First Lot Owners in Bentonville

The City of Bentonville was platted out at statehood when Bentonville became the county seat. Some of the first owners were recorded in 1837.

A list of these can be found here: http://www.argenweb.net/benton/deeds-Bentonville.htm

and can be coordinated with the map found here: http://www.argenweb.net/benton/deeds-BentonvillePlat.htm

This information is Copyright 2008 by Nancy Feroe, who compiled it from the county records. i have not copied any of it here in lieu of permission from Ms. Feroe but I don't think she will mind her website being linked through mine. She has a lot of interesting information about Benton County. You should take a look...

J. Dickson Black, a Bentonville Original

Some of you may remember J. Dickson Black. I reference him many times in my blogs because for many years he was the unofficial historian of Benton County and wrote several small books about the communities and one rather large book about the history of Benton County, which can be purchased here :http://www.amazon.com/History-Benton-County-Dickson-Black/dp/B0006CJT4K/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1346125586&sr=8-1&keywords=history+of+benton+county

Mr. Black was born February 16, 1925 in Chicago, Illinois to James and Edna Leach Black. He was an Army veteran of World War II, serving in the CB 631 Tank Infantry and division of Patton's Infantry. He graduated from photography school in Seattle, Wash. He married Wilma Rhoades on June 28, 1952. He moved to Bentonville in 1952 and opened Black's Studio. He was the author of many local history books, including "History of Benton County." In 1978, he started the Bentonville Square Farmers' Market. He also refinished furniture after retiring from photography.

His photography hobby led to a career as a writer of local columns in the Benton County Democrat, as the paper was known then. It was through this column that he interviewed many individuals over the course of his life and translated these stories into columns and eventually into his book. This manner of writing caused the book to have a marked lack of footnotes, as most of the interviews he collected himself or found in back issues of the newspaper. But the information is still largely correct, as remembered by the folks he interviewed.

He took over the mantle of historian for the county after Alvin Seamster, retired postman, lawyer, judge, and expert historian, especially of the Battle of Pea Ridge, got tired of being the unofficial historian. Seamster passed away about the same year the book came out.

He was slightly eccentric (aren't we all) and could be seen around the square at the farmer's market wearing a tall top hat.

Mr. Black passed away on August 14, 2004. I think it is important for us to all remember the contributions he made to the documentation of the history of our county. He has passed forward many interviews and anecdotes that would have been lost if it weren't for his passion for history.

I tip my hat to him and I borrow liberally from his work. I will always try to cite him when possible but I wanted everyone to know the part he played.

Movie Tragedy Takes Life of Young Employee

Benton County Record, October 22, 1942

Cause of Accident Which Takes Life of One Unknown:

Tragedy more grim than had ever been enacted on the silver screen of a Bentonville moving picture theater took place in the projectionists' booth about 10 o'clock Tuesday night and brought horrible death to Miss Joyce Madsen, 21, projectionist.

Exact cause of the accident which took the girl's life was unknown. It occurred while she was threading one of the machines of the Royal Theater prepartory to rewinding a reel of film shortly after the first show of the evening. She was believed to have been killed instantly when the film she was handling seemed to explode between her and the single exit of the room, knocking her down and trapping her.

Her brother, Lyle Madsen, whom she was assisting in the booth, suffered painful injuries about the hands, arms, and head when he attempted to close both the film containers of the machines and smother the flames. The raging flames blew them both open, however, and spread over the room. Both he and another brother, Keith, in the room at the time were unable to reach their sister, and were finally forced from the room by the burning and exploding film. Attempts to rescue the girl from the skylight of the room were likewise unsuccessful.

The fire department was called but it was not until 45 minutes later that the body was carried from the flame swept booth.

All of the projection equipment was destoryed, including two projection machines and 14,000 feet of film. Fire was confined solely to the booth.

The Old "Opera House" on the Bentonville Square

Taken from J. Dickson Black's "History of Benton County"

"The old Opera House building which stood on the northeast corner of the square in Bentonville, was taken down in 1962 to make way for the Bank of Bentonville. (now Arvest - Larry)

The Opera building, as it was called for years, was built a year or so after the bad fire of the winter of 1880-81, which burned most of the north side of the square. But there is no date as to when it was built. "

The lot was originally sold by T.M. Duckworth to James Caldwell on April 3, 1849. It was just part of a trasaction in which Caldwell bought several hundred acres. in 1872, R. N. Corley sold this lot to J. D. Harston for $900, a price which would indicate that there was some kind of a building here then. A year later J. T. and C.R. Craig bought the lot.

