PARK ROAD 4 HALS TX-9 Connects U.S. Highway 281 to State Highway 29, running through HALS TX-9 Longhorn Cavern State Park and State Park Burnet Burnet County

WRITTEN HISTORICAL AND DESCRIPTIVE DATA

HISTORIC AMERICAN LANDSCAPES SURVEY National Park Service U.S. Department of the Interior 1849 C Street NW Washington, DC 20240-0001 HISTORIC AMERICAN LANDSCAPES SURVEY

PARK ROAD 4

HALS NO. TX-9

Location: Burnet Vicinity, Burnet County, Texas, connecting U.S. Highway 281 to State Highway 29, running through Longhorn Cavern State Park and .

Park Road 4 Historic District

Lat: 30.756947, Long: -98.373055 (intersection of Park Road 4 and S.H. 29, Google Earth, Simple Cylindrical Projection, WGS84)

UTM References: 1 to 7 are the northwestern segment of Park Road 4 from S.H. 29 through Inks Lake State Park and along Hoover’s Valley Road, to the northern boundary of Longhorn Cavern State Park. References 8 to 14 represent a polygon encompassing the boundaries of the park, and references 15 and 16 represent the endpoints of the segment of road between the headquarters of Longhorn State Park and the entrance of the parkway on U.S. 281.

Zone Easting Northing 1. 14 56006.28 3402832.12 2. 14 559629.15 3402276.15 3. 14 561949.97 3401915.38 4. 14 560352.51 3400516.03 5. 14 560471.48 3399724.22 6. 14 559192.08 3399774.33 7. 14 559289.01 3396604.93 8. 14 559769.32 3396201.27

Zone Easting Northing 9. 14 561583.61 3396225.23 10. 14 563330.17 3394433.60 11. 14 562831.94 3393525.76 12. 14 561317.34 3394366.03 13. 14 561512.62 3396062.38 14. 14 559291.56 3396028.98 15. 14 562841.99 3394708.47 16. 14 571336.11 3395642.90

Significance: Park Road 4 is a 15.5-mile, two-lane parkway that provides access to Longhorn Cavern State Park and the eastern shore of Inks Lake State Park (Figure 1). The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (Parks and Wildlife) has owned the right- of-way of Park Road 4 since the mid-1930s when the first several miles were constructed by the CCC to provide visitor access to the newly renovated Longhorn Cavern. The parkway was extended westward in the late 1930s PARK ROAD 4 HALS NO. TX-9 PAGE 2

connect with then-Hoover’s Valley Road, and finally completed by the Texas Highway Department concurrently with the construction of Inks Lake in the early 1940s. The Park Road 4 Historic District was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 2011 as significant at the state level as an excellent of Depression-era park and parkway design and construction, with elements skillfully executed in the rustic aesthetic; for its outstanding rustic architecture; and as a stellar example of Texas’ participation in the national movement to create scenic parkways for the traveling public.

Description: Park Road 4 is a 15.5-mile, two-lane, scenic parkway that extends west from U.S. Highway 281, at a point four miles south of Burnet, Texas, located northwest of the state capital city of Austin. The parkway travels through Longhorn Cavern State Park and along the eastern shore of Inks Lake State Park before it terminates at State Highway 29 to the west of Burnet (Figure 2). Lying entirely within Burnet County, Park Road 4 passes through a variety of dramatic landscapes from east to west, ranging from the gently rolling limestone karst region containing the spectacular Longhorn Cavern, over and down the dramatic slopes of Backbone Ridge, and through the other-worldly pink gneiss formations above Inks Lake.

Parks and Wildlife has owned Park Road 4 since the mid-1930s, when the first several miles were constructed by members of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) to provide visitor access to the newly renovated Longhorn Cavern State Park. The parkway was extended west of the park head-quarters in the early 1940s and finally completed concurrently with the construction of Inks Lake State Park in 1941. Today, Park Road 4 serves as the major access road for Longhorn Cavern State Park and for the eastern reaches of Inks Lake State Park.

