Park Road 4 Historic District
Also known as: Park Road 4; Longhorn Cavern State Park Parkway; Inks Lake State Park Parkway; Hoover's Valley Road et al.
Why it's listed
Park Road 4 is a 15.5-mile, two-lane scenic parkway in Burnet County, Texas. It begins at US 281 south of Burnet, passes through Longhorn Cavern State Park and skirts the eastern edge of Inks Lake State Park before reaching SH 29. The historic district covers the road right-of-way and all of Longhorn Cavern State Park. Civilian Conservation Corps crews began the road in the mid-1930s to give visitors access to the renovated cavern, and WPA workers and the State Highway Department extended and finished it in the early 1940s. Its features include sandstone entrance portals, masonry bridges, retaining walls and guardwalls, 62 stone and concrete culverts, designed vistas and overlooks. Within the park are CCC-era buildings such as the museum, caretaker's residence, observation tower and cabin. The district was listed because it has seen little alteration since its 1934-1942 construction and shows strong design integrity as a New Deal parkway landscape.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues the parkway is a designed landscape that has changed little since its 1934-1942 construction and keeps outstanding design and architectural integrity. It was built by the Civilian Conservation Corps, WPA workers and the State Highway Department to give the public access to scenic Hill Country landscapes and Longhorn Cavern. Its masonry bridges, culverts, guardwalls, overlooks and park buildings are tied to the New Deal state parks program.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 10001221, listed February 7, 2011. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | Park Rd. 4 from US 281 to TX 29 & Longhorn Cavern State Park, Burnet |
|---|---|
| County | Burnet County |
| Listed | February 7, 2011 |
| Reference number | 10001221 |
| Resource type | District |
| Architect / builder | Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC); Works Progress Administration (WPA) workers; Texas State Highway Department |
| Architectural style | OTHER: NPS Rustic; no style |
| Areas of significance | Landscape Architecture, Education, Entertainment/Recreation |
| Level of significance | State |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Park Road 4 and Longhorn Cavern State Park remain in use as a road and park, owned by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department; the dominant historic features remain intact with few exceptions. |
| Acreage | 953 |
| Coordinates | 30.71665, -98.33081 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
This is a historic district. Buildings within its boundary are either contributing (they add to the district's significance) or non-contributing. Owners of contributing income-producing buildings can claim the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit; homeowners should look at state credits. National Register districts impose no design review by themselves; a local historic district ordinance, if one exists, does (the difference explained).
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 10001221.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikidata Q18388806
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.