National Youth Administration Woodstock Resident Work Center

Set in a forest clearing along Route 212 east of Woodstock village, this small campus was built around 1939 as a National Youth Administration resident work center. Young people trained in metalwork, woodworking, stone carving, pottery, wool processing and weaving until the center closed about 1942, when the United States entered World War II. Students helped construct the long, low buildings of local bluestone, wood and brick, using rustic clapboard with irregular wavy edges that echoed the Woodstock art colony's studio style. A carved octagonal stone flagpole base, attributed to the influence of sculptor Thomas Penning, shows the camp's crafts, farming and sports in relief. Eleanor Roosevelt followed the center closely and attended the cornerstone setting in 1939. An earlier barn and a gazebo are also part of the group. The Woodstock School of Art still uses the buildings as studios, so they remain close to their original appearance and function.