Barney Kusnerak Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) photographs

The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was established in March 1933 as part of President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal to provide employment for young men during the Great Depression while improving the nation’s natural resources. CCC enrollees lived in organized camps and worked on projects such as planting trees, fighting forest fires, building roads and trails, controlling erosion, and developing parks and recreation facilities. Over its nine-year existence, nearly three million men participated in the program, leaving a lasting legacy of conservation and public infrastructure across the country.

By the late 1930s, CCC camps were well established throughout Utah and Idaho. In Utah, 116 camps operated over the life of the program, with projects including forest and watershed improvement, park development, and major water projects; a camp near Deer Creek Dam, established in 1938, supported construction of the Provo River Project. Idaho camps similarly focused on forestry, fire protection, roads, trails, and recreation projects. As the nation moved toward World War II, the CCC increasingly supported defense-related work, and the program was officially terminated on June 30, 1942. Many of the roads, trails, buildings, and other improvements constructed by the CCC remain important historic resources today.

While these photo albums were not signed, the collection does appear to be from Stephen Barney Kusnerak (1918-1983), born in Ohio, the son of Czechoslovakian immigrants. Barney likely served with the CCC from 1938-1940, then joined the military in July 1941. After World War II, Barney appears to have moved to San Pedro, California where he married Bernice Salvaggio (197-2018). He died in 1983 in California and was buried at Caldwell, Ohio.