USA > Arkansas > Biographical and historical memoirs of eastern Arkansas, comprising a condensed history of the state, a number of biographies of distinguished citizens of the same, a brief descriptive history of each of the counties named herein, and numerous biographical sketches of the prominent citizens of such counties. > Part 44
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casionally working at his trade in connection with his milling operations. After purchasing a farm of 160 acres in Conway County, in 1862, he settled his family there, and June 20 of the same year he enlisted in Company A, Col. Glenn's regiment, and was on detached duty in Arkansas for about a month as teamster, and was afterward promoted to the position of wagon master, in which capacity he served until January, 1864. While at home on furlough the Federal troops got possession of the State of Arkansas, and Mr. Wright was cut off from his command, and did not again enter serv- ice. In 1864 he bought an interest in a large flouring mill, which was known as the Peach Or- chard Tap Mill, but sold out two years later, and in 1869 purchased the farm where he is now resid- ing, and since 1870 has also operated the Warren & Davis flour, grist and cotton-gin mill, following the latter occupation in El Paso from 1872 to 1886. He has been very successful and at one time owned 240 acres of land, but at the present time has in his possession 160 acres with about 100 acres under cultivation. Mr. Wright and his wife belong to the Missionary Baptist Church, and in his political views he is a Democrat. He belongs to El Paso Lodge No. 65 of the A. F. & A. M., and has at- tained the Chapter degree. He has taken an active interest in the advancement of education in his county, and was one of the few who voted for the special school tax. He has also contributed liberally to schools.
James A. Wright, postmaster and express agent at Higgins, grew to manhood in Alabama, and in Independence County, Ark., receiving a good edu- cation. In 1861 he joined the Confederate army, in the Eighth Arkansas Infantry, and served the first year east of the Mississippi, afterward being transferred to the Trans-Mississppi Department, and undergoing capture as a prisoner of war, at Little Rock, though he was only retained only six weeks. He was in Price's raid through Missouri, and participated in the battles of Prairie Grove, Helena, Pilot Knob and a number of skirmishes, and was accidentally wounded, losing his right leg. After being discharged in the latter part of 1864, he went to Searcy and engaged in farming
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and the mercantile business, and in August, 1874, moved to his present location where he has since been selling goods with flattering success. Mr. Wright was born in Jackson County, Ala., Febru- ary 21, 1842, to the union of N. A. and Martha (Byranny) Wright, natives of Alabama. The former was a Methodist minister, and upon his removal from Alabama to Arkansas, located in Independ- ence County in 1858, ten years later coming to Searcy. After one year here he went to Red River County, Tex., and died there October 2, 1877, at the age of sixty-two years, his wife pre- ceding him two months; she was a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. They were the par- ents of nine children, six of whom are living: James A. (our subject), Lovenia (wife Mr. Gideon, of Alabama), Malinda (now Mrs. Malden, of Texas),
Amanda (also Mrs. Malden, residing in Texas), Mary (Mrs. Taylor, of St. Francis County), and Ellen (widow of a Mr. Malden). In connection with his other business Mr. Wright held the position of agent of the Iron Mountain Railroad at Higgins, from 1875 until July, 1889, also being appointed postmaster of Higgins, in March, 1875, which office he still occupies. May 15, 1864 he was married to Mary A. Ellis, who was born in Carroll County, Tenn., in 1846. They have a family of nine chil- dren: Mattie (wife of W. H. Chrisp), W. H., Maud L., Tommie, P. H., George D., Ollie and Willie. Mrs. Wright is a member of the Methodist Epis- copal Church, South. Mr. Wright belongs to the I. O. O. F., is a decided Democrat and is one of the founders of the village of Higgins. As an es- teemed citizen he is widely known.
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CHAPTER XVI.
