferred to Winnett, MT where he was a Locally Experienced Man (LEM) that supervised building check dams at MT-SCS-1.   Glenn gave his life for his country during WWII!

Edward Hohmann served in the CCC from the fall of 1936 through the summer of 1939.   His first assignment was with Company 661 at Camp Luzerne, MI.   He moved to Camp McCoy, WI.   Then, as many companies were formed to go to the west coast, Ed explained "10 men from 5 different camps joined 200 new recruits to form a new 250 man company.   They were slightly larger companies and had guidance from experienced boys."   Ed was 1 of the 10 men pulled from Camp McCoy to form Company 3692 that went to Lyman, WA.   He actually worked out of a side camp called Camp Welcome that built Canyon Lake Road.   He also fought forest fires and recalls that one day when they were walking on a log to cross a creek the boy ahead of him stepped on a stub of a branch that contained a bee's hive.   Ed and the boy ahead of him were stung many times.

Richard Chrisinger poses with his daughter Naomi.   Richard served in the CCC from Oct 1937 to Apr 1939.   He grew up in MN, and first served in Company 3652 at Camp Rusk near Glen Fora, WI.   Later, he was moved to the west coast and worked in Company 943 near Oakridge, OR, and finished his CCC experience at Camp Zig Zag near Mt Hood building the Spike Barlow Road.

Melvin Rau was working for the CCC at Pine Grove Furnace in PA when the decision was made to move 100 boys from that camp to Quantico, VA.   Melvin moved to Chopawamsac Recreation Demonstration Area and helped set up the tents that would house Company 2349 in Camp SP-25.   Melvin remembers "Neddy Wright was a school teacher that would come to teach classes, and she held class in a Post Office building."

James "Phil" Simpson poses with his wife Betty.   Phil served in 2 camps.   The first one was in southern IL near Carrier Mills, and the second was near Twins, WA.   Betty is the president of CCC Legacy Chapter 169 at Sebring, FL.

Warren, PA - - August 22, 2008 CCC 75th Anniversary observed along Allegheny River



A "CCC Worker" statue re-dedication celebrating the 75th anniversary of the Civilian Conservation Corps was held on Friday, August 22, 2008 at the PA Visitor Center in Starbrick, PA.   Charles Varro, past president of the National Association of Civilian Conservation Corps Alumni and having served at CCC Camp NF-1 at Marienville (Duhring) in the 1930's, poses next to "The Worker".
U.S. Forest Service Archaeologist, Rick Kandare, gave a talk on the conservation work done by the men in the CCC camps both on the Allegheny National Forest and throughout the country from 1933 to 1942.
After the statue ceremony attendees retired to Buckaloons Campground and Picnic Area.
There, they dedicated a wreath to the Allegheny River in remembrance of all members of the CCC, both living and deceased.   Pictured below are:
Seated, left-to-right, John Holec of Bradford, Joe Tullio of Erie, Nick Stanko of Warren and Charles Varro of Westlake, OH all served in the Civilian Conservation Corps on the Allegheny National Forest during the 1930's. Standing behind these CCC men are history teacher and CCC historian Dr. Michael Schultz of Pittsburgh and Rosemarie Gusciora of Jamesburg, NJ, a board member of the national CCC Legacy organization.

Former CCC member Joe Tullio of Erie did the honors by tossing the wreath into the current, taking it directly into the middle of the Allegheny River at Buckaloons, accompanied by the cheers and applause of the members gathered by the river.

A picnic luncheon of barbecued chicken, salads, local sweet corn, and watermelon was topped off by cake and ice cream served in the riverside picnic pavilion at Buckaloons.   After lunch, attendees reminisced about their service by sharing photos and experiences in the camps.   The picnic and ceremonies were part of the ongoing celebration of the 75th anniversary of Franklin D. Roosevelt's "Tree Army" established in the depths of the Great Depression now being remembered across the country.

CCC Historian Dr. Michael Schultz (standing, background) addresses CCC alumni, family members, dignitaries and volunteers in attendance during an "Allegheny Picnic" to observe the CCC's 75th Anniversary at Buckaloons Campground in Irvine, PA.

Edinburg, VA - - May 17, 2008

Matthew Dellinger, Boy Scout and grandson of two CCC boys, lead the group in Pledging Allegiance to the Flag.

William Miller and Walter Atwood unveil THE STATUE.



Sally Prouty, President of the Corps Network, explains what is happening with the Conservation Corps today.

