About We Can Take It

This is the story of one of the most effective and important efforts ever undertaken by our nation to combine relief efforts, as welfare was then known, with major conservation projects in our parks and forests in the 1930s and early 1940s. It is also the story of three million young men who served in the Roosevelt Tree Army, as it was known. Their motto was "We Can Take It!" because of the hard work they undertook. Finally, it is about the young men who served in New Jersey's most famous state park of the 1930s, High Point State Park and how High Point came to be developed.

This is a book that is great importance to our region=s history because with the passage of time many of the participants in the famed conservation program are now passing on. Albert Mastriani, one of the National Park Service foremen who served at High Point from 1933-1941 said about the book that "The remarkable story of the Civilian Conservation Corps at New Jersey's High Point State Park needed to be told now or forever lost."

This book was written to honor the approximately three million men who served in the CCC and in particular those who served at High Point State Park from 1933-1941. It is a subject in American history not often written about. It was also authored to create interest in the history of New Jersey's most famous park and to share with visitors the story of how it came to be developed.

The book is noteworthy because there has never been such an extensively researched book of its type written about a CCC camp in New Jersey. In addition, the park has never had such a detailed history written about one of its most important chapters. The author used extensive excerpts from interviews with former CCC boys who were at High Point and an NPS official who were associated with the camp to tell the story. Finally, the author attempts to illustrate why the CCC was such an important economic tool to fight the toll that the depression took on the young men of the era and also how important their work was in creating the present system of state and national parks and forests.

Upon reading the book, John C. Keator, the superintendent, High Point State Park said "Peter Osborne's extensive use of taped and personal interviews has presented this topic in a very warm and human format. As I read this book, I could feel the hardships and triumphs that these enrollees experienced at High Point State Park. Prior to starting this book, I thought I had a good grasp of this subject but the wealth of new information presented here makes this book a must read for anyone interested in an intimate look at the Civilian Conservation Corps."

Area historian and coauthor of High Point of the Blue Mountains Ronald J. Dupont, Jr. said "Peter Osborne hasn't merely written a history of the CCC at High Point - he has virtually brought Camp Kuser and its C boys back to life, vividly, with his meticulous research and his obvious love for the subject. It's a stirring tribute to an epic chapter of our history."

The book will be available at area bookstores or can be purchased from this web site. It retails for $24.95 with an additional $4.95 to ship and handle in the United States.