Narrow dirt trails, led us through leaves to the top of Round Top Mountain

Rain was falling outside as a high school basketball game roared in a gym in Jasper, Arkansas. A B-25 Bomber, on the way from Dayton, Ohio to Little Rock, lost its way in the thick fog, lost altitude due to wing icing. About 8 o'clock p.m. on February 6, 1948, the date and time of the crash, windows panes shook all around. Giant flames exploded from Round Top Mountain, providing the only illumination for search groups. Two ball caps could be seen, and then two bodies. It would be morning before the other men could be found. The scene was described as "grisly."

State Police and an army rescue team from Barksdale Field, Shreveport, La., removed the bodies of:

Lt. Phillip Novick, aged 26 of Brooklyn, New York;

Lt. Felton F. Roberson, aged 27 of Little Rock and Osborne, Ohio;

Lt. Charles W. Thomas, aged 26 from Zepher Hills, Florida;

M-Sgt. George L. Haties, aged 28 of Dayton, Ohio;
GM2 Francis J. Russell, just listed as passenger;

from Round Top Mountain.

Today, a wide concrete walkway at the base of Roundtop Mountain will take you to the site of the crash. Many years ago, the plane's engine was embedded in the hill as a memorial -- a tribute, so to speak, to those who died. The engine is no longer visible. The above picture is a map for those who which to hike to the crash site or up the mountain. The concrete bench is dedicated to the memory of Ray H. Crouse whose spirit, they say, lives and soars along the trails of Roundtop Mountain. Ray Crouse was not killed on the plane.

After visiting the crash site (a very short walk) we decided, since it was such a warmish day, to hike to the top of Round Top Mountain, which is eight tenths of a mile (1,278 ft.). The entire trail is 2.78 miles. We did not hike the entire trail for two reasons: one, we got lost; two, it was getting dark.

Round Top is owned by the Newton County Resource Council.  Extensive work has been done to develop a scenic trail around the mountaintop, although without a map of some kind, it can be hard to figure out where in the world you are -- if you are US. There are several "natural" benches along the trail.

There are many parts of the trail where stone steps make the climb easier.

We were quite amazed at how this huge tree, embedded in a boulder, could continue to grow, thrive even.

More stone steps. Up. Up. Up.

Our dog, Alice Ivy, needed a rest stop. And Dwain needed an opportunity to snap some photos.

We were amazed at all the green moss covering the stones, some creeping up tree trunks as were many ferns and mosses on the forest floor. And just look at the tangle of grapevines. Kind of made us wonder if Tarzan would suddenly swing through and yodel  Yea-ya-ya-ya-ah.

Seriously -- right here in this very spot -- we did hear a distant, mysterious stuttering rhythmic coo -- sort of a spooky sound in the deep woods. Then came another -- an answer from another part of the woods. This went on for awhile. Ahhhh... a Great Horned Owl. Not Tarzan.

Another mysterious "T" in the narrow trail and another natural bench -- which way do we go?

So...  we picked the North Overlook trail. Not sure if it was the right pick, but you get what you get. The Bluff Trail that follows the high points appeared to be loops within a loop.

After a number of hits and misses along the trail, this is where we ended up. A pretty nice overlook.

We think we can see Russia from here.

At the top of Round Top Mountain, it looks as if we had wings, we would fly.

Coming down. Most trails are this nice.

Our Alice Ivy thought the stone steps and boulders made amazing jumping-off places.

As we descended the mountain, we made an amazing discovery. Mushrooms? Mushrooms as big and round as paper plates attached to tree limbs. We were lucky to find this one close enough to the trail to take a picture close up. Many of the trees along the trail are identified by species with stamped metal signs.

As we near the end of the trail and daylight dims, distinctly new colors pop out in the forest.

Next time we visit Round Top Mountain, we plan to hike the 2.2 mile Loop Trail. And we plan to take a field guide or map. We didn't see the spirit of Ray Crouse soaring above the trails, the unseen but audible sound of Great Horned Owl, a reminder of how small we are in this world.

Dwain & Megan

Our bid number was 62! Megan's secret age.

From time to time, an auction will catch our eye. Ever since Dwain saw an ad for an auction 2-1/2 years ago near Clifty in Madison County, Arkansas, we study auction fliers. That was the auction of Billy Poorboy, and it will always be the measuring stick, for us, of estate auctions.
Here is a link to that blog, if you missed it: Unseen spirits
The above ad in the Harrison Daily Times last week promised Native American artifacts and Western "collectibles." So we set our compass for Highway 76, east of Lake Taneycomo in Branson, Missouri. The auction would be indoors, so the weather had to be perfect, with free concessions.
When we walked in the door, the auction hadn't started. So we milled about to see what caught our attention.

There were many framed pictures and prints, but this license caught Megan's eye. If you can believe this, Megan had to pull Dwain across the room to look at it. Look at the bottom right of the picture.

