Huck Finn's Tree Fort

Junior · October 29, 2010, 11:10:32 AM

Though hopeful it will be restored, I tend to agree with Swoosh, as it is probably 99.9 percent likely it will be taken out. With the coming of Half Dollar Holler, this winter would be a good time to remove it. I could still see some sort of small playground going in there, maybe a small building. It would be nice just to leave it as green space, too. Perhaps an area for future development. Do you think it just coincidence that Half Dollar Hollar is slated to have a bunch of little treehouses? Perhaps that's the response to all the guest questions about the current treehouse?

rubedugans · October 29, 2010, 11:13:08 AM

What if they brought the treehouse portion down to ground level!!!!!Hey if they can take apart a church and a cabin piece by piece to reconstruct...why not a treehouse, well I guess then it would just be a house huh?

As for the Tree Stairs...I think those will be a chore to remove. Maybe they will auction off chunks!

Junior · October 29, 2010, 11:30:53 AM

Just another mind fart...but what if they did bring the treehouse down to say, a few feet off ground level, and moved it to half dollar holler? Certainly someone there at the park can put together a blueprint for the treehouse, and they could use the old material from it to rebuild a new, stronger version of it? Ahhhhh...we have such interesting ideas, just no power or money to put the ideas into play!!!

sanddunerider · October 29, 2010, 07:16:21 PM

Hmmmmmmmm?

rubedugans · November 01, 2010, 10:33:25 AM

Not sure If'n I spurred that thought in you, but if not Junior...were on the same page here!

Enjoy ya'all...this might be the last view of the interior that you'll ever have!

MissinTheGreenTrams · November 01, 2010, 10:38:12 AM

such wonderful pictures! oh how I miss that thing! I am going to state now that if I win the powerball I will give the money to SDC to restore the tree house!!!!

Ozark Outlaw · November 01, 2010, 10:40:59 AM

Wow!

What great, and classic photos you have there Rube! It has been so many years since I have been inside of the tree house, that I nearly forgot what it looked like. Just seeing the swinging bridge in action almost brings a tear of joy to my eyes.

Junior · November 01, 2010, 02:45:19 PM

Great shots, Rube. Looking at the photo of the folks crossing the bridge, your pictures would have to be from about 1980 or maybe '81. The management had a crawling net placed on the bridge around 81 or 82 to prevent adults from going inside...I don't know this for sure, but my personal belief is that the treehouse was becoming unstable and I guess they figured by keeping big adults out of it, it might last a few more seasons. I do know about this time period they reinforced the legs on the treehouse, because I witnessed the maintenance and construction crews doing the work. The 1980-81 period is when Tom Sawyer's Landing was new and the treehouse had been rethemed to Huck Finn's Hideaway to fit in with the adjacent "landing." Thanks for sharing, and I hope you can get your pops permission to wade through all the family photos soon, so we can see more of them here.

rubedugans · November 01, 2010, 03:13:06 PM

Thanks!, now time for a bad shot...this one is soooo underexposed. But you can see the Pre Huck Finn transformation. Notice the sign about the "Revenoor Head Chopper" above the door! Like that would go over now adays!

MissinTheGreenTrams · November 01, 2010, 03:14:24 PM

rube-have I told you how much I love you lately? I love your pictures!

sanddunerider · November 01, 2010, 03:32:15 PM

great pics, i remeber some of them now that i see them... thanks!

Junior · November 01, 2010, 05:00:35 PM

Revenoor Head CHopper....somebody call the Department of Homeland Security! (Or maybe not!)

This shot looks like it dates back to the days when the treehouse was called Herman the Hermit's Treetop House. it was full of weird and wacky inventions, all of which worked.

rubedugans · November 01, 2010, 06:24:52 PM

Definitely Hermans Hermits era there Junior. I have a few more of that era, but not too many. The more I think about it over the past 2 days since my response...I would go up if I had the chance. Looking at these old photos have made me wonder...what is up there now. Is it storage? are the signs/ gags, still in place? If someone will give me a boost next time I'll climb on up and check it out next time!!! Not really, but man would it be interesting to see again.

Junior · November 02, 2010, 07:59:14 AM

Hey, Rube, if you don't get in your dad's house and post some of those choice photos you are talking about, I'm gonna find out where he lives and have him drag all those old vacation photos out so I can see them!

rubedugans · November 02, 2010, 08:30:02 AM

Hmm any requests of items we have not seen...I take requests...

The ones I am speaking of are in a box of 1,000+ slides right now, and I just have to sort them by location and scan each one...no biggie!

I plan on my Thanksgiving and Christmas breaks this year on converting VHS to digital from our trips, and scanning mom and dads photos of SDC from 1974-present. Patience Junior, it has been 35 years, what is a few more weeks?