Judge Isaac Charles Parker

One of the most notorious, or notable; depending on your viewpoint, characters to come out of Arkansas' history is Judge Isaac Charles Parker. Not a native of Arkansas, he became synonymous with its history as a judge for the United States District Court for the Western District of Arkansas. He presided as judge over that court for 21 years. His notoriety is such that he has been portrayed in works of fiction like True Grit by Charles Portis as well as novels by Larry McMurtry and Loren Estleman.

REPRODUCTION OF THE OLD 1886 GALLOWS OF THE FEDERAL COURT FORT SMITH, ARKANSAS
This gibbet was built to hang as many as twelve men at one time. Judge Isaac C. Parker, the "Hanging Judge" ruled over the Indian Territory, comprising some 74,000 square miles with an iron hand. During his term of 21 years, 1875-1896, the court disposed of a total of 13,500 cases- of which 12,000 were criminal, 88 men were hanged.
Color Photo by Brock

During his tenure as judge he tried 13,490 cases, 344 of which were capital cases. In those capital cases, Judge Parker sentenced 160 to death by hanging. Only 79 of those sentences were carried through (less than 50%) and resulted in his reputation as a "hanging judge." That may have come more as a result of the gallows he used which could hang as many as twelve at one time. 

It should be noted, at that time, the two crimes that carried the death penalty were rape and murder. Judge Parker said of the hangings, "It was not I who hung them. I never hung a man. It is the law." Essentially true as hanging was mandated for murder and rape.

Called one of the first advocates of victims' rights, the judge reserved his sympathy for the victims of crimes. Even though his reputation was that of a hard man, he was fair, often granting retrials that resulted in acquittals or reduced sentences.

Isaac Parker was the youngest person ever to hold the position when he was appointed to the federal bench at 36 years of age. His salary was $3,500 per year. Court often lasted from 8:30 in the morning until dusk or even after dark.

He was given only 200 federal marshals to patrol a territory of almost 74,000 square miles with a population of about 60,000. Of those 200 marshals, 65 died in the line of duty. A United States Marshal's pay was $90 per month.

An interesting book to read is Hell on the Border copyrighted in 1953 by Frank L. Van Eaton. The title page pretty much tells you it is "A history of the Great United States Criminal Court at Fort Smith and of Crimes and Criminals in the Indian Territory and the Trials and Punishment Thereof before his honor United Sates Judge Isaac C. Parker 'The Terror of Law Breakers.' Embracing the Leading Sentences and Charges to the Grand and Petit Juries in dome of the most famous cases in the world's history." The book is out of print but I found it easily on both eBay and Amazon. There are quite a few pictures and many of the more famous cases are detailed as well as biographies of court officials and a history of the court. 

As you may note in reading various histories, the numbers do vary. Some say over half his Marshals were killed and others also have a higher total of persons hanged. I chose the more conservative of the numbers in writing this blog post.

Sources: 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaac_Parker

The Arkansas Handbook by Sutherlin, Diann ©1996, Fly-by-Night Press

http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~rkinfolks/deputies.html 

Fort Smith Historical Society: http://www.fortsmithhistory.org

http://littlerock.about.com/cs/generalhistory/a/hangingjudge.htm 

Arlington Hotel - Birth, Fire and Rebuilding

Raphael Tuck & Sons Series No. 2369 "Hot Springs Ark."
The Arlington Hotel is the only hotel situated on the Government Reservation. The structure is of brick, in the Moorish style, well befitting its location against the Hot Springs Mountain in the narrow valley. The Arlington accommodates 500 guests and is open the whole year. It is one of the oldest hotels, but was entirely rebuilt a few years ago.

The postcards above and below depict the second of three constructions of the Arlington Hotel. Its first location is actually across the street from its present location and was completed in 1875. It is still located in the downtown area of Hot Springs, and offers not only rooms but a full-service spa and two restaurants. 

Posted February 22,1910

On April 5, 1923, the above structure burnt to the ground. One fireman died and two others were injured fighting the fire after a wall collapsed.

The loss was estimated at over $1,000,000, even in 1923. According to newspaper reports, only about half that loss was covered by insurance.

This is an actual photo of the fire and firefighting efforts.

Although guests were able to escape, most personal property was destroyed by the fire. Many of the guests were able to exit through the back of the hotel where it was possible to escape to the mountainside.

The fire was reported at about 3 in the afternoon, according to a newspaper report. The fire started in the basement and spread quickly. Many of the guests were outdoors enjoying the weather when the fire started.

Even though many were outdoors, about 50 guests had to be rescued from windows at the front by hook and ladder, as they were unable to exit through the rear due to heavy smoke.

Heavy, thick smoke also hampered firefighters' efforts to fight the fire. For most of the first hour, it was contained to the lower part of the building but spread to consume the entire structure. It had been closed the previous year for about 4 months for renovations.

A popular hotel at the time, the Arlington had several notable people including William Pinkerton, head of the Pinkerton Detective Agency staying there.

Actual photo of the ruins after the fire.

Rebuilt in less than a year, in the same location, the Arlington was once again a popular hotel for the rich, famous, and infamous. Notable guests included, Joe DiMaggio, Babe Ruth, Theodore Roosevelt, Bill Clinton, Andrew Carnegie, and Al Capone. During WWII, the Arlington was one of the hotels commandeered by the Army for relaxation and redistribution for its troops. 

The Arlington Hotel is open year-round. For more information, please visit their web site http://www.arlingtonhotel.com

Newspaper articles cited:
Detroit Free Press, April 6, 1923
The Atlanta Constitution, April 6, 1923

One Tiny Town - Two Unusual Museums

The town of Lakeview was formed because of the Bull Shoals Dam. Completed in  1952, its construction gave rise, as well, to the town of Bull Shoals.

