Our Mark on This Land: A Guide to the Legacy of the Civilian Conservation Corps in America's Parks

The Civilian Conservation Corps, one of the very first - and Very successful - efforts of Franklin D. Roosevelt's presidential administration, was created to put unemployed young men to work performing conservation and related activities during the depths of the Great Depression while simultaneously striving to restore the bodies, minds, and spirits of the men themselves. During the nine years that the CCC was in existence - from 1933 to 1942 - more than three million men planted billions of trees, restored worn out forests and farmlands fought forest and range fires, erected hundreds of fire towers, constructed lakes and dams, blazed thousands of miles of trails, planned and graded roads, and built numerous cabins, lodges shelters, bridges, and other structures. This work of the CCC placed a rich distinct, and durable imprint on more than 700 local, state, and national parks throughout the United States - and in the process created a personality of landscape, that generations have since come to recognize and appreciate as an inherent part of their - and the nation's - outdoor experience.

Our Mark on This Land identifies, discribes and provides access information to more than 300 parks spread throughout the United States that provide the best remainingexamples of CCC workmanship. As such, it is a treasure trove of destination at which the living legacy of the CCC may still be experienced - and ever more fully appreciated for the recreational and historical importance, this program provided all who value and appreciate America's local, state, and national parks

Authors Ren and Helen Davis are actively retired administrators and educators who devote much time to researching, photographing, writing about, and offering public presentations on travel, recreation, and natural and cultural history topics.