Come On In

In my last post I talked about wandering around the downtown area of Benton, Arkansas. I mentioned that I had met three very kind people. They each saw me and my camera and asked "do you like to photograph old things?" That's my favorite question.

The first young man noticed me as I was taking a picture of one of the letters on his business sign. Remember I was looking for unique letters of the alphabet. He said that he owned the barber shop and thought I might like to see inside because he not only cuts hair, but he collects sports memorabilia, old signs from around town, and vintage barber equipment. He was very proud of his barber chairs. The one below is called a Presidential Chair from around 1959. This type of barber chair was popular in the Kennedy era. He even uses an antique cash register.

All four of his barber chairs are antiques. The barber chairs below are from 1905 to 1930. The pole in the window is from 1940's.

I'm pretty sure my grandsons would love to get their hair cut here and look at all the sports memorabilia. Isn't this a fancy place to prop your feet while you're getting your hair cut?

The second man noticed me as I stepped in the open bay door of his auto repair shop. I was taking a picture of a neon sign. He invited me in and told me all about the vintage signs hanging in his shop. 

As I was leaving he asked if I'd like to see some old tools. In a small room at the front of his shop he has quite a collection of antique tools, oil cans, repair books, and car parts.

He also mentioned his wife owned the building next door which was being restored. He told me I was welcome to go in and look around. The walls were brick with nice arched windows in the rear, but it was the ceiling tiles that caught my attention. They were installed in 1908.

He told me to be sure and go around the back of the building to enter the basement. It used to be a mortuary, now it's used for storage. The building sits on sloped ground. The top floor is at street level and the slope causes the basement that can be entered from the rear parking lot. I loved the arched doors that led to the basement. I could tell why this would have made a good place for a mortuary in days without air conditioning. It was very cool even though it was hot and humid outside.

I was headed home when I remembered that in a nearby neighborhood were several large crepe myrtle trees. I wanted to see if they were in full bloom, which they weren't, but I took a few pictures anyway. As I was taking pictures this very sweet lady came outside of her home and talked to me. She showed me her black walnut trees and her beautiful oak leaf hydrangeas in her side yard. I asked her if she knew how old the crepe myrtle trees were. Her answer was no, but if I'd come inside with her she had a newspaper article about them. I hesitated, but she insisted. I think she was very lonely and just needed someone to talk to. The article said that the trees were planted as part of a city beautification project in 1927. We talked a few minutes about her family history in Benton. She was genuinely grateful that I had visited with her. I know it wasn't the safest thing I've ever done, but my instincts led me to a very nice visit. 

I'm still so amazed every time I'm out with my camera. It seems to lead me on fun adventures.  I'm looking forward for cooler weather to arrive. I'm ready for more wanderings and more adventures. I will have a photo buddy to go on adventures with now, my sister. She retired a few weeks ago. So look out Arkansas we'll be out and about with our cameras.

A - B - C - D - E - F - G

What do you do when you have a cooler morning and you can think of no destination to take your camera? It needs to be a close destination, because the coolness will quickly turn to extreme heat. Well, I just got in the car and started driving. I thought of one place as I headed west that might work, but upon arrival I changed my mind. Knee high weeds and a man working on a lawnmower didn't seem promising for peace and quiet. Now what? Intuition kicked in and I drove to the small town center surrounding the county courthouse. I've been there many times. I've posted about it here; the small downtown area of Benton, Arkansas. I try to keep my priorities straight and you can't take great pictures on an empty stomach, so I stopped by McDonald's for a chicken and biscuit sandwich and headed to a small park where I sat, listened to the quiet waterfall, and thought about what to do. What was there for me today in this small town? I remembered a recent post by my good friend Kelly who went searching for the letters of the alphabet in shapes around her neighborhood. Her finds were fascinating. I changed it up a little and looked for the compete alphabet in the signage around town. A couple of letters weren't so easy to find. I did it though I found every letter.

A lot of thought goes into signs. They communicate a message about a business, a product, or a road. Signs are our way of passing along information. I found signs embedded in concrete. One near a memorial and the other in the sidewalk. There are several quotes in the sidewalks around the county courthouse.

