During the 1930's both the Works Progress Administration and the Civilian Conservation Corp were very active in Murray County. Several Murray families made it through the Great Depression due to these New Deal programs. The work done by those employed by the WPA and CCC in Murray County is still greatly visible.
WPA Labor built the rock building at Murray High which brought about consolidation of several smaller high schools in 1934. The county home on highway 52 east of Chatsworth was also the result of the WPA which "approved $1,116 for the native stone veneer" in 1935. In 1940 the WPA approved "a disposal plant at Chatsworth."
Civilian Conservation Corp Camp No. 447 was established in 1938. According to Thurman Underwood, a member of the camp, the group originated in Tennessee where they built Picketts State Park near Jamestown. When the camp moved 'o Chatsworth. the former brick plant property at the south end of First and Second Avenues became its headquarters. The Chatsworth Camp came to include men from Tennessee, Georgia, and the Carolinas.
The major task facing this camp was the development of Fort Mountain State Park. Roads, trails, a tower, facilities, and a lake were constructed. Among the commanders of this camp were Captain Wimberly, Lieutenant (later Colonel) Fries and, briefly. Captain Padgett. Mr. Underwood, who served as an orderly under Commander Fries, stressed the value of the CCC in preparing men-physically and mentally-for later service in World War II. The CCC had medical, dental, food, and recreational programs as well as economic and environmental functions. The men were paid approximately $30 per month and were required to send part of their salaries "home."
Murray County's longest lived CCC group was the "Holly Creek Camp," officially designated as Carnp Crawford W. Long, Company No. 483. Directed by the U.S. Forestry Service, this camp was located on Holly Creek, east of Eton, following the arrival of 150 enrollees from Fort McClellan, Alabama, on June 25, 1933. The Official Annual of the Civilian Conservation Corps, 1937, records the story as follows:
The Camp was built by enrollees and local carpenters, many of whom were later enrolled in the Camp and formed the nucleus of the Company . . .
The first year of the Camp's existence was uneventful. Main objectives were completion of permanent Camp and organization. Little time was available for promotion of educational program, discipline and morale, although "favorable local contact," always a policy of this Company, was given birth by friendly relations with town officials and citizens.
As time passed improvements were made even though nature did not favor this location. Additional buildings were erected, old buildings repaired and more time spent promoting educational, social and recreational program.
This Company has always ranked high in education and recreation, turning out several local championship basketball and baseball teams.
Under Captain Tindal the Camp reached a "high" from which a decline was noted until the summer of 1936.
In the spring of 1936, heavy rains almost washed the Camp away. Side of the recreation hall was crushed by a dirt slide from mountain above Camp; water ran through barracks leaving mud and sediment; deep gullies were washed in company Streets and camp grounds which were almost denuded.
At this time the morale and general appearance of the Company reached its lowest ebb.
During this period Lieutenant Calleteau was assigned to the Company as Camp Commander. His was a difficult task; rebuilding the camp, establishing discipline and morale. Lieutenant Calleteau faced the situation squarely and with the cooperation of the enrollees began reconstruction work. A seawall was built along the creek extending the entire length of the Camp to prevent a recurrence of such a disastrous flood; rock terraces were built over Camp; the drainage system enlarged and rearranged to provide adequate drainage; the recreation hall remodeled and general renovation of the Camp undertaken.
Captain Brown succeeded Lieutenant Cailleteau and with the continuation of Lieutenant Cailleteau's policies made Company 483 one of the best in this Sub-District.
The main projects completed by the Using Service include: Road building, cultural work, reforestation, and building or a dam for recreational purposes. Over fifty miles of graveled road has been carved out of mountain sides, many of which afford beautiful scenery. The dam being constructed is to be a recreational project open to the public. Cabins are to be built and the lake, which will cover approximately twenty-five acres, to be stocked with fish. Two fire towers have been built and are maintained by enrollees.
