National Park Service rustic – sometimes colloquially called Parkitecture – is a style of architecture that developed in the early and middle 20th century in the United States National Park Service (NPS) through its efforts to create buildings that harmonized with the natural environment. Since its founding in 1916, the NPS sought to design and build visitor facilities without visually interrupting the natural or historic surroundings. The early results were characterized by intensive use of hand labor and a rejection of the regularity and symmetry of the industrial world, reflecting connections with the Arts and Crafts movement and American Picturesque architecture. Architects, landscape architects and engineers combined native wood and stone with convincingly native styles to create visually appealing structures that seemed to fit naturally within the majestic landscapes. Examples of the style can be found in numerous types of National Park structures, including entrance gateways, hotels and lodges, park roads and bridges, visitor centers, trail shelters, informational kiosks, and even mundane maintenance and support facilities. Many of these buildings are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Oregon Caves Historic District covers 6 acres (24,000 m2) in the main visitor area of Oregon Caves National Monument in southern Oregon. The district includes four primary buildings plus two other structures. Because of the unique rustic architecture of these National Park Service buildings and the surrounding park landscape, the area was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1992.
The Clackamas Lake Ranger Station Historic District is a Forest Service compound consisting of eleven historic buildings located in the Mount Hood National Forest in the Cascade Mountains of northern Oregon. It was originally built as a district ranger station for the Clackamas Lake Ranger District. It was later converted to a summer guard station. Today, the Forest Service rents the historic ranger's residence to recreational visitors. The Clackamas Lake Ranger Station is listed as a historic district on the National Register of Historic Places.
The Giant Forest Village–Camp Kaweah Historic District is located in Sequoia National Park. It is notable as one of two registered historic districts in the park that were largely demolished as part of National Park Service efforts to mitigate the impact of park visitor facilities on the park's giant sequoia groves. They were in a vernacular National Park Service Rustic and American Craftsman Bungalow style.
The Zigzag Ranger Station is a Forest Service compound consisting of twenty rustic buildings located in Oregon's Mount Hood National Forest. It was built as the administrative headquarters for the Zigzag Ranger District. It is located in the small unincorporated community of Zigzag, Oregon. Many of the historic buildings were constructed by the Civilian Conservation Corps between 1933 and 1942. Today, the Forest Service still uses the ranger station as the Zigzag Ranger District headquarters. The ranger station is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The Paulina Lake Guard Station is a Forest Service building located in the Newberry National Volcanic Monument in Central Oregon. The guard station was built by the Civilian Conservation Corps to house the seasonal assistant ranger responsible for patrolling the forest around Paulina Lake. Because of its rustic architecture, the guard station was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1986.
The Tiller Ranger Station is a United States Forest Service compound consisting of twenty-seven buildings in Oregon’s Umpqua National Forest. Over the years, it has been the administrative headquarters for five ranger districts. It is located in the small unincorporated community of Tiller, Oregon, United States. The historic structures were built in the rustic style by the Civilian Conservation Corps between 1935 and 1942. Today, the ranger station is the headquarters for the Tiller Ranger District, and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The Unity Ranger Station is a United States Forest Service compound consisting of five buildings and a lookout tower in the Wallowa-Whitman National Forest of northeastern Oregon. It was previously the administrative headquarters for the Unity Ranger District. It is located in the small unincorporated community of Unity, Oregon. The historic structures were built in the rustic style by the Civilian Conservation Corps between 1936 and 1938. Today, the ranger station is only used during the summer months to house Forest Service fire crews. The ranger station is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The Paradise Historic District comprises the historic portion of Paradise developed area of Mount Rainier National Park. The subalpine district surrounds its primary structure, the Paradise Inn, a rustic-style hotel built in 1917 to accommodate visitors to the park. The Paradise Inn is a National Historic Landmark. Five other buildings are included in the district. The district was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on March 13, 1991. It is part of the Mount Rainier National Historic Landmark District, which encompasses the entire park and which recognizes the park's inventory of Park Service-designed rustic architecture.
The Nisqually Entrance Historic District comprises the first public entrance to Mount Rainier National Park. The district incorporates the log entrance arch typical of all Mount Rainier entrances, a log frame ranger station and checking station, a comfort station and miscellaneous service structures, all built around 1926, as well as the 1915 Superintendent's Residence and the 1908 Oscar Brown Cabin, the oldest remaining structure in the park. The buildings in the district conform to the principles of the National Park Service Rustic style that prevailed in park design of the 1920s and 1930s.
