Benton County History

06/06/2026

Bentonville Lions Club vs Rogers Lions Club? In a football game?

Have we mentioned that we sometimes find some pretty wonderful surprises tucked inside old books? BCHS recently received a donation that included a 1946 Bentonville Tiger yearbook, and when one member of our preservation team opened it up, this fell out.

Initially it looked like a listing of local businesses who might have sponsored the yearbook.

And honestly, we would have been delighted with that, because it’s packed with advertisements from local businesses such as Garner’s Grocery on Second Street in Rogers, Croxdale Grocery and Market, Allen’s Market and Grocery, Ozark Sport Shop, A.D. Callison Funeral Home, Putman’s of Bentonville (“The Style Headquarters!”), and the Bank of Bentonville.

But - when we turned it over and realized what we were holding a flyer advertising a “Foot Ball Game” between the Rogers Lions Club and the Bentonville Lions Club, scheduled for October 30 at the Bentonville Athletic Field—complete with player lineups for both teams.

We weren’t able to uncover details of the game, but we did learn that football games sponsored by local Lions Clubs were pretty common across the United States during the 1930s and 1940s. Community pride, football, fundraising, and local bragging rights must have made a pretty good combination.

And thanks to one forgotten flyer tucked inside a yearbook for nearly 80 years, we got to have a little glimpse of that wonderful tradition.

06/04/2026

You just never know what you’ll find tucked inside an old book. As we continue with repairing Goodspeed’s History of Arkansas (1889), a surprise appeared between the pages: an incredibly thin piece of old stationery bearing the name J. Van Butler and the words “The Locomotive” in beautiful lettering.

And that sent us straight down the old research rabbit hole. Who was J. Van Butler? What was “The Locomotive”? And why does the paper say Muskogee, I.T.?

It turned out that J. Van Butler was actually written about in Goodspeed’s History of Arkansas! According to Goodspeed’s, Butler was born in Georgia in 1866 and came with his family to Benton County in 1878 when his father settled east of Siloam Springs. Remarkably, Goodspeed notes that outside of only six months of formal schooling, Butler educated himself largely through personal study.

In 1886, J. Van Butler entered the newspaper business when he and his brother purchased a printing office in Springdale. They published a paper called The Locomotive beginning Christmas Day of 1886. The Springdale venture lasted only a few months before the brothers relocated to Siloam Springs, where they revived The Locomotive on August 26, 1887.

Sadly, Butler’s life would be a short one. In May of 1895, the Bentonville Sun published a heartfelt obituary following his death from consumption at only 29 years old. The paper remembered him as “always of a bright, cheerful nature,” and noted that “some of the brightest editorial and comical narratives of Arkansas journalism were found in his paper.”

As for the mystery? The stationery also lists Muskogee, I.T. (Indian Territory - not computer support). And we haven’t been able to find a connection between either J. Van Butler or The Locomotive and Muskogee. At least, not yet.

Perhaps one of our readers knows the answer.

Moments like this are one of our favorite parts of preservation work. You begin repairing a book… and suddenly you’re chasing the story of a long-forgotten newspaper editor through Arkansas and Indian Territory.









Sources:
The History of Benton County, Arkansas, Goodspeed Publishing Co., 1889
Obituary of J. Van Butler, Bentonville Sun, May 30, 1895
Gravette News, June 1, 1895
The Arkansas Locomotive (Springdale, Ark.) 1886-1887, Library of Congress Directory of U.S. Newspapers

06/03/2026

It was The Great Escape - Benton County style! Well - almost…

Our favorite archivists, Mike Carney, recently shared a fascinating 1911 newspaper article titled “Prisoners Escape” from The Democrat—and it tells quite a story.

A little background first: Benton County’s previous jail had been destroyed by fire in 1905, leading to the construction of a new jail at 212 N. Main in Bentonville. The handsome two-story brick building was designed by architect A. O. Clark and construction was completed in 1911. It included office space and living quarters for the sheriff’s family, as well as the sheriff’s office and jail cells (which were located on the second floor).

And it appears that their brand-new jail came with a very short “escape-proof” warranty.