Capt. A.B. Culbertson, present Company Commander, is continuing the improvement program and is beautifying the Camp by planting flowers and shrubs, but he is concentrating mainly on improving the sanitary level of the Camp and enrollees and educating enrollees in personal hygiene.
Company 483 is located on the east bank of Holly Creek, a beautiful mountain stream, seven miles east of Eton, Ga. A graveled road leads to Camp which nestles among towering trees overlooking restful Holly Creek. The rugged beauty of the surrounding mountains is inspirational and the scenery comparable with any in the state.
For some time the Crawford W. Long Camp had a featured column in The Chatsworth Times entitled "Holly Creek Ripples." Present-day U.S. Forestry Service employee Mrs. Harriett DiGioia researched the old newspapers and found several interesting items:
May 17,1934:
We can see at this time of the year a mighty good reason for preservation of the forests. Did you ever see such beautiful wild flowers? All of us admire the honeysuckle (wild azalea) which has been of all colors and varieties. The dogwood and sweet shrubs have also been beautiful, and now the mountain laurel and rhododendron aie blooming. Would it not be a crime to have all these beautiful flowers killed by disastrous fire? Of course, we all know the value of preserving and conserving the trees that will be used commercially in the future and probably will repay our Dear Old Uncle Sam for taking caie of us during these trying times of the depression. Also, everyone can see that it is essential and desirable to keep these flowers and shrubs for their beauty.
We received last week a supply of first-aid kits, and smoke remedies. If accidents should happen, do not get excited, especially in case ot" snake bite. Do not exercise at all unless absolutely necessary. First aid will be administered as soon as possible by the leader. The carnp surgeon is giving instructions in first aid.
Our side camp is now occupied but not filled to capacity yet. We have not completed the dinmg tent, and some other things will be necessary to complete it. But in due time we hope to have a model camp with running water, electric lights, baths, etc. at an elevation of 3,000 feet above sea level. Claude Arrowood is in charge.
The following new officers were elected for the Literary Club at its regular meeting last Monday night: President, Floyd Wooten; Vice-president, Ray Tuggles; Secretary, Paul Jones. The officers also constitute the program committee.
The Literary Club scheduled an extemporaneous debate for last Wednesday night. The relative values of the mule and cow as farm animals was argued. Affirmative side: Jasper Henderson, Orville Hegood, and Hugh Carmichael;Negative side: Proctor Scrivens, Hoke Isenhower, and Ray Tuggles. Judges were Lieutenants Obear and Sumner, and enrollee Robert Rainey. Old "Bossy" won the argument, and the debate was a laugh from start to finish.
May 24, 1934:
Captain John R. Tindall of the 324lh infantry Reserve, has served as C.O. of two other CCC companies, coming to this organization from Company 1475 of Whitwell, Tenn. Captain Tindall is a graduate of the Army Infantry School at Fort Benning, Ga.
FORESTRY NEWS - By W.F. Montgomery, Project Superintendent
George Stephenson, forest ranger for this section of the National Forest, paid our camp a visit on last Friday. He was here making arrangements for building a lookout tower and cabin on the lop of Grassy Mountain. Harvy Rouse is in charge of the construction and our boys.,,
Our trail builder is now at work on the building of the Grassy Mountain road, and within a week or more the road will be open to the top of the mountain. Rouse is beginning to get out the timber today to build this lookout and he will be camping at a spring near the proposed lookout station.
Our new CCC enrollees, 23 of them, are out at work this morning . . .
TRAVEL CLUB - By Ployd Woolen, Secretary
Our Travel Club is proving very interesting as well as educational. The club meets twice a week, and some members tells of his travels . . , The purpose of out club is to study the points of interest in our country and the world at large with reference to their geographical, economic and social values. At the same time the boys are being trained to express themselves before an audience.
SPORTS - By C.A. Paine
Holly Creek vs. Ellijay Camp - Last Sunday Holly Creek flowed into Ellijay, but the Ellijay boys turned the tide by the score of 6 to 5 in one of the most interesting games of the season. Outstanding players for Ellijay were "Curley" Milton, Pinson, Mitchell; for Holly Creek, Vinson, Deaton, and Eugene Wellborn.
