CCC Camp Jim Staton, c. 1934

Camp Jim Staton was a Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) camp located on Curtis Creek northeast of Old Fort. The CCC was a federal relief program established during the Great Depression of the 1930s to provide work for young men at a time when the national unemployment rate was around 20 percent. Local jobs included community improvement projects, such as improving Curtis Creek Road, clearing a roadbed for the Blue Ridge Parkway, and building bridges.