Civilian Conservation Corps Camp

Civilian Conservation Corps Camp. . Camp BF-1 (DSE-204): located in edge of town of Lake Andes , Companies: Nebraskans?--July-October 1933; 2759V -- 7/31/34-11/1/34; 2743 (Nebraskans) -- 5/25/35-Fall 1935, The Civilian Conservation Corps was a federal relief program during 1933-1942 that gave jobless men work renovating abused lands. The Army built 48 200-man camps in South Dakota and provided food, clothing, medical care, pay and programs of education, recreation and religion for 23,709 war veterans and enrollees (single men aged 17-25 who sent $25 of their $30 wage to their families). Camps and work projects were supervised by another 2834 men. The Office of Indian Affairs sponsored the CCC-ID for South Dakota Tribes, housing 8405 men in youth boarding camps, home camps, and family camps., Information about the camp is fragmentary because reports of camps and companies not active in the state at the end of the year were omitted from CCC Annuals. Other 1933 reports state that the camp opened about July 1 and closed about October 1. A CCC Annual shows that the camp designation was DSE-209 in 1934 -- one of 13 "drought-relief" camps to help combat the ills of deep drought and dust storms. The camp was a 40 x 100 foot building and tents to accommodate 290 South Dakota world war one veterans. They built diversions to carry overflow from creeks into the north side of Lake Andes and channels to drain its overflow to the river. It was reopened in 1935 as Camp BF-1 to develop a water fowl refuge -- now Lake Andes National Wildlife Refuge.