WOODRUFF COUNTY-PERIOD OF SETTLEMENT-FIRST PIONEERS-COUNTY FORMATION-SEAT OF JUSTICE -BUILDINGS FOR BUBLIC USE-JUDICIAL HISTORY-LEGAL BAR-POLITICAL STATUS-DIREC- TORY OF OFFICIALS-MILITARY AFFAIRS-GEOGRAPHICAL SITUATION-BOUNDARY AND AREA-TOPOGRAPHY-PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION-RESOURCES-CEN- SUS STATISTICS-VALUATION AND TAXATION-TRANSPORTA- TION-POPULATION-EDUCATIONAL AND RELIGIOUS FACILITIES-SOCIETY-COMMERCIAL CENTERS.
Look forward what's to come, and back what's past; Thy life will be with praise and prudence graced; What loss or gain may follow thou may'st guess, Then wilt thou be secure of the success.
EFORE the settlement of Ar- kansas by the Americans be- 3163163 1501 gan, the Chickasaw Indians occupied the eastern part, and the Quawpaws were lo- cated on and along the Ar- kansas River in the western part. In visiting each other these tribes crossed White River at the point where Augusta is now located. Hence long before Au- gusta was established its site was called Chickasaw Crossing. The first white settler of the territory composing Woodruff County was a Mr. Hamilton, who, about the year 1820, landed at Chickasaw Crossing, and "squatted" upon the present site of Augusta. Soon thereafter-say some time between 1822 and 1826-Rolla Gray, with his family and others, came up the river in a small boat from a for- mer settlement made near Indian Bay, or mouth of Cache River, near the present town of Clarendon,
and landed at Chickasaw Crossing. Mr. Gray then bought the right, "good-will or possession," of Mr. Hamilton, became a permanent settler, and lived here until his death. The sons of Mr. Gray, who came and settled with him, were John, Jesse, Daniel, Samuel and Jacob, all of whom afterward made individual settlements. John Gray and two of his brothers settled in that part of the county now known as the Point, in the southern part of the county. John became a stock raiser, and suc- ceeded so well that in 1840, he owned "upward of 100 horses," and in 1841 he drove "400 or 500" head of cattle to Jacksonport, and there shipped them to New Orleans. The two brothers built the first mill in the Point, on Bayou Cache. These three constituted the entire settlement of that section until 1843, when Durant H. Bell, of Tennessee, came and settled there. Others then followed in rapid succession until the Point was
*In the compilation of the history of Woodruff County, acknowledgments are due to Thomas E. Erwin and wife, Dr. F. D. Dale, writer of the pamphlet enti- tled "Woodruff County," and others for valuable infor- mation furnished.
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fully settled. Daniel Gray is said to have been a great bear hunter.
In 1827 John Dennis, a son-in-law of Rolla Gray, settled about three miles south of Chickasaw Crossing, and near the same time two brothers, Michael and Joseph Haggerdon, settled in the vicinity of the Crossing. Redding Stokes and his two sons, George Hatch and Samuel Taylor, were the first settlers on Taylor's Bay, it being named after the latter. Dudley Glass and John Teague settled the O'Neal place, four miles north of Au- gusta. Teague Lake was named after the latter. In 1835 Maj. John Roddy and his brother, Elias B., natives of South Carolina, settled in the vicin- ity about three miles northeast of Chickasaw Cross- ing. In the latter part of 1840, or early in 1841, James Barnes, an eccentric pioneer, founded the Jennie Colony between Cache River and Bayou De View, now De View Township. He named it in honor of his wife, whose first name was Jennie. Thomas Arnold, Absalom Arnold and his son Jerry, were the next settlers of the Jennie Colony. The fame of this colony " spread round about," and it soon became more fully settled. Perhaps the most noted pioneer settler, though not the first, was Thomas Hough, the founder of Augusta. His work as a public man will be mentioned further on. Among what may properly be called the second early settlers, were Thomas E. Erwin, J. L. Mur- phy and Lieut. L. M. Sawyer, all of whom are living. Mr. Erwin settled in the territory com- posing Woodruff County, on Taylor's Bay, in 1840, and is now the oldest surviving settler. Mr. Lewis settled ten miles south of Augusta, in 1846. [For further mention of pioneer settlers see Biographical Department. ]
Inasmuch as the territory composing this coun- ty was nearly all taken from Jackson, it is proper here to mention the formation of that county. Jackson County was organized in accordance with an act of the legislature of the Territory of Arkan- sas, approved November 5, 1829, and early in 1830 the first courts were held at the house of Thomas Wideman, where Erwin Station* is now situated,
on the Batesville & Brinkley Railroad. The courts were continued to be held there until 1832, when the seat of justice was established at the town of Litchfield, which was located on Village Creek, at the crossing of the Jacksonport and Augusta wag- on road. The county seat remained at this place until 1839, when it was removed to Elizabeth, on White River, midway between the present towns of Jacksonport and Newport, on the same river. Here it remained until 1852, when it was removed to Augusta (the present county seat of Woodruff County). The following year it was removed to Jacksonport, where it has ever since remained.
