Centennial history of Arkansas, Part 87

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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Dr. Smith is a Mason of high rank, having attained the thirty-second degree of the Scottish Rite, while with the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine he has crossed the sands of the desert. He is also a member of the Congregational church and in these con- nections are indicated the interests of his life and the rules which govern his conduct. He commands the respect and confidence of all and the sterling worth of his character as well as his professional ability has gained him high standing in public regard.

JAMES HARTSHORN.

James Hartshorn of Fort Smith, interior decorator, who established business in 1915, has through the intervening period of six years gained a patronage that is most gratifying. His work is seen in some of the most beautiful interiors in the best homes of the city. He possesses initiative and sound judgment combined with a highly devel- oped artistic bent and his excellent work has brought to him many satisfied patrons.

Mr. Hartshorn came to the southwest from New Albany, Indiana, where his birth occurred in 1885, his parents being James and Matilda Hartshorn. He was reared and educated at the place of his birth and has devoted his attention to the decorating busi- ness throughout practically his entire life. He designs interiors and advises concern- ing all necessary materials required in the decoration of a home. He carries in stock all materials such as paints, paper and other factors in household adornment and on receiving a commission for work of this character turns the actual task of painting and paper-hanging over to a contractor. He has won a large clientele in the short time that he has been in business and is regarded as the leading decorator of the city. When he first came to Fort Smith in 1911 he worked for a year in the employ of the C. J. Murta Furniture Company and afterward spent two years in the employ of James Sparks. On the expiration of that period he became identified with the Art Wall

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Paper Company, with which he continued for three months and then embarked in busi- ness for himself. He entered into partnership with a man by the name of Fleming, under the firm style of Fleming & Hartshorn, the senior partner advancing the money, while Mr. Hartshorn supplied the practical skill. After a short time, however, his partner decided to retire from the business and Mr. Hartshorn purchased his interest. He practically started the business on nothing, but he possessed skill and taste and it was not long before the value of his work met appreciation in a liberal patronage. He laid the foundation for his success in a four years' thorough apprenticeship and ten years of practical experience at his trade in Indiana. Steadily he has advanced and is now one of the capable and prosperous business men of Fort Smith.

In 1905 Mr. Hartshorn was married to Miss Hattie Clara Klerner of New Albany, Indiana, and their children are: Jane, Louis and Katherine.

During the World war Mr. Hartshorn was a member of the Home Guard, and served on various committees to promote war activities. He possesses an excellent voice and sang on many occasions in furthering the various drives. He has membership with the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks, is a member of the Rotary Club, the Ad Club and the Business Men's Club and when his cooperation is sought to further any plan for the public good he is never found wanting.

MONROE PERRY WATTS.

Among the energetic, wide-awake and progressive business men of Camden is Monroe Perry Watts, who is conducting a dry goods and general department store. He is numbered among the native sons of Ouachita county, his birth having occurred on the 3d of July, 1854. His father, Thomas Jefferson Watts, belonged to one of the old American families and was an own cousin of Thomas H. Watts, at one time governor of Alabama. Thomas J. Watts removed from Alabama to Arkansas in 1848 and devoted his entire life to the occupation of farming, his demise occurring in 1860, at the age of fifty years. His wife, who bore the maiden name of Lizzie Godbold, came from Ala- bama and departed this life in Arkansas in 1886. They were the parents of six children.

Monroe Perry Watts, who was the fourth in order of birth, was educated in the county schools and in the Gordon Institute in Union county, near Lisbon. He started out in the business world in 1875 as clerk in a store and in 1881 opened a store of his own at Delta. Later he removed to Dallas, Texas, and in 1887 became a resident of Camden, Arkansas, where he entered business circles under the firm name of M. P. Watts. In 1890 the firm became M. P. Watts & Brother, and through the inter- vening years they have successfully engaged in business, having today one of the leading dry goods and general stores of Camden. They carry a large and well selected stock and their progressive business methods have won for them a liberal patronage. M. P. Watts is also a stockholder in the Doyle-Kidd Dry Goods Company of Little Rock and in all business affairs he has displayed sound judgment and enterprise that has brought him substantial results.