Black says that he had been unable to find out who had the opera house built, but in talking to Jim Craig in 1960 he said that he could remember his father talking about having rented it for plays or programs at the time he and Jim's grandfather owned the place.

Col. Sam Peel owned the building in the late 1880's and it changed hands many times over the years.

"People in Bentonville saw all types of vaudeville and stage shows here. It is said that after the railroad came (1882) some of the best acts in the country stopped and made a one-night show here. Throughout the year there would be programs. As on the night of February 3, 1888 when there was a band benefit concert by Alex Black's band, a local group with other short acts to fill in. Alex Black's cornet solo of the Lauterback Waltz and a violin solo, The Last Rose of Summer...were highlights of the program that played to a full house. On August 31, 1892, Richards and Pringle brought their famous minstrel show here for a on-night stand. The Famous Georgias, as it was called, was the only legitimate all-colored minstrel show in the country." (please - Mr. Black's language, not mine!)

"The night of January 2, 1893 was a benefit night. The program was put on by the children and parents of the 'colored school.' They were raising money to repair the roof of the school. Price was 25 cents for adults and 15 cents for children, and this included a light lunch."

"Another highlight in the entertainment world here at the opera house was the political speeches. If the weather was bad they would hold the rally here. The oldtimers say that these old time politicians had a lot more wind and talked longer than a candidate does today.

In 1898, along came a new and different entertainment that was (known as) the Chautauqua era, and for a few years each summer you could hear a lecture, band music, singing, oratory, or amybe a little of each if you stayed for the whole program.

I (Black) found no one who could remember what the inside of the opera house was like at first. The building was two stories and there were two business rooms in the front at ground level. You went in from the front and upstairs. Some think that the inside was all balcony and it looked down at the stage that was in the back of the building..."

"Sometime around 1900 the building was remodeled. The upstairs had a stage a seats; the downstairs was made into a store. At one time Jackson's Grocery was here. In 1914, the Ozark Trails Garage moved in downstairsin place of the store, and it stayed here until about 1921. It was run by Ed. Pace and Clyde Adams.

The Mo-Hawk Dance Club was held here upstairs every Saturday night frm about 1911 to 1914. At that time there was a stairway outside the east side of the building. In 1914 the building was condemned and they stopped using the upstairs.

During World War I the US Government used the upstairs as an armory. The 142nd Field Artillery was stationed here for some time. they slept upstairs and drilled in the street in front of the building.

About 1922 the building was bought by M. J. Kilburn who had it rebuilt into a movie picture house. The entrance was again moved to the front of the building. The inside had a stage downstairs and seats down, as well as up in the balcony. There were two small rooms in the front that opened onto the street in front of the building. These were rented for small cafes or real estate offices. The big outside balcony was taken down and a marquee was put up. The building was used as a theater until a few years before it was taken down. The last few years before the building was razed, it was used only for storage."

Now me - this was one of four movie theaters that the town had at one time or another. If I remember correctly, this was known as the Royal. There was also the Cozy, which was in the spot where the Station Cafe is now. Then in the Blevins Building which was later Black's Clothing Store was originally the Meteor theater. Then when I was young it was the Plaza, which was (and is) still located on the corner of West Central and A.

                          The Plaza Theater - 273-2222 for those of you who remember

The Meteor Theater, on the left. About 1920.

The Bentonville Interurban - Local Mass Transit that was Ahead of its Time

I have become friends, over the internet, with Keith Jones, who is vice-president at URS Corporation in Little Rock. His company specializes...well let me paste from their website..."URS Corporation is a leading provider of engineering, construction and technical services for public agencies and private sector companies around the world. The Company offers a full range of program management; planning, design and engineering; systems engineering and technical assistance; construction and construction management; operations and maintenance; and decommissioning and closure services for federal, oil and gas, infrastructure, power, and industrial projects and programs"

They are presenting a proposal to the Northwest Arkansas Regional Planning Commission regarding the development and feasibility in the future of light rail travel in Northwest Arkansas.