The assertion that the county seat of Jackson County was held at Augusta in 1852 and 1853 has been strenuously disputed by certain later citizens of that place, but the statement is made upon the authority of personal examination of the county records; additional conclusive proof of this avow- al is seen by the following letter from the present clerk of Jackson County:
Jacksonport, Ark., July 15, 1889.
SIR: The record here shows that the county court of the county was held from April, 1852, to October, 1853, at Augusta. The opening order for the April term, 1852, reads as follows: "At a county court begun and held for the county of Jackson, at the court house in the town of Augusta, on Monday the 12th day of April, 1852, present Hon. John H. T. Webb, presiding judge." The circuit, chancery and probate courts were also held at Augusta.
Respectfully yours, J. J. WALKER, clerk. Per E. L. BOYCE, D. C.
Certainly this record evidence is all that is nec- essary to settle the question, as the county court and all the other courts of Jackson County would not have been held at Augusta if it had not been the county seat.
Woodruff County was created by a vote of the people in pursuance to ordinance of the State Con- vention of 1861, and was organized in 1862. It was named in honor of William E. Woodruff, edi- tor of the first paper published in Arkansas, the Arkansas Gazette, first published at Arkansas Post, in 1819. He was one of the most distinguished pioneers of the State, and died recently, at Little
It was the site of the old Shawnee Indian village, but abandoned as such when Mr. Wideman settled thereon.
*This was the oldest cleared place in Jackson County, having been cleared by the Indians over 100 years ago.
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Rock, at a very advanced age. It being during the war period, the organization of the county was not fully and permanently completed until 1865, the end of that period. The county court record prior to September, 1865, seems not to have been preserved, at least it does not appear on file in the clerk's office.
Immediately upon the organization of the coun- ty, the seat of justice was established at Augusta, where it has ever since remained. The first court house erected at Augusta was a one-story frame building, which is still standing on the west side of Second Street, on Lots 11 and 12, in Block 8, according to the original plat of the town. The second court house was a residence with two rooms (frame), and stood on the north west corner of Block 22. It was purchased by the county, but used only a short time, until the present court house was occupied. This latter house was built just before the Civil War, by Thomas Hough, for a residence, and was used as such by his family, through the war period and later. On April 21, 1870, Mr. Hough, for the consideration of $28,000, conveyed the realty on which this house stands, consisting of a full block of ground, according to the plat of that part of the town, to the county for a court house and public square. The build- ing is a large, two-story brick structure, and, though built for a residence, it answers very well for a court house. It stands in the northern sub- urbs of the town.
Soon after this property was purchased, a stone jail was erected on the southeast corner of the square, and was afterward set on fire by prisoners and destroyed. The present jail is in a brick building, which was erected by Mr. Hough near his residence for the occupancy of his servants. The county owns a "poor farm," with fair aver- age buildings thereon, for the home of its pau- pers. This farm lies in Section 16, Township 8 north, Range 3 west.
