Old Washington Historic State Park
Encyclopedia
Washington, Arkansas
Washington is a city in Hempstead County, Arkansas, United States. The population was 148 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Hope Micropolitan Statistical Area.The city is also home to Old Washington Historic State Park....
. The state park
State park
State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the federated state level within those nations which use "state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on account of its natural beauty, historic interest, or recreational...
opened in 1973 as Old Washington Historic State Park but was renamed in September 2006. It offers visitors walking guided tours which interpret the history of this pioneer settlement, originally on the Southwest Trail
Southwest Trail
The Southwest Trail was a 19th-century pioneer route that was the primary route for American settlers bound for Texas.The Southwest Trail was originally an American Indian trace, and it was improved and expanded by European-American pioneers. The trail ran from St. Louis, Missouri, to Fulton,...
, also known as the Old Military Road. Historic Washington, one of 52 state parks operated by the Arkansas State Parks, Recreation, and Travel Commission, contains 54 buildings on 101 acres (40.9 ha). Thirty of the buildings are historically significant.
During the 1820s and 1830s, Washington was a stopover for travelers going to Texas. It was originally the county seat
County seat
A county seat is an administrative center, or seat of government, for a county or civil parish. The term is primarily used in the United States....
of Hempstead County until a new courthouse was completed in Hope, which was designated the seat of government in 1939. The park emphasizes regional 19th century history from 1824 to 1889. It is located in southwestern Arkansas east of Texarkana
Texarkana, Arkansas
As of the census of 2000, there were 26,448 people, 10,384 households, and 7,040 families residing in the city. The population density was 830.5 people per square mile . There were 11,721 housing units at an average density of 368.1 per square mile...
and near the entrance to Interstate 30
Interstate 30
Interstate 30 is an Interstate Highway in the southern United States. I-30 runs from Interstate 20 west of Fort Worth, Texas, northeast via Dallas, Texas, and Texarkana, Texas, to Interstate 40 in North Little Rock, Arkansas. The route parallels U.S. Route 67 except for the portion west of...
.33.776863222°N 93.6780579741°W
History of Old Washington
The Southwest Trail ran from St. Louis, MissouriSt. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
, to the Red River
Red River (Mississippi watershed)
The Red River, or sometimes the Red River of the South, is a major tributary of the Mississippi and Atchafalaya Rivers in the southern United States of America. The river gains its name from the red-bed country of its watershed. It is one of several rivers with that name...
port of Fulton
Fulton, Arkansas
Fulton is a city in Hempstead County, Arkansas, United States. The population was 245 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Hope Micropolitan Statistical Area...
in Hempstead County some twelve miles from Washington. At the time, the Red River was the border between the United States and Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
. The trail was a route taken by people headed to Mexican Texas
Mexican Texas
Mexican Texas is the name given by Texas history scholars to the period between 1821 and 1836, when Texas was an integral part of Mexico. The period began with Mexico's victory over Spain in its war of independence in 1821. For the first several years of its existence, Mexican Texas operated very...
. William B. Travis
William B. Travis
William Barret Travis was a 19th-century American lawyer and soldier. At the age of 26, he was a lieutenant colonel in the Texas Army...
, Sam Houston
Sam Houston
Samuel Houston, known as Sam Houston , was a 19th-century American statesman, politician, and soldier. He was born in Timber Ridge in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, of Scots-Irish descent. Houston became a key figure in the history of Texas and was elected as the first and third President of...
, and Davy Crockett
Davy Crockett
David "Davy" Crockett was a celebrated 19th century American folk hero, frontiersman, soldier and politician. He is commonly referred to in popular culture by the epithet "King of the Wild Frontier". He represented Tennessee in the U.S...
each separately traveled through Washington on their way to Texas. In the early 1830s until the 1840s, bands of Cherokee
Cherokee
The Cherokee are a Native American people historically settled in the Southeastern United States . Linguistically, they are part of the Iroquoian language family...
and Choctaw
Choctaw
The Choctaw are a Native American people originally from the Southeastern United States...
travelled through Old Washington on their way to Indian Territory
Indian Territory
The Indian Territory, also known as the Indian Territories and the Indian Country, was land set aside within the United States for the settlement of American Indians...
under the Indian removal policies of U.S. President Andrew Jackson
Andrew Jackson
Andrew Jackson was the seventh President of the United States . Based in frontier Tennessee, Jackson was a politician and army general who defeated the Creek Indians at the Battle of Horseshoe Bend , and the British at the Battle of New Orleans...