Batteries: Mitchell and H. Milton, and Campbell, Cook, Snelling.
BY HAL DOBBS - Holly Creek vs. Duane Chair Company - Holly Creek defeated Duane Chair Company, of Dalton, Saturday at Eton in one of the best games of the season. Campbell, of Holly Creek, was in rare form, allowing only five hits and walking none, York, for the visitors, pitched a good game and deserved a better fate, but Holly Creek was not to be denied. He gave up a total of eight hits, which were kept well-scattered, except in the second, and walked only one man.
A bit of humor was injected into the game when, in the seventh, Huggin singled between short and second, and the ball was lost in high grass. The whole Holly Creek team searched frantically for several minutes before it could be found. Huggin had ample time to score, but elected to hold first, thinking he was being led into a trap.
May 31, 1934:
Bridge Work Progressing Rapidly
After a slow start in getting up the first pier, the bridge crew is now making rapid progress on the second and middle piers. They will finish the second pier this week, and probably the cofferdam for the middle pier. Assistant Leader Henry Leonard is building the cofferdams, and Assistant Leader Marvin Rogers is in charge of the forms for the piers. Mr. Lanham is supervising the work.
The boys in the bookkeeping class taught by Lieutenant Sumner are showing great interest in their study. This week each member of the class has received a portfolio of forms for practice.
Our new company commander. Captain Tindall, is taking great interest in the camp educational program. He has already secured many supplies, including blackboards, chalk, erasers, library books, textbooks, etc., all of which were badly needed. Upon his advice the camp educational adviser has organized two new classes, one in business English and one in business arithmetic. Also, Captain Tindall has volunteered to teach one or more subjects. The class in carpentry is to be congratulated on having him as instructor, beginning this week.
June 7, 1934
OLD TIMERS WILL LEAVE CAMP ON JUNE 30th
It was a year ago on June 4th and 5th that this company was formed at Ft. Mc-Clellan, Ala. There were two groups, the first from Atlanta, the second from Rome, Ga. They combined to become 209 strong and did they feel their strength! These Old Timers built this camp, it was through them that we have nice barracks and a mess hall. Many will leave with regret the friendships they have formed while here. This year will linger in the memory of those who found work that will be a monument to them for years to come.
FOREST NEWS
As we have some new men in this camp who perhaps don't understand the Forest Service system of roads, 1 will tell you in this article something about them.
The Cherokee National Forest of several thousand acres lies in Tennessee, Georgia, and North Carolina. A large acreage of this forest is here in Murray, Gilmer and Fannin Counties, Georgia. The Old Westfield Pike which is the road leading from Crandall to the Holly Creek camp and on to Mulberry Gap is the present southern boundary of this part of the Cherokee National Forest. We consider this road as our base and are building four or five other roads turning off in a northerly and easterly direction to connect with the Cowpen Mountain Road which has already been built along the crest of the mountain.
The Tibbs Road which is almost complete is one of these roads. The Potato Patch Mountain Road which we are just now beginning, will be another and we have the Mill Creek Road and the Emory Creek Road yet to take up. We also have another, the Mule Top Three Forks Mountain Road, which will lead off from the Cowpen Mountain Road and will connect with a road system being built by Camp Tennessee F-10. Probably other road projects will be added.
The primary purpose of these roads will be to use in fighting fires, and next in importance will be for use for recreation. The value of these roads will probably repay the government and the people for the expense now being spent on them. This in addition to giving the young men something to do in these trying times.
On April 3, 1934 the camp's commander was George S. Obear III who was succeeded by Captain Tindall. Others were Lt. Summers, Lt. Walker, and Captain Flemings. Superintendents included Paul Arrowood and Bill Montgomery. Claude Arrowood, Porter Huffstetler, Jack Kelly, Mac Trammell, and Temple Johnson held various foremanships.