According to the article, around 4:30a.m. on the morning of September 11, six of the twelve prisoners in the brand-new jail made their ‘daring’ escape.

First, they escaped the inner cage. Then they went to the east end of the building and dug a hole through the brick wall before lowering themselves from a second-story window using a rope made from… sheets (yep - you read that right, bedsheets).

But - the story gets better. The newspaper explained that the new jail had automatic locks on the cell doors, but they hadn’t been used because “the combinations are very intricate.” (We’re betting that changed pretty quick!) Besides, it was assumed prisoners wouldn’t try escaping with the sheriff living in the building.

Unfortunately, Sheriff Andrew J. Russell happened to be away that night.

And somehow…the prisoners knew it.

On the bright side, the paper reported that three of the escapees were “back at the old stand for supper” the very same evening.

Meanwhile, the other three were still on the run.

But perhaps the most surprising detail came at the end of the article: the six prisoners who stayed behind apparently could have escaped, but chose not to. In fact, they were the ones who gave the alarm once the others got out.

So in the end, half the jail broke out, half stayed put, and the brand-new jail immediately acquired a rather memorable first chapter in its history.







Sources:
“The Democrat,” Sept. 11, 1911
https://theclio.com/entry/202644
Historical Review of Arkansas: Its Commerce, Industry and Modern Affairs by Fay Hempstead
Courtesy of archivist Michael L. Carney

05/31/2026

Sometimes we need a reminder of just how much determination “getting an education” once required.

In 1924, when this photo was taken, Coal Gap School stood along Slate Gap Road near Garfield. The one-room schoolhouse (which still survives today) taught eight grades under one roof. Students came from all over the area, arriving on foot or horseback with packed lunches. At the time, the length of a school term depended on available funding, meaning some school years lasted only three months. Others stretched to seven.

According to Patricia Heck, niece of one of the girls in the photograph, these four students were crossing the White River because Rocky Branch School offered a “Normal School” program. These programs trained future teachers during a time when many women had few opportunities for higher education.

Pat explained that her Aunt Cleva Williams Douglas—one of the girls in the photo—had already completed the eighth grade at Coal Gap School. With no nearby high school available and no money for room and board in town, Cleva went on to repeat the highest grade a couple of times so she could continue her learning. This was because Cleva had no opportunity to go to high school, as she didn’t have relatives in town, and couldn't afford room and board.

Unfortunately for Cleva, shortly after this photograph was taken the arrangement came to an end. The other girl in the photo, Lucy Williams, married Homer Rayon and left school. Cleva told Pat that she also had to quit attending because “in those days at Glade,... it would have been considered improper for a female to be in the boat alone with men.”

As Pat said: “Times have changed.”

Pat also said that her Aunt Cleva was “very bright,” and lived to be 106 years old! A special woman indeed!

It’s remarkable to think about the effort these students made to continue their education—crossing a river, repeating grades to keep learning, and working around the expectations of the time.







Sources:
The Benton County Pioneer, Volume 65, Number 4, Fourth Quarter 2020, “A Glimpse of History: Coal Gap School” by Ruth Billingsley
Encyclopedia of Arkansas, “Coal Gap School”
Rogers Historical Museum Facebook post, Sept. 1, 2022
Information shared by Patricia Heck, Benton County Historical Society and Glade Historical Society Board President

05/26/2026

Main Street Centerton

Take a look at what someone created with ChatGPT.

05/26/2026

Colorized photo from the newspaper, Cherokee City

Take a look at what someone created with ChatGPT.

05/26/2026

Sulphur Springs in 1925 - complete with bank robbers, running gun battles, and two little boys who accidentally changed the course of events by building the Mosier Dam.

In a 1986 issue of The Benton County Pioneer, Hazel M. Stotler told the story of the Sulphur Springs Bank Robbery of 1925. According to Hazel, those involved said they had “never, ever read an accurate written account of this robbery.” So she decided to fix that.

Hazel interviewed surviving eyewitnesses, including Elmer Johnson - who lost an eye pursuing the robbers—and Dick Stout, whose father was killed in the attack. She also spoke with Willard Mosier, who was only five years old at the time of the robbery (but still played an important role.) Hazel’s account is fascinating, but it’s also 10 pages long. So - here’s the abridged version.