The parkway right-of-way varies in width from 100 to 500’ and contains the whole of Longhorn Cavern State Park. Park Road 4 maintains its original horizontal and vertical roadway alignments; dramatic sandstone eastern entrance portals; and sandstone, limestone, granite, and gneiss masonry bridges, retaining walls, and guardwalls, most of which were constructed between 1934 and 1942 by the CCC and the State Highway Department (now Texas Department of Transportation or TxDOT) under the direction of the National Park Service (NPS). Of particular note are the 62 stone and concrete culverts, also constructed by the CCC and the SHD, that pass under the park road. In addition, historic buildings, structures, objects built by the CCC, and sites associated with the CCC, lie within the developed area of Longhorn Cavern State Park. The district also contains historic landscape features such as vistas into the surrounding landscape, designed by NPS staff; established scenic overlooks; native trees preserved by the CCC; and other vegetation planted by CCC crews.

Most of the historic landscape features of Park Road 4 are in good condition, with only one instance of the complete removal and replacement of a 1934 CCC bridge (not in-kind), along with minor masonry damage to others. Some viewsheds have become blocked by vegetation, but this is easily reversible. One PARK ROAD 4 HALS NO. TX-9 PAGE 3

overlook has been abandoned, but is still evident in the landscape and only slightly eroded and overgrown.

The greatest threats to the historical integrity of Park Road 4’s character-defining features are a direct result of regional changes in land uses from agricultural to residential and recreational during the last thirty or so years. These land use changes have altered the historic use of the road, increased traffic, had a negative impact on some scenic viewsheds, and inspired new connections to other roads or additional driveway cuts to access commercial, recreational, and residential properties. The current and future impact of these threats has been recently been addressed through the listing of Park Road 4 on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP), as discussed below.

History: Park Road 4, Longhorn Cavern State Park, and Inks Lake State Park were designed and constructed by the CCC from 1934-1940, and completed by the State Highway Department in 1941. The CCC was one of many of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s Emergency Conservation Work (ECW) programs and was developed to employ large numbers of men in the nation’s forests and parks. Cooperating with state and local agencies throughout the country, the federal government embarked on this unprecedented environmental improve- ment program to reclaim forests, prevent soil erosion, build reservoirs, and create parks for public recreation.

The NPS managed the CCC work in Texas, which was led by NPS architect, Herbert Maeir. Between 1924 and 1929, Maeir, who had been trained at the University of California, Berkeley, designed museums at Bear Mountain, Yosemite, Grand Canyon, and Yellowstone national parks. Contemporaneous and modern critics have considered his work the culmination of the NPS’ rustic style, designed to complement the landscape through the use of native materials and handcrafted construction. As the ECW director of District III, which included Texas, from 1933 to 1937, and then director of the NPS Southwest Region after 1937, Maier promulgated his ideas regarding park design by training inspectors, landscape architect, and architects employed in Denver or at the Central Design Office in Austin.

Maier believed that park developments should harmonize with, rather than dominate, the natural landscape. Parks and parkways were designed to rest lightly on the land, working with existing natural topography and vegetative patterns, and highlighting scenic vistas. The architects, landscape architects, and engineers who designed the park buildings, structures, trails, and parkways under Maeir’s tutelage utilized local materials and hand-crafted details to reflect the unique geology, history, and culture of the surrounding landscapes. Support structures, such as bridges, culverts, dams, fences, and retaining walls, were typically constructed with hand-hewn and locally-quarried stone or other native materials in keeping with the rustic aesthetic. This visual quality was enhanced PARK ROAD 4 HALS NO. TX-9 PAGE 4

by the preservation or planting of native trees and shrubs in areas of intense use, such as park headquarters, parkway entrances, and scenic overlooks.

In 1934, Maeir developed a photographic portfolio of park structures, called “The Library of Original Sources,” which showcased his own work, as well as state parks developed under his supervision. The portfolio was used as a style guide for park and parkway designers and for construction managers in the field. A similar, but nationwide catalog of park facilities was compiled for the NPS by architect, Albert H. Good, during the following year. Maier served on the selection committee for Good’s expanded, three-volume Park and Recreation Structures, published in 1938.1 Many of the features of Park Road 4 and Longhorn Caverns State Park were used to illustrate Good’s book.