In Camden, on the 21st of November, 1883, Mr. Watts was united in marriage to Miss Minnie L. Lee, a daughter of Lynch Lee, now deceased, who at one time was sheriff of Ouachita county, filling the office for a period of ten years. Mr. and Mrs. Watts have two sons: Thomas E., who married Miss Josephine Taylor and is living in Camden, working in his father's store; and Monroe Perry, who is also with the firm of M. P. Watts & Brother.

Mr. Watts takes a deep and helpful interest in public welfare and has served on the board of trustees of the Ouachita Central College at Conway. He was also a trustee of the Orphans Home at Monticello, Arkansas, for a time. His religious faith is that of the Baptist church and he is serving as one of the deacons in his church, while in all good work he takes a helpful interest.

JAMES JABEZ HARRISON.

James Jabez Harrison, vice president of the Home Life & Accident Company of Little Rock, is thus identified with one of the important business interests of the state and at the same time has been extremely active as director of the Forward Education Movement of Arkansas. Since the 1st of January, 1922, however, his relationship with the Forward Education Movement has been merely of an advisory character, for on that date he assumed the duties of active vice president and production manager in the life

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department of the Home Life & Accident Company of Little Rock. His progressive spirit allies him with many movements which have to do with the progress and improve- ment of the commonwealth and his labors are at all times far-reaching and resultant.

Mr. Harrison was born in Hot Springs, Arkansas, June 26, 1891, and is a repre- sentative of a family of five sons and four daughters whose parents are the Rev. William R. and Alice Virginia (Grady) Harrison. His father, a native of Mississippi, was born in Itawamba county, December 17, 1852. He prepared for the Methodist ministry and has devoted his life to the work of the church, being now pastor of the Twenty-eighth Street Methodist Episcopal church, South, in Little Rock. His wife was born Decem- ber 25, 1864, in Lockesburg, Sevier county, Arkansas, and they were there married on the 4th of October, 1882. Of their family of nine children, two daughters died in infancy, while the other seven are living.

James J. Harrison, who was the third in order of birth in the family, was a pupil in the Hot Springs public schools in early youth and afterward attended Henderson- Brown College at Arkadelphia, Arkansas, through the year 1906-7. Later he was graduated from Hendrix College at Conway, Arkansas, with the class of 1914, winning the Bachelor of Arts degree. He dates his residence in Little Rock from 1919, when he became an active factor in the business circles of the city as vice president of the firm of H. G. Pugh & Company, printers and stationers, in which he is still interested. As active vice president and production manager of the Home Life & Accident Company of Little Rock, he is identified with one of the strongest financial organizations of the state.

On the 28th of April, 1920, in Little Rock, Mr. Harrison was married to Julia Turner, whose birth occurred in Morrillton, Arkansas, May 10, 1893. She is a daughter of Horace P. and Virginia Lee (Binns) Turner. The father, a native of Louisiana, resided for some years at Morrillton, Conway county, Arkansas, but is now deceased. The mother, who was born in New Kent county, Virginia, now makes her home in Little Rock. Mr. and Mrs. Harrison are parents of a daughter, Virginia Turner, born February 1, 1921.

In his political views Mr. Harrison has always been a democrat and from 1915 until 1917 served as county examiner of Dallas county and superintendent of schools at Fordyce. During the World war he joined the army as a cadet in an Officers' Training Camp and in November, 1917, was made captain of infantry, while in August, 1918, he was promoted to the grade of major. He served as an instructor in training camps during his entire service, being located at Camp Stanley, Texas, at Camp Travis, Texas, at Camp Beauregard, Louisiana, and at Camp Pike, Arkansas, remaining on active duty from July, 1917, until December 16, 1918. He organized the American Legion in Arkansas and became the first department commander of the state, serving from April, 1919, to August, 1920. He is a member of the Ad Club and the Country Club of Little Rock. He is likewise a Master Mason, while his religious faith is indicated in his membership in the First Methodist Episcopal church, South, of which he is lay leader. He is also teacher of the Victory class in the Methodist Sunday school.

Mr. Harrison is the director of the Forward Education Movement of Arkansas, which is doing most effective work in promoting high educational standards iu the state, and is secretary of a commission appointed by Governor McRae to direct a survey of the public school system of Arkansas.

