Palisades State Park Concession Building
Canyon, Randall County, Texas
Marker Inscription
In the midst of the Great Depression, a group of Amarillo businessmen combined resources and purchased for donation 320 acres of Henry Clay Harding’s Ranch. Located in the upper reaches of Palo Duro Canyon, the acreage was designated as Palisades State Park. In 1933, Civilian Conservation Corps Company 856 began construction of the concession building for visitors to the park. Local architect Guy Anton Carlander designed the building in “NPS rustic” style which harmonizes the structure with its surroundings by the use of natural local materials and colors, low horizontal lines, and the loss of demarcation between the structure’s foundation and the ground. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark – 2014
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
During the depths of the Great Depression, a group of Amarillo businessmen pooled their money to buy 320 acres of ranchland in the upper reaches of Palo Duro Canyon and donate it as Palisades State Park. In 1933 a Civilian Conservation Corps company raised this concession building for park visitors, and local architect Guy Anton Carlander gave it the low, earth-hugging lines of the "NPS rustic" style. Built of local stone and timber, it was designed to look as though it had grown out of the canyon rather than been set upon it.
Why it matters
It is a tangible survivor of the New Deal's Civilian Conservation Corps, which put idle young men to work building the parks that still shape how Americans experience their landscapes.
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Related people
- · Guy Anton Carlander
- · Henry Clay Harding
Related events
- · Civilian Conservation Corps construction, 1933
Themes & tags
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