The rich wildlife habitat of the Cache River today is a legacy of the determination and energy of his monumental battle against channelization of the river. His campaign to preserve these duck wintering grounds was ultimately successful.

A former teacher, she took a pastime of treating injured birds of prey to an avocation of educating people about them. “Arkansas’s Eagle Lady” became familiar in schools statewide with her entertaining lectures on raptors.

He recognized the essential role of clean water long before it became a conservation byword. He was also a leader in wetlands protection, deer management, wild turkey restoration, endangered species protection and predator control.

A former White River and Bull Shoals Lake fishing guide, he developed the modern bass boat. Wood’s Ranger boat operation grew hand in hand with the emergence of tournament bass fishing and safe, efficient travel on the water.

Ducks throughout North America benefit from the enthusiastic activities of Ruth and Rollie. They are veterans of decades of fund raising for Ducks Unlimited, and their unique “Rollie Sticks” have been presented to special people worldwide. She and Rollie shared a love of nature that caused them to take on many conservation-related causes. Ducks Unlimited and the Nature Conservancy honored them for their dedication.

Ducks throughout North America benefit from the enthusiastic activities of Rollie and Ruth. They are veterans of decades of fund raising for Ducks Unlimited, and their unique “Rollie Sticks” have been presented to special people worldwide.

A boyhood hobby turned into a career of international renown for this archery expert. His instrument was the longbow, and he took it on hunting trips to several continents and into a highly successful business enterprise. He is most notable for starting the first company in the United States to mass-produce archery sets and equipment.  In 1972, he was among the first inducted into the Archery Hall of Fame.

From an early career as a wildlife biologist, working for the AGFC, he moved to the Arkansas Highway Department and was its longtime director. He developed the Marine fuel Tax system in which state taxes on boat fuels are used to build access to waterways. He held the position of Director of Highways from at least March 1973. A Senate Resolution from 1987 commended Henry Gray for his invaluable service to the people of Arkansas. 

Neil Ernest Compton of Bentonville was a physician of obstetrics by profession and a conservationist by avocation. He is widely recognized as the founder of the Ozark Society to Save the Buffalo River, which he and his associates initiated on May 24, 1962, at a meeting in Fayetteville. He loved the untamed Buffalo River even more than his vocation of treating the sick and bringing babies into the world. As founder and first president of the Ozark Society, he was in the forefront of the long and eventually successful fight to prevent building of dams on the Buffalo.

Compton was also a talented author and photographer. He wrote his first book in l982, The High Ozarks: A Vision of Eden, featuring photographs he made during his favorite Ozark explorations.