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Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
By Josiah H. Shinn, A. M.
Member Imperial Russian Geographical Society, St. Petersburg; Member
Imperial Russian Historical Society, St. Petersburg; Honorary Member
of Pennsylvania and West Virginia Historical Societies:
State Superintendent of Public Instruction, Arkansas, two
terms; Chief Clerk, Office Secretary of State, three
terms; President Southern Educational Association,
two terms; Vice President National Educa
tional Association; President Arfcjinsas
Educational Association; Judge Lib
eral Arts Department, World's
Columbia Exposition,
Chicago, IU.; Account
ant in Indian Office,
Washington, D.C,
and Chicago, III.,
three years; Founder of
Southem School Joumal;
Author of "History of the Ameri
can People," "History of Arkansas,"
"History of Education in Arkansas," publish
ed by the U.S. Government; "History of the Shinn
Family in Europe and America," "U. S. Land Surveys,"
"History of Russia," "Russia at the World's Fair," pub
lished in English and Russian; "The Public School and the College,"
"Thc South in Public Education," "Vassar College," "Life and Public
Services of Brigadier General Lewis G. Arnold;" Correspondent for many
Societies and Publications, and founder of The Washington Literary Bureau

Published by
Genealogical and Historical Publishing Company

COPYRIGHTED 1908
BY M. C. SHINN
WASHINGTON, D. C

PRINTED BY
DEMOCRAT PRINTING & LITHOGRAPHING CO
LITTLE ROCK, ARKANSAS.

PREFACE
This modest volume does not deal with downfalls either of
Roman or any other vaunted civilization or empire; it has noth
ing whatever to do with submergences, whether the thing over
whelmed be kingdom, satrapy or monarchy, Persian, Assyrian
or Egyptian; it makes no vain appeals to the lessons of history
and depends in no sense on industrial conformity to an organi
zing authority.
It will deal less with the permanency of our institutions
than with the institutions themselves ; less with methods than
matter; less with evolut'on and law than with humanity. The
modern scientific spirit with its crucifixon of thought and in
terest will be entirely and exclusively ignored.
This book will be devoted to the people, who fashioned and
builded a State, and it makes not a raps difference to the author
whether these people had Bagehot's conception, or Lubbock's
conception of progress or not. It is enough for him to know
that they were human beings, — that they lived and acted their
parts, — and that all l.hat they did contributed to everything that
now prevails. They were here first and did their work as
human beings unmanacled by science and formality and there
fore interestingly. As men and women, they performed a life's
work, died and were buried. They cleared farms, made roads
and enacted laws — all for their own comfort and well-being —
the highest end and aim of life. They seemed to know that by
the sweat of their brows they should eat and that he who pro
vided not for his own had denied the faith and was worse than
an infidel. They sought to better their condilion and laid by
for a rainy day. They were your fathers and mine.
The aim of this book will be as Macaulay expressed it — "to
make the past present, to bring the present near, to invest with
the reality of human flesh and blood beings whom we' are
too much inclined to consider as personified qualities," rather
than to rob history of its human element by a cataloguing of
facts without eifort to lead their meaning. With Lord Acton,
the sanest historic authority, we believe that "History is the con
science of mankind," and have therefore set out thousands of
facts as a potent influence in showing what the pioneers really
did — their modus operandi — their hopes, joys and sorrows, as

parts of an experience we are interested to know and from which
we may one and all draw general lessons of moral and political
wisdom. The book was made while busily engaged upon other mat
ters — in fact, is the outgrowth of more pretentious historic
study — but will not lose interest or value by reason thereof. It
is the outgrowth of years of grubbing in old newspapers, old let
ters, old legal tomes, and documents, and of contact with grave
yards, tombstones and death registers.
It is sent to the world with some misgivings but with a
larger hopefulness. Scribbling in magazines run riot in mis
statement, over-statement and folderol about the difference
between the way we do things and the way in which our grand
fathers did them. We are glibly told that a cabinet officer today
does not only twice as much work as did his predecessor fifty
years ago but that he does it twice as well. Our government
officials are said to conduct the affairs of the people with a
keener, greater business energy than they did in days of old,
and we are expected to believe it. Our cabinet officers are globe
trotters and runabouts — on exhibition everywhere under the
ostensible plea of getting into closer touch with the bigger things
of today. They splurge more but work and think less than did
their predecessors — men who worked out the rules and regula
tions by which the real business of government is done at this
good hour. The experience of one hundred years, crystallized
into rules unequalled elsewhere in the world, is treated to the
Don Ouixotean lances of a Keep Comimssion or some other
commission of fledgelings, whose only recommendation is noise.
W^e are told that they are doing things and when the noise dies
and cold reason returns, we find that they have simply brought
a lot of changes without a single iota of improvement. Ex
perience is more and more derided, and change is more and
more taken for real evolution. We have a new Indian policy —
a new land policy — a new fiscal policy, with every change in our
cabinet officers and we are asked to believe that each of these
new polices is an improvement on the old, simply because it
comes heralded as a modern improvement, forgetting that every
real improvement must come through the throes of a biting
experience, and not through a mere political change of ofificers.

IV

We undoubtedly do many things diflferently and better than
did our fathers. We travel differently and better; we have a
different and better physical light; we have different and better
facilities of many kinds, but with all these differences and better
ments, we are not doing more proportionately than did our
grandfathers — and in m^any cases we are doing proportionately
less. We have possibly more knowledge and it is intimated
that we certainly have less wisdom; we have more preaching
and less morality; more of the spectacular and less real produc
tivity ; more brag and less accomplishment. We have more
goober grabblers on the surface but not an equal number of
profound thinkers ; more tinkerers but no greater number of
real workers ; more shouters but no greater number of real con
verts. We have more money and less conscience ; more wealth
and less restraint; more ease and less happiness. Our Bible is
the same old book our fathers read but we have learned to skip
the difficult lines. Our Caesar is the same old story about Gaul
but we have destroyed its hard places. Morality today is just
what it always was but we have decked it with strange clothes.
We have changed the material world and hav* improved it by
the change, and with impious hands have claimed a like right
to change the moral and spiritual world — to Mter the unchange
able and limit the infinite.
We have done really great and wonderful things but in
claiming credit for them we have slandered the dead and run
rough shod over past greatness and goodness, without adding a
particle lo our real greatness or a single iota to our real good
ness. We are really doing things — great and imperisliable
things — ^but we are the heirs of the ages — the recipients of cen
turies of experience, and should gratefully acknowledge our in
debtedness. All that is old is not good and all that is new is not bad.
The fathers worked for better things and made macerial pro
gress; we started where they left off but have by no means
reached the goal. We tre and ought to be proud of our age but
this should not lead us to flippantly decry the majestic work of
our fathers. I would have no man look backward for the mere
glory of ancestral worship, nor pause a single instant in the real

work of developing the world. I would only look back to catch
the rays of the world's great lamp of experience, for without a
genuine, real and hard experience there can be no lasting, per
manent and general improvement. There is no sound method
of judging the future but by the past, and with this thought as
a basis, I launch my "Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas" with
the hope that it may give courage to thinkers and workers every
where and nerve them for a greater and more successful work.
Josi.vH H. Shinx.
Washington, D. C,
October i, 1908.

CONTENTS
Chapter i. — The Formation of Arkansas Territory — The Foundation
of the Arkansas Gazette — The Leading Men at Arkansas Post  9
Chapter 2.— 'Woodruff's Power at the Post— Early Post-Offices— The
Original Spelling'of the Word Arkansas  15
Chapter 3. — 'Who's 'Who of Old Arkansas Post— French and Amer
ican Settlers  23
Chapter 4. — First Officers of the Territory — All Non-Residents  29
Chapter 5. — General Miller, Our First Territorial Governor — ^His
Opinion of Early Little Rock — ^General Jackson's Opinion of
General Miller  34
Chapter 6. — Early Settlers on the Rivers of Eastern Arkansas and on
the Arkansas River  40
Chapter 7.— The Settlement of Crystal Hill— Pyeatts, Carnahans—
Grays  45
Chapter 8. — Alexander S. Walker, Soldier, Lawyer and Legislator... 51
Chapter 9.— Robert Crittenden— William O. Allen— The First Duel in
Arkansas  58
Chapter 10. — Samuel Mosely — Francis Notrebe — Terrance Farrelly.. 66
Chapter 11. — Pringles — Harringtons — Morrisons and Dardennes — List
of Revolutionary Patriots  72
Chapter 12. — Samuel Calhoun Roane  80
Chapter 13. — ^Shirt Sleeved Millionaires  93
Chapter 14. — The Coraing of the Covered Wagons  102
Chapter 15. — Distribution of Settlements in 1820  109
Chapter 16 — Benjamin Fooy and Fooy's Point — W. B. R. Horner — St.
Francis and Helena  117
Chapter 17. — Great Cherokee Indian Agents — Matthew Lyon, Edward
W. DuVal and David Brearly  131
Chapter 18. — First Authentic Maps of the Territory showing Roads,
Towns, County Lines and Streams  144
Chapter 19. — Longevity of the Pioneers — Some Old Marriages and
Marriage Customs  157
Chapter 20. — Early Election Practises  166
Chapter 21. — ^Governor George Izard  172
Chapter 22. — Robert Crittenden  179
Chapter 23. — ^Chester Ashley — Thomas Willoughby Newton  185

CONTENTS— Cont.
Chapter 24. — The Superior Court of Arkansas — Andrew Scott — Ben-
j amin Johnson  195
Chapter 25.— Ambrose H. Sevier— William S. Fu'.ton — Pre-emption.. 206
Chapter 26. — Joab Hardin — The Bentleys — Major Welborn — Abner
Harold — Colonel Thomas Mathers — The Arkansas Traveler  217
Chapter 27 — Rev. Cephas Washburn  222
Chapter 28.— Major Isaac Watkins  '  228
Chapter 29. — Slaveholders of 1830  • •  235
Chapter 30. — The Fletchers  240
Chapter 31. — Edmund Hogan  250
Chapter 32.— The Two P Architecture— The Martins  255
Chapter 33. — Henry L. Biscoe  264
Chapter 34. — Caleb Lindsey — uther Lindsey Families  269
Chapter 35. — The Brilhart and Davis Families — ^Marriages and Deaths 280
Chapter 36. — The Lafferty Family  /  290
Chapter 37. — ^The Kaufmans, Coffmans and Cuffmans  300
Chapter 38. — Augustus Hill Garland  307
Chapter 39 — The Deshas  331
Chapter 40. — Abraham Ruddell  338
Chapter 41. — The Wilson Family  348
Chapter 42. — The Rector Family  370

ERRATA
On Page 263, line 12 read "Jared Carswell Martin."
On Page 293, line 15 read "on White River."
On Page 303, next to last line read "October 22, 1782.'
On Page 345, thirtieth line .read "thirty-sixth year."
On Page 367, sixth line read "1873."

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas

CHAPTER I.
The FoRM.\TiON OF Arkansas Territory — The Foundation
OE THE Arkansas Gazette. — ^The Leading Men at Ar
kansas Post.
March 2, 1819, is a notable date for Arkansas, as on that
day the president approved the bill which created the territory
of Arkansas. The debate, which led up to the final vote in
Congress, was more than usually dramatic and was participated
in by Taylor of New York, Clay of Kentucky, Walter of North
Carolina and McLane of Delaware. In Committee of the Whole
House, Representative Taylor offered an amendment containing
two divergent propositions ; — one prohibited the further introduc
tion of slavery into the territory, and the other provided for the
emancipation of all negroes born in the territory after the expi
ration of twenty-five years. The speeches on one side bristled
with arguments and fancies concerning fre,e labor, its dignity
and worth; the evils of slavery, its wastefulness, its slovenliness,
and, greatest of all, its antagonism to pure reason and its incom
patibility with free institutions.
On the other hand were arrayed arguments and fancies,
showing the constitutional rights of slaveholders to travel at
will carrying their chattels, the improved condition of the
African in slavery as compared with his free condition in Africa,
and brilliant exaggerations of plantation life.
CEOSE shave eor advocates oe slavery.
The House of Representatives was about equally divided in
sentiment. The amendment was divided and its first clause failed
by a vote of seventy ayes to seventy-one noes; the second clause
carried by a vote of seventy-five ayes to seventy- three noes. Thus
the further introduction of slavery was permitted, but a gradual
emancipation provided. This did not suit the framers of the

10 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
bill and when it was reported to the house it was moved to refer
it to a special committee with instructions to strike out the sec
ond clause. On this vote the ayes numbered eighty-eight and
the noes numbered the same. The tie was broken by the vote
of the speaker in the affirmative. When the special committee
reported back, the vote upon concurrence stood eighty-nine ayes
to eighty-seven noes. It was a close shave, but the advocates of
slavery won. Suppose the vote had been registered the other
way on one or both these propositions, what would have been the
result upon Arkansas affairs? Who can answer the question
with any assurance of accuracy? Missouri would have been ad-^
mitted as a free State beyond all question and the line between
the free and slave territories in the West would have been drawn
much farther to the South. But what of its influence on after
Arkansas history? Would the hands of the Arkansas develops
ment clock have gone forward or backward? There are two
sides to the question, but it is not outside the realm of sound
prediction to say that the victory of the South in Congress in
1819 was a stumbling block to the rapid development of the ter
ritory. This congressional debate presaged the dawn of limitations
upon the slave power, which found legal status wh^n Missouri
was admitted as a State, and sounded the eventual death knell of
slavery throughout the country.
The discussion showed that little or nothing was known
about the population of the State, or its resources. The com
mittee which reported the bill ignored these questions and the
disputants were without facts. Some one from Missouri sug
gested that there might be fourteen thousand people in the pro
posed territory and the speakers adopted this unit of measure
ment, and it has ever since remained Unquestioned. The real
population was nearer ten thousand than fourteen thousand, as we
shall show in another chapter upon the census of 1820, the first
enrollment of the pioneers as Arkansans.
Bir.TH OF ARKANSAS TERRITORY.
July 4, 1819, was another notable date for Arkansas, as on
that day, under the provisions of the act of March 2, 1819,

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas ii
Arkansas territory was legally born, with its capital at Arkan
sas, as the Post of Arkansas was called.
October 30, 1819, was another notable date, indicating the
arrival of William E. Woodruff at Arkansas with his printing
press. BIRTH OE THE GAZETTE.
The greatest date for Arkansas history, however, is Novem
ber 20, 1819, the date when the first issue of the Arkansas Ga
zette made its appearance at Arkansas.
Other events have had a more or less marked influence on
Arkansas men and affairs, and their dates have become monu
mental landmarks signaling the student to corner-stones of
political growth, — bases from which new bearings are to be
made. But towering over all these, in both absolute and rela
tive importance, must be rated the first issue of the Arkansas
Gazette, the initial beacon of a greater intelligence, the first
headlight of a greater progress, and the commanding index to
the march of improvement and power.
William E. Woodruff lacked the higher forms of education,
was not blessed or burdened with wealth, but was the happy pos
sessor of a trade. He had something which he could do, and
he had that something well in hand. Opportunity in 1819 seem
ed to have her habitat in the West and the sons of the East
were seduced by her call. It has been said that the energetic
sons of the East went West at that time, while the drones re
mained at home. This is a superficial showing, however, as a
very slight acquaintance with affairs will demonstrate that these
stay-at-home drones had energy enough to take care of the East
and place mortgages on the seemingly greater energies of the.
West. WHEN OPPORTUNITY WHISPERED.
Woodruff had a trade, but no location. He might have
worked at the cases in New York and made a competence. Op
portunity whispered that the West was a better field and Wood
ruff inclined his ear. He found nothing that promised at Wheel
ing, at Louisville, at Russellville, or at Nashville. It seemed
that he had been beguiled by a siren voice and that the West

12 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
was not what it had been painted. Panegyric has lauded his
rowing a boat from Wheeling to Louisville, and his walking
from Louisville to Xashville. This is superficial also, as the
common heritage of men at that time was to row or walk. All
pioneers could do either, and it was a poor specimen of man
hood that would hitch up a team to go ten miles. Walking was
in vogue and its devotees numbered all the able-bodied populace.
The caravans of covered wagons that moved from the Atlantic
States in early days carried the household goods, the aged and
the infirm. The men and women walked with the horses from
the Fords of the Dan, to the Fords of the White, and were all
the better for it. Woodruff could row a boat, a.id walk four hun
dred miles, two things which proclaimed his title to ordinary
American manhood as measured by the standards of his day,
standards which Americans might adopt today without any loss
of prestige, strength or power.
But although he had not found a mecca, he still had hopes.
There was St. Louis on the borders of civilization and Arkansas
Post far beyond its confines. Should he take St. Louis, or
should he take Arkansas Post? St. Louis already had a news
paper and the competition there would be great indeed. Arkan
sas Post was the capital of a new territory, had no paper, and
with a true Macedonian cry was shouting, "Come over and help
us.'' It is said that he tossed up a dollar and that the decree of
chance favored Arkansas. There is nothing in the after life of
William E. AVoodruff that points to the habit of settling momen
tous questions Ijy an appeal to chance. His life seemed to be
made up of balances in which reason was the umpire. Reason
pointed to Arkansas Post with unerring finger and William E.
Woodruff crossed the Rubicon and entered Arkansas. The issue
of his after life demonstrated the wisdom of his choice.
He landed at Arkansas with his printing press on October
30, 1819, and on November 20 of that year, just twenty-one days
after his arrival, issued the first copy of the Arkansas Gazette,
and continued to issue it at the same stand, without the loss of
a single issue, and without a tardy issue, on every Saturday, to
December 29, 1821, the date of the first issue at the City of Lit
tle Rock.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 13
THE GAZETTE IN TWO LANGUAGES.
Arkansas Post at this time was one hundred and thirty-three
years old, and was largely populated by people of French de
scent. So large was the proportion of French speaking people
in Arkansas Post and in the territory at large, that Woodruff
printed his announcements for office in English and French.
The whole population at the post could not have numbered more
than two hundred, and most probably not more than one hun
dred and fifty. There were thirty dwelling houses built in the
French style, besides several stores, a mill and a hotel. The two
principal streets were Front street and Main street. The prin
cipal business was the buying of peltries and cotton. The French
hunters and trappers lived on almost every stream in eastern
Arkansas and bartered their wares at Arkansas Post or New
iMadrid. The cotton plantations were around Arkansas Post,
but did not yield the quantum of goods or money that followed
the trade in furs and skins. The mercantile business of the
post was considered large for the times.
BUSINESS MEN OE 1819.
James Scull ran a mill which did a large business. The prin
cipal cotton factor was William Drope of New Orleans, and
Frederick Notrebe acted as his agent at the post. Drope ran
this business in conjunction with a store which carried every
thing from sugar to sawmills. Samuel Mosely kept another
large general store on Main street, and for ten years had been
the principal competitor of Notrebe. Mosely died before Wood
ruff reached the place, and his widow in January, 1820, married
Terrence Farrelly of the firm of Farrelly & Curran. This firm
opened up at the post in December, 1819, having come from
Pittsburg with a large stock of all kinds and sorts of goods,
plenty of energy and a determination to win. They occupied the
house formerly occupied by Captain Allen, and reached out with
claw hammer hands for cotton and peltries. Eli J. Lewis was
postmaster, clerk of the Circuit Court, tanner and storekeeper,
and the boomer of the town.

14 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
BIG ADVENTURES OF THE EARLY DAY.
Lewis & Thomas kept the largest general store down on
Front street, carried dry goods, groceries, hardware, queens-
ware, boots and shoes, hats, caps, books and stationery. In the
first issue of the Gazette they took a double column three quar
ter page advertisement and kept it going all the time. They of
fered eighty barrels of good whisky, one barrel of peach brandy
and one barrel of fourth proof whisky, among an array of other
articles that would have done credit to Marshall Field, or any
other kind of department store. Pryor & Richards had been
doing a good business, but closed out about the time of Wood
ruff's arrival. Farrelly & Curran were passably good adver
tisers ; Notrebe touched it gingerly but Lewis & Thomas had the
modern idea and took printer's ink in preference to anything else
as a means to an end. It is possible that Woodruff would have
starved before getting a sound start had it not been for the gen
erous help of this firm. Woodruff's rates were one dollar for
each fifteen lines and fifty cents for the same space for each
subsequent insertion. Lewis & Thomas carried a standing ad
vertisement of about two hundred lines, which warmed Wood
ruff's heart all through the winter of 1819-20, when he found
it most difficult to make both ends meet.
THERE WERE DELINQUENTS THEN ALSO.
The subscription price of the paper was three dollars a year
if paid in advance and four dollars a year if paid at the end of a
year. The frequent calls in the paper for advance subscriptions
during the first year justify the conclusion that a very large
number of his subscribers preferred to pay thirty-three and one-
third per cent, more and wait till the end of the year for a re
ceipted bill; and the most urgent plea at the end of the year to
call and settle, showed that there were quite a large number of
subscribers who still owed the printer, and who were not anxious
about the receipt. Human nature has not changed much since
Adam and Eve started the race of mankind. If a higher and a
lower price is set out in a paper every day, and the subscriber
knows that he has violated every condition upon which the lower
price rests, he will still demand the lower price when he comes to

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 15
settle. Nearly all of Woodruff's subscribers who settled at the
end of the year demanded the three-dollar rate, although every
issue of the paper informed them that this was an advance rate.
When all other sins are old avarice is yet young ; it is never satis
fied; it blinds our eyes, disposes men to fraud, increases with
wealth, is both knave and fool, is insatiable. And Old Billy
Woodruff met this sin in 1819-20, as every editor of the country
meets it to-day.

CHAPTER II.
Woodruff's Power at the Post — EarlV Post Offices — The
Original Spelling of the word, "Arkansas."
He is half done who has made a good beginning. William
E. Woodruff landed at Arkansas Post on Saturday, October 30,
1819, without friends, money or renown. He had youth, energy
and a printing press to his credit and with these he began his
work. The coming of a printing press to any town is an event
of note ; what must it have been to the inhabitants of that isolated
town, the post of Arkansas.
A man with a bell could run all through it in thirty minutes
calling its people to arms or to events of pleasure. The whole
town was soon down on Front street gazing at the young east
erner. Woodruff, with earnestness, and with rapt wonder at the
strange machine, the printing press.
ARKANSAS POST's GREATEST HONOR.
Arkansas had long been a post under both French and Span
ish rule. Its people were not unacquainted with the politer
forms of life as expressed in the higher walks of life at Paris
and Madrid. Arkansas was continued as a post under American
rule and hither had come many of the officers of the American
army. Arkansas had been honored signally by Congress in be
ing selected as the capital of the territory. True, there was no
other town in the territory, but that did not detract from the
honor rightly ascribable to a town already there, — and a town
that had lived longer than several of the colonial governments.

i6 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
But the greatest honor the town ever had was the honor con
ferred on it by the unknown printer, William E. Woodruff.
Robert Crittenden on October 30, 1819, was not as big a
man as Woodruff in the eyes of the inhabitants of Arkansas, nor
was the governor, James Miller, who arrived a short time after
ward. Crittenden and Miller could run the territory, but it took
Woodruff to show it off.
There was onh' one road, the one running from Davidson-
ville in Lawrence county, to Ouachita in Louisiana, and over
this road, once a month, the mail was carried on horseback.
Sometimes during 1819 and 1820 that mail rider did not show
up, for two whole months, and frequently his pouches did not
contain a single letter or package for Arkansas. The people of
the town wanted more of the limelight. They desired to have
some sort of recognition in the great outside world. They
wanted more mails, more roads, more opportunities. Wood
ruff's printing press was the means to the end, and Billy Wood
ruff was the man of the hour. The fullblood Quapaws from the
Southwest looked on with grunts, long and deep; the halfbreeds
disclosed their French or Spanish antecedents by long and sus
picious scrutiny; while the Americans whispered, "Now watch
the town grow."
Nor were these people very far wrong in their estimates of
men. Crittenden and Miller-were greater in a special sense, but
not equal to Woodruff in the permanency of influences set to
work by him and them. Crittenden and Miller fixed certain
forms and blazed the way for rising political institutions. Wood
ruff fixed forms of thought and prepared men for conduct undei
any and all institutional forms. Crittenden and Miller were
evanescent. Woodruff was permanent and far more influential.
THE GAZETTE BROUGHT RESULTS.
But aside from generalities. Woodruff filled the bill as out
lined by the populace. He had not been there four months be
fore he got mails once every two weeks, and the promise from
the postmaster general of a weekly mail. A road was cut to
Cadron, and another to Montgomery's Landing. People began
to migrate to the territory, and hardly an issue of the paper-came

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 17
out that did not tell of these waves of people pushing over the
country. More letters came in the mail pouches, and, greatest
of all, the Arkansas Gazette every week carried the happenings
of the world to the firesides of the people. The printer was the
greatest man in town, as he ought to be in every town.
Woodruff had no subscribers when he landed, nor did he
waste any time in getting them. The people took the job off
his hands. He asked no man to take the Gazette, but old citizens
of the town took his lists and drummed the town and country.
Woodruff unloaded his press and moved it into an old house
off Front street which belonged to Richmond Peeler and set it
up ready for operation. This house had no value before Wood
ruff occupied it, but by January 20, 1820, it had so increased
its worth as to be sold in an action for debt by Joseph Stillwell
and was bought in by Woodruff.
Woodruff was the "whole push." He had no helper but
himself, and not only had to prepare all the matter, but set it up
and run the press. The editorial matter of the paper cost noth
ing for the reason that there was no editorial matter in the paper.
One column was given to local reporting and all the rest of the
paper to advertisements and general reading matter clipped from
Eastern and foreign papers. The reading matter occupied about
seventy-five per cent of the paper and the advertising about
twenty-five per cent.
The paper was printed on sheets eleven inches wide by eight
een inches long, and had four pages of four columns each. It
was uniformly of this size while printed at the post.
There was no special delivery of the paper in town and each
subscriber was requested to call for his paper. The subscribers
did this with alacrity, as they all wanted the news, besides never
tiring of seeing Billy Woodruff work. I have never passed
Hearst's newspaper office in Chicago without seeing from twenty
to fifty men and women standing there gazing at the wonderful
machines. One would think that the interest would wear out in
time, but it does not. No thorough going man can pass a great
newspaper press without complimenting it by a look. So much
the more was the feeling at Arkansas Post.

i8 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
CELEBRATION IN HONOR OF THE GAZETTE.
The machine talked faster than the men could talk, and ever
so much better. In twenty-one days Woodruff ran oflf his first
edition a bright, well printed, newsy document. It set the post
on fire and cost Lewis & Thomas a barrel of whisky in celebra
tion. Woodruff wrote a sensible salutatory, one line of which is
worth a quotation, and then worth remembrance. He said: "It
is the duty of every man to be useful in whatever situation he
may be placed in life," and then proved his right to say it by
keeping the Gazette going as a headlight for the State's prog
ress to power. AN E-'^.RLY ORACLE.
One anonymous writer in the first issue stated what the
town needed and what it could well do without. He said, first,
that the town and territory had a sufficient number of lawyers
—more than were then making a living by their practice.
The outlook then was about the same as it is today so far
as the law is concerned. It is a great profession, but it is over
crowded from Bangor, Maine, to Pasadena, California.
The writer said, second, that probably enough physicians
were on hand to meet every demand, and that unless things got
very much worse, no more doctors were needed.
But the thing wanted and wanted bad was an influx of
farmers, or a lot of men to work the farms. These pictures
of the pen show the condition of things better than any words
of ours and lead to the conclusion that things have not changed
materially in eighty-seven years.
The first issue of the paper had five marriage notices and
one obituary, which was a good beginning and a fair omen.
Fifty-one letters were advertised and the names on the list be
long to men who in other parts of the territory and State ac
quired celebrity.
There were two tailors in town and they both advertised the
latest cuts and fashions. The day of "Hand-me-downs" had
not come and all people dressed more decently and adorably.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 19
Mr. Craig kept a tavern where men of fashion congregated, to
discuss the news and show their clothes. Stokeley H. Coulter,
a fine old-fashioned tailor from North Carolina, kept all the
latest plates, beneath which ran the legend, "Clothes make the
man and I make the clothes." Out on Main street J. B. Burt
kept another shop with the motto, "Eat to please yourself, but
dress to please others." In 1820 a third tailor shop was opened
by John B. O. Ragan, who took for his trademark the words:
"The tailor makes the man, and that suit is best that fits
best." Shoemakers were flush with money at the place, as $2.50
pegged shoes were unknown. A tailor-made man had fine sewed
boots, which cost from $10 to $15 a pair. And the father of
the writer of this article made fine beaver hats which proclaimed
their wearers as finished productions.
These advertisements are indices to the town. They show
a degree of .wealth and thrift not found in ledger footings and
balances. They also show a high degree of refinement and so
cial standing. In this atmosphere the Gazette began its career
and in this community for two years it sustained itself with
credit. EARLY ARKANSAS POSTOFFICES.
When the paper started there were but two postoffices in
the territory, Arkansas Post and Davidsonville. In less than
six months there were six with the following postmasters :
Arkansas Post, Eli J. Lewis.
Davidsonville, Richard Searcy.
Cadron, Thomas H. Tindell.
Clark Court House, Jacob Barkman.
Hempstead Court House, John English.
White River Postoffice, Pej^ton Tucker.
In the original records of postoffices at Washington, D. C,
ths postoffice at Arkansas Post is listed under the spelling, "Ar-
kansa," a form retained on the record for seven years, when it
gave place to the form "Arkansas."

20 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
woodruff's influence on SPELLING.
The act creating Arkansaw territory contained the word
Arkansas eight times, and each time it was spelled with a final
w, and not a final s. President Roosevelt has just given official
notice to the world that he proposes to change the recognized
spelling of about three hundred words. Spelling by law will
never prove profitable for the reason that lawmakers and exec
utors are not specialists in orthography, and Roosevelt's mandate
will likewise fail.
John Scott, delegate to Congress from Missouri in 1819,
is said to have drawn the bill which cut off Arkansas from Mis
souri, and he is responsible for the act which legalized "The
Territory of Arkansaw,'' with its capital, "Post of Arkansaw"
on the "Arkansaw" river.
Two other laws were passed by Congress prior to 18 19,
which applied to Arkansas County in Missouri territory, both
drawn by Missouri men and both times using the form "Arkan
saw." So far as Missouri could do it she attempted to fasten on
the people of Arkansas forever the spelling, Arkansaw, and it
will be interesting to note the failure of tiiis spelling and the
causes which led to its downfall.
A general article is far too short for a complete explica
tion of a series of beautiful Indian words, but not too short for
an enumeration or an induction, whose force may be grasped by
all who read.
The following is an array of strangely resonant Indian
words in the singular number:
Chippewa, Omaha, Altamaha, Chocta, Chickasa, Tensa,
Moapa, Nebraska, Ivansa, Arkansa, Quapa, Arickasa, Sagina,
Oklahoma, ]\Iaricofa, Alabama, Apalachicola, Pensacola, Tam
pa, Ponca, Nemaha, Umatilla, Arizona, Taya, Kiowa, Oneida,
Yakima, Ka, Jacarilla, Pima, Dakota, Yuta.
Nearly all of these retain this singular form today and only
take a final s when pluralized: The words Chocta, Chickasa,
Quapa, Sagina, and Ka for many years were pluralized by add
ing an s, but after awhile were changed in- the singular so as to

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 21
end in w. These five words are universally spelled in the sin
gular with a final w. An attempt was at one time made to
change Chippewa to Chippeway, but failed. The change from
Yuta to Utah was successful. The four words, Tensa, Kansa,
Arkansa, and Taya, at a very early date took on a final s to de
note a singular, and Taya changed to Texas. Prior to 18 19 the
universally proper way to spell these words, was Kansas, Arkan
sas, Tensas, and Texas, and it was also universally recognized
that these forms were in the singular number. It is idle to
speculate upon the causes for this change, as they are beyond the
analysis of the human mind.
But from 1812 to 1819 efforts were made to change Arkan
sas from its plural form to the real singular Arkansaw, and to
place it in the Choctaw category. This might have succeeded
but for the pertinacity of William E. Woodruff, Sr.
He published the act creating the territory in the first issue
of his paper and changed the eight spellings of the law, "Ar
kansaw," to the recognized form, "Arkansas." He headed his
paper "The Arkansas Gazette," and on the publication, line
placed the words "Arkansas, Arkansas Territory." He kept
this up until he moved to Little Rock, when he changed the
publication line to "Little Rock, Arkansas Territory." In all
the thousands of times that he used the word in the paper he
spelled it "Arkansas." The people of Arkansas never saw any
other form in the Gazette, their leading paper, and they very
rarely saw any other form in any other paper. William E.
Woodruff more than any other man, yea, more than all men
combined, taiJght the people to love the form "Arkansas," and
it is safe to say that this form will never be changed.
But there was a time when it might have been changed
easily and that time was in 1819-20. William E. Woodruff
could have followed the form used in the law and thus taught
the people to love and revere that form. He could have printed
the name of his paper "The Arkansaw Gazette" and other pa
pers would have gradually fallen into line.
The newspapers hesitated for a long time and for about a
year spelled the word "Arkansaw," but when they saw Wood-

22 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
ruff's paper clinging so persistently to the older form they went
back to "Arkansas."
The Washington Intelligencer printed the law and used the
Arkansaw spelling. The same paper followed the final w form
for two years. The two St. Louis papers of 1819 refused to
make the change and always spelled the word "Arkansas."
Niles' Register took up "Arkansaw" for a while, but abandoned
it. A\^hen the annals of Congress were printed in 1853 the orig
inal act was printed with the word "Arkansas" and not "Arkan
saw," which seemed to imply that the word had never been
, spelled with a "w." But the session laws of 1819, printed at
the same time, show the eight recurrences of the word with the
form, "saw."
Peter's Digest of the United States statutes in 1854 repro
duced the original act and used the "w," but in all the notes
used an "s."
Nuttal, the only scientific man who has ever written a
great deal about the State, and who visited it. in 1818, persist
ently used the form, "Arkansa," a triumph for all who advocate
the original spelling of this beautiful word.
Another man of science, Featherstonaugh, visited the State
in 1835, and left two forms of spelling. Whenever he referred
to the State he wrote "Arkansas," but whenever he referred to
the river he used "Arkansa." Frederick Gerstaecker, the Ger
man hunter, who tramped all over the State from 1839 ^o 1842,
always spelled the word "Arkansas."
William E. Woodruff may have never known that the legal
spelling was "Arkansaw." If so, he triumphed through igno
rance. The probabilities are, however, that he did know, but
refused to follow the law, so far as its barbarous spelHng was
concerned. It was about this time that the following verses ap
peared in many papers creating no end of merriment from
Maine to Missouri :

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 23
"I love the girl from Arkansaw
Who can saw more wood than her maw can saw
And can saw much more than her paw can saw
In the grand new State of Arkansaw.
"Then sing and saw
For maw and paw,
For that old saw
Of Arkansaw.
"See saw the girl from Arkansaw,
Whose saw outsaws her maw's best saw,
And saws a saw her paw can't saw,
The oldest saw of Arkansaw.
!'Her maw can saw,
Her paw can saw,
And she can saw,
In Arkansaw.''

CHAPTER III.
"Who's Who" of Old Arkansas Post — French and Amer
ican Settlers.
To the solemn tread of the tune "Old Hundred" we ap
proach the "Old Timers" who are in the strictest sense the
"First Families of Arkansas."
The glory of ancestry sheds a halo around their posterity;
birth is nothing without it. The deeds of the Old French set
tlers at Arkansas Post have for the most part been obliterated.
The French were attracted in the earliest times to the post by
reason of the superior prowess of the Quapaw Indians who in
habited Arkansas. They were the dominant tribe of the South
Mississippi 'Valley and the French were eager to cultivate ami
cable relations with them. This resulted in the maintenance of
an army post on the Arkansas and in intermarriages between
the French and the Quapaws.
Much criticism has been wasted upon "Alice of Old "Vin
cennes." All of the descriptions of the book are historically
true, and every character in it might have been found in the
personages who lived at Arkansas Post from 1718 to 1800.

24 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
SOCIETY AT ARKANSAS POST.
The Catholic church, with its priests and their civilizing and
refining influence, was there from the very beginning. The law
of France and Spain had been well represented by soldiers, offi
cers and men, who had won distinction on European ground,
and who carried with them the social atmosphere of a distant
world. The French immigrants to Louisiana had come from
all grades of French life except the highest nobility. Under the
rule of the United States the post was still maintained and the
presence of officers like Colonel J. B. Many, Colonel Armistead
and Major Bradford, with garrisons of from fifty to one hundred
men, assured some degree of social advantage and brought in
great floods of light from the outer world.
True the community declined. On the whole it was a de-
generate community. It retained godliness and gentleness, but
it lost energy, virile power and industry. The common outdoor
dress was the Canadian overall and blouse, unchanged and un
changeable, and the highest aspiration seemed to -end in being
either a noted trapper or a first rate hunter. Despite all this
there w'ere brilliant exceptions and to these we now turn in order
to introduce you to the "Who's Who," the real old First Families
of the State. the vaugines.
We have the authority of Nuttal for saying that Lewismore
Vaugine was a superior man. This testimonial is still further
reinforced by the voluntary testimony of Colonel Preston, a repre
sentative of the United States land office from Washington, who
visited this community a few years after Nuttal. One of Vau-
gine's ancestors belonged to the nobility of France, as Nurtal
says, and was sent over by the king as commandant of the Post
of Arkansas. He acquired large interests and remained. Susette
Vaugine, his sister, a winsome, piquant and attractive blossom
of the forest, attracted the affections of the soldier, Chalmette,
the commandant in 1780. A daughter of Lewismore Vaugine
captivated Don Joseph Valliere, the commandant from 1786 to
1790. The birth and position of the Vaugines was of the best,
and these two marriages simply increased their prestige and

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 25
power. Francis Vaugine, born 1 793, brought this family far into
the last century and into closer contact with real American Hfe.
Francis Valliere was connected by blood with the Vaugine
name. the bogies.
Lewis Bogy, or as Nuttal spells it. Bogie, was not a native
of Arkansas, but was, nevertheless, one of its most prominent
men. Nuttal brought a letter of introduction to him from
learned men of the East, and his own testimony is enough to
give Louis Bogy a place quite apart from the other residents of
the place. That he could follow Nuttal in his scientific and bo
tanical disquisitions and be interested therein, attests his mental
parts. He was born in Canada, but came to the post in 1790,
where he remained until he died. Ignace Bogy was another
prominent member of this line.
THE VARSIERS.
Francis Varsier was born at the post and christened by the
Catholic fathers in 1793. His father and mother were both
natives of this region, from forbears that came from the south
of France. FRANCIS d' ARMAND.
This Frenchman did not live at the Post, but was so well
known there as to make it proper to consider him at this point.
Distinguished in France, he decided to improve his fortune in
'¦'La Louisiane," He came in 1766 and selected a site near the
mouth of the White, put up a huge chateau and engaged in
trade. His fortunes grew apace as did the reputation of his
noted home. His houses were to be seen as late as 1833, and
William Montgomery, who purchased the place, made it one of
the most noted landings on the Mississippi river. It was the
Monte Carlo of the Mississippi Valley.
Other Frenchmen who were here more than one hundred
years ago are Francois Imbeau, Baptiste Imbeau, Joseph De
Chassein, Antoine de Chassein, Baptiste Socie, Joseph Bonne,
Baptiste Bonne, Louis Bartelmi, Francois Coupot, Joseph Val-

26 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
liere, the Closseins, Antoine Barraque, Eteinne Vaugine, Pierre
La Farve, John Larquer, and Pierre Michel. It would be in
teresting to know how many of these are represented in Arkan
sas by name and blood today.
SYLVANUS PHILLIPS.
Phillips county carries this man's name and is his monu
ment. Born in the United States, he was in early life attracted
to the West and in 1797 built a log cabin near the mouth of the
St. Francis river in Arkansas, and was, as he said, the only set
tler for miles around. His nearest neighbors were Antoine Tes
sier and Joseph De Plasse, who lived at the mouth of the Cache.
Be3'ond their residences there were no other settlements in that
direction. In 1798 he explored the Arkansas river for some
distance above Arkansas Post, but found no settlement in that
direction. In 1799 the commandant of the post, fearing an up
rising of the natives, warned Phillips to remove to the post. He
did so and remained there for many years, and was joined by
J. B. Mooney and the Pattersons, all related by marriage, and
who with him made extensive explorations for mineral and tim
ber wealth. He gained in this way a great knowledge of the
territory, a knowledge which Sam C. Roane, in later years, was
enabled to use as an effective club in breaking up the gigantic
land frauds which threatened to despoil the State of hundreds
of thousands of acres of land.
CHRISTIAN PRINGLE.
This man was born in Hagerstown, Maryland, in 1760. In
his twentieth year he took his gun and, accompanied by his dog,
started into the wilderness of the West. For two years he ram
bled over West Virginia, Kentucky and Tennessee, equally at
home in one place as in another. In 1782 he reached Arkansas
Post, where he spent the remainder of his life. He was univer
sally respected and died in January, 1820. He seems to have
been an unmarried man, but this is not clear.
THE WINTERS AND STILWELLS.
Sometime between 1790 and 1798 Elisha Winter and Ga
briel Winter went to New Orleans and began the manufacture

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas , 27
of cotton rope. They were Kentuckians and their free handed,
open hearted ways soon gained therri the friendship of people
in power. As recompense for introducing a manufacture into
the province, it is said that the commandant granted them one
million arpens of land on the Arkansas river. In 1798 these
men, accompanied by Joseph Stilwell, who had acquired an in
terest in the grant, arrived at Arkansas Post and began a so-
called survey of their lands. This Winter-Stilwell grant ex
tended from the Post along the Arkansas river on its northern
side to Argenta, and proved a great impediment in after years
to the newcomers seeking for homes. In 1819, a man seeking
lands had no chance between Arkansas Post and Little Rock.
The Quapaws owned all on the south side and the Winters and
Stilwells claimed to own all on the north side. The Quapaws
could not sell, and while the Winters and Stilwells were eager
to sell, no one would buy for fear that the grantors had no legal
title. The Winters erected houses on their land, sub-let in many
cases, made a stubborn fight in Congress, but were finally ousted
by the United States and their claims disallowed.
¦ Joseph Stilwell was a man of varied parts, could speak Span
ish, French, English and Quapaw and was most highly respected.
He was a member of the first territorial legislature, being elected
to fill a vacancy, and made his announcement when seeking the
place in both English and French, which proves the existence
of a French speaking voting population in other parts of the
territory. Harold Stilwell was another prominent member of
this family.
.It will be a matter of greater interest, however, to say, that
Joseph Stilwell was a revolutionary soldier. He was born in
1752 in Monmouth county. New Jersey, and enlisted as ensign
in the first regiment of New Jersey troops, and was soon pro-
m.oted to the captaincy, and was in command in the affair at
Sandy Hook in June, 1776. He was then made captain in Col.
Forman's battalion on July 18, 1776, in detached mihtia service.
He was in the battle_of Monmouth and suffered all the hardships
of the many campaigns in New Jersey. In Monmouth, Somer
set and Gloucester counties. New Jersey, there were twenty-two

28 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
men of the name Stilwell, three of them being brothers of Joseph
and all related by blood lines.
After the war the Stilwells, in common with hundreds of
other Jersey families, were without homes and the day of pen
sions had not arrived. The West was open to them and there
they went in companies of from ten to fifty.
Joseph Stilwell drifted into Kentucky, where he met the
Winter family, and from there he migrated to Arkansas Post,
where he spent the last twenty-two years of his life. He died
at the post on September lo, 1822, leaving an aged wife, a num
ber of children and troops of grandchildren.
, HEWES SCULL.
This gentleman came from Philadelphia to Arkansas Post
in 1802. His ancestors were from Salem and Gloucester coun
ties. New Jersey, and were brave and public spirited men. Eight
men of that name were in the Continental line from South Jersey.
On one occasion a noted Philadelphian was excoriating New
Jersey for leaning too much toward Toryism. One of the Sculls
happened to hear him and remarked: "Shut up, you old fool.
You don't know whereof you speak. Every Scull in New Jersey
was in Washington's Army." This play upon the word "skull"
made New Jersey appear very patriotic.
Hewes Scull, like many an other Jerseyman, was attracted
to the West by the stupendous effort made hy the land specu
lators of Southwestern Ohio to people Symmes' Purchase, 'the
region around Cincinnati. Stratch a grave in the Cincinnati
cemeteries dug before 1810 and you will in all probabi^'*-y dis
cover a Jersey man's bones. But Hewes Scull did not leave his
body at that place. He heard of Arkansas Post through some
French traders and made his way to that point. He was a mer
chant and trader and amassed some wealth. He was honored
by the people of Arkansas county with many positions of honor
and trust and was in every sense a splendid type of the early
pioneer. James Scull has his name perpetuated in the .treaty
made with the Quapaws in 1824, and by this document it is cer
tain that he was as that time worth $7,500, owed to him by the
Quapaws, and which the government agreed either to pay in

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 29
money or by the grant of two sections of land in the old reserva
tion. The government let him take the land.
There may be a few more names in this locality, or in some
other, that represent families who have been on Arkansas soil
continuously for one hundred years ; if so, their owners can
easily attach themselves to this list of the noble clan of old
famihes and be entitled to all the privileges of the order. It is
surprising, however, how few there are who are thus to the
manor born.
If there is a divine right for the existence of the noble order
of the "Colonial Dames," or the "Society of May-flower De
scendants" or "The Settlers of America," there is an equal right
and chance for the "Who's Who of Arkansas," the descendants
of ancestors who were in Arkansas one hundred years ago. And
if it be an honor to descend from one whose feet first touched
American soil at Plymouth Rock, it can be made an equal honor
to descend from ancestors who lived on any particular soil, but
best of all, on Arkansas soil, one hundred years ago. If all that
is ancient is beautiful the sons and daughters of the ancient may
be pardoned for their desire to perpetuate the memory of their
ancestors. The second death of oblivion must never come to the few
names that connect Arkansas in the eighteenth with Arkansas in
the nineteenth century. Horace Greely said that the only cer
tainty which follows us is oblivion, but he might have softened
it by saying, "He who saves a life from oblivion adds to the rem
iniscences of eternity."

CHAPTER IV.
First Officers of the Territory — All Non-Residents.
The territory of Arkansaw was created on March 2; its
governor and secretary were appointed by President Monroe on
March 3, and the announcement thereof printed in the Wash
ington Intelligencer, the congressional record of that day, on
March 4, 1819. That closed the Washington end of the affair

3u Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
and the new territory was not again mentioned in any print at
\\^ashington until the following December.
Four lines were used by the Washington Intelligencer in
announcing the appointment of James Miller of New Hampshire
as governor, and Robert Crittenden of Kentucky as secretary.
So far as A'\'ashington people were concerned they were not in
terested in the territory nor in the men who were to govern ii.
Some few knew that James Miller had gained a glorious reputa
tion at Lundy's Lane by saying "I'll try, sir," but that day
was over. Why revive its memory at this time? A lesser num
ber had heard of Robert Crittenden and even these could not tell
what he had done to deserve the honor. Why should the ap
pointing power at AA^ashington in choosing men to govern a terri
tory always select them from men living outside its boundaries
and to the least extent interested in its affairs? Is it because
there are no qualified men in the territories ? Not at all. In the
case of Arkansas it was certainly not the case.
' ]\Iajor Vaugine would have made every whit as good a
governor as James Aliller did. Sylvanus Phillips would have
filled the bill, as would Richard Searcy. Hewes Scull would
have made equally as good a secretary of the commonwealth
as did Robert Crittenden. In the first place there was very little
for either officer to do and that little required nothing more than
firmness, honesty and a small modicum of business ability. Tal
ent was of far less use than tact, and the home product was more
likely to possess this than any foreign importation.
It is a. beautiful fiction of our politicians and lawyers that
ours is a government resting on the consent of the governed.
No consent whatever was given by the inhabitants of Arkansas
to the Act Creating the Territory of Arkansaw. They were
never consulted. What consent was given by the people of
Arkansas to the appointment of the executive and judicial offi
cers from 1819 to 1836? The law was made without consulting
the people, and the officers who were chosen were for the most
part appointed by a power outside the boundaries of the territory.
Politics is a game of favors. The aid extended in one field
m.ust be repaid by favors in another. The president of the United
States is supposed to select the wisest and best men, but it is

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 31
somewhat strange that in territorial matters he never finds wis
dom or goodness within the territory.
All that can be said in favor of the current method of ap
pointment is that it introduces, or may introduce, new blood
into the body politic, and may possibly induce a desirable class
of citizens to become permanent residents.
CRITTENDEN WAS A YOUNG LAWYER.
Robert Crittenden was a young lawyer from Kentucky, a
scion of a family that afterwards became somewhat distinguished
in that State and in the nation. There were too many Critten-
dens for Kentucky's omnivorous office-seeking propensities, and
her friends were always most gracious in their desire to lend a
few of them to other States and territories. In this way Ken
tucky lent a great many of her men to Arkansas and Missouri.
So far as Arkansas is concerned she 'has never had any
reason to be ashamed of her Kentucky settlers, and least of all
of Robert Crittenden. True, Arkansas had men within her
borders thoroughly competent to do the work as well as Critten
den did it, but they were not competent, it may be, to become
yt^hat Crittenden became. Crittenden made a good secretary of
the territory, but his fame does not rest upon this, nor did his
management thereof reflect any transcendent ability. The office
was a minor one, and the fact that a man of superior ability
filled it did not make the office an iota greater.
Crittenden had a shorter distance to travel than Miller and
got to Arkansas Post nearly six months before Miller. Crit
tenden received $i,OQO a year and the governor $2,000. A man
who gets twice the salary is supposed to have twice the dignity,
and may be permitted to travel more at will. Crittenden was on
time, but Miller was about six months off the date, the salary
funning on nevertheless. The government was to begin on July
4, 1819, with a governor, a secretary, a council, and a court. The
Council, to save money, was to consist of the three members of
the court, all of whom were non-indigenous productions. One
of the judges. Judge Andrew Scott, hailed from Potosi, Mis
souri, and got to Arkansas Post before any of the others. There

32 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
he began to make those friends who ever afterward made his
life enjoyable and who never relaxed their affectionate regard.
Robert Crittenden and Robert P. Letcher came in next, and
came in together, as Letcher was also a Kentucky production.
Charles Jouett, the third member of the court, appointed from
Michigan, soon followed and the machinery of government was
ready for operation. True, the governor was not there, but by
the double action of the la-w, Crittenden could act as governor
while commissioned as secretary.
JIILLER MAKES LEISURELY TRIP.
James Aliller, the governor, was signaled at Pittsburg late
in September and seventy-five days after that his high and
mighty ship, the Arkansaw, landed at the wharf at Arkansas
Post. What marvelous speed ! What a wonderful junket ! Just
a trifle more or less than ten miles a day. Billy Woodruff could
have walked the whole distance in half the time and would have
done it for half the money. If a chip had been thrown on the
Ohio when the gallant craft, the Arkansaw, left Pittsburg, it
would have reached the mouth of the Arkansas or the mouth of
the White more than thirty-five days earlier than did the gover
nor. The chip would have attended to the business of floating
and would have reached there in good time. Miller had other
fish to fry. He was the hero of Lundy's Lane and heroes in the
United States can't travel like chips. They must slow up at all
the landings and let the populace see what a real hero looks like.
He must get off the boat at certain places and let the people
touch his clothes for some virtue to soak through them to the
devotee. I have seen a bewildering mass of people stand around Wil
liam Jennings Bryan waiting to grasp his hand. I have seen
hundreds, who finding their time would never come, push through
and touch his coat. I asked Bryan, at my table the same day,
after he had helped himself the third time to the choice chicken
my Kentucky wife had prepared for, her kingliest of men, just
how he felt when men pushed through to touch the hem of his
garments like they did in the davs of Christ.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 33
Said Bryan: "Well, you have a Blue Grass wife who will
appreciate my answer whether you do or not. How do I feel?
Why, sir, I feel like a prize steer at a Kentucky fair."
So it is with every hero. So it was with James Miller. At
Cincinnati there were a great many heroes of the war of 1812
and they all wanted to see the author of the memorable words
"I'll try, sir." All the old citizens were down on Rat Row, as
the insignificant wharf of the time was called. This was before
the advent of the Storers, the Tafts and the Longworths, the
men who now confer honor by inheritance on Losantiville, the
old name of Cincinnati, the Queen City of the West.
The men who waited on Miller were original heroes of two
wars, the War of Independence, and that other war which
rubbed our independence in. These men were not the sons or
grandsons of great men, but were great themselves. Miller had
to stop and he had to stay. He was taken up to that old mag
nificent hotel which in early days faced Front street and was
there dined and wined until further trial was out of the question.
He swept everything before him at Lundy's Lane, but was sig
nally conquered at Losantiville. Not satisfied with one great
feast, they laid out another for the night in order that the wcpien
of Cincinnati might grasp his hand.
Out on the streets if you met a man and> said "Will you have
one on me?" his answer came pat, "I'll try, sir." And when after
awhile you said, "Turn about is fair play. Will you have an
other?" The answer was the same old saw, "I'll try, sir."
It was a trying time for Cincinnati. Everybody seemed to
be impressed with the idea that this was the exact time to try and
keep on trying. The whole town was on the ragged edge of an
incipient drinking festival and most thoroughly committed to the
New Hampshire logic, "I'll try, sir."
It was the same way at Louisville, at Paducah, at Cairo and
at every one horse landing along the route. The only wonder is
that the hero of Lundy's Lane got to Arkansas Post at all.
He arrived, however, in the middle of December and Billy
Woodrufif noted the event in twelve short lines. He was sworn
in and for four years made a good governor of the territory.

34 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
CHAPTER V.
General Miller, Our First Territorial Governor— His
Opinion of Early Little Rock not Favorable — Gen
eral Jackson's Opinion of General Miller.
There is so much in the life and character of James Miller
that is worthy of study, that we are warranted in giving a fuller
exposition than we have already given.
He was born in the fastnesses of the mountains in the Gran
ite State, a poor boy, and was singularly fortunate in not having
a superabundance of opportunities. Bacon has said, "A wise
man will create opportunities," and it is far better to be endowed
with common sense, the basis of wisdom, than to be born with
a silver spoon. The silver spoon will come to every one who
has sense and courage to master his own mind and use his own
hands. Nor will a wise man waste time in a useless discussion of
the equality of opportunity. Equality of opportunity is far more
prevalent in the United States than equality of wisdom.
miller's honorable career.
James Miller had an abundance of that old-fashioned com
mon sense which was the almost universal heritage of Americans
one hundred years ago. He entered the army and was a good
soldier. In 1808 he had risen to the rank of major in the Fourth
United States Infantry, and in two years more had become the
lieutenant colonel of the Fifth ; he was transferred to the Sixth
in 1812 and was made colonel of the Twenty-first in 1814. He
won the honor of a brevet colonelcy in 1812 for distinguished ser
vice at Brownstown, Canada, and was promoted to the rank of
brigadier general in July, 1814, for distinguished services at
Niagara Falls.
Congress on November 3, 1814, by unanimous resolution
presented him with a gold medal as a testimonial of the high
sense entertained by Congress of his gallantry and good conduct
in the several conflicts of Chippewa, Niagara and Ft. Erie. He
resigned his position as general in the United States army on

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 35
June I, 1819 to accept the position of governor of Arkansas Ter
ritory, which had been tendered him by President Monroe.
EARNED EVERY promotion.
Miller made his way from obscurity to renown not by rea
son of superior chances, but by bravely doing the best thing that
came up for accomplishment. His life was the logic of "I'll
try," backed by works proving his sincerity. The preceding rec
ord is a stair step of accomplishment, and the same record may
be made by any determined man. Miller made many strides
from common soldier to general of the army, but he always kept
step. He earned his promotions, and his titles are his legitimate
capital. He was General Miller when he came to Arkansas, and
not Colonel Miller, as some Arkansas publications describe him.
He was a real general and not a paper-made general, as were
several of the men at Arkansas Post at the date of his arrival.
The so-called General William O. Allen was a real captain in
the United States army and nothing more. General John Har
rington had some militia experience but nothing to warrant the
title) "general." The same was true of General William Mont
gomery, who afterward made Montgomery's Landing a famous
resort. In the same negligent way the real Captain Spencer
came to be a colonel, and Ensign Robert Crittenden received
the same colloquial promotion. Robert C. Oden was called
colonel, and Terrence Farrelly, general ; the first being a lieuten
ant colonel of the Second Arkansas regiment of militia, and the
latter adjutant general.
There is no valid objection to that form of colloquial
pleasantry which compliments by exaggeration, but there is no
justification whatever, for the practice of some writers, in styling
General Miller, "Colonel Miller," a degradation from his ac
credited rank.
James Monroe recognized the merit of the old soldier and
made him governor. He was a hero and the people of Arkansas
have always been proud of his selection.
GOVERNOR miller's first MESSAGE-
He landed at Arkansas post in late December and at once
convened the Arkansas legislature. In his first message to that

36 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
body he set out at full length the reasons for his tardy arrival.
He was appointed on March 3, 1819, and the wise oflficials at
Washington sent his appointment to the post of Arkansas, so
that he did not receive it until June ist, too late for him to make
the twenty-four hundred mile trip and reach his destination by
July 4.
The remainder of his message dealt with the local needs of
the territory and was expressed in words that carried conviction.
In April he set out for Dardanelle, accompanied by iiis aides de
camp, Samuel Dinsmoor and Rufus P. Spaulding.
These gentlemen came in with the governdr from the East
and announced their intention to become permanent citizens.
The legislature of 1820, by a special act, arranged for the exami
nation of Spaulding as an attorney at law, and he and Dinsmoor
formed a partnership for the practice of law at Arkansas Post.
They were successful, but the climate prostrated them and they
had to leave. DINSMOOR AND SPAULDING.
Samuel Dinsmoor was born at Windham, Vermont, in 1766
and was graduated from Harvard in 1789; he represented Keene,
New Hampshire, in the Twelfth Congress as a Democrat ; was
in Arkansas from December, 1819, to January, 1821 ; was State
councilor of New Hampshire and presidential elector for Mon
roe in New Hampshire in 1821-22; probate judge of Cheshire
county from 1823 to 1831, and governor of New Hampshire
from 1833 to 1835. He died in 1836.
Rufus P. Spaulding was born at Tisburg, Massachusetts in
1799, and was graduated from Yale in 1818. Was the first law
yer admitted to the bar in Arkansas territory; removed to
Trumbull county, Ohio; served several terms in the legislature
and was speaker of the house; was for several years judge of
the Supreme Court of Ohio; removed to Cleveland to practice
law, and was sent to Congress as a Republican in the Thirty-
eighth, Thirty-ninth and Fortieth Congresses. He died in i88d
These two young men accompanied Governor Miller on his
first of many trips to consult with the Indians. Governor Miller
was in Arkansas nearly four years, and during that time traveled

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 37
more into the interior than all the other territorial governors
combined. He and Major Bradford were almost all the time
from 1820 to 1824 busy with Indian disputes and Indian out
rages. They attempted pacifications that promised much, but
were thwarted, not only by the Indians, but by the rapacious
whites. The latter class wanted all the land lying inside the
boundaries despite the fact that the Indians had a legal right to
more than one-third of it.
white man's rule in arkansas-
Miller was respected by the Indians, but soon decided that
the two peoples could not live in harmony and prosperity inside
the same boundary, and advised the general government that it
would be wise to begin the removal of the Indians. His advice
was taken, and in a short time after he left the State there was
but one government in the territory, and that was the white
man's rule. His advice to the successive legislatures was sound
and resulted in laws that brought a fair degree of prosperity.
He had an able supporter in young Robert Crittenden, but it is
very unfair to say that Miller was not himself the active spirit
from 1819 to 1825. It would be easy to prove that he did more
real work than any territorial governor who succeeded him.
EARLY LITTLE ROCK A BAD TOWN.
He did not like Little Rock as a location for either the
county seat of Pulaski county or the capital of the territory, and
for this he is not to be blamed. One who reads all that has
been printed of Little Rock from 1821 to 1825, and even for
many years thereafter, can not but conclude that this town dur
ing these years was not a heavenly resort, nor a summer resort,
nor any very desirable resort for the best people.
It had good people but it unfortunately had too great a
number of very bad people, and these were always on parade.
That Little Rock triumphed over her surroundings and evolved
into a model city is a strong argument for the survival of the
fittest and a proof that we grow better as we grow older. But
in 1820 Little Rock hadn't enough people of any kind to make it
an attraction for the capital. ^ Nuttal in 1819 found a settlement

38 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
at Cadron that surprised him. He said no settlement in the
State except Arkansas Post could compare with it in numbers.
By a little patience I think I could count up as great a number
having Cadron for a center as could have been counted at the
Post in 1819. Little Rock in 1819 could not muster a corporal's
guard. A writer in the Gazette after it had been removed to
Little Rock, after the Gazette had been there a year, in January,
1823, summed up the Little Rock houses for the years 1821 and
1822. In the first year there was one hotel, one boarding house
aind seven private houses ; in 1822 there was one hotel, one board
ing house and one private residence. The writer was evidently
correct, for Mr. Woodrufif made no comment. Two speculative
factions were at work trying to strangle each other, and thus
kept dwelling house people away. The speculators herded at
the hotel and the boarding house.
Governor Miller preferred the "up river" country. He and
the one hundred and fifty others who lived up there, staunch
Kentuckians and Tennesseeans, tried to have the county seat re
moved to Cadron in 1820. The bill was introduced in the coun
cil by Thos. H. Tyndall, of Cadron, and had a close shave. Four
members voted for it and four voted against it. The chairman
of the Committee of the Whole House, W. B. R. Horner, of St.
Francis township, Arkansas county, dissolved the tie by voting
no, which killed it for that session, or part of a session. The
matter came up again in October of the same year and Cadron
was successful.
But as the capital had been moved to Little Rock, the county
seat question had to be threshed out again, and this time Little
Rock won. Had the matter been left to the vote of Pulaski
county, in 1822, both as to capital and county seat, the Cadron-
ites would doubtless have won.
Dr. Menifee was somewhat of a power in those days, and
Tyndall, Mcllmurrey and Kuykendall were able supporters.
Events have proved that Little Rock was the proper place for
both the county seat and the capital, and the State is to be con
gratulated that the change to Cadron was not made. But it was
most difficult in 1820 fOr any one to see in the cocoon, Arkopolis,
the brilliant butterfly. Little Rock of today.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 39
MORE honors FOR MILLER.
In 1824, President Monroe appointed Governor Miller col
lector of the Port of Salem, which terminated his career in Ark
ansas. Prior to this appointment, the people of the First
congressional district of New Hampshire had elected him as
their representative to Congress, so that he was at once governor
of Arkansas territory, Congressman from New Hampshire and
collector of the port at Slalem. The old general resigned his
position as governor, and then did what no one had ever done
before, resigned his place in Congress, and settled down as col
lector. Jackson's compliment to miller.
In the race between Adams and Jackson in 1828, Miller sup
ported John Quincy Adams, but Jackson won out, and after his
inaugural began to enforce the sound doctrine "To the victors
belong the spoils." Civil service has flung round this truth the
mantle of hypocrisy, but the doctrine still works, and works
forcefully, in every department at Washington. The most vio
lent partisans that have ever held cabinet positions are working
full time on political manipulations in Washington today.
Jackson chopped off official heads on all sides, and Miller,
soldier as he was, asked no quarter and prepared to go. His
friends, however, went to Jackson and made a special plea in
Miller's behalf. Jackson listened to them in grim silence until
they were through. He then said: "You tell General Miller
that so long as Andrew Jackson is president of the United States,
the hero of Lundy's Lane will remain collector at the Port of
Salem." Andrew Jackson was a virile, strenuous president and not
a mere imitation. He recognized the transcendent valor of Mil
ler, and at the same time recognized his right to support Adams,
not only actively, but with what would now be termed a most
pernicious activity. Miller held the post assured to him by
Jackson through several successive administrations and died in
1849.

40 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
CHAPTER VI.
Early Settlers on the Rivers of Eastern Arkansas and on
THE Arkansas River.
When we consider that but four hundred years have elapsed
since the first white people came to the Western world, and that
during the next year the United States will celebrate the ter
centennial of the oldest English settlement in America, we begin
to appreciate how really modern all things are on the Western
continent, and what may be really accomplished in one hundred
years. Virginians have always invested the settlers of the Tide
water section of their State, the part settled during the first cen
tury of her existence, with something akin to veneration. They
were not invested with the title, "First Families of Virginia" for
the reason that these settlers were noblemen or men of exalted
rank. The fact is that they were not. The Washingtons, the
Jeffersons, the Peytons, the Balls, the Slaughters and other noted
families were from the great middle rank in England. The
fewest number were from the major" nobility, and a larger, but
by no means the greater, number were from the minor nobility.
The majority were representatives of the great families of- Eng
Hsh yeomen, sturdy, energetic and brave. They were the first
to people Virginia ; the first to battle against forest and swamp ;
the first to have chances at the resources of the commonwealth,
and thereby obtaining wealth and refinement for themselves and
for their children. They were actually the first families to settle
the country, and as the centuries rolled on they became a class by
themselves, the F. F. V.'s.
In time the families of Arkansas will divide into the newer
and the older, and to rescue from oblivion those who were in
Arkansas one hundred years ago was the purpose of a previous
chapter, and is the purpose of the one we now write. •
EARLY land grants.
The United States began the investigation of land grants in
Missouri, Louisiana and Arkansas soon after the purchase of
that region in 1803. Exhaustive examinations were made as

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 41
to the dates of settlements, the length of their existence and the
nature of the claims. Thousands of claims were rejected, but
several hundred were confirmed and deeds given to the claimants.
The following list shows when the various settlements in what is
now Arkansas were begun as sworn to by clouds of witnesses,
and shows an additional number of people that were here one
hundred years ago, together with their seating places in the wild
erness. BENJAMIN FOOY.
The Fooy family in Arkansas sprang from Benjamin Fooy,
a native of Holland, born in 1759. He tried to better his condi
tion in many parts of the world and in 1794 found himself op
posite the present oity of Memphis in Spanish territory at the
village of Hopefield, or as it was called then. Camp Esperanza.
The Commandant Augustine Le Grande granted him a conces
sion of land, upon which he settled and upon which he died thirty
years afterward, on December 27, 1823.
Thirty years in the forests of Arkansas, thirty years on the
banks of the mighty Mississippi. Honored was he by the
Spaniards while in control; honored again while the territory
was known as Louisiana ; honored still more in the days of
the territory of Missouri, and most of all under the territorial
laws of Arkansas. He was a justice of the peace for years
and under the last control a judge of the Court of Common
Pleas. His character was above reproach, and his philanthropy
and hospitality were only bounded by his means. He left an
aged wife, a large number of children, and a stih larger num
ber of grandchildren, whose descendants still ramify eastern
Arkansas. Lands were confirmed to him at Hopefield and Wap-
penocke as having been settled prior to 1799, and to Isaac Fooy
at Hopefield under a settlement of 1801.
Other Hopefield and Wappenocke settlers were Montford
Ferryman, Wappenocke, 1801, and Wihiam Grace of the same
place, 1802.

42 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
ALLIGATOR LAKE.
This region is now Crittenden county and the confirmed
concessions recorded in 1811 and 1813 upon which patents were
issued were as follows :
Antoine Pena, Augustine Gonzales, John Francis Almend-
ras, John Dominiques, John Andre Escriveve, Francis Groson,
Jasto Martin, John Rodrigues and Elizabeth Jones, whose settle
ments were made between 1798 and 1802. Elizabeth Jones was
also confirmed in her right to a farm on Elk Lake opened in 1801.
On Copperas creek of the St. Francis the earliest settler in
that region was John Hogan, in 1800, who was joined in 1803
by John Taylor. They and their families were not disturbed
by other additions to their neighborhood until some time in 1810.
ST. FRANCIS RIVER SETTLEMENT.
In addition to those named in the previous, chapter there
were the following: John McLean and Jesse Stephens settled
on the St. Francis near the mouth of the Eel river in 1803; a
little higher up was William Gregory of 1802; along its banks
somewhere was the farm of Mary Edwards, whose husband
located there in 1803. In the same year Charles Stenson settled
at the mouth of the river, and three miles above him was the
home of Edward Proctor, who had lived there since 1800. On
the waters of the St. Francis Moses Burnett and Joseph Sevier
had homes, the former coming in 1797 and the latter in 1800.
John Grace settled on the low ground above Big island in 1800
and Caty Gallowhorn on an island in the Mississippi river in
1801. Enos Chartruce also made a home on the St. Francis in
1800. Joseph Stilwell also had a concession on the St. Francis
from 1799. ON THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER.
Besides Fooy, Phillips, Mooney and D'Armand, there were
the following settlers, widely separated from each other and
almost cut oflf from the world : In 1803 Ebenezer Fulsome took
up ground on the Mississippi about three miles above the mouth
of the St. Francis. In the same year Moses Perry settled be-

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 43
tween the White and St. Francis, and William Bailey south of
the St. Francis on Caney creek. Along the banks were Abra
ham Ramer, a settler of 1802 ; Joseph Gazzia, of 1798 ; Sylvanus
Phillips of 1797; Pat Cassidy, adjoining Phillips and Patterson,
1803; William Patterson, 1797, ^^ n^^r where Helena now
stands, and William McKinney, seven miles below Hopefield,
1802, with George Roebuck, a near neighbor. John Le Fevre
had a landing seven miles below the mouth of the St. Francis
and settled there in 1802.
William H. Glass and John Dill were between him and the
mouth of the river and moved there in 1802. Daniel Mooney
had a home between the St. Francis and the Mississippi, the date
of which ran back to 1797. In the neighborhood of Benjamin
Fooy were John Henry Fooy, William Porter and William Riggs,
dating from 1799 to 1802. WHITE RIVER.
At Belle Point on the White river Augustin John Friend
had a home dating back to 1793, and his neighbor, Charles Fur
nish, from 1801. Below these lived Joseph Michel and Alex
ander Bridoute, John Fayac had for years prior to 1800 lived at
the fort on White river, while Joseph Michel had another clear
ing at the Bay of White river dating from 1801. Away up the
White river, above Poke bayou, lived B. H. McFarlane, who
claimed a residence from 1804. In 1803 Archibald Fallen drove
his stakes on Lock creek, and Moses Price made a home on the
bay in 1803. As early as 1789, Francis Francure had a home
on the White twelve miles below Red river.
CACHE RIVER.
Elijah McKinney settled on the Cache in 1803; Samuel
Treat, in 1801 ; Peter Le Fevre, in 1800; Francis Michel and
Louis Gossiat had a home on Big lake before the opening of the
nineteenth century and died where they lived.
Abraham Hickland came to Pleasant lake in 1803 and James
Patterson in 1802; Thos. Williams to Cypress bayou in 1803;
Joseph Calais to Prairie Catocke in 1800, and John Diana to
Turk's Prairie in 1799. Over on Black river near Clover Bend,

44 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
Anthony, Nicholas and John B. Janis had a concession of 1801
which was confirmed in 1813, while that of Joseph Gingnolet
about seven miles from them had the same age. In 179 1 Peter
Burrell and John B. De Plaice had cabins on the Cache.
THE ARKANSAS RIVER.
Besides those heretofore named there were the following:
Charles Ref eld and Albert Berdu, of 1800, two miles from the
Post; Athenas Racine, of 180 1, on the prairie six miles above;
John Bartran on the bayou near Vaugines; Samuel Treat, in
1802, two miles from the Post; Michael Petersel, 1800, on the
river; Michael Wolff, 1801, on Bayou Hunt; Joseph Greenwald,
1793, five miles away; William Bassett, 1799, at the Post; An
drew Fagot, 1798, at same place; Jean Baptiste Dernissee, on
the river from 1800; Jacob Bright, Martin Serrano and Peter
Jordalles all had possessions near the Post dating back to 1795,
while John Lavergne, one mile north, antedated them two years.
In the same category were Jean Lavale, Pierre Pertuis, Alexis-
and Jean Jardales. About two miles from the Post on farms
antedating 1800 Jived Christian Pringle, Francis Gimblet, John
Hadsell and George Leard. John B. Ca''thoit moved to the neigh
borhood six miles northeast in 1803 and in the same year John
B. Minard settled on the bay below the village. George Kepler
on the lake, with Christopher Coffman above and Lavergne be
low him; in 1803 Pierre Perti lived three miles east and in the
same year Charles Bogy on River Grues. In 1802 John B.
Dardenne was found on the river above the Post ; Madame Fran
cis Valliere had a farm in 1802 and two miles below the Post
lived Etienne Vasseau, in the same vicinity as lived Baptiste
Placide. Near the Post Mary Dernisseau had possession in
1802, and contemporary with her was Christopher Kaufman on
Kaufman's bayou. (The spelling is Cofifman at one place, and
Kaufman at another.) Of about the same time was John Lan-
guies, while in the year before James Davis, Samuel Brown and
George Duval settled on Crow Creek. Raphael Brinsbeck had
lived two miles east of the Post since 1793, while Francis Vas
seau for the same time had lived on the river.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 45
Four miles below, Jacob Goris, 1793; five miles out, Elisha
Winter, 1799; and Anthony Wolfe, 1796; six miles out, Michael
LaCourse, 1796; four miles below, Joseph Bogy, 1792, and Eliza
beth Pertuis, 1792. Fifty miles up the river lived Michael Bonne,
from 1801, and fifty leagues above was the home of Louis P.
Levy, 1801 ; thirty miles above lived Peter Dervsier, 1800.
EARLY SETTLERS IN LITTLE ROCK.
In 1763 John B. Imbau settled at Little Rock and in the
same year Joseph Bartholomew located about forty miles above
the Post. In 1801 Leon Perry was on Kaufman's bayou and
C. Kepler on the west side of the Big Prairie. Dating back into
the eighteenth century were the settlements of Francis de
Vaugine, Petro Pertuis, Joseph Trudeau and F. Imbau on the
Arkansas river.
Above Cadron at Casatete (Cassitot) lived Benjamin Stan
ley from 1777 to 1780, and John and William Stanley from 1779
to 1782. The Stanleys failed to have their claims confirmed foi^
lack of a ten years' settlement, but they antedated all other Anglo-
Americans in western Arkansas.

CHAPTER VII.
The Settlement of Crystal Hill — Pyeatts, Carnahans,
Grays. Of the settlers who came into Arkansas when it was a part
of Louisiana Territory (1803-1812) little has ever been written,
because very little is known. Less than five hundred souls in
habited the District of Arkansas in 1803, and the census of 1810
gave the district a population of ten hundred and twenty-six.
Unfortunately the rolls of that census are lost, so far as they
pertain to the Territory of Louisiana, which in 1810, included all
that is now known as Missouri and Arkansas. The rolls for the
Territory of Orleans, now the State of Louisiana, for 1810 are
intact, and disclose a number of names that in 1820 were in the
Territory of Arkansas.

46 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
In 1810 the northern boundary of Arkansas was much far
ther to the north than the present State line, the line surveyed
by the Missourian, Brown, in 1823-4. The hideous jog in the
northeast corner of the State was enumerated in 18 10 in the Dis
trict of Arkansas by the United States marshals who took the
census, so that the number ten hundred and twenty-six included
settlers in territory now forming a part of Missouri.
It may be safely said that the population of Arkansas in
creased from 1803 to 1810 not more than four hundred souls,
and very probably not more than three hundred. Where did
these three hundred settle? Who were they? Were they your
ancestors? Was your grandsire or granddame one of these?
To help to an answer to these questions is the bbject of this work.
THE PYEATTS OF CRYSTAL HILL AND CADRON.
The very foremost of the Americans to enter Arkansas be
tween 1803 and 1810 was a band of North Carolinians, who, in
1806, brought their families to the high lands above Crystal Hill,
on the south side of the Arkansas river. "The chief spirit of the
party was John Gozel, but seven other heads of families united
with him to form the settlement.
One year later Major John Pyeatt and his brother, Jacob,
with their families, settled at Crystal Hill. It has been said that
they were from Georgia, but I am inclined to believe they were
from North Carolina. These two settlements were about a mile
apart and existed, it seems, without any kind of communication
with the outside world. In 181 5 Major Gibson of the United
States army went up the Arkansas and stopped at Major Pyeatt's.
To his amazement Major Pyeatt had not heard of the war of
1812, nor of the many events that had transpired in the world
since 1807.
To live eight years in the heart of a wildnerness, cut oflf
from ah communication with old associations or the world's
progress, seems very much like being buried alive. If, as Gib
bon says, solitude is the school of genius. Major Pyeatt must
have been genius personified. Some other eminent man has
said : "Solitude is the audience chamber of God ;" but this is
hardly applicable to Crystal Hill. It is certain that these set-

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 47
tiers were isolated and that they suffered many privations, but
it is only along lines like these that civilization proceeds.
Near Major Pyeatt there lived a Frenchman, Louis Bran-
giere, who, mistaking the rock crystals and talc in the bluff,
about one mile below White Oak bayou, for silver, became a
prospector and developer of mines. He opened a mine and spent
considerable money upon it, but without striking pay dirt. Nut
tal found the old implements and pans in 1819. John Trammel
in 181 5 also found this mine and took specimens to Arkansas
Post, where Francis Notrebe, a new comer from France, and a
clerk in a commission house decided they contained gold., No
trebe afterward found gold in Arkansas, but not through mining
channels. For years after this, and even down to this good hour
the whole region from Crystal Hill on one side to the mouth of
the Cadron on the other was, and is believed by many, to be
rich in mineral, but no one has ever made it pay.
The fake mine of Brangiere is the only reason for Bran-
giere's importance in history, unless his remarkable talent for
developing pre-emption claims be considered. He tried to
blanket the whole region around Crystal Hill in a great blanket
claim in 1820, and enlisted Colonel Alexander S. Walker as his
attorney in working the claim. The colonel believed in "bluf
fing," and at once published a notice in the Gazette, warning all
persons, as they valued their peace on earth or their happiness
hereafter not to trespass by so much as a hair on Brangiere's
vested and inalienable rights. General Hogan knew Brangiere
and he knew Colonel Walker. Hogan lived on the interdicted
ground, and when he read Walker's bluflf he published a card
telling Brangiere and Walker to go to Hades and be quick about
it. Hogan held his ground and Walker went to the legislature.
Brangiere got lost in the shuffle.
CRYSTAL HILL MARRIAGES AND DEATHS.
Major John Pyeatt died in 1826, and his wife, Betsy, and
his son, Peter, were appointed by the Pulaski Court as admin
istrators. This son was not the recluse his father had been. He
had a good horse and saddle and he took long rides to the north
ward on Saturday night, returning late Monday morning. Awav

48 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
up on Poke Bayou, near where Batesville now stands there came
in 1814 a band of Peels and Millers from Kentucky. Young
Peter Pyeatt discovered that James Miller of Poke Bayou had a
daughter most fair to look upon, and this explains his mysterious
pilgrimages. Mary Miller said "Yes," and in December, 1822,
Rev. John Carnahan united them in holy wedlock and Crystal
Hill gained another family. From this Poke Bayou family of
Millers came in time a second governor for Arkansas named
Miller and he was born at Batesville in less than a year after the
Pyeatt-Miller marriage.
Jacob Pyeatt, after living several years at Crystal Hill,
moved to Cadron and founded a new settlement in the year 181 5.
His wife, Margaret, died at Cadron in 1822. Nuttal found "J.
Piatt" at Cadron in 1819. His spelling of the word is not the
result of ignorance, but simply shows the tendency of the human
mind to travel along the easiest line. Not only this. In New
Jersey, a State very near to Philadelphia, there lived a distin
guished family of Piatts, from whom the noted Don Piatt de
scended. Nuttal confused the speHing of a family name that he
knew with another that sounded just like it.
It has been said that John Pyeatt was a major in the revolu
tionary army, and this is doubtless true, as the claim was made at
a time when its falsity could have been easily disproved. I have
revolutionary services not recorded, and many recorded services
have been lost. Pyeatt township will forever commemorate this
family, a far greater monument than most of us get.
REV. JOHN CARNAHAN.
Between 1810 and 1815 this minister of the gospel settled
at the upper end of Crystal Hill, adjoining the Pyeatt's, WilHam
Lockwood and Jonathan Pharr. Mr. Carnahan preached ser
mons at Arkansas Post in 181 1, and was doubtless the first prot
estant preacher to make a permanent residence in Arkansas'^
WiUiam Patterson, the father-in-law of Daniel Mooney and
Sylvanus Philipps, is traditionally assigned to the ministry of the
Methodist church, and if he really was a preacher the credit of
living first in Arkansas belongs to him, and goes back to 1803.
John Carnahan had a daughter, who, on February 10, 1820,

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 49
was married to Henry P. Pyeatt at Big Rock. Near the resi
dence of James Pyeatt, another son of Major John Pyeatt was
located and opened the first religious camp ground in Arkansas
on May 24, 1822. At that time a five days' meeting was held
under the auspices of Rev. John Carnahan, with reported good
results for the cause of Christianity, as represented by the Cum
berland Presbyterian church. This camp meeting was held two
years before the formation of the Baptist church at Little Rock.
In 1825 another great camp meeting was held by Mr. Carnahan
at Cadron, and in 1826 a still greater one at Crawford court
house. At this meeting denominational lines were broken down,
and the Baptists, Methodists and Presbyterians united in a great
season of love. The testimony of John Carnahan to the zeal
and good offices of these kindred Christian bodies on that oc
casion is one of the sweetest records of these early days. On
May 15, 1825, John Carnahan and Rev. Robert S'loane held an
other camp meeting at Crystal HiU, which seems to have been
blessed by the Lord. Just what family this old backwoods
preacher had I do not know, but I do know that in 1826 Mrs.
James Carnahan was buried, and that in the same year Samuel
Carnahan was appointed as her administrator. Away up in
Washington and Benton counties are Carnahans of Crystal Hill,
and Peels of Greenbrier and Poke Bayou. The Cumberland
Presbyterian church at Little Rock has honored itself by fram
ing into its structure a memorial window in memory of this first
— this pioneer Protestant preacher.THE GRAYS.
Joseph Gray, Jacob Gray and Shared Gray migrated to Ar
kansas in 1818 and settled in what is now Pulaski county. They
migrated from East Tennessee. Joseph Gray died in 1821 and
Wright Daniel administered upon his estate. Jacob and Shared
lived for many years after this, gathering wealth and honors.
On the United States pension rolls the fact appears that both
Jacob and Shared Gray were placed on the rolls in 1834 with
pensions beginning from 1831.
Jacob was recorded as a revoluntionary soldier of the South
Carolina militia and Shared as a soldier of the North Carolina

50 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
militia. Jacob at that time (1834) was seventy-one years of age
and Shared seventy-seven. Both were then living in Pulaski
county. Thinking that Shared was a missprint for Sampson I
looked up the original record, but found that Shared was right.
Sampson Gray was in Pulaski county in 1818, and was a son of
one of the immigrants ; he was a popular and noted man. These
men also have a township in Pulaski county standing to their
everlasting credit. JAMES VANN.
In 1809 this pioneer entered the Territory of Louisiana and
settled in that part of the District of Arkansas now known as
Randolph county. He, too, was a revolutionary soldier of the
continental line of North Carolina. In 181 1 the McKnights and
Richardsons settled in Lawrence county, and it is a tradition of
the family that they felt the earthquake shocks of that year.
SHERIFF DANIEL MOONEY.
Daniel Mooney was appointed sheriff in 1810 under the old
Louisiana law and was continued from 1812 to 1815 under the
Missouri law, when he resigned and was succeeded by Hewes
Scull, who held the ofifice until 1819. Daniel Mooney had the
whole of the present State of Arkansas as his baUiwick, and when
he arrested a man for a capital offense he was forced under the
law to take him clear to Washington, Missouri, for trial. How
would the present sherififs of Arkansas like his job? Joseph
Stilwell was made auditor of accounts in 1810 and held the place
until 1815. His duties called him to all parts of the State, and it
is said that he and Mooney knew every Indian trail and every
hog track in the State. A STRANGE COINCIDENCE.
One night last week I sent one of the clerks of the congres
sional library for the session laws of the Territory of Missouri.
Six volumes were brought me fresh from the bindery. Upon
opening them I found the paper as old and musty as I found
the paper to be in the old session laws I used to ponder over
while in the office of secretary of State at Little Rock. The

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 51
books were very old, but had been rebound. On the flyleaf of
every volume I found the name "John Scott" in bold, clear let
ters. I had before me the books that once belonged to John
Scott, the Missouri delegate, who drew the law that made Ar
kansas a territory.
Venerable books! The signature was that of the brother
of Judge Andrew _Scott, the first judge of Arkansas Territory,
and the first county judge of the county in which I was born.
My mijid went back, there under the dome of the nation's great
est library, to John R. Homer Scott, my friend, and the nephew
of the man who once owned the books I held in my hands. I
cried inaudibly : "Truly, I am growing old." John Scott is
gone. Andrew Scott is gone. John R. Homer Scott is no more.
John Scott's books were before me and will be before archaeolo
gists and students for five hundred years to come. Under the
six little volumes before me were four giant volumes of the
Arkansas Gazette. William E. Woodruff, Sr., has gone, too, but
he has left his mark in these books, which ages will not be able
to destroy. They bristle with the life of other days and carry
that life forward into immortality.

CHAPTER VIII.
Alexander S. Walker, Soldier, Lawyer and Legislator.
Colonel Alexander S. Walker was a Virginian of the Tide
water region, born about the year 1786, of parents whose an
cestors ran far back into Colonial days. Little is known of his
early life. On July i, 1808, he enrolled his name on the lists
of the new regiment, the First regiment of United States rifle
men, under Colonel Alexander Smythe, a Virginian, born on
Irish soil.
The United States at that time was in a flurry. England
was suspicious, Spain was objecting and France was in arms.
No one knew where the blow would fall, but every indication
pointed to New Orleans. Five regiments of infantry were hur
ried into the Territory of Mississippi and several yessels of the

52 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
Marine Corps to the mouth of the Mississippi. The riflemen
were all picked men, men whose aim was sure and their nerves
of iron. This regiment, the First Rifles, was ordered to Fort
Adams, in Alississippi territory. Alexander S. Walker was
rapidly advanced and in three short months held the grade of
captain. The regiment was quartered in the swamps and in less
than a year lost one hundred and three men by sickness and
death and fifty-three by desertion. Sickness was on all sides
and was undermining the morale of the army. In July, 1809,
the government was four months in arrears with the soldiers'
pay and this added another element of discontent.
Captain Walker objected to the location of the camp and cir
culated a petition for a change, which he presented in person to
General Wilkinson. The general answered with an oath that he
could make no change, that the localities had been selected by
the secretary of war, and that in locating the camps he had
simply obeyed orders. Captain Walker forgot himself and said,
"Damn such orders." That night he took a little more whisky
than the malaria demanded as an antidote for his anger. This
loosened his tongue and he went so far as to say that he didn't
blame the men for deserting; that no government had the right
to order men to any death save death at the cannon's mouth, and
that the camps had been pitched in the worst spots imaginable.
A second lieutenant, Matthew Cannan, of the same regiment,
was equally outspoken.
When all this reached headquarters the devil was to pay and
no pitch hot. Walker and Cannan were arrested. A court-
martial was convened at Arkansas Post and a trial had. Walker
expressed no contrition, nor did Cannan. In December, 1809,
they were both adjudged "guilty," and on January i, 1810, they
were dishonorably discharged from the United States army.
THE courage of walker.
Walker was down and out. But what of that? Shall the
soul refuse to aspire because for a reputed sin a stigma has been
put upon it? Alexander S. Walker had sinned against every
rule of war and by a war court was humiliated. Was that to
end his career? Was there to be no further room for ultimate

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 53
success? Why are we so eager to cast a stone at a humiliated
soul? Is it because we have no sin, or is it because our sin has
not gone to the proper court-martial? Has the muck-raker a
patent on sinlessness? Is Collier and all that conceited, aimless,
money-grabbing crowd, the index finger of a stainless life ? Nay,
verily. On the other hand, of what stern stuff must a man be made
who deliberately communes with himself and says: "I, myself,
am down ; terribly but not irremediably down ; despite the blow
I will arise." Alexander S. Walker felt keenly the humiliation
to which he had been subjected, but neither fretted nor repined.
He had been stricken by a power he could not resist — censured,
as Jackson was censured a few years later, but he did not whine
nor hide. Within the very theater where had been enacted his undoing
he began the work of his restoration. A restoration, not to the
military rank he had forfeited, but to a place in the broad and
generous confidence of his fellow-men. Courts-martial may es
teem this or that point of law or evidence at a little less or a
little more than its legitimate content, but the sUent judgment
of mankind is a far more accurate balance.
walker as a civilian.
Within sight of the Post where he had been cashiered he
began the battle of civil life. Upon that ground, or in its im
mediate neighborhood, he spent more than thirty years of his
after life. He flaunted, sUently, his growth in the esteem of his
fellows, in the very faces of those who would have made him a
pariah. He had a good education and a very stubborn will. He
dug a living out of the ground through the years 181 1 and 1812.
In his cabin he read law and studied the game of politics. He
had friends in the district of Arkansas when the territory of
Missouri was created, and these friends -sent him in 1815 to the
House of Representatives at St. Louis, and Henry Cassidy to
the council. In 1816 he was sent to the Assembly from Law
rence county along with Joseph Hardin, while Edmund Hogan
was sent from Arkansas; in the council James Cummins repre
sented Arkansas and Richard Murphy Lawrence. In 1818 Law-

54 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
rence was represented by Perry Magness, Joseph Hardin and
John Davidson, while Arkansas sent Edmund Hogan. The long
horseback rides from the Arkansas to the mouth of the Missouri
only made him grimmer and sterner. The stigma of cashierdom
was more than offset by these signal marks of honor. In the
heat of passion and debate men hurled his former degradation
into his teeth, but he, although passionate, somewhat overbearing
and brave to a fault, answered never a word. What could he
answer? He had been disgraced in the days agone, but not so
signally as to take oflfense when anger forced an antagonist to
forget his nobler part. He was not disgracing his position now,
and that position was slowly sponging out the old account.
walker in HEMPSTEAD COUNTY.
In 1819, when Arkansas became a territory, he was ap
pointed sherifif of Hempstead county, which indicates a residence
there at the time, although there is no other record of the fact.
In November of the same year the flrst territorial election for
delegate to Congress took place, and there were six candidates
for the place, viz : Alexander S. Walker, Henry Cassidy, James
Woodson Bates, Perley Wallis, R. F. Slaughter and Stephen
Austin. Hempstead in his excellent history of Arkansas names
but five and states that there were but one hundred and two
votes cast. In this he was misled. He took his returns wrong.
Arkansas township in Arkansas county cast one hundred and two
votes and voted for only five men. There were twelve hundred
and seventy-two votes cast in the territory for six candidates.
James Woodson Bates had been a resident of the territory for
a year, having come in in 1818, just before the creation of the
territory. He had been there a little longer than Andrew Scott
and StiU a little longer than Robert Crittenden. Bates always
claimed that he came to Arkansas on his own motion, while
Scott and Crittenden were there on salary and by appointment.
Young Robert C. Oden had another way of expressing it. He
said that he came because he wanted to, but that Scott and Crit
tenden had to be hired. He afterward used this logic against
Henry W. Conway. Bates wanted a salary and announced for
Congress, pointing to his long twelve months' residence as a

Pioneers and Makers of Arkwnsas 55
partial reason. Perley Wallis was a lawyer and had been in
Arkansas about four years. R. F. Slaughter could not boast of
so long a residence as Bates, but he used the residence racket for
all it was worth. Henry Cassidy and Alexander S. Walker
could boast of a residence of about nine years each, and were the
. only real old residents in the race. Stephen F. Austin did not
reside in the territory at all. The people knew his father and
thought that a son of Moses Austin would make them a good
representative. They ran him without consulting him and came
very nearly electing him. Bates got four hundred and one votes ;
Austin, three hundred and forty-three ; Walker, two hundred and
twenty-six; Cassidy, one hundred and fifty-six; Slaughter, one
hundred and thirty-eight, and Wallis, eight. Bates had a plural
ity df fifty-eight votes over Austin, his closest competitor, and one
hundred and seventy-five over Walker. Austin, the future
founder of Texas, almost became the delegate to Congress from
Arkansas. His name was not announced anywhere until eleven
days before the election, and did not get on any ticket in Ar
kansas county, nor on the tickets of two townships in Lawrence
county. But for this slight circumstance the whole history of
Arkansas and Texas would probably have been very different.
Had Austin's name gotten on these other tickets there would
have been no Conway-Crittenden feud — the glories of the Alamo
would not have transpired. The vote cast indicates a population
for the territory at that time of but a little more than ten thou
sand, rather than the usual estimate of fourteen thousand. The
census authorities inform me that eight to a voter, including
slaves, is the highest ratio of voters to population. This would
make the population in November, 1819, about ten thousand one
hundred and eighty-four.
Austin was so flattered by this vote from a constituency he
never saw that he decided to run down that way. He entered
Arkansas in May, 1820, and "lit a running." Governor MUler
was so charmed with him that he, on July 15, 1820, appointed
him judge of the First Circuit Court, which position he held but
a few months, when he resigned to become "the founder of
Texas."

56 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
Shortly before his appointment two army officers. Colonel
Wm. McCray and Major S. B. Archer, visited the territory,
arriving at the Post in January, 1820, with the announced pos
sibility of remaining. To clinch the decision favorably. Governor
Miller appointed Alajor S. B. Archer to the same judgeship he
afterward offered Austin. Major Archer held the matter under
advisement until July i, 1820, when he declined the appointment,
preferring to retain a place whose duties he knew to accepting
a place for which he had had no antecedent training. Hemp
stead notes the appointment of Archer, but intimates that this
was probably a mistake of the copyist, and that the record should
be S. F. Austin and not S. B. Archer. The record is right, as
the Gazette of that date notes Archer's arrival, his appointment
to the judgeship, his declination and the subsequent appointment
of Austin. Alexander S. Walker's vote came from the following places :
Arkansas county, forty-nine ; Lawrence county, two ; Clark
county, seventy-three, and Hempstead county, one hundred and
two. In other words, he got the greatest number of votes in
the county of which he was then sheriff and the next greatest
number in Clark. He surely had a residence of some kind at
Arkansas Post in the early part of 1819, but the largest part of
his Arkansas county vote came from Point Chicot township. He
surely had a residence in Pulaski county in 1820 and for many
years thereafter. In 1819 he had twenty-seven thousand five
hundred acres of unconfirmed land on White river and about
an equal amount of confirmed land, scattered through the five
counties of the State. He may have had five residences for all
the record shows. I have found no record of his marriage, but
he was a married man and reared a family. In June, 1820, he
took hold of Brangiere's claims upon the Crystal Hill country,
and although foiled as to General Hogan, was successful as to
many other persons more easily convinced. But practicing law
and running plantations had fewer charms for Walker than the
game of politics. In 1825 the people of Pulaski county elected
him to the legislative council. This was a most exciting race and
showed the old man's game spirit.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 57
EARLY BALLOT BOX IRREGULARITIES.
When the returns were all in Walker was ahead, defeating
Hogan about twenty votes. The Revising Board, composed of
Thomas W. Newton, Sr., Matthew Cunningham and another,
found certain irregularities in the returns of two townships and
threw them out. This made the vote a tie and a new election
was ordered. Walker came out in a card appealing to the people
to stand for their rights and "not to let a stripling hardly accli
mated cheat them out of their votes."
Thomas W. Newton answered that he had no desire to de
fraud, but that a stripling was every whit as good as a cashiered
officer. In the second race Walker was elected by thirteen votes.
In 1827 Hogan beat Walker by about the same majority and in
1829 Wharton Rector and Walker were elected to the House of
Representatives from Pulaski county. In 1831 Walker was
elected sheriff of the county to fill out the unexpired term of S.
M. Rutherford. While he was sherifif of the county David Rorer
was the county judge. Professor Reynolds in his admirable
little story book tells the ox-yoke story as related by Judge Pope
in his Early Days. Reynolds has a picture showing Walker
dressed as an old-time planter carrying a gun, with Rorer dressed
as a field hand carrying an ox-yoke. This picture is utterly'
incongruous and is not fair to Judge Rorer. Prof. Reynolds
describes Rorer as one of that shiftless, harmless, easy-going
class of people always to be found on the borderland of civiliza
tion. There is no evidence whatever to support the description.
Rorer was elected by the people as their county judge. He was
repeatedly appointed administrator for people dying intestate,
some leaving good estates, but the most of them very little prop
erty. Rorer owned the ferry at Little Rock and kept a good
house of entertainment on the north side. He entertained Gov
ernor Pope, and his whole life merits a better description than
the one alluded to. He had to carry the ox-yoke because Walker
had a gun. The duel between Walker and Colonel Francis No
trebe in 1816 has already been told by Judge Pope. In 1819,
when Governor Miller appointed W. O. Allen, brigadier general
of the Arkansas militia, Allen appointed Alexander S. Walker
colonel of the First regiment. In this position Walker trained

58 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
the men who afterward became the leaders of Arkansas. In his
regiment were men who in after years were the ornament of
both civil and military life.
Such was the life work of a peculiarly eccentric man. He
had grave faults, but with them he had transcendent virtues. He
began life with a load, but he carried it so nobly as to win the
esteem of all his fellows. The lesson of his life is refreshing
to the soul. He was afterwards appointed by President Jackson
Indian Agent for the Senecas and died near Fort Gibson in 1837
or 1838.

CHAPTER IX.
Robert Crittenden — William O. Allen — the First Duel in
Arkansas.
Gregory, in his description of Thornton, the home of the
Brontes, has said of its people : "Dwelling in the seclusion of
a village, at that time much cut off from the centers of popula
tion, they nursed their piety and their prejudices." The village
of Arkansas Post was much cut oflf from the centers of popula
tion, and its inhabitants certainly nursed their prejudices, but it
can not be said that they gave much attention to their piety. All
through the Gazette's life of two years at the Post there is no
record of a resident preacher, and few refe'rences to a traveling
minister. The residents of this isolated village nursed their
politics and their prejudices. Politics throughout all territorial
days had nothing whatever to do with parties, but was a purely
personal affair, the aggrandizement of self with a perennial preju
dice against all others having the same propensities.
ROBERT CRITTENDEN A CARDINAL WOLSEY.
Young Robert Crittenden, as secretary of the territory, had
little to do under the score of official duties. There were only
five counties, with about fifteen county officials and about a dozen
justices of the peace to commission. I have issued a thousand
commissions a day in the after-life of Arkansas and could have

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 59
performed all of Crittenden's legitimate duties in a day without
breaking the sacred surroundings of fhe eight-hour law.
For the first six months of the first year Crittenden was also
loaded down with the dread weight of the governor's office,
which possibly took a solid week of his time. Oflficial duties be
mg few, there was plenty of time for nursing prejudice and cod
dling politics. Crittenden was a past master in both these arts,
but he still had plenty of time to practice law and deal in real
estate. In fact, these last comprised his business and the- others
were his pastime.
He and Bates began the practice of law in 1819 as partners,
with Bates as the head of the partnership. When Bates went to
the bench the same year Crittenden tried it alone, but before the
year expired Bates went to Congress, and the partnership was re
vived, to remain in full force for three years, until politics and
prejudice arrayed these men against each other with a fervor
that never abated.
Bates said that Crittenden desired to run the politics of the
State, manage the governor and direct the delegate; that when
Miller showed spirit and independence he was called "an old
fool," and when he (Bates) proposed to do his own thinking as
a delegate, Crittenden wanted to turn him out. Crittenden was
called "Cardinal Wolsey" on account of his supposed influence
with the governors, an influence that never counted in fact, but
which made a good 'supposititious asset.
Crittenden had a partnership with Elijah Morton, another
Kentuckian, in the real estate busiriess, and they were together
interested in many real estate deals. Bates said that Crittenden
carried his pockets full of blank justice of the peace commissions,
which, by judicious distribution, laid the foundation for the Crit
tenden machine which began to grind in 1823. Politics and
prejudice controlled at Arkansas Post in 1819 and 1820, but not
exclusively. There were some not wedded to these gods, who
seem to have taken a loftier ideal and to have gauged their
actions by a better standard.

6o Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
GENERAL WILLIAM O. ALLEN.
It is now about eighty-seven years since William O. Allen
went down to an untimely death at Arkansas Post. The more
one studies the fragments of his speeches, and the more one in
vestigates his life and character, the more one is convinced that
he was the ablest man in the territory of Arkansas in 1819 and
1820. Intellectually, he was the superior of Crittenden or Bates,
the two most luminous characters of those years. And whUe
Bates far transcended Crittenden in mental vigor and logical
power, Allen not only transcended Bates in these, but was his
superior in self-discipline and independence.
Like Bates, he was born and educated in Virginia. His
family was of equal respectability and his training similar in
kind. Each had the American reverence for the profession of
law, and each spent the heyday of young manhood in dreams of
future conquests at the bar. Each migrated to the territory of
Louisiana, Allen being there while it j'et had that name and
Bates reaching it after it bore the name Territory of Missouri.
Allen was in St. Louis when the tocsin of war was sounded in
1812, and the spirit of his ancestors became reanimate in him,
impelling him to offer his services for the common good. Crit
tenden at that time was but a sixteen-year-old boy in central
Kentucky, but when the Second Rifles was formed in 1814 he
became its ensign and went to the front. Bates had no military
spirit, although equipped with a full amount of soldierly courage.
Allen's six years in the army.
Allen enlisted in the Twenty-fourth Infantry on January i,
1812, and on April 14 of that year was advanced to the captaincy
of a company. On June 15, 1814, he was transferred to the
Thirty-fifth Infantry, and on May 17, 1815, to the Artillery Corps,
holding his rank. He resigned from the service at Arkansas
Post on March 18, 1818. During these long years he served in
many parts of the United States and made the acquaintance of
the leading military spirits of the age. In 1812 his regiment was
with the army in Ohio and Michigan, but was never under fire.
On August 2, 1813, it had its baptism in blood at Fort Stephen-

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 6i
son, Ohio. On December 19, 1813, it was present at the action
at Lewiston Heights and the surrender of Fort Niagara. On
March 14, 1814, it took part in the action at Longwood, Upper
Canada. During the remainder of the war the regiment re
mained on duty in Upper Canada. As a member of the Corps
of Artillery his lot was cast in the Southern Military Division,
in turn being stationed at Fort Barrancas, at New Orleans and
at Arkansas Post and Fort Smith. This corps was made up of
the chociest spirits of the war. Its colonel was the famous
Moses Porter, and its lieutenant colonels, all in commission from
1815 to 1821, were: Constant Freeman, James House, F. K.
Huger, WUliam Lindsey and WUliam McRae, each at one time
or another on duty at the Post. Its majors during this period
were : Forney, Nye, Armistead, Many, Hindman, Bankhead
and Walbach. COLONEL GEO. B. ARMISTEAD AT THE POST.
Alien was a close friend of Colonel George Armistead dur
ing all the years of his residence at the Post, and, like Armistead,
had become the*owner of property in that old Arkansas town.
When the fortunes of war carried Armistead to other fields,
Allen became the manager of his property, and after the death
of Allen, this trust was confided to Willia,m E. Woodrufif, Sr.
until Armistead's death.
There must have been attractions in a business way at Ar
kansas Post in 1816, 1817 and 1818 that we at this distance of
time can not estimate or appreciate. Allen resigned his place
in the army, gave up a career among distinguished associates to
enter civil life, and chose Arkansas Post as the place for a be
ginning. AU through 1818 and 1819 he was quietly engaged
at buUding up his old business, the law. When bluff old Gen
eral Miller reached the Post he was gratified to find AUen there,
and at once appointed him brigadier general of the Arkansas
militia. The necessity for a defense of the settlements against
Indian outrages necessitated immediate action. A brigade was
formed by Allen, one regiment of which was placed under the
command of Colonel Alexander S. Walker.

