Paul DeCell Daughdrill was born in Brookhaven, Mississippi, on July 26, 1915. He farmed until the age of twenty-one, when he enrolled in the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) at Brookhaven. Daughdrill worked at various CCC camps throughout Mississippi from 1935 through 1937. He later worked for the railroad until his retirement.

Daughdrill was appointed state coordinator of the fiftieth-anniversary celebration of the CCC. He and his wife, Nell Daughdrill, represented the state of Mississippi at a ceremony in Luray, Virginia, dedicating the CCC commemorative stamp of the United States Post Office. Luray was the site of one of the first CCC camps.

The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), active from 1933 to 1942, was one of the earliest New Deal programs of the administration of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. The CCC primarily hired young, single, able-bodied men to work at fighting forest fires, flood control, land conservation, reforestation, road and bridge construction, and telephone-line installation during the Depression. The CCC also hired older men with families who needed financial support. Over three million men were enrolled in the CCC during the Depression. The CCC was organized along United States Army guidelines, with strict rules and uniform attire. Veterans were often hired to train enrollees. Regulations required that the majority of an employee’s paycheck be sent home to help support his family. The emphasis of the CCC on job safety significantly decreased accident rates. Many men in the CCC also completed their high-school education through on-site tutorials. Benefits of the CCC were a ready workforce for the World War II industrial buildup and a large number of disciplined recruits for the military. The CCC was disbanded in 1942, due to wartime budget cuts and the need for increased manpower in the armed forces.

Evidence of the CCC in Mississippi is perhaps most visible in the Vicksburg National Military Park where soil erosion was destroying Civil War battlefields. The CCC graded and sodded eroding hills, reconstructed original battlefield topography, and reforested the park. Other CCC projects included the construction of the Percy E. Quin, Roosevelt, and Tishomingo state parks, and the reforestation of lands that are now part of the DeSoto and Holly Springs national forests.

Although there is some biographical information for Paul DeCell Daughdrill, the majority of this collection pertains to the fiftieth-anniversary celebration of the Civilian Conservation Corps in Mississippi. There are also coins and first-day-issue stamps commemorating the fiftieth anniversary of the CCC.

1. Biographical Information. [1937; 1942]; n.d. 1 folder.

   This series contains photocopies of registration and work papers of Paul DeCell Daughdrill while he was enrolled in the CCC.

   Box 1

2. Civilian Conservation Corps (Mississippi) Fiftieth-Anniversary Records. 1983; n.d. 3 folders.

   This series contains originals and photocopies of correspondence and newsclippings associated with the fiftieth-anniversary celebrations of the CCC in Mississippi. This series also contains several state and municipal proclamations recognizing the anniversary. There is a photograph of Paul DeCell Daughdrill receiving a CCC anniversary proclamation from Governor William F. Winter. Another item of note is a set of registration forms of former CCC workers attending the fiftieth-anniversary celebration in Mississippi. It lists the projects they worked on.

   Box 1

3. Civilian Conservation Corps Fiftieth-Anniversary-Commemorative-Stamp Materials. 1983; n.d. 2 folders.

   This series contains originals and photocopies of correspondence and newsclippings associated with the Luray, Virginia, ceremony observing the first-day issue of the CCC commemorative stamp by the United States Post Office on April 5, 1983. Several examples of canceled stamps and a commemorative coin are included. There are also order forms for a CCC commemorative medallion.

   Box 1 (originals and photocopies)

4. Printed Materials. 1983. 1 folder.

   This series contains an April 1983 issue of the NACCCA Journal announcing a convention at Eagle River, Wisconsin. The NACCCA is the National Association of Civilian Conservation Corps Alumni.

   Box 1