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Parker - Hickman House
Said to be the oldest house along the Buffalo River, the Parker-Hickman
log house was built between 1847 & 1849 by brothers Alvin & Greenberry
Parker. In 1857, Alvin moved on to California. The house has been added
onto by later owners and "modernized" at various times with such things
as linoleum floor covering and paneling. The house was occupied by the
Hickman family from 1912 - 1978. The last owner was Gradon Hickman.
The 195 acre-property was purchased in 1982 by the National Park
Service. In 1987, it was listed on the National Register of Historic
place. |
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Building an Ozark Home
Rain-swollen rivers produce silt-laden floodplains. These fertile
valleys attracted the first pioneers who cleared the bottomland to grow
corn, wheat, and others crops.
In the late 1830's, Alvin Parker and his brother Greenberry arrived from
Tennessee and built a home here using the nearby red cedar trees.
Joining the hand-hewn logs with half dovetail notches, the Parkers
crafted one of the finest log houses in the Ozarks.
Over the years, later owners built additions to the original log house.
The last owners - the J.D. Hickman family occupied this farm from 1912
to 1978 and constructed most of the outbuildings visible today. |