The story began before the robbery happened. A deputy sheriff from Adair County, Oklahoma wrote to Storm O. Whaley, the cashier at the Bank of Sulphur Springs. The deputy warned that “bad actors” were planning to rob the bank in May or June. Storm, L.M. Stout (the bank president), Sheriff Gailey, and the entire town all took the warning seriously.

So they prepared and waited, and waited, and waited. But when the robbery finally came, it caught the town unprepared. It seemed the “bad actors” had been watching and knew exactly when to strike.

Axel and Della Johnson, owners of the Johnson Garage, Electric, and Plumbing Shop, had gone to Joplin, MO that day leaving their son Elmer in charge. Elmer was 23 years old, and very dependable.

Over at the bank, Miss Clara Abercrombie and Storm Whaley planned to close up at noon so they could go home for dinner. But, Storm was a talker and at dinner time he was talking with a customer (Mr. C.A. Swarens, manager of the lumber yard). So, Miss Clara left alone.

As Miss Clara left the bank, she met two men coming in. Outside was a Model T with two more men in it. As she passed by them, she heard one say "Just let her go". Miss Clara had been through bank robberies before, and she knew what the men were. So she left - walking very fast and heading for Stout's Grocery.

Mr. L.M. Stout and his sons, Louis and Dick were in the back of the store when Miss Clara came hurrying in saying "Mr. Stout, they are robbing the bank."

Meanwhile, at the bank the two robbers told Storm and Mr. Swarens to "Stick 'em up quick” - which they did without any hesitation. Storm had a gun in his cash drawer but handed over the money without any fuss. The robbers emptied the safe, then put Storm and Swarens in it.

What the robbers didn’t know was that there had recently been a telephone installed inside the vault, just in case the bank got robbed again. (The phone was a well-kept secret -only Elmer and Storm knew about it.) Storm called Johnson's Garage and told Elmer about the robbery.

Storm knew the leader of the gang and knew he was no good. "Mean clear through." The leader was John Burchfield. The rest were: Boyd Jewell, Tyrus Clark, and Elva McDonald.

Back at the Stout Grocery Store, L. M. Stout grabbed his 12-gauge shotgun and ran out the back door to confront the robbers saying “You fellas halt!” Tyrus Clark was in the back seat of the Model T, and shot Mr. Stout in the stomach with a load of buckshot. Louis and Dick Stout returned fire, wounding two of the robbers (Jewell and Burchfield) before the gang took off in their Model T.

Then came one of the best parts of the story. While trying to escape town, the robbers accidentally took a wrong turn onto Duff Avenue—a dead-end street.

At the end of Duff Avenue, two little boys, Paul and Willard Mosier, had been pretending the road was a river and had built a “dam” across it. The fleeing Model T struck the Mosier Dam, swerved, and crashed into a tree.

At that point, the robbers abandoned the car and fled into the woods on foot.

Two of the robbers (Jewell and Burchfield) were captured shortly after the crash and brought back to town under guard by Elmer Johnson, who rode on the running board holding his .45 revolver. The other two fled across the railroad tracks and through barbed-wire fences (which tore off their pockets and scattered stolen silver along the way!)

Late that night, Elmer Johnson and Jim Mosier (father of Paul and Willard) caught up with the fugitives. Elmer attempted to persuade them to surrender, but instead Clark opened fire and the robbers took off running. Elmer got a load of buckshot in the face and chest. Jim was shot in the wrist. Elmer would lose his right eye and carry bullets in his head, neck, and chest for the rest of his life.

Five days later, Clark and McDonald were captured near Claremore, Oklahoma by Sheriff Gailey after a chase stretching more than 125 miles.

Tragically, L. M. Stout would die from his injuries on June 12, 1925.

As for the robbers: one turned state’s evidence and went free, two received life sentences, and Clark was sentenced to death by electrocution for the murder of L.M. Stout..

It’s an incredible story that Hazel Stotler worked hard to preserve through the memories of the people who lived it.







Sources:
Hazel M. Stotler, “Sulphur Springs Bank Robbery,” The Benton County Pioneer, Volume 31, Issue 4, Winter 1986

05/19/2026