This is one of the best inland towns in the county. It is situated in Section 29, Township 16 north, Range 33 west, and is the center of a rich grain and live stock region. It is within one and a half miles of “the Nation,” and has a good trade from that country. The amount of business transacted in 1887 is estimated as follows: Aggregate, $224,935; merchandise, wagons and agricultural implements, $82,865; grain and grain products, $43,500; cattle, hogs, sheep and mules, $91,750; miscellaneous, $5,000. There are in the town five general merchants, two milliners, one druggist, one wagon factory, one agricultural implement factory, two blacksmiths, two tanneries, two harness shops, one undertaker, two shoe-shops, one merchant and custom mill, two physicians, one dentist, one hotel, one livery stable, an academy and two churches. One of the most important enterprises is the wagon factory of James Oates, who located in Cincinnati in 1868. His sales in 1887 amounted to $15,000. The oldest mercantile establishment is that of R. J. Rhea, who in 1884 succeeded W. H. Rhea, who began business in 1849. Among the others are Rhea & Watts, Spivey & Marquess Bros., Moore Bros., H. Shields and C. M. Cox. Moore Bros. are also proprietors of the Eureka Mills.
Back to: Washington County, Arkansas History
Source: History of Benton, Washington, Carroll, Madison, Crawford, Franklin, and Sebastian Counties, Arkansas. Chicago, IL, USA: Goodspeed Publishing Co., 1889.