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27.1996—Focus :Blvtheville Courier NewsF—*IIfCounty moves toward 21 st centuryrIn 1901 the legislature [divided the county into two j .districts, making Blytheville j T the county seat of the -Chickasawba District.*■• S.E. Simonsen in an arti-•vcle in he Arkansas Historical {’Quarterly describes the coun-* * ty in 1902 as a very sparsely* ’-settled area, “about 90 percent J'of which was called a hope-! 'less malaria ridden swamp.” It £ ’ was then a hunters and fisher-•vlumen’s paradise, he said, teem-; ;!ing with deer, bear and a vari--ety of fur bearing animals. ['Alligator Gar were said to [-have been up to six feet long [• and weighing two hundred [-pounds and more. Predatory animals included bear, pan-jl thers, bobcats and large tim-Iber wolves. Describing the millions and millions of y mosquitoes,” he told of howi• n**the had to at times “carry burn-ing punk close to my face or a £ hand full of vigorously waved ir bushes to fight the mosquitoes L; away from my nostrils so that I could breathe.”: In 1910 county population !* was 30,468. In 1940 popula-»tion in the county was 80,217.Floods Notable Mississippi River ’ floods occurred in 1897-98,1903, 1907, 1912, 1927 and 1937. Damages for the 1927 flood were estimated at$236,000,000.Eaker Air Force BaseIn 1942 an area of 2,640 acres northwest of Blytheville was developed into an Army Air Force Base. The base was ■ officially opened on June 10, 1942, as an advanced flying school in the Southeastern Training Command’s Pilot ■ Program. The goal of thiS'program was to train combat pilots until World War II ended.After the war ended, the Southeast Flying Training Command abandoned the field. Shortly after that the Troop Carrier Command took over the installation and it was used as a processing point for personnel being discharged. In 1947 the base was declared surplus by the War Assets Administration and was closed.The city of Blytheville received all of the runways and airport facilities, including 12,000 acres in an outright grant.In December of 1950, there was talk of reactivating the facility due to the worsening condition in Korea. A resolution was adopted by the City Council asking for the permanent reactivation of the base on January 26, 1951. After more than two years of construction, the 461st Bomb Wing, a part of the Tactical Air Command, relocated to Blytheville from Hill Air Force Base, Utah. By 1956, the base was fully operation, complete with three squadrons of B-57 bombers.During the 1970’s the fate of the base hinged on the whims of the base closure committee. For four years the base was an alternate to closure. On May 26, 1988, thename of the base was officially changed to Eaker Air Force Base in honor of the first commander of the 8th Air Force during World War II.The threats of closure remained hanging over the base and on April 12, 1991,the base was included on the closure list. This time it was not as an alternate but as a primary closure site. Despite the efforts of the city of Blytheville, the order was signed by President George Bush and the closure process was completed when the House of Representatives voted to accept the list.On Dec. 15, 1992 the base was closed.1-55Interstate 55 which runs from the north end of the county to the south end was completed in the early 1970s.Mississippi County Community CollegeAfter a three-mill tax and the establishment of a college district was approved by county voters in 1974, classes of the Mississippi County Community College began. Land was purchased in 1976 and the campus located on Hwy. 61 was completed by 1980.industry growsNucor-Yamato Steel, a joint Japanese and American steel venture, opened in the county in 1988 adding a boost to the local economy. A second Nucor plant opened in 1992. As a result several other satellite plants have opened in the vicinity. The county is now one of the top steel producers in the country.County history supportedSeveral museums and the Mississippi County Historical and Genealogical Society support the history of the county.Officers for the Mississippi County Histpnc^l and Genealogical- ■ Societyv.. i§8BpSMilitary aircraft flying in and out of Blytheville became a common occurrence after Blytheville Army Air Base opened in 1942. The base closed in 1947 and was reopened in 1951. Then in 1992 the base was closed permanently. The area is in the process of redeveloping the base property.include Richard Hartness, president, Dr. Eldon Fairley, vice president, and Shirley M. Richards, secretary, treasurer.The society publishes The Delta Historical Review which presents historical articles about the county.The Mississippi County Historical Commission consists of Dr. Eldon Fairley, chairman, Bonnie Nichols, editor, Paul Shipley of Blytheville, Loretta Cude of Leachville, Alena Wiley of Blytheville, Marion Haynes of Yarbro, Gene Robinson of Osceola and Dr. Joe Jones of Blytheville.Main Street Blytheville’s Heritage Museum, at 107 C West Main in the Cotton Patch Promenade Mall contains agricultural, Eaker Air Force Base and localill© memorabilia The•rUrrv-r' I'i'i\ « *'w - .museum is open by appointment by calling 763-2525.The Mississippi County Historical Center was dedicated Nov. 21, 1993. The centeris housed in the former Patterson buildings on Hale Avenue across from the courthouse. The 1902 and 1904buildings were donated to the society by Miss Lonetta Patterson.The 1904 buildingremains much the same as it was in 1904 featuring walnut counters and shelves and fixed stools along the counters for customers’ convenience.The buildings were place on the National Register of Historic Places in 1987. The museum is open on from 2 p.m. until 4 p.m. on Wednesday and the first Sunday of the month.Hampson Museum State Park at Wilson houses an educational exhibit of the Nodena people who lived along theMississippi River from 1350 until 1700 A.D. The museum is open from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday and from 1 p.m. to 5p.m. on Sunday.• ••\ AS' .*1 m C?Vf- 'n jttt : ■ 1i '; f
Newspaper Details
Blytheville Courier News
Blytheville, Arkansas, US
Sun, Oct 27, 1996
Page 23
Full Page
Clipped by
University O.
AR, USA 27 Feb 2020
Other Publications Near Blytheville, Arkansas
Blytheville Army Air Corps News
Blytheville Courier News
