PINE BLUFF — Stacked in boxes and separated by old newspapers, plastic replicas of the fighter jets and bomber planes of World War II sit in the corner of Currin Nichol’s old home on Martin Street.
There they serve as memories of the 1950s, ’60s and ’70s, when the Pine Bluff native would spend time with his three children, piecing together wings, wheels and propellers onto model planes.
He amassed a collection of more than 150 American, German, Austrian, French, Japanese and English planes.
His work was viewed by family and friends until about four years ago, when he put the planes on display on Veterans Day at the Trinity Village Retirement Community south of Pine Bluff, where he lives with his wife, June.
He’s continued to display the model planes every year at the retirement community.
“He used to make those planes when it was snowing or raining real bad and the children were around,” June Nichol said. “He would let them play with the planes and paint and things.”
“It was wonderful for me because it entertained themwhen the day was so bad,” June Nichol added, laughing.
Nichol now plans to donate his collection to the Jefferson County Historical Museum.
Sue Trulock, director of the Jefferson County Historical Museum, said the museum would accept Nichol’s donation but needs to find a placeto store and display the extensive plane collection.
“We would like to have it,” Trulock said.
Nichol, 81, said he became interested in model warplanes at 14, back when such replicas were made of balsa wood, not plastic.
He said he enlisted in theArmy in 1951 and served in Japan during the Korean War, teaching defense against biological warfare.
Jane McMullin, director of health and fitness at Trinity Village, said she initially thought the collection would be a great addition for the Pine Bluff Municipal Airportat Grider Field.
“It’s such a wonderful thing to have here in Pine Bluff, I’d hate for them to get away,” McMullin said.
Airport manager Doug Hale said there are plans to have a small museum or exhibit at the Pine Bluff Municipal Airport in about three years, after building renovations are complete at the airport terminal.
He said he already has about 50 World War II model airplanes another man donated to display at the airport. Those planes are displayed in the lobby of the airport terminal.
Nichol said he quit making the model airplanes in the late 1970s, mainly because his children moved out and he was working extra hours at Simmons National Bank in Pine Bluff, where he worked for nearly 40 years.
Sometimes, though, he said he still gets the itch to put another model plane together, noting that he still has unopened boxes of model World War II planes.
“I’d eventually like to start back, but I think my hands may be too shaky,” he joked. “I don’t know whether I could do it or not. I haven’t tried it yet, but I’ve got the kits available, so I don’t have an excuse.”
Northwest Arkansas, Pages 9 on 12/21/2009