The 24 Guest Rooms in Historic Mather Lodge at Petit Jean State Park Have Reopened

Joan Ellison, public information officer
Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism

MORRILTON – The 24 guest rooms and the Arkansas Room in Mather Lodge at Petit Jean State Park have reopened after being out-of-service beginning March 1, 2010, while repair and renovation work was underway on the exterior logs of this 1930s-era, CCC/Rustic-style park lodge constructed by the Civilian Conservation Corps and the Works Progress Administration.

The work at Mather Lodge is part of a phased, park wide project at Petit Jean State Park that includes the repair and replacement of exterior logs, where necessary, on the lodge and other Civilian Conservation Corps-constructed facilities in the park. These structures include the park Boathouse, Pavilion A, Pavilion B and the Visitor Center. Like Mather Lodge, these rustic-style native stone and log buildings represent some of the most historically significant structures in the Arkansas state parks system. Among its most beloved park facilities, these historic treasures stand as a tribute to the craftsmanship and conservation achievements of the close-to-his-heart “Tree Army” of Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal created during the Great Depression.

The repairs and renovations meet the U. S. Secretary of the Interior’s standards for the rehabilitation of historic buildings. The contractor for this work is Kinco Constructors, LLC of Little Rock. The current contract totals $431,907. The design consultant firm is SCM Architects, P.A. of Little Rock.

The project is being funded by grant monies from the Arkansas Natural and Cultural Resources Council (ANCRC). Established by the Arkansas Legislature in 1987, the ANCRC manages and supervises a grants and trust fund for the acquisition, management, and stewardship of state-owned properties acquired or used for ANCRC approved purposes. Grants from this fund are for projects that protect and maintain state-owned natural areas, historic sites, and outdoor recreation.

Petit Jean State Park is one of the 52 state parks administered by the State Parks Division of the Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism. It is located in Conway County on Petit Jean Mountain approximately 21 miles southwest of Morrilton.