62 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
Allen's rapid promotion.
Life moves with resistless energy for those capacitated to
stem its currents. Allen was elected to the first legislature, in
the fall of 1819, by the people of Arkansas county. This body
met in February, 1820 and was in session but for a few short
weeks. Few speeches of that legislature have come down to us,
but singularly enough the greater number of these are those of
Allen. Upon these speeches and the narration I have just con
cluded, the judgment is predicated that Allen was the ablest man
at the Post. His greatest speech was upon the removal of the
county seat from Little Rock to Cadron.
TyndaU, the Cadron member, was all fire and seemed likely
to have everything his own way. Allen rose above place and
circumstance. He stood for the dignity of a legislative body,
and urged that the only function of legislation was to deal with
general principles and not local affairs. That it was the duty
of the body to pass a general law covering the modus operandi
of locating county seats and for their removal. That it was no
part of a legislator's duty to choose between rival county towns,
or to locate a county seat for the people of Piiiaski county. It
was a long speech, well delivered and logical.
Tyndall had but one answer, and that was* "We were sent
here to legislate, and if we can't locate a little county seat at Cad
ron, we had better go home." Hardin, another bluff old soldier,
agreed with Tyndall, and said: "We are here to make laws
and if we want to make a law carrying the county seat to Cadron
we have the right to do so." Allen won the fight by a close
shave, the vote being five for non-consideration and four for.
During the next week, Allen discussed the militia situation so
forcefully, so intelligently and so logically as to carry his prop
ositions overwhelmingly. He had made an indelible mark on the
people and on his companions in legislation. No one doubted
his future career of usefulness.
Allen's untimely death.
But who can read the future? Before that body adjourned
William O. Allen was a corpse. In March, 1820, he challenged

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 63
Robert C. Oden to mortal combat, which challenge was accepted,
the seconds being George W. Scott and Elijah Morton. The
duel occurred on an island in the Arkansas river on March 10,
1820. Allen fired first and his bullet went true to its aim, struck
a button over Oden's heart, glanced aside and inflicted a severe
but not a mortal wound. The impact of the ball knocked Oden
down, and as he fell he fired a random shot, which struck Allen
in the head, killing him instantly. Oden was accidentally saved
and AUen was accidentally killed. The accident of a button and
the accident of a random shot changed the issues of the combat.
Such is dueling. gazette's comment on duel.
The cause of the duel may never be known. The Gazette
of the following week noted the death of Allen, and said : "We
sincerely regret to see a practice still continue which has been
universally condemned by every philanthropic mind."
But there was not one syllable about the reasons leading to
the fight. Captain John R. Homer Scott, born in Missouri a few
years before the duel, in his later years gave Judge Pope a version
from memory as told him by his father. Judge Andrew Scott,
which, to my mind, is unsatisfactory. He said that Allen and Oden
were at dinner and that Oden finished first. Seeing AUen's cane
near, he picked it up and began twirling it. Allen finished, and,
being lame, reached toward Oden for the cane. Oden, in playful
ness, retreated, Allen pursuing as best he could. This was kept up
until Allen became angry, limped to his room and wrote the chal
lenge. , 1 !
ANOTHER VERSION OF THE AFFAIR.
In 1885 the writer was on Grand Prairie, between DeWitt
and Stuttgart. He traveled off the main road and approached
a large frame house for information, and was invited to remain
for dinner. At table was an old man, a relative of some sort
of the owner of the house. The conversation reverted to the
Post and the duels fought there. The old man gave this version
of the Allen-Oden duel : Allen and Oden were at table when a
discussion began between them over Allen's speech in the legis-

64 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
lature. Allen was about forty-five years of age and Oden about
twenty. Oden was passionate and very sensitive. As the argu
ment grew warmer, Oden accused Allen of disputing his word,
seized Allen's cane and struck Allen a smart blow. The blow
resulted in the challenge. Up to this time both men had been
friends, and Allen had formed a great liking for Oden. Years
after this conversation I jotted down its substance, but could not
recall the name of the narrator. The version of Mr. Scott, a
man of remarkable memory as well as of absolute veracity, may
be the correct one. The old man's story seems, however, to
furnish a better motive.
THE LAW REGARDING DUELING. ¦ i^ , .
In what follows we have the prifited report of the Gazette
and it is collated and reproduced here to show the iron-clad senti
ment which prevailed at that time with reference to dueling. In
1820 the Grand Jury of Arkansas county indicted Robert E.
Oden for receiving a challenge, and George W. Scott and EHjah
Morton for officiating as seconds. It was not murder nor man
slaughter to kill in a duel, and the only offense was sending or
receiving a challenge, or officiating as seconds. At the trial the
prosecution offered to put Scott and Morton on the stand to
prove the reception of the challenge. The court held that this
could not be done until it was proven that the challenge itself
was lost. This foiled the prosecution and the jury was forced
to find a verdict "Not guilty."
On the next day the trial of Scott and Morton began, and,
although they made no denial whatever, the case against them
was not proved. The defense moved to quash, on the ground
of variance — the indictment being laid at the Post and the evi
dence showing that the duel occurred on an island in the river.
The court held that the words "Arkansas Post" were descriptive
merely and that the indictment was good. The jury, however,
brought in the verdict "Not guUty under the indictment."
The Gazette made but few remarks regarding the result of
the trials, but advised the people to repeal the laws they had and
let those who wanted to kill each other do as they pleased. An
anonymous writer noted the mistrial in both cases and advised

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 65
the enactment of a new law, permitting the seconds to testify
as to the challenge and making the offense murder.
Williarn Montgomery, the foreman of the juries, answered
this writer, denying that the verdict was "not guilty," but "not
guilty under the indictment," and in a very pompous manner
said no writer, "whether he be vagrant or gentleman, should ma
lign a jury of which he was a part."
puts an END TO DUELING.
At the next session of that legislature an iron-clad law
against dueline" was passed. Death resulting from a duel fought
on A '"kan. do ^.j.i was declared to be murder. Seconds were au
thorized to testify, and the courts required to take their testi
mony, immunity for the testifying witness being provided for.
This law was passed in October, 1820, and it has had a goo3
effect. No duel has been fought in the State or territory since
its enactment, although it has been easy at all times to evade it.
William O. Allen was an unmarried man, and no wife nor
child was brought to grief by his death. He left an estate, upon
which Eli J. Lewis and Daniel Mooney administered. The ad
vertised list of property filled nearly a column of the Gazette,
In the list was a library of books, legal, historical, mathematical
and astronomical, which had no equal in Arkansas then, and
which doubtless entered into the family collections of other men
and became the basis of the educational development of many of
the sons and daughters of Arkansas. Is it possible to trace that
library? Will those who have very old books look in them to
see whether the name of William O. Allen appears therein?
Many of them ought to be in existence today.
In April, 1820, the Comet arrived at Arkansas Post, being
the first steamboat to travel up the Arkansas. Her captain was
named Byrne, and he brought his wife, the sister of William O.
Allen, to the Post to investigate his death and to settle his estate.
Thus the law of sequence comes to the forefront of aft'airs. A
duel results in a death. A steamboat owner, driven by love,
forces his vessel along paths heretofore considered impassable
and navigation of a great river ensues.

66 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
CHAPTER X.
Samuel Moseley — Francis Notrebe — Terrence Farrelly.
In the lives of Samuel Mosely, Francis Notrebe and Ter
rence Farrelly, all born on foreign soil, but who acquired wealth
and honor at Arkansas Post, there is much to inspire every
human being — ^much to show that life is not the victim of luck,
fate or chance.
The Scotch are noted for thrift, the Irish for wit and fhe
French for versatility. Neither of these men could claim to
have been knighted by the king's own hand, but each of them
sprang from a line of knights famous in Scotland, Ireland and
France. When knighthood was in flower these ancestors en
joyed its fruits, but their remote descendants, the men of
whom we write, had neither fruit nor flower. They were of
poor parents and inherited nothing but the disposition to have
something and an opportunity to attain their aims. It has been
said that a Scotchman needs no open door of opportunity — ^that
he can make his opportunity at will. From the Gazette we
ascertain that Samuel Mosely was born in Aberdeen, Scotland,
about 1784. The story of how he spent his younger life and of
how he found his way to Arkansas Post may never be known.
He was found at the Post in 1812, and drops out of sight com
pletely untU the month of November, 1818, when the St. Louis
Republican announced the marriage of Samuel Mosely to Mary
King at Arkansas Post, .on October 22, 1818. The family of
the bride is not known, but as Wigton King had been a resident
at the Post since 1814, and was a justice of the peace from that
time until the creation of the Territory of Arkansas, and for
many years thereafter, it is supposed that she was his daughter.
nuttal's reference to opportunity.
The next historic reference to Mosely is found in the quaint
old diary of Nuttal, containing his experiences in Arkansas in
1819-1820. He notes the residence of Mosely in the Arkansas
river, and states that he had lately died, after many years of
residence at the Post, and further that he died at the age of
thirty-five. He then caUed attention to the fact that in the few
years that Mosely had resided at the Post he had gathered quite

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 67
a fortune, dying with an estate of $20,000. Forgetting his
scientific mission for awhile, Nuttal turns aside to comment upon
the opportunities of a region that in so short a time could give
one man so great a fortune. Mosely died the richest man in
Arkansas county, Nuttal says, and his fortune was certainly a
great one in that day. His death is noted in the Gazette months
after it occurred as having happened on September 19, 1819.
He had been married not quite a year, but his death notice con
tains no reference to children, nor do the after references to his
estate disclose any, but there may have been a child. In Decem
ber, 1819, Eli J. Lewis and Daniel Mooney gave notice in the
Gazette that, as administrators, they had the settlement of the
estate in hand and would proceed with their work as the statutes
required. The widow did not remain a widow long, for on January 22,
1820, she was wedded to Terrence Farrelly, of the firm of Far
relly & Curran, the Irishman of our present article. The life
of Samuel Mosely is best interpreted by his achievements. He
came to the Post poor and died the richest man there. The long
years of hard work, the intensity of his struggle rnay only be
estimated ; he left no record disclosing the stages of his efforts
or the sacrifices he must have made. He came unheralded and
unknown, and died the richest, and very probably, the best-
known man at the Post. It has been said fhat five things are
necessary to success — ability, integrity, dispatch, patience and
industry — and, judged by his success, Mosely must have had all
these abstract substances in the highest degree.
colonel Francis notrebe.
Francis Notrebe was not only a native of France, but a
soldier of France, under that master of war, the great Napoleon,
but he did not win his title of colonel in the French army. His
tory is silent as to the place of his birth, his early education and
the causes fhat led to his' enlistment as a French soldier. He
has told his Arkansas friends the reasons for his abandonment
of France, and they are alike creditable to his patriotism and
his will. As a common soldier he risked his life to give France a
republic, and was an enthusiastic follower of Napoleon so long
as that genius kept his eye single to the freedom of France.

68 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
When ambition led the general to overthrow fhe republic and to
set up an empire on its ruins Notrebe would not go with him.
He was proud of Napoleon but placed France and its interests
above his affections for the man. He could not fight for an
empire, and after great diflficulty succeeded in separating him
self from the army and in reaching the United States. After
years of rambling life he found himself, in 1813, at Arkansas
Post. Here he found congenial French people, and after awhile
a congenial business. He was essentially a merchant, and as a
clerk in the great trading houses at the Post he soon found the
natural trend of his mind. Barham & Drope, Prior & Lewis and
Louis Bogy were great traders and maintained great warehouses
far up the Arkansas, in what is now Indian Territory and Kan
sas. At these places and at the Post they carried on a large
trade with the Indian tribes.
In a small way Notrebe began business for himself at the
Post in 1819. His advertisements in the Gazette show that he
was just embarking and that fortune had not begun to smile.
EARLY LITTLE ROCK MERCHANTS.
In 1820 the sherifif of Pulaski county published a list of
men who had taken out licenses as merchants or grocery keepers
for that year at Little Rock. At the head of the list was Chester
Ashley, then a young unmarried man, and a briefless lawyer.
While Sam C. Roane pieced out an income by acting as press
man for Woodruff, the future great senator of Arkansas at
tained the same end by keeping a small grocery. When Wood
ruff moved to Little Rock two years later his paper did not give
him a support and he began the sale as sole agent for an Eastern
house of a line of patent medicines. The other names on the
list were George W. Brand, WiUiam Drope, Thomas W. John
son and Francis Vaugine. In 1821, when the second list was
published, the name of Francis Notrebe appeared and was re
tained there for several years. Notrebe was thus connected as
a merchant with Arkansas Post and Little Rock, but his prin
cipal business as well as his affections were centered at Arkansas
Post. Between 1822 and 1825 he extended his business rela
tions to the upper Arkansas, and at his deat'h, several years
later, was the richest man in the territory. When Governor

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas . 69
Pope entered the territory, in 1829, he made the acquaintance of
Notrebe, and in 1832 was his guest at Arkansas Post. The dis
play of silver and cut glass, as well as the retinue of servants
maintained by Notrebe, excited the governor's surprise, as he
did not expect such service in the wilds of the West.
Judge Pope has left an interesting description of Colonel
Notrebe as he was in the days subsequent to 1832. He was a
man of commanding appearance, very black hair and a dark
complexion. He possessed large but regular features and in
his youth was doubtless a handsome man. He was said to have
all the refinement and elegance of the French race. He was a
married man and reared a family of children, but I have not
been fortunate enough to find fhe family name of his wife nor
the date of his marriage, which probably took place before he
reached Arkansas. CUMMINS-NOTREBE WEDDING.
Kentucky sent several young lawyers into Arkansas between
1819 and 1830, but in all probability no one of them was better
equipped than William Cummins of Louisville. Tradition giveS
him high rank among the lawyers of the territory and State from
1830 to 1840, but of the years before 1830 little is said. He
began a suit at Arkansas Post before that august and pretty
judge, 'the daughter of the rich Frenchman, Colonel Notrebe,
and managed it so well as not only to win it, but to marry the
judge. As Mrs. William Cummins, the daughter of Notrebe
piesided over a hospitable and elegant home in Little Rock for
many years, and died, leaving children.
Colonel Francis Notrebe was connected with the Missouri
militia prior to 1819, and was continued in that service under
Arkansas law, and in this service won his military title. In
1820 when the Court of Common Pleas was instituted at the
Post, Colonel Francis Notrebe, James Hamilton and Joseph Stil
well were appointed judges of the court, which position they held
until the court was abolished. In 1821, when the new town of
Arkansas Post was laid oflf, James Hamilton, Francis Notrebe,
Doctor Robert McKay, Colonel David Brearly and John Max-^
well were made its first trustees.

70 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
It has been said that every man has in himself a continent
of undiscovered character, and in this sense, Notrebe was most
happy in becoming the Columbus of his own soul.
GENERAL TERRENCE FARRELLY.
Terrence Farrelly was born in County Tyrone, Ireland,
about 1795, but was brought to Meadville, Pennsylvania, by his
parents about the year 1800. What educational opportunities
were afforded him is not known, but it is supposed that they
were somewhat above the average. I have not been fortunate
enough to find an authoritative reference to his father, but am
inclined to believe that he was a son of Patrick Farrelly of
Meadville, born in Ireland in 1760, a lawyer, and a member of
the Seventeenth Congress (1821-23). He was re-elected to the
Eighteenth and Nineteenth Congresses and died at Meadville,
January 12, 1826, while serving his third term. He was elected
as a Democrat and was a strict constructionist. The few
speeches that remain proclaim him a man of extensive parts, and
he voted for Henry W. Conway's improvement schemes in Ar
kansas in 1825, although violating his principles in so doing.
*Henry W. Conway was more of Whig than anything else and
was warmly supported in all his territorial measures by Henry
Clay, and opposed by the old line strict constructionists. From
the fact that Patrick Farrelly voted for Arkansas improvements,
I infer a close relationship between Patrick and Terrence,- and an
appeal from Terrence which effected this result. Patrick Far
relly had another son, John W. Farrelly, born at Meadville,
July 7, 1809, who became a prominent man. He was a member
of the Pennsylvania Senate in 1828, where he remained for
many years. He served one term in the Thirtieth Congress as
a Whig, and was appointed by Taylor sixth auditor of the treas
ury. He died at Washington.
Terrence began his life as a merchant in MeadviUe, but in
181 7 removed to Pittsburg. There he became acquainted with
another young Irishman, Thomas Curran, and with him formed
a partnership for a hardware establishment at Arkansas Post.
They arrived at the Post in November, 18 19, and rented a store
of General William O. Allen, where they carried on business
until the latter part of 1820, when Curran removed to David-

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 71
sonville, Lawrence county, where, on February 18, 1821, he
married Mrs. Jane Dodge. This firm gave William E. Wood
ruff, Sr., a good advertisement for the first issue of his paper
and kept it up until the firm dissolved. Terrence 'had not been
at his new home long before he became acquainted with the rich
young widow, Mrs. Mary Mosely, and wifh true Hibernian
directness, made a short wooing and won the prize. He was
married on January 22, 1820, and in a short time Lewis and
Mooney, Samuel Mosely's administrators, notified all interested
parties to settle with Terrence Farrelly, who now had charge of
the Mosely estate. Thus, while others waited for fortune's
favors, Farrelly captured them by love and wit. He was now
an American landlord and at once set about to be an American
leader of affairs. FARRELLY AS A LEGISLATOR.
And why shouldn't he be a leader? He was blessed with
every element that a leader should have. Do you ask for wit?
He was born in Ireland and blessed with the fullest amount of
Irish wit. Do you ask for wealth and power to please? He
had just married the richest woman in Arkansas and has been
given full control of her estate. Do you demand business abil
ity? He was in the Arkansas territorial legislature from 1821
to 1836, a longer period than any other man ever served,
before or since, and was at all times either on the Committee
or Banking or on the Committee on Auditor's and Treasurer's
Books. Do you ask for a sound judgment and a good knowl-
. edge of law? For fifteen years he was on the Judiciary Com
mittee of the Arkansas legislature, and did more toward fash
ioning Arkansas law in his day than any twenty men that
can be named. Do you want honesty and faithfulness? Then
reread what I have written and add that he was the first county
judge of Arkansas County from 1830 to 1832, and could have
had the place ever afterward but that he positively refused to
serve. Is courage what you seek? He was adjutant-general
of the Arkansas militia under Generals W. O. Allen, Edmund
Hogan and William Bradford. More than that, he was the
chief adviser of Maj. Bradford, and to this advice the territory
was indebted for the nine regiments of splendid troops the

72 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
territory afforded in 1825. We have had adjutant generals
since Farrelly's day, but none that could muster an army like
he had under his charge. The regiments were real live flesh
and blood soldiers, commanded by the following colonels: First
Regiment, Jack Wells; Second Regiment, James Lemons;
Third, Joseph Hardin; Fourth, James Scull; Fifth, Thomas
Dooley; Sixth, Pearson Brierly; Seventh, Hartwell Boswell;
Eighth, Daniel Mooney; Ninth, Jacob Pennington. General
Terrence Farrelly was not afraid of any of these colonels, nor
of all of them combined. He could make and unmake them at
pleasure. And after all of this category of public services, when
Statehood came, Arkansas county sent him to the Constitutional
Convention, and no man in the body equalled him in influence
and worth. Do you ask for an organizer — a boss? Terrence
Farrelly bossed the politics of Arkansas county and had no
rival. For sixteen years he carried the county in his pocket,
and so gentle was his rule, so wise, so patriotic as never to
create a schism or revolt. Outside of Arkansas county, he was
looked upon as a sound and safe man, worthy of any and
every trust, and honored throughout the State. He had talents
and he used them to improve, exalt and gladden life. He was
just, and thereby ennobled his own character. His wit made
him the god of moments, and in later times, his genius would
have made him god of the ages. No man of the period extracted
as much sweet out of life as did he, and in that he proclaimed
his wisdom. There was no pleasanter character in territorial
days than Terrence Farrelly, the Irish-American.

CHAPTER XI.
Pringles — Harringtons — Morrisons and Dardennes — List
OF Revolutionary Patriots.
In speaking of that old Marylander, Christian Pringle, who
died in 1820, after a residence in the neighborhood covering
forty years, a doubt was left as to his marriage;. He left a wife,
who in 1823 re-entered the connubial State by marrying James
Young at Arkansas Post. Christian Pringle left a son and a
daughter, that are of record, and possibly other children. John

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 73
Pringle was born at the Post about 1804 and on July 15, 1824,
married Mary Jones at the same place. This is the first mention
of the Jones family and her father's name is not known. The
daughter of Christian Pringle was also born in Arkansas about
1806, and on January 26, 1825, married John, a son of the
pioneer soldier, Joseph Stilwell.
major JOHN HARRINGTON AND DESCENDANTS.
John Harrington was a New Englander, whose father was
born in Ireland and a soldier of the American revolution. John,
born in Massachusetts in 1769, served in the Indian wars of 1793,
and in the second war with Great Britain in 181 2, in which he
won several promotions in rank, terminating with major. When
he was mustered out of the service he was induced to go to Ar
kansas, where in 1814 he purchased a plantation and settled
down to a peaceful and contented life.
He lived about twenty miles above Samuel Moseley's im
mense plantation on the Arkansas, and had for his neighbors,
Mr. William Morrison, Mr. Mason, Madame Embree, whose
daughter afterward married Judge Sam C. Roane, and Major
Vaugine, in a region that was afterward named, Richland, and
from which the township was called.
Nuttal had the happy faculty of "sensing" strong characters
and of honoring all such wifh a short note. He said of Major
Harrington, "He was a farmer in comfortable circumstances."
The major owned property at the Post and was a favorite wifh
Governor Miller. The old man died on his farm on August 29,
1829, in his sixtieth year. He had a son, Bartley, who was a
man of parts, and who exercised a great local influence. The
treaty between, the United States and the Quapaw Indians was
negotiated at the house of his father, although at that time
under the control of the son. Both father and son were well
known to the Indians, and the Harrington house was selected,
not alone ori the ground of its contiguity, but for the sounder
reason, that the Indians held Major Harrington in high esteem.
This treaty was negotiated on fhe part of the United States by
Robert Crittenden as special commissioner, and was witnessed
by Thomas W. Newton, Robert C. Oden, Terrence Farrelly,
Bartley Harrington, D. Barbin, special Indian agent, Gordon

74 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
Neil, Edmund Hogan, brigadier general of the Arkansas militia,
Thomas W. Johnson, Antoine Barraque, Etienne Vaugine and
Joseph De Chassin. Hogan was dressed in his valiant military
suit, as was Farrelly, his adjutant-general, and Oden, the lieu-
tant-colonel of the Second regiment. Thomas W. Newton was
aide-de-camp to the governor, and, altogether, this display of
epaulettes was supposed to be the right thing for fhe Indians.
CRITTENDEN DEALS WITH INDIANS.
Robert Crittenden made one of those strictly American farce
talks, in which he assumed the role of "The Great Father," and
bunkoed the Indians in the American fashion of that day. They
sold as fair a piece of God's heritage as was ever seen for a mess
of pottage. The government had sent down about seven thou
sand dollars as expense money, and it was the handling of this
money that brought Henry W. Conway and Robert Crittenden
face to face in mortal combat, in which Conway went to an un
timely death. There were two things that counted with the In
dians far more than the epaulettes and the jangling swords.
One of these was fheir faith in Major John Harrington, and he
hesitated to advise. The other was the jingle of the ducats that
Crittenden offered. In this way "Harrington's" had become
one of the mile posts of Arkansas growth, the removal of the
Quapaws. Harringtons is settled flrmly in the archives of the
government, to remain there forever, as a place where something
of importance happened, and out of which other important hap
penings were evolved. What happened at Harringtons may
have been a crime against a race, but as old Major Harrington
told them: "Better this than worse." The Indians did not get
full value, nor anything like it; but they got more than fhey
could use, and a home for all future time. Civilization gained
by the purchase and Arkansas development was thereby assured.
CANDIDATES IN FIRST LEGISLATURE.
Bartley Harrington was a candidate for a position in the
first legislature, but was defeated by General W. O. AUen. He
represented the county in the council of the fourth legislature.
He died in September, 1835, on the river returning from New
Orleans. Alfred Harrington, another son, was married to Polly

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 75
Mason of Pulaski County on March 2, 1820, at the house of the
bride's father, Ephraim C. Davidson officiating. On August 19,
1821, at the house of the major, Archibald Taylor was married
to Mary Harrington, Esquire Wigton King performing the cere
mony. At the same place on November 28, 1819, Benjamin
Kuykendall was married to Eliza Harrington. Four years later,
on January 29, 1823, Dempsey Kuykendall, a brother of Ben
jamin, died in Vaugine township at the age of thirty, leaving a
wife, and five children, who have doubtless carried the name
down to fhe present. On February 14, 1830, Allen Harrington
vvas married in Richland township to Clarissa McKenzie, but
whether he was a son or grandson of Major Harrington, I can
not say. The blood of Major Harrington is carried by many brave
men and fair women of Arkansas today. They have always been
sturdy Americans and have contributed their full share to the
greatness, the wealth and refinement of Arkansas.
WILLIAM MORRISON.
Concerning this pioneer I have not been as successful as
with Major Harrington. I am satisfied that he was a little older
than Major Harrington, from the fact that his wife died on
April 27, 1827, at the age of sixty years. The major died two
years later at the same age. The death of WilHam Morrison
is not noted, nor the birth of his children, although I am satis
fied that he left children, who have filled honorable stations in
Arkansas county. He lived about six miles above the cut-off
and had for his nearest neighbor Joseph Kirkland, of whom I
have found no further record. Near them lived the old French
settler, John B. Dardenne, who gave the government consider
able trouble in later years. Under the Spanish regime he was
granted about six hundred acres on the north side of the Arkan
sas river at Chactas Prairie, near where the town of Russellville
now stands. This title was regularly confirmed by the govern
ment, but no patent issued. In 1817, the government negotiated
a treaty with fhe Cherokees, by whose terms the Cherokees were
to surrender lands in Tennessee and Georgia for lands in Ar
kansas. The lands in Arkansas were north of the Arkansas
river and west of a line drawn from Point Remu (Remove)

76 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
to the White River above Batesville. The government was to
remove all settlers from this vast tract, excepting John P. Lovely.
Now John B. Dardenne did not live within limits and was not
removed. He owned land within it, however, but because of
the non-issuance of the patent, there was no record of title, and
therefore no exception in the treaty. The Cherokees owned his
lands and there was no relief save by an act of Congress. The
Committee on Public Lands in their report said that Dardenne
was entitled to relief, and that he was willing to take satisfaction
in one of three ways : ( i ) To be given his identical lands in
fhe Cherokee reservation: (2) To be given $10,000 in money:
(3) To be permitted to take up an equal quantity of unoc
cupied land anywheje in Lawrence land district. The commit
tee reported in favor of the latter proposition. Dardenne's name
is perpetuated in Dardanelle Rock, and his descendants are in
many parts of Arkansas, in Indian Territory and in Kansas.
One wing of the family of the writer, by marriage, carries this
old French name and blood. The first marriage of a Dardenne
to a Dardenne occurred on December 8, 1822, when Abraham
married Harriet at Arkansas Post.
MARRIAGES IN ARKANSAS IN 1819 AND 182O.
The following marriages, not elsewhere noted, were cele
brated in Arkansas in 1819. At Arkansas Post: — in November
Francois La Fargue to Agnes Pinneaux; in August, David
Walter to MUlet Michel; in September, Francois Duval to
Catherine Dudley; in October, Michael Cotoner to Elizabeth
Kepler, and Brerihard Raphael to Catherine Gossien. In 1820:
— At Strawberry in Lawrence County, January; 24, Napoleon B.
Ferguson to Elizabeth Allen, and on February i George Brad
ley to Eleanor Bayliss. At Utica on the St. Francis by Daniel
Mooney Judge WUliam Reece to Sarah Dukes in October; by
Judge W. B. R. Hornor on May 29, at same place, J. Clark Dunn
to Clarissa Murch, and Ichabod Dunn to Margaret, daughter of
Gabriel Latimer, one of the most noted men of the St. Francis
and Mississippi river settlements. On September '29, 1821, Mar
garet Dunn died and. on the same day her infant son passed
away. At Blakeley town, Clark County, July 4, Thomas Fish to
Emily Hemphill, late of South Carolina. At Arkansas Post on

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas "jy
July 29, Antoine Bonneau to Adele Godin; at Little Rock on
September 16, Mr. Martin to Miss Daniel, the daughter of
Wright Daniel. Their given names are not preserved, but their
descendants of Little Rock will doubtless be in position to com
plete the omission. At the University of Virginia, in October,
Joseph Selden, Judge of the Superior Court of the Territory of
Arkansas to Harriet Gray of Albemarle County, Virginia. At
Arkansas Post on December 30, Eli J. Lewis to Polly, daughter
of Joseph Stilwell. "get THERE ELI."
Lewis was a hustler in business and pohtics, as will be
shown hereafter in a sketch of his remarkable career, the one
man for whom the phrase "Get there Eli" was coined, and what
follows will show that he believed marriage to be a success.
WheU'he married PoUy Stilwell he was a widower, his wife Sally
having died on January i, 1820. Polly died within four years,
on April 21, 1824, when he made a third venture, marrying the
belle of the Mississippi river, the 'daughter of Sylvanus Phillips
at Helena, in August, 1825. At Mound Prairie on November
24, William Trimble, U. S. District Attorney, to Lounetta,
daughter of Colonel Abraham Stuart; at Utica on January 11,
Charles Ewell, of Kentucky, to Barradel Latimer, daughter of
Griswold. These became the forbears of thousands of descend
ants through the eighty-five years that have elapsed since Wil
liam E. Woodruff first heralded these marriages to the world.
REVOLUTIONARY SOLDIERS AS SHOWN BY THE PENSION ROLLS.
This roll of heroes is a government record and is the high
est form of evidence. It is the pension roll of the revolutionary
soldiers alive in Arkansas in the counties named in 1833 and
1834, and will serve as an index to all descendants, who may
desire to take membership in any of the patriotic orders. The
publication of this list must not be taken as an exhaustive presen
tation of all soldiers in the revolution in Arkansas. There were
others, as will be shown from time to time, but they were not on
this roll.Revolutionary pension roll for the State of Arkansas with
ages of the pensioners :

78 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
Crawford County : Isaiah Mobley, aged seventy-nine years ;
Clement Mobley, sixty-seven, both of the South Carolina militia.
Hempstead County: Benjamin Clark, Sr., seventy-six, North
Carolina militia; William Conway, seventy-six, South Carolina
militia; Morgan Cryer, Sr., seventy-eight. South Carolina militia;
Morgan Cryer died in Clark county in November, 1833; John
Holman, ninety-seven, Virginia Continental Line.
Independence County: Lawrence Angel, seventy-one, North
Carolina Continental Line ; John Carothers, eighty-eight. South
Carolina militia; Benjamin Hardin, sixty-ijine. North Carolina
militia; David Vance, seventy-five, Virginia Continental Line;
John Weldon, seventy-five. South Carolina Continental Line,
John Welden died in April, 1835.
Lawrence County: James Ferguson, eighty-two. State not
given ; James Van Zant, seventy-eight, Pennsylvania Continental
Line. Jackson County : John Robinson, seventy-seven, Pennsyl
vania militia.
Pulaski County: Jacob Gray, seventy-one, South Carolina
Alilitia; Shared Gray, seventy-seven, North Carolina militia;
Asher Bagley and Benjamin Bagley, ages not given, both of
the First regiment of the New Jersey Continental Line.
Washington County: James Leiper, seventy-seven. North
Carolina militia; Arthur Murphy, seventy-two. North Carolina
Continental Line, and Warren Philpot, seventy-seven, of the
North Carolina mUitia.
THE FRENCH HERO, MONSIEUR LE NOIR DE SERVILLE.
This gentleman, who died on Arkansas soil December 30,
1828, was of the flower of France and one of the foreign con
tingent that lent its assistance to the cause of American Inde
pendence. He came to the United States as a French marine
with the fleet commanded by Count de Grasse, and was wounded
at Yorktown in attacking and carrying one of the British re
doubts on the evening of October 14, 1781. Being honorably
discharged he returned to France, but in after years came back
to the United States and in time found a home in Arkansas
near the plantation of Monsieur A. Barraque in Richland town
ship. He was accidently killed by the falling of a tree and was

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 79
buried with all the honors of war. It was a grand sight to see
the blending of nationalities at this military interment of a for
eign hero.
Adjutant General Terrence Farrelly, Colonels A. S. Wal
ker, Francis Notrebe, and several companies of fhe First and
Second regiments, Acting-Governor Robert Crittenden and his
dashing aide-de-camp. Colonel Yell, made up the military cor
tege, while the French families from far and near and the
American contingent of wealth, prowess and achievement made
the occasion a memorable one in early days. I do not know
whether this grave is in Richland, or in Barraque township
of Jefferson County, nor do I know whether it carries a mark
by which it may be identified. It was all in Richland township,
Arkansas county, in 1828, -but I am inclined to believe that
the grave is at what is now Redfield. It would be a graceful
thing for the citizens of Jefferson County, if they have not al^
ready done so, to erect a modest monument over the remains
of the foreign soldier L^ Noir de Serville, who died a stranger
in a land for which he fought; and if the spot of interment can
not be found, to place a memorial at the intersection of two
of the most prominent streets of fhe beautiful bluff city. There
is enough distinguished French blood in Jefferson County car
rying American names to do this graceful thing without sac
rifice or pain, and it would honor them while commemorating
the life and services of the gallant man.
DON CARLOS DE VILLE^MONT.
This Spaniard was commander of the Spanish garrison
at the post for many years prior to 1803, and maintained his
residence there and at Point Chicot after the cession of the
country to the United States. He took a wife in this region
about the year 1800, and died at the Post at the age of fifty-six,
on August 9, 1823, leaving his wife and a large family of chil
dren. No one was better known at that place than this old
Spanish grandee, and no one there was as much respected.
He united an almost princely suavity of manners with a char
acter that was without blemish. He was absolutely upright,
most charmingly sociable and as cheerful as sunlight. His death
was regretted by every man, woman and child at the Post, and

8o Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
elsewhere where he was known. With all this, he had a charm
ing family to whom he was devoted, being the kindest of hus
bands and the most affectionate of fathers. The Gazette leaded
its columns as a memorial to the man. One of his daughters,
Matilda, was on August 9, 1826, married to Doctor John Gibson
of Point Chicot, by Judge Eskridge of the Superior court. An
other died at Point Chicot in 1835, a single woman of unblem
ished character and most charming manners. The blood of this
gentle Spanish ancestor still flows in fhe veins of Arkansas men
and women.

CHAPTER XII.
Samuel Calhoun Roane.
Arkansas Post, as has been shown, was a magnet of remark
ably attractive power for men of parts from 1812 to 1819. It is
our purpose now to deal with a man who, without any injustice
to others, may be denominated the greatest jurist of territorial
days. The life of Samuel Calhoun Roane was in many respects
the rnost remarkable of the State's history. It was a record of
privation, of struggle and of triumph. It was interesting, be
cause for the most part it was spent on Arkansas soil, with all
its intensest energies given to the elucidation of those great ques
tions which in their ultimate effects flxed limiting forms upon
the mechanisms of territory and State. It was important be
cause Sam C. Roane became one of our own people and in the
totality of his living represented the highest, cleanest and best
type of Arkansas manhood. the ROANE FAMILY.
Some families exist for a century; others maintain their
vigor for a much longer time. Some men, like Napoleon, be
come the Hapsburgs of a new line ; others simply become greater
Hapsburgs in an existing line. The Bachs triumphed over cen
turies and are still a great family. Heredity has stamped itself
on the Adams, the Breckinridges, the Marshalls of our own coun
try and on the Rose family of Arkansas. It is true of some
people who boast of their ancestry that, like the potato, their

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 8i
best part is under the ground. But, like aU other flippancies,
this saying proves nothing, and is not exactly true. Pride in an
unsullied ancestry is the logical outgrowth of the morality which
enjoins a clean life. We are to honor our fathers and mothers,
and this logically leads to pride in ancestry. Strength of mind
is a rock for reverential regard and it is a poor tribute to mental
strength to limit it to a life in being. The common history of
every-day people proves the doctrine of inherited power far
better than the exceptional records of the great men of the world.
Sturdiness, manliness and vigor have passed down the centuries
from father to son, making the world's mass of sturdy, manly
and vigorous men today, its safety valve and governing power.
The Roanes were a sturdy, manly, vigorous family in the
old colonies of Virginia and North Carolina, and one does not
read far before finding this stock doing yeoman service for home
and country on fields of battle and in heroic private lives. When
the great West was opened up we find fhe Roanes in the van
making greater names in the new world, Kentucky, Illinois and
Tennessee. the TENNESSEE ROANES.
Samuel Calhoun Roane sprang immediately from the Ten
nessee branch of the family. Three brothers of this surname
were born in Virginia in the eighteenth century. One of them
remained on the ancestral estate and in time became governor of
the Old Dominion. Another, Archibald Roane, migrated to
Wilson county, Tennessee, and in due time became governor of
the State, with a county named in his honor. The third brother,
Hugh, also migrated to Wilson County and although not credited
with the political ability of his brothers, became the father of
three sons, two of whom became men of prominence one becom
ing a great lawyer in Arkansas and another its governor. The
Roane family has given a governor to Virginia, another to Ten
nessee and another to Arkansas, but the three governors com
bined lacked the mental vigor and polish of the Arkansas jurist,
Sam C. Roane, fhe subject of our sketch. The great William
Wirt at one time thought Sam C. Roane overmatched by the
combined talent of the Little Rock bar, while remaining the
equal of any part of it standing alone. Later on in his associa
tion with Roane he decided that Roane was more than equal to

82 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
the entire bar of Arkansas, and the equal of any lawyer in the
country. What shall we say of heredity in the face of a family
record like this ? Was there no antecedent crucible for the prep
aration of a matrix of this kind? If chance can account for the
Roane family on scientific principles, then moral injunctions and
godly lives are not worth the price we pay for them. Back of
the stature of the Roanes was the frugal, temperate, sacrificing
lives of their fathers and grand-fathers, as back of all worth is
to be found these habits and qualities in the profoundest degree.
THE ARKANSAS ROANES.
In the year' 1818 the discussion began concerning the making
of the State, Missouri, and the creation of the territory, Arkan
sas. Before either of these acts was consummated, Samuel Cal
houn Roane, a poor but a well-equipped young lawyer, passed
through fhe opening territorial gate and pitched his tent at Ar
kansas Post. Henry Clay in the halls of Congress in 1824, in
that masterful answer to the sneers of John Randolph, said: "I
was born to no proud patrimonial estate; from my father I in
herited only infancy, ignorance and indigence. I feel my de
fects, but so far as my situation in early life is concerned, I may
without presumption say that they are more my misfortune than
my fault." Clay in this splendid exaggeration omitted entirely
'his inheritance of intellect, as logically traceable to his father,
as were the inheritances of infancy, ignorance and indigence.
Samuel Calhoun Roane inherited indigence, infancy and in
tellect, but his education was not neglected. He outgrew the in
fancy by regular stages, and came to Arkansas to beat down the
indigence by the use of intellect. Like Woodruff, he came into
the territory without much money, but ready to do something;
unlike Woodruff, he had a profession and not a trade. No law
yer can beckon clients at will, and all through the years 1818 and'
1819 Roane had diflficulty in making buckle and tongue meet.
Other lawyers were at the Post, not his equal in power, who
were doing better than Roane, not in practicing law, but in mak
ing money in other lines. Joshua Norvelle was the district at
torney under Missouri law and had a salary. James Woodson
Bates had a real estate agency, but soon gave this up for a sal
ary. Robert Crittenden had a salary as secretary of the com-

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 83
monwealth, but made more money as a real estate agent. Roane
had too much of a legal mind to make a successful real estate
vendor. In early 18 19 he formed a law partnership with Joshua
Norvelle. The town of Rome was laid out in April, 1819, and
the troubles growing out of the titles to its lots brought the firm
of Roane & Norvelle some little money, but not enough to give
either of the partners a good suit of clothes. Then, as now,
good young lawyers were classified by the seediness of their
clothes. A tailor-made suit every six months indicated ten years
of privation and the beginning of power. A tailor-made suit
every year indicated eight years' privation mitigated by gains
made in other lines. A tailormade suit every two years was a
sign of brains and purpose, while a suit that lasted three years
was indicative of great will power and superior legal attainments.
THE TOWN OF ROME.
Rome, the imperial city, has gone ; so has Rome of Arkansas
county. It was once entitled to a place on the maps, but unfor
tunately while it existed no maps were made in Arkansas. Rome
was about five miles out of Arkansas Post and was designed to
be rat proof. The overflow of the Arkansas drove the rats to
higher ground and Arkansas Post was a "ratty" town. Rome
was to be on still higher ground and offered great inducements.
Its principal street was called Don Carlos, and the grandees re
served this for themselves. Crittenden and Morton were largely
interested in its development and in the sale of lots. William
Craig, another quaint character of fhat day, was also a vigorous
promoter. Unfortunately the title to the original grant was in
dispute and this created trouble and finally destroyed the town.
It began in 1819 and lasted about ten years. In 1822 it had the
following residents: Edward Brown, W. B. R. Horner, Robert
Johnson, William B. Locke, Elijah Morton, George Sampson,
John Taylor, Sr., and William Trimble. Everybody around
the Post owned one or more lots, which they looked upon as a
bonanza. JOSHUA NORVELLE.
The partnership of Roane & Norvelle did not last long.
Norvelle was a good young lawyer in a Missouri town, but af
flicted with salaryomania. In 181 5, just about fhe time when

84 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
fees were beginning to grow, he was offered' the prosecuting at
torney's place at Arkansas Post.
Joshua Norvelle accepted the place because of the salary
and with his wife moved to the Post. He held the office and
the salary until July, 1819, when he was out of a job. He and
Roane then joined forces, but the salary phantom was so im
bedded in Norvelle's constitution as to unfit him for fhe slow
work of an ofifice lawyer. His Missouri friends prevailed on
President Monroe to give him a place somewhere, and he was
sent to St. Bartholomew's Island as consul. He was credited
with being a good ofificer while there. He left his wife at Ar
kansas Post and then forgot to maintain her.
On July II, 1821, Maria Norvelle, wife of Joshua Norvelle,
filed a suit at Arkansas Post for a divorce on the ground of
desertion and non-support. Before the case came on for trial
Joshua Norvelle died. He passed away at St. Bartholomew on
August 12, 1821, and I have not found any further history of
his wife. OTHER MEN WHO BECAME PROMINENT.
Sam C. Roane stuck to his office. He did odd jobs on the
outside in order to make a living, but he never lost faith in the
law. Judge Witter was at Arkansas Post in December, 1819,
and met William E. Woodruff and was shown through the Ga
zette establishment. Woodruff had one helper, and that only on
press days. Witter was there on press day and was introduced
to the pressman, Sam C. Roane. Witter's description of Roane
is laughable. He said in effect that Roane was as far from the
dainty, well-dressed man he afterward became as Arkansas Post
was from the New Jerusalem. Roane kept books for Pryor &
Richards at night, earning a few extra dollars, and drinking in
the weird and wonderful experiences of Pryor, one of the great
est travelers that Arkansas has ever known. When the first
legislature convened in February, 1820, Roane was made en
grossing clerk and he honored the place. But Sam C. Roane's
law ofifice was always open. Dinsmoor & Spaulding kept their
office open also, as did Crittenden & Bates. The difference was
that Roane kept a law oflfice, pure and simple, while these others
kept a real estate office with a law attachment.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 85
These men advertised, giving one line to the law and thir
teen lines to real estate. Ashley at Little Rock stuck to the law,
but put up a grocery next door to his ofifice as a mainstay.
Neither Roane, Crittenden, Ashley, Morton nor Newton
were married men. Young Newton carried the mail from Ar
kansas Post to Little Rock in 1820 and 1821, and then became
deputy clerk at Little Rock, while studying for the bar. While
Spaulding was the first man admitted to the bar, Newton was
the first one to prepare himself for the bar in an Arkansas ofifice.
When these men were ready to marry they all took different
directions. Ashley went to Missouri, while Crittenden, Oden,
Morton and Newton went to Kentucky for wives. Chester
Ashley was the first, marrying Mary W. EUiott at Potosi, Mis
souri, on July 2, 1821. Robert Crittenden went next, being
niarried at Frankfort, Kentucky, on October i, 1822, to Ann
Morris. Elijah Morton took the Kentucky fever also and on
September 20, 182 1, married Nancy W. Stewart at Russellville,
Kentucky. Oden and Newton waited longer, but in May, 1829,
they both went back to Kentucky and married. Oden was mar
ried on May i at Bardstown to Frances Crozier, while Newton
was married on the 15th to Mary K. daughter of Colonel John
Allen, at Shelbyville, Kentucky. I can't blame these gentlemen
for their predilection for Kentucky women, for the reason that
I have lived wifh a Kentucky wife for thirty-two years, and if I
desired to throw rocks she stands in the way, dominating as is
her right and duty.
In the eyes of the larger world it would seem, however, fhat
these gentlemen exercised a sound and most excellent judgment,
but as the boys around the State house used to say, their course
did not indicate good political sagacity. Ashley triumphed over
his Missouri environment .and reached the United States Senate.
A Missouri wife, therefore, is not impedimenta in Arkansas
politics. The men who went to Kentucky, however, for wives,
leaving the Arkansas girls alone and forlorn, seem to have been
marked men politically ever afterward. Morton never tried for
political place, but Crittenden failed most egregiously to elect
himself and destroyed the chances of every man he favored.
Newton broke the rule once for a single term in Congress, but

86 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
could never break the "hoodoo" again. Oden ought to have
succeeded, but fate was against him.
THE EMBREES OF ARKANSAS COUNTY.
This family came into the territory about 1815 from Vir
ginia, and was located on the Arkansas river between Mason's
and Colonel Vaugine's in 1819, when Nuttal made his trip up
the river. Mr. Embree was then dead and Mrs. Embree was
running the plantation. She had a large family of children, the
most prominent sons being Jordan and Benjamin, well known in
later days. Colonel Embry of Atkins was a cousin of the hus
band of Mrs. Embree, although he spelled his name in a differ
ent way, and a more barbarous way, to my mind, as the word
Embree has much to commend itself fo every one. But Mrs.
Embree had a daughter, Maria, and this daughter captivated
Sam C. Roane. She was of an excellent family and would own
in her own right a splendid fdrm on the Arkansas. She had
varied charms and Roane fell in love. In the language of that
day he loved the ground she walked on and idolized the house
she lived in. On February 20, 1825, he married her in Vaugine
township, Arkansas County. He did not marry in haste, nor did
he marry before he could support his wife creditably. His tide
turned between 1820 and 1825.
THE TURN OF THE TIDE.
In August, 1820, he was appointed United States district
attorney for Arkansas and was reappointed on May 19, 1821.
The salary for the first four years was two hundred and fifty
dollars per annum, with a per diem of five dollars a day, while
the Superior Court was in session, an average of about three
days a month. He was reappointed in 1825, and again in 1829,
serving thirteen years in all. The salary improved from 1825
to 1829, but was never what it should have been. Holding a
government office was no bar to holding a State oflfice in those
days, nor was residence of any very fixed character demanded.
In 1 82 1 the people of Clark County elected him fo the Legis
lative Council by a majority of six votes over Eli Langford and
the council elected him president. He served the citizens of

^ Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 87
Clark County four years in this capacity, when his work at Little
Rock became too onerous for further political engagements.
Governor Miller appointed him, Robert Bean and James
Billingsly commissioners to locate the site for a court house in
Pulaski. Roane and Bean agreed upon Little Rock and the Cir
cuit Court confirmed the selection. On March 12, 1822, Henry
Armstrong, Archibald McHenry and Wright Daniel were ap
pointed commissioners to let out the contract and put up the
building. That ended the Pulaski contest and gave Little Rock
security and a chance to grow. In 1823 he digested the laws
of fhe territory, which added to his fortunes and fame. In 1822
Roane became the leading council for the plaintiff in Riley v.
Bradford, with Sevier, Crittenden and Ashley as associates,
while Major Bradford was represented by Trimble, Quaries and
Oden. This was a noted cause, involving a forced enlistment
of a man in the United States army at Fort Smith from 1817
to 1821. The jury gave a verdict for the plaintiff for fourteen
hundred and fifty dollars.
In 1822 General Edmund Hogan of Crystal Hill sued Wil
liam Russell of St. Louis and Little Rock for libel, and retained
Sam C. Roane, Chester Ashley and Neill McLane as his attor
neys. Russell was represented by Trimble and Sevier. The
jury gave a verdict for Hogan for twenty-four hundred dollars.
Nor did Roane neglect his federal business. In 1821 he gave
notice to wood and timber thieves along the Mississippi that
fhey might expect an enforcement of the law, and for four
years he so followed them that fhey gave up the business and be
came law-abiding men.
GREAT WORK IN THE LAND FRAUD CASES.
In the sale of the Louisiana territory to the United States
in 1803 provision was made for the protection of all settlers
then on any part of this vast area. In 1806 fhe government of
the United States began an investigation to ascertain who was
entitled to preference in land claims and kept the investigation
on foot for many years. It is safe to say that every honest
Spanish claim growing out of antecedent settlement, that is, a
settlement made prior to 1803, was presented to these investigat
ing boards before they passed out of existence, and that almost

88 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas g
every honest claim had been confirmed before 1820. From 1820
to 1824 Congress was overrun with claimants, who averred that
they had been overlooked and thereby wronged. On May 26,
1824, Congress authorized the Superior Courts of the territories
to try these new claims. In 1825 and in 1826 aU was quiet in
Arkansas. In fhe latter part of 1827, however, the Superior
Court at Little Rock was confronted by one hundred and twenty-
six cases demanding confirmation, and demanding it vigorously.
Every claim was a Louisiana claim sold by John J. or James
Bowie, or some other speculator, to men who lived in Arkansas.
These purchasers were all honest and ignorant of the origin of
the claims they were pressing to judgment.
In looking over these claims one is surprised to find that
men like Major Bradford, Robert Crittenden and A. H. Sevier
were so deceived by them as to invest in them. All fhe best
element of the Arkansas population seemed to have been deluded
into buying, and as a consequence every reputable lawyer in the
territory, except Richard Searcy, was on one side of the case,
and Sam C. Roane alone upon the other. He retained Searcy
as a helper and these two started in to beat the entire bar of
Arkansas. The odds were fearful, and when it was ascertained
that the court had a leaning the wrong way the case seemed
hopeless. The trials began in December, 1827, with a written
motion by Roane to postpone until he could learn a little more
about the Spanish language and law, but more particularly that
he might have time to go down into Louisiana and hunt up evi
dence. The court, composed of Johnson and Eskridge, over
ruled the motion. The trial was forced to an issue and Roane
did the best he could with the evidence at hand and interposed
the case of Soulard v. The United States, a case decided by
Judge Peck of the United States Supreme Court, which was a
bar to the actions in hand, but aU to no purpose. Between
December 19 and December 24, 1827, the court confirmed one
hundred and seventeen of these claims, and the lawyers of the
Little Rock bar were in a frenzy of delight. Roane took his
exceptions and his medicine. He was not only a good lawyer,
but something of a wif. Shortly after the trial Judge Ben John
son said to Roane: "I suppose you wanted a good long ad
journment in order to learn a little Spanish law." Roane drawl-

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 89
ingly answered, "Yes, that was partly my object; but my greatest
reason was that the court might have time to acquaint itself
with American law." The judge said : "WeU, the court seems
to have been satisfied wifh the knowledge it had." "True," said
Roane, "but the medicine has not had time to work yet. When
the court really studies the law its satisfaction will turn to con
fusion." ROANE'S TUSSLE WITH WILLIAM WIRT.
But Roane's confusion did not end with the loss of the
cases at Little Rock. When the news got to the ofifice of Wil
liam Wirt, the attorney general of fhe United States, it created
a sensation. Wirt at once jumped to the conclusion that Roane
had been over-powered by the Little Rock bar and had misman
aged the cases. He wrote Roane an interminably long and
terribly dry letter. He could not conceive how such a thing
could happen. You, Mr. Roane, were on fhe ground and you
were supposed to know Spanish law. More than that, you were
supposed to know the case of Soulard v. The United States, the
very mention of which would have apprised the court that a
higher power had already passed upon these very questions, and
saved fhe country this erroneous ruling. Roane could take a
great deal, but he could not take this veiled lecture from Wil
liam Wirt. He answered Wirt most vigorously and most effect
ively. The attorney general was informed that every principle
of the Spanish law known to him or to Richard Searcy was
given to the court; that efforts had been made to secure a post
ponement in order to learn more of these principles and to get
relevant evidence. That the case of Soulard v. The United
States was thrown at the court time and time again, but fhat
the court had always dodged the blow. He informed Mr. Wirt
that his salary was two hundred and fifty dollars a year and that
he had spent one hundred dollars of that for evidence, and that
this, like the case, had faded away. Then with a master hand
he said that future action was worth far more than criticism of
the past. You have let two years pass in correspondence and
the time for a bill of review has nearly elapsed. I have found
evidence in Louisiana fhat will reverse these cases, and if you

90 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
will send Isaac Preston of New Orleans to testify as an expert
it is very probable that other conclusions will be reached.
The motions for fhe bills of review were fought by the Ar
kansas bar to the last minute. The court found iself in a
dilemma, but there was no way out of it than by a reversal.
William E. Woodruff printed fifteen or sixteen pages of clean-
cut extra matter in every issue for a month, notifying man after
man to come in and show cause why a bill of review should not
issue. The original papers were spirited away by interested
parties in order that fhey might not be used in criminal actions.
Roane won out and won so thoroughly and so completely as to
place himself at the very head of the Arkansas bar. When John
son met Roane after his great victory he said : "Well, Roane,
I see that you have learned a little more Spanish." "Yes, your
honor," said Roane, "and the court has learned a little more
law." Johnson and Roane were friends and each appreciated
the good points of the other.
Governor Pope was charged with saying that Roane had
not used proper diligence in the original trial of the cases, but
denied this in a full-page letter to the people. He said he
thought fhat Roane had been over-powered by the tremendous
number of lawyers arrayed against him, but that he never
charged him with any delinquency. When an attempt was made
to oust Roane Pope asked, "Who is there to fake his place, since
all the reputable lawyers are on the other side?" Pope also
gave out the information that while in Washington he had heai;d
from Graham and Wirt, and that these gentlemen said that all
any lawyer could do was done by Roane in 1827; that he was
not overpowered by the Little Rock bar, but slaughtered by the
Little Rock court, in its effort to override a decision of the
United States court. That ended the influx of fraudulent and
forged claims, and gave Roane fhat prominence af the bar which
led to wealth and affluence. The character of the Superior
Court, however, suffered a severe blow, from the effects of
which it never recovered, and when it passed out of existence
in 1836 the people did not grieve.
The original decisions of 1827 seemed to make all these
Spanish claims good, and the traffic in them increased so alarm
ingly that Graham, the land commissioner, held up the registry

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 91
and appealed to Congress. When the court reversed itself in
1 83 1 the people were disgusted. Could there have been an elec
tion for Superior Court judges, there is little doubt but that
Eskridge, Trimble, Bates and Johnson would have gone down
under an overwhelming vote of popular disfavor. General Ar
buckle and others went fo Congress for relief, claiming that
they bought under the decision of the Arkansas court, and that
as the court had gone wrong they should not be made to lose
thereby. When catechized more closely by congressmen, Ar
buckle was forced to admit that Roane's position and the cases
cited by him had created a doubt in his mind, and in the minds
of Arkansas generally, as to the soundness of fhe court's de
cisions, and that although he had bought twenty-four hundred
dollars worth of these claims since the decisions, he never felt
fhat he had an absolutely valid title. Congress refused the relief.
roane's further honors.
From 1 83 1 to 1836 he was judge of fhe First Territorial
Circuit Court, and in 1836 was chosen by Jefferson County as
her representative in fhe constitutional convention. From 1836
fo 1837 he served Jefferson County as State Senator, and was
the first president of the Arkansas Senate under the State re
gime. While President of fhe Senate, Roane frequently acted as
Governor of Arkansas, during fhe frequent absences of Gov
ernor Conway. The columns of the Gazette from 1837 fo 1840
contain numerous proclamations signed "Sam. C. Roane, Act
ing Governor." SAM C. ROANE AS ACTING GOVERNOR.
Speaking of Sam. C. Roane recaUs the fact fhat he is
the only acting governor of Arkansas not recorded by fhe
Secretary of State in his list of governors and acting gov
ernors of Arkansas. All the rest are duly credited,' but Sam
C. Roane's name is remarkable for its absence. This is a great
injustice to a worthy man, and to the facts of history. Lists
of this kind have a great historic value, and they should be
absolutely authentic. Why Jacob Frolich, the compiler of the
original list, omitted Roane, I am not able to say. Certainly

92 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
nof intentionally, for Jake Frolich was an absolutely fair man.
In compUing this old record, he laid fhe State under perpetual
obligation to him, and certainly left a monument to his own
painst^ing care and personal zeal. He left out Roane, how
ever, and no secretary since his day has noted the omission.
For flve years I had the preparation of this report in hand,
and made many corrections, but failed to discover the error
I am adverting to now, and possibly would not have discov
ered it but for the series of articles I am now writing. In the
columns of the Gazette for 1837 and 1838 there are many
proclamations signed by Sam C. Roane as acting governor
of the State of Arkansas, being the first acting governor the
State ever had. It is also true that he acted more frequently,
and for a longer period, in that capacity than any other man
since his day, except the present ofiicer. Roane as acting gov
ernor in 1837 organized the mihtia of Arkansas, commissioned
its officers and sent them to Fort Towson to operate against the
Indians. MANY ERRORS IN OFFICIAL LISTS.
I have in my after researches found quite a large num
ber of errors in the early Arkansas official lists as published,
and have also found many of the officers who are recorded in
blank in the published lists. The State should provide for the
revision of these old lists, so that they may import absolute ver
ity and certainty. An appropriation of two hundred and fifty
dollars would pay for the whole research, and the truths of his
tory seem to demand fhe investment.
THE .WIT OF ROANE.
Upon reading of the duel between Isaac Knott and Alex
Shott, Judge Roane remarked: "Knott was shot and Shott
was not," a conclusion reached by George D. Prentice on in
dependent lines. At a dinner fable in one of the old Arkansas
taverns, Judge Roane noticed that fhe butter contained many
flies. Calling the landlord to one side, he said: "I see you
mix your flies with the butter. Would it not be better to place
all the flies on one plate and the butter on another, leaving it

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 93
for the guests to mix them according to their own tastes? I
merely suggest this for your own reflection."
. Roane was an Arkansan to the core, and with any sort
of a reckoning must be classed as one of fhe really great men
of the State. Sam C. Roane had a brother, James, prominent
in Eastern Arkansas, but not connected with political affairs.
His brother-in-law, Jordan Embree, represented Jefferson Coun
ty in the legislature of 1844. The brother John Selden Roane,
was prominent in Jefferson County politics and in 1849 'was
elected governor of the State.
Sam C. Roane left nine chUdren: one son Andrew, died
in infancy; two other sons, John Jordan and Samuel Calhoun,
grew to manhood. The six daughters married as foUows:
Juliet to Colonel M. L. Bell, Fannie to Flowers McGregor, Hen-
nie to L. H. Oliver, Mary to. Mr. Dorris, Johanna to Captain
Chalmers, and Ida to Captain John S. Bell.

CHAPTER XIIL
Shirt-sleeved Millionaires.
It has been said of Pittsburg that it has more than one*
hundred shirt-sleeve millionaires and but very few of. the silk
hat variety. It is meant by this fhat the rich men of today
were the poor boys of yesterday. The contrast may be greater
in Pittsburg, going to the extreme of extremes, or as my
wife pithily expressed it after returning from a visit to her
millionaire kin iri the Iron City, "Pittsburg is the Eden of
dirt and diamonds," — ^yet it is nevertheless true that the en
tire West notes its rich of today as the poor of yesterday.
Nowhere in the Mississippi valley is the generality of this
truth better attested than in the history of Arkansas. Mosely,
Farrelly, Notrebe, Ashley, Roane, Barkman, Horner and hun
dreds of others came in as poor men, without illustrious an
cestry or great friends. Crittenden in an open attack upon
Judge Eskridge, who came poor and made money quickly, dis
closed the fact fhat Judge Trimble, who came in 1820 clad in
homespun and dreams, had retired from the State within ten

94 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
years with $20,000 in gold honestly made, something better
than any lawyer in the Mississippi valley had been able to do
up to that time. In the furious fight between William Strong
of St. Francis and W. D. Ferguson of Crittenden, in the thir
ties, it developed that Ferguson came to the State in 1824 with
out bag or baggage and in fifteen years, as Strong said, had
made his "Golcondry" besides "holding down an oflfice every
day of the time and sometimes two."
HENRY W. CONWAy'S WEALTH.
Ambrose H. Sevier in 1825 told the people of Pulaski in
an appeal for votes that "he came among them an orphan, with
out wealth, without relatives and without friends." Henry W.
Conway in 1823 in his first race for delegate to Congress told
the people that "he had tried Tennessee, Illinois and Missouri
before coming to Arkansas, but without success ; that he had not
made anything in those States and had been in Arkansas since
1821 without the trappings of wealth or the aid of influential
friends." Conway exaggerated at this time for he had influen
tial friends, who gained for him an ofifice in 1821, receiver of
public moneys at Little Rock, and another in 1823, that of
postmaster, the two not being incompatible as things were then.
' Nor is it exactly square to say that the public conscience is more
acute today than then. A more exact expression would be,
there are more guests at fhe table today, and the pie must be cut
into smaller pieces. Conway on his own account started a
town in 1819, in Southern Illinois, called "America," which has
long since changed its name. In May of the same year he, and
his uncles, WiUiam and Thomas Rector, laid off the town of
Osage, Missouri. When he died in 1827, after six years of
Arkansas atmosphere, he was "not so ailing as he was in 1823."
It took nearly a column of the Gazette to display his holdings.
In Little Rock he owned a six-room frame house, each room
16x20, with a fire place in each room. The house had an upper
and lower gallery, eight feet wide, with a passage way above
and below stairs, with a brick kitchen and smoke house de
tached. This house was not on any submerged tenth, but stood
out "commanding like" on fhe bluff in front of the ferry on a
lot three hundred feet long and one hundred and forty-five feet

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 95
deep with a splendid frontage on three streets. When erudition
lends itself to an investigation of really historic homes it will
not start with the "Crittenden mansion" of 1830, but will go
back into real history and dig up this best house in Little Rock,
in 1823. There were better and more noted houses in other
parts of the State at that time, but historians have made their
starting point so far down the line of years as fo exclude these
old historic landmarks. Conway also owned forty lots in Little
Rock, one hundred and seventy acres of the best bottom land
within three miles of Little Rock, and lands all over the terri
tory and in the States of Illinois and Missouri. He was a good
type of the shirt sleeve Croesus at home, although wearing a
silk hat at the capital of fhe country.
CAPTAIN NATHANIEL PRYOR.
Captain Nathaniel Pryor led a life of wonderful adventure
before settling at Arkansas Post in 1814. Prior to 1804 it was
said that he had been in every Eastern State, never satisfied,
always eager to move on. When the Lewis and Clark expe
dition was formed by President Jefferson, Nathaniel Pryor was
one of the thirty-two selected spirits who were to make the
trip. This was a memorable trip to the Pacific, the first ever
made by Anglo-Americans, and the names of the members of
the party, Pryor's among the rest, still distinguish rivers and
mountains along the path of the great march. For years after
ward he traded up the Missouri and in 1814 began his opera
tions on fhe Arkansas. Nuttal traveled with him up fhe river
in 1819, and has left us an interesting account of his manner
of trading. He was, in river parlance, half horse and half
alligator, a shirt sleeve explorer and trader and a silk hat mer
chant prince in St. Louis and New Orleans before Pittsburg
began to call the roll of ifs shirt sleeve millionaires.
THE unknighted pioneers.
These men had no pedigree that they were familiar with
and wanted none. A coat of arms would have been looked upon
as an anamoly, but real arms were somewhat of a necessity,
if not a delight. They could shoot bears with deadly precision
and with equal skill could bring down an Indian or desperado.

96 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
The moral tone of each neighborhood was higher than it is
today, being protecfed and upheld by fathers and brothers, al
ways at hand and always loaded for bear, while now we must
ride six miles for a constable or a policeman, who is often not
on his beat when wanted, and not equal to the occasion when
found. These old-time shirt sleeved gentry did each year as
a simple matter of course and without claiming any kind of
credit for its deeds what in a kingly country would have brought
a coat of arms. Thus when, in 1260, William De Gylpin killed
a wild boar in the wilds of Westmoreland, King John knighted
him and gave him a crest, which was afterward elaborated
into a coat of arms. The crest was nothing more than the
picture of a wild boar, but the descendants of William Gylpin
through six centuries have prized the crest more than gold
and have fought for its honor on every English battlefield.
The old Arkansas pioneers turned a wilderness into an Eden,
drove the snakes out of its borders, left their descendants silk
hats and a good name. They had buckskin breeches, wool
hats of a most uncertain age, but of no particular shape, good
pruning hooks and shooting irons, but, best of all, unsullied
names. They were all on fhe democratic level, with the post
master and storekeeper as a sort of oracle. Well-to-do farm
ers were, of course, a little better than the ne'er-do-weUs,
and a man with a thousand acres cut a wider swath than one
with a quarter section. They all came in on the level of equal
opportunity and of almost equal poverty. Every fellow from
anywhere had a chance, and what was in him had a chance to
come out. Very soon after the flood of migration began to
rise men began to be measured by the ice they had cut. A
man with one hundred cattle and twenty negroes became a
neighborhood nabob, and was called Colonel to distinguish him
from the man who had no land, but hired himself to others.
A man with a half dozen pretty girls and a good farm was
called Judge, and insensibly the orderly laws of -caste were
evolved from the chaos of democratic opportunity. The sons
came to wear silk hats, and the grandsons, if they had nothing
else, could boast of the most pleasing memories. The shirt
sleeve brigade always makes the fortunes for its silk-hat de
scendants; but the silk-hat brigade has never been able to make

Pioneer's and Makers of Arkansas 97
an invention that would preserve and make everlasting fhe
good solid chunks of wealth rolled up by its shirt-sleeve an
cestry. SOME OF the earliest officers.
Captain James B. Many, with a body of United States sol
diers, came to Arisansas Post in 1804 to take charge of the
country under the new regime. The Spanish commandant, with
all the pride of his nation, fired a salute to the Spanish flag
as it ran down fhe galliards for the last time, and with equal
courtesy flred a salute as the Stars and Stripes took its place.
Captain Many remained at the Post for some time, and in 1816
made an afifidavit before the Spanish Claims Commission which
fixed the settlement of Joseph Mason on Plum Bayou as older
than the American occupancy. Colonel Francis Vaugine, Joseph
Bogy, Andre Fagot, Jean Lavale, Pierre Pertuis, Alexis Jar-
deles and Jean Jardeles made separate affidavits before Judge
George Bullitt at the Post in October, 1816, that Joseph Mason
came in 1798 during the time of Don Carlos de Villemont's oc
cupancy. Henry Cassidy also made oath that he surveyed for
Winters in 1802 and found Mason there. Nuttal notes his resi
dence on Plum Bayou in 1819, which proves a long and con
tinuous residence. He was a Kentuckian and introduced into
the region marty of the farming customs that still prevail. I
have no proof that the family was perpetuated on Arkansas soil,
but I believe fhat it was. Polly Mason, who married Alfred
Harrington on May 2, 1820, was probably a daughter, as the
marriage was in Joseph Mason's township, and the Harringtons
near neighbors. The ceremony was performed by Ephraim C.
Davidson, a justice of the peace, who came in in 1819. James
W. Mason opened an oflfice at the Post as a physician on April
7, 1 82 1, and may have been a son of the old pioneer.
Chevalier Pierre Pertuis, named above, died at the P-ost
December 2, 1821, at the age of sixty-five having lived in this
region all his life. His daughter, Nina Pertuis, married Victor
Vasseur at the Post in June, 1822, the ceremony being per
formed by Judge Andrew Scott. I think the name Pertuis is
nearly extinct in Arkansas, but the blood of the old chevalier is
still perpetuated. At his funeral were two older men than he —

98 Pioneei-s and Makers of Arkansas
Joseph Dardene, born 1748, who died at the Post in 1837 in his
eighty-ninth year, and Francis Varsier, born 1756, and died at
the Post in January, 1836, in his eightieth year. Longevity
seems to have marked these old Frenchmen for her own.
EARLY SETTLEMENT ON POKE BAYOU.
The examination cited above disclosed the fact that B. H.
McFarlane had made a settlement on the south side of White
river above the mouth of Poke bayou in 1804 and that he had
lived there continuously for ten years. His right to a square
mile of land was confirmed in 1813. Nicholas Trammel had a
square mile in Independence, confirmed in 181 7, based on a ten
years' continuous residence, which he sold in 1821 to Morgan
Magness, a Tennesseean. The occupancy was proved by
Charles Kelley, one of the oldest settlers of Independence
County. In one of Captain Alany's reports the interesting informa
tion was given that the winter's rations for the garrison had
been laid in, consisting of twenty-five buffaloes and five thou
sand bushels of corn. Hewes Scull had a miU at which this
corn was ground and the toll yielded a good income. The sol
diers quartered there were generally artillerymen, and in the days
of the first occupancy made long trips to the West in search of
buffaloes, buf in later times the meat was brought down on boats.
FIRST CIVIL court.
Soon after Captain Many took possession, Stephen War-
rell, a lieutenant of the artillery and a native of Pennsylvania,
was made deputy governor, and resigned his army position to
take up his new duties. He organized the first civil government
under the United States for the regulation of property trans
fers, marriages and the like. Another lieutenant under Many,
Robert Weir Osborne, also a native of Pennsylvania, was made
clerk of the court in October, 1806. Whether Warrell died or
resigned is not clear, but in 1808 Osborne was made deputy
governor and Richard W. Honey, clerk, a position he held until
the territory of Missouri was formed, in 1813. Honey was not
an army man and his records still remain to gladden the heart
of the antiquarian and fo enlighten all interested parties upon

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 99
the court proceedings of that time. When the territory of Mis
souri was created, George Bullitt of Missouri was appointed
judge and moved his family to the Post, where he remained un
til 1819, the leading citizen of the town. He was a man of
parts and impressed upon the District of Arkansas and upon fhe
counties of Arkansas, Lawrence, Pulaski, Clark and Hempstead
their organic form under Missouri law, which form was perpet
uated by the act creating the territory of Arkansas. Judge
Bullitt organized these five counties and enforced the laws of
Missouri- and was a factor in early territorial life for six long
years. BULLITT ORGANIZED TERRITORY.
Crittenden is given an absolutely unwarranted credit for
organizing the new territory of Arkansas. It was organized by
Bullitt, and Congress, in making Arkansas Territory, continued
the organic divisions and fhe laws then existing, and so spe
cifically stated in the organic act. The so-called first legislature
of the territory, wherein Crittenden, Scott, Jouett and Letcher
spread Missouri law over fhe territory, was supererogation, pure
and simple. Congress had already done this and Congress was
the only power that could do it. An examination of the other
work done by this so-caUed first legislature shows that there
was much fuss over very few feathers.
It is time that the hoary chestnut about Crittenden's arduous
task in organizing a new territory be relegated to the junk de
partment, and that George Bullitt be given the credit he de
serves. Five counties, wifh fourteen thousand people, were un
der law and progressing finely when Crittenden went to Arkan
sas. Not a thing was changed, except to substitute"" the word
"Arkansas" for the word "Missouri," and put in five new ofificers,
a governor, secretary of State, and three new judges, to do what
George Bullitt had been doing for six years single-handed and
alone. When Bullitt left Arkansas Post for his new home at
Cape Girardeau his departure was universally regretted, and in
his new home he gained an enviable reputation. John Dodge
was his clerk at Arkansas Post, and in after years was a leading
citizen of the new commonwealth.

ioo Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
In 1819 fhe Superior Court was established, with Andrew
Scott, Charles Jouett and Robert Letcher as judges. David E.
McKinney was clerk of this court for many years and became a
landmark in early judicial affairs. Jouett and Letcher were
quitters, and in 1820 Benjamin Johnson succeeded one, and in
1 82 1 Robert Selden succeeded the other.
EARLY COUNTY ADMINISTRATIONS.
The old county oflficers, three from each county, clerk,
sheriff and coroner, appointed in 1818, continued to administer
county affairs under the new territory and all of these came into
the territory during the years 1816 or 1817. Eli J. Lewis,
Hewes Scull and Oliver H. Thomas were, respectively, clerk,
sheriff and coroner of Arkansas County from 1817 fo 1821.
Thomas was a young merchant from Baltimore, Maryland, very
enterprising and popular. He was connected with the early
militia organizations at the Post and, like his partner, Lewis was
a big man at every feast. He committed suicide in 1822. W.
P. L. Blair was clerk of Clark County in 1818; resigned in Sep
tember, 1819, and was succeeded by H. L. Biscoe from Richmond,
Virginia; Moses Graham, a citizen of Clark for many years, was
sheriff in 1818 and died in September, 1819, when S. M. Ruther
ford, a clerk for many years under Pryor & Richards, was ap
pointed in his stead. NON-RESIDENT OFFICEHOLDERS.
It will be seen that a man could reside at Arkansas Post and
still be sheriff of Clark County, as Rutherford did not actually
move from the Post for several years. Mathew Logan was
coroner of Clark County from 1818 to 1821. W. P. L. Blair
was also one of the promoters of fhe town of Rome, in Arkan
sas County, and in some way, not explainable at this distance of
time, a large number of Clark County people lived at the Post.
Jacob Barkman's wife died at her residence, five miles from the
Post, in August, 182 1, when at the same time her husband was
postmaster at a crossroads in Clark County. When Blair re
signed as clerk, Sam C. Roane of Arkansas Post was made clerk
pro tem. ; Roane was prosecuting attorney in Clark in 1820, still
residing at the Post, and represented Clark County without ever

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas loi
living in it ; Blair was a thorough going man and alpng with the
old Frenchman, Peter Jardelow, made a lot of money. Other
old residents of Clark County, Zachariah Davis, Samuel Parker,
Adam Stroud and Abner Hignite, had residences in 1817 and
1818 at the Post, and their connection with Clark County at
that time vvas principally that of hunters and trappers. There
were courts in Clark County before the Common Pleas Courts
were established in 1819, and Blair, Graham and Logan were
county officials one year before these courts sprang into exist
ence. EARLY SETTLERS IN CLARK COUNTY.
In 1822 the town of Crittenden was laid off by Adam
Stroud, Wm. Kelley and John Bull and advertised in fhe Ga
zette as the county seat of Clark. Stephen Clanton of Pulaski
County was one of the first Common Pleas judges of Clark
County, and died in 182 1. The Fish family, the Fenfors, the
Scarboroughs and fhe Deans entered Clark in 1818 or 1819.
Thomas Fish was the most prominent of early Clark County
men and died February 4, 1823. Patrick Cassidy was perhaps,
with one exception, the first Anglo-American to settle in Clark
County, his claim going back to 1800. The exception is the
claim of Archibald Price and Louis Cavet on the Ouachita many
years before this. At all events, Cassidy resided there in 1800
on a twelve hundred-acre tract, purchased by him of Price and
Cavet. Cassidy had large holdings on the Mississippi and was
one of the candidates in 1819 for delegate to Congress.
In Hempstead County Colonel J. M. Stewart was clerk
from 1818 to 1823, and Benjamin Clark coroner for the same
period. They entered Hempstead County in 1815, and Colonel
Stewart was for years Hempstead's leading citizen. He was a
major in a Tennessee regiment in the War of 1812, and died at
Washington on February 24, 1825. Benjamin Clark, fhe cor
oner, was a wealthy planter, as things were counted then, and,
with the exception of Stewart and John WUson, was the most
prominent man in the county.
COLONEL ALEXANDER S. WALKER.
Colonel Alexander S. Walker was sheriff from 1818 to
1823, though living aU the time at Arkansas Post. Since writ-

I02 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
ing the sketch of his life I have ascertained that after serving
Pulaski County as sheriff from 1830 to 1831, he again ran for
the legislature, but was beaten by Allen Alartin. In 1835 the
Democrats of the legislature nominated him for auditor of State,
but the Whigs swept everything before them and he was beaten.
Then Old Hickory, President Andrew Jackson, took up the old
wheel horse and made him agent for the Seneca Indians. Presi
dent Madison dismissed him from fhe United States service in
1810, and President Jackson reinstated him to an arm of the
civil service in 1835. He died in 1837 at Fort Gibson with his
name on Uncle Sam's pay rolls. This rounds out the career of
one of the most remarkable men ever connected with Arkansas
affairs. In Lawrence County, Richard Searcy was clerk from 1817
to 1821 ; Joseph Hardin, sheriff from 1817 to 1825, and Robert
Blane, coroner from 1817 to 1821. In Pulaski County, R. C.
Oden was clerk from 1819 to 1821 ; Lemuel R. Curran, sheriff
from 1818 to 1 82 1, and Jacob Pyeatt, coroner for the same
•period. Lemuel R. Curran was one of the leading spirits of
Cadron, and died there on March 8, 1821.
Thus the counties were organized when Crittenden and his
associates entered the State, and the matter of organization was
a matter of the supremest indifference and moment. Had the
new ofificers never come it would have made no difference what
ever. The shirt-sleeve pioneers were organized for work, were
doing exceUent work in a lawful way, and were piling up thaf
wealth which supports their silk-hat descendants of today.

CHAPTER XIV.
The Coming of the Covered Wagons.
The scarcest commodity in the territory from 1819 to 1825
was money. In fact it was not needed to any great extent and
when circulated was in fhe main Spanish silver. The finding
of Spanish coins in odd places of the State is no evidence of
Spanish occupancy, for American settlers used this coin for
more than two decades. Between 1819 and 1825 the territory

Pioneers and Makers^of Arkansas 103
issued scrip which from the start never had a general value of
more than fifty cents on the doUar of Spanish money. Sam
C. Roane conceived the idea of utilizing this scrip for fees and
in 1820 advertised that he would take it at par in payment of
fees. As he was single and always lived within his means, there
is little doubt but that he made considerable by holding the scrip
for fhe golden moments when he could use it to advantage.
There is no proof, however, that his cash charges were not ma
terially less than his scrip charges. William E. Woodrufif
would never take it for more than seventy-five cents on fhe dol
lar, but preferred cash. The merchants took it at fifty and sixty
cents on the dollar, and passed it out at par fo the unsuspect
ing customers who sold them cotton and peltries, but, if re
quired, were ready to pay silver. These merchants did not wait
for cotton and peltries to come to them, but ran pole boats up
the river stopping at every settlement to points far up in Kansas.
Every farmer had a heavy two-'horse wagon and kept a number
of horses, as the only method of travel in the interior was by
wagon or on horseback. The horse trails were far more numer
ous than wagon roads, and horseback riding very popular.
THE BARBECUE AND BERGU.
The barbecue was a feature of early territorial life, and the
pioneers could smell a feast of this kind for fifty mUes. The
bergu was another great feast and consisted of five hundred
squirrels properly cleaned and boiled to the consistency of soup
in a twenty gallon iron caldron. A barbecue or a bergu was
the social occasion of the period, but politicians soon turned it
into a machine for vote getting and for sampHng bad whisky
and worse oratory. When camp meetings began in 1823, an
other social outlet was created and it was no uncommon thing
to see three hundred horses hitched to swinging limbs of trees
in fhe forest, whose riders, male and female, had traveled from
forty to fifty miles. When preaching was over and the basket
dinner eaten, the men parceled themselves off in squads to at
tend to more important matters, swap horses, trade land and do
the other fellow up before he had time fo get in his work on
him. One eye was always towards the horns of the altar, while
the other sought for soft snaps and easy mutton. Thus they

I04 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
prayed and preyed until four o'clock, when they struck the trail
for a long ride home.
THE IMMIGRATION OF 1815-183O.
The greater part of the immigration of this period was by
wagon. When Uncle Sam counted the people in 1820-21, he
found fourteen thousand two hundred and seventy six, which
had grown in 1830 to something more than thirty thousand.
The great line of march after 1817 was the Great National Road
from Missouri to Davidsonville. In 1820 this was extended to
Cadron through Batesville, and in 1821 down to' Red river
through Clark and Hempstead counties. Branches from this
road went east and west, but they were tough propositions, and
like Jordan, "fiard roads to travel." The St. Louis Republican
in 1819 stated that one hundred persons a day passed through
St. Charles, one-third of whom passed Southward, distributing
themselves as they were suited clear down to Red river. Some
bands of immigrants carried one hundred head of cattle, each
one of them making music with a bell. Every party had from
three to twenty slaves. The ferries on the Mississippi took over
from three hundred to five hundred persons a day, and from
thirty to fifty wagons. Missouri got the most of this migration
from 1819 to 1830, but from 1830 to 1850 the larger part of it
entered Arkansas. In 181 9 we found the State inhabited by
people who came by water and who lived on fhe rivers of East
ern Arkansas. In 181 5 the method of transportation began to
change and the covered wagon and the national road began to
get in their superior work. In the census of January, 182 1,
Lawrence County had five thousand six hundred and five people,
practically aU of whom came in from Missouri after 1816. They
settled first on Strawberry river, then spread fo fhe Current and
Black, always taking the best lands. Some of these reached
Poke Bayou as early as 1814, but the very largest part did not
arrive until after 1818. Hempstead County, in 1821, had two
thousand two hundred and forty-eight people, one-third of whom
were there in 1817 and 1818. They settled on Mount Prairie
and spread, like a great setting hen, clear to Red river.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 105
WHEN PULASKI EXTENDED TO FT. SMITH.
The third county in size was Pulaski, with nineteen hundred
and twenty-three people, and settlements at Cadron, Crystal
Hill, Pecannerie, Little Rock, Crawford Court House, and on
the Saline near Benton. There were but nine counties in 1821,
and Pulaski extended clear up fo Ft. Smith. The fourth county
was Arkansas, with twelve hundred and sixty-one people. Phil
lips came next with twelve hundred and one, the larger part
coming directly across the river from distributing points on the
National road from Nashville to Natchez, while a great number
came by boat from Southern Indiana and Ohio, and from river
points in Kentucky and Pennsylvania. The next county was
Clark, with eleven hundred and forty people, the larger part
coming by way of fhe National road, while the smaller part
came by way of the Post. Miller County came next with nine
hundred and ninety-nine people, nearly all of whom came the
Missouri route, with a very small number coming up from
Louisiana. The smallest county was Crawford, with five hun
dred and forty-seven souls, included in the Pulaski County
enumeration. Lawrence and Independence County were listed
together in this census, although separate counties, and together
had more than one-third the population of the whole territory.
This shows how much more important the wagon was in deter
mining population and its location than the boat. Far-away
Hempstead had more than one-seventh of the population, and
although for the most part from Georgia, North Carolina, Vir
ginia and Kentucky they came in from Missouri in wagons
guided by the National road.
This distribution of population is always a fascinating study.
The greatest factor in the immigration from 1812 to 1817 was
cheap and good lands. Under the influence of this law a great
number of clean, honest, yet poor people came into the territory
from every Eastern State. Davidsonville in 1817 had mer
chants from rockbound Vermont, and Mount Prairie had mer
chants from Maine. The major part of the population, how
ever, was from the older Southern States.

io6 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
MILITARY OFFICERS WERE NABOBS.
The factor most largely entering into the immigration from
1817 to 1825 was the soldiers' land bounties. Congress gave its
soldiers of fhe Revolution and the war of 1812 a preference in
free lands. This brought another mass of clean, honest, brave,
and somewhat richer men. A colonel received one thousand
acres, and when a colonel moved to the territory he came in
state, bringing cattle and slaves and cutting a very wide swath.
Before leaving his Eastern home, he had probably bought all
the land warrants he could find, with the hope of becoming rich.
Thousands of American soldiers in the East were satisfied to
remain there, and in many cases generously gave their warrants
to their poorer neighbors, while others sold them to speculators,
who thrive in every country, and who, like the poor, are always
with us. THE PROLIFIC RECTOR FAMILY.
In 18 1 7, Arkansas, Missouri and Illinois formed one land
district, with General William Rector as surveyor general. This
man had a host of kinsmen by fhe name of Rector, another host
by the name of Conway, and still anofher host by the name of
Sevier, three names written large upon the early annals of the
territory and State. General William Rector had more power,
so far as determining the location of certain families was con
cerned, than the president of the United States. He was one of
nature's noblemen, but undoubtedly 'had more kin-people than
any man since Adam, and by a strangely fortuitous chain of cir
cumstances, which will be treated hereafter, they nearly all fell
into Arkansas, and for thirty years dominated it as clansmen of
the older order. THE GREAT RECTOR SURVEY.
In 1818, General Rector received instructions to survey
sixty townships, or about one million, three hundred and eighty-
two thousand acres of land for soldiers' bounties. Complying,
he surveyed the most of it on the St. Francis and White rivers,
and on February 17, 1818, land offices were opened at Davidson
ville, called fhe Lawrence Landoflfice, and at Arkansas Post.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 107
Within two years these oflfices were removed to Batesville and
Little Rock. Surveys were extended to the Cadron, to Poke
Bayou, to the Strawberry, to Mount Prairie and to Red river.
Notwithstanding the fact that these were soldiers' lands, many,
who were not soldiers, obtained titles to them. Rector finished
the survey in 1819, and then began a series of surveys for pre
emption lands and for sale. The records of fhe land oflfices for
18 1 9, 1820, and 1 82 1 show that the very least quantity was sold;
that a very little larger quantity went to pre-emptioners or
Spanish land claimants, whUe the very largest part of the sur
veyed lands was given away as soldiers' bounties.
The greatest money-making business at that time outside
of speculation was surveying, and General WiUiam Rector could
place the contracts where he pleased. His surveyors came to
know the best lands, and had opportunities for buying claims
that even speculators did not have, and many of them became
rich men. William Russell of St. Louis was probably the great
est speculator in Arkansas lands from 1816 to 1830, and there is
hardly a county in Arkansas east of a line through Pt. Remove
north and south that will not show his name in many places on
the firsf deed records. Not only did these surveyors become
rich, but they also became men of influence and character, and
had much to do with the early development and growth of the
territory. But no speculator, nor any surveyor, could keep a
soldier, or his assignee, from placing his warrants where he
pleased on unoccupied lands.
This accounts for the rush to Arkansas and Missouri from
1818 to 1830, and warrants the conclusion fhat the general char
acter of the immigration was as good as any that ever entered
any country. The very largest part of it was fhe citizens sol
diery of the republic, not afraid to fight and not afraid to- work.
Along with it came a certain proportion of floaters, and a few
genuine birds of prey. Where fhe carcass lies there will always
be found the buzzards, and where the sainfs pitch their tents
there the devil will open a saloon. These classes, however, were
few in number, although they made considerable noise and
kicked up a moral stench which seemed to come from a larger
crowd. The Mississippi river towns were the greatest "hell
holes," as they were called at that time, with Arkansas river

io8 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
towns a close second. The rest of the State was practically im
mune. FIRST ANTI-GAMBLING ASSOCIATION.
In 1830, the town of Helena organized an Anti-Gambling
Association, with Judge W. B. R. Horner at its head. This as
sociation gave notice to all gamblers, thieves and thugs to get
out "within twenty-four hours," and signed the notices as our
forbears signed the Declaration of Independence. When the
disreputable class read the notices, T;hey stopped not to argue or
bluff, but like the Arab pulled up their stakes and ingloriously
ran away. The list of names forming this early Helena Asso
ciation contains the very names that have given Phillips County
its character and reputation. I shall give them the honor that
is justly due them in proper season, for, like the band of Boz-
zaris, "Such men were not born to die."
At Washington, in Hempstead County, a kindred society
was formed at an earlier date, and the men behind it were Hemp
stead's most solid citizens. Little Rock began the work in
1825, but being the capital, it failed to be as effective as the
other towns. Many of the early legislators were born gamblers,
while a few of them were professional gamblers. When law
makers do privately what they condemn publicly, it is hard to
regulate the town in whic'h they meet. The mouth of the White
river, afterward called Napoleon, was the worst place in the
territory, and owing to its inaccessibility flaunted its gambling
into the teeth of the law longer than any other place.
GAilBLERS DRIVEN FROM LITTLE ROCK.
The Little Rock Times in 1835, under the fearless manage
ment of Andrew Jackson Hunt, a young man from ZanesvUle,
Ohio, drove gambling out of Little Rock, but unfortunately he
died the next year, and the cat came back. The good people of
Little Rock had to peg on in their crusade against this vice
without newspaper aid, as the successor of Hunt, young Reed
from Kentucky, Albert Pike of fhe Advocate, and DePew of the
Gazette, were up to their eyes in political controversy, and the
larger questions of "tearing each other down." William E.
Woodruff, Sr., was a retired newspaper man for the time, busily

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 109
working to be treasurer of State. When Featherstonaugh lived
in Little Rock in 1838, he found gambling in full swing, appar
ently the only legitimate business of the place. Woodruff got
back to the Gazette after awhile ; Pike succeeded in destroying
the Times, and these two gentlemen joined in with the citizens
and cleaned out the town. Ever since that day, with a few
sporadic exceptions of reconstruction days, fhe vice has been
kept urider reasonable control.
CHAPTER XV.
Distribution of Settlements in 1820.
In 1820 there were three men of the name of Stuart, or
Stewart, in Arkansas, and by a strange coincidence each of these
carried the title "colonel," and each had a war record of longer
or shorter duration. The name Stuart or Stewart is Scotch,
and for centuries has been recognized as the same family name,
and there are hundreds of instances where different members
of fhe same family bearing this surname spell it Stuart or Ste
wart, as the mood affected them. It is a name of high antiquity
in Scotland, and adheres to a famous royal family.
Colonel James M. Stewart of Mount Prairie, Hempstead
County, has his name spelled in the Gazette ot the day in both
forms, the spelling Stewart predominating. Two titles were
also given him, major and colonel; the former, I apprehend, be
ing won in the' war of 1812, and fhe latter following as an act
of courtesy. There are intimations, however, that he was a
brevet lieutenant colonel in the same war. He entered Hemp
stead County in either 1816 or 1817, and was the flrst clerk of
the county in 181 8. He came to Arkansas from Tennessee, and
died in Hempstead County on February 24, 1825, the most
prominent citizen of the county, and frequently mentioned in the
columns of fhe Gazette.
In the same county was another Colonel Stuart, whose
Christian name was Abraham. He entered the county in 1818
or 1819. I have not been successful in tracing his military rec
ord, but he lived for many years an honored citizen of Hemp
stead, dying there on August 23, 1836, "at an advanced age and
one of the pioneers."

110 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
The Gazette noted the marriage on November 24, 1821, of
Lounella, daughter of Colonel Stuart of Hempstead County, to
WiUiam Trimble, United States district attorney. In a previous
chapter I indentified Colonel Stuart as Colonel James M. Stuart,
which was an error. It was a case of too many colonels on the
one hand and too Httle knowledge of Colonel Abraham Stuart
on the other. The Gazette speUing of 1821 of the lady's name
was also wrong. Lunetta Stuart married William Trimble, and
lived for many years at Columbus, Arkansas, but made her final
residence in Texas. William Trimble came to Arkansas from
Kentucky in 1819, having been appointed United States district
attorney by President Monroe. His first act at Arkansas Post
was to draw two indictments for petit larceny, for which he re
ceived eight dollars. In the same year he ran for the legislature
in Arkansas County, being desirous of sitting in the first legis
lature of the territory. There were many others with the same
desire, but only two, W. B. R. Horner and General W. O.
Allen, were successful. The defeated candidates were Bartley
Harrington, William Craig, Richmond Peeler, Doctor Robert
McKay, Harold Stilwell and WiUiam Trimble. Upon his mar
riage to Miss Stuart he removed to Hempstead County, and in
1823 was appointed judge of the Superior Court, succeeding
Judge Selden.
J. L. Stuart of Columbus, Arkansas, is a grandson of
Colonel Abraham Stuart, and there are very probably a number
of others in fhat neighborhood carrying the blood, if not the
name, of this old soldier and pioneer.
In 1816 Colonel William Stuart located at DavidsonviUe,
Lawrence County. He died on March 3, 1822, leaving a family,
whose descendants I have not been able to trace. Besides these
three colonels, there was another pioneer of the name of Stuart,
who lived in Hempstead for many years. The only reference
I have to him, however, is his appointment as commissioner for
the sale of lots upon fhe laying out of the town of Washington.
The advertisement bore date October 26, 1824, and the commis
sioners were Elijah Stuart, John Munn and James Moss. N. E.
Stuart was surveyor of Hempstead County from 1836 to 1846,
and was doubtless a descendant of either Elijah or Colonel
Abraham. James Moss, who was connected with the earliest

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas iii
lot sale at Washington, was county judge of Hempstead County
from 1827 to 1832. THE First town lot sale.
So far as the records show, Cadron was the first town to
advertise a sale of lots. Nuttal says that a sale was advertised
at this place for May, 1818, and thirteen hundred dollars' worth
of lots were sold. He called attention to another sale for May,
1819, but does not note the results. On March 27, 1819, he
wrote as follows : "Town lot speculations have already been
tried at fhe Cadron, which is yet but a proximate chain of farms,
and I greatly doubt whether a town of any consequence on the
Arkansas will ever be chosen on this site. There is scarcely a
hundred yards together of level ground, and the cove in which
Mr. Mcllmurry lives is almost impenetrably surrounded by lofty
trees." He tells us further that this early town lot bonanza was
engineered by four proprietors, not naming them.
In the Missouri Gazette of February 3, 1819, we find the
names of these proprietors to have been John Mcllmurry, John
Chamberlain, James N. Menifee and Thomas H. Tyndall, and
fhat the town they proposed to lay off was on the east side of
the Arkansas river at the mouth of the Cadron, "in the center
of the best settlement on the Arkansas river." Each of these
four men was far above mediocrity, and combined made a quar
tette of the largest influence in early political affairs. The town
of Menifee perpetuates the name of one of them and local tradi
tions and State history immortalize the others.
THE TOWN OF FULTON.
In'the Missouri Gazette of October, 1819, and the Arkansas
Gazette of December, 18 19, a sale of town lots was advertised
for Fulton, the proprietors being William O'Hara, a speculator
of St. Louis, James Bryan and Robert Fulton. In a succeed
ing notice of sale Robert Fulton's name was omitted and Wil
liam Andrews substituted.
The town of Memphis was advertised for lot sale on July i,
1820, and on July 20 of the same year the town of Currenton
was laid off at Hix's Ferry on Current river by Jesse Cheek
and Bernard Rogan. The town of Rome was laid off the same

112 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
year. Beardstown, in Arkansas County, as early as 1819, manu
factured leather, WiUiam Luckie being proprietor of the tan
nery. TOWN OF MOUNT MARIA.
In 1820 William Craig, who kept tavern at Arkansas Post
in 1819, and who practiced law for many years thereafter, laid
off the town of Mount Maria, on the north side of the Arkansas
river, one hundred and fifty miles from its mouth. He reserved
four blocks of an acre and a half each for meeting houses,
market houses and schools. He offered as a gift twenty lots of
three acres each to actual settlers who should at the same time
be regular members of the Methodist Episcopal church. At
that time there was no Methodist Episcopal church. South, so
that this body of the faithful has as much right to claim William
Craig as the older one. I can not locate Mount Maria, unless it
be fhe nucleus from whic'h Pine Bluff originates.
The Methodists had a strong church at Henry's chapel on
Mount Prairie in 18 16, but the Spring River circuit was estab
lished in 1815. In 1820 the Methodists had six circuits — Pecan
Point, Hot Springs, Alound Prairie, Spring River, White and
Arkansas. All of the preceding towns were laid off before Arkopolis,
or, as it is now called Little Rock.
PIONEERS OF LAWRENCE COUNTY.
Lawrence County was established by the Missouri terri
torial legislature on January 15, 1815, being cut off from Ar
kansas County, and was then inhabited by several 'hundred pro
gressive Americans. The eajliest settlement dates back to
1804, at the mouth of Poke bayou, a settlement, however, which
affected no one save the solitary man who made it. In 1811,
and from that on to 181 5, when the county of Lawrence was
created, a stream of immigrants poured in from Missouri. The
earliest settlers were Louis De Mun, WiUiam Robinson, William
Hix, Sr., Solomon Hewitt, Andrew Criswell, James M. Kuyken
dall, Isaac Kelley, Charles Kelley and Morris Moore. In 1817
James Campbell was sheriff and Richard Searcy clerk. At

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 113
Eleven Points in the same county were William Looney, William
Meredith, Massack H. Jones, John Miller and James Hadlock.
At Davidsonville were Polly Taylor, James Taylor, William
Cox, Jason Chamberlain, Staples Chamberlain, Stephen Cham
berlain, John Lewis, Sr., John Lewis, Jr., Jacob Garrett and
Benjamin A. Porter. In March, 1821, Rueben Lewis made an
addition to the town of Davidsonville and dedicated five per cent.
of the proceeds of the lot sale to the erection of a church, besides
giving a lot for the same, and an acre of ground for a cemetery.
He who imagines that the art of promoting was born in our
day is mistaken. These advertisements also show that schools
and churches were looked upon then as the chief additions to a
town, and label these backwoods promoters as being, in progres
siveness, energy and advanced spirit, every whit as good as any
of their foUowers.
In Spring River township, were Thomas Black, Joseph
Hardin, Jacob Hardin and William McAdoe. In Union town
ship John WeUs, William Fugett, Henry C. Wells, Jonas Austin
and William Jones, a justice of the peace. On Strawberry L.
Richie, George Bradley, Mr. Bayliss, James Allen, Napoleon B.
Ferguson, James Ferguson, the Revolutionary soldier, Archi
bald Hodge and John P. Maxwell.
GALAXY OF GRAND OLD MEN.
Old age is honorable. Gray hairs are an honor to any life
and a crown of glory to a well-spent life. I have never seen a
healthful man that wanted to die, and down deep in every heart
is the hope that he may live a long and happy life. The desire
to live long is universal and when one finds a number of gray
heads in a community th.e inference is either that they have lived
most careful lives or that the locality contains elements con
ducive to longevity. What shall we say of Lawrence County
in early days? In 1830 a census was taken, which showed
some remarkable instances of long life. The rules of the United
States Census Bureau in 1830, although not so systematic as to
day, required neveftheless thaf the ages should be classified.
Between sixty and seventy years of age at the date of the enum
eration were the foUowing Lawrence County pioneers: Wil
Ham Hix, Sr., _Henry Murrey, Arthur Murphy, Colonel Stephen

114 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
Byrd, Thomas Lewis, John Pierce, Mary Welch, Mrs. Nathaniel
McCarroU, Ananias Erwin, WiUiam McKnight, Isaac Flaery
and James Davis.
Between seventy and eighty years : Nathan Luttrell, Sr.,
James Boyd, Mrs. Wayland, Peter Taylor, James S. Worten-
berry, Daniel Williams, Martin Van Zant and Mrs. Joseph KU-
lett. Eighty years and upward: John Shaver.
Twenty-one persons were in Lawrence County sixty years
of age and upward in 1830. One of the Lewises, thought to be
Henry, lived to be one hundred and eight years of age, and
John Gould Fletcher, the ancestor of the great Fletcher family
of the' State, died in 1825 in Lawrence County, an octogenarian.
His wife, who was a Lewis, lived also beyond her eightieth year.
Nor were large families exceptional. The family of W. B. R.
Horner consisted of thirteen white persons and seven slaves.
Joseph Martin of Crawford County died March 24, 1841, at
the age of sixty-nine having served in two wars, leaving his
wife, seventeen children and no slaves, to mourn his irreparable
loss. He was born in Albemarle County, Virginia, and lived a
strenuous life. In December, 1828, a woman in Clark County
gave birth to five living children, three of whom, with the
mother, survived the catastrophe and lived to tell fhe story.
James M. Kuykendall died in Lawrence County February 15,
1836, at the age of fifty-four years, twenty-one years of whic'h
were passed on Arkansas soil. He came from Kentucky along
with the Hardins and served in the Fourth territorial legisla
ture. He was a man of large stature and afraid of no living
being. In 1825 he was elected sheriff, succeeding Joe Hardin,
and was elected for six successive terms thereafter, dying in
ofifice. No other man in Lawrence County has ever held ofifice
as long as Colonel James M. Kuykendall.
BATESVILLE ONCE STATE'S BEST TOWN.
In fhe southern part of the county, cut off in 1820 and
called Independence County, were John Read, Perry G. Mag
ness, James Miller, Peyton Tucker, Robert Bean, Stephen Jones
and Matthew Adams. When Batesville was laid off, March
10, 1821, Richard Searcy, James Searcy, Charles Kelley and

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 115
Joseph Hardin, James Trimble and Samuel S. Hall became
residents, and to them the town owes its early progressiveness.
For more than twenty years Batesville was the leading town in
Arkansas, excelling every other in population, wealth, cultiva
tion, schools and regard for law. Each and every one of its
first settlers had been in the territory since 181 5, and each and
all centered their endeavors on the development of a great and
thriving town. Thomas Curran, an erstwhile partner of Ter
ence FarreUy at Arkansas Post, moved to BatesvUle in 1822,
after his marriage to Jane Dodge of Davidsonville. Townsend
Dickinson, a lawyer from Yonkers, New York, and one of the
first supreme judges of the State of Arkansas, moved to Bates
vUle in 1821. He married there, February 27, 1825, Maria,
daughter of Colonel Moore. This wife died at BatesvUle on
February 2, 1836.
In Christian township, Lawrence County, the first settlers
were John Shannon, Abraham and George Ruddell. Binks and
Henderson Lafferty were prominent young men, fhe former
marrying Sally, daughter of James MiUer, and the latter on the
same day (August 17, 1821), Nancy Craig.
POPULATION OF THE OLDEST S.ETTLEMENTS.
The old settlements of Arkansas are best shown by the cen
sus of 1820. Lawrence County at that time had nine townships,
wifh the following number of inhabitants : Christian township,
one thousand two hundred and twenty-two, the largest and most
populous township in the territory; Spring River, seven hundred
and fifty-two ; Davidson, four hundred and sixty-one ; Current
River, four hundred and twenty-two ; Columbia, five hundred
and twenty; Strawberry, six hundred and twenty-one; Lebanon,
three hundred and nine; Union, four hundred and seventy-five,
and White River, eight hundred and twenty. Two of these,
Davidson and Christian, were named after old settlers. Some
of these townships are in other counties today.
Phillips County had but four townships, none of them very
densely populated : Cache had one hundred and seventy-eight ;
St. Francis, which included Utica, four hundred and eighty;
Mississippi, forty-five and Hopefield four hundred and ninety-
eig'ht. Cache, Mississippi and Hopefield townships are in other

ii6 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
counties today. Arkansas County, the oldest county in the ter
ritory, had three townships: Point Chicot, now in Desha and
Chicot counties, four hundred and fifty-two; Mississippi, now in
Desha County, eighty-two, and Arkansas township, including
Arkansas Post, seven hundred and twenty-six.
Pulaski had six townships: Cadron, seven hundred and
seventeen; Crawford, now four or five counties, five hundred
and forty-seven; Big Rock, three hundred and thirty-eight;
Vaugine, one hundred and twenty-two; Red River, one hundred
and sixteen, and Saline, eighty-three.
Clark County had four townships: Caddo, six hundred
and seventeen; Warm Spring, one hundred and fifty-three; An
toine, eighty-eight, and Missouri, one hundred and eighty-two.
The settlement on the Caddo began with the Barkmans in 1809
and the Hemphills in 1810.
Hempstead also had four townships : Missouri, three hun
dred and fifty-eight ; Ozan, five hundred and sixty-three ; Saline,
seven hundred and sixty-three, and Monroe, five hundred and
sixty-four. MiUer County was not enumerated by townships, but had
nine hundred and ninety-nine souls.
These townships are the best and surest guides to the oldest
settlements in each of these counties and of the many counties
formed therefrom. They are a gauge also to the location of the
richest and best lands of the .territory as it existed then, exclud
ing the Indian reserves.
Of these enumerated people there were sixteen hundred and
seventeen slaves, or about one-ninth of the entire population.
The slaves were for the most part in eastern and southern Ar
kansas, where they gave little trouble to agitators or humanitar
ians. They became the center of interest, however, in eighteen
hundred and thirty-five, when in the constitutional convention,
David Walker of Hempstead, by securing representation based
on white population and three-fifths of the slaves, also secured a
greater representation for Hempstead County with fewer white
people than for Lawrence, with a greater number of white
people. Had the question of white representation been sub
mitted to the people separate from all other questions it would
have carried by a large majority. As it was the people either

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 117
had to give up statehood or take the mixed representation. The
effect was to give a smaller number of white people in south
Arkansas a larger influence in State government than a much
larger number elsewhere. The question created much conten
tion throughout the State, but was soon forgotten in the march
of events. There were fifty-nine free negroes in 1820 and thirty-nine
non-naturalized foreigners.
Such was the distribution of settlements in December, 1820,
and in January and February, 1821, when the enumeration was
taken by the government, and out of these nuclei of settlements
rather than the nuclei of 1810, must come the studies which ac
count for the growth of the State.
I. The pre-United States settlements ended in 1803.
2. The first Anglo-American settlements began in 1806,
and subsided in 181 1, W. B. R. Horner of Helena being about
the last of this wave.
3. The second Anglo- American settlements, beginning in
1814 and running to 1818.
4. The public land wave beginning in 1819, and exhaust
ing its force in 1840.
In the third and fourth waves, the farmers came first, as
the great backbone of the settlements ; then came the blacksmiths
and other artisans; lastly the professional men. In the second
wave adventurous merchants were side by side with adventurous
hunters and trappers.

