Friends Recall The Legacy Of Jim Gaston

When most trout fishermen die, the Governor doesn’t issue a statement. But Jim Gaston was no ordinary trout fisherman. He was a stunt pilot, photographer, steam engine collector, motorcyclist, fountain pen collector and seller, and wristwatch collector.

He was also a giant in the tourism industry in Arkansas.

“A great Arkansas character who enjoyed life and devoted himself to our great state, Jim Gaston was one of the pioneers of the tourism industry in Arkansas. His name became synonymous with fishing and the White River. While he will be missed by many Arkansans, he has left behind a lasting legacy,” said Gov. Asa Hutchinson in a statement released hours after Gaston died Monday.

Gaston, an emeritus member of the State Parks, Recreation and Travel Commission, helped shape the tourism industry of the Natural State. The owner of Gaston’s White River Resort not only turned his own resort into a landmark, he helped made Arkansas a premiere tourist destination.

If Gaston’s legacy is anything in the tourism community, it’s that he thought beyond himself. Commission members say he regularly reminded them that their decisions were about what was best for Arkansas, not what anyone’s personal interest might be.

“Jim was always two steps ahead of everybody else,” said Richard Davies, executive director, Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism. He was one of the first to push the idea of operating cooperatively as an industry, a push that eventually led to the 2% tourism tax that continues to fund promoting Arkansas as a destination.

“He kept saying, ‘We’re too small not to work together. Everybody who is offering a traveler something, the better we can work together, the more successful we’re going to be,” Davies continued. “Then years later, he was talking about websites and Internet before anyone else. When social media came out, he said we ought to be on Facebook and Twitter. Nobody had ever heard of this stuff and he was pushing it.”

Arkansas was one of the first states to have a website promoting tourism.

Montine McNulty, executive director of the Arkansas Hospitality Association, remembered Gaston as a man generous with his time and expertise. “He was always willing to sit down and share business experience and perspective with anyone who sought advice,” she said. “He was willing to help people in the industry do better. He’d sit down and have a cup of coffee with anyone who wanted advice. That made a big difference for a lot of people over the years.”

Gaston inherited his family resort on the White River when he was in his early 20s. He is said to have joked he got “six cabins and boats and a lot debt.” He turned that into a nationally recognized resort for trout fishing with 79 cabins, 70 boats, an airstrip, tennis courts, restaurant, private club, gift shop, playground, swimming pool, game room and two nature trails.

“I think he liked the constant challenge that operating a resort presented,” said Davies. “It gave him a purpose to start from where he did to turn it into what it became. But then when [then Governor] Bumpers put him on the commission, it became larger than the resort. His arena was then statewide. And he took it terribly seriously.”

Tourism is currently the second biggest industry in the state behind agriculture. It’s also the fastest growing, employing more than 100,000 people.