The concept of scenic parkways was relatively new when Park Road 4 was initiated; in fact, only nine states had adopted laws enabling parkways by 1937. In the 1937 Department of the Interior yearbook entitled Parks and Recreation Progress, Conrad L. Wirth, assistant director of the National Park Service, lauded the federal government’s assistance in widespread park development since President Roosevelt took office in 1933. Wirth acknowledged great strides in national and state park development, but noted that “access and travel constitute a phase of the program which has received little attention in the past,” particularly in the case of state parks.2 Wirth pointed to existing parkways as “important arteries of travel for pleasure vehicles” and envisioned a national network of scenic parkways connecting important recreational centers by “an avenue of escape free of commercial vehicles and cluttered roadsides.”3

It was in this atmosphere that Park Road 4 was planned and executed as a connection between—and an extension of—Longhorn Cavern and Inks Lake state parks, to be experienced by automobile. Rather than blast hills and level valleys to build a straight, unvaried road, its designers laid out the parkway to follow the natural contours of the Hill Country wherever possible. Today, the parkway remains unchanged from its original alignment. Limited to two lanes, it passes under occasional tree-shaded canopies, but for the most part, remains open to scenic and often dramatic views into adjacent and distant landscapes. Park Road 4 was developed as four discrete segments between 1934 and 1941 (Figures 3, 4, and 5). The first section was constructed by the CCC between 1934 and 1937 in conjunction with their work at Longhorn Cavern State Park, one of Texas’ first CCC parks. Originally known as Sherrard’s Cavern, the Longhorn Cavern cave system is the focal point of the parkway and its main attraction. One report regarding work in the park described the general terrain surrounding the cave entrance as an upland plateau that was “admirably suited to

1 Albert H. Good, Park and Recreation Structures (1938; reprint, New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 1999). 2 U.S. NPS 1937 Yearbook, v. 3 U.S. NPS 1937 Yearbook, 29. PARK ROAD 4 HALS NO. TX-9 PAGE 5

development as a State Park,” applauding the location of the park on such a pronounced uplift because it afforded visitors long scenic vistas across Inks Lake and beyond, rendering the site a “spot of beauty.”4

When Longhorn Cavern State Park was acquired by Texas in 1932, the cavern system was surpassed only by Carlsbad Cavern and Mammoth Cave in size. CCC work began in 1934, and for four years, workers labored to clear rooms and trails in the cave, build levees for flood control, and install a cavern lighting system. In addition to interior improvements, the CCC built a decorative stone entrance at the cavern’s opening and the rustic Administration Building, now known as the CCC Museum, of hand-hewn local wood and limestone, with locally-crafted wrought iron lanterns, hinges, and other details.

Traveling a winding course over hilly terrain, the scenic drive to Longhorn Cavern was envisioned as an extension of the park itself. Unfortunately, the NPS was not able to acquire a broad a right-of-way for this portion of the scenic drive. Although the goal the NPS set for all parkways was a minimum of 200’, preferably with controlled access, the NPS could only come to agreement with adjacent property owners for the acquisition of a 100’ right-of-way to the park boundary. The lack of controlled access and the narrowness of the right-of-way for this section would contribute to the erosion of historic integrity in the late twentieth century.

The parkway is introduced on its east end by dramatic sandstone portals framing its intersection with U.S. Route 281. Designed by landscape architect, Merrill E. DeLonge, and constructed by CCC workers, these naturalistic features consist of a weathered sandstone pylon on the south side of the entrance, bearing a sign for Longhorn Cavern State Park, and a roughly shaped sandstone arch depicting the shape of the cavern entrance on the north side (Figures 6 and 7).5 Curved sandstone walls extend to the north and south. In a progress report to the NPS, CCC Company Superintendent M. J. Nash reflected that the lichen-covered rocks used for the portals lent a patina of age to the structures and that the native plantings installed there by the CCC added to the attractiveness of the entry.6

To accommodate stormwater drainage along the parkway, NPS architects, landscape architects, and engineers designed a series of arched culverts and bridges constructed of stone quarried along the path of the road. These materials change along the length of the parkway, reflecting the changes in local geology, moving from sandstone to limestone and then to pink schist and granite. Though utilitarian in function, many of these features exhibit elegant design and fine craftsmanship. Although visible from the road only as stepped stone guardrails,

4 Texas State Archives, TSPB Records Box 2005/041-15, Longhorn Cavern Acquisition and Development, Memorandum Regarding Work on Longhorn Cavern State Park. 5 “Details: Park Entrance Portals at State Highway 66,” n.d., PR 4_Scan0177.tif, TPWD, Map Collection. 6 NARA, CCC Records, TPWD Archeology Laboratory, Longhorn Progress Reports, M.J. Nash letter, n.d. PARK ROAD 4 HALS NO. TX-9 PAGE 6

some of these bridge and culverts have substantial headwalls that frame round or segmental arched openings (Figure 8). Other CCC-constructed features associated with the parkway include the CCC Museum, as well as several other native stone and timber buildings, native stone walls, and furnishings, all within the state park headquarters area and other locations along the parkway, designed and constructed in the rustic style (Figure 9).

