Madison County remains rural

Rugged area retains its roots in the shadow of sister counties

— There isn’t a single stoplight in Madison County and the people living there are proud of that.

In Madison County, the land is affordable, folks are nice and the pace of life is slow. The rugged county just east of the Springdale-Fayetteville bustle wasn’t transformed by the last decade’s development boom that forever changed Washington and Benton counties. And for a lot of folks, that’s a good thing.

Bears and wild turkey still live in remote corners of the county. And there’s a stubborn rumor that a panther prowls the hills.

Buried in its soil are two former governors, Isaac Murphy of Huntsville and Orval Faubus of Combs.

Madison County lacks amenities such as swank subdivisions, shopping and nightlife. But compensation is found in family, friends and familiarity, said those who live there.

For people like cattle farmer Joy Russell, that’s enough.

Her 565-acre farm includes a mile of frontage along sparkling War Eagle Creek. The lush bottomland is framed by tree-covered mountains. Heron feed in the water while deer roam the hayfield.

Big sunsets in the summer and autumn leaves mark the passage of time. When the holidays come around, there’s plenty of room for visitors.

An only child, Russell was sole heir to the farm. With the exception of a two-year stint in Missouri when she was “miserable,” Russell, 56,hasn’t lived anywhere else.

“These are my roots,” she said. “That’s all I can say.”

Pieced together by her great-grandfather, C.W. Anderson, the farm in Witter bears evidence of habitation reaching deep into history. Arrowheads and grinding trays made by American Indians. The ruins of a chimney built by homesteaders. The tale of an April 1863 murder during the Civil War. Ruts from a forgotten stagecoach line from Ozark to Huntsville.

Hazards come with thehistory, too. Russell once found the remnants of a methamphetamine lab up in the hills. Her son, Dustin, stumbled upon poachers. When she’s out and about on the property, a trusty Australian shepherd named Katie is at her side, and so is a pistol.

“If it came down to me or them,” she said, and let the unspoken part of the sentence drop.

Russell has two daughters and a son, and none of them have shown an interest in maintaining the cattle farm.

Russell understands.

“It’s a lot of hard work,” she said. “It can tie you down. There’s always something to do.”

But if the children ever want to return to paradise, they have a standing invitation.

“All my kids know if they want to come out here they can build a house and have some land,” she said.

And if Russell has her way, that invitation will always be around, even if she isn’t.

“I have no plans to sell,” she said. “Frankly, if I did, I feel like I’d be selling a part of myself.”

CENTER OF ATTENTION

The Huntsville square appears to be in good shape. Two coffee shops, antique stores, law offices and a gazebo. With the exception of an old bank building, storefronts along the square are occupied.

Huntsville, which just landed its first McDonald’s, is open for business. That’s the message from David Pemberton, secretary of the Huntsville Chamber of Commerce.

Like a lot of people from Madison County, Pemberton had to move away for awhile to make a living. But he returned. From the newly renovated chamber office on the square, he sees a bright future for Huntsville. But not too bright.

“I think we’ll grow, but I don’t think it’ll be wild growth like Lowell and Centerton,” he said. “You’re not going to see a bunch of unfinished subdivisions dotting the landscape.”

The widening from two to four lanes along U.S. 412 from Hindsville to Huntsvilleshould be a boon. The right of way has been purchased and utilities are being moved. Once that’s done, the Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department will award a bid for the 4.9-mile stretch, spokesman Randy Ort said. Once it starts, the project could be finished in two years.

“I think it’ll make this area more attractive to people who feel like they’re closed in over in Fayetteville, Springdale and Rogers,” said Pemberton, referring to the road project. “Some people might want to have 20 acres instead of 20 neighbors.”

In Madison County, all major roads lead to the square. That’s why local artist Lisa Bauer opened her art studio there. She wanted to ply her trade in the heart of the community. While she features her own work, she also shows pieces by other artists. Paintings by Jerry Plumlee, a portraitist, are currently hanging on the walls and are for sale. When his show ends, another will begin.

Bauer hopes the studio will encourage local artists to present their work to the public. Now that there’s a visible venue, that might start to happen, she said.

Bauer also wants to nurture a new generation of painters. She has about a dozen students. They start with basic drawing, and from there, they can go as far as their imagination will allow, said Bauer. Creating art breeds self-gratification and self-esteem, Bauer said, and art is essential to a good education.

For a long time she’d wanted to bring the blessings of art to the hub. When an appropriate space opened up, she signed a rental agreement, had the space renovated and moved in.

“I’ve had people asking me for years to do classes,” shesaid. “I want to see people appreciate the arts.”

EMPLOYMENT PICTURE

While the population of Madison County did not explode during the development boom, figures from the U.S. Census show that the area did grow.

From 1990 to 2000, the population increased from 11,618 to 14,243. The 2009 population estimate is 15,875. Most people live outside the incorporated areas. According to the Census, Huntsville has a population of 2,407, making it the largest city by far.

In terms of population density, Madison County has 19 people per square mile. That compares to 213 per square mile in Washington County and 266 in Benton County, according to the U.S. Census.

Over the years, the county has enjoyed low unemployment, according to records kept by the Arkansas Department of Workforce Services.

In 2001, the unemployment rate was 3.3 percent, and through 2008, the rate never peaked higher than 4.2 percent. These days, the county still fares well when compared to the state and the nation. In May, the rate was 6 percent compared to state and federal rates of 7.7 percent and 9.3 percent, respectively.

Plenty of residents in Madison County travel to Springdale and Fayetteville to buygroceries and supplies. Many people work in those towns, too. But Huntsville does have three big employers that collectively support more than 1,100 jobs.

The Huntsville School District employs 350 people, and LaBarge, a manufacturer of circuit boards and electronic assemblies, employs 165 people.

The largest employer in town is Butterball. The Huntsville plant, which opened in 1974, employs 650 people. The annual payroll for Butterball employees is about $22 million, according to information released by the company’s public relations office. The company paid $140,000 in real estate taxes, and the 65-acre site consumed $1 million in water and sewer services over the last 12 months.

Through several buyouts, mergers and changes in ownership at the corporate level, the plant has remained in operation. While the plant is one of only two that produces whole turkeys, the facility also produces boneless roasts, breasts and parts.

In 2009, the plant sent out 185 million finished pounds.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration awarded the Huntsville Butterball plant a Star Worksite rating in 2008. The award acknowledges Butterball’s efforts to minimize employee injuries and related workercompensation hours.

“This is more than a slaughterhouse,” complex manager Bill Folk said.

FARMS DISAPPEAR

People move in and people move out. People buy and people sell. In the last 15 years, real estate agent Phil Bolinger has seen it all.

A man from Beaumont, Texas, recently purchased a farm so he could get away from the heat, hurricanes and mosquitoes of southeast Texas. Others are moving into Madison County and stocking up on provisions so they can sit out the apocalypse, which they think is coming in 2012.

A few years back, when there was plenty of discretionary cash floating around, people bought land for hunting clubs.

Regardless of why people buy, the result is the same: The family farm is slowly dying.

“They’re disappearing because sons and daughters of the old family farmers are realizing it’s not a good living,” Bolinger said. “They’re realizing they can get a job and insurance and benefits.”

But for those who want to stick it out and raise poultry, there are still plenty of opportunities, Bolinger said.

“The banks will still loan money on poultry farms,” he said. “Those are good loans because they can cash-flow in 15 years.”

For college graduates, there are few job prospects in a rural area like Madison County. And Bolinger should know. His 27-year-old daughter, a graduate of the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville, lives in Lowell and works in Bentonville. And when his 22-year-old son graduates from UA, Bolