Chickasaw National Recreation Area ⓘ

Visitors to the Platt Historic District find a remarkable and inviting landscape of swimming holes, winding trails and roads, campgrounds, and rustic stone buildings that provide a quiet, intimate place to relax and explore the natural environment. These features reflect the hard work of young men whose lives were changed by an organization that lasted only nine years but left an indelible mark on the landscape of the United States. These “Men Who Built the Parks” left a legacy in parks and forests across the country, and decades later, millions of people still enjoy their work.

Many people who had enjoyed the prosperity of the Roaring Twenties found themselves in soup lines and tattered clothes by the early 1930s. Sputtering Model Ts rumbled down dusty roads, carrying passengers and their few possessions toward dreams of a better tomorrow. The growing depression devastated the nation’s economy and left many in dire straits. By 1933, nearly ten thousand banks had failed and more than 16 million Americans were unemployed. Fifteen percent fewer children were born in 1933 than in 1929; a reflection of severely diminished expectations.

Franklin D. Roosevelt (FDR) was elected president by a landslide in 1932 with his promise of a “New Deal” for the American people. Within days of his inauguration, FDR called Congress into special session to work on emergency legislation to aid the economy and the American people. Many new agencies and programs were created to provide relief and restore the economy. President Roosevelt kept his promise and the New Deal was born.

Probably the most popular New Deal program was the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC). Designed to reduce unemployment while also conserving natural resources, the CCC affected the lives of millions of Americans, and transformed the American landscape. Nicknamed “Roosevelt’s Tree Army,” the CCC was operated through the cooperative efforts of four departments. The Department of Labor oversaw the selection of enrollees, the Army ran the camps, and the Interior and Agriculture departments provided work projects. The work of the CCC initially focused on reforestation, but quickly evolved to include soil conservation and development of recreational park facilities.

Initially, unmarried men between the ages of 18 and 25 whose families were on relief could apply. They enrolled for six months, with an option to reenlist for up to two years. Enrollees earned $30 a month, $25 of which was sent to their families. Eventually, “Local Experienced Men” and World War I veterans were allowed to enroll. African-Americans and American Indians also participated, generally in segregated CCC companies.

From 1906 until 1976 the present-day Platt Historic District was known as Platt National Park. Established as Sulphur Springs Reservation in 1902 to protect mineral springs and water resources, the site evolved from a settlement and town site into a national park. This evolution required almost equal amounts of obliteration and construction of buildings, roads, and other features.

The early appearance of Platt National Park was not what we imagine today when we think of national parks. Early park features included not only mineral springs, but flower beds, animal pens, and a golf course.

The small size and humble resources of Platt National Park were somewhat atypical, when compared to the great landscape parks with their sublime scenery and monumental hotels. Yet visitors didn’t seem to notice; in 1914, Platt’s visitation exceeded that of both Yellowstone and Yosemite and was second only to the Hot Springs Reservation in Arkansas.

Because of its limited size and the unusually large number of visitors, portions of Platt were heavily impacted by camping, cars, and people. Balancing visitor needs while protecting park resources was a constant struggle in the early years of Platt National Park. The programs and federal dollars of the New Deal were seen as “a golden opportunity” by park staff.

The community of Sulphur had some apprehension about a CCC camp, concerned over the possible presence of unruly young men. This attitude swiftly changed as the camp was established and work began. The city demonstrated their appreciation in 1935, by donating thirty gallons of paint to improve the appearance of the camp buildings. Enrollee Earl Pollard remembered, “Sulphur used to be a lively place. Very lively. The camp didn’t have any air conditioning, and we’d open the windows and doors at night, and the music from the honky tonk would put us to sleep every night.”

Camp facilities included a headquarters building, day room, and a little canteen where enrollees could buy cigarettes, gum, and candy; in the middle of the camp were a shop, educational and supply buildings. Two barracks, a latrine, and a mess hall were on the west end. Three more barracks were located on the south side and a flagpole in the parade ground. The camp cook would prepare hot lunches, including sliced pies, which were brought into the field to feed work crews.

Company 808’s masonry, forestry, and landscaping work was exemplary, but the development of the young men “mentally, physically and morally” was the most outstanding part of the program. Enrollee Jay Pinkston remembered working “harder in Platt National Park than I ever worked for any contractor or expected to.” In June 1940, after eight years of work, Company 808 moved from Platt National Park to Rocky Mountain National Park. When the CCC boys left, one writer remembered, “a feeling like that accompanying an irreparable loss settled on the community.”

Between 1933-1940, a series of landscapes—including spring pavilions, creek dams, swimming holes, wooded picnic grounds, hiking trails, a new road system, and campgrounds—were created or improved with the labor of the CCC in Platt National Park. Old restrooms, roads, and other features were removed and the land rehabilitated. Master planning treated the landscape as a whole, enhancing and revealing its natural, geological, and water-based marvels, while providing for visitor recreation in and enjoyment of nature. Constructed of native materials, the resulting New Deal landscape of Platt National Park is of exceptional quality and demonstrates outstanding workmanship that has proven extremely durable.