. In 1846, Washington was a mustering point for Arkansas troops marching south to fight under General Zachary Taylor
Zachary Taylor
Zachary Taylor was the 12th President of the United States and an American military leader. Initially uninterested in politics, Taylor nonetheless ran as a Whig in the 1848 presidential election, defeating Lewis Cass...
in the Mexican War
Mexican–American War
The Mexican–American War, also known as the First American Intervention, the Mexican War, or the U.S.–Mexican War, was an armed conflict between the United States and Mexico from 1846 to 1848 in the wake of the 1845 U.S...
.
On February 14, 1820, Washington was authorized for a post office. That facility remains the oldest continuous postal operation west of the Mississippi River
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
. A new postal building was dedicated on May 29, 1988, by then U.S. Senator David Hampton Pryor. Washington became a town on George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
's birthday, February 22, 1824.
From 1863-1865, Old Washington was the site of the Confederate
Confederate States of America
The Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
capitol of Arkansas after the fall of Little Rock
Little Rock, Arkansas
Little Rock is the capital and the largest city of the U.S. state of Arkansas. The Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 699,757 people in the 2010 census...
to Union
Union Army
The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...
forces. The original Arkansas Confederate capital
Confederate State Capitol building (Arkansas)
The Confederate State Capitol building in Washington, Arkansas was the capital of the Confederate state government of Arkansas, during 1863–1865, after Little Rock, Arkansas fell to Union forces...
, where the refugee government fled, still exists in the park. It is a part of the Camden Expedition Sites
Camden Expedition Sites
Camden Expedition Sites is a National Historic Landmark consisting of eight historic sites where events of the Civil War's Camden Expedition occurred...
, named in part for the town of Camden, Arkansas
Camden, Arkansas
Camden is a city in and the county seat of Ouachita County in the southern part of the U.S. state of Arkansas. Long an area of American Indians villages, the French also made a permanent settlement here because of its advantageous location above the Ouachita River. According to 2007 Census...
, in southern Arkansas.
In the early 1864, Washington was threatened by Union forces under the command of Major General Frederick Steele
Frederick Steele
Frederick Steele was a career military officer in the United States Army, serving as a major general in the Union Army during the American Civil War. He was most noted for his successful campaign to retake much of secessionist Arkansas for the Union cause.-Early life:Steele was born in Delhi, New...
which moved south along the Military Road en route to Shreveport, Louisiana
Shreveport, Louisiana
Shreveport is the third largest city in Louisiana. It is the principal city of the fourth largest metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana and is the 109th-largest city in the United States....
. A Confederate force under the command of Major General Sterling Price
Sterling Price
Sterling Price was a lawyer, planter, and politician from the U.S. state of Missouri, who served as the 11th Governor of the state from 1853 to 1857. He also served as a United States Army brigadier general during the Mexican-American War, and a Confederate Army major general in the American Civil...
blocked Steele's army. The two forces engaged in battle on April 10, 1864, some fourteen miles north of Washington. Steele was forced to move east to Camden, a movement which spared Washington from invasion. This encounter was known as the skirmish at Prairie D'Ane. Many wounded soldiers were brought to Washington for medical treatment. Several buildings, including the Washington Baptist Church, were turned into hospitals to treat the wounded. Seventy-four unknown Confederate soldiers from this battle were buried in a mass grave in the Washington Presbyterian Cemetery.
Arkansas Supreme Court
The Arkansas Supreme Court is the highest court in the U.S. state of Arkansas. Since 1925, it has consisted of a Chief Justice and six Associate Justices, and at times Special Justices are called upon in the absence of a regular justice...
intervened and, in a ruling in May 1939, declared Hope the county seat.
In 1958, the Pioneer Washington Restoration Foundation began preserving the unique buildings and sites that currently lie within the park. The park was established in 1965 and opened eight years later. The Southwest Regional Archives was established there in 1978. Since that time, more than 200,000 artifacts related to 19th century life have been recovered in the park and is the site of ongoing archaeological research on small-town life.
The historic buildings provide excellent examples of the architectural styles popular in the 19th century American South. Examples on display are Southern Greek Revival, Federal architecture, Gothic Revival, Italianate, and the rough-hewn timber or brace-frame construction of the frontier.
