William Looney Tavern
POCAHONTAS, AR. April 2 — BRTC鈥檚 Project REACH site located at Dalton has set April 6 as its reopening date. The REACH site will be open on Tuesdays from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. and every second Saturday of the month from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. through the month of October.
Project REACH鈥擱esearching Early Arkansas Cultural Heritage鈥攊s a historic preservation project conducted by Black River Technical College.听 Through multi-year grant funding from the Arkansas Natural and Cultural Resources Council (ANCRC), the restoration of two early log structures from Arkansas鈥� Territorial era have been restored and are available for tour.
The two donated structures听were brought to the attention of听BRTC as a result of the Early听Arkansas Settlement Study.听听This study was funded in part听by a grant awarded to the Historic Preservation Alliance of Arkansas with funding provided by the Arkansas Humanities Council and the Department of Arkansas Heritage. In the course of this 2003-2004 study, the Rice-Upshaw House (built 1828) and the Looney-French听House (built 1833) were both identified by dendrochronology听to have been constructed during the Arkansas territorial period.
Each听structure was identified as a unique Arkansas example of early log building traditions.听 Both houses, listed on the National Register of Historic Places,听were donated, along听with significant items听of material culture, to BRTC by descendants听of the families who built听them.
The REACH site is located at 4800 Hwy 93 Pocahontas, AR. For more information, contact the Office of Institutional Advancement at (870) 248-4026.