Arkansas

Explore the once quaint farming town of Historic Monte NE. With images throughout the centuries, witness its transformation into a tourism hotspot during the 1920s.

Situated in a lush, spring-fed valley, the town of Silver Springs in Northwest Arkansas was once home to a small community of people who farmed, enjoyed the riches of rural life, and gathered at the local auditorium, gristmill, or tavern. Their world was forever changed in 1900 with the arrival of William Hope ""Coin"" Harvey. A fervent supporter of the ""free silver"" movement in the 1890s, Harvey had become disgruntled with the American financial system. Retreating to the pastoral valley, Harvey purchased 320 acres, renamed the community Monte Ne, and began to build a grand resort. It attracted visitors from across the country with its fertile landscape, large hotels, and private rail line. By the 1920s, Harvey had turned his attention to building a large ""time capsule"" pyramid, of which only the foyer, or amphitheater, was completed.