Centennial history of Arkansas, Part 133

Author: Herndon, Dallas T. (Dallas Tabor), b. 1878
Publication date: 1922
Publisher: Chicago, Little Rock, The S. J. Clarke publishing company
Number of Pages: 1172

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CARL S. BUNGART, M. D.

Dr. Carl S. Bungart, whose activity in the practice of medicine and surgery in Fort Smith since 1911 has been interrupted only by his service in the World war, was born in Kansas City, Missouri, in 1877 and is a son of H. F. and Nannie (Freese) Bungart, the former a Kansas City attorney. The son was educated in the public school there and afterward spent four years as a student in the State Agricultural College of Colorado. Determining upon medical practice as a life work, he then devoted four years to study in the Hahnemann Medical College at Kansas City, from which he was graduated with the class of 1902. He afterward spent one year in study in the University Medical College at Kansas City, Missouri, graduating in 1905, and a further year in postgraduate study in New York in 1910.

Dr. Bungart entered upon the active work of his profession in 1902 in old Mexico, going to that country first as a bridge surgeon, while later he was made chief surgeon for the Vera Cruz & Pacific Railroad. He came to Fort Smith, Arkansas, in 1911 and has here practiced continuously save for the period of his service with the Medical Corps, U. S. A., in the World war. He entered the army in the fall of 1917 and was sent to France the following year, returning on the 30th day of June, 1919. He was made a captain of the Medical Corps with Base Hospital No. 68, which has the record of taking care of the greatest number of injured with the smallest surgical and hospital personnel in France. It is recorded that in one day over four thou- sand injured were cared for in this hospital. This meant work night and day for Dr. Bungart and his assistants. He occupied the chair of major surgery in Base Hospital No. 68, at Mars Sur Allies, France. He has specialized in accidental surgery and is now surgeon in connection with the building of the new million-dollar bridge that is being constructed across the river at Fort Smith. He is also surgeon for various factories of the city and is local surgeon for the United States Fidelity & Guaranty Company.

Dr. C. S. Bungart was married to Miss Linnie E. Bush, a daughter of George W. Bush of Kansas City, Missouri. Dr. Bungart is a Mason and is a loyal follower of its teachings and purposes. Along professional lines he is identified with the Sebastian County Medical Association, Arkansas Medical Society, American Medical Association, the Medical Association of the Southwest, Association of the Military Surgeons of the United States, member of the Homeopathic Medical State examining board of Arkansas, and member of the American Institute of Homeopathy.

ED AUSTIN STANLEY.

Ed Austin Stanley, state manager of the Reserve Loan Life Insurance Company of Little Rock, was horn on a farm in Drew county, Arkansas, June 7, 1883, and is a repre sentative of one of the old pioneer families of this state. His parents were Henry Jef- ferson and Georgia A. (Mewborn) Stanley, both of whom were natives of Tennessee, the father born in Somerville, in 1849, while the mother's birth occurred in Macon, in 1850. It was in the latter city that they were married. Removing to Arkansas they

DR. CARL S. BUNGART

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settled in Drew county, where for many years the father followed the occupation of farming, carefully tilling the soil according to progressive methods and thus greatly developing and improving his place. He was a democrat in his political views and was quite active and prominent in public affairs in Drew county, where for two terms he filled the position of county judge, his course on the bench being characterized by the utmost fidelity to duty in rendering strictly fair and impartial decisions. He died in Drew county in 1888 and is still survived by his widow who makes her home in Little Rock. They were the parents of three sons and two daughters, all of whom are living, the youngest of this family being Ed Austin Stanley.

Spending his youthful days on the home farm, his time being passed in the usual manner of the farm bred lad, Ed A. Stanley attended the district schools until he had mastered the branches of learning therein taught and later he hecame a student in Hendrix Academy. Still later he attended the Hendrix College at Conway, Arkansas, but did not complete the course there. He next entered the law department of the University of Arkansas, from which he was graduated in 1913. In 1915, however, he turned his attention to the insurance business in Little Rock, becoming general agent for the Reserve Loan Life Insurance Company of Indianapolis, Indiana. Through the intervening period of six years he has made steady advancement and is today a well known figure in insurance circles in the capital city. He has greatly developed the business which he represents in Arkansas and today has an extensive clientele.

