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District FeatureArkansas National River and the Civilian Conservation Corps
The Arkansas State Park System was developed through the work of the CCC. CCC Camp #4733 was established in 1938 to construct a new state park--Buffalo River State Park, now known as the Buffalo River State Park Historic District. The Army administered the day-to-day activities of the camp; the National Park Service provided technical assistance and design for the project. The CCC laid out the park roads, built retaining walls, an overnight lodge, a picnic pavilion, and six cabins. The building stone was quarried on site; lumber was prepared at the camp sawmill and crafted by the enrollees. Sixty years later the facilities they built are still in use.
The lodge, pavilion [now the group camping area], stone retaining walls and culverts are all still in use. A short hike down the Indian Rockhouse trail leads to a spur accessing the quarry where much of the rockwork for the cabin walls and chimneys was quarried. Drill marks are still visible in the distinctive St. Joe limestone.
The Buffalo River is certainly one of the more pristine ecosystems in the Mid South, and Buffalo Point area, located in the midst of the river's course, probably the best complete, lasting example of the efforts and skill of the Civilian Conservation Corps in Arkansas. Any stay at the park, whether you are a camper, a backpacker or a motel kind of person, are in for a real treat in a rustic CCC cabin environment. Sitting in front of the stone fireplace with crackling fire, quietly reflecting on a past time in our country's history, can we begin to fully appreciate the scope of the CCC program. Skilled and unskilled alike came together out of necessity to construct public facilities, that unknown or even considered by them, would endure the test of time. It is this legacy that the National Park Service is eager to pass on to future users. It is important to preserve the monuments created by the initiatives of our citizens, such as the Buffalo Point area, as an ever enduring historical context to the American way of life.
Source - History of Park and CCC: Suzie Rogers, Historian, Buffalo National
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One
of the most successful programs of the 1930s was the Civilian Conservation
Corps (CCC), a work program for young men ages 18-24. In return for job
training and a paycheck, the men of the CCC provided labor for conservation
and recreation projects nationwide. The rustic design that was a hallmark
of the CCC work utilized materials found in the local area to blend with
and complement the natural environment. Each element of a structure was
considered integral to the design, whether it was a small rock path or
the slope of the roof. 
In
1972 the national significance of the Buffalo River area was recognized
by the establishment by Congress of Buffalo National River, a new unit
of the National Park System. Arkansas State Parks transferred ownership
of Buffalo River State Park to the new park unit. The six "rustic"
CCC housekeeping cabins continued their service to park visitors. The
cabins are operated by a park concessioner who is responsible for their
day to day operation. 
The
cabins were completed in 1942. This year marks their 60th birthday - sixty
years of serving visitors to the Buffalo River. The cabins have seen many
folks cross their thresholds, watched children grow up and bring their
own families to the Buffalo River to enjoy a vacation along the river
and among the pines. Their continued use for more than half a century
is a tribute to the skill and conscientiousness of those participating
in the Civilian Conservation Corps program. But like all things that get
old, the cabins are looking tired. 
The
National Park Service and Buffalo Point Concessions, along with a special
group of park supporters organized as the Friends of the Buffalo National
River, have embarked on a cooperative mission to renew the Civilian Conservation
Corps cabins and other park projects to benefit the public's enjoyment.
The goal of this cooperative effort is to preserve the original CCC design
as closely as possible while providing limited modern renovation for health
and safety. This is but the first phase of an ongoing effort by the Friends
of the Buffalo National River to address the overall needs of the Buffalo
River State Park Historic District.
