Civilian Conservation Corps, former federal agency of the United States, established in April 1933 as part of the New Deal program of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. The agency, commonly called CCC, was created by the U.S. Congress for the conservation of the natural resources of the country—timber, soil, and water—and to provide employment and training for unemployed young men as long as the depression lasted.

At first the agency was officially known as Emergency Conservation Work, but when Congress extended its period of operation in June 1937, the popular name, Civilian Conservation Corps, was made official. In 1939 the agency became part of the Federal Security Agency. In June 1942 Congress, against the wishes of the president, voted to abolish the corps within 12 months; a presidential order for liquidation followed about 6 months later.

While the CCC was in operation, it provided for the enrollment of unemployed and unmarried men between the ages of 17 and 23 who were U.S. citizens. Members received a base pay of $30 per month and lived in work camps that were generally operated by the Department of War. While the agency was in operation, about 3 million men received employment on projects that included such work as reforestation, construction of fire-observation towers, laying of telephone lines, and development of state parks.

See also New Deal.