According to CCC mason Frank Beaver, soil and rock was removed from the front of Antelope Springs to reveal the fresh water spring emerging from the solid rock formation below. Enrollee Earl Pollard commented that, “The construction supervisor said that all landscaping was ‘nature faking.’ The shoulders had been graded and they wanted to make it grow back natural.” Enrollee Truman Cobb commented that he “took care of those slopes. They put us to doin’ somthin’ that would last, and make something beautiful. You go today, where they’re building highways and it’s just an old barren cut there and nothin’ pretty about it. But we sloped those things, leaving the boulders, leaving the outcroppings that would be picturesque…. We might work half a day around one boulder… kinda like an artist”

The CCC planted 800,000 plants, including 60 tree species throughout Platt National Park. Enrollee Delbert Gilbert, who served on the ‘sapling crew’ remembered, “They schooled us on not hurting the trees. Don’t break no green limbs off, you know, and we took that schooling.”

Although the Platt Historic District’s landscape features—stone bridges and culverts, scenic vistas, rustic buildings constructed of native limestone, and plantings of cedars and wildflowers—are important individually, together they compose a cohesive and seemingly natural recreational environment. Thus the CCC design of Platt National Park transformed an eroded resort landscape into a holistic place of great beauty, whose enduring recreational and scenic values visitors still experience and appreciate today.

Nationwide, the CCC operated 4,500 camps in national parks and forests as well as state and community parks. More than three million men enrolled between 1933 and 1942, planting three billion trees, protecting 20 million acres from soil erosion, and aiding in the establishment of 800 state parks.

The CCC advanced natural resource conservation in this country by decades, and provided education, training, and experience for a generation of young men.

Remembering the work of the CCC at Platt National Park, enrollee Truman Cobb observed that, “all of the pavilions are just kind of monuments to some real good construction work. Even the restrooms are made with permanence ….”

Millions of visitors to the Platt Historic District have enjoyed the work of the CCC. During your visit take a drive along the perimeter road, hike the trails along Travertine Creek or through Flower Park, and remember the young men who worked there many years ago. As Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr., wrote, the Civilian Conservation Corps has “left its monuments in the preservation and purification of the land, the water, the forests, and the young men of America.”

Archeological evidence of nomadic people, Paleo-Indians and later Woodland Indians (A.D. 600 - 1500) indicates these people rested here and were refreshed by the cool waters. In the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, Wichita villages were scattered from the Arkansas River to the Red River. Hunting parties from these villages camped in this area along with their allies, the Caddo and Pawnee.

In the 1820s, the federal government adopted a policy of Indian Removal from the eastern United States to the prairies of what are now the states of Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska and the Dakotas. At that time, the area was known as the “Great American Desert” due to vast treeless prairies, and was considered too hostile for pioneer settlement.

The Indian Nations in the Old South—Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Tennesse, and Florida—were the Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole. These Nations were relocated to an area later labeled Indian Territory. In 1907 this area became the state of Oklahoma.

The Choctaw Nation was the first to be relocated during a period of 15 years, 1820-1835. They were assigned land covering the southern third of Oklahoma. Beginning in 1837 government officials began prodding the Chickasaw Nation to migrate west into Indian Territory. An agreement between the Choctaw and Chickasaw Nations allowed the Chickasaw to settle on part of the Choctaw land grant. In 1855, the two tribes and the U.S. government agreed to split this area into two sections. The land acquired by the Chickasaw was south-central Oklahoma and included the area in which the park was later formed.

By the late 1890s settlers had built the town of Sulphur Springs around the fresh and mineral springs, with hotels and bath houses that promoted the waters’ medicinal qualities.

Residents of the town and the Chickasaw and Choctaw Nations, fearing the waters would suffer from uncontrolled use, worked with government officials to find ways to save the springs. In 1902 the Chickasaw and Choctaw Nations sold all the springs and 640 acres to the Department of the Interior for protection, becoming the Sulphur Springs Reservation.

Sulphur Springs Reservation was renamed Platt National Park in 1906, to honor the recently deceased Senator Orville Platt of Connecticut. Senator Platt had sponsored the 1902 legislation for protection of the springs.

For many years visitors came to partake of the medicinal qualities of the springs and to enjoy the fresh water creeks and other recreational opportunities. Platt National Park, Oklahoma’s only national park, also administered Arbuckle Recreation Area, which was authorized by Congress on August 24, 1962. In 1976, Platt National Park and Arbuckle Recreation Area were combined into one.

To honor the Chickasaw Nation, who originally ceded the land in 1902, the new park was named Chickasaw National Recreation Area.

Today, Chickasaw National Recreation Area offers a wide variety of recreational activities such as camping, boating, swimming, hiking, picnicking, and educational programs. As in the early 1900s, this peaceful area continues to draw people here for relaxation and renewal of body and spirit.

The first park ranger to work in what would become Platt National Park (the present-day Platt Historic District at Chickasaw National Recreation Area) was Forest S. Townsley.

Born in Greeley Center, Nebraska, August 24, 1882, Forest moved with his parents to Guthrie, Oklahoma. At the age of six he rode a horse in the "Great Land Rush" at the opening of the Cherokee Strip, where his father served as Deputy U.S. Marshal.

By the 1890s the Townsley family had relocated to Sulphur Springs, in the Chickasaw Nation. Forest's father, Willis Townsley, was the unpaid caretaker of the Buffalo and Antelope Springs for a few years following the establishment of the Sulphur Springs Reservation in 1902.