The demobilization of the Holly Creek Camp was ordered, but, due to the efforts of Congressman Malcolm Tarver and Senator Richard Russell, the order was rescinded. At this time the camp numbered 165 "boys" with Captain Y.E. Bargeron, Lt. V.B. Cagle, Lt. V.C. Pulliam, and project superintendent J.L. La-Rue were camp officers. Captain Nimmo Old, Jr. succeeded Bargeron as commander.
The camp disbanded in the fail of 1941 but some of the cabins existed years later. Most of the CCC work area was incorporated within the Chattahoochee National Forest whose story is told by Mrs. DiGioia as follows:
Following passage of the Weeks Law in 1911, the U.S. Government began to purchase land in the east as part of the National Forest system. Originally, the Georgia Purchase Unit was a part of the Cherokee and Nantahala National Forests. But on July 9, 1936, it was established by Presidential proclamation as the Chattahoochee National Forest.
In 1936, the Chattahooehee was organized into two Ranger Districts, the Blue Ridge and the Tallulah, The original land area was composed of 1,165,000 gross acres. Approximately 500,000 of these acres were located in Dawson, Fannin, Gil-mer. Habersham, Lumpkin, Murray, Rabun, Towns, Union and White counties. In 1937, the Armuchee Purchase unit of 250,000 acres in Caloosa, Chalooga, Floyd, Gordon and Walker Counties was approved for addition.
The lands purchased were mostly cut-over, burned-over, eroded lands which were considered of little value. Fire protection was one of the biggest jobs as million of trees were planted in the cut-over and burned-over areas. Fish and game were also restocked in areas where they had been depleted.
During this time, managing the National Forest for the 'greatest good' was difficult. Travel over the forest was mostly on horseback.
The Civilian Conservation Corps, created out of the Depression era, was instrumental in the management of the early Chattahooehee National Forest. The CCC'ers planted trees, checked and controlled tree disease and insect infestations, built fire-towers, roads, ranger stations, and recreation areas, laid communication lines, and did erosion control work.
The 60's began with the signing of the Multiple-Use, Sustained Yield Act that specifies National Forests to be managed for outdoor recreation, range, timber, watershed, fish and wildlife purposes in such combination and manner that they will
best serve public needs.
The 1960s were characterized by a wave of activity on the Chattahooehee. Tremendous construction efforts were undertaken to provide recreation areas within SO miles of every major town. Roads such as the Richard Russell Scenic Highway were built to provide better access to the National Forest.
Timber harvests also increased in the 60s as the timber planted in the 1930s began to mature. The largest timber sale on the Chattahooehee was made in January, 1964. It took five years to cut over 9,390 acres taking only 10.5 million board feet of timber.
The explosive growth period in the 60s brought concerns and greater appreciation for the nation's natural resources. E nviron men tabs m became the critical factor in forest management in the 1970s.
During the mid-70s Cohutta and Ellicott's Rock Wilderness areas were established. These areas offered forest visitors more primitive recreation activities in secluded areas. The Chattanooga River was designated as a wild and scenic river by Congress during this time.
The 70s brought many changes in traditional forest management. Fire towers were phased out and replaced by aerial lire detection and expanded disciplines brought more technical expertise to the forest,
During 1980, a process known as land management planning began on the Chattahooehee. By actively seeking public input, the forest service worked to develop a plan to manage all of the resources of the Chattahooehee over the next 10 to 15 years. The plan was recently completed and is now being implemented on the forest. The Chattahoochee has come a long way since the early days of forest management. By managing the forest environment for a variety of resources, the U.S. Forest Service is helping to ensure that each of these resources will have a place in our future and in our children's future.
For many years Charles Dunn, a Murray native, headed the Forestry Unit. Bill Black is now superintendent. Lake Conasauga Recreation Area boasts camping, hiking, and picnicking facilities as well as Georgia's highest lake. All of it began half a century ago with the CCC.
Murray County Heritage