I saw signs I've never see before. Walking completely around the downtown blocks and alleys put me on streets I've never traveled or I traveled to fast to look at the signs.

I saw signs that have been there so long they're almost hidden. 

There were old faded signs.

Metal signs, vintage signs, hand-lettered signs, and even a sign that was signed.

A sign with missing letters.

On many of the signs I saw ampersands. Ampersands seem to be quite popular right now in home decor. I'm not sure why. I'm always behind when it comes to what's new, cool and in!!

It was really quite fun looking at the different signs, their fonts, and typeface. It was a new look at an old city and it led to three different encounters with the kind people of Benton. You know how I love vintage things. Well, these people showed me places that delighted me. I'll be back with the next chapter in this saga.

Hope you have a very nice weekend!

History Walk

We met at the courthouse on a chilly overcast morning; a group of about eighty to ninety who were interested in the people and the historic buildings in the town of Benton, Arkansas.

The beautiful courthouse was built in 1902. It was the third courthouse to be used by the county. My favorite part of courthouses is the clock towers. I don't know if there's a real bell in the tower or not, but it still rings out the hour.

Rachael Silva, from the Arkansas Historic Preservation Program, led us around town beginning inside the courthouse. The painting beside her, The Bauxite Mines, was painted by Julius Woeltz as part of the New Deal-sponsored Art in Post Office project. It was originally installed in the US Post office of Benton in 1942, but was later moved to the courthouse. Woeltz chose to depict the importance of the mining of bauxite to the surrounding area.

I love to wander around old downtown streets. I'm fascinated by the unique brickwork, doors, windows, and trims of these historic buildings. It's always interesting to hear the history and stories about these buildings. 

The Royal Theater opened in the spring of 1949 after an older theater built in 1920 was extensively remodeled and enlarged. In the 1950's the owners acquired the neon sign and marquee from the recently dismantled Royal Theater in Little Rock and remodeled the entrance. The Royal continued showing movies until 2000 when it was converted into a community playhouse. 

The Gann building was constructed in 1893 to be a medical office for Dr. Dewell Gann, Sr., by a group of patients who couldn't afford to pay for the doctor's services. The exterior walls are made of hand-cut bauxite blocks.  Bauxite is relatively soft out of the ground, the builders sawed the blocks square with handsaws and allowed them to harden in the sun for six weeks before assembling them into this gingerbread style house. This is the only know bauxite building in existence in the world. Note, Dr. Gann had separate entrances built for men and women to assure his female patients that they could avoid any rough workmen who were visiting the office at the same time. In 1946 Dr. Gann Jr. gave this building to the city to serve as a library and later a museum.

In 1895 Dr. Gann's home, a beautiful Queen Anne Structure, was built next door to his medical office.  The home's design features a rounded turret, a wrap-around porch supported by fluted columns, and leaded and stained glass windows. It's so sad to see it in such disrepair. Hopefully someday it will be restored.

 

I love the porch swing!

Another very interesting building was The Bell Building constructed in 1888. It housed the Bell's Hardwood, Dry Goods, and Grocery Store. The facade has been changed by the removal of some windows and the addition of stucco. What is interesting is not the front, but what's on the side of this building.

A beautiful mural, painted by Dianne Roberts and Mark Davey, has just recently been completed depicting the history of Benton. The mural concept originated with Arlene Rainey, now 97, when she shared her desire for a downtown mural. She commented that the Bell Building was "a building that is speaking to me and telling me that it would be a perfect place for a mural." The mural's story begins with the 1400's when Native Americans inhabited the area and ends in 1900 when the trains were in their heyday and pottery was a thriving industry.

The figures on the mural are painted from photographs taken of local people dressed in period costumes. 

At the end of our tour we were treated by the History and Heritage Society to cookies and punch. After two hours of walking, we were ready for a little sweetness.

Many thanks to Rachael and the Arkansas Historic Preservation Program for this fun tour through Arkansas history. Most of the information I've shared here is from Rachael's research. The AHPP provides programs including Walks Through History featuring historic sites around Arkansas and Sandwiching In History featuring historic sites around central Arkansas.