Review board to consider nominations to National Register of Historic Places

The Arkansas State Review Board will consider the nominations for several Arkansas properties to the National Register of Historic Places at their next meeting on August 7th.
“The National Register of Historic Places is a program of the National Park Service that is administered in Arkansas by the Arkansas Historic Preservation Program,” said Ralph Wilcox, national register and survey coordinator and deputy state historic preservation officer for the Arkansas Historic Preservation Program. “The National Register is the country’s official list of historic resources that are worthy of preservation, and it’s always exciting when we have National Register nominations under consideration. It allows us to showcase the incredible history of Arkansas and how the state’s past is reflected in its built environment.”
The Arkansas properties that will be considered by the State Review Board come from all over the state and illustrate the rich and diverse history that Arkansas has.
“The nominations that the Review Board will consider include properties from the nineteenth and twentieth centuries and include a wide range of property types,” said Wilcox. “From bridges and cemeteries to schools and historic districts, the properties up for nomination illustrate the wide variety of properties that can be listed on the National Register and how they all reflect Arkansas’s history.”
The nominations to the National Register of Historic Places that will be considered include:
Worthen Building, Little Rock, Pulaski County: Designed by architect Noland Blass, Jr., and built in 1967–1969, the Worthen Building is an outstanding example of the Brutalist style. The Worthen Building was also the state’s tallest building from the time of its completion until 1975.
Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific Railway Overpass, Little Rock, Pulaski County: The Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific Railway Overpass was built in 1936 and reflects the efforts in the 1930s and 1940s to eliminate railroad grade crossings on the state’s highways.
Conway Mayes Marker, Conway, Faulkner County: The Conway Mayes Marker, which was erected in 1955, is an example of the roadside religious markers erected around the country by Kentucky artist Henry Harrison Mayes.
Searcy Commercial Historic District, Searcy, White County: The Searcy Commercial Historic District, which encompasses the commercial core of Searcy, reflects the nineteenth- and twentieth-century commercial history and development of the city.

Cherry Cemetery, Rison Vic., Cleveland County: The Cherry Cemetery, which is located in rural Cleveland County, reflects the settlement history of the former Mt. Elba community in central Cleveland County.
Wilson Hall Additional Documentation, Russellville, Pope County: The additional documentation for Wilson Hall, which was built in 1933, updates the building’s previous nomination and reflects the role of the Reconstruction Finance Corporation in the building’s construction.
Old Town Historic District, Russellville, Pope County: The Old Town Historic District, which reflects the growth of Russellville from the 1890s up through the 1970s, contains homes that reflect national architectural trends during the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries.
Cove Creek Bridge, Leslie, Searcy County: The Cove Creek Bridge at Leslie, which was built in 1930 and constructed by B. H. Heard of Little Rock, has played an important part in the transportation history of Leslie, connecting Leslie with U.S. 65, the main highway in the area.
WPA Privy, Pyatt, Marion County: The WPA Privy at Pyatt is a good example of the many privies that the WPA built during the 1930s and reflects the period trend of promoting healthy and sanitary practices in the early twentieth century.
Yellville West Overpass, Little Rock, Pulaski County: The Yellville West Overpass, which was also built in 1936, like the Chicago, Rock Island, and Pacific Railway Overpass in Little Rock, reflects the efforts in the 1930s and 1940s to eliminate railroad grade crossings on the state’s highways.
St. Paul Methodist Church Cemetery, Historic Section, Ozan Vic., Hempstead County: The St. Paul Methodist Church Cemetery, Historic Section, reflects the early settlement period of the Ozan area of Hempstead County in the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries.
Wickes School, Wickes, Polk County: The Wickes School, which was built in 1913 in the Mission style, served as the community’s school from the time of its construction until 1940. The building has also served as the community’s Masonic lodge and currently serves as the town’s City Hall.
In addition, the State Review Board will consider a nomination for the Old Kingsland Post Office in Cleveland County to the Arkansas Register, and they will consider nominations to designate the Pankey’s Thid Addition and Extension in Pulaski County and the George Walker and George Ealy Homestead and Land in Faulkner County as Arkansas Heritage Sites.