Keith emailed me a couple of years ago about Bentonville railroads and history and especially of the Interurban railroad. It made me think that now would be a good time to explain the old rail line and it's story.

Monte Harris provided this picture which is a favorite photo among those looking for information on this old line, courtesy of the Rogers Historical Museum:

The train itself reads "Bentonville Park Springs and Rogers." According to the section on the Interurban in J. Dickson Black's History of Benton County, talk of the first trolley in Benton County began in 1912 when a charter was granted to the Arkansas Northwest Railroad Co. to run an interurban train between Bentonville and Rogers. The company got the franchise from Rogers to operate its car down the center of second street from Cherry north to the intersection with the Frisco track which ran to Bentonville.

In Bentonville they left the main Frisco line just west of the Bentonville Station.

The rail would have turned north just in the foreground of this picture.

The rails ran right down the middle of the street. The train stopped at the Massey Hotel, then continued on to Park Springs Hotel at the north end of town.

On July 1st, 1914, several hundred Bentonville citizens and a band went to Rogers on the first trips of the new motor car, and an informal reception was held. A little later Rogers returned the call and a dinner and picnic was held at Park Springs.

The fare was 15 cents at first and the car made several trips each day. The motor car, as Black called it, was not always reliable and missed a good many trips. But this was alot better than have just one run a day like the Frisco made with their train that ran from Rogers to Grove, Oklahoma.

The train was far different from any the people in Benton County had ever seen before. It was a big red coach trimmed in black with gold lettering. The engine was in one end of the long coach and next to this was a small baggage room. The coach was 92 feet long inside. The passenger part seated about 130. Sometimes there was standing room only.

The line was owned by J. D. Southerland, that is, he owned both ends of it. Mr. Southerland came to Bentonville in the fall of 1913, and bought the Park Springs Hotel. At that time it was a large and beautiful summer resort. But it was hard for people to get from the Frisco station in Rogers to the hotel.

Mr. Southerland made a deal with the Frisco Railroad line to run his train on their track from Rogers to Bentonville. The only trains running was a passenger train to Grove that went out in the morning and back at night. Then there were a few freight runs. Mr. Southerland made his runs between these.

The Rogers station was just a roofed over platform a block from their Frisco station. There was a shop and shed at the Bentonville end of the line, and the train was kept here overnight. At that time the streets were all dirt, so when they laid the track they used short ties and built the track in the center of the road. The wagons and what few cars there were had to drive on both sides of the track.

"The Interurban filled a need at the time when it was built," said Henry Cavness, one of the last men to die who had worked on this train. "I was the brakeman the whole time the train ran. There were several motormen, among them Ed Largette, Ben Guol, Art Mayhall, and Jake Kohley. Bob Fowler and a man named Ketter were the comductors. We used just a three man crew to run the train. We hauled mail between the two towns and always met the trains that ran on the Frisco main line. The tourist going out to stay a month at Park Springs sure would have a lot of baggage. Sometimes we would fill the little baggage compartment."

The first run left Bentonville at 615 in the morning and the last run got back to Bentonville at 1130 in the evening. They stopped at Cherry and Walnut Streets in Rogers, then at Apple Spur, Arlan Spur, Massey Hotel and Park Springs Hotel.

In the evening there was always a good crowd riding. They could go to the picture show or visit in town. In the summer whenever there was a ball game, fair, or carnival in either of the towns, the coach would be full every trip.

The rate was raised to 40 cents for a round trip, one way 21 cents; 5 cents from the Massey to Park Springs. They had a ticket office in the Massey Hotel; this was also the business office. Most people just paid when they got on. This train stopped almost anywhere along the line to pick up or let off passengers.

"The only time we ever had any trouble was when we had a full load," said motorman Jake Kohley. "I remember one night in the summer of 1915, it was the last run and there had been a carnival in Rogers, and we had a load of about 150 people. Someone had opened the switch at the edge of Bentonville; when we hit that it knocked the wheels off the car. We were very lucky no one was hurt. But a lot of them had to walk home...The auto took the place of the trolley but it seemed to me a lot of fun of the trip went out when the trolley did."

The motor car made its last trip June 11, 1916, when the Frisco railroad ordered it off their tracks for non-payment of lease dues.