The courts of the county consist of the county, probate and circuit. The regular terms of the former begin on the first Mondays of January, April, July and October of each year, and the reg- ular terms of the probate court on the fourth Mon -
days of the same months. The regular terms of the circuit court convene the third Mondays of February and August. The first term of this court, as appears of record, was held in October, 1865, by Hon. William R. Cain, judge presiding. The grand jury selected and empaneled at this term consisted of the following-named gentlemen: James P. Ferguson (foreman), Edmond N. Shel- ton, William Kemble, Andrew J. Henry, Y. B. Brantley, Littleberry G. Wilkerson, Thomas B. Roddy, Thomas H. Penn, Gabriel Couch, Gabriel M. Couch, George Mayfield, Henry W. Linthicum, Jesse H. Wolf, Samuel Whitcomb, William B. Tilmon and Oliver O'Neal. The Woodruff Circuit Court belongs to the First judicial district, com - posed of the counties of Phillips, Lee, St. Francis, Prairie, Woodruff, White and Monroe. The pres- ent judge is M. T. Sanders, of Helena, and the prosecuting attorney is S. Brundidge, of Searcy. The local legal bar of this county consists of: T. E. Stanley and D. D. Leach, of Augusta, and A. F. Maberry and Will T. Trice, of Cotton Plant. It is evident from the small number of attorneys that there is but little litigation carried on in the county.
To show the political aspect of Woodruff Coun- ty, the votes cast for the candidates for Governor and for President at the late elections is here given: For Governor at the September election, 1888, James P. Eagle (Dem.), 1,548; C. N. Norwood (Com. Opp.), 1,375; for President, at the Novem- ber election, 1888, Cleveland (Dem.), 1,236; Har- rison (Rep.), 1,021; Streeter (U. L.), 192; Fiske (Pro.), 2.
The following is a list of the names of the county officers of Woodruff County, with date of terms of service annexed, from the time of organi- zation:
Judges: I. McCurdy, 1862-64; E. T. Jones, 1864-65; R. W. Martin, 1865-66; E. T. Jones, 1866-68; A. D. Blanchard, 1868-72; L. M. Ram- saur, 1874-76; E. T. Jones, 1876-82; J. B. Dent, 1882-88; W. T. Trice, present incumbent, elected in 1888.
Clerks: V. L. Walters, 1862-64; D. H. John- son, 1864-66; W. P. Campbell, 1866-68; D. H.
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Johnson, 1868-74; W. P. Campbell, 1874-82; A. W. Jones, 1882-86; W. E. Ferguson, present in- cumbent, first elected in 1886.
Sheriffs: J. R. Jelks, 1862-64; John Thorp, 1864-66; J. R. Jelks, 1866-68; J. N. Bosley, 1868-74; J. R. Jelks, 1874-76; A. W. Jones, 1876-78; Ed. Roddy, 1878-80; A. W. Jones, 1880-82; W. E. Ferguson, 1882-86; Ed. Roddy, present incumbent, first elected in 1886.
Treasurers: James Smock, 1862-64; T. E. Erwin, 1864-66; R. L. Barnes, 1866-68; W. M. Reynolds, 1868-71; E. H. Shelton, 1871-72; T. E. Erwin, 1872-74; C. T. Petit, 1874-82; War- ren Sale, 1882-84; J. W. Sallee, 1884-86; War- ren Sale, present incumbent, first elected in 1886.
Coroners: James Crawford, 1862-64; William Cornelius, 1864-66; W. H. Dickinson, 1866-68; Edwin Wilson, 1868-72; J. A. Hamlet, 1874-76, B. F. Hawkins, 1876-78; N. J. Barbee, 1878-80; William Elsberry, 1880-82; C. H. Devain, 1882-84; R. W. Stokes, 1884-86; H. D. Spivey, 1886-88; W. A. Harper, present incumbent, elected in 1888.
Surveyors: C. S. Cabler, 1862-64; R. H. Cotney, 1864-68; G. D. F. Malone, 1868-72; C. W. Montague, 1872-74; R. T. Cotney, 1874-78; R. K. Fitzhugh, 1878-82; W. F. Fesperman, 1882-84; E. S. Freeman, 1884-86; L. H. Weed, 1886-88; R. K. Fitzhugh, present incumbent, elected in 1888.