SAMUEL WITHERS TRIMBLE.

Samuel Withers Trimble, attorney at law at Pine Bluff, was born in 1891 in the city which is still his home, his parents being David L. and Ella Lee ( Withers) Trimble. The father, a native of Louisville, Kentucky, was a son of Dr. Robert W. Trimble, a minister, who was born in Mount Sterling, Kentucky, and was of Irish lineage. The ancestral line is traced back to five brothers, who left the Emerald isle to become resi- dents of the new world, one of these establishing his home at Mount Sterling, Kentucky, so that several generations of the family have lived in that state. Dr. Robert Trimble served in the Confederate army during the Civil war and became the first Episcopal minister of Pine Bluff, preaching here for many years and building the present Trinity church. He was the father of David L. Trimble, and the line of descent comes on down through David Trimble to Samuel Withers Trimble of this review, David L. Trimble was united in marriage to Ella Lee Withers, a daughter of Dr. Samuel J. and Emma (Collier) Withers. Her father practiced medicine in Alabama for a number of years and after removing to Arkansas owned a plantation, where the town of Altheimer now stands.

Both of the children of Dr. Robert W. Trimble became residents of Pine Bluff, these

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being David L. Trimble and his sister, Mattie, who married Peter Torian, a resident of Pine Bluff. The son, David L. Trimble, was educated at Sewanee, Tennessee, and became a minister of the Episcopal church, preaching at different periods in Pine Bluff and in De Witt and also in Illinois. He followed in the footsteps of his father, who founded the church at Pine Bluff, and he exerted a widely felt influence for good in the community in which he labored. He also owned a plantation east of Pine Bluff for a number of years and derived a substantial income therefrom. He first wedded Maggie Davis and to this marriage there was born a son, Robert W., who is now a farmer of Jefferson county, while Samuel Withers Trimble is the only child of the second marriage.

Having mastered the elementary branches of learning taught in the public schools, Samnel W. Trimble continued his education in the University of the South at Sewanee, Tennessee, and in the University of Virginia. He was a law student in the latter institution and there won his professional degree, after which he entered upon active practice in Pine Bluff in 1914. Here he has won distinction in his skillful and creditable handling of some noted criminal cases. He defended Tom Bradbury in a murder case and also defended Tom Slaughter, who later made a spectacular escape from the peni- tentiary and was shot to death by one of his escaping companions. Mr. Trimble ably defended Slaughter, who, although a desperado, was likable in many ways and possessed splendid physical courage. Mr. Trimble was widely complimented by his skillful defense in this case, although the overwhelming odds were against his client. Mr. Trimble is justly noted for his oratorical power, which has been an influential element in swaying jnries when combined with the masterly manner in which he presents the facts of a case and the law applicable thereto. He is recognized as a leader among the younger members of the bar and is rapidly advancing to the front as an eminent repre- sentative of the legal profession in Arkansas.

Mr. Trimble was married in 1916 to Miss Helen Tucker, a daughter of E. A. and Emma (Grange) Tucker of Chattanooga, Tennessee. He belongs to the Episcopal church, thus adhering to the faith of his fathers, and he also has membership with the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks. During the World war he enlisted in the field artillery service and was commissioned a second lieutenant, while later he won promotion to a captaincy, being mustered out with that rank. He is now captain of Company D, One Hundred and Fifty-third Infantry, a machine gun company of the Ar- kansas National Guard. His gift of oratory has made him a popular speaker who is called upon to address many public audiences and his intelligent presentation of his cause always carries conviction to the minds of his hearers. It is indeed a dull men- tality that does not respond to the logic of his utterances or the play of his fancy.

JOHN FRANCIS BOYLE.

John Francis Boyle, a Little Rock capitalist, whose financial interests are extensive and who throughout his business career has displayed sound judgment, keen discrim- ination and unfaltering energy, thus coming to a point of leadership in business circles, has been a lifelong resident of Little Rock. He was born on the 14th of November, 1874, in the city which is still his home, and is one of the two children whose parents were John Francis and Mary Matilda (Dorsey) Boyle. The family has long been represented in this state. The father was born in Pulaski county in 1845 and from 1870 to the time of his demise he made his home in Little Rock, where for many years he conducted business as an insurance agent. At the time of the Civil war he enlisted in 1863 in the Confederate army and was with Price's command until the close of hostilities. He always gave his political support to the democratic party. He died in the year 1913. His wife was born in Jefferson county, Kentucky, in 1854, and there they were married. They became parents of two children, John F. and Emily Boyle. The mother departed this life March 20, 1920.