Sandstone for the entry portal and many of the bridges and culverts, and limestone for the park buildings, was quarried from nearby Ebling Ranch. Individual stones were cut to size with a pick and shovel, manually loaded onto trucks, and laid by hand or maneuvered into place with crowbars. In his reports, Superintendent Nash complimented the workers on their enthusiasm and skills in building these structures:

The quality of workmanship of the enrollees building the stone walls, Project No. 154, on the entrance road culverts shows indications of keen interest in project progress and the character of their masonry construction. Through the use of excellent weathered sandstone which has been donated by an interested and sympathetic rancher near the park, some very pleasing walls are being built in which great care is given so that the weathered surfaces are retained on all exposed faces.7

Also designed by Merrill DeLonge, the bridges and culverts were built between 1934 and 1937.8

This section of the road, along with the buildings and structures within the state park, are the most celebrated of the parkway. Many were featured in Good’s Park and Recreation Structures, along with the entrance portals and examples of the bridges and culverts along the parkway, as examples of the rustic style (Figures 10 and 11). Good showcased the stepped parapets used for the bridge and culvert headwalls for their picturesque informality. In a section on culverts, examples in which “the blending of the head wall to the site is generally very skillfully executed” include a culvert from Park Road 4 (labeled as Longhorn Cavern State Park) (Figure 12).9 In another photograph, a bridge on Park Road 4 appears to dissolve into its surroundings, as its carefully laid ashlar masonry gives way to rough limestone boulders lining the creek banks (Figure 13).10

The work for the entrance section of the parkway also included surveying,

7 “Narrative Report for Longhorn Cavern State Park, SP-35,” Jan. 1936, NA, Group 79, Box 40, Folder 207: Reports. 8 “Vehicle Bridge: Culvert near Station 153+00,” 13 Dec. 1934, PR 4_Scan0127.tif; “Vehicle Bridge: Culvert at Station 190+50,” 10 Sept. 1935, PR 4_Scan0126.tif; and “Vehicle Bridge: Culvert near Station 133+00, “10 Sept. 1935, PR 4_Scan0134.tif, TPWD, Map Collection. 9 Good, 173. 10 Good, 193. PARK ROAD 4 HALS NO. TX-9 PAGE 7

grading, and graveling the road, and excavating swales and ditches. This work to direct stormwater was done in a manner recommended by NPS Inspector W.F. Ayres in his 1938 progress report, who asked that steep grades of the parkway be left “irregular so that the water would flow from pool to pool. This would eliminate the need for check dams, and the soil is so rocky that it lends itself to this type of development.”11 Trenches to divert water from the roadway were hand dug by the CCC enrollees, and the debris hauled away in wheelbarrows.12 The designers of Park Road 4 sought to preserve and celebrate the surrounding landscape of the Hill Country. From the beginning, the NPS took care to identify and preserve trees and natural vegetation along the road. Notable live oak, elm, and cedar trees were marked at their bases with nails and their locations noted on vertical alignment drawings for the roadway (Figure 14).13 M.J. Nash attested to the parkway’s early popularity with neighboring communities because of its scenic beauty: “Many local people make this drive in the evenings to enjoy the scenery visible from this road. Many favorable comments have been received on this work.”14

The second segment of Park Road 4, built by the CCC from 1938 to 1940, connected Longhorn Cavern State Park with the existing, rural Hoover’s Valley Road (Figures 15 and 16). This segment of the parkway runs through the state park, which was established on a knoll, and provided sweeping views to the southwest into the park and the landscape beyond. The NPS was able to negotiate a 500’ right-of-way for this section of the parkway, and the combination of parkland and a generous right-of-way allowed the designers to align the road to better follow the topography of the hilly landscape and to add two scenic overlooks that provided spectacular views to the west (Figure 17). Guard walls and culverts along this section were constructed of large slabs of locally-quarried white and grey limestone.