At about this time Mr. Southerland lost or had to sell most of his holdings here. Soon the track was taken up, the coach sold and the line was no more. But old-timers still talk about the trips to Bentonville or Rogers, or a trip to Park Springs for a picnic that was made on the Interurban. (that was in the 1970's that Black did his research.)

The only one who ever talked of the bad parts of the line was a man who drove a team to a freight wagon. He said,"The ties stuck out so far that if you were not careful a wheel would hit one and could throw you right off the wagon. But it had its place, just as the horse once did, but they are both gone now."

I have done a lot of searching but I have yet to have found any old tickets, baggage claims, photos of the storage shed, or especially any sign of where the unique train went once it left Bentonville and was sold.

Robert Winn, railroad expert, has the most accurate description of the engine in his book Railroads of Northwest Arkansas. He called it a "knife-nosed McKeen car with distinctive round porthole type windows. " I have searched all of the records at my disposal but have come up short on whatever happened to it.

The internet has some beautiful pictures of this same type of engine, especially the one restored for the Nevada State Railroad museum in Reno.

Don't you know that this beauty would have caused a stir travelling down Bentonville streets?

Here is the interior view:

You can follow this link on Youtube to see Reno's old engine in action after restoration:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YmOSWNmjfsY

The north end of Bentonville was a popular recreation spot during those years. The big Park Springs Hotel had a pool, cabins, and several springs that were thought to have had healing powers. There was a large baseball park somewhere around the area of what is now NW A and 10th probably lying to the east. It was known as the Blackjack ball park. The area around Park Springs was not even annexed into the city limits until the 1930's.

Maybe someday soon the trains will run again, carrying passengers from Fayetteville to Bentonville and back, in hopes of alleviating some of our traffic woes. We shall soon see.

BENTONVILLE'S BIGGEST FIRE (January 14,1921)

From the Benton County Record:

Property worth nearly $100,000 destroyed 

Volunteer Fireman Killed by Falling Wall

New Fire Equipment Ordered

Fire broke out shortly after midnight Saturday morning in the rear of the new building of the Benton County Hardware Company, and for two hours the fire department and voluteers fought the flames valientlu. but they were fighting against hope, for the water pressure as so weak that a stream of water could barely be thrown into the second story windows. The fire was discovered by john Webster, who lives in the country and a party of boys, who were returning form a party shortly after midnight Friday night. They gave the alarm.

Shortly after two o'clock the north wall fell burying Charles A. Masterson, a hoseman, covering him with a ton of brick. He was quickly recovered by Lyle Casey and Wm. Wilson, but death had come instantly. he was examined by Dr. Huffman who was near by and found frightfully mangled.

About twenty minutes later, the two story Huffman building caught fire from the roof and was completely destroyed. It was occupied by the Atkinson and Huffman Wholesale Grocery, the Electric Studio, and the Zimmerman Grocery.

In the meantime flames were quickly eating their way into the south end of the building and at one time looked as if the Massey Hotel, the Craig building and handsome structure of the County National Bank were doomed. The timely arrival of the Rogers Fire department with their splendid equipment and the fire was soon under control.

The exact damages of the fire cannot be fully given until the insurance adjustor makes his report. The loss given below is based on the figures given by the firms themselves.

The Benton County Hardware company had the greatest loss. Their new two story brick was completed but a few weeks ago, at a cost of $16,000 and was used as a combined sample room, warehouses and Ford Service Station. A stock values at $35,000 was on hand at the time of the fire. Among the heavy losses were eight power sprayers, one car of Springfield wagons, four or five Weber Wagons, about the same number of buggies a car of International gas engines, 25 new Ford cars, trucks and a large quantity of spray material, besides a complete stock of Ford car parts, and other pieces of machinery. The firm carried $28,000 insurance on this stock.

The Atkinson and Huffman Wholesale Grocery Company carried a stock of about $30,000 which was covered by $14,000 in insurance.

The building of Mrs. W.M. Baird which went through the fire safely was insured for about $2000 but was damaged and weakened somewhat by the fire. It is thought that $500 will cover the loss.

The big fire proved that our pretty red truck labelled Bentonville Fire Department is all right on a dress parade but with fire staring it in the face, proves inadequate. Consequently at the council meeting Tuesday night it was decided to purchase a suitable fire truck that will take care of our needs for several years to come.