Forest started his National Park career on June 18, 1904 at what was later known as Platt National Park, serving first as patrolman and later as park ranger. Ranger Townsley furnished two private animals, at his own expense, used in patrolling the park. Superintendent Swords wrote to the Secretary asking that the rangers who furnished private animals receive an additional sum of twelve dollars per animal per month for its care and feeding. Park Ranger Forest Townsley and a collegue were commissioned as Deputy United States Marshals for the Southern District of Indian Territory out of Ardmore, I.T. Their commission, however, was limited to the confines of the federal reservation.

Besides the customary job of protecting the visitors and maintaining law and order, Rangers Forest Townsley and Robert Earl had to keep the cattle out of the reservation. In April of 1907 the rangers removed 1,466 head of cattle and horses beyond the limits of the Park.

In 1906, the Park still had over one hundred abandoned buildings that were bought by the government during the two segregations. One of the jobs of the rangers was to keep squatters and trespassers out of the old buildings.

Townsley wrote that in “ ... about 1905 during a conversation with Frank C. Churchill U. S. Inspector from Washington and Col. Swords, who was Superintendent of Platt National Park at that time, we discussed at length the uniform that was worn by Dr. Francois Matthes, in connection with his work in some of the South American countries. It was decided at that time that a uniform should be designated for the ranger service. A catalog issued by the M. D. Lilly and Company of Columbus, Ohio, showed a uniform similar to that worn by Dr. Matthes. We thought it a good serviceable outfit for a mounted patrol ranger. I ordered a uniform made up by the above company. It was very similar to the regulation soldier uniform at that time with high collar, regular riding breeches, Stetson hat olive drab color, with puttee leggings and officers military shoes.” This uniform would form the base of the National Park Service ranger uniform that was officially adopted years later.

After nearly ten years on the job at Platt National Park, Townsley relocated to Yosemite National Park in 1913, paying his own moving expenses. He was appointed Chief Ranger of Yosemite in 1916, the same year the National Park Service was finally established. Stephen T. Mather, Director of National Parks selected him to organize a ranger force at Grand Canyon National Park in 1919. While there the late King Albert of Belgium visited the Park and decorated Chief Townsley for horsemanship.

As Chief Park Ranger of Yosemite National Park, Townsley welcomed visitors from all parts of the world and from all stations in life and shared with them his love of the wilderness.

Mrs. Eleanor Roosevelt visited the park in 1934, where she camped five days with a ranger party. She praised Townsley very highly. Later she wrote in her, “My Day,” of him. “He has the kindliest face I know and the most humor, yet the eyes look you so straight in the face that I should hate to meet him if I wished to hide anything. He gave you a sense of his strength.”

His skill as taxidermist also brought special recognition from Stephen T. Mather, first Director of the National Park Service. His bird and mammal specimens were the nucleus of an exhibit which were originally prepared and displayed by Townsley in the ranger office in the Old Village in 1915. In 1920 the exhibits were moved to the Old Jorgensen Studio which served as the Park Museum until the opening of the present museum in 1926 at Government Center.

Chief Ranger Townsley died of a heart attack on August 11, 1943. He was on a fishing trip in the Tuloumne Meadows area at “his lake,” Townsley Lake.

Forest was Chief of the Yosemite Ranger Force for 27 years. He is buried in the Yosemite Cemetary . Townsley's ranger legacy was continued by his son John, who served as superintendent of Yellowstone National Park in the 1970s.

Lincoln Bridge was dedicated on February 12, 1909, the centennial of Abraham Lincoln's birth. The bridge rapidly became a favorite scenic spot within the park, confirmed by the multiple postcard views taken of it in the early 19th century.

For one hundred years the Lincoln Bridge has been a park landmark and a treasured part of the cultural landscape.

Lincoln Bridge is very nearly hidden in plain sight. The bridge is located on the southern edge of Flower Park, near of the intersection of the park's Northwest Perimeter Road and Highway 177.

From the north, the bridge is near the first right after the four way stop at 1st and Broadway. Traveling from the south on Highway 177, it is the first left after Hillside Springs.

The bridge is located on the north side of Perimeter Road; parking is available on both the north and south sides of the road.

Lincoln Bridge was the first major improvement to Platt National Park. As a result it received an in-depth description in Superintendent Albert Greene's monthly report to the Secretary of the Interior for the month of February 1909:

As the Department has already been advised, this bridge was completed on the 11th of February and the accounts for the work certified for payment.

In the main the undertaking was completed in a satisfactory manner, and the structure will doubtless stand for ages.

As this is the first permanent improvement in the Park, I may be permitted to refer briefly to its most prominent and picturesque features. The arch, capable of sustaining any weight, spanning the stream; the four turrets at the corners, with battlemented summits, surmounted with metal flag-staffs; the eight electric lights along the parapets; the rugged construction of the stone work, without mark of hammer or stroke of trowel to embellish; the paved roadway leading on the one hand to a great highway congested with travel, and on the other by sodded slopes to shady retreats along the noisy brook, unite to form in symmetrical proportions, a feature of utility and beauty that shall be an object lesson of the stability and dignity of the general government, forever stimulating patriotism and a pride of country. It is not a thing apart - it is as if it had grown there and been made when the rugged banks of the stream and the trees were made.

In the face of the southeast turret is a brass plate with this inscription cast into the surface:-

Flower Park, named for the ornamental flower beds planted here a century ago, has long been an important feature of the Platt Historic District. As the park developed throughout the early Twentieth Century, so too did Flower Park, serving as the gateway from the town to Sulphur into the park. The Lincoln Bridge was built on the southern edge of Flower Park in 1909 to provide easy access from the town to the mineral springs preserved inside the park.