Visitors follow plank board sidewalks along streets that have never been paved. The largest magnolia
Magnolia
Magnolia is a large genus of about 210 flowering plant species in the subfamily Magnolioideae of the family Magnoliaceae. It is named after French botanist Pierre Magnol....
tree in Arkansas, planted in 1839, also graces the town. Everything within the original 1824 boundaries of the town are listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
.
Major buildings
Park tours begin at the previous Hempstead County Courthouse, which was constructed in 1874 and is maintained as the museum headquarters and visitors center. On the top floor, one may meditate in the courtroom where trials and hearings were formerly held. After the county seat was moved to Hope, the 1874 courthouse was used as a school beginning in 1914. A gym was built during the 1930s by the Works Progress AdministrationWorks Progress Administration
The Works Progress Administration was the largest and most ambitious New Deal agency, employing millions of unskilled workers to carry out public works projects, including the construction of public buildings and roads, and operated large arts, drama, media, and literacy projects...
. Both are still used for meeting rooms and group rental facilities.
- John Dyer Trimble House – Heirs of John D. Trimble donated their family home and furnishings to the museum in 1978. The artifacts highlight three generations who lived in the house in Hempstead County.
- Clardy/Goodlet Kitchen – This detached structure is believed to be one of the last original such kitchens in the state.
- Royston Log House – A demonstration of living in the 1830s-1860s. A guide shows visitors what materials and tools were essential to build a log house during the previous century.
- Crouch House – A Greek revival home constructed by Augustus M. Crouch, a jeweler and watchmaker who served in the Mexican War at the Battle of Buena VistaBattle of Buena VistaThe Battle of Buena Vista , also known as the Battle of Angostura, saw the United States Army use artillery to repulse the much larger Mexican army in the Mexican-American War...
in 1847. This structure was located on museum grounds in 1980 at the site of a similar house which burned in 1903.
- B.W. Edwards Weapons Museum – A former bank houses a collection of weapons assembled by Basil W. Edwards, a local resident. The exhibit includes musketMusketA musket is a muzzle-loaded, smooth bore long gun, fired from the shoulder. Muskets were designed for use by infantry. A soldier armed with a musket had the designation musketman or musketeer....
s, rifles, shotguns, matchlockMatchlockThe matchlock was the first mechanism, or "lock" invented to facilitate the firing of a hand-held firearm. This design removed the need to lower by hand a lit match into the weapon's flash pan and made it possible to have both hands free to keep a firm grip on the weapon at the moment of firing,...
s, flintlockFlintlockFlintlock is the general term for any firearm based on the flintlock mechanism. The term may also apply to the mechanism itself. Introduced at the beginning of the 17th century, the flintlock rapidly replaced earlier firearm-ignition technologies, such as the doglock, matchlock and wheellock...
s, revolverRevolverA revolver is a repeating firearm that has a cylinder containing multiple chambers and at least one barrel for firing. The first revolver ever made was built by Elisha Collier in 1818. The percussion cap revolver was invented by Samuel Colt in 1836. This weapon became known as the Colt Paterson...
s, and Bowie knivesBowie knifeA Bowie knife is a pattern of fixed-blade fighting knife first popularized by Colonel James "Jim" Bowie in the early 19th Century. Since the first incarnation was created by James Black, the Bowie knife has come to incorporate several recognizable and characteristic design features, although its...
. The weapons museum also includes an exhibit on Thomas Hamilton Simms 1838—1919), who served with the Hempstead Rifles at the Battle of Wilson's CreekBattle of Wilson's CreekThe Battle of Wilson's Creek, also known as the Battle of Oak Hills, was fought on August 10, 1861, near Springfield, Missouri, between Union forces and the Missouri State Guard, early in the American Civil War. It was the first major battle of the war west of the Mississippi River and is sometimes...
near Springfield, MissouriSpringfield, MissouriSpringfield is the third largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and the county seat of Greene County. According to the 2010 census data, the population was 159,498, an increase of 5.2% since the 2000 census. The Springfield Metropolitan Area, population 436,712, includes the counties of...
, early in the Civil War.
- Washington Print Museum – Interprets printing equipment and techniques from the late 19th century and early 20th century. The print shop is also run by Gary White.
- 1836 Courthouse - The original Hempstead Courthouse was in 1844 the scene of the first murder trial in Hempstead County. The courthouse was chosen by Governor Harris FlanaginHarris FlanaginHarris Flanagin was the seventh Governor of the State of Arkansas.-Biography:Harris Flanagin was born in Roadstown, New Jersey. Flanagin was educated in Quaker schools in New Jersey. At age 18 he became a professor of mathematics. Flanagin moved west and opened his own private school in Paoli,...
during the Civil War as the Confederate capital of Arkansas. By 1858, Washington had outgrown the courthouse, and a new facility was proposed in 1872. When the second courthouse opened in 1874, the previous structure became the house of the county clerk. In time it was boarded up.