CHAPTER XVI.
BENJAMIN FooY AND Fooy's Point — W. B. R. Horner — St.
Francis and Helena.
The Mississippi river region from 1800 to 1819 was a land
of adventure, daring and rough living. Calhoun called the river
an inland sea and along its banks isolated cabin settlements were
made, some prior to 1800, but a much larger number from 1800
to 1812. The river itself was a terror to the early immigrants.
Squatting as th^y did in the almost impenetrable forest jungle
along its banks, they were repeatedly driven to higher ground

ii8 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
by the recurring overflows, at that time uncontrolled by levees
or other hindering obstacles. The river roUed on in majesty
and when it pleased spread itself over an area of from fifty to
one hundred miles in width, driving deer, bear and other wUd
animals of the forest to the higher elevations — the wooded is
lands, as it were, of the ocean of waters.
Fooy's Point, opposite Memphis, afterward called by the
Spaniards Camp Esperanza and by the Anglo-Americans, Hope-
field, was on high ground, and prior to 1800 was the place of a
considerable settlement. Benjamin Fooy was the original set
tler, followed by the location of a Spanish deputy governor, and
then by adventurous Americans. Benjamin Fooy's name will
forever stand as the first of the mighty army of settlers on the
Mississippi — ^the first in the van of law and orders— the connect
ing link between the vanishing barbarism of the wild woods and
the rising civilization of modern times. His house was ever
open to the friendless on the Mississippi, and to it were attracted
the wiser and stronger characters of the time. It was in his
house, at a period when the whole region was as yet lawless and
uncontrolled, that the great Volney wrote his great "Ruin," and
the table upon which this volume was written was one of Ben
jamin Fooy's priceless mementoes. After his death his sons
prized it more highly than did their father, refusing an almost
princely offer from Judge Overton of Memphis. When the
State of Arkansas shall enter systematically upon the preserva
tion and housing of fhe really great landmarks of her march to
power, it will be well for her to hunt up Volney's old writing
desk, or rather Benjamin Fooy's old writing table, immortalized
by Volney's use in the production of a masterpiece. He who
for decades has had nothing but sneers for the men who came
first in the hard life of settlement, will find himself worsted in
a combat with Fooy. A character that could attract Volney and
hold him in his cabin life for several months is no ordinary man.
A house that can boast of being the place where such a book
was written is a greater house than the "Big House" of Robert
Crittenden.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 119
OTHER' CRITTENDEN COUNTY SETTLERS.
Between 1800 and 1812 the region round Wappenocke had
gained many additions, none of them, however, equaling in dig
nity and worth fhe old pioneer, Benjamin Fooy. Isaac and
Samuel Fooy were men of parts and were well known to all river
men. Mentford Ferryman was another rugged character, dat
ing back almost to the beginning of things, a hunter and trapper
known far and wide. Another old resident of the place, John
Grace, dated back to 1802. Proceeding down the river the set
tlements became fewer in number until the present site of
Helena was reached, where the settlement of PhUlips, Patter
son and Mooney presented another air space for civUization.
At the Sixty-ninth island of the navigator, Nuttal found in 1819
a tavern kept by a man named McLain. The presence of a tav
ern indicated a settlement in the neighborhood, for a tavern
would not be necessitated by the river traffic of the time. Nut
tal says that between this island and the mouth of the St. Francis
there was a considerable settlement on fhe White. He does not
name this settlement, but in the first issue of the Gazette of 1819
reference is made to the town of Utica, a town at that time of
nearly one hundred people. In the election for delegate in 1819
there were one hundred and two votes cast at Arkansas Post,
eighty-two at St. Francis, the township containing the present
Phillips County, and the ancient town of Utica; thirty-eight
votes were cast in Point Chicot township, the present Chicot
County ; twenty-six at Hopefield, the present Crittenden County ;
twenty at Cache township, the present Monroe County, and thir
teen in Mississippi township, the present Desha County. This
large settlement in St. Francis township extended from the
¦mouth of the St. Francis to where Helena stands, and, in my
opinion, the old town of Utica was at the mouth of the St. Fran
cis. It was a town of some possibilities in 1819, but gave place
in a very short time to fhe greater glory of Helena.
TOWNS THAT DWINDLED AWAY.
I have tried to locate Utica exactly, as many marriages were
celebrated at this point, and many Arkansas families date their
origin from this early Arkansas village. There was a later

I20 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
town, Shirley, in the same neighborhood, but this, like Utica,
has faded away. Between fhe mouth of the St. Francis and a
point twenty miles below lived at dates from 1802 to 1812 a fine
line of old river men. There were Ebenezer Fulsome, Moses
Perry, William Bailey, J. McLean, Jesse Stephens, the last two
living near the mouth of Eel river, at its junction with the St.
Francis. Sylvanus PhiUips lived exactly at the mouth of the
St. Francis in 1797, but died near Helena. The Pattersons and
Dunns also lived at the mouth of the St. Francis, but the Patter
sons soon became identified wifh Helena. In the same neigh
borhood lived Wm. Gregory, Patrick Cassidy, Henry Cassidy
and Mary Edwards. Three miles below the mouth of the St.
Francis lived Edward Proctor in 1803, and ten mUes below the
mouth lived John LeFevre. On the waters of the St. Francis
lived Aloses Burnett, Joseph Sevier, Enon Chartreuse and John
Taylor. These were of the second wave of settlers, coming
between 1800 and 181 1, and had increased to eighty-two voters
in November, 1819, or about four hundred population for the St.
Francis township settlements. W. B. R. HORNER.
One of the leaders of this settlement was W. B. R. Horner.
Sylvanus Phillips and Daniel Mooney came earlier, being there
prior to 1800. In the death notice of Horner it is stated that
Horner came in 181 1 and that he was among the last of the
earlier wave of settlement. But while Mooney and Phillips
were earlier, they were no more prominent.
W. B. R. Horner was born at Falmouth, Virgini.a, in 1785,
of an old and respectable colonial family. He was twenty-six
years of age when he landed at the St. Francis settlements in
181 1, and was fifty-eight years of age at his death in Helena on
May II, 1838. He settled in this region before Phillips County
was born and was the principal figure in its creation. He was
before Helena was, and to him more than any other of the
earlier men is Helena indebted for fhe vigor of her early exist
ence. Horner was a resident of the settlement when it was a
part of Louisiana territory and saw fhat territory die; he lived
in fhe settlement all through its life as a part of the territory
of Missouri and all through the life of the territory of Arkansas.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 121
He died just as Arkansas threw off the territorial yoke, and
took place among the sisterhood of States. Thaf Horner was
one of the quickening forces in all these changes can not be
denied. He came to Arkansas a well-educated man, bringing
with him all the courtesy and dignity of old Virginia life. He
came as a lawyer, thoroughly equipped for a professional career,
but without fortune or fhe blandishments of fame. Whatever
of legal business the St. Francis settlement had went to W. B.
R. Horner, and in every thriving community there will always
be enough real estate, probate and criminal business to insure a
young practitioner an honest competency. This was true of
Horner at least. He had the confidence of fhe St. Francis set
tlement, the Cache settlement, the Mississippi settlement and of
the people at Arkansas Post.
THE FIRST ELECTION IN 1819.
When representatives were to be chosen for fhe first legis
lature in 1819 there was no lack for candidates. Eight men
wanted the place and made strong efforts to get it. Two of
these, Bartley Harrington and Harold StUwell, had been in the
territory longer than Horner ; in fact, they were almost natives,
having lived in the territory from boyhood. Doctor McKay and
Richmond Peeler could boast of as long a residence as Horner,
and William Craig a year longer. William Craig believed in
the old-timers having control and was always outspoken about
the upstarts, Crittenden, Scott and Norvelle sent in from fhe
outside to rule them. He demanded that Arkansas offices be
filled by Arkansas men, and gave Bates considerable trouble in
his first race. General William O. Allen had been in the terri
tory but a short time, while William Trimble was a most recent
importation from Kentucky. It was a lively race in the swamps
and undergrowth, but brains and character combined won the
race. W. B. R, Horner and General W. O. Allen were elected,
and two better men could not have been sent to the legislature.
The lower house was composed of W. B. R. Horner and W. O.
Allen, from Arkansas County; Thomas Fish, from Clark
County ; J. English and W. Stevenson, from Hempstead ; Joseph
Hardin, Sr., a revolutionary soldier, and Joab Hardin, from
Lawrence; Radford Ellis and T. H. Tyndall, from Pulaski.

122 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
Nine choicer spirits never sat around any legislative board.
They came from fhe best families of the United States, from
the army of the United States, from backwood's homes. They
united blood, brains and adventure in each of their lives and
made a better showing than nine-tenths of the succeeding legis
latures have been able to make. Allen was killed before his
time was out, and the old settler Stilwell, sent in his place.
Prior to Stilwell's coming Horner had the distinguished honor
of being the oldest resident of the State in the legislative body,
but when Stilwell came, all the rest were mere new-comers.
Stilwell went back into the dark ages of 1798 and could and did
many marvelous tales unfold. William Stevenson seems to have
had more legislative experience than the others, and was elected
speaker. He did what no other speaker has ever done since,
served one day and resigned. His reason was fhat he had rather
shoot than be shot at, and that he had been made a target for
one day, which was enough. The question then arose, "Who
should be shot at?" Joseph Hardin, Sr. said: "Boys, I was
shot at by fhe British in 1778, and I'm not afraid of your small
arms." They elected him, and he gave proof of the qualities
which afterward made the Hardin famUy in Kentucky famous.
Allen was the principal thinker and speaker; Horner, the man
of the best judgment; English, the man of ideas, while Joab
Hardin, Radford EUis and T. H. Tyndall furnished the local
coloring. The upper house, called the Council, was composed
of five grand old-timers, Sylvanus Phillips, Jacob Barkman,
David Clark, Edward AIcDonald and John Alcllmurry. Rich
ard Searcy of Davidsonville was clerk to the council and a fine
young lawyer; J. Chamberlain was clerk to the house, and Sam
C. Roane, engrossing and enrolling clerk.
These seventeen men were far more in the public eye than
the governor, AliUer or the secretary, Crittenden. These four
teen men had been selected by the ballots of freemen to make
laws, and they were the only representatives of the elective prin
ciple then in being. Wm. Craig said: "The president sent us
a governor from New Hampshire and a secretary from Ken
tucky. That's all right, but as Americans, we like to choose
our own cooks."
Largely through the influence of Horner Arkansas County

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 123
was divided, and on May i, 1820, PhiUips County was created
and named after its patriarch, Sylvanus PhiUips, of the councU.
W. B. R. Horner was the flrst representative from Phillips
County in the second legislature, and held the place through the
life of the third session of that body. . He served six years as a
territorial legislator, when he was selected as prosecuting attor
ney for the First circuit, which position he held for five years,
when he resigned. He served as clerk of Phillips County from
1820 to 1821. When the ofifice of Common Pleas judge was
created in 1821, Phillips County was given three judges, and
Daniel Mooney, Benjamin Fooy and W. B. R. Horner were
selected for these places, which they held until the positions
were abolished. At this tinie Horner lived at Utica, where he
solemnized many of the early marriages. In 1828 he was made
the alderman of Helena, which position he held for five or six
years. This position corresponds to our ofifice of mayor. He
was a lot holder of the old town of Rome, and the owner of
much valuable property throughout fhe State.
OLD-TIME FOURTH OF JULY BARBECUES.
PhiUips County held its first Fourth of July celebration in
1821. Several beeves were roasted whole and served in bar
becue style. A man who has never attended an old-time barbe
cue is not a thoroughly educated man. His head may have had >
¦proper attention, but his stomach has been neglected. To my
mind fully half fhe sickness of the present age is due to starva
tion. The idea of economy in living has made wholesome liv
ing dangerous. There are too many physiologists telling us
what to eat, and what not to eat. Thus through stinginess and
fear the stomach is starved. The idea that high thinking and
low living are synonymous is one of the modern absurdities.
High thinking and the power to do any kind of work well comes
from good living, and barbecued meat of the olden days is one
of its best types. This PhiUips County barbecue was held near
a spring in the neighborhood, where a fine quality of Kentucky
mint had taken hold, thoug'h why the mint patch should be im
mortalized I can not say. There must have been some bever
ages of very strong parts, though of this the record is silent. A
Kentucky barbecue with the mint left out would be like Hamlet

124 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
with Hamlet omitted. At this first barbecue in PhUlips good
order prevailed all day long and everybody was delighted.
Toasts were drunk and at the conclusion of each a salute of
from three to nine guns were fired. W. B. R. Horner presided
at this celebration and made the address of the day. He was
assisted by Doctor Smith, Doctor Swanson, N. Rightor, Colonel
Spencer and Colonel Mooney. These patriotic meetings were
continued in Phillips County for more than fifteen years, and
W. B. R. Horner was regularly chosen as the presiding ofificer.
On the same day down at Arkansas Post another barbecue
was held, and Robert Johnson, one of the patriarchs of Chicot,
was selected for the foUowing toast :
"Ourselves — Recently collected together from various quar
ters, may we harmonize in feeling, and with united efforts stead
fastly pursue our own and our country's best interests."
Some are ready to criticise the gentleman for emphasizing
his private interests. A man that can not steadfastly pursue
his own best interests will be lacking in power to pursue his
country's interests, and the man who is always subordinating
himself to his country's good needs watching, lest the country
suffer. Bob Johnson's toast reminds me of another :
"Ourselves — God may have made others prettier and fairer,
but I'm sure you'll all agree, he never made a bunch, healthier
or squarer." ST. FRANCIS AND HELENA.
General W. O. Allen was the most active man, and Colonel
William B. R. Horner was next in all that transpired in the first
real legislature — ^the one elected by the people. Three-fourths
of the motions of this earliest legislative body were made by
Colonel Horner. He it was that introduced the bill cutting
Arkansas County into two parts, one to hold the old name and
the other to be called PhUlips County. This act passed in Feb
ruary, 1820, but in aU the reports of the secretary of State is
sued since the days of Jacob Frohlick, the formative day is
placed on May i, 1820.
The county site was originally called St. Francis, Just
when the name Helena supplanted it I can not say, but the first
reference to Helena in fhe Arkansas Gazette was on June 23,

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 125
1 82 1. Prior to this date the Gazette agent, Colonel Daniel
Mooney, was given a residence at St. Francis; on that day and
ever afterward, at Helena, Colonel Horner before this was re
ferred to as. of St. Francis and after this as of Helena. Now
it is more probable that the town changed its name about tliis
time than that these two gentlemen should have moved at the
same time from St. Francis ' to Helena. More than that, the
Gazette after June 23, 1821, made no further reference to St.
Francis, and before this had never mentioned Helena. St.
Francis died, but the town known by that name remained under
the new name, Helena.
Thus in 1836 a county site was laid out for Monroe County
on Aladdux's bay, a lake about four miles from White river
and about one hundred miles from its mouth. This county site
was called LawrencevUle, and the commissioners advertised a
sale of lots on December 11, 1836. Whether LawrencevUle
died out or became Clarendon I can not tell, but most probably
the present Clarendon is the old LawrencevUle. The commis
sioners for LawrencevUle were Andrew D. Nance, John R. Dye
and Alartin Guest. Helena, born in 1821, simply carried on the
life of the old village of St. Francis, which lived sleepily and
sluggishly through a long line of years back to 1802. Wm. B.
R. Horner had lived there from 181 1 and continued to live there
through the rest of his life. Phillips County ran north to the
Missouri line, west to the St. Francis river and south to the
mouth of the White. Horner from 1821 to 1826 was an attor
ney and land agent, advertised in the Gazette nearl}'. the whole
time, and had much to do with the settlement of the early land
titles. He was postmaster at Helena from 1823 to 1825. Hel
ena continued to be a lazy, sluggish town untU 1835, when it
began to show a faster development.
THE ADVENT OF NEWSPAPERS.
In 1833 John W. Steele started the Political Intelligencer
at Helena, but was induced to transfer it during that year to
Little Rock, where it lasted through one bitter political struggle.
Steele sold out to Jefferson Smith and Andrew Jackson Hunt,
who changed the name of the paper to fhe Little Rock Times.
The people did not like the long name, "Political Intelligencer,"

126 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
and Smith & Hunt did not want an elephant on their hands.
Hunt died within a year and Smith took James H. Reed as
partner and editor. Hunt started in with one and fifty sub
scribers, but at his death had a roll of three hundred and twenty-
five ; in ten months after his death Reed claimed a circulation of
seven hundred. This paper was making inroads on the Advo
cate, owned by Albert Pike, and Pike conceived the idea of add
ing the seven hundred subscribers of fhe Times to his own list.
He bought out Jefferson Smith at a good round figure, and then
proposed to Reed to consolidate fhe Times with the Advocate
under the name Advocate and Times, with Pike and Reed as
editors and owners. Reed agreed and between them they got
out the best paper in Arkansas from 1835 to 1840.
HOW HELENA WAS BOOMED.
The people of Helena having tasted of newspaper sweets'
were eager that some one else should enlighten the town. In
1836 William T. Yeomans gratified their desires and for two
years got out the Constitutional Journal. Why it was called by
so grandiloquent a title will never be known, and there is noth
ing in any of its issues bearing on constitutional questions. The
one thing it did was to "boom Helena." It did this weU. It
told the world a lot of things that Helena undoubtedly had and
a lot of things that Helena* did not have. It told of fhe sleepy
age through which the village had passed and then noted the
great changes beginning in 1836. It told of new houses, new
wharves, new migration and ever so many other new things.
Yeomans looked around him at the rising town and then looked
into the future. What he saw in this realm induced him to wax
eloquent. He declared Helena was to be "the London and
Paris" of the Western continent : It was to be "London in size"
and "Paris in beauty." Great was the foresight of Yeomans,
but too far ahead of Helena to be appreciated at that time. He
found himself languishing for patronage. At times he threat
ened to sell out and at others refused to admit fhat he ever
wanted to sell. He was like the boy with a counterfeit two-
dollar bill. Some days he thought it was good and on other
days bad. On one of fhe days he thought it good, it went. So
with Yeomans. On one of his blue days Martin made him a

• Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 127
good round offer and the paper went to Martin, who suspended
it in less than a year. THE OLD AND NEW HELENA.
Yeomans saw everything old through a minimizing lens and
everything new through double magnifiers. Grant that the old
Helena was slow, and sleepy, and the new Helena more up to
date, the old Helena had many compensations. It was like the
old-time clock which sat in the old farmhouse for a hundred
years ticking off the minutes to the grand sound : "Peace, Rest ;
Peace, Rest; Peace, Rest." What a compensation is peace and
rest. The grandfather and grandmother sat under its sound at
peace with all the world and in most beatific rest. The children
grew into refined men and women under the guiding oscillations
of an atmosphere measured by the sweet ticking, "Peace, Rest."
Every grandchild loved the old clock and imbibed the sweetness
of its spirit. The old cat and the faithful dog slept peacefully
side by side undisturbed by the ticking of fhe old clock. But
a new age came — an age of bustle, of hurry and of excitement.
A little round clock now supplants the old timepiece. The new
clock costs seventy-five cents with an alarm thrown in to wake
up the household after a dissipation lasting half the night. The
new clock is on the mantel and ticks off the minutes in a most
up-to-date style, - saying "Get-there, get-there, get-there," a
variation of the old time "Pot-rack, pot-rack," of the guinea
fowl. The Horners, the Biscoes, fhe PhUlipses, the Ferebees,
the Mooneys, the Pattersons, the Deshas and other old-timers of
Helena had peace and rest, which fheir descendants have never
had under the "get-there" drive of modern law.
THE VIGILANCE COMMITTEE OF 1836.
The Latimers were an old and highly respectable family of
St. Francis and Helena. Whether Griswold Latimer entered
Arkansas County before Colonel Horner is a question I have not
as yet decided, but I am of the opinion that he did. He was of
an old Alabama family and well known to all river men. He
lived at Utica and reared sons and daughters, who intermarried
with the best people of the time. His descendants are in many
parts of the State.

128 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
In 1836 one of his sons — ^William Latimer — a most respect
able citizen of Helena, was foully murdered by an unknown
hand. Even as the gambling element had moved the citizens
to most decisive action in earlier days, so this murder moved
fhem to rapid decision. About a dozen men gathered that night
at the home of Darby Pentecost, one of the quaintest men of the
day. Colonel Wm. B. R. Horner was there and was called to
the chair, with William R. Sebastian as secretary.
Horner made a rapid-fire talk explaining the situation and
demanding not only that quick action be taken to uncover the
murderer, but also that decisive action be had to cleanse the
town of all undesirable characters. Honorable Thomas J. Lacy
then moved that a committee be named and sent out to bring
in all the better class of citizens. That committee consisted of
Silas Drury, W. W. Palmer, Robert Maloney and Wm. P. Craig.
A recess was taken for the committee to act. The committee
scoured the town rapidly, as the sergeant-at-arms scours Wash
ington for absentees from Congress. Every citizen notified
dropped everything and went to Pentecost's.
George W. Ferebee, a man who had lived there twenty-five
years, moved that three committees be named : ( i ) A Vigil
ance Committee to hunt down fhe murderer; (2) a Finance
Committee to raise a reward of one thousand dollars: (3) a
Secret Committee for advice.
MEMBERS OF VIGILANCE COMMITTEE.
Colonel Wm. .Horner appointed as the VigUance Committee
George W. Ferebee, Miller Irvin, N. Rightor, Thomas B. Handy,
Davis Thompson, Thomas J. Lacy, James H. McKenzie, W^rn.
R. Sebastian, Wm. M. McPherson, S. C. Mooney and S. R.
Sumpter. On motion Colonel Wm. B. R. Horner and SUas
Drury were added. This was the strongest vigilance committee
ever authorized to act by any body of citizens in Arkansas.
Every man on the committee was a law-abiding citizen, and
every one of them was a terror to evil-doers. This vigilance
committee was not to hang nor burn the culprit. It was to dis
cover him, arrest him and put him in jail for trial. A reward
of one thousand dollars was also raised and offered for the ap
prehension of the murderer.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 129
This committee made a raid on fhe dark corners of Helena
and of St. Francis township. All suspicious characters were
arrested and put through a merciless examination, but all to no
purpose. The murderer was not found. The effect, however,
was magical. The bad and suspicious characters left the place
and for twenty-five years Helena had no such diabolical outrage
to contend against. The pioneers deserve our grateful remem
brance for removing from our pathway many of the ruder dan
gers of an earlier civilization. The descendants of this vigilance
committee are numerous and should take an added pride from
the fact fhat their ancestors, when courage was needed, did not
shirk from the task. INCORPORATION OF HELENA.
The old town of Helena had been getting along swimmingly
for many years, but in 1836 it woke up to find that it had been
"whangdoodled," as Mr. Oliver said of his canal matters. At
Little Rock there was a legislature in session and William Rus
sell of St. Louis had a bill introduced to incorporate the town of
Helena. The Helena members, thinking of no evil designs,
made little investigation and no opposition. When the biU
passed and was scrutinized by Colonel Wm. B. R. Horner, the
alderman, or, as he was called, "the lord high mayor," of Hel
ena, it was discovered that Russell had incorporated into Helena
a lot of his wild land, and was log rolling to have the county
buildings moved from their old location to his holdings. An
other wave of excitement swept over Helena. The people said
they would not be taxed to give an unearned increment of value
to a non-resident speculator. But what were they to do? Col
onel Horner found a way.
ALL HELENA OFFICIALS ABDICATED.
He advised the town assessor, the town constable, the over
seer of the streets and fhe clerk of the corporation to resign,
which they did. He then advised the common council, consist
ing of George W. Ferebee, James H. McKenzie, Benjamin T.
Odle and William Dodson, to do likewise, which they did. Fol
lowing all this. Colonel William Horner likewise resigned and
there was no Helena and no way to create new officials except

130 Pioneers and Linkers of Arkansas
under the old law, which the citizens resolutely refused to put
into operation. A compromise was effected during the year by
which "the bad features of the new law were abandoned and a
new set of ofificers created. Colonel Wm. B. R. Horner refused
to re-enter public life and died shortly afterward.
One of the last acts of Colonel Horner was in the educa
tional field. The school authorities of the town on August 10,
1836, appointed him, with James H. McKenzie and Fleetwood
Hanks, commissioners to erect a school house on lot number
four hundred and' eighty-one of the town of Helena. I do not
know whether this building is still in existence, but the citizens
of Helena may easily trace the structure.
OTHER MEMBERS OF HORNER FAMILY.
One J.' S. Horner began teaching at Helena on April 28,
1836, having been a teacher five years preceding. The ordinary
primary branches were taught for six dollars ; the grammar
branches for eight doUars, and the high school branches for ten.
dollars a quarter. J. S. Horner gave up the school room in
1837 ^"d became deputy clerk under J. R. Sanford. From 1844
to 1846 he was county judge of PhUlips County, and from 1838
to 1842 its county clerk.
Ferdinand S. Horner, William F. Moore and John Swan
were appointed by the legislature in 1836 as appraisers of land
for the Real Estate bank.
Horner & ToUeson opened a store on July 28, 1836, in a
new house belonging to ToUeson, and W. D. Horner was treas
urer of the county from 1856 to 1858. In 1835 Amelia Harriet
Horner was married at fhe residence of Colonel Wm. B. R.
Horner to J. A. Wherry of St. Louis, fhe ceremony being per
formed by Judge Lacy. In 1830 the census noted W. B. R.
Horner as the head of a family of thirteen white persons and
seven slaves but I have not traced their careers.
I am unable to state the genealogical ties uniting these Hel
ena people of the surname Horner to the pioneer, but if they
are not all direct descendants they are of very close kin. The
name of Colonel Wm. B. R. Horner can not be disassociated
from Phillips County and will forever remain as one of its heroic
names. He lived in a rude age, far in advance of his environ-

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 131
ment. He lived for law, for progression and for righteousness.
His descendants are also a vital part of PhiUips County.
In the constitutional convention of 1874, the convention
that revivified Arkansas and started her on a new career of
glory, Phillips County was represented by J. J. Horner, a man
whose life and career are household words in eastern Arkansas
today. This family first appeared in Arkansas in 181 1 and in
four more years will have passed the^entury mark. One hun
dred years from Wm. B. R. Horner of St. Francis to J. J. Hor
ner of Helena. A century of pulsing life and vigor for all men,
but far more important to the Horners of today. The pioneer
set a vigorous step — a step which others of the name and blood
have sought to maintain with honor and credit. In 191 1 the
Horners of Helena should hold a reunion and set a step for the
century to come. All honor to the heroic pioneer. Colonel Wm.
B. R. Horner.

CHAPTER XVII.
Great Cherokee Indian Agents — Matthew Lyon — Edward
W. DuVal, and David BrEarly.
In 1819 outside of Arkansas Post fhe most considerable set
tlement in the State was at Cadron, where about sixty families
had gathered. Further «p came Pecannerie, the town or settle
ment where pecans grew abundantly. Here lived the old Gen
eral WUliam Lewis, who died there January 17, 1825. Origin
ally a Virginian, he was made a captain in the Virginia levies in
1791 ; a captain in fhe United States Infantry, March 16, 1792,
a member of the Third United States sublegion on September
4, 1792, and was honorably discharged in 1796. A lieutenant
colonel of Kentucky Volunteers in 1812 and 1813; brigadier
general 1814; resigned 1815. Was among the foremost of the
brave Kentuckians in many Canadian battles. Lived for several
years in Jessamine County, Kentucky, removed to Arkansas
territory settling at Pecannerie in 1819. Dr. Nimrod Menifee,
fhe great dueling surgeon of early days, married his daughter,
Harriet, on December 28, 1824.

132 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
At Point Remove lived Mr. EUis and fourteen other fami
lies. On Petit Jean were Alessrs. Tucker and Major Welborn.
At the Galley was a Cherokee village at which Jolly, the chief,
had a residence. Between this and the DardaneUe hiUs lived
many 'half-breeds, with Air. Raphael, the storekeeper, and at
Spadra Bluff lived Air. Rollin, fhe United States Indian agent.
In the neighborhood lived Air. Webber, a half-breed, and John
Rogers, a respectable and civilized Cherokee.
All this country on the north side of the Arkansas river
from Point Remove to the mouth of Frog bayou belonged to
the Cherokees, and the government maintained an Indian agency
at various places along the river from Old Norristown to Spadra
Bluff. All on fhe south side of the river was open to settlement
until in 1820 the ' government made a treaty with the Choctaw
Indians by which all the region west of a line from a point on
Red river three miles below the mouth of Little river north
wardly to Point Remove was given to the Choctaw tribe and all
white settlers ordered to remove. This raised a stir and the
people at once wanted to know what fheir delegate to Congress,
James Woodson Bates, had been doing that he permitted the
tyrant, John C. Calhoun, the secretary of war, to thus deprive
fhem of vested rights. As a matter of fact none of them had
an original right to locate where they were, but they were lo
cated, and being located had rights which they would spill
oceans of blood to maintain. General Jackson ordered them
removed, however, and they went without spilling a drop. They
kept up a great agitation, however, and the politicians saw a
great chance for themselves, which they worked religiously, un
til Congress, without their help at all, moved the Choctaws fur
ther west.
The United States in its very earliest history assumed the
relation of guardian for its Indian wards, and through more
than a century has maintained that relation with more or less
of credit. This relation was the result of treaties negotiated
with the savages from the very beginning of the republic, which
treaties are to a large extent still in force.
The whites, as individuals, wanted the Indian lands, and the
government by diplomacy obtained through treaties just what
the whites wanted, without making the equities blush too se-

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 133
verely. It was a grab game garnished by a show of morality in
which the Indians always lost and the whites always gained.
To do this, however, the government had to promise to do cer
tain things, and then whether it really intended to do the things
or not, to make a show which would have that appearance.
There is no proof in all these Indian relations to show that the
government really intended to do the vital things it promised,
that is, to protect by force the Indians in their new possessions.
As a compensation for this double dealing it promised to make
certain money payments annually, and to do certain other things
which, in the eyes of the multitude, seemed to be the real thing.
In order to carry out these money payments and to perform the
minor parts of the treaties men were needed on the ground to
see that all the government had promised should be done and
that no advantage should be taken by contiguous whites of the
Indians in their new homes. At first these men thus called to
represent the government were called Indian factors, but in time
they came to be called by the equivalent name, Indian agents,
and by that name they are known today. '
These factors or agents were scattered over all the country,
wherever the Indians were in actual habitat, and made a most
respectable body of United States ofificers. The older Indian
agents were as a rule men of parts, but since the advent of the
Civil Service regime they are, almost without exception, men of
less than mediocre ability. Arkansas had but one tribe of In
dians — ^the Cherokees — actually within its borders, but these
Cherokees were bound to the government by many treaties. The
agents connected with this tribe in Arkansas during its oc
cupancy of the soil were Mr. Rollin, Matthew Lyon, David
Brearly, Edward W. DuVal and Wharton Rector. Of Mr.
Rollin little is known and the services of Mr. Rector wjll be
treated in the chapter devoted to the Rector family.
MATTHEW LYON.
The second of these, Matthew Lyon was in many respects
the greatest of them all. Appointed by Monroe as Indian Fac
tor, he came to Arkansas in 1820 and located himself at Spadra
Bluff. He performed his duties most satisfactorily, but as the
system was young there was little to do ; being a man who could

134 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
not quietly settle down to do nothing he looked about for a new
opportunity to distinguish himself. He had to do something or
die. His chance came with the agitation which followed the
removal of the Choctaws during the first term of Bates in Con
gress, and just at the beginning of his canvass for re-election.
POLITICS IN THE OLDEN DAYS.
In November, 1820, James Woodson Bates, as the high and
mighty delegate to Congress, deliberately sat down in the
sanctity of his room in Washington and wrote an ultimatum to
John C. Calhoun. One great card of-the politicians of the entire
West is and has been the writing of ultimatums. When Bates
wrote that letter to John C. Calhoun, his admiring constituents
gave him the sonorous title, "Junius of the West," a title fitting
bim as little as any could weU have done. He could write, but
not like "Junius."
Bates told the South Carolina secretary of war that all that
vast region so given over to the Indians had been settled by
whites in 181 1, and that it had a county government in 1814.
This was a mighty stretch of the county government theory, but
what was a congressional delegate- for but to stretch the Arkan
sas district of New Aladrid County, Alissouri, over as vast an
area as possible? Accuracy of statement is not political genius,
and Bates found it easier to assert than prove.
Bates wound up this paper with these words : "These
people (less than two hundred settlers removed) have known
government only by its perversions and abuses. I protest
against the meditated act, that prostrates their rights, outrages
their- feelings and treats them as subjects and vassals." Bates
fired this straight at Calhoun, who never answered it. He made
the treaty; the president signed it and the Senate ratified it. A
cool business talk with Calhoun, or the president, or a few quiet
words with senators would have changed the whole affair.
Bombast failed, but it had a successful run where it was in
tended to circulate. The letter was not intended for Calhoun,
but for the voters in Arkansas in the election of 182 1. It was
one of the "Home Consumption Articles," which politicians
know how to write. They have done nothing, but the people
must be led to see how much they had tried to do something.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 135
This Choctaw treaty, however, went into Arkansas politics.
Bates had served one term and wanted another. Two hundred
voters were a bonanza in an election that totaled less than 2,000.
Robert Crittenden had been for Bates in the first election, and
was still for him in the second. In the third election Crittenden
and Bates no longer played in the same back yard, and Henry
W. Conway fell heir to the Choctaw agitation prize, although
Bates in the meantime had secured the abrogation of the old
treaty and on general principles ought to have been the "Peoples'
Pride." He ought to have been beaten in 1821 and ought not
to have been beaten in 1823. He had nothing to show in 1821
but the buncombe letter to Calhoun, while in 1823 he had his
arms full of accomplished things. Possibly he was beaten in
1 82 1, and the trend of the after-election movements seem to in
dicate that Bates met his Waterloo in that election, but was
saved from its effects by the election ofificers, who made the peo
ple vote the way they "ought to," rather than as they were re
corded. It was close, and throwing out ballot boxes was not
unknown in 1821, however righteously and rigidly the State
may have abstained from the practice ever since.
THE AJAX WHO OPPOSED BATES.
In 1819 several candidates opposed Bates. In 1821 he had
but one, and that one, one of the most remarkable men of the
United States. James Woodson Bates was pitted against Col
onel Matthew Lyon, and was really beaten by him, but Bates
and Crittenden had the machinery and knew how to run the
machine. Lyon was a good "machinist" himself, but unfortu
nately he could not enter the power house, where fhe secret
manipulations went on.
Dn Alarch 21, 1821, the people of Arkansas territory, who
read the Arkansas Gazette, were treated to a five-column article
on the Choctaw treaty. This document was not a hifaluting
ultimatum like that issued by James Woodson Bates. It was a
cold-blooded, straight-from-the-shoulder argument, taking issue
with President Alonroe for signing the treaty, and with Cal
houn for drawing it. The article was signed by, Matthew Lyon,
and all Arkansas wanted to know who he was. To begin with,
he was the livelong friend of Monroe and of Calhoun, and his

136 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
letter had more to do with the after repeal of the treaty than all
that Bates or Conway did or tried to do.
Arkansas recognized the fact that whoever Alatthew Lyon
might be, he was a great and masterly man of affairs. He ig
nored buncombe and appealed to reason. He had Alonroe and
Calhoun on the hip, and Gazette readers in the East were quick
to see that Arkansas territory had one man at least ^vho could
enter the lists of logic, and, without buncombe, convict great
men like Monroe and Calhoun of error. The people of Arkan
sas demanded to know more of Alatthew Lyon, and they were
informed that he was an appointee of President Monroe, a
United States factor or agent for the Cherokee Nation, residing
at Spadra Bluff, and who entered Arkansas on February 10,
1821. MATTHEW LYON AS A CANDIDATE.
The people at once demanded that Matthew Lyon run for
Congress, which he did. He made the race and ran well.' The
official returns showed him a loser by about sixty votes. On
October 22, 1821, Lyon proclaimed himself elected, and gave
notice to the powers in control that they might expect a contest.
He went before the territorial legislature, but that body, largely
dominated by Crittenden and Bates interests, took refuge behind
fhe sanctity of the returns. Lyon said the returns were rotten
and asked the privilege of making proof. He was denied, al
though the general impression was that the old man was right.
He went to Congress and that body without waiting for Lyon
to present proofs, and without giving a hearing, made a report
unfavorable to Lyon. The report was based on the fact that
Lyon had submitted no proof. Lyon had no notice of a hearing
and therefore had not submitted his proofs. Lyon had been in
Congress before, not as a delegate, but as a congressman from
Vermont, and again as a Congressman from Kentucky. Lyon
was genuinely hated by all that part of New England and of the
whole country, which afterward made up the Whig party.
Lyon was one of the original Democrats of the United
States and was with Jefferson in every fight he had ever made.
He was born in Ireland in 1746, and was one of the first settlers
of the Green Mountain State, where in time he married a

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 137
daughter of one of its governors. He took an active part in the
Revolutionary war, and was a fighting hero. When Vermont
decided to become a State Lyon was a member of its constitu
tional convention. He was repeatedly sent to fhe legislature
on the. anti-Federalist ticket. In 1796 he was sent to Congress
from Vermont. The John Adams party soon came into power
And Lyon attacked its principles bitterly. One New England
member attacked him with a cane on the floor of the house.
Lyon wrenched the cane from the assailant and beat him unmer
cifully. He was attacked the second time and again he beat-
his assailant with his own weapon. The Federalist party had
him before the bar of the house and tried to expel him. Jeffer
son and his friends balked this movement. They then took him
into the courts and mulcted him with a fine, which broke him up
financiall}', but did not quell his energy. New England became
foo hot for him and he moved to Eddyville, Kentucky, where he
was sent again to Congress. In 1819 he moved to St. Genevieve,
Missouri and was a candidate against Scott for Delegate to
Congress, but was defeated. The Federalists hated him like
the devil hates holy water. He was an Irish humanitarian, op
posed to aristocracy in every form. He had mental gifts and
a superb courage. He was now seventy-five years of age and
no longer able to fight the battles of his younger days. In his
seventy-fourth year Monroe made him agent for the Cherokees,
and in that year he ran against Bates. Pie died claiming that
he was elected, and at this remote period, it may be as well to
say, that his claim was supported by the proof. On February
14, 1822, in his seventy^fth year, he left his home at Spadra
Bluff, in a flatboat, made by himself, loaded with furs of the
last year's collection, bound for New Orleans, where he arrived
safely. He sold his cargo for good prices and bought machinery
for a cotton gin, which he was then erecting at Spadra Bluff.
The machinery weighed fourteen hundred pounds.
He ascended the Mississippi on his flatboat to the mouth
of the White, where he stored his freight, and proceeded on his
flatboat to Kentucky to visit his children. Returned on the same
boat, and in three months after leaving Spadra Bluff was back
at home. He had made a journey of more than three thousand
miles in three months, and still there are those who tell us that

138 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
everything was too slow in the days agone. Matthew Lyon
gives the lie to all this and proves that a man is never too old
to do great things, untU he, himself, comes to see his shadow.
What seventy-five-year-old man in Arkansas would undertake
that trip today?
Billy Woodruff saw him on his return up the river and said
that he could not see that the trip had affected his health. In
going down stream his boat frequently ran aground and Lyon
was the first man to jump into the river to shove the boat into
the stream. On ascending the river he did his full share of the
rowing, steering and cordeling.
On May 3, 1822, from Spadra Bluff he wrote a long letter
to Josiah Meigs, commissioner of the General Land Ofifice at
Washington, an old friend, protesting against the suits brought
against steam-boat men for cutting wood on wild lands along
the Mississippi river for use in navigating the river. It was a
five-column article and very strong in character.
He died at Spadra Bluff on August i, 1822, in his seventy-
sixth year, and is represented in Congress today by a grandson,
that stalwart Republican of Iowa, William P. Hepburn. A
great grandson of Lyon and a son of Congressman Hepburn
was killed in a quarrel on the Frisco Railway in northwest Ar
kansas and his assaUant sent to the penitentiary, to be pardoned
afterward by the chief executive of Arkansas.
Such was the life of a man distinguished in three States,
and, a Congressman elected from each of them, without serving
in the last. Among all the grand men of early days, Matthew
Lyon stood like a giant. He was an honor to the territory and
some mark of honor should be placed over his grave.
COLONEL DAVID BREARLY.
The second Indian agent differed from the first as day
differs from night. David Brearly was living in Arkansas as a
merchant during the last year of Lyon's life. President Mon
roe selected him for two reasons : First, for his mUitary career,
and, second, for his great business capacity. Colonel Brearly
was born in New Jersey in 1786, the son of David 'Brearly, a
Revolutionary colonel. Educated in New Jersey in the best
schools, he entered the army of the United States in 1808, being

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas ' 139
made at once captain in the crack regiinent, the Light Dragoons.
ITe served with this regiment three years, when he resigned.
He remained at home in New Jersey until the beginning of the
second war with Great Britain, when he again offered his ser
vices to the United States, and was made lieutenant colonel of
the Fifteenth infantry on March 12, 1812; he was promoted on
Alarch 12, 1813, to the colonelcy, and was honorably discharged
on the 15th of June, 181 5. His regiment saw service in aU the
battles of the war. He re-enlisted January i, 1816 and was
made lieutenant colonel of the crack regiment, the Seventh in
fantry, with the brevet of colonel from March 12, 1813 ; on April
10, 1817, he was transferred to the Third infantry, and on April
30, 1817, was made a fuU colonel of the Seventh infantry. He
held this place until March 16, 1820, when he resigned, in order
to begin a civil career in Arkansas. Twelve years of active
military service Jiad improved his manhood, nurtured his cour
tesy and developed his executive ability. He knew all the lead
ing military men of the age and was the social equal of any
man of the day. For five years prior to 1820 his life had been
to a greater or less extent connected with the territory of Ar
kansas, either at the Post of Arkansas or at Fort Smith.
While colonel he had made many investments in Arkansas
lands, and in 1820 cast his fortunes unreservedly with the new
territory. For a year his mercantile enterprise at Arkansas Post pros
pered beyond precedent and upon the death of Lyon, President
Monroe offered him the Indian Agency to fhe Cherokees. On the
condition that he might continue his mercantile business he ac
cepted and in 1822 he removed to Dardanelle, where the new
Indian agency had been located. Here he made money and at
the same time performed his duties as Indian agent to the entire
satisfaction of the government. The Indians had the highest
regard for Colonel Brearly, which paved the way for his future
greatness in a wider field. He held this place until the ist of
January, 1824, when Monroe, seeking a man to deal with the
Creeks and Choctaws of the South, then in readiness for re
moval to the West, turned his eyes to Arkansas for a man for
this new and greater field. Colonel Brearly was most admirably
fitted for his new relation. His military training gave him a

140 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
thorough command of himself and his courtesy and kindness
made him a favorite of not only the Indians, but of all with
whom he came in contact. He was scholarly, courteous and
kind; firm as a rock when principle was concerned, )'et yielding
and flexible at all other times. He traveled all over the South
in his new field of work and was everywhere at home, whether
with the great and learned or thepoor and unlearned. No man
was too great not to be proud of Brearly's friendship and no
man was too poor or low to be outside of the pale of his regard.
He died in Arkansas in 1837, having spent a greater part of
twenty-two years within its borders.
MAJOR EDWARD W. DUVAL.
In January, 1824, Monroe appointed Edward W. DuVal of
Virginia and Washington City to succeed Colonel Brearly as
Indian agent in Arkansas. Major DuVal brought his family
with him and on January 15, 1824, landed at Arkansas Post.
After a week's rest there he took a boat for Little Rock, where
he remained for another week, when he took passage for
Dardanelle. The remainder of his life was spent in. Arkansas.
Alajor DuVal was descended from the French Huguenots of
Manakin Town, Virginia, and had all the energy, courtesy and
force of that ancient people. He was a young man when he
entered Arkansas, although the head of a family, and this must
be his excuse for many of the weaknesses he showed during the
first three years of his incumbency. He lacked the political
reputation of Lyon and the military and business parts of
Brearly, and to make up for these he at once began to magnify
his ofifice, which in turn he thought, would magnify him. Gov
ernor Izard was not only the chief executive of the territory,
but also superintendent of Indian affairs. DuVal magnified
himself by ignoring Izard as superintendent. Whether this was
the result of DuVal's initiative, or whether it was the beginning
of fhe government's policy of ignoring State ofificers, can not be
asserted with confidence at this time. Certain it is, however,
that DuVal ignored Izard. Now, Izard was not a man to be
ignored. He had been a major general of the United States
army and was the chief organizing mind in the military prop
aganda of 1812, the great body of which organization main-

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 141
tains to this day. DuVal failed to report to Izard, as the regu
lations required, although he reported regularly to Washington.
In less than a year, however, DuVal learned his lesson, and for
the remainder of his ferm paid due regard and respect to Gov
ernor Izard. DuVal also attempted to control Colonel Arbuckle,
but after one effort gave up the^ attempt in disgust. Colonel
Arbuckle let him know that he was the mogul at Fort Smith
and that under no circumstances would he take orders from an
Indian agent. He would be proud to confer with him, and
would be glad to have his advice, but the,' ultimate decision must
rest entirely with him. DuVal was an aggressive man, but at
the same time a most sensible man. In less than three ,years he
had worn- off all his aggressive bumps so that nothing appeared
but the grandly common sense which belonged to the man.
From that time on he grew in- favor, not only with the Indians,
but with all the whites with whom he/ came in contact.
Colonel Arbuckle loved to drop down to Dardanelle and
spend a day with the major, as did the other officers of the fort.
On May 22, 1826, Reverend Cephus Washburn was called over
from Dwight to perform the marriage ceremony , between Cap
tain Pierce M. Butler of the United States army and Miranda
Julia DuVal of Washington City. This day was a gala day for
Dardanelle, and the Indians were as much filled with wonder
ment over the great marriage feast prepared by Major DuVal
as were the whites.
Major DuVal never neglected his duties as Indian agent.
He was absolutely incorruptible, and when his mind was set,
absolutely unchangeable. He took a warm interest in the In
dian welfare and gave freely of his means and advice for their
ultimate development. The Indians came to honor him and love
him. He headed many expeditions of Indians from the Cher
okee country in Arkansas to Washington City, to enable the In
dians to present their claims more fairly to the authorities.
Colonel Arbuckle jestingly said, "DuVal had rather take a party
of Indians to Washington than to command an army," but at
the same time every one knew that each trip that DuVal took
to Washington rendered white supremacy that much more se
cure. He died at his post in 1828 or 1829 and was succeeded
by Major Wharton Rector. The descendants of Major DuVal

142 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
have lived continuously in Arkansas from that day to this, add
ing honor, dignity and great worth to the State. The names of
Lyon, Brearly and DuVal will forever remain an honor to Ar
kansas and a tribute to the integrity and justice of early Indian
affairs. NEIGHBORHOOD SETTLEMENTS.
The Dardanelle Settlement was mentioned by Nuttal in
1819, and dated back, possibly, to 1817. Its most ancient set
tler is unknown. On the other side of the river a little lower
down was the Cherokee village, the Galley. Old Dwight Mis
sion was established in 182 1 on the Illinois Bayou, where it re
mained until the Cherokees were removed to the West. On
November 2, 1829, Pope County was carved out of this old In
dian region, the oldest county made from Cherokee soil. Its
first officers were — Judge Andrew Scott, County Judge; he had
the distinguished honor to have been the first judge of the
superior court of Arkansas to arrive on her soU, and with the
exception of Judge Benjamin Johnson, to have served longer
in that capacity than any other man. He was also first county
judge of Pope County and is buried in the cemetery at Russell
ville, his grave being marked by one of the finest monuments
that the State knows.
The other ofificers first selected to manage the affairs of this
new born county were Twitty Pace, clerk; H. Stinnett, sheriff;
W. Garrett, coroner, and W. Mitchell, surveyor. These oflficials
held ofifice during the years 1829 and 1830.
Isaac Hughes was the first State senator from Pope County
and Judge Andrew Scott the first representative. With the be
ginning of county government and the removal of the Cherokees
settlements went on rapidly. Norristown was founded in 1829,
by Samuel Norris of New Jersey, and for a time was a pretty
lively town. In 1837 B. H. Martin, John Macbeth, John Wil
son, J. H. Newman and Judge Andrew Scott advertised a sale
of lots at the town of St. Martin on the north side of the river,
seven miles above the mouth of Illinois Bayou and just below
the mouth of Big Piney. These gentlemen stated in their pros
pectus that the site they had chosen was the only one on the
river for a great town, and they confidently expected St. Martin

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 143
to be the London of Arkansas. Norristown, however, was in
its way; Scotia sprang into existence; and Dover was born. All
these, coupled with the running of the roads relegated St.
Martin to the rear.
Just why these incorporators chose the name St. Martin,
may never be known. In England there was a great church par
ish, "St. Martin in the Fields," but there is little evidence that
these gentlemen were acquainted with that fact. Possibly the
settlement, St. Martin, antedated 1837 by a great many years
and received its name from some Catholic father in his ministra
tions to the Indians. True, B. H. Martin was one of the sub
scribers to the town lot advertisement, but it is hardly to be
supposed that his name furnished the basis for the cognomen
St. Martin. Norristown forged ahead and with a most remark
able energy tried to make herself the capital of the State. It is
said that she nearly succeeded ; that a change of two votes would
have dwarfed Little Rock and enlarged Norristown. The com
ing of the Little Rock & Fort Smith Railway, however, changed
the whole state of affairs and brought Atkins and Russellville
prominently to the fore. In 1834 Norristown was the county
site, which position it held until 1842, when the county of YeU
was in part formed from old Pope and the CQunty site removed
to Dover. Dover in 1853 was the most prominent town between Little
Rock and Fort Smith, and in that little town was held in that
year the first railroad meeting ever held in the State bearing on
the Little Rock & Fort Smith Railroad. Men from all parts of
the State attended that meeting, and out of it came the Little
Rock & Fort Smith Railway. The first church in this county
was in the vicinity of the BoUing Spring camp ground, near
lUinois Bayou and was established by the Methodists in 1832.
The second church was organized at the house of Sanford King
on Point Remove in September 1833, and was known as the
Baptist Church of Christ. The Cumberland Presbyterians built
a church at Shiloh in 1837 near the old Williams camp ground.
Among the pioneers of this old county are Andrew Scott and his
son, John R. Homer Scott, John Bolinger, Samuel Norris,
Robert Davidson, Doctor J. H. Brearly, Thomas Murry, J. M.
Crutchfield, John WiUiamson, Kirkbridge Potts, S. K. Blythe,

144 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
Daniel Gilmoreii Ben Langford, J. S. Price, Thomas Gardner,
R. S. Bewley, John Ridge, Owen Williams, George Roland,
WUlis Hodges, John Bruton, Alahlon Bewley, Absalom Sims,
Alerideth Webb, John AlcCarley, Henry Andrews, Doctor Wear
and George A\'allace. D. Porter West came with his father in
1839, and in 1903 issued a little book entitled "D. Porter West's
Early History of Pope County," which contains much of interest
and value to the old citizens of that county. Doctor John Wil
son, one of the founders of St. Alartin, was the father of R. J.
Wilson fhe merchant of Russellville. Air. Jacob Shinn, whose
name will forever be associated with the development of Rus
sellville and Pope County, did not come in until 1837, when as
a child he entered Arkansas with his father, Benjamin D. R.
Shinn and others of that name, with Reeds, Harkeys, McNultys,
Fowlers, Linkens, Shandys and Brooks, all from North Carolina.

CHAPTER XVIII.
First Authentic AIaps of the Territory Showing Roads,
Towns, County Lines and Streams — French and Ger
man Maps.
A little man comes before the world and blows a trumpet,
and then steps aside that another may present himself and be
canonized by the public. This is one of the unfortunate con
ditions that cluster around the making of real history. The men
who make real history have not the time to write it, are rarely
canonized, never blow a trumpet and are rarely given place in
the tomes of historians. One objection to written history has
been that its pages have dealt too little with the real workers,
or as Junius Jordan says, "those who remain with the pots and
pans of every-day life." This trouble roots back into the dis
position of the public to enshrine in their temporary affections
those who blow trumpets and act comedies or tragedies, more
generally farces, upon the stage of public affairs. The real
instructors and helpers of the common people are not the
trumpeters so much as the obscure workers, and yet the man
with a trumpet will get four hundred pages of historic men-

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 145
tion to the worker's one. The men who make the dirt roads
of a country are its real financiers, its wealth builders and wealth
creators ; the men who open farms and plant fields ; the men
who start towns and stay with them through their various
stages of development; the men with blacksmith and wagon
shops at the cross roads; the men behind the hoe, in short, are
the makers of history, and what do we know of them? Only
last year the cotton and corn producers added two billions of
dollars to our wealth. This was new money — a great, grand,
glorious find. Bankers and financiers add nothing to our wealth
— the)' only manipulate it — and generally to our disadvantage.
The great orators and great lawyers make no additions to our
wealth — they only consume, conserve and distribute.
In the following article I shall go back into the government
archives and try to show by authentic maps, surveyors' sketches
and other cartographical matter exactly what the pioneers of
Arkansas were doing from 1818 to 1830, the roads they were
building and the towns they were forming. This will empha
size the magnitude of their labors, unfold the extent of their
diflficulties and call attention to the debt we owe them for their
unrecorded struggles. It will also correct much that has been
written and add to our vocabulary of early place names.
MAPS REFERRING TO ARKANSAS.
The first map showing Arkansas as a geographical division
was the Lewis map. It had one town named Delaware which
was located on the White River. I have never been able to
identify it. The Melish map came out in 1816 showing no towns
in Arkansas at all. The Varle map came out in 1817 showing
two towns, Arkansas Post and Lawrence, as Davidsonville was
first called. First original map of Arkansas.
The first sketch map of Arkansas was Watson's map of
the military and general land survey, dated Washington, D. C,
December 6, 1820. It was made up from matter taken from
fhe surveyor general's ofifice and is' absolutely authentic.- On
this map Helena was called St. Helena, and was not located

146 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
where it is today. BatesvUle is recorded under the names Bates
ville and Napoleon, both names being expressed with the con
junction between them. In 1818, when Schoolcraft was
in this place, it was called Poke Bayou, and had a popu
lation of fifteen or twenty people. Thus within three
years this ancient town of Independence County had three names,
(Poke Bayou, Napoleon and Batesville. Their high regard for
their fellow-citizen, James Woodson Bates, led them to discard
Poke Bayou and Napoleon and cling to the word which now iden
tifies the town. Three mills seats in operation were noted on the
Watson sketch, located on the north fork of Cadron, and one on
Big Creek in section thirty, township two, south, range four
east. This shows the original seating place of the great lum
ber industry which has added so much to the wealth of the
State. Cadron village was noted as a seat of justice of Pulaski
County ; Davidsonville of Lawrence ; Batesville or Napoleon of
Independence; St. Helena of PhiUips; Little Rock as the seat
of government of the territory and Arkansas Village as a for
mer military post and the seat of justice for Arkansas County.
St. Helena was in a bend of the Mississippi, about ten miles
south of the present location of Helena in territory covered by
the surveys and located in township four south, range five east.
As this map was made by United States surveyors, it imports
absolute verity.
In the extreme southeast corner of the map covering more
than the present Chicot County and lying east of the Quapaw
line is noted Don Carlos de Villemont's claim, settled at that
time by fifty families. None of the southwestern, western or
northwestern part of the State is shown, as the object of the
map was to enable soldiers holding warrants to locate their
bounty lands. The only regions surveyed south of the base
line was between Arkansas Village and St. Helena. Bayou Me-
tou has one branch carrying two names, Creus or Little Deep
river. No surveys were made north of the St. Francis along
the Mississippi. Eel river is noted as a branch of the St. Fran
cis and the lands on both sides of it were surveyed clear to its
headwaters. The entire region from the Cherokee boundary

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 147
line east to the White river and north to BatesvUle or Napo
leon was surveyed, as was all the region on Spring river. Eleven
Points and Thomas Fork, tributaries of the Black, and fifteen
townships on Strawberry. This map was prepared for ofifice
use in 1820 and published in Watson's collection in 1825. It
is the oldest map made from record evidence, and is therefore
immensely valuable. THE original surveys.
The surveys were begun in 1819, Nicholas Rightor having
eight townships between the White and Mississippi rivers;
Charles AlcPherson had eight more immediately north of those
given to Rightor. Stephen Rector, David Nolan, David Deshler,
EUas Rector and Wharton Rector had contracts between the
Cherokee line and the White reaching up to Missouri. In 1822
and 1823 Henry W. Conway and James S. Conway made sur
veys along Red river. These contracting surveyors employed
a large number of assistants, who in the course of time became
citizens of the territory. BROWN AND BARCROFT'S MAP.
In 1825, E. Brown and E. Barcroft published a map of
Missouri, Ilhnois and the territory of Arkansas from surveys
in the surveyor general's ofifice. This map shows Crittenden,
Lawrence, Independence, PhiUips, Arkansas, Pulaski, Izard,
Crawford, Miller, Hempstead, Conway, Clark and Chicot coun
ties. Crawford County began in the southeast corner of town
ship three, south, range seventeen west, and ran due west to
a line north and south six miles west of Cantonrpent Towson,
thence north to the Missouri line, thence east to the White
river, where the western Cherokee boundary line strikes that
river; thence southwest along the western Cherokee line to a
point six miles west of Fort Smith on the Arkansas river;
thence down the Arkansas to the eastern Cherokee line; thence
due south to the beginning. It covered fully one-fourth of
fhe territory and a strip forty miles wide in Oklahoma as we
know it. Izard County ran from Independence to the Missouri
line and touched Crawford County on the northwest corner.

148 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
where the White river enters Arkansas. Conway County raft
from the Little Red river to the headwaters of the Saline on
the south side of the Arkansas. Pulaski County ran east to
Vaugine's settlement on the Arkansas, thence around Arkansas
County to the White and Red rivers.
TOWNS OF EARLY DAYS.
The present Helena on this map is called St. Helena, and
is located where we know it. The only other towns on the map
are Villemont, Washington, Crittenden, Biscoeville, Little Rock,
Cadron, Post of Arkansas, Harrington Settlement, Vaugine
Settlement, Fort Smith, Batesville and Davidsonville. Biscoe
ville was on the west side of Femchea Caddo in Hempstead
County, and Crittenden, twelve miles southwest of Biscoeville
on Fommier Creek, also in Hempstead. Henriad's Springs was
on a branch of the Little Missouri, about twelve miles north
east of Washington. Eighteen miles west of Washington weret
the salt works and the Saline landing was about fifteen miles
southwest of Washington. No salt works are shown elsewhere,
unless the letters S. W., after Wachita in Clark County, mean
salt works, and this may have a bearing upon the study of De
Soto's travel. It may place the land of the Cayas in the re
gion of Saline Creek, between Big Cofsclose Creek and Wash
ington. Delaware ViUage and Indian Town are about twenty-
eight miles due south of Washington on Red River. Bodcaw
is spelled Bodcou. Ten miles southeast of Biscoeville on the
eastern side of Femchea Caddo, in Clark County, was the
only town in the county, and then called Wachita, S. W., for
salt works probably. This town was on the Safreit, and ten
miles higher up on the Safreit was a stone quarry. Hot Springs
was then in Crawford County. The Tulip was speUed Julip,
which shows how tastes have changed. The Ouachita was
speUed Wachita. The eastern line of Clark was but thirty miles
from the Post of Arkansas, and this explains how Jacob Bark
man maintained a home five miles west of the Post, while clear
ing a final home in Clark. Jacob, John and Asa Barkman, in
the census of 1810, were living in Ouachita parish, Louisiana,
each having a smaU family. Jacob in 1814 moved to a farm

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 149
five miles from Arkansas Post and began hunting and trapping
in Clark. He had a second home in Clark in 1818, where he
passed the rest of his life. From Ouachita parish, Louisiana,
tradition says that he frequently ascended the Wachita to Hot
Springs long before he moved to Arkansas Post. Bayou Des
Arc was Bayou Des Arques. Fourche du Mas was Fourches
a DuMas, which Schoolcraft in 181 8 termed a corruption of
the legitimate name Fourche a Thomas. On the map the old
town St. Francis is identified. It was about four miles above
the mouth of the St. Francis and about five mUes west of Ship
Island. FRENCH AND GERMAN MAPS.
In the atlas "Deux Ameriques," by J. A. Buchon, 1805,
printed in French, BatesviUe is called "Napoleon," and nothing
else. Davidsonville is noted, as is Arkansas Post. The river
is speUed Arkansa, as is the teritory. Little Rock is put down
as Arkopolis. C. F. Weiland's German Atlas of America, 1824,
spells Missouri "Missuri," and Arkansas with a final "s." It
makes Crawford County take in aU of the Cherokee Reserva
tion. The county site of Miller is put down as Pecan Point and
Clark County has no county site. In all other respects it agrees
with Finley's map.
In Finley's map of 1826 printed at PhUadelphia, Little Rock
was on the north side of the river and Arkopolis on the south
side. Batesville was called Napoleon. A road from Reynolds-
ville, Tennessee, ran through Memphis and Little Rock to Hot
Springs. Dardanelle was called Dandenai, proving a contention
I have always made that the place was named after the Dar
dennes. Piats Town is put down above Little Rock and the
Mount Prairie Settlement is identified as being on the Saline
in what is now Benton County. William Rector, however, the
surveyor general, in a letter to the land department placed the
Mount Prairie Settlement in Hempstead County. In this map
the boundaries of Clark County have been changed so as to take
in Biscoeville and Crittenden. Batesville has not lost the name
of Napoleon and Hot Springs is in Pulaski County. Beards
town is between "Pine Bluffs" and Arkansas Post. Belle

150 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
Point, opposite Fort Smith, makes its first bow to a civilized
world. burr's COLLECTION.
In Burr's collection for 1839, there is a map of Arkansas
made up from surveyors' notes gathered between 1830 and
1839. On his map going up the Arkansas the first town above
Little Rock is Cadron, and the next Lewisburg. Then comes
Norrisville, Dwight, Spadra Bluff, Johnson, Logan, Ozark, and
Van Buren on the north side; Dardanelle, Morrison's Bluff,
Crawford and Short Alountain on the south side. No other
towns are noted in that region. A road ran from Dardanelle
to Petit Jean, thence to Bboneville, thence to Zebulon in what
is now Pike, thence through Washington to Fulton. Another
ran from Logan and intersected this road at Petit Jean. From
Little Rock a road ran through CoUegeville, Benton, Rock
port, Raymond, Clark, Bayou de Rocho, Wolf Creek and Wash
ington to Fulton. From this road at CollegeviUe a branch ran
out through Caldwell Town to Hot Springs. Another road ran
from Little Rock through Saline Crossing to Rockport. An
other Caldwell Town, about six miles north of the first had a
road through Alagnet Cove to Hot Springs. From Ultima
Thule a road ran east through Paraclifta, Pine Woods, Wash
ington, Ecore Fa'bre, Cabeans, Bartholomew to Columbia in
Chicot County. Five miles north of Columbia on the Mis
sissippi was another Fulton, and ten miles south was Lakeport;
twelve miles further south Grand Lake. From Little Rock a
road ran on the south side of the Arkansas through Pine Bluff
and on to New Gascony, where it crossed the Arkansas and
ran down to Arkansas Post to the mouth of the White. An
other road left the Post, crossed the river and ran down to the
mouth of the Arkansas, thence south crossing into Mississippi,
through Bolivar, thence back irito Arkansas and on to Columbia.
A road ran from Pine Bluff fo Hudgens, twelve miles south,
where it forked, one branch going to Cabeans, thence into
Louisiana, and the other through Bartholomew to Columbia.
From Columbia a road ran southwest intersecting the Pine Bluff
road to Louisiana, about eighteen miles south of the State line.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 151
From Ecore Fabre a road ran southeast to Union on the
Ouachita. A road from Fulton, Hempstead County, ran east
to Spring Hill where it intersected the road from Washington
south to Lafayette Court House, thence through Conway to
Allen's Settlement in Louisiana. Lost Prairie was the only
town with no road.
The streams on the map bear the names the}- now hold
except that Tulip creek maintains its old form of Julip creek,
a much more savory name. From Little Rock north a road ran
through Bayou Meteo, Des Arc, Little Red River, to Bates
ville, thence to the town of Strawberry River on Strawberry
to Jackson, between Spring River and Eleven Points, thence to
Fourche DuMas, a town about seven miles from Hix's Ferry
and thence info Missouri. From Jackson a road ran east to
Pocahontas thence southeast to Crowleys, thence south through
Greenfield, County Line, Walnut Camp, St. Francis, St. Fran
cisville, L'AnguUle, Martins to Helena. Old St. Francis on
the Mississippi disappears and the new St. Francis near where
the present Forest City stands takes its place. At L'AnguUle
the road forked and a branch went southwest to Clarendon.
From Dwight a road ran northeast to Clinton where it forked,
one branch going to Batesville and the other to Pine Bayou
farther up the White. From Clinton a road ran south to Lew
isburg. On the Little Rock road at Des Arc a road ran north
east twelve miles to Frankfort, where it stopped. The Congress
road, as the military road was called, ran from Little Rock
through St. Francis to Memphis, missing Clarendon and Marion.
A road from the mouth of the Cache ran east of Clarendon, south
to Jacob's Staff, six miles east to Monroe, which had no road,
thence east fo Helena. Helena on this map is in township two,
south, range five east, while on the other maps St. Helena was in
township four, south, range five east in the great bend. Oldtown is
in township four, south, range four east, outside the great bend.
From both St. Francis and St. Francisville roads ran to Marion,
one going to Memphis and the other to Greenock, in Mississippi
County. No road reached Cornwall still further north and none
entered Canadian still higher up. From Batesville a road ran
to Sulphur Rock, thence to Pleasant Island and Litchfield,

152 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
thence southeast to St. Francis, where it tapped the Helena and
Alemphis road. Another road ran direct from Jackson to Crow-
leys. From Batesville a road ran northwest through Tecum
seh to Pine Bayou then to Izzard, then to Johnson, Yellville,
Crooked Creek, Sevierville and Richland to FayetteviUe, thence
through Cane HUl and Vineyard it reached Van Buren. Cane
Hill then was in township fifteen north, range thirty-two west.
Another road ran from Johnson through Carrollton and War
Eagle to FayetteviUe.
From FayetteviUe a road ran north through Hubbard and
Osage to Sugar Creek, Missouri. Another road swept south
from FayetteviUe to Mountain, thence west to Cane Hill. A
road ran from Little Rock on the north side through Cadron,
Lewisburg, Point Remove, Dwight, Scotia, Spadra Bluff, John
son, Ozark, Pleasant HiU and Cotocton to Van Buren. From
Alorrison's Bluff on the south side a road ran west through
Mountain to Crawford, thence on to Fort Smith. A road also
extended from Van Buren to Fort Smith, while another ran
from Vineyard out to Lee's Creek. This is a large map and
the foregoing contains every town and road as laid down at that
time. The only error that I note, and this may not be error,
is the location of Oldtown. I take Oldtown of this map to be St.
Helena of Watson's collection. The locations on the Watson map
were made by government surveyors and St. Helena is there placed
in the bend of the Mississippi river, with that river on both sides
of it and a part of Mississippi, Coahoma County, between it and
Arkansas. ST. GENEVIEVE-BATESVILLE ROAD.
Above New Madrid was the older French town, St. Gene
vieve, which likewise attracted to itself rich and educated Virgin
ians, Marylanders and Pennsylvanians, and from which many
men afterwards migrated to the newer territory of Arkansas.
St. Genevieve is also bound to Arkansas by a closer tie; near
it was one of the principal ferries over the Mississippi, by the
aid of which the vast throng of emigration found its way from
the older States into Louisiana. To accommodate this tide o£
travel a road had been cut from St. Louis to St. Genevieve,

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 153
and from St. Genevieve to Hix's Ferry on the line between Alis
souri and Arkansas. These roads formed one continuous line,
started about 1765 and finished about 1800. Soon after 1800
the road began its prolongation southward and ever southward,
to make way for the ever increasing flood of dissatisfied men
and women, seeking a land of promise and of rest in southern
Missouri and Arkansas. On each side of this road in Missouri,
towns sprang up far into the interior on branch roads which the
wanderers established, the direct fruitage of the old St. Genevieve
and Little Rock road, or as it was called then the National road.
Just when Hix established a ferry is not known, but it was
certainly prior to 1808. This ferry was necessitated by the ex
tension of the National road and brought the first English set
tlers of northern Arkansas into that region. It was a noted
place of crossing in the olden times arid the beginning point of
that other great road on the south side of the river on to where
the immigrants built Davidsonville, then on t© where they built
Batesville, and on to Little Rock, then on to Fulton. It was a
grand thoroughfare, the builder and maker of north, central and
south central Arkansas. I have traveled it from Hix's Ferry to
Little Rock, and it is the best long road in Arkansas today, but
not what it ought to be made. That road, could it speak, would
tell of long caravans of covered wagons bringing men and
women, who became the ancestors of the wisest and best of Ark
ansas' present population. When it was a new road, a mere
thread zigzagging over the face of the earth, old Colonel Walker
road over it on horseback to attend the legislature at St. Louis.
Down that road in 1819 came James Woodson Bates on a
blooded horse — a young lawyer, . poor, as a lean turkey — but
brimful of brains and purpose, riding to his destiny. Down that
road on another splendid Kentucky charger rotfe Robert Critten
den, another youngster of power and purpose, the then secretary
of the backwoods commonwealth and its acting governor. Down
that road rode Andrew Scott with his head fiUed with Blackstone,
ready made by the midnight lamp of study to oil the wheels of
justice and start the courts of Arkansas. That old road carried
civilization to a large degree into Arkansas. Ashley, MUler and

154 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
Letcher got to Arkansas Post by water, but Bates, Crittenden
and Scott came by way of the so-called National road.
CARAVANS OF PIONEERS.
Over that road from 1808 to 1830 went caravan after car
avan of covered wagons filled with men, women and children,
and accompanied by slaves, horses, cattle, sheep and troops of
dogs to found for themselves a new empire — a new government
of larger, freer and ampler scope and power. In all the wide
world there is no fairer region than that between the Strawberry
and Current rivers. To the west and northwest rise in grand-
uer the mighty Ozarks, whose tops lose themselves in the distant
skies, while to the south and east stretch out into glorious
perspective fhe undulations which lose themselves in the Arkan
sas and Alississippi. 'Where in all the world can a body of
rivers be found as limpid, clear and beautiful as fhe White,
the Black, the Strawberr}-, the Eleven Points and the Current?
The attractiveness of the region brought French pioneers there
as early as 1750. Who will ever tell the story of the Janis
famih- on the Black or of fhe other old Frenchmen who lived
and died in this romantic region? It is no wonder that Alice
French, or as she is better known, "Octave Thanet," loves that
locality, and clings to it with the fervor of a Mohammedan
clinging to his shrine. The land is full of poetry, romance
and history and the old National road is the key to its treasures.
When Arkansas shall put aside politics and rise to fhe majesty
of a great State creating highways of indomitable purpose and
power, this oldest of Arkansas highways will be made one
hundred feet wide of the best macadam clear across the State
from the monumental landmark, Hix's Ferry, to that other monu
mental landmark the town of Fulton.
In what a most romantic field was Hix's Ferry placed!
In the land of the Osages then, and afterwards in the land
'Of the Cherokees. Bands of savages from either nation travel
ing on errands of peace or war converged from all directions
to the ford where Hix's ferry came to be. Here these barbarous
and half-civilized tribes camped, and here they danced their
harvest, their peace or their war dances. Here tradition stUl

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 155
points out the spot w'here these savages clashed with themselves,
or with the whites who first crossed the lines. All through
the region are mounds holding .their heads aloft in dignified
attestation of the earlier Indian habitat. All around Cherokee
bay are Indian relics of profound historic character, which in
the future will furnish the world, and I trust at fhe hands of
Arkansas genius, romances and historic theses of marvelous in
terest and worth. SCHOOLCRAFT ON NATIONAL.
Schoolcraft and Drummond struck the National road in
the winter of 1818-19 at Poke bayou, afterwards Napoleon, and
the present BatesvUle. They put up with Robert Bean, the
earliest merchant of the town, and a man whose name is asso
ciated with pioneer life in many States. The first white child
born in East Tennessee bore the name. Bean, but whether its
parents were of kin to Robert Bean I can nut say. Certain it
is that either Robert Bean or a son organized a body of Rangers
in Independence and Izard Counties in 1832 or 1833 who at
tached themselves to the expedition of Captain Bonneville, which
made fame for itself in what is now Oklahoma. It was on
this expedition fhat Washington Irving gathered materials for
two of his excellent books, and in this way through either
Robert or Mark Bean, North Arkansas connected itself with
a glorious enterprise. Schoolcraft and Drummond were two of
the earliest "tramps," known to Arkansas history. They tramped
from Batesville to St. Genevieve about the time fhat Congress
was creating the territory of Arkansas. Schoolcraft's boots
hurt his feet and he could not make time, and as Drummond
had to be in fhe East at a certain time, by mutual consent, they
separated, Drummond walking to make time, and Schoolcraft
taking it more leisurely to save his feet. At Strawberry. School
craft found a village of fifteen buildings scattered along the
banks of the stream, including a grist mill turned by water,
a whisky distillery, a blacksmith- shop and a tavern. I am of
opinion that this was not the first distillery in Arkansas, although
it may have been.- Down on Oil Trough Bottom, or as Ger-
stacker called it, "Oil Trove Bottom," Magnus had a distillery.

156 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
which I think was the first in the State. I have tried to find
a reason for the name Oil Trough, but have not found a satis
factory one, and I am inclined to believe that the real name
was the one handed down by Gerstacker and not the one which
marks that splendid bottom today. Ten miles beyond this vUlage,
Davidsonville, Schoolcraft stopped at Dog Wood Spring on the
divide between Strawberry and Spring river, where he was
entertained by that old pioneer. Major Haynes, who represented
Lawrence County in the fourth territorial legislature, when
Robert Bean was speaker and David Barber, clerk. School
craft was amazed at fhe improved farms and houses which
skirted the road on either side. Ten miles from Spring river
'he entered a region where he found wheat, rye, oats, cotton and
tobacco, all flourishing in the same field. He crossed the Spring
river in a canoe, and at eleven o'clock the next day reached
the Eleven Points, which he also crossed in a canoe. He spoke
of the Fourche at Thomas, and remarked that even at that
-early date the American emigrants had corrupted it into its
present form, Foos'h-e-da-Maw. Those who would connect this
little stream with the great French name, Dumas will be hit
hard by this explanation. He did not speak of Fourche de
Mun, a stream immortalizing the name of old Robert de Mun,
the early French settler of Davidsonville. The testimonial of
Schoolcraft to the hospitahty of early Arkansas has already
been noted, and this trip over fhe old National road is of addi
tional interest. At that time L. Ritchie was magistrate at
Davidsonville, and one of his earliest official acts was the mar
riage of Napoleon B. Ferguson to Elizabeth Allen. As early
as 1820 another old pioneer preacher was on the Strawberry,
Reverend James Larrimore, a Baptist preacher from Virginia
and Kentucky. On February i, 1820, he married George Brad
ley to Eleanor Bayliss, at the home of the bride near Davidson
ville. In 1788, General Morgan of Virginia, began a settlement
,on the Mississippi, which received the name New Madrid and
grew rapidly. Morgan had received an extensive grant from
Spain, rich in special privileges and abounding in promise. The
prominence of Morgan in the revolutionary war, together with
his social position in the lower Shenandoah Valley, made it

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 157
easy for him to induce settlers to leave the old Virginia heaven
for a new home on the banks of the mighty Father of Waters.
The men who settled that town and neighborhood were the
creme de la creme of Virginia, and one can but wonder why
they made the change. Alen of wealth abandoned the aristo
cratic counties of Frederick, Page and Berkely, taking with
them their families and all their property for the Wild West.
With them went rich Marylanders and Pennsylvanians, thus
importing into New Madrid, a ready made colony of intelligence,
wealth and power. The peregrinations of the Bowie family
from Alaryland to Louisiana, must be unraveUed, if the gnarl
is ever straightened, by a study of fhe New Madrid rolls. Rezin
and David Bowie were at New Madrid before 1800, and both
proved settlement between that place and St. Genevieve between
1800 and 1808. Stephen and Amos Byrd, whose descendants
in after times were found in Arkansas, had a home on Randall's
Creek on the road leading from St. Genevieve to Little Rock,
and on Byrd's Creek as early as 1800. Randall was a rich
man from the Shenandoah Valley whose children migrated to
Arkansas. The earthquake of 181 1 which destroyed New Mad
rid left hundreds of people without homes, and the government
to provide for these, issued New Madrid certificates, which
authorized their holders to locate on unoccupied lands in Mis
souri and Arkansas. Many of those were located in northern
Arkansas and in the neighborhood of Little Rock. Thus the
buUding and destruction of New Madrid were intimately asso
ciated with the development of Arkansas.

CHAPTER XIX.
LOXGEVITY OF THE PiONEERS  SoME OlD MARRIAGES AND
Marriage Customs.
There is a sentiment running through American history
which seems to sustain the dictum that the West was peopled by
young men and that the gray-heads stayed at home. Out of this
has come the distinctions of the "Wild and Woolly West," and
the "Cultivated East." I have lived in the East seven years

158 Pioneers and Makers of. Arkansas
and have traveled a great deal throughout the world and have
corrected some of my own impressions, and am now writing
to change a general impression.
LITTLE -SOCK AND WASHINGTON.
W'ashington has more people. Little Rock more refinement;
Washington has more wealth, Little Rock more independent
good livers. Washington has more negroes than Little Rock
has white people and negroes combined, and the negro question
will eventually be settled by their moving to Washington and
the whites moving to the States. There are ninety thousand
negroes here and "more a-comin." Washington has more offi
cial, and Little Rock more real society. There is no better
system of education in Was'hington than in Little Rock, and
there are a far greater number of gawks, cranks and half-
educated people here than in Little Rock or any other first
class city of the country. Civil service finds a roosting place
for thousands who can just puU through, but when they are
through have a life job without corresponding mental improve
ment. They do one thing forever, which dwarfs without making
them specialists. The president of Princeton University has
pointed out that the tobacco chewers of the West are the greatest
thinkers of the country, and that there is a close inter-relation
between the sawdust spit-boxes of the cross roads and a high
order of thought. Government clerks never think ; it would be
suicidal so to do. They do as they are told and in exactly fhe
manner they are told, and have a dozen high mucky-mucks
standing over them to see that they do it. They can't think
and hold their jobs. Other people in the West are too busy
reading the papers and making money to have time for rumina
tion and chewing the cud. When young men were told to go
West and grow up with the country it was not generally known
that the old men of the country had been acting on that advice
for fifty years. In fact, the West was peopled by men over
forty-five years of age to a far greater extent than by people
between twenty-six and forty-five.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 159
OLD MEN NOT AFRAID TO MOVE.
It is generally believed that old men become more and more
cautious as they advance in years and less and less adventurous.
I understand how difficult it is to properly generalize the class
of old men, but fhose over forty-five will come much more
nearly forming a single class of old men than those under
forty-five will the single class of young men. If there are to
be but two classes, the forty-fifth year is a distinct line of
cleavage. Alore men and women over forty-five years of age
entered Arkansas prior to 1830 than did the men, women and
children under forty-five. Men begin to live the really strenuous
life at about forty-five, and do more really good work for the next
twenty years than they did from twenty-five to forty-five. It
is too great a task to enumerate all the men and women between
forty-five and seventy years in Arkansas in 1830, but their
aggregate was much larger than those between twenty and
forty-five. WORK OF THE PIALF-CENTURY EMIGRANTS.
Men and .women of forty-five years or older piloted the
long caravans of covered wagons that entered the State in
territorial days; they entered the lands; they cleared fhe lands
and built the cabins. In those days people younger than these
were to be seen, not heard. There were exceptions of course,
T)ut the rule was as I have stated. Young lawyers and politicians
came in droves of one and two, while the old people came in
caravans. I have in a previous chapter picked out the men over
sixty years of age in Lawrence County, but found the task too
great for the entire territory. I have changed the age to seventy
or more and present the following Hst, as official and authentic,
for the entire territory in 1830. It proves that old men in that
day were not afraid to make long journeys, not afraid to make
a new home in the wilderness. These old men and women are
the ancestors of thousands of our best citizens and are entitled
to the special mention I give them.
Lafayette County had three men between seventy and eighty
— George Hubbard, Morgan Cryer and John Berry.

i6o Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
Izard County had nine — John Deerman, John Hargrove,
Abraham Wood, Sr., Airs. Abraham Wood, Samuel Davis,
John W. Stewart, Airs. Winnifred Chisolm, Webb E. Hayden
and Joshua Martin. Towering above all these was old Jacob
Wolf, between eighty and ninety.
Phillips County had four from seventy to ninety — ^John
Royall, Mrs. John Royall, John Ward and Mrs. John W. Hunt.
Hempstead County took the premium for grand old men
and women. There were three from seventy to eightv — Airs.
John Wilson, WiUiam BaUey and John Chairs. There were
two between eighty and ninety — Mrs. Ambrose Hudgins and
Mrs. Benjamin McDowell — while four men and women an
swered to their names with ages between ninety and one hun
dred. This grand old quartette of nonogenarians was John
Haleman (possibly Holman), Mrs. John Haleman, Mrs. William
Reed and Mrs. Abraham Stuart.
Conway County had two from seventy to eighty — Henry
Siscoe and Mrs. Margaret Kuykendall — while John Aplin regis
tered between eighty and ninety.
Hot Spring County had two old people between seventy
and eighty — L. Belding and Mrs. Jonathan Irons.
Sevier County had a quartette of septuagenarians — John
DoUarhide, Airs. John Dollarhide, Airs. David Fareen and
Benjamin Clark. She also had two octogenarians — David Fareen
and Mrs. Benjamin Clark.
Pope Count}-, my own native heath, had two between
seventy and eighty — Mrs. Jessie Burton and Elijah Baker.
Away up in Washington County, where the boast has been
that fhe men live forever and the women never die, there were
eight between seventy and eighty, but none older — James Fisher,
Airs. Alexander Williams, Jacob Pyeatt, Mrs. John Casey, John
Estes, Henry Click, Samuel Vaughan and Mrs. Samuel Vaughan.
In Clark County they were limited to septuagenarians, but
they beat Washington County in number. Tbe roll contains ten
names — Airs. George Overban, Alary Dickson, Benjamin Crow,
John Little, Jonathan West, Charles Cox, Mrs. Charles Cox,
John Elkins, Nancy Biddix and Airs. Joseph Galbreath.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas i6i
Jefferson County was exceedingly short on longevity and had
but one person seventy years of age — Airs. Samuel Waters.
Miller County had one from seventy to eighty — John Roberts
— and one from eighty to ninety — George C. Wetmore. Major
Wetmore was reported to have been killed by the Indians in
1822, but this proves that to have been false.
Independence County had four persons from seventy to
eighty. Col. William Johnson, David Vance, John Minyard and
Morgan Alagness. Sainuel Caruthers was between eighty and
ninety. In Pulaski County none but septuagenarians, were enrolled.
These were : Samson Gray, Thomas MassengUl, Asher Bagley,
Patrick Flanakin, John BaUey, Valentine MiUer, WilHam Duncan
and Margry Harris. Six of these old men of Arkansas were
Revolutionary soldiers, Benjamin Clark, Morgan Cryer, John
Holman, David Vance, Asher Bagley and Charles Pelham.
FOURTH OF JULY, 1 822, AT BATESVILLE.
On this ocasion the whole county turned out and a grand
jubilee was held. They read the Declaration of Independence,
and Townsend Dickinson, a young lawyer from Yonkers, New
York, afterward supreme judge of the State, made a speech which
"set the boys wild.'' Among the men who responded to toasts
were men fhat afterward added fame and honor to Arkansas.
There was Richard Bean, one of the men from Tennessee whom
Schoolcraft has named. Colonel Richard Peel was there and
kicked harder than his descendant, Sam W. Peel, ever did against
taxation without representation. John Colley, with his coon skin
cap, tickled the State ofificers with compliments. James Trimble
drank to the health of the territory and wished that it might
soon become a State. There was no height of impudence to
which these jovial sons of the forest would not go. James
Trimble came from Kentucky in 181 5. His wife, a Culpepper,
Virginia, woman died in 1836. Major Joseph Taylor, fresh
from Cynthiana, Kentucky, paid a glowing tribute to the pioneers.
He unfortunately died the next year and was buried with
Masonic honors, before there was a lodge in the State. Richard
Holaby toasted Governor Miller, and Colonel James Boswell

i62 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
pushed up Statehood. Townsend Dickinson looked askant at the
daughter of Major William Aloore (whom he afterwards mar
ried), and made the speech of the day. WiUiam Ramsey pitched
into the Choctaw removal and Charles H. Pelham paid a tribute
to young Robert Crittenden. Charles Kelley and Major WUliam
Aloore boomed BatesvUle, while Aaron Gillet toasted John C.
Calhoun and nominated him for president. The red-hot speech,
however, was made by Alajor David Magness. His toast was:
"May fhe hand wither and rot that plucks one feather from
the tail of the Bird of Freedom to adorn the crown of royalty."
A man that couldn't make a speech on that question at that
time was not much of a speaker. Major Magness fllled the
bill and roused Independence County to the heights of patriotism.
After the speaking was over the fiddles ivere brought ont
and the dance began. It was a grand gathering of fair women
and brave men and all went merry as a marriage bell. The
whole affair was impromptu and enthusiastic. Independence
County couldn't give that celebration today. There are too
many critics in these modern times to do things grandly large in
a truly off-hand way. There must be committees and a bevy
of grand marshals, and a regiment of good lookers to grace the
platform — a phalanx of fuss with little feathers.
WEDDING FEASTS OF LONG AGO.
While camp meetings, barbecues and Fourth of July cele
brations gave vent to the social proclivities of early Arkansas,
illustrating their good nature, good humor and camaraderie,
nothing so w-ell illustrated these points of vantage as the wed
dings and infares of the early days. These were the great events
of the neighborhood and were celebrated with all the pomp and
ceremony of backwoods civilization, a civUization in some re
spects, in the matter of wedding festivities particularly, far in
advance of the civilization of today. The wedding supper then,
given at the house of the bride, meant something to eat; some
thing substantial, wonderfully tasteful and altogether abounding.
In fhe center of a long table, running diagonally across the
large old-fashioned generous room, cake stands were placed one
above the other to the height of three feet, containing cakes of

Pioneers and Alakcrs of Arkansas 163
the most toothsome kind, made at home by cake makers and not
bought at a bakery, each tier of cake flanked by rows of small
glasses, each fllled with a different colored jelly, all topped with a
bouquet of hundred-leafed roses, sweet pinks and Hlacs. At
one end of the table was a young pig cooked whole lying in a
dish as you have seen live pigs in a trough, flanked by dressing
made savory with sage, thyme and parsley, with a small nubbin
of roasting ear held between its feet and nose, and its tail curled
saucily over its naked back; this pig being a thoroughbred of
early Arkansas days before modern degeneracy had developed
the razorback and straighttailed variety. At the other end a
turkey hen sat in state upon a gorgeous platter surrounded by
stuffing witb hard-boiled peeled eggs protruding, as though the
fowl were preparing to hatch a glorious brood. This was not the
modern "nature study" of imitation eggs and learned palaver,
but the real turkey on a nest of real stuffing and eggs equally
as real and altogether true to nature. Then there was the
great platter of cold ham, and fhat other of sliced lamb, and
numerous dishes of chicken salads — all of which made a first
' course better than any three courses of the modern menu,
whose essence is physiological culture and parsimonious economy.
Time fails to enumerate the pyramids of cream potatoes,
the bountiful dishes of butter beans and cucumbers, and the
huge tureens of gigantic roasting ears. All down the aisles
of these substantial were tumblers of stick candy of all colors
and sizes, very much like fhe barber poles that grace the avenues
of our cities. The only new things advertised for the occasion
were egg puffs, known today as sugar kisses. These were an
innovation lately brought up from New Orleans, and were carried
home as souvenirs to furnish social diversion for fhe following
month. "float" was the dessert.
For dessert anofher huge tureen, holding about ten gallons,
contained fhat savory production called in those days "float,"
which modern learning classifies as "egg-nog," without contrib
uting a particle to the excellency of the old-fashioned float.
This was before ice cream could be bought done up in tin squares

164 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
read}- to be served wifh a wafer or nabisco, and the float fully
made up for this possible lack. There • was enough on these
tables, taken separately, to serve flve or six hundred guests,
as guests are served today at swell receptions at our capital,
v/here one teaspoonful of chicken salad upon one small lettuce
leaf, one cheese straw, two salted almonds and a stuffed olive
is considered a superfluity of most gorgeous abundance. We
have today physiology and starvation coupled with choice in
tellectual pabulum, socalled, making a somewhat dubious feast
of reason coupled with a flow of soul. Our Arkansas ancestors
had plenty to eat, cooked in generosity and served with fervor.
They got their physiological service from the force which came
from good food well cooked, and the pleasure w'hich came from
the knowledge that no one need fear that a second helping
would exhaust the supply. the second day feast.
An exact copy of the wedding feast came the next day at the
infare, which was held at the home of the groom. Thither went
the friends and neighbors for twenty miles around in the old-
fashioned lumbering coaches, in heavy buggies and wagons, and
on horseback. They all ate like they loved to eat and no one
was the worse for it. Nervous prostration was a thing un
known in Arkansas in the days of groaning tables and bountiful
living. Emaciation had not come and health was so distressingly
prevalent as to make the practice of medicine unprofitable. Old
Doctor AIcKay at Arkansas Post in the year 1819 earned less
than ten dollars and ''changed his business for another which
carried a percentage. Nerve prostration came in with physiology
and regulated eating and has kept splendid pace with their
ruinous teachings. A man's stomach in the good old time
worked full time, giving beauty and strength to the body and far
more intellectual impetus to the mind than modern eaters display
who starve the body to enrich the mind. The old Latins had
an idea that soundness of mind was in some way connected with
sound bodies, and the soundest bodies are those that not only
digest good food well, but glory in doing it.' A little weasley,
shrunken, half-starved body was never designed to carry any-

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 165
thing but a weasly, shrunken and half-starved mind. Poor
living may suit those who want to save money, but it was
never designed' to develop an immortal mind.
NOTABLE EARLY MARRIAGES.
Such weddings and infares -were common in early days
throughout Arkansas, Missouri, Tennessee and Kentucky. Mar
riage to a young man meant a most momentous occasion in life
and was celebrated with all the dignity of a feast. Following
are some of the marriages of 1822 and 1823 :
On December 20, 1822, George W. Scott, afterward United
States marshal at Little Rock, was married to Ann Dodge,
daughter of General Henry Dodge, at St. Genevieve, Missouri.
In the same year the following marriages were celebrated
at Arkansas Post : Robert Brooks to Clemence Polet, in June ;
AchiUe Godin to Manette Felicity Valliere in July; both these
marriages were celebrated by Judge Scott. In April of that
year at the same place John Taylor was married to Eliza Webb.
On June 19, 1821, Squire Petty in Mississippi township united
Isaac Copeland to Nancy Bridgman in holy wedlock; on July
4, 182 1, Joseph Bonne was married to Miss BUleate in Pulaski
County by John Dodge; on May 28, 182 1, Joseph Bennett was
married to Alargaret Montgomery in Mississippi township at
the mouth of White river by 'Squire Petty; in June, 182I,
William Kepler was married to Mary Folson, both of Clark
County; on February 11, 1820, Charles Ewel was married to
Borradell Latimer at St. Francis by Judge W. B. R. Horner.
On December 25, 1822, William Franklin was married to Elinor
Lockert, daughter of James Lockert, in Pulaski County; on
February 19, 1823, John Taylor to Judic Imbeau, daughter of
Alonsieur Joseph Imbeau at Arkansas Post; in February, 1823,
Zechariah Lorance to Betsy Harold, daughter of Abner Harold
at Little Rock; on February 28, 1223, Andrew HemphUl to
Margaret Welch, daughter of Robert Welch in Clark County.
On October 22, 1821, in Vaugine township, Pulaski County,
Creed Taylor was married to UtaHe Vaugine, daughter of Major
Francis Vaugine; on March 21, 1822, at Jackson, Missouri,
Henry Sanford clerk of the Lawrence County Court, to Maria

i66 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
Daugherty; on June 24, 1822, Andrew Fentor to Sidney Dean
in Clark County; on the same day James Scarborough was an
nounced as having been married to Betsy Fentor, but the next
week's paper said fhat this wedding did not come off. On July
17, 1822, in Pyeatt township, Pulaski County, Smith KeUum
was married to Jane Pyeatt, daughter of Jacob Pyeatt; on
January 8, 1833, at Long Prairie, Joshua Morrison was married
to Alargaret Bradley, stepdaughter of WUliam Woodward; on
March 25, 1823, Reverend Isaac Brookfield was married to Nancy
Campbell in Lawrence County.
These were all noted weddings of the day and time,, adding
much to the pleasure and well-being of the neighborhoods at the
time and to the glory and growth of the State since that time.

CHAPTER XX.
Early Election Practices.
The Gazette began its existence in 1819 at Arkansas Post
in a small house owned by Richmond Peeler. In less than a
year it moved out to the main street opposite the store of David
Brearly, a Revolutionary soldier from New Jersey and a prom
inent soldier, at that. There the Gazette stayed until its re
moval to Little Rock. Its first resting place in the capital
of fhe territory is not clearly disclosed, but on January 7, 1824,
the paper's habitat was more clearly defined. On that day the
management let fhe people know that the day of log and frame
houses was over for the Gazette, and that thereafter the 'head
quarters of the great newspaper emporium would be in the new
brick house — the new two-story brick house — a few rods west
of the tannery, or tanyard. Much speculation has been in
dulged in as to the oldest brick house in Little Rock, and writers
seem to have fixed the brick house era as beginning in 1825
or later. Henry W. Conway had a brick kitchen and outhouse
in 1823, and the Gazette occupied a two-story brick house
in 1824. The issue of the paper making the announcement
does not state that the Gazette would occupy the first brick
house built, or the only brick house then standing in Little
Rock, which seems to authorize the inference that "there were

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 167
others." Doubtless there were, and the date of the notice of
January 7, 1824, would certainly place their construction in
1823, if not earlier. This brick building of the Gazette was on
the northeast corner of Markham and Scott.
THE BRICK TAVERN.
Isaac Watkins kept the earliest tavern, possibly, in the
village of Little Rock, whioh, after his demise, was not again
used for a tavern for several years. Matthew Cunningham
moved to Little Rock in 1821, having come from Missouri to
Arkansas Post in a wagon, w'hich he advertised for sale at
that place. How he transferred himself to Little Rock is not
known, but he got there, all fhe same. On January 7, 1822,
he advertised for private boarders, and kept a fashionable private
boarding house for several years. On October 10, 1825, Nicl^
Peay, from Shelbyville, Kentucky, opened a house of enter
tainment in the Isaac Watkins tavern stand on the river front,
which was a noted place under his management for many years.
These, however, were all frame houses, as were several other
minor taverns and boarding houses that existed for a longer
or shorter period between 1819 and 1825.
The habit of locating physicians in hotels is an ancient
one, and on December 21, 1821, Doctor Ct Baker advertised his
place of business at "Watkins' hotel." Alan Mars & Company
advertised themselves on February 28, 1822, as ready for brick
and stone masonry contracts. In 1823 a two-story brick build
ing was put up on Main Street about half way between Markham
and Second streets, which was at once occupied as a 'hotel,
and continued as such for more than fifteen years. This was
the first brick hotel in Little Rock, but it is not standing today.
Just opposite was anofher two-story brick house, also put up
in 1823, whioh was used as a store. All of these brick structures
were in existence when the Gazette took the new brick two-
story building on January 7, 1824. How many brick residences
there may have been I have not been able to determine, but in
all probability there were several.
Some time in 1821 Christian Brumbach and Benjamin Clem
ents formed a partnership as bricklayers and plasterers, which
partnership lasted until October 31, 1822. This firm advertised

i68 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
frequently for bricklayers, and there is little reason to doubt
but that in 1822 and 1823 they put up many brick houses, which
are still standing or have given place to other structures under
the rapid march of improvements. It is certain that the era
of brick houses in Little Rock began long before 1825.
First judicial hanging.
Judge Pope in his Early Days places the first judicial hang
ing- as of date Alay 21, 1828. This was the execution of WiUiam
Strickland at Little Rock for murder. The judge was mistaken
upon the point of priority in the honor of hangings, as there
are several recorded instances of judicial hanging prior to 1828,
and a great number of others that by all the rules of the game
ought to have transpired, but by vicious practices were kept
from the realm of fact. In the year 1820 Thomas Dickinson,
a farmer owning three hundred acres of land on Old river,
made an unprovoked assault upon a neighbor and killed him.
He was arrested, tried, convicted and hanged at Arkansas Post
in the year 1820. This is the first duly authenticated "necktie
party"of the territory of Arkansas, and a terrible warning to
evil doers. EARLY ELECTION SCHEMES.
From the very first day that the territory boasted an exist
ence there was an all-prevalent desire on the part of early
arrivals and on the part of the "old residenters" to do their
country service by holding one or more of its oflfices. In the
first days of fhe territory one ofifice was not enough, and really
ambitious citizens not only wanted, but were permitted to have,
two or more good, fat jobs. Robert Crittenden could act as
a governor, run the secretary's ofifice, practice law and conduct
a real estate oflfice. This led some one, who signed his name
"Farmer," to publish a two-column article in the Gazette on
November 17, 182 1, protesting against it. This writer said:
"There is no people more degraded and unfortunate than those
having a practicing lawyer for governor." He also objected
to Sam C. Roane acting at the same time as United States
district attorney and as president of one of the legislative bodies,
and to Brigadier General Hogan, a commissioned ofificer of

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 169
the United States, holding a seat in the legislature. His ob
jections had a great influence on all after elections, and effected
a reform, except that Crittenden never relinquished his power
until he was forced out by General Jackson in 1829. In 1819
William Craig, an old resident at the Post, began to size up
the new coming ofificeholding class, and in July, 1820, flagellated
fhem severely iff the Gazette. He did not object particularly
to their holding ofifice, and fhat without fhe consent of the
people, but he did object to their dabbling in other business.
He said they gave one hour to the public business and nine
hours to their own pockets. That they were "claim sharks,"
of the meanest order, and fhat the people of Arkansas territory
were entitled to a cleaner deal. The newcomers looked upon
the older citizens as a sort of uncivilized barbarians upon whom
they might prey with impunity, and their greatest field of opera
tion was in the buying of claims.
ELECTIONEERING DEVICES.
When the first legislative election came there were many
candidates. They harangued the voters, as they do today
and used many practices which have since been legally declared
to be corrupt. Whisky was a powerful stimulant upon the
minds of the electorate. The man who set up the most free
whisky was the man of the greater intellectual caliber, and the
quality of the whisky cut no figure, except that all grades
of decent, first-class whisky were barred out. Only whisky that
would befuddle quickly and accurately was up to the standard,
and in close races there were always a sufficient number of sots
to turn the scales in favor of the intellectual giant, who knew
where to locate his jugs and how to manipulate them success
fully. The whisky scheme was detected first and the clean
voters blacklisted the man who used it. Then came the cheap
cigar age of electioneering expedients. Here, also, none but
the worst grades were in use. The office-wanting class seemed
to think fhe electorate a lot of unthinking blocks, not only
ready to be bought, but to be bought by cigars that cost fifty
cents a hundred. They lacked not on-ly the decency of clean
practices, but the generosity of a real grafter.