By the late 1930s it had been redesigned into a pedestrian park with an elaborately designed landscape. The Civilian Conservation Corps built new features that included curving trails, reflecting pools, rock dams, cascades, and a serpentine stream, reminiscent of an “English Romantic Landscape.” The stream and pools were created in Flower Park to allow the use of sulphur water for health and beauty treatments. Visitors applied the sulphur-rich, black mud on their faces and bodies, hoping to cure their ills.

Today Flower Park still serves as an idyllic escape, an ideal place for picnics and small gatherings. Even a short time spent there will make the modern visitor recall the spirit of Park Superintendent J. W. French's statement in 1912, " Just to sit on the banks of this pretty stream and listen to the music of the songs it sings will soothe into the land of dreams the sufferer from insomnia, and make the tired business man forget his cares ."

"West Central Park" In the earliest years of the park, the area north of Travertine Creek was known as "Central Park." Divided by the Buckhorn Road (the present-day U.S. Highway 177), the two halves of Central park were known as West Central Park and East Central park. East Central Park quickly evolved into a camping area, and West Central Park served as a gateway from the relocated community of Sulphur to the mineral springs at the heart of the park.

The first major park development was the construction of the Lincoln Bridge , which was built in 1908-09. The bridge was opened on February 12, 1909 and rapidly became a favorite scenic spot within the park, confirmed by the multiple postcard views taken of it in the early 19th century.

In 1909, foot trails leading to the bridge were replaced with a concrete walkway. Other improvements to the area followed. In 1913, 108 shade trees were planted in East and West Central Park. By 1915, two “new” comfort stations were located in West Central Park, one “just west of Lincoln Bridge” and one 600 feet north of the bridge.

Flowers were also added to the area. As early as 1909, Superintendent Greene reported planting twelve-foot diameter flower beds in Flower Park, maintained by members of the community. Although much of Flower Park over time became “covered with sweet clover and weeds,” flowers continued to be planted under Superintendent Sneed.

In March 1922, probably as a part of Superintendent Ferris’ campaign to expand the park’s collection of animals, the park acquired a bald eagle, whose cage “hung in a tree in Central Park.” Where this was located and how long the eagle lived there are both unclear.

Redesigning Flower Park By the early 1930s, the park's landscape architects noted that Flower Park was “congested” and “the most used area in the park” and had “suffered a great deal of abuse in the past.” They designed a plan for the whole area sometime in late 1933 or early 1934. The Flower Park area was intended to serve as a mediating space between the “citified” qualities of Sulphur and the more naturalized landscape of the park.

The overall plan for Flower Park was broken down into a series of smaller projects. Flower Park’s old circulation system was redesigned. Work included demolishing old roads and the “rigid and inappropriate” concrete walks running through the park. Constructed in their place was “a network of trails, nearly a mile long, five feet wide, curbed with rough stone, and covered with gravel . . . conveniently connecting all the parts with its three entrances.” The paths, ran on graceful, curvilinear alignments, and utilized broad, curving, dry-laid limestone steps to navigate the slopes on the ridge between Travertine Creek and the town to the north.

Another project was the construction of a large parking lot in the northwest corner of the park adjacent to the Vendome Plunge Pool. The parking area was intended to “service Flower Park” and Vendome and was designed to accommodate 130 cars. This parking lot had one unusual feature: Running beneath the parking lot, on the line of the middle island, was a “siphon” or pipe for the Vendome stream, which then bubbled up on the opposite side of the parking area.

The Vendome stream, previously a ditch, was redesigned to create the most distinctive attraction of the area, an “artificial creek” with two wading pools located along its length. The stream was given a new, more meandering course through the park and emptied into Travertine Creek. A series of five small waterfalls were constructed down the length of the stream, and their varied forms seem to have been engineered to present different effects of sound and movement, thereby enticing visitor interaction with the water. The largest of the dams was a low waterfall bubbling into the lower pool, the large stones on its sides placed to provide seats next to the rushing water. Playful footbridges were also designed to cross the stream, and included a low water crossing and a log bridge just above Vendome Falls.

Finish work in the park included fine grading, sodding with Bermuda grass, and planting trees and shrubs. Ten quarts of wild flower seeds, all collected in the park, were scattered in the Flower Park Area. The wildflowers were intended to connect the redesigned landscape to its earlier form as Flower Park.

Prior to 1933, the road system in the park consisted of an east-west route (Travertine and Rock Creeks) crossed by a north-south route (Buckhorn Road) with a few spurs located off these main roads. This was drastically changed during the CCC years, when a perimeter loop road encompassing the entire park was constructed. It utilized much of the old east-west route, but connected the two ends with additional road running along the southern boundary of the park. The perimeter road integrally changed the experience of the park. It opened up previously inaccessible areas, reduced congestion by eliminating dead ends, and provided an experience wherein the park landscape could be viewed as a whole.

Landscape architects Richey and Popham considered the existing circulation system “a problem” and described the “rearrangement of the Park road system” as one of the “major plans” to be undertaken. Once they had a new road design, they felt that “the general plan of the park came into being.”This emphasis on establishing a comprehensive circulation system makes sense, given their training in traditional park design.

