LANDGROVE, Vt. – On Saturday, Oct. 10, at 2 p.m., at the Landgrove Town Hall, 88 Landgrove Road, the Landgrove Historical Society will host author and historian Marty Podskoch, who will give a presentation on his new book, “Vermont Civilian Conservation Corps Camps: History, Memories & Legacy.” The book describes the history of the 36 Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) camps and supply depots where young men and World War I veterans built dams, state parks, and state forests from 1933-1942.
For the past four years, Podskoch has visited and explored the 36 Vermont CCC camps and gathered the camps’ histories and photos from historical societies, museums, libraries, personal interviews, and state and college archives. Families of young men and veterans shared their relatives’ memories and photos of camp life and work projects.
The Civilian Conservation Corps began on March 31, 1933, under President Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal to relieve the poverty and unemployment of the Great Depression. CCC camps were set up in many Vermont towns, state parks, and forests. Workers built trails, roads, camp sites, and dams; stocked fish; and built and maintained fire towers, observer’s cabins, and telephone lines. They also fought fires and planted millions of trees. The CCC disbanded in 1942 due to the need for men in World War II.
The history of the following 36 Vermont CCC camps and supply depots is told in Podskoch’s book: Barre Supply Depot, Bellows Falls, Bethel, Brunswick, Colchester Supply Depot, Colchester/Army, Cuttingsville/Shrewsbury, Danby/Mount Tabor, East Barre, East Burke, East Wallingford/Weston, Elmore, Jericho/Firing Range, Ludlow, Marshfield/Groton, Mendon, Middlesex, Milton, Montpelier/Middlesex/Wrightsville, Montpelier/McKee, Moscow, Northfield, North Thetford, Peru, Plymouth, Poultney, Ricker Mills, Rochester, Saint Albans, Sharon, Underhill Center/Firing Range, Waterbury/Village, Waterbury/Dam, West Burke/Sutton, Wilmington, and Windsor.
Podskoch is a retired teacher from Delhi, N.Y., in the Catskill Mountains. He is the author of 12 books, and he writes a weekly column called “Adirondack Stories” in five Adirondack newspapers. He has also written two books each focusing on Connecticut and Rhode Island.