Pocatello in Bannock County, Idaho — The American West (Mountains)
Vocational Building & Hangar
Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, July 7, 2024
1. Vocational Building & Hangar Marker
Constructed by the Works Progress Administration in cooperation with the State Board of Education, the State Department of Vocational Education, the National Youth Administration and the Southern Branch of the University of Idaho
Dedication on November 11 1939
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Architecture • Charity & Public Work • Education. In addition, it is included in the Works Progress Administration (WPA) projects series list. A significant historical date for this entry is November 11, 1939.
Location. 42° 51.893′ N, 112° 25.82′ W. Marker is in Pocatello, Idaho, in Bannock County. It is on Martin Luther King Junior Way (East Terry Street) just west of East Oak Street, on the right when traveling west. The marker is mounted near ground level on the southeast corner of the subject building. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1230 Martin Luther King Junior Way, Pocatello ID 83201, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Idaho’s Bear River Country. It is also in the American Mountain West.
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Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within one mile of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Site of Reed Hall (approx. 0.3 miles away); Red Hill I (approx. 0.3 miles away); Charles H. Kegel Liberal Arts Building (approx. 0.4 miles away); Leonard Hall Pharmacy Building (approx. 0.4 miles away); Utah & Northern Railroad (approx. 0.4 miles away); Idaho State University (approx. half a mile away); Greek Orthodox Church (approx. 0.9 miles away); Chief Theater (approx. 1.1 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Pocatello.
Also see . . .
1. ISU's Vocational Arts Building (Idaho State University).
(by Arlen Walker, 2/4/2019) Excerpt: The Vocational Arts Building (VA), one of the oldest buildings at ISU, was originally named the Vocational Building and Hangar. It was constructed by the Works Progress Administration (WPA) between 1936 and 1939 in a style now known as WPA Rustic (a combination of neo-classical and art deco architecture, strongly influenced by the American craftsman(Submitted on July 12, 2026, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)style).Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, July 8, 20242. Vocational Building & Hangar WPA MarkerBuilt by Work Projects Administration ☆ 1939 The WPA (renamed in 1939 as the Work Projects Administration) was the largest and most ambitious American New Deal agency of the Great Depression, employing millions of people (mostly unskilled men) to carry out public works projects, including the construction of public buildings and roads.
The south end of the VA, facing Reed Gym, contained classrooms and workshops and the north end, shaped like a Quonset hut, was a hangar for the aeronautics program. A runway for the take-off and landing of small aircraft extended from there at a diagonal to the northeast, the spaces now occupied by Memorial Drive and the Holt Arena. It was in use during World War II for the initial training of Navy pilots and aircraft mechanics.
2. A Stone Aircraft Hangar and Teaching Building on the Campus of Idaho State University.
Excerpt: One thinks of aircraft hangars of corrugated aluminum, or perhaps wood, but this building is a stone hangar and teaching building on the campus of Idaho State University in Pocatello, Idaho. The building was constructed as(Submitted on July 12, 2026, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)a hangar by the WPA in the late 1930s and still is used for vocational education by the ISU College of Technology.Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, July 8, 20243. Vocational Building & Hangar MarkerThe marker is mounted near ground level on the southeast corner of the building, facing Martin Luther King Junior Way. The WPA shield marker is mounted directly above it.If it's odd to have a stone hangar, at least most of the stone is appropriate to the hangar's setting in Pocatello, in southeastern Idaho. The structure is built largely of sandstone derived from the mountains above Pocatello. In addition, Pocatello sits at the edge of the Snake River volcanic province, so it's not too surprising that a few pieces of vesicular basalt can be seen.
3. Works Progress Administration (Wikipedia).
Excerpt: The Works Progress Administration (WPA; from 1935 to 1939, then known as the Work Projects Administration from 1939 to 1943) was an American New Deal agency that employed millions of jobseekers to carry out public works projects, including the construction of public buildings and roads. It was set up on May 6, 1935, by presidential order, as a key part of the Second New Deal. The WPA was a federal program that ran its own projects in cooperation with state and local governments, which supplied 1030% of(Submitted on July 12, 2026, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)the costs. Usually, the local sponsor provided land and often trucks and supplies, with the WPA responsible for wages (and for the salaries of supervisors, who were not on relief).Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, July 8, 20244. Vocational Building & Hangar
Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, July 8, 2024
5. Vocational Building & Hangar (southwest elevation)
Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, July 7, 2024
6. Vocational Building & Hangar (southeast elevation)
The rear portion of the building is the hangar, partially visible here in the right background. It is quite unusual (perhaps unique?) to see a stone hangar!
Credits. This page was last revised on July 12, 2026. It was originally submitted on July 12, 2026, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 5 times since then. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on July 12, 2026, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.