The use of curvilinear circuit drives around the properties as a formal design principle dates to at least the 18th century and the country park estate landscapes of Capability Brown. The concept was then adapted to public park design in the work of Olmsted and Vaux at Central and Prospect Parks in New York and thence to park design in the National Parks. The fact that it had never been used at Platt prior to 1930 is revealing, indicating that up until that time, Platt had never really been viewed as a landscape park in the tradition of U. S. park planning, or worthy of well-known park planning principles. Rather, park planning had primarily focused on providing basic access to individual springs or campgrounds. The use of the perimeter road as a design device signaled that Platt was finally being taken seriously by the designers of the NPS and was truly becoming a park landscape.

Although a plan for the perimeter road was complete by early 1934, construction of the road continued through most of the CCC years.

Originally known as Sulphur Springs Reservation, and later renamed Platt National Park, the park was established in 1902 through an agreement with the Chickasaw and Choctaw Nations and the federal government. The Chickasaw Nation sold the land to the government in order to protect the unique freshwater and mineral springs along Travertine and Rock Creeks. Even with these protections, the popularity of the area continued to grow in the early 1900s.

Though a number of landscape elements in the Platt District relate to the early period of the park’s establishment, the majority of historic landscape resources relate to the period from 1933-1940 .

During this period, NPS professionals planned and designed extensive park infrastructure which was constructed by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC). Elements included mineral spring pavilions, campgrounds, picnic areas, dams and waterfalls; these were linked by a network of roads and trails. Over one-half million trees and shrubs were planted in a park of less than a thousand acres. The CCC work group at Platt National Park was the largest and longest running of any in Oklahoma, employing about 200 workers at any given time between 1933 and 1940.

After 1940, the park first went through a period of wartime economy, followed by minor expansion in 1950. A nature center was added and other changes were made during the late 1960s. In the 1970s, the park merged with the Arbuckle Recreation Area to become Chickasaw National Recreation Area.

Although it was the 7th National Park created in the United States, Platt National Park is rarely mentioned in any National Park Service informational resources. Historic maps and documents , along with primary written accounts, help us fill in the blanks about this oft-forgotten piece of history.

Both Platt National Park and Hot Springs National Park are remnants of the great age of hydrotherapy. Each park was initially set aside as a United States Reservation by Congress (Hot Springs in 1832 and Sulphur Springs in 1902). The two parks contributed to the emerging National Park System and illustrate the changing values of what was deemed worthy to be a "National Park." However there are some very key differences between the two parks, the most important being the temperature of the water and the amount of development that was permitted to occur. The water at Platt National Park, now Chickasaw National Recreation Area, is cold, coming out of the ground at 63 to 64 degrees Fahrenheit. The water at Hot Springs is hot, coming out of the ground at 147 degrees Fahrenheit.

“Taking the cure” at mineral spring resorts became highly fashionable in Europe during the 18th and 19th centuries, when thousands visited such famous spas as Bath, Aix-les-Bains, Aachen, Baden-Baden, and Karlsbad (Karlovy Vary). As mineral springs were discovered in America, they too attracted attention. Places like Saratoga Springs in New York and White Sulphur Springs in Virginia (now West Virginia) were developed privately, but Congress acted to maintain federal control of two springs west of the Mississippi.

Hot Springs in the Arkansas Territory comprised 47 springs emerging from a fault at the base of a mountain. In 1832 Congress reserved four sections of land containing Hot Springs “for the future disposal of the United States.” After the Civil War the Interior Department permitted private entrepreneurs to build and operate bathhouses to which the spring waters were piped, and the Hot Springs Reservation became a popular resort.

In 1902 the Federal Government purchased 33 mineral springs near Sulphur, Oklahoma Territory, from the Choctaw and Chickasaw nations to create the Sulphur Springs Reservation, also under Interior’s jurisdiction. The reservation was enlarged in 1904, and two years later Congress renamed it Platt National Park after the recently deceased Senator Orville Platt of Connecticut, who had been active in Indian affairs.

In 1921 the State of Oklahoma constructed a tuberculosis sanatorium for veterans immediately south of Platt National Park. A trail connects the Veterans Center to Pavilion Springs. At Platt National Park, there were few bathhouses built, and all were required to move outside of the park boundaries when the original Sulphur Springs Reservation was established. Also, the main focus was not bathing in the water, but drinking it. The water was reputed to be a cure all for a variety of ailments, including infection, asthma, indigestion, nausea, nervousness, arthritis, weakness, lameness, and many more. It was also reputed to act as insect repellent, guarding against mosquitos, chiggars, and ticks. The National Park Service neither substantiates nor denies claims about the water's therapeutic values.

Congress redesignated Hot Springs Reservation a national park in 1921. Although the park encompassed some natural terrain, it remains more an urbanized spa and historical area than a natural area.

Platt National Park was incorporated in the new Chickasaw National Recreation Area in 1976 and no longer exists as a park on its own.

In 1902 the Federal Government purchased 33 mineral springs near Sulphur, Oklahoma Territory, from the Choctaw and Chickasaw nations to create the Sulphur Springs Reservation, also under Interior’s jurisdiction. Established by Congress in 1902, the reservation officially opened to the public on April 29, 1904. On June 29, 1906, it was renamed Platt National Park in honor of the recently deceased Senator Orville H. Platt of Connecticut, who has helped establish the area four years earlier. The town of Sulphur Springs, Indian Territory, had been built in the immediate area around the springs on tribal land. Improvements such as buildings were purchased by the federal government. Many residents relocated buildings outside of the new reservation boundaries. Most remaining buildings were dismantled by the government. Only one original building from the original town remains, a stone building used as park headquarters for almost a century and now used as the Platt Ranger Station. During these early years, overall park development was slow and hampered by a general lack of funds and the complicated process of relocating the community of Sulphur Springs outside the new park's boundaries. The reason for Platt National Park's quick and early popularity was simple. First, it was already a destination before it became a national park. Second, it was the only national park for hundreds of miles around. During the summer, in an otherwise hot and dry area, the park was a unique collection of mineral and fresh water springs with cool creeks hidden in shady draws. While lacking great size or grandeur, Platt National Park offered a place of cool water and shade for the entire family to relax. The first major structure to be built in the new park was Lincoln Bridge in 1909.