170 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
In the old three days' elections all the sots of the neighbor
hood were secreted by the office-seeker, who was not ashamed
to work that way, kept full of mean whisky for two days and
hauled to fhe polls on the third to plump in their unpurchasable
votes for their friend. Others had their pockets stuffed with
cheap cigars and at the right moment voted a free vote for
the cigar candidate. MORE CRITICISM FROM CRAIG.
In the very first election old WUliam Craig denounced
these practices, and like Ossian prophesied the downfall of the
class using such schemes. On July i, 1821, he said: "The
new-fangled mushroom politicians will be left to their own shame,
and to smoke their own segars." He seemed to think smoking
an abomination, but the smoking of candidates' "segars" a mental,
moral and physical poisorf. The giving of cigars and drinks
to the voters has survived through all the years since 1820 and
is proof positive that Darwin was wrong in his doctrine of
fhe survival of the fittest. The question of drinking and smoking
is not involved in the discussion, as every man has the moral
and legal right to determine that for himself, without subjecting
himself to criticism. The bald question is "Can a clean candi
date, one who has never before been found extending fhe cour
tesies of smoking and drinking to anybody, when he announces
himself for office, aU at once begin treating the electorate pro-
miscously?" The mind and conscience of the people have an
swered this with a strong negative, and the corrupt practices'"
acts of many States have 'made the promiscuous treating of
voters illegal. Candidates still treat their constituents, but so
guardedly as to avoid the operation of law.
CHARGES IN ODEN-CONWAY RACE.
In the race between Robert Oden and Henry W. Conway It
was charged by the Odenites that Conway used whisky and
cigars, while the Conwayites retorted that Oden did far worse.
It was charged that Oden kissed all the babies he came in
contact with in that race except the "pickaninnies." Conway's
detectives found out that every time Oden left Little Rock
on his canvass he carried out a carpetbag full of trinkets of

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas lyi
little or no value, but which he distributed judiciously among the
children, the wives, daughters and mothers of the voting popu
lation. It was charged that he cleaned up all the unsalable
gewgaws of Little Rock and scattered them throughout fhe
rural regions. He was overwhelmingly defeated,, which would
seem to argue fhat the voters thought mort of their whisky
and cigars than t'hey did of the pleasure that might be given
their feminine adjuncts. Or it might be said that they were
getting the graft of both sides — ^the men got whisky and cigars
from one candidate and the women of their families got the
gewgaws. In all such expedients only the "floaters" are in
volved and to the honor of Arkansas be it said that this class,
although dominant in localities, has never had a very great in
fluence on a general election. In the legislature of 1825 a certain
question was carried by the judicious distribution of a boat
load of sugar-cured hams among the legislators. The recipients
of the hams were spotted and in the next election fhe question
of "Ham or no Ham" played a most important part.
The Gazette published several cards from pork-packing
establishments, wanting to know how many boatloads of hams
would be required for fhe legislation of the territory during the
next session of the legislature. One cargo laid up at the mouth
of the White on its way to New Orleans, dickering wifh Little
Rock persons as to whether to bring the cargo up fo the capital
or take it on down the river. It went to New Orleans and the
question soon died away.
No age has ever been exempt from corrupt practices, nor
has any country. They had a wide latitude in early days, but
were as emphatically denounced then as now. Fewer legisla
tures have been bought in Arkansas than in Massachusetts and
New York, and fhe debauching of the electorate has never been
so general in Arkansas as in Massachusetts or New York.
The campaign funds of party politics are the bases of corrupt
practices and until they are absolutely abolished and the elections
left entirely to the will and determination of the electors these
practices will go on. The management of campaigns by and
through committees having a treasury is the essence and core
of corruption and should be abolished by law.

172 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
CHAPTER XXI.
Governor George Izard.
In the fall of 1825 Governor James Miller went back to New
Hampshire arid was elected to Congress from that State and was
appointed coUector at the port of Salem. He was loaded down
with offices and honors.* He took the collector's place and re
signed his governorship of Arkansas and his right to a seat in
Congress. He and Robert Crittenden, the acting governor, are credited
with setting up the territorial government, oiling it at periodicctl
moments and seeing that it did not jump a cog now and then.
AVhen MUler went out there were those who thought Crit
tenden should go in, and Crittenden might have been of that
opinion, though there is little to show for it. One thing is
certain, however, he did want to be secretary for the territory.
He was called Cardinal Wolsey, and he tried to follow in the
footsteps of that illustrious character, without copying him in
any particular save in his fall. There were those in the territory
who opposed him for secretary, prominent among them being
Judge James Woodson Bates. These two used to play in the
same back yard, but now they refused to walk on the same side
of the street. Bates had more sense, but less political sagacity.
He had the better education, legal and otherwise, but had far
less prudence. Crittenden used the gloved hand while Bates
used the mailed fist; besides, Bates loved a toddy. Crittenden
as acting governor appointed several justices of the peace and
miany militia ofificers. In other words, Crittenden had a machine,
while Bates had nothing but his own intelluctual and moral
parts. He gave Crittenden considerable trouble and kept him
awake all night frequently dodging twenty-four pounders, but
he couldn't keep him from being appointed secretary of the
territory. IZARD APPOINTED GOVERNOR.
The president, James Monroe, who had the appointing
power, selected Alajor General George Izard of South Carolina
to fill the place of governor, and he made a most admirable

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 17 z
selection. His greatest difficulty was in securing his acceptance.
Monroe desired some one who had character and strength suffi
cient to bring order out of the chaos. Things in Arkansas were
not lovely by any maner of means and an iron hand was needed.
Izard needed no ofifice, being a man of independent means; his
associates were the leaders of the country and his sentiments
were decidedly adverse to going to Arkansas. Monroe prevailed,
however, and Izard accepted.
George Izard really organized the territory of Arkansas.
His predecessors, the governor and the acting governor, simply
set the machine up and put it into bungling operation. They
touched the high places, as it were, and substituted words for
things. They had a militia so-called which consisted of a brig
adier general, who lived at Fort Towson, and an adjutant
general, who was sheriff of Arkansas County. They had colo
nels galore, and that was the sum and substance of the "milish,"
except the neighborhod organizations. They had no men, no
guns, no ammunition, no arsenal, no rules and really no militia.
IZARD THE GREAT ORGANIZER.
In point of education, George Izard was unquestionably
the superior of any man that ever sat in the governor's chair
at Little Rock in either form of government. State or territorial.
Born in Richmond, England, he graduated at the University of
Pennsylvania, an honor man in 1792. He then attended the
military schools at Kensington, England ; the University of Edin
burgh, and the French military schools, at Marbury and Metz.
More than that, he was a man of sense. He had the caliber
that took on education with out becoming a fool. He had a
sound organizing mind to begin with, and he enriched this
with all that the best schools of organization could offer. The
results of the war of 1812 are traceable to George Izard's master
ful power of organization, more than the work of any other man,
or that of any other twenty men combined. It was he that
supplied the military organization act of 1812, which was taken
by the supreme authorities and put into practice. Under this
act Captain George Izard was made Colonel of the Second
Artillery, with Lieutenant Winfield Scott as lieutenant colonel
and William Lindsay as major.

174 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
IZARD HAD NO. SUPERIOR.
Concerning Colonel Izard, Birkhimer in his history of the
Artillery of the United States says :
"There was not in the United States his superior in mil
itary knowledge. Educated in fhe military schools of France,
he had, by several years' experience in the army, supplemented
by study and reflection, methodically digested in his mind the
whole subject of organization and supply. This fact made
his counsel particularly valuable at the beginning of the war,
upon which, with little preparation, the government had now em
barked. Both the colonel and the lieutenant colonel of this
regiment rose to the grade of general officer."
Colonel Izard was in a short time promoted to the rank
of brigadier general and Scott succeeded him as colonel of the
Second ArtUlery. George Izard was the son of the patriot and
statesman, Ralph Izard, of South Carolina. Ralph Izard was a
grandson of one of the founders of the Palmetto State and the
name has always been an honored one. It was given also to
Ralph Izard to have a splendid education. He was a graduate
of Cambridge, England, and lived for many years in England
and France. While at Paris he took sides with Arthur Lee
against Silas Deane and Benjamin Franklin in their famous
controversy. Returning to America, he secured' for General
Greene the command of the Southern Continental Army, and
then pledged his entire estate to enable the Continental Congress
to purchase the ships of war in Europe. He was a delegate to
Congress from South Carolina in 1782 and 1783, and a senator
from the same State fr^m 1789 to 1795, when he was paralyzed.
Few grander men have ever lived than Ralph Izard, and in
the same category stands the name of his illustrious son,
George. His father married a De Lancey of New York, which
gave George two currents of blood, each representing the best
of two widely differing sections.
In 1814 Major General George Izard was in command on
Lake Champlain and on the Niagara frontier, where in Septem
ber at Sackett's Harbor he received an urgent call from Gen
eral Jacob Brown to come to his relief at Fort Erie. Izard
moved up to Black Rock and crossed the Niagara, camping

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 175
within two miles of Fort Erie. Ranking General Brown, he
took supreme command and prepared to march against General
Drumrnond, who had retreated to Queenstown. At Chippewa,
Izard vainly tried to draw Drummond out, but that astute gen
eral retreated further inland. Izard then blew up Fort Erie
and recrossed the Niagara. For this he was iseverely criticized
by the New England stay-at-homes, but supported by the War
Department. "When the war was over, he, in 1816, issued a
volume entitled "Oflficial Correspondence With the War Depart
ment," which added a great deal to his stature as a military
and scholarly man.
When this man of affairs reached Little Rock he found
everything in confusion. The governor was in New Hampshire
and the acting governor in Washington. Izard asked how
they managed in this way and was told that everybody did
pretty much as he pleased anyway and that they got along fully
as well without governors as with them.
IZARD DRAWS THE REINS.
Izard soon ascertained that things were running pretty
loose. Money to pay fhe Indians was in the shape of a draft
locked up in Crittenden's desk awaiting his return; other moneys
were at fhe mouth of the Arkansas in Crittenden's name await
ing his signature. Vacancies in various offices were hanging
fire and the people doing without officers awaiting Crittenden's
return. Indian agents were withholding their reports and a
spirit of unrest was abroad in the land. The Quapaws had
not been paid and the Indian agents were arrogating unlawful
and arrogant powers. Izard as an organizer soon had every
thing in good working order. Indian agents fell back to their
lawful places and soon made quarterly returns, accounting for
every dollar. The Quapaw chief, Heckaton, said that Izard was
a white man of the right kind and worthy of everybody's con
fidence. The Choctaws were moved to the West without a
particle of friction, and south Arkansas was entirely clear of In
dians. Izard then took up the Cherokee question and during four
years laid down plans which eventually removed every Indian
from the State.

176 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
Izard was a clean man and a well-dressed man. He knew
the world and was equally at home in a king's palace or an
Indian hut. His speech was clean and his heart spotless. The
onlv present he would ever allow a man to make him was a
razor. When he left Europe he had more than twenty of these
tools, and when he moved to Arkansas he selected seven and
had fhem marked with his name and the day of the week.
He never entered his ofifice in the morning without a clean shaved
face and his example had a wonderful influence on the birds'
nests which many men of the time sported on their faces.
LITTLE ROCK COULDN'T MAKE CHANGE.
The United States treasurer sent Izard drafts for $10,000
to pay Indian and other claims. These he took to the business
men of Little Rock, there being no banks, who told him that all
the money in town put together wouldn't total $10,000. Izard
had to send a messenger to New Orleans to have these drafts
cashed, a most expensive as well as dangerous proceeding.
THE CRiTTENDEN-CONWAY DUEL.
The old-time honesty could not be impugned, but it wouldn't
pass muster today. If a messenger entrusted with money in
those days ran short he appropriated from the trust funds, and
sometimes made it up promptly, but sometimes did not. Izard
had to sue one messenger for using the trust funds and wait
nearl}- a year for the money. The duel between Conway and
Crittenden grew out of this habit. The treasurer at Washing
ton handed Conway in 1824 about $7,000 to hand to the gov
ernor of Arkansas to pay the Quapaws. Conway ran out of
mone}- before reaching Little Rock and used some of the money.
He called on Crittenden, the acting governor, and asked him
how much he wpuld need. Crittenden said about $6,000. Con
way said that he was glad of that, as he had used a part of
the money given him at Washington, but had $6,000, w'hich he
paid, and Crittenden gave a receipt. The other $1,000 was
strictly accounted for several months later. When Conway ran
for Congress in 1824, his second term, nothing was said about
this matter, but when Robert Oden ran against him in 1826
'he made this his bUl of particulars. Conway answered him and

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 177
admitted all that Oden charged. He said that the treasurer of
the United States was fhe man to object if any wrong had been
done, and not Oden. In his explanation, however, he said that
Crittenden had consented for him to keep fhe $1,000 for a
short time. Crittenden denied this and said that he had no right
to consent or to object. That the money was not his and that
the treasurer had not authorized him to demand anything of
Conway. That he simply took the $6,000 and receipted for it
without expressing an opinion one way or the other. Conway
still claimed that Crittenden consented and the people soon for
got Oden's charge and began to discuss whether Crittenden
consented or not, a question not connected with fhe race. Con
way won the election and followed it by a bitter card denouncing
Crittenden, which brought a challenge and Conway's death.
This affair coupled with Izard's fixed rules requiring prompt
reports and settlements, broke up fhe habit of using public funds
for private purposes, even though the use was apparently
righteous and necessary. To keep from sending $10,000 drafts
to New Orleans Izard succeeded in having the drafts sent in
$500 denominations, which were easily handled by fhe mer
chants of Little Rock. IZARD ORGANIZES MILITIA.
Izard began a real organization of the mUitia. He got
guns and then men. He laid the foundation for the arsenal.
He furnished the rules and regulations, having done this be
fore for the entire United States. Drilling went on regularly
and manv men who became famous in the Mexican war re
ceived their earliest tutelage in Izard's mUitia companies.
Civil ofificers were held to a strict accountability and his
administration was in every sense a great and wise one. Dur
ing his administration of affairs in Arkansas his family remained
in Philadelphia, where, in 1827, his wife died. Aftei* Izard's
return to Little Rock he gradually succumbed to a disease that
had followed him through life. He died November 22, 1828,
and was buried on the lot where the Peabody school now stands.
His death was a blow to Arkansas. He had elevated the ter
ritorial government to the highest rank and had made troops of
friends. Could he have lived for a few years longer (he was

178 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
but fifty-one at his death), he would in aU probability have
represented the State in the highest councils of the nation.
As it was, Arkansas stood well with all other people and was
looked upon as a great and growing commonwealth. The good
A\ork begun by Izard was most fortunately continued by John
Pope, which made fhe organization absolutely complete.
Thus sleeps on Arkansas soil one of the greatest construc
tive minds of the United States. His work still lives in the
organization of the United States army and his influence is still
felt in the State where he died. There are few brighter spots
in Arkansas history than the short four years George Izard was
its governor. May his memory ever be revered and his example
emulated.

CHAPTER XXII.
Robert Crittenden.
Robert Crittenden was a Kentuckian and was immensely
proud of the fact. Virginians first made "State pride" a sine
qua non, and the changes have been most vigorously rung on the
F. F. V.'s of the Mother of Commonwealths. Kentucky was the
eldest daughter of Virginia and some of her children, when they
could make no other boast, fell back upon the claim that they
were born in Virginia. To be a Mayfiower descendant was a
great thing in New England, but it never meant half so much as
being born in Virginia meant in Kentucky. That fact alone cov
ered a multitude of sins and was thought to be suflficient to un
lock all gates, even fhe golden gates of heaven.
Kentucky was settled by people from all fhe Eastern States,
with Virginians preponderating. The Crittenden family may be
said to be a Kentucky family, with Virginia antecedents, all the
glory of the family having been made in Kentucky, however, and
very little in Virginia.
The family lived in Woodford County prior to 1800 and
were its pioneers, increasing in wealth as the hemp of Woodford
projected itself into the markets of fhe world. My grandfather
preferred the uplands of the adjoining county, Anderson, to the
levels of Woodford, and therein he committed a crime against

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 179
his descendants, although Anderson County got even on distil
leries, Robert Crittenden was born in Woodford County, Ken
tucky, in 1797. John J. Crittenden, the one to whom fhe family
owes its greater, fame, was also born in Woodford County in
1787, ten years prior to fhe birth of Robert. Both studied law
and both were eminent in their profession. Robert became an
ensign in the Second United States Rifles in 18 14 and was honor
ably discharged in June, 1815. He served about thirteen months
with credit to himself and honor to his country. Henry Critten
den of the same county enlisted in 1812 and served three years,
rising to fhe rank of captain in the Seventeenth infantry. These
were all of the Crittendens who held official position in the War
of 1812, but quite a number of the name became prominent in
military affairs during the next century. George Bibb Critten
den graduated at the military academy in 1833 and rose to the
rank of major in the United States army, being cashiered in 1848.
He joined the Southern army in 1861 and rose to the rank of
major general. Thomas Leonidas Crittenden never went to the
academy, but as a private joined the regular army in 1836, from
which he rose to the position of major general in the United
States army. It will thus be seen that the family has been well
represented in all the wars of the United States since 1812 and
that it is a family of high martial instincts.
ROBERT CRITTENDEN IN ARKANSAS.
In his twenty-first year, a young, ambitious and briefless
lawyer, Robert Crittenden was ap'pointed by President Monroe,
secretary of Arkansas territory at a salary of $1,000 a year and
the privilege of doing all and every other sort of business, not
conflicting with his secretarial duties. T'he duties of fhe ofifice
were not onerous, even though he had to act as governor, as
there were but five counties, and these wifh a regular quota of
ofificers. Crittenden accepted the place as the best possible open
ing for a young lawyer, and to his credit it may be said fhat he
made a good secretary, and when called on made a good act
ing governor. No fault can ever be found with Crittenden's
performance of duty. He was a good ofificer, one of fhe very
best. His sins were of another nature and had nothing whatever

i8o Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
to do with the words misfeasance or malfeasance in ofifice. He
arrived at Arkansas Post in 1819 and on July 4 Governor Miller
not having arrived, organized the territorial government of Ar
kansas, as acting governor, in conjunction with Charles Jouett,
Charles Letcher and Andrew Scott, judges of the Superior Court.
The whole work was finished in less than three weeks and Jouett
and Letcher vamosed, never to return, and a doubt exists as to
Jouett's presence.
Crittenden at once formed a partnership with James Wood
son Bates in the practice of law and the dealing in real estate.
Bates was soon put on the bench, and this partnership was dis
solved. Bates left the bench and ran for Congress, being elected
by a close shave. The partnership was re-formed and continued
for three years most profitably to each. Bates wanted a third
term, but did not say so. He was in Was'hington most of the
time and did not keep his weather eye open on the Arkansas
clouds. Crittenden resolved to beat Bates and found three candi
dates ready to make the race; in fact, already announced and
working for the place. Crittenden believed that if Trimble. Esk
ridge and Conway all ran. Bates would have clear sailing and set
about to get two of them out of the way.
THE GREAT INTRIGUE OF 1823.
Crittenden asked Trimble, Eskridge and Conway to meet
him in Judge Roane's ofifice, and requested Judge Roane to be
present. Crittenden made quite a talk and after arguing with
Trimble and Eskridge for quite a while induced them to with
draw, which they did, agreeing to support Conway. Crittenden
afterward alleged that Conway promised to have but one term
and not to run again. This Conway denied and Roane, when
called on to prove Crittenden's assertion, made a good Conway
witness. One need not study far to ascertain Conway's change
of front. He outwitted Crittenden, Eskridge and Trimble.
After the cabinet council referred to above Conway went up into
Alissouri and met Bates. He asked him: "Are you going to
run for the third term?" Bates said: "No, Conway; you are
fhe man for the place." ' Conway said : "No, I'll not run ; you
are the man." Thus Arkansas without knowing it furnished
the originals for the two great characters, "Gaston and Al-

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas i8i
phonse," and unconsciously verified the adage that there is no
new thing under the sun. Bates and Conway parted, so Bates
said, wifh the understanding that neither was to run until a
further consultation, and that if Bates decided to run Conway
was not to run. Conway said that Bates gave him a clear field
over his (Conway's) protest and thiat he proceeded to make good.
He went to Batesville and sa-w Colonel Hardin, who told him that
Independence County was for. Bates, but that if Bates was not
going to run, as Conway said, the county would support Conway.
Conway having the whole field to himself repudiated his one-term
stand and ran the second and third times, winning in every case.
BETTER LAWYER THAN POLITICIAN.
Crittenden stuck far more closely to the law than to politics,
and succeeded most admirably at the bar, while failing most
egregiously in politics. He made money and spent that money
in beautifying Little Rock. He built a fine house and with a
most generous hand dispensed the most lavish hospitality. He
was clean of speech, clean of dress, open handed and open hearted.
He was the best loved of all men among his votaries, and the
most hated man in Arkansas among his adversaries. What was
his trouble? He had all the arts of the politician without fhe wisdom of
the statesman. His ambition extended to a mere parceling of
minor appointments rather than a leadership based on reason or
the exercise of superior talent. He preferred to marshal men
through personal obligation rather than lead them by an appeal
to conviction. He did not lack eloquence — a great and com
manding eloquence — an eloquence, however, more fanciful than
logical — more imaginative than practical. He lacked an orderly
control of his mind and this to a large degree destroyed his in
fluence upon political subjects. His greatest defect was that he
mingled too little witb the masses of men, and was therefore
without knowledge of the great mainsprings to human action.
He was an inborn aristocrat and a whig to the core. To the
multitude he was therefore an iceberg, and to him, the multitude
was an unthinkable quantity. He was above them and this feel
ing of eminence barred his entry into the great domain of human
nature.

i82 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
Evidence is not lacking of his desire to dominate the gov
ernors of the territory, and of a bitter resentment on his part for
fhe governors who resented his dictation.
DID NOT HOLD FRIENDSHIPS LONG.
Judge Bates is authority for the saying that Crittenden
dubbed James Miller "The Old Fool," and gave as a reason the
tendency of MUler to think for 'himself. That the relations be
tween Izard and Crittenden were strained is well known, but the
reasons for their polite estrangement have not been enumerated
with exactness. That Crittenden expected the appointment of
governor in 1825 and did not get it seems to have been accepted
as a sufficient reason for fhe lack of camaraderie between these
men. If so, both men were of a smaller caliber than history has
accorded them and unworthy of a lasting public esteem.
The real reason must be sought in the abnormal propensity
of Crittenden to control, and the abnormal propensity of Izard
to think for himself and follow his own bent.
Evidence is not lacking also to show that Crittenden was
without constructive ability in his management of those relations
which lead up to permanent and powerful friendships. He was
check by jowl with Elijah Morton in 1819, but sundered from
him as far as the poles in 1820. It was to his influence in 1819
that Bates owed his small majority. So intimate were these men
then as to be partners in law and in real estate.
HIS DUEL WITH CONWAY.
In 1823 Crittenden paved the way for Conway to beat Bates.
Conway and Crittenden were close friends in 1823. Conway se
cured Crittenden the commissionership to negotiate the Quapaw
treaty, and suggested his name to fhe president as governor in
1825. In 1827 Crittenden was for Oden, against Conway, and
took the stump for Oden, not on the high plane of civil service,
but on the supreme issue of personal altercation. When Oden
was defeated Crittenden pursued the personal phase of the con
troversy on fhe field of honor, with fatal results to Conway.
Had there been but one estrangement between Crittenden
and his close friends no general conclusion would have followed.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 183
But the estrangement of Morton, of Bates, of Conway, and, in a
lesser sense, of Miller and of Izard — all seem to point to a mental
objectiveness on Crittenden's part to subordinate himself of
ficially. Nor were his lesser friends permitted to shine by their
own light — tbey were to be mere pawns in his hands — nothing
more. THE CONWAY-SEVIER DYNASTY.
There was no real reason for the rise of fhe Conway-Sevier
dynasty. Crittenden was on the ground before fhe Conways —
before the Seviers. He had the advantages of place and a wider
acquaintance. He was more eloquent than either, yea, than all
of them, and with a rational program ought to have succeeded.
The Conway-^Sevier dynasty could never have had an initial place
had Crittenden adhered fo Bates in 1823. His act then drove the
Bates faction to Conway in 1827. Ambrose H. Sevier would
not have been a debatable quantity in 1827 and 1833 had Critten
den's pohcy from 1819 to 1825 been one of higher political
thought. The Conway family, from 1820 to 1827, had no abnor
mal influence in Arkansas affairs. Ambrose H. Sevier was not
a gigantic power until 1836. He held his position up to fhat
time, not through family influence and ramifications, but solely
and alone through his better knowledge of human nature. Henry
W. Conway, in 1823, first sprang the idea of rotation in ofifice,
and quietly rang the changes on being a poor boy making his
own way. The people elected him. Sevier ran in 1827 as a
Whig, and is recorded in Was'hington as a Whig until 1836. He
told the people about coming to the territory in 1820 as a mere
boy — ^^an orphan, friendless and alone. He told them that he had
grown up among them and was not afraid to submit his claims to
their judgment. All the speeches of Henry W. Conway from
1823 to 1827 were exactly the kind of speeches Henry Clay was
making at fhat time. All the measures Conway got through
were public improvement measures, for which Clay spoke and
voted. The men who were afterward called "rock-ribbed Demo
crats" , all voted and spoke against Conway's measures. The
same was true of Sevier up to 1836.

184' Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
FELL AS DID WOLSEY.
Crittenden solidified the Conway-Sevier influence by a su
preme lack of high organizing sense, and laid the foundation for
the great family influence which sprang up after 1836, and which
it took the State twenty years to destroy.
Not only did he lay the foundation for this family control
of political affairs, but he also undermined the foundations of the
Whig party in Arkansas. James Woodson Bates was driven fo be
a mugwump. Henry W. Conway died before he had to make a
choice, but up to the day of his death was as good a Whig as
Crittenden. Sevier was originally a Whig, but Crittenden made
him a straightout Democrat. Dictation was Crittenden's great
est weakness and led to the nickname "Cardinal Wolsey." Even
as fhe great cardinal went down carrying his friends with him,
so Crittenden went down, burying the Whig party under the
ruins of the temple.
In every relation of life save politics Robert Crittenden
was a great and illustrious man, and in that field would have
shone as a bright and particular star but for his abnormal
self-esteem. As a lawyer, he attained particular eminence and
died after a triumphant nine hours' exposition of a greait and
notable case.
He married on October i, 1822, Miss Ann Morris of Frank
fort, Kentucky, a woman of most excellent understanding and
the highest social position. For his wife, Crittenden always
had the highest affection and in his family relations was sans
peur et sans reproche.
His death occurred at Vicksburg, Mississippi, on December
18, 1834, in his thirty-seventh year. That death cast a gloom
over the entire State, and both friends and enemies united in
testimonials to his personal and professional worth. He had in
him the elements of greatness and worked out for himself a
position second only to that achieved by John J. Crittenden,
the greatest of that name.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 185
CHAPTER XXIII.
Chester Ashley — Thomas Willoughby Newton.
On October 11, 1620, the Mayflower from England landed
at what is now called "Plymouth Rock," with a passenger list
that has become the foundation for membership in one of the
most exclusive societies in the United States. The basis of this
society is blood descent from some one of fhe passengers of
this ship, and as a matter of historical interest this list as printed
in the New England Historical and Genealogical Register of
fifty years ago is reproduced here. It is the oldest passenger
list for New England and registers the entrance date, not of
Puritanism, but of Pilgrim Puritanism into New England.
Pure English Puritanism came later and the difference was
more of degree than of kind. The Pilgrims had lived in
Holland awhile and had worn off the keen edge of con
troversy; the English Puritans came direct from England
fresh from the arena of controversy and battle, and were pious,
plucky and pugnacious. The essence of Puritanism in every
age has been, not so much the purity of the inner individual
life as the formal regulation of the outer social life. The Cath
olic and Episcopal churches presented dogma standardized by
councils and a hierarchy. The Puritans presented dogma stand
ardized by local communes. The standards differed materially,
and each destroyed to a degree the right of private judgment.
No pope and council ever ruled with a more rigid iron hand
than did the Puritan elders, ministers and councils of New En
gland. God Almighty gave ten short commandments from
Sinai ; the Puritans enunciated ten thousand or more and en
forced them with rerriorseless rigidity. They regulated every
thing from the dress of the body to the food for the soul, and
pronounced upon fhe desirability of their citizens with the same
ease and glib facility that the president of the United States
now discourses upon the same theme.
Everything had to be regulated and the regulators were
the chosen high priests of a political and religious hierarchy,
which ruthlessly trampled upon all opinions and judgments not
in accord with their narrow judgments. Puritanism died a slow

i86 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
death under the hammer of enlightenment, but the spirit of reg
ulation it brought to life has survived its demise.
Senator Spooner in a short verse lampooned the present
Massachusetts, and most vividly recaUed the older days of se
verity and repression. He said in the Senate hall :
"Hail Alassachusetts !
The land of the herring and cod,
^\'ho swaps her Adams for Douglas
And worships her Lodge as God."
The original pilgrims.
The Pilgrims of the Alayflower were:
John Carver, Mary Carver, his wife, and Jasper Carver.
William Bradford and Dorothy, his wife.
Edward Winslow, wife Elizabeth, son Edward, grandson
John and George Soule.
\\'illiam Brewster, wife, two children, a daughter-in-law
and a grandson.
Isaac .\llerton, wife and four children.
Allies Standish and wife.
John Alden.
Samuel FuUer and WUliam Butten, his servant.
Christopher Martin, wife and son.
^^'illiam AluUins, wife and three chUdren.
William White, wife and two sons. Resolved and WilHam.
Edward Thompson and Richard Warren.
Stephen Hopkins, wife and four children.
Edward Doty and Edward Leister.
Edward Tilley, wife and two chUdren.
John Tilley, wife and child.
Francis Cooke and John, his son.
Thomas Rogers and John, his son.
Thomas Tinker, wife and family.
John Rigdale and wife.
Edward Fuller, wife and son.
John Turner and family.
Francis Eaton, wife and son.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 187
James Chilton, wife and daughter.
John Crackston and son.
John BiUingston, wife and two sons.
Aloses Fletcher, John Goodman, Degory Priest, Thomas
Williams, Gilbert Winslow, Edward Margeson, Peter Brown,
Richard Britterige, Richard Clarke, Richard Gandiner, and two
seamen, John AUerton and Thomas English. ,| .*¦ Ku !p"iH.x?^.
THE ASHLEY family.
The Ashley family of England had representatives in both
the major and minor gentry of England and among fhe yeo
men. According to Hinman, the only one of the name to locate
in New England, prior fo 1800, was Robert Ashley, a Puritan
from England, but not of the ultra type. He settled at Spring
field, Massachusetts, and was the lineal ancestor of Honorable
Chester Ashley, possibly the greatest of the name in America,
and one of the greatest senators Arkansas or any other State
has ever produced. The name of Robert Ashley's wife was
Mary, but her family name is lost in oblivion. Robert had five
children, David, Mary, Jonathan, Sarah and Joseph. David
married Hannah Glover and had eleven children, of whom one,
Samuel Ashley, became the father of Reverend Joseph Ashley,
graduate of Yale and minister at Sunderland. The son of
Reverend Joseph Ashley, Stephen, had a son, William, born
at Leverett, who became th'e father of Chester Ashley, who was
born at Amherst, Massachusetts, in the latter part of the
eighteenth century. In about 1805 William Ashley removed to
Hudson, New York, from whence, in 1809, Chester was sent
to Williams' College, from whence he graduated in 1813. At
Litchfield, Connecticut, under the guiding hand of the famous
judges, Reeve and Gould, he prepared himself for the profession
of law. SETTLES IN ARKANSAS.
Recognizing the great advantages offered by the West, he
in June, 1819, opened a law ofifice at Edwardsville, Illinois,
and advertised for practice in that district and in Missouri. The
overtowering importance of the new territory of Arkansas was

i88 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
soon brought to his attention and determined him to make that
region his permanent home. In the latter part of 1819 or early
in 1820 he was at Arkansas Post, and in 1820 had a merchant's
license for the village of Little Rock, and had also swung his
shingle to the breeze as an attorney at law. Robert Oden was
at that time the greatest lawyer in Little Rock, being the only
one there, and without much business or hopes for business.
Witli the coming of Ashley, two great lawyers had the entire
community to themselves. The town was noted for its suburbs ;
in fact, had more suburbs than anything else. But Ashley and
Oden, not being overburdened by fhe demands of high social
life, managed to keep their heads above water, and their hopes
burning for an overwhelming future. Other people were com
ing — at least other speculators were coming. Two great bodies
of speculators, and a caravan of smaller fry, covered the loca
tion of Little Rock with overlapping and conflicting claims,
and spread the same over the nonpartisan ground which after
ward became famous under fhe name of Argenta. Ashley and
Oden in fheir rude log law oflfices smacked their lips with de
light as these conflicting claims, backed by pugnacious pro
moters, began to claim the attention of the courts.
RIVAL TOWNSITERS.
Each of the great speculating companies had its cohort of
surveyors and each laid off a town, one town being laid off on
top of the other. One town was called Little Rock and the town
on top of it was called Arkopolis. Everybody was busy. The
Little Rock crowd swore they would fight it out on that Hne if it
took all summer. The Arkopolis crowd said, "Me, too." The
word "crowd" must not be taken in its modern sense. All the
people put together would not have numbered one hundred souls,
Ashley and Oden told the speculators to keep cool and not
bite off their noses to spite their faces, that the whole matter
¦would have to be thrashed out in the courts, but that in the mean
time they had better get together and agree upon one name
for the town and some method of neutrality, the observance
of whicii would tend to invite prospective purchasers to make
the place a permanent home.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 189
WHEN LITTLE ROCK WAS NAMED.
They patched up a truce, agreed upon fhe name. Little
Rock, and parcelled out the territory accordingly. All was
fair on the surface now and Little Rock began to fill up. Dur
ing the year 1820 another lawyer, William Quaries, located at
Little Rock; Up at Batesville James Woodson Bates and Rich
ard Searcy were practicing; while down at Arkansas Post
Robert Crittenden, Colonel Walker, Kelly & Maddox, Sam C.
' Roane and Williain Craig were trying to practice. From 1820
to 1825 the bar at Little Rock increased very rapidly with
Chester .Ashley at its head. Speculation went on, yielding large
profits to those who were shrewd enough to be on the right side.
The settlements of the conflicts growing out of the wave of
this speculation gave all good lawyers an abundance of fees.
Chester Ashley had that sort of -judgment, and that character
of investigation, which always kept him on fhe safe side of
his speculations; he also had that character of education, legal
and otherwise, whic'h made his judgment most valuable to the
courts and his clients. With these he brought the courtesy of
the Ashleys of the major gentry and in a comparatively short
period of time became not only a wealthy man, but a man of
affairs and honors. On July 2, 1821, he went up to Potosi,
Missouri, where he was joined in holy wedlock to Mary W.
Elliot, one of the loveliest characters of early Arkansas history.
WON FAME AS A LAWYER.
His fame as a lawyer soon covered Arkansas, not without
the usual stabs of envy and the strokes of calumny and enmity.
No successful man can escape these and no great man can avoid
them. They are the tribute which men of lesser power always
pay to greater genius. He kept out of politics and attended
strictly to his own affairs. From 1820 to 1848 his name was
written in fhe largest character of letters upon everything con
nected with the betterment of Little Rock, and with much that
made for the development of the State. Kind and thoughtful,
he made and kept friends; profound and learned, he baffled and
destroyed his enemies. Having made his estate secure he at
last listened to the importunities of his friends and was sent

igo Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
to the Senate of the United States. His rank there is known
to all men and needs not my puny pen to enrich it. Here he
died and at AVashington was given a most dignified state funeral.
Whatever may have been the antecedent greatness of the
name Ashley, certain it is that he was the greatest of its great.
Born of a Puritan family, he practiced its principles without
advocating its regulatory rigidity. He had profound convic
tions, and at proper times never hesitated to express them, but
he scorned that system of regulation which would regulate all
the affairs of men by the puny arm of a single narrow creed
or a single narrow party. He was a Democrat by conviction,
and as a Democrat lived a pronounced life among his fellows.
He recognized, however, the value of Whiggery, and had many
pronounced friends among the most thoughtful of that great
party. He was a great man in every sense of the word and an
honor to the State of his choice, if not of his birth.
THOMAS WILLOUGHBY NEWTON.
Thomas Willoughby Newton, Sr., lived a strenuous life
ill Arkansas, beginning in 1820. He came from Alexandria,
A'irginia, being about seventeen years of age at the time. When
a youngster of seventeen leaves an old town like Alexandria
for a new life in the woods it is but fair to say fhat he had
strenuous blood in his veins. Some Newtons lived at Norfolk,
Virginia, among whom was Thomas Newton, born in 1769,
who, being liberally educated, represented Norfolk in Congress
from 1801 till 1830, and then served one term afterward. He
died at Norfolk in 1847.
There was also a Willoughby Newton of Westmoreland
County, A'irginia, who, with a limited education, represented
his district as a Whig in the Twenty-eighth Congress.
The relation of these two men to Thomas Willoughby
Newton of Alexandria cannot be told by me, but the identity of
names suggests something of kin.
Neither of these two eminent Virginia Ne-^vtons lived as
eventful a life as our Arkansas Newton. He was born at Alex
andria in 1803, and had but a limited education. He had the
"three R's" weU and was a good penman. He entered Arkansas

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 191
hi 1820 and began his career riding the one-horse mail from
Arkansas Post on the north sid^-of the river to Cadron. He
did not deign to stop at Little Rock, that being too small a
place. He not only carried the mail on this star route, but he
used his wits for better things. He made an impression on
Crittenden, on Bates, on Samson Gray and on all fhe prom
inent men of that time.
Politics cut no ice in 1820 and all men lived together in the
love of the Lord and goodfellowship. Newtoti attended to his
business and was soon sought by McKinney as deputy superior
court clerk, whic'h position he held for years. He was also post
master for awhile in 1824, and from 1825 to 1829 was clerk of
Pulaski County. During this time he had studied law with
Crittenden and had become a full-fledged lawyer. He had a
most amiable and sunny disposition, which brought him friends.
Even in his worst Whiggery he had troops of Democrat friends.
He counted Colonel Walker out as the law directed, which
led Walker to dub him a "stripling from Virginia;" Newton
answered fhat stripling as he was, he was the equal of any cash
iered ofificer. He was fearless, briUiant and most energetic.
NEWTON AS A LETTER WRITER.
In the period of 1824-30 a mania existed in Arkansas for
card writing in the Gazette over assumed names. Even Bates
used this plan, as did all the earlier prominent men of the State
except Tom Newton. He signed his own name and seemed
to be proud of it. He never wrote cards about 'himself, nor
very frequently in defense of himself. He loved Bob Critten
den, however, as a brother; lived at his house for a long time
and was his constant associate. Whenever an anonymous writer
attacked Crittenden, as they did every week of the world, some
times deservedly, but more frequently the opposite, Newton de
fended Crittenden — and to his credit, be it said, he did it weU.
Plis pen was not polished, but it was strong. His English was
good and he knew human nature as expressed by the heart
feelings of the age. He knew the people also and could worst
far better thinkers and writers than himself. His tilt with Bates
was strong, but Bates got fhe laugh on him. Newton said in

192 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
the beginning of his card that, unlike his opponent, he was not
college bred — ^that he lacked the graces of a finished education.
He claimed for himself a more humble origin and said that he
walked fearlessly on every part of his native heath, defying
all oppressors and backbiters. Bates retorted that he used th^
wrong words ; that he should have said : "Like his predecessor
of old he walked the Hounslow Heath, seeking whom he inight
devour." Newton was dubbed the Knight of Hounslow Heath
ever after that, and frequently complimented Bates on his
skill at turning trumps. On the field of honor his troubles
were never his own, but a part of fhe heritage growing out of
his close relationship to Crittenden. He was adjutant to Crit
tenden at the treaty with fhe Quapaws; and aide-de-camp to
General Bradford in 1826.
In 1829 he went to Shelbyville, Kentucky, and married
Mary K. Allen, daughter of Colonel John Allen of that place,
and a hero of the war of 1812. He rose to the rank of general
and no man stood higher in the estimation of Kentucky people
than General Allen. Newton followed fhe fortunes of his wife
and remained at Shelbyville practicing law. In 1837, however,
after the admission of Arkansas to the Union, Newton brought
his wife back to Arkansas, rhaking it his home. He became
cashier of the State and Real Estate bank and lived through
the fortunes and misfortunes of fhat institution.
GIVEN MANY POLITICAL HONORS.
He always had a strong penchant for political affairs and
was frequently honored by the political parties. He was clerk
of the council in the Third territorial legislature in 1823 and
also in 1825, 1827 and 1828. He was elected as a Whig to the
fifth State legislature and served in the Senate from November
4, 1844, to November 4, 1848. When Archibald Yell resigned
his seat in Congress to become colonel of the Arkansas volun
teer regiment in the Mexican war, Thomas W. Newton was
elected to fill the unexpired term and served as a Whig in the
Twenty-ninth Congress. He died in New York City in 1853.
Thus we have a most strenuous life, beginning as mail boy
in the backwoods in 1820 at seventeen and ending in the halls

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 193
of Congress. Thomas W. Newton, Sr., was an honest man
and a most cheerful one. He loved his fellows and was an
optimist of the highest rank. Everybody loved him. His sons
were Robert Crittenden Newton and Thomas Willoughby New
ton, Jr., the former being dead and the latter a citizen of Little
Rock, whose name is known to all sons of Arkansas.
THE NEWTON GENEALOGY.
Thomas W. Newton, Sr., of Arkansas, was fhe seventh in
lineal descent from Thoinas Newton of Kingston-upon-HuU,
England. Thomas Newton of Kingston-upon-HuU, had a son,
John Newton of the same place, master and mariner, who set
tled in Westmoreland County, Virginia, about 1660, where he
died leaving a will dated August 19, 1695, and recorded July
28, 1697. He appears to have been married twice, the name of
the first wife being unknown to me, while that of the second was
Rose Gerrard of Virginia. Three sons were the fruits of the
first marriage, all born in England, from the eldest of whom
the Arkansas Newtons, so far as they descend from Thomas
Willoughby Newton, claim descent, while the Willoughby New
ton line of Virginia, including the late Bishop Newton descend
from the last marriage.
The eldest son of John Newton of Kingston-upon-HuU
was John Newton of Westmoreland County, Virginia, who was
brought by his father to that region about 1660, passing the
rest of his life in that county. He married a woman whose
surname is lost but whose Christian name was Elizabeth and died
leaving a will dated March i, 1721, and recorded May 30, 1722.
The second son of John Newton of Westmoreland County
v/as William Newton of Stafford County who married Margaret
Monroe of Virginia of the same family as that of President
James Monroe. His wiU was dated June 16, 1784, and recorded
sometime in 1789. WUliam Newton left a son, John Newton of
Stafford County, who married Mary Thomas and died after the
year 1798. John Newton left two sons, William Newton being
the eldest and John Newton the second. William Newton mar
ried Jane B. Stewart of Maryland and left a large family among
whom were Commodore John Newton, Commander of the

194 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
Hornet, whose second wife was a Miss Izard of South Caro
lina, Thomas Willoughby Newton, the subject of our sketch
and Fenwick Newton.
From John Newton, the second son of John and Mary
(Thomas) Newton, who married Sarah Pollard of Virginia,
there descended a daughter Jane P. Newton who married John
H. Crease and moved to Arkansas. John H. Crease was State
treasurer of Arkansas from January lo, 1849, to January 26,
1855, and from February 2, 1857, to February 2, 1859, and
reared a family in Arkansas. His third daughter, Mary A.
Crease, married George Claiborne Watkins, Chief Justice of
the Supreme Court of Arkansas.
OTHER NEWTONS OF ARKANSAS.
The first cadet credited to Arkansas at the MUitary Acad
emy at West Point was James Hamilton, son of a merchant at
Arkansas Post and Little Rock. He withdrew the same year,
and G. W. Hardin of Batesville, was appointed in his stead, but
failed to report. In 1827, James Scull, son of the pioneer af
Arkansas Post, was appointed, but he found fhe mUitary life
too strenuous and withdrew in 1828. In 1828 Fenwick Newton
of Pulaski was appointed, but^there is no record of his further
progress. Arkansas from 1820 to 1830 held a very low rank at
West Point, although all the boys who reported stood their en
trance examinations upon arriving.
Before Thomas W. Newton, Sr., was registered in Arkansas
there was a man named John Newton living in Pulaski County
on the north side of the river. He was a man of family, and
seems to have had an estate. When Crawford County was laid
out in 1820 the first court was held in a storehouse belonging to
Basil and Larkin Newton. I suppose these were brothers, and
were possibly sons of John Newton of Pulaski. The latter died
in December, 1822, at his house in Pulaski County, and on
November 11 of the same year Jane, wife of John Newton, died
in the same county. In July, 1825,^ Basil Newton of Crawford
County took administration upon the estates of John and Mary
Newton. In September, 1829, Larkin Newton drifted into
Hempstead County and on that day married Mary Ann, daughter
of John Wilson of that place. He was at that time serving as

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 195
clerk of the court, piecing out the unexpired term of Colonel J.
AI. Stewart. The after-history of Fenwick, Basil and Larkin
Newton is unknown to me, but they doubtless have many de
scendants in various parts of the' State.
Jesse Newton of Drew County was an honored citizen of
that bailiwick, but came into the State at a much later period.
James Newton of Calhoun County in 1850 may have been a de
scendant of Larkin Newton, but this is merely assumed.
CHAPTER XXIV.
The Superior Court of Arkansas — Andrew Scott — Ben
jamin Johnson.
When the territory of Arkansas was created provision was
made for a court to be styled "The Superior Court of the Terri
tory of Arkansas." This court was to consist of three judges,
and on March 3, 1819, President Monroe appointed as these
judges Andrew Scott of Missouri, Charles Jouett of Michigan
and Robert Letcher of Kentucky. The records of the ofifice of
the secretary of State at Little Rock show that in July, 1819,
under the act of Congress creating the territory, this court met
at Arkansas Post and in conjunction with Robert Crittenden, the
acting governor of the territory, proceeded to put the new gov
ernment into operation. There was little to do and, so far as
the records show, these men did that little in a very short time
and adjourned. The book containing the legislation passed by
that so-called "first legislature" could be written by a good type
writer in three hours. Records which can not be denied show
that Charles Jouett was elected president of the body, and yet
there are equally undeniable records proving thaf Charles Jouett
never set foot on the soil of the territory of Arkansas. Hemp
stead in his history of the State says that after the adjournment
of this body two of the judges, Jouett and Letcher, left the State,
never to return. This may be the actual state of affairs, but
from what follows it will be made clear that either Jouett never
entered the State at all or that the Grand Jury which indicted
him was absolutely ignorant of the English language.

196 Pioneers aud Makers of Arkansas
INDICTMENT BY THE ARKANSAS POST GRAND JURY.
The Grand Jury of the Superior Court of Arkansas at its
June term at Arkansas Post in 1820, Judge Andrew Scott being
the only judge present, after bringing in an indictment against
Robert Oden for fighting a duel with General Allen, and another
against the seconds of that duel, brought in a third indictment
against Charles Jouett, one of the judges of the Superior Court
of the territory. The latter indictment was more in the nature.
of a complaint and was designed to represent certain facts in the
strongest light possible, rather than to bring him to the bar of
justice for any crime. This Grand Jury represented to the court
that Charles Jouett, who for more than twelve months had held
the appointment as judge of the Superior Court, without having
taken his seat on the bench, was thereby obstructing the course
of justice and should be reprimanded or removed.
It is true that Judge Jouett could have sat in the first legis
lature as its president without taking his seat as judge of the
Superior Court. This is hardly probable, however, as he was
appointed judge of the Superior Court, and as judge became
ex-ofificio a member of the legislative body. In the nature of
things he had to take his seat as a member of the court first, and
this indictment negatives that. But this is not all. William E.
Woodruff in the columns of the Gazette, a month or two later,
set out that Judge Letcher had gotten sick of the Arkansas coun
try and retraced his steps to Kentucky without setting his foot'
in the territory. This is very strong language and but for the
emphatic record of the acts of the first legislative body, which
contains his signature, together with that of Judge Jouett, would
be taken in any court of law as proof positive that neither of
these judges ever set foot on Arkansas soil. In the same article
Air. Woodruff has this to say of Judge Jouett: "It is still re
membered here that last spring (1819) Judge Jouett was driven
from the territory by a swarm of mosquitoes, at the mouth of
the White river, while on his way to this place, and within
eighteen mUes of his destination." Language can hardly be
made stronger than this, and would seem to prove that Charles
Jouett, despite his signature to the acts of the first legislative
body, never qualified as judge of the Superior Court, and was

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 197
never inside the territory of Arkansas, except his landing at the
mouth of White river and his judicial combat with "gallinippers"
of that region, in which the insects got the advantage.
The first Superior Court of Arkansas, from July, 18 19, to
January, 182 1, was constituted and made up solely and alone of
fhat man who never flinched from duty. Judge Andrew Scott.
As long as the court remained at Arkansas Post, Judge Scott
performed all the duties of this court, and remained one of its
honored members after the removal of this court to Little Rock.
Benjamin Johnson of Kentucky was appointed judge of this
court in the place of Jouett in December, 1820, and arrived at
fhe Post shortly afterward. Joseph Selden was appointed in
the place of Letcher in October, 1820, proceeded to the Univer
sity of Virginia in the same month, where he was married to
Miss Harriet Gray of Albemarle County, Virginia, and wifh her
set out for his new post in the territory. He arrived there on
December 24, 1820. Judge Johnson arrived shortly after this
and in early 1821 the first full court sat at Arkansas Post.
The most comprehensive definition of a court is that it is a
tribunal for the settlement of disputes. It is an institution set
up by wise government to furnish a remedy for the grievances
of orderly life. This is its older and most comprehensive func
tion. Without sacrificing this under modern refinements it has
come to be a tribunal for the settlement of disputes between rival
authorities. The Superior Court of the Territory of Arkansas
from 1819 to 1836 had little to do with questions other than the
settlement of disputes, and from the nature of the population
of the territory, its sparsity and its poverty, it never gained a
position of eminence. There was little to do, and that little had
nothing whatever to do with those questions which give great
ness to a tribunal.
There was an apparent exception to this in the settlement
of the Spanish land grant claims, but as will be seen hereafter,
the court failed to take the right side of the question, failed fo
m.easure up to any standard which would have attracted to it
the title "great," and therefore the entire body for the entire
period must be classed with those necessary institutions which
fall under and never pass beyond the claims of the word medi
ocrity.

198 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
In the constitution of this court in 1819 tnree judges, Scott,
Letcher and Jouett, were appointed to administer the United
States law in the territory, and to act as an appellate court from
the judgments of such inferior judges as should be created by
the territorial legislature. The original defects of this Superior
Court was its numbers. One man would have done far better
than three, and for the first year one man. really did all the work.
Jouett and Letcher showed up at the organization of the terri
tory, and then quit, leaving Andrew Scott as the sole judge for
the remainder of the year, 1819. Scott's identify with the terri
tory of Arkansas began in June, 1819, and terminated only with
his death. As a citizen no one in the territory or State has ever en
titled himself to higher rank or merit, cleanliness and public
enterprise. Descended from a Virginia and Alissouri family,
he brought into Arkansas an escutcheon entirely clea'n.
JUDGES WERE ALL TOO YOUNG.
Another objection to the Superior Court of Arkansas was
the fact that all of its members were young men. Scott had just
passed his majority, and when reappointments -were made to
fill the places of Jouett and Letcher, two young men, Robert
Selden and Benjamin Johnson, were selected. No matter what
the antecedent training of these men may have been, and no
matter whaf their family connections were, they were entirely
too young for the responsible position of judges of a superior
court, unless that court was of the most secondary importance.
Robert Selden was a Virginian, a descendant of a Revolution
ary colonel, possessed of all the elements of a great and good
man. Benjamin Johnson represented the same characteristics,
but descended from an Ulustrious family in Kentucky. Selden
brought to Arkansas the old Virginia idea of social superiority,
which as a young man he had not the prudence to conceal.
The same remark to a lesser degree applies to Andrew Scott.
Both were fond of social eminence, both prided themselves on
their gentlemanly instincts and both possessed tempers which
their youth forbade them to control. Johnson, whUe the equal
iu birth and social standing of either of his associates, cared less
for the honor attached to ancestry, and still less for the honors

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 199
society usually confers. Johnson owned a fine plantation sev
eral miles from Little Rock, where, surrounded by his slaves,
his friends and his family he created a society of his own, and
kept aloof from the entangling jealousies of Little Rock life.
Selden and Scott lived in town and were thrown for their lighter
amusements upon the facilities which the society of the town at
that time afforded. Bridge whist was not then in vogue, but
card playing was as popular then as now, and both Selden and
Scott prided themselves upon their skill in a social game, the
social games of society, and not those of the gambling hells.
JUDGES QUARREL AT CARD TABLE.
Judge Pope, upon the authority of John R. Homer Scott,
the illustrious son of Andrew Scott, has given us as a reason
for the unfortunate animosity which sprang up between Judges
Selden and Scott, the statement that in a game of cards Selden"
used what at the most can only be called rude language to
the partner of Judge Scott. Scott and his partner seemed to
have been winning, and Scott's partner, an unnamed lady of
Little Rock, triumphantly claimed superiority in words addressed
to Judge Selden. It is said that Judge Selden replied, "That
is not so," or "That is not true," or words to that effect. The
lady took offense and showed it by a resort to tears. This ap
pealed to her partner, Judge Scott, who at once demanded of
Judge Selden that he apologize to the lady he had offended.
Judge Selden was rude, and, as a Virginia gentleman, should
have apologized at once without the request of Judge Scott,
and should have done it gracefully and freely.
But this little act of rudeness was no excuse for what fol
lowed. Judges Selden and Scott were representatives of the
highest court in the land, and were expected to set the highest
example of good citizenship. The laws forbade dueling and
this little incident was no excuse for two eminent judges to so
far forget themselves as to resort to a duel to settle an insig
nificant dispute. The Little Rock Gazette of that time seems
to indicate that there were other causes than the one already
narrated, but does not state them. Selden did not apologize,
and Scott did not challenge him at once. A stiffness grew up

200 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
between them, and for many months they sat upon the bench
together, side by side with Judge Johnson, without speaking to
each other. It was thought that the men were antagonistic
in temper and that they would never agree, and although a duel
was hinted at in the earlier stages of the coolness, no such calam
ity was expected later on, as time had removed both men so far
from the incident. JUDGE KILLS ASSOCIATE IN DUEL.
Early in the year 1824 Judge Scott challenged Judge Sel
den to fight a duel, the meeting place being opposite the mouth
of White river in Mississippi. Dr. Nimrod Menifee was the
second of Judge Scott and surgeon for both parties, and
James AA^oodson Bates, second for Judge Selden. Pistols were
used and the distance was ten steps. Judge Selden fell at the
first fire, and Scott escaped uninjured. No one regretted the
affair more than Judge Scott, a man whose life both before and
after was in every respect above all reproach. The act is charge
able first to the youth of the parties and the prevailing senti
ment at that time that the duel was the only honorable way
for gentlemen to settle their disputes.
DUEL PREVENTED SCOTT's CONFIRMATION.
Scott's second term expired in 1827, and he was nominated
by the president of the United States for a third term. The
friends of Judge Selden, however, succeeded in the Senate of
the United States in having his appointment not confirmed.
The bar of Little Rock, at a public meeting shortly after this
act of the Senate, passed a series of resolutions condemning the
Senate of the United States for its action and commending
Judge Andrew Scott for his abUity, cleanness and character. He
Vvas designated as the leading judge of the Superior Court of
Arkansas. This terminated his connection with the Superior
Court bench, but he was at once appointed by Governor Izard
as judge of the First Circuit Court of the territory. He held
this position until 1831, when he retired to his plantation at
Scotia, in Pope County. He represented Johnson and Pope
counties in the Constitutional Convention of 1836, and was a

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 201
member of the Territorial House of Representatives from Pope
County in 1831. Pie acquired a fortune in private life and was
at all times the most distinguished citizen of Pope County. His
monument in the cemetery at Russellville is one of the finest
creations of art, an honor to him and to his distinguished son,
John R. Homer Scott, who erected it. The greatest judge on
the superioi court bench from 1819 to 1827 was Judge Andrew
Scott. SUCCESSION OF SCOTT AND SELDEN.
To succeed Judge Seldon, the president appointed William
Trimble of Kentucky, who remained on the bench for several
years. We have the authority of Robert Crittenden for say
ing that no man upon the Superior Court bench made as much
money as did Trimble. He was a fine business man, in fact a
better business man than a judge, and all his ventures in business
were successful. Crittenden said that he left the State in 1832
with about $20,000 in gold. His character was above all re
proach, although his legal acumen was not equal to that of either
Scott or Johnson. He was succeeded on the bench by Edward
Cross. In 1827 S. P. Eskridge was appointed fo succeed Judge
Scott and remained upon the bench for many years. He was a
Presbyterian of the strictest type and also a most successful busi
ness man. He had lived iri the territory since 182 1, in which
year, as a commissioner, he ran the famous Choctaw line. He
was the first judge appointed by Governor Miller in the First cir
cuit in 1823, which position he held until 1827, when he was
advanced to fhe superior court bench. He was prominently
identified with almost every interest of eastern and northeastern
Arkansas. He lived in Crittenden County and died at his resi
dence on December i, 1835. He was a native of Virginia and
one of the staunchest of Arkansas' early citizens. In 1828 the
superior bench was enlarged to four, and James Woodson Bates
appointed, to the place. Upon his removal in 1831 the bench
resumed its old numbers with Johnson, Cross and Eskridge as its
members.

202 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
JUDGE Johnson's one mistake. ,
Judge Benjamin Johnson held the position of territorial
judge from December, 1819, until 1836, when the State was ad
mitted into the Lonion, a longer period than that of any other
man. Each year of his life he added to an originally good
judgment and increased his hold upon the law. His only break
was in 1827, in the decision of the Spanish Land Grant cases,
which was cured by a graceful overruling of his own decision
a few years later and a greater caution throughout the rest of
his long life in the investigation and application of precedents
and legal authorities. When the State was admitted into the
Union it become entitled to a United States Supreme Court judge.
and in all the United States no man could be found fitter for the
place than Judge Benjamin Johnson. He had had sixteen years'
experience upon the Superior Court bench of the territory of
Arkansas ; he was connected by birth with the ablest families
of Kentucky and of the nation, and had the natural qualifica
tions of attention and study so essential to the progressive ca
reer of a great judge. He served as United States Supreme
Court judge in the State of Arkansas for thirteen years after
the creation of the State, and died rich in this world's goods,
rich in honor, and rich in the esteem of the entire people of the
State. His son, Robert W. Johnson, served the State with
honor in the Senate of the United States, and his son-in-law,
Ambrose Hundley Sevier, held the same position. Such was
the old Superior Court of the territory- of Arkansas, and such
were the men it brought into Arkansas.
genealogy of BENJAMIN JOHNSON.
Judge Benjamin Johnson was descended from an old Vir
ginia family. His father, Robert Johnson, was born in Orange
County, Virginia, on July 17, 1745; in the same county in 1770
he was married to Jemina Suggett ; he afterwards moved to Ken
tucky, dying at Warsaw in Gallatin County on October 15, 1815.
Eleven chUdren were the fruits of this marriage: Betsy, James,
William, Sally, Richard M., Benjamin, Robert, John T., Joel,
George W., and Henry, two girls and nine boys. Betsy married

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 203
General John Payne in Orange County, Virginia, on June 28,
1787, and died in November, 1845, leaving thirteen chUdren.
Sally married General William Ward at Great Crossings,
Kentucky, on December 28, 1795, and died August 25, 1846, leav
ing eight children.
Of his elder brother, Richard Mentor Johnson, little need
be said. In 181 2 he was made Colonel of the Kentucky Mounted
Volunteers and gained distinguished honor in Upper Canada.
Congress by an act of April 4, 1818, resolved: "That the Presid
dent of the LTnited States be requested to present to Colonel Rich
ard AI. Johnson a sword as a testimony of the high sense
entertained by Congress of the daring and distinguished valor
displayed by himself and the regiment of volunteers under his
command in charging and essentiaUy contributing to vanquish
the combined British and Indian forces under Major General
Proctor, on the Thames, in Upper Canada, on the 5th day of
October, 181 3." He was a representative in Congress and a
Jackson Democrat in the Tenth, Eleventh, Twelfth, Thirteenth,
F'ourteenth and Fifteenth Congresses; a United States Senator
fiom Kentucky succeeding John J. Crittenden; he served as Sen
ator from March 3, 1819, to March 3, 1829; served again in the
Twenty-first, Twenty-second, Twenty-third and Twenty-fourth
Congresses ; was Vice President of the United States from 1837
to 1841, being chosen by the Senate; he was defeated for the
same ofifice on the Democratic ticket in 1840; he died at Frank
fort, Kentucky, on November 19, 1850.
Another older brother, James, served with distinction in the
war of 1812; was a large contractor for supplying troops on the
Mississippi and Missouri Rivers in 1819, 1820; represented a
Kentucky district in the Nineteenth Congress and died at Great
Crossings, Kentucky, August 14, 1826.
John T. Johnson, a younger brother was born in Scoff
County, Kentucky, where he was admitted to the bar; repre
sented that district in the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Congresses ;
was Judge of the new Court of Appeals of Kentucky for many
years; joined the Christian Church and became one of its most
noted preachers, preaching throughout the Mississippi Valley, in

204 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
Of the further career of his elder brother, William, and his
other younger brothers, Robert, Joel, George W. and Henry, I
am not advised.
We have been told by Arkansas historians that Benjamin
Johnson was the youngest member of a family of distinguished
men. The above genealogy proves this to be untrue. We have
also been told that Richard Mentor Johnson served fifteen years
in the lower house of Congress, while the records show a service
cf twenty years. The order of a man's birth and the number of
years he may serve in a given position may not be important;
but where they are stated as historic truths they should at least
be accurate. Another narrative makes a brother of Judge Ben
jamin Johnson kill the great Indian Chief, Tecumseh, and an
other brother serve as Vice President of the United States, when
the truth is that these brothers were identical.
Judge Benjamin Johnson was born in Scott County, Ken
tucky, on the 22d day of July, '1784, and was married to Matilda
WUHanis in the same county on September 8, 181 1. The Judge
died at Lexington, Kentucky, on October 2, 1849, and was buried
in Mt. Holly Cemetery at Little Rock. Eight children were
born to Judge Johnson and his good wife, Matilda. They were
as follows :
I. Juliette E. Johnson, born October 12, 1812, married to
Ambrose Hundley Sevier at Little Rock on September 26, 1827,
and died on March 16, 1845, being buried at Little Rock. Four
children were the fruits of this marriage, Annie M. Sevier, Mat-
tie J. Sevier, Elizabeth Sevier and Ambrose H. Sevier. Of these,
Annie AI. Sevier married General and Governor Thomas J.
Churchill on July 31, 1849, and became the mother of six chUd
ren : Abbie, Samuel J., Ambrose S., Juliet J., Emily and Matilda;
2. Robert Ward Johnson was born July 22, 1814, married
Sarah S. Smith, daughter of Doctor George W. and Sabina Dubb
Smith of Louisville, Kentucky, March 10, 1836, died July 26>
1879, and was buried in Little Rock. Robert W. Johnson was
born in Kentucky, attended the common schools and the college
at Bardstown, Kentucky ; graduated in law at Yale College ; ad
mitted to the bar and began practice af Little Rock ; was elected
to the Thirtieth, Thirty-first and Thirty-second Congresses as a

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 205
Democrat; elected United States Senator to succeed Solon Bor
land, serving from December 5, 1853, until he withdrew from
the Senate to align himself with the Confederate States in 1861 ;
Confederate States Senator from Arkansas from 1861 to 1865;
after the war removed to Washington, D. C, where he engaged
hi the practice of law untU his death. His children were:
Charles who died in infancy; Benjamin S., born October 29,
1841, married December 19, 1878, to Lina Vandegrif t of Dela
ware, and became the father of Adeline C, who died in infancy,
and James V. Johnson, who with his father, Benjamin S. John
son, are prominent practitioners in the department of law at
Little Rock; George J., who died in infancy; Robert W. Jr., who
died at eighteen years of age; Francis born September 5, 1847,
married to May F. Curran, October 14, 1873, and died Septem
ber 22, 1902, leaving children, Alice, Sophia, Elsie, Ada May
and Robert W. ; Sally F., born February 12, 1849, married Joseph
Cabell Breckinridge of Kentucky, December i, 1869. Her child
ren were — John C, Laura, Robert W. J., and Benjamin J.
3. George Junius Johnson died early in life unmarried.
4. Benjamin S. Johnson married Amelia Smith and died
April 20, 1857, leaving no children.
5. Richard H. Johnson was born February 22, 1826, mar-
Yied Annie Newton, daughter of Thomas W. Newton, Sr., on
February 22, 1855, and died in 1891. His children were MatUda,
Sevier, Allen N., Mary, Junius J., Sidney, John A., and Anna.
All of these chUdren are dead, except John A. Johnson who lives
in Little Rock.
6. James B. Johnson, born February 16, 1828, married
Mary W. Cocke, niece of Governor John Pope, and was killed
in the Confederate Army in 1862. His children were : Matilda,
James Watt, and Irene, all of whom are dead.
7. Charles E. Johnson, died o. s. p.
8. Irene M. Johnson was born April ,27, 1835, married
Doctor John A. Jordan and died in August, 1878. Her chUdren
were : Matilda, Robert W., Mary, Irene and Maude J.
It will thus be seen that Judge Benjamin Johnson while tied
to a distinguished family in Kentucky was also the head of a
distinguished line of descendants whose names are connected
with every line of development in Arkansas.

2o6 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
CHAPTER xxv:
Ambrose H. Sevier — William S. Fulton- -Pre-emption.
Ambrose Hundley Sevier owed much to heredity. His
family on the paternal side had for more than a thousand years
occupied places of honor and trust in both church and State in
the great kingdom of France. His great uncle, John Sevier,
had carved for himself an immortal name in the creation of the
State of Franklin and the making of the great commonwealth
of Tennessee. The father of John Sevier, who spelled his name
Xavier, its French form, was born in France, but on account
of religious differences emigrated to Rockingham County, Vir
ginia, where in 1745 John Sevier was born. In this same rug
ged county of Virginia, the bee hive of restless and ambitious
spirits, was born Valentine Sevier, another immortal Tennessee
name, and also several other brothers' among whom was the
grandfather of A. H. Sevier.
John Sevier's fame rests upon the confidence of his friends
and neighbors, engendered by his unselfish and patriotic devo
tion to duty. Wherever John Sevier went twere went all his
neighbors and friends, and out of his pocket, which was never
reimbursed, went the money which these friends and neighbors
needed in the execution of their enterprises. John Sevier was
the idol of his neighbors and friends and knew men as few
other men of his age knew them. Valentine Sevier sacrificed
boy after boy in the East Tennessee conflicts with the Indians;
with but two left, he sent these into the Cumberland district to
help his friends there, where they were both butchered by the
savages. In the agony of his heart the old man wrote back to
a brother in Rockingham County: "Send me one or two of
your boys. My boys are all gone, except some little ones they
left, and the old man is so lonely." The wail of Ossian is no
whit grander than this wail of old Valentine Sevier in the
mountains of East Tennessee. In answer to this request, one
nephew, with his wife, moved to Greene County, Tennessee, to
comfort the declining years of this majestic old uncle, who was,
with the exception of his brother, John, the proudest figure of
that day.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 207
CLASSICAL education IN THE MOUNTAINS.
This boy, the father of Ambrose Hundley Sevier, married
in Greene County, Susan Conway, whose nephews afterwards,
became famous in Arkansas. In Greene County, in the year
1801, at the very time when his great uncle, John, was governor
of the commonwealth, A. H. Sevier was born. For nineteen
years he lived in Greene County and was there educated. He
was classically educated in the mountains of East Tennessee.
And he who conceives that a classical education may only be
had inside great collegiate walls needs to undeceive himself.
He who believes, like Alfred Bushnel Hart, professor of history
in Harvard College, that the puritans of New England furnished
the leaven which leavened the whole lump of American civili
zation, needs to undeceive himself. The civilization of the great
West and South owes less to puritanism, to New England, than
to any other cause. In fact, the very purest puritanism existed
in other colonies, and while the narrow puritanism of New Eng
land made more noise, the broader puritanism of the other colo
nies produced a greater effect.
When Doak, the great Presbyterian puritan of North Caro
lina, established a college in East Tennessee before 1800, he was
planting the leaven which should contribute most to Tennessee
civilization. This college had the same Virgil, the same Cae
sar, the same Xenophon, the same Cicero, the same Legendre
and the same Bible that any college in the warld had, and its
teachers were masters of the books, a thing that may not be
said of all the professors who hold place in the greater institu
tions of today. A. H. Se-vier in East Tennessee received a clas
sical education, and upon the death of his father and mother
received a very small estate. Not satisfied to live surrounded
by an aristocratic kin, unable to move in the same circle with
them, and looked upon by them as poor relations, Ambrose H.
Sevier, in his nineteenth year, moved to Little Rock, Arkansas.
We are not left to conjecture as to his condition upon arriving
there. On April 25, 1825, in a speech to his friends in Little
Rock, he used these words : "In my orphanage and boyhood
I emigrated to this country, where I had neither friends or for
tune or family connections." He was not making a speech for

2o8 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
political buncombe, for the election was over and he had won.
It was a speech characteristic of old John Sevier and of young
Ambrose Sevier, or, as he was called in Little Rock, "Don Am
brosia." It was a speech to the people in which he rehearsed his
life for five years in their midst, and in which he acknowledged
his obligations to them for taking him into their confidence and
honoring him with their support. It was not the speech of a
demagogue, tickling the people for future gain, but a speech
from the heart, a Sevier speech of the type of old John, in which
truth and honesty predominated. There are those who think
that Sevier's rapid promotion was due to his gifted father-in-
law, Benjamin Johnson, and to his great kin, the Conways an.l
Rectors. As a matter of fact, instead of these making Sevier,
he, in all fruth, may be said to have made them. It was Repre
sentative Sevier who saved Benjamin Johnson in the Congress
of the United States, and it was the same Sevier who had a
name and power before the Conway- Johnson family became the
political rulers of the State.
sEviEr's rapid RISE-
He studied law in Little Rock, which is not to his discredit.
He had the same Blackstone, the same Chitty, the same Ste-»
phens, that he would have had in a great law school, and as good
teachers as any law school of that day afforded. He was a
student and that explains the whole question. While others
were enjoying themselves Sevier was studying his tasks, or visit
ing among the common people, whose heartthrobs found an an
swering echo in his own. He was a full-fledged lawyer in 1823
and had for his first case the defense of Russell in the great slan--
der suit of Hogan v. Russell. He lost, but made for himself a
character and a name. His friends were Chester Ashley and
Robert Crittenden. He was clerk of the House of Representa
tives in the second legislature in October, 1821, and earned in
that way the means necessary for his support. His manly com
mon sense won for him the esteem of the people and in 1823 he
was sent to the House of Representatives from Pulaski County,
and returned again in 1825 and in 1827, in which session he was
speaker of the house. Such a career for a poor orphan boy is

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 209
absolutely remarkable, and bespeaks for him talents and virtues
of the very highest order. During this time he held partner
ships with Crittenden, with Ashley and with Trimble.
Political issues were of little moment, but in aU the essen
tials of a party he was a Whig, as were the great body of the
aristocratic slave holders of that period.
In fact, he is credited as being a Whig in his first term as
delegate to Congress by the registers of that body. The enmity
between him and Crittenden was not yet born, for in 1824 Crit
tenden, as acting governor, appointed him as prosecuting at
torney for the Second Judicial District, and in the same year
aide-de-camp to the governor, with the rank of lieutenant colonel,
from which he obtained the title Colonel Sevier. In the race
between Conway and Crittenden Sevier supported Conway, and
upon his lamentable death entered the field as a candidate to fill
the vacancy. In this race Crittenden supported him, but from
that time on Crittenden's way diverged from that of Sevier.
Sevier became a Democrat and Crittenden a pronounced Whig.
It was not likely otherwise than that Sevier should become a
Democrat. His whole Hfe had been spent with the people. He
knew their trials, their sentiments, and was one with them in
their hopes. For years he had been an intimate associate of
Sampson Gray and in his company had mingled with the common
people everywhere.
He had the aristocratic tendencies of his Whig friends and
relatives, but had the sense to know that these tendencies were
antag-onistic to a republican form of government.
SEVIER'S defeat of CRITTENDEN.
His greatest race for ofifice was against Crittenden. Crit
tenden was more eloquent Sevier the more forceful; Crittenden
made preparation for literary effect; Sevier for a natural effect;
Crittenden sacrificed matter for a period; Sevier sacrificed his
periods for his matter. Both were learned men, both honest,
and both good looking. Sevier's knowledge of men gave him
the advantage and he won by an overwhelming majority. From
1827 to 1836 he was 'constantly in Congress as a delegate from
the territory, and while there made friends in both parties. In

2IO Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
fact no man had a greater influence than did he. In 1836 he
was sent to the Senate of the United States and remained there
for twelve years. In the Senate he took the very highest rank,
and maintained it. As chairman of the Committee on Foreign
Relations he was recognized as a power with few equals. His
speeches in Congress are models. When the pre-emption law
was before the Senate of the United States in 1841 he made a
speech, which should be in all the school readers of the State.
In that he described the common people as he knew them and to
their credit. He argued for the emancipation of men from the
grade of operatives to that of managers. He argued for a freer
life upon the farm. He argued for Arkansas and for the great
influx of population which this bUl would surely bring. He de
scribed as no other man on the floor did, or could, the kind of
people that were going West in covered wagons. He drew a
parallel between the covered wagons of the Yankees seeking a
new home and fhat of the North Carolinians on the same quest.
It was humorous and far more creditable to the Yankee than to
the North Carolinian.
His apostrophe, however, to the North Carolinians was elo
quent to the extreme. He pictured his early boyhood home,
where for nineteen years he could look from his door over Bun
combe County, North Carolina, and told his North Carolina
friends who opposed the bUl that while they might be ashamed
of their own sons and daughters, that he was not. He said they
were a good sort of people and that he wanted more of them,
both Yankees and North CaroHnians, in Arkansas. He then
told of his association with North Carolinians as a man, from
WUmington to the mountains, and while honoring them and
loving them, he assured the senator from North Carolina that
he would not blush, nor dread to make a comparison of his con-
stitutents upon the public lands with the best his State afforded,
gauged by any standard of virtue, intelligence or worth, which
he or others might choose to suggest. His speech upon the civil
service had exactly the right ring and was head and shoulders
above the twaddle which modern civil service reform has given
the world. He believed in the spoils system, the very system
that obtains, despite aU civil service law. He said: "But as

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas ,211
for Democrats, they expect to be turned out from one end of
the country to the other. And for one, I should disown them
as party associates if they whimpered over their removal." He
was answering Henry Clay, and that great man, after the an
swer, hurried to his side to express his congratulations. There
was a manliness about Sevier which no one could doubt. He
was a man of the people without being a buffoon or a demagogue,
and in the matter of the division of the offices, conscientiously
believed that the party in power should have their exclusive con
trol. In 1848 he was sent as minister to Mexico, and in the
same year died at his plantation in Arkansas. On September
27, 1827, he married Juliette Johnson, daughter of Honorable
Ben Johnson of the superior court, and his children may be
found in the chapter on Judge Benjamin Johnson.
In whatever capacity Sevier was placed to serve he rounded
it out with dignity and honor. His private life was above re
proach and in all the attributes of greatness was sound to the
core. He inherited much and in a new environment hammered
himself up to the fullest stature of a great man.
pre-emption speech.
Senator A. H. Sevier in his great speech on pre-emption in
1841 before the Senate of the United States said:
"Public sentiment in the new States demands a change in
the disposition of the public lands, and, sooner or later, public
sentiment will control. On this subject there is a collected
moral force, which can not and will not be resisted. And is it
not our duty to respect this public opinion? Is it not our duty
to promote the peace and happiness of every member of our
Union? And in accomplishing so high and so noble a purpose,
does it become us to stand out upon- mere trifles? What are a
few dollars, more or less, to the national treasury, in comparison
with such absorbing questions?
"And, lastly, is it not' our duty, as far as in us lies, to make
every citizen in every State a freeholder — ^an independent and
happy man? What spectacle is there so pleasing to a virtuous
and feeling heart?"
This was a great speech of a great man on a great question,
and is of lasting importance to one who tries to grade the intel-

212 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
ligence of Arkansas in early times. The extract is but a part
of the speech, but it is enough to lead us to intelligent conclu
sions as to the speaker, and through him, as to the men behind
him, and who stood for him. Webster may have had a quality
of eloquence more reflned and more exhaustive, but no whit
greater than that of Sevier in cogent and forceful utterance, in
comprehensive knowledge of the flner play of human nature, in
an understanding of the loftiest soul forces and the power of
human spirituality. He was on the borders of a great, and
hitherto, untried problem — the disposition of the lands of a
continent. Is it not proof of his disinterestedness that he stood
out boldly and fearlessly for the individuals— the men in home
spun — the pioneers ? Today he might be criticised as a Social
ist, but in that good day such a classification was unknown.
What loftier utterance has ever been made by any statesman
than Sevier's words, "Is it not our duty, so far as in us Hes, to
make every citizen in every State a freeholder, an independent
and happy man?" And with this grand old pioneer may we not
all say, "What spectacle is there so pleasing to a virtuous and
feeling heart?"
Grand old Sevier! Yea, verily. Grand old Arkansas! He
was not a diamond dropped in a sea of dirt, nor was he alone,
among his fellows in the territory, a master of correct thought
and rightful action. The pioneers of Arkansas were all dia
monds in the rough, great hearts and souls living in the woods.
There were gamblers and thieves among them, as a matter of
course, for wherever mankind has rested there these degenerates
have been found. Gamblers and thieves, however, never chose
a Sevier for their leader, for he was not of their kind. The great
population of the territory and State was honest, and Sevier
represented that element, and in his day a man from Arkansas
was in any part of the world the peer of any man from any sec
tion of the Union.
The question he discussed so ably was a most comprehen
sive one, and the happiness, thrift and wealth of the United
States have come more from the way in which America handled
this question than from any other single source, except that of
American freedom.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 213
PRE-EMPTION LAWS-
Between 1801 and 1841 — a period of forty years — sixteen
separate pre-emption laws of greater or lesser comprehensiveness
were passed by Congress. In 1838 the selfish effort was made to
confine the benefits of pre-emption to citizens of the United
States, but it failed. In 1843 the right was extended to all citi
zens, but limited to land which had been surveyed. The acts
of 1853 and 1854 permitted the pre-emption to extend tq unsur
veyed lands in Cahfornia, Oregon, Minnesota, Kansas, Nebraska
and New Mexico. All the lands of Arkansas had been surveyed
prior to the passage of these laws. The necessity of protecting
settlers on the public domain and of giving preference right to
persons desiring to make homes thereon became strongly ap
parent in the period 1830-40. During that decade the population
of Arkansas increased more than two hundred and twenty per
cent. The receipts of the government from cash land sales during
that period were eighty-one million, nine hundred thirteen thou
sand and seventeen dollars ; and in the year 1836, the record year
of our whole history, twenty-five millions, one hundred and sixty-
seven thousand eight hundred thirty-three dollars, and repre
sented a sale of thirty-two million eight hundred thousand acres
of land, an area greater than the State of Ohio.
Free soil-
After 1850 we hear less of pre-emption and more of free
soU, but we must never forget that Sevier in Arkansas is entitled
to a meed of praise for cheap lands equal to that which Missouri
ascribes to Benton for free lands. When my history of the
United States was up for adoption for State use in Missouri the
Adopting Board made three ultimata, viz : a full page picture of
Lincoln, another of Grant and still another of Thomas H. Ben
ton. The three pictures went into the book and during ten
years more than one hundred thousand copies of the book were
sold. In my native State, the State whose honor I have upheld
on two continents, no more than thirty counties ever adopted the
book, proving two things, (i) that a prophet is never without
honor save at home, and (2) that Arkansans are not as proud of
Sevier as Missourians are of Benton.

214 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
The Free Soil Democrats in 1852 at Pittsburg put into their
platform a plank demanding the granting of the public lands in
limited quantities free of cost to landless settlers. From this on
to 1862 the question became national and a part of the platforms
of all parties. In i860 Andrew Johnson of Tennessee intro
duced a homestead biU into the Senate of the United States, by
which all actual settlers, being heads of families, should have the
right to a patent for one hundred and sixty acres of land by set
tling upon it and remaining upon it for a period of five years.
The house had already passed another bill, but upon conference
the Senate bill was accepted, and passed both houses.
HOMESTEAD LAW OF 1 862.
James Buchanan, an Eastern Democrat, vetoed the bill to
his everlasting dishonor and discredit. The present law was
passed in 1862, and Abraham Lincoln, a man who, like Sevier,
knew the settlers on the public lands, made haste to sign it. The
entries under this law from 1862 to 1880 numbered four hundred
sixty-nine thousand, seven hundred eighty-two, and the area
settled amounted to fifty-five mUlions six hundred sixty-seven
thousand and forty-four acres. Nearly five hundred thousand
heads of families were thus made freeholders and given the
peaceful and happy condition so aptly outlined by Mr. Sevier.
Today the president, the secretary of the interior and the com
missioner of public lands, under the cry of "fraud" and the
further cry of "hold the lands for actual settlers," have promul
gated rules and regulations which virtually destroy the law of
1862. Reform may go too far, and it does go too far, when it
makes it harder for an honest man to obtain the benefits of the
law than it ever did for a dishonest man to bring it into contempt.
There are cases today in Arkansas of cash entries made under
the timber and stone act as far back as June and October, 1906,
which have been held up by the department during all these
months, with not even an inspector ordered to this good hour to
make an investigation, and I can give names and letters from
the commissioner as late as January 25, 1908. The land system
of the United States has had the ability and experience of Hamil
ton, Jefferson, Madison and Gallatin, and is the best known to
the world.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 215
SENATOR WILLIAM S. FULTON.
Senator Fulton, a colleague of Sevier, was a Marylander,
¦ who had lived in Tennessee and Alabama before his appointment
to the gubernatorial thair of the territory of Arkansas, being the
last to hold that position. He was born in Cecil County, Mary
land, June 2, 1795; graduated from Baltimore College in 1813;
started the study of law under Williams Pinckney, but gave it
up to serve in a company of volunteers at Fort McHenry; after
the war moved with his father's family to Tennessee and finished
his law study with Felix Grundy, military secretary to General
Jackson in his Florida campaign in 1818; moved to Alabama; ap
pointed by Jackson, Secretary of the Territory of Arkansas in
1829, succeeding Robert Crritenden, and Governor in 1835-6.
He was elected to the United States Senate in 1836, and died
August 15, 1844, during his second term. He, like Sevier, took
quite an interest in the public land laws, and when Tom Benton's
great pre-emption bUl was before the Senate, made a speech of
considerable importance, and which contains a fair view of how
the pubhc lands were manipulated under the old law. He said :
"Mr. President — Under the present system all lands subject
to sale are piit up at auction. And what is the result? The
moment the proclamation issues, speculators. put their agents to
work. They obtain the numbers of every valuable tract to be
sold. They meet together at the sale. They form a company
and agree to bid off all the good land offered. They accordingly
purchase it at a fraction over the minimum price, as they have
no competitors. Immediately after the public sale they have an
auction among themselves, and each one purchases the tract he
wishes to buy and pays for it in proportion to its value, or as
there may be bidders who come into competition. The proceeds
of the sale are divided amongst the company and the speculators
realize all the profits of your auction system."
This was the much-lauded system which Eastern men clung
to with an almost fanatic regard, opposing all pre-emption laws
for its maintenance, and with equal force opposing the homestead
law. The speeches of these Eastern men were selfish fo the ex
treme and placed the treasury of the United States, which was
not really benefited by the old law, as Fulton has shown, above

2i6 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
the future advantages which a liberal pre-emption law or a free
soU law would bring the entire country. These same Eastern
men denounced the settlers on public lands as criminals, although
Sevier, Benton and Fulton lifted their voices in vain to tell them
that these public land settlers were equal in point of worth, in
tegrity and enterprise to any of those who took pleasure in de
nouncing them. Senator Fulton said :
character of the old pioneers.
"They are not known to senators or they would not thus be
mahgned. Arkansas was organized as a territory when nearly
all her citizens were settlers on the public lands. Go fo your
land oflfices and you will find that men who have been members
of Congress, and have filled the highest stations in the old States,
have settled upon the public lands and have obtained titles to
their lands as pre-emptioners. For generosity, capacity to en
dure hardship and noble daring no people are equal to the pre-
emptioners of the South and West. They go there with their
wives and children poor and penniless, and in a year are found in
a snug cabin surrounded by a cultivated field, with an abundance
of everything necessary to support life. From this humble be
ginning by the exercise of industry and perseverance, they soon
become independent, and in time become the best and worthiest
of the inhabitants. To secure homes for men like these is the
end of my political ambition, and as an act of justice, I ask the
Senate to protect the settler, the maker and builder of common
wealths, from the greed and rapacity of the most selfish of men,
the speculator in public lands."
Thus from the mouths of both Senator Sevier and Senator
Fulton is the character of the old pioneer blazoned to the world.
It is a character which brings no blush of shame, and although
made without a coat of arms, forms the basis for the most illus
trious quarterings which heraldry can give.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 217
CHAPTER XXVI.
Joab Hardin — the BentlEys — AIajor Welborx — AbnEr
Harold — Colonel Thomas Mathers — The Arkansas
Traveler-
Joab Hardin was a fair representative of an old family in
Kentucky, that was pioneer in the commonwealths of Pennsyl
vania, Kentucky, Illinois and Arkansas. The expedition of
George Rogers Clarke took many Kentuckians into Illinois, who
afterward made that State their permanent place of residence.
When General WilHam Rector surveyed Illinois under the land
laws, soldiers from all parts of the Union, especially from North
Carolina, Virginia and Kentucky, entered Illinois, and located
their claims. This made Illinois Democratic during all the ear
lier years of its history, especially the southern part, which on
this account was called by the abolitionists who flocked to the
northern part, Egypt. Some of the most thrilling history of the
United States from 1820 to i860 was fought out in southern
Illinois by these Southern emigrants, who carried with them into
their new homes their peculiar ideas as to slavery and other
things. Along with these went soldiers from the Northern
States, equally as pugnacious as their Southern friends, who
created contests most bitter and lasting. Some of the greatest
names of modern Republican history spring from men and
women of southern Illinois, who up to the beginning of the war
were Democratic in political faith. Generals Grant and Logan
were Democrats until the exigencies of the war made them
Republican. THE PROLIFIC HARDIN FAMILY.
The name Hardin is a contraction of the older name, Hard
ing, and both forms root back into colonial Pennsylvania, Vir
ginia and Maryland. Some of the members of families using
both forms of spelHng are to be found in aU the Southern States.
Joab Hardin was born in Virginia, moved to Kentucky and then
to Arkansas. He served in the War of 1812, but was more
of a politician than a soldier. Like his kinsman. Old Ben Hardin,
of Kentucky fame, he beheved it less sinful to fight with his

2i8 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
tongue than with guns. He settled in Lawrence County, Ar
kansas, in 1818, and at the first election in the territory began
to run for ofifice, a trait characteristic of the Hardin family, if
not of the human family. He not only ran, but was elected,
and served in the first and second Territorial legislatures.
He had not the Hardin gift of eloquence, but was a speaker
very hard to down. Fie could talk well on his feet without
notes, being master of human nature and well acquainted with
the foibles of mankind. He fell in with the Cadronites in Iheir
effort to make Cadron the capital of the State, and it was to his
influence that the measure finally carried. He owned lands not
only in Lawrence County, but also in Pulaski County in the neigh
borhood of Cadron. In 1823 he moved from his Lawrence
County home down into Pulaski County, into what is now Con
way County, and without any effort whatever became the most
influential man in that part of the county. On account of this
influence they called his settlement "The Hardin Settlement of
Pulaski County," and when townships were named the one con
taining this settlement took old Joab's surname, which name it
holds to this good day. When Conway County was formed
Plardin township fell into that county, and in 1873 was set off
into Faulkner County. The town of Conway forms the center
of the old Cadron settlement, while the Cadron mills were lo
cated in another settlement, now called Matthews township. In
October, 1824, Joab Hardin died in Hardin township, Pulaski
County, and John Lindsey Lafferty, then living in Pulaski
County and in the same township, administered upon his estate.
John Hardin represented Hardin township from Conway County
in 1844. In this way the Hardins go back to the beginning of
things. THE bentley Family-
George Bentley came to Arkansas territory in 1819, and
settled on the Arkansas river in the Pecannerie settlement. A
fine grade of pecans then grew in that neighborhood, from
which the name was derived. The father of George Bentlev
was a member of the Fifth Virginia Continental Line and rose
to the grade of captain. He served from 1776 to 1779 and was

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 219
also a lieutenant colonel in the Indian war of 1799. He was
mustered out in 1800 and died shortly afterward. His son,
George, was a sturdy pioneer in Arkansas history, but kept out
of politics. He made money in the early history of the State,
and was considered one of the best of the old citizens of Con
way County. A township carries his name. He had a daugh
ter, Nancy, who was quite an accomplished woman, who died
at Pecannerie in 182 1. He also had a son, Joseph, who died at
the same place February 14, 1825. The mails at that time went
from Davidsonville through Batesville to Cadron, <!*and thence
down to Arkansas Post, once every two weeks. In March, 1821,
through the efforts of George Bentley, a new route was estab-
li^hed, beginning at Cadron, running through Arkopolis, thence
south to the Ouachita. Colonel Bentley had another daughter,
a most promising woman, who was married on September 23,
18-23, by Reverend Mr. Arnett, to Colonel Thomas Mathers of
Pulaski, now Conway, County. There must have been other
sons who married, as both the name and the blood still exist in
Conway County, where for nearly ninety years it has contributed
to the development of that region.
MAJOR WELBORN AND OTHER PIONEERS.
This old soldier came frojn Virginia to the Arkansas region
in 181 7, and was well located on the Arkansas river when Nut
tal passed up in 1819. He acquired his title as major in the
War of 1812, and was one of the most vigorous citizens of the
old Pecannerie region. In a trip to the southwestern part of
the State lassoing wild horses in 1822 he was kiUed by the In
dians. This is one report; in another report it was noted that
he escaped, and in still another that he was killed and scalped
by the Indians. I am not able to say which report is correct,
but his prominence was suflficient to give his name to a township
Ul the county, the thriving town of Morrilton, I believe, being
its center. Major Welborn and General Lewis were flrm friends
and contributed much to the respectability and power of this old
settlement. It was then a part of Pulaski County, and the most
prominent citizens of the settlement, in 1822, other than Wel
born and Lewis, were Thomas White, John Hibbin, Timothy

220 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
Harris, William Frazier, William Lackey, Jacob Slinkard, James
Titsworth, Thomas Hibbin, George Bentley, Adustin Rogers,
George Garden, John Belcher, Larkin Womack and Samuel Mc
Call. ABNER HAROLD.
Another old pioneer in that part of Pulaski which is now
Faulkner was Abner Harold. He appears to have been Ken
tucky born and to have entered the territory in 1820, locating in
the neighborhood in which he lived and died. He was a man
of most forceful convictions, of splendid influence among hig
neighbors and friends, but without political aspirations. Modest,
unassuming, honest and industrious, Abner Harold made a fine
impression on the neighborhood in which he lived and was in
every respect one of the most respectable citizens of Pulaski
County. In February, 1823, a daughter, Betsy, was married to
Zechariah Lorance, very probably Lawrence. Going out the
Arch street turnpike toward Cockmon's sawmill, a citizen of to
day will pass a little creek called Lorance creek. This would
seem to indicate that the name, Lorance, whether originally Law
rence or not, still clings to Arkansas as a place name, and would
indicate that the surname Lorance was a part of the earlier ter
ritorial history. Very probably the pioneer Zechariah Lorance
lived upon this creek, or, if not, sqme of his descendants. Ab
ner Harold must have had sons and grandsons to perpetuate his
name, since in more modern times one of the most distinguished
law-yers of the State carries that name and roots back as to his
forbears into this old Faulkner-Pulaski County settlement. The
vigor of the grandfather or great grandfather, if these be the
exact relations, is most aptly shown in the strong native parts
of this illustrious descendant. .
COLONEL THOMAS MATHERS.
This old soldier was born in Cumberland County, Pennsyl
vania, that thriving county of which Carlisle is now the county
seat. He won a colonel's commission in the War of 1812, and
located his land warrant in Pulaski County in 1820, where he
built a mill which was known far and wide as Cadron mill. He
at once became one of the leaders of the settlement, and was

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 221
considered a good catch, by all the respectable girls of the neigh
borhood. In 1823 he was married at Pecannerie to Mary, daughter
of George Bentley. Colonel Mathers served in the third ter
ritorial legislature from 1823 to 1825, and was clerk of Conway
County from 1832 to 1836. He died at his home at Cadron
Mills in 1839. Other old settlers of Pulaski County in the Con-
wzy County region were Judge W. G. Saffold, David Barber,
James Ward, Judge B. B. Ball, J. I. Simmons, James Kellam,
James Barber, Reuben Blunt, John Houston, William EUis and
E. W. Owen. "the arkansaw traveler-"
Conway County was named after Henry W. Conway, the
second delegate to Congress from Arkansas territory, and was
formed out of Pulaski in October, 1825. It was originally much
larger than its present boundaries indicate. A large part of the
Cherokee Indian purchase was added in 1828, while large sub
tractions were made and given to Pope and White in 1853. Be
sides the ones named, Gregory township. Griffin, Higgin, How
ard, AIcLaren and Nichols carry the names of other old settlers
of that region. Faulkner County was not created until 1873,
and was named for Colonel Sandford C. Faulkner, a wealthy
planter of Chicot County, the author of the famous colloquy
and piece of music entitled "The Arkansaw Traveler." Edward
P. Washburn of Pope County has painted in oU this famous
scene as told him by Colonel Faulkner. The pai'nting was said
to be a fine piece of art, and found place for many years in the
parlor of Colonel Faulkner at Little Rock. I do not know where
this historic painting is lodged at present, but in deference to
Colonel Faulkner, and as an honor to Arkansas' earliest artist
it should find place in the archives of the State.
NO INJURY TO STATE-
It has been said that this literary production of Colonel
Faulkner has been an injury to the State. This is a very short
sighted view of the question. In my opinion no community can
ever be permanently or temporarily injured by any mere work
of humor, and as a piece of humor, broad, it is true, "The Ar-

222 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
kansaw Traveler" has never been excelled. Instead of injuring
Arkansas it has carried that name to the remotest parts of the
earth, and has exploited a type of easy-going citizens common to
all localites the world over. The type needed excoriation, which
Colonel Faulkner gave with a gloved but not a mailed hand. No
living man in any part of the world has extended the range of
the type to include all the citizens of the State, and the idea that
it does so has originated in the mind of those who claim it has
injured the State, and not elsewhere. Colonel Faulkner de
serves honor for the fidelity with which he has delineated the
t}-pe, and Mr. Washburn an equal honor for perpetuating it in
oil. "The Arkansaw Traveler" has a niche in the temple of
fame from which it can never be dislodged, and is in no sense a
reflection upon the energy and masterly parts of the great mass
of the population which has contributed to its growth and power.

