Walnut Canyon National Monument Headquarters Area Historic District: Cultural Landscape Inventory, Walnut Canyon National Monument, National Park Service
Yaryan H, Curran M, Mardorf C. 2011. Walnut Canyon National Monument Headquarters Area Historic District: Cultural Landscape Inventory, Walnut Canyon National Monument, National Park Service. Cultural Landscapes Inventory Report. 975278. NPS Intermountain Regional Office. Intermountain Regional Office/CLI Database
Encompassing approximately 552 acres, the Walnut Canyon Headquarters Area Historic District is part of Walnut Canyon National Monument, located southeast of Flagstaff in Coconino County, Arizona. Within the park, the district is located on the north rim of Walnut Canyon and is accessed via Interstate 40, US Route 66, or Coconino County Road 303. It serves as the primary visitor contact area, park administrative area, residential area, and maintenance area for the monument. Walnut Canyon National Monument Headquarters Area Historic District is a landscape that is comprised of multiple properties representing various phases of administrative development and conservation of the Walnut Canyon area. The area was first administered by the Forest Service from 1904 to 1934. During this time a ranger station was constructed and minimal improvements were made throughout the landscape. Later, upon the establishment of Walnut Canyon National Monument in 1915, the monument was transferred to the National Park Service shortly thereafter. Major improvements occurred throughout the district from 1933 to 1942 as part of the New Deal era. The New Deal era represented a period of unprecedented intervention of the federal government in the national economy and welfare of its citizens. During this period the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC era: 1933‑1942) was developed to create a workforce aimed at improving and developing infrastructure and conservation units across the United States. Structures built during this time reflect the NPS Rustic Style of architecture, which emphasized the use of local materials to fit buildings into their setting and appear historic. The NPS continued to alter the landscape during the Mission 66 era, which was initiated as a post‑ World War II effort in response to a dramatic increase in the number of road‑travelers and visitors to National Parks. The specific goal of this program was to substantially improve the parks by 1966, hence its name “Mission 66”. The period marks the largest multi‑year construction event in NPS history. Although the official extent of the program was 1956‑1966, Mission 66 era resources in Headquarters Area fall within the 1956‑1967 timeframe. Structures built during this time reflect a modern style of architecture that was meant to minimally invade the landscape. This layering of features makes the Walnut Canyon NM Headquarters Area Historic District significant at the state level as an excellent example of projects completed during early conservation efforts in the United States—most notably the “New Deal” era of the 1930s‑1940s and the “Mission 66” era of the 1950s‑1960s. Additionally the property also contains early Forest Service features that were important to the early development of the area prior to the establishment of the monument. In addition to its significance, the property retains integrity in the areas of location, design, setting, workmanship, materials, feeling, and association.
- Type
- Published Report
- Authors
- Yaryan, Heather; Curran, Michele; Mardorf, Carrie
- Date of Issue
- 2011-05-06
- Publisher
- NPS Intermountain Regional Office
- Units
- IMR , WACA
- Keywords
- Agriculture, Anglo-American, Architecture, automobile, Campground, Cecil Doty, Civilian Conservation Corps, Comfort Station, Community Planning and Development, Conservation, Conservation of Natural resources, domestic, Entertainment, Forest, Forest Service, Government Office, hiking trail, Historic Designed Landscape, Historic Preservation, Interpretive Trail, Landscape architecture, Livestock, Long Canyon, Maintenance Facility, Mission 66, Modern Style, Natural area, Parking Area, Pedestrian-Related, Picnic Area, Pueblo-Hopi, ranger station, Recreation, residential, Road-Related, Rustic style, San Francisco Mountain Reserve, Sinagua, Single Family Dwelling, Social History, The 1930s: Era of Public Works, Tourism, Transportation, Visitor Contact, Wupatupqa