The 1910s and 20s were the first golden age for Platt National Park, as the park slowly evolved as a facility and visitors continued to come for the cool and 'health-giving' waters. The community of Sulphur also grew, and the park and town were in many respects inseparable during this time as Platt National Park became known as "the playground of the southwest." Major improvements included many plumbed restroom buildings and improvements to the road system, though these restrooms have been replaced and the original roads have been rerouted in the time since. Improvements still in place include the community buildings at Cold Springs and Bromide (brown clapboard sided buildings currently used as park offices), the concrete retaining dam at Panther Falls, and the pavilion at Black Sulphur Springs.

Only one year after the Civilian Conservation Corps camp closed, the United States entered the Second World War. The war years meant a decline in funding for the park, yet visitation continued to climb. The steady increase in visitors quickly increased in the post-war years. In 1949, Platt National Park boasted over one million visitors for the first time. These visitors came to the park for its recreational and outdoor opportunities, not for the healing properties of the water, reflecting new attitudes towards medicine and leisure activities that have continued to this day. Rock Creek Campground was added to the park to accommodate the increase in campers.

The completion of the Arbuckle Dam and the filling of the Lake of the Arbuckles in 1966 added an entirely new dimension to the Platt experience. For ten years the two adjacent locations existed as separate parks operated by the staff of Platt National Park. Additional facilities, most notably lakeside facilities such as Buckhorn, The Point, and Guy Sandy Campgrounds, picnic areas, and boat launches were built. Platt National Park was not neglected in favor of the new recreation area; the Travertine Nature Center opened to the public in 1969. In 1976 the Arbuckle Recreation Area and Platt National Park were combined to create the modern park visitors experience today: Chickasaw National Recreation Area, named after one of the tribes who helped make the original Sulphur Springs Resevation possible.

A close reading of books covering the history of the National Park System will uncover the conspicuous absence of Platt National Park. Often overlooked, the history and legacy of Platt National Park provide powerful lessons regarding the evolution of the American system of National Parks. This history continues under the park's current name, Chickasaw National Recreation Area.

Platt National Park—Environment and Ecology Ballard M. Barker and William Carl Jameson (1975)

Written and published one year before the park would be redesignated Chickasaw National Recreation Area, this book expertly summarizes the natural resources of Platt National Park, and captures the end of an era.

The Great Health Giving Mecca and Summer Resort: Platt National Park, The Early Years Douglas C. McChristian (2003)

This study examines the early history of Platt National Park [the present-day Platt Historic District in Chickasaw National Recreation Area].

Cultural Landscape Report—Platt Historic District Heidi Hohmann and Katarzyna Grala (2004)

The Cultural Landscape Report documents the physical evolution of the Platt district’s cultural landscape and provide a base of information to develop a preservation treatment plan.

An Ethnohistory of the Relationship between the Community of Sulphur, Oklahoma and Chickasaw National Recreation Area Jacilee Wray and Alexa Roberts. (2004)

This study focuses on the values attached to the park and its resources by members of the traditionally associated community of Sulphur, Oklahoma.

Tradition touches the present at Chickasaw National Recreation Area. People park their cars and pursue the same diversions people enjoyed at the turn of the Twentieth Century— after parking their buggy or getting off the train.

Tents have evolved from simple white cottons and poplins to domes sewn of bright, lightweight nylons, but the tents are still pitched by families seeking a week of fun and relaxation in shaded woodlands threaded by clear-running streams and dotted with mineral and freshwater springs. Horse-drawn buggies were traded for automobiles. Quaint old cars and campers foreshadowed today’s RVs in the campgrounds by the Lake of the Arbuckles.

First Native Americans, and then early settlers of the surrounding plains, sought recreation here. Summer weekends still find family reunions picnicking at favorite spots. Some have returned every year for more than half a century.

For over one hundred years the park has been a refuge for outdoor tradition; a protected niche of parkland where styles may change, but where recreation remains a relaxing way of life.

This resource is based on the following source: National Park Service. 1990. A checklist of the birds of Chickasaw National Recreation Area. Southwest Parks and Monuments Association. For additional information on the projected future populations of birds in the park, read Birds and Climate Change: Chickasaw National Recreation Area

Although small in size, (less than 10,000 acres), Chickasaw National Recreation Area plays host to a remarkable number of birds. The east-west ecotone (where the hardwood forests meet the grasslands) the overlap of north and south, and the proximity to the central flyways provide more types of birds than are found in some larger areas.

Over 160 of the birds on this list have actually been sighted in the area. The rest are likely present at one time or another during the year but either haven't been sighted yet or the sightings haven't been reported. If visitors spot a unique or interesting bird, please let park staff know. These sightings help keep Chickasaw's species lists up-to-date.