CHAPTER XXVII.
Reverend Cephas Washburn.
In 1819 Nuttal found settlements on both sides of the Ar
kansas river in the neighborhood of what is now Dardanelle.
The whites lived on the south side of the river and the Indians
on the north. There was quite a large village located on the
north side made up of Indians exclusively which was called
The Galley. The chief of the Cherokees was named Jolly, a
half breed of respectable talents, who had made quite a' reputa
tion in Tennessee and Mississippi. The Indian agent at that
time was Air. RolHn, who lived at times at The Galley, and at
other times at Dardanelle and at other points on the river. In
1820 he was succeeded by Matthew Lyon, who made his home
at Spadra Bluff. During his administration the government
built an Indian house at Dardanelle and upon the death of Lyon,
Edward Duval, who succeeded him, moved into this agency
house where he remained for many years, combining the duties
of Indian agent with those of postmaster.
Quite a friction was engendered between Duval and Gover
nor Izard as to the management of Indian affairs, the rendering

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 223
of accounts and other minor 'items, but the friendship of these
gentlemen was never impaired. There was a half breed Indian
storekeeper at The Galley in 1819, and another half breed,
"Walter Weber, lived at the foot of the Dardanelle HUls. At
The Galley lived John Rogers, one of the most respectable of
the civilized Cherokees, and one to whom that nation is much
indebted for its development and growth. Colonel David Brear
ly, a Revolutionary soldier and also a soldier of the regular
army, moved in 1821 to Arkansas Post, where he opened quite a
large store. Four years later he opened a store at Dardanelle
and still later at Norristown, a vigorous town on the north side,
which made a hard fight in later years for the position of capital
city of Arkansas. THE FOUNDING OF DWIGHT.
Reverend Cephas Washburn, a Congregational minister of
New England, was sent by the Board of Missions of the United
States to Arkansas in 1821 to open a mission school among the
Cherokee Indians. A place for the mission was selected at a
point on the Illinois bayou, which, in honor of Timothy Dwight,
president of Yale College, was named Dwight, and is now known
to all the people of the State as Old Dwight, and is in the pres
ent Pope County. The erection of buUdings was begun in
1821, and continued for several years. Doctor Washburn
brought with him six teachers, all from New England, and be
gan a work at Dwight, who^e influence is still apparent among
the Cherokees in Oklahoma. On his road to his mission he
stopped at the village. Little Rock, and preached a sermon. His
description of the capital at that time is so well known as to
demand no repetition here. He went on up the river and opened
a school which was of distinct advantage to the Cherokees, who
were already the most advanced Indian nation of the country.
That school was continued at Dwight until after the removal of
the Cherokees to the Indian Territory. Under the same manage
ment it was continued for several years afterwards for the white
people, and many of the most distinguished men of the Arkansas
valley in early days were educated at that place.
Reverend Cephas Washburn, president of the mission and
school, descended from a New England family whose history

224 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
goes back to the very earliest colonial days. The Washburn
family was not only an old one on American soil, but one noted
for its distinguished sons and daughters, whose names and his
tories have added luster to American art, politics, reUgion and
law. The spelling of the name varies from Washbourn through
Washburne down to its modern and settled form, Washburn.
Reverend Cephas Washburn was an alumnus of Yale Col
lege, and in naming his Indian mission honored its illustrious
president, the chief executive of the institution while he was a
student. The transition from the New England cHmate to that
of Arkansas was noted by many climatic diseases, the one which
gave the most trouble being the ague. The assistants at Dwight
from 1821 to 1826 were Alfred Finney, Mr. Orr, Jacob Hitch
cock, Asa Hitchcock, Ella Stetson and Nancy Brown. Cephas
Washburn's name in the Cherokee language was "Ookuquah-
tuh," but none but the Cherokees ever used it.
Reverend Cephas Washburn was an Indian Educator in Ar
kansas and the Indian Territory from 1821 to 1847. Coupled
with this he preached the gospel, but did not assume a regular
charge until late in life, when his age precluded further active
educational endeavor. THE EAR WEST ACADEMY. /
In 1844 he was the chief spirit in the organization of the
Far AVest Academy in Washington County and president of its
flrst Board of Trustees. These trustees came from all parts of
the State and were as follows : Hugh A. Anderson, Robert A.
Alecklin, Joseph M. Hoge, James Boone, William D. Cunning
ham, David Walker, John Harrel, Edward Freyschag, Samuel
Newton, Benjamin Pearson, Alfred W. Arrington, Joseph P.
Moore, Thomas J. Pollard, William T. Larrimore, Isaac Murphy,
A.ndrew Buchanan, Matthew Leeper, James Orr, Muloin A.
Lynde, George W. Paschal, Edward Cunningham, David Mc-
Alaners, James Lockridge, Aaron W. Lyon, John McMillan,
James M. Aloore, WilHam W. Stevenson, Benjamin F. Thomp
son, A. R. Banks and J. S. Phelps, the latter being from Spring
field, Alissouri. One of these was afterward a member of the
L'nited States Senate from Arkansas, and another one of its best

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 225
governors. Aaron W. Lyon was the president of Batesville
Academy and a most prominent educator in early times. The
whole list is a distinct roll of honor and shows the remarkable
influence of Cephas Washburn among the really strong men of
the day. The land for this academy was in Prairie township,
Washington County, and was donated by Solomon Tuttle, J.
M. Tuttle, W. D. Cunningham, John Pollard, J. P. Moore and
Allen Moore. The fundamental rule of the school was that the
Bible should be the standard of morals and religion.
WASHBURN'S WORK STILL LIVES.
Any conservative estimate of the character and Hfe work of
Cephas Washburn will fall short of accuracy. He was a inan
of purpose, distinct religious purpose, animated by the loftiest
desire to aid the Indians. He was educated to the highest and
best degree and thus enabled to realize his purpose. He was
undoubtedly disinterested and his long and distinguished career
in Arkansas left him a poor man, a fact somewhat discreditable
to the State he helped. However, this was as he would have
had it to be, as under no circumstances would he put his own
interests above those of the public. He strengthened the Chero
kee character as no other man did and gave direction to Arkan
sas character as few others did. His work remains in the
civUization of Arkansas and Oklahoma, although his name to
most Arkansans is completely unknown. He was one of the
State's best characters and deserves a niche in its Valhalla when
it comes. He died at Little Rock on Alarch 7, i860, having
spent thirty-nine years in Arkansas.
EDWARD p. WASHBURN, ARTIST.
He was one of the earliest pastors of the Presbyterian
church at Fort Smith, and while stationed there, his son, Ed
ward P. Washburn, began to exhibit that mentality which
stamped him as an artist in embryo. In a previous chapter I
have referred to the talent of this young man, but unfortunately
called him Charles P. Washburn. Having forgotten his name, I
referred to Judge Pope's Early Days and adopted his error. The
salary of Cephas Washburn at Fort Smith was not sufficient to
justify him in sending Edward to the studio of some eminent

226 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
artist in Europe, and the boy was left to develop his own talents
under his own intuitions. The father of J. F. Weaver of Fort
Smith was at that time a merchant at that place and a great ad
mirer of young Washburn. Being in Philadelphia, replenishing
his mercantile stock, he bought an artist's outfit of painting ma
terial, which upon his return he presented to the young man.
This was as great a delight to young Washburn as the consent
of Benjamin West's Quaker parents was to Benjamin, when they
agreed that he might have time and place to develop his God-
given gift. As a return for the kindness, young Washburn
presented Air. \\'eaver with a picture he had executed, represent
ing the Bay of Naples. This picture was prized by Mr. Weaver,
but in a removal in 1871 it was unfortunately misplaced and lost.
AA^ashburn gave Air. AA^eaver another picture, which is now at
the house of J. F. AA'eaver of Fort Smith, the editor of the Fort
Smith Elevator. This picture represented Fort Smith in the
early fifties and was the joint production of young Washburn
and AA'illiam Quisenbury, an old-time Arkansas editor and artist,
whose pseudonym was "Bill Cush." It is said that Quisenbury
made the drawing while Washburn added the color.
THE ARKANSAW TRAVELER.
About this time Col. Sandy Faulkner's inimitable story, "The
Arkansaw Traveler," made its appearance and was as popular
in a day as "After the BaU" or "Annie Rooney" ever dared to
be. Edward Payson Washburn listened to the story of Sandy
Faulkner and decided to sketch it. The house or cabin in the
picture which he made originaUy stood on the bank of Illinois
bayou near Dwight, but not a trace of it exists today. I was
born in a log cabin on Illinois bayou in 1849, ^nd have heard the
story repeated from my earliest recoUection. In my flights of
oratory and rhetoric my mother took pleasure in bringing me
down to earth by pointing to the old cabin of Washburn's picture,
saying, "Aly son, don't fly too high. There was where you
were born." She meant, of course, that I was born in a house
exactly like the one which Washburn painted into his picture,
and any house on Illinois bayou at that day would have met the
conditions. I have never clainied that I was born in the identi-

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 227
cal house painted by Edward Washburn, but I was born in a
leg house very like it and very close to it. Neither am I ashamed
of the old log cabin in which I was born, but on the contrary I
have reason to be proud of it. From papers on its walls I
learned to read, and when I was six years of age I presented
myself at the doors of the Louisville, Kentucky, graded schools,
then in charge of that accomplished educator from New Eng
land, Doctor George Chase, the founder of the graded school
system in the West, and I was put in the fourth grade. As a
six-year-old boy I started in the LouisviUe graded schools in
the fourth reader, and am indebted to that old Arkansas log
cabin for the fact that I never saw the first, secflnd or third reader
in my school Hfe.
So much for the early Arkansas cabins, the cabins made
famous by the painting of Edward P. Washburn. The boy on
the hopper in the picture is said by the family to be Joe Brearly,
son of David Brearly of Norristown. Others aay that the boy
was George F. Dodge, but the version of the family is more
likely the correct one. The man on the horse was said to be
Colonel Faulkner himself. In this way with real models which
he carried in his mind, young Washburn worked Faulkner's
fiddle story into the picture as we know it. At least this is the
traditionary account as told by the Washburn family today. The
boy on the hopper was not demanded by Faulkner's phUosophy,
and was Washburn's conception pure and simple, a decided ad
dition to the picture.
BOTH WASHBURNS BURIED IN MT. HOLLY.
Edward Payson Washburn was born at Dwight Mission in
the Cherokee nation, November 17, 1831, and died at Little
Rock March 26, i860. He and his father both died at the house
of Doctor R. L. Dodge, in the same year, and both are buried
in Mt. Holly cemetery. The grand-daughters of Reverend Ce
phas Washburn are now living at Russellville, Arkansas, viz. :
Mrs. George Black and Mrs. Dodd, wife of C. W. Dodd, editor
of the Pope County Record. The original sketch of the Arkan
sas Traveler is held by Mrs. Black. It has been laid away for
years and is now somewhat defaced. It was exhibited at Eureka

228 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
Springs last summer at the annual meeting of the Arkansaw
Travelers' Association. Airs. Black is also the owner of an oU
portrait of Edward Washburn, and also of his father, Cephas
AA'ashburn, both life size. She has also a scrap book containing
many newspaper references to both father and son at their death.
It is said that Rev. Cephas Washburn was caUed upon one
night while located at Old Dwight to visit the bedside of a dy
ing Indian. After prayer and other religious ceremonies, the
dying man revealed his identity and claimed to be none other
than the famous renegade, Simon Girty. I doubt the validity
of the claim, but if it shall turn out to be a truthful one, Ar
kansas contains the grave of one of the most notorious white
renegades known in Indian historv.

CHAPTER XXVIII.
Major Isaac Watkins-
Buckle was a firm believer in the doctrine of a great natural
law so dominating all special laws, that given all the special laws
acting on a man's environment it became possible to foretell
each man's action at every period of his life. This theory was
neejjlessly attacked by many divines, as in general terms its truth
is unassailable. Its uselessness as a doctrine, however, lies in
the fact that only Omniscience can see the multiplicity of natural
special laws acting on a man's personality and that therefore
only Omniscience can foretell.. Buckle simply said, "If you will
m.ake me Omniscient, I will tell you how you will act in every
conceivable situation."
It is a general law that a certain number of men will become
bondsmen for other men. Special laws determine who these
men are to be. It is a general law that a definite number of
these bonded men will faU to perform their bond as stipulated
and that the bondsmen will suffer. Special laws determine the
failures, and only Omniscience can foresee them. It is a gen
eral law that the sufferers under the mortification of loss wiU
migrate to other localities, wherein their pride shall not suffer
and recuperation go on under changed and more peaceful con-

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 229
ditions. Thus the movements of population are influenced by
the bankruptcies of the world and by the added loads bondsmen
are forced to carry.
It was this that ga-ve Arkansas the citizen. Major Isaac
Watkins, father of Chief Justice George C. Watkins, and his
most interesting family, wherein Arkansas was a distinct gainer
and Kentucky the loser. The Watkins family was an ancient
family of England belonging to both the major and minor
gentry, and the old fashioned box shaped tomb of Major Isaac
Watkins in Mt. Holly Cemetery, Little Rock, blazon the words:
"Haud Immemor.
"Isaac Watkins, Gent.
"Born in Virginia, April 10, 1777.
"Died in Arkansas, Dec. 13, 1827."
The migration of the earliest propositus to Virginia \^s in
the latter part of the seventeenth century, and the habitat, Cum
berland County, afterwards Powhatan. Thomas Watkins set
tled on Swift Creek and his will was probated in June, 1760.
His eldest son, Thomas of Chickahominy, Virginia, married a
sister of Claiborne Anderson, who was also a descendant of Wil
liam Claiborne, the first Secretary of the Colony.
Thomas of Chickahominy had a brother, Benjamin, who
represented Chesterfield County in colonial assemblies, and was
a member of the convention of 1776. He was a friend and cor
respondent of Samuel Adams and John Hancock, and the grand
father of the famous Benjamin Watkins Leigh.
The youngest son of Thomas Watkins of Chickahominy was
also named Thomas. He married in 1763, SaUie Walton, sister
of George Walton, signer of the Declaration of Independence
and Governor of Georgia. A descendant of George Walton be
came Governor of Florida and father of Madame Octavia Wal
ton Le Vert of Mobile, Alabama.
FOUGHT IN WAR OF l8l2.
Major Isaac Watkins, the subject of this sketch, was the
youngest son of Thomas and Sallie Walton Watkins and the
first of the family to migrate to Kentucky. His father died
while he was quite young leaving but a smaU estate and a large

230 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
family. His mother remarried and moved to the neighborhood
of Shelbyville, Kentucky, taking her younger children with her.
Here Isaac AA'atkins grew to manhood and became a man of
influence and wealth. In 1812 he served as a soldier and rose
tc the rank of Alajor. No man had a fairer reputation in Shel
byville than he did. He had been assisted to a most accom
plished education by his uncle, Francis Watkins of Virginia, who
married the heiress Agnes Woodson, daughter of Baron Wood
son, a great landholder of that region. With a sound education
and all the polish of an old time Southern gentleman he could
not refuse to aid his friends and in a weak moment in 1820 signed
a bond for a large amount for a friend, which bond he had to
pay. CAME To LITTLE ROCK IN 182O.
This stripped him of the larger'part of his fortune and he
with a remnant thereof in 1820 came to Little Rock to recu
perate. In December, 1820, he lived in a log house while putting
up the first frame residence in the town. This residence was
finished early in the summer of 1821, and was used by Major
Watkins as a hotel for several years, and was said by W. E.
Woodruff, Sr., to be the only eligible location for a public house
in the town. It was called The Little Rock Tavern, and may
be identified from the fact that in 1825 it passed into the hands
of Mr. Nick Peay, who continued it as a public house for many
years. On June 20, 1822, Major Watkins announced to the
people in the columns of The Gazette the completion of a horse
mUl at Little Rock, being the -first structure of the kind in the
town. It would grind six bushels an hour by a little pushing of
the horses, and fifty bushels of good meal a day. The mill was
constructed by Joseph Thornhill, an intelligent carpenter of the
town, but who had never built a mill. Under the direction of
Alajor AVatkins, ThornhiU is said to have built one of the best
mills of those times. Thornhill amassed wealth and died in
1826, appointing Bernard Smith, Major Watkins and WiUiam
E. AVoodruff, Sr., as his executors.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 231
HEIRLOOM FURNITURE STILL IN EXISTENCE.
The furniture for the most part which Major Watkins used
in his log cabin as well as in his larger frame mansion was
brought from Kentucky, and was of the most elegant kind, a
sad reminder of his more prosperous days. It is worthy of note
to say that an old Chippendale clock, some sofas, tables, minia
tures and portraits, brought by Major Watkins from Kentucky
to Arkansas, are still in the possession of his descendants at
Little Rock. In addition to his town property, he bought a
large tract of land on the north side of the river, about three
miles below the town, whicii he cleared and put in a high state
of cultivation. It is also worthy of note to say that the north
side of the river in the very earliest days had more attractions
for emigrants than the south side. United States Marshal
George W. Scott bought a plantation on this side of the river
about a mile above town, and built a brick house on it which
was finished in October, 1824. This was certainly the first brick
house on the north side, and in all probability the first brick house
in Pulaski County, outside of Little Rock. Some local an
tiquarian may be able to point out its present location. It was
built by Christian Brumback.
Major Watkins in 1821, 1823 and 1825, set banquets for
the men who celebrated the birthday of our independence dur
ing these years. One of these banquets was set in the gallery
of the old court house, and accommodated one hundred persons,
being presided over by Governor Izard. At the celebration of
1823 AA'atkins was the presiding officer, and at each of these
celebrations he responded to a toast. On the fourth Saturday
in July, 1824, the first Baptist church of Little Rock was organ
ized at his house, Reverend Silas T. Toncray, presiding, with
Major Watkins, clerk. FIRST BAPTIST ASSOCIATION.
In November, 1824, the first Baptist Association of Arkan
sas was formed at the State house, the same ofificers presiding.
The churches present were Little Rock, Salem, Clark County
and Pecannerie. This association was called the Little Rock
Association of Regular Baptists. Major Watkins remained

232 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
clerk of the church and of the association for many years. In
1825 he made his only race for the legislature, being a candidate
for the council, against General Edmund Hogan and Colonel A.
S. Walker. He was too good a Baptist to be a good politician
and lost out. In those days it was not much of a recommenda
tion for a politician to be a church member, and the Baptist
church did not look with favor upon its members running for
ofifice. The same may be said of the other churches. The
change between that time and today is no' better marked in any
particular than in this. In 1827, Governor Adair of Kentucky,
visited the Hot Springs and was entertained by Major Watkins
at his residence in Little Rock most sumptuously. Governor
Adair commanded the regiment in which Major AVatkins held- a
commission. MAJOR WATKINS WAS ASSASSINATED IN m'lANE'S STORE.
In December, 1827, while Major Watkins was seated in
McLane's general store in Little Rock, a man named John
Smith, with a rifle on his shoulder, walked in and began talking
with the proprietor. Having thus engaged his attention. Smith
deliberately turned, brought his rifle to a charge, and fired its
contents into the body of Major Watkins, who sat not ten feet
away. Major Watkins died within an hour. In the excitement
following the shooting, Smith passed out the front door, leaped
on his horse and rode toward Crystal Hill. He passed the
night with General Hogan, who knew nothing of the shooting,
and in the morning rode to the south. The posse following
Smith did not discover until morning that he had ridden toward
Crystal HUl, and when it reached there Smith was well out of
the way. A reward of five hundred seventy-five dollars was
offered for the apprehension of Smith, but he was never arrested.
W. E. Woodruff of the Gazette, after stating that Watkins was
one of the first permanent settlers of Little Rock, went on to say
that beyond all questiSn he had done as much for the improve
ment of Little Rock as any other man. It appeared that on the
preceding day Watkins had been to his plantation and had found
that some of his stock was missing. He traced it to the cabin
of John Smith, found the dead carcass of one of his -hogs, and

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 233
immediately charged Smith with the theft. Smith did not re
sent it then, but took his revenge as we have stated.
HIS DESCENDANTS PROMINENT.
Major Watkins was married twice, both times in the State
of Kentucky, His first wife was Paulina Thurston, who died
shortly after giving birth to a son, who afterwards became Doc
tor Robert Anderson Watkins of Little Rock, and who on June
28, 1827, married Mary W. Nash, daughter of Doctor John T.
Nash of Florissant, Missouri. Robert A. Watkins, was the first
secretary of State under the new constitution, serving from Sep
tember 16, 1836, to November 12, 1840.
Major Watkins took for his second wife Marie Toncre of
Kentucky, a lady of Huguenot extraction, and who came with
him to Arkansas. The chUdren of this marriage were : Hon
orable George Claiborne Watkins, who became chief justice of
the supreme court of Arkansas, and Mary Eliza Watkins.
George Claiborne Watkins married Mary A. Crease, the third
daughter of John H. Crease, State treasurer of Arkansas, and
Jane P. Newton, his wife. Mary Eliza Watkins married John
J. Clendennin, afterward one of the supreme judges of the State
of Arkansas. When Major Watkins moved to Arkansas he brought with
him Miss Mills, a neice of his wife, who on November 14, 1827,
became the wife of William E. Woodruff, Sr., the editor and
founder of the Arkansas Gazette.
After the death of Major Watkins, his wife remarried,
her husband being Reverend W. W. Stevenson, a pioneer Metho
dist preacher at Little Rock, but who afterwards joined the
Christian church, becoming a noted ministter therein. Mrs^
Stevenson died at the residence of her son-in-law. Judge Clen
dennin, on the 2ist of March, 1874, in the eighty-first year
of her age, having lived in Little Rock continuously for fifty-
four years, a longer continuous residence than any other citi
zen before her time, and, in all probability, since her time.
Her husband died in California in his eighty-ninth year. Mrs.
Stevenson was one of the best women who ever lived in Little
Rock. She was first last and all the time a Christian, and her

234 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
home was at all times a home of missions and for all the min
isters of all denominations. When the Scientist, Feathersto
naugh, was in Little Rock in 1838, he found no place of public
lodgment at all suitable for a gentleman. Mrs. Stevenson,
hearing of his dilemma, threw open her house to him, where
for several months he prosecuted his studies, leaving a high
testimonial to the admirable good character and magnificent
womanhood of Mrs. Stevenson. Such is a brief record of the
antecedents of Chief Justice George Watkins, possibly the ablest
man that Arkansas has produced.
The following is taken from the files of an old newspaper :
"Died. In this city on the morning of the 21st of Alarch,
1874, at the residence of her son-in-law. Judge Clendennin, Mrs.
Maria Stevenson in the eighty-first year of her age.
"This brief notice records the death of the oldest female
resident of our city. For fifty-four years she has been a con
tinuous resident of Little Rock, and during all that long period
she graced the community by her hospitalities, blessed the poor
with her charities, and the stricken in sorrow and affliction with
her love and advice. Enjoying through most of her long life
uninterrupted health and favored with more than an ordinary in
tellect, she met the troubles and trials of her early frontier life
with firmness and fortitude and was able to assist, counsel and
advise those who sought her in their troubles ; always a Christian,
her house was the home of the mission and the ministers of all
denominations. She lived to see her children and children's
chUdren grow up around her, anxious to minister to her wants,
and surrounded by them she calmly passed away to the rest pre
pared for those who here have so well done the Master's will.
"Airs. Stevenson was born in WUliamsport, Alaryland, in
1793, and when quite young moved with her parents to Kentucky
where she married Alajor Isaac Watkins, of Shelby County, with
whom she and her infant son, the late Judge George C. Watkins,
and her niece. Airs. AVoodruff, the wife of the venerable William
E. Woodruff, resided. In 1820, she removed to Little Rock
where she had always since lived."

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 235
CHAPTER XXIX.
Slave Holders of 1830.
It is a most interesting study to connote the rise of the
slave interest in the United States. From a few squalid slaves
planted on the shores of New England in the earliest days of
the colonies, the institution spread Southward, hunting a more
congenial clime, until, after a century, its habitat was found
ill the Southern States, and its quasi enemies in the original New
England States. The inhospitable climate of New England
did not favor slave labor, nor did its more inhospitable shores.
The more generous climate of the South, coupled with its lands
of superabundant fertility, made that region a heaven for not
only slave owners, but for the slaves.
It is a waste of time at this day to discuss or even seem
to discuss the advantage of slavery to such negroes as were
caught up in Africa and subjected to ifs malign influences
in the American colonies. The negro of America today is the
product of slave institutions, and by as much as he surpasses
any set of negroes in his original African home, by that much
is he indebted to American slavery. I have met negroes in all
parts of the world, negroes who had slave antecedents and
negroes who had not ; the American negro of slave antecedents
is immeasurably superior to all these and infinitely superior to
his brethren that he left in Africa two hundred years ago.
Slavery may be illogical ; it may be inhumanitarian ; it may
be against all conscience, propositions I do not care to discuss,
but, it certainly prepared the American negroes for higher
estates than have been held by the negroes of any other country,
taking the negro of a country as a whole. They have improved
in language; they have improved in dress; they have improved
in manner of living, although there is yet a tremendous room
for improvement; they have improved in mentality; they have
improved in business relations, and high and above all other
things, they have improved morally and spirituaUy. Give the
devil his dues. Let slavery be crowned king of African de
velopment, so far as the same gives evidence in American af
fairs, and let the old slave-driver, the schoolmaster of African

236 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
civilization, hard-hearted though he may have been, be given a
crown of laurels for the absolute success of his work.
No set of schoolmasters that the world has known has
done as much for a race as the African slave-drivers of fhe
South did for the African race. The African was made in
every respect more decent, more respectable, more lovable, more
able to do a man's work in the race of life, although the Repub
lican party emancipated him a trifle too soon, a few minutes
before the hatching bird would have pipped the shell for itself,
and emerged a thoroughly self-respecting bird. As it is, the
African is puzzled to know whether he owes most to his old
owner or to the Republican party. The Republican party freed
him, the slave owners of America gave him whatever parts
he possessed which entitled him to freedom. The mere ipse
dixit of a party cannot confer manhood; the antecedent ele
ments of manhood, wherever they may be found in the Ameri
can African race, must be sought for in the Anglo-Saxon homes
of the South, among its educated men and its eminently lovable
women. NORTHERN OVERSEERS HARD TASKMASTERS.
It is a weU-known fact that the hardest slave-drivers were
the overseers and that the kindliest friends the slaves had were
the masters and mistresses. As a rule the overseers were either
Northern men or men of Northern antecedents. They are
and ahvays have been the best bosses of human labor, getting
more out of it oh harsher terms than any bosses of the world,
and they are now bossing the white labor of America with the
same inexorable fatality that they bossed the slave labor in the
good old days before the war. They were conscienceless. They
made the negroes work, and the best paying plantations were
those in the hands of Northern overseers. AU such plantations
were detested by the Southern slaves. They hated to be bought
by a Southern slave owner who maintained a Northern overseer.
They traveled from master to master when their own masters
were in bankruptcy asking them to buy them and promising
the most faithful service. The reason for their importunity
was that if they were not so bought that other slave owners

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 237
with a Northern overseer would certainly get them, and these
poor darkies hesitated to fall into his hands.
But the great majority of the Southern slave-owners were
either their own overseers, or had Southern overseers, or had
even negro overseers. That old pioneer, Titsworth, of Logan
County, Arkansas, owned between one hundred and two hun
dred negroes, and was a very prince of good fellows. His
own negroes loved him, and all the negroes of the surrounding
plantations when they had to be sold, surreptitiously sought out
Titsworth and begged him to save them from the fiendish hands
of the Northern overseers. To the credit of Titsworth be it said,
that he always gave the negroes a squarer deal than Roose
velt or any other Republican has ever given them since. Tits-
worth's plantation was a very Eden for fhe negroes, and the
slaves he owned had much more nearer a heaven on earth than
any other negroes have had at any other time or place before or
since. When you are hunting for old-time men who have done
something for humanity in the largest and best sense write down
Titsworth's name of Logan County. He was a man among men,
the equal of any other man, whether his name was Roosevelt,
Taft or Bryan.
The whole South was full of Southern great hearts like
Titsworth, who put to blush John Temple Graves, the great
orator of Georgia, who reasons with his tongue and not with
his brain, and who seems to think that Roosevelt is in love with
the South, when, in fact, Roosevelt knows no god but himself.
Roosevelt hates the old slave-holders and holds himself im
mensely their superior. As a matter of fact, as men ran then,
the old slave-holders of the South had no superiors. They were
honest; they were truthful; they were full of the milk of hu
man kindness; they gave every man a square deal in reality
and not ostensibly as a mere party pretext; they were clean;
they led a clean government and gave the world its finest ex
amples of integrity, leadership and honor. All hail the old-
time Southern slave owner, not only for what he was himself,
and for what he made his family, and for what he made the old
South, but for what he made of the negro himself. When the
honors are divided by a just judge the old Southern slave-

238 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
holder will get so much that the frazzle that is left will not
hurt the other fellows. SLAVES OF PULASKI COUNTV.
The Fletcher family, consisting of Richard M., Henry L.,
Frederick and John, in 1830 owned thirty-three slaves, a greater
number than that owned by any other family in the county.
Do family traits inhere? Is it worth while to study family
history? Is there any reason why a family should be great in
one age and weak in another? There are reasons and they can
only be ascertained by a comprehensive system of family his
tory. AA'hy should the Fletchers be great in 1800? Why
should they be the most solid people of the country in 1830?
AA'hy should they hold their own in 1870 and give Arkansas
two as solid men as it has today? Why are the Fletchers still
solid today? Only a most comprehensive study of sociology
and family history can in any sense answer these questions.
The greatest individual slave holder of Pulaski County
in 1830 was Benjamin Trotter, who held twenty-three slaves
in his own right, and was everywhere known as the most hu
mane slave owner. If any of Trotters negroes are alive today
they are entitled to be heard, and if all the good things that hap
pened on Trotter's estate had been told with reference to the
negroes alone several books as large as the Bible would have
been required. Old Ben Trotter was one of the makers of Pu
laski County, a tremendous factor in the development of Ar
kansas. The next greatest slave-holder of Arkansas territory was
Judge Benjamin Johnson, who owned twenty-one slaves, one-
half of them being under fifteen years of age. A negro from
one. to fifteen years of age was worth all the way from one
hundred dollars to one thousand dollars, while a negro from
fifteen to forty was worth from one thousand dollars to three
thousand doUars. Is it any wonder that the negroes them
selves who brought three thousand dollars on the block should
hold themselves superior to the poor white trash who could not
earn fifty cents a day?

Pioneers ahd Makers of Arkansas 239
The next greatest slave owner in Pulaski County was Law
yer John H. Cocke, who owned fourteen, and Samuel Taylor
Wrio owned the same number.
The Lindsey family came next, having thirteen negroes,
and these Lindseys, sons of old Caleb Lindsey, of Virginia,
speUed their name in the good old-fashioned way, with an "e"
and not an "a." More great Lindseys in England today spell
their name this way than the other, but this is all a matter of
taste. The Lindsey negroes, however, were a matter of dollars
and cents. AMBROSE SEVIER'S RAPID RISE.
Standing next below the Lindseys stood old Archibald Mc
Henry and James Walker, with twelve negroes each, and mighty
fine negroes they were. All near the two thousand dollar
mark. Then came the Honorable Ambrose H. Sevier, with
eleven sla-ves in 1830. In 1820 he came to Arkansas a poor,
friendless orphan boy; in 1830 he was a good lawyer, a delegate
to Congress, the son-in-law of Ben Johnson, and the owner of
eleven slaves. A pretty good march for a poor boy in ten years.
True, his slaves were for the most part under fifteen years of
age, being household maids for the most part, and it may be true
that old Ben Johnson gave him the most of these, but they were
Sevier's negroes all the same, and he took all the glory and honor
for them. Ben Johnson's negroes were Kentucky negroes, and
were in a sense F. F. Vs., but none of the Arkansas negroes
ever yielded precedence to them. It was said that one of Mc-
Henry's negroes could whip any five of Johnson's negroes, but
that they were afraid to do it lest the judge should get the law
on them. The following persons in Pulaski County in 1830 each had
nine negroes : Elinor Lockhart, Wharton Rector and John Pope.
The following had eight : Robert Crittenden, James Lemon,
George W. Scott and John Evans. The following had seven:
Nicholas Peay, Allen Martin, John D. Mosby and David Rorer.
The historian who made Judge David Rorer an example of the
happy-go-lucky kind seems to have reckoned without his host.
In this way a large lot of veritable history, so-called, is made.

240 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
Old David Rorer ranked with the elite in 1830, and would ranlc
there yet were he alive to row his own boat. I have skipped an
other old Pulaski County slave-holder, Sarnson Gray, the son of
a Revolutionary soldier and who had eleven negroes. Quite a
number of Pulaski County citizens owned five negroes or less.
Chester Ashley owned three under fifteen years of age, and had
one free negro in his family, thirty-five years of age. Billy
AA'oodruff, Sr., owned three, all under, fifteen years of age, which
shows that Arkansas citizens from Long Island and Massachu
setts were not ashamed of the peculiar Southern institution, and
owned slaves and treated them equally as humanely as the manu
facturers of Long Island and Massachusetts treat their employes
ill factories and manufacturing establishments. If any of the
old negroes belonging to any of these old men of Pulaski County
are alive I should be pleased to hear from them, in order to
gather from their lips a few more ideas of the grandly good old
times in Arkansas from 1830 to 1890.

CHAPTER XXX.
The Fletchers.
In the Review of Reviews for November, 1907, is a picture
of Horace Fletcher, in turn whaler, explorer, miner, sharp
shooter, gymnast, merchant, traveler, phUosopher, philanthropist,
author and originator of "Fletcherism," or how to eat so as to
live royally, which book every dyspeptic should read, and which
picture every one interested in the inhering likenesses descending
to members of the same family even after all trace of the re
lationship is lost, should see. My object in ad-verting to this
picture is primarily to call attention to the heredity of family
likeness, although the common ancestor may have lived three
hundred years ago, and his descendants, widely scattered, may
be unable to trace any tie of kin or bond of family union; and,
secondarily, to animadvert upon the superior claims of common
sense over legislative control, or pure food laws, in securing and
maintaining a proper degree of health.
When I opened the Review of Reviews last November and
let my eye fall upon the picture of Horace Fletcher, my mind at

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 241
once recalled "Uncle Tom Fletcher" of Little Rock. The like
ness was not only faithful, but singularly striking. My mind
soon corrected this impression by a glance of the eye at the signa
ture beneath the picture, and from a reading of the accompany
ing matter. Had there been nothing but the picture, however,
I am of opinion that I should have called it the picture of Thomas
Fletcher, despite the plug hat on the table and one or two other
minor details. PIONEERS AND MAKERS OF ARKANSAS.
To show how strong this likeness really was, I covered up
the signature and submitted the picture to my wife, who at once
said: "What, a fine picture of Uncle Tom Fletcher!" Stranger
than this, it so happened, that John Fletcher, the distinguished
son of Thomas Fletcher, dropped into my ofifice in Washington,
and I made the same test upon him. Now John Fletcher is one
of the most modest men in the world, more is the pity, and he
hesitated ; that hesitancy proved to me that he, too, was just ready
to say: "How did the picture of my father get into this book?"
His controlling modesty produced by the fear of being vain, led
him to say: "The face is familiar to me," and I said, "Oh
pshaw !" John laughed. He then pointed out to me minute
points of pose, facial resemblance and other particulars common
to his father and to the picture, which led me to see that he saw
the striking resemblance of the picture td his father, but like a
good lawyer, would not commit himself.
STRIKING FAMILY LIKENESS.
I have also been informed that Honorable Thomas Fletcher
of Pine Bluff, erstwhUe acting governor of Arkansas, bore a
most marked resemblance to Uncle Tom Fletcher of Little Rock.
Here are two strong sets of facts of family likenesses, or inhering
resemblances in families of the same name, yet claiming no kin,
and these facts prove a kinship of nearer or remoter degree. In
the fnatter of Thomas Fletcher of Pine Bluff there is an explana
tion, based on a much nearer kinship to Thomas of Little Rock
than any that can be suggested as to Horace Fletcher. Thomas
Fletcher of Pine Bluff, erstwhile acting governor, de-

242 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
scended from the Fletchers of middle Tennessee, remotely con
nected to all branches of the various Arkansas Fletcher lines.
Joshua and Peter Fletcher, brothers, entered Arkansas in 1811,
and settled on the Mississippi river, in what is now Mississippi
County. Peter Fletcher remained where he settled and became
the head of a prominent family in that county, one of whom be
came prominent in the legislative history of the State. Joshua
Fletcher for some cause left Arkansas and nioved across the river
in 1819 into what is now Shelby County, and held many positions
of county honor in his new home. He was a member of the first
Grand Jury that ever convened in that county, and was a respect
able citizen in every particular. The land archives of the gov
ernment show that Joshua Fletcher actually made his settlement
in Mississippi County, Arkansas, in 1802; that he abandoned it
in 1806, and returned to it in 181 1, leaving it finally for Tennes
see in 1819.
In 1815 John Gould Fletcher settled on Fourche de Thomas,
Lawrence County, now Randolph, and died there in 1825. These
old people doubtless knew their relationship to each other, but
the younger descendants of the present day have lost the trace.
The resemblance of Thomas Fletcher, grandson of John Gould
Fletcher, to Thomas Fletcher, acting governor, and who hailed
from middle Tennessee, proves a consanguineal relationship, and
back in antiquity somewhere the ancestors of Horace Fletcher
and of the Arkansas and Tennessee Fletchers unite to form one
line. I have not traced Horace Fletcher's lineage sufficiently to
even name an approximate time for this union. The Fletcher
physiognomy, however, is so marked as to prove a family tie.
FLETCHERS DATE BACK TO 162O.
I am certain that no Lindseys were in Virginia on February
16, 1623, the date of the first census ever taken in America. It
is interesting to note that this most venerable roU shows John and
Richard Fletcher as among the living at that date, and what is
more valuable as separating the Baldwins in Connecticut from
those of Virginia, is the fact that Thomas Baldwin was then
living at Jordan's Point, Hugh Baldwin on the Main, John Bald
win at Jamestown.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 243
Thomas and two WilHam Baldwins at Elizabeth City. On
the roll of Virginia adventurers made up in London in 1620
stands the name of John Fletcher, contributing fifty pounds ster
ling and John Fletcher & Company, seventy-five pounds sterling.
Thus the Fletchers and Baldwins connect themselves with the
oldest American colony and the first settlement of America. Old
Isaac Baldwin of Pulaski County, 1820, is very probably a de
scendant of these Jamestown Baldwins.
Lawrence County presented many attractions to settlers
seeking new homes in the early part of the last century. That
two days work in the Arkansas district would contribute as much
to the support of a family as a week would do in the North and
East was prevalently believed at that time, and had much to do
with the migration of the period. Another element which had .a
large effect on the Tennessee migration was the excitement in
that State over the removal of the Cherokees to the West. In
dian agents told great stories of the St. Francis, the Black and
the AA'hite river regions to the Indians in Tennessee and North
Carolina, and young Tennesseeans hearing these stories took
dogs and guns and started on exploring expeditions. Return
ing, they had stUl larger stories to tell which resulted in whole
families pulling up stakes and starting for Arkansas. They were
either Indian fighters or sons of Indian fighters and were inured
to the hardships of hunting, trapping and fighting. For twenty
years Aliddle and East Tennessee had gone through the horrors
of Indian butcheries, and the cessation of hostilities brought such
a stagnation as to cause many of the more hardy ones to want
to move. In other cases, the emigrant wanted to find a region
where there were not so many people, where they could have
.more elbow room. HENRY LEWIS FLETCHER.
This man, born on the Watauga in 1788, entered Arkansas
before 181 5 and settled on Bayou De Mun in Lawrence County.
Along with him came his father, John Gould Fletcher, who died
in what is now Randolph County in 1825 or 1826, in his sixty-
sixth year. The father of John Gould Fletcher was Richard
Fletcher, of the Washington district on Watauga, who was a
pioneer in that region. The pioneers of Arkansas never under-

244 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
went the privations and horrors that the pioneers of East Ten
nessee had to undergo. In 1779 men from Virginia, Maryland,
Pennsylvania and North Carolina began to settle on Watauga,
where for thirty years they had to fight for their lives. They
were cut off from the protection of the colonial governments and
in self-defense forined governments of their own. In 1775 the
Washington District of Tennessee had all the forms of an in
dependent government and addressed a petition to the Assembly
of North Carolina reciting that they had organized a govern
ment; that they had sent troops eastward to help the colonies'
in their affairs and had directed other troops to quell the Indians.
The petition respectfully asked to be made a part of North Caro
lina, and to be given a chance to aid that colony repel British
aggressions. This petition is marked "Filed July 20, 1776," and
it must have been prepared early in that year. About one hun
dred names are affixed to it, among them being those of John
Sevier, Valentine Sevier, and the ancestor of our Arkansas fam
ily, Richard Fletcher.
In the next session of the North Carolina Assembly, later in
1776, Washington District was represented by delegates, so that
this petition had its effect. This government must not be con
founded with the State of Franklin, formed on the same grounds
by the same men later on. It was a government, however, which
stood for American Independence, and the action of these signers
contributed to the success of the American arms.
The Watauga settlement is the only settlement in the United
States where a Tory was not permitted to live. Richard Fletcher
was one of the original patentees to lands on the Watauga in
1775. It is said that every able-bodied man on Watauga rode
with Sevier to King's Mountain, but I have not been able to find
the muster roll of the heroes.
In aU probabUity Richard Fletcher was one of them, and it
is certain that Surgeon David Gould, father of Richard Fletcher's
wife, was a inember of the Virginia Continental Line. Others
of the name from the mountain regions of North Carolina who
participated in that war were Thomas Fletcher, John Fletcher,
Reuben Fletcher, Nathan Fletcher, William Fletcher and Abner
Fletcher. What relationships these bore to Richard Fletcher,

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 245
I can not say, but in all probability the relationship was close,
as they all hailed from the same region. Richard Fletcher died
and was buried on the Watauga; John Gould Fletcher, probably
the revolutionary soldier named above, died in Arkansas and
was buried on the De Mun; Henry Lewis Fletcher, born 1788,
died in Arkansas, and was buried on the Saline in 1840, leaving
children, Thomas, Henry L., John G., Jeff L., Richard, and sev
eral others most prominently identified for fifty years with every
interest of the State. Henry Lewis Fletcher, Sr. married in
1815, Mary, daughter of Caleb Lindsey, a Kentucky pioneer, on
De Mun, and very probably the first old field school teacher of
the State, as his brother, EH, was the first local preacher of the
Methodist church in Arkansas, beginning on Strawberry in Octo
ber, 1815. FLETCHERS IN PULASKI BEFORE 1830.
The census of 1830 shows Henry Lewis Fletcher a resident
of Pulaski County, with one person in the family from forty to
fifty years of age, one from thirty to forty, six children and eight
slaves. This put upon his shoulders the responsibility for the
support of a family of sixteen persons. Men of Arkansas for
the last fifty years have mingled with the sons of this old pioneer
and are in condition to estimate his mental and physical vigor.
Figs do not grow on thorns, nor do such men as the later Fletch
ers come from insignificant ancestors. The vigor of the old
Watauga struggles was perpetuated in the lives of the grandsons
and great-grandsons. Strong men do not come from castles
alone. The cabins of the West have been splendid hives for
thousands of our best moral, mental and physical leaders.
In the same census there was Thomas M. Fletcher, born
between 1800 and 1810, with a family of three chUdren, all living
in Pulaski County. EH Fletcher, born in the same period, with
a wife and one child, lived in the same township. Richard
Fletcher, born between 1790 and 1800, with a wife and six chil
dren, lived near. I suppose these were all brothers of old Lewis
H. Fletcher and sons of John Gould Fletcher, the pioneer in the
cabin on the De Mun.
Away up in Randolph County at the same time lived John
Fletcher, born between 1780 and 1790, with a wife and seven

246 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
children. This John was either the eldest of old John Gould
Fletcher's children or the second child. Near him lived Levi
Fletcher, born between 1800 and 1810, with a wife, no children
and two slaves. Thus of all the progeny of John Gould Fletcher,
a great and mighty race, there were but two who owned slaves
in 1830, Henry L. Fletcher of Pulaski County and Levi Fletcher
of Randolph County.
Just who Captain Fred Fletcher of Old Crawford County
was, I cannot say, but he was surely a descendant of John Gould
Fletcher. He lived around Cadron and organized a coinpany of
cavalry in the spring of 1824 for Indian activity.
AA'hen John Gould Fletcher left the Watauga Settlement he
went to Stewart County, Tennessee. There his son John mar
ried a Skinner, a daughter of the proprietor of a very extensive
iron works which flourished there in that day. In that neigh
borhood the Fletchers and Lindseys began to intermarry, and in
the after migration to Christian County, Kentucky, and to Ran
dolph County, Arkansas, went together. Caleb Lindsey, the
father of Alary Lindsey, who married Henry L. Fletcher, had in
addition to Alary, six other children ; Betsy, who married Martin
Fletcher, a brother of Henry L. Fletcher, and who died in Pulaski
County in December, 1826, Abijah Davis and Richard Fletcher
administering upon his estate; John Young Lindsey, who mar
ried Jennie Davis ; Agnes Lindsey, who married Richard Fletcher.
another brother of Henry L. Fletcher; Sally Lindsey, who mar
ried AA'ill AA'illiams ; Caleb Lindsey, who married Rebecca Bril-
hardt, and another daughter who married Doctor Hoover at
Davidsonville, in 1824. Henry Lewis Fletcher died in SaHne
County in 1855. Caleb Lindsey, Sr., died in Pulaski County in
November, 1826, Sarah Lindsey and John Y. Lindsey administer
ing. The sons of Henry Lewis Fletcher were Thomas, John
Gould, Henry Lewis, Richard, Jefferson L. and Martin Franklin.
Alartin Franklin Fletcher died several years ago in Cam
den leaving a son, Wiley Lewis Fletcher who married Pauline
O'Connell, and had one daughter, Olivia Fletcher, who is now
the wife of C. W. Cherry of Little Rock. Upon the death of

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 247
Wiley Lewis Fletcher, his widow, Mrs. Pauline Fletcher, became
the wife of Dr. Lindsey of Little Rock.
THE LATE THOMAS FLETCHER.
Of the sons of old Henry Lewis Fletcher, Thomas was
next to the eldest, having been born in Arkansas on the De Mun,
April 8, 1817, dying in Little Rock in February, 1900, being
eighty-three years of age, all of which were spent on Arkansas
soil. Who will write the biography of Uncle Tom Fletcher?
There is no one better fitted for the task than his gifted son,
John, the attorney in Little Rock. To write that history will
be to write almost all the history of Arkansas, but there has
been no character on Arkansas soil more worthy of an extended
biography. Born in Randolph County in 1817, he came with
his parents into Pulaski County in 1825. The old homestead
was cut off by the legislature into Saline County in 1835, but
in 1844, after his marriage to Lucinda Beaver of Henderson
County, Kentucky, Uncle Tom moved into Pulaski County,
where he remained until his death. He served as sheriff of
Pulaski County from 1858 to 1862, and in 1862 was sent to
the State legislature; was a member of the Confederate legis
lature in 1864, and in 1866 was re-elected sheriff of Pulaski
County; licensed to practice law in 1868, and candidate for the
Democratic nomination for governor in 1878. It was in this
race that Uncle Tom disposed of one of his opponents by a
fatherly shake of the head and the -words : "As to my friend,
Smithee, he's young ; he can afford to wait." To which Smithee
innocently retorted: "True, I can afford it, but that is not the
question. Can Arkansas afford it?" As an appointee of Presi
dent Cleveland, he served as United States marshal for fhe
Eastern District of Arkansas with credit to himself and to the
administration. No more vigorous man ever lived in the State,
and he will forever remain a fine type of the old regime of hon
est, earnest, able men.
Lucinda Beaver, wife of Thomas Fletcher, was a daughter
of Stephen Beaver, born February 10, 1823, in Lincoln County,
Tennessee. Stephen Beaver entered Tennessee in the first dec
ade of the nineteenth century from Beaver County, Pennsyl
vania. Two other daughters of this old couple married Ar-

248 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
kansas gentlemen, Sarah and Nancy; Sally marrying John
Aloose, becoming the head of the noted famUy at Morrillton,
and Nancy who married John Milner and became the head
of a family in South Arkansas. The wife of Stephen Beaver
was Nancy AA'hite, whose father, as well as Stephen Beaver, are
said to have been soldiers in the Revolutionary AA'ar. The chil
dren of Thomas Fletcher and Lucinda Beaver who lived to rear
families were five in number :
I. Henry Lewis Fletcher, who married Cumi Smith, and
had two children, Thomas Milton Fletcher, a physician at Paris,
Arkansas, and Mary C. (Fletcher) Daniel, who lives at Palarm,
Arkansas. 2. Richard Fletcher, deceased, who married LUHe Dea But
ler, and had three chUdren; Elizabeth married Allen Johnson,
who died leaving a daughter, Elizabeth; James Richard Fletcher,
who married Mary Collins in October, 1907, and LiUie Dea
Fletcher, who married Mr. W. C. Cherry of Nashville, Tennes
see, in June, 1907.
3. John Fletcher, attorney at Little Rock, who married
Alary Emily Moose, a granddaughter of John and Sally (Beaver)
Aloose, and had one son, Thomas. They reared another -boy,
Ellis Ford.
4. Nancy A. Fletcher, who married J. B. Miles, and died
leaving a daughter, Nancy, who married W. M. Tatum, and be
came the mother of several children.
5. Caleb Lindsey Fletcher married Elizabeth Medlock, and
died leaving one daughter. Alma Elizabeth Fletcher, who is still
unmarried, and living in the old homestead at Ninth and Cum
berland, in Little Rock.
Richard Fletcher served in the Sixth legislature from Pu
laski County, with Charles P. Bertrand and Peter L. Crutch-
field as associates. He was then sent to the Senate and served
through the Eighth and Ninth legislatures. Jefferson and Henry
never sought office, but were fine types of manly citizens. Henry
Lewis, Jr., born in 1833, married .Susan Bricelin in Pulaski
County and died in 1896, his wife being still alive. Her father
was Milo Bricelin and her mother, Pamelia Baldwin, a daughter
of Isaac Baldwin of Pulaski County. I was well acquainted
with Henry L. Fletcher, Jr., and have known no man for whom

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 249
I had a higher regard. His daughter, Mary Pamelia Fletcher,
is one of the best women of Little Rock.
John G. Fletcher was possibly the most prominent banker the
State has ever had, and was most prominently connected with
every great enterprise that had for its object the permanent
uplift of the State. This is a short resume of the Fletcher
family from 1770 to the present time. It is a clean, refreshing
record of the Wataugan principle, "Independent thinking cou
pled with a clean life, leads to competence here and happiness
hereafter." THE LEWIS FAMILY OF LAWRENCE COUNTY.
The career of John Gould Fletcher, who died in Randolph
County in 1825 or 1826, is not fully developed. Its greater part
was spent in the mountain fastnesses of western North Caro
lina, southwestern Virginia and east Tennessee. He was prob
ably in the Revolutionary war and was certainly connected
with all the Indian struggles on Watauga. He saw his brother,
Thomas, scalped by Indian savages, together with his nephew,
Thomas, and had grcJUnd into him the principles of an actual
struggle for existence which developed aU the latent powers
of manhood. He married a Lewis, one of the family that for
heroism and privation stands unequaled in historic fact. When
the sentimental and fictitious strenuosity of Theodore Roose
velt shall have been forgotten the strenuous lives of the Lewises
will remain. Five statues of the Lewis men adorn the Wash
ington monument in Richmond, Virginia, and all Virginia, Ken
tucky, North Carohna and Tennessee history abounds with
their names. The battle of Point Pleasant, in Virginia, is a mon
ument to the courage and leadership of five Lewis boys.
John Gould Fletcher married into this family on the Wa
tauga, and in that neighborhood spent the greater part of his mar
ried life. In that neighborhood in 1772 the family of WUliam
Lewis, consisting of himself, his wife and five children, were
brutally murdered by the Indians. Two small chUdren, a boy
and a girl, were carried into captivity and afterwards ransomed
by the pioneers of the Watauga. Thirteen of the Lewis family
v/ere in the Revolutionary war from North Carolina and more
than twice that number from Virginia. The old town of David-

250 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
sonville in Lawrence County was laid off by the descendants of
the Tennessee Lewis family, and the blood of the family is car
ried by more than a thousand of Arkansas' sons and daughters.

CHAPTER XXXI.
Edmund Hogan.
The Hogan famil}' dates back in Georgia history to the
ante-revolutionary days, and the father of Edmund Hogan,
the subject of our sketch, was a wealthy and prominent Georgian
during the Revolution and the days that followed. Both he
and his son were members of the Georgia legislature, and Ed
mund was a brave soldier in the war of 1812. In 1817, before
the creation of Pulaski County, Edmund Hogan removed from
Georgia to the Territory of Missouri, and settled in what is now
Pulaski County, at Crystal Hill. He brought with him several
slaves and a large amount of money. In fact he was reputed in
the earlier da}-s of the county to be one of its richest men, but
owing to his generous disposition and the numerous land suits
engaged in by him he had lost at the time of his death a large
amount of his wealth. He bought the pre-emption claims of
Thomas Pharr, near the lands located by John Carnahan, and
erected thereon a fine residence and numerous other buildings.
It was the handsome residence of Edmund Hogan, as well as
the fine elevation of Crystal Hill that led Governor Miller to
make his residence at that place, and to urge it as the most
suitable location for the capital of the State.
Edmund Hogan was the first' justice of the peace appointed
by the authorities of the Territory of Missouri in Pulaski County
upon the formation of that county in 1818, which position he
held for many years thereafter under the laws of the Territory
of Arkansas. In this capacity he celebrated many of the early
marriages of the territory, the most prominent of which was
that of Henry P. Pyatt, son of the pioneer, to Miss Carnahan,
daughter of Rev. John Carnahan, the first Presbyterian preacher
of the territory, on February 10, 1820. Crystal HiU was then
the center of fashion and intelligence of Pulaski County, and also

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 251
the center of the religious influences whici^ even at that early
date were beginning to permeate the territory.
BRIG.\DIER GENERAL OF ARKANSAS MILITIA.
Edmund Hogan in the war of 1812 made a good sol lier,
and when his record was presented to President Monroe, upon
the death of Brigadier General Allen, he was appointed on March
24, 1 82 1, as brigadier general of the Arkansas militia, which po
sition he held until 1825, wlien he was succeeded by an appointee
of President Adams, namely Brigadier General Bradford of
the regular army, then stationed at Fort Smith.
General Hogan took great interest in his military position,
and in conjunction with Governor MiUer tried to bring the
mUitia of the State to a high degree of perfection. He was not
successful, however, save in towns like Arkansas Post and Lit
tle Rock. He made a fine appearance in his regimentals, as did
the subordinate ofificers. At that time there were quite a number
of soldiers who had served in the war of 1812 in the territory,
and it may be said with a large degree of truth that the militia
of the Territory of Arkansas from 1821 to 1825 was largely
made up of this soldiery. The territory contained several men
who had risen to the rank of colonel in that war, and hundreds
who had been majors, captains or lieutenants. They were all
of the Western type, free and easy in their manners, very out
spoken in their conversation and therefore very hard to con
trol. They were not bad men, but men of independence of
character and very tenacious of their opinions. General Taylor
of the regular army, or as he was famUiarly caUed, "Old Rough
and Ready" was of this type of men. When General" Scott
issued his tactics in 1835, or thereabouts, a copy was sent to all
the inferior officers of the army, among whom was General
Taylor. Taylor looked at it, turned over all its leaves
and then remarked : "This is another of Scott's novels." He
then pitched it into his trunk and commanded his army according
tc his own rules of warfare upon tactics which suited him and
the soldiers of the West.
Hogan had considerable force of character, and being a
superior soldier managed to control the combustible elements
of which the mihtia was formed at that time, and to make of

252 Pioneers and Alakers of Arkansas
them most serviceable soldiers. They were never called into ac
tion, but had there been occasion, Hogan's soldiers would have
made a record. Hogan also had to contend with numerous
land claimants, whose attorney was Colonel A. S. Walker, a
foe not unworthy the general's steel. Both ihen were given to
bluffing to a large extent, but both were brave and true as steel.
Hogan spent a large part of his money to defend his holdings
and a still greater sum to maintain his position in the community
according to his ideas of the demand of a gentleman and gen
eral. He entertained lavishly, and was one of the most popular
men of earlv Arkansas history.
BITTER POLITICAL CAMPAIGN.
One of the most bitter contests known to Arkansas his
tory occurred in 1825, when Colonel A. S. Walker was pitted
against General Edmund Hogan for a seat in the council of
the Fourth Territorial Legislature. Invective was largely in
dulged in and feelings aroused, which were not quieted by time.
By throwing out one township Hogan was declared elected
by the narrow majority of thirteen; Walker would not stand
for this and a new election was ordered in which Walker was
elected. Alany prominent citizens of the county were drawn
into the controversy on one side or the other, and out of it
grew the lamentable circumstances whicii led to the general's
death. In the canvass for the legislature of 1827, three can
didates were before the people. Colonel Walker, General Hogan
and Judge Scott. Pretty much the same canvass was made this
year as had been made two years before, except that the in
vective was greater and the atmosphere considerably hotter.
Hogan was elected and ever}-body settled down to quiet life
not thinking that a great tragedy was on the eve of enactment.
So far as AA'alker was concerned he appears to have dropped out
of the limelight, and Judge Scott to have taken his place. After
the election was over the people resumed the usual tenor of
their ways, and on the surface everything appeared quiet.
In 1828. on Alay 31st, a great public hanging occurred in
Little Rock, at which men gathered from far and near. When
the hanging was over the crowd dispersed, those living at a

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 253
distance taking their horses and riding away. Judge Scott
after witnessing the execution wended his way to the store of
McLane & Badgett on the west side of Main street. Here
surrounded by a number of Little Rock citizens he was dis
cussing the circumstances of the hanging, when General Ho
gan entered the store.
The general was a man weighing nearly three hundred
pounds, tall and straight as an arrow, and with a physique as
powerful as that of a lion. He always made a fine appearance
either on foot or on horseback, and was a man of almost super
human strength. Judge Scott was a small man, not weighing
more than one hundred and thirty pounds, and as weak as
General Hogan was strong. Scott was a giant in niental furni
ture, but a weakling in the matter of physique. Nobody ex
pected the difficulty, not even Hogan or Scott. The conversa
tion went on, both Scott and Hogan taking part in it, at times,
and neither showing any animosity one to the other. As conver
sations ordinarily do, this one soon diverged from the hanging
to politics, and before the men knew it they were discussing
the old Walker and Hogan race. This seemed to revive in the
mind of General Hogan something that occurred in the trian
gular race between himself. Walker and Scott. He turned
to Scott and accused him of writing a letter into one
township derogatory to the character of Hogan. Scott
at once informed the general that he had been misinformed.
Hogan reiterated the statement and said that he believed that
it was true. Scott denied it again, and remarked that if he
made it as a statement of his own that it was false.
HOW HOGAN MET HIS DEATH.
Both men were standing up. No sooner had Scott made the
last remark than Hogan, with a powerful sweep of his arm,
felled Scott to the floor, where for an instant he remained in
an apparently senseless condition. As he revived he struggled
to his feet, and Hogan squared himself for another blow. As
Scott arose he very dextrously unsheathed a dirk from a sword
cane which he carried, and before Hogan could strike the second
blow, had plunged the dirk several times into the body of Gen-

254 Pioneers and iMakers of Arkansas
eral Hogan. Hogan fell and expired within an hour. Every
body was amazed and likewise horrified. Judge Scott was ar
rested by his brother. United States Alarshal George Scott,
and taken before an ofificer for trial. The facts as stated
above were there proven, and the court held Hogan to have been
the aggressor and released Judge Scott. It was everywhere
remarked that the blow of Hogan would have killed an ordinary
man. Thus perished one of the oldest and best citizens of Pu
laski County. Judge Scott, while regretting the circumstance,
always held that he could not have done otherwise than he did.
Both men were thoughtful, humane and most progressive citi
zens, and the entire community was shadowed with gloom over
the lamentable aft'air. The residence of Hogan at Crystal Hill
was noted by Nuttal in 1819, and from that time on until thd
date of his death was one of the best known residences in the
county. William Hogan was married in Pulaski County on
Alarch 25, 1825, to Alary Rankin, but whether he was a son of
General Hogan or not I am not informed.
General Bradford held the position of brigadier-general
from 1825 until the date of his death in 1826, when he was suc
ceeded by Colonel John Nicks of Crawford County. General
Xicks was one of the strong characters of early Arkansas his
tory. He represented Crawford County in the House of Repre
sentatives in the Third and Fourth legislatures, and was noted
for his strong common sense and sterling courage.
CATERED TO ALL TASTES.
The first county seaf of St. Francis County was called
Franklin, and was located at a point which before that had been
known as the "old Cherokee village." It was near the United
States road from Alemphis to Little Rock, and two miles from
the St. Francis river. Its first public buUdings were begun in
1832. The inducements offered by the people for settlers were
two: First — A respectable Bible Society for the improvement
of those who felt desirous of promoting the cause of religion.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 255
Second — .-A face course for the recreation of those who de
vote a portion of their time to the scenes of high life in con
nection with the respectable jockey club.

CHAPTER XXXII.
The "Two P" Architecture — The Martins.
One of the quaintest conceits of family history is the fa
mous "Three Brothers Theory." One came over and settled
in New England ; another in A^irginia, and the third further
south. The conclusion drawn is that all of the name descend
from these brothers. This is unmitigated bosh. Another is
the Northern and Southern "branch" theories. This is greater
bosh than the other. Every man of the name came over at any
time formed the prepositus of the branch, and the branches do
not descend from any one man in the North and another 'man in
the South. I read a short time ago that all the Williams in
the LTnited States descended from some old emigrant up in
Massachusetts. What humbug ! There were at least five Wil
liams in A'irginia before the Alayflower ever came to the rock
where — - The Puritans landed and fell on their knees
And then — on the Aborigines.
AU of these Williams had families, and there is no proof
that the original immigrants were related. So it is evident that
there are several thousand Williams in the United States not
descended from the New England stock, who can claim an older
residence in .-America. I have spent eleven years on the Wil
liams pedigree in order to gratify a certain fair lady who was
born a WiUiams, but who in deference to me, changed her
name to Shinn. After all sorts of investigation, running through
years, I landed her line in unbroken continuity in an old log
cabin of David Williams, Jamestown, Virginia, of 1609. There
were other Williams' there then, viz. : Thomas of Jordan's Point
Henry of the same place, Robert of the plantation above and

256 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
Rowland of Brick Row, and for one hundred .years afterwards
hardly a ship landed without one of the name, each be
coming the prepositus of a line. Then after other, years I as
certained that the David AA'illiams of Jamestown, A'irginia, was
not the ancestor of my wife, but that another David of the
eastern shore, of Alaryland of 1660 was the ancestor, which
brought in another distinct line of ancient AViUiams. So of coats
of arms. These are property and descend to the issue of the
original grantees or creators. The coUateral kin. have no title
whatever. If a coat of arms is two thousand years old, there
is a greater possibility that all of the name may claim it, but it
is not sure. One must prove his lineal descent from an armored
ancestor before he can claim the arms. Then the coat of arms
of a father may be changed by the son, and again by the grand
son. AU descendants of the father may claim his armorial bear
ings, but they may not claim those of the son or grandson.
arkaxs-\s architecture.
Every age has produced an architecture, which in a sense
characterizes the age and comes to the dignity of an order.
The seven orders of ancient architecture have been made the
theme of many articles and are well known, as is the Colonial style
of early America. Not so well known, however-, to the literary
world, is the architectural order established by early Arkansas
pioneers. It is hardly true that this order was the evolution of
pure Arkansas thought since it found place everywhere in the
Alississippi A'alley. It has never been named, and for continuity
of thinking I propose to label it the "Two P" order of architec
ture, the latest, if not the most prevalent style of house build
ing. It derived its name from the significant fact that it con
sisted of two pens and a passage. Logs round or squared were
notched and laid on each other until a pen of the required size
was laid about eight feet high ; then another pen was made
about twelve feet from the first and built to the same heighth.
Then longer logs were laid over both pens so as to make a pas
sage between the pens. Then the whole edifice was covered
with clapboards and the structure was complete. These houses
were immensely popular and covered Arkansas in 1830. In one

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 257
pen cooking and eating went on, and the other contained the
piano and harpischord. The sitting room where melons
were cut and horses swapped, was in the passage. The sleep
ing apartments were in the loft, reached by a cleat ladder on
the sides of the pen. More great men and women of early
times were reared in these double log pens with a passage than
in castles or marble fronts. In fact a boy or a girl coming from
these last establishments was looked upon as a doubtful quan
tity. Then the furnishing of the pen and the passage was a tri
umph in every particular. Modern writers lampoon it for in
congruity, but what of that? Are there no incongruities to
day? What relation does a Louis XIV set of exquisite chairs
in a modern parlor bear to an antique oak dining room set?
Or how connect a Brussels carpet with cheap plush parlor sets?
What relation has a silver sugar bowl to a fifty cent set of
plates? True there was incongruitiy in the old time houses,
but let not the guilty descendants of their owners throw the
first stones. music of the three p's.
In old times as you sat in the passage you heard the music
of pigs, poultry and the piano. Horrid, you say ! WeU, I don't
know. Many old pigs made better music than scores of
modern pianos. Any old time piano player in the log cabins
had the art of playing instead of thumping, and pigs and poul
try ceased grunting and cackling to listen to the grander music.
Our ancestors had cornmeal products side by side with cus
tards. Our filet mignon de Meyerbeer combines the tenderloin
with toad stools and chicken gizzards. In the old houses you
could see sand, sawdust and silver, tubs, teapots and tapestry,
metals, mosquitos and mahogany, gourds, gimlets and gera
niums. Happy combinations ! Wonderful ideas I In our mod
ern style we combine saloons, saliva and sacristans ; pewter,
pomatum and priceless prints; feather beds and finger bowls;
bats, balls and Bibles, and so on to the end.

258 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
OLD TIME mother wit.
In Conway County there happened to be a neighborhood
of old timers who came in 1819; near by was another band of
immigrants from Illinois who came in 1830. The first set hav
ing lived on the soil eleven years were natives and held their
heads high above the other set. They had to worship God in
the same house, but they sat on different sides. Sometimes the
women met but they did not mix. They always clashed. One
day an old maid from the Illinois set got out of humor and
said : "You sisters on that side of the house are the most can
tankerous people I ever saw. I have seen sassy people, but of all
sassy people in the world Arkansassy people are the worst."
Amidst loud applause from her side she sat down. Then an
other old maid from the other side got up and said : "I hate
noisy people, and of all the noisy people in the world the lUinoisy
ones are the worst." Great was the applause on the other side.
Here we have the genesis of the modern womans' clubs of the
State and their motive. The idea is always to do the other
fellow before he does you, and if he does get his oar in first,
come back with remark called for brevity, "The Retort Courte
ous." The humor of the old Conway Club was that the young peo
ple of these two factions had to intermarry, and the chUdren
were not onl}- "sassy" but "noisy," which accounts for a great
deal of our modern history.
But mother wit was not confined to the female portion of
the communities. Some of the boys had all of it, and their
mothers very little. There was William R. Miller of Miller's
Creek. He was born on the soil and was a holy terror as a
boy. Some wise heads said "That he would come to no good
end," while others said, "Pshaw, BiU MUler will be governor;
mark my words." Now putting aside the reflection that the two
remarks coincide, let us look for the future governor's style.
In 1836 the Van Buren campaign was on and Bill Miller, a
sixteen-year-old boy, seeing young Fent Noland, an ardent young
Whig, approaching him on the boulevard of BatesvUle, yelled
out:

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 259
"Hurrah for Van Buren."
Fent Noland immediately replied :
"Hurrah for a jackass."
To which the future governor roared :
"That's right Fent, you holler for your candidate, and I'll
holler for mine."
This made Bill Miller the hero of the Democrats, and Fent
Noland his life-long friend. MiUer had to wait a long time for his
reward as governor, but he finally made his mark.
OLD time critical ACUMEN.
In a newspaper of New York City, bearing date, 1822, I
found an article which said that the editor of the Little Rock
Gazette, WiUiam E. Woodruff, had criticized Noah Webster
for putting the word "lengthy" in the dictionary. "What are we
coming to?" asked Woodruff. "If the word is permitted to
stand, the next edition will authorize the word 'strengthy.' "
The New York journalist said that "Our contemporary in the
Great West is right about the matter, but old Noah will have
his way." One does not read far in BUly Woodruff's thesaurus
of Arkansas happenings before he concludes that the editor was
a most thoughtful man, and that his range of subjects were very
great and his method of treatment original and profound. He
educated a lot of Arkansas printers, who under the laws of na
ture came to have papers of their own and then turned upon
the old man to rend him. He was as brave as Julius Csesar,
and was never the first to cry, enough.
OLD GAZETTE MARRIAGE POETRY.
The Gazette of May 29, 1839, contained the following:
"On May 28, 1839, Allen Martin of Pulaski County was
married to Mahala Rowland, daughter of Thomas Rowland of
Saline County, by Rev. J. W. Moore."
Then the Gazette followed with this gem of poetry, which
the Martins may put in their scrap books, if they choose, and
other benedicts may follow suit.

26o Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
Huzza for the married men true,
. Huzza for the men who have -wives.
It's better to stick to your dearie like glue
Than single to hve the days of your lives.
So do-wn -with the bachelors, gloomy and sad,
Up with the married men, merry and glad.
OLD PULASKI PIONEERS.
The Alartins date back to 1817, coming in with that grand
old guard "Rector's Surveyors." The family on Little Rock
soil is older than Little Rock, and is a strong and reputable
family today. It has been largely a family of surveyors and
their work has established lines and monuments which in their
totality make the security of Arkansas. A Martin married a
Daniels, daughter of Wright Daniels, September 16, 1820, at
Little Rock. AA'ho this was I do not know. Certain it is that
one Allen Alartin was on the north side of Arkansas river in
1819, but whether he was the lucky man to marry this fair
woman, I cannot say. Wright Daniels was one of the oldest
settlers of Pulaski, a most industrious man, the owner of a
grist mill, and the father of beautiful daughters. Jared C.
Martin on January 25, 1827, married Mary, daughter of John
Douglas. Here are two old Martin marriages, brothers, which
form stems for two great families, James Martin died in 1826,
and Alartha Martin, his widow, and Allen Martin were ap
pointed executors. This James may have been a brother of
Alien and Jared C. Alartin.
Ezekiel Douglas and his son, John, settled in Pyatt town
ship, in 1819, but John Douglass in 1820 entered land five miles
below Little Rock, at a time when only one log house stood where
Little Rock now stands. At the same time, three Martins,
known to be brothers, were in the neighborhood, Hutcheson,
Allen and Jared C. Hutcheson ran a ferry boat and was prob
ably the one that married a Daniels. This was James Hutche
son Alartin, who in addition to running a ferry kept an inn on
the north side of the river. He died in February, 1826, at the
house of Reuben J. Blount, and his widow married Judge Da-

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 261
vid Rorer in March, 1827. Allen and Jared C. erected a tomb
stone to Hutcheson in 1857. AUen Martin was county surveyor
of Pulaski County from 1825 to 1830, and Jared C. Martin
county treasurer from 1840 to 1842. Allen Martin was sheriff
from 1836 to 1838, and member of Arkansas Legislative Coun
cil, 1831-33, while Jared C. Martin was member of the Arkansas
legislature from 1842 to 1844. On September 13, 1829, a
double funeral was preached at the house of David Rorer by
Rev. S. T. Toncray, commemorative of the death of Wright
Daniel and James Hutcheson Martin. There was a known
fourth brother of Hutcheson, Allen and Jared C, named An
drew, who was judge at Jackson, Missouri, and who died there
September 6, 1834, aged forty-two years. These old pioneers,
Martin, Daniel and Douglas, have left a most honorable line of
descendants, who stUl do honor to the State.
ALLEN MARTIN.
Since writing the above, I have received from Miss Ma
hala Isabella Martin of Midland, Texas, and a daughter of old
Allen Martin, the following matter which I publish entire:
"Our father, Allen Martin, son of John Martin and Eliza
beth (Allen) Martin, both from near Belfast, Ireland, was born
in Washington County, Georgia, November 10, 1801.
"His father moved with the family to Louisiana territory
and settled near Jackson, Cape -Girardeau County, Missouri.
In this new home AUen's father died in July, 1808, leaving him
to work and study under the care of his mother until he was
seventeen years old. That year, 1818, he, with his own chain,
compass, etc., helped survey the route from Memphis, Tennes
see, to Fulton, Arkansas, said route known as the military
road. He then returned to his mother's home full of desire to
come to Arkansas territory. About 182 1, he and his brother,
Jared Carswell Martin, came to Little Rock country, at that
time only one little log cabin on the site of the now beautiful city
of Little Rock, secured land round about what is now known
as Mabelvale, made some improvements and returned to Mis
souri.

262 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
"Their mother moved with them to their new home one and
one-half miles apart, and died in Allen's home in 1840 on the 28th
of June— seventy five years old. Allen's first marriage was
to Alahala Collins Rowland in i839> ^^ay 28th. On July 17th,
1840, she died, leaving a son nine days old. He niarried (the
second time) Alaria Shackleford Rowland, who had cared for
the little boy, John Rowland Martin, since her sister's death,
this marriage occurring on May 24th, 1842.
"Allen Alartin was a very accurate and successful civU engin
eer and sectionized a large part of the State of Arkansas, and
was a trusted reference for facts and conditions all over the
State of Arkansas as long as he lived. His memory was re
markably faithful, so much so that he could even recall different
things he was doing the day his first wife was born.
"He and his brother, Jared, with whipsaws, sawed the
necessary planks for flooring, doors, etc., needed in the con
struction of their log homes. They burned brick and built chim
neys, some of which are still standing. In 1857, Allen with
his family left the home of thirty-six happy years to move to
Red River County, Texas, where he settled ten miles east of
Clarksville. "Allen was always full of public enterprise, ever doing
something to help his neighbors and further the welfare of his
community. He loved the Methodist church of which he was
a faithful member from 1842 till his death in 1872."
This is a splendid letter and will be prized by not only the
descendants of Allen Martin, but by all the descendants of old
John and Elizabeth Allen Martin. It is incorrect in minor par
ticulars. The military road was not established until 1824, and
the road indicated by Miss Martin was the continuation of what
was then called the military road from St. Genevieve, Alissouri,
to Little Rock, Arkansas, upon which work from Little Rock
to Fulton, Allen Martin was engaged in 1818. He was after
wards employed in surveying Conway's military road, 1824-5,
from Alemphis to Little Rock.
There was another brother, John Martin, who entered Ar
kansas at a very early date and settled on Poke Bayou, flfteen

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 263
miles from Batesville, where he lived until driven from home by
the events of the Civil War, to the home of his daughter, Eliza
beth Alahala Watkins, wife of Dr. Owen Watkins of La Crosse,
Izard County, Arkansas. He died there in September, 1864,
almost seventy-six years of age. When John Martin, the an
cestor of this family left Georgia, the governor of that com
monwealth in a testimonial under the State seal certifled to the
fair name of John Martin and stated that he was a faithful sol
dier in the war for American Independence. His sons, John
Alartin and James Hutcheson Martin, were volunteers in the
war of 181 2 and did honorable service for their country.
Jared Carswell Allen stuck to Pulaski County and left the
following well-known descendants: ¦v.-
I. James Allen Martin, who married Huldah T. Toncray,
draighter of Silas T. Toncray, the pioneer Baptist preacher.
James Allen Alartin was a material addition to the State's prog
ress, and no history of value wiU ever omit his name. He was
honest, just and courageous, and aU religions were bettered by
hii existence. He belonged to the Christian Church, however,
and that body of people throughout the State owe much to his
consistency and general good character. He left three children
to honor his name.
"* 2. AA^illiam Andrew Martin, who married Sue R. Hamlet
and left three children.
3 MoUie Douglas Martin, who married James Jared Mar
tin, her cousin, son of John Martin of Poke Bayou. I know no
better law than the one that the husband is a full half of his wife,
and following that law and speaking for my wife, I note MoUie
D. Martin as one of the best of Little Rock's splendid women.
There were five children of this marriage.
4. Jared Carswell Martin, who married Fanny Foy, daugh
ter of William Foy. He has now three Hvipg children, one of
wdiich, Blanche, is a graduate of Vassar.
5. Henry Gibson Martin, who married Clara Davis, and
though without children, are a couple standing among the very
best of the citizenship of Little Rock.

264 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
I knew the descendants of Jared Carswell Martin, and with
out disparaging the merits of descendants of John and Allen,
desire to say that, in my opinion, no better people ever lived.
Thoinas Rowland was one of the pioneers, as was R. N.
Rowland. The latter was county surveyor of Pulaski County
from 1830 to 1832, and from 1836 to 1838. Thomas Rowland
was a public spirited man and one of the incorporators of Ben
ton Academy, Saline County. G. Douglass was county surveyor
from 1838 to 1840, but of his relationship to Ezekiel Douglas,
I am not advised.

CHAPTER XXXIIL ,
Henry L. Biscoe.
Are we wiser today than the pioneers? It is no answer to
this to say that everybody finds it natural and easy to de
plore and to denounce the errors and crimes of past times. But
are we at the same time finding it easy and natural to abandon
the prejudices and predispositions of today?. What we do is
right, because we are at the helm, but when we shall have passed
away will not our very righteousness be condemned by those
who follow us? In other words, have our heads grown larger
or smaller during the century of our existence as a State ?
Professor Carl Pearson and Dr. Bernard Hollander, to
gether with various hat manufacturing establishments, say that
our heads are larger today than they were one hundred years
ago. This may be good news, and it may be bad news. There
have been large heads in Arkansas which were admittedly good
heads, a good example being that of Senator Garland. On the
other hand, there have been large heads that were disappointing
to say the least. It must be admitted that there have been a
great number of smaU heads in Arkansas, who have reaUy done
wonders. It would be so manifestly unjust to particularize
that we let it go at that. Roughly speaking, alertness of intel
lect belongs to the small head; profundity to the large head.

I
Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 265
Admitting that exceptions abound, we would suggest that large
heads are slow and sure, but there is no proof that we today
have a greater number of these in proportion than had the
pioneers. If the dehberations of large heads usually result in
conclusions that are sound morally as well as logically, then
large heads are just what Arkansas wants. No doubt the heads
of a considerable section are today as they were in the past,
far too small, as the historical, expression "cymlin head," ban
died in legislative halls and the newspapers, fairly proves. It
is this section that has probably yielded measurements to the
learned doctors and professors, to say nothing of the hatters,
and if this is true the finding that heads are growing larger is
absolutely good news, providing always that the skulls are not
growing thicker. AN OLD ARKANSAS PIONEER AT HELENA.
One of the earliest large heads to come to Arkansas was
that carried on the shoulders of a young man from Richmond,
Virginia, whose name was Henry L. Biscoe. He came early in
1819, before Governor Miller had reached the territory, and took
residence at Arkansas Post, where he announced it as his inten
tion to stay. He had no ofifice under the government, nor did
he seem to want one, although his life was checkered with ofifice
holding years. His people, back in Virginia, were of the most
respectable kind and his education had therefore been the most
liberal. His career, however, had to be made, and Richmond
at that time was crowded with well-educated, ambitious young
men, who might and would win, but who would have to wait a
very long time for their laurels. Elbow room is a great thing,
and it is a sign of a great mind for a young man to decide
that his home field is too crowded for his rapid development,
and who casts aside his easier and more settled life for the
greater and harder ordeals of a life in the woods.
Such a man was Henry L. Biscoe, who left Richmond soon
after Congress had created the Territory of Arkansas for a home
at Arkansas Post. He lived at Arkansas Post during the greater
part of 18 19, and in 1820 he divided his home between the Post

266 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
and Clark County. There was some close connection between
Clark County and Arkansas Post, not fully disclosed by the rec
ords. Why Jacob Barkman should maintain a home five miles
from the Post, and another in Clark County is not now known, but
the fact remains that he did. Colonel Walker was an Arkansas
Post man as to residence, and at the same time sheriff of Hemp
stead County. S. M. Rutherford was a clerk for years at the
Post, and maintained a home there even after opening an office
in Clark. Sam C. Roane had a home at the Post, another in
Clark, and still another in Pulaski. Henry L. Biscoe was ap
pointed clerk of the Circuit Court of Clark County in 1820,
which position he held until 1823 when he was appointed as
sistant United States Marshal. The town of Biscoeville was
named for him in 1821. HIS CAREER AS MARSHAL.
Mr. Biscoe was a man of indomitable courage and inured
to every variety of hardships. One of the most picturesque and
dangerous expeditions ever undertaken by an Arkansas official
was one cast upon him while assistant marshal and which in
volved the arrest of a half-breed Indian, Tom Graves, who had
violated the national law in Clark County and fled to the In
dian reservation in the West. Believing that the Cherokees had
grown contemptuous of the white courage, and that, if the law
of the whites was to be vindicated, and the rule of the whites
perpetuated, Biscoe held that a supreme example was necessary
to impress the natives and prevent the recurrence of similar
crimes, and that this half-breed should be brought back to Clark
County and made to suffer the consequences of his acts. Bis
coe prevaUed and the old rule of "good riddance" as applied
to a refugee was set aside and pursuit ordered. There were no Ber-
tUlon measurements then, no rogues' gallery of pictures, no tele
graph lines, and no raUway trains, and Biscoe had to seek hi&
man as a dog hunts a rabbit. Biscoe set out for the West on a
flne horse, being well armed. At Fort Smith he heard that his
man was over in the Cherokee country to the east, as the Cher
okees then inhabited nearly aU of north Arkansas. He turned

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 267
his steps toward the Cherokee country, where he arrived in
good time to locate his man. He found him somewhat protected
by the favor of the Cherokee chiefs and braves, and was told
that it was dangerous to attempt an open arrest, as the unthink
ing Indians would certainly espouse the half-breed's cause.
Biscoe sat down among the Cherokees to win their favor by
a course whicii soon ingratiated him into the esteem of all the
savages. Dressed in the moccasins and accoutrements of a
trapper, Biscoe made a fine appearance, and his ready use of
the rifle made the Cherokee braves his warm friends. Gaunt
and thin of flgure he would have arrested attention anywhere
by the impressions he conveyed of endurance, skill and inde
pendence. He kept his eye on his man all the time, but did not
disclose his mission. Warily he waited and at a favorable mo
ment, when he was separated from his comrades by a distance
they could not easUy overcome he arrested him and hurried him,
despite his bullying protestations to the Arkansas river, where
he quickly crossed, and directed his movements toward Little
Rock. The Cherokees missed Biscoe and one of their men went
to Fort Smith, where, learning the truth, they threatened war
against the whites, but were appeased by good council. When
the Indians calmly investigated what their compatriot had done
they agreed that he ought to be punished, and that he had no
right to flee into their reservation to avoid his just deserts.
They also applauded Biscoe for outwitting them, although had
he disclosed his intentions openly they undoubtedly would have
opposed him. Biscoe lodged his man in jail in Little Rock and
then took him down to Clark County, where he was tried and
convicted. Terror was king throughout that long ride, but its
effects were only visible on the face of the half-breed — to Biscoe
it was simply an excursion in the woods.
While Biscoe was assistant United States marshal his old
friend, S. AI. Rutherford, was sheriff of Clark County and then
sheriff of Pulaski County.

268 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
BISCOE AT HELENA-
In 1825, Henry L. Biscoe flung aside the official restraint
of the assistant marshal's place and moved to Helena, where his
old friends, Horner and Rutherford, had preceded him. The
lives and fortunes of these three men were most strangely in
termingled. He had scarcely got a foothold at Helena, when he
was elected to the House of Representatives of the Fourth Ter
ritorial legislature for the years 1825-27. During the same years
he held the ofifice of county clerk for Phillips County, and from
1827 to 1 83 1 was sheriff of the county, to which ofifice he was re
elected in 1832 and held it until 1836. When the territory be
came a State in 1836, he was elected by PhUlips County, along
with his old friend, George W. Ferebe, to represent that county
in the convention which formed the first constitution for the
State. His education and talents, coupled with his observa
tions and experiences in the backwoods of the West, gave him
power and influence among his fellows, a power and
influence which he used for their betterment and the
permanent development of the State. He had gathered to him
self considerable money and his influence extended throughout
the State. He had been made colonel of one of the militia reg
iments in the 20's, and in 1834 purchased a new printing out
fit and started a paper, the Helena Democrat, with AVilliam T.
Yeomans as its manager and editor. Biscoe was opposed to
Governor Pope and the columns of his paper did valiant serv
ice in creating popular opinion against the governor. Biscoe
wanted to be governor and had he succeeded in demolishing
Pope would, in aU probability, have attained his end. Congress,
however, stood by Pope, and Biscoe then turned his attention
to the question of Statehood. No paper in the State did better
service for the advancement of the Statehood sentiment than
did the Helena Democrat, and as a reward Phillips County sent
him to Little Rock to join in the making of the first constitution
for the State. THE BISCOE FAMILY.
Colonel Biscoe was a married man and left quite an in
teresting family. His wife, Phebe, died at Helena November

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 269
30, 1828. One of his sons. Captain Cameron N. Biscoe, is stiU
living at Helena, the father of several children residing.^ at the
same place. A daughter of Colonel Biscoe married Major Gen
eral T. C. Hindman of Helena, a distinguished Confederate
soldier and a distinguished congressman of the United States.
General Hindman was assassinated in Phillips County shortly
after the war, leaving a family of chUdren, Miss Blanche Hind
man of Suwanee, Tennessee; T. C. Hindman of Nashville,
Tennessee, and Colonel Biscoe Hindman of Louisville, Ken
tucky. What relation Henry L. Biscoe of Little Rock, of the
firm of Biscoe, King & Company, was to Colonel Biscoe, I am
not advised, but from the simUarity of names I would take
him to be either a son or a grandson. This, in brief, is the
record of one of the most prominent of the early pioneers. He
lived a clean life and died with an honored name, which his
descendants have kept unsmirched to this good hour.

CHAPTER XXXIV.
Caleb Lindsey — Other Lindsey Families.
The Lindseys in America are a widely distributed people,
but are of pure Scotch descent, although many of them found
a resting place in Ireland before coming to America. The old
earldom of the Lindseys became extinct in the fifteenth cen
tury, but the clan shows no sign of present extinction. An
American has written a history of the Lindseys in America,
confining herself in the main, however, to proving that David
Lindsey of Northumberland County, Virginia, represented the
oldest migration to America and that her line descended from
that David. Neither proposition has been established absolutely,
since David's will shows but one child and that a daughter.
She has made one interesting point, however, and that is
a tabulation of ninety-nine different ways of spelling the word,

270 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
It may be that David Lindsey of Northumberland was the
first immigrant to America, but the fact is not yet proved. There
is a grant of land to David Lindsey of Northampton County,
Virginia, in 1657. There is no proof, however, that the Da
vid of Northumberland and the David of Northampton are iden
tical. The whole Chesapeake Bay divides these counties.
There is an undisputed grant, however, in Gloucester
County, A'irginia, to James Lindsey in 1674, and another in
the same year in Aliddlesex County to John Lindsey. I
have not investigated the relationship of this John and James,
but have investigated the descendants of James of Gloucester in
order to help the great army or Arkansas Lindseys to a glimpse
of their blood. The life of James Lindsey of Gloucester, like
all other lives, rests on tradition and fact. The tradition is
that James Lindsey entered the James river with the second or
third fl.eet that came to America, and the tradition is probably
true. That the fact is that in 1674 he owned three hundred and
ninety acres of land in Gloucester County, while John owned
seven hundred acres in Middlesex. The inference is that these
men were brothers, but it is not proved. Who James Lindsey
niarried is not known, but he had four male children, Caleb,
Joshua, Adam and William.
ANCESTOR OF ARKANSAS FAMILY.
AA^e are not interested in the last three in this article, but
they have an army of descendants not noted in the Lindsey
book. The eldest son Caleb married in Gloucester County and
had two sons born, James and Joshua. Joshua remained on the
ancestral estate in Gloucester, while James removed to Caroline
County on the Rappahannock. He married either in Albemarle
or Caroline County Sarah Daniel, the daughter of William Dan
iel. He was born in 1700 and died in Caroline County in 1782.
The children by Sarah Daniel were Caleb, born 1733; John,
James, William, Jacob and Daniel. James married the second
time to Aliss Ware, and had another son, Reuben Lindsey.
Of these eight boys, Caleb removed to Essex and Albemarle,
and thence to Rockbridge ; John removed to Halifax County,
North Carolina, as did Jacob. The others remained in Virginia.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 271
The Port Royal Lindseys of Caroline County, Virginia, are de
scended from James of Gloucester through his fourth son,
William, and have given the world two great military men,
Colonel William Lindsey, who rode with Light Horse Harry,
and Colonel William Lindsey of the Second United States Ar
tillery. The O'Neals of Arkansas descend from James of Glou
cester, through Adam, his third son.
Caleb, born 1733, married in Albemarle County Sarah Carl
ton, and had Caleb, James, Joshua, Carlton, Archibald and prob
ably Eli. Caleb, born 1767, married in Rockbridge County,
Virginia, Sarah, daughter of John Young, and with his broth
ers, James, Joshua, Carlton, Archibald, EH, and a large com
pany of -others, set out for the West between 1790 and 1800.
Their flrst resting place was in Christian County, Kentucky,
where in 1810 the census of the United States locates them with
large famUies of children and slaves. Here Carlton, Archibald
and Joshua died. Carlton was the eldest child, born 1760, and
left eleven children. In 1814 or 1815, Caleb, James and Eli
moved their families to the territory of Missouri, settling on
Fourche de Mun in Lawrence County. Caleb afterwards moved
into Pulaski County, where he died November 23, 1826. Ca
leb's widow, Sarah, and his brother, James, were in Pulaski
County in the census of 1830, being between sixty and seventy
years of age. CALEB lindsey's cave SCHOOL.
Caleb Lindsey, born 1767, married Sarah Young, about
1790; he was commissioned a justice of the peace in Christian
County, Kentucky, on March 9, 1812. He was a surveyor,
as was his father in Essex County, Virginia, and the records
of Christian County show that in 1813 he was authorized to
resurvey a tract of land four hundred acres, and in November,
1814, he had his tract recorded. This ends his official record
in Kentucky, and the census of 1820 shows no Lindseys in
Christian County. He is noted of record in Arkansas Territory
in 1819, and the traditions of the family place his entrance into
Lawrence County in 1815. He was a man of varied parts and
a fine type of the educated pioneer.

272 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
In a cave in what is now Randolph County he gathered the
children of the neighborhood and taught them the elementary
branches. Uncle Tom Fletcher, who was born in Randolph in
181 7, always gave Caleb Lindsey the credit for what education
he had. When we look at our splendid Architectural triumphs
in school buildings and compare them with Caleb Lindsey's
cave — God's own handiwork — we are moved to exult over our
progress. It is a progress — a great and triumphal progress in
architecture, and also in opportunities. Whether education has
advanced is another story, as Kipling says. Garfield, in choos
ing a building, said : "Give me an old three-legged bench in
a log house with Alark Hopkins as teacher and I'll get an edu
cation."' So with the hardy pioneers. Give them a cave and
Caleb Lindsey as teacher and they got education enough to
grease the wheels of the highest civilization and push the back
woods State into prominence. In noting what a later age has
done, it will be well to remember that greater things were done
in an earlier age by the graduates of the cave and log house
schools. The lives of Jackson and Lincoln show that great men
come from educational institutions of very low architectural de
gree. Caleb Lindsey had six children, four girls and two boys.
One of these boys, John Young Lindsey, was a pioneer Bap
tist preacher in Randolph, Pulaski and Saline counties. His
monumeiit is the men and women he put on the road to right
eousness and the godly life he lived himself. Today after
services the pewholders invite the preacher home to dinner —
that is, they are supposed to do this in some parts of the coun
try. They don't do it in Washington. All the traditions of
the country about the best chickens for the preacher fail to
materialize in Washington. If the preacher gets chicken there,
he buys it out of Jiis salary, and eats it close communion style,
with his own family. Not so with old John Young Lindsey. He
preached until he was through, an hour, or two hours, or more,
and then invited the whole congregation over to his house for
a dinner that was worthy of the gods. His congregation never
found fault with his long sermons, and he never insulted it-dJy
tising a manuscript. He had something to say, and knew how

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 273
to say it, and then talked it over with the brethren over a feast
of good things. He was a grand type of the pioneer Baptist
preacher, and would have been an honor to Virginia, but in his
day \''irginia was persecuting all saints who did not happen to
be of the Episcopal brand, and his father and people found
freedom in the rising empire of the West.
the dance first, then the sermon.
Eli Lindsey began preaching on Strawberry in 1814 and his
circuit ran from Little Red river north to what is riow Missouri.
He was a Methodist, and had his own methods. Colonel Mag
ness states that the visits of EH to OU Trough Bottom were
irregular; that he attended aU the house raisings, log rollings,
quiltings, marriages and frolics. He would encourage the
young people to dance and after they were through would preach
to them. At the end of the year 1815 he reported ninety-five
members in his circuit. In 1816 he visited the spot where Bates
ville now stands and found a man named Reed in possession
of a new house he had just finished for a store. Lindsey asked
the privUege to christen it, which was granted. He sent out
to Miller's creek, to Lafferty's creek, to Greenbrier, and all
around, and notified the folks to come out. They came with
their guns, and a fine old crowd it was. Colonel MUler and
his boys. Colonel Peel and Sons, the widow Lafferty and sons,
Major Robert Magness and his army of boys, the Craigs, Rud-
dells, Trammels, Beans, Gillets, Holabys, Trimbles and Kelleys
were all there with their guns stacked around the walls. Old
Eli began his sermon and in a short time the dogs started a
bear. Old Eli said : "The service is adjourned in order that
the men may kill that bear." They rolled out with alacrity,
mounted their horses, pursued Bruin and killed him. They then
went back to the new house, where Eli "thanked God for men
who knew how to shoot and for women who knew how to pray,"
and finished his sermon.
Whether Eli and Caleb were brothers I cannot say with
confidence. Long after both were dead there was a young Eli
Lindsey, about the same age as John Young Lindsey in Sa
line County.

274 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
INTERMARRIED WITH FLETCHERS.
Of Caleb Lindsey's daughters, three niarried Fletchers;
these were Alary, Betsy and Agnes. The fourth daughter, Sa-
. rah, married Dr. Huber at Fourche de Thomas in 1825. The
eldest daughter, Alary, married Henry Lewis Fletcher in 1815,
and left a family of ten children, Honorable Thomas Fletcher
of Little Rock being the second child born in 1817. Of old
James Lindsey, who came in with old Caleb, I am not so weU in
formed. He was alive in 1830, living in Pulaski County, as was
his wife, and both were then nearly seventy years of age. In
his neighborhood lived a, number of younger Lindseys from thir
ty to forty years of age. These were Eli, John Young, Carl
ton. Samuel and Walter, all married and blessed with children.
This is a clean, authentic line connecting these Lindseys in
unbroken chain to James Lindsey of Gloucester County, Vir
ginia, of 1623-1674, and with the Earl of Lindsey of the fifteenth
century. DESCENDED FROM NOBILITY.
There is quite an army of Lindseys, descending from the
Earl of Lindsey now living in Arkansas, who descend in an
other way. They carry the blood and are of remote kin, but of
the clan. These are Colonel Lindsey, the Tripletts, the Em-
brees, the O'Neals, the Whites and a host of others whose line
I will take up at some other time. All these, however, are later
additions to the Arkansas trunk, coming in fuUy thirty years
after the advent of the Gloucester-CaroHne-Albemarle-Rock-
bridge line. They trace through the Northumberland-Fairfax
line, and the trip of their ancestress, a widow with children,
from Fairfax to Jefferson County, is a splendid story of priva
tion and heroism.
Senator Lindsey of Kentucky, the most eminent of the name
in the United States, traces through Rockbridge straight to
Scotland, going backward, and straight to Frankfort, Ken
tucky, coming the other way. The old pioneer, Isaac Lindsey
of Davidson district, afterward Sumner County, Tennessee,
traces through the Halifax (North Carolina) line back to James

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 275
of Gloucester County. All the Lindseys of Virginia were of
gentle blood.
The second family of Lindseys to enter Arkansas was that
of Isaac of Hempsteady County, who, in 1823, was declared
by the sheriff of the county delinquent for State and county
taxes, to the extent of $5. Tax dodging is a very common thing
today, but there is little evidence to show that it existed in
Arkansas as early as 1823. The long list of delinciuents pub
lished by the sheriffs and collectors is neither evidence of resi
dence in Arkansas nor of tax dodging. These lists at the best
simply show that certain men, residence unknown, had made
claims for lands in Arkansas, which claims had been allowed.
There is no evidence to show that for the major part these
claimants ever made an actual residence in Arkansas, or that
they, as foreign land holders, preferred to abandon their lands
to paying taxes thereon. This is all there is of record to show
that Isaac Lindsey of Hempstead County was ever in that coun
ty. He may have been, but the inference is that he was not,
and that he preferred to forfeit his land claim to paying a $5
tax claim. I have not been able to find other Lindseys in Hemp
stead County as early as 1823, nor immediately thereafter,
and I am inclined to believe Isaac Lindsey was never a resident
of the State. If I am wrong in this, and there are descendants
of Isaac Lindsey in south Arkansas who can prove my error, I
shall be under many obligations to them, or to anyone else,
if they will kindly do so. ,
The third man of this name actually entered Arkansas,
lived in it for eleven years, and died leaving a family whose
descendants still honor the State. A young man, Peter Lind
sey, left Fairfax County, Virginia, in 1825, and traveled o-ver-
land to what is now Jefferson County, Arkansas. He spelled
his name "Lindsey," although descendants of the same famUy
in Virginia today are sticklers for the speUing, "Lindsay." Why
anyone should prefer the suffix "say" to "sey," I am absolutely
unable to determine.
The aristocratic Lindseys of England, Canada and Amer
ica, up to the year 1850, aU spelled their names "Lindsey,"

276 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
and the real value of the suffix "sey" is of transcendently greater
historic importance than that of "say." In an article of this
kind I cannot go into the reasoning which supports it.
Peter Lindsey's journey from Fairfax, Virginia, to Jef
ferson County, Arkansas Territory, was most romantic, and
would make a fine basis for a real historic novel. His life in
Arkansas was not eventful, as he died in Jefferson County on
February 7, 1839, at the age of thirty-six, leaving a wife and
children. He lived long enough to acquire an estate and his
children intermarried with the best people of the State. From
1838 to 1840, William H. Lindsey was judge of Jefferson Coun
ty. He could not have been a son of Peter Lindsey, although
he may have been a brother. The O'Neals of Jefferson County,
also from Virginia, were also descended from the Fairfax Lind
seys, and were most prominent in Jefferson County affairs from
1833 to 1840.
The Virginia Lindsey pedigree is most aptly illuminated
in A^ols. X, XI, XII and XIII of the Virginia Magazine, and
much pertaining to the general line of Lindseys is therein in
cluded. MORE AS TO REV. CEPHAS WASHBURN.
It is so easy to forget. It is so easy to let slip one or more
of the essential features of a record. In Cephas Washburn's
record there is no reason for naming one set of grand
daughters without naming all of tliem, and Miss Clara B.
Eno of Van Buren, very kindly called my attention to the lapse.
She informed me that Cephas Washburn has a granddaughter.
Airs. Alary AA''ashburn Henderson, at Prior's Creek, Oklahoma.
Biographers and historians are credited with a full cup, and
they must walk very carefully or the liquor will run over. I
ought to have known possibly, that Mrs. Henderson was alive
and a granddaughter of Cephas Washburn, but I am frank
to say, I did not. The credit for the perfected line is therefore
due Miss Eno, a lady I have known and respected for more
than twenty years, and whose intelligence and patriotism is an
honor to the State she so vigUantly represents.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 277
ALMOST FORGOTTEN KING's MOUNTAIN HERO.
On June 28, 1840, in Johnson County, Arkansas, the death
of Major Henry Francis was noted, be being then eighty-three
years of age, and, what is more to the purpose, the last of the
King's Mountain heroes. Major Francis was a citizen of pa
triotic tendencies and a warm friend of the old pioneers, Sam
uel Adams, Sr., and John Williamson. What his family connec
tions were I do not know, but he doubtless left a family whose
descendants may still be found in Johnson County. The
Daughters of the American Revolution would do well to hunt
out the grave of this old hero and mark if in some suitable man
ner. It is a false idea to think that memories are perpetuated
solely and alone by marble shafts coming from the hands of great
sculptors and costing an immense sum of money. There are
memorial shafts over all the world which have been made by
loving hands from the rough rock of the neighboring hUls,
and these memorials are of equal value with the more artistic.
The Daughters of the American Revolution at Van Buren can
not find the grave of James PhiUips, a revolutionary soldier,
and the founder of Phillips Landing, the original name of Van
Buren. The cemetery in which Phillips was buried in 1829
is now in all human probability in the very center of the bust
ling city of Van Buren. It is enough to know, however, that
the revolutionary soldier PhUlips died there, and was buried
there in the very center of his last forceful endeavor, and a
monument made of Crawford County stone, of which there is a
superabundance, will not only honor the soldier, James Phil
lips, in the highest degree, but honor the Daughters of the
American Revolution at that city and every citizen who shall
contribute his part to the erection of a monument at any point
within the corporate limits of Van Buren.
JACKSON COUNTY PIONEERS.
William H. Glass first settled on the Mississippi river, five
miles below the mouth of the St. Francis river, in the days of
the French domination in 1802. He proved his concessionary right
before the United States commissioners in 1806-7, t'^f was de-

278 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
nied a grant. He persisted and under the ten years' settlement act
obtained his land. Where he came from and his after-history
IS unknown to me. Hiram Glass was an early settler on
White river, and may have been his son. Jackson County was
formed in 1830 from Independence and Lawrence counties and
Hiram Glass lived in the northern part of the new county Jack
son near where Swifton now stands. One of the earliest townships
of Jackson County was named for him, and he was the first county
judge of the county, while from 1832 to 1836 he was its coroner.
One of the most active men of Jackson County from 1823
to 1850 was John Robinson. He came into the State as a sur
veyor under General AViUiam Rector, and did a great amount
of contract work throughout the territory, entering land for
himself in both Independence and Lawrence counties. He was
county surveyor for Jackson County from 1830 to 1834, and
its county judge from 1834 to 1836. He was elected by his
fellows to represent Jackson County in the convention which
forined the first constitution of the State and was generally
considered a man of exceUent judgment. John Robin
son was also county judge of the county from 1844 to 1850,
but could not have been the pioneer. James Robinson was
also of Jackson County and may have been a brother of John.
He was sheriff from 1835 to 1838 and from 1838 to 1842. He
also served three times in the legislature of the State. Much of
the early history of this region is wrapped up in the Hves of
these two men, and the early progress of the county was largely
due to them. Other prominent pioneers of Jackson County
were Judge E. Bartley, J. C. Saylors, who was clerk for eight
years ; Isaac Gray, sheriff for ten years ; M. Copeland and A.
AI. Carpenter. John Robinson, the pioneer aforementioned, came to Mis
souri territory, from whence he finally drifted into Arkansas
territory where he died. He was in 1834 placed on the pension
rolls of the United States as a survivor of the Pennsylvania
militia in the Revolutionary war, and was at that date seventy-
seven years of age. When he died I am not advised, but his
grave is in all probability near Swifton in Jackson County.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 279
Near him rest in Lawrence County the Revolutionary pa
triots James Ferguson, eighty- two years of age in 1833, ^-^^d
James Vanzant of the Pennsylvania Continental Line, seventy-
eight years of age in the same year. Near him also to the
northwest are the graves of five Revolutionary patriots in In
dependence County: Lawrence Angel, of the North Carolina
Continental line, seventy-one years of age in 1833 ; John Ca-
lothers, of the South Carolina militia, eighty-eight years of age
in 1834; Benjamin Hardin, of the North Carolina militia, sixty-
nine years of age in 1833; David Vance, of the Virginia Conti
nental line, seventy-five years of age in 1834, and John Weldon
of the South Carolina Continental line, seventy-five years of age
in 1834. Thus eight duly accredited revolutionary soldiers sleep in
what was once old Lawrence County, being not only soldiers
of the American Revolution, but pioneers of the new territory
Arkansas. They are entitled to a double monument at the
hands of the people of Independence, Lawrence and Jackson
counties, and the Daughters of the American Revolution of
these counties or the daughters of the pioneers of these counties
should see to it that their graves are fittingly marked.
Besides the grave of James Phillips, in Crawford County,
there also rest within its bosom the two brothers, Isaiah Mob
ley and Clement Mobley, who were on the pension rolls in
1835 from Crawford County, as surviving soldiers of the South
Carolina militia in the Revolutionary war. In addition to John
and James Robinson, Pioneers of Jackson and old Lawrence,
there was a William Robinson in Lawrence County as early as
1815, who was appointed one of the commissioners to select
a location for a court house, his associates being the oldest
pioneers of the region, Lewis De Mun, WiUiam Hix, Sr., owner
of Hix's Ferry; Solomon Hewett, Andrew Criswell, who mar
ried a daughter of John Lafferty; Isaac Kelley and Alorris
Moore. The sheriff at that time was James Campbell.

