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William Woodruff House
Est. 1853
This house is in dire need of saving,
please scroll down and see if YOU can HELP!
Subject: Help us Save the
Woodruff House!
Everyone,
A special thanks to those of you who attended the special meeting at
Curran Hall on Tuesday, November 6, to discuss the acquisition and
preservation of the Woodruff House. I have heard from many more of you
who were unable to attend but have expressed your sincere interest and
concern for the future of this historic home.
I am pleased to inform you that our offer to purchase the Woodruff House
has been formally accepted by the seller. The purchase price is $250,000
with a 60 day period for the QQA to raise these funds. Closing date is
no later than January 5, 2008. The QQA must have the full purchase price
in hand by that date. So, in other words, the clock is now ticking.
There are three things we need you to do:
Make a financial commitment. I hope you will consider making a generous
donation on behalf of this historic property. Keep in mind that the
Quapaw Quarter Association is a non-profit 501c3 corporation and is a
duly registered charitable organization in the State of Arkansas
(documentation of our non-profit status will be made available upon
request). Your donations are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by
law.
Please make checks payable
to:
QQA (with notation "For the Woodruff House Fund)
P.O. Box 165023
Little Rock, AR 72216
You can also make an
online payment by credit card at:
Pay by Credit Card
Talk it up and encourage others to donate. Talk about the importance of
saving the Woodruff House to your friends, family, and business
acquaintances. Forward this message to others who you think may be
interested (if you do forward this, please cc a copy to qqa@quapaw.com ,
so that we may add their e-mail addresses to our list for future
mailings and updates.)
Volunteer your time. Immediate needs are creating an e-newsletter, a
brochure, and also updating our website or creating a new one for the
Woodruff House, and of course, FUNDRAISING. At some future date, there
will also be a need for volunteers to help us clean up the property and
cut weeds and brush, etc.
Many of you have expressed your willingness to participate financially
in saving the house. Now is the time. The Woodruff House is important
not only to Little Rock history but also to Arkansas history; it is much
too important to lose. The QQA Board of Directors took this bold step on
behalf of all the citizens of Arkansas. Together, we can do this!
Please feel free to contact me with any questions you may have about
this endeavor.
Sincerely,
Roger
Roger D. Williams
Executive Director
Quapaw Quarter Association
Office Location: 615 East Capitol Ave., Little Rock, AR 72201
Mailing Address: P. O. Box 165023, Little Rock, AR 72216
501.371.0075
501.374.8142 (fax)
rwilliams@quapaw.com
www.quapaw.com
About the Woodruff House
Located on a site near downtown Little Rock, which now overlooks the
William J. Clinton Presidential Center, the William E. Woodruff House
was built in 1852-3 and placed on the National Register of Historic
Places in 1989. In 2007, the Historic Preservation Alliance of Arkansas
place the Woodruff House on its Most Endangered List.
Woodruff was the founder of the Arkansas Gazette, the first newspaper in
Arkansas and, when it ceased publication in 1991, the oldest surviving
newspaper west of the Mississippi River. As the state’s primary
newspaper publisher, Woodruff was influential in the early politics of
Arkansas and the West. Historic events in our nation’s history, such as
the Texas Revolution, the Alamo, and the “Trail of Tears” were reported
by him to eager audiences back East. Many historic figures of the
period, eager to curry his favor and get favorable mention in his paper,
visited him at his home.
The two and one-half story house sits on three lots just two blocks east
of I-30, near the MacArthur Park Historic District and the rapidly
developing River Market District. Originally built in the Greek Revival
Style, the house has many Colonial Revival elements, dating from an
early 20th century remodeling. The footprints of outbuildings are still
evident on the property, and the original cistern is located nearby.
Photographed September 2006 by Pris
Weathers
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