Assessors: W. P. Anderson, 1868-72; J. H. Johnson, 1872 to May, 1874; James B. Dent, from May, 1874; W. W. Garland, 1874-80; W. E. Fer- guson, 1880-82; G. W. Gordon, 1882-86; J. P. Hobbs, 1886-88; J. W. Sallee, present incumbent, elected in 1888.
Delegates in State Conventions: W. H. Gray was elected to represent the county in the State convention held January 7 to February 18, 1868, but did not attend. William J. Thompson repre- sented the county in the State convention held July 14 to October 31, 1874.
Upon the approach of the Civil War of 1861-65, many of the citizens of the territory now embraced in Woodruff County, were opposed to secession, but when actual operations of a warlike nature began, they generally cast their lot with the proposed
Southern Confederacy, and did what they could to help establish it. In May, 1861, Capt. Charles Matlock organized a company of State troops at Augusta, and in July following, it was mustered into the Confederate service at Mazzard Prairie near Fort Smith, and became a part of Col. Churchill's regiment-the First Arkansas Mounted Rifles. Capt. James H. Patterson raised the second company at Augusta, in July, 1861, "The Independent Jackson Rangers," as they were called, and soon after this company moved to Mammoth Springs in Fulton County, and there joined Col. Snavell's battalion of Missouri Cavalry. Later, in 1861, Capt. Robert Anthony, Jr., raised a company, mostly in what is now the northern part of Woodruff County, and it joined and became a part of the Eighth Arkansas Infantry. After- ward, in May, 1862, Capt. Ed. T. Jones raised a company at Augusta, and, moving to Little Rock, it joined Col. Pleasant's regiment of the Trans- Mississippi Department. Subsequently Capt. John Bland raised a company, or part of a com- pany, in the territory now composing Woodruff County. This company was composed largely of deserters from the army and conscripts.
All of these companies served in the Confeder- ate army, and acquitted themselves as gallant soldiers. No troops were raised within what is now the limits of the county for the Federal army. In the spring of 1864, Gen. Davidson came up the river in a boat or boats with the Third Minnesota Infantry, landed at Augusta and sent out a com- pany of about ninety men to reconnoiter. On or near the Fitz Hugh farm about six miles northeast of Augusta, this company encountered several hundred Confederate soldiers under command of Gen. McRae. A fight ensued and the Federals fell back in good order to Augusta, suffering a small loss in killed and wounded. Capt. John Bland of the Confederate force and a few of his men were killed. It is said that he and his men did most of the fighting in this engagement, on the part of the Confederates. This was the only skirmish of note that occurred during the war in what is now Woodruff County.
In moving southward, Gen. Steele, command-
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ing a portion of the Union Army, stopped and spent the first week in July, 1862, at Augusta, making his headquarters at the residence of Thomas Hough, now the court house. The General pitched his tent on the lawn near the house, and near where lay a large pile of earth (probably thrown from the cellar). Presently a party of soldiers came and began to dig into the earth pile, but the General stopped them and demanded to know what they expected to find; he was informed that a " nigger," one of Mr. Hough's servants had informed them that a keg of currant wine was buried there. The General at once put an end to further pursuit for the wine, and informed Mr. Hough that he had better remove it. The latter was a Union man but would not fight against his neighbors. Gen. Steele and his staff boarded at Mr. Hough's table. The wine was removed from its hiding place, and there is no doubt about the knowledge that the General and his staff had of its quality. Mr. Hough (now deceased) was very liberal, and the wine was free.
Steele's army then moved on toward Helena, and afterward, in the winter of 1864-65, a small force of Federal troops occupied Augusta for a short time. A portion of Gen. Price's Confeder- ate army passed through Augusta on the occasion of his last raid into Missouri, and some of Gen. Joe Shelby's men passed through it frequently. It was never occupied as a military post by either of the contending armies.
