He was born in 1885 in Fayetteville, the son of a Presbyterian minister. His grandfathers, also Presbyterian ministers, had migrated to Arkansas around the middle of the 19th century. After becoming an early graduate of the University of Arkansas, the fledgling new land grant college in Fayetteville, he decided not to follow the ministerial tradition of his father and grandfathers. He became a civil engineer.
In 1917, he left Fayetteville and moved his young family to Morrilton to supervise one of the early bridges over the Arkansas River. Four years later, he was chosen to supervise construction of the road that leads to the top of Petit Jean Mountain.
In 1934, he was named project superintendent to build the first Arkansas State Park, Petit Jean State Park. One of the many ways he got public involvement in the project was to ask locals to catch and donate live rats to the state park zoo for feeding the snakes. Three years later, he became Arkansas' first parks director.
Who was this pioneering parks director whose grandson would later also serve as the Arkansas State Parks director?
See NOTABLE ARKANSANS--Answer
Style on 01/26/2020