WPA Cemetery Records

Between 1935 and 1943 The United States Government as part of the Works Progress Administration (See Below) Historical Records Survey conducted the WPA cemetery survey project on a county to county basis. It must be noted that they may not have actually gone to the cemetery. They may have collected info from death record books at the courthouse or from newspaper obituaries. Various sources were used. Some cemeteries were not recorded. Some listed have incorrect names or are not in the county. Some burials, especially those of young children, were omitted.

We are deeply indebted To Phyliss Heller for providing a copy of the WPA cemetery records for Crawford County and to the volunteers listed below who transcribed the data from the WPA cemetery records for these web pages.

Find cemetery listing for surnames beginning with the letter

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W Y Z

Volunteers:
Rachel Fafinski, Phyliss Heller, Carolyn Jarvey, Darlis Lupton, Craig Poole
Sean Timm, Helen and Allan Weber

From the Univ. of Iowa Library
The Works Progress Administration (WPA) was established by the United States government in 1935 as part of the Emergency Relief Appropriations Act to create jobs for the unemployed. In 1939, its name was changed to the Works Projects Administration. The WPA, under the direction of Harry L. Hopkins, created millions of jobs for those who could work and responsibility for the unemployable (children, elderly, and disabled) was returned to the states. The WPA was mandated to choose projects which would not compete with the private sector while at the same time making genuine contributions. Consequently, many WPA projects concentrated on physical improvements such as building schools and highways, rural electrification, and reforestation. It also gave work to students, artists, musicians, and writers. They produced a series of state travel guides, public murals and sculptures, and brought music and drama to many small communities. Always controversial, the WPA was accused of waste, political manipulation, and even subversion. As the Great Depression drew to a close, so did the Works Projects Administration. The agency was dissolved in 1943.

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