At Arkadelphia, Arkansas, on the 22d of April, 1913, was celebrated the marriage of Mr. Stanley and Miss Alcie Dean Olmstead, who was born in Brinkley, Arkansas, November 8, 1892, her parents being John W. and Claudia G. (Harris) Olmstead, both of whom have departed this life. The father was born in Indiana and the mother was born in Beebe, Arkansas, and in the latter place they resided for an extended period. Their daughter, Mrs. Stanley, was liberally educated and is a graduate of the Hender- son-Brown College of Arkadelphia and also of the Conservatory of Music in Cincinnati, Ohio. She is a lady of innate culture and refinement and occupies an enviable position in the social circles of this city. To Mr. and Mrs. Stanley have been born two children: Martha Dean, whose birth occurred May 2, 1914; and. Edward A. (Pete) Stanley, Jr., born August 3, 1917.

Politically Mr. Stanley is a democrat, having supported the party since age con- ferred upon him the right of franchise. He formerly took a very active part in politics, but does not at the present, preferring to concentrate his efforts and attention upon the upbuilding of his business interests. From 1911 until 1913, however, he served as dep- uty secretary of state and was secretary of the Arkansas tax commission from 1913 until 1915. He was formerly identified with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and he is still a member of both the lodge and chapter in Masonry. He likewise belongs to the Pulaski Heights Methodist Episcopal church and his life has ever been guided by high and honorable principles, making him a man whom to know is to esteem and respect.

E. C. ROYSE.

E. C. Royse, a contractor and architect with offices in the Citizens Bank building at Pine Bluff, has won notable success in the planning and construction of some of the finest buildings of this city, his labors contributing largely to the architectural adornment. Mr. Royse was born in Shelby county, Illinois, in 1869, and is a son of Daniel and Abigail (Whitlock) Royse, who were from Connersville, Indiana. They eventually removed to Oklahoma, where the father passed away and where the mother still makes her home.

E. C. Royse was educated at Westplains, Missouri, and in early life learned the carpenter's trade, becoming a general builder. In 1890 he removed to Pine Bluff and since that time has devoted his attention to building operations here. During a portion of this period he was employed as an expert coach builder by the Cotton Belt Railway Company. Eventually he took up contracting and building on his own account and he has erected many of the better buildings and residences in this and other com- munities. Some of the finest structures of Pine Bluff stand as monuments to his skill, including the high school building, and a number of the industrial buildings and fine residences of this and other cities. He was also the builder of the State Industrial School for Boys and of the Bank of Marianna at Marianna, Arkansas. Mr. Royse has had broad practical experience in his chosen life work and understands the scientific phases of construction as well as every practical phase of the business.

In 1893 Mr. Royse was united in marriage to Miss Sarah E. Smith, a daughter of F. G. and Annie A. (Dennington) Smith of Pine Bluff. Their children are six in number: Earl: Carl, who served in the navy during the World war; May, the wife

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of Ed Albright; Fay, the wife of Arthur Reed, who was with the army during the world conflict; Leona; and Charles H. The parents are members of the Christian church and Mr. Royse belongs to the Woodmen of the World and to the Masonic fra- ternity, being a loyal follower of these different religious and fraternal organizations.

JONES BROTHERS.

One of the best equipped shoe stores in Pine Bluff is that owned by Jones Brothers, who are enterprising, alert and energetic business men, whose well directed efforts are resulting in the constant development of their business. The business is owned by four brothers-J. G., Jr., J. L., A. P. and Charles Jones-and is incorporated. J. G., Jr., is president of the company. He is the organizer of both of their stores and is still a traveling salesman. In addition to their store at Pine Bluff the brothers are conducting another store at Jonesboro, Arkansas. J. L. Jones is the active manager of the Pine Bluff establishment, which is situated at No. 314 Main street and was formerly the Leverens store, being an old established shop of this city.

