Prairie Girls

Grace

This is Grace again, and I am excited. Momma and Daddy said we are moving to Wichita! The aircraft industry in that town is hiring workers. Daddy will find a job there I’m sure.  I will miss my friends here and especially Christine, our boarder, but I know I will make new friends.

After we move to Wichita we will be closer to my cousin Ginny and her family. Momma said we might see them more often. I would like that. We will live with Daddy’s brother until we find a place of our own. Uncle Alan’s house is big enough I will have my own bed again.

 

Cemetery Wall

                                        by Collette

 My grandfather on my mother’s side worked for the WPA for a short time. The agency provided construction in this part of the state. Nearly every dirt road in the county had a low water bridge or at least a concrete culvert in place over creeks or areas where water collected. At one time there were two rainbow bridges built over rivers near town. Only one remains. Most of the surviving structures are stone and can be found around our local park and zoo.

The cemetery wall remains the most striking feature of this stonework. It begins at the outskirts of the town and continues for blocks as one drives into the residential area on the main street of the city. It surrounds the cemetery on four sides and runs beside the park, as well. It is one of the longest cemetery walls in the state. On closer inspection, one can see the patterns and artistry in the placement of the rocks. When I discussed this wall in my American History classes, I was amazed how many students actually studied the wall and commented on what they had seen.

The WPA construction in my hometown provides a legacy and an historical record of what the local men, including my grandfather, did to survive the Great Depression.