Special History Report: Preliminary Survey of Historic Structures, Part I, Buffalo National River, Arkansas
Sellars RW. 1973. Special History Report: Preliminary Survey of Historic Structures, Part I, Buffalo National River, Arkansas. Combined Historic Structure Report and Cultural Landscape Report. U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service, Historic Preservation Team. Denver Service Center, Denver, Colorado
This report, created a year after the establishment of Buffalo National River, contains a preliminary survey of historic structures along Buffalo National River on the priorities of: 1. National Park Service owned areas; 2. Areas under option to buy; 3. Areas designated for special development; and 4. Any other areas which have particular historic interest. The data for the individual briefs were obtained by consulting maps and property appraisals used in land acquisition, found in the files of park headquarters. Following review of this information, sites were visited and photographed. Local informants, named in each brief, provided information on the age of the buildings and other historical facts. It provides recommendations for stabilization, restoration, or dismantling. The report provides an overview of historical themes and interpretation at Buffalo River Valley, with particular focus on subsistence agriculture and land use in the geographically isolated area. The remaining farm structures and field patterns evoke impressions of the activities and aspirations of people of the valley. The author acknowledges the role of the NPS in altering human activity in the area. He also considers the development of a living history program at this park and the potential for the stabilized, abandoned farm structures to provide an accurate representation of the historic scene. The report notes which surveyed structures are of regional significance, and which areas are promising for maintaining typical Ozark farm setting. It provides recommendations on the idea of moving structures at Buffalo National River for greater accessibility or to form a cluster of buildings for an exhibit. The author also notes the relationship between the natural environment and historical interpretation and recommends an oral history program.
- Type
- Published Report
- Authors
- Sellars, Richard
- Date of Issue
- 1973-10
- Publisher
- U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service, Historic Preservation Team
- Units
- BUFF , MWR
- Keywords
- acquisition, agriculture, Boxley Valley, Buffalo River Valley, dismantle, Hickman cabin, inholding, interpretation, isolated, living history program, local informant, oral history, Ozark, Ozark pastoralism, Richland Valley, Rush, subsistence, Villines Mill, zinc mining
- Subjects
- CRIS-HS: 060552: Buffalo River State Park CCC Pavilion