The stretch of Hoover’s Valley Road was acquired by the NPS in anticipation of the impoundment of Inks Lake and development of the state park. Hoover’s Valley was a small community that arose around the Hoover homestead, established in 1854. All that marks the community today are a few scattered houses and a cemetery. The NPS was only able to acquire a 100’ right-of-way for the construction of the third segment of the parkway, which consisted primarily of local roadway improvements (Figure 18). It is notable, however, that in improving this section of road, the CCC identified and preserved several large live oak trees that contribute to the scenic character of the road (see Figure 14).

11 NARA, TPWD Archeology Laboratory, Inspection Report September 9 1938, W.F. Ayres. 12 Hubert Bolton et al., Longhorn Cavern Reunion, 19 May 1990; and Anderson Van Dyke, interview by Janelle Taylor and Mark Thurman, 20 Sept. 2002, TPWD, CCC Oral History Transcripts. 13 PR 4_Scan0056.tif, PR 4_Scan0057.tif, PR 4_Scan0058.tif, PR 4_Scan0059.tif, PR 4_Scan0104.tif, PR 4_Scan0105.tif, PR 4_Scan0106.tif, PR 4_Scan0107.tif, PR 4_Scan0108.tif, TPWD, Map Collection. 14 “Longhorn Cavern State Park #35-T,” n.d., NA, Record Group 79, Box 40, Folder 207: Reports. PARK ROAD 4 HALS NO. TX-9 PAGE 8

The fourth segment of the parkway was constructed after the completion of Inks Lake State Park in 1940 (Figure 19). Federal assistance in developing Texas parks coincided with plans to harness the waters of the for water storage, flood control, hydroelectric power, and recreation. Beginning in 1934, six lakes were impounded through the Hill Country, including Inks Lake, and parks were created around these lakes along the lower Colorado, including Inks Lake State Park. This final section of the parkway, which curves around the eastern shore of Inks Lake, was constructed by the State Highway Department because CCC Company 854 had been disbanded in 1940. The parkway was completed in 1941.

Maintenance of the hilly, unpaved road proved to be a burden to the State Parks Board from the outset. The original caliche (ungraded limestone gravel) topping on the first six miles of the parkway required supplemental applications after only a year. Eventually, routine maintenance of the road overtaxed the State Parks Board’s limited budget, and the agency approached the State Highway Department for assistance. The State Highway Department, now TxDOT, assumed maintenance duties in 1937 and has carried them out since that time.15 In 2005, TxDOT approached Parks and Wildlife with a proposal to widen Park Road 4 as a safety measure. TxDOT was responding to an increase in accidents—including a few driver fatalities—that had occurred on the road, as well as local pressure to make the road more commuter friendly, including raising the speed limit. The increase in accidents corresponded with a population boom in Burnet County. Between 1980 and 2000, the population of this primarily rural county more than doubled, and by 2010, the population had risen by another 25% to 42,750.16 Population growth led to increased residential development along the more narrow rights-of-way of Park Road 4 and development close to Inks Lake State Park, a popular recreational area.

The safety program TxDOT proposed included to widening the road, adding a middle turn lane in some locations, and straightening curves to allow for higher speeds (Figure 20). This proposal inspired Parks and Wildlife to pursue listing Park Road 4, Longhorn Cavern State Park, and Inks Lake State Park as a historic district in the National Register to provide a level of protection from the widening project. The Park Road 4 National Historic District was listed in 2011. Because the historic road is now nationally-recognized, TxDOT agreed to collaborate with Parks and Wildlife on safety solutions that would not adversely impact the historic character of the parkway. Based on this study, TxDOT, working with Parks and Wildlife, agreed to modify their plans. Instead of widening the entire parkway, only on short section, which sees the highest amount of non-park-related traffic, would be widened to allow for increased

15 James Wright Steely, Parks for Texas: Enduring Landscapes of the New Deal (Austin, Texas: University of Texas Press, 1999), 124-125. 16 U.S. Census; accessed July 18, 2014. PARK ROAD 4 HALS NO. TX-9 PAGE 9

traffic. As part of the compromise, Parks and Wildlife convinced TxDOT to save an important large-caliper live oak that had been identified and preserved by the CCC along this section of the road.

For the rest of the parkway, TxDOT proposed slightly wider shoulders in curves, to allow for safer passage of large recreational vehicles, or towed vehicles and boats. In addition, Parks and Wildlife asked TxDOT to consider utilizing traffic warnings for curves, such as signs, rumble strips, or lights indicating speed.