28o Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
CHAPTER XXXV.
The Brilhart and Davis Families — Marriages and De.'\Ths. "
Brilhart is an old German name ante-dating the campaigns
of Csesar on the north of the Rhine. For twenty centuries or
more people of the name lived in the Rhine region, cultivating
the graces of King Gambrinus and wearing wooden shoes.
In about the year 1720 Jacob Brilhart, with his frau and little
kinderlings, migrated from the oppressed German States to
the Quaker land of Pennsylvania. They came to be called
"Pennsylvania Deutch," and with true German frugality pros
pered and waxed fat. Jacob, Jr., a son of Jacob, Sr., was at
tracted to North Carolina in 1760 and settled in Lincoln County.
He was blessed with a family of nine children, one of whom,
Jacob, had a family of seven in 1790. One of the seven,
also named Jacob, a great-grandson of the emigrant, went back
to the old Pennsylvania home, and while there enlisted as an
American soldier in the war of 1812 and served his time. In 1816
the government gave him a land warrant, and he started west
to locate it in the wilderness of IlHnois. The influx of land-
grabbers was too great for the quiet Jacob Brilhart, and lands in
Missouri Territory being more inviting, he crossed the river
and drifted southward until he found a place that suited him
in what is now Lawrence County. Here he drove down his
stakes and made a home.
DAVIS FAMILY IN LAWRENCE COUNTY.
At that time, 181 7, there was a man, Benjamin Davis, forty-
seven years of age, living at Strawberry. Near him lived Eli
phas Davis, about the same age with a family of ten children,
and also the widow Elizabeth Davis with a family of eight.
Samuel Davis, about ' fifty-seven years old, also lived in the
county, as did Charles and David, each about thirty years old.
It will thus be seen that there were quite a number of the Davis
family in Lawrence County in 181 7, and at this late day it is
impossible to untangle the degrees of relationship. Where the
Davis family came from I cannot say, but it is reputed to have

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 281
come from Kentucky to Arkansas, and from North Carolina
to Kentucky. It is certain that North Carolina could have
furnished two regiments of the name Davis in 1790 without
calling on the other States. The fiirst census of North Carolina
gives four hundred and four families of the name, with an aver
age of five persons in a family, or two thousand and twenty
Davises. Some of these may have formed the Lawrence County
settlement. UNION OF THE BRILHARTS AND DAVISES.
Young Brilhart was smitten with the charms of one of
the young Davis girls and married her. The father and mother
lived on their little farm near Strawberry, where in 1822 a
daughter was born. Jacob Brilhart and wife both sickened and
died in 1826, and the infant daughter was taken by her grand
mother Davis to her home and reared.
The attractions of Pulaski County on the Saline were at
that time beginning to depopulate Lawrence County, and in
183 1 Grandmother Davis moved to that neighborhood. Rebecca
Brilhart grew to womanhood on the Saline, a gem of the forest
and a picture of life. She knew every dale and glen of the
neighborhood and made toys out of the soapstones before mod
ern industry gave them a value. Under the guidance of a
noble dame Rebecca Brilhart was trained to think, to act and
to grow symmetrically. THE SALINE OCTOGENARIAN.
Eighty years is a noble span for a single life, and she who
makes it is one of the immortals. Rebecca Brilhart died in
Little Rock in 1903 at the ripe old age of eighty-one. All of
that life was spent in Arkansas. In 1838, about seven miles
from the quiet town of Benton, Rebecca Brilhart niarried Caleb
Lindsey, a son of Caleb Lindsey of Lawrence County, and
a brother of John Young Lindsey of the Saline. It was
a great and notable wedding. The Lindsey negroes were
sleek and fat, and the Lindsey and Davis homes noted
for their hospitality. Marsa Caleb was to bring home the
young mistress, Becky, and every negro added something

282 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
to the festivities. The wedding dinner was superb and
the infare an immense affair. Rebecca Brilhart did well,
but Caleb Lindsey did better. A noble woman is God's best
gift to man, and Caleb Lindsey got a noble woman for a wife.
DOWN IN ASHLEY COUNTY.
How Americans drift from place to place ! Ashley County
was opening up and Caleb Lindsey, as the youngest child,
went where chances for growth were greatest. Here he pros
pered, but in 1856 sickened and died. The widow Lindsey
never wavered. She had seven children born, three of whom
lived to be honored citizens of Arkansas. All through the hor
rors of the Civil war Rebecca Lindsey kept her family intact.
In 1866 she doffed her widow's weeds and married Cornelius
Carlock. also a man of German extraction, but with an ances
try of more than one hundred and fifty years of American life
on Xorth Carolina soil. The Carlocks of Cabarrus County
were once the leaders of the county, and the grandmother of the
writer was Rebecca Carlock, of Rowan-Mecklenberg-Cabarrus
County, a sister of the father of Cornelius Carlock, and my
father wore her name, Josiah Carlock Shinn.
Rebecca Brilhart Lindsey Carlock was a fi.iie specimen of
the old Arkansas womanhood, and could have given novelists
and historians much valuable matter had they deemed it worth
while to consult her. She lives in the memory of a troop cf
loving children and grandchildren, and in the high esteem of
hundreds of friends. Her three sons, Harrison B., Rezin AV.
and Allen H., all married and reared families. Harrison B.
Lindsey is living in Ashley County, the honored father of five
children. Dr. Rezin W. Lindsey is a familiar figure on the
streets of Little Rock today, and is represented in the law by
a son, Edwin W. Lindsey. Allen H. Lindsey died at Portland
in Ashley County in 1887, leaving a son, Guy A. Lindsey, at
the same place.
Thus Rebecca Brilhart and Caleb Lindsey both cover the
same habitat. Both lived in Lawrence, Pulaski and Ashley,
while the mother lived to a -grand old age.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 283
ORIGIN OF THE PROVINCIAL.
Are the fathers greater than the sons? Are the mothers
superior to their daughters? In flesh and blood, no; in oppor
tunity, yes. AU the fathers and* mothers of 1810-1830 had seen
something of the world; their children and grandchUdren had
not. The cosmopolitan sense is far more ennobling than the
pro-vincial. The pioneers were cosmopolitan and their imme
diate descendants provincial. The old people, the pioneers of
Arkansas, had seen much more of the world than their children
and were to that extent broader and better educated. No edu
cation can quite equal that of travel and changed residence,
and in this sense the people of Arkansas from 1830 to i86q
suffered. They had great, broad, generous parents who knew
the world, but they themselves lived in a province and acquired
the idea, in part at least, that the province was the world.
They needed only the meUowing influences of contact with other
people to make them broad, generous and tolerant, as great in
every sense as their fathers, the pioneers.
Jacob Brilhart may have been poor in worldly goods, but
he was rich in observations and experiences. He had been in
North Carolina, Pennsylvania, IlHnois and Arkansas, and had
served in the army. He was rich in all the elements of great
ness and transmitted these to his daughter, who carried them
forward to her children.
HEMPSTEAD COUNTY SETTLERS.
One of the earliest settlers of Hempstead County was Mat
thew Fountaine of Virginia. He came in 1816 or 1817 and set
tled on Mount Prairie, west of Washington. This prairie is
historic, being the oldest settled part of south Arkansas. The
national road was out thereaways in 1819, but the settlement
arite-dated the road and a godly settlement it was. The oldest
church edifices of the State belong to the Catholics, but the
oldest Protestant church house was Henry Chapel on Mount
Prairie, built in 1816 or 1817. It was Methodist in belief, but
Christian in practice. All bodies of people worshipped freely
within its walls. Exclusiveness had not yet set in, and it was

284 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
generally believed that a Methodist and a Baptist had an equal
chance if they behaved themselves.
AA'hile Eli Lindsey was the first Methodist preacher in Ar
kansas, Air. Henry was the second, and to him is Henry Chapel
indebted for its existence. He preached for many years all
over soutii Arkansas and contributed in no small degree to the
civilization and nioral growth of that region. His wife die'd in
Hempstead County in 1826, and to her influence and exceUent
character is much of the early Methodist growth attributable.
Air. John Harris was the third Methodist preacher, coming in
1820 with a circuit extending from Little Rock to Missouri.
MARRIAGES AND DEATHS.
The woman of the future is far less interesting than the
girl of the present. Thus thought our Arkansas ancestors,
and so think we. Lads and lassies have glorified every age of
the world, and marriage has everywhere been honorable. There
have been three historic forms of marriage : First, marriage by
capture. This was a most ancient form, but still prevails in
some regions^; second, marriage by purchase, a very common
form today, but always vehemently -denied; tihird, marriage
by espousel, or by fascination or love. This is the holiest form
of wedlock, and the form that prevailed most largely in the mar
riages we enumerate below. Whether each and all of those I
collate were celebrated by the espousal and the engagement ring,
I cannot say, but in all probability each one of them was. The
people of the elder Arkansas day were far more particular about
the "Trulofa," or the ring ceremony, "I plight my troth," than
we are. In Southwestern Ireland, a marriage today is not con
sidered valid unless solemnized with a ring, and the laborers
of Eastern England express their faith in the mystic efficacy
of the. "Golden Arrabo" in terms almost worshipful. It was
said by an old Arkansas pioneer that every matron, no matter
how poor, always wore a wedding ring. Hundreds of back
woods mothers were able to repeat and did repeat with pride
Plerrick's old lines :

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 285
"And as this round is nowhere found.
To flaw, or else to sever.
So may our love as endless prove.
As pure as gold forever."
And' hundreds of Arkansas fathers today remember the
old couplets or posies their mothers used:
"Our contract was heaven's act,
In thee my choice
I do rejoice.
I will be yours
While life endures.
If you deny, then sure I die."
In one old Arkansas paper was this couplet:
"I did commit no act of folly
When I married my sweet Molly."
It is said of Bishop Thoinas that he married his fourth, wife
with a wedding ring that had for its posy the following words:
"If I survive, I'll make them flve."
SOME EARLY SUPERSTITIONS.
A'ery few of the old Arkansas rings carried posies, although
their wearers were great hands at quoting them. The plain
golden ring was the almost universal form and grew out of
the saying of Queen Alary, who, rather than have a wedding
ring with jewels on its surface and engravened with a foolish
couplet, "chose to be married with a plain hoop of gold like any
other maiden." Our grandmothers wore this ring on the third
flnger of the left hand, because at that time there was believed
to be a channel of connection between the ring finger and the
heart. Lemnius said "the small artery is stretched from the
heart to this flnger." Alany an old Arkansas mother has aroused
her daughter from a swoon by pinching her ring finger and
rubbing saffron on her wedding ring. It was the saffron and
the pain together that wrought the cure, and not the mystic
artery. It was said of an Arkansas physician that he dosed

286 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
his patients with gin and sulphur, because it made them cheer
ful, and always attributed the cheerfulness to the sulphur. After
marriage suppers in early Arkansas days the younger lassies ob
served the following superstition : She would sleep on a pil
low over a piece of wedding cake cut by the bride from her
bridal cake and passed three times through her bridal ring.
She was sure to dream of her future husband.
One old Arkansas bachelor got off the following, which was
by no means original :
"A spaniel, a woman and a walnut tree.
The more they are beaten the better they be."
Another compositor in Phillips County, desiring to make
fun of a certain girl who had possibly jilted him, got off the fol
lowing non-original, two-century-pld couplet:
"Fair and foolish, black and proud.
Long and lazy, little and loud."
ARKANS.'VS MARRIAGES 182O-3O.
The following marriages were celebrated in different parts
of the territory prior to 183 1 : At Arkansas Post, on August
9, 1826, Francis Vaugine, Jr., to Odelle Paulette, -the ceremony
being performed by Judge Eskridge. In January, 1827, at the
same place, Alajor Francis Vaugine to Madam Mary Deru-
seaux, widow of Alonsieur John B. Deruseaux, an old French
pioneer. In Crawford County, on December 12, 1827, Honor
able James Woodson Bates to Mrs. Elibabeth AV. Palmore,
daughter of Ben Aloore, Sr. On June 17, 1826, at the residence
of Chester Ashley in Little Rock, by Rev. S. T. Toncray, Jo
seph Henderson, a merchant of Little Rock, to Ann Eliza,
daughter of Ben EUiott of Washington County, Missouri. At
Long Prairie, Hempstead County, on December 21, 1826, James
Sevier Conway to Mary Jane, daughter of John Bradley of
AA'ilson County, Tennessee. At Arkansas Post, January 23,
1824, Ignace Bogy to Desire, daughter of Francis Michel. At
AA'alnut Hills, Aloses Starr to Eliza, widow of P. J. Cady, late
of New York. At Arkansas Post, on April 28, 1828, Albert

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 287
Berdu to Mary Goceaux. In Welborn township, Pulaski
County, Adustin Rogers to Alary Cardin, on May 18, 1824. At
Little Rock, June 17, 1824, James Gibson to Priscilla Clanton,
and on August 15, 1824, Jacob Thorn to Lavina Porterfleld.
At Arkansas Post, on July 22, 1824, John Whittaker to Mary
Greenwalt, and on the same day at the same place, Asa H. Kem
ble to Alargaret Scipes. On August 28, at the same place,
Pierre Pono to Amelia Brinsbach; on December 5, EH Evans
to Polly, daughter of Thomas Burris; and on January 17, 1825,
Francis Limoneaux to Madam Barbe Benette. At Pecannerie,
February 14, 1825, William Lackey to Sarah Harris. In Jan
uary, 1825, Paul Vaugine was married to Jane Wolff by Judge
Scott. On August 29, 1829, Archibald Hubbard to Charlotte
Fooy, daughter of Judge Fooy of Crittenden County. At Cane
Hill, Washington County, March 16, 183 1, John Piatt, late of
Pulaski, to Aliss Eliza, daughter of Widow Buchanan of Lin
coln County, Tennessee. On the same day at the same place,
by Rev. A. Buchanan, John Stephenson to Nancy, daughter
of Samuel Pitman. On August 4, 1831, Edward Cross, judge
of the Supreme Court, to Laura Frances, daughter of Ben
Eliott of Washington County, Missouri.
The earth holds more dead bodies than it numbers living
souls. It is a mighty charnel house — a universal cemetery. The
pioneers died ancl no mark remains to tell where tiiey were
bviried. In this work we shall number some of the ancient
deaths and mark their general resting place. It may comfort
some soul, besides aiding others to perfect a record of their
family lines. To live in hearts we leave behind is not to die,
and my work is to help the dead to that sort of immortality. In
the larger realm of thought each departed friend is a magnet
attracting us to another world. These friends lie in graves
which are the general meeting places for all mankind; places
where all distinctions are leveled — vast ante-chambers to im
mortality. At Arkansas Post in the Spring of 1820, Solomon B. Judd
from Colchester, Connecticut, sickened and died and was there
buried. He was a young man prospecting for a home. At
the same place on July 21, 1821, Wm. O'Hara, a rich specula-

288 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
tor from St. Louis. There also un July ii, 1821, Judge Sel
don lost an infant daughter. The judge consoled himself with
the remark, "Whom the gods love die young." In September,
1 82 1, Jonathan R. Brown from New York died at Little Rock,
and in the same months Mrs. Ann Greenwalt, an old settler,
died on her farm five miles from Arkansas Post. In the'same
month at the residence of Wright Daniels on the Arkansas
river, Lewis Rouse passed away. In September, 1819, Moses
Graham, sheriff of Pulaski County, died at his residence, hav
ing lived in Arkansas about three years. John McLain died
in Hempstead County in 1819, and William McDonald adminis
tered on his estate. At Davidsonville, Stephen Chamberlain
died on August 6, 1821. He was from Vermont and quite a
prominent man. In Richland in Arkansas County in 1831,
James Currin died at a very advanced age, having been for
many years a resident of that section ; like a fire he - flickered
out, but sparkled long after they thought him gone. In 1821,
two brothers from Kentucky, Joseph and Andrew Colville, died;
the former in AliUer and the later in Pulaski County.
In the same year at Arkansas Post Martha D. Long, wife
of Zachariah Long, late of VersaiUes, Kentucky. Michael D.
Robinson from NashviUe, Tennessee, died in Hempstead County
in 1823, and Madam Imbeau, wife of Monsieur Imbeau, died at
the Post. In December, 1820, Jacob Jones died at Little Rock,
being fifty years of age. On February 8, 1823, Asenath Stu
art, daughter of Col. Wm. Stuart, died in Lawrence County.
At Pecannerie on Alay 28, 1824, Eliza, wife of Thomas White,
and on September 25, William, son of Colonel WiUiam Lewis.
In Independence County there were several deaths in 1824:
Betsy AlUlsaps, wife of Reuben, in November; Mrs. Stephen
son, wife of William, and Mrs. Dodd, wife of Thomas D., both
died in November, as did a Mrs. Griffith. Crystal Hill in Jan
uary, 1825, Alark Westland, a native of Austria, and Hiram
Green, both passed away. Joseph Bentley, son of George, died
at Pecannerie in February, 1825, while WUliam Woodward
passed away in Hempstead County on November 2, 1824, leav
ing a wife and children. He migrated from Tennessee to Long
Prairie, then in Missouri, in 1816, and filled offices under the

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 289
general government. He was one of the first common pleas
judges of Hempstead County. SamUel Faulkner, late of the
steamer Spartan, died in August, 1825, at the house of James
H. Martin, aged thirty years. Dr. R. H. Fenner died in Little
Rock in February, 1824. At Arkansas Post in her twentieth
year, on January 14, 1820, Paulina Colville. The family seems
to have been located there several years, and she was doubtless
of kin to the brothers mentioned above. In June, 1820, Major
Noah Lester, a United States army officer, died at Little Rock.
Jairus Berry from Courtland County, New York, with his fam
ily, entered Arkansas in 1820, and at the mouth of the Arkansas
river his wife was taken sick and died. She was buried at that
place. William WUson arrived at Little Rock in 1820 from Or
ange County, New York. In October of that year he died.leaving
a wife and three children, who remained in Arkansas. In De
cember, 1820, Dr. AASUiam Orr from Missouri, a friend and
relative of Judge Andrew Scott, died at the Scott residence
and was buried in Little Rock. Abraham Beck, formerly of
New York, died at Arkansas Post on September 5, 1821. He
had just opened a branch of the Western Land Agency. . Betsy
Barkman, wife of Jacob Barkman, died at the farm five miles
from the Post on August. 2, 1821. Jacob Barkman seems to
have had a home in Arkansas County, while blazing a way for
bis later and lasting home in Clark County. In Hempstead
County in February, 1829, Joseph Paxton from Virginia, be
ing fifty years of age, passed away. Thomas Knox, who moved
to Chicot County in 1826, died there in 1829. At Arkansas
Post on August 22, 1839, Elizabeth, wife of Wigton King, died
in her fifty-eighth year. In Miller County, on November 21,
1829, Claiborne Wright died in his forty-fifth year, leaving a
wife and children. Sylvanus PhUlips died at Helena October
31, 1830, aged sixty-five. He was one of the oldest Arkansas
pioneers, dating far back into the previous century. On July
25, 183 1, at Van Buren, James Phillips, a soldier of the Revo
lution. These all He very probably in unmarked graves, over
which the plow-share of progress has "fun so deep and often
as to make their identity impossible.

290 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
CHAPTER XXXAT.
THE LAFFERTY FAMILY.
AA'hen you come to consider an Irish pedigree you have
your hands full. The Hebrews have their genealogical lore
in as fine shape as any other knowledge and the Bible redounds
with genealogical lines. The only people that can compare
with the Jews in clear-cut accuracy of genealogical acumen
is the Irish — the genuine Irish — of the oldest Ireland. They run
their family lines in bold assurance straight back to the Gar
den of Eden, and then defy Huxley to show a better parentage.
The monkey theory never bothered an Irishman. He says : "Well,
Huxley doubtless sprang from a baboon. He looks like one and
acts like one. But as for me, I'm from Killarney, and my peo
ple came there straight from the Garden of Eden." It was an
Irishman in Arkansas who, after listening to an Englishman
boasting of his descent, said : "WeU, it may be true that you
blarsted Englishmen came over with Noah in the ark, but we,
sons of Erin, came over on our own account. Our ancestors
ran an independent line which put Noah out of business."
Burke's Peerage is a good old book, but it looks like thirty
cents when put side by side with Rooney's Irish Families. The
Englishman, like Byron's ocean, stops with the shore, but the
Irishman proves his descent from the most hoary antiquity.
Take the old pioneer, John Lafferty of Lafferty's creek, in what
is now Independence County, but was then the territory of
Louisiana. His father was from Donegal, but his ancestors
could show an unbroken line from King Milesius of Spain,
two thousand years before Christ. The Lafferty family in Ire
land were Labbertachs before St. Patrick drove the snakes out
of the island. Their coat of arms was an unquartered shield
of gold, in whose center was a fuU-grown tree of everlasting
green, the tree of life, in whose boughs was a crown of gold,
the emblem of their kingly descent. Descending from King
Alilesius, through the line of his son, Heremon, a scion was
at length found, Brian Labbertach, who was one of the kings
of Ireland in A. D. 350. The Irish spelling has gone through

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 291
many successive changes, from Labbertach, through Lafertach,
Lavertach, Laferty, Laverty to Lafferty of modern times. All
Laffertys or Lavertys who are not clean Irish are descended
from another son of Milesius and trace through Gaul to Britain
before Julius Csesar led his conquering legions to battle. These
became the English Lavertys. Those who remained in Gaul
becaine the De la Fertes, who entered England with the conqueror.
So all the Laffertys of the world are of one blood, and spring
from old Milesius, a direct descendant of Adam and Eve, and
one of the earliest pioneers to go west and start a country from
which Columbus went still farther west to find America. The
John Lafferty of 1810 in Louisiana, now Arkansas, sprang
from the Irish line, from King Brian Labbertach, the heroic
snake fighter of Ireland before the S'axons had discovered Eng
land. Aly friend Thomas Lafferty, of Little Rock, is of the
same family, but he is not descended from old Arkansas John
of 1810. The Lafferty coat of arms is ancient and singularly char
acteristic. It lays the English peerage in the aliade and chuckles
and chortles. The Lafferty crest is still more remarkable. It is
an arm akimbo holding a flne tempered Toledo blade on whose
point fixed through its tail is a venomous snake coiling itself
around the blade and killing itself on its sharp double edges
in its mad and vain effort to strike the Lafferty hand. Saint
Patrick may have driven the snakes out a hundred and fifty
years later, but fhe Laffertys had lots of fun killing them be
fore St. Patrick was born.
IMMIGRATED FROM IRELAND.
John Lafferty of Independence County came over with his
father from Ireland a mere boy, at the time of the great ex
odus to North Carolina from 1740 to 1770, and settled with the
Irish clans in western North Carolina, in what was then Rowan
County, now Rutherford. In his seventeenth year he joined
Captain Smith's company in Colonel Thomas Polk's regiment,
the Fourth North Carolina Continental Line, and served three
years in the Revolutionary war. He enlisted June 10, 1776,
and was mustered out June 15, 1779, in his twentieth year.

292 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
Histor}- leaves him for a few years at this point, but family tra
ditions link him with the Cherokee troubles of 1785 in western
North Carolina, carrying him over into Tennessee. History
finds him in Tennessee in the Cumberland district in 1790, when
he married an Arkansas pioneer, a Lindsey, of pure Scotch
blood. She may have been a daughter of Isaac Lindsey, the
first regularly appointed justice of the peace in the Davidson
district in 1783, being one of the guard of honor, who were
given lands in 1782 without price. There were six hundred
and forty of this grand guard, and John Lafferty himself^ may
have been one, but unfortunately the complete roll is not re
corded. This Isaac Lindsey was made ranger in 1786 and was
a noted pioneer character. Whether John Lafferty married
his daughter, or the daughter of Benjamin Lindsey, who was
scalped in 1784, may never be known, but it is certain that he
married a sister or cousin of Caleb and of old Eli Lindsey,
the pioneer Alethodist preacher of Arkansas on the Strawberry,
the Current, the Black and the White in late 1785.
John Lafferty lived for many years in Tennessee near the
Kentucky line and all his children were born there. He was
a rover of the grandest type. His hunting and trapping carried
him all over Alissouri, Louisiana, Arkansas and Kansas. He
was on friendly terms with the Cherokees of later days and
with them hunted and trapped incessantly. In 1810 he brought
his family to what is now called Lafferty's creek, in Independ
ence County, and settled on the barrens in a little log hut, which
in after days was one of the most famous of Arkansas. That
cabin was then in Louisiana, but it lived on through the days
of Alissouri territory, Arkansas territory into the life of Arkan
sas State. Political divisions may change, but the log cabins
do not change with them. In 1814 the tocsin of war caUed
John Lafferty back to Tennessee, and with Jackson he marched
to New Orleans, where he was wounded, and from the effects
of which he died in his cabin home on Lafferty's creek in 1815.
A hero of two wars sleeps somewhere in the barrens of Union
township. Independence County. This ends the mortal career
of the Irishman, John Lafferty, but opens the career of his

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 293
Scotch wife, the Widow Lafferty, and the mainstay of Method
ism in the Lawrence County of early days.
LE^VDERS IN ALL GOOD WORKS.
Eli Lindsey preached everywhere in his most original way.
Caleb Lindsey, another brother, taught school in a cave up on
Fourche de Alun, while the Widow Lafferty, a sister or cousin
of these boys, kept open house on Lafferty's creek, encouraging
the pioneers to live godly and righteous lives and rearing a fam
ily of splendid boys.
In 1808 when the Commissioners were taking proof to set
tle titles growing out of settlements made prior to 1803, John
Lafferty proved a settlement on White river for six hundred
and forty acres of land made in 1802. This claim was not al
lowed because it had not been continuously lived upon for
ten years. He also made proof in 1813 for another six hundred
and forty acres in the Paoli Fields or White river, proving a
continuous settlement from 1807 to date, which was allowed.
A caravan of Laffertys and Criswells left Tennessee in
1807 with teams and wagons for Memphis, Tennessee, at which
place they built a boat and went down the river., to the mouth
of the AVhite; from this point they went up to the Post of
Arkansas where they laid in a supply of furniture, salt, flour
and everything necessary for a long life in the woods. They
then went back to the mouth of the White and made their way
up that stream to the Paoli Fields.
John Lindsey Lafferty and Margaret Lafferty, a son and
daughter of John and Sarah Laft'erty, were with this party,
Elizabeth Lafferty, another daughter, married a man by the name
of Kelley in Tennessee and formed another part of the caravan.
Elizabeth Kelley died at the mouth of the White river, where
she was buried, while the husband kept on up the river with
the Laffertys, dying a few years after he reached the destina
tion. The trip from East Tennessee to Independence County,
Arkansas, took six months. There was a young man named
Criswell with the party who on March 13, 1813, married Mar
garet Lafferty. He was born in South Carolina in 1791 and

294 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
died in Izard County, October 31, 1844; his wife, Alargaret,
died February 23, 1868, and was buried near Philadelphia Church
in the same county. They were both members of the Alethodist
church. One son of this marriage, Cyrus J. Criswell, is still living
far out on Rock Creek in Alontana. There he owns five thou
sand acres of land, si.xty head of horses, three hundred and
fifty head of cattle and one hundred calves. He is about six
feet high, of a light complexion, splendid blue eyes and weighs
one hundred and seventy pounds. He remembers his grand
mother, the widow Lafferty, as a very small woman, but one of
remarkable courage and splendid force of character. Besides
these three children of John and Sarah Lafferty, there were
four other boys, Henderson, Austin, Binks and Lorenzo Dow
Lafferty. When Schoolcraft and Drummond passed down the White
river in 1818, they stopped and stayed all night at the Widow
Lafferty's house, which they stated was thirty miles below
Williams' and five miles above a Mr. Jones on the same river.
Her farm was said to be on the right banks of the river, where
she had been living for many years. Schoolcraft found Mrs.
Lafferty very much excited, as were all her neighbors on that
side of the river. She with others had improved farms, farms
upon which they had lived for a long time, but which under
the treaty made with the Cherokees they were to be forced to
relinquish. Airs. Lafferty was making arrangements then to
move across the river to another farm which belonged to her
deceased husband, now in Izard County, and upon which she
died in 1832.
Thus the good work of this little woman found place in
Schoolcraft's narrative, and her other life work was most .splen
didly exemplified in the lives of her sons and daughters. Laf
ferty's creek in that region perpetuates the name of old John
Lafferty and his family to this good hour.
The Lafferty boys from 1815 to 1830 were the leaders- in
all good works. The eldest boy, John Lindsey Lafferty, was
a noted pioneer of A^an Buren County. He was born February
20, 1794. In 1836 he contested the seat of W. W. Trimble

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 295
in the constitutional convention and was successful. He was in
the legislature of 1838-40, and was the first county judge of
A'an Buren County.
In 1862, in that most trying legislature when John Har-
rell was speaker and Alden M. Woodruff clerk, he represented
Van Buren again. He then joined Colonel T. D. Merrick's
Tenth Arkansas Regiment and marched with General Bragg.
He died before the war was ended in his seventy-fifth year,
leaving a splendid famUy of children, whose descendants are
among the prominent men and women of the State.
Judge John Lindsey Lafferty was certainly married once
and he may have been married three or four times. The evi
dence points to several marriages. Plis first wife was Lucinda
Bagley, to whom he was married in 1817, who died after giv
ing birth to a son, Vaughn Burr Lafferty, who lived for many
}-ears with his grandfather, Asher Bagley, in Saline County.
His other sons were Wesley Rufus, George Lorenzo, John Red
man, Henderson Green, Austin Dallas and Alfred Wright.
John Redman died in California in 1872; the others are all dead,
excepting Alfred Wright, now living in Brownsville, Cleburne
County, Arkansas. Their mothers' names are unknown to me.
Vaughn Burr Lafferty, married Eritha McCaleb of Hick
man County, Tennessee, a granddaughter of that other old pio
neer, Joseph Hutcheson, of Saline County, Arkansas. Vaughn
Burr Lafferty settled in Dallas County, where for years he was
the neighborhood peacemaker and advisor. Born in Arkansas,
he lived on its soil eighty years, dying on Christmas Day in
1898. A'aughn Burr Lafferty learned surveying under Henry
W. Conway, possessed most excellent judgment, was a good
debater and a strong States' rights Democrat. He was prom
inent with Simon P. Hughes in the early Grange movement.
He was born August 16, 1818, in Independence County and was
married on April 3, 1842. His wife was the daughter of John
AlcCaleb of Saline County, Arkansas, and was born in Hick
man County, Tennessee, January 30, 1819, and died August
18, 1872, being buried at Holly Springs, Arkansas, where a
suitable stone marks her last resting place. She was known to
be an excellent Christian woman. V. B. Lafferty died Decem-

296 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
ber 25, 1898, at Lester, Arkansas, where for fifteen years he had
been merchant, postmaster and justice of the peace. He is
buried in Greenwood cemetery, Camden, Arkansas, and his grave
is marked with an appropriate stone. The sons of V. B. and
Eritha Lafferty were:
I. Lafayette Samuel Hempstead Lafferty, born January
29, 1843, and who died at New Aladrid, Missouri, February
II, 1862, a member of the 12th Regiment Arkansas Volunteers,
C. S. A.
2. John AlcCaleb Lafferty, born in Dallas County, Arkan
sas, February 10, 1845. He was a Confederate soldier, a com
rade of Ex-senator Jones, a physician for fifteen years at Chi
dester, Arkansas, and for the last twenty-four years connected
with the United States railway mail service. He niarried Jan
uary 12, 1871, Nancy Alinerva Hairston, who was born at Holly
Sprin_gs, Arkansas, August 15, 1848, a daughter of James and
Alary (A'aughn) Hairston, both natives of FayetteviUe, Tennes
see. Their children were: (i) Mary Eritha Lenora Lafferty,
born October 4, 1875, married December 22, 1903, Dr. Jeter
Lafferty Rushing, and had one child, Mary Elizabeth, born
October 19, 1906; live at Chidester, Arkansas; (2) John Yan
dell Lafferty, born October 14, 1879, married Bessie PhiUips
in Alarch, 1904, and had one chUd, John Lewell, born Jan
uary 17, 1905; John YandeU Lafferty holds a responsible posi
tion in the baggage and express department of the Iron Moun
tain RaUroad and is located at Little Rock; (3) Vaughn El
bert English Lafferty, born April 23, 1881, A. B. of Hendrix
College, physician, now holding responsible position in Charity
Hospital at New Orleans, Louisiana.
3. Druzilla Jane Lafferty, born March 9, 1847; married
James Rufus Brazeale Alarch 19, 1871, and died September i,
1900. James Rufus Brazeale, son of Benjamin Franklin Bra
zeale, was born in Ripley County, Mississippi, April 10, 1838,
and died June 3, 1895 • Druzilla Jane and her husband were both
members of the Alethodist Church, South, and are both buried
at Sardis Church in DaUas County, Arkansas ; he was a farmer
and a Mason. Their chUdren were: (i) Isabelle Eritha, born

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 297
February 11, 1872; married January 5, 1896, London L. Knight,
and have three children, Vaughn Alberta, Eritha Elizabeth and
John Feiix; live at Fordyce; (2) Mary Eliza Ann, born July 25,
1874; married February 14, 1901, William David Hall, and
became the mother of two chUdren, Martha Druzella and Cora
Mildred; live at El Dorado.
4. Eritha Elizabeth Lafferty, born March i, 1849, and died
September 19, 1859.
5. Sarah Elender Lafferty, born May 10, 1851 ; married
Alexander Tolbert N^aUor in October, 1876, he died in Decem
ber, 1879, leaving no children; his wife married Maston De
catur Fletcher of Lonoke County, Arkansas, in December, 1881,
who died February 5, 1905 ; she died October 4, 1901 ; they were
members of the Christian Church and are buried at Hamilton
postoflfice in Lonoke County; the children by the last marriage
were: (i) Lloyd Lafferty Fletcher, born May 18, 1883; a far
mer married and lives near Stuttgart, Arkansas; (2) Anna Ger
trude Fletcher, born June 25, 1884, married November 10, 1901,
-to Benjamin Franklin Leonard, a farmer of Lonoke County;
now living near Hillsboro, Texas, with two chUdren, Lloyd De
catur and Cleo Gertrude; (3) Kathleen Fletcher, born May 9,
1886; married November 21, 1907, to WiUiam Orr Whitlock,
a farmer near Hillsboro, Texas; (4) Arky Vaughn Fletcher,
born in August, 1891, and is still unmarried.
6. Vaughn De Kalb Lafferty born December 31, 1853;
physician, zealous Sunday school worker and lecturer; mem
ber Masonic fraternity and of the Methodist Church, South;
represented Saline County in the Legislature of 1888 and died
March i, 1891. He was buried at Bryant, Arkansas. Unmar
ried. 7. Mary Mariah Lafferty, born March 29, 1856, and died
December 30, 1872.
8. Arky Burr Lafferty, born AprU 3, 1859; married No
vember 9, 1879, James Oliver Reinhardt, who died in September
1887, without issue; the widow married on October 28, 1890,
James Wilkinson Hopper, a locomotive engineer, bom in New
York City, September 6, 1839, and for many years connected

¦298 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
with the Iron Mountain and Texas Pacific Railways; he died
March 12, 1906, and was buried in Greenwood cemetery, Cam
den, Arkansas.
John Lindsey Lafferty was nearly seventy years of age at
the time of his enlistment in the Confederate army — a mag
nificent age and a magnificent cause combining to round out his
eventful life. It is said that at the battle of Shiloh, Judge John
Lindsey Lafferty was chosen to carry the flag at the head of
the regiment, — and that running some twenty or thirty paces
ahead, he would turn about ever and anon to cheer his com
rades forward. The Stars and Bars were a glorious incentive
but the long flowing white locks of this grand old man made a
most picturesque figure and inspired his comrades to the loft
iest deeds of daring. His descendants are entitled to look upon
their ancestor with the most fulsome pride and Arkansans of
all shades of opinion will certainly justify them.
Another son of John Lafferty, the pioneer, was Jacob Binks
Lafferty, who in 1825 married a daughter of old Colonel James
Aliller of Aliller's creek, Independence County, and a sister of
ex-Governor W. R. Miller. Binks had a daughter who mar
ried twice, her last husband being Rev. William Atchley Ma
ples of Carroll County.
Another son, Henderson Lafferty, married in 1825 a
daughter of that other pioneer. Colonel Craig of Greenbrier.
He was one of the greatest of the early Arkansas Methodist
preachers, and possessed many of the characteristics of his
uncle, Eli Lindsey.
Another son, Austin F. Lafferty, married in Independence
County and reared a family.
The youngest son of the pioneer was Lorenzo Dow Lafferty,
commonly called "the Rover." He went to Texas and there
published a book entitled "The Life and Adventures of Lo
renzo Dow Lafferty," which was published by a New York
house, and dealt largely with the romance of early Arkansas
life. He married Elvira ChrisweU and had children; Martha,
Matilda Jane, Sarah, Eliza, Eva, Margaret, Francis, BurweU,
Dow and Albert Glenville.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 299
.'»
The boys of old John Lafferty were an honor to his name,
and stand as monuments to the sturdy virtues of the widow
Lafferty. The Berkshire Hills of Massachusetts never turned
out a more honorable, a more vigorous, a more patriotic set
of boys than came from the old Lafferty cabin on the barrens
of Independence County.
AVhen honors are fairly divided John Lafferty of Lafferty's
creek, the hero and pioneer, will be entitled to a full share; and
the Widow Lafferty, the great Methodist mother of the bar
rens, will be crowned with laurels.
THE LAFFERTY ANCESTRAL MOTTO.
John Lindsey Lafferty, in marrying Lucinda Bagley, mar
ried a daughter of a soldier, then drawing a pension, who had
served in the First regiment of the New Jersey Continental
Line. The descendants of John Lindsey Lafferty are thus
doubly tied to patriotic ancestry. Asher Bagley died in what
is now Saline County, and his daughter, Lucinda Lafferty, died
in Van Buren County on April 23, 1840, in her thirty-ninth
year. John Lindsey Lafferty also served in the Eighth Arkan
sas legislature in 185 1.
For the edification of all the Laffertys of Arkansas, I print
their ancient motto in Irish and Latin. If they cannot under
stand it, that is their misfortune. There is no law against an
American or Irish descent studying his ancestral tongue.
The Lafferty motto as engraved on their arms was :
O Dhia Gach an Cabliar —
Nec Timeo nec Sperno —
Min Sicker Reag.
THE HALL FAMILY.
WUHam Hall, Sr., was born in South Carohna, sometime
in the year 1769. Of his parents we have no record, save that
his father came from Ireland. When quite a young man he
went from South Carolina to Georgia and settled a farm near
the county site of Forsyth County. In the year 1794 he married
Mary Hamilton and became the father of ten children, John,

300 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
Alexander, George, Sarah, Samuel, David C, Mary, Jack, James
and William, Jr. With his family he entered Arkansas in the
spring of 1834, settling in Dallas County, seven mUes west of
HoUy Springs; at a later period he moved up near Tulip, at
which place he died on July 20, 1854; his wife died in 1865, and
both were buried at Old Tulip. Of this old pioneer family but
two are living; Mary and Sarah have their homes near Cedar
viUe, Crawford County, Arkansas. George, Jack and Wil
liam, Jr., died during the Civil war; Samuel died in 1854, and
John and Alexander died sometime in 1890. David Clark Hall
was born in Forsyth County, Georgia, August 20, 1822, and
came with his father to Arkansas in 1834; he was married on De
cember 26, 1844, to Alartha Ann Dickinson, to whom was born
nine children; (i) Mary Kate, born June 22, 1846, and died
August 9, 1871 ; (2) James T., born March 8, 1848, died May
25, 1897; (3) Sylvester D., born October 8, 1849, now living
in Dallas County, Arkansas ; (4) Robert D., born August 14,
1851, now living at Arkadelphia, Arkansas; (5) Martha D.,
born July 22, 1855, died September 17, 1859; (6) Edward M.,
born December 12. 1857, now living at Arkadelphia, Arkansas;
(7) Charles G., born August 18, i860, died July 31, 1879; (8)
AA'illiam D., born January 4, 1863, now living at El Dorado,
Arkansas; (9) Sally, born January 14, 1867, died June 4, 1867.
David Clark Hall and his wife lived near Tulip, Arkansas,
where his wife died on August 29, 1871. On December 21,
1 87 1, he was married the second time to Mrs. Lucy H. Kit
trell. Three chUdren were born to this marriage, Ida V., Luta
G., and Geneva K. David C. Hall continued his residence in
Dallas County until the latter part of 1886, when he moved to
Arkadelphia, where he died Alay 24, 1887. His last wife stiU
lives at that place.
CHAPTER XXXVII.
The Kaufmans, Coffmans and Cuffmans.
All names as they run through the centuries change form,
and no name is as difficult to identify through all its ramifica
tions as is the name Kaufman, Coffman or Cuffman. There can

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 301
be little doubt but that these three forms represent the name of
the same old German family, the Kaufmans. In Rupp's Thirty
Thousand Germans who landed at Philadelphia during the i8th
century the name Kaufman appears many times, but the name
Coffman or Cuffman is not to be found. They were Palatines
and in the main shipped from Rotterdam to Philadelphia. The
first on Rupp's list was Henry Kaufman in 1727; then John
Kauffman in 1737; then Hans Jacob Kaufman in 1738, and in
the same year John George Kauffman. From this on until
1764 eighteen other males bearing the name, Kauffman or Kauf
man, entered Philadelphia, and in 1750 Solomon Caufman is
presented. In 1764 Conrad Korfman came over. This is enough
to show that the German spelling of the word is either Kauff
man or Kaufman.
Now note the transition. I have followed up the imme
diate after history of many of these emigrants of Rupp and find
that when these Germans bought lands, or did other business
which brought them into contact with the English Colonial of
fice holders of Pennsylvania, Maryland of Virginia, that the
word Kaufman immediately changed to Coffman on the Amer
ican records. The Germans simply spelled it one way and the
English record makers another.
In the history of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, the county to
which nearly all of these Kaufmans as enumerated by Rupp
made their way, I find that one, Michael Kaufman, migrated
from the vicinity of Greensted, Hesse, on the Upper Rhine for
America and entered Lancaster County at sometime between
the years 1710 and 1719. The history states that Michael died
soon after leaving a son, John, and a daughter, Elizabeth, and that
their guardian bought of Penn's Commissioners, a large tract
of land in the vicinity of Landisonville, upon which John Kauf
man settled. All that is known of Elizabeth is that she married
Christian Stoneman in 1734. John Kaufman died leaving three
sons. Christian, Michael and John.
Old Michael Kaufman did not die soon after, but on the
contrary migrated to the Shenandoah Valley, Virginia, in 1727
or 1728. In Wayland's German Element in the Valley it is
set out that Michael Kaufman of Lancaster County, Pennsyl-

302 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
vania, bought lands of Daniel Stover at Massanutting in the
Shenandoah Valley in 1729. It appears that Stover had made
false representations to Kaufman in Lancaster County, Penn
sylvania, by and through which Kaufman with a part of his
family was induced to enter the Shenandoah. At that time no
one lived in the valley of the Shenandoah, and Michael Kauf
man in making this settlement of Massanutting earned for it
the title which history accords it of "The First Permanent White
Settlement West of the Blue Ridge." After the settlement was
made and the Germans were beginning to make a show it was
found that Stover's grant was defective, and the Virginia
Colonial Council upon petition of these German settlers quieted
their title and gave them lawful latitude to develop and pros
per. This is now in Page County. In 1736 a deed is recorded
showing that Michael Coffman lived on the south side of the
Shenandoah river adjoining Martin Coffman's land at Elk
creek. In the same year Michael Coffman bought other lands
on the Shenandoah, and in February, 1737, Martin Coffman
of Pennsylvania bought six hundred acres oi^ land on the Shen
andoah. In the same neighborhood were several Coffmans
and in that neighborhood the name has prevailed for more
than one hundred years. One of the trustees of Woodstock
Academy at its incorporation was Samuel Coo f man in 1817.
In Hening's Statutes the charges fixed by the legislature of
Virginia for a ferry from the land of John Coffman ¦ in the
county of Shenandoah across the south fork were fixed by law
on December 7, 1796.
Alartin Coffman died in 1748 leaving a large estate and
between that and 1800 many entries of land were made for
Coffmans by the name of Martin, David, Augustine, Andrew,
Jacob and John. Some of these are spelled Coffman and others
Coofman, yet all descending from the old German, Michael
Kaufman. It is my opinion that the spelling Cuffman is a
corruption of the Coofman, which in turn was a corruption of
the spelling Coffman, all being corruptions of the original spel
ling Kauffman or Kaufman.
In Arkansas Christopher Kaufman, known to have come
from the Shenandoah valley inhabited and cultivated six hun-

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 303
dred and forty acres on Kaufman's Bayou, Arkansas County,
from 1803 to 1806, and from 1809 to 1812 in person, and by
tenants from 1806 to 1809 and was granted six hundred and
forty acres under the act of Congress of 1814. Under the same
act George Kepler proved that he had possessed and cultivated
two hundred and forty arpens from 1801 to 1813 on the Lake
of the Prairie, bounded above by Coffman and below by Lavergne.
From this it is evident that the old spelling in Arkansas County
for Christopher was both Kaufman and Coffman. Nuttal ad
verts fo Kaufman's Bayou but nearly all of the later speUing
confirms Coffman. Christopher Kaufman died in Arkansas
County being one of the earliest pioneers of that region, but as
to his family I am not further advised. The name Kaufman
and Coffman as place names are landmarks in Arkansas his
tory. OTHER COFFMANS.
C. T. Coffman, the present county judge of Pulaski County,
says that his great grandfather was named Andrew Coffman
and that he emigrated from Virginia to Granger County, Ten
nessee, prior to 1800. That he ended his days in Granger
County living to be eighty-four years of age. He had a son,
Andrew Coffman, born in Granger County who in 1852 mi
grated to Hot Springs County, Arkansas, where he died about
the year 1884. This Andrew Coffman had a son, Hugh W.
Coffman, the father of C. T. Coffman, who was born in Granger
County, Tennessee, in 1821, moved to CarroU County, Arkansas,
in April, 1854, where he now lives (1907) at the age of eighty-
six. Hugh W. Coffman states that his grandfather, Andrew
Coffman, was a soldier in the Revolutionary war and that he
has often heard him narrate his experiences growing out of that
struggle. AU this is right and aU wrong. The NashvUle, Tenn., Mili
tary Grants from North Carolina show that Andrew Coffman
was granted on October 22, 1872, 200 acres on Lick creek in
Green County and not Granger.

304 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
THE CUFFMANS.
The traditions of this family as gleaned from old settlers
of Sumner County, Tennessee, are that Pavatt Cuffman was born
November 30, 1782, probably in the Shenandoali valley, Vir
ginia. The traditions are that the father of Pavatt Cuffman
was named Thomas Cuffman, and that he was born in Virginia,
that he either married there or in North Carolina a woman
liy the name of Pavatt, and that he died either in Virginia or
North Carolina. It is certain that he left a wife and two chil
dren, Thomas and Pavatt. I have not been able to identify this
particular Thomas Cuffman, but I feel assured that he descends
from Alichael Kaufman of the Shenandoah valley.
Personal investigation since the above was written shows
Thomas Cuffman a surveyor of roads in Sumner County, Tennes
see, in 1796, and as serving on a petit jury in 1797. This leaves
little room for doubt that the father of Pavatt Cuffman was
Thomas Cuffman, the traditionary ancestor. The records also
show that this Thomas Cuffman was from Shenandoah County,
Virginia, which virtually makes him a descendant of Michael
Kaufman, the pioneer. He died and was buried in Sumner
County, Tennessee.
It is unfortunate that the census rolls of Virginia for 1790
and 1800 are lost, as they would throw much light on the set
tlement of this region. The census of Virginia for 1810 for
Shenandoah County, which at that time included Page and a
part of Rockingham, contains the narries of twenty-six Coff
mans, each of which represented a head of a family. Besides
these there were three Pavatts. The court records of Shenan
doah County as to the marriage licenses of the dates 1780-
1800 are not avaUable, and it is not therefore possible from
these sources to determine which of the Coffmans married a
Pavatt, or Pavett as it is sometimes spelled. We shall assume
therefore that the traditional Thomas who married a Pavatt
was the real Thomas and the facts show that he was a grandson
of Michael Kaufman, the original settler of 1729 through Mar
tin Kaufman, his son. Thomas Coffman married a Pavatt be-

Pioneers and' Makers of Arkansas , 305
tween 1770 and 1800, dying in the same period. The traditions
of the family now remaining in the valley show that as early as
1780 men of the name began to emigrate to the west, but I have
not been able to find from those sources the migration of
Thomas Coffman and his two sons. In the census of 1820 for
Tennessee, the earliest extant, the names of Pavatt and Thomas
Cuffman appear as follows:
"Purvat Cuffman, one male six to ten, one sixteen to
twenty-six, one twenty-six to forty-five, three females six to
ten, and one female twenty-six to' forty-five, with four slaves."
Thomas Cuffman also appears immediately after Purvat
as a married man but witliout children or slaves, both man and
wife being between twenty-six and forty-five. No other Cuff
mans appear in Sumner County and as there was no one enu
merated in either the family of Pavatt or Thomas over forty-
five, the inference is that the Widow Cuffman was dead at that
time. Of Thomas Cuffman, the younger brother, little further
is known. The official war records show that Thomas Cuff
man, so spelled in one place, and Thomas Coffman, in another,
served in the War of 18 12 in Colonel John Coffee's Regiment
of Tennessee Mounted Volunteers in Captain John W. Byrn's
Company. He left Sumner County shortly after his marriage
and the traditions say that he went to Arkansas. Beyond this
nothing is known.
Pavatt Cuffman was born November 30, 1782, and migra
ted with his father and brother to Tennessee between 1790
and 1795. In 1807 he married Jane Kinsall, daughter of Moses
Kinsall, who came with his family to Sumner County, Tennes
see, in 1796. A sister of Jane Kinsall married Colonel Mont
gomery of Sumner County, Tennessee, who was from Virginia.
Pavatt Cuffman was a physician of the old style and did an ex
tensive practice in Sumner and adjoining counties; he stood
high in the community where he lived and had many substan
tial friends. He was noted for his honesty, fair dealings and
for his charity. He was also a farmer, and was counted very

3o6 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
well to do for a man of his day and time, owning a consid
erably quantity of land and a large number of slaves. He died
September 14, 1840, and was buried in the family burying
ground on the old Cuffman homestead near Hendersonville,
Tennessee. He was the father of six children, lantha, Eliza Ann,
Josephus, Julia Jane, Benjamin and Mary Martha.
Josephus Cuff'man, the oldest son and third child was born
March 19, 1814, in Sumner County, Tennessee; he was reared
on a farm and at twenty-two years of age enlisted in Captain
William Trusdale's Company, Second Tennessee Mounted
Alilitia, and served as a private in the Florida War of 1836.
He was twice -married: First, to Mary A. Smith of S'umner
County; second, to Alary E. Carroll. Five children were born
to the first marriage, Benjamin Franklin, Mary Jane, David
Pavaft, Robert AI., and Daniel W. The chUdren of thei sec
ond marriage were Rowena, John H., James M., Joida, Al-
meda and Almira.
Alary E. Carroll, the second wife was a daughter of Wiley
Carroll and PoUy Hunnicutt, who was a daughter of Bart
lett Hunnicutt and Sally Holt, both North Carolinians. Bart
lett Hunnicutt served as a private in the War of 18 12, and
Gabriel Holt, father of SaUy Hunnicutt was reputed to have
been a Revolutionary soldier.
The following testimonial of the family physician of Jose
phus Cuffman is worthy of perpetuation and will be appreciated
by his Arkansas descendants: "Josephus Cuffman was born in
Sumner County, Tennessee, March 19, 1814. He died October
27, 1869. He was a man remarkable for his love and devo
tion to his family. He had raised to majority four sons and one
daughter, and leaves six little ones, the youngest two being
but three weeks old. He was a man of the strictest honesty
in aU his dealings, and of stern and unbending integrity. As
a husband he was one of the kindest and most devoted; as a
parent, ever ready to advise, assist and protect his children;
as a neighbor, kind and obliging; as a man and friend, true,
faithful and ever ready to assist. He has gone to his grave
leaving many to mourn his loss, and all may profit by the con-

Pioneers and Makers of Arliansas S^7
templation of his honesty, and his affection for his wife, children
and friends. James Franklin, M. D. October 28, 1869."
John H. Cuffman, son of Josephus Cuffman by the second
marriage was born in Sumner County, Tennessee, educated in
that county and Hickory Flat Institute, Kentucky; he graduated
from the Medical Department of Vanderbilt University in 1889,
and removed to Arkansas the same year. He is now located
at Gurdon engaged in the general practice of medicine, at the
same time being a surgeon for the St. Louis, Iron Mountain
& Southern Railroad, and the Gurdon and Ft. Smith Railroad.
He married Mary E. Littlejohn of Dallas County, a descendant
of one of the pioneers of that region. Her father, Alex W. Lit
tlejohn was the boy companion and life long friend of Ex-Sen
ator James K. Jones.
Another son of Josephus Cuffman, James M. Cuffman, is
a resident of Nashville, Tennessee.

CHAPTER XXXVIII.
Augustus Hill Garland.
Augustus Hill Garland was well born and had furnished to
his hands many of the elements out of which greatness is
evolved, but his success is not to be attributed to these alone,
nor to any considerable degree. His father, Rufus King Gar
land, was a Virginian of Scotch-Irish descent, of a family
whose respectabUity extended through more than a century of
Virginia's colonial career, and who in his young life removed
to North Carolina, and afterwards to Tennessee.
At that time there was living at Lexington, Henderson
County, Tennessee, a young woman named Barbara HUl, who,
born AprU 10, 1811, near Louisburg, Franklin County, North
Carolina, was destined to exercise a tremendous influence upon
the life and fortunes of Rufus King Garland. She had re
moved with her parents in her tenth year to Tennessee and had
finished her education at the female academy in Lebanon. In
1827 at Lexington, Rufus King Garland married Barbara HiU,

3o8 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
and not long after their marriage they removed to Tipton
County, Tennessee, near Covington where they resided for a
few years. In this place they prospered and here three children
were born.
I. Elizabeth John Garland, born December i, 1828, who
married Captain Robert P. Cook, of Virginia antecedents, born
Bedford City, Virginia, March 31, 181 5, a pioneer of Arkansas
who settled near Brownstown, Sevier County in 1836, and who
died at Arkadelphia on the i5th day of June, 1880. The
mother died at the same place December 31, 1896. The chil
dren of this marriage were Robert T. Cook, now a prominent
citizen of Hot Springs; Garland Cook of the St. Louis, Iron
Mountain and Southern Railroad, now living in Little Rock;
Fanny Cook who married Dr. Ware, a presiding elder of the
Methodist Church, South; Laura Cook, who married Eli Mc
Daniel of Arkadelphia, and Barbara Cook who never married.
2. Rufus King Garland, Jr., was born May 22, 1830, arid
in his after life, became a prominent character in Arkansas a
noted lawyer and a great politician, and who married Isabelle
Walker, the accomplished daughter of David Walker, the
wealthiest man in his day in Hempstead County; he owned a
thousand acres of good land, was a first class lawyer, a planter
and a recognized preacher of the Methodist Church. Rufus
King Garland, Jr., lived a long life in Arkansas, but died with
out descendants. He died at Prescott, December 12, 1886.
3. Augustus Hill Garland, the youngest child, born June
II, 1832, whose further life is the object of this sketch.
He inherited from his father and mother a strong mind and
a strong will. The conservation of that will marked him for a
life of greatness, and the exercise of that will brought the real
ization. Before he was a year old his parents moved to Arkan
sas and settled upon a farm near the present town of Garland,
in Miller County, then in Lafayette County. Upon this farm
his father died within a very short time, and upon that farm,
overlooking the Red river, was buried. Thus it happened that
young Garland never knew much of his father, but notwith
standing this always held his memory in the very highest esteem.
So strong was this sentiment that he was frequently charged

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 309
with ancestry worship, a charge that he never took the pains
to deny. It is true that he never visited near Garland, in any
part of his after eventful life, even after his mother had remar
ried and become the head of a great house in Hempstead
County, without going to the grave of his father, and with un
covered head standing before his last resting place. On one
occasion he put up at the Russell residence on the opposite side
of the river for the night, announcing to his host that he de
sired to be called early in order that he might cross the river
and pay his accustomed visit to his father's grave. His host
told him that such an arrangement would be useless, for at the
last rise of the Red river the banks upholding the cemetery had
been undermined and all the graves washed away. This af
fected Mr. Garland very much, and kept him from retiring ¦
until long after midnight. He walked backwards and forwards
over the veranda of the old house and was frequently overheard
to say, "Would to God I knew where to find his bones."
What I propose to do first is merely to consider a little of
Garland's life prior to the events which gave him a prominent
State character, the sure forerunner of his national character,
and then to refer to any other facts and circumstances which
may help us to account for his greatness as a man and as a
statesman. I do not wish to be impudent, nor shall I be servile,
believing, however, with Lord Beaconsfield that it is better to
transgress through impudence than servility.
The first great fact to remember is that Augustus H» Gar
land was in every essential a monument to Southern character
and therefore a true representative of all that is good in Ameri
can worth. He was an American to the core, and this Ameri
canism found root in that other circumstance that he was born
in the South. ^
He was born in Tennessee — a fact that may and may not
be of importance. It is also a fact that before he was out of
his swaddling clothes he was taken by his parents to Arkan
sas — a fact of greater importance possibly than his birth date
and place. What he would have been under a life tutelage in
Tennessee, no one can say — no one can guess. He might have

310 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
'.vorked out a greater stature and then again he might not. His
gr-^atness came to him by and through his Arkansas mantle and
net through the clothing of his Tennessee birth. He was proud
of his Tennessee lineage, but prouder of his Arkansas home.
The one was accidental, while the other was to the greatest
extent the result of his own volition. Whenever you are in
your next fit of depression about Arkansas and most piously
wish yourself a denizen of a greater State, it may be well to
dc a little stock-taking and calculate your profits as well as your
losses. Garland, as an Arkansan, lifted the State to a higher
pedestal of honor and power, and this is all to your good.
You can, if you choose, do likewise.
GARLAND A TYPICAL ARKANSAN.
Garland was not only an Arkansan, but a typical one ; one
of the very kind that many Northern men make a point of dis
liking. He lived in Arkansas while it was a territory and knew
the pioneers and was thoroughly well acquainted with pioneer
Hfe. He lived in Arkansas under every one of its constitutions
and was therefore a good constitutional Arkansan. He was a
"before the war" Arkansan, a "through the war" Arkansan,
and a first-class "after the war'' Arkansan. He lived in South
Arkansas and was educated there in good old pioneer schools.
His mother was Arkansan to the core and his father was buried
on Arkansas soil. His mother remarried one of the old type
of Afkansas gentlemen. Judge Thomas Hubbard, a prominent
attorney of Hempstead County, prosecuting attorney from 1828
to 1832, and judge of the Sixth Circuit from 1854 to 1856, and
it is no discredit to the stepfather to say that he loved and hon
ored the stepson to as great a degree as a father could honor
a son. Shortly after the death of his father, his mother, Mrs.
Barbara Hill Garland, rented out the Red River farm, and with
her children and servants, settled a new home in the hills,
some thirty mUes from the farm, which she caUed "Spring HiU,"
at which place in 1837 she was remarried to Judge Hubbard.
The residence at Spring Hill was maintained until 1844 when it

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 311
was transferred to Washington, Arkansas, where it was con
tinued until the death of Judge Hubbard in 1865.
Augustus H. Garland received his early education from his
mother and step-father, two characters most admirably adapted
to this end. He also attended schools at Spring HUl and Wash
ington, and was afterwards sent to Bardstown College, at Bards
town, Kentucky, where he spent six years. His intellectual
habit of mind exhibited itself early, and formed the basis for
that strong tie which always existed between his step-father.
Judge Hubbard, and himself. He was an omnivorous reader
and went to college with a larger miscellaneous stock of read
ing than was usual for one in those parts, and in this sense he
was like Edmund Burke. I can not say that he read no novels,
for that would be a charge against his emotions; nor that he
eschewed poetry, which would be to attack his intelligence;
I suppose he was like all other sturdy boys, an omnivorous
reader of novels and poetry, in which sense he is again com
parable with Edmund Burke. Certain it is that he read much
history, which at that time meant Rollin, Plutiarch, Irving,
Burke and Macauley — a far better course than most young
men take today. A master of Plutarch is already a master of
historic thought. He also read Blackstone — long before he had
taken the notion to read law. His scholarly stepfather was
doubtless the cause of this excursion into the greatest law book
that has ever been penned. A master of Blackstone is fixed in
the saddle of the science of lav/ and no pernicious bupking of
the steed can unhorse him. Among the students at Bardstown
he stood high. Father Hill of St. Louis, who was a teacher
at that institution, in his after Hfe, said of General Garland:
"That Gus Garland had one of the greatest minds of any stu
dent that ever appeared at Bardstown."
After graduating he returned to the residence of his step
father in Hempstead County, learned as to the schools, but un
determined as to a vocation in life. His mother had her way
and he was given freedom to choose for himself. Judge Hub
bard, however, bided his time and in time had his way. Por
a year Garland taught school in Sevier County, but being pos
sessed of a strong penchant for clerical work, returned to Hemp-

312 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
stead* County and took a place in the ofifice of the county clerk.
Specimens of his work are not handed down to us, but traditions
are full of glow as to their worth. He was not fixed in his
political principles, but his leaning was to the Whigs. When
one looks at the record of Whiggery in Hempstead County,
from 1835 to 1855, he has no diflculty in explaining this leaning.
That county was for years about evenly divided between the
Democrats and Whigs — one party succeeding at one election,
and the other at the next, the only exception being in favor of
S. T. Sanders, the county clerk, who held ofifice from 1838 to
1868, through the vicissitudes of all parties and the favorite of
all men. About this time, the date of Garland's entrance upon
a career, the Democrats had been in power for two years and
the AA'higs felt that it was their turn next. He was a favorite
of Judge Hubbard and also of Mr. Sanders, and the Whigs
thought that with their help they could make Garland the treas
urer of the county, a thing which appealed to his young mind
and won his consent. This, however, brought the iron hand of
the stepfather down and carried the mother with it. Judge Hub
bard forbade Gus Garland to run for county treasurer, and the
mother united her prayers to her husband's remonstrance. Gus
backed down, entered Judge Hubbard's ofifice and began the
serious study of law. In after years Garland asked his step
father why he had so vigorously opposed his taking a county
ofifice. The judge answered : "For this reason. You had a
legal mind and you owed it to yourself and the people to develop
it. Had you been elected treasurer, you would have remained
treasurer all your life, and the triumphant leadings of your mind
would have been stifled." HIS MARRIAGE.
The society of old Washington was possibly the most culti
vated of the State, and in this young Garland spent his young
boyhood and manhood. He had for his friends the ablest and
best AA^higs and Democrats of that day and was surrounded by
as high a class of womanhood as the world has produced. Cap
tain Simon T. Sanders, a North Carolinian by birth, and the
most popular man in Hempstead County at that time, had a

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 313
most accomphshed daughter, Sarah Virginia Sanders, whose
love was won by A. H. Garland, and who became his wife. The
union was blessed with eight children, four of whom died in
infancy, while four reached maturity. Sarah Virginia Garland
died at Little Rock in her Stott street residence in 1879 and was
buried in Mount Holly cemetery.
Garland was an American also in his love for debate and
was most fond of this class of educational societies. He was
unquestionably the possessor of great powers of illustration, ex
planation and expatiation. He was not great in the reservoirs
of critical learning, but was in every sense a virile, vigorous
thinker. Being admitted to the bar under the advice of his
stepfather he removed to Little Rock, where he formed a part
nership with Ebenezer Cummins, under the firm name of
Cummins & Garland. Judge Cummins at that time was the
leading lawyer of Little Rock and the fortunate master of a
large and lucrative practice. Within a year Garland had ac
quainted himself with the demands of this practice, and, at
Cummins' death, shortly afterward, succeeded to this practice
ill its entirety. Thus before he was twentyeight years of age
he was in possession of one of the most lucrative law practices
in the State of Arkansas, and but for the breaking out of the
war in i860 would possibly have become the richest practitioner
of the State. HIS First visit to Washington, d. c.
In his little book, "Experience in the United States Su
preme Court," Garland has himself told of this first visit to the
capital of the country. He says: "In December, i860, when
I was half way between twenty-eight and twenty-nine years of
age,'^I left Little Rock, Arkansas, to come to the Supreme Court
for the purpose of attending to the case of McGee v. Alathis, and
several others. At that time it required nearly an entire week
to make the trip from Little Rock to Washington." At Wash
ington he put up at the Kirkwood house, which afterward came
to be known as the Palais Royal, and is now refitted and known
as The Raleigh. Accompanied by Reverdy Johnson on the
26th of December, i860, he was enrolled as an attorney at law,

314 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
solicitor in chancery, and proctor in admiralty. He did not
visit Washington again for five years, his next appearance being
in the Test Oath cases, wherein he blazoned his right to stand
as a national character and laid the foundations strong and
secure for his after greatness. But between his first and second
trips to AA'ashington much of historic moment intervenes, which
we shall now turn aside to examine. The four cases filed by
Garland at this time involved the impairing of the obligations
of contracts by State law, and the Circuit and Supreme Courts
of Arkansas had decided adversely to Garland. These cases
slumbered at Washington for six years, but through Garland's
untiring- efforts were finally decided in his favor. The amount
involved financially was large to the extreme, and, if no war
had come, the decisions in his favor, according to Garland's own
statement, would have enabled him to retire from practice, but
owing to the war they profited him nothing.
garland in The civil war.
He left AA^ashington on January 15, 1861, and arrived at
Little Rock a week later. Here all was turmoil and excitement.
Alen were preparing for war, and Garland was borne with the
people into its seething center. A constitutional convention was
called and he was elected a member thereof from Pulaski County.
This convention held sessions from Alarch 4 to Alarch 21, 1861,
and from Alay 6 to June 3 of the same year. In the meantime
the Southern Confederacy was formed and on May 10, 1861,
the Arkansas convention sent R. W. Johnson, A. H. Garland,
H. F. Thomasson, Albert Rust and W. W. Watkins as dele
gates to the Provisional Confederate Congress at Montgomery,
Alabama, Garland receiving the highest vote. Here, Garland
lived in the same house with Alexander H. Stephens and formed
a friendship whicii was only terminated by the death of the
distinguished vice president. At the general election in 1862
Garland was elected to the lower house of the Confederate Con
gress from the Third district of Arkansas, and at the general
election in 1864 was reelected from the same district. The
delegates to the lower house from Arkansas, who sat with Gar
land, were Thomas B. Hanley, G. D. Royston, F. I. Batson and

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 315
R. K. Garland, his brother. During his second term in the
lower house the Confederate legislature of Arkansas, after a
spirited contest between him and Albert Pike, elected him to the
Confederate Senate, which caused him to resign his place in
the lower house, where he was succeeded by D. W. Carroll.
Thus, A. H. Garland served in the Provisional Congress of the
Confederacy at Montgomery, Alabama, and also in both the
upper and lower houses of the Confederate Congress at Rich
mond, Virginia, during the entire life of the Confederacy. The
history of this most remarkable body has not as yet been writ
ten, but when the future historian shall outline its work in its
entirety it will challenge the admiration of the world. To legis
late for an armed struggle of the magnitude of the Civil war in
a territory surrounded and blockaded by the enemy at every
point and to carry that struggle successfully through a period
of four years will not only merit but command impartial atten
tion. With the downfall of the Confederacy, Garland went
back to Little Rock to find himself absolutely impoverished.
His negroes were gone ; his property worthless, and his splendid
practice absolutely destroyed, while military law dominated the
entire land. He had to live, and in July, 1865, made a trip to
Washington, called upon President Johnson and with much
amiability besought him to grant a pardon, wiping out all of
Garland's sins of omission and commission growing out of the
Civil war. Reverdy Johnson, the man who had introduced him '
to the Supreme Court five years before, seconded the efforts of
Garland, and Johnson issued the pardon. It was a huge docu
ment, of which Garland was proud, as in his language it vir
tually made him a new man. Going over to the Supreme Court,
he dug up the papers he had filed there years before and re
solved to prosecute them to the end.
THE TEST OATH IMPEDIMENTA.
One thing, however, stood in his way as it stood in the way
of all lawyers of the South. On January 24, 1865, Congress
had passed an act disbarring every attorney from practice be
fore the Supreme Court of the United States or any Circuit or
District Court of the United States unless said attorney should
take the iron-clad oath of July 2, 1862, which recited that he

3i6 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
had never borne arms against the United States, nor volun
tarily given counsel, aid or encouragement to persons in armed
hostility to the government. This act of Congress was made a
rule of court in Alarch, 1865, and Garland found himself
although able and willing to practice, without the right to enter
a single district, circuit or the United States Supreme Court.
He said to Reverdy Johnson, "I am going to fight the constitu
tionality of that law, and I desire your counsel and help." John
son, with his usual generosity, replied, "I will help you gladly,
but will take no fee." Garland was afterward advised to secure
the help of Alatt Carpenter, who answered in almost the same
words that Johnson had used.
Garland went home, prepared his petition to the Supreme
Court attacking the constitutionality of the law and filed a brief,
which formed the basis of the after arguments made by Gar
land, Reverdy Johnson and Carpenter. No greater State paper
has ever been filed in the Supreme Court than Garland's brief.
He argued that exclusion from the practice of law or from any
other vocation in life for past conduct was a punishment for
said conduct ; that a bill of this character was of the nature of
a bill of pains and penalties and therefore within the constitu
tional inhibition against the passage of bUls of attainder and
therefore unconstitutional. He also set up many other points
\ii-hicli made the law unconstitutional on the ex post facto side.
He argued strongly also that attorneys were not officers of the
United States, but ofificers of the particular courts which en
rolled them and were responsible solely to them, and could only
be deprived of their special ofifice by the judgment of those
courts, after opportunity to be heard had been afforded. That
their admission and exclusion to and from the practice of law
were judicial powers, absolutely outside the range of congres
sional action. He further argued fully and forcibly the nature,
extent and effect of executive pardons and in every item car
ried the court with him.
On the evidential side he showed his admission in an Ar
kansas court and his continuance on the Arkansas roll of at
torneys; he showed the intervention of the Civil war, secession
ahd his alliance with the Southern cause; his membership of the

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 317
lower house of the Confederate Congress and afterward his
membership of the Confederate Senate. It was impossible
therefore for him to take the oath of July 2, 1862, or to obey
the rule of the court of March, 1865 ; he filed the pardon granted
by the president in July, 1865, which gave him a clearance
against all offenses against the United States and their effects.
He showed that he had taken the oath required by the pardon
and annexed to it, and argued that all other oaths were uncon
stitutional. AA'hen he got ready to go on to Washington to argue the
case he found himself without money. He dropped in to the
ofifice of S. H. Tucker, the moneyed man of the town, and told
him that he wanted $100, for v/hich he could give no security
except his note. Tucker looked at him a minute and said,
"Gus, what would you do in Washington with $100? You
would look shabby." Then turning to his clerk, he said, "Give
Garland $500 and take his note for it. There is no security,
but I believe the money wiU be repaid." The money was repaid.
The case was known as "Ex parte Garland," and was
argued for Garland iJy Garland himself, by Reverdy Johnson,
Matt Carpenter and Mr. Marr, an attorney from Louisiana.
For the government it was argued by Attorney General Sneed
and by Henry Stansberry, special counsel. The case attracted
wide attention, as it involved ihe return of the old Southem
lawyers to practice before the Supreme Court. Johnson and
Carpenter were giants, but Garland proved his right that day
to stand side by side with these men. Matt Carpenter said:
"Garland, you have this day, stepped from a provincial to a
national field."
The Supreme Court was constituted then as follows:
Chief Justice S. P. Chase, Justices James M. Wayne, R. C.
Grier, Noah H. Swayne, David Davis, Samuel Nelson, Nathan
Clifford, Samuel F. MiUer and Stephen J. Field. Justice Field
delivered the opinion of the court, from which Justices Swayne
and Davis dissented. The case wUl be found in Fourth Wal
lace, a book abounding with questions of great constitutional
moment. From this it will appear that seven justices decided
with Garland, maintaining every contention that he made, whUe

3i8 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
two dissented. For some reason Garland in his little book,
"Experience in the Supreme Court," printed in 1898, held that
but five judges were on his side and four against him.
James G. Blaine, in his "Tv/enty Years in Congress," stated
that there vvas a strong disposition on the part of Southern
Democrats in the convention which nominated Mr. Seymour to
nominate Judge Chase, as he had favored the application in ex
parte Garland to admit their lawyers to practice in United States
courts. Garland said that Blaine was mistaken, that Judge
Chase, the chief justice, was a dissenter. The records, how
ever, show that only Swayne and Davis dissented and that
Blaine was therefore right.
Garland was now not only a pardoned man, but admitted
to the right to practice law in all the United States courts, and
the right which he gained for himself inured to every lawyer
of the South who had been disbarred. This brought Garland
prominently before not only the Southern bar, but the entire
'bar of the United States. This episode was in all probability
the greatest act of his life, and if he had done nothing more,
would entitle him to rank among the very* greatest men of the
United States. Credit should also be given to those grand
men, Reverdy Johnson and Matt Carpenter, and Arkansas has
special reason to forever remember their names.
THE -RECONSTRUCTION PERIOD IN ARKANSAS-
Returning to Little Rock, he set about to resume the prac
tice of law and to this end formed a partnership with James
White and L- C. Nash under the firm name of Garland, White
& Nash. A few months later, Mr. White died, and the firm
became Garland & Nash. Some years later the firm was - dis
solved, Nash going West, and a new partnership was formed
with Sterling R. Cockrill, under the firm name of Garland &
Cockrill. When what was called the Rebel legislature met in
1866, John T. Jones and Andrew Hunter were elected senators
of the United States. Hunter resigned in a short time and
Garland was selected in his place. While Garland had been
fortunate in conquering his way into the Supreme Court he was
not able to overcome the political antagonism of the United

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 319
States Senate. Both he and Jones were denied admission to
that honorable body at that time. From 1866 to 1874, Gar
land's life was devoted to his law practice. In 1868 he was
sent by the Democracy of Arkansas at the head of its delegation
to the Democratic convention at New York city, the convention
which nominated Horatio Seymour. While there he had a pic
ture taken, which in after years was used by a Tennessee artist.
Miss Crawley, for painting the portrait which now hangs in
the State house at Little Rock. Garland always liked this pic
ture and used it in his little book, "Experience in the Supreme
Court." There is another picture of Garland which adorns the
walls of the Department of Justice at Washington, but which
his friends say is not a true portrait.
HIS great letter to VICE PRESIDENT STEPHENS-
In the same year, after the election was over. Senator Gar
land wrote a letter to Vice President Alexander H. Stephens, a
copy of which he kept and which is now in the possession of
Mr. R. T. Cook of Hot Springs, Arkansas. On account of its
importance it is reproduced entire :
A. H. Gariand.
L. B. Nash.
Garland & Nash.
Attorneys at Law.
Little Rock, Ark., Nov. 9, 1868.
My Dear Mr. Stephens :
The election on last Tuesday, the 3d inst., has resulted in
the choosing of General Grant to the presidency of the United
States, which I have been expecting for the past two months,.
and I do not, for one moment, suppose that you are astonished
in the least, at this result. Grant will go into ofifice with in
fluence and weight of character sufficient to destroy the liberties
of the country as well as the country itself in a very short time ;
and so too, he wiU have it in his power, if disposed, to arrest
the tide that is now upon us, and to restore the country to peace
and order, which in a few years would bring us prosperity
again as a nation. It is with him, in my calm and deliberate
judgment, to accomplish one of these alternatives. If he fol-

320 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
lows the programme and the wishes of the party whose candi
date he was, ruin, red ruin, will be the consequence, and that at
no distant day; if on the other hand, he follows his own judg
ment and tries to administer the government according to the
constitution, and in justice to all, he wUl rescue us from destruc
tion, and lay broad, deep and permanent the foundation for our
future well being.
Which wUl he do? I know so little of General Grant as a
public man, I am utterly unable to form a satisfactory opinion
to myself as to this. I know him personally, but not well, and
he says nothing on public matters; but I have always heard he
was a man of sense, and particularly a man of his own will and
judgment. From his acts towards our soldiers and others in
trouble after the surrender, I can not think him a bad man at
all, but rather a fair minded man. Of course much has been
said of and about him, during the late political contest, by his
opponents, that they themselves in their cool moments do not
believe — the results of, I suppose, what is called political license.
Now then, whatever tinge or coloring may have been given to
his feelings in passing through the recent ordeal of an election,
which under the most favorable auspices is always trying, he
must, now that the storm of battle has cleared away, reflect
calmly upon what lies before him. Certainly he is not a fool,
and certainly he would like to li\'e in history as the savior of his
country rather than its destroyer. We all believe him as am
bitious as Cassius, and he might aspire to that praise Cicero
clainied he would be entitled to in saving Rome from Cataline's
machinations — that is, saving Rome would give him more
honor than the founder of Rom.e had. If his ambition is at all
purified and well directed, the idea of saving the institutions of
his country and living hereafter by the side of Washington,
might well move him in a direction altogether different from
that desired or expected by his party friends. We must bear in
mind, that we now had it that Grant was a republican or a
radical until he and the President, summer before last, got at
outs, and it was by no means certain until then, that he would
be with the republicans, but on the contrary, some of our friends
were fondly calculating on him as the standard bearer of the

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 321
Democracy in the national contest just over. Do you think it
at all improbable that he might surround himself with decent.
moderate and able men of the republican party, and be governed
by them and rule as President in conservatism?
To the South this is all important^ — it is vital. If the
latter course is not pursued by him, then history will not afford
an example so prostrated, so wicked and so deplorable, as our
poor South. This, of course you know, and know it much bet
ter than I do. It is all important too that General Grant should
determine some time before his inauguration upon his course,
so that when he is installed, if his course is conservative, we
will be inspired with hope, and our energies for good will be
gin to display themselves at once. In order then to enable him,
or to aid him to determine, it has occurred to me after much
long and anxious reflection, that some kind and considerate
influences ought to be brought to bear upon him before the
4th of March next, and as soon now as he is rested from his
late heat, and his sores are healed somewhat. In other words,
we should not leave him m the hands of Bingham, BoutweU,
Washburne, ed id omne genus, for then he will become -wedded
to his idols. We should look the situation in the face, and ac
cept it gracefully, and study to render it not only bearable, but
to deprive it of all its disagreeable and unpleasant consequences
as threatened. As a plan to accomplish this, I have fallen on the follow
ing, and I wish you to consider it in all its bearings, and decide
on it, viz. : One or two representative men of the true conser
vatism in each of ten Southern States should by private agree
ment meet with General Grant about ist January next and lay
before him the facts as they are in these States, and promise
and vouch for the peace and order and obeying of the laws on
the part of the people here, if the government is properly con
ducted. By representative men I mean neither active demo
crats or republicans in the late contest — but men who have been
quiet and have been looking to the peace and quiet of their
people, and who have not stirred up strife and bitter feeling^s
ahiong their people. For as you well know, we have been for
the last three months ground in between the upper and nether

322 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
mill-rocks — conservatism proper has been strangled, and bad
men on both sides, desiring trouble and commotion have kept
the country on fire, just as the late hell-born war was originated
in 1 860- 1. And I do not believe I mistake the facts, when I
say, that our people South — I mean those of social, pecuniary
and moral responsibility desire peace earnestly and are ready
and willing to conform to rules under anyone if they can be
protected in their rights as given them even in the general terms
of the Constitution; and I believe this assurance full and ample
can be made to General G. and strictly within the bounds of
truth. These things properly laid before him by men who are
able to do it — who are respected at home, and who are known
to be conservative indeed, must make him pause and reflect, and
then act as a man of sense and of patriotism, and they wUl do
so, unless he is a fool or a fiend, or both, which I do not believe
at all. And after looking over the whole country, I have concluded
of all men, you are the proper person to initiate this and carry
it out, if you approve it. Although you were in high position
in the Confederacy, yet all men have (and do still regard) re
garded you as conservative; and the republicans north know
and acknowledge this; and I know the people north respect
your character and judgment, whUe the South more than re
spects them. And your quiet and retired course since the war
has added largely to your name, and enlarged your powers for
usefulness. Now, if you, General Lee, Governor Graham of
North Carolina, Orr of South Carolina and others, by concert
of action will go to Washington City, as by accident, and meet
General Grant and have this kind of a conversation, then all is
lost, if good does not come of it. The other names you know
better than I. General Joe Johnston would be a good one. I
write today myself to Governor Graham and Orr and send them
copies of this letter to you. These names would weigh with
Grant, and I must think would cause him to pursue a course of
administration that would disappoint some of his partizan friends
but would bless the land at large. All of you have been quiet
and have not wrangled, and what you would preach you have
practiced. I might do something myself, but my connection

Pioneers and Makers of A rkansas 323
with the Test-Oath Case and the Miss. Injunction Case, and be
ing elected by the Legislature of 1866-7 here (which is odious
to that party) to the United States Senate, although unasked
and unsolicited, would break down any influence I might exert
there — although with an assurance of this kind to you gentle
men or others, from General Grant I could quiet Arkansas in
ten days, I believe, and it 'would give me the greatest pleasure
and joy to do this.
Now I have thought this subject over and over, and have
concluded on the foregoing. I make the suggestion to you.
Act in it as you think best. J feel well satisfled the gentlemen
referred to will aid you, and co-operate in all you do. The ob
ject to be attained is worth all the effort. No one, but a friend
who copies this letter for me to forward to Governors Graham
and Orr, knows I have written it. Something must be done
quickly, and we should not hesitate about it. I would do any
thing on earth to bring about a better state of affairs and can't
it be done? Try once more, and then when we have done all
we can and faU, let the end come and we are clear of responsi
bility. Write me in full and see if you can tell me something
encouraging or hopeful. See if you can't call back Tige by tell
ing him "that d — d varmint is gone." I wish I could see you.
Let me know how your health is,- and believe me always.
Your friend truly, , -
A. H. Garland.
;P. S. When wUl your second volume on the zvar be out?
I read the first with great interest, and look forward, with
pleasure, to the reading of the 2d.
Yours, Garland."
The following endorsement appeared on the back of this
letter:
A. H. Garland to A. H. Stephens.
"Copy of a letter sent this day to Mr. S. Nov. 9-68. ;G."
hominy hill.
He bought the home of Major John D. Adams in Little
Rock and afterward built the residence on Fourteenth and Scott

324 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
streets. In 1870 he bought Gibson Springs, a farm of twelve
hundred acres in Ellis Township, and changed its name to
Hominy Hill. His wife died in the Scott street house, but
Garland's summers were spent mostly at Hominy Hill. He was
a great deer hunter, being one of the best shots in the country
and a great fisherman. Here h^ developed the farm, read law
and history, hunted and fished at pleasure-, He had three boys
who were accomplished musicians on the violin, flute and piano.
Here he was visited .by his old-time friends, B. D. Williams,
General Fagan, James N. Smithee, John D. Adams, James M.
Henry, Captain Rees Pritchard, Zeb Ward, Sr., Judge Compton,
Colonel Bob Howard and W. S. Davis, besides many others.
Garland, when in the Senate of the United States, made head
quarters whUe in Little Rock at the livery stable of W. S. Davis,
whom Garland termed familiarly, William Saltpetre Davis.
Davis was an excellent conversationalist and Garland a good
listener, especially with a pocketful of peanuts to munch from.
Thus passed his life to the beginning of the Brooks-Baxter war.

, garland as governor.
The Reconstruction government of Arkansas began with the
constitution of 1868 and ended with the Constitutional Con
vention of 1874. During the last years of this epoch the Re
publican party split wide open, resulting in two candidates for
governor, Baxter and Brooks. The Democrats, after mature
deliberation, decided to make no contest and to let the Repiibli-
cans flght it out among themselves. Thousands of Democrats
voted for Baxter and other thousands voted for Brooks. At
this day it is easy to say who was elected. There can be no
doubt that Joe Brooks, the preacher-politician, was fairly and
squarely elected, and there are thousands of democrats today
who are wiUing to die for that proposition. Brooks, however,
was not counted in, but Baxter was. The Republicans wanted
him and they got him, but after they got .him he would not stand
hitched. Then the Republicans did not want him and turned
to Joe Brooks. Joe Brooks demanded the ofifice after being
denied it by all the courts and Baxter let him have it. Then

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 325
Arkansas had two governors, Brooks operating from the State
house and Baxter from St. John's College.
Here Garland comes in again. He had been practicing
law for years and did not consider that there was much differ
ence to the people of Arkansas between an administration by
Brooks and administration by Baxter. As a lawyer, however,
he decided that the legal forms were on the side of Baxter, al
though his sympathies ran very largely to the' side of Brooks.
None of these things, however, disturbed his equilibrium and
he went on practicing law, eating three square meals a day and
sleeping the sleep of the righteous. Going home one day he
heard that Brooks had ousted Baxter, and he said "Good." He
kept on, however, to Fourteenth and Scott, when he saluted his
wife, ate his supper, read his evening's literature and calmly
went to bed. At about midnight a deputation arrived at his
door and a knock was heard. Garland was sound asleep, but;
Mrs. Garland was stUl at her desk writing, and answered the
knock. With a lamp in her hand, she opened the door and
her son says was confronted by Judge U. M. Rose, backed up
by a deputation of citizens, all armed. Mrs. Garland invited
the judge to enter and he asked to see Mr. Garland. Mr. Gar
land was called out of bed and in due time came downstairs.
He was told that a revolution was on hand; that Brooks had
ousted Baxter, and that Civil war confronted the citizens of
Arkansas. Garland was always a most humorous man, in fact,
a genuine wit, and when told that Baxter had gone to St. John's
College, said "The Devil. Is he a professor? Is he going to
teach school?" He was made to understand finally that a con
sultation of the leading men of the State was to be had at St.
John's College and that his presence was desired. Garland
subordinated his comfort to his duty and went.
At St. John's College he found Judge U. M. Rose, Judge
Henry Caldwell, Judge Sam W. Williams and Judge Compton,
besides several men representing the military arm of govern
ment. Garland soon ascertained that Baxter desired to go on
to Washington, thinking that by a personal conference with
Grant he could control matter's. Garland knew better, and be
sides, knew that if Baxter ever got to Washington he would

326 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
never come back. Some means would be devised by which
Baxter would be held at Washington and the Brooks govern
ment perpetuated. Garland decided that it would be better for
Arkansas, in the long run for the Baxter government to be
perpetuated, and, although his sympathies were with Brooks,
he decided to act according to his judgment. He made up his
mind at once that under no circumstances should Baxter go out
of the State. Baxter in Arkansas was an asset of superlative
value to the old Confederates, and to the lasting advantage of
good government in the future. He therefore combated Bax
ter's plan of going to Washington and volunteered to stay with
him, and see the thing out, no matter what the outcome might
be. The other confreres agreed with Garland, and Baxter de
cided to stay. He went down to the Anthony House, where
he made his headquarters, and Gus Garland went with him,
remaining there for six long weeks without returning to his
home. With that six weeks of civil war we have little to do —
it was brother against brother. Democrat against Democrat,
Republican against Republican, a botch potch impossible to ex
plain. A Confederate general headed Baxter's troops, and a Con
federate general headed Brooks' troops — it was the devil to pay
and no pitch hot. Down at the Anthony House, however. Gar
land's judgment was supreme, and that judgment won out. It
gave Arkansas the constitution of 1874, the constitution under
which the State has made its grandest strides forward, and
under whose operations Arkansas has become a real power in
the federal Union. At the first election under that constitu
tion Augustus H. Garland was selected as governor by a vote
of seventy-six thousand four hundred and fifty-three out of a
total of eighty thousand votes. He served from November 12,
1874, to January 11, 1877. He came in with chaos in the sad
dle ; he went out with law and order on every side. He came
in with not a dollar in the Arkansas treasury; he went out with
the credit of the State good, and rising every day. He came
in without State or county organization; he went out with the
most perfect organization that the State has ever known. The
name of Garland was a name to conjure with in those days,

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 327
and that name conjured nothing but law, order and civic right
eousness. His Arkansas countrymen decided to send him
higher; they had done this once before ineffectually, but this
time their efforts were to be crowned with success.
GARLAND as united STATES SENATOR.
At the close of his term as governor the legislature elected
him in January, 1877, to the United States Senate for six years.
and in 1883 for a second term of six years. He served one term
and a part of the second, being called by his countrymen of the
United States to step up higher.
In the Senate he was at once assigned to the Judiciary
Committee, where he remained until he left the Senate. His
confreres on the committee were Allen G. Thurman, chairman;
McDonald, Bayard, Lamar, Davis, Edmunds, Conkling and Car
penter. This was a great aggregation of talent, and the period
one which brought the committee in daily contact with ques
tions of the most far-reaching importance. Garland was also
made chairman of the Committee on Territories and a member
of the Committee on Revolutionary Claims. He was specially
selected for work on the committee to investigate the law touch
ing the counting of the votes cast for president and vice presi
dent and contributed largely to the making of the present law
as to the presidental succession. He was also on the Special
Committee on the Freedman's Saving and Trust Company, and
drew a bill amending its charter which became a law. He also
headed a special committee to investigate the frauds of the late
election and was a member of the special committee to provide
against the spread of epidemics. He was a hard worker and
made more than one hundred reports from the Judiciary Com
mittee. He was not an ornate speaker, but very dear, concise,
logical and convincing. He never spoke to the galleries, and
never spoke unnecessarily. He made hundreds of short speeches,
each of which was full of meat, and nothing but meat. On the
resolution concerning the Thirteenth, Fourteenth and Fifteenth
amendments he reached the consciences of men like Edmunds
and Conkling and led them to see these amendments in a new
light. Garland showed how they were passed in Arkansas and

328 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
his showing was taken by great Republicans as a truthful show
ing. He claimed that measures passed as these measures had
been passed, by and through the disfranchisement of the en
lightened and intelligent voters of a great section, could not be
set up as monuments of either nforal or legal power.
When the bill to remove the disability from James Monroe
Heiskell of Baltimore, a grandson of President Monroe, was
up. Garland made a most excellent short speech. Section 1218
of the Revised Statutes of the United States made it unlawful
for the president to appoint to a position in the United States
army any one who had served in the Confederate army. Gar
land said that he would vote for the special act relieving Mr.
Heiskell from the operation of the law, but that he did not
believe in granting amnesty by piecemeal. Either pardon all or
keep the disability on all. Believing that universal amnesty was
right and that the occasion was ripe, he would test the matter
by offering an amendment to the bill repealing section one
thousand two hundred and eighteen of the statutes. Senator
Edmunds followed, saying: "I am glad that the senator from
Arkansas, who is always logical and always brave, has offered
the amendment, and I hope that it will pass." It passed almost
unanimously in the Senate, but was cut out in the house. Gar
land kept on, however, untU all this class of legislation was re
moved from the statutes and the way opened for Fitzhugh Lee
and Joe Wheeler to become United States brigadiers.
To follow Garland through the wide range of subjects
upon which he spoke from 1878 to 1885 would be to fiU'up sev
eral pages of this work, and I must desist. He spoke on many
special relief bUls for Arkansas citizens and upon every public
question that came before the Senate. He was special presid
ing ofificer of that body scores of times, and was noted for his
courtesy, fairness and judicial bearing. A most instructive
book might be written entitled "Garland in the United States
Senate." GARLAND AS ATTORNEY GENERAL.
In 1884 Grover Cleveland was elected president of the
United States, and in March, 1885, was inaugurated. In form
ing his cabinet he chose Augustus HUl Garland of Arkansas as

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 329
one of its members, assigning him to the ofifice of attorney gen
eral. Garland at once resigned his seat in the Senate and was
succeeded by James H. Berry. He had barely qualified as at
torney general when the vials of scandal were poured upon him.
While a senator he had bought three hundred dollars 'worth of
Pan-Electric Telephone stock and was made attorney for the
company. The directors of the company were such prominent
men as Senator Isham G. Harris of Tennessee, Senator Joseph
E. Johnson of Georgia, J. D. C. Atkins and Casey Young. The
company was all right, Garland's connection with it was all
right, and time has done nothing except to emphasize this right
eousness. However, the Bell Telephone Company, with its
millions of wealth, decided to throttle the Pan-Electric, and it
fought in every way possible every man connected with the new
concern. It happened that Garland was a bright and shining
light, and the Bell telephone agents selected him as the mark
for their most scandalous shafts. Garland had forgotten that
he owned stock in the Pan-Electric, but when being apprised
of it, said: "What of it?" He then went to President Cleve
land and laid the whole matter before him, saying, "I o-wn the
stock, and I propose to keep it. It is a mere bagatelle, but it is
mine. It is righteously mine and I wUl hold it. I do not want
to hamper the new administration, and if my holding of that
stock is to stand in the way, I beg most sincerely to be relieved
of my portfolio as attorney general." President Cleveland took
the matter under advisement, investigated it and notified Mr.
Garland that his holding of that stock was in no way, legally
or morally, incompatible with his holding the position of attor
ney general. The House of Representatives, goaded by BeU
Telephone newspapers, ordered an investigation, the result of
which was the entire vindication of Senator Garland. What
hurt Garland most, however, was not the attacks derivable from
the Bell Telephone corporation, but the attacks of men that he
had considered his friends at home. These attacks pierced the
armor of his soul, wringing anguish therefrom all the more
frightful, since the charges were absolutely untrue.
Through all this scandal General Garland became —
A tower of strength.
Which stood foursquare to all the winds that blew.

33° Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
As attorney general he pursued the even tenor of his way
and in every case added to the strength of character which had
marked his previous career. On the death of Justice Wood in
May, 1887, Senator Garland was named as a fit successor. This
coming to his ears led him to go at once to President Cleveland
and state to him that under no circumstances would" he accept
the offer and that he desired the president to proceed to the
consideration of the question as though he had never heard of
Garland. On the 23d of February, 1887, President Cleveland
asked Senator Garland to take a place on the Interstate Com
merce Commission, which he positively declined.
Senator Garland .states that he himself had decided to retire
from public life at the close of his term as attorney general,
devoting the remainder of his life to the practice of law. He
went out of ofifice honored and respected by every great man of
the country, irrespective of party and for ten years continued a
most honorable practice in that court in which, in i860, he had
been enrolled.
Such is the career of Augustus Hill Garland. By his mar
riage with Sarah Virginia Sanders he had eight children, four
of whom died in infancy. The fifth child, Sanders Garland)
was born in 1862, at Arkadelphia, while his father was a mem
ber of the Confederate Congress; this son married (i) Annie
N. Hening, at Washington, D. C, and had one child, Charles
Augustus Garland, now in business in the capital; married (2)
Sarah J. Mack of Newark, New Jersey, and had one child,
Walter Raleigh Garland, of Washington, D. C.
The sixth child, Rufus Cummings Garland, married Miss
Hobson of Virginia, and left two living children, Rufus Cum
mins Garland and Sarah Virginia Garland.
The seventh chUd, Daisy Garland, died unmarried in Wash
ington, D. C, October 27, 1893.
The eighth child, William AUen Gariand, married Cora
McPherson of Benton, Arkansas, and left one surviving chUd,
Rufus M. Garland.
Augustus Hill Garland died in Washington, D. C, on Jan
uary 26, 1899, in his sixty-seventh year, and was buried at Alount
Holly cemetery, Little Rock, by the side of his wife. His remains

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 331
were taken to Little Rock by his son, Rufus Cummings Garland
and James K. Jones, Jr. His mother, Mrs. Hubbard, died in
Washington November 17, 1893, and was buried in Rock Creek
cemetery, D. C. Thus this magnificent woman, the mother of
a most magnificent man, had a pilgrimage worthy of her nobil
ity; born in North Carolina, a transient resident of Tennessee,
a longer denizen of Arkansas, and for years a resident of Wash
ington, D. C, she now sleeps in one of the leading cemeteries of
the world, awaiting that trumpet which shall recall her to eter
nal life and unite her to the son she loved.
The glory of any age is its coterie of great men ; and ever)'
coterie of great men that could have been formed in the United
States from 1875 to 1900 would have- had as one of its members
the commanding presence of Augustus H. Garland. He formed
a part, and most commanding part, of the glory of that age.
Mrs. Alary E. Donelson Wilcox has printed a fine little
brochure of twelve pages in memory of Mrs. Barbara Hill Hub
bard, which abounds in history pertaining to the period 1832-
1899. The Gazette is the oldest and most influential paper of
Arkansas. All Arkansans are proud of its career, but it is
doubtful whether any act of its long and useful career deserves
a greater commendation than the splendid work of the present
management in starting and receiving subscriptions for a monu
ment to Senator Garland. Every admirer of Senator Garland
as well as every lover of Arkansas can but be thankful for the
splendid work of the Arkansas Gazette in this regard.

CHAPTER XXXIX.
The Deshas-
One of the fads of modern civilization is an increase of
population. This is looked upon as a panacea for almost every
ill. The great cry is for more people, and with more people
will come a greater development, a greater wealth and a greater
happiness. To a large extent the conclusion rests on a sound

332 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
induction, which accounts for the universal prevalence of the
idea. The demand for a greater influx of population is rational
and wise only so far as the population attained is capable of as
similating itself intellectually and economically with the institu
tions of a people. It is not a question of riches or wealth; a
thousand poor, honorable men, no matter how poor they may
be, if intelligent and industrious, are as great a boon to a com
munity as a great influx of rich men. Neither is it a question
of party ; men honestly differ, and honest differences of opinion,
political, ecclesiastical and otherwise, are the very life blood of
a community. The nearer parties are divided in strength in
any community the better will be the administration of the law.
The territory of Arkansas wanted a greater population, but it
made no such efforts as modern methods seem to demand.
Nevertheless, it made all reasonable efforts to secure a wise,
temperate and industrious addition to its population, and it suc
ceeded. INFLUENCE OF A NAME.
It is interesting to note not only the trend of population, but
the influence which a single name often bears upon the com
munity to which it attaches. The Huguenots were a wise,
temperate, frugal and most accomplished set of people in south
France, who contributed most largely to the glory of France,
and who attached themselves to the Protestant cause. Catholic
France made a great mistake in so prosecuting these Huguenots
as to force them to leave their native home for a refuge in the
wilds of America. Persecution always reacts upon itself and
the Catholics have not been the only persecutors. Protestant
New England drove the Baptists from their midst; Protestant
Virginia persecuted Quakers, Methodists and Baptists, and so
on to the end. One body of these thrifty and cultured Hugue
nots from France found a home at Manakintown, Virginia, and
developed a community from which some of the ablest men and
families of the United States have sprung. It gave the Deshas,
Duvalls, Jordans and others to Arkansas, famihes which have
at aU times been a decided acquisition to territorial and State
growth.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 333
Old Ben Desha of Manakintown, was a refined industrious
and learned man, descended from an illustrious line of French
men. His sons and daughters became Americans in every sense
of the word, and a grandson, Joseph Desha, a general in the
United States army and governor of Kentucky. This grand
old'man sent four sons and daughters into the territory of Ar
kansas, every one of whom was a tower of strength in the
community to which he or she went. His oldest son was named
Benjamin, Kentucky born, who in 1812 was made a first lieu
tenant in the Seventeenth Infantry, which appointment was
not conflrmed by the United States Stenate. In the next year
he was confirmed as a third lieutenant in the First Regiment
of Light Dragoons ; in the next year he was advanced to the
grade of captain in the Second Regiment of the United States
Rifles. The traditions of Captain Ben Desha are still cherished
by Kentuckians, who are descended from soldiers of these reg
iments. He resigned in 1815 to accept a seat in the legislature
of Kentucky, where he won a position almost as distinguished
as that of his illustrious father. In 1822 President Monroe
offered him the receivership of public moneys of the territory
of Arkansas, which position he accepted, and whose duties he
performed honorably and well for many years. The thrift of
the Huguenots never deserted him, nor did their reflnement of
manners. deshas of ARKANSAS.
Old Captain Desha of early Arkansas history was a man
of whom all Arkansans were justly proud. He was a Whig
of the most pronounced type, but was universally admired by
the Democrats. In the unfortunate duel between Crittenden
and Conway, Desha acted as second for Mr. Crittenden, and no
man exhibited a more genuine grief for the death of his friend
than did Captain Desha. He acquired wealth in the territory
of his adoption, and died November 21, 1835, universally re
spected and admired. A county in the State, in whose con
fines he Hved an honored man when it was a territorial part of
another division, bears his name today.

334 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
Of a second son, Robert Desha, also a captain in the United
States army, we have already given a partial account. While
stationed at Norfolk, Virginia, with his regiment he became
acquainted with Frances Ann Ferebe, a daughter of one of the
most aristocratic famUies of that city. Captain Robert Desha
was soon transferred to the Marine Corps, with headquarters
alternating between Helena, Arkansas, and New Orleans, Lou
isiana. His accomplished wife came with him to the territory
in 1819, and the thrift of the family was never better exem-
plifled than in the case of Captain Robert Desha. He died No
vember 6, 1822, one of the richest men in the territory. George
Ferebe, brother of Mrs. Robert Desha, moved to Helena in
1820, and for many years was one of the leading citizens of
that pioneer town. A sister of Captain Desha, coming to
Arkansas from Kentucky to visit her brother, was wooed and
won by George Ferebe, and one chUd, Richard Montgomery
Ferebe, blessed this union. This boy died in early manhood,
and the name Ferebe became extinct in Arkansas, and is almost
extinct at its old seating place, Norfolk, Virginia. Such is
the fate of individuals and such is the fate of names. They rise,
are glorified and then sink into oblivion and decay.
The widow of Captain Robert Desha, within two years after
the death of her husband, was married the second time to Cap
tain Hartwell Boswell, one of the most distinguished men of
Batesville, Arkansas. Another daughter of Captain Robert De
sha of Kentucky, while on a visit to Mrs. Boswell at Bates
ville, captivated the affections of Joseph Egner, a pioneer of
BatesviUe from 1818. Four children blessed this union, Elvira
Fowler Egner, Henry Egner, Virginia Egner and Cornelius
Egner. These and their descendants contributed largely to the
wealth and refinement of early Independence County, and are
now scattered through seven or eight counties of the State.
Captain Robert Desha, who married Frances Ann Ferebe,
left two children, Franklin W. Desha and Margaret Frances
Desha, whose descendants ramify all eastern Arkansas, and
whose life work has contributed largely to the better interests
of the State. Franklin AV. Desha at Batesville, married Eliza-

Fiowers and Makers of Arkansas 335
beth Searcy, the sister of Richard Searcy, one of the best lawyers
of early days. The chUdren of this marriage were Robert,
Benjamin, Stonewall, Mary and Lizzie, all of whom lived to
be men and women, doing a great life work, but only one of
them, Lizzie, became entangled in matrimony. Robert was
sheriff of the county in later days, as was his uncle, Joe Egner,
in earlier days. I believe that all these children are dead, ex
cept Ben, and the name Desha, so far as Arkansas is concerned,
has also become extinct. The blood of Franklin W. Desha,
however, is carried down to posterity through Lizzie, who mar
ried a prominent citizen of Independence County,
state's most beautiful woman.
The second child of Robert and Frances Ann Desha was
a daughter, Margaret Frances, who married twice, each time
to a distinguished citizen of Batesville. Margaret as well as
her brother, Franklin W. Desha, was born at the Washington
Navy Yard. She was educated at Ellicott City, Maryland, the
seat then of the greatest -female educational institution of the
State. She was a most accomplished woman, as was her class
mate, Lucretia Ringgold, the most beautiful woman of early
Arkansas history, daughter of the accomplished jurist. Judge
Ringgold, and wife of that greatest of early Arkansas writers,
Fent Noland, the wandering comet of the Hterary sky. When
Margaret Frances Desha returned to Batesville, the most ac
complished woman of the town, she was wooed and won by
William French Denton, a distinguished lawyer of Batesville,
and a gift of Tennessee to Arkansas growth. Several chil
dren followed this marriage, namely, Frances Jane, Franklin
Desha, Elvira Fowler and William French. Of one of these
children, Franklin Desha, Arkansas may weU be proud. For
years he was the central figure in the newspaper life of
the State, and no one has contributed more to its development
than F. D. Denton. He established the Batesville Bee, which
had a long and successful existence, and then the Batesville
Guard, now controlled by that accomplished gentleman, Edward
Givens. Not to have known F. D. Denton from 1870 to 1890
was to acknowledge yourself comparatively unknown. William

336 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
French Denton, his brother, dedicated his young life to the
Southern cause and was killed at his post.
Margaret Frances (Desha) Denton took for a second hus
band that distinguished gentleman. Judge Buford H. Neely of
BatesviUe, and had several chUdren. The first chUd, Mary
Euphenia Neel}-, married Mark Wycough, well known through
out Independence County and the adjacent counties. The sec
ond child was Elizabeth Egner Neely, who married J. D. Vance,
an accomplished scholar from Tennessee, now engaged in lit-
erar}' work in Washington, D. C. There is no better woman
living than Elizabeth Egner Vance, and in her advanced age
she remains a distinguished example of the refinement, the
courtesy and the intelligence of the old Huguenot Deshas, with
the strength which has come through the new lines of blood,
the Ferebes and the Neeleys. The third chUd of Margaret
Frances Neely by her last marriage was Esther Ann, who at
Batesville made two ventures in matrimony, her first husband
being James EUis, and her second, George Emmert.
Absalom Fowler, a Virginia lawyer, moved to Little Rock
in the twenties, and acquired a position second to that of no
lawyer of early Arkansas days. He ranked with Chester Ash
ley, and was a tower of strength to any cause to which he lent
his influence. He held legislative positions and was one of the
most prominent members of the Arkansas Constitutional Con
vention. Colonel Boswell, by his flrst wife, had a daughter
named Elvira, who became the wife of Absalom Fowler, but
was never the mother of children. In this way the name
Fowler, so far as it pertains to this distinguished line, became
extinct in Arkansas. Thus three names, the Deshas, the Ferebes
and the Fowlers have come into Arkansas life, have entangled
themselves with all its stupendous problems, have contributed
manfully to their solution, adding dignity and grace to its so
cial institutions, and have passed out without leaving the name
as a present inheritance to the State. These names, so far as
their relations to these lines are concerned, are extinct, but the
blood of the Deshas still runs in the veins of hundreds of Ar
kansas men and women, and to the last drop, wherever it may
be found, carries an assurance of honesty, refinement, energy

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 337

»

and intelligence. In these devious ways and by these tortuous
methods is the great problems of civilization carried forward
to mastery.
ft A B.AD YEAR FOR THE DESHAS.
November 6 will ever be remembered sorrowfully by the
Desha family. On that day in 1822 Captain Robert M. Desha
of the United States army, and a native of Kentucky, living at
Helena, died of yellow fever at New Orleans.
On November 6, 1823, Mrs. Rachel Harriett BosweU, wife
of Colonel Hartwell BosweU of Batesville, and daughter of
General Joseph Desha of Kentucky, died at her home in Bates
ville. Robert M. Desha was a most excellent army ofificer and
also a splendid business man. Administration was granted his
wife, Frances Ann Desha, and George N. Ferebe, at Helena, in
February, 1825. He owned ninety lots in Helena, besides about
an equal number in DavidsonviUe, BatesviUe and Little Rock.
His inventory took a column in the Gazette. He was also the
owner of large bodies of land in several counties of the State.
Colonel Boswell was the appointee of President Monroe to the
Lawrence Land Ofifice, which position he held for many years.
He was also a member of the Arkansas legislature and a most
capable man. He was for years colonel of the Seventh Arkan
sas regiment of militia and an honor to the position. On July
I, 1829, Colonel Boswell took a trip to Kentucky and for the
second time carried away from the residence of General and
ex-Governor Joseph Desha a wife. The first time he took the
general's daughter; the second time, his daughter-in-law.
He married Mrs. Frances Ann Desha, widow of Captain Rob
ert M. Desha, of the United States Marine Corps, and returned
to Batesville, where his wife formed one of the leaders of early
BatesviUe society, at that time the most exclusive society of
the State. Colonel Noland had lived there for many years and
with his Virginia wife, imported a refinement and courtesy
which attracted to Batesville some of the best people of the
early days. Colonel Boswell died January 13, 1833.

