The Historical Museum at Fort Missoula is excited to present a new exhibit in our Heath Gallery, “We Can Take It!”  The exhibit explores the history of the Civilian Conservation Corps, the New Deal program that put young men to work creating trails, roads, and other infrastructure. The exhibit opens on Friday, March 31^st, the 90^th Anniversary of the creation of the Civilian Conservation Corps.

The American economy reached an all-time low after the stock market crash of 1929. In response, President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the Civilian Conservation Corps to employ young men from poor families to work on public land conservation projects. In 1933, Fort Missoula was named the Northwest District Headquarters Detachment and, over the course of the Depression decade, processed and trained thousands of young corpsmen. These men would go on to do many meaningful projects throughout Western Montana, many of which you can still see today.

This exhibit explores the history of the Civilian Conservation Corps from its initial organization in 1933 to the lasting legacy that it has provided to many areas around the country. Learn what it would have been like to be an enrollee in this groundbreaking program and the organizations that are keeping this history alive.

The exhibit can be viewed during regular museum hours, Tuesday-Sunday Noon-5:00 pm.