The county of Woodruff, in Eastern Arkansas, is bounded north by Jackson, east by Cross and St. Francis, south by St. Francis and Monroe, and west by Prairie and White Counties. It lies mostly in the 36° of north latitude, and between the fifth principal meridian of the United States surveys, and longitude 14° 21' west from Washington. It comprises an area of 590 square miles, of which less than one-fifth is under cultivation.
Its boundary lines are as follows: Beginning on the fifth principal meridian, where the line between Townships 8 and 9 north, crosses it; thence south on said meridian line to the line divid- ing Townships 4 and 5 north; thence west on the township line to the southwest corner of Section
32, Township 5 north, Range 2 west; thence south to the southeast corner of Section 6, Township 4 north, Range 2 west; thence west to the south- west corner of Section 2, Township 4 north, Range 3 west; thence south on section lines to the line dividing Townships 3 and 4 north; thence west on the township line to the line dividing Ranges 3 and 4 west; thence north on the range line to the line dividing Townships 4 and 5 north; thence west on the township line to the line dividing Ranges 4 and 5 west; thence north on the range line to White River; thence up White River following its mean- ders to the line dividing Townships 7 and 8 north; thence west on the township line to the southwest corner of Section 35, Township 8 north, Range 4 west; thence north on section lines until White River is again intersected; thence up White River, following its meanders to the line dividing Town- ships 9 and 10 north; thence east on the township line to the line dividing Ranges 2 and 3 west; thence south on the range line to the line dividing Townships 8 and 9 north; thence east on the town- ship line to the place of beginning.
Of the area of the county, the St. Louis, Iron Mountain & Southern Railway Company, owns between 2,000 and 3,000 acres, and between 30,000 and 40,000 acres is public property, and the balance is owned by individuals.
Its meteorology for the past forty years gives no record of cyclones or other character of violent storms. The annual mean of barometer officially given for the county is 3007100 The rain fall is
from 44 to 49 inches annually. The mean tem- perature for the year is 60°. The isothermal belt crossing the county is that which includes the vicin- ity of Norfolk, Va., Raleigh, N. C., Atlanta, Ga., Nashville, Tenn., Fort Smith, Ark., and El Paso, N. M.
Woodruff County is a part of the vast scope of lowland farm country, lying between White River, below its confluence with the Black and the Mis- sissippi. There are no hills in the county. The surface is comparatively level, its uplands com- prising above five-eighths of the whole area, rang- ing from one to fifteen feet above high water mark. White River, as has been shown, runs
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nearly all the way along the western boundary of the county. Cache River, a confluent of the White enters the county from the north, near the middle of Range 2 west, and flows thence in a general direction a little west of south, and leaves the county near the southwest corner of Township 4 north, Range 3 west, its average distance from the White being between eight and nine miles. Bayou De View, another confluent of the White, enters the county from the north about two miles west of the northeast corner, and flows southward in nearly the same direction as that of Cache River, leaving the county near the middle of Range 2 west, its average distance east from the Cache being between seven and eight miles. Eastward from this latter stream, the country rises gently to the summit of the ridge between it and L'Anguile River, which flows in a southerly direction through the western part of Cross and St. Francis Counties. Nearly all the natural drainage of the county is through White and Cache Rivers, Bayou De View and their tributaries.
The longitudinal course of these streams has the effect of dividing the county into three great bodies, viz .: that portion lying between White and Cache Rivers, and that lying between Cache River and Bayou De View, and that lying east of the latter. These again are subdivided into small bodies or slight ridges by the smaller streams. The bottom lands along the large water courses, comprising perhaps nearly three-eighths of the area of the county, and known as the "slashes," are more or less subject to overflow. The major part of these lands, however, can be reclaimed and made tillable by levees and a proper system of drainage. The lands thus far cleared and occu- pied are on the ridges between the streams. The soil of the entire county is very rich and fertile. It has two grades known as the " gum lands and the white oak lands," the former being the strongest and most productive. The soil of the uplands is a rich, dark, sandy loam, quick and generous, deep and durable; that of the lowlands is more tenacious. The soil in general is composed of vegetable mold, clay and sand, and much of it is of the alluvial deposits.
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