338 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
CHAPTER XL.
Abraham Ruddell.
Before entering upon the meat of this article, a few ad
ditions to preceding articles should be made. As early as 1824
there was a Joseph H. Lindsey living in Saline County, who had
a daughter named Margaret, born there at that date, who mar
ried Philo Howell of Saline County, and died at her father's
house in October, 1859. She was a prominent Methodist and
her father was the first Lindsey of the name to settle in that
part of Pulaski County which is now Saline. On October 9,
1859, B. A. Brown married Sarah Ann Lindsey to William Hill
of Pyeatt township. Peter Lindsey entered Arkansas in 1825
and died in Jefferson County in 1839, in his thirty-sixth year,
leaving a wife and children.
Isaac Lindsey was a resident of Hempstead County in 1823
and was delinquent $5 for State and county taxes. In 1817
James Lockhart emigrated from Union District, South Carolina,
and settled in Pulaski County on the Saline. His wife, Elenor,
died in Saline County July 21, 1840, in her, sixty-sixth year.
On December 25, 1822, his daughter, Elenor, married WiUiam
Franklin of the same settlement. James Lockhart died a few
years before his wife. John Douglas died in January, 1836, at
his home, thirteen miles from Little Rock, in his sixtieth year.
W. S. Lockhart represented Saline County in -the legislature
from 1838 to 1840. Louisa S. Hughes, wife of Green B.
Hughes of Tennessee, moved with him to Lawrence County
in 1819 and to Saline County in 1826. He represented Saline
County in 1846. She died in 1859. Elizabeth Martin died in
Fourche township, June 28, 1840, in her seventy-sixth year.
AN ARKANSAS WOMAN OF 180O.
Christian Hacker was born at Arkansas Post November
28, 1800, when the entire country was under the nominal rule
of Spain. She was baptized at the Post in 1819. She married
Thomas H. Tennant at that place and moved to Barren Fork,
Washington County, where she died September 28, 1840, leav-

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 339
ing seven children, who now, through their descendants, are
entitled to admission into the Arkansas Century Society.
REMARKABLE LIFE OF ABRAHAM RUDDELL.
Abraham Ruddell, of Independence County, had a career
which the pen of J. Fennimore Cooper might have depicted as
it deserved, but which my peq in the space allotted cannot ad
equately express. He was born as far west as white people at
that time had found permanent homes. Far down on the Hol
stein in Virginia in a log house on August 3, 1774, he first saw
the light of day. He never knew much about this home nor
his parents, for on June 22, 1780, the Indians fell upon the
little settlement and with savage ferocity tomahawked its resi
dents, carrying off as a prisoner the little curley-headed Abra
ham Ruddell. They carried him over into Kentucky and the
same something that prompted his savage captors to spare his
life, whatever that may have been, prompted the great Tecum
seh to not only further spare him, but to take him into his
family as an adopted son. Strange fortune was this ! Strange
mutation of the little child's life. He grew up under Tecum-
seh's eye and was trained by that renowned warrior in all the
arts of Indian life and Indian warfare. He learned the lan
guage of the tribe, played the Indian boyhood games, and took
part in all the Indian wars. He was an adept in the use of a
tomahawk, though his white blood restrained him from its more
barbarous uses. He was skiUed with the bow and could contest
favorably with all his dusky comrades. In the use of the rifle
he had no superior and Tecumseh awarded him many happy
encomiums. When the tribe fought other Indian tribes Ruddell
fought at Tecumseh's side and fought well. He had no particle
of cowardice in his system and was far more venturesome than
even his savage friends. He was trained, however, to know
that he was white, and Tecumseh always held out to him the
fact that at some time he would go back to the whites to live
the white man's life. So gentle was Tecumseh to him that he
grew to love him and throughout his life had a warm vein of
affection for the great warrior. When Tecumseh died there was
one white man, at least, that sincerely mourned his" death.

340 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
Logan, the Alingo,. stood alone in his absolute lack of mournful
friends; Tecumseh was mourned by his tribe and by Abraham
RuddeU. For Tecumseh's brother, the prophet, Ruddell had
a supreme contempt, and it was only his love for Tecumseh
that kept him from openly showing his dislike.
LIVED SIXTEEN YEARS WITH INDIANS.
After sixteen years of captivity under the provisions of
Alad Anthony Wayne's treaty, he returned to the whites. His
parting with Tecumseh was grievous, and each shook the hand
of the other in proud good faith as they separated. Ruddell
went back to his own people, a stranger in their midst. In Ken
tucky he started a new life, the white man's life with an added
Indian education. His counsels were sought by the border
woodsmen, and his Indian craft was used to circurrivent the
craft of the Indians. In 1811 he became a soldier of the
United States and with the backwoodsmen of Virginia and
Kentucky, with unerring rifles and forest tactics, marched with
the brave and gallant Winchester into Canada. He was in the
ever memorable fight of the Raisin and with others felt all
the mortification of defeat. All day long his eye swept the
field of savage faces hunting for the familiar face of Tecum
seh. At the risk of his life he would have tried to shake Te
cumseh's hand again. He had bullets for the Indians, but
none for Tecumseh. But he saw not his friend, nor did he
see that other, the Prophet, for whom he had saved a special
bullet, and whom he would gladly have shot. Ruddell always
attributed the prevalence of the Indian atrocities to the evil eye
of the Prophet. MOVED TO ARKANSAS.
In battle after battle the defeat was retrieved and the war
cry "Remember the Raisin," became the rallying cry of all fu
ture combats. Ruddell served through the war and went back
to his forest home to ever afterwards live a peaceful life.
In 1816 the Western fever attacked his neighborhood and with
one accord they pulled up stakes and began a journey into the
greater and newer West. Crossing the Mississippi below St.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 341
Genevieve they took the old St. Louis and Washita road and
turned South. One by one they found their Canaan and blazed
their claims. Ruddell found his in the fairest part of what is now
Independence County, in that township which will forever carry
his name. Grand old Abraham Ruddell! Was there ever a
man more respected in the county?
UNIVERSALLY RESPECTED.
Fent Noland, who knew him well, who gleaned the fore
going story from his lips, said, "No. He was a man of his
word, honest and clean. He was never asked for a bond, and
hated a liar. He was not only respected, but loved, and at
his death, February 25, 1841, the whole county grieved. He
loved the forest and spent the greater part of his time in its
depths. He knew all the trees and communed with them; he
knew the habits of all the birds and loved to imitate their music.
Every flower of the county was known to him, not by its Latin,
but by its loving backwoods name. Such a man had in him
all the fire of a poet linked to the soul of a scientist. He never
injured any man and all men were his friends. He could lie
down in the forest, draw the drapery of a couch around him,
and in the presence of the stars sleep that sleep which abounds
only in pleasant dreams."
Fent Noland was a clean man — a man of lofty, poetic ideals,
and his testimonial to the character of Abraham Ruddell is one
of the brightest parts of old Independence County history. He
had several chUdren, but at his death had but one son and one
daughter living, who with his wife shed genuine tears of regret.
He never sought oflfice, and but one of the name, John
Ruddell, is enrolled on the county's official roll. George Rud
dell was a citizen of Batesville in 1821. Abraham Ruddell's
name marks the township in which Batesville stands, and that
is a most signal honor. There on the hallowed ground where
James Boswell, Richard Peel, Richard Stearcy, Thomas Cur
ran, J. Redmon, Charles H. Pelham, Charles Kelly, J. Egner,
John Read, Colonel MiUer, J. L. Daniels, Robert Bruce, John
and James Trimble, Colonel and Fent Noland, James Denton,
Townsend Dickinson, William Moore, and other choice spirits

342 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
of the earliest times met with him and lived with him — there
was he buried amidst the most profound grief of his fellows.
No more romantic character ever lived on Arkansas soil, and
some rising Arkansas Octave Thanet will do credit to her name
by writing a characteristic romance with Abraham Ruddell as
its central flgure. He was "The Last of the Mohicans," as
it were, but his life story ought not to die.
OTHER PIONEERS.
In the same year that Ruddell passed away, in the last
¦days of August another settler who came in with Ruddell in
1816, but who settled in what is now Lawrence County, died and
was buried, not with his fathers, but in a new graveyard in
the west. His name was Nevill Wayland and he left chUdren to
perpetuate his name. In October of 1840, at Spring Hill, Hemp
stead County, died Aquilla Davis in his sixtieth year, having
lived in Arkansas twenty-four years. He left a large family
and a most excellent name. His house was headquarters for
all -the young people and his hospitality knew no bounds. He
was said to entertain a poor -man equally as lavishly and with
the same spirit that he entertained richer people. His cheerful
ness was his main characteristic and with this he made troops
of friends. PHILANTHROPIST AND EMANCIPATOR.
John Latta ' of Vineyard township, Washington County,
moved to that neighborhood before it was organized as Wash
ington County. He came from Lexington, Kentucky, and was
a man of wealth, as riches were counted in that day. The
wiles of lovely women seem never to have ensnared him, either
at Lexington or in Arkansas, for he died a bachelor, Septem
ber 23, 1834, in his forty-fourth year. He had imbibed many
of the Henry Clay notions about slavery and was a great be
liever in the colonization of negroes in Africa. Not to be in
consistent he emancipated his slaves at his death, and not to
be inhumane provided for them by a bequest of $2,500 in gold
in his wUl. The hUls of northwest Arkansas had no charms
for these dusky freedmen and when they got their money they

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 343
went back to Kentucky to live as freemen in the old haunts
where they were born. When men tell me of the horrors of
the old time free negro surrounded by slaves, I cannot har
monize it with my own experiences. Although born in Ar
kansas I was taken back to Kentucky, her nativity, by my wid
owed mother in my fifth year. My earliest recollections are
blended with the slave meetings on Sunday in Anderson County,
where many of my white relatives were slaveowners. I re
member the white patrols clearly and distinctly, but never saw
a disturbance at one of the gatherings and never heard of
one, near enough to test it by actual visitation. The stories
came from the distance as a rule and in most cases were pre
pared for a purpose. FREE NEGROES IN SLAVE TIMES.
Speaking of my own observations I remembered that there
were many free negroes in Anderson County, some old arid some
young. They mingled with the slaves and paid workmen and
had their own cabins in some prominent but neglected half-acre
on the turnpike. The old free negro women made ginger
cakes which they sold to travelers and the sweetest things I
ever ate as a boy were these cakes made by the free negro
women and sold to my people on county court days as we
trooped to the county site to buy and sell the stock of the plan
tation. All ginger bread is good for a boy, but the best I ever
had came from the source I have named, or from other free
negroes at their booths on circus days. The free negroes of
that day were fixtures and were never maltreated by the people,
but on the contrary, when they were decent had the universal
respect of all the citizens. When old Horace Witherspoon,
the richest man in the county, got on one of his lordly sprees,
and from the back of his thoroughbred rode through Lawrence-
burg shooting out the lights in the houses, he never deigned
to shoot the modest candles of old free negroes. At the first
sound of a gun at night every light went out at once except
those of the free negro cabins. The whites feared Wither-
spoon's drunken hilarity, but the free negroes knew that he
would never shoot at them. They, too, could approach him

344 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
when drunk, and do more with "Mars Horace" at such mo
ments, than any of his brothers or friends. The old free
"Aunt Sallies" and the "Free Bills" and the "Free Dicks"
were numerous and they were as secure as the whites themselves.
John Latta as a Kentuckian freed his negroes, provided for
them in his wUl, and left $12,000 besides for his kin. All
honor to this old Washington County humanitarian and phi
lanthropist. RANDOLPH COUNTY.
Randolph County was formed in 1835, but was settled at
a date corresponding with the close of the second war with
Great Britain, about the time of the creation of Lawrence
County in 181 5. Much of the interest of the early history of
Arkansas clusters around the sombre stUlness of Fourche de
Mun and Fourche de Thomas. Many of the names which have
added glory, interest and power to Arkansas are of those who
settled originally in that part of Lawrence which is now Ran
dolph County, and by marriage and removal have become well
known in other localities.
One of the earliest Randolph settlers was Ransom Suther
land Bettis, who in February, 181 5, settled near where Poca
hontas now stands. He was born in North Carolina in 1787
and was twenty-eight years of age when he made his choice of
a permanent home in the wilderness watered by the Black.
Of a rugged and temp.estuous ancestry in the Old North State
he was trained to the life which was before him and never
flinched from his purposes. He conquered the forest and cov
ered the lands he called his own, and made his holdings pro
ductive areas. He was a great marksman and hunted bear,
deer and turkeys in the elemental days, when these animals
roamed at wUl throughout all that region. He died at Poca
hontas respected and honored by all the community on March
30, 1842, having lived twenty-seven years in that locality.
EARLY LAWRENCE COUNTY BARBECUE.
On July 4, 182 1, at Fourche de Thomas, a great patriotic
celebration was held. In their enthusiasm they imitated the
builders of the Tower of Babel and raised a liberty pole higher

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 345
than the surrounding trees. This pole stood for several years
and was used for kindred purposes. It became one of the land
marks of the times. Jacob Shaier was made grand marshal
and upon a Kentucky thorough-bred headed a procession of
pioneers and put them through the evolution of infan
try tactics. Daniel Ploth read the Declaration of Inde
pendence in true ringing style and then invited all the
people to his house for a genuine old-time barbecue dinner.
Matheas Mock presided, assisted by Dr. P. R. Pitman and Wil
liam Garrett. Toasts were drunk and the interludes enlivened
by martial music and volleys of musketry. A stranger witness
ing the scene would have said that patriotism can never die
when nurtured by celebrations such as these. Many in the
crowd were wild and reckless, ready at all ' times for a fight or
a frolic, but honest, patient and . true after their fashion under
difificulties that would have dazed the hero of today.
FOUNDER OF BATESVILLE.
It was in Batesville that Hon. J. Woodson Bates settled
in 1819, and where he lived for about fifteen years. • At a bar
becue in 1830 at this town Col. A. S. Walker spoke eloquently
to the foUowing toast: "To Judge Bates, the Man of Science
— the Man of Hospitality; on the Bench the Guardian of the
People's Rights."
John C. -Calhoun said of Bates in 1820:
"He was a man of eminent acquirements and naturally of
a legislative turn of mind." Judge Ringgold also lived at
Batesville. His family was a most estimable one and added
much to the charm and graces of Batesville society. Richard
Searcy, one of the most eminent of the territorial lawyers,
also lived at this ancient town, but was cut off in the midst of
his usefulness. He died July 25, 1833, in his sixty-sixth year,
having spent twenty of these in Arkansas, beginning as a boy
at Davidsonville at its beginning. He came from Tennessee
and was a son of a Revolutionary patriot. By personal merit
and moral worth he gained the esteem of all who knew him.
His name was a household word at the time of his death.
William E. Woodruff" said of him: "While clerk of Lawrence

346 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
County he studied law; was made a judge, and as such had
sound judgment, unwavering fidelity and correct decision. He
resigned ofifice to practice law and was eminently successful.
His life was marked by industry, capabUity and excellence of
character." James Searcy, his brother, died in BatesviUe in 1837, leav
ing his wife and a large famUy of children.
James Trimble was another Lawrence County pioneer,
locating near where Batesville stands, in 1815. His wife, Eliz
abeth, was born in Culpepper County, Virginia, and died at
Batesville in 1836, being forty-seven years of age. Trimble
was of an old and distinguished family of Kentuckians.
FIRST ACADEMY AT BATESVILLE.
Through the influence of Col. William Noland, Professor
A. W. Lyon of Nassau Hall, New Jersey, was induced to
come to Batesville in 1828. He conducted a high-grade acad
emy there for many years, which in 1836, was incorporated as
the Batesville Academy. This was the first incorporated in
stitution of learning in the State and had a long and useful
career. Its first trustees were: Aaron W. Lyon, Isaac Fol
som, Joseph H. Egner, Charles MqArthur, Lawson Ander
son, Charles H. Pelham and William Moore. The earliest
social and educational forces found their best environment in
Lawrence and Independence counties from 1815 to 1840.
INDIAN-FIGHTING OLD PIONEER.
The name Magness is inseparably connected with Law
rence and Independence counties. Magness was a Tennes
seean and an Indian fighter of the old Davidson district. From
1782 to 1804 Tennessee was bloody ground and the Lindsey,
Fletcher, Lafferty and Magness families were always in the
thickest of the fight. Three Thomas Fletchers and two Laf
fertys were scalped in cold blood.
Robert Magness was the Arkansas pioneer of that name,
having moved to Lawrence County in 181 5, settling in Oil
Trough Bottom, now in Independence County. He was not

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 347
only an Indian fighter, but a feudist, and was mixed up in
Tennessee with several of the feuds between Andrew Jackson
and Jesse and Thomas Benton. He was lord of all he sur
veyed in Lawrence County for many years and died June 22,
1837, in his seventy-second year, at the house of his daughter,
Mrs. Hardin. The German hunter, Gerstaecker, has left some
good stories of the old man and his children, which will for
ever be of interest to Arkansas readers. Morgan Magness
was a member of the territorial legislature of 1831 and 1833
and also of the State legislature in 1838, serving with Fenf
Noland; member of the Senate 1840-44. Perry G. Magness
was one of the commissioners in 1820 to point out a suitable
place for the court house for Independence County.
DEATHS IN 1820 AND 182I.
During the years the following persons died in Arkansas
after a residence of from three to five years : Hempstead County,
1820, John McClain, John Rowen, George Berry and Benja
min Pool. In 1 82 1, William D. Craig, John Humphries and
Andrew Shaddy. In Arkansas County: 1820, John Dortolan
and Joseph Cook. At Davidsonville, 1821, Col. Stuart. In
Conway County, Miss Nancy Bentley, daughter of George Bent
ley of Virginia, and Skelton T. De Moss. This gentleman had
lived in the State for many years and had large interests at
t'he mouth of the Arkansas and at Cadron. Neal McLane
died at Little Rock November 21, 1821, at the age of twenty-
nine. He had only been in the State a short time, having come
in on the invitation of Robert Crittenden. He was a lawyer
of blameless life, and was said to have been appointed circuit
judge before he moved to the territory. He undoubtedly acted
as judge, but the nature of his appointment is problematical.
He was born in New Hampshire, but had lived in Kentucky
for three or four years.
On August I, 1 821, a quaint old German citizen died at
Little Rock. His name was Christian E. Zoeller, born at Em-
mendengen in 1758. He was a noted man in his way, having
served in the Germari army and possessing a small estate. He
had $1,241 in gold at his death, which was sent to his relatives.

348 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
All of the aforementioned people left property and nearly all
of them left descendants. Born in various parts of the world,
their bodies lie in forgotten graves in different sections of
Arkansas. The strenuosity of life is fully equally by the stren
uosity of death.
CHAPTER XLI.
The Wilson Family.
Arkansas history connotes many names of the family, Wil
son, and this article must be specially tabbed so as to avoid
confusion. It applies directly to the family of Judge Robert B.
Wilson of Russellville, Arkansas, but in its entirety may over
lap and include much of the history of other Arkansas Wilsons.
To begin with, the word, Wilson, finds its oldest explica
tion in the oldest Norse Sagas, and in the remotest antiquity of
the Norsemen connects itself with the gods. Antiquity is a
very relative term ; in America it cannot mean more than a trifle
beyond three hundred years, so far as European-American
descendants are concerned; in England, it may mean the Nor
man Conquest of the eleventh century, or by an easy stretch of
the imagination, may mean the conquest of Great Britian by
the Angles and Saxons from the sixth to the ninth century.
What was the antiquity of Great Britain prior to the sixth cen
tury? The Jews show an antiquity four thousand six hundred
years greater than this, and the Aryan race certainly had an ex
istence in other parts of the world than Asia-Minor.
The Wilsons have been seated in Scotland from a time
whereof the memory of man runneth not to the contrary, and
they have been seated in England for almost the same time.
Their residence in Ireland cannot go behind the reign of Wil
liam the 3d, and is of Scottish origin. The kinship of the Scotch
and English Wilsons cannot be told with any degree of accu
racy. Geographically they are as follows: In Scotland they
inhabited the Great Shire of Inverness, the Royal Burgh of
Lanark, the Royal Burgh of St. Andrews, the Burgh of Fort-
rose and the County of Fife of which Dunfermline was their

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 349
habitat; in England the Wilsons have a most remote residence
in the Shires Kent, Suffolk, Westmoreland, Sussex, Northum
berland, Herts, Berks, Yorkshire and London. The residence
in Scotland antedates the year 1000 A. D., and in England, the
year 1200 A. D. They are a prolific and virile race, and the
evidence points to a common Norse origin. The English and
Scottish coats of arms are numerous and they all agree upon
a wolf, or a demi-wolf salient. The crests and mottoes differ
slightly, and taken with the arms seem to prove a common
origin. The comnion arms may be represented by a demi-wolf
salient or, holding between the claws a crescent sa. The Scot
tish arms are simply a wolf salient or, with a motto, Expecta
cuncta superne. The Irish arms, derived from the Scottish are
a wolf rampant az. on a chief indented of the last three estoilles
of the field. The Irish crest is a demi-wolf rampant, per pale
indented arg. and az. with a motto, PoUet virtus.
As we are interested in the Scottish line more than the Eng
lish or Irish, we shall not pursue this investigation further, but
bring ourselves more clearly within the lines of sure historic
sequence. Alexander Wilson was the first professor of Astronomy
at the University of Glasgow in 1714; Alexander Wilson was a
distinguished ornithologist of Paisley of 1766; Andrew Wilson,
son of Gabriel and Rachel (Corsar) Wilson was a distinguished
physician and author, graduating from the University of Edin
burgh in 1749; Arthur Wilson, 1595-1652 was a distinguished
historian and dramatist. But to enumerate all the great men of
the name Wilson from Scottish soil would take more space
than we can allow. It is enough to say that the name is and has
been one of luster, fame and renown. In the humble walks of
life the Wilsons of Scotland have been above reproach.
In 1692, James Wilson, was a shipmaster in Glasgow;
two years prior to that we find John Wilson a bailiff of Dun
fermline; in 1684, P. A. WUson was clerk of the Royal Burgh
of St. Andrews; in the same year David Wilson was treasurer
of the Royal Burgh of Haddington, and George AA''ilson, a mer
chant therein; in 1636, Archibald Wilson was baillee of Queens

350 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
Ferry, Burgh of Inverness; in 1692, Alexander Wilson was clerk
of the Burgh of Lanark, of which Glasgow was the center; in
171 1, John WUson, Sr., -John Wilson, Jr., and Robert Wilson
were Councillors of the Burgh of Fortrose; in 1724 John and
James Wilson were Councillors of Dunfermline Fifeshire. This
John Wilson was a descendant of an ancient John Wilson who
migrated to Rashee, Country Antrim, Ireland. This John Wil
son of Ireland married Barbara, daughter of Andrew Porter,
and died in 1692, leaving children, Frances, Hugh, Robert,
Thomas, James, Janet and Susan. With none of these are we
concerned save the- third child, Robert, who returned to Dun
fermline and married Jane Ramsey in 1722, and had children
William, John, Hugh and Richard, which last child married
Janet Ross in 1752 and moved to Virginia. Richard Wilson
cast his fortunes with Scotland in its rebellion against England,
and when his cause went down in defeat, suffered severely as
to his landed estates. He found refuge in the American col
onies, seating himself in the county of King and Queen in the
royal province or colony of Virginia. In the sixteenth and
seventeenth centuries the Wilson family, although not of the
major or minor gentry of Scotland, distinguished itself in war,
medicine, law, divinity, science, mechanics, landscape painting,
poetry, commerce, manufactures and lihe drama. The great
Christopher North of Blackwood Magazine, was really none
other than John Wilson of Scotland, the son of a commoner.
The son of a Scottish fisherman Wilson gave the world another
Wilson who stood pre-eminent in divinity. They were great
soldiers, great lawyers, great preachers, great astronomers,
great ornithologists, great poets, great shipmasters and great
thinkers. It is remarkable also that fhese Scottish AVilsons
produced a great many women who have come down to the
world as equally eminent with the men carrying that name.
The Wilsons were men of the "craft" in opposition to the men
of the "clan" and added most to the glory of England.
In the new world Richard WUson and his good wife set
about to improve their fortunes as best they could, and through
their relations with the Ross family in Scotland, obtained grants

^Pioneers and Makers o f Arkansas 351
to land in the wilds of Virginia. How many children Richard
Wilson had is not known but he was certainly the father of
James, Ehzabeth and Nellie Wilson, whose after fortunes were
connected with Fluvanna County, Virginia, and of Hugh Wil
son, who was killed and scalped by the Indians, an unmarried
man, March 5, 1776, near Harrodsburg, Kentucky. He may
have been the father of Robert and Archibald Wilson of Orange
County. Richard Wilson afterwards moved to Amherst County
where he died. James WUson was in all probability born in
King and Queen County, Virginia, about 1756, and married
there Anna Kidd, a daughter of Jesse Kidd, another Jacobite
sufferer from the Scottish wars. Jesse Kidd afterwards moved
into Fluvanna, where he died leaving a large family. James
Wilson , grew" to manhood in King and Queen and after his mar
riage removed to Fluvanna. In Deed Book No. 2, page 120 of
the Fluvanna land records is a deed from Richard Bennett of
Henrico, to James Wilson of Fluvanna, for two hundred and fif
teen acres on Ballingers Creek, called Bold Branch, dated April
7, 1786. James Wilson had a residence in Fluvanna prior to
this date. The consideration for this property was eighty
pounds sterling, and by and through it are we enabled to con
nect this line of the Wilson family with its ancient forbears.
In the county clerk's oflfice I was introduced by the very
polite clerk, Mr. Slaughter, (a man who has held this position
since 1875) to Mr. David Wilson, an old man of eighty years.
I asked Mr. Wilson if he had ever heard of Mr. Barnett Wil
son, and he answered that Barnett Wilson was his uncle, and
a brother of his father, John Wilson. I asked him further if
he could give me the name of the father of John and Barnett
Wilson. He answered that he could not. I then jead him
the description of the land granted by Bennett to James Wilson
in 1786 and he at once brightened up saying: "John and Bar
nett Wilson were bprn on that farm, and it remained in our
family for nearly a century." This settled the question of James
Wilson's relation to John and Barnett Wilson with whom we
shall have more to say. It appeared strange to me that a man
could live eighty years in a neighborhood, own the ancestral

352 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
farm on which his grandfather was buried, within five miles
always of the county court records, and yet not know the name
of his grandfather. David Wilson had all these advantages to
his credit and yet could not give me the name of any ancestor
behind his father. This is a common experience of mine and
shows that family pride, in Virginia and elsewhere is* not what
it ought to be.
From the minute book of the Fluvanna county court re
cord it appears that James AVilson was a surveyor and a man
of considerable parts. His immediate neighbors were John A.
Strange, Alicajah Bragg, John Ross, John Glass, Archibald
Glass, James Glass, Sr., Joshua Bethell, John Fones, Alien Q.
Lindsey, Zaccheus Watson, Jesse B. Barnerd and Joseph Pace,
nearly all from Scotland. As a surveyor he was frequently
selected to collect the tithes of these men, and also to employ
their tithables as a surveyor of roads from Lindseys to Broken
Back Church. There is a station called Lindsey on the Chesa
peake & Ohio railroad in Albermarle County, and it is supposed
that this county road ran from that neighborhood to the neigh
borhood of Kents in Fluvanna. At all events James Wilson sur
veyed the road from Lindseys to Broken Back Church in April,
1799, more than one hundred and eight years ago. Over the
same track or nearly so, the Viriginia Air Line railroad is now
building its line from Lindsey in Albermarle to Bremo on the
James, thus treating the descendants of these old people to the
first screech of the locomotive that region has ever known.
James AA'ilson was frequently chosen to other places of honor
and frust by his friends and neighbors between 1782 and 1820,
his greatest service to the people being the survey of the old
roads, which in all probability are the very county roads now in
use today. In 1782, Joseph Wilson was given a grant of fifteen hun
dred acres of land on Birds Creek, Fluvanna County, as appears
from Book N^o. 8, page 324 of the Fluvanna land records. Who
Joseph Wilson was, I am unable to say, and this appears to have
been the opinion of the old residents of Fluvanna County. Cer
tain it is that in 1806, he appeared before the county court and

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 353
asked for a resurvey of his land, which request was grarited.
Joseph Wilson then disappeared from Fluvanna County, going
back to Scotland or to parts unknown. What became of him
history knoweth not. Certain it is that between 1818 and 1823
his lands were regularly forfeited to the State of Virginia over:
the signature of twelve of its best citizens. These citizens re
cite that Joseph Wilson was the owner of these lands by grant,
that for seven years his whereabouts had been unknown, and
that he was without kindred in Fluvanna County. This seems
to settle the question that Joseph Wilson was of no kin to James
Wilson of Fluvanna, or to Jonathan Wilson of Cumberland.
We are interested to know what became of Elizabeth and
Nellie Wilson, daughters of Richard Wilson of King and Queen,
and sisters of James Wilson of Fluvanna, and but for the will
of James Ross, of Seven Islands, Fluvanna County, dated June
4, 1800, and recorded in Book No. i, page 192 of Fluvanna wills,
we might flounder in the great sea of uncertainty forever. That
will, however, enlightens us, not only as to a part of the after
history of these girls, but opens up an avenue by which the Wil
sons run back to the Earldom of Ross and align themselves'
with the greater clansmen of Scotland. In this will James Ross'
recites that he is a brother of Daniel Ross, late of the West>
Indies, and also a brother of David Ross, one of the greatest
landholders of Virginia. James. Ross states that during his'
younger life he managed the interests of his brother, Daniel,
in the West Indies, and that later on during the Revolutionary
War, he came to Virginia to perform the same office for his
brother, David. He seemed to think that his management had
a value, and Daniel and David seemed to have agreed with him,
for according to his statement they settled an annuity of one hun
dred and fifty pounds sterling a year on him for life. James must
have worked hard for he tells us that he needed a rest and that
this annuity was given him in order that he might take this rest
in Glasgow, Scotland. He recites that the annuity was paid for
a great number of years, until the death of Daniel, who, he says,
left money in the hands of David to effectuate it. David, how--
ever, seems to have let it lapse, and James, unable to live in

354 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
Glasgow without money, came back to A'irginia, where David
located him upon the Seven Islands in the James, not many
miles from the farm which President Roosevelt, or his wife, has
purchased in Albemarle County, Virginia. On this farm David
seems to have paid part of the annuity and to have used James
ill many other ways, the principal one being to send him to Great
Britain for artificers and helpers for his land schemes in Vir
ginia. In due time James Ross came to his death bed and in
view of this made the will from whicii the preceding historical
items are gathered. When he came to dispose of his estate,
being a bachelor, he selected those who were his nearest kin,
and at the same time nearest in geographical location. He
gave Nellie and Elizabeth Wilson all his household goods and
each a cow and calf; he gave James Wilson, their brother, a
white horse and his wearing apparel, reserving his gold shoe
buckles for his nephew, James Colquhoun (pronounced Co-
whoon) of Glasgow, Scotland. He then gave all the residue of
his estate including the amount due from his brother David on
his annuity and the amount due from services connected with
the Great Britain promoting expedition to James, Elizabeth and
NeUie Wilson. Now James Wilson lived diagonally across the
County Fluvanna in its northeastern extremity, and Elizabeth
and NeUie lived, in the same neighborhood, while the Seven Is
lands were in the James river at the southwestern end of the
line, fully forty miles av/ay. The question arises why should
James Ross select James, Elizabeth and Nellie Wilson as his
legatees, renouncing all his other relatives, except James Colqu
houn. unless they were his nearest of kin in Virginia, with the
exception of brother and his children who did not need his
help? This deed of gift taken in connection with the fact
that the father of James Wilson married Agnes Ross seems to
establish the fact, that Agnes Ross was a sister of James, Daniel,
David and Peter Ross, and that James, Elizabth and Nellie Wil
son were nephew and nieces of the testator, James Ross. In
order that there might be no confusion as to Elizabeth and Nel
lie Wilson, James Ross made a codicU to his will in which he
more particularly identified them. He said that EUzabeth Wil-

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 355
son had married Joseph Scott of Fluvanna County, and that
NeUie Wilson had married James Farrow of the same county.
This great particularity of James Ross further fortifies the con
clusion that these women were of the clan Anrias or Ross,
his near kinswomen, the ones to whom he was determined his
estate should go.
This seems to align the family, WUson, with the old clan An
rias or Ross of Scotland. Authorities differ as to the origin of
this great Scottish clan. A county in Scotland still bears its
name and its history as to origin is lost in the very remotest
antiquity. The old Norse Sagas contain references to the fam
ily Ross, and the better opinion is that the Ross family is of
Norse origin ; that it conquered a foothold in Northern Scotland
in days when the old Celtish clansmen were forming their habi
tats in that place. Other authorities claim for it a pure Gaelic
origin, but they are not well fortified with facts. Whatever its
origin may have been the clan Anrias or Ross goes back to the
very beginning of the Clans in Scotland, and has equal glory
with that of Mackenzie, Macgregor, AlacKinnon and the two
score or more great clans upon which the glory of ancient Scot
land seems to rest. After centuries of clan life the Earls of
Ross were accused of treason to the English King and forfeited
their political rights. These Earls of Ross were numerous
governing with almost unlimited power in what is now Rosshire,
Inverness and Nairn, Scotland. A favorite baptismal name of
the Rosses was Hugh, a name which as we shall see has clung
to the Wilson family to this good day. The Rosses forfeited
their estate in the fifteenth century at a time when their retainers
nunibered about eight hundred fighting men, all kinsmen and
part of the clan. With the forfeiture, the Earls of Ross and
their nearest of kin became simply great landholders, and parts
of the major and minor gentry of Scotland. The commonalty
of the Ross family unable to prove its descent by pedigree were
enrolled under the banner of the clan MacKenzie, but while
carrying a new name, after the advent of surnames, really car
ried Ross blood. The major and minor gentry, however, had
pedigrees, and although without legal right to the title earl or

356 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
lord, still used it, and were still given it by their immediate friends.
In 1692, James Ross was Burgess of Nairn; in 1708 in the Burgh
of Fane, fourteen Rosses were connected with the govemment of
the burgh. Their principal citizen was William, otherwise Lord
Ross, who at that time was not ashamed to be styled a merchai;it.
Others of the name in the same burgh were Charles, Alexander,
Thomas, Robert, Malcomb, David and Andrew. Two Davids
appear in this roll of honor, David Ross, late treasurer of In-
verchasley, and David Ross of Balingowan, the father of David,
James, Daniel, Peter and Agnes heretofore named. The arms
of the Earls Ross were : Gules, three lions rampant arg. The
Roses as well as the Wilsons seem to have been a sept of the
Rosses. Daniel Ross died and was buried in the West Indies;
James Ross was buried on the Seven Islands in the James ;
Agnes AA^ilson, nee Ross, was buried in Amherst, while David
Ross was buried in Henrico. From the Land Books of Flu
vanna for 1796 I have calculated more than thirty-two thousand
acres of land as the property of David Ross, which property he
sold prior to 1830, when but two hundred and fifty acres were
assessed to his name. The greatest chancery suit ever known in
Fluvanna County was that of Ross vs. McLachlen and Quaries.
As early as 1782, David Ross formed a partnership with Allen
McLachlen to conduct a trading post in Fluvanna County at the
Place of the Fork, now Columbia on the James. Columbia to
day is a town of possibly a hundred and fifty souls, but in times
past was strong enough to secure within one vote of as many
votes in the Legislature of Virginia for the location of the capital
of the Commonwealth as did Richmond. At Columbia Ross
and McLachlen carried on their mercantile busines for more
than twenty years, and seemed to have settled it satisfactorily,
before the death of McLachlen. When McLachlen died Quaries
was made his executor, and he refused to carry out the settle
ment. A suit ensued which was settled forty years after, when
both Ross and Quaries had passed away. David Ross was a
member of the House of Delegates from Fluvanna in 1781 and
1783. He was a married man and certainly had one daughter
to whom he gave the estate called "Solitude," twenty-five hun-

Pioneers and Makers of ^Arkansas 357
dred acres just west of Palmyra. He may have had a son
David, who married Frances, a daughter of .James Wilson, but
this is not sure. James Wilson himself carried the Ross
blood, but the evidence seenis to point to the fact that the David
Ross who married his daughter, Frances, was a son of Peter
Ross. David Ross, Jr., died in 1857 leaving a son, James Wil
son Ross. In the census of 1810 David Ross is enumerated im
mediately after Peter Ross; Peter being forty-five years of age
and over, with twelve slaves, while David was twenty-six and
under forty-five, owning one slave.
The descendants of EUzabeth Wilson who married Joseph
Scott, and of Nellie Wilson who married James Farrow still
ramify Fluvanna County, but I have not busied myself to trace
their lines.
James Wilson seems to have died about the year 1820 and
his wife, Anna (Kidd) Wilson, about 1821. Their children
were Hugh, Barnett, John, Walker, Elizabeth, Frances, Rachel,
Joannah and Rebecca. Hugh Wilson died before he reached
his maturity but the others were all married and became the
heads of -families. In Book No. 8, page 372 of the Fluvanna
land records, a power of attorney is set out, dated October 27,
1823, from the heirs and children of Anna Wilson, deceased, to
Barnett Wilson, one of the chUdren and heirs, authorizing him
to proceed to King and Queen County and collect their interests
in the estate of a bachelor uncle, Bartholomew Kidd. This iii-
strum-ent recites that the children named are all children of
James and Anna (Kidd) Wilson. It shows that Elizabeth was
a minor, and on another page in the same book the fact appears,
that she had chosen Barnett Wilson, her brother, as her guard
ian. Walker Wilson was not present, but the instrument recites
that he was in the West and had empowered Barnett Wilson to
act as his attorney in fact.
Not aU of the marriage dates of this family are to be found
in the Fluvanna records, but the most of them are. These re
cords show that John Wilson married Nancy W. Johnson on
December 18, 1822; that Elizabeth Wilson married Peter R.
Johnson on December 16, 1823 ; that Frances married David

358 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
Ross on January 20, 1803; that Joannah married John White
on December 22, 1807; that Rebecca married David AVhite on
November 20, 1821. The power of attorney shows that Fran
ces, Rachel, Joannah and Rebecca married the men named,
and their names, the husbands, are signed to the instrument.
When Rachel married William Sadler is not shown in the
marriage license record, but the power of attorney shows that
William Sadler was the husband of Rachel. The children of
Frances, Rachel, Joannah, Rebecca and Elizabeth are widely
scattered over Fluvanna County, and many of them have mi
grated to other States. Walker Wilson married in the West
and his descendants are now in Texas. John AA'ilson who mar
ried Nancy Johnson had several children, WiUiam, John Morti
mer, David, Daniel Sarah Ann, Tranquilla and Betty. David
is still alive, residing near Palmyra, Virginia. AA'iUiam left two
descendants ; John Mortimer married and left two daughters ;
Daniel married and left three daughters ; Sarah Ann Tranquilla
married John F. Ohmohundro and Betty married Harvey King,
leaving a descendant now in the Senate of Virginia and a promi-
enent lawyer at Clifton Forge.
AA'hy James AA'ilson selected a habitat in Fluvanna County,
Virginia, may never be known. His kinship to David Ross may
have a bearing upon the question, and the old coal and gold
mines of Fluvanna and Goochland may also have been an in
fluencing cause. It is a well known fact that the earliest min
ing of coal and gold in the United States was in this region, al
though the industry, so far as these counties are concerned lan
guishes today. Wilson Town, Carnwath Parish, Lanark
shire, Scotland is a town nearly three centuries old, famous for
its iron works and established by the Wilsons. John Wilson
was a minister in Lanarkshire in the parish of Crawfordjohn
as early as 1647 ^"d had for his patron. Lord Selkirk. Lanark
shire and Renfrewshire have been the seating place of Wilsons
for four hundred years, some preachers, and some soldiers, but
for the most part merchants, shipmasters and manufacturers of
either iron or cloth. John AVilson of Dunfermline invented the
fly shuttle and made a new epoch in the art of weaving. The
crown invested him with many honors and the burgh looked

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 359
upon him as one who had contributed most largely to the glory
of the town. WUson's School on New Row, Dunfermline, was
created -by a Wilson, for the free education of Dunfermline
children, specially those bearing the name Wilson. On Novem
ber 17, 1 61 3, the weavers of Dunfermline met and prescribed the
width of table cloths and bed spreads, and ainong the signatures
of those present we find the names of John and Andrew Wil
son. Fourteen years before this, this same body met and pro
hibited the exportation of wool. It will thus be seen that the
Wilsons of Scotland have done much for the commerce of Eng
land, and this same craft spirit may have led James Wilson into
Fluvanna. But the old Wilson spirit was not entirely com
mercial, for Scotch Wilsons have made great captains, great
colonels, and even great generals in the English army. This
martial spirit animated James Wilson during the Revolutionary
War, leading him to enroll himself in the Virginia line to fight
against Great Britain, even as his father had done in Scotland.
He was a private in the infantry Hne and by the Act of Congress
of March 18, 1818, was placed upon the pension roUs of the
United States, but died within two years after iiis enrollment.
In Document 44 of the Proceedings of the House of Delegates
of Virginia for 1834-1835, it is set out that James Wilson was
entitled to State land for military services in the War of the
Revolution but that he never received it.
Other Wilsons from Scotland settled on the lower James
many years before Richard WUson entered King and Queen,
some of whom becaine distinguished in early colonial his
tory. The great Miles Carey, Rector of William and Marys
College, married one of these and became the proprietor of
Carey's Ford, Fluvanna County, one of the most noted seating
places of the old Virginia landed gentlemen. Descendants of
his in 1810 had one hundred and seventy-four slaves, by far
the largest number of slaves owned by any family in Fluvanna;
next to the Careys stood Joseph Haden with forty-two; then
Patrick Woodson with thirty-six; then George Holman with
thirty; then James Quaries with twenty-seven. These in their
day held themselves as of a higher social stratum than others

360 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
owning a lesser number of slaves. A very large number
owned from fifteen to twenty-five slaves, among whom was
James Wilson with seventeen. It is interesting to note that the
fewest number of families in the old slave States owned fifteen
or more slaves. In Westmoreland County in 1782, there were
two hundred eighty-nine slaveholders owning less than ten slaves
and but fifty-six who owned ten or more. The average size of
slaveholding in most counties was but nine. In fact on most of
the slaveholding estates there were more whites than blacks, and
an estate having more blacks than whites came to be called a plan
tation, while an estate having more whites than blacks was but
a farm. Every slaveholder who owned -fifteen or more negroes
was called "Esquire," and "Planter." In addition to this he
was in nearly every case a social dignitary. This mingling of the
economic and social currents was characteristic of Southern ante
bellum communities, and James Wilson enjoyed the privileges
and immunities of his day. He was an economic success and a
man of high social standing.
James Wilson died in 1820 in his sixty-fifth year, honored
by all his fellow citizens and lamented by a respectable family of
children and relatives. He certainly did his part for country
and home and his descendants have every reason to be proud
of his memory. The division of his estate among eight or nine
chUdren gave each of them a fair beginning in life but not
enough to entitle them to the social position of their father.
B.\RNETT Wilson.
This brings us to Barnett Wilson whose life connects itself
more closely with Robert B. Wilson of Arkansas. The mar
riage license records of Fluvanna do not show the date of his
marriage but the traditions are that he married in Goochland
County in either 1813 or 181 4. His farm was on the line be
tween Goochland and Fluvanna, and in various deeds he is some
times described as Barnett Wilson of Goochland and at other
times as Barnett Wilson of Fluvanna. He married Elizabeth or
Polly Parrish, daughter of Anderson Parrish of Fluvanna and
Goochland. The Parrishes were an old and respectable family

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 361
of Virginia, landholders and slaveholders, but I have not been
able to trace them back to their landing. The first act of Bar
nett Wilson after his marriage was to purchase ten acres of
land on Bird's Creek in a different part of the county from that
in which his father and other relatives were then seated. The
land adjoined his father-in-law, Anderson Parrish, and was
partly in Goochland and partly in Fluvanna. In 1835, Ander
son Parrish deeded to Barnett Wilson of Goochland County one
hundred and sixty acres of land in Fluvanna County. In the
census of 1830, Barnett Wilson was described as of Fluvanna
County with seven children, five males and two females, having
a wife, each head of the family being between thirty and forty
years of age. In that enumeration he was the owner of four
slaves, which seems to prove that he had determined upon an
agricultural life. That he had the confidence of his brothers
and sisters, their husbands and wives is fully proven by tlie
power of attorney heretofore referred to. This would also
seem to indicate that he was a man of good business judgment,
with mental parts far above mediocrity. He was reputed to have
been a Baptist in good standing with his church and was cer
tainly a Democrat. Both he and his wife died in Virginia on
their old home farm where they were buried, leaving the follow
ing children: Hugh, Benjamin Frankhn, John T., Martha,
Judson and Lucy. Hugh emigrated to Shelby County, Tennes
see, where he married and lived until the war; he enroUed hini
self in the Confederate Army and died in that service. John
T. Wilson also emigrated to Shelby County, Tennessee, where
he married Sally W. WiUiams. After residing in Shelby Coun
ty for several years he moved to Arkansas, where he died in
1857 or 1858; his widow is still living at Atkins in Pope County.
Judson Wilson married and became the father of one child; he
joined the Confederate Army in 1861 and remained with it for
nearly four years, being kUled in one of the last battles. Be
fore the battle he had a premonition that he would be killed and
gave his watch and ring to a fellow ofificer to give to his wife,
which was done. His wife remarried after the war and went
to South 'America.

362 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
Martha Wilson niarried a Richardson, a descendant of one
of the gentlemen justices of Fluvanna County, A'irginia, and
died a few years after the war. Lucy Wilson about the begin
ning of the war married William Knuckles, and v/ith him made
her residence at Richmond, Virginia, where she died in 1887.
This leaves Benjamin Franklin Wilson of whose career it is
now our purpose to write. This leads us to remark.
Richard Wilson of King and Queen County, and James
Wilson Of Fluvanna, ancestors in a direct line of Barnett Wilson,
were each in their day, far more eminent men in tneir counties
than was Barnett or any of his brothers. James AA'ilson was
easily the equal of any man in Fluvanna in his day, not except
ing any of the Careys, who exceUed him alone 'in wealth and
education. James Wilson was a man of honor, chivalry,
spirit, energy, courage, and of eminent hospitality. His sons
had all these characteristics, but fifty years make a remarkable
difference in conditions. James Wilson had a county for his
field of operation, and in that field he never failed to prove his
worth. His children had a narrow field — a neighborhood — and
were satisfied with their lot. Self satisfaction not only accounts
for differences in condition but also creates new differences.
They, these AA'ilson children, like their father were honorable,
slightly less chivalrie, immensely less spirited, somewhat less
energetic, equaUy hospitable, but in a different kind. James,
the father, entertained his friends throughout Fluvanna, and
even entertained his friend William Bolling, whose fine estate on
the James was everywhere known as "BoUing Hall," and which
through the centuries has cast a glamour of glory around its
owner. Barnett AA^ilson and his brothers entertained their church
friends on Sundays with splendid hospitality, but it was only
their church friends. You can not separate a true Virginian
from hospitality in some one of its forms, and Barnett Wilson,
unable to meet the larger demands of the term, limited himself
to the church form, that generosity of spirit which invited to his
home troops of Baptists after the regular church services of
the Lord's Day. Virginia hospitality whether of the older form
of the day of James AA^ilson, or of the younger form of the day

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 363
of his son, Barnett, cost the man who exercised it far more than
it yielded of absolute value. Every great Sunday dinner cost
Barnett Wilson more than it yielded him. He could ill afford
to give the dinner but as a Virginian he could not escape the
law which bound him, nor did he wish to escape it. He must
entertain, and be it said to his credit he loved to entertain, and
throughout his life he held himself in the ranks of old time
Virginians bound by the laws of old time Virginia hospitality.
Like a valiant hero, although without ability to do so, he main
tained every form of Virginia Hfe, and died a true Virginian, a
splendid representative of the old time F. F. Vs. His children,
however, went West to escape the calls of hospitality as de
manded by the code, and to make for themselves an estate and a
name. Some of them, as has been outHned, died on the field of
martial glory, fighting for the glorious unfortunate Confederate
Cause, leaving names that are immortal. Benjamin Franklin
Wilson stuck to his estate, loving it, nursing it and leaving it
as a lever by and through whicii his children might win back
the old time credit of their forbears, Richard and James Wilson,
splendid representatives of old time first families of Virginia.
BENJAMIN FRANKLIN WILSON.
Benjamin Franklin AVilson was born in Goochland County,
April 17, 1823; he was brought up on his father's farm to a
life of industry and given the educational opportunities afforded
by the Old Field Schools. In his eighteenth year he joined
the Baptist church and lived a consistent inember thereof through
out his life.
At the age of twenty-one the larger West beckoned him
and he answered the call by moving to Shelby County, Ten
nessee, finding a suitable home near where the old town of
Fisherville once stood. There he met Mary Wright Williams,
daughter of Robert and  (Beasley) Williams, to whom
o'n March 16, 1848, he was married. Elder Askew officiating.
Robert Williams was a North Carolinian by birth, emigrating
to Tennessee as a boy and settling in Rutherford County. For
tune favored him and he became a moderately wealthy man.

364 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
The going security for friends, however, swept away all he
had and led him to a second removal into Shelby County, where
he died in 1885. Mary Wright WUliams was born March 6,
1828, in Rutherford County, Tennessee, and died at the home
of her daughter, Martha Luella McReynolds, in Barry County,
Missouri, on June 28, 1897, while on a visit to her daugjiter.
She joined the Baptist church in Shelby County, Tennessee, the
year she was married and lived a consistent religious life frorrf
that time until her death.
In 1853 Benjamin Franklin Wilson moved to Conway County,
Arkansas, settling a few mUes above Old Lewisburg. Two years
later he purchased a farm in the southeast corner of Pope County,
on the Arkansas river, where he lived for about twenty years,
when failing health, largely induced by exposure as a Confederate
soldier, led him to move to Washington County near Cane Hill.
He afterwards bought a farm near Springdale in that county,
where he lived until the death of his wife in 1897. The re
mainder of his life was passed among his children in Arkansas
and Missouri, dying at the house of his son, Robert B. WUson,
in Russellville, Arkansas, on April 21, 1904, having lived in Ar
kansas something more than half a century.
From 1853 to i860 he worked industriously upon his farm,
clearing it and preparing it for the raising of stock, a vocation
he seemed to love. Arkansas at that time was most sparsely
settled ; his house was of hewed logs and the floors of the old
pioneer puncheon form. In 1861 he voted against secession
but when Arkansas seceded, Wilson adhered to the State's
decision and joined the Confederate Army. He enUsted twice;
first, in a cavalry regiment raised in western Arkansas, iri
which he served more than a year. During this service he
reached his fortieth year and was no longer subject to military
duty. He left the regiment and went back home. Later on the
necessities of the Confederacy became greater and WUson de
cided that his duty was to help his country despite his ex
emption from service. With him duty was always a law, arid
hc at once enlisted in the First Regiment of Arkansas Cavalry,
commanded by Colonel Erastus Stirman, in the company led
by that soldierly gentlemen. Captain James W. Russell of Rus-

Pioneers and Makerj of Arkansas 365
sellville, where he remained until the end of the war. His
hardships as a soldier were very great, but at no time equalled
those of his wife, a non-combatant, residing in a territory raided
and plundered by the irregular troops of the Union army. To
the credit of both armies it may be said that the regular soldiers
respected the rights of women and children. Armies, how
ever, have troops of camp followers whose only law is revenge,
ruin and rapine, and at the hands of these, Mrs. Wilson and her
children received the most unsoldierly, and at the same time,
the most unmanly treatment. The history of Southern mothers
whose husbands were at the front has never been written, but
when it shall be, their heroism and self-denial will fairly rival
that of their husbands, and their suffering sb far transcends
that of their husbands, as to make it fairly insignificant. All
honor to the mothers who gallantly held their homes in the
deadly area between the lines.
Benjamin Franklin Wilson at the beginning of the war had
five slaves and a fine lot of cattle and horses. One negro woman
came to him from his Virginia father, and was brought by him
to Arkansas, where she died shortly after the close of the war.
She was always loyal to her master and mistress, and was a
great help to Mrs. Wilson during the war. The war destroyed
all of the property of Benjamin Franklin Wilson except his
farm, to which he returned to recuperate his fortunes by honesty
and untiring industry. He was a member of the Galla Creek
Baptist Church until he moved to Washington County, where
he became a member of the Baptist Church of Springdale. Like
his father he was most hospitable, especially to his church
friends, and if called on, would not hesitate to entertain a whole
Baptist Association. He never held office. When solicited to
stand for ofifice in both civil and military life he' invariably re
fused. He was a Democrat and believed the doctrines of that
party, loyally supporting it to the end. To Benjamin Franklin
and Mary Wright Wilson were born the following children :
I. Mary Elizabeth Wilson who died in infancy; 2. Robert
Barnett Wilson of whom we shaU have more to say ; 3. Wil
liam Judson Wilson, who died when three years of age; 4-

366 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
Martha Luella Wilson, born August 16, 1853; niarried C. Lee
AIcReynolds and is now living near Purdy, Missouri, the mother
of several children ; 5. Matilda Alildred Wilson, who died in
infancy; 6. Katherine AA'right Wilson, born August 14, 1859;
married Dr. R. B. Gladden and lives in Purdy, Missouri;
7. Theodosia Wilson, born in 1863, who died in 1883 ;
8. Benjamin Franklin Wilson, born April 25, 1866; moved to
Texas, where he niarried, and is now living in Oklahoma ; 9.
Tames Edward Wilson, born September 18, 1869; married and
lives at Lufkin, Texas. The first three were of Tennessee birth,
but all the rest were born on Arkansas soil. Such is the event
ful history of two splendid Arkansas characters, a history worthy
of study and emulation.
Robert Barnett Wilson.
We now come to an Arkansan well and favorably known to
Arkansans generally, and to the legal profession particularly.
Robert B. Wilson was born in Shelby County, Tennessee, on
May 26, 1850. He came with his father to Arkansas in 1853,
and is now living in the county in which the greater part of
his life has been spent.
There were no schools in his neighborhood and his op
portunities to acquire an education were therefore limited. In
i860 his father and neighbors employed a man to teach in the
neighborhood, and for ten months he had his first tutelage outside
of home. During the war whicii followed education was a lost
occupation and all schools were abandoned. While his father
was absent as a soldier and for a long time after his return, the
son was compelled to work upon the farm, snatching what learn
ing he could by self help, which after all is the greatest help a
man can have. He gathered knowledge as did Lincoln, in the
quietude of his mother's log cabin, from such books as he could
borrow or buy. At twenty-one years of age he passed an ex
amination for teaching, winning a second grade certificate, upon
which he taught a three months school. In March, 1872, he
went to Murfreesboro, Tennessee, and attended Union Uni
versity for about four months. Returning he again taught
a three months school in Pope County, Arkansas, but to his dis-

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 367
may found that there was no money in the treasury to pay him
after his work was done. The war had been over a long time
but reconstruction still held the country in its ruinous grip.
This kept him from returning to Union University and led him
to take to clerkship in a store at Galla Rock for the fall and
winter. In the spring of 1783 he went to Texas and taught a
summer school in Tarrant County, preparatory to entrance upon
St. John's College at Little Rock. He entered late on account
of his teaching work ; was interrupted by the sickness of his father
and the Brooks-Baxter war of the spring of 1874. For a time
he added to his scanty exchequer by acting as janitor for the
college. He lived for a while with many of the other students
in a frame dormitory attached to the property, but afterwards
took a room with one of the professors in the coUege building,
and at the breaking out of the Brooks-Baxter war was the only
student occupying a room in that location, and as his profes
sional room-mate had resigned and left, he had these quarters
all to himself. This gave him an opportunity to know and see
things that otherwise he could not have had. When Brooks
ousted Baxter, the latter repaired to St. John's College and
placed himself under the protection of the commandant. Major
Gray. The students were formed into a body guard for Gov
ernor Baxter, and with guns in hand moved with greater
alacrity than they had shown when armed with books. The
governor was placed in Wilson's room, where he was guarded
during one night and until he removed his headquarters to the
Anthony House. In this room the portly govemor occupied
Wilson's bed, but being so much heavier broke it down and
slept on the floor. It is claimed that the State of Arkansas owes
Wjilson for tihat bedstead to this gopd, hour. The military
knowledge gained by Wilson at this broken term was not lost,
as he was deputed by Major Gray to aid in disciplining the
raw recruits who came in under Baxter's call. For the next
year he worked on his father's farm and in a country school
house, until in March, 1875, he entered the law ofifice of L. W.
Davis of RussellviUe, where under the scholarly guidance of
Judge Frank Thatch he studied law. He was admitted to the

•368 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
¦bar in Alay, 1876, and at once opened an office in RussellviUe to
begin the practice of law. For thirty-two years he has been an
active practitioner in Arkansas and is still wedded to his pro
fession. He has been a close student during all these years and
is thoroughly well grounded in the law. At St. John's College
he was a classmate with J. W. Blackwood, George and John Rose,
J. E. Williams and others, whose names have since becoine noted
in the law at Little Rock, and where comradeship iias been of
value through all these years.
Robert Barnett Wilson has never been an ofifice seeker, but
at times has held honorable positions under both State and
national law. In 1878 he was appointed to fill the unexpired
term of the county judgeship and then elected for another term,
refusing further preferment. In 1888 he, without his solici
tation, was appointed by President Cleveland, Register of the
United States land ofifice at Dardanelle, which place he held
until by a change of administration he was succeeded by a
Republican. For fifteen years he was a member of the Rus
sellville school board, acting as its president for the most part,
succeeding Jacob L. Shinn. For many years he has been the
local land agent of the Little Rock branch of the St. Louis,
Iron Alountain and Southern RaUway; is the retained attorney
of the Southern Anthracite Coal Company, the Onita Coal and
Mining Company and the Peoples Exchange Bank, a leading
financial institution in western Arkansas.
He is and always has been a Democrat, responding cheerfully
to every call of his party, whether the demand was for work or
for contributions; he has served as Chairman of the County
Central Commiftee and has been a member of the State Central
Committee. For years he was a member of the Baptist church at Rus
sellville, but at present affiliates with Methodist Episcopal
Church, South, the church to which his wife has always belonged.
On November 21, 1877, he was married at RussellviUe, to
Ann Mary HoweU, Rev. W. J. Dodson, of the Methodist Epis
copal Church, South, performing the ceremony. His wife was
the daughter of Jesse C. and Adalissa C. (Hardaway) HoweU,
formerly of Hardin County, Kentucky.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 369
It has been said that a good wife is the best fortune a man
can have, and in this particular Mrs. WUson has been a most
exemplary woman. She is and always has been her husband's
greatest helper. Beginning life poor, she practiced economy
and industry as few women do, thus enabling her husband to
gain a handsome competency. The children born of this mar-
ria'ge were: i. Hurley HoweU Wilson, born January 6, 1879;
graduate of Russellville High School; graduated electrical en
gineer. University of Arkansas, class of 1901 ; now and for five
years past in the employ of the Pennsylvania Railroad Company,
with headquarters at Altoona, Pennsylvania; superintended the
electric lighting and power of the new union depot at Wash
ington, D. C. ; 2. Mary Wilson, born March 4, 1881 ; attended
Maddox Seminary at Little Rock and Virginia Female Institute
at Roanoke, A'irginia; niarried Elbert H. Rankin in May, 1904,
and has one child, Robert Wilson Rankin; 3. Frank Connyng-
ham Wilson, born May 31, 1886; graduate of the RussellviUe
High School, and of the Dental department of Vanderbilt Uni
versity class of 1908; 4. Adalissa Wilson, born October 25,
1893, and 5, Robert Barnett Wilson, Jr., born April 23, 1897.
Judge Robert B:. Wilson is a man of firm convictions
coupled with a courtesy that wins him friends from all classes
of men. No man in the country has achieved a more distinctive
success in life than he, another proof of the power of the human
will over external circumstances. Without the aid of influential
friends, — without that education which comes from the highest
college forms and without any antecedent and inherited wealth,
he has hammered out of adverse circumstances a position in
life second to no one in the county. His word is as good as his
bond and his social position that of the best of his fellows.
From "Wilsonia," one of the finest houses, if not the finest
house in Pope County, he dispenses an elegant hospitality and
revives the prestige of the old Virginia name. In years to come
men will point with as much pride to the Wilson House in Rus
sellville as in centuries agone they pointed to the famous BoUing
Hall on the historic James.

370 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
CHAPTER XLII.
The Rector Family.,
The Richters are an old family of the German Empire,
widely dispersed in locality, of eminent respectability, and far-
famed as thinkers and musical composers.
Franz Zavier Richter of Stra"sburg, first gave musical promi
nence to the name, 1709- 1789, as an author of many productions
for instruments of all kinds. He was followed by Karl Gotlieb
Richter of Berlin, 1 728-1809, who acquired great celebrity as a
musician in the service of Princess Amalia of Prussia, as organist
of the Cathedral at Konigsburg, and as author of many con
certinas for the piano and trios for two flutes and a bass. This
fjime of the Richters was further enhanced by Ernest Frederick
Edward Richter of Leipsic, 1808-1879, Director of Alusic at the
University of Leipsic. His musical works have an immense cir
culation. Another member of the family of great fame was
Ernest Heinrich Leopold Richter, 1805-1876, of the Royal In
stitute of Berlin. The Catholic Church of the United States
boasts a bishop, Henry Joseph Richter, who was born at Olden
burg in 1838. In German history they have also been noted as
great soldiers and great merchants. In old German the word,
Richter, means a judge, and its Anglicized form. Rector, carries
the same idea in part, but is limited to ecclesiastical affairs.
Richter is an old surname in Germany, and has been trans
planted to England and the United States. In the latter country
the word has been variously spelled, Richtor, Richter, Ricktar,
Rechter, but is now almost exclusively spelled Rector. The coat
of arms of the family was an eagle displayed sa, in dexter an
olive branch, vert, and in sinister a thunderbolt, ppr.
THE migration to AMERICA.
The flrst migration of any of the Richter family to America
occurred as follows : About one hundred and ninety-five years
ago the inhabitants of the thrifty little German viUage of Musen,
about fifteen miles northeast of the city of Siegen, in the then
principality of Nassau-Siegen, the present Prussian province of

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 371
Westphalia, were thrown into great excitement by the arrival
of agents of Baron D. Graffenreid, seeking skilled workmen to-
open the iron mines of Virginia for Governor Spottswood.
Siegen is now and was then the center of one of the most
noted iron producing and manufacturing districts of Germany,
and at Alusen is situated one of the most famous iron mines in
that country, dating hack to 1303. There were, of course, many
men, thrifty and honest, who desired to better their condition, and
who under the promise of free passage and free lands soon con
sented to change their habitation. Forty persons agreed with
Graffenreid's agent at Musen and Seigen to go to Virginina.
This colony did not go as servants as did many of the other
German colonies, but as freemen planted a free colony on the
Rappahannock in April, 1714. They were received by Governor
Spottswood with open arms, placed in a fort on the frontier at
a place where Spottswood lived and given twelve hundred acres
of land. There were not more than twelve heads of families,
who soon provided themselves with log huts forming a nucleus
for a new settlement which was called, Germana. Germana is
no longer on the map, but in the language of another, is located
as follows : "Germana was the famous town of Governor Spotts
wood ; the first county town of Spottsvylvania County ; the place
where St. George's Parish was organized ; where the first iron
furnace in America was built; and the first pig iron made as
Spottswood claims; the place from which the famous Expedition
of the Knights of the Golden Horseshoe started ; where the first
German congregation in America was organized, its first pastor
settled, and its first services held."
It is no longer a town but a mere ford in the river, called
Germana Ford, in the extreme northeastern corner of Orange
County, on a remarkable peninsula of about four hundred acres
with the Rappahannock to the north, west, and east of it, about
fourteen mUes above where the Rapidan debouches into the
Rappahannock. The first pastor of this congregation at Old
Germana was Henry Hager, and the elders of the congregation
in 1714 were Henry Hager, Pastor; John Jost. Merdten (Martin)
and John Jacob Re'chtor, ..(Rector), which is attested by the

372 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
extant credentials signed by them and given to Jacob Christo
pher Zollicoffer when he was sent by this congregation to Europe
to solicit aid to build a church and schoolhouse at Germana.
Henry S. Dotterer has given the world a paper containing these
facts as taken from the Stadt Bibliothek of Frankfort on the
Main, a copy of which in German is in possession of Hon. E. W.
Rector of Hot Springs, Arkansas. It is a most valuable addition
to the Rector family history. The English Church created St.
George's Parish to proselyte these Germans into the Episcopal
Church, but Henry Hager was acute enough to hold them to the
tenets of the German Reform Church.
The thirteen householders making this German Colony of
1714 were John Kemper, Jacob Holtzclaw, John and Harmon
Fishback, John Huffman, Harmon Utterbach, Tillman Weaver,
John Joseph Martin, John Jacob Rechtor, Jacob Coon, 
Wayman,  Handback and Peter Hitt. From this hand
ful of Germans, of meager estate but of thrifty and moral habits,
have come through two centuries many most prominent men;
it gave a great general to the Confederate Army, who was also
governor of Virginia; a surveyor general for Illinois, Missouri
and Arkansas, William Rector; four governors of the State of
Arkansas, James S. Conway, Elias N. Conway, AA^illiam M.
Fishback and Henry M. Rector, besides hundreds of others in
somewhat less eminent positions.
In fact, it is doubtful whether any other single group of
men of the same size, or of ten times the size, in any part of the
world has ever produced through two centuries an equal num
ber of great men. And frora John Jacob Rechtor proceeded a
greater degree of vigor and power than from any other name
of the colony.
In about ten years this colony became dissatisfied at Germana
and removed to a point on Licking Run, then in Stafford County,
but now in the southern part of Fauquier County, and established
a town called Germantown, about eight miles south of the present
town of AA''arrenton. Spottsylvania County is and always has
been a very poor county, and these thrifty Germans soon ascer
tained this truth and moved to a richer part. Fauquier County

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 373
is a rich county and while Germantown is not located in its
cream, the second location was far better than the first. Here
these thrifty Germans prospered and laid the foundations for a
greater wealth. Old Germantown gave place in time to Fauquier
White Sulphur Springs, but in time lost its prestige and is now
a mere hamlet in South Fauquier. Thus at Germana and at
Germantown began the Virginia family of Rector, the family
whose name heads this chapter.
The proof of the date of John Rechtor's migration to Vir
ginia is to be found in Will Book A, pages 3 and 4, of the old
Spottsvylvania records, and is recited in Volume 13 of the Vir
ginia Magazine of History and Biography. The recital is as
follows :
"At a court held the 2d day of June, 1724, for Spottsylvania
County, Jacob Ricktar, (Rector), in order to prove his right
to take up lands according to the Royal Charter, made oath that
he came into the colony to llwell in the year 1714, and that he
brought with him his wife, Elizabeth, and his son, John; and
that this is the first time of proving their said importation;
whereupon certificate is ordered to be granted them of right to
take up one hundred acres of land. The certificates for the land
were issued May 30, 1729. Signed, T. A. Harris, Clerk."
John Jacob Rechtor, or as the Spottsylvania clerk anglicized
it, Ricktar, must have died between 1724 and 1729, for the cer
tificate for this land was issued to Ehzabeth, his wife, reciting
the facts. We know from his oath that he was married when
he came to Virginia and that he brought with him one child,
John Rechtor. So much for this old pioneer. Born in West
phalia and educated as an iron and steel -manufacturer; poor yet
thrifty; a member and elder in the first German Reform Church
ever established in America; one of the guild that manufactured
the first pig iron ever made in America, and who died after
proving his right to one hundred acres of land, thus becoming
a freeholder in America.
We also know from the will of John Rechtor, the 2d, that
John Jacob Rechtor, the father, had antother son, Harmon, who
was given one hundred and sixty acres of land on. Licking Run

374 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
by John, the 2d, who named hira as his brother. Harmon Rech
tor left descendants around Germantown, where they may be
found until this good day, and it may be that some of the de
scendants of John Rechtor, the 2d, may be found in the same
place. Henry Hager, the pastor at Germana and Germantown,- had
eleven children, the sixth one born in 1687, being Elizabeth
Hager, who in Germany, prior to the migration, was married to
John Jacob Rechter between 1707 and 1713. John Jacob Rechter
was born about 1680 and died between 1724 and 1729. Henry
Hager, the pastor, was the son of Henry Hager of Antshausen,
a village of Nassau. The son was well educated, being a teacher
of Latin in Siegen before becoming a pastor in the German
Reform Church. On December 3, 1678, Henry Hager, the
Latin professor, married Anna Catherine Friesenhaugen, daugh
ter of Jacob Friesenhaugen, the Mayor of Freudenburg. This
establishes the fact that the Rectors of Virginia descend from
German families of the very highest respectability and worth,
and evidence is not lacking to show that in more ancient times
they had a higher heraldic renown.
JOHN RECTOR, THE SECOND.
That John Jacob Rechtor had a son, John, is proved by his
oath in 1724 when he applied for his land. This oath also proves
that the son, John, was foreign born, but without fixing the date
of his birth. The mother, Elizabeth, was born in 1687, and the
son, according to a memorandum of his grandson. Nelson, was
born in 1707. We cannot fix the exact date of the son's mar
riage. In John Fishback's will of date 1733, he mentions a
daughter, Catherine Rechter, and John Rechter witnessed his
will. John Jacob Rechtor was dead at this time, hence the sig
natory. John Rechter, was the son and the husband of the daugh
ter named Catherine. This daughter was also born in 1707. In
John Rector's will of 1773 he names his wife as Catherine Rec
tor. John Rector married Catherine Fishback before the date
of John Fishback's wiU, probably in i73i'or 1732.
John Rector, the 2d, like all of his neighbors, was a farmer
and as events prove a very thrifty one. He was an adventurous

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 375
man, fearless and progressive. His stature was very large, as
was that of his children. Fauquier County at that time had no
existence as a political division, being a part of Stafford County,
and with a few exceptions was a grand primeval forest of the
deepest solitude. John Rector plunged througli the almost in
terminable undergrowth of the land and discovered where the
better lands lay. He found out that Germantown was in the
poorer part of the county, bvit that in the northern part of the
county there were much richer lands, whereon a more abundant
living might be made with much less work. As he grew older
and wealthier he purchased lands in this locality and upon them
made a greater wealth. The Rectors today are located in two
distinct parts of Fauquier County, around Germantown and
around Rectortown, possibly fifty niUes apart. The wealthier
Rectors reside around Rectortown, and some of them claim to
be of no kin to those around Germantown. The great Rector
stature still adheres to each set, which proclaims them of com
mon origin, and there are no other differences which may not
be accounted for easily by the differences in the country in which
they have lived for more than a century. Those who remained
at Germantown are simply Rectors of a poorer neighborhood;
while those at Rectortown are pitched in a better natural loca
tion. Both sets descend beyond all question from old John
Jacob Rechtor of Germana and Germantown.
John Rector, the 2d, lived to be sixty-five years of age and
became the head of a large family. We cannot follow his Ufe
in detail, but one event deserves special mention as it indicates
his progressive spirit and great foresight.
In February, 1772, 12th George III, Henning's Statutes of
Virginia, Vol. 8, it appears that the House of Burgesses of Vir
ginia authorized John Rictor (Rector) of the County of Fau
quier, the owner and proprietor of lands in that region, to lay
off fifty acres of his land into lots and streets for a town, to be
called and known by -the name of /Maidstone. This little item of
law goes far towards an explication of the passion we shall
hereafter discover in the Rectors to lay off and establish towns,
i: passion which marked their career most strorigly in Illinois

376 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
and Missouri. It fnay also, indicate a point in family history
which we raay never be able to prove. It is historically certain
that the German colony from Musen and Siegen remained in
England for some time before making its final trip to Virginia.
AVho can tell but that John Rector, the son of John Jacob Rech
tor and Elizabeth, his wife, was not born during that brief sojourn
in England, and possibly at the old English town, Maidstone ! It
is no wild stretch of the imagination to assume that John Rector,
the 2d, in founding the town, Maidstone, and in giving it that
name, did so in honor of his own birthplace. iMaidstone was in
Fauquier County, in its northern part,- — in the very cream of the
county. After John Rector's death in 1773, the town prospered
and held the narae, Maidstone, untU about 1796, when in honor
of its founder, John Rector, it came to be called Rectortown, and
by that name is known today.
Alaidstone was founded about the beginning of the Revo
lutionary AA^ar, during which struggle John Rector, its founder,
died, having sent a grandson, John, and possibly others, into
that war. The traditions of the family are clear that his son,
Frederick, was a Revolutionary soldier from Virginia, but the
condition of the military records of that State makes it impossible
to prove this authoritatively. His children asserted it in 1820,
and it was doubtless true.
THE WILL OF JOHN RECTOR, THE SECOND.
John Rector's wiU was dated November 5, 1772, and pro
bated Alarch 22, 1773, and is recorded in Book i, pages 205-7,
of the Fauquier County wills. It names his wife, Catherine,
seven sons and two daughters. The wUl distributed about sixty
thousand dollars' worth of property and indicates superior thrift
on the part of John Jacob, the immigrant, and of John, the tes
tator. At that time this sum of money marked its possessor as
a rich man. He gave his wife, Catherine, his plantation, with
all his negroes during her life. He gave his sons, Henry, Daniel,
Charles, Jacob, Benjamin and Frederick, and his daughters
Catherine and Elizabeth from two hundred to four hundred
acres of land each and a number of negroes at the death of his

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 2i77-
wife. His son, John 3d, was dead, leaving a son, John 4th, who
in turn was given land and negroes. The children of John, the
4th, were Elias, Benjamin, BurreU, Blaxton, Eli, Edward, Su
sannah and Sally. Their descendants, as well as the descendants
of Henry, Daniel, Charles, Jacob, and Benjamin, and Catherine
and Elizabeth, still ramify Fauquier, Culpepper and Rappahan
nock counties, — some of them rich, whUe the greater number are
neither rich nor poor, but own their own homes and form a part
of that great array of men called, "good livers."
John Rector, the 2d, owned about three thousand acres of
land on CromweU's Run, Licking Run, Goose Creek and in other
parts of the county. John Rector, the 2d, was a thoroughgoing
man. In June, 1764, he, Isaac Cundiff and John Kincheloe, laid
off a road from Ashby's Gap to John Lea's. In May, 1760, he
secured the running of a road from Rector's mill on Goose
Creek to the main road. On July 23, 1761, Thomas McClanahan
and Augusta Jennings, captains, and Jacob Rector, his son, en
sign, took the oath to support his majesty's person.
John Rector built raiUs, bought farras, laid off a town,
proved his manhood and worth. He is buried near Maidstone,
now Rectortown, and his wife sleeps by his side. Passing the
other sons and grandsons, we now come to the third generation
of Rectors in America, and shall confine ourselves to Frederick
Rector the imraediate ' ancestor of the Missouri and Arkansas
Rectors. Catherine Rector died in 1775, two years after the
death of her husband. FREDERICK RECTOR.
Frederick Rector was the seventh and youngest son of John
and Catherine Rector and was born July ^16, 1750. As
a youngest son he was doubtless favored by his parents during
their lives, and thus made helpless as to individuality. His
-father died when he was about twenty-three and his inother
died within the next two years.
He had executive abUity and was a most honorable man
for that, in Will Book No. i, page 427 of Fauquier County wills,
it is set out that he and his brother, Benjamin, were made exec-

378 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
utors of Henry Rector's will. Henry was a brother, and left
sons, AA'illiam, John and Enoch, and several daughters. His
lands lay on Goose Creek. He also witnessed his uncle Har
mon's will in September, 1782. From this will it appears that
Harmon married a woman named Mary, and left sons, Harmon,
Nathaniel, Uriah and Henry. From other documents it is clear
that Uriah was a Revolutioiiary soldier and died in Tennessee.
That Henry had sons and daughters, Polly, Elijah, Caty and
Spencer, and that Spencer's chUdren were Edward, John, Henry,
Alary and Pency. Nathaniel had children, Anne, Aylette and
Joel. Elias Rector, son of John, the 4th, was the father of
Franklin, Alary, Annie, Lizzie, Alildred, Charles, Marion, Alvin
and William Henry. Frederick Rector grew up among a great
mass of Rector kin, both at Germantown and Maidstone. He
was evidently a conveyancer and raay have been a lawyer. Cer
tain it is that he gave his children, and he had a very large
faraily, superior opportunities for an education, and their careers
seem to justify the conclusion that they each and all had recep
tive minds.
Frederick Rector was given lands by his father on Goose
Creek in the richest part of John's possessions, but the education
of nine boys and four girls, Virginia fashion, soon ate up the
estate. Two negroes, Jeffey and Jackey, came to him at his
father's death, before the final division of the residuary estate.
The exact date of his raarriage was February 7, 1770, and on
February 20, 1776, he and his wife, Elizabeth, joined in a deed
selling land, which deed recited that the land was given hira by
his father, John (Fauquier Deeds, Book 6, page 233). Frederick
Rector married Elizabeth Conner, daughter of Lewis and Ann
(Wharton) Conner, an old Virginia faraily. Elizabeth Conner
was born at Norfolk in 1755. Again, on October 22, 1782, Fred
erick and Elizabeth sold to John Moffett two hundred acres on
CromweU's Run, reciting that this land came from his father,
John.^ the consideration being $1,500 (Deed Book 7, page 470).
Frederick was then living in Maidstone, educating his children
and dispensing a hospitality that added to his fame while rapidly
diminishing the patrimony given hira by his father.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas ^yg
In May, 1782, as shown by the Minute Book of the Fauquier
County Court, Frederick Rector memorialized the court that he
owned land on one side of Goose Creek and asked the privilege
of the court to erect a water mill, vvhich was granted. He was
still alive in Fauquier County in 1792, as the minutes of the
court show, but after that he drops entirely out of sight on Vir
ginia records. By his marriage he had nine sons and four daugh
ters, each of whom he reared to man's and woman's estate. The
names of the sons in order were : Wharton, Williain, Elias, John,
Nelson, Stephen, Thoraas C, Samuel .and Henry. One daughter
was named Ann, or Nancy, and the other three, Sally, lAIoUie
and Lucy. Elizabeth married a Barton, whose descendants are
'among the wealthiest people of Kansas City. Sallie married a
Beale and becaine the mother of General Wm. K. Beale of the
Confederate army. Elizabeth Rector, the mother, died at Oak '
Hill, seven miles above Kaskaskia, in Illinois Territory, on Sep
tember 18, 181 1, and Frederick died at the same place on Oc
tober 24, 181 1.
4TH GENERATION — THE RECTORS OF ILLINOIS.
In 1806, these nine Rector boys left Fauquier County to
seek their fortunes in the West, and their parents soon followed
thera. All these years we have been hearing about the solid,
phlegmatic, philosophical Gerraan who reads abstruse specula
tions on the ultiraate theory of raatter, and thinks rather than
acts. But there is another side to the picture and in following
the fortunes of these particular German boys from 1806 to the
present we shall be led to see it. Some one has said that no
people on earth excel the Berliners in certain aspects of gaiety
and pleasure seeking and that they excel all other people in
genuine courtesy. The Parisian and American do have much
fun and pleasure but they generally get through about mid
night — the very time when the German is just getting under
good headway. They are not loud in their fun — on the con
trary, they are very sedate — ^but in having it, they fill the cafes
of Berlin, Dresden and Munich with their wives and chUdren
at four o'clock in the morning, at the very hour that Paris and
New York are asleep. They can sit four hours at a table in

380 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
quiet discussion, all the time eating and drinking, which goes
far towards making a really sound mind in a really sound body.
They know what they want, and also how to get it. When a
German draws near a table partly occupied by others but which
the necessities of the case require him to occupy, he draws his
heels together and makes a military salute. When his food
comes before eating he lifts his glass or stein to all who are at the
table. He is trained to respect the rights of others and to do
it gracefully. Every one of these Rector boys was stolid, phleg
matic and philosophical but each of them sought and had his
pleasures, and each of them retained to the last a most masterful
politeness and courtesy.
If there was any difference it was in degree and not in
kind. William and Elias were models of courtesy even in the
backwoods, but the nine Rector boys as a body made and won
friends among all classes of people, the rich and learned and
the poor and unlearned. Jared MansfT|(ld was surveyor general
of the Northwest Territory from 1803 to 1812 with headquar
ters at Cincinnati. To him in 1806 William and Elias Rector
applied for work and were by him assigned to the Kaskaskia
District of Illinois as deputy surveyors. The other brothers
were taken as surveyors and helpers. John Rector had been
to Kaskaskia in 1804 and had remained there a year, and his
brothers in asking for work requested an assignment to that
teritory. Alontague, in his History of Randolph County, speaks
of the work of John Rector as a lawyer in 1804 and then says:
"The Rector family consisting of nine brothers, came to Kas
kaskia in the year 1806. They were in the United States sur
veying service and only remained temporarily at Kaskaskia."
They remained in the Illinois country until 1816 and in that
time surveyed and sectionized almost the whole State. In the
letters of the United States Treasurer to the surveyors gen
eral these boys are always referred to as the Rectors, and in
the main what was said in praise or criticism of one was said
of all. They forraed a clan of courteous, yet most clannish broth
ers, and were looked upon by the department at Washington and
the surveyors general at Cincinnati as solid and steadfast men.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 381
Each of them was six feet high, straight as an arrow, fearless
yet quiet and courteous. They were law-abiding and honest.
Their ancestors gave the Virginias no trouble at Germana and
they were true to the, teachings of their fathers. They had
ideas but they used them for their own edification and not as
a raeans to control others. They also knew their rights and
also how to defend them successfully. Under the law they were
required not only to survey the government lands but to sur
vey those of private individuals. The private lands were in
the main old French grants and very difficult to outline and
the Rectors thought the government should pay an extra com
pensation therefor. They sent their claims to Congress and in
December, 1809, Senator Richard M. Johnson reported that
William and Elias Rector had not only surveyed the public
lands of the Kaskaskia District, but under compulsion of law
had surveyed the claims of private individuals, and that owing
to the intricate nature of the work their claira for increased
compensation should be allowed, and it was.
Another German characteristic is the love of being gov
erned, not the slavish obedience to all sorts of law, but a philo
sophic belief that almost any sort of government is better than
none, and that the governors are better fitted to devise than
the governed, to say nothing of the principle that it is the inter
est of the governors to devise the best. The letters of the
Surveyor General Mansfield to the United States Treasurer
abound with the rehearsals of complaints from the deputy sur
veyors and surveyors against regulations, and in one letter from
the Treasurer to the Surveyor General, Mansfield is told that
all these complaints have been made direct to the department,
but as the Rectors have not coraplained, the department has
concluded that the difificulties grow out of the inherent nature
of the work rather than the regulations. The Rectors were not
kickers against the regulations and in that they were wise. The
correspondence between the Rectors and Mansfield and the de
partment from 1806 to 1812 is voluminous, disclosing not only
the difificulties of tjie survey, but the fact that the Rectors were
frequently called to Cincinnati by Jared Mansfield for consul-

382 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
tation. WUliam Rector seems to have been the leader and Elias
Rector his principal adviser, and in fact the balance wheel of
the faraily, but the interest of one brother was the interest of
all. Sometimes WiUiam went alone, and sometimes Elias, but
not infrequently they all went together. Cincinnati at that time
was a mere vUlage but the nine Rectors always made an impres
sion upon that town when they went there together. There
they met the distinguished Ohio surveyors, Israel Ludlow,
Thomas Worthington and Levi Whipple, forming attachments
that were never broken. While at Cincinnati they regularly
visited Louisville, and sometimes Frankfort, renewing their friend
ships with old Virginia friends in their Kentucky homes. How
many of the boys were married at this time I am not able to
state with exactness. AA^harton certainly was, for his sons,
AA'harton, Elias of Fort Smith, and AViUiam A'., were all born
in Virginia prior to 1806.
These boys were also honest, patriotic and brave. In 1809 Illi
nois Territory was cut off from Indiana Territory and Ninian
Edwards was appointed governor, and Nathaniel Pope, secre
tary, with power to act as governor during that officer's ab^
sence. Nathaniel Pope was a brother of Senator John Pope
and was then practicing law at St. Genevieve just over the river
from Kaskaskia. He knew the Rectors in Virginia and. had
renewed his acquaintance in their Illinois habitation. ^ Nathaniel
Pope got his Illinois appointment before Edwards and as act
ing governor set the territorial government to work. His first
official act on Alay 3, 1809, was to appoint Elias Rector, attorney
general, John Hay, sheriff, and seventeen justices of the peace.
On June 11, 1809, Ninian Edwards arrived and when told what
had been done said that he was sorry, as that en route he had
written John J. Crittenden offering him the portfolio of the
attorney general and would have to stand to his word. Elias
Rector said that he had only taken the place temporarily and
would be glad to shift it to another. The salary was but one
hundred dollars per annum, and he. Rector, was engaged in
more lucrative employraent. John J. Crittenden declined but
recoraraended his brother, Thoraas L. Crittenden who served

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 383
for a short time. Governor Edwards then appointed Elias
Rector, adjutant general of the State militia, but on July nth
of the same year removed him and appointed a man named
Morrison. On Noveraber 9, 1909, Senator John Pope wrote
Edwards a letter in which among other things he said, "I am
sorry you removed Rector and appointed Morrison, although
you acted correctly. The Rectors are honest men and would
have been your firm friends. Morrison I know to be a scoun
drel and will not be your friend unless you do the one htin--
dredth good turn." Notwithstanding Pope's harsh judgment,
Morrison was a good man and becaine the ancestor of Hon.
WUHam Morrison. On May 10, 1810, Governor Edwards re
appointed Elias Rector adjutant general, which position he held
to October 25, 1813. Pope thus testifies to the honesty and
steadfastness of the Rectors and these virtues do not exist -with
out others. Elias Rector organized the militia of Illinois and
had it in readiness for the second war with Great Britain, a
struggle in which Illinois Territory suffered severely.
The historian, Moses, recites that in 1812 the Indians on
the Illinois above Peoria committed many outrages and Gov
ernor Edwards put two regiments of militia in readiness to pun
ish them — Elias Rector being made colonel of the ist regiment,
and B. Stevenson colonel of the 2d regiment. Davidson and
Struve say, "The volunteers were divided into two small regi
ments commanded by Colonels Elias Rector and Benjamin Ste
phenson respectively." Moses says further: "In these frontier
wars of 1812-1814 the names of Samuel Whiteside, James B.
Aloore, Jacob Short, Nathaniel Journey, Willis Hargrave, Ja
cob and Samuel Judy, Benjamin Stephenson and WilHam Mc
Henry William, Elias, Nelson and Stephen Rector were con
spicuous as commanders of either companies or regiments."
In the roster of the State troops the foUowing attestation
occurs :
"Muster roll of general and staff officers of a detachment
of Militia of Illinois Territory ordered into the actual service of
the United States and commanded by his Excellency Ninian Ed-

384 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
wards. Governor and Commander in Chief of the Territory afore
said : Ninian Edwards, Commander in Chief.
Elias Rector, Adjutant General.
Benjarain Stephenson, Brigadier Alajor.
Nathaniel Pope, ist Aid.
AA'illiam Rector, 2d Aid.
Nelson Rector, 1 , - , . - , „
_ , « , , >¦ Volunteer Aids.
Robert Todd, j
Endorsed: "Examined, approved, certified and returned
by me according to law to the Comniander in Chief.
Elias Rector,
Adjutant General, Illinois Territory, November 23, 1812."
Elliott in the Appendix to Illinois Soldiers in the Black
Hawk and Mexican wars, quotes the preceding paper and says:
"This paper in an historical point of view is of more interest
than that of any small paper connected with the history of the
State." I am sure that I agree with him and the Rectors ought
to. It is most complimentary to them.
Edwards in his Life and Times of Ninian Edwards places
Captain N. Rector in charge of one company in the expedition
against Peoria in July, 181 1.
Edwards also states that Colonel Elias Rector on August
15, 1812, on his return from a trip to St. Louis brought the
first news to Governor Edwards of the fall of Fort AI alden.
Prior to this Edwards had addressed a letter to AV. Eustis, secre
tary of war, recommending the appointment of WUliara Rector
as brigadier general of the Illinois troops but through a raistake
at Washington the commission came to Edward's headquarters
made out in the narae of Elias Rector. By the next mail a letter
came from Washington referring to the mistake and asking that
the commission be returned for correction. In the meantime
the news brought by Colonel Elias Rector made action of sorae
kind necessary and William Rector was recognized as a briga
dier general and acted. On August 26, 1812, Ninian Edwards
issued the following order:

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 385
"Brigadier general Rector is hereby required to take the most
prompt and effectual means for caUing into active service ac
cording to law four classes of the railitia from each coinpany
in the ist, 2d and 4th regiments of the militia of the State. The
Commander in Chief requests to be notified at the earliest period
at which those respective detachments can be prepared to march."
In a short time Rector reported as required and the force
took position at Fort Russell, from whicii Edwards began his
correspondence with the war department objecting to General
Harrison exercising authority over his troops, ordering them
to the Wabash when the Illinois was in greater danger.
In the campaign of 18 13 General Howard sent sixty-six of
the Illinois Rangers under Captain Stephen Rector up the Mis
sissippi to reinforce the fort at Prairie du Chien, and forty-
four regulars in another boat under Lieutenant Campbell. Above
Rock Island at the Rapids, Rector's boat got ahead and at a
favorable point the Indians attacked Campbell's boat, destroyed
nearly all the troops and set the boat afire. Rector seeing
Campbell's predicament let his boat drift down the river guid
ing it alongside the other. Araid the deadly flres from- the In
dians he lashed his boat to the other, rescued the survivors,
carried off every dead soldier and left the burning boat to the_ In
dians. But for the heroism of Rector every one of Campbell's
men would have been destroyed. The place afterwards received
the name Campbell's Island but Illinios historians aver that it
should have been caUed Rector's Island.
In 1 8 14 another expedition was sent up the river in charge
of Alajor Zachary Taylor. Nelson Rector, Samuel Whitesides
and Captain Hempstead were each in command of a boat. They
were to penetrate well into the Indian country and returning
destroy all the corn on both banks of the river down to Rock
Island where they were to establish a fort. They ascended
to Rock Island unmolested although the country swarmed with
British and Indians. On August 22, 1814, the boats were at
tacked by a combined force of English and Indians. Taylor
anchored his fleet in tbe river out of reach of the rifles near
some willow islands. During the night the British planted a

386 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
battery of six pieces at the water's edge and landed Indians on
the islands. Captain Rector landed on the lower island and
drove the Indians off; he then tried to clear the upper island
but it was too well protected by the battery on the shore. Taylor
withdrew down the riyer and at a point opposite the present
town of AA'^arsaw landed and built a fort, caUing it Fort Ed
wards. In Reynold's "My Own Times" these further facts are
found. In ¦ September, 1812, the forces marched to Peoria, the
1st regiment commanded by Colonel Elias Rector and the 2d
by Colonel Benjamin Stephenson. John Moredock acted as
major; Colonel Desha as a field officer of some kind. Judge
Pope, Nelson Rector and Lieutenant McLaughlin as aids to the
governor. The governor and brigadier general Rector accompan
ied the detachment. In another place Reynolds says : "No act
of noble daring and bravery surpassed the rescue of Campbell
during the war in the West. Rector and his men were gov
erned by high and ennobling principles of chivalry and patriot
ism." He describes Nelson Rector's dress in the Willow Island
fight as foUows : "Captain Nelson Rector was elegantly dressed
in military costume with a towering feather in his cap, and with
his sword drawn led his men to the charge. In this exposed
situation with hundreds of guns fired at him he moved on un
daunted as if he were in his mess-room with his com.rades. The
Rector family never knew what fear was."
Parrish in his Historic Illinois gives this spirited account
of Stephen Rector's rescue of CampbeU and his regulars: "It
was at this desperate juncture that Stephen Rector and his gal
lant crew of lUinoisans, comprehended the horrible situation of
their helpless comrades, performed as cool and heroic a deed
as ever imperUed the life of man. Deliberately, in the teeth
of a howling gale, in full view of hundreds of infuriated sav
ages lining the nearby shores, and within easy reach of their
deadly rifles. Rector ordered his frontier heroes to raise their
anchor, to lighten their barge by casting overboard nearly aU
their stock of provisions, and then guided it with the utmost
labor and amid tremendous danger down that raadly racing cur
rent, actually forcing it to the windward of the burning barge

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 387
and into the very blaze of the Indian guns. Holding it there,
in spite of the galling fire fairly scorching their faces, these
men coolly rescued the survivors, removing wounded, dying and
all to the security -of their own vessel, and then swept with them
in safety down the river. It was as heroic a deed of daring
as was ever performed in -War. The island was later named
for Campbell, but with Captain Rector and his Illinois rangers
remains the true glory of the action."
Reynolds in his Pioneer History of Illinois says : "In 1806,
when the United States lands were to be surveyed, the Rector
family reached Kaskaskia and remained there for several years.
This family in Illinois were numerous and conspicuous in pio
neer times. There were nine brothers and four daughters of
the family, all born in Fauquier County, Virginia, and many of
them raised there. Some of them had emigrated to Ohio and
others direct to Illinois. The family were singular in their traits
of character. They were ardent, excitable and enthusiastic in
their dispositions. They possessed integrity and honesty of
purpose in the highest degree. Nature endowed them with
strong and active minds, but their passions at tiraes swept over
their judgraents like a terapest. They were the most fearless
and undaunted people I ever knew. Dangers, perils and even
death were amusements for them when they were excited. They
were impulsive and ungovernable when their passions were en
listed. They were the most devoted and true-hearted friends
and the most energetic and impulsive enemies to anyone they
thought deserved their hatred. The family in their persons
were generally large and formed with perfect manly symmetry.
They were noble, commanding and elegant in their bearing and
their personal appearance was, for raanly beauty, not surpassed
in the territory. They possessed an exquisite and high sense of
honor and chivalry. An insult was never offered to any one
of them that went unpunished."
"William Rector was the oldest brother and a monitor for
the balance. He was a deputy surveyor and all were respectable
gentlemen. Elias Rector commanded a regiinent as colonel in the
campaign of 1812. The whole Rector family were patriotic and

388 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
were always willing and ready to shed their blood in the defense
of their country. Nelson Rector while surveying in Gallatin
Count}- in Alarch, 1814, was fired on by the Indians and severely
wounded; his left arra was broken, a ball entered his left side
and another struck his face but he raounted his horse, escaped
and recovered."
This account is in the main true. It is wrong in one particu
lar. Nelson Rector was not surveying when attacked but was
bearing dispatches as aide to Governor Edwards.
The father of Reynolds settled in Randolph County, Illi
nois, before the Rectors entered the territory; he was a very
rich and influential man ; his son, the historian, graduated in 1810
form KnoxviUe College, East Tennessee, and was for thirty
}-oars intimately acquainted with the Rectors.
THE testimony OF GOVERNMENT RECORDS.
In A'olume 2. American State Papers, Public Lands, is a
plat of the Comnion Field of Town Tracts of old Kaskaskia
made in 1807. to whicii the following attestation is made: "We
do hereby certify that the above surveys as laid down, were
made b}- us, by the consent, under the superintendence and by
tiie aid of the citizens of Kaskaskia, and that many of the an
cient boundaries were found, which governed the sur\^e3'S, and
also that the surveys were correctly executed by us as laid down
on this plat. AA'iUiam Rector. D. S., Elias Rector, D. S."
On Alay 2T,. 1808, Elias Rector as deputy surveyor, made
the same attestation to a survey and map of Prairie du Pont;
on January 29, 1810, AA'iUiam Rector, D. S., attested the sur
vey of the village of Prairie du Rocher ; on June 2. 1809, that
of Fort Chartres and Sr. Philipps : on Alay 2t,. 1808, for Ca-
hokia. Tliese records show that Elias and AA'illiam Rector were the
first g¦o^-ernnlellt surveyors to enter ¦ Illinois, and the plats of
to\\mships surA'eys in the office of the L'nited States Commis
sioner of Lands at AA'ashingt-on. whicii have been examined by
the writer, show that these two men did the very largest part
of the govemment work a? to township sur^^eys for Southern
Tilii-iois from 1806 to iSio. Nelson Rector was recognized as

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 389
a deputy surveyor in 1810 and his signature appears to hundreds
of township surveys from that on until 1820. Wharton Rector
was recognized as a deputy surveyor in 181 5 and his name ap
pears to many plats in Illinois, Missouri and Arkansas from that
on to 1822. The first surveyor general over Illinois work was
Jared Mansfield; the second, Josiah Meigs, from 1812 to 1814;
the third, Edward Tiffin, from 1814 to 1816. WiUiam and Elias
Rector were deputy surveyors under all of them for all the time ;
Nelson Rector under all of thera but for a portion of the tirae
under Mansfield, while Wharton came in under Meigs and lasted
throughout Tififin's connection with lUinois surveys. The names
of Thomas C. Rector and Stephen Rector flrst appear upon the
government records in 1818 as deputy surveyors under the sur
veyor generalship of William Rector, their brother. Their
names appear on hundreds of township plats in lUinois, Mis
souri and Arkansas, and as they always appear together, it is
fair to presume that they worked together throughout their
lives. Six of the nine boys are thus vouched for by the govern
ment as deputy surveyors, qualified to take independent work,
and given independent work, four of them by Mansfield, Meigs
or Tiffin, and two of them by Rector, their brother. Nowhere
upon the records, that I have been able to find, do the names
of the three other boys, John, Samuel and Henry appear. John
was certainly a lawyer, and although tradition makes him a
surveyor, as well as Samuel and Henry, it is certain that they
were never recognized as deputy surveyors. I have not been
able to find anything concerning the after history of John,
Sarauel or Henry. WILLIAM RECTOR AS SURVEYOR GENERAL.
In July, 181 5, William Rector submitted a plan to the sec
retary of the treasury for the survey of Missouri Territory, and
with Elias Rector made a trip to Chillicothe, Ohio, to confer
wiith Edward Tiffin. This plan was no doubt worked out by
William and Elias, was approved by Tiffin and adopted by the
secretary of the treasury. On April 29, 1816, Congress provided
for a surveyor general for the Illinois and Missouri Territory;
on May 10, 1816, Josiah Meigs, for President Madison, com-

390 Pioneer's and Makers of Arkansas
missioned William Rector as surveyor general for Illinois and
Alissouri, with headquarters at St. Louis. When AViUiam Rec
tor was commissioned he was residing at Kaskaskia, Illinois,
but on July lo, 1816, took up his residence at St. Louis, where
the rest of the family soon began to assemble. In 1817 Wil
liam Rector surveyed St. Louis County, and during the same
year Elias Rector, Wharton Rector, Nelson Rector, Thomas
C, and Stephen Rector, as deputy surveyors, did an immense
amount of work in Missouri Territory, William Rector lived
upon a farm about three miles west of St. Louis as it was
then, and Elias was upon a farra adjoining him. Elias Rector
had for years been a lot owner in St. Louis, and the records
show that on Noveraber i, 1816, he sold several , of these to
Colonel Clemson of the United States army. On Alay 25, 1818,
Stephen Rector and twelve, others, subscribed an agreement
to built a theatre on the south side of Chestnut street. The
building was erected according to the plans and became the
first theatre of St. Louis. On March 17, 1819, Stephen Rec
tor, Thomas Rector, and William V Rector, the latter being
a son of Wharton Rector, Thompson Baird, Richard Gentry
and D. AI. Bates laid off the town of Hannibal at the Bear
Creek and advertised a sale of lots as proprietors. On the same
day Ehas Rector, John Miller and Henry Jones laid off the town
of Wyaconda at the mouth of the Wyaconda. In May, 1819,
William Rector, Thomas Rector, Henry W. Conway and others
laid off the town of Osage, Missouri.
On December 8, 1819, William Rector was elected a ves
tryman of the Episcopal church, soon to be founded in St. Louis.
On Alay 15, 1819, the Independence, Captain John Nelson from
Louisville, Kentucky, left St. Louis to go up the Alissouri as
far as Chariton, being the first steamboat to ascend the Alis
souri. The passengers were Colonel Elias Rector, Stephen Rec
tor, Captain Desha, and others. They arrived at Franklin, Alis
souri, on Alay 28, where a great dinner was spread at which
Colonel Elias Rector and Captain Stephen Rector made speeches.
They arrived at St. Louis on their return on June 5, 1819.
On June 10, 1819, a great dinner was given at Bennett's
hotel in St. Louis presided over by General William Rector,

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 391
assisted by Colonel Choteau, Major Christy and Colonel Ben
ton. The occasion was in honor of the military expedition then
on its way up the Yellowstone, the scientific expedition con
nected with it and to Captain Nelson of the steamboat Indepen
dence as the first navigator to ascend -the Missouri river. It
was a great occasion and General Rector, as well as Elias Rec
tor made appropriate speeches.
In November, 1819, Captain A. T. Crane died and Colonel
Elias Rector was appointed to succeed him as postmaster of St.
Louis. He was the fourth postmaster of the city and had for
his assistants Lucius T. Thruston and James Sevier Conway."
His first act was to move the postoffice to the old mansion of
Mrs. Choteau on the corner of Main and Chestnut streets. Col
onel Rector held this office until his death in August, 1822.
TFIE RECTORS IN POLITICS.
Alissouri was now ready for Statehood and on April 19,
1820, William Rector announced himself as a condidate for the
constitutional convention as a representative from St. Louis on
a platform whicii made the voters sit up and take notice. His
platform was short and sweet. It called for the eternal im
portation of slaves, restricted suffrage and viva voce voting.
It took a brave man to announce himself upon a platform like
that, but he won, receiving the highest vote of any man on
the poll. In the convention he was a valuable member and his
influence was felt in the making of the first constitution of Mis
souri. In 1820, Colonel Elias Rector announced himself as a
candidate for the legislature but withdrew before the election.
In February, 1821, he announced himself for the State Senate
and was elected, dying before his first term had expired. In
January, 1821, William V. Rector, son of Wharton, was elected
auditor -of Missouri, by the State legislature. In July, 1822,
Captain Stephen Rector announced himself for the legislature
but was defeated. In 1820 the editors, Charles, of the Gazette
and Henry, of the Inquirer, got into a difficulty on the street,
when Wharton Rector intervened in the interests of peace. He
was severely castigated therefor by editor Charles in the next

392 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
issue of the Gazette and most highly praised in the next issue
of the Inquirer. The trouble was Benton and anti-Benton,
and as Wharton Rector was a Benton man, Charles accused him
of intervening to help Henry and to injure him.
THEIR SURVEYING WORK IN .\RK.\NSAS.
The first goverment surveys of Arkansas were accomplished
by AA'ilIia:ii Rector assisted by sixty-two deputy surveyors and
an army of surveyors and helpers. General Rector in a docu
ment set out in Anierican State Papers, Public Lands, Vol.
4, showed that from 1816 to August 18, 1823, he had employed
sixty-two deputy surveyors and gave names of each. Among these
we find the names of his brothers, Elias Rector, AVharton Rector,
Stephen Rector and Thomas C. Rector ; his nephews, WiUiam V.
Rector, son of Wharton, Henry W. Conway, James Stevier Conway
and Frederick Rector Conway, sons of Ann Conway, his sister.
This was the beginning of the Rector influence in Arkansas.
In Alay, 18.19, prior to the organization of the territorial govern
ment in Arkansas, General Rector sent a letter to General Aleigs
at Washington, accompanied by a sketch of the surveys which
had been made and were then making in different parts of the
territory. These surveys were made in the neighborhood of
the principal settlements and the largest bodies of rich lands,
partly on the Arkansas and partly on the Red river. Two mil
lion acres were covered by the sketch, which General Rector
said were "well adapted to tempt the enterprise of every de
scription of emigrants who may wish to seek their fortunes
in new countries." The following extract shows the vigorous
character of the man : "In every part of the United States
young men are sitting down in idleness, talking of the good times
which are passed, when their fathers purchased lands for a trifle
which are now worth thousands; they lament that the times
are changed, the days of good bargains gone and the field of
enterprise exhausted forever. Everywhere these lamentations are
heard ; yet the fact is that times are as good as ever and better, too ;
the days of good bargains are more plentiful than they were
in the past age; and the theatre of enterprise more wide, rich

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 393
and magnificent than our fathers had ever seen. The truth is
that the fault is not in the times, but in the temper and disposi
tion of those who make the coraplaint; in their own want of
energy; in their womanish desire to hang about their kin and
to live and die where they were born, instead of going off to the
Mississippi, the Missouri, the Illinois, the Arkansas, or the Red
rivers, to set up for theinselves and to become the founders of
fortunes and families as their fathers did before them."
This letter shows not only the philosophical reasoning of
the Rectors but also their courage and independence in breaking
away from the East where they were born and founding for them
selves names and fortunes, which their ancestors had never
known. Thus, before Crittenden, Scott or Bates, were in the
territory, five Rector brothers and four Rector relatives were
already there laying fast and sure the monuments and bound
aries by which the security and happiness of miUions who were
to foUpw them were forever to be established, raaintained and
conserved. It was the Rector influence that almost elected Stephen
Austin, a candidate of the eleventh hour, as the first delegate
from Arkansas to the American Congress. It was the same in
fluence that really elected Matthew Lyon as the second delegate,
but who was not permitted to enjoy the fruits of his election.
The Rector influence was the flrst to pit itself against
the Crittenden influence, and although it was entirely non
resident, it was a superb power. The Rector influence
from St. Louis made Henry W. Conway receiver of pub
lic moneys at Little Rock in 1820, and postmaster at
Little Rock the same year. In the third race for delegate to
Congress, the Rector influence elected Henry W. Conway, and
again in the fourth and fifth races. It was first the Rector
influence alone, exercised froni St. Louis through the influence
of the surveys ; it then took the shape of the Rector-Conway
influence with Wharton and Elias, sons of Wharton, Sr., and
three of the Conways, Henry W., Jaraes S., and Frederick R.,
residing in Arkansas. The Rector-Conway influence in the sixth
race for delegate was transferred to Ambrose H. Sevier, who.