The Jones brothers are all native sons of Pine Bluff, their parents being J. G. and Louise (Dellmar) Jones. The brothers did their full share in the World war, J. L. serving as a second lieutenant in a machine gun battalion and being an instructor at Camp Custer, Michigan, at Camp Hancock, Georgia, and at Camp Lee, Virginia. A. P. Jones was also on duty in a camp and C. A. Jones was a member of the navy.

The brothers have always displayed marked energy and laudable ambition since starting out in the business world. J. L. Jones formerly traveled for a well known wholesale shoe house of St. Louis and Arthur was at one time a bank examiner of Arkansas. The present partnership relation was formed in 1921 and through the inter- vening period the brothers have constantly developed their business along the most substantial lines. They early recognized the eternal principle that industry wins and have made that the beacon light of their lives. They are alert and energetic young men who are rapidly building up a business of substantial proportions, and in Arkansas, where they have spent their lives, they have a circle of friends almost coextensive with the circle of their acquaintance.

S. LASKER EHRMAN.

S. Lasker Ehrman, one of the younger representatives of the Little Rock bar, with a very creditable practice, is also numbered among the veterans of the World war. He was born in Vicksburg, Mississippi, January 4, 1894, and was the second in order of birth in a family of three children, whose parents were Albert A. and Esther (Lasker) Ehrman. His grandfather, Charles Ehrman, now living in Yazoo City, Mississippi, was in the Confederate army and was captured at Memphis, Tennessee, but was soon after- ward paroled. He is a representative of one of the old southern families. The father of S. Lasker Ehrman was born on the 1st of July, 1860, in Hillsboro, Scott county, Mis- sissippi, and retained his residence in his native state until 1900, when he removed from Vicksburg, where he had long made his home, to Little Rock, Arkansas, where his re- maining days were passed. Throughout his life he had engaged in business as a live stock dealer and the capable management of his interests brought to him a substantial measure of success. In politics he was a democrat. On the 10th of June, 1891, he wed- ded Esther Lasker, a native of Little Rock, and they became the parents of, a daugliter and two sons: Nannette Sara, now the wife of Herbert O. Wolf of Fort Smith, Arkan- sas; S. Lasker, of this review; and Charles A. The husband and father died November 17, 1917.

S. Lasker Ehrman spent the first six years of his life in his native city and then accompanied his parents on their removal to Little Rock. Here he attended the public schools until graduated from the high school in 1911, when a youth of seventeen years. He taught for two years in the Little Rock high school, from 1911 to 1913. Almost immediately afterward he began preparation for the practice of law and matriculated as a student in the law department of the University of Arkansas in 1911, gaining the LL. B. degree in 1913. He then went east for further study in preparation for his profession and entered the Columbia University of New York city, winning his LL. B. degree there upon graduation from the law department with the class of 1916. Through the intervening period he has concentrated his efforts and attention upon his profession, save for the period of his service in the World war.

On the 26th of February, 1918, Mr. Ehrman enlisted in the American army for

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service in the World war and went overseas from New York in August, 1918, landing at Cherbourg, France. He was on duty in both France and Germany, being in Coblenz for six months, although he was not active in the front line trenches. He was made a regiment sergeant major in the judge advocate's department in the Eighty-seventh divi- sion headquarters and Third army headquarters. He was discharged as a non-commis- sioned officer on the 30th of June, 1919. With his return home he resumed his law prac- tice, when he formed his present partnership with Grover T. Owens, under the firm name of Owens & Ehrman, with offices in the Bankers Trust building.

Mr. Ehrman holds to the Jewish faith and is a member of the Independent Order of B'nai B'rith, being identified with B'nai Israel at Little Rock. In politics he is a democrat. He is also well known as a thirty-second degree Mason and member of the Mystic Shrine and he is now historian of M. M. Ebberts Post No. 1, of the American Legion, at Little Rock.