Old and leaky hose had to be used at the fire although the city had placed an order for 1000 feet of new hose several months ago. A first class firefighting equipment, good hose, and the fire plugs examined every thirty days would prove a big factor in having our high insurance rates reduced.

(The headstone for the grave of Charles Masterson was purchased by the fire department and the nozzle he was holding at the time of death was presented to his widow. Masterson was not a member of the department but only a passerby who had stopped to help man the hoselines.)

Bentonville Railroad History

The construction of a railroad meant growth and prosperity for many an isolated town in the mid-19^th century. Compare it today with receiving an interstate highway, telephone lines, and internet service all on the same day. Its effect was much the same: an outlet for farm produce, a means of entry and exit into the area, and a means of communication with the outside world through enhanced mail service.

The story of Bentonville’s railroad is a complicated one, intertwined with political wrangling and personal maneuvering by many a community leader. As early as December, 1853, there was a bill put forth in the House of Representatives by A. B. Greenwood to grant right-of-way… “to aid in the construction of a railroad from….Springfield Missouri to Bentonville Arkansas…” Bentonville was fortunate enough to be home to a United States Congressman, at a time when the state only merited two representatives for the whole state. But the political winds were blowing unfavorably for Bentonville and the railroad did not come to fruition until after the Civil War.

Railroads proliferated during these years. Northern capitalists were eager to tie the industrial centers with the agricultural lands in the south, and new railroad charters were issued almost weekly. The bountiful orchard lands of Northwest Arkansas were no exception. The Library of Congress has an 1872 map on file which shows the Texas and Northwestern Railroad system; a tentative line runs directly through Bentonville in a line from Missouri to Fort Smith and beyond. When reading newspapers from the era, one finds that citizens were frequently called to “railroad meetings” sponsored by the various rail lines, which were in competition to service the area. Unfortunately, the political machinery was slow moving, due to both national and local economic woes and arguments within the State government concerning the repayment of railroad bonds.

By the late 1870’s, the St. Louis and San Francisco Railway was determined to extend their tracks to Bentonville, Fayetteville, and Ft. Smith from a point on their line between Joplin and Springfield at Pierce City, Missouri. Newspaper accounts from the day follow the construction from Pierce City to the Arkansas line. Bentonville residents were so enthusiastic that they named the street that led to the north out of town “Pierce City Road.” 

At this point in the story, the facts become muddled. Weekly accounts in the Fayetteville newspaper “The Sentinel” explained the construction of the railroad in detail and Bentonville was long touted as one of the towns to be included on that line. Somehow the plan changed around December 1880 and the railroad was moved to a line from Seligman Missouri south to Fayetteville, creating the new towns of Avoca, Rogers, and Lowell, avoiding Bentonville altogether.

The primary resource from the period – newspapers and court documents especially – are scarce. The Fayetteville “Sentinel” does little to explain, only that at least two meetings were held in Avoca with railroad officials prior to the change.

The story handed down by several people was that the railway officials asked Bentonville for money but were turned down. Rogers then offered the money and was rewarded with the line. J. Dickson Black, in his book History of Benton County, points to a $15,000 fee that was requested by the railway that had been denied by Bentonville officials but was put up by more savvy Rogers officials. Although this may be fact, I find it unlikely. The Bentonville townspeople had been eager to put money towards securing a rail line; in fact the line that linked Bentonville to Rogers that was built the very next year – 1882- cost $42,000 and was paid for by capital raised by a group of sixteen Bentonville businessmen.

As noted in Goodspeed’s History of Benton County, written in 1888, Rogers, at the time it was chosen as a town site along the St. Louis and San Francisco Railway, contained nothing but a dilapidated pole cabin. The money that was put up by the businessmen of what would eventually become Rogers amounted only to $600, the amount which was demanded by the company’s right-of-way agent. They did, however, provide several acres of right-of-way free of charge, including a depot site.

The loss of the railroad was more likely due to geographical reasons than any other. Once the surveyors for the railroad entered the county and investigated all of their options, the route taken would likely have been the cheapest and most direct. Looking at a 1903 topographic map of the area we can see that the railroad snaked its way through the mountains from Seligman to Fayetteville along a relatively flat plain. Some bridges were required, but it appears to have been an easier route.