Prince William Forest Park, VA
Second Annual CCC Member Appreciaton Day    March 29, 2008
Seven men that worked in the CCC attended.   From left to right are:
Vernon Hill - 4 forestry camps in the UP of Michigan
Norman Claiborne - helped build Seashore State Park (now First Landing)
Walter Patrick - SCS supervised Camp Pine Top in Amelia County, VA
Karl Landstrom (99) - Army Officer in charge of Camp Moro, OR
Frank Kuhn - Jackhammer operator turned sign painter at Camp Lost Creek, Norton, VA
Larry McGlynn - a camp near Aberdeen, MD and NP-10 Shenandoah National Park, VA
and Larry Baird not pictured.

       Topeka, KS - March 19, 2008

Present to witness Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius place her signature on a proclamation designating March 31 as Civilian Conservation Corps Recognition Day were from left: Roweena Plett, Marilyn Hamler, Marie Waltman, Feebie Holdeman. Bill Holdeman, Dwight Beckham, Helen Beckham, Irene McBurney and Cleland McBurney.

Bill Holdeman, directly behind Governor Sebelius was enrolled in the CCC at age 16 (with parents permission) and served as a heavy equipment operator building roads in the mountains of Oregon.

Cleland McBurney, extreme right is the son of Ed McBurney who was engineer of the dam at Marion, Crawford, Reading, Lone Star and Meade lakes.

September 22, 2007    Edinburg, VA

Ninty-six people interested in the legacy of the CCC met at the Creekside Plain and Fancy Restaurant in Edinburg, VA to celebrate the FIRST anniversary of Virginia setting aside March 31st as CCC Member Appreciation Day.   The 'boys' that attended were Walter Atwood, Hal Bush, Larry McGlynn, Clifford Sine, Norman Turner, and Charles Varro.   Jonathan Folz, the Great-Grandson of LEM C.E. Thompson who helped build many of the buildings at Camp Roosevelt attended.   James R. Wilkins, Jr., son of James R. Wilkins Sr. who was Superintendent at Camp Roosevelt attended.

Hostess for the evening was President of Camp Roosevelt CCC Legacy Foundation, Joan Sharpe.

Pastor William Fisher (pictured to the left), son of William A. Fisher a Camp Roosevelt CCC boy, gave the Invocation.

Aaron Shapiro, Chief Historian of USDA Forest Service, was the keynote speaker.

Norman Turner (left) Camp Roosevelt and Larry McGlynn (right) Shenandoah National Park Camp

Charles Varro (left) Company 318 in both Marienville and Harrisburg, PA - - - - - - - - - - - Clifford Sine (right) Camp #3359 F-25 Bath, VA

(to the left) Walter Atwood, President of NACCCA receives Builder's Award from Joan Sharpe. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - (to the right) Norma Burnette (daughter of the very first CCC enrollee, Henry Rich) visits with Hal Bush.

This was the 73^rd reunion of the Shenandoah National Park CCC boys.
In the fall of 1933 when the first boys were leaving the CCC, all the camps got together and had a big party for those leaving and there has been a reunion every year since.   This years reunion was held in the Conference Center at Skyland with about 20 CCC boys in attendance.

The highlight of this years reunion was the dedication of the bronze statue of "Iron Mike" in front of the Harry F. Byrd, Sr. visitor center at Big Meadows.

September 16, 2006    Edinburg, VA

Six 'CCC boys' rode in the festival's parade.   They were (from left to right) Walter Atwood, Joe DeCenzo, Everette Leake, Clifford Sine, Curtis Stallard, and Larry McGlynn.

Hostess for the day was President of the CCC Legacy Foundation, Joan Sharp.

CCC boys attending:

Walter Atwood grew up on a farm in Kansas.   He enrolled in the CCC in 1940 and served for 6 months in Wyoming and 6 months in Idaho.   He served in the USAF in the South Pacific during WWII.   He is currently President of NACCCA and lives in South Carolina.

Landon Walker ran a dozer at Camp 26 near Calso, VA

Everette Leake worked at Big Meadows.

Curtis Stallard joined the CCC at the age of 13 and worked at 3 camps in Virginia.   The first one was at Bedford where he helped build a 135 acre lake by driving a dozer to move the earth and then by sodding the freshly moved earth which was subject to erosion.   He visited the lake recently to find that it was now in private ownership, and had houses built all around it.   Later, he worked on roads at Big Stone Gap and at Clintwood.

Hal Bush will be 98 on Veterans day, and he worked in several CCC camps.   The last one he worked at was Bull Hill in PA.   He worked there until it closed in 1941, and then became a forest ranger, and worked in 6 National Forests.   In the CCC, he worked on roads, trails, and reforestation projects.