Can you read what the August, 12, 1878, license said? We tried to find the address through Google maps, 114 Cheyenne Street, Abilene, Kansas, but it doesn't exist today ... and neither does that trade .. at least openly in Abilene, Kansas.
While we were examining this license, the auction started, and another, similarly framed "license," sold for $80. We don't want that license's bad juju in our house, so we just took a picture.

 This gold chariot didn't get much attention, but guns and gold jewelry will always bring a crowd to auctions. We saw more than 2-carat solitaire diamonds inlayed in gold sell for $1,700. Again, we're just not jewelry people. But the turquoise inlayed in a Navajo wide, silver bracelet was tempting.

 Back to the guns, Dwain was drawn to the old double-barrel shotgun at the left of the picture with a gold plaque on top of the pistol grip.

The plaque and carved in the stock said it belonged to Wells Fargo & Co. And the tag tied to the trigger guard said it was a .10 gauge carry gun manufactured for Wells Fargo & Co. All Dwain knows is the barrels were too short to be legal for sporting or other use. Owning it'll get you arrested.

Anyone want to buy an old bass? Or two? Probably the framed Native American artifacts (spear points) and turquoise necklace drew more attention. In the 21st Century, how can you legally deal in Native American artifacts?

As you can see, the auction floor and walls were lined with Western pictures. Here's a colored lithograph of Annie Oakley that went for $120. Probably the frame was worth that, if you're into frames.

Here's our animated auctioneer. He had a story for everything, and there was no order to how the lots were sorted and sold. Here (on the left) is a guy holding longhorn horns, and another pair were just below us. We found out, if you wanted to bid on something, they would take it up and sell as a special request.

Here's another example of random lots - a dainty, complete 62-piece tea set, a soup tureen that sold separately for $60 and a glass-topped table that sold later. This among guns at an auction that was billed as Western and Native American. How strange, along with French furniture, Greek statues, oriental urns, and French and Spanish objects. Oh, don't forget the South American shiny, black pottery.

 We didn't stay long enough to see the price for these gents. But it was interesting. Good to see you again, Curly, Larry and Moe -- the Three Stooges. Megan wonders if they would start hitting each other when they got home. We bet they sold together, but priced individually.

 For goodness sake, what would you do with these chandeliers? Did giants live in this house? We're not sure we could hold one up, and there were lots of chandeliers, from rustic to very fancy. But they were all huge.

Urns, dozens of urns, big urns, some so big the muscular display guys could barely hold them up. What in the world do you do with those urns? Some of those things could store a whole body. Then we have French furniture and statues of partially dressed women parading around as fountains.

Don't forget the Greek statues to go with that 1878 license for Holly Sneed's avocation. Where do you put these statues in the house, anyway?

If you're into old oak whiskey barrels, you could have owned this one for a Benjamin Franklin ($100).

Snowshoes, old snowshoes, also went for about $100. We hope we don't need them this winter, so we passed. Another pair, just like them, was on the wall.
Where do you put this stuff? Hoarders are us?

 Dwain was seriously interested in this "loveseat," and Megan kept trying to get him to raise that No. 62 bid card. But gosh, it must have weighed 300 pounds and required a dolly to move it. Talk about solid. We reasoned that our dogs and cats couldn't tear it up. But by the time we reasoned through it, the fast-talking auctioneer had lowered the gavel on $600. A steal! Somebody else got it, and the dolly moved in and someone else carried it out.
We had Dwain's pickup truck in the parking lot.

 We have a friend who's always on the lookout for fine glassware to impress the widows at his church. If he had just been there and waited ...

... He also could have loaded up on a box of little, green hurricane lamps. Talk about setting the mood.

Now look there. Megan decided she could start a band with these three instruments. She could be a one-woman band. We bet a drum was hidden somewhere under a table. You should see what all is hiding under the tables.

 It's always Christmas, and the season is always hiding in your house, somewhere. Look at that, a centerpiece and wrapping paper under a table. They also sold two sculptured trees with lights that could be used for a holiday other than Christmas. They were some of the first items sold - for $50 apiece. You had to listen, everything sold individually, including two old Winchester straight edge razors that were mounted together under glass. They drew spirited bidding wars.

 We bet this guy knows his way around auctions, kind of like the daily betters at Oaklawn.

 Aren't you the lucky one, Megan! Our bid number was 62, her age for another six weeks, and a young man leaned over her shoulder and gave her a fresh, red rose. A Valentine's Day miracle.

 Sorry, these two urns were already bought. Yep, the usual price, $50 apiece. What do you do with them? Hide Easter eggs. The auction was in the Lions Club building on Highway 76 East. Free concessions are in the corner. We shared cookies, a nice touch.

We finished off our auction adventure by sharing an Ole' Pizza and a Blue Moon at Pizza by the Chef. One of our favorite places.
Life's an adventure.
Megan and Dwain

We're curious. How do you get on the National Register of Historic Places?

