24/05/2022
Hidden in the hills of the Ozark Mountains in north-central Arkansas is the small town of Mountain View. The town was relatively isolated making it difficult for industry to open shop in this little community. The first paved roads came to Mountain View in the late 1960's. The only way this town would survive its inaccessibility was to attract visitors. The Rackensack Society was formed by musician Jimmy Driftwood and other musical citizens. Their primary purpose was to carry on the tradition of "mountain music" that the area seemed to enjoy and to bring in tourists. There were weekly "pickings" around the town and the heritage of American folk music was alive and well. The Arkansas Folk Festival held its first annual event in 1963. At the time there were less than 1000 citizens in Mountain View. The festival attracted 2500 visitors in its first year. Later, the Ozark Folk Center State Park was established and opened in 1973. In the 1980's a second festival, Beanfest, was initiated complete with an outhouse race. The entertaining folks of this small Ozark town bring in 286,828 visitors and 64 million dollars in revenue annually. Mountain View was the childhood home of actor Dick Powell and famous residents have included Jimmy Driftwood who is known for his songs "Battle of New Orleans" and "Tennessee Stud", and Grandpa Jones, a "regular" of the Grand Ole Opry and the television show "Hee Haw". If you want to hear some great "pickin" by the best “pickers”, make your way to Mountain View--it also has great fishing, hiking and exploring!
Photo: Arkansas Parks and Tourism
