Postcard From Historic Washington, Arkansas

The famous 1874 Washington Courthouse is now
the visitor center.

Established on George Washington's birthday in 1824, Washington, Arkansas is today a quiet, peaceful, tree-shaded town, a state park, and probably America's premier historic village. More than 30 restored historic structures, including examples of Southern Greek Revival and Federal architecture, Gothic Revival, Italianate, and those of hand-hewn timber framing or brace-frame cottage construction, stand as a tribute to life in Washington from 1824 to 1900. You can tour the public buildings and homes; see wonderful collections of antiques, guns and knives; visit with the guides in period attire; ride the surrey around town and step back to a more genteel  period in history. There was a time, however, when Washington was a bustling, thriving city and for almost 3 years during the Civil War, the state capitol of Arkansas.

Black's forge where the 1st Bowie knife was
made for Jim Bowie.

Located in Hempstead County, Washington was established as the first county seat. It was located on the famous Southwest Trail (the earliest road across the state) and, due to its closeness to the then Mexican border, was a stopover for pioneers traveling west to Texas. Davy Crockett, Sam Houston and Jim Bowie stopped in Washington on their way to die in defense of the Alamo. Legend say's Houston planned parts of the revolt strategy in a tavern in Washington during 1834. James Black, a talented blacksmith in the town, was commissioned by Jim Bowie to create the original Bowie Knife in 1831. It was this knife he became famous for and died wielding at the Alamo.

Planted in 1839, this magnolia tree has seen
a lot of history.

The town was also the rendezvous point for volunteers to be mustered in to fight in the Mexican War in 1846.  By 1860, the booming town could boast of 17 lawyers, 16 doctors, 15 carpenters, 15 merchants, nine blacksmiths, nine teachers, six printers, 3 hotel owners, 3 carriage makers, and 1 fortune teller. But the town experienced its period of greatest importance during the Civil War. The state capitol in Little Rock fell to the Union Army in September 1863. Governor Harris Flanagin moved the state government to Washington and established offices in the Hempstead County Courthouse. Hempstead County provided its fair share of troops for the Confederacy and the town became a refugee center. In April, 1864, the battle of Prairie D'Ane was fought about 20 miles to the east of the town and the wounded were cared for in Washington.

Unfortunately for the residents, the coming of the railroad era and the establishment of the new town of Hope along the rail line which had bypassed Washington started the town on a path of decline. In 1875, a fire destroyed much of the business district. It was rebuilt, but another fire in 1883 destroyed most of the remaining old businesses in town. Hope was becoming the new shipping and trading center for Hempstead County and Washington residents began to move away. By 1900, only 374 persons were living in town. Repeated attempts to move the county seat to Hope finally succeeded in 1939 further hastening Washington's decline.

Archeological dig - notice the cannon balls
they found?

The town became a state park in 1973 and many of the old structures have been restored by the Pioneer Washington Restoration Foundation. For the last 20 years, archeological fieldwork has been conducted in the town and over 200,000 artifacts have been recovered and preserved. There are still 138 permanent residents who call Washington home.

Located on Highway 278 just nine miles from Hope (from I-30, take exit 30), the park is open year round from 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. except Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's Day.

Well preserved Washington pioneer cemetery.

The Story of Ink

The unincorporated community of Ink, Arkansas, located on Highway 88 east of Mena, received its name in 1887. The U. S. Post Office, trying to cut down on duplicated town names, required towns to submit at least three alternate names on the submission form. Instructions on the ballot sheet distributed to the community asking for a town name said, “Write in ink” so that’s what a lot of folks did. When the first choice of “Mellon” was rejected because a different town already had that name, the 2^nd most popular choice, “Ink” was awarded. Nobody knows what the 3^rd alternate name was.

Closed Ink convenience store

Even more of a sleepy little town today than it was over 100 years ago, the Ink post office closed its doors in 1967. With only 1 business open (a cement delivery service), and a few widely scattered homes, it is very close to being a full-blown ghost town. It does, however, have a large, very well maintained cemetery which serves the area. The cemetery is home to almost more living things than the community - 2 roadrunners.

Ink community center

One of the roadrunners living in the cemetery.

Abandoned Ink home - the norm

I Doggies, Folks!