We began our search in Russellville, Arkansas. Pope County has 37 places, including several secret archeological (petroglyphs) sites, but nothing seemed to tie together the three sites we visited. We also wandered into an "Historic Neighborhood."

In honor of Black History Month (February), we made this house on the corner of South Houston (formerly spelled Huston) Avenue and West 3rd Street, our first stop. This house is listed on the National Register of Historic Places by the name Latimore Tourist Home.

Dwain found this book two years ago at the Antique Festival of the Ozarks in Springfield, Missouri. It's no bigger than an old S&H Green Stamp book. We paid more than the original 1959 price of $1.25 because we didn't expect to ever see another copy. Sometimes you only get one chance.

Look carefully. In 1959, African-Americans fortunate enough to be able to travel across the country only had this book as a guide to where they would be welcomed. The first Green Book was published in 1941, and the last one about 1970. In our 1959 edition, the only safe stops in the northwest quarter of Arkansas were Russellville (1), Fayetteville (1) and Fort Smith (2). At that time, Hot Springs was the most welcoming town for African-Americans.
Books like this weren't necessary by the time our generation graduated from high school. We didn't even know they existed. What a shock.

The house operated by E. (Eugene Gene) Latimore, his wife Cora Wilson Latimore and their daughter Anna, was built in the early 1900s. Today, most screens are missing on the front porch, banisters on the upstairs balcony have crumbled along with the paint, and an old storm door looks out of place. Minutes after this picture was taken, a cat jumped out of the porch.

The Latimores added onto their house so they could accept more guests. Allowing guests to stay in their home, increased their income and they got to meet a lot more people and expand contact with a wider world. We particularly liked the aluminum awnings on the west side of the house to keep out the hot, summer sun.

Here's part of the reason we rushed down today. This historic house may not be here much longer.
A window is broken; wasp nests are under the eaves; and many boards are rotting. It wouldn't be safe to walk around inside.
The Latimore's son-in-law, Damon Stokes Jr. (6/15/1926 - 9/20/2015) sold the house to the next door neighbor, New Prospect Missionary Baptist Church, the church he attended and where his funeral was held.
It's now up to the congregation to decide what will happen to the house.

A Notice of Condemnation has been posted on the old tourist home. We suppose that the City of Russellville will consider the historical value of this home before it is demolished, but the church will also have some say in what happens to this house.

A block or so east of the Latimore Tourist Home was this sign, "Old Town Historic Neighborhood." Bonus! We weren't even looking for that. The homes, yards, fences, porches and sidewalks in this neighborhood look so well kept and pretty.  Wouldn't it be lovely if someone would gift the church enough money to restore the Latimore Tourist Home so that it could become a museum?

Here is another home in the Historic Neighborhood. As you can see from the scaffolding, repairs are definitely taking place.

A Confederate Mother's Memorial is  also on the National Register of Historic Places.  This little park was on Glenwood Avenue.  It was such a small park that we almost missed it.  In fact, we had to turn around and go back to find it. Those two rock columns on each side of the entrance were dedicated June 12, 1924.

The little park is pretty much maintenance free, with pine needles cushioning the walk up the little hill.

The land for the park was donated to the United Daughters of the Confederacy by Judge R.B. Wilson and his wife, Mary (Howell) Wilson on June 30, 1921.
The park originally had plans for a playground and a caretaker's home. But they didn't come to pass.

By October 10, 1921, a "granite shaft" had been erected on a hill in the park with the inscription: "This Park is Established as a Memorial to Our Confederate Mothers *** and Dedicated to the Happiness of the Children of Our United Country."
The other improvements are a gravel parking lot and a pine-laden path to the monument.

You have to take a short detour off Highway 7 to find this historic Center Valley Well House on the grounds of the Center Valley Elementary School. It was a project of the Works Progress Administration and was significant between 1925-1949.

The "official" plaque calls the structure the Center Valley Gazebo from 1937, but we'll stick with the Center Valley Well House. We don't much more about it than that. It  may have supplied water to the school next door, but that's only a guess. It's a mystery.
We meant to stop and eat lunch at another structure on the National Register of Historic Places - Old South Restaurant - but it's closed on Sunday. Privately owned since built in 1947: Old South Restaurant was nominated as a historic location by State Government based on Architecture/Engineering and its significance in Architecture.
If you want to know if your property is historically significant enough for inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places, it should be at least 50 years old and be significant in American history, architecture, archeology, engineering, and culture. But first, you have to nominate your property to the Arkansas historic preservation office.
Good luck.
We're heading back to the Old South Restaurant. Its evidently got good food, but not on Sunday. Consider us educated.
How many of you have eaten at the Old South Restaurant during a trip to Russellville or through Russellville to Hot Springs?

Megan and Dwain