Daycation

It's not uncommon for new words to be created using parts of old words. Take the word vacation. During the 2007 - 2010 financial crisis in the US many individuals couldn't afford the luxury of a vacation. Thus, their vacation became a staycation; a period where the family stayed at home, made day trips, and returned to sleep in their own beds at night. A new word was born. Mr. H and I rarely go on a vacation or a staycation. We only take a day now and then. We take daycations!

Vacations, staycations, daycations

Don't you just love words!

Desha County Courthouse

Arkansas City, AR

So anyway, Mr. H and I went on a daycation. I have a project that I began in July of 2011. I am attempting to take a picture of every county courthouse in Arkansas. Our first stop was in Arkansas City a small town of only 0.5 square miles and a population of 366. You can imagine my surprise when we drove into town and found this beautiful courthouse surrounded by large magnolia trees. Not only was the courthouse beautiful, but there was an old high school built in 1910, a small building that looked like it might have been a jail at one time, and an old church. Three things I love a lot very close together. I don't mean I love jails a lot, I just love old buildings a lot!

St. Clements Episcopal Church

Arkansas City, Arkansas

One of the reasons I love old buildings is their doors and windows. It doesn't matter to me if the doors are on an outhouse, a church, a historical building, or a rundown shack. They're all fascinating.

Windows can be beautiful and ornate or they can be worn and rusty. It doesn't matter, I love them all.

Sometimes I find windows or doors that I can peek into. I'm not a "Peeping Tom." I only peek in windows on public property and when the place is closed; like the old high school below which is now part of the court system.

Arkansas High School, 1910

Here's the view through looking through the front door. I love the tin ceiling tiles and all the gorgeous wood.

I was also able to peek into the window of this beautiful home which is now The Ashley County Museum.

Ashley County Museum - 1918

And when I peeked in, I fell in love with those interior doors between the parlor and the dining room. I'd love to go back and tour this gorgeous home.

It seems there's always something the intrigues me and makes me ask questions, such as this old church which is now the meeting place of the Hamburg Garden Club. I wonder why the windows of this church and the above church have been painted over. Wouldn't you want to have light flowing in, especially in this church where the club meets? It's a mystery. One that I will probably never know the answer to.

Hamburg Presbyterian Church, 1871

We had such a nice day, even if we did travel 301.7 miles and were gone nine hours. I'm making progress on my project. I have taken pictures of 56 courthouses. There are 85 county seats in Arkansas and before someone corrects me, I know there are only 75 counties. Ten of those counties have two county seats and two courthouses. That leaves me with only 29 more courthouses to go. It looks like we'll be going on a few more daycations to get this project done!

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.

Looking For Arkansas Courthouses

As many of you know I'm trying to take a picture of all the county courthouses in Arkansas. Recently we had a free day and Mr. H suggested that we make a courthouse run. I'm always ready for a little traveling. Our destinations were Prescott, Hope, and Nashville. The courthouses weren't as impressive as some I've photographed. I like the ones that are ornate with the tall clock towers, but they can't all be built like that!

I know it's going to be a good day when the first wrong turn we made in Prescott lead us to a beautiful mural, painted by Jorge and Maria Villegas, that told the history of the town. The train front and center is pretty much the way it is.  The tracks run right beside the main street and we constantly heard trains.

Downtown was in pretty bad shape, but there's still an old fashioned barbershop.

The detail work in these old buildings fascinate me. It's beautiful the way the bricks were placed to create unique designs like the herringbone below. It's also nice when the names and dates are worked into the design; makes research so much easier. This building was built about 1908 and housed the Bemis Department store.

The Hamby Building was built in 1905 to house the law office of Col. C. C. Hamby. 

The largest building in downtown was built about 1905. The Prescott Hardware Company building is enormous, a full city block deep. 

Of all the buildings it was in the worst shape and has been condemned by the city for demolition.

Which is such a shame.  On the sides and back of the building are fourteen ghost signs. This back section was used to store the large items for sale like buggies, harnesses, wagons, vehicles, and agricultural implements.

Here's the statistics of the day:

seven hours to drive

250+ miles through

seven counties to

find three courthouses

bonus:

20 ghost signs

Such a fun day!