Habitat This listing is for habitat where bird is most commonly found. If no habitat is listed, the bird is of widespread occurrence.

Chickasaw National Recreation Area is located between the eastern hardwood forests and the western prairies. In south-central Oklahoma, these two ecosystems form a zone known as an ecotone; ecotones tend to be very ecologically diverse.

Some common trees in this national park include: Oak, Hickory, Eastern Red Cedar, Elm, and Sycamore. Open areas within the forest ecosystem provide a place for the mixed grasses and wildflowers of the prairie to prosper. These prairie plants include: Sideoats Grama, Little Bluestem, Indian Blanket,Yucca, and Coneflowers.

A variety of animals utilize these forests and prairies. The Hermit Thrush and Flying Squirrel remain in the deep woods, while the White-tailed Deer will venture to the forest edge to increase foraging success. Some prairie species such as the Eastern Meadowlark, Bull Snake, and the Nine-banded Armadillo will also be found near the boundary between prairie and forest. This ecotone environment provides the diversity of animals that can be found in Chickasaw National Recreation Area.

Campground Information Camping is a great way to immerse yourself in the stunning scenery of Chickasaw National Recreation Area. Six campgrounds throughout the park offer a variety of options for both tent and RV camping. Exact dates vary year to year. Please check our current conditions page for campground open and closure dates .

NOTICE: If a site is purchased at a first-come first-served campground and left empty, it may be declared abandoned and sold to another camper. Platt Historic District # of Sites Water Spigots? Flush or vault toilet? Showers? Electric Hookups? When is it open? Reservable? Central 10 Shared Flush No No Summer Yes Cold Springs 65 Shared Flush No No Year-round Yes Rock Creek 99 Shared Flush No No Summer Group site only

Lake of the Arbuckles Buckhorn 134 Shared for non-electric sites. Electric sites have individual water hook-ups. Flush Each loop has one shower in the restroom building No on loops A & B

Loop D has 25 sites with 30-amp service and 24 sites with no electricity Loop A & B Summer Only

Loop C and D Year-round Loop C only Guy Sandy 40 Shared Vault No No Closure ongoing No The Point 55 Shared for non-electric sites. Electric sites have individual water hook-ups. Flush on the lower loop; vault on the upper loop The lower loop has one shower in the restroom building The Point has 12 sites with both 30- and 50-amp service and 43 sites with no electricity Year-round Upper Loop only

A lakeside view at The Point campground. NPS/Natasha Moore Camping Fees All campgrounds accept debit and credit cards only. Cash is not accepted. Non-utility sites (up to 8 people maximum) $20/night Utility sites (up to 8 people maximum) $30/night Small group sites (no utilities, up to 10 people maximum) $30/night Large group sites (no utilities, up to 30 people maximum) $50/night Check-out time for all sites is no later than 12 noon on the day of departure.

Self-pay stations are available at the entrance to first-come-first-serve campgrounds. These machines only accept credit or debit cards. Cash cannot be accepted. Other important information: Fees and Reservations Pets

Buckhorn Campground Buckhorn Campground is located on the eastern side of Lake of the Arbuckles. It has four loops, A, B, C, and D. Loop A is open seasonally. It has 21 campsites including 1 accessible site; all of these sites are first come, first served. Modern restrooms and showers are available to campers in this campground.

Loop D is open year-round. It has 51 campsites including 3 accessible sites. All sites are first come, first served. Modern restrooms and showers are available to campers in this campground. There are 24 electrical sites (30 amp). Sites with electrical hookup also have water hookups. There are no sewer hook ups in the campground. A dump station can be found on Buckhorn Road outside of the campground. Campground maps: Loop A | Loop B | Loop C | Loop D

The Point Campground The Point Campground is located on the northern side of Lake of the Arbuckles. It is open year-round and has two loops.

All sites on the upper loop are available by reservation only. There are 12 electrical sites (50 and 30 amp) and 9 non-electrical camping sites, including 2 accessible sites (with hookups). Electrical sites also have water hookups. There are no sewer hookups available in the campground. A dump station can be found on the road down to the campground. Showers are available in the Lower Loop restrooms. Campground map

Rock Creek Campground Rock Creek Campground is open seasonally. It has 99 campsites and 1 large group site. The group site is available by reservation only; all other sites are first come, first served. All sites are non-electric. Some sites can accommodate small RVs (25' or less). A dump station is located outside of the campground, near Bromide Pavilion.

Water has always been the reason people are drawn to this area. Many of the park trails in the Platt National Park Historic District travel through the forest, hugging the banks of the streams, passing by rushing waterfalls, and crossing near freshwater or mineral water springs. Lakeside trails offer panoramic views of Lake of the Arbuckles, and the Multi-Use Trail crosses through prairie uplands. Trail descriptions will help you choose your route. The trails vary in length, difficulty, and scenery. Sturdy tennis shoes are satisfactory on most trails.

Antelope (pictured) and Buffalo Springs are the main sources sources for the water in Travertine Creek. NPS Photo Springs Trails From the Travertine Nature Center, the Antelope Spring Trail forms the basis of the trails to the east. Additional loops stem from this trail.