The Elwha Ranger Station is a historic district in Olympic National Park, originally built in the 1930s for the U.S. Forest Service. The complex of fourteen buildings is divided in two by Olympic Hotsprings Road. To the east lie the ranger station and three residences, with nine maintenance buildings on the west side of the road. The complex was turned over to the National Park Service in 1940 when the land was added to Olympic National Park from Olympic National Forest. Construction is typical of USFS practice, and reflects the Forest Service's preference of the time for bungalow and American Craftsman style architecture.
The Graves Creek Ranger Station is a small historic district in Olympic National Park, Washington, USA. It includes the first administrative buildings to be built by the National Park Service in the newly designated park. The district comprises two buildings built in 1939-41 by the National Park Service in the Graves Creek region of the western park. Labor from the Civilian Conservation Corps and the Public Works Administration was used for both the ranger station residence and the garage-woodshed, as well as for a generator building that no longer stands. The 1939 ranger station residence is a one-story frame structure, clad in cedar shingles. The garage is of similar construction, built in 1941. Both structures are examples of the late National Park Service Rustic style, featuring broad shingle courses and deep eaves.
The Butte Falls Ranger Station, located in Rogue River – Siskiyou National Forest in Butte Falls, Oregon, was built in 1935 by the Civilian Conservation Corps. It was designed by architects of the United States Forest Service in rustic style.
Randle Ranger Station-Work Center in Gifford Pinchot National Forest near Randle, Washington was built during 1935-36 by the Civilian Conservation Corps. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1986 for its architecture. It was designed by the USDA Forest Svce. Architecture Group in Rustic architecture. The listing included seven contributing buildings including a single dwelling, a secondary structure, a warehouse, and a fire station on a 5-acre (2.0 ha) area.
The Glide Ranger Station in Umpqua National Forest near Glide, Oregon was built in 1938 by the Civilian Conservation Corps. It served historically as a government office. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1986 for its architecture. It was designed by architects of the United States Forest Service in Rustic and other architecture.
The Elkhorn Guard Station, also known as the Elkhorn Ranger Station, comprises four buildings in the backcountry of Olympic National Park, Washington. The station was built by the U.S. Forest Service between 1930 and 1934, before the establishment of the national park, when the lands were part of Olympic National Forest (USFS). The structures were designed in the Forest Service's interpretation of the National Park Service rustic style, using native materials and construction techniques. The complex was built using labor from the Public Works Administration and the Civilian Conservation Corps. The Elkhorn Guard Station is one of five surviving USFS-built guard stations.
The Lake of the Woods Ranger Station is a United States Forest Service compound consisting of eight buildings overlooking Lake of the Woods in the Fremont-Winema National Forests of southern Oregon. All of the ranger station structures were built by the Civilian Conservation Corps between 1937 and 1939. Today, the compound serves as a Forest Service work center, and the old ranger station office is a visitor center. The ranger station is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The Gasquet Ranger Station Historic District comprises a compound of buildings associated with the Gasquet Ranger District of Six Rivers National Forest. The U.S. Forest Service complex is located along the Smith River on U.S. Route 199 in Del Norte County, California, within Smith River National Recreation Area. Most of the buildings were built by the Civilian Conservation Corps between 1933 and 1939. Seven buildings and a rock wall remain of the CCC-built structures. The district office, the assistant district ranger's residence, a warehouse, two garages and a fuel house were built in the Forest Service rustic style that prevailed at the time. The style is reflected in distinctive detailing, including a recurring pine tree cut-out logo that appears on gables and shutters.
The Gold Beach Ranger Station was built at Gold Beach, Oregon in Siskiyou National Forest in 1936 by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC). The ranger station comprises several structures that typify the U.S. Forest Service's design style of the time.
The North Bend Ranger Station is a collection of buildings operated by the USDA Forest Service in the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest. Constructed by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) in 1936, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1991. The multiple buildings indicate the expansion of Forest Service responsibilities from custodial supervision to extensive resource management. North Bend Ranger Station is considered historic both for its distinctive rustic architecture and for its association with the federal New Deal programs.
