Centennial history of Arkansas, Part 20

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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who in her maidenhood was Lucille Nady, having been born in France, whence she came to the new world and was married in Arkansas county to Frank Menard. Here they reared their family, which included N. B. Menard, whose youthful days were spent on the old homestead farm and who early took up the occupation of farming as a life work. Having reached years of maturity, he married Ellen Thompson, a daughter of Zachariah Thompson, who came to this state from New Orleans and settled on a tract of land in Arkansas county. "His wife bore the maiden name of Abigail Freeman. To the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. N. B. Menard were born five children: W. T., who is now a minister of the Methodist Episcopal church, engaged in preaching at Lake Village; N. B., who is a railroad operator; J. G., who is in the merchant marine service; M. L .. who has departed this life; and Louis Keener.

The last named completed his literary education in Hendrix College and afterward took up the study of law. At length he was qualified for admission to the bar and, having successfully passed the required examination, he entered upou active practice in De Witt. Here he was engaged in the work of the profession as a lawyer before the courts until 1920, when he was elected county judge and is now sitting upon the bench. In early manhood he taught school at Hendrix Academy, at Mena, Arkansas, being thus engaged while laying the foundation for his later success as an attorney. His course on the bench is in harmony with his record as a man and lawyer, being characterized by a masterful grasp of every question presented for solution and by marked fidelity to duty at all times.

Mr. Menard was united in marriage to Miss Mary Nicholson, a daughter of Charles Nicholson of St. Charles, Arkansas. Judge Menard belongs to the Methodist Episcopal church and he stanchly endorses all those forces which make for the uplift of the indi- vidual, the betterment of the community and which promote respect for law and order in every way.

ALEXANDER MCCARTNEY.

Alexander McCartney, manager of the Sligo Manufacturing Company of Fayette- ville, was born in Ireland, in 1858, his parents being John and Agnes (Cochran) Mc- Cartney, who were likewise natives of the Emerald Isle, whence they came to the new world in 1865. They settled in Cuba, Missouri, and the father, who had been a weaver of linen cloth in Ireland, purchased a homestead in Missouri, where he spent his remain- ing days. His widow afterward returned to her native country and there died. They were the parents of six children, of whom only two are living: Alexander and Thomas, of St. Louis. The parents were members of the Presbyterian church and Mr. McCartney was an orangeman. His political allegiance was given to the republican party.

Alexander McCartney was educated in the common schools of Missouri and after- ward attended night school in St. Louis. He was reared to the work of the home farm and remained thereon to the age of eighteen years, when, believing that he would find other pursuits more congenial than those of agricultural life, he obtained a position in a hardware store and engaged in clerking for thirty-one years. He came to Fayetteville in 1895 and established a branch store for the Sligo Iron Store Company, which com- pany purchased hardwood lumber for wagons and also hought timber here and likewise has a hardwood lumber plant, manufacturing all kinds of hardwood lumber. They now make hardwood rims and spokes for automobiles and the concern is a mammoth one, being classed with the largest and most important productive industries of this section of the state. The business has heen greatly developed under the direction and as the result of the enterprise of Mr. McCartney, who has been manager for the company in Arkansas and in Oklahoma since locating in Fayetteville in 1895.

In 1881 Mr. McCartney was united in marriage to Miss Mary A. Murphy, who was born in St. Louis, a daughter of John Murphy, an architect and huilder of that city. They have become parents of the following living children: Stella is the wife of Ben Stone, an attorney with large practice at Amarilla, Texas, who has also been referee in bankruptcy there; Jessie is the wife of Paul C. Williams, a lawyer of Muskogee, Oklahoma, who has a large and important practice; Isabelle is the wife of Harry Schultz, who is connected with the musical department of the State University at Denton, Texas; Ruth is the wife of L. M. Holt, agent for the Dodge Brothers car at Fayetteville; Nor- man, who is taking up business in connection with his father, entered the regular army in the World war in May, 1917. He had previously spent six months on the Mexican border and he trained at Little Rock, going overseas as first lieutenant in July, 1918. He was on the front for forty-two days and received his discharge May 17, 1919. He was with the infantry forces and at one time he had to march two hundred miles on foot at night. He never had his shoes off for days at a time and there were periods

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in which there was, indeed, little rest. On one occasion he was wounded and sent to the hospital but again qualified for active duty and was on the firing line on the day the armistice was signed.