In 1929, the United Daughters of the Confederacy
United Daughters of the Confederacy
The United Daughters of the Confederacy is a women's heritage association dedicated to honoring the memory of those who served in the military and died in service to the Confederate States of America . UDC began as the National Association of the Daughters of the Confederacy, organized in 1894 by...
secured state funding to restore the 1836 Hempstead Courthouse. This was the first restoration money ever appropriated by the Arkansas General Assembly
Arkansas General Assembly
The Arkansas General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Arkansas. The legislature is a bicameral body composed of the upper house Arkansas Senate with 35 members, and the lower Arkansas House of Representatives with 100 members. All 135 representatives and state senators...
. The building now included in Washington Park has paintings of Confederate icons J.E.B. Stuart
J.E.B. Stuart
James Ewell Brown "Jeb" Stuart was a U.S. Army officer from Virginia and a Confederate States Army general during the American Civil War. He was known to his friends as "Jeb", from the initials of his given names. Stuart was a cavalry commander known for his mastery of reconnaissance and the use...
, Stonewall Jackson
Stonewall Jackson
ຄຽשת״ׇׂׂׂׂ֣|birth_place= Clarksburg, Virginia |death_place=Guinea Station, Virginia|placeofburial=Stonewall Jackson Memorial CemeteryLexington, Virginia|placeofburial_label= Place of burial|image=...
, and Pierre G.T. Beauregard on the walls.
In 1958, a group of Washington citizens formed the Pioneer Washington Restoration Foundation to preserve the old structures and interpret the history of Washington. They operated tours of some of the historic homes for fifteen years. In 1973, they invited the Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism to assist in the preservation and interpreation of the village. The foundation donated property, buildings, and antiques, and Old Washington Historic State Park opened as the then thirty-fourth Arkansas state park on July 1, 1973.
- Block-Catts House – Built by Abraham Block, a merchant in Washington, this home, elegant in its day, is a rare Federal-style structure in southwest Arkansas. Block, an immigrant from BohemiaBohemiaBohemia is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western two-thirds of the traditional Czech Lands. It is located in the contemporary Czech Republic with its capital in Prague...
, had twelve children. Block first came to the port of New OrleansNew Orleans, LouisianaNew Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...
before heading northward. He was the first Jewish settler in Arkansas. His house was the oldest in Washington and the oldest two-story residence in the state. The house had a grand piano and impressive dining hall. Block died in 1857.
- Blacksmith Shop – The shop was built by the Pioneer Washington Restoration Foundation in 1960 as an interpretation center. It has two working forgeForgeA forge is a hearth used for forging. The term "forge" can also refer to the workplace of a smith or a blacksmith, although the term smithy is then more commonly used.The basic smithy contains a forge, also known as a hearth, for heating metals...
s. In 1831, James Black, the best known blacksmithBlacksmithA blacksmith is a person who creates objects from wrought iron or steel by forging the metal; that is, by using tools to hammer, bend, and cut...
in Washington, forged one of the original Bowie knives for the frontiersman James Bowie. The shop was dedicated to the memory of Thomas Hamilton Simms of the Hempstead Rifles.
- Simon Sanders House and Urban Farmstead – A program entitled "Her Work Is Never Done" presented at the Sanders House is a demonstration of the endless tasks assigned to a household slave during the antebellum years in Washington. Simon Sanders was the father-in-law of Augustus H. Garland, a Hempstead County resident who was Attorney General of the United States during the administration of U.S. President Grover ClevelandGrover ClevelandStephen Grover Cleveland was the 22nd and 24th president of the United States. Cleveland is the only president to serve two non-consecutive terms and therefore is the only individual to be counted twice in the numbering of the presidents...
.
- Nashville High School – The restoration of a 1914 school in nearby Nashville was dedicated by the State Parks, Recreation, and Travel Commission in June 2003. It is located on the far eastern end of the village. Then Governor Mike HuckabeeMike HuckabeeMichael "Mike" Dale Huckabee is an American politician who served as the 44th Governor of Arkansas from 1996 to 2007. He was a candidate in the 2008 United States Republican presidential primaries, finishing second in delegate count and third in both popular vote and number of states won . He won...
attended the dedication.