Antelope Springs Trail Distance: 1.0 mile (round trip) Prairie Loop : add 0.5 mile Tall Oaks Loop : add 0.6 mile Buffalo Springs Loop : add 0.4 mile Dry Creek Loop (leaves from the Buffalo Springs Loop): add 0.5 mile

Travertine Creek Trail The Travertine Creek Trail connects the Travertine Nature Center and Pavilion Springs. Parking is available on both ends. This trail is a mostly level gravel trail with some bridges, long gentle slopes, and a set of stone stairs near Pavilion Springs. Width and surface type varies and the trail is not wheelchair friendly. Strollers with larger wheels will be able to travel on the trail surface, but wider models will not have sufficient space in places. Pets are allowed on this trail, provided they are on a leash no more than 6 feet long or are fastened into a carrier or stroller.

Veterans Trail The Veterans Trail connects Pavilion Springs to the Oklahoma Veterans Center just outside of the park boundaries. Parking is available at Pavilion Springs. This trail is a wide, mostly level gravel trail. Most wheelchair tires are too narrow to travel well on the gravel, but most mobility scooters can cover the length of the trail. Strollers with good tires will also be able to travel the entire trail. Pets are allowed on this trail, provided they are on a leash no more than 6 feet long or are fastened into a carrier or stroller.

The West Bison Pasture is one of two pastures in the park. The small herd of bison is rotated between the two pastures. Visit the current conditions page to find out which pasture they are in. NPS Photo West Bison Pasture Loop The West Bison Pasture Loop Trail travels around the West Bison Pasture. The trail can be accessed from the Lincoln Bridge, Pavilion Springs, Hillside Springs, Bison Overlook, and Bromide Pavilion parking lots, or via the trail system from Pavilion Springs, Flower Park, Bromide Hill, or Rock Creek Campground. The gravel trail varies in width, with some elevation gain (or loss depending on direction travelled) near the junction to the Bromide Hill spur trail. Trail width and surface are not wheelchair or scooter friendly due to a number of stairs, narrow spots, and short but steep grades. Some strollers can be used, but they will need good tires, be on the narrow side, and will have to be picked up and carried in places. Pets are allowed on this trail, provided they are on a leash no more than 6 feet long or are fastened into a carrier or stroller.

Distance: 1.9 mile (round trip) Spur to Bromide Hill : add 0.5 mile (one way, fairly steep switchbacks, trail narrows) Spur to Rock Creek Campground : add 0.8 mile (one way, fairly steep switchbacks, trail narrows)

Flower Park Trails A small network of gravel paths connect Vendome Well and Lincoln Bridge. Parking is available on both ends. Most wheelchair tires are too narrow to travel well on the gravel, but most mobility scooters do well. Strollers with good tires should also be able to travel the trails. Pets are allowed on these trails, provided they are on a leash no more than 6 feet long or are fastened into a carrier or stroller.

Veterans Lake Trail The Veterans Lake Trail is a wide concrete path that loops around Veterans Lake. There are two parking areas available, one near the dam and at the eastern end of the lake. While some visitors who use wheelchairs are able to complete this trail, it does not fully meet accessibilty standards due to long grades. Some moderate to steep inclines are scattered along trail. Those using mobility scooters should check their battery levels before starting the trail due to length and inclines. Surface is stroller friendly. Pets are allowed on this trail, provided they are on a leash no more than 6 feet long or are fastened into a carrier or stroller.

Inkana Trail The Inkana Trail is a wide paved path that connects the Veterans Lake to the Chickasaw Cultural Center . Some wheelchair users may be able to navigate the trail, but it does not fully meet accessibility standards due to long grades. Most mobility scooters should be able to travel the length of the trail. Parking is available at the Chickasaw Cultural Center (check website for days and hours ) and at the park 24 hours a day. NPS parking areas are at the end of Cat's Eye Road near Inkana Bridge (gravel) and at Veterans Lake Dam (paved). Pets are allowed on this trail, provided they are on a leash no more than 6 feet long or are fastened into a carrier or stroller.

Rock Creek Multi-Use Trails The Rock Creek Multi-Use Trails are the only trails the visitors may ride horses on. These rustic trails travel mostly through prairie areas, and the trails can be a bit difficult to see in the spring as new grass grows. These trails also pass through one of the park's hunting areas . If hiking in hunting season, be sure to wear brightly colored clothing. Trails can be accessed via the northern trailhead off of Cat's Eye Road, near Veterans Lake, or via the southern trailhead off of Cedar Blue Road, near Buckhorn Campground. These trails are not accessible and are not navigible with strollers. Pets are allowed on these trails, provided they are on a leash no more than 6 feet long or are fastened into a carrier. End-to-end trails: Trail 1 : 4.3 mile (one way) Trail 4 : 5.2 mile (one way) Loop trails : North Trailhead Short Loop (Trail 1 to 2 to 3) : 2.2 mile loop North Trailhead Long Loop (Trail 1 to 3) : 5.2 mile loop South Trailhead Loop (Trail 4 to 1 to Dirt Road) : 3.3 mile loop

Lakeside Trails at The Point Both the Lakeview Trail and the Fishing Rock Trail leave from Cooper Memorial Road, just north of the picnic area at the end of the road. Parking is available along the road and at the picnic area. Both trails are dirt paths with some up and down. Trails are not wheelchair accessible, and most mobility scooters will not be able to navigate the trails due to uneven surfaces. Some strollers with sturdy wheels and suspensions may be able to make both trails. The Fishing Rock Trail is closest to the lakeshore and is often partially underwater in spring, but may still able to be followed by those willing to wade. Pets are allowed on these trails, provided they are on a leash no more than 6 feet long or are fastened into a carrier.