Garland County Historical Society releases journal

The Record, the yearly journal of the Garland County Historical Society, is now available, highlighting the life of a famed Hot Springs architect.

“The Wright Style in Hot Springs: The Architecture of I. Granger McDaniel,” by Mason Toms, an architectural historian and preservation designer with the Arkansas Historic Preservation Program, profiles McDaniel, a World War II hero and architect who transformed the landscape of Hot Springs, the society said in a news release.

The front cover features a view of the McDaniel-designed Dierks Forests, Inc. — later Weyerhaeuser — building at 810 Whittington Ave.

In other articles, Dr. Ronald D. Greenwood discovers the state of health care in 1892 Hot Springs as he analyzes the first issue of the Hot Springs Medical Journal, and the editorial staff uses 1892 ads and old photos to illuminate that moment in time.

Donnie Kilgore relates the history, starting in 1823, of sometimes overlooked Garland County pioneer families, including their connections to Ouachita River ferries and

crossings. A related article, by Frances Williamson Dever, examines an 1852-53 account book from William Gardner’s general store in Hot Springs.

Clay Farrar introduces the reader to Jimmy J. Dowds Jr. and his historic postcard collection, which Jimmy’s son, James B. Dowds, recently donated to the society. Postcards from this collection are featured on the back cover of the journal.

Hot Springs National Park Ranger Brian Schwieger explains the history of Noble Fountain, a Hot Springs landmark since 1894, and Ron Fuller remembers the sights, sounds and even smells of Ramble School, 1954-60.

Jerry Butler explores the mysteries of the Hot Springs Creek tunnel, and he and Liz Robbins, the society’s executive director, present a timeline of the 1884 historic tunnel. Clyde Covington uses photographs from the society’s collections to take the reader on a tour of the 1924 Arlington Hotel during its first two decades.

“I hope people enjoy reading about Garland County history in our journal and that they also enjoy seeing our history in the many photographs that make our past come to life,” Robbins, The Record’s editor, said in the release.

“I’m very grateful to the authors and to the society volunteers who helped produce this 58th edition of The Record. Our members will receive the journal as a benefit of membership, and nonmembers can purchase the journal. Its sales help fund our work, as do sales of books like ‘Then and Now: Hot Springs, Arkansas’ and packages of note cards that feature drawings of old Hot Springs scenes.”

The journal sells for $25 or $30 if mailed, and is available for purchase between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. Monday through Friday at the Historical Society, 328 Quapaw Ave. The Record 2017 can also be ordered through the society’s website at http://www.garlandcountyhistoricalsociety.com or by mail at Garland County Historical Society, P.O. Box 21335, Hot Springs, AR 71903.

Call the historical society at 321-2159 for more information.