"Hello, Jot 'Em Down Store. This is Lum and Abner." For nearly 25 years, that was the most welcome greeting on radio. Chester "Chet" Lauck (Lum Eddards) and Norris "Tuffy" Goff (Abner Peabody) were the creators, actors, writers, sound effects men, directors and the soul of the Lum and Abner program. They received more fan mail than any other program at the time - 1 1/2 million letters per week! You've been exposed to their influence on popular culture whether you know it or not. When you hear Jed Clampett say, "Eee doggies," you're hearing an echo of Abner Peabody. When you watch reruns of Green Acres, Petticoat Junction, the Andy Griffith Show or Hee Haw, you're seeing characters based on Lum and Abner characters.

Wax Lum 'N Abner figures in the Museum

Their careers began as young, amateur performers in Mena, AR where they grew up together and performed at school and civic functions. In early 1931, while doing a skit for radio station KTHS in Hot Springs, Arkansas, they tried out their old country storekeepers routine. The names "Lum Eddards" and "Abner Peabody" were just spur of the moment additions and the format was conversational, but the guys were so talented, they were invited back. After a short while, they were offered a 13 week contract with NBC and soon thereafter, their show obtained Quaker Oats as a sponsor and they headed to Chicago for "temporary" show business careers.

Inside the store - the Pine Ridge Post Office

Pine Ridge, Arkansas is about the same size now as it was in the early 1900's when it was called Waters. Located here was a post office, sawmill, general store, grist mill, blacksmith shop, and the other services needed by a farm community. The general store of any small town was its activity hub, especially on Saturdays when everyone from the surrounding farms came to town to trade goods, stories, and get caught up on the latest news. Chet and Tuffy based their program on this interaction they had experienced in Waters, modeling the dialect, phraseology and customs after the citizens of the remote community who "lived lives as their forefathers lived theirs, unaffected and unspoiled by modern progress; who are content to eke out an existence and live their lives undaunted by the depression's hardships."  Many of the fictional characters in the fictional town of Pine Ridge were based on actual residents of Waters and the surrounding area, but only the many voices of Chet and Tuffy were heard on the radio. Chet was Lum, Grandpappy Spears, and Cedric Wehunt. Tuffy was Abner, Squire Skimp, Mousey Grey, Dick Huddleston, and most of the other characters they developed over the years. They kept in touch with the folks in Waters, especially Mrs. Homer Graham (known as Ethel in the program)  who worked in one of the general stores and took notes while customers shopped for shoes, cheese, harness, and other necessities. She would then send these to Lauck and Goff and they used the news, sayings, and phrases in their act.

By the mid-1930's, the radio program was well known across the nation and the listeners kept demanding to know where the town of Pine Ridge was located. Finally, the town of Waters officially changed it's name to Pine Ridge in an elaborate ceremony on the steps of the state capital in Little Rock in 1936 on the 5th anniversary of the program. Pictures hanging in the Lum and Abner Museum show the governor greeting Lum, Abner, and the real-life counterparts of Grandpappy Spears, Cedric Wehunt, Dick Huddleston, and several others.

The original pot bellied stove in the
Jot 'Em Down Store.

The stores that were such an integral part of the program are still in business today and are on the National Register of Historic Places. The original Huddleston store, built in 1909, is now the Lum and Abner Museum and holds the souvenir and gift shop. The A.A. McKinzie Store, built across the street in 1904, has become the Jot 'Em Down Store which gained fame in the program. It has been moved next door to the museum and in addition to selling a few souvenirs, hand-made knick-knacks and snacks, contains the old post office, many pieces of the Lum and Abner program and the original pot bellied stove where the residents would gather around during those cold winter Saturdays so long ago, swapping tales, getting caught up on the news, and laughing at the stories Chet and Tuffy were telling about them.

Many of the original items sold in the store are
in the museum.

In the early 1950's, after almost 25 years of 13 week contracts, 7 movies and thousands of radio shows, Lum and Abner retired. Norris Goff, surrounded by his loving family, died in California in June, 1978.  Chester Lauck and his family moved back to Arkansas after he retired and later aided in the development of the Lum and Abner Museum. He passed away in February, 1980.

Located at the corner of Old Waters Highway and Hole In Ground Road (Highway 88 in Montgemery County, Arkansas - a county that is so rural it doesn't have any traffic lights), Pine Ridge is still a very small, very rural town little changed from the days of the show. 911 service was finally introduced in 2000 and it was just a couple of years ago that anything other than party telephone lines became available. As you pass the community along the 2-lane blacktop highway, the 2 old general stores, an outhouse, and a couple of homes are visible, but the community stretches beyond what you can see. The gravel roads link many farm houses where log buildings can still be found. Two church buildings and a cemetery are out of sight a quarter mile down the "old highway" road, the road to the right of the outhouse.