|
|
|
|
|
WALKS THROUGH HISTORY SCHEDULE
The "Walks Through History" program is a series of monthly outdoor walking tours that seeks to familiarize people who live and work in communities outside of central Arkansas with the historic structures and sites around them. Presented by the Arkansas Historic Preservation Program, an agency of the Department of Arkansas Heritage, the tours begin at 11 a.m. on Saturdays, and last between one and two hours. An AHPP staff historian leads the tour, delivering a brief lecture about the properties visited and their history.
Pocahontas Commercial Historic District |
March 13 - Pocahontas Commercial Historic District
March 13, 2010: Pocahontas Commercial Historic District. With the Italianate-style Randolph County Courthouse as its centerpiece, the Pocahontas Commercial Historic District represents the commercial development of the county seat. Because of its location on the banks of the Black River, Pocahontas became an important trading and distribution hub in northeast Arkansas and southeast Missouri by the mid-nineteenth century. The buildings within the district boundary are good examples of late nineteenth and early twentieth century commercial-style architecture as well. The tour group will meet at the Randolph Music Theatre at 302 N. Marr St. Co-sponsored by Five Rivers Historic Preservation, Inc., and the Randolph County Tourism Association.
|
Fordyce-Ricks House |
April 17 - Fordyce-Ricks House Historic District
April 17, 2010: Fordyce-Ricks House Historic District at 1501 Park Ave. in Hot Springs. Constructed between 1904 and 1909 as a retirement home for railroad mogul and Hot Springs entrepreneur Samuel W. Fordyce, the Fordyce-Ricks House is the most substantial building in the district. This 12-room, 4,338 square-foot home was constructed with logs and designed in the Rustic, Adirondack style. The house was sold in 1937 to General Earl T. Ricks, who was adjutant general of the Arkansas National Guard, mayor of Hot Springs, and an American Aviation Hall of Fame inductee. The house remains the best example of the Rustic style in Hot Springs. Co-sponsored by the Garland County Historical Society.
|
Wynne Commercial Historic District |
May 15 - Wynne Commercial Historic District
May 15, 2010: Wynne Commercial Historic District. Wynne became an important commercial center around the turn of the twentieth century because of its unique position at the intersection of the north-south and east-west branches of the St. Louis, Iron Mountain & Southern Railroad. As a result of this growth, the Cross County seat was moved in 1903 from Vanndale to Wynne, where it remains today. The district also contains a good collection of late nineteenth and early twentieth century commercial-style buildings, which serve as a reminder of the town’s importance to the surrounding county. The tour group will meet at the corner of Front St. and Merriman Ave. Co-sponsored by the Cross County Historical Society.
|
Mammoth Spring Dam |
June 12 - Mammoth Spring Dam and Lake
June 12, 2010: Mammoth Spring Dam and Lake. Constructed in 1887-88 by the Mammoth Spring Improvement and Water Power Company, the Mammoth Spring Dam powered the Mammoth Spring Roller Mill and Elevator, which ground soft wheat into flour, and the Mammoth Spring Cotton Mill and Cotton Gin. The construction of the dam spurred industrial and commercial growth in the sparsely populated area known as “Head of the River,” ultimately leading to the incorporation of the town of Mammoth Spring. After the Arkansas-Missouri Power Company purchased the Mammoth Spring Dam in 1925, the south turbine well was retrofitted to produce hydropower. The Arkansas-Missouri Power Company operated the Mammoth Spring Power Plant until 1972, when it became uneconomical to maintain the small station. The power company then donated the dam and powerhouse to Arkansas State Parks, and the Mammoth Spring State Park was established in 1957. The tour group will meet at the Information Center. Co-sponsored by Mammoth Spring State Park and the Mammoth Spring Chamber of Commerce.
