Field Notes: Lasting Tribute

"The story of the New Deal and the legacy it left in our parks begins in the depths of the Great Depression, and it includes the sounds of song and laughter, the changing light of the seasons, and the smell of fires in barrel stoves, keeping young men warm through cold winters and hard times." So writes David Benson in Stories in Log and Stone: The Legacy of the New Deal in Minnesota State Parks.

The 125-page book, published by the DNR, tells the story of the men who found work under President Franklin D. Roosevelt's popular New Deal programs and completed conservation projects that endure today.

Massive unemployment led millions to enroll in the Civilian Conservation Corps, Works Progress Administration, and Veterans Conservation Corps from 1933 to 1943. The men planned parks, planted trees, built roads, fought forest fires, battled erosion, and constructed stone and log buildings, many of which are still in use in Minnesota state parks.

Personal stories, maps, blueprints, and more than 170 historical photographs document the workers' daily lives and the impressive buildings, bridges, dams, and trails they built across the state. Benson provides a guide to hundreds of structures that remain in 27 state parks.

Look for Stories in Log and Stone at bookstores and selected state parks. Mail-order forms are available online at www.dnr.state.mn.us/state_parks/logstonebook.html.