Mr. McCartney is prominent in Masonic circles, having attained the Knights Tem- plar degree in the York Rite. He has passed through all of the chairs in the Blu" lodge, chapter and commandery and he is also a member of the Knights of Pythias. His political allegiance is given to the republican party. He and his entire family are faithful members and active workers in the Presbyterian church, in which he is serving as an elder. His life has ever been guided by the highest principles and he has ever stood as a man among men, honored and respected by all who know him and most of all by those who know him best.

JOHN BAUMGARTNER.

John Baumgartner, superintendent of schools at Brinkley, is a splendid type of the progressive men and women who are now efficiently promoting the interests of public education in Arkansas. He holds to high ideals and employs the most practical methods in their attainment, thus making the public schools a source of great benefit in training the young for the responsible duties of life. Mr. Baumgartner comes to Arkansas from Ohio, his birth having occurred at Bluffton, in the northwestern part of the Buckeye state, in 1880, his parents being Christ and Elizabeth (Welty) Baumgartner. The former is of Swiss parentage, while the latter was born in Ohio and is a repre- sentative of a very old, prominent and distinguished family in the northwestern part of that state, a family that has furnished to the country several congressmen, including the present member of congress from that district, who is a consin to Mr. Baumgartner. The parents of Mrs. Christ Baumgartner were Peter and Fannie (Bixel) Welty and like others of the family they enjoyed the high respect and goodwill of all with whom they came into contact.

In the acquirement of his education, John Baumgartner attended the public schools of his native town and also studied at Lima, Ohio, and in the Northern Indiana Univer- sity at Valparaiso, Indiana, where he won the Bachelor of Arts degree. He likewise attended the University of Arkansas and the Chicago University, from which he received his Master's degree, and his thorough and comprehensive training have well qualified him for important work in the educational field. All of the schools under his direction have made steady progress, for his methods are efficient and resultant. He served for nine years as superintendent of the schools at Brinkley, Arkansas, and satisfaction is everywhere evinced in connection with what he has accomplished. Among the improved features which are now in the school are courses in home economics, voca- tional agriculture and banking, a school bank having been established. Mr. Baum- gartner also started a movement for a safe and sane Hallowe'en and takes the school children on an organized hike on that day with games, races and other means of enter- tainment, thus keeping them out of mischief. All of his work is conducted along psychological principles and he believes that mind and hands well occupied will solve many a problem of juvenile delinquency. He also made a record on the sale of War Savings Stamps, receiving a special testimony from United States Treasurer McAdoo for his work in this connection, acting as chairman of the War Savings Stamps sales in the county. He was likewise chairman of the Y. M. C. A. drive for three counties and he did much other effective work in behalf of the country during the war period.

Mr. Baumgartner was united in marriage to Miss Van Arsdell of Stuttgart, Arkan- sas, who is also a teacher in the Brinkley high school. They attend summer school each year, thus equipping themselves for better service and their labors are indeed most efficacious in advancing the interests of the schools, in promoting the standards of education here and in producing practical results. They are studying broadly and thinking deeply along those lines which have to do with public progress, and their influence is an immeasurable force for good and for advancement among the young people who come under their instruction.

JOHN ELMORE CULP.

John Elmore Culp, one of the leading and representative business men of El Dorado, now occupying the presidency of the Arkansas Wholesale Grocery Company, one of the leading commercial enterprises of the city, was born February 14, 1892, in the city which is still his home, his parents being Mr. and Mrs. Elmore W. Culp, of whom extended

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mention is made on another page of this work. At the usual age he became a public school pupil, passing through consecutive grades in El Dorado and later enjoying the benefit of a commercial course in Draughan's Business College at Little Rock. He completed his studies there in 1910 and returned home to become associated with his father in business as a member of the office force of the Arkansas Wholesale Grocery Company. He then bent his energies to a mastery of every phase of the business with which he became connected in the discharge of his official duties and had thus heen weil trained for further responsibilities when in 1915, immediately following his father's death, he was elected to the presidency of the company. He has since served in this capacity, covering a period of six years, and his prominence in business circles is further indicated in the fact that he is the president of the El Dorado Building & Loan Asso- ciation.