Whatever the case, we may never know exactly why the railroad moved east. At the time, it was seen as devastating to the local economy, but the Bentonville businessmen did bring a branch line to town, allowing the local economy an outlet to the world. 

Bentonville was once again bitten by the railroad bug in 1890 and 1891 when the Kansas City, Bentonville and Springdale Railroad was chartered. In three months of intense work, a grade was completed from Bentonville to the Missouri line. Unfortunately, the hopes of the city were dashed when it was found that the right-of-way for McDonald County had not been secured and the workers were laid off “indefinitely.” Remnants of what are reported to be this grade still exist north of Bentonville.

In 1898, Bentonville finally acquired a through road with the Arkansas, Oklahoma and Western railroad, which eventually ran from Rogers to Grove, Oklahoma. It was affectionately known locally as the “All Off and Walk” due to it’s inconsistency of adherence to a timetable.

Following the slow decline of the orchard based economy of Northwest Arkansas which really ended during the dust-bowl years of the 1930’s, the railroad industry also waned. The line from Bentonville to Grove was abandoned in 1940 and after that rail service into Bentonville was on an “as needed” basis. It indeed has served its purpose. Quoting Tom Duggan, expert on Arkansas Short Line Railroads, “The Bentonville Railroad was conceived of civic pride…The (railroad) branch…served a vital function for perhaps thirty years in the lives of the residents living along the line.”

Here is an excellent link to an article by railroad expert Tom Dugan on the Bentonville Railroad...

http://www.arkrailfan.com/userFiles/364/0206.pdf

Also, under my historical photos there are a few more photos on the railroad subject.

A short history of Bentonville, Arkansas

A. 1836 - 1860

      Settlers lived in the Bentonville area as early as 1830, but the town was originally known as Osage. The post office was established in December, 1836. The town was later renamed Bentonville in the same manner as the county was named, after prominent Missouri Senator Thomas Hart Benton who had been a strong supporter of Arkansas statehood. The town of Bentonville was selected as county seat of Benton County upon Arkansas’ acceptance as a state on June 15^th, 1836. The town site itself was not laid out and platted until November 7^th, 1837.[1]

            Almost immediately the first general store opened on the east side of the town square, but isolation caused the town to grow slowly. It was the town’s good fortune, then, to lure in a new resident in 1838 who would begin to help put Bentonville, economically, on the map. Alfred Greenwood was appointed in 1837 as one of the Federal Commissary agents who escorted a group of Cherokee Indians into the Indian Territory. After the escort, Greenwood decided to move his family from Georgia to Arkansas, and he selected Bentonville as their new home. Greenwood opened a law office in a town with a population of thirty. There was only one business, a general store. In 1846 he was elected by the state legislature as prosecuting attorney representing ten Northwest Arkansas counties. He held this position until 1852, at which time he was elected Circuit Judge of the Fourth Judicial District of Arkansas. This position was short-lived, as Greenwood resigned in 1853 when nominated to Congress from the First Congressional District, which consisted of all territory north of the Arkansas River. This position was one of only two congressional seats for the whole state and it was from this seat that Greenwood was allowed to procure some benefit for Bentonville, his home town.[2] He nearly immediately began building support within the federal government to aid in the construction of a railroad from Springfield, Missouri to Shreveport, Louisiana via Bentonville. The railroad bill that was proposed by Greenwood eventually fell short, lost on the fears surrounding the upcoming 1856 election and the furor over slavery.[3] But Bentonville had been helped considerably. By the start of the Civil War, there were five general stores, a furniture store, saddle and harness shop, two hotels, and three or four mechanics shops. It also contained county buildings, two churches, a Masonic lodge and school house, and about 500 citizens.[4] New roads were built, securing a lifeline for the town to the outside world. 