EVERETT B. GIBSON.

Everett B. Gibson, who since 1912 has been president of the Home Bank of De Witt, was born in Missouri in the year 1860, his parents being E. and Martha (Adams) Gib- son. The father's birth occurred on Green river in West Virginia and his father, Burrel Gibson, was also a native of that state. The latter served under William Henry Harri- son in the battle of Tippecanoe and with Gen. Andrew Jackson at the battle of New Orleans, January 8, 1815, and after his return from the war he again took up his abode in West Virginia, where he reared his family. His son, E. Gibson, having arrived at years of maturity, wedded Martha Adams, a native of Virginia, and subsequently they removed westward to Missouri. At length they became residents of Arkansas, settling on a farm near Des Arc in the year 1875. They had a family of five children: Albert G., who is living in Missouri; W. Frank, who makes his home in Calexico, California; Ezra, a physician, practicing in White county, Arkansas; Everett B .; and Maggie, the wife of Robert Jackson of Heber Springs, this state.

Everett B. Gibson was a lad of fifteen years when his parents removed from Mis- souri to Arkansas and after completing his public school education he continued his studies in the Peabody College at Nashville, Tennessee. He then took up the profession of teaching, which he followed in Saint Charles, Arkansas, and later he engaged in merchandising at that place for a period of five years. He dates his residence in De Witt since 1895. He has filled various offices, having served as deputy circuit clerk of Arkansas county, also as circuit clerk and as deputy collector for a period of ten years. Retiring from office he concentrated his efforts and attention upon the banking business and since 1912 has continuously served as president of the Home Bank of De Witt. He is also the owner of rice land in this state and was president of the company, owning and operating the first rice mill established in this community. He has given much study to the question of rice culture and the marketing of the product and his pro- gressiveness and enterprise have contributed in no small measure to the prosperity that has been won through the rice industry in Arkansas county.

Mr. Gibson was married in 1902 to Miss Ella Ayres, a native of Missouri, at Port- land, Oregon, and they have one child, Everett B., Jr. Mr. Gibson has long been a mem- ber of the Methodist Episcopal church, South, and of the Masonic fraternity. The cause of education has ever found in him a stalwart champion and for ten years he has filled the office of school director, while for seven years he was county examiner of pub- lic schools of Arkansas county, doing much to improve the schools in his community. He has ever been a public-spirited citizen, withholding his aid and cooperation from no plan or measure for the general good and his labors have been far-reaching and re- sultant.

MARSHAL DOUGLAS.

A representative business man of Fayetteville is Marshal Douglas, who since 1906 has been connected with the Benton County Hardware Company. He was born in Benton county on the 27th of July, 1881, a son of T. H. and Emily ( Morrison) Douglas, the former a native of Tennessee and the latter of Benton county, Arkansas, where their marriage occurred. Throughout his life the father followed farming and upon the outbreak of the Civil war, his sympathies being with the south, he enlisted in the Confederate army, participating in the battle of Wilson's Creek and other notable en- gagements. Further mention of the family may be found in the sketch of Marion Douglas, appearing elsewhere in this work.

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Marshal Douglas attended the, schools of Benton county and upon putting his text- books aside went to work for his father. Subsequently he became associated with the Benton County Hardware Company and he has been prominently identified with that company since 1906. He was first employed earning twenty dollars per month, but his conscientious performance of every duty assigned him won for him quick and steady promotion. In 1919 he was made president and general manager of the stores at Fayetteville, Springdale and Lincoln, Arkansas, and Westville, Oklahoma. He is one of the vice presidents of the Benton County Hardware Company, with stores at Ben- tonville, Rogers and Siloam Springs. Mr. Douglas is a business man of progressive spirit and unfaltering determination, who accomplishes everything that he undertakes and steadily works his way upward to success, employing modern business methods and wisely utilizing every opportunity that comes to hand.