Friday Finds and Randomness

 

I am not a flower gardener!  I have shade gardens with azaleas and hostas which are easy-peasy and not necessary to tend in the heat and humidity of summer!  BUT, I do love flowers (those that requires little attention) so, I add some pots here and there for color! I finally made the trip to the closest nursery to buy my annuals and found these petunias. I've never seen this color before. Sometimes they're dark like these and sometimes the blooms are more yellow with deep burgundy stripes. They're right by the door where I can enjoy them each time I'm in and out!

 

Linking with Kim's Friday Finds.

 

 

 

Next comes the randomness!

 

#1

Topping the list this week is my grandson Josh. Josh is seven (one of the twins) and has an amazing talent for music. Yes, I'm partial,, but it's true. He's only been taking lessons since January and is breezing through his piano book. This past Sunday he had his first recital. He was able to play a song he loves, Beethoven's Ode To Joy. I took this picture of him when he was practicing his piece right before we left. At the recital he played beautifully; never missed a note or missed a beat...it was perfect!! You can tell that he enjoys music and feels it in his heart!  He brought tears to my eyes as he performed.  We are so proud of him! I think they'll be investing in a piano before too long!

 



 

 

#2

This is my daughter's flower garden.  Her peonies are always gorgeous! There's also water flowing into a rock pool complete with fish! It's so pretty and peaceful.

 

#3

Now, for some things that caught my eye this week. Have you ever noticed that some older buildings and monuments use the letter "V" for the letter "U."  In case you've ever wondered why, according to Scrabble Help,  "At one time, in the Middle Ages, the U and V were very closely related and were commonly used in words, that would seem backwards to us now. For example, Upon would have been written as Vpon. This was slightly due to the fact that there was no capital U in the alphabet. However, as this changed, the U and V were changed and the distinguish between the consonant and vowels." And, now you know! 

 

 

#4

I spend another day traveling Arkansas in search of courthouses. I now have taken pictures of 49 of Arkansas' 85 county courthouses. This is a project I started several years ago and it's been such a fun adventure. Most of the courthouses are in the older downtown areas and I never know what I'll find like this pretty mural. This is only one small section of the mural that told the history of Harrison, Arkansas. I really like the old rock building in the background, too!

 

 

#5

I love to walk down alley ways in the these older sections of town. You find great textures and a few surprises! I spotted a heart in the crumbling wall of a building.

 

 

 

 

 I leave you with this scene which made me laugh!

 

Just look at mama's expression! I'm sure she's saying, "Honey, you have something on your bill. You must be neater!  Our little one watches everything you do!"

 

 

To those of you in the States, have a nice Memorial Day Weekend!

To everyone else, just have a nice weekend!

Friday Finds & Random 5 Friday - March 21, 2014

HELLO   SUNSHINE!!

HELLO   COLOR!!

HELLO   SPRINGTIME!!

 

 

I finally found the magic time to take pictures of my jonquils. It seemed no matter what time I was outside, I couldn't get a decent picture. There just seemed to be no depth...just blobs of yellow. I glanced out the window while cooking dinner around 4:30, saw this gorgeous light, and grabbed my camera. YES! This is what I wanted!  In case your interested, I didn't burn dinner!

 

 

On to some randomness...

 

Fact  #1

The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, written in 1875, is considered as the first published book written by using a typewriter; a Remington.  I love old typewriters!  I want one!!

 

Fact  #2

I'm on a mission to take a picture of every county courthouse in Arkansas.  While I'm in town for the courthouse shot, I wander around taking pictures of other historical buildings and cemeteries. I never seem to have enough time to see everything I want to!

 

Fact  #3

I love my washing machine...no explanation needed! The third washboard has the word "saver" on it, surely it doesn't read "time saver!"

Fact #4

I've always wanted a long porch on the front of my house. Alas, I don't think I'll every get one!  I wouldn't mind the house that goes with this porch either!

 

 (Cargile House, Arkadelphia, AR - built in 1898)

 

 

 

Fact  #5

It snowed again this week. I was pretty excited!  Gee!  We might be up to a whole four or five inches total for this winter!! By the next day temperatures were back up in the 60's! Thankfully, the snow didn't seem to hurt my Flowering Almond tree.

 

Happy Spring!

 

Linking with Kim for Friday Finds and Nancy for Random 5 Friday.