Peter Humenuk helped build telephone lines in 1939 near Coatsville, PA.   He used a 50 pound sharp pointed bar to dig holes for the poles.   Peter said "that was the hardest work he did in his life and later he worked in the steel mills, and he dug those holes for a dollar a day except of the dollar 22/30ths of that was send home to the family.   Right after pay day, he would buy cigarettes rather than roll his own.   Cigarettes cost about 10 cents a pack, and they came by cartons of 10 packs.   The carton would be made up of 4 packs picked by the boys and 6 packs selected by the canteen worker.   He said packs of Pall Malls would go begging."

William Miller was from Luray, VA and worked at Camp Roosevelt in the motor pool in the 4 bay garage shown below.   This building was moved from Camp Roosevelt to Edinburg in 1943.   Red Hatashell was supervisor of the motor pool.   William worked in the Cs for 6 months until he obtained a construction job in Washington DC.   He served in World War II and said "his experience in the Cs helped him get a motor pool job in the Army."

Four (John Yancy, Larry Baird, Joe DeCenzo, and Walter Atwood) CCC boys attended.   Pictured (left to right) is Walter Atwood (President of NACCCA), Norma Burnette (daughter of first CCC enrollee - Henry Rich and President of Chapter 13), and Joe DeCenzo (CCC Camp Sligo, PA) just as we concluded pledging allegiance to our flag.

John Yancey was raised near the Florida border in southern Georgia.   His first four nights away from home were spent on a train going to a CCC camp in Oregon.

Larry Baird grew up in New Hampshire, and worked in three CCC camps.   The first was in TN where the boys built a recreation area overlooking Norris dam and the lake above it.   The camp was closed when the reservoir above the dam was about to flood it.   Larry then went to Washington to clear grand fir trees that had died when they were flooded by Clear Lake near Yakima.   It took 3 months to cut the trees up and remove them from the 40 acre site.   Some of the trees were so big that dynamite was used to break them up.   Then he moved to a SCS camp in the Finger Lakes area of NY, and planted trees on the contour on badly eroded farm land.   Larry said "he got pretty strong from swinging the pick mattock which made a hole large enough to place a tree seedling and then stomping the hole shut with the heel of his boot."   He completed his days with the CCC as a canteen steward, and joined the Navy in December of 1936.   Larry celebrated his 63rd wedding anniversary the day before our luncheon.

Ray explained how some camps were started.   He said "A group of around 25 boys would move from an established camp to construct facilities for a new camp.   During May 1934, a group of boys from Camp Leadbine in Tucker County, WV moved to Hardy County to build Camp Hardy.   In a few months a group of boys from Camp Hardy moved to Pendleton County, WV to build Camp White."   Ray's brother, Ralph, was in that group.

Ray was proud of the one home run he hit playing on the baseball team, and he said "it was a grand slam!"

This picnic was held at Mike's Italian Restaurant in Alexandria, VA with 12 people attending including three CCC boys: (left to right) Charlie Brewer, Burton "Burt" L. Appleton, and Larry Baird.

Charlie worked out of Camp 420 near Lookout Mountain, TN.   He was a draftsman.

Burt was from NY City and went all the way out to Glacier Park to work.   He said "they dug ditches, put in phone lines, cleared timber, and fought forest fires.   They went out to work every day regardless of weather, and the winters were so cold he only stayed 1 year from April 1939 through March 1940."   He enjoyed playing baseball.   On weekends after policing the grounds and scrubbing the barracks, he would hitch hike to the "big" city of Kalispell 35 miles away or one of the closer small towns of Whitefish or Columbia Falls.   He and his buddy Walter Matthau would go to get away from the regimen of camp life and seek a respite from the horrible food!

Some of those attending from left to right were:
   Joe DeCenzo (CCC Camp Sligo, PA)
   Norma Burnette (daughter of first CCC enrollee - Henry Rich and President of VA Chapter 13). Norma's husband Joe's father was a CCC enrollee in NC.
   Mary Gallas (daughter of Frank Mathis and wife of Peter Gallas -both CCCers)
   Karl Landstrom (age 97 from Camp Moro, OR)
   Joan Sharp (President of the Legacy Foundation)
   Vernon Hill (Chapter 13 Secretary)
   Owen Davis (from Camp Monroe and ????)

Williamsport, PA
2003 Little League World Series
Jim "Red" Franklin throws out the first pitch at the 2003 Little League World Series in Williamsport, PA.   Red was in the S-78 Cooks Run CCC camp, which was above Renovo, PA.   Red was with a group that had come from Alabama.   Now he's the Mayor of South Renovo, PA.