Graphic Organizer Explanation by Erin Dillon, Copley High School

Civilian Conservation Corps Overview

1. Objectives:

a. Employ young, urban men in jobs that would benefit the community.

b. Provide a military-like environment (the Army administered all camps) for all CCC enlistees for the purpose of instilling discipline and work ethic.

c. CCC jobs were designed to improve local parks and facilities.

d. Support conservation efforts.

2. Rationale: Young males that reside in urban areas tend to make up the highest percentage of criminals.

3. Facts

a. Camps were segregated.

b. Enlistees were required to mail home $25 of their $30 per month pay.

c. Some of the old CCC camps were used as POW camps during World War II.

d. CCC workers were often times referred to as “Roosevelt’s Tree Army.”

4. Failures/Criticisms:

   a. Women were discriminated.

   b. Blacks experienced difficulty gaining admittance and were forced to deal with segregated work camps.

Graphic Organizer Explanation

1. The camp is illustrated in a manner that depicts its distance from the city. Most work was completed in national parks or other rural areas.

2. The workers/enlistees are working within the realm of military-like orders wearing military-colored hats (Roosevelt’s Tree Army).

3. The black worker is segregated from the white workers and is outnumbered by the white workers. Also, the black worker’s camp housing is segregated from the housing of the white workers. The proportion of black to white workers depicts the difficulty blacks experienced in gaining enrollment in the CCC.

Graphic Organizer Explanation by Erin Dillon, Copley High School (PDF File)