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 How did a river surrounded by the progress of civilization
escape impoundment, impairment, and change? The Buffalo National River encompasses the diversity of the
natural resources that are the Ozarks. This was acknowledged by an U.S. House
of Representatives Committee Reports (1972) that explained the basis for the
establishment of the Buffalo National River. It stated, "Because it is a
pure, free-flowing stream which has not been significantly altered by
industry or man, it is considered to be one of the country’s last significant
natural rivers. It is not one single quality, but the combination of its
size, its completeness, its wild qualities, and its associated natural,
scenic and historic resources that makes the Buffalo worthy of national
recognition."
The meaning of the Buffalo River today is not difficult to
discern. It is reflected in the faces of people enjoying the river’s
recreational challenges. It rises in the spirits of people immersed in this
landscape’s beauty. It finds its measure among the families who celebrate,
with periodic riverside reunions, their multiple generations living in the
area. Here are exhilaration and enthusiasm, relaxation and recreation. Here
these merge with living tradition as thoroughly as the wild and free running
Buffalo River merges with its ancient Ozark setting.
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