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While visiting the Parker Homestead
you will find many interesting sites.
Come with me for a little tour of the place.
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CLARK'S CABIN
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The first building you see as you begin your tour is CLARK’S CABIN.
Built during the depression era, this building is furnished as it might
have been 100 years ago, complete with a rope bed and feather mattress.
Originally a two room house, there were only enough logs left to construct
a one-room dwelling.
The KITCHEN on the back is connected to Clark’s Cabin by a dogtrot,
or breezeway, and was originally a one room house built by Jesse Brunson
in 1923 for a family of five to live in. The Home Comfort wood
cook stove in the kitchen was 1 of 6 brought into Harrisburg by train
and purchased by the Fair family of Whitehall.
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THE LOOM HOUSE
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Once located at the foot of Crowley's Ridge in the Whitehall
era, the LOOM HOUSE was used originally as a corncrib and is believed
to have been built sometime in the 1880's. The notches on this building
are of a type known as chamfer and notch and are probably of German origin.
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THE BROOM SHOP
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The logs used to construct the BROOM SHOP were saved from the home of
Phil Parker's 2nd Great-Grandfather, Moses Pitts. Pitts, who was the last
surviving Confederate soldier in Cross County, built his house when he
returned home from the Civil War in the 1860's.
Although the house was torn down in the 1930's, one wall of logs were
salvaged and stored in a barn until the Parkers used them to construct
the open faced Broom House. Here you'll see brooms made by the Parkers
on an antique broom-making machine patented in 1878.
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GENERAL STORE
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The HOMESTEAD GENERAL STORE was a three room round log dwelling donated
by the Jernigan family and reconstructed as it originally was, except for
the vaulted ceiling. The middle room was the original dogtrot. The store
contains many items for sale, including lye soap made at the Homestead.
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THE BARN
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| The large BARN is constructed of round logs from the American Legion Hut
in Trumann, AR. It is packed full of old hit n' miss engines, equipment,
and tools - looking as though a farmer simply walked away one day and left
everything as it was. |
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THE BLACKSMITH
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THE WAY STATION
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These two were also constructed with the logs gathered
from the old American Legion Hut.
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THE SORGHUM MILL
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| SORGHUM was once the "principal sweetnin"
of the pioneers. When sorghum cooking time arrived, the farmers would take
their cane to the mill owner and have it cooked down. A mule or horse would
walk in circles to power the mill squeezing the juice out of the cane being
handfed into the mill. The mill owner retained a percentage of the syrup
for payment. Homestead syrup is cooked in a 10 foot copper pan over a wood
fire, just as the pioneers would have done. |
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THE GRIST MILL
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The GRISTMILL, originally from Whitehall,
came from the old Foust Store. Again, farmers would bring their corn into
"town" to be ground into meal, paying the mill owner a toll, or
percentage, of their meal. |
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THE E. SLOAN HERITAGE SCHOOL
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| The E. SLOAN HERITAGE SCHOOL, now a one-room
schoolhouse, was also a two-room house. The logs for the building were donated
by Betty Sloan. Notice the log benches on the front porch. They are made
out of the only logs salvaged from a large structure atop Crowley's Ridge.
The school is full of old school artifacts - enough in fact to have lessons
for a day! |
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ROBERTS' CHAPEL
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| Across the footbridge, you'll find ROBERTS' CHAPEL, so named
for the 2 men who donated the logs (Butch Roberts) and the stained glass
windows (John Roberts). Rest here for a bit, looking out at the scenic natural
view. Before you leave, look at the date carved into a log at the right
of the large window - 1858, Nov. This building is believed to be the oldest
on the Homestead. |
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Originally a two room house, this building has an interesting story. A
woman was living there by herself while her menfolk were away in the Civil
War. Yankees came through and took her only means of transportation, a little
mare. Although she vigorously protested such action, it did no good. But
she won in the end - in the middle of the night, she heard a commotion and
went outside to find that her mare had escaped and come back home! |
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THE SMOKEHOUSE
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| The small SMOKEHOUSE comes from Pocahontas and was once a one-room house.
There were only enough logs to construct this size building. |
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THE POST OFFICE/PRINTSHOP
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The POST OFFICE / PRINT SHOP was originally a one-room house from the
Bono area. It houses the 1850's operational George Washington Press along
with the original Whitehall Post Offices, complete with mail from local
citizens, some of who still remember their box combination from over 30
years ago! |
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PARKER'S BRIDGE
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PARKER'S BRIDGE leads to the dirt road that was once the major route into
Whitehall. The road meanders along the creek and is a branch off Old Military
Road, which runs along Crowley's Ridge. |
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THE BACON HOTEL
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| Although it's not part of the Homestead, be sure to notice the BACON HOTEL,
the two story building next to the tracks on Homestead Rd. Built in 1912,
this building is listed on the National Historic Register. It is an old
railroad hotel located in the heart of Whitehall, next to where the Railroad
Depot once stood. Rooms went for the rate of $1.00 a day when it was operational.
The Bacon Hotel belongs to John and Ruth Roberts of Whitehall. |
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This has just been
a short tour.
There is much more to see and experience
at the Parker Homestead.
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