Sources: Banks, Tommy. Interview by Terri Myers, , Texas, 21 August 1993. Breeding, Seth D. “Inks Lake.” The Handbook of Texas Online, http://www.tsha.utexas.edu/handbook/online/articles/II/rui1.html; accessed August 2007. Brown, David O. and Dana Anthony. Archeological Investigations for TxDOT Improvements at Inks Lake State Park, Burnet County, Texas. Texas Antiquities Permit #2478. Anthony & Brown Consulting, Feb. 2002. On file at TPWD, Archeology Laboratory, Austin, Texas. Burnet County. Deed Records. CCC Reunion Group. Interview by Terri Myers, Fort Parker State Park, Texas, 22 Aug. 1993. Center for American History, University of Texas at Austin. Vertical File, Civilian Conservation Corps. _____. Vertical File, Highland Lakes. _____. Vertical File, Inks Lake State Park. _____. Vertical File, Longhorn Cavern State Park. Center for Nature and Heritage Tourism, Department of Geography, Southwest Texas State University. Feasibility Analysis of the National Scenic Byways Program and Other Travel Route Alternatives for Texas and a Summary of Outdoor Advertising and Roadside Vegetation Regulations in Texas (San Marcos, Texas, November 2002); ftp://ftp.dot.state.tx.us/pub/txdot-info/ tpp/scenicbyways.pdf; accessed August 2007. Clay, Comer and Diana J. Kleiner, “Colorado River,” The Handbook of Texas Online, http://www.tsha.utexas.edu/handbook/online/articles/ CC/rnc10_print.html; accessed July 2007. Cohen, Stan. The Tree Army: A Pictorial History of the Civilian Conservation Corps, 1933-1942. Missoula, Montana: Pictorial Histories Publishing Company, 1980. _____. “New Deal Roadside Landscape Features.” Historic Landscape Initiative of the National Park Service; http://www.nps.gov/history/hps/hli/ currents/newdeal/introduction.htm; accessed August 2007). Davis, Timothy. America's National Park Roads and Parkways: Drawings From the Historic American Engineering Record. Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2004. PARK ROAD 4 HALS NO. TX-9 PAGE 10

Debo, Darrell. Burnet County History. Vol. 1. Burnet, Texas: Eakin Press, 1979. Drake, Douglas, Dan K. Utley, and Carole A. Medlar. Archeological Survey of a 320-Acre Tract in Inks Lake State Park, Burnet County, Texas. Texas Antiquities Permit #1644. TPWD, Cultural Resource Program, 1996. On file at TPWD, Archeology Laboratory, Austin, Texas. Good, Albert H. Park and Recreation Structures. 3 vols. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service, 1938. Reprint (3 vols. in 1). New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 1999. Hendrickson, Kenneth E., Jr. “Civilian Conservation Corps.” The Handbook of Texas Online; http://www.tsha.utexas.edu/handbook/online/ articles/CC/ncc1.html; accessed August 2007. _____. “National Youth Administration.” The Handbook of Texas Online; http://www.tsha.utexas.edu/handbook/online/articles/NN/ncn4.html; accessed August 2007. _____. “Replenishing the Soil and the Soul of Texas: The Civilian Conservation Corps in the Lone Star State …during the Great Depression.” The Historian, Vol. 65, 2003. Jordan, Terry G. “Hill Country.” The Handbook of Texas Online; http://www.tsha.utexas.edu/ handbook/online/articles/HH/ryh2.html; accessed August 2007. Lankford, Earnest. Interview by Terri Myers, Fort Parker State Park, Texas, 21 Aug. 1993. Lankford, Willie. Interview by Terri Myers, Fort Parker State Park, Texas, 21 Aug. 1993. Lankford, Willie and Tommy Banks. Interview by Terri Myers, Fort Parker State Park, Texas, 22 Aug. 1993. Longhorn Cavern Administration Building; http://www.9key.com/markers/ marker_detail.asp?atlas_number=5053009725; accessed August 2007. Marriott, Paul Daniel. Saving Historic Roads: Design & Policy Guidelines. New York: Preservation Press, published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1998. Matthews, William H. III. The Geologic Story of Longhorn Cavern. Bureau of Economic Geology Guidebook 4. University of Texas at Austin, Feb. 1963. On file at TPWD, Archeology Laboratory, Austin, Texas. Maxwell, Ross A. Geologic and Historic Guide to the Texas State Parks. Bureau of Economic Geology, University of Texas at Austin, 1970. On file at TPWD, Archeology Laboratory, Austin, Texas. McCann, William. “Lower Colorado River Authority.” The Handbook of Texas Online; http://www.tsha.utexas.edu/handbook/online/articles/LL/ mwl3.html; accessed August 2007. McClelland, Linda Flint. Building the National Parks: Historic Landscape Design and Construction. Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1998. _____. Presenting Nature: The Historic Landscape Design of the National Park Service, 1916 to 1942. Washington, DC: U.S. Dept. of the Interior, National Park Service, Cultural Resources, Interagency Resources Division, National PARK ROAD 4 HALS NO. TX-9 PAGE 11