For some years Mr. Culp was a member of the city council, exercising his official prerogatives in support of many measures for the general good. He is a member of the Rotary Club and of the board of directors of the El Dorado Chamber of Commerce. He belongs to El Dorado Lodge, No. 1129, B. P. O. E., of which he was exalted ruler in 1917-18. He has membership in the Methodist Episcopal church and his entire life has been guided by those principles which neither seek nor require disguise. His course reflects credit upon an honored family name and he is regarded as a dominant figure in the commercial circles of the city.

GENERAL VIRGIL AUGUSTUS BEESON.

Arkansas on the whole has heen signally favored in the class of men who have occupied her public offices. They have been men of ability, loyal to the welfare of the state, and have greatly advanced the interests of the commonwealth through the faith- ful performance of duty. To this class belongs Virgil Augustus Beeson, who is now state adjutant general, and his effective service has given high standing to the military interests of the commonwealth. Making his home in Little Rock, he was born in Monroe City, Missouri, June 3, 1880, and is a son of the Rev. Isaac Richard Marion and Lulie (Merriman) Beeson. The father was born in North Carolina in 1843 and in early life took up the work of the ministry as a representative of the Baptist church. After forty-six years of active service he retired from the ministry shortly before his death. In politics he was always a democrat and at the time of the Civil war he espoused the cause of the Confederacy, joining General Price's army, with which he served during the last three years of hostilities between the north and the south. He accomplished great good during the long years devoted to the upbuilding of the church and the advancement of moral progress. He came to Arkansas in 1914 and died at Morrillton in December, 1916. His wife, who was born in Louisville, Kentucky, in 1847, and whom he wedded in that city in 1875, died in Savannah, Missouri, in 1906. They were the parents of two sons and two daughters, and one son and one daughter are yet living.

Virgil A. Beeson, having acquired his early education in the public schools of his native state, afterward spent two years as a student in the William Jewell College at Liberty, Missouri. He has been prominently identified with military and public affairs since attaining his majority and his record in both connections is of most creditable character. He was a member of the Second Arkansas Infantry and on the 7th of June, 1917, he offered his services to the country in connection with the prosecution of the World war, enlisting as a private in Headquarters Company of the Second Arkansas Infantry. He was commissioned captain of D Company, Third Arkansas Infantry. When the state troops were drafted into the federal service on August 5, 1917, he went to Fort Logan H. Roots, Arkansas, and later to Camp Beauregard, Louisiana, remaining at the latter place until July 30, 1918, when the troops left for the port of embarkation, sailing for France on the 6th of August, 1918. General Beeson remained in France until the latter part of July, 1919, and was promoted to major there on the 19th of May. He was on overseas service from the 6th of August, 1918, until July 31, 1919, when he was honorably discharged, the demobilization occurring August 19, 1919. He was appointed major of infantry of the Officers' Reserve Corps on that date and was appointed major of infantry of the Arkansas National Guard Reserve on the 18th of September of the same year. On the 1st of February, 1921, he was appointed adjutant general of the state by Governor Thomas C. McRea and is now serving with that rank.

Before entering the army General Beeson was connected with the publishing busi- ness, hecoming widely known as editor and publisher between the years 1900 and 1917. He was connected with the following papers: The Democrat of Savannah, Missouri; Times Dispatch of Pawnee, Oklahoma; Republic of St. Louis, Missouri; and the Mor-

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rillton Headlight of Morrillton, Arkansas. In 1915-1916 he was president of the Ark- ansas Press Association.

On the 21st of April, 1908, General Beeson was married to Miss Charlotte Howe Lewis, who was born in Missouri in 1883 and is a graduate of the Howard Payne Col- lege at Fayette, that state. She is a daughter of Charles O. Lewis, also a native of Missouri. General and Mrs. Beeson have membership in the Presbyterian church and take an active and helpful interest in its work. Fraternally he is connected with Masonry as a thirty-second degree member of the Scottish Rite. He also belongs to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and to the Ancient Order of United Workmen. Politically he has always heen a democrat, loyal to the interests of the party, and has rendered active service to the commonwealth as a legislator, having been a member of the general assembly from Conway county in 1915 and 1916. The service which he has rendered to the state hoth along political and military lines ranks him as one of the honored and representative residents of the capital city.