John Francis Boyle pursued his education in the public schools of Little Rock and when his textbooks were put aside he turned to the business world, where he has made a notable name and place for himself. As the years have passed he has improved the opportunities which have come to him and step by step has progressed. At all times he has displayed keen sagacity in making investments and in directing his business interests. What he has undertaken he has accomplished, never allowing obstacles or difficulties to bar his path. Steadily he has worked his way npward and his success . has come to him through his connection with the banking business and land operations. He is now the vice president of the W. B. Worthen Company, a banking concern, and he is the president of the Boyle-Farrell Land Company, which owns in Pulaski, Saline and Grant counties of Arkansas land to the amount of forty-eight thousand acres.

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Mr. Boyle is also the president of the Hawthorne Land Company, president of the Adams & Boyle Realty Company and president of the Boyle Realty Company. He is the owner of the Boyle building at Fifth and Main streets in Little Rock, which is one of the most modern bank and office buildings in the south. One of the elements of his success has been his ready recognition of existing conditions and the opportunities presented. Opportunity has ever heen to him a call to action and what he has accom- plished represents the fit utilization of his innate powers and talents.

Mr. Boyle has always given his political allegiance to the democratic party. He at- tends the Presbyterian church and he is well known as a member of the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks, the Country Club, the Quapaw Club and the Lakeside Club.

BURRELL A. FLETCHER, M. D.

Augusta proudly claimed Dr. Burrell A. Fletcher as a citizen and since his demise has cherished his memory hecause of what he did for the city's upbuilding and development and because of the prominent place which he made for himself in the regard of his fellow townsmen. Dr. Fletcher was born in Lee county, Missis- sippi, October 14, 1864, his parents being Dr. John P. and Mary (Cooper) Fletcher. The father was a native of Rutherford county, Tennessee, and a son of John D. Fletcher, who was born November 28, 1804, and was prominently connected with the public life of that state, serving as a member of the Tennessee senate. He in turn was a son of another John Fletcher, who was born in Virginia, April 6, 1775, and removed from the Old Dominion to Tennessee, becoming the founder of the family in the latter state, where for several generations the Fletchers have figured most prominently and honorably. The father, Dr. J. P. Fletcher, was a graduate of the New Orleans Medical College and devoted his life to the practice of his profession in Mississippi, but his last days were spent in Lonoke county, Arkansas, where he died March 9, 1907. His children were as follows: J. D., who was a Baptist minister of Arkansas; J. J., who was practicing medicine in Augusta, Arkansas, at the time of his death; Thomas Moore, a dentist of Lonoke, this state; Burrell A .; William P., a prominent citizen of Lonoke, mentioned elsewhere in this work; Mary, the deceased wife of A. F. Huntsman of Lonoke; and Sue J., who was the widow of E. S. Lee of Arkansas when she departed this life.

Dr. Burrell A. Fletcher was but six years of age when he came to Arkansas with his parents, the family home being established in Lonoke, where he was reared and where he was married in the year 1884. He then removed to Woodruff county to look after his father's and brothers' estates and eventually he became the most prominent and successful land dealer of this locality in his day and generation. At one time he owned from fifteen to twenty thousand acres of timber land and in the management and control of this property he displayed splendid business ability. Dr. Fletcher, how- ever, was not only known through his extensive operations in land but by reason of his activity in other fields. He won distinction as a physician, for after pursuing his early education in the public schools of Roanoke county, Virginia, he attended the University of Arkansas and then studied medicine in the Bellevue Hospital Medical College of New York, thus becoming thoroughly qualified for the onerous and responsible duties connected with medical practice. Throughout his life he continued to render valuable service to his fellowmen as a physician and he was an honored member of the Woodruff County Medical Society and of the Arkansas State Medical Society, which elected him to its presidency. Dr. Fletcher likewise established the Fletcher & Air- heart drug store of Augusta and he became a director of the Augusta Mercantile Com- pany, the president and one of the directors of the People's Gin Company and had other important business associations outside of his profession. He was particularly well known as a prominent banker, becoming the president of the Augusta Bank & Trust Company, a position which he occupied until his death. His labors, too, were of a character that contributed in large measure to the upbuilding and development of the section in which he lived and many of the now prosperous men of this part of Arkansas can trace their good fortune to the great foresight and ability of Dr. Fletcher in devel- oping the land of this part of the state.