In 1907 Mr. Douglas was united in marriage to Miss Jett Wyman, a native of Illi- nois, and a daughter of H. Wyman, a farmer of Benton county, Arkansas. To their union two children have heen born: Bill, eleven years of age, and Vol, aged seven years. Since attaining his majority Mr. Douglas has been a stanch supporter of the democratic party and he has taken a prominent part in local affairs. His fraternal affili- ations are with the Masons, in which order he is a Knight Templar and a member of the Mystic Shrine, and he is an Elk and a Knight of Pythias. The religious faith of the family is that of the Christian church. As a member of the Rotary Club and the Chamber of Commerce, Mr. Douglas is ready at all times to do anything for the advance- ment of the community and he has been a cooperant factor in many movements which have been followed by tangible results for the progress and upbuilding of Fayetteville.

J. S. STILWELL, D. D. S.

Dr. J. S. Stilwell, who has been actively engaged in the practice of dentistry at Searcy for more than a third of a century, enjoys an enviable reputation as one of the leading representatives of the profession in central Arkansas. His birth occurred in Bloomington, McLean county, Illinois, on the 4th of April, 1865, his parents being Stephen and Mary (Lewellen) Stilwell, the former also a native of McLean county, Illinois, while the latter was born in Virginia. The paternal grandfather of Dr. Stil- well was a successful agriculturist of Bloomington, Illinois. A. A. Lewellen, the ma- ternal grandfather, was a descendant of Captain John Smith and a native of Virginia, where he became an extensive landowner. At one time he owned five hundred slaves. He held the rank of captain in the Confederate army during the Civil war, organizing a company of Virginia troops and remaining at the front throughout the entire period of hostilities between the north and the south. After the close of the war he removed to Illinois and located a claim on the present site of the city of Bloomington, while subsequently he made his way to Champaign county, that state, where he purchased land and continued to reside until his demise, which occurred when he had reached the age of seventy-three years. He wedded a Miss Boyer, a representative of a promi- nent southern family who were also large slave owners.

Stephen Stilwell, the father of Dr. Stilwell, obtained his education in the public schools of McLean county, Illinois, and became an extensive landowner there. The year 1877 witnessed his removal to Kansas, where he purchased a large farm and car- ried on general agricultural pursuits until called to his final rest in 1887, when forty- seven years of age. Throughout his entire business career he followed farming and stock raising, specializing in the breeding of blooded live stock. He gave his political allegiance to the republican party and filled a number of local offices with credit to himself and satisfaction to his constituents. His religious faith was indicated by his membership in the Christian church, while fraternally he was identified with the Inde- pendent Order of Odd Fellows. His widow is still living at the age of eighty-one years and now makes her home in Lawrence, Kansas. They became the parents of eight children, six of whom survive, as follows: W. A., who resides in Paola, Kansas, and is engaged in farming and in the raising of blooded stock on an extensive scale; J. S., of this review; Charles E., a financier and mining man who is now living retired in Durango, Colorado, where at one time he owned the Stadtler Hotel; George F., who is in the service of the Great Northern Railroad in Spokane, Washington; Elizabeth, living in Lawrence, Kansas; and Ada, the wife of Joseph D. Rogers, who is a com- mercial salesman residing in, Dallas, Texas.

J. S. Stilwell supplemented his early education, which was acquired in the public schools of Champaign, Illinois, by a course of study in the University of Illinois at Urbana. He then returned to the farm of his parents in Kansas and, having deter- mined upon the practice of dentistry as a life work, entered the Kansas City Dental

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College at Kansas City, from which he was graduated with the degree of D. D. S. in 1887. His initial experience as a dental practitioner was gained at Olathe, Kansas, whence he came to Bentonville, Arkansas, where he remained for six months. On the 12th of May, 1887, he removed to Searcy, where he has continuously occupied the same office during the intervening period of thirty-five years and where his pronounced skill has won him an extensive and profitable practice. His high standing in the profession is indicated in the fact that he has been honored with the presidency of the Arkansas State Dental Association and has served as president of the Arkansas state board of dental examiners and as secretary of the state board of dental examiners. On two occasions he represented the board in the National Association of Dental Examiners. He belongs to both the Arkansas State Dental Association and the National Dental As- sociation and has won distinction not only as a practical examiner but also as a forci- ble expounder of the theory of his profession. Dr. Stilwell is likewise a director of the People's Bank of Searcy.