Museum information
The museum address is P.O. Box 129, Washington, AR 71862. Adult admission is $8, and a child's ticket is $4. Those desiring a limited tour of only two buildings pay $5 for adults and $2.75 for children. SurreySurrey (carriage)
A surrey is a horse-drawn, four-wheeled, two-seated pleasure carriage with an open spindle seat.-Overview:The name comes from Surrey, the county in southern England where it was first built. It resembles a cabriolet but has a straight or nearly straight bottom, sometimes cut under...
rides are available on special occasions. Regular hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., seven days per week except New Years Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day. The Williams Tavern Restaurant offers country cooking from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Part of the funding for Arkansas state parks such as Washington comes from a .125-cent sales tax allocated for Game/Fish and Parks/Tourism.
The park provides a variety of events for local residents and visitors including demonstrations and workshops on blacksmithing, weaving
Weaving
Weaving is a method of fabric production in which two distinct sets of yarns or threads are interlaced at right angles to form a fabric or cloth. The other methods are knitting, lace making and felting. The longitudinal threads are called the warp and the lateral threads are the weft or filling...
, quilting
Quilting
Quilting is a sewing method done to join two or more layers of material together to make a thicker padded material. A quilter is the name given to someone who works at quilting. Quilting can be done by hand, by sewing machine, or by a specialist longarm quilting system.The process of quilting uses...
, sewing
Sewing
Sewing is the craft of fastening or attaching objects using stitches made with a needle and thread. Sewing is one of the oldest of the textile arts, arising in the Paleolithic era...
, candle
Candle
A candle is a solid block or cylinder of wax with an embedded wick, which is lit to provide light, and sometimes heat.Today, most candles are made from paraffin. Candles can also be made from beeswax, soy, other plant waxes, and tallow...
making, forging, and harness driving.
Historic Washington offers Civil War weekends and reenactments, the Five Trails Rendezvous (commemorating the origin of five Native American trails in the region) held in February, the annual jonquil festival in March, and a Christmas festival and Victorian era
Victorian era
The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...
Christmas ball. The park is decorated for Christmas each December.
At Historic Washington, the American Bladesmith Society
American Bladesmith Society
The American Bladesmith Society or ABS is an non-profit organization composed of knifemakers whose primary function is to promote the techniques of forging steel blades. The ABS was founded by Knifemaker William F...
operates the only bladesmithing college in the United States. The program, affiliated with Texarkana College
Texarkana College
Texarkana College is a community college located in Texarkana, Texas.-Location:Texarkana College is located at , in the northeast border of Texarkana, Texas, at the junction of Robison and Tucker streets, which is approximately one mile south of Interstate 30.The twin cities of Texarkana,...
, claims to be the only school in the world dedicated to the art of making knives and swords.
Restoring Old Washington
Among the leading figures in the restoration of Old Washington was James H. Pilkinton of Hope, who served as president of the Pioneer Washington Restoration Foundation twice between 1959 and 1990. Others involved in the restoration are Parker O. Westbrook, a former aide to the late U.S. Senator J. W. Fulbright, and Westbrook's sister, Lucille.Old Washington has been called the "Colonial Williamsburg of the Southwest" or "Colonial Williamsburg of Arkansas", in reference to the Colonial Williamsburg
Colonial Williamsburg
Colonial Williamsburg is the private foundation representing the historic district of the city of Williamsburg, Virginia, USA. The district includes buildings dating from 1699 to 1780 which made colonial Virginia's capital. The capital straddled the boundary of the original shires of Virginia —...
restoration in Virginia which opened in 1957 courtesy of the Rockefeller family
Rockefeller family
The Rockefeller family , the Cleveland family of John D. Rockefeller and his brother William Rockefeller , is an American industrial, banking, and political family of German origin that made one of the world's largest private fortunes in the oil business during the late 19th and early 20th...
.
Washington Collections
Historic Washington houses the Southwest Arkansas Regional Archives which is the primary center for historical and genealogical research in the region. The archives contain rare books, court documents, newspapers, census information, photographs, scrapbooks, sheet music, and assorted family histories.See also
- List of Arkansas state parks
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Hempstead County, ArkansasNational Register of Historic Places listings in Hempstead County, ArkansasThis is a list of the National Register of Historic Places listings in Hempstead County, Arkansas.This is intended to be a complete list of the properties and districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Hempstead County, Arkansas, United States...
External links
33°46′26"N 093°41′00"W