CCC Camp S-90 Ruins and Historical Marker - Franklin, Massachusetts - Civilian Conservation Corps on Waymarking.com

Find foundation ruins of a Civilian Conservation Corps camp S-90 a few hundred yards up Healthy Heart Trail at the west end of Camp Road in Franklin State Forest in Franklin, Massachusetts. This suburban slice of protected woodland is bound by Grove Street to the east and Forge Hill Road to the west.

A pair of loop trails - Healthy Heart Trail (1.2 miles, blue blazes) and CCC Trail (0.7 mile, green blazes) - trek the slightly hilly terrain. A map posted on the kiosk at the trailhead and in spots along the trail notes the "CCC Camp Ruins" with a red triangle in its key and its location along the north property line.

Just a few yards north of the path and a wood "Camp Road" post are two small, square, concrete remnants with moss-covered tops poking a couple feet above ground. The smaller structure is about four feet on each side, the larger about 12 feet on each side. They were filled with standing water, sticks, and fallen leaves the morning of my visit.

Back at the paved parking area is a historical marker which reads:

Civilian Conservation Corps

The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was created by President Franklin Roosevelt during the Great Depression to provide employment opportunities and to improve the country's forest and recreational resources. Administration and logistics were the responsibility of the U.S. Army, while work projects were directed by the U.S. Forest Service and the National Park Service. Locally experienced men (LEMs) were hired to serve as foremen and liaisons with the community.

At its peak in Massachusetts, the CCC had a total of 51 camps that enrolled 10,000 men. The first year was spent setting up campsites and providing access to forest areas. In the years that followed, the men had five primary tasks: forest management, fire hazard reduction, pest control, wildlife enhancement and recreational development. In addition to work experience, a wide variety of educational opportunities were offered, ranging from academic coursework to crafts and culinary arts.

The program not only touched the lives of these Pine Cone Johnnies, but also left a lasting legacy of forest improvements and recreational resources throughout the state. These included roads, bridges, ponds, picnic areas and campgrounds, wells, hiking, riding and skiing trails, log cabins and bathhouses. Sixty years later, many of the facilities built by the CCC, including one in the vicinity of this sign, are still in use.

This sign was erected in 1998 as part of the Centennial celebration of Massachusetts State Forests and Parks.

CCC Camp Ruins: 42.081111, -71.426667

Marker and map at Grove Street trailhead parking lot: 42.0801311, -71.4237112