Information about White River NWR
Credit: USFWS
Location
The White River National Wildlife Refuge Office/Visitor Center is located in St. Charles, Arkansas about 15 miles east of DeWitt.
Hours
The Visitor Center is open from 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM Monday through Friday and 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM on Saturday. The center is closed on Sundays and holidays.
Entrance Fee
There is no entrance fee on to White River National Wildlife Refuge. However, a refuge user permit is required for hunting, fishing, camping, and ATV use. To obtain a refuge user permit contact the office headquarters or stop by one of our five kiosks located at Ethel Bottoms, Jacks Bay, North Unit Road, Indian Bay, or Prairie Lakes on the east side.
History
The area which is now White River National Wildlife Refuge has a long and colorful history. Hernando DeSoto landed near what is today St. Charles. At that time it was an Indian village and later became a trading post as goods moved up and down the White River to the Mississippi River. Not until the late 1800s and early 1900s did the population grow and settlers began to live along and on the river. Timber harvest, commercial hunting, fishing, trapping, and digging freshwater mussels for their shells were the primary means to make a living, resulting in significant reductions in native wildlife and their habitats. People working and living along this portion of the White River continued in this manner until the refuge was established.
Current Projects:
- Comprehensive Conservation Plan
- Contact: Keith Weaver, Acting Project Lader, keith_weaver@fws.gov, telephone (870) 282-2800
- Bottomland Hardwood Trail Project
- Coming soon: Interpretive map and trail brochure depicting several features of the trail coming in early summer.
- Parish/Moon Lake Rehabilitation Project 2012
- Dry Lake Water Control Structure 2012
- Hwy 1 Turn Lane Project
