Hot Springs is traditionally best known for the natural spring
water that gives it its name, flowing out of the ground at a
temperature of 147º Fahrenheit (64º C). This series has been
developed to tell about many of the historical facets surrounding
Hot Springs, Arkansas. Some of the events and happenings of this
city are well known and others are more
obscure.
Several of the
letter connections will be quite obvious upon arrival of the cache,
while others you might derive from reading about the history of a
particular location or event. For the most part, the caches are PnG
and should be easy to locate. I hope you enjoy this series as much
as I have putting it together. I have learned quite a bit about the
town that I call home.
O is
for Ostrich
One
of the oldest attractions
was an ostrich farm that
opened in 1900 by Thomas A.
Cockburn. Ostrich riding and
racing were popular activities at Cockburn’s Ostrich Farm in Hot Springs. Cockburn oversaw more than 300 ostriches; the most outstanding pair was Black Diamond and
Whirlwind. They were
out of the ordinary to tourists and townspeople alike
for their racing abilities. Black Diamond stood 9 feet 8 inches
high and weighed 375 pounds. Whirlwind was 8 feet 6 inches tall and
weighed 350 pounds. By 1903, the Ostrich Farm in Hot Springs was known as
“the largest and most up-to-date ostrich
farm in America.”
The Garland County Historical Society publication "The
Record" states, "A
curiosity here, seen nowhere else, was a pair of trained birds,
running races daily, harnessed to specially built speed
wagons. The birds were a great attraction at state and county
fairs and drew bigger crowds than any of the other features.
They could make remarkable time, in harness or ridden bareback,
against horses."
A person could take the opportunity to order an ostrich through a catalog produced by the
Ostrich Farm. The plucking
of the birds also brought income to the Ostrich owners. Their plumes were harvested
for feather and down fans, hair ornaments, opera wraps, carriage wraps, and
stoles. This farm was
in existence until the mid 1940's. In its last years of operation the
attraction was known as the “Ostrich and Wild Animal
Farm.” The
attraction stopped operations in
1952.
The more you log
online including words that start with the letter of the cache, the
more interesting the logs will be. If this cache needs attention
let me know.
