Editorial
Front Page - Friday, November 06, 2009
From past to present... a history of Arkansas courthouses
Little River County
Rebecca Brockman
Compared to other counties, Little River County has a somewhat brief courthouse timeline. Yet, the county is not a stranger to fires, county seat struggles, growth and despair. Five cities complete this county in southwest Arkansas: Winthrop (first known as Millkin), Foreman (formally called Rocky Comfort), Wilton and Ogden were all established between 1890 and 1978. The fifth city, Ashdown, is the current county seat. Little River was established in 1867. Little River County is also the birthplace of Jeff Davis, the 20th governor of the state of Arkansas. A historical marker outside the courthouse in Ashdown called Davis one of the “state’s most colorful personalities.”
The last-known native residents in Little River County were likely to have been the Caddo Indians. According to research, the Caddos moved south out of the Great Bend area by 1778. Until a treaty in 1835, the land continued to be regarded as Caddo territory. Even before the treaty was signed, white settlers were apparently squatting on the land. After the treaty was completed, settlements and communities developed quickly. Pioneers began settling in the area in the early 1800s. Benjamin Layne donated land for development and the first town plotted was aptly named Laynesport in 1836.
Around 1845, Willow Springs, later named Rocky Comfort and then Foreman, began to thrive. During the Civil War, the citizens of Little River County suspended raising cotton while other products were produced for the war efforts. Many families lost property and were displaced.
The first courthouse and jail in the county were located near the area that is now known as Alleene on land owned by the first sheriff, William M. Freeman. In 1868, Gov. Powell Clayton had all of the county records moved to an established headquarters in Rocky Comfort. The records were given a proper home when the citizens of Richmond built a new courthouse in 1880. Property was deeded to the county on the condition that Richmond would remain the county seat. Unfortunately, the courthouse burned to ground. Determined to keep the courthouse in their town, the citizens agreed to rebuild the courthouse at no cost to the county. While Richmond citizens were busy building a new courthouse, the railroad was coming to town.
The Arkansas and Choctaw Railroad was built from Ashdown to Arkinda in 1895. True to railroad fashion, the new form of transportation provided much-needed relief to people transporting goods. For example, companies such as Koffman Seed Store had the ability to ship seeds all over the world. Additionally, passenger and transport trains opened many markets and business opportunities for residents of Ashdown. Cotton and corn were the leading crops of the day. Eventually timber would take the top spot and bring wealth and business to the area.
Little River’s second county seat, Rocky Comfort (Foreman), was created when the Arkansas and Choctaw Railroad was constructed. The railroad cut through virgin forest one mile north of old Rocky Comfort. A post office was established in the area around 1900 and named for Ben Foreman of Texarkana. The stores in old Rocky Comfort were moved to the new town where the railroad and post office was located. Due to the exciting arrival of the locomotion, the county seat was moved there in 1902.
Well, at least that was the plan. While the records were being transported to Foreman, Ashdown, a “boom town” in Little River County petitioned for the county seat. An election was held in 1906 and Ashdown won. After the election, records were moved from Foreman to a vacant building, known as the Mizell Building in Ashdown.
Before it was a “boom town” due the arrival of the railroad, it was a small town, incorporated on June 11, 1892. Judge Lawrence Alexander Byrne named the town. According to historical accounts, he owned several sawmills in the area and following a fire at his Keller mill, stated that his mill had “burned down to ashes.” Byrne decided to start a town there and named it Ashdown. Prior to Byrne’s devastating fire, the town of Ashdown was first known as Keller, but nicknamed Turkey Flat by earlier settlers. William and Maloy Waddell originally owned the land.
The town is located between two rivers – the Little River and the Red River. Land was developed at a rapid pace and Ashdown was the place to be in 1904. A new courthouse was built between 1906 and 1907. Architect Sidney Stewart designed little River’s third courthouse and selected a Neo-Georgian/Classical Revival style.
Sadly, in Nov. 1915, a volunteer firefighter died on the floor of the courtroom after falling from the octagonal dome above the two-story brick courthouse. His heroic efforts were credited for saving the building. Valiant efforts were also visible during WWI. Many women from Ashdown aided the war effort by taking jobs at the Red River Army Depot and Lone Star Ammunition Plant in Texas. Mothers who had to stay at home with their children contributed to the war efforts by making bandages for the wounded soldiers.
By 1911, there was a cotton seed oil mill, fertilizer works, sawmills, handle factory, bottling works, brick plant, cotton gins, flour mill, motels, grocery and hardware stores and a waterworks system.
Electrical and telephone services came to town in 1930, but so did the Great Depression. According to research, the Depression hit the whole county hard. Farms were lost, wages decreased and people lost jobs. The Encyclopedia of Arkansas History & Culture reported that in 1932, income had dropped to one third of what it had been before Oct. 1929. Ashdown had its share of floods, fires, tornadoes and bank robberies. The town was in ill repair as it recovered from the Great Depression; streets were unpaved and many of the sidewalks were made of wood. But proving that even in the hard times people need to have fun — the first indoor basketball court in the county was built in Ashdown in 1930.
Twenty years later, things started looking better for good people of Ashdown. Coca-Cola brought a bottling plant to the region and other companies followed suit. Around the 1950s, there was an ice plant, a pallet plant, a garment plant and a box factory. Little River Memorial Hospital was built in 1958.
The courthouse was renovated in 1977 and listed on the National Register on Sept. 29, 1976. According to research, during the renovation, the plaster walls were painted a light mint color to maintain the colonial appearance of the courtroom.
The county seat’s natural resources also proved to be very
beneficial. Developed in 1966, Millwood Lake offered a major economic boost to Ashdown’s industrial growth. Since its development, tourists have enjoyed trophy fishing contests, camping sites and sports facilities at Millwood State Park.
Nekoosa Paper Mill selected Ashdown because of the town’s accessibility to two rivers. The mill was sold to Georgia-Pacific Industries in 1991 and sold again to Domtar Industries in 2001. Cossatot Community College of the University of Arkansas established a campus in Ashdown around the 1990s. On April 18, 2007, the Little River County Historical Society celebrated an important milestone – the 100-year anniversary of the 1907 courthouse.
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