On April 1, 1933, as a way to celebrate the enthusiasm surrounding the development of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the Town of Waynesville Board of Aldermen voted to donate $50 to help pay for the construction of of a “Parkway Sign at the corner of Depot and Main Streets” in Downtown Waynesville, North Carolina.

Later that month, a scale model of the sign was displayed in the window of the Massie Furniture store, just up the street from the proposed location of the arch, and a benefit movie showing was held with proceeds helping to raise the remainder of the $250 needed to construct the arch.