As previously stated, Dr. Fletcher was married in the year 1884, when Miss Mary A. Baker became his wife. She is a native of Rockbridge county, Virginia, and a daughter of Rev. J. F. and Phebe (Steele) Baker. Her father, a minister of the Presby- terian church, was a native of Liberty county, Georgia, and was graduated from Prince- ton University. He came to Arkansas in the latter part of his life, settling in Des Arc, while subsequently he removed to Lonoke and was instrumental in bringing about the erection of the first Presbyterian church built there. He died at the age of fifty-

DR. BURRELL A. FLETCHER

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eight years, while his wife, a native of Virginia, lived to the advanced age of eighty- five years, spending the last twenty years of her life in the home of Mrs. Fletcher, although her death occurred at the home of a daughter in Memphis, Tennessee. To Rev. John F. and Mrs. Baker were born ten children: F. H., a physician of Hatton, Arkansas; Mrs. M. F. Riggs of Memphis; Mrs. Fletcher; J. M., a dentist of Little Rock; W. S., a minister; J. O., a farmer of McClelland, Arkansas; A. E., a minister located in Rockbridge county, Virginia; Phebe, who is well known in literary circles in Washing- ton, D. C .; Sarah A., deceased; and Ashley, an artist and photographer of Memphis, Tennessee.

Mary A. Baker spent her girlhood days in the home of her parents and in 1884 became the wife of Dr. Burrell A. Fletcher. They had a family of ten children: Mary A., now the wife of Dr. D. C. Long, a dentist of Augusta; Anne F., Sarah P. and Gladys S., all now deceased; Mrs. E. W. Butler, living in McClelland, Arkansas; Thomas Moore of Augusta; Mrs. W. E. Matkin, a resident of McClelland; Ethel, deceased; Burrell Alexander, attending the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville; and Lucy Allena, who is a student in Galloway College at Searcy, Arkansas.

Dr. Fletcher always took a keen interest in politics and was a recognized leader in the ranks of the democratic party. He was for a year president of the Augusta high school board, but his ambition did not center in the line of office holding. He belonged to the Augusta Outing Club and he held membership in several fraternal organizations, being identified with the Knights of Pythias and the Woodmen of the World, while in Masonry he attained the Knight Templar degree in the York Rite. At McClelland, where he pioneered, there was organized a Masonic lodge which was named the B. A. Fletcher Lodge in his honor. His religious faith was indicated by bis membership in the Baptist church and his entire life was guided by justice and fairness to his fellow- men and by the highest principles in all relations, Owing to the substantial success which he won in the management of his important business affairs, Dr. Fletcher was able to leave his family in very comfortable financial circumstances. His estate included about seven thousand acres of highly cultivated farm land in addition to his other hold- ings. Mrs. Fletcher still makes her home in Augusta, where she is most widely and favorably known, the sterling worth of her character having won to her many warn friends. Both Dr. and Mrs. Fletcher ever gave their aid and influence on the side of progress and improvement, of right, truth and justice, and thus contributed to the intellectual and moral as well as to the material progress of the community. On the 15th of November. 1917, Dr. Fletcher was called to his final rest.

H. L. PEARSON.

Arkansas numbers among her native sons, H. L. Pearson, who is one of the prom- inent and representative members of the legal profession in the state. Mr. Pearson may truly be called a self-made man, for he started out in the world practically empty-handed and has steadily worked his way upward through the wise use of his opportunities, his indefatigable energy and his sound judgment. He is a very successful lawyer, having early manifested ability in solving intricate legal problems, and he has remained a close student of the principles of jurisprudence.

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Centennial history of Arkansas, Part 87

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