Col. A. P. Robinson, a prominent figure in Central Arkansas, was born in Hartford County, Connecticut, in 1822. The eldest of seven children of Ludyah and Sophia Eliza (Hosmer) Robinson, he was raised in Newburgh, New York. Educated in civil engineering, Robinson worked on the Erie Railroad and later constructed major railways, including the Iron Mountain & Southern Railroad and the Little Rock & Fort Smith Railroad. Moving to Little Rock in 1869, he helped develop Conway, Arkansas. Robinson served as Conway’s first mayor and was active in real estate and politics. He married twice, first to Lucy Blodgett, with whom he had five children, and later to Mary Louise De St. Louis. He was known for his contributions to education, agriculture, and community development.
Col. A. P. Robinson needs no especial introduction to the readers of this volume as one of the most prominent men in Central Arkansas, for his substantial reputation is well known and his name is a familiar one throughout a large region. He was born in Hartford County, Conn., in the year 1822, and is the oldest child of seven born to Ludyah and Sophia Eliza (Hosmer) Robinson, both natives of the same state and descendants from Puritanical stock. The parents were among the most prominent people in that state, and the maternal grandfather was a noted soldier in the Revolutionary War. The father moved from his native state to Newburgh, N.Y., when a young man, and embarked in business in that city with great success. His death occurred in 1861 in New York City, while his wife still survives him and resides with a son in California.
A. P. Robinson was reared in Newburgh, N.Y., and educated in the schools of that place. In his youth, he displayed a natural aptitude for scientific matters, and while at college was instructed in all the intricate branches of civil engineering. After entering into active work, he was a rodman on the first forty-five miles of the Erie Railroad constructed west of the Hudson River. Since then, his operations have extended over the entire country, and he has witnessed the growth of the railroad system in the United States from its infancy to the great mass of steel network extending from Maine to Florida and from the Atlantic to the Pacific. After the war, with an escort of cavalry, he made an exploration from the Missouri River to Denver; then moved to the State of Kansas and was engaged by the Missouri, Kansas & Texas Railroad Company, but he left their employ in 1869 and came to Little Rock, where he built the first twenty miles of the Iron Mountain & Southern Railroad and afterward constructed the Little Rock & Fort Smith Railroad, of which lines he was chief engineer. He also laid out the Hot Springs Reservation for the government in 1884.
During his connection with the Little Rock & Fort Smith Railroad, Col. Robinson bought 640 acres of the company’s land, upon which the city of Conway now stands, that place having grown until it now occupies three-fourths of the original section. Col. Robinson first located at his present home in 1871 and since then has been actively engaged in buying and selling real estate. His fine plantation is partially inside of the city limits. He was the first mayor of Conway and filled that office for many years. In educational matters, he is deeply interested and at the present time is serving as president of the school board. The Colonel has always been active in politics and carries considerable weight in his party. He is a staunch adherent to the Republicans and a valuable man to that party whenever he desires to use his influence.
In 1845, he was married in New York City to Miss Lucy Blodgett of that state, by whom he had five children, only two of whom survive: Sanford (chief engineer, and residing in Guatemala, Central America), and Lucy (now Mrs. Mathie, who resides in New York City). In 1859, the first wife died at Norwich, Conn., and in 1874 Col. Robinson was married to Miss Mary Louise De St. Louis, of Montreal, Canada, who has been a devoted wife. He is greatly interested in Shorthorn cattle and owns some of the finest Jerseys in the state and has three splendid bulls of that breed. Besides this, he is rearing fine cattle of other kinds, hogs, and sheep, and his stock is beyond comparison with any other in that section. He is one of the prime movers in every worthy enterprise that takes place in Faulkner County, and his popularity with his fellow citizens is not only due to his valuable services to that community but to his personal qualities as well.