ALEXANDER JAMISON WILSON.

Alexander Jamison Wilson, manager since 1909 of the insurance department of the Southern Trust Company of Little Rock, was born in Monticello, Arkansas, August 28; 1873, a son of Alexander Jamison and Eliza H. (McCain) Wilson. The father was born in Chester district, South Carolina, March 4, 1836, and in 1857 hecame a resident of Monticello, Arkansas, so that the entire period of his adult life was spent in this state, his attention being given to farming and fruit raising. In 1862 he responded to che call of the Confederacy and became chief gunner in the Drew Battery of Light Artillery, which for a time was connected with Forrest's command. He always voted with the democratic party. His death occurred in Monticello, Arkansas, in 1910, and he is survived by his wife, who yet makes her home in that city. She was horn on a farm in Tipton county, Tennessee, August 21, 1840, and their marriage was celebrated in that county in December, 1857. They became parents of two sons and four daughters, of whom one son and three daughters are yet living.

Alexander J. Wilson pursued his education in the schools of Monticello until grad- uated from the high school with the class of 1890. He then resided in Drew county until 1897. Taking up the profession of teaching, he was thus active in the work of the schoolroom in Drew and Ashley counties for a period of seven years. He has been identified with the Southern Trust Company as manager of the insurance department since 1909 and is one of the directors of the corporation. His entire attention is now given to this business and he has been instrumental in the development of a strong and growing department.

On the 1st of November, 1905, Mr. Wilson was married to Mamie Eloise Fuller, whose birth occurred in Nashville, Tennessee, November 5, 1884, her parents being Felix De Moville and Mary (Osborne) Fuller, the latter a native of Georgia. They resided tor some time at Nashville, Tennessee, but the father is now deceased. Mrs. Wilson was reared in that city and is a graduate of the Nashville Conservatory of Music. Mr. and Mrs. Wilson have one daughter, Elizabeth, whose birth occurred Novem- ber 21, 1915.

Politically Mr. Wilson is a democrat and while residing at Fordyce, Arkansas, filled the position of recorder for two years and for one year directed the affairs of the city as its mayor. During the World war he served on all the bond drives and otherwise supported to the extent of his ability and opportunity those interests which had to do with the support of the government in financing the war. He belongs to the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks, the Lakeside Country Club, and is an active member of the First Methodist Episcopal church, in which he has served as secretary of the board of stewards since 1919. For several years he has been treasurer of the Arkansas Sunday School Association and is very active in both local and state Sunday school work.

REV. WILEY LIN HURIE,

Rev. Wiley Lin Hurie, pastor of the Central Presbyterian church of Russellville, has devoted many years to the ministry and his religious instruction has been a tangible force for good in the various communities in which he has labored. He was born in Petersburg, Illinois, March 17, 1885, a son of J. S. and Anna (Houghton) Hurie, both of whom were born in the central part of that state. The paternal grandfather, Josiah Hurie, was a native of Pennsylvania and became one of the pioneer farmers of Illinois,

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in which state his demise occurred. The maternal grandfather, A. M. Houghton, was born in central Illinois and there spent his life. J. S. Hurie, a man of good education, who has devoted much time to reading and study, is now residing on his farm, having engaged in agricultural pursuits for a number of years. His political allegiance is given to the democratic party and he is a Knights Templar Mason and is also identified with the Knights of Pythias. Mrs, Hurie died in 1910, in the faith of the Presbyterian church. Mr. Hurie is also affiliated with that religious denomination, joining the church over which his son was at that time presiding. In the family were four children: A. E. and E. J., who are operating farms in Illinois; Wiley Lin; and Frank J., who is also engaged in farming in that state.