Register of Historic Places, 1993. McGookey, Donald P., Geologic Wonders of West Texas (Midland, TX: Donald P. McGookey, 2004). Patterson, Patience Elizabeth. Inks Lake State Park, Burnet County, Texas: An Archeological Survey of Areas Proposed for Modification. Texas Archeological Survey, Technical Bulletin 6. University of Texas at Austin, June 1975. On file at TPWD, Archeology Laboratory, Austin, Texas. Purinton, Bradbury. Developing Design Elements for Scenic Byways in Virginia: Final Report. Charlottesville, VA: Virginia Transportation Research Council, 1994. Ralph, Ronald W. “Longhorn Cavern State Park.” An Inventory of Cultural Resources within the Texas Park System: November 1976 through October 1981. Texas Antiquities Permit # 128. TPWD, Aug. 1996. On file at TPWD, Archeology Laboratory, Austin, Texas. Randle, Mallory B. “Works Projects Administration.” The Handbook of Texas Online; http://www.tsha.utexas.edu/handbook/online/articles/WW/ ncw1.html; accessed August 2007. Rhoades, Alice J. “Quinn, Frank David.” The Handbook of Texas Online; http://www.tsha.utexas.edu/handbook/online/articles/QQ/fqu13.html; accessed August 2007. Rhodes, Ezekial. Interview by Terri Myers, Mexia, Texas, 19 Aug. 1993. Rhodes, Ezekial, et al. Interview by Terri Myers, Fort Parker State Park, Texas, 21 Aug. 1993. Smyrl, Vivian Elizabeth. “Burnet County.” The Handbook of Texas Online; http://www.tsha.utexas.edu/handbook/online/articles/BB/hcb19.html; accessed August 2007. _____. “Inks Lake.” The Handbook of Texas Online; http://www.tsha.utexas.edu/ handbook/online/articles/II/ruil.html; accessed August 2007. _____. “Inks Lake State Park.” The Handbook of Texas Online; http://www.tsha.utexas.edu/handbook/online/articles/II/gki1.html; accessed August 2007. _____. “Longhorn Cavern.” The Handbook of Texas Online; http://www.tsha.utexas.edu/ handbook/online/articles/LL/rql1.html; accessed August 2007. _____. “Longhorn Cavern State Park.” The Handbook of Texas Online; http://www.tsha.utexas.edu/handbook/online/articles/LL/gkl7.html; accessed August 2007. _____. “State Parks Board.” The Handbook of Texas Online; http://www.tsha.utexas.edu/ handbook/online/articles/SS/mdsfm.html; accessed August 2007. _____. “Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.” The Handbook of Texas Online; http://www.tsha.utexas.edu/handbook/online/articles/TT/mctqb.html; accessed August 2007. Steely, James Wright. The Civilian Conservation Corps in Texas State Parks. PARK ROAD 4 HALS NO. TX-9 PAGE 12

