Depression Era Group, 1927-1939

Depression Era Group, 1927-1939. . Buildings in this area were constructed in 1934 and 1939 during a major Army building program that added many structures to Fort Bliss and other Army installations nationwide. The Army's building program benefited from Federal relief programs initiated during the Depression to provide employment and stimulate the economy. Programs such as the Public Works Administration (1933) and the Works Progress Administration (1935) provided work for and paid the wages of local craftsmen and laborers, and added quarters, stables, garages, and other buildings to Fort Bliss. Fort Bliss administered the regional Civilian Conservation Corps from a 1921 Warehouse., Unlike most Army installations in the 1930s, Fort Bliss's horse cavalry was augmented rather than replaced by mechanized transport. First Cavalry Division troops continued to use horses as the most effective means of patrolling the U.S. - Mexican border, with horse trailers delivering mounts to maneuver areas., The long brick buildings in this area were originally stables, each with a capacity of 112 horses. Hay from second story haylofts was dropped to the stalls from elevated walkways that ran the length of the building. Stall doors were overhead garage type to allow conversion to gun sheds. The small brick buildings at one end of the stables were stable guard quarters, while those at the other served as blacksmith and saddler shops. In the mid-1950s, the stables were converted into guided missile classrooms and laboratories for the U.S. Army Air Defense School. The pipe fence and gate along the west side of Building 685 are all that remain of the corrals which once surrounded and separated the stables., The stuccoed and tile roofed three-story buildings next to the stables were built in 1934 and 1939 to house the men of the First Cavalry Division.