Ozark Folk Center State Park

Arkansas State Park, Opened 1973. The Only State Park In The United States Dedicated To Preserving And Presenting Ozark Mountain Folk Culture Traditional Crafts, Music And Herb Lore As A Working, Staffed Craft Village Rather Than A Static Museum. · Mountain View, Arkansas

The Ozark Folk Center is the only state park in America built to keep a regional folk culture working rather than to display it behind glass. In the craft village two dozen artisans sit at benches doing the things Ozark households used to do - blacksmithing, coopering, broom-making, spinning, pottery, knife-making, soap - and they sell what they make and will talk while they do it. In the evening the music auditorium runs traditional Ozark music played on acoustic instruments, with no amplified drums, which is a rule rather than a preference. The park sits above Mountain View, a town of about three thousand that calls itself the folk music capital of the world and backs it up by filling its courthouse square with people playing for nothing most fine evenings from spring to autumn. There is also a heritage herb garden that is quietly one of the best in the region. Nearly all of it closes for the winter.

1032 Park Avenue, Mountain View, Arkansas, 72560, United States

Strongly seasonal: the craft village and the music programme run roughly from April to November, daytime hours for the village and evening shows in the auditorium, with a reduced schedule at either end of the season and special events at Christmas. Most of the park closes from late autumn to spring. The lodge, cabins and restaurant keep their own calendar. The Mountain View courthouse square jam sessions are not run by the park, are free, and happen most fine evenings in season. Confirm the season, the day's craft village hours and the music schedule before travelling.

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