By Liz McMahan
Muskogee Phoenix Staff Writer
August 26, 2009 01:06 am
—
Nearly $1 million will be spent over the next few months in the
restoration and redesign of Fort Gibson Historic Site, said Dr. Bob
Blackburn, executive director of the Oklahoma Historical Society.
The
money includes a grant from the Oklahoma Department of Transportation
through its Transportation Enhancement Program, Blackburn said. The
application had the support of State Sen. Earl Garrison, D-Muskogee,
and Rep. George Faught, R-Muskogee.
The balance of the funding —
about $200,000 — will come from Save America's Treasures, a
public-private partnership between the National Park Service and the
National Trust for Historic Preservation.
The stockade portion of
the park was built in the 1930s as a Works Progress Administration
project. It is a replica of the original fort built in 1824 and is
about two-thirds the size of the original.
The grant funds will be
used for a number of projects throughout the site, Blackburn said,
including replacement of several rotted logs on the north side of the
stockade.
Also planned is repair to stone structures on Garrison
Hill and renovation of the old military post hospital. That building
now stands vacant. When the project is complete, it will be open to
visitors, Blackburn said.
The renovations also will include moving
the site’s interpretative center out of the old commissary building on
Garrison Hill and back into the stockade, Blackburn said.
The interpretive items will tell visitors the significance of what they are seeing.
“Even after hours, we want somebody to enjoy that site,” Blackburn said.
By the numbers
Visitors to Fort Gibson Historic Site by fiscal year ending June 30:
• 2009 — 9,795, including 817 from out of state.
• 2008 — 11,824, including 720 from out of state.
• 2002 — 11,978, including 664 from out of state.
Source: Oklahoma Historical Society, Museum and Site Division.
Reach Liz McMahan at 918-684-2926 orClick Here to Send Email
Posted on
Fri, August 28, 2009
by Crystal Drwenski