Ozark Playground Series
Part of the business district of Lakeview, Arkansas. Lakeview is a nationally known resort area, offering complete accommodations for the entire family. The business district is located on Bull Shoals Lake and only one mile from Bull Shoals Dam. Excellent motels, restaurants, gift shops, drug sundries, sporting goods shops and other business facilities to serve you. At Lakeview you have choice of lake or river fishing, including public boat dock, bathing beach, fishing pier and floating swimming pool for children. For fun and relaxation, visit in the Ozarks often.
Ansochrome by Huel M. Morrison

A very small town, even today, one can still find the buildings that once contained the Where Away Button Mosaics and Penrod Museum. Any indication that there were once museums there is long gone. It's interesting to realize that such a small town could house two museums virtually right next door to each other.

Penrod's Hobby Museum
Lakeview, Arkansas
One of the nation's most outstanding privately owned Hobby Museums. 57 fabulous collections from all over the world. Hundreds of rare collector's items. Representing over 40 years of collecting by Mr. and Mrs. J.L. Penrod.

Penrod's Hobby Museum now houses a motorcycle sales and repair shop and the former Where Away building currently has a store carrying all sorts of merchandise.

I don't really remember Penrod's. I moved to the Twin Lakes area in 1979, and it may have closed by then. If anyone knows more of the history, I would love to hear about it.

I do remember Where Away Button Mosaics. A friend actually bought many of the collectibles when it closed in the 1980s. If anyone know what happened to the Button Mosaics, which were not for sale, I would really enjoy learning about them.

You can see the two button mosaics on the wall below in color.

Button Mosaics
"Where Away" Gift Shop
Bull Shoals Dam, Lakeview, Arkansas
One of the world's only old Button Mosaics, created by Norman C. Engeler. There are fifteen completed Mosaics, containing over 180,000 buttons; many rare collectors items, representing thirty years of collecting and handwork.
On exhibition at "Where Away" the Ozarks outstanding Gift Shop.

As you can see, the Button Mosaics were displayed quite prominently along the walls of the shop, What you can't see, is that there were many more collectibles, including antique dolls, wood carvings by local artists like Junior Cobb, glassware, and much more displayed in the shop. Below are more of the button mosaics in color and black and white on postcards I have collected. Most have the same description on the back as the Dawn of a New Day postcard.

Red Wing is to the right in color below.

The close-ups of both Chief Crazy Horse and Red Wind show a lot more detail and some idea of just how much work was involved in each Button Mosaic.

Chief Crazy Horse
One of the world's only collections of fifteen Old Button Mosaics at WHERE-AWAY, Bull Shoals Dam, Lakeview, Arkansas. Approximately 20,000 buttons in this picture - 46 1/2 by 52 1/2 inches.

Again, if you have more about the history of either of these interesting places or about the Button Mosaics and where they ended up, I would really enjoy hearing about it. 

Monte Ne - Then and Now

Now in ruins, Monte Ne was once a thriving tourist destination in northwest Arkansas. Just a short distance south of Rogers, now on the shore of Beaver Lake, most of the ruins are usually under the waters of the lake. 

All that remains of Missouri Row is the foundation and the chimney with several fireplaces. 

The shore of Beaver Lake often covers much of the foundation and only the chimney can be seen above the water. These photos were taken in April 2017 when the lake level was fairly low. 

Monte Ne Hotel foundation

All that is left of the Monte Ne Hotel is the foundation and some of the front wall next to what is now a boat launch ramp.

The only remaining structure from Monte Ne that stays clear of the water is the tower from Oklahoma Row which was later renamed The Club House Hotel.
The logs you see in the postcard above were purchased and moved just down the road to be reconstructed as an antique gallery. You can see the structure, nearly in ruins itself, on the way down to Monte Ne .

Surrounded by a fence and barbed wire, the tower has been heavily tagged by vandals. The walls of the tower are at the head of the foundation for Oklahoma row. 

At the other end of the remnants of the foundation is the cellar for Oklahoma Row. Usually underwater, the lake level has been low enough for vandals to tag the walls and interior of the structure.

The interior of the basement, heavily tagged, but still showing some of the former glory of the old building.

Unless you know it's there, you would probably miss this forgotten Arkansas tourist attraction. 

Building Bull Shoals Dam

The Dedication

President Harry S. Truman came to the area, after the completion of Bull Shoals Dam, to dedicate both the Norfork and Bulls Shoals Dams. I was fortunate enough to find an original flyer for the visit and dedication. 

July 2 through the 4th of 1952 was quite an affair for the now Twin Lakes area and must have been very exciting for local residents. I hope, in the future, to find some photos from the occasion to add to my collection.

Building Bull Shoals Dam

Part 2

General view looking upstream from below near office building. Pool elevation 497.0 upstream gauge. January 1, 1950

 For this part of the story, I'd like to let the photos, postcards, and captions tell the story. The photos and postcards are all part of my growing and rather extensive collection of historical Arkansas postcards, images, and ephemera. The captions were retrieved from the Corps of Engineers descriptions from photos posted online.

March 1, 1950
View looking upstream from left training wall along down stream side of monoliths 17 - 6 inclusive.

The field you see below the dam is now a golf course. That bridge is no longer there, removed after construction was completed. 

This is the downstream side of the dam. You can see where the White River was diverted on the right-hand side to allow for construction. On the hill to the left is where the Gaston Visitor Center now sits overlooking the dam.

Here, the dam is nearly completed. You can still see the bridge below the dam that connects both sides of the river. The postcard below shows much the same picture but the bridge has been demolished and the rest of the construction equipment on the dam is gone.

This postcard and the one below are before the dam was completed. You can see some phases of the construction. 

As you can see, the project was extensive and well-documented with photographs. 

Next time, the dedication of the dam.