On January 26, 2024, Preserve Arkansas hosted its annual Arkansas Preservation Awards dinner and program to honor individuals and organizations for projects focused on historic preservation, education, and advocacy throughout the state. Honorees and guests celebrated with a reception and banquet at the Robinson Center in Little Rock, followed by a program recognizing the Historic Washington Foundation as well as 10 outstanding preservation projects. Nate Coulter, Executive Director of the Central Arkansas Library System, served as emcee for the event. The 2023 Arkansas Preservation Awards were presented with generous support from the Division of Arkansas Heritage, Clements & Associates Architecture, John Milner Associates Preservation and MAHG Architecture, Hope Consulting and Williams & Dean Architecture and Interior Design, and additional sponsors.
Photos from the event are available here.
Named in honor of Preserve Arkansas’s founding president, the Parker Westbrook Award for Lifetime Achievement recognizes significant achievements in historic preservation over a period of years. The award may be presented to individuals, organizations, businesses, or public agencies whose activities may be of local, statewide, or national importance. The 2023 Parker Westbrook Award for Lifetime Achievement goes to the Historic Washington Foundation.
For sixty-five years, Historic Washington Foundation (formerly Pioneer Washington Restoration Foundation) has been a leader in organized preservation efforts in Arkansas. With its incorporation in 1958, it became the first historic preservation organization in the state. In addition, the Foundation has been directly involved in the preservation of more historic structures than any other preservation organization in Arkansas. Besides its direct preservation work, Historic Washington Foundation (HWF) was instrumental in having the Washington Historic District listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1972. The Foundation also worked to create Old Washington Historic State Park (now Historic Washington State Park), which opened in 1973 to partner with HWF in preserving and interpreting the town, a partnership that remains strong today. In 1975, Parker Westbrook, a native of nearby Nashville, Arkansas, and an ardent preservationist, was elected to the Foundation board. He remained actively involved, eventually serving as volunteer executive director, for more than thirty years. Now, in recognition of its ground-breaking work in historic preservation in Arkansas, it is fitting for the organization he served to receive the Parker Westbrook Award.
W. L. Cook Award for Excellence in Heritage Preservation | Eureka Springs Community Center Foundation
For the Eureka Springs Community Center project |
Excellence in Preservation through Rehabilitation | Martin Hall at Hendrix College, Conway
Owner: Hendrix College Architect: WER Architects Contractor: Nabholz Construction |
Excellence in Preservation through Restoration – Award | Willhaf House, Van Buren
Owner: University of Arkansas – Fort Smith Architect: John Milner Associates Preservation / MAHG Architecture Contractor: Crawford Construction Company |
Excellence in Preservation through Restoration – Honorable Mention | Crittenden County Bank and Trust Building, Marion
Owner: Fredrick Millar Architect: None Contractor: Fredrick Millar |
Excellence in Preservation through Restoration – Honorable Mention | Wingmead Cabin, Roe
Owner: Wingmead, Inc. Architect: Revival Architecture, Inc. Contractor: Historic Works, LLC |
Outstanding Achievement in Preservation Education | Ritter-McDonald Cabin, Springdale
Owner: City of Springdale – Shiloh Museum of Ozark History Architect: Clements & Associates Architecture, Inc. Contractor: River Ridge Builders |
Ned Shank Award for Outstanding Preservation Publication | “Cy Sutherland: Architect, Educator, Preservationist” by Andrea Cantrell
Published in Washington County Flashback, Spring 2023 |
Excellence in Personal Projects | Wallace Stone, Hot Springs
For Judge Glover’s Hideout at Malvern |
Outstanding Achievement in Adaptive Reuse | Benton Federal Building, Benton
Owner: Jonathan and Devan Hope Architect: Williams & Dean Architecture Contractor: Titan General Contractors & Hope Consulting |
Outstanding Service in Neighborhood Preservation | Angela and Bobby Mathews and Lynn Boyd, Little Rock
For the Chester Nests project, Little Rock |
Dr. George Betts
David and Patricia Blick
Jim and Kathy Boyette
Lori Filbeck and Allen Hart
Drs. Suzzette Shaw and Moses Goldmon
Historic Cane Hill
Amber and Scott Jones
Jill Judy and Mark Brown
Kudzu Collective
Mitchell Williams
Justice and Mrs. David Newbern
Ross and Irina Toyne
Joseph and Amara Yancey
Award winners and sponsors of the 2022 Arkansas Preservation Awards
Award winners and sponsors of the 2021 Arkansas Preservation Awards
Award winners and sponsors of the 2020 Arkansas Preservation Awards
Program and sponsors of the 2019 Arkansas Preservation Awards
Program and sponsors of the 2018 Arkansas Preservation Awards
Program and sponsors of the 2016 Arkansas Preservation Awards
Program and sponsors of the 2017 Arkansas Preservation Awards