      B. 1860-1865

            The Civil War was particularly devastating to the town. The most important battle west of the Mississippi was fought within ten miles of Bentonville. Sometimes called “The Gettysburg of the West,” the Battle of Pea Ridge was fought in March, 1862, and resulted in a sound Confederate defeat. The battle all but secured Union control of Missouri, a much needed victory after their defeat at the hands of the Rebels at Wilson’s Creek, Missouri in August, 1861. Many of the local boys fought in this battle and others throughout the war, but the main damage to the town was done by Union soldiers during the war. Rumor has it that the soldiers, angry over the alleged death of one of their comrades at the hands of a local, burned many of the buildings in town, including the county court house. According to Goodspeed, “Bentonville, especially, suffered terribly from the ravages of war. In February, 1862, when a portion of the Federal troops belonging to Gen. Curtis’ army passed through the town, a soldier lingered behind…and was killed by one in sympathy with the southern cause. Some of the Federal soldiers returned to town the next day, and on learning the fate of their comrade became exasperated, applied the torch in revenge, and on this occasion thirty-six buildings were consumed by fire…Afterward…buildings continued to be burned in the town, and in the country surrounding it…Both (Union and Confederate) contending parties now claim that the court-house was burned by the other. According to best authority, two churches, the Masonic hall and school building, and the jail, were burned…This work of burning property was carried on to such an extent that when the war closed only about a dozen houses were left standing in Bentonville.”[5]

      C. From Reconstruction to the New Century

          From 1868 to 1874, Arkansas state government remained in disarray, although relations with the United States government had been reestablished. There was a complex power struggle within the Republican Party that was encouraged by the Democrats. This conflict meant the return to power by the Democrats. With the election of Augustus H. Garland in 1874, the internal conflict finally ended.[6] Reconstruction also held up the town’s plan to build a new court house in 1871. Money was scarce, and when the county attempted to sell $33,000 in bonds to pay for the court house, only $14,500 could be collected. It took a second bond issue in 1873 to secure the funds for construction. [7]

            In January, 1873, Bentonville was officially incorporated as an Arkansas town. This allowed the town to be self-governing, with the “full authority to organize as such and…as a corporate body have all of the powers conferred by law upon incorporated towns of its size and class…Provided always that the town council…hereafter be selected by the qualified electors of said incorporated town…” The incorporation also allowed the city to levy taxes on property within the city limits, except for that land, “…used only for farming purposes…nor upon any timbered land…within the limits of said corporation…”[8] However, granted this new power, the city fathers failed to enact their first ordinance until 1886, some 13 years later. No city records remain to explain the gap. One possible reason is that the city was being pushed to incorporate by one of its favorite political sons but failed to continue with the enthusiasm after the deed was done.

            In another stroke of good fortune, two more great politicians made themselves at home in Bentonville.  Samuel Peel was an ex-Confederate colonel who practiced law in Bentonville beginning in 1867. In 1869 he convinced his brother-in-law, James Henderson Berry, to move his family to the town and join in law practice with him. In 1872, Berry was elected to the state legislature from Benton County. In 1878, he was elected to a circuit judge position. Peel served as a state prosecuting attorney from 1873 until 1882. In that year both men moved to higher office. Berry was elected Governor of Arkansas and Peel was elected to Congress. Berry served until 1885 when he was appointed to the United States Senate to fill a vacant position. He served here until 1907. Peel served in Congress until 1892.[9] The benefits of having two hometown attorneys in state and national office at the same time again allowed Bentonville to receive more attention than most towns her size.

---

[1] Conflicting reports vary on the date that the name was actually changed. Postman/attorney/amateur                                                        historian Alvin Seamster reports in an article for the Benton County Pioneer, that the name was changed on July 10, 1841. However, in his book Handling the Mail in Benton County, George Phillips quotes the date as January 3, 1843. In either case, the name Osage had apparently fallen out of favor upon statehood in favor of the respected politician Benton.

[2] J. Dickson Black, History of Benton County, International Graphics Industries, Little Rock, Arkansas,

1975, pp.163-165

[3] Journal of the House of the United States of America, 1789 – 1873, Feb. 21, 1856.

[4] Goodspeed, History of Benton, Washington, Carroll, Madison, Crawford, Franklin, and Sebastian Counties, Arkansas, Goodspeed Publishing Company, Chicago, 1889, p. 96.

                [5] Goodspeed, p. 97.

[6] C. Fred Williams, S. Charles Bolton, Carl H. Moneyhon, and LeRoy T. Williams, editors, A Documentary History of Arkansas, University of Arkansas Press, Fayetteville, 1984, pp. 88-89.

[7] Black, History of Benton County, p. 28

[8] Petition for Incorporation of the Town of Bentonville, Jan. 7^th, 1873

                                                [9] Black, History, p 165-172