Civilian Conservation CorpsPublications of the Civilian Conservation Corps in Porter County . . . .

The United States Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was designed as a public work relief program for young men between the ages of 17 and 28 who found difficulty in obtaining employment during the Great Depression. The program operated from 1933 to 1942. The majority of CCC work focused on transportation construction and improvement, flood control, forest fire protection and suppression, and the protection and enhancement of natural resources. Upon entrance into the CCC, men were assigned to a camp that usually focused on a particular type of work.

Many CCC camps throughout the United States published camp newsletters and newspapers. Unfortunately, a large number of these camp newsletters and newspapers were not preserved and no longer exist. Copies of numerous issues of two publications from a Porter County CCC camp were preserved, however, which provide a glimpse into the everyday life of the young men employed by the camp. Links to available issues of these publications are provided below.

Two CCC camps operated in Porter County. Company 1583 D-4, more commonly referred to as Camp Calumet, was established on July 24, 1935, and was located approximately one-half mile north of Valparaiso where the County Seat Mall would later be established. The camp was later designated as Company 1583 SCS-20. This camp was tasked with providing improvements on private lands in conjunction with the United States Department of Agriculture's Soil Conservation Service.

According to information published in the Camp Calumet newspaper, this camp spent considerable time ditching and laying tile line on private property in the counties of Jasper, Lake, LaPorte, Porter, and Starke. In other words, the focus of their work was on drainage projects. Seven other camps in Indiana also focused on drainage, six of these located north of Indianapolis. From August 21, 1935, through March 31, 1939, Camp Calumet had cleared more than 2,211 acres of land, excavated 1,087,300 cubic yards for ditches, and installed over 9.1 miles of tile line.

Company 1563 DSP-1 was established August 9, 1934, and was located at the Indiana Dunes State Park. Physically, the camp was located just south of the present day Dunes Pavilion along Dunes Creek. The camp constructed the park's gatehouse, Wilson Shelter, the flag pole at the nature center, and the underground culvert that redirected the flow of Dunes Creek, as well as built and maintained the park trail system. The camp area was converted into a parking lot when it was dismantled. This camp published a newspaper titled Sandunes of 1563. Comments published in newspapers from other camps indicate that Sandunes of 1563 was an impressive camp newspaper. The format design of the Camp Calumet newspaper in Valparaiso was based on Sundunes of 1563, according to the The Valpo Vane editor.

The Valpo Vane

The Valpo Vane was published monthly by Camp Calumet, Company 1583, from January 1936 through February 1942. The issues provided below were obtained from the Indiana Historical Society. Each issue was converted into a fully searchable portable document format (pdf) using Adobe Acrobat.

    The Valpo Vane, January 1936
    The Valpo Vane, February 1936
    The Valpo Vane, March 1936
    The Valpo Vane, October 1936
    The Valpo Vane, August 1937
    The Valpo Vane, January 1938
    The Valpo Vane, March 1938
    The Valpo Vane, November 1938
    The Valpo Vane, December 1938
    The Valpo Vane, January 1939
    The Valpo Vane, February 1939
    The Valpo Vane, March 1939
    The Valpo Vane, April 1939
    The Valpo Vane, July 1939
    The Valpo Vane, August 1939
    The Valpo Vane, September 1939
    The Valpo Vane, October 1939
    The Valpo Vane, November 1939
    The Valpo Vane, December 1939
    The Valpo Vane, January 1940
    The Valpo Vane, February 1940
    The Valpo Vane, March 1940
    The Valpo Vane
, April 1940
    The Valpo Vane, May 1940
    The Valpo Vane, June 1940
    The Valpo Vane, July 1940
    The Valpo Vane, August 1940
    The Valpo Vane, September 1940
    The Valpo Vane, October 1940
    The Valpo Vane, November 1940
    The Valpo Vane, December 1940
    The Valpo Vane, January 1941
    The Valpo Vane, February 1941
    The Valpo Vane, March 1941
    The Valpo Vane, May 1941
    The Valpo Vane, June 1941
    The Valpo Vane, September 1941
    The Valpo Vane, November 1941
    The Valpo Vane, December 1941, Part I
    The Valpo Vane, December 1941, Part II
    The Valpo Vane, December 1941, Part III
    The Valpo Vane, February 1942

Nuts to You

Nuts to You was a short-lived daily published by Camp Calumet, Company 1583, from February 24, 1936, through March 27, 1936. The issues provided below were obtained from the Indiana Historical Society. Each issue was converted into a fully searchable portable document format (pdf) using Adobe Acrobat.

    Nuts to You, February 24, 1936 - Volume 1, Number 1
    Nuts to You, February 25, 1936 - Volume 1, Number 2
    Nuts to You, February 26, 1936 - Volume 1, Number 3
    Nuts to You, February 27, 1936 - Volume 1, Number 4
    Nuts to You, February 28, 1936 - Volume 1, Number 5
    Nuts to You, March 2, 1936 - Volume 1, Number 6
    Nuts to You, March 3, 1936 - Volume 1, Number 7
    Nuts to You, March 5, 1936 - Volume 1, Number 8
    Nuts to You, March 5, 1936 - Volume 1, Number 9
    Nuts to You, March 6, 1936 - Volume 1, Number 10
    Nuts to You, March 9, 1936 - Volume 1, Number 11
    Nuts to You, March 12, 1936 - Volume 1, Number 12
    Nuts to You, March 13, 1936 - Volume 1, Number 13
    Nuts to You, March 16, 1936 - Volume 1, Number 14
    Nuts to You, March 17, 1936 - Volume 1, Number 15
    Nuts to You, March 18, 1936 - Volume 1, Number 16
    Nuts to You, March 19, 1936 - Volume 1, Number 17
    Nuts to You, March 20, 1936 - Volume 1, Number 18
    Nuts to You, March 23, 1936 - Volume 1, Number 19
    Nuts to You, March 24, 1936 - Volume 1, Number 20
    Nuts to You, March 25, 1936 - Volume 1, Number 21
    Nuts to You, March 26, 1936 - Volume 1, Number 22
    Nuts to You, March 27, 1936 - Volume 1, Number 23

Prepared by Steven R. Shook, July 2015

 

CSS Template by Rambling Soul