Wiley Lin Hurie acquired his early education in the country schools of his native state and then became a student in an academy at Jacksonville, Illinois, completing his course in 1902, while four years later he was graduated from Illinois College of that place. He then entered the Union Theological College of New York city and was grad- uated from that institution with the class of 1912, but had engaged in preaching the gospel in the country adjacent to Petersburg previous to this time, erecting a church at Hickory Grove, Illinois, which was named the Lin Hurie chapel, in his honor. While attending the theological seminary he supplied the pulpit of the First Presbyterian church at Petersburg, was student pastor of the Church of the Covenant in New York city, pastoral supply at Christ church, and acting pastor of the Church of the Covenant in 1912. In November, 1912, he was called to Russellville to fill the pastorate of the Central Presbyterian church, of which he has since been in charge, and under his guidance the work of the church has materially expanded and developed. It now has a membership of three hundred and seventy, of which number about fifty are non- residents, and its influence is constantly broadening, the church being recognized as a potent force for good in the moral progress of the community.

On the 15th of November, 1917, Rev. Mr. Hurie was united in marriage to Miss Ula Moores, who was born at Richmond, Arkansas, a daughter of Alexander Ross and. Nellie Virginia Moores. The father was for many years a prominent merchant of that place and later he became connected with mercantile interests of Russellville. To this union has been born a daughter, Mary Virginia, who is but a few months old. In his political views Rev. Mr. Hurie is a democrat and in Masonry he has attained high rank, having taken all of the degrees up to and including those of the consistory. For a number of years Rev. Mr. Hurie has been president of the board of trustees of the College of the Ozarks, the synodical college of the Presbyterian church, located at Clarksville, Arkansas. He is a gentleman of liberal culture and superior intellectnal attainments, who by example as well as precept has pointed out to others the best way of life, and his course has at all times awakened admiration and respect.

LEON A. WILLIAMS.

Leon A. Williams, numbered among Arkansas' capitalists, makes his home at Fort Smith and owns and controls important farming and live stock interests. His land holdings are, indeed, extensive and he employs the most progressive and scientific methods in the care of his fields and in the breeding of his stock.

Mr. Williams is a native of Kansas, born in 1881. He was but fourteen years of age when he took up his abode in Arkansas and settled in Fort Smith and here he started out in the business world by trading horses and mules. Young though he was, he displayed excellent judgment in recognizing the value of the animals and, prosper- ing in his undertakings, he acquired after a time a barn of moderate size. Gradually he expanded and developed his business interests and in this connection erected one of the largest barns of the kind in Arkansas. He rented his first barn at ten dollars per month and from that modest beginning he steadily worked upward until he has become one of the wealthy and influential men of the state. While only forty years of age, he is the owner of eight thousand acres of laud and has also made investment in some of the best business property of Fort Smith, with an estimated value of three hundred thousand dollars. Whenever he has seen opportunity for judicious investment he has added to his property holdings and he is today one of the foremost agricul- turists of the southwest, employing the most scientific and improved methods in caring for his fields and in the development of his herds. .

Mr. Williams has ever recognized the fact that play is second in importance only to work and that a man's recreations make or break him as surely as do his business habits. He has largely found his diversion in fox hunting, keeping a kennel of fine hounds which are the best bred of any to be seen in this section of the state. In busi- ness he has ever recognized the fact that application is what counts and that every

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man has it in him to work if he wants to. Indifference is the principal cause of failure and a lack of real interest in the business keeps most men from financial success. Mr. Williams, however, has always found pleasure in his work and has steadily improved and developed his opportunities until prosperity has followed all his undertakings.

THOMAS N. BLACK, M. D.

Dr. Thomas N. Black, one of the younger physicians of Hot Springs, whose ability, however, is bringing him rapidly to the front, was born in Little River county, Arkan- sas, June 24, 1891, his father being Thomas N. Black, a native of Alabama. Dr. Black was largely reared at Ashdown, Arkansas, where he pursued a public school education, while later he attended a high school in Oklahoma and also was a student in the Uni- versity of Oklahoma. He thus laid broad and deep the foundation upon which to build the superstructure of professional knowledge, when he had decided to engage in the practice of medicine as a life work. In 1911 he entered Tulane University at New Orleans, Louisiana, as a medical student and was graduated therefrom with the class of 1918. His first practical experience came to him through serving as an interne in Charity Hospital of that city. He afterward opened an office in Hot Springs in connec- tion with Dr. Tribble, his office being in the Thompson building. He specializes in urology and surgery and is making rapid advance along those lines, attaining a marked degree of efficiency in each. In addition to his private practice he is serving on the staff of the St. Joseph Hospital.

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Centennial history of Arkansas, Part 20

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