In early manhood Dr. Stilwell was united in marriage to Miss Carrie Bosley, a native of Woodruff county, Arkansas. They are consistent and devoted members of the Methodist Episcopal church, South, in the work of which they take an active and helpful part, the doctor having served on its board of stewards for thirty-three years. He is a democrat in his political views and has been a member of the city council. Fraternally he is identified with the Masons, belonging to Searcy Lodge No. 49, A. F. & A. M., of which he is a past master; and Tillman Chapter No. 19, R. A. M., in which he is a past high priest. During the World war he was a member of the medical ad- visory board for White and Cleburne counties and has personal letters from ex-Governor Brough, General Crowder and Lord England, written at that time. His influ- ence has been felt in the material, political, social and moral development of his com- munity and his position in both professional and social circles is a most enviable one.

FINN CRAIG.

El Dorado has enjoyed notable growth, especially since the development of oil wells in this vicinity. Among those who have been active in promoting public welfare here is numbered Finn Craig, who has been called to various public offices and he is now engaged in the oil business. He is a native son of El Dorado, born August 13, 1878. His father, Peter G. Craig, was a native of Coleraine, Ireland, and in young manhood came to the United States in company with John B. Speers, late of Pine Bluff, Arkan- sas, now deceased, who is reputed to have become the first millionaire of the state. The two boys landed in New Orleans and made their way up the Mississippi river onto a landing on the Ouachita river, then known as Newport in Union county. Here they secured work on the building of a mill pond near the town, which changed the course of a creek for a planter. For some time Mr. Craig worked as a common laborer, dig- ging ditches and performing other such tasks. But he and his friend were both highly educated young men and fate had something better in store for them. However, they were willing to do anything that would yield them an honest dollar during the early period of their residence in the United States. Eventually they made their way north- ward to Calhoun county and there both secured schools and began to teach. While there residing Mr. Craig formed the acquaintance of Miss Anna Bunn, a native of North Carolina, whose family had come to Arkansas in the early '50s. The young couple were married and soon afterward established their home in Union county, settling in El Dorado, where Mr. Craig engaged in the drug business. He had been educated for the medical profession in Ireland and had won the M. D. degree. He, therefore, had con- siderable knowledge of drugs and his capability and enterprise enabled him to win suc- cess as a druggist, his activity in that field continuing to the time of his death. He built the First Presbyterian church in El Dorado and gave it to the town, thus con- tributing in large measure to the moral progress of the community. He served with the Confederate army through the Civil war as a sergeant with the forces of General Lee and he walked from Virginia to Arkansas after the surrender. He was closely asso- ciated with the development and progress of El Dorado in many ways and served as one of the first justices of the peace in the town, occupying that position for many years, his decisions being at all times fair and impartial, while some of them were considered classics. He was a most faithful follower of the teachings of the Presbyterian church, strict in his adherence to his belief, and no labor was permitted to be done by his family on Sundays, even to the cooking of a meal. After the erection of the house of worship he refused to allow an organ to be placed in the church. Though many might differ from him as to his opinions all respected him by reason of the honesty of his con- victions and his fidelity to what he believed to be right. He left behind him an un-

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Centennial history of Arkansas, Part 133

Author: Herndon, Dallas T. (Dallas Tabor), b. 1878 Publication date: 1922 Publisher: Chicago, Little Rock, The S. J. Clarke publishing company Number of Pages: 1172

Author: Herndon, Dallas T. (Dallas Tabor), b. 1878
Publication date: 1922
Publisher: Chicago, Little Rock, The S. J. Clarke publishing company
Number of Pages: 1172