394 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
while having no Rector blood, was half Conway. AVith the rise
and grow'th of Sevier the influence of the Rectors diminished,
while that of the Conways increased. It was a Sevier influ
ence that brought in the Johnsons and gave rise to that power,
the Conway-Sevier-Johnson dynasty, which ruled Arkansas for
nearly thirty years, but which was broken up by the indomitable
purpose of another Rector, Henry Massey Rector, a son of old
Elias of St. Louis. General William and Colonel Elias Rector
laid the foundation of the greatest political combination ever
known in Arkansas affairs, and Governor Henry Massey Rector
smote the idol at the knees and reduced it to nothingness.
MARRIAGES OF THE RECTORS.
Of the marriages of these nine Rector boys I am not fully
advised. Certain it is that Wharton was married before leaving
the East and that he left three sons and one daughter, and prob
ably, a fourth son. These sons were, Wharton, Jr., Elias of
Fort Smith, William V., and possibly Enoch. Wharton, Jr.,
known as Colonel Wharton Rector, was a 2d lieutenant in the
2d Rifles in 1820, and of the 6th Infantry in June, 1821. He
was afterwards made army paymaster, which position he held
for a great number of years, dying February 8th, 1842, in his
forty-second year. His rank in the army was that of major.
His father, Wharton Rector, Sr., was also known as Colonel
Wharton Rector but I am unable to state authoritatively where
he obtained the title. Wharton Rector, Jr., was a citizen of
Little Rock as early as 1825 ; in September, 1827, he was a sec
ond of Ambrose H. Sevier in his duel with Thomas W. New
ton, at Point Remove, now in Conway County. In October,
1827, he was also the second of Henry W. Conway in his duel
with Robert W. Crittenden. Wharton Rector, Jr., was appointed
adjutant general by Governor Fulton in 1835, and he in turn
appointed Elias Rector of Fort Smith, his aide. In 1832 Gov
ernor Pope appointed Elias Rector of Fort Smith, A. D. C,
and upon the death of Colonel Yell appointed William Field,
adjutant general with the rank of colonel.
Colonel Wharton Rector, Jr., was married at St. Louis.
He was buried at Van Buren, Arkansas, with mUitary honors.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 395
the services being conducted by Major Lear of the Army Post at
Ft. Smith. He was a director of the Van Buren branch of the
Real Estate Bank at the time. The Van Buren Intelligencer
said : "Colonel Rector was a Democrat of the most independ
ent character, but his personal friends were by no means con
fined to members of his party. His uniformly honorable and
manly deportment won for him the esteem of all who knew his
worth. His rise in the world is another high evidence of what
honesty of purpose, industry and application may accomplish."
Another son of Wharton Rector, Sr., was William V. Rec
tor, surveyor under Colonel William and Colonel Elias Rector
of St. Louis ; auditor of Missouri for many years and a resident
of Little Rock in 1829, where he died at the residence of his
brother, AA'harton, on September 21, 1829, at the age of thirty-
three. The third brother. Colonel Elias Rector of Fort Smith, was
born in Fauquier County, Virginia, Steptember 28, 1802 ; was
reared in St. Louis County, Missouri, and educated at Lexing
ton and Bardstown; he came to Arkansas in 1823 as a surveyor
under his uncle William; by and through the influence of Sen
ator Benton he was made United States marshal for Arkansas
in 1830, which position he held until 1842, when by the death
of Harrison and the accession of Tyler, he was superseded by
Henry Massey Rector, his cousin, but was re-appointel upon the
accession of Polk. The title of Elias Rector of Fort Smith, is
indiscriminately that of colonel and major, but that of major
clung to him most persistently. Major Elias Rector lived at
Little Rock frora 1825 to 1837, a period of twelve years, and
at Fort Smith forty-one years thereafter. He was the young
est son of the family, served twenty years as United States
marshal without the influence of the Arkansas contingent, ten
years as LTnited States Indian agent and has been immortalized
by Albert Pike as "The Fine Old Arkansas Gentleman close to
theChoctaw line." On November 25, 1835, he married Cather
ine J. DuVal, daughter of Williain Duval of Fort Smith. He had
a daughter, Harriet Amanda who married General William A.
Cabell, the idol of Southern soldiers. He had two sons, Jaraes
B. and Elias.

396 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
Colonel Wharton Rector, Sr., had a daughter, Mary A.
Rector who married William Walker. He may have had a
son, Enoch, as I find an Enoch Rector certifled to the Wash
ington department as a surveyor by General William Rector.
He was not one of the nine, and I cannot place hira unless he
was a son of Wharton, Sr.
General WUliara Rector had a sister, Ann or Nancy Rector,
born in Fauquier County, Virginia, who married Captain Thomas
Conway of Pitts County, Virginia, and moved to Greene County,
Tennessee. Captain Thomas Conway was a son of Edward Con
way, a revolutionary soldier, and is entitled to that credit. In
after time James Sevier Conway, Governor of Arkanass, tried
to connect his family line with one of the extinct earldoms of
England but failed. Moncure D. Conway after considering the
evidence decided it insufficient, but Hayden, the editor of the
Conway paper, decided to admit it, not as establishing the
claim of Governor Conway, but for its own inherent worth.
The Conways have enough to be proud of as the sons of an
adraitted revolutionary hero, and of their Rector blood, without
the flim-flam of English heraldy. The one is absolute and true,
the other rests upon the flimsiest of deductions. Thomas Con
way in Greene County, Tennessee, would have lived and died
a Greene County squire, but for the vigor of Ann Conway,
nee Ann Rector, who desired that her husband and her sons
should be something more. She knew that her brothers, Wil
liam and Elias Rector, thought that blood was thicker than
water, and when General WiUiam Rector was appointed sur
veyor genera], she wrote to Colonel Elias Rector, the mentor
of the family, asking if there was any opening in Illinois for
her husband and her sons. Colonel Elias Rector at once ad
vised her to induce her husband to pack his grip and move to
St. Louis, Missouri. By what methods she succeeded we are
not told, but succeed she did. In 1819, Thomas Conway and
family were residents of St. Louis and James Sevier Conway,
the future first governor of Arkansas was given place by Colonel
Elias Rector, postmaster of St. Louis in his ofifice, with a salary
fixed by the government at $60 a year and board. In the same
year, Henry W. Conway, working with Colonel Elias, his

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 397
uncle, founded a town named "America," in southern Illinois,
and in 1820 opened a store in St. Louis. Through the influence
of his uncle. General William Rector, iie was sent to Little
Rock as receiver of public moneys and through the influence
of his uncle. Colonel Ehas Rector, was made postmaster of the
same city. Both uncles took hold of Frederick Rector Con
way and pushed hira forward in the work of surveying. Both
he and his brother, James Sevier Conway, were afterwards
surveyors general of Arkansas. James Sevier Conway was the
flrst governor of Arkansas and Elias Nelson Conway, his brother,
the fifth governor of Arkansas. Dr. John Rector Conway also
surveyed under his uncles, William and Elias, but devoted the
major part of his life to the practice of medicine. William
Conway, another son of Ann Conway, was a judge of the
Supreme Court of Arkansas, signing himself, WUliam Conway,
B. Ann (Rector) Conway counted far better than she knew
when she left Greene County, Tennessee ; two sons of hers were
governors of Arkansas, and two sons surveyors general, while
one was a judge of the Supreme Court. Of her other son,
Thomas Asbury Conway, and her daughters, Eliza Conway and
Sarah Hundley Conway, I am not so well advised. As an indica
tion, however, that the power was Rector rather than Conway, it
may be observed that Ann Rector Conway after the death of her
husband in Missouri, married a man by the name of Runkle,
by whom she had a son, Thomas Sheppard Runkle, a lieutenant
in the Confederate army, and Mary A. Runkle, who married
William Pelham, United States surveyor general and had a son
Thomas Pelham.
Another of the nine brothers. Colonel Elias Rector, born
in Fauquier County, about the year 1785 ; raarried at Louis
ville, Kentucky, about 1810, Fannie Bardella Thruston, daughter
of John Thruston of Louisville, Kentucky. She was born March
7, 1795, and after the death of her husband. Colonel Elias
Rector, in 1882, married General Stephen Trigg of the United
States army and a native of Virginia. Her father Cornet John
Thruston, was allotted two thousand one hundred and fifty-
six acres of land in Clark's grant for his services as cornet
in the Illinois regiment in the Revolutionary war, a cavalry

398 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
ofifice now but rarely used. In passing, it is but right to say that
John Rector, a kinsman of these nine boys, was also a raeraber
of the Illinois regiment, and the records show that he was
entitled to the same quantity of land in the same grant, but
for some reason never applied for it. John Thruston was of a
distinguished family, being the eldest son of Rev. Charles Alynn
Thruston and Mary Buckner, daughter of Colonel Samuel
Buckner of Gloucester, Virginia. His brother Buckner Thrus
ton was at one time United States Senator from Kentucky
and a distinguished judge of the United States Court. A third
brother, Charles Alynn Thruston, Jr., was the second husband
of Frances, General George Rogers Clark's youngest sister.
Rev. Charles AI}Tin Thruston, the father of these three boys,
was born in Gloucester County, A'irginia, in 1738, and died
near New Orleans, Louisiana, in 1812; he was educated at
William and Marys College, Virginia. At the beginning of
the Revolutionary war he raised a company in Clarke County,
of which he was made captain ; he was wounded at Trenton,
New Jersey, and then made colonel of the regiment and was
always known as the "War Parson." He was the son of Ed
ward of Gloucester Count}-, A'irginia, who in turn was the
son of Edward Thruston the imraigrant-of 1666, who in turn
was the son of John Thruston, Chamberlain of the city of Bris
tol. England. Cornet John Thruston was born August 18, 1761,
and after his service with Clark in the Illinois regiment, settled
on a beautiful tract of land on Bear Grass Creek, a few miles
from Louisville, Kentucky, containing one thousand acres, where
he continued to reside untU his death, February 19, 1802. He
was at that tirae judge of the court of common pleas and his
wife was Elizabeth Whitney. His seventh child, Bardella, mar
ried Colonel Elias Rector and General Trigg. By the marriage
with Rector, several children -were born, one of whom, Henry
Alassey Rector, born at Louisville, Kentucky, May i, 1816, will
be considered as we proceed!
General William Rector was a married raan but without
children. His history has been tolerably well set out in what
has gone before. It now remains but to give what the records
further disclose. Enough has been said to show that his brothers.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 399
Elias, Wharton, Nelson and Stephen were not only surveyors
recognized by Jared Mansfield, Josiah Meigs and Edward Tiffin
between 1806 and 1816, but that these same men were also sol
diers erainent in the defense of lUinois Terriiorv. They were
surveyors under Jefferson, Madison and Monroe, and their
services were at no time impugned by a living soul. From
1816 to 1823, General Williain Rector was surveyor general,
and when appointed by President Madison, it was well known,
that the Rector boys had always clung together, and it is to be
supposed that Madison did not object to this. From 1816 to
1824, during two terms General William Rector had charge
of the largest surveying force ever given to one man, and
surveyed the three large States, Illinois, Missouri and Arkansas.
Monroe re-appointed him in 1819 and again in 1823. No com
plaint as to the surveying was ever made, and no com
plaint of any character was ever raade until 1823, when Sen
ator Barton of Missouri charged General Rector with favorit
ism in the appointment of his deputy surveyors. He made no
charge as to the character of the work but simply asserted that
General Rector as a public servant had no right to appoint
so raany of his relatives and personal friends. General Rector
went on to Washington and succeeded in overcoming the
charges of Senator Barton. While there, his brother, Thomas
C. Rector, by an ill-advised movement undid all that the General
had accomplished. In the colurans of the St. Louis Gazette in
1822 an article appeared rehearsing all the charges that Sen
ator Barton had raade in Washington, over the signature
"Philo." When Thomas C. Rector read this, although the
charges were what in this day would be considered trivial, he
becarae angry, and at once repaired to the Gazette ofifice and
demanded the name of the writer. He was told that Joshua
Barton, district attorney of the city of St. Louis, and brother
of the Senator, was the author. 'Without waiting to consult
his brothers or friends he at once sent a challenge to Barton
which was accepted. They met on Bloody Island where two
shots were fired. Reynolds says that Rector was as cool as
though he had been hunting rabbits and that his ball went
straight to the mark. Barton died on the ground and Rector

400 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
was uninjured. When General AA'illiam Rector returned to St.
Louis he was very much mortified over the act of his brother
but did not conderan him. His life characteristic was to stand
by and uphold the Rector blood. Edward Bates took up the
quarrel and published a long article upholding the card of
"Philo," which in the light of the after reports of General Rec
tor may be considered as first class buncombe. Out of sixty-
two deputies but nine were of the Rector blood. Senator Bar
ton also wrote a card. The result was that while Rector had
succeeded at Washington, his brother had aroused an opposition
at St. Louis which could not be overcome. In February, 1824,
President Monroe revoked his appointment of General William
Rector for the third term. In this revocation he set out the
fact that every act of William Rector had been founded on
precedents and that his lifelong character had been fair but that
the good of the service demanded a change. The killing of
Barton by Thomas C. Rector overcame the good services of Gen
eral AA'iUiam Rector. He continued his work at St. Louis with
his successor, Colonel McRee until the beginning of 1825, when
he repaired to his farm to overlook his great landed interests
and to commune with his friends. Among his friends were the
greatest men of the United States at that time. He died the
next year at Edwardsville, Illinois, while on a visit to friends.
General AA''illiam Rector was one of tiie wealthiest men of his
day at St. Louis, and had the estate of Colonel Elias Rector
been properly conserved his descendants would today be very
rich men. General Rector built a very large house in St. Louis
on the northeast corner of Third and Vine in 1816 for a resi
dence and office. It was enlarged in 1819 by him and was known
as Bennett's Mansion House Hotel. The first theatrical com
pany to visit St. Louis gave its performance in the dining room
and the first constitutional convention met in that house. Sen
ator Bogy of St. Louis said of the Rectors of St. Louis: "They
were men of great stature, perfect in symmetrical form; a^
tall straight and noted for their beautiful hair, which they wore
long; they were courtly and cultivated to a marked degree; one
of their characteristics was a prompt resentment of any reflec-

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 401
tion cast upon a woman in their presence, whether of high or
low estate; another was their quick resentraent of any iraputa
tion upon their own character, or an insult offered to one of
thera, which they never permitted to go unavenged. They were
all men of the highest character and always appeared most ele
gantly attired." No two men had a greater influence on early
Arkansas affairs than General WiUiam and Colonel Elias Rector,
and no two brothers had an equal prominence in the west.
FIFTH GENERATION — GOVERNOR HENRY MASSEY RECTOR.
Henry Massey Rector was born at LouisviUe, Kentucky, on
May I, 1816, the son of Elias and Fannie Bardella (Thruston)
Rector. His father died during his sixth year, and his early
boyhood was spent at home with his mother, and in work at the
salt works owned by General Trigg in Saline County, Missouri.
He attended school in Louisville, Kentucky, in 1834 and 1835 ; in
the last year removed to Arkansas to look after the great landed
interests inherited from his father. He was teller of the State
Bank of Arkansas in the years 1839 and 1840. During the year
1841 he superintended his farm in Saline County and studied
law; in 1842 was appointed United States Marshal for the
District of Arkansas by President Tyler, superseding his cousin,
Elias Rector of Fort Smith, and served for three years. He
then engaged in the practice of law at Little Rock, his specialty
being criminal law; served in the State senate in 1848-49, 1850-
51. representing Saline and Perry counties; from 1853 to 1857
he served as surveyor general of Arkansas, and in 1855 was
elected to the legislature from Pulaski County. In 1858 he was
elected as an associate justice of the supreme court which posi
tion he resigned in 1859 to make the race for governor of Ar
kansas. At this -time the Conway- Johnson dynasty had full
swing and was thought to be in absolute control of the politics
of the State. Little attention was given by it to Henry Massey
Rector, who for ten years had been building a character araong
his fellows, which was to make hira more than equal to the com
bined power of the dynasty. At the regular Democratic Con
vention in i860, Colonel Richard H. Johnson, a former editor
of the Little Rock True Democrat was nominated for governor.

402 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
and everybody thought that he would surely be elected. The
Union party nominated Judge Thomas Hubbard of Hempstead
County. Against this array of great men Henry Massey Rector
announced himself as an independent Democratic candidate. In
the canvass which followed Johnson and Hubbard made great
speeches while Rector simply appealed to the sterling common
sense of the voters. This statement must be taken cum grano
salis. Henry Alassey Rector was a natural born orator ; his
vocabulary was rich in words and richer in suggestive imagery;
his natural logic was superb ; his appearance commanding ; he
was conceded by the ablest judges of the times to have been the
greatest debater that Arkansas had known, and it is very doubt
ful to day whether the State has ever furnished a superior.
AA'hen the votes were counted Rector had a plurality of two
thousand four hundred and sixty-one votes. Thus the stone
which the buUders rejected became the head of the corner.
About this time caricature by pictures first entered Arkansas.
There was a paper published at FayetteviUe called the Inde
pendent, edited by William Quesenbury, popularly called "BiU
Cush." He made a cartoon after the election which he labeled
"Tom, Dick and Harry.'' Judge Thomas Hubbard was repre
sented as "Old lAIother Hubbard" searching the cupboard "to
give her poor dog a bone," but the cupboard was bare. Colonel
Dick Johnson was mounted on a whisky barrel surrounded by
a crowd of his supporters, diligently telling them how it all
happened. Colonel Henry M. Rector was represented with a
rooster's head, strutting about and crowing lustily. It was cer
tainly a great victory for a man who had been in the State but
twenty-five years, and who had opposed to him all the political
sagacity of the State. He was elected for a four years' term
but did not serve his full time. After being sworn in the Civil
AA'ar was inaugurated and the secretary of war made a requisi
tion upon Governor Rector for troops to put down what was
called "The Rebellion." Governor Rector showed the stuff' of
which he was made in the answer which he sent to AA'ashington,
an answer worthy of the family from which he sprang. That
answer was as follows :

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 403
"Executive Ofifice, Little Rock, April 22, 1861.
"Hon. Simon Cameron, Secretafy of War, Washington,
D. C.
"In answer to your requisition for troops from Arkansas to
subjugate the Southern States, I have to say, that none will be
furnished. The demand is only adding insult to injury. The
people of this commonwealth are free men, not slaves, and will
defend to the last extreraity, their honor, lives and property
against N'orthern mendacity and usurpation. Signed Henry M.
Rector, Governor of Arkansas."
No stronger State paper has ever issued from the execu
tive department at Little Rock, nor, for that matter, from any
other State department in all the world. That p^per alone
entitled Henry M. Rector to the honor of being not only
a brave man, but a great man. It entitled hira to far
better treatment than was given him. The regular Dem
ocrats smarting under their defeat took an undue advan
tage of him in the convention of 1861. That body while
providing for a new constitution which continued certain offices
in force, intentionally or unintentionally omitted to make any
provision whatever for the governor's position. Rector's ad
herents have always claimed that this was done intentionally
and from the meager records which have come down to pos
terity, it is entirely safe to say, that this contention of Rector's
friends was true. At all events it was clairaed that as the con
stitution did not provide for the continuance of the Governor,
that a vacancy existed, which contention was upheld by the
supreme court. Henry M. Rector served as governor from
November 16, i860, to Noveraber 4, 1862, when he was suc
ceeded by Acting Governor Thomas Fletcher, who served until
November 15th when Harris Flannigan was inaugurated under
the new constitution. During this time Governor Rector seized
the arsenal at Little Rock and the fort at Fort Smith, together
with all the arms, ammunition and stores contained therein.
He was a member of the military board which raised and equipped
forty regiments for the Confederate army. He is justly entitled
to be called "The War Governor of Arkansas." After leaving

404 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
the ofifice of govemor he joined the reserve corps of the Con
federate array, refusing a quartermaster's place, and served as a
private until the close of the war. For several years after the
close of hostilities he was engaged in farming and in 1874 was
sent to the Constitutional Convention from Garland County.
In this position he was held to be a man of force, brains and
powen His whole life had been clean, honorable and conser
vative, and these influences gave him power in the convention.
He had all the fire and courage of the elder Rectors and was
known to be a man no man could insult with impunity. He
died in Little Rock at the old Rector residence, a landmark of
the town, in August, 1899. With him died the last link of ante
bellum family influence and power.
In October, 1838, he married Jane Elizabeth, daughter of
William Field of Little Rock, who died in 1857. William Field
was clerk of the old superior court from 1829 to 1836 and of
the United States court for many years thereafter. His father,
Abner Field, died in Kentucky on April ri, 1831, in his seventy-
flrst year, four years of which were passed in the service of
the United States in the war of the Revolution, where he gained
the rank of major. In 1859 Governor Rector raarried a second
time, his choice falling on Ernestine Flora, daughter of Albert
Linde, of Alemphis, Tennessee. The children of the first mar
riage were:
I. Frank Nelson Rector, who grew to manhood and died
unmarried. 2. Ann Baylor Rector, born in Saline County, Arkansas,
April 25, 1841 ; married in 1857 at Little Rock to William M.
Alatheny, an attorney of Harrodsburg, Kentucky. To them were
born four children, three of whom are now living : ( i ) Mary C.
Alatheny, who raarried Walter J. Land in 1879, and had Walter,.
Rector,, Vivian and Leighton. Mary C. was married a second
time in 1899 to Eugene H. Starcke of St. Louis; (2) William
Ivan Matheny who married Edna Virginia Terry of Washington,
Iowa in 1897; (3) Julia Fannie Maud Matheny who in 1905 was
raarried to AA^illiara AVayne Sutherland of St. Louis and had one-
child, Junebug Sutherland.

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 405
3. William Field Rector, who joined the .Confederate army
in his 17th year, and at the battle of Helena, was adjutant of
Colonel Hart's regiment in General McRae's brigade. In that
engagement all the regimental officers were either killed or
wounded, and in the charge on Grave Yard Hill, he as adjutant
took command ; he was but nineteen years of age, immensely
handsome and as brave as a lion ; he pushed rapidly forward and
found himself alone, some fifty yards in advance of the regi
raent; fearing that his men were about to falter under the ex
cessive heat and the difficulties of the approach, he scaled the
breastworks of the .enemy, reached the top, within twenty feet
of the opposing line, when he stopped, placed his cap upon his
sword and held it out with his right hand, cheering his regiment
and bidding them to come on ; in this position his right arm was
broken by a ball from the enemy's guns, and his cap and sword
fell to the ground ; whereupon with his left hand he picked up
his sword, thrust it through his cap, again held it aloft and again
cheered his men to action ; a second ball from the enemy struck
hira, passed entirely through his body piercing both lungs and
inflicted a mortal wound. The regiment pressed forward and
took the fort, but were soon compelled to abandon it by the
river flotilla, leaving Rector where he fell. The enemy on dis
covering who he was had him removed to the home of one of Gov
ernor Rector's friends, where he died the following day, leav
ing a message for his father, that death came to hira in the line
of duty and that he had no regrets. He was afterward buried
in the Rector burial place in Mt. HoUy ceraetery, where a fit
ting raonuraent was erected by his father.
4. Julia Sevier Rector, who niarried Colonel Charles S.
MitcheU of the Confederate array; removed to DaUas, Texas,
where she died leaving three chUdren, Charles, William and
Lilian, the first and last being married.
5. Henry Massey Rector, Jr., who graduated from Alis
souri Medical CoUege, and practiced medicine at Hot Springs;
was in the Confederate army at sixteen years of age, being in
the reserve corps ; he was a very learned man, but most modest,
retiring and reticent; his reading was almost unlimited and he
was a master with the pen; member of the Arkansas legislature;

4o6 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
editor Hot Springs Telegraph; mem'ber Hot Springs school
board ; president Hot Springs Valley Bank ; universally recog
nized as a man of great civility and erudition but a man of the
supremest courage ; married Hebe Gower of Iowa City, and lived
in Hot Springs untU his death in 1905, leaving one son and
three daughters; the son Henry Alassie Rector, Jr., niarried
a lAIiss Mooney of Hot Springs, and had one son, also named
Henry AI. Rector; the eldest daughter, Grace Greenwood Rec
tor, niarried AA'iUiam Fry, son of Captain C B. Fry, of the noted
A'irginia family of that name, lives in Hot Springs and has one
daughter; the second daughter, Ernestine, married AA'atson Alor
rison, and lives at Hot Springs; the third daughter, Levison,
married AA'alter Land and lives at St. Louis, Alissouri.
6. Elias WUliam Rector was born at Little Rock, Tune
II, 1849, af the home of his grandfather Field, where his
raother was visiting, the father s residence being at CoUegeville
in Saline County ; he was educated at Little Rock and the Uni
versity of A'irginia ; admitted to the bar at Hot Springs in 1874 ;
member of the legislature for many terms ; during his first ser
vice he was chairman of the judiciary committee ; in his second
terra, chairman of the ways and means committee, and in his
third term was speaker of the House ; he introduced the first
bill to become a law, making it unlawful for a State or county
ofificer to ride on a free pass on the railroads of the State ; he
was also the father of the geological survey bUl which has pos
sibly done more for Arkansas than any measure passed since
1875 ; he was largely instrumental in passing the railroad com
mission bill ; he was also chairman of the house committee ap
pointed to inquire into the expediency of building a new State
house, which led to the present law authorizing its erection ;
he was twice a candidate before the people for the Democratic
nomination of governor but was defeated, largely through the
opposition of the railroads and other corporations engendered
by his activity in passing the conimission bill ; he is the retained
attorney of the Hot Springs Street Railway Company and has
been for twenty^ve years. E. W. Rector has the hight, sym
metry and raanly proportions of his ancestry, coupled with their
courtliness and courage. I have known him for twenty-four

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 407
years as a public man and have always found him in the fore
front of the progressive element of the State; his honor is un
questioned and unquestionable, and no person commands the
the respect and confidence of his fellows to a greater degree
than he; he was fortunate in his marriage, selecting as his life
companion Rosebud Alcorn, daughter of United States Sena
tor Jaraes Lusk Alcorn and Araelia Walton (Glover) Alcorn,
whom he married at Friar's Point, Mississippi, on November
II, 1875, Rev. Mr. White officiating. The wife of the senator
was a Glover descended from the wealthy family of that name
in South Carolina, and frora the Waltons of Virginia, through
whom she was lineally descended from Baron Whiteford of
Ayrshire, Scotland.
The father of Mrs. Rector, Senator Alcorn, was a most
distinguished, as well as a most reraarkable man; of Southern
birth, he served the South in her struggle for independence, by
equipping at his own expense, a brigade for the Southern Con
federacy, the command of which his enemies did not permit
him to enjoy; despite this he^tood by the Confederate cause to
the end, and then stood by Mississippi in her after efforts to
recuperate her wasted resources. Like Longstreet, he decided
that the best way to help the South, was to carap on the enemy's
ground, and he became a Republican. Upon his death the Mem
phis Commercial Appeal said: "Alone, unique, majestic in his
dignified aloofness, stands James Lusk Alcorn against whose
shield hate has hurled her last arrow in vain. Measured by
what he has accomplished for his State he stands without a peer.
Misjudged, misunderstood, maligned for a time by those he
sought to serve, and bitterly assailed by many in the open, who
came to him clandestinely to applaud and commend, he ex
hibited the courage of a Coriolanus, the splendid contempt of
his enemies of an Alcibiades, the wisdom of a sage and the
loyalty of a patriot." The editorial from which this was taken
was very long, but its cream, its essence, its real strength is
quoted above, and is a splendid tribute to the man. The Com
mercial Appeal exhausted the vocabulary of vituperation against
the living Alcorn, but made this glorious reparation to Alcorn
dead. The occasion was the selection of a Mississippian for

4o8 Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
the HaU of Fame, and the Alemphis paper, while naming many
as worthy of the American Valhalla, gave James Lusk Alcorn
double the space of all others combined. A man may be called
great from evidence adduced by his admiring friends, but James
Lusk Alcorn was pronounced great by his bitterest foes. His
title to greatness is therefore without a flaw, and his children
and their descendant's may well be proud of their birth.
Rosebud Alcorn, the wife of E. W. Rector, was educated
at Airs. Prince's School in N'ew York City and at the Baldwin
Female College of Staunton, A'irginia; inheriting the raental
strength of her father, as well as his courage, she brought to her
married relations a finished and cultivated mind, which has
made her an acquisitoin of inestimable value to her husband, to
her children, and to her friends.
The chUdren of E. W. and Rosebud Rector were :
I. Alcorn Rector, born December 2y, 1876; educated at
Hot Springs and Bingham's School, North Carolina ; inventor ;
his inventions being (i) the Rector gas lamp, now owned and
operated by the Rector Gas Light ^Company of New York City;
(2) the Rector Help-a-Phone, a device for telephones to aid
the hearing, which improvement is manufactured and sold in
New York City by two New York corporations, known as the
Rector Help-a-Phone Company, and the Inter-National Help-
a-Phone Company. Air. Alcorn Rector is a large stockholder
and an ofificer in each of these corporations and resides in New
York City, unmarried.
2. Amelia Walton Rector born April 5, 1878; educated at
Searcy Female CoUege, Arkansas, and at Belmont Seminary,
NashviUe, Tennessee. She is an accomplished vocalist and
lives with her father at Hot Springs, unmarried.
3. Henry Field Rector, born April 9, 1880; educated at
Hot Springs; large planter in Coahoma County, Mississippi;
m.arried Alary Dye, daughter of Rev. Thoinas Dye of Missis
sippi, and has two chUdren, E. W. Rector and Henry' Field
Rector. 4. James Alcorn Rector, born June 22, 1884; educated at
LawrencevUle School, New Jersey, from whence he graduated

Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas 409
in 1906 the valedictorian of his class; entered the University of
Virginia in the fall of the same year, and is now in the senior
class of the law department; honorary member for life of the
New York Athletic Association, and has never been beaten in
the United States in a hundred yards running dash; represented
the University of A'irginia at the Olympic Games in London in
1908, but was beaten by a man from South Africa. He is un-
. married. 5. Jane Elizabeth Rector, born 'Alarch 21, 1886; educated
at Hot Springs, Arkansas, and at Springside, Chestnut Hill,
Philadelphia, a school presided over by Mrs. Chapman, the
ilaughter of Bishop Polk, the noted Confederate general. She
married Middleton Lane Wootten of Hot Springs, Arkansas, a
prominent lumberman and became the mother of one child, E.
AV. Rector Wootten.
6. Sally Phillips Rector, born Alay 10, 1892 ; educated
under a private governess, and is now at Springside School,.
Chestnut Hill, Philadelphia.
The seventh child of Governor H. M. Rector was Fannie
Thruston Rector, who was born in Saline County, Ai kansas, in
1853 and who was married twice: (i) to Roswell AV. Fore:iian
of Washington, D. C, and had three children, one of whom is
now living, viz. : Helen Foreman, who married Charles E,
EUis of New York, and resides at Yonkers, New York; (2) to
Colonel Charles S. Mitchell, whose first wife was her sister;
two children were born to this union, Grace and Margaret, who
are both married. By this second marriage. Governor Rector
had one child, Ernestine Flora Rector, who married (i) McGhee
Williams of Memphis, Tennessee, and Iiad three sons, Rector,
AIcGhee and Thruston; (2) Mr. Brunson of Pine Bluff; (3)
Mr. Vaughn of Hot Springs, Arkansas. No children by the
last raarriages. •
This ends the history of one branch of the Rector family,
lineally descended from the immigrant John Jacob Rechter of
1714. The entire history of this patriarch's descendants could
easily be written, but it would far transcend the limits of this
work. Other lines abound with great names whose history is-
worthy of preservation and which in its fulness would illuminate

4IO Pioneers and Makers of Arkansas
the life of the early German elder with transcendent glory.
AA'hat is written here is authentic, and although confined to one
g'-reat and illustrious line, is a lever of power magnifying with
out injustice or favor, the real dignity of the old German father,
and his splendid line of descendants. It is doubtful whether
God ever permitted the perpetration of physical stature and at
tributes for so long a period as has been covered by the Rector
regime. E. AA'. Rector of Hot Springs, carries today every
physical property of the Rectors of two hundred years ago.
It may be also well doubted whether any family of America
through so long a time has maintained its elegant discrimina
tion as to dress or its marked power in the wide realm of
courtly civility and almost princely refineraents of manners. With
all this the courage of the old Germans who combated with
Caesar on the banks of the Rhine stands out with pre-eminent
force today. Courage in every age of the world has had the
highest place in the affections of mankind, and it is worshipped
today no less zealously than of old. Homer has deified it and
mankind still worship at the altar of the inimitable Greek. The
mental powers of the Rectors have in every age kept full pace
with their splendid physical parts, making them most powerful
factors in the making and keeping of all that goes for the pro
gression, the elevation and the betterment of the world. The
Rector influence in Arkansas began before the territory was born ;
was in full force at the birth of the territory ; lasted through
every hour of its life ; was triumphantly prominent in the forma
tion of the State, giving that formation birth raany years ahead
of time ; and has followed the State through its every vicissitude
of fortune, with loving hands. AVithout disparaging other great
Arkansas names, it is but just to say that the name, Rector,
shines with a luster equal to that of any other and is un-
dimmed to this g-ood hour.

INDEX.

Adair, Gov  232
Adam, Matthew  114
Adam and Eve  14
Advocate and Times  126
Adams .Samuel  277
Adams, John D  324
Allen, General WilUam O., 13, 35, 57, 68
60, 110, 121, 251, 61, 71, 74.
Allen, James  113
Allen, Mary K  85, 192
Allen, Col. John  85, 192
Allen, Elizabeth  156, 76
Alice of Old Vincennes  23
Alligator Lake  42
Almendras, John F  42
Angel, Lawrence  78, 279
Andergon, Law-sou  346
Anti-Garablinj^ Associations  108
Andrews, William  Ill
Andrews, Henrv  144
Alpin, John  160
.-ircher, Major ,S. B  56
Arbuckle, General  91 , 141
Architecture, The Two P 's  255
Argenta  188. 27
Alcorn, Gov. James Lusk  407, 408
Alcorn, Rosebud  407, 408
Alcorn, AmeUa Walton  407
Arkansas P. 0  19
'Arkansas Territory  9, 10, 11
20, 21, 22, 29, 30.
Arkansas, Slavery in  9, 10
Arkansas, See Arkansas Post,
Arkansas Post, 12, 13, 15, 17, 19, 23, 35,
58, 61, 76, 80, 83. 20, 148.
Arkansas, Spelling of  20, 21
Arkansas County  35, 54, 105, 116, 147
Arkansas River Settlements  44, 45
Arkansas Boundaries  45
Arkansas Population  45
Arkansas County Officers  100
Arkansas County, Election  110
Arkansas Cabins  226, 227
Arkansas Baptist Assn  231
Arkopolis  38, 112, 149, 188
Armistead, Col. Geo. F  61
Armstrong, Henry  87
Arnett, Rev  219
Ashley, Chester  68, 85
185 to 190, 240, 286, 336.
Ashley Family  187
Assassination of Major Isaac Wat
kins  232
Austin, Stephen  54, 55
Austin, Moses  55
Austin, Jonas  113
Barkman, Jacob. .19, 122, 148, 265,
289.
Barkman, Betsy  289
Barkman, Asa  148
Barkman, John  148
Ballot Box Irregularities  56
Bagley, Archer  78, 161
Bagley, Benjamin  78
Bafley, William  43, 120, 160
Baker, Elijah  160
Bailey, John  161
Baker, Dr. C  167
Baldwin, Isaac  248
Baldwini Pamelia  248
Ball, Judge B. B  221
Banquets  231

Baptist Society  25
Baptist Church, Little Rock  49
Baptist Church ot Christ  143
Baptist Church, First  231
Baptist Association, First  231
Bartelmi  25
Barraque, Antoine  26, 74
Bartran, John  44
Bartholomew, Joseph  45
Barbin, D  73
Barraque Township  79
Bartholomew  151
Barber, David  156, 221
Barber , James  221
Bartley, Judge E  278
Barton, Elizabeth  379
Barnerd, Jesse B  352
Barton  379
Barbecues and Bergus  123, 344
Bassett, "W illiam  44
Batesville 47, 75, 104, 114, 115, 148, 346
Bates & Crittenden  58
Bates James Woodson. .54, 58, 82, 134
346, 286, 172, 180, 189, 199, 201.
Batesville Bee  335
Batesville Guard  335
Bay ot White River  43
Bayou , Hunt  44
Bayliss, Mr  113
Bayou Metou  146
Bayliss, EUnor  76, 156
Bayou Des Arc  148
Baxter  324
Baxter. Gov  367
BeUe Point  43, 149
Berdue, Albert  44, 287
Bean, Robert  114, 87, 156
BeU, M. L  93
BeU, Capt. John S  93
Bean, Richard  161
Beddux, Nancy  160
Bewley , Mahlon  144
Bewley, R.S  144
Belding, L  160
Bennett, Joseph  165
Bentleys, The  217
Beaver, Lucinda  247
Beaver, Stephen  247
Beaver, Sarah  248
Beaver, Nancy  248
Bertrand, C. P  248
Benton Academy  264
Bennette, Madame Barbe  287
Bentley, George  218, 347
Berry, Jairus  -.  288
Berry, James H  329
Berry, John'  159
Berry, George  347
Beale, Gen. Wm . K  379
Bentley, Joseph  288
Beck, Abraham  288
Bettis, R.S  344
Beardstown  112, 149
Bethell, Joshua  352
Big Island  42
Big Lake  43
Big Prairie  45
Billingsly, James  87
Biscoe, H. L  100, 264 to 270
Biscoeville  148, 266
Big Cofsclose  148
Big Piney  142
Bible .Society  254

412

Index

Biscoe Family  268, 269
Biscoe, Capt. Cameron  269
Biscoe, King & Co  269
Billeate, Miss  165
Berkheimer  17-1
BUl. Cush  266, 402
BlackRiver  43, 104
Blane, Robert  102
Black. Thomas  113
Blakeleytowa  76
Blair, W. P. L  103
Blythe,S.K  143
Blount. Rueben J  260, 221
Black, Mrs. George  22*
Blackwood, J. W  368
Bog>', Le-wis  25
Bogie  25
Bonne, Joseph  25, 165
Bonne, Baptiste  25
Bogy, Charles  44
Bogy, Joseph  -  45. 97
Bonne, Michael  45
Bovd, James  114
BosweU, Col. HartweU . .72, 334. 336
Bonneau, .-^.ntoine  * 6
Bowie, John J  88
Bowie. James  88
Boiling Springs Camp  143
Bollinger, John  143
Boswell, Col. James  341, 336, 161
Bodcaw  148
Bogj-, Ignace  286, 25
Boswell, R.-H  337
Bryan. WiUiam J  32. 33
Bradford, Major. ...35, 71, 87, 88. 254
Brideoute, Alexander  43
Bright, John  44
Brown, Samuel  44
Brinsbeck, Raphael  44
Brangiere, Louia  47
Bryan, James  Ill
Bradley, George  113
Brand, George W  68
Brearley, Col. Darid. .. .69, 166, 223, 131
138, 139, 140
Brierly, Col. Pearson  72
Brinhard, Raphael  76
Bradley, George  76, 1 56
Brown, Edward  S3
Brearley, Dr. J. H  143
Brown & Bancrofts Map  147
Bruton, John  144
Brooks, Robert  165
Brick Tavern  167
Brumbach, Christian  167, 231
BrickHouse  167, 168, 231
Breckenridge, Joseph C  205
Breckenridge, Joh n C  205
Breckinridge, Laura  205
Breckinridge, Robert W.J  205
Breckinridge, Benjamin  205
Brown, Nancy  224
Brearly, Jo  ,  227
Bricelin, Susan  248
Bricelin, Milo  24S
Brilhart Family  280, 2S4
Brilhart, Jacob  2n0
Brilhart, Rebecca  2S1
Bradlev, John  286
Bradley, Mary .  2x6
Brinsbech, .Vmelia  2S .
Bridgman, Nancy  165
Brookfield, Rev. Isaac  166
Brown, Jonathan R  288
Brazeale. J. R  196
Brooks-Baxter War  324, 367
Bruce, Robert  341
3rooks, Gov  367, 324
Brunson, Mr  409

Bragg, Micaiah 
Burt, J.B  ¦ -
Burnett, Moses  42,
Burrell, Peter 
Bull, John  ¦•_¦
BuUett, Judge George  9 1 ,
Burton, Mrs. Jes.se 
Burton, Butler M 
Burr 's Collection 
Buckle 
Butler, Lillie Dea 
Burris, Thomas 
Burris, Polly 
Buchannan, Widow 
Buchannan, Rev. .\ 
Byrd, Col. Stephen  114,
Byrd, .4mos 
Byrne, Capt 
Cadron  16, 19. 38, 45, 47, 48
61, 102, 104, 105, 111, 146, 148,
Casatete 
Catholic Church  24' 331.
Catholic lathers 
Cache River  26, 43,
Canev Creek 
Cassidy, Pat  43, 101,
Campbell, James  212,
Calais Joseph 
Catocke Prairie 
Cathot. John B 
Carnahan, Rev. John. ...48, 49,
Camp Ground, First 
Cavet, Louis 
Cane HiU 
Carothers, John  78.
Cannan, Matthew 
Cas-fidy, Henry  54, 55, 97,
Candidate First Legislature 
Cabeans 
Caravans of Pioneers 
Caldwelltown 
Casey, Mrs. John 
Carutliers, Mrs. Samuel 
Carlocks 
Garden, Marv 
CarroU, Jlary E 
Campbell. Nancy 
Garden, George 
Carpenter, A. M 
Cady, P. J 
Carroll, Wiley 
Caldwell, Henry 
Carey, Miles 
Cabell. Gen'I Wm O 
Cameron, Hon. Simon 
Chalmette 
Chassein, Joseph de 
Chas.sein, Antoine 
Chartruce, Enos  42,
Cheek, Jesse 
Chamberlain. John 
Chactas Prairie 
Cherokee Treaty 
Chalmees, Capt 
Chamberlain. Jason  113,
Cherokee Indian Agents 
Choctaw Treaty  133, 134,
Chicot Countv 
Chisholm, Mrs. W 
ChurchiU, Gov 
ChurchiU, .\bbie 
Churchill, S. J 
ChurchiU, A. S 
ChurchiU, Juliet J 
ChurchiU Emily 
ChurchUl, MatUda 
Cherry, W. C 
Colley, John 

352 19
120 44
101 99
160 141
150
228
248 287287287
287 1571.57 0549
218. 45
284 25
4443
120279 43
43 44
251 49
101152
279 51
120 74
150154
150 100160282287
306 166
220 278
286 306325
359 396
403 24 2525
120 14
111 75 7593
289 131
135 147 160
204 204 204
204 204204 204248 160

Index

413

Click, Henry  160
Clarendon  125
..Clark, P. 0  19
,':Clark, David  122
' Clanton, Stephen  101
Closseins, The  26
Clover Bend  43
Clark County. 56, 76, 101, 105, 116, I47
Clark, Benjamin Sr., . 78, 101, 160
Clay, Henry, Speech  82
Clark County Officers  103
Clark, Mrs. Benjamin  160
Clements, Benjamin  167
Clendennin, Judge J. J  233
Clanton, PriscUla  287
Cotoner, Michael  76
Coulter, Stokely H  .'.¦.:; 19
Oopfot, Francois  25
Copperas Creek  42
Coffman, Christopher  ..'..'. 44
Cox, WiUiam  113
Conway, James S. . 147, 286, 372
Comet, First Steamboat  65
Colonels ot Militia  72
Conway, Wm  78
Covered Wagons  102, 103, 104
Conway Family  106
¦Columbus  110
Constitutional Journal  126
CoUegeviUe  161
¦Cornwall. '  161
Columbia  151
Ootocton  162
Conway County. . . . 147, 148, 218, 221
¦Cox, Mrs. Charles  160
Cox, Charles  -. . 160
¦Copeland, Isaac  165
¦Conway, Sevier Dynasty. ,. .183, 184
¦Conway Town  218
¦Cocke, John H., Slaves  239
CoUins, Mary  248
¦Copeland, M  278
ColvUle, Joseph  288
¦Colville Andrew  288
Colville, PauUne  288
Coffman, .Andrew  308
Coffman, C. T  303
¦Coffman, Hugh  303
¦Cook, Capt. R. P  308
Cook, Robert T  308
Cook, Garland  308
Cook, Fanny  308
-Cook, Laura  308
Compton, Judge  314
¦Cook, Joseph  347
¦Colquhoun, James  354
Coon, Jacob  372
¦Conner, Elizabeth  378
Conner, Lewis  378
¦Conway, Elias N  372, 397
Conway, Ann  396
Conway, Capt. Thomas  396
Conway, Edward  396
Conway Moncure D  396
•Conway, Frederick R  397
Conway, John R  397
¦Conway, WiUiam B  397
Conway, Thomas A. ,  397
¦Conwayj Sarah A  397
Conway, Henry W. .64, 74, 94, 147, 166
176, 183, 221.
Cocke, Mary W  205
¦Crittenden, Robert, 18, 30, 32, 35, 37
64, 58, 73, 79, 82, 87, 88, 99, 102, 118
168, 172, 176, 178 to 185, 189, 201, 239
¦Craig, William, 19, 83, 110, 112, 121, 122
128, 169, 170, 189, 347.
Crittenden County  42, 118, 147
Crow Creek  44

Crystal Hill, 45, 56, 106, 232, 250,
Crawford Court House 49,
Criswell, Andrew  112,
Craig, Nancy 
Crawford County Heroes 
Cryer, Morgan  78, 169,
Crozier, Francis 
Crittenden Town  101,
Crawford County  105, 147,
Crutchfield, J, M 
Creus River 
Crow, Benjamin 
Crittenden, Conway Duel 
Crease, John H  193,
•CCfease, Mary A  194,
Cross, Edwards  201,
Criswell, Cyrus J 
Criswells 
Curran James  13,
Curran Thomas  70, 115,
Curran Lemuel R 
Curran, May F 
Current River 
Cumberland Presbyterian Church. .
Cunningham, Matthew  5, 7,
Cummins-Notrebe Wedding 
Cummins, William  - 
Cummins, Mrs. WiUiams 
Currenton 
Cuffmans 
Cuffman, Thomas 
Cuffman, Pavatt 
Cuffman, Josephus  ¦. 
Cuffman, Dr. John H 
CufTman, James M 
Cummins and Garland 
Cummins, Ebenezer 
Cypress Bayou 
Daridsonville, 16, 19, 104, 105, 110,
146, 148
D'Armond, Francis 
Dardanelle  36, 134, 149,
Dardenne, John B  43,
Davis, James 
Daniel, Wright, 49, 77, 87, 260,
Daridson, John 
Daridson, Ephraim C  76,
DardaneUe Rock 
Daniel, Miss 
Dardenne, Joseph 
Daris, Zechariah 
DardaneUe Settlement 
Daridson, Robert 
Daris, Samuel 
Daugherty, Maria 
Davis, Clara 
Da-vis, Benjamin 
Davis, Elizabeth 
Daris Samuel 
Daris, W. S 
Davis, L. W 
Daris, James 
Daniels, J, L 
Daris, Aquilla 
DePlaice, John B 
Dernisse, Jean B  44,
DePlasse, Joseph 
Dernisseau, Mary  44,
Dervsier, Peter 
Delegate to Congress 
DeChassin, Joseph 
DeMun, Lewis  112,
DePew 
Delaware ViUage 
Descendants, Thomas Fletcher. . . .
Descendants, Caleb Lindsey 
Descendants, Frederick Rector. . . .
Deruseaux, Mary  

254 105
279 115 78
160 85
148194 143
146 160176
236 233
287294293288341 76
205 104 49
167 69

111
304 304304306307307313
313 43
113 25
222 7544
288 54
97 767798
101
142 143160 166
263280 280
280324367 114
341342 44
286 26
286 45
5474
279 108 148
247
246379 286

414

Indc.v

Desha, Joseph  333
Desha, Captain  333
Desha, Robert  333
Desha, FrankUn  334
Desha, Margaret  334
Deshas  331 to 338
Desha, Ben  333
Deruseaux, John B  286
Dean, Sidney  166
Deerman, John  160
Deshler, David  14'
Denton, W. F  335
Desha County  119
Deans  101
Denton, F. D  333
Denton, James  341
Deaths in 1S20  347
DiU. John  43
Diana, John  43
Dinsmoore, Samuel  36
Dinsmoor and Spaulding  84
Dickinson, Townsend  115, 161, 341
Dickson, Mary  160
Dickinson. Thomas  168
Dickinson, Martha .\  300
Dominiques, John  42
Dodge, Mrs. James  71, 115
Dooley, Col. Thomas  72
Dorris, Mr  93
Dodge, John  99, 165
Dodson, WiUiam  129
Dover  143
Dodge, Oen'l Henry  165
Dodge, Dr. R. L  227
Dodd, C. W  227
Dodge, Geo. F  227
Dodd. Mrs  227
Douglas, John  260, 339
Douglas, Ezekiel  260, 264
Douglas, G  264
Dodd, Thomas  288
DoUarhide, Mrs. John  160
Dodge, .\nn  165
Dortolan, John  347
Dotterer, Henry  372
Drope, William  13, 68
Drury, Silas  12S
DuVal, George  44
Duel First in Arkansas  65
Dueling Law  65
Duel — Barton and Rector  399
Duel— Scott and Selden  199
Duval, Francois  76
DuVal, Mieranda J  141
DuVal, Edward  131, 140, 222
DuVals  331
DuVal Catherine  ,395
DuVal, WilUam  395
Dudley, Catherine  76
Dukes, Sarah  76
Dunn, J. Clark  76
Dunn, Ichabod  76
Dunn, Margaret  76
Duncan, yilliam  160
Dwight's Mission  223
Dve, Mary  408
Dye, Thomas  408
Early Land Grants  40
Early County Administrations. .. . 100
Ecore Fabre  151
Edwards, Mary.  42, 1,50
Educational Opportunities  207
Edwards, Gov. WiUiam  382
Egner, Joseph  334, 346
Egner, Elvira  334
Egner, Henry  334
Egner, Virginia  334

Egner, Cornelius  33-*
Elk Lake  -1=
Eleven Points  113. 14/.
Eel River  42, 120, 146?
EUiott, Mary W  ^5. 189
Ellis, Radford  121, 132
Elkins, John  160
Election Practises. . . . 167, 168, 169, 170
Ellis, WilUam  221
Ellis, Charles  410
Ellis, James  336
Elliott, Ann Eliza  286
EUiott, Ben  2s6, 287
EUiott. Laura F  ._. 287
Embree, Madame  73, 86
Embrees of Arkansas County. .. .86, 2/8
Embry. Col. of Atkins  86
Embree, Maria  86
Embree, Jordan  93
Emmert, George  336
Emancipation of Slaves  342, 343
Eno, Miss Clara B  276
English, John  19, r21
Erroneous Notions  254
Erwin, .A.nnanias  114
Escririeve, John A  42
Esperanza Camp  41. 118
Eslcridge, .Judge S. P, 80, ISO, 201, 286
Ewel, Charles  165
Farrelly, Terrence, 13, 35, 66, 67, 73, 79
115.
Farrelly and Curran  13, 14
Fayac, John  43
FaUen, Archibald  43
Fagot, Anthony  44
Fagot, Andre  97
FayettevUle  152
Fareen, Mrs. Darid  160
Fareen, Darid  160
Faulkner Countv  218
Faulkner, Col. Sanford  221, 226
Far West Academy  224
Family Likenesses  241
Faulkner, Samuel  2.S9
Fagan, Gen'I  324
Fads  331
Farrow, James  354
Featherstonaugh  22, 109, 234
Ferguson, Napoleon B. .. .76, 113, 156
Ferguson, W. D  94
Ferguson, James  113, 279
Ferebe, Geo. W, 128, 268, 334, 337
Fentors  101
Fermchea, Caddo  148
Fenton, Betsy  166
Fenner, Dr. R. H  2S9
Ferebe. Ann F  334
First Families  23, 24, 25
First Families of Virginia  39
First Circuit Court  55, 56
First Territorial Legislature. . . . 61, 99
First Steamboat  65
First Little Rock Merchants  68
First Town Lot Sale  Ill
First Judicial Hanging  168
First West Point Cadets  194
First Superior Courts  197
First Baptist Church  231
First Baptist Association  231
First -Academy at Batesrille  346
Field Marshal  14
Fish, Thomas  76, 121
Fish FamUy  101
Fish, Thomas  101
Finley's Map  149
Fisher, James  160
Finney, Alfred  224
Fishback, John  372, 374

Index

415

Fishback, Harmon  372
Fishback, Gov. Wm M  372
Fishback, Catherine  374
Kteld, William  404
Field, Jane Elizabeth  404
Field, Abner  404
Flaery, Isaac  114
Flanakin, Patrick  161
Flannigan, Gov. Harris  403
Fletcher, John Gould  114, 242
Fletcher, Acting-Go V. Thomas.... 403
Fletcher Family Slaves  238
Fletcher Family  240 to 250
Fletcher, Thomas of Little Rock, 241
245, 247. 248, 272.
Fletcher, Thomas of Pine Bluff. ... 241
Fletcher, Henry Lewis, 243, 244, -245
246.
Fletcher, Richard  243
Fletcher, John G  245, 249
Fletcher, Jeff  245
Fletcher, Thomas M  245
Fletcher, Eli  245
Fletcher, Capt. Fred  246
Fletcher, Martin  246
Fletcher, W. L  247
Fletcher, Olivia  246
Fletcher, John  247
Fletcher, T M  248
Fletcher, J. R  248
Fletcher Lillie Dea  248
Fletcher, Ann E  248
Fletcher, Mary P  249
Fletcher, Maston  297
Fooy, Benjamin, 41, 43, 117, 123, 287
Fooy, Isaac  118
Fooy's Point  117
Fooy, John Henry  43
Fooy, Samuel  118
Foov, Charlotte  287
Foy, Fannie  263
Fort on White River  43
Founder of Texas  65
Fort Gibson  58, 102
Fourche a duMas  1-48
Fommier Creek  148
Fourche a Thomas  149, 150
Fourche de Mun  156
Fourth of July at BatesviUe  161
Folsom, Mary  165
Fontaine, Matthew  283
Folsom, Isaac  346
Fones, John  352
Fowler, Absalom  336
Foreman, Roswell W  409
Foreman, Helen  409
French Population  13, 23, 24
Francure, Francis  43
Frohlick, Jacob  91, 92
French Maps  149
Free SoU  213
Frazier, William  220
FrankUn  264
Francis, Major Henry  277
Franklin, WiUiam  166, 338
Free Negroes in Slave Times  343
Friesenhaugen, Anna  374
Friesenhaugen, Jacob  374
Fry, William  406
Friend, Augustas J  43
Fry, Capt. C. B  406
Ft. Smith  105, 148
Furnish, Charles  43
Fulton  Ill
Fulton, Robert  Ill
Fugett, Wm  113
Fulton, Gov. William S, 215, 216, 217

Gazette, Arkansas, 11, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17
18, 21, 22, 38, 61, 66, 96, 97, 108, 166
269, 260.
Gallowhorn, Caty  42
Gazzia, .Toseph  43
Garrett, Jacob  113
Galaxy of Grand Old Men  113
Galley  142, 222, 134
Garrett, W  142
Garden, Thomas  143
Galbreath, Mrs. Joseph  160
Garland, Gov. A. H  307 to 331
Garland, EUzabeth J  308
Garland, R. K  308
Garland, R. K. Sr  307
Garland's Letter  319
Garland, Sanders  330
Garland, R. C  330
Garland, Daisy  330
Garland, VV. A  330
Garrett, Wm  345
Gerstaecker, Frederick, 22, 155, 156, 347
German Maps  149
Germana  37 1
Germantown  372
Gerrard, Rose  193
Gillet, Aaron  162
Gingnolet, Joseph  44
Gimblet, Francis  44
Gibson, Dr. John  80
GUmore, Daniel  143
Girty, Simon  228
Givens, Edward  335
Gibson, James  287
Gladden, Dr. R. B  366
Glass, Wm. H  43, 277
Glass, Hiram  278
Glass, James  352
Glover, Amelia W  407
Glass, Archibald  352
Gonzales, Augustine  42
Gossiat, Louis  43
Goris, Jacob  46
Gossieu, Catherine  76
Godin, Adele  77
Godin, AchUle  165
Goceaux, Mary  279
Gower, Hebe  406
rireely, Horace  29
Grace, William  41
Grace, John  42, 118
Graham, Moses  100, 288
Grays  49
Gray, Jack  49, 78
Gray, Shared  49, 78
Gray, Joseph  49
Gray, Sampson  50, 160, 240
Gray, Harriet  77, 197
Gray, Isaac  278
Gray, Major  367
Graves, Tom  266
Gregory, William  42, 120
Greenwood, Joseph  44
Greenbrier  49
Greenoch  ._  151
Gregory Township  221
Greenwalt, Mary  287
Greenwalt, Ann  288
Green, Hiram  288
Griffith, Mrs  288
Griffin Township  221
Groson, Francis  42
Grues River  44
Hardin, Joab  121, 217
Hagerstown  26
Harrington, John  35, 73
Hadsell, John  44

4i6

Index

Hardin, Joseph, 54, 72, 102, 113, 115, 121
180.
Hamilton, James  69, 194
Harrington, Bartley  73, 110, 121
Harringtons  74, 148
Harrington, Alfred  74, 97
Harrington, ?\Tary  75
Harrington EUza  75
Harrington, Allen  75
Hardin, Benjamin  78, 279
Hardin, Jacob  113
Hadlock  113
Hanks, Fleetwood  130
Haynes, Major  150
Hargrove, John  160
Harris, IVfargry  161
Hayden, Webb E  160
Harold, Betsy  165
Harold, Abner  165, 217
Hardin, G. W  194
Harris, Timothy  220
Hamlet, Sam R  263
Harris, John  284
Harris, Sarah  287
Harrell, John  296
Hairston, Nancy M  296
Hairston, James  296
Handy, Thomas B  128
HaU, Samuel S  115
Hall FamUy  299, 300
HaU, Wm S  299
Hall, David C  300
Hacker, Christain  338
Hardaway, Adalissa C  368
Handback  372
Hager, Henry  374
Hav, John  -  374
Helena, 43, 108, 118, 125, 129, 148, 266
268.
Hewett, Solomon  112, 279
Hempstead 's History  54, 56
Hempstead County, 56, 101, 104, 116, 147
Hemphill, Emily  76
Hemphill, Andrew  166
Hempstead Co. Rev. Soldiers.... 78
Heredity  SO, 82
Henry 's Chapel  112, 284
Hepburn, Col. W. P  138
Heads Growing Larger  264
Helena Democrat  268
Henderson, .Mary W  276
Henry, Mr  '  ' 034
Henderson, Josepii  268
Henry, James M  ' 324
Hening, Annie N  ', 330
Hempstead Court House  19
Hix, William Sr  113, 153
Hickland, Abraham  .' 43
Hignite, Abner  .' 101
Hi.x, WUliam  112 153 279
S-w"- '^^Vl  "!• 1S3
riibbin, John  2i9
Hibbin, Thomas  220
Higgin Township  221
Hitchcock, Jacob  t  224
Hitchcock, Asa  224
Hindman, Gen'I T. C  269
Hindman, Blanche. . t  ogg
Hindman, T. C. Jr  269
Hindman, Biscoe  269
HiU, Barbara  307
HUl, WUUam   q^o
HiU, Peter  ;;  373
Hornor, J. J  j3g
Hornor, F, ,S  ' 130
Hornor. J. S   130
Hornor, W, B. R, 38, 8.3, lO'sVilO ' 114
120, 121, 122, 123, 124, 125, 126, 127
128.

Hopefield  41,42, 118
Ho£n;Gen'l.,-47,66,-57V71,-74,-16S, 235
250 to 255.
Hogan, Edward  54-;
Home of the Brontes  ¦ ¦ ¦ 58
Holman, John  78, 160.
Hodge, Archibald  113
Hogan, W. Russell  87
Honey, Richard W  97
Hot Springs  112, 148, 232
Hodges, WUlis  144
Holaby, Richard  161
Homestead Law  213, 214
Houston, John  221
Hogan, WiUiam  254
Holt, SaUv  306
Hominy HiU  323
Howard, Col. Bob  324
Hobson, Miss  330
HoweU, Philo  338
HoweU, Ann M  368
HoweU, Jesse E  368
Howell, Adalissa  368
Holtzclaw, Jacob  372
Huffman, John  372
Hubbard, Judge Thomas.... 310, 402-
Hunt Bayou  44
Hunt, Andrew J  108, 125
Hughes, Isaac  142
Hudgins  151
Hubbard  t  152
Hubbard, George  159
Hunt, John W  160
Hudgins, Ambrose  360
Hubbard, Archibald  287
Hutcheson , Joseph  - . 295
Hughes, Gov. Simon P  : 295
Hunnicutt, BaUly  306
Huguenots  331
Hughes, Louisa S  338
Hughes, Green B  338
Humphries. John  347
lUinois Settlement  382
Illinois Bayou  142
Imbeau, Francois  25
Imbeau, Baptiste  25
Imbeau, Judic  166
Imbeau, John B  45
Imbeau, Madame  288
Imbeau, Monsieur  288
Imbeau, Jo,seph  165
Indian Names  20
Indian Agents  131
Indian Life  33<>
Intelligencer, Wasliington  22
Independence Co. Heroes . . . . 78
Independence Co, 105, 114, 115, 147, 180
Infares and Weddings  165
Intrigue of 1823  180, 181
Indictment of Oden  196
Indictment of Jouett  196
Immigration  104, 106, 107
Izard, Gov,, 111, 172 to 178, 182, 2''-'
231.
Izard County  147
Izzard  152
Irons, Mrs. Jonathan  ' 160
Izard, Miss  194
Irish Pedigrees  .' .' ' ' 290
,Tackson, Andrew  39. .53 102
Janis, Anthony  ' ' 44
Janis, Nicholas  '  44
Janis, John B  ' " ' 44
Jardelles, Alexis  .',', '44 97
Jardelles, Jean  ' 44' 97
Jackson County Heroes  .,...' 78

Index

417

Jardelow," Peter  101
Jacob's Staff  161
Jackson County Pioneers  276
Jefferson County  79
Jones, EUzabeth  42
Jouett, Charles' 32, 100, 180, 195, 196
Jordales, Peter  44
Johnson , Thomas W  68, 74
Jones, Mary  73
Jones, William  113
Jones, James K. Jr  330
Jones, Ma5.sack H  113
Jones, Stephen  114
Johnson, Robert  83, 124
Johnson, Benjamin, 88, 89, 90, 100, 142
201 to 206.
Johnson  \  152
Johnson, Col. Wm  161
Johnson Family  202 to 206
Johnson County  200
Johnson, Robert W  202
Johnson, Juliette E  204, 211
Johnson, George J  205
Johnson, Benjamin S  205
Johnson, Richard H  205, 401
Johnson , James B  205
Johnson, Charles E  205
Johnson, Irene M  206
Johnson, James V  205
Johnson, Francis  205
Johnson, Matilda  205
Johnson, Sevier  205
Johnson, AUen N  205, 248
Johnson, Mary.  205
Johnson, James J  205
Johnson, Sidney  206
Johnson, John A  206
Jbhnson , Anna  205
Johnson, Benjamin, Slaves  238
Johnson, Nancy W  357
Johnson, Peter R  3,57
Jordans  331
Jordan, Dr. John A  205
JoUy  222
Jones , Jacob  288
Judd, Solomon B  287
Justices Pulaski County  250
Kaufman's Bayou  44, 46, 303
Kaufman, Christopher  44, 303
Kaufmans  30o
Kaufman Michael  300
Keplar , George  44
Kepler, C  46
Kepler, EUzabeth  76
Kepler, WUliam  165
KeUey, William  101
Kelly, Isaac  112, 279
KeUy, Charles  98, 114, 162
Kelly and Maddox  189
Kelley, EUzabeth  293
Kellett, Joseph  114
KeUum, Smith  166
Kellum, James  221
Kemble, Asa H  : 287
Kemper, John  372
King, Mary  66
King, Wigton  66, 75, 289
King, Sanford  174
King's Mountain Hero  277
King, EUzabeth  289
Kinsall, Jane  305
KinsaU, Moses  306
KettreU, Lucy H  300
KUling ot Gen'I Hogan  253
Kirkland, Joseph  75
Knuckles, Wm  362
KuykendaU  38
Kuykendall, Benjamin  75 ¦

Kuykendall, Dempsey  75
KuykendalhpJames M. ..... 112, 114
Kuykendall,^Margaret. . . . .-  R160
Lawrence County, 16,!'54, 115,5147 ,»243
56, 102, 104, 112, 113. tsjrWI
Lawrence County Heroes  V^ 78
LawrencevUle  W 125
Lawrence County Barbecue  * 342
La Louisiane  9^^^
La? Farve, Pierre  (26
Larquer, John  26
Lacy, Thomas J  128
Lavergne, John  44
Lavale, Jean  44, 97
Languis, John  44
La Course, MichaU  45
La Fargue, Francois  76
Latimer, ¦William  128
Latimer, Gabriel  76, 77
Latimer, Greenwood  127
Latimer, Barradel  77, 167
Langford, Eli  86
Land Fraud Cases  87, 88
Lafferty, Binks  116, 294, 298
Lafferty, Henderson  116, 294, 298
Lafferty, John L  218, 293,, 294
Lafferty, John  279, 290, 291
Lafferty FamUy  290 to 299
Lafferty, Margaret  293
Lafferty, Sarah  293
Lafferty, Austin  294, 298
Lafferty, Lorenzo B  294, 298
Lafferty, Widow  294
Lafferty, Vaughn B  295
Lafferty, Wesley R  293
Lafferty, George L  295
Lafferty, John R  295
Lafferty, Henderson G  952
Lafferty, Austin D  295
Lafferty, Alfred W  295
Lafferty, L. S. H  296
Lafferty, Dr. J. M  296
Lafferty, Druzella  296
Lafferty, E. E  297
Lafferty, Sarah E  297
Lafferty V. D  297
Lafferty, M. M  297
Lafferty, A. B  297
Land , Walter  404
Langford, Ben  143
Lafayette Court House  151
LAnguille  151
Lakeport  151
Larrimore, Rev. James  156
Lackey, WilUam  220, 287
Latta, John  342
Lewis, Elijah. .13, 19, 65, 67, 76, 77, 100
Lewis, Thomas,  114
Lewis and Thomas  13, 14, 18
Lewis, Polly  7'7
Lewis Family  249
Lewis and Clarke's Expedition  95
Lewis, John Sr., and Jr  113
Lewis, Rueben  113
Lewis, Gen'I Wm L  131, 220, 288
Lewis Map  145
Lewis, WUliam Jr  288
Lewisburg  150, 151
Letcher, Robert P  31, 100, 180
LeGrande A.ugustine  41
LeFever, John  43
LeFever, John  43, 120
Leard, George  44
Levy, Louis P  45
Legislatures Territorial  61
Lemmons, Col. James  72, 239
Leiper, James  78
Lee 's Creek  152

4i8

Index

Lester, Major Noah  288
Little Rock, 12, 37, 38, 87, 108, 112, 148
150, 188, 189.
Little Rock Times  125, 108
Little Rock Settlers  45
Little Rock Merchants  68
Little Rock Advocate  108
Little Rock & Ft. Smith Ry  143
Little Rock & Washington  158
Little Rock Speculators  188
Little Rock Tavern  230
Little Rock Baptists  231
Little Deep River  146
Litchfield  151
Little John  160
List of Original Pilgrims  186
Lindsey Family Slaves  239
Lindsey, Caleb, 245, 246, 269 to 276
Lindsey, EU  246, 273, 284, 294
Lindseys of Virginia  269, 270, 271
Lindseys Cave School  271
Lindsey, John Y  272
Lindsey, Col  274
Lindsey, James  273
Lindsey, Issaac  275, 338
Lindsey, Peter  275, 338
Lindsey, William H  276
Lindsey, Caleb Jr  281
Lindsey, Harrison B  282
Lindsey, Rezin W  284
Lindsey, Allen H  282
Lindsey, E. W  282
Lindsey, Joseph H  338
Lindsey, Sarah A  338
Lindsey, AUen Q  362
Littlejohn, Mary E  307
Littlejohn, Alex W  307
Linde, Flora  404
Linde, Albert  404
Lemoneaux, Francis  287
Looney, WiUiam  113
Lock Creek  43
Louisiana Settlers  46
Lockwood , W iUiam  48
Lovely, John P  75
Locke, WUUam B  83
Lost Prairie  152
Longevity  151, 168, 159
Lorance, Zechariah  160, 220
Lorance, Betsy  220
Lockhart, EUnor  239, 338
Long Prairie  286
Long, Martha D  288
Long, Zachariah  288
Lockhart, W. S  338
Logan, tiie Mingo  340
Luckie, WiUiam  112
Luttrell, Nathan  114
Lyon, Matthew  131, 122
Lyon, Aaron W  224, 225, 346
Mack, Sarah J  333
Magness, Major Darid  163, 273
Martin, AUen, 102, 239, 269, 260, 261
MaUs Early  16
Magness, Robert  273, 346
MaxweU, John P  113
Martin, Joseph  114
Martin, Jasto  42
Maloney, Robert  128
Magness, Perry G  54, 114, 347
MaxweU  69
Mason, Mr  73
Mason, Polly  76, 97
Marriages in 1819  76
Martin, Mr  76
Many, Capt. James B  .-•  97
Mason, Joseph  97
Macbeth, John  142

Mason, James W  97
Magness, Morgan  98, 160, 347
Martin, B. H  142
Maddox 's Bay  125
Maps of Territory 144, et seq.
Magnet Cove  161
Marion  151
Marriage Customs, 162, 163, 164, 284, 285
Martin, Joshua  160
Mars, Alan & Co  167
MaU Routes  219
Mathers, Col. Thomas  217, 219
Martin FamUy  260, 261, 262
Martin, John Jr  262
Martin, Jared C  260
Martin, James  260
Martin, Matilda  260
Martin, Andrew.'  261
Martin, Mahala  261
Martin, James A  263
Martin, WiUiam A  263
Martin, J. C. Jr  263
Martin, MoUie D  263
Martin, Henry G  263
Martin, J. J  263
Martin, Elizabeth  338
Marriages and Deaths  284, 285
286, 287.
Marriage Posies  285, 286
Martin, John Joseph  372
Martin, John  261
Maidstone  3'76
Matheny, WilUam M  404
Matheny, Mary C  404
Matheny, William 1  404
Matheny, Julia F. M  404
Menifee, Dr. James N, 38, 111, 131, 191
Meredith, Wm  113
Methodist Preachers  48, 285
Menifee  Ill
Memphis  Ill
Methodist Episcopal Church  112
MeUick Map  145
Messengill, Thoraas  161
Medlock, Elizabeth  248
Merrick, Col. T. D  295
Miller County  105, 116, 147
Miller, Gov. James, 16, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34
36,36,37,38,39,65,57,61,87, 172, 182
250.
Migration  16, 17
Missouri Territory  '  20
Miller, John  ',','  113
Michel, Pierre  '  26
Mississippi River Settlements  42
Michel, Joseph  . 43
Michel, Francis  .,43, 286
Michel, Desire  286
Michel, MUlet  76
Minard, John B  44
MiUer, James ot Poke Bayou, 48, 114, 116
341.
Miller, Mary  48
Militia  '.eV, 251
Mitchell, W  142
Minyard, John  161
MUler, Valentine  161
Mills, Miss  233
Milner, John  248
Miles, J. B  248
Miller, WilUam  258
MUlers Creek  273.
MitcheU, Col. Chas. S  409
Mosely, Samuel  13, 66, 73
Mount Prairie, 104, 105, 109, 112, 149
284, 77.
Montgomery Landing  16, 35
Montgomery, William  25, 35, 64
Monte Carlo  25

Index

419

Moss, James  HO
Mqrse, Pres, James  39, 193
Mooney, Daniel, 43, 48, 50, 65, 67, 72
76, 123, 124.
Morton, EUjah. . 59, 63, 64, 83, 85, 182
Mosely, Mary  71
Morrison, WilUam  73, 75
Mobley, Isaiah  78, 279
Mobley, Clement  78, 239
Moore, Mores  279, 112
Morris, Ann  85, 184
Moore, WilUam  341, 346
Mount Maria  . 112
Moore, Col. Ben  115, 161, 286
Monroe County  119, 125
Morrison's Bluff  151
Monroe  151
Montgomery, Margaret  165
Morrison, ,Joshua  116
Money in Little Rock  176
Monroe, Margaret  193
Mount HoUy  227, 229
Mosby, John D  239
Moose, Mary E  248
Moose, John  248
Moore, Rev. J. W  259
Morrison, Wm. P  383
Moses  383
Morrison, William  406
Mooney, J. B  26
Munn, John  110
Murrey, Henry  113
Murphy, Arthur  113, 78
Murch, Clarissa  76
Murry, Thomas  1 43
McLane, Congressman  9
McLane, NeUl  87, 347
McLanes' Store  .•  232
McLain and Badgett  253
McLean, John  42, 120
McLain, John  288
McLain, John  347
McLachlen, AUen  356
McKinney, WilUam  43
McFarlane, B. H  43, 98
McICnney, Elijah  43
McKinzie, James  128, 130
McPherson, Charles  147
McKinney  191
McLaren Township  221
McCaleb, Eritha  295
McCaleb, John  295
McArthur, Charles  346
McCray, Col. Wm  56
McRay, Dr. Robert  69, 110, 121
McKenzie, Clarissa  75
McHem-y, .-Vrchibald  87, 239
McGregor, Flowers  93
McKinney, David E  100
Mcllmurry, John  38, 111, 122
McAdoe, WUUam  113
McCarroU, Mrs Nathaniel  114
McKnight, Wm  114
McDonald, Edward  122
McCarley, John  144
McDoweU, Mrs. Benjamin  160
McCaU, Samuel  220
McDonald, Wm  288
McDaniel, EU  308
McPherson, Cora  330
McReynolds, C. Lee  376
National Road  104
Napoleon  108, 146
Nash, -Mary W  233
Nash, Dr. John V  233
NaUor, A. T  297
Newton, Thomas W. Sr., 67, 73, 85, 186
190 to 196, 205.

Newton Family  193, 194
Newton, Other  194
Newton, R. C  193
Newton, T. W. Jr  193
Newton, Fenwick  194
Newton, Jane P  194, 233
Newton, John  194
Newton, BasU  194
Newton, Larkin  194
Newton, Jesse  195
Newton, James  196
Newton, Annie  205
Neely, Judge Buford F  336
Neeley, Mary E  336
Neeley, E. E  336
Neely, M. T  336
NeU, Gordon  74
Newman, J. H  142
New Gascony  151
Nichols Township  221
Nicks, Col. John  254
Nine Rector Boys  379, 381
Notrebe, Francis 13, 14, 47, 67, 66, 68
79.
North Carolina  19
NorviUe, Joshua  81, 82 83
Norville, Maria  , . 84
Non Residents  100
Norristown  134, 142, 223
Norris, Samuel  142, 143
North Carolinians  210
Nuttal, 22, 24, 25, 37, 47, 48, 66, 73, 86
97, 111, 118, 222, 264,
Ouachita  16
Oden, Robert C, 35, 54, 63, 64, 73, 85
102, 170, 176, 177, 188, 196.
Odle,. Benjamin F  129
Oden-Conway Race  170
O'Hara, WUliam  Ill, 287
OU Trough Bottom  155
OUver, L. H  93
Old County Officers  100
Old Dwight Mission  142, 223
Oldtown  152
Old men of Lafayette, Izard, PhU
lips, Hempstead, Conway, Hot
Spring, Serier. Pope, Washington,
Clark, Jefferson, Miller, Indepen
dence, and Pulaski  159, 160
Old River  168
Old Cherokee Village  254
Old Time Mother Wit  268
Old Time Acumen  269
Old Marriage Poetry  259, 260
Old Pulaski Pioneers  260
Oldest Church Edifices  284
Origin of the Prorincial  283
O'Neals  274
Orr, Dr. WiUiam  289
Overban, Mrs. George  160
Orr, Mr  224
Owen, E. W  221
Overton, Judge  118
Osborne, Robert W  98
Osage  152
Ookuquahtuh  224
Parker, Samuel  101
Piilmer, W. M  128
Pattersons  26
Patterson, WiUiam  43, 48
Patterson, James  43
Pace, Twitty  142
ParacUfta  151
Paulette, Odelle  286
Palmon, EUzabeth W  286
Paxton, Joseph  , . .. . 289
Pace, Joseph  362

420

Index

Parrish, Elizabeth  360
Parrish, Anderson  360
Peeler, Richmond. .. .17, 110, 121, 166
Ferryman, Montford  '. . . 41 , 118
Pena, Antoine  42
Peel, Col. Richard  161
Peters, Digest  22
Peel, Sam W  161
Perry, Moses  42, 120
Petersel, Michael  44
Pertuis, Michael  44
Pertuis, Peter  44, 45, 95
Perte, Pierre  44, 95
Pertuis, Elizabeth  45
Perry, Leon  45
Pentecost, Darby  128
Peels and MUlers  47
Pennington, Col. Jack  72
Peel, Richard. ..T  341
Pertuis, ChevaUer  97
Pertuis, Nina  97
Pecannerie  105, 220
Pecan Point  112, 149
Petit, Jean  132, 161
Pelham, Charles H  162, 341, 346
Peay, Nick  167, 230, 239
Persecution  331
Pelham, William  397
Pelham, Thomas  397
Phillips, Sylvanus, 26 30, 43, 48, 77, 120
289.
Phillips County, 26, 105, 115, 123, 147
pharr, Jonathan  48
philpot, Warren  78
pharr, Thomas  250
Phillips, James  277, 289
Phillips, Landing  277
pike, Albert  108, 126
piat, J  48
piat, John  287
pine Bayou  151
pierce, John  114
Pinneaux, Agnes  76
Pioneer Coats of Arms  95
Pioneer Habits  95, 96
Pioneer Officers  97
Pine Bluff  112
Pioneers of Lawrence  113
Piats Town  149
Pilgrims  186
Pitman, Nancy  287
Pitman, Samuel  287
Pitman, Dr. P. R  345
piacide, Baptiste  4-4
Plum Bayou  97
Pleasant Island  151
Ploth, Daniel  345
Post Offices, Earliest  19
Poetry on Arkansas  23
Porter, WilUam  43
Poke Bayou, 43, 47, 98, 104, 112, 146
Porter, Benjamin A  113
Point Chicot  56, 79, 119
Pope, Gov. John, 57, 69, 90, 205, 239, 268
Point Remu  75, 107, 132
Population  104, 115, 116
Political IntelUgencer  125
Politics in Olden Days  134
Pope County  142, 200, 223
Potts, Kirkbride  143
Polet, Clemence  165
Pono, Pierre  287
Pope, Judge  168, 225
Poetry of Senator Spooner  186
PoUard, Sarah  194
Pope, Nathaniel  382
Porterfield, Lavinia  287
Pool, Benjamin  3-17
Pope, Senator John  382

Polk, Bishop  409
Pocahontas  151
Pryor & Richards  14, 84, 100
Pryor, Capt. Nathaniel  95
Preston, Colonel  24
Presbvterians  49
Procter, Edward  42, 120
Price, Archibald  101
Pringle, Chri.stian  44, 73, 74
Pringle, John  73
Preston, Isaac  90
Price, J. S  144
Pre-emption  206, 207
Pre-emption Speeches  211, 215
Pre-emption Laws  213
Prairie Township  225
Pritchard, Captain Rees  320
Pula.ski County, 37, 38, 49, 50, 102, 106
116, 117.
Pulaski County Heroes  78
Pulaski Court House  87
Pulaski Commissioners  87
Puritans  185
Pulaski County Slaves  238
Pyeatt, Major John  45, 47, 48, 49
Pyeatt, Jacob  45, 48, 102, 160
166.
Pyeatt, Betsv  47
Pyeatt, Henry P  49
Pyeatt, Peter  47, 48
Pyeatt, James  49
Pyeatt, Jane  166
Pyeatt, Margaret  48
Quapaw Indians  23, 27, 73
Quapaw Treaty  73
Quaries, WUUam  189
Quisenbery, -VWUiam  226, 402
Ragan, J. B. 0  16
Ramer, Abraham  43
Racine, Althenas  43, 44
Ramsay, William  162
Rankin, Mary  254
Race Course  254
Randolph County  344
Rankin, Elbert H  369
Rankin, Robert W  369
Reed, James  108, 125
Read, John  114
Refeld, Charies  43, 44
Revolutionary Heroes, 49, 60, 77, 78, 113
Rector, Wharton, 57, 133, 141, 147, 239
394
Rector Family, 106, 133, 370 to 410
Rector, Elias  147
Rector, Stephen  147, 383, 390
Rector, Gen'I Wm, 94, 106, 107, 149, 217
279, 372, 379, 380, 381, 382, 383 to 389
Rector, Thomas  94
Rector, Survey  106, 107, 392
Rechter, John Jacob  372, 373
Rector, John  374, 375
Rector, Governor Henry M., 372, 401 409
Rechta,r Jacob  373
Rechtor, John Jacob  373
Rector, E. W. of Hot Springs, 372, 406
407, 408, 409, 410.
Rector, Harmon  374
Rectortown  376
Rector, John's WiU  376
Rector Descendants  376
Rector, Frederick  378, 379, 380
Rectors of lUinois  379 '
Rector Fa ily Names  378
Rector EUas of St. Louis, 379, 380, 381
382, 383, 384, to 399.
Rector, Nelson  383, 384, 388, 390
Rector Influence  393

Index

421

Rector, Elias ot Ft. Smith  396
Rector, Ann  396
Rector, Thomas C  399
Rector, Frank Wilson  404
Rector, Ann Baylor  404
Rector, W Field  405
Rector, John Sevier  405
Rector, Henry Massey Jr  405
Rector, Grace Greenwood  406
Rector, Ernestine  406
Rector, Levison  406
Rector, Alcorn  408
Rector, AmeUa W  408
Rector, Henry F  408
Rector, James A  408, 409
Rector, Jane Elizabeth  409
Rector, SaUie F  409
Rector, Fannie F  409
Rector, Ernestine F  409
Reynolds, Professor  57
Regimental, Colonels  72
Reece, WiUiam  76
Redfield  79
Removal of Indians  132, 133
Reed, Mrs. Wm  160
Reinhardt, James O  297
Reconstruction  324, 325
Redman, J  341
Read, John  341
Riggs, Wm  43
RicHland  73, 79
Richie, L  113, 156
Rightor, N  124, 128, 147
Riley vs Bradford  87
Ridge, John  114
Rival Townsiters. . ,  188
Ringgold, Lucretia  335
Ringgold, Judge  335, 345
Ricliardson  362
Roads, Early  16, 144 to 147
Roosevelt, President  20
Roane, Sam C. 26, 68, 73, 80 to 93, 103
168, 180, 189. 265.
Rodrigues, John  42
Rorer, Darid  57, 239, 260
RolUn, Mr  134, 222
Rogers, John  134, 223
Robinson, WiUiam  112
Robinson, John  78
Roane Family  80
Roane, John S  80, 93
Roane, Fannie  93
Roane & NorveUe  83
Roane, Hennie  93
Roane, Mary  93
Roane, James  93
Roane, Johanna  93
Roane, John Jordan  94
Roane, Ida  93
Roane, Samuel C, Jr  94
Roane, Juliet  94
Rose FamUv  80
Rome  83, 111
Roland George  144
Rockfort  161
RoyaU, John  160
Royall, Mrs, John  160
Rogers, Adustin  220, 287
Rowland, Mahala....  2,59, 262
Rowland, Thomaa  269, 264
Ro-«land, Maria S  262
Robin.son, John  278
Robinson, James  278
Rol)inson, Michael D  288
Rowland, R. N  264
Robinson, WiUiam  279
Rose, U. M  325
Ross, John  352
Ross, James  353

Daniel  353
Ross, David  353
Ross, Agnes.  354
Rosses  355, 356
Ross Earls of  355
Rose, George  368
Rose, John  368
Rowen, John  347
RuddeU, George.-  114
RuddeU, Abraham  114, 338 to 342
Rutherford, Col. S. M., 57, 100, 265, 268
RusseUviUe  75, 201
Runkle, Thomas S  397
Runkle, Mary A  397
St. Louis  12
St. Louis Papers  22, 104
St. Francis River  26, 42
St. Francis  126
St. Francis Settlements  44
St. Francis Townsbip  38
St. Francis  42
St. Martin  142
St. Helena  146
St. FrancisvUle  151
St. Genevieve Road  152
St. Francis County  254
' St. John's College  367
St. Louis Republican  104
Sampson, George  83
Saline Landing  148
Saline Creek  148
Safriet  148
Sanford, Henry  165
Safford, Judge W. G  220
Saylors, J. C  278
Sanders, Simon T  312
Sanders, Sarah V  312
Scarborough  101
Scott, Judge Andrew, 31, 51, 63, 97, 100
142, 289, 287, 196, 197, 198, 252
253, 165, 180, 195 to 202.
Scott, John R. H. . ., 51, 63, 143, 199, 201
Scott, Geo. W., 63, 64, 165, 231, 239
Scotia  143, 152, 200
Schoolcraft  149, 155
Schoolcraft and Drummond  155
Scarborough, James  166
ScuU. James  13, 194
Scott, Selden Dael  199
Scipes, Margaret  287
Scott, Joseph  354
ScuU, Hewes, 28, 30, 50, 72, 98, 100
Scott, John  20, 51
Searcy, Richard, 19, 30, 88, 102, 112, 114
189, 341, 345.
Searcy, James  114, 346
Sevier, Joseph  42, 120
Serrano, Martin  44
Seneca Indian Agent  58
Selden, Joseph,. .. .77, 110, 197, 288
Serville, De Monsieur Le Moir  78
Serier, A. H., 88, 94, 183, 202, 204, 206
to 215, 239.
Settlements in 1820  109
Sebastian, Wm. R  128
Seviers  183
Sevier, Annie M  204
Serier, Mattie J  204
Sevier, Elizabeth  204
Serier, A. H  204
Sevier-Crittenden Race. -.  209
Searcy, Elizabeth  335
Shiriey  120
Shaver, John  114
Shannon, John  115
Shirt Sleeved Millionaires  93
Shiloh  143
Shinn, Jacob  144, 368

422

Index

Shinn, B. D. R  144
Shaddy, Andrew  347
Shaier, Jacob  346
Sims, Absalom  144
Siscoe, Henry  160
Simmons, J  221
Sloane, Rev. Robt  49
Slaughter, R. F  ,54, 65
SUnkard, Jacob  220
Slavery  235 to 237, 342, 343
Slaveholders  239
Slaveholdings in Virginia  359
Slaveholding Social Currents  360
Smith, Jefferson  126
Smith, Dr. Geo. W  205
Smith, Sarah S  205
Smith, Amelia  205
'Smith, Bernard  230
Smith, John  232
Smith, Mary A  306
Smith, Dr  124
Smithee, J, N  324
Socie, Baptiste  25
Spring River  146
Spencer, Capt  36, 124
Spaulding, Rufus P  36
Spring HUl  152
Spring River Circuit  112
Spadra Bluff  137, 222
Spanish Land Grants  197
Stephenson, W  121
StilweU, Joseph, 17, 27, 28, 42, M, 69, 77
122.
StilweU, Harold  27, 110, 121
Strawberry  76, 155, 104
Stephens, Jesse  42, 120
Stenson, Charles  42
Stroud, Adam  101
Stpvvart.Col. J. M  101, 110, 195
.Stanley, Benjamin  45
^ Stanley-, John  ¦15
Stanlpv, William  .... 4.5
StUweU, John  73
Stuart, Abraham  77, 109, 110
Stuart, Lunetta  110
Stuart, N. E  ,  110
Stuart, J. L  110
Stuart, Elijah  110
Stuart, Col. Wm  110, 288, 347
Stuart, .Asenath  288
Stuart, Mrs. .\braham  160
Stewart, Nari(-\- W  85
Stewart, John W  160
Stewart, Jane B . . . .  193
Strong, WUliam  -  94
Steele, John W  126
Stinnett, H  142
Strickland, WiUiam  168
Stetson, Ella  224
Stevenson, Rev. Vi . W  233
Stevenson, Maria  233 , 234
Stephenson, John  287
Stephenson, William  28S
Stephenson, Mrs  288
Starr, Moses  286
Strange, John A  352
Stadt Bibliothek  372
Starcke, Eugene H  404
Superior Court Salaries  86
Superior Court, 87, 88, 89, 90, 99, 100, 195
Sumpter, S. R  128
Sulphur Rock  151
Superstitious  285
Surveyors, General  389
Sutherland, William W  404
Tatum, W. M  248
Taylor, Congressman  9
Taylor, Polly  113

Taylor, James  113
Taylor, Peter  114
Taylor, Mrs. Joseph  161
Taylor, John  42, 83, 120
Taylor, Archibald  75
Taylor, Creed  165
Taylor, John  165
Tessier, Antoine  26
Texas, Founder of  55
Terry, Edna V  404
Tecumseh  152, 339
Test Oath Cases , 314, 315, 316, 317, 318
Tennesse, Roanes  81
Tennant, Thomas H  338
Thatch, Frank W  367
Thruston Family  398, 399
Thruston, Fannie B  397
Three Brother Theory  255
Thorn, Jacob  278
ThornhiU, Joseph  230
Thurston, PauUna  333
Thornton  58
Thompson, Davies  128
Tindall, Thomas H  19
Titsworth, James  220
Titsworth  237
Town Lot Sales  Ill, 112
Townships  115, 116
Towns,  148, 150
Toncre, Marie  233
Toncray, Rev, Silas T., 231, 261, 263, 286
Toncray, Haida T  263
Treat, Samuel  43, 44
Trimble, James, 115, 116, 341, 346
Trimble, John  341
Trudean, Joseph  45
Trammell, John  47
Trimble, William, 77, 83, 110, 121, 180
201
Trammel, Nicholas  98
Thomas, Oliver H  100
Thomas Fort  147
Traveler, The Arkansas  221, 226
Trustees Far West Academy  224
Tripletts  274
Trigg, General  ' . . 401
Turk's Prairie  43
Tucker, Peyton  114
Ultima, Thule  151
Union  1.52
U. S. Pension Rolls  78
Utica  lis
Utterback, Harmon  372
Vaugine, Lewismore  24
Vaugine, Major Francis, 25, 30,45, 68,
73, 86, 97, 165, 286
Vaugines  24, 44
Vaugine, Susette  '. 24
Vaugine Settlement  ' 148
Vaugine, Etienne  26, 74
Vaugine, Walter  165
Vaugine, Francis Jr  ., . 286
Vaugine, Paul  287
Vaugine Township  86
Valliere, Don Joseph  24
Valliere, Francis  25, 44
Valliere, ,Joseph  ' . 25
Valliere, FeUcity  '..'.' 166
Varsier, Francis  .25, 98
Vasseau, Etienne  ' . 44
Vasseau, Francis  44
Vasseur, Victor  97
Varle Map  145
Vann, James  50
Vance, David  -78, 161, 229
Van Zandt, James  78, 279
Van Zandt, Martin  .' 114

Index

423

Van Buren  152
Vaughn, Samuel  160
Vaughn, Mrs. Samuel  160
Vandegrift, Lina  205
Vance, J, D  336
Vaughn, Mr  409
Villemont, Don Carlos  79 , 97
Villemont, MatUda  80
Villemont   148
VigUance Committee  . 127
Vineyard  152
Votes for Delegate  65
Walter, Congressman  9
Wappenocke   41, 118
Walter, Darid  76
Washington  108,110, 148
Watkins, Major Isaac, . . . 167, 228 to 235
-Watkins, George C. . 194, 229, 233, 234
Watkins Family  .-.. .229, 233
Wayland, Mrs  114
Walker, Col. Alex. S., 47, 51, 61, 79, 101
232, 252, 346.
Wallis, Perley  64, 55
Washington County Heroes  78
WarreU, St.ephen  98
Washburn, Rev. Cephas, 141, 222 to 229
276.
Wallace, George  144
Watson's Map  145
Washita  j48
Walnut Camp  151
War Eagle  152
Waters , Mrs, Samuel  161
Watkins Hotel  167
Ward , James  221
Washburn, Edward P  221, 225
Ward, John  160
Watkins, Dr. R. A  233
Watkins, Mary E  234
Walker, James  .'  239
Watauga  243
Walker, vs. Hogan  252
Watkins, Elizabeth M  263
Watkins, Dr. Owen  263
Ware, Dr  3OS
Walker, IsabeUe  308
Walker, David  308
Ward, Zeb  324
Wayne, Mad Anthony  340
Wayland, Nevell  342
Watson, Zaccheus  352
Wayman  372
Walker, WUUam  396
War Governor  403
WeUs, Col. Jack  72
Wells, John  113
WeUs, Henry C 
Welden, John  78, 279
Welch, Mary  114
Welborn, Major  134, 217
Wear, Doctor  144
Webb, Meredith  144
'West, D. Port«r  144
West, Jonathan  160
Wetmore, Geo. C  161
Webb, Eliza  165
Wedding Feasts  162
Welch, Margaret  165
Welch, Robert  166
West Point Cadets  194
Weber, Walter  223
Weaver, J. F  226
Westland, Mark  288
Western Land Agency  289
Weaver, Tillman  372
White River P. 0  19, 108
White River  25, 26
White River Settlements  44
Who 's Who of Arkansas  29
Wherry, J, A  130

White Oak Bayou  47
White, Thomas  219
White, Nancy  248
Whites  274
Whittaker, John . '. '  287
White, John  358
Whiteford, Baron  407
Wharton, Ann  378
Winters and StiUwell  '26
Winters, Elisha  26, 46, 97
Winters, Gabriel  26, 27
Winter, StUwell Grant  27
Wilson, John  101, 194
Wilson, Mary A  194
Wilson, Dr. John  142, 144
WUson, Mrs, John  160
Wilson, WilUam  289 »
Wilson, Family  348 to 370^^
WUson, Richard  350
Wilson James, 351, 352, 353, 354
Wilson, Joseph  352
Wilson, John  357
WUson, Elizabeth  367
Wilson 's School  359
Wilson, Barnett  361, 362, 363
WUson, John T  361
WUson, Benjamin F, 361, 362, 363, 364
365
Wilson, Martha  361
WUson, Lucy  362-
Wil.son, Robert B., 365, 366, 367, 368
369, 370.
Wilson, Judson  365
Wilson, Martha A  366
Wilson, Matilda  366 '
Wilson, Katherine  366
WUson, James E  366
Wilaon, H.H  369
WUson, Mary  369
WUson, Frank C . ,  369 "
Wilsonia  369i
Wilson, R. J  144-
WiUiams, Tliomas  43 '
WUliams, David  114
Wu-t, WiUiams  SO, 89, 90
Witter, Judge  84
Williams Camp Ground  143
WilUams, Owen  144
WUliams, Mrs. Alexander  160
WiUiams, Matilda  204
WilUamson, John  27-7
WiUiams, B, D  324
WUliams, Sam W  325
WUliams, SaUy W  361
Williams, J. E  368
WiUiams, McGhee  409
Woodruff, WilUam E. Sr, 11, 12, 13, 14
15, 16, 17, 22, 38, 61, 61, 68, 71, 77, 84
90, 103, 108, 138, 196, 230, 233, 240
259, 346.
Wolff, Michael  44
Wolf, Anthony  45
Wolsey, Cardinal  59, 184
Woodward, WilUam  166
Womack, Larkin  219
Wolff, Jane  287
Woodward, WUliam  288
Woodruff, Alden M  295
Wootten, Middleton L  409
Wright, Claiborne  289
Wycough, Mark  336
Wolf, Jacob  160
Yell, Col  79, 193
Yell County  143
YeUviUe  152
Yeomans, WilUam F  126, 268
Zebulon  151
Zoeller, Christian E  347
ZolUcoffer, Jacob C  372

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