Legacy Day puts focus on Civilian Conservation Corps history in Pennsylvania

The Centre County Historical Society and Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources will host a Legacy Day of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) event on Sunday. The event, contributing historian William “Bill” Marcum said, is a chance for attendees to learn about the history of the CCC and its importance in the restoration and conservation of the state and country’s forested lands.

A self-proclaimed CCC enthusiast, Marcum is one of several contributing experts to present at the daylong event at Poe Valley State Park. Like many Pennsylvania natives, Marcum boasts personal family ties to the CCC and, specifically, Poe Valley State Park. His grandfather acted as foreman at CCC camps both there and at Parker Dam State Park in Clearfield County.

“When I was a little kid, I heard all kinds of stories about (my grandfather’s) days in the CCC,” Marcum said. “It was a big part of his life. He was in the CCCs for seven years. My family heard endless stories; he enjoyed his time when he worked for the forestry service.”

After his grandfather’s death, Marcum said he came upon a box filled with “all kinds of memorabilia from his time in the camps” — photographs, blueprints, daily notes, the engineer’s log.

“I could go on and on about the miscellaneous things in this trunk,” he said. “It spurred me on to wanting to learn more about it.”

Marcum’s curiosity evolved into a passion that resulted in his writing “The Foreman’s Boys,” a regional history book that details the lives of the CCC workers at Poe Valley State Park. However, Marcum is a bit of an outlier in his interest in the CCC, partially, he notes, due to lack of focus on the CCC in the traditional school setting, but also due to the time period’s overshadowing by World War II.

“Whenever I was in high school, we touched on the New Deal era and I can remember maybe a few of the acronyms of the New Deal, but we spent 30 minutes one day in history class (on it). How do you cram the New Deal era and all that came out of it into a 30-minute history class in high school? You don’t,” he said, laughing. “Many families don’t even know they had a family member that was a veteran of the Civilian Conservation Corps. It was one of those things that came and went.”

The program operated from 1933-1942. For the men who were part of the CCC during the Great Depression era, it was a necessity, Marcum said.

“They needed to eat and the family needed money. When they left this time in their lives, they didn’t really look back on it as a great time in their life. It was something that needed to be done and they didn’t talk about it too much,” he said. “Then World War II came along and a lot of guys ended up in the war, so it really overshadowed their experiences in the Civilian Conservation Corps. Almost anyone knows if Grandpa was in World War II, but Grandpa didn’t talk about also being in the CCC.”

The event, Marcum said, gives people the opportunity to learn about the CCC — what was done and who did it, how the program was created and what the end result was.

The event kicks off at 10 a.m. with music led by folk singer and songwriter Van Wagner, followed by an introduction to Camp S-63 activities and film clip provided by Marcum. Surviving CCC veterans are invited to share their stories about their times in the CCC, as are family members.

A provided lunch features the exact same menu that the Poe Valley camp offered to CCC workers on Aug. 22 in the 1930s — pork loin, mashed potatoes and gravy, green peas, sliced tomatoes and bread and butter. Afternoon events include presentations on Pennsylvania’s state park history, CCC archaeology, CCC uniforms and African Americans in the CCC. Memorabilia will be on display and attendees can also visit the original CCC camp site and officers’ quarters at the park.

Attendees are asked to RSVP for the event, either at CentreHistory.org or by calling the Centre County Historical Society at 814-234-4779. The society suggests attendees bring and wear masks when unable to social distance at the event.