|
Austin Pangburn House |
July 17 - Historic Pangburn
July 17, 2010: Historic Pangburn. Located in northwestern White County, Pangburn grew up along the banks of the Little Red River. The small town of Pangburn boasts several National Register-listed houses designed in various vernacular styles popular during the Railroad Era. These homes were constructed quickly and inexpensively to accommodate rapid population growth during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The tour group will meet at the corner of Main and Searcy streets. Co-sponsored by the White County Historical Society.
|
Rector Commercial Historic District |
August 14 - Rector Commercial Historic District
August 14, 2010: Rector Commercial Historic District. The northeast Arkansas town of Rector was platted in 1882 along the St. Louis and Texas Railroad. Rector grew rapidly as a result of the railroad, the timber industry, and later, cotton. The buildings in downtown Rector retain much of their historic integrity, including several with cast iron storefronts. These storefronts were manufactured by the Mesker Brothers Company of St. Louis beginning in 1879. The tour group will meet in Rector Downtown Central Park at the intersection of S. Main and Front streets. Co-sponsored by Rector Downtown Central.
|
Arkansas County Courthouse, Southern District |
September 18 - DeWitt Commercial Historic District
September 18, 2010: DeWitt Commercial Historic District. DeWitt, one of two county seats in the state’s first county, Arkansas County, grew slowly until 1891, when a spur of the St. Louis and Southwest Railroad extended its tracks through the town. The railroad provided transportation for prairie-grown hay, livestock, timber, cotton, and later, rice. The district’s collection of early twentieth century commercial-style buildings reflects DeWitt’s role as a center of commerce in Arkansas County. The tour group will meet in front of the 1931 Art Deco-style Arkansas County Courthouse on DeWitt’s Court Square. Co-sponsored by the Grand Prairie Historical Society.
|
Calhoun County Courthouse |
October 9 - Historic Hampton
October 9, 2010: Historic Hampton. The timber industry has always been important in Hampton, harvesting Calhoun County’s extensive forests of short leaf yellow pine, cypress, oak, red gum, and hickory. Although the completion of the St. Louis, Arkansas & Texas Railroad through northern Calhoun County in 1883 lessened Hampton’s commercial importance, the county seat grew steadily. Because of its location along the main thoroughfare between Little Rock and El Dorado, the town remains an important asset for the surrounding county. Of particular interest is the National Register-listed Hampton Cemetery, which includes the graves of survivors of the Mountain Meadows Massacre. The tour group will meet in front of the Calhoun County Courthouse. Co-sponsored by the Hampton Cemetery Committee.
|
Shaheen-Goodfellow Weekend Cottage |
November 13 - Shaheen-Goodfellow Weekend Cottage or "Stoneflower"
November 13, 2010: Shaheen-Goodfellow Weekend Cottage, or “Stoneflower,” at 704 Stony Ridge Rd. on Eden Isle (near Heber Springs in Cleburne County). “Stoneflower” was designed by one of Arkansas’s most celebrated architects, E. Fay Jones. Completed in 1965 on a lot overlooking Greers Ferry Lake, this house foreshadowed Jones’s design for the building that would bring him international acclaim—Thorncrown Chapel in Eureka Springs. “Stoneflower” is exactly half the size of Thorncrown Chapel and utilizes the same elaborate succession of 2’ x 4’ cross braces to support the upper story’s tall walls and high ceiling. Intimately integrated with its environment, “Stoneflower” exhibits the principles of organic architecture followed by Jones throughout his career. Co-sponsored by the Cleburne County Historical Society.
|
Poinsett County Courthouse |
December 11 - Harrisburg Commercial Historic District
December 11, 2010: Harrisburg Commercial Historic District. Harrisburg, the Poinsett County seat, prospered when the St. Louis, Iron Mountain & Southern Railroad was completed through the town in 1882. The railroad provided transportation for timber and later, cotton and rice. The historic commercial buildings on Harrisburg’s courthouse square date to the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries and reflect the town’s greatest period of growth. The tour group will meet in front of the Poinsett County Courthouse. Co-sponsored by the Sunken Lands Regional Chamber of Commerce.
|
|
