Lakeport Plantation: Preservation

Showing posts with label Preservation. Show all posts

Monday, August 8, 2011

Historic Preservation in Lake Village: Remembering, Tearing Down, and Preserving History

Back in April the Arkansas Historic Preservation Program focused on downtown Lake Village for their "Walks Through History Tour." In February, Lake Village's downtown was added to the National Register for its local significance under Criterion A (economic development of the city) and C (mid 20th century architecture). According to AHPP "The Lake Village Commercial Historic District exemplifies the growth of the city through its peak in the 1950s. The period of significance extends from 1906 to 1960."

The script for the AHPP tour, given and researched by Rachel Silva, is now available on AHPP's website as a pdf file. My Pictures of the tour are below:

This August one of the buildings discussed in the tour, the Dixie Queen, was torn down. The tour script says, "Not in district—built about 1935 as a filling station. Later became the Dixie Queen Dairy Bar, a popular hangout for Lake Village youth in its heyday."

Dixie Queen, April 2011

Dixie Queen, August 3, 2011. Photo by Ned McAffry.

Slab on N. Lakeshore Dr., August 8, 2011

While the loss of the 1935 Dixie Queen / filing station leaves a hole in the city's historic fabric and an empty lot along the lake front, the city of Lake Village continues with its plans to restore the historic Tushek Building for city offices.

Tushek Building, April 2011

The 1906 Tushek Builing is described in the National Register nomination as the "finest example of a commercial building designed in the Beaux Arts style in the county seat of Lake Village." The earliest known photo of the building is from a 1908 postcard:

1908 Postcard of Lake Village (corner of Main & Court Streets). Courtesy of Blake Wintory

Meanwhile, over in Monticello (Drew County), the city celebrated the dedication of the rehabilitated Ridgeway Hotel Historic District (includes H. M. Wilson Building). The Ridgeway, a 1930 hotel and a 1912 hardware store, have been rehabed into senior living apartments. The historic district was added to the National Register in 2009.

Thursday, May 26, 2011

Lakeport Technical Reports

Thursday, May 19, 2011

May is Preservation Month -- Lakeport Technical Reports Made Available

The National Trust for Historic Preservation declares each May National Preservation Month. This year's theme is "Celebrating America's Treasures." City and county officials throughout Arkansas have recognized the month and made their own preservation declarations.

Yesterday, the Historic Preservation Alliance of Arkansas announced "The Most Endangered Places in Arkansas" aka "Seven to Save." There is a video of the announcement on Facebook or you can read about the seven on Rex Nelson's Southern Fried Blog . The announcement has no power to save these sites, but it does raise awareness of historic places and generates public, technical, and financial support.

Lakeport was never on the Preservation Alliance's most endangered list--although, the H. L. Mitchell/Clay East Building, now ASU's Southern Tenant Farmers Museum, was on the list in 2000. Lakeport was in need of expert restoration work. Much of the technical work for the restoration was documented and complied into technical reports. Sonya Walker (formally of the Lakeport project) has authored eight technical reports on parge coating; chimneys; foundation and footers; windows; shingled roof; guttering and sheet metal work; cornice, siding, and paint; and smokehouse and mechanicals. Reports on dendrochronology and historic archeology have also been authored.

For Preservation Month these reports are being posted online. Today, there are links for the first three reports and I'll continue posting more each day.

Lakeport Plantation Technical Reports:

Wednesday, March 2, 2011

Preservation & Tourism News for Lake Village & Chicot County

The Arkansas Historic Preservation Program, in a press release, announced Lake Village's downtown has been added to the National Register of Historic Places. On Saturday, April 9th at 11 a.m., AHPP will hold its Walks through History program in downtown Lake Village. Lakeport will also be open following the Walks through History program.

DOWNTOWN LAKE VILLAGE LISTED ON NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES

LITTLE ROCK—The Lake Village Commercial Historic District at Lake Village in Chicot County has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the country’s official list of historically significant properties, Arkansas Historic Preservation Program Director Frances McSwain announced today.

The Lake Village Commercial Historic District – which is bounded by Lakeshore Drive, Jackson Street, Chicot Street and Church Street – features buildings dating to around 1906.

“The district reflects the growth of Lake Village as a nucleus of commerce and trade in southeast Arkansas,” the National Register nomination says. “As the county seat, Lake Village is a center for local government and the Chicot County Courthouse is a cornerstone of the downtown commercial district. The Lake Village Commercial Historic District contains 38 buildings and one monument.”

The AHPP is the Department of Arkansas Heritage agency responsible for identifying, evaluating, registering and preserving the state’s cultural resources. Other agencies are the Arkansas Arts Council, the Delta Cultural Center in Helena, the Old State House Museum, the Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission, the Mosaic Templars Cultural Center and the Historic Arkansas Museum.

On Friday, February 18th, the Delta Byways held their 11th Annual Delta Awards in Forrest City. Lake Villagers were dominated for two awards; Brianne Connelly of Lake Village was nominated for the Tourism Support Award and Lake Village Mayor JoAnne Bush was nominated and won Tourism Person of the Year.

Tourism Person of the Year Winner JoAnne Bush with family and supporters from Lake Village

Brianne Connelly, Tourism Support Nominee, with James Bacon

11^th Annual Delta Awards for Tourism Achievement

The 11th annual Delta Awards recognizing tourism achievements in Eastern Arkansas were presented during festivities Friday evening, February 18, at the Forrest City Civic Center in Forrest City, Arkansas. The event was sponsored by Arkansas Delta Byways, with support from the St. Francis County Museum and the Forrest City A & P Commission.

Finalists for the awards were as follows, with the winner designated by an asterisk:

1. Media Support Award

Cross County Historical Society Newsletter, Wynne

*Delta Crossroads Magazine, Piggott, Rector, Manila and Trumann

Rob Johnson, Forrest City Broadcasting

2. Hospitality Award

Edwardian Inn, Helena

*Lake Poinsett State Park, Harrisburg

Paragould Community Center, Paragould

3. Entrepreneur Award

ASU Farmers’ Market, Jonesboro

E. J. Miller, Colton’s Steak House, Marion

*Periwinkle Place, McGehee

4. Tourism Support Award

Brianne Connelly, Lake Village

*Electric Cooperatives of Arkansas, Little Rock

Scott Lane, Dermott

5. Festival/Event of the Year

Blues on Broadway, West Memphis

Loose Caboose XXI, Paragould

*Tour duh Sunken Lands Harvest Ride, Dyess, Lepanto, Marked Tree and Tyronza

6. Boot Strap Award

Dyess Days, Dyess

*Main Street Paragould’s Holiday Traditions, Paragould

McGehee Historic Depot, McGehee

7. Promotional Award

Arkansas DeltaMade Artists - Betsy Brackin, Norwood Creech, Suzanne Churchill,

Edward Wade and Nancy LaFarra Wilson, All Counties

*City Branding Programs, Blytheville, Helena, Paragould and West Memphis

Bike Crowley’s Ridge, Mississippi River Trail

8. Outstanding Member Award

Linda Hinton, Tyronza

*Sheilla Lampkin, Monticello

Vicki Trimble, Lake Frierson State Park, Jonesboro

9. Cultural Heritage Award

*Exploring the Arkansas Frontier, ASU Museum, Jonesboro

Civil War Helena, Phillips Helena

Parker Pioneer Homestead, Harrisburg

10. Tourism Person of the Year Award

*JoAnne Bush, Lake Village

Rosalind O’Neal, Marion

Munnie Jordan, Helena