Austin, Texas: Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, 1986. _____. Parks for Texas: Enduring Landscapes of the New Deal. Austin, Texas: University of Texas Press, 1999. Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT), Austin, Texas. R.O.W. Structures Survey, Park Road 4. _____. Texas Highway Department Records. State Control No. 533, Section 1: Park Road 4, Burnet County. Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD), Austin, Texas. CCC Oral History Transcripts. _____. Land Acquisition Files, Inks Lake State Park. _____. Land Acquisition Files, Longhorn Cavern State Park. _____. Map Collection (Digital Files). _____. State Parks Deed Files, Inks Lake State Park. _____. State Parks Deed Files, Longhorn Cavern State Park. Texas State Archives (TSA), Austin, Texas. Texas State Parks Board (TSPB) Records. U.S. National Archives (NA), Denver, Colorado. NA, Record Inks Lake State Park. Record Group 79, Boxes 128-129. _____. NA, Record Longhorn Cavern State Park. Record Group 79, Boxes 39- 43. U.S. National Park Service (NPS). Conrad L. Wirth, principal author. 1937 Yearbook: Park and Recreation Progress. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1938. _____. The Highland Lakes of Texas: A Study Prepared Under the Authority of the Park, Parkway, and Recreational Study Act of June 1936 [49 Stat. 1894] Made at the Request and with the Cooperation of the Lower Colorado River Authority and the Texas State Parks Board. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1941. Weisenberger, Carol Whiteside. The National Youth Administration in Texas, 1935-1943:

Historians: Laura L. Knott, Principal Landscape Architect John Milner Associates, Inc. 300 West Main Street, Suite 201 Charlottesville VA 22902

Michael A. Strutt, Director, State Park Division, Cultural Resources Program Texas Parks and Wildlife Department 4200 Smith School Road Austin TX 78744

Historical research completed 2007-2008 by:

PARK ROAD 4 HALS NO. TX-9 PAGE 13

Terri Myers and A. Elizabeth Butman Preservation Central 823 Harris Avenue Austin TX 78705

Date completed: July 31, 2014

Entry 2014 HALS Challenge: Documenting Landscapes of the New Deal

Figure 1. Map of Park Road 4 Historic District. JMA.

PARK ROAD 4 HALS NO. TX-9 PAGE 14

Figure 2. Park Road 4 key map. JMA.

Figure 3. Park Road 4 Section 1: Entrance Portals. JMA. PARK ROAD 4 HALS NO. TX-9 PAGE 15

Figure 4. Park Road 4 Section 2: Backbone Creek. JMA.

Figure 5. Park Road 4 Section 3: Backbone Ridge. JMA. PARK ROAD 4 HALS NO. TX-9 PAGE 16

Figure 6. Park Road 4 eastern entrance portal, constructed by the CCC of hand- hewn sandstone from Ebling Ranch. JMA, 2007.

Figure 7. Entrance portal, south side, constructed by the CCC of hand-hewn sandstone from Ebling Ranch. JMA, 2007. PARK ROAD 4 HALS NO. TX-9 PAGE 17

Figure 8. Sandstone bridge built by CCC workmen from local sandstone in 1934. JMA, 2007.

Figure 9. Longhorn Cavern State Park Administration Building, constructed by the CCC of local limestone and now used as the CCC Museum. JMA, 2007. PARK ROAD 4 HALS NO. TX-9 PAGE 18

Figure 10. North entrance pylon as shown in Good's Park and Recreation Structures.

Figure 11. South entrance pylon, as shown in Good's Park and Recreation Structures. PARK ROAD 4 HALS NO. TX-9 PAGE 19

Figure 12. Sandstone culvert featured in Good's Park and Recreation Structures.

Figure 13. Sandstone bridge featured in Good's Park and Recreation Structures. Builders carefully blended the structure into the natural landscape using local stone. PARK ROAD 4 HALS NO. TX-9 PAGE 20

Figure 14. Live oaks marked and preserved by the CCC along Park Road 4. JMA, 2007.

Figure 15. Park Road 4 Section 4: Longhorn Cavern State Park. JMA. PARK ROAD 4 HALS NO. TX-9 PAGE 21

Figure 16. Park Road 4 Section 5: Hill Country Overlook. JMA.

Figure 17. Sweeping views of the Hill Country to the west of Longhorn Cavern State Park. JMA, 2007. PARK ROAD 4 HALS NO. TX-9 PAGE 22

Figure 18. Park Road 4 Section Six: Hoover's Valley Connector. JMA.

Figure 19. Park Road 4 Section Seven: Inks Lake State Park. JMA. PARK ROAD 4 HALS NO. TX-9 PAGE 23

Figure 20. View from Park Road 4, looking over a pink gneiss formation towards Inks Lake and the Hill Country beyond. JMA, 2007.

Figure 21. Park Road 4 as it climbs Backbone Ridge. The road retains its original horizontal and vertical alignment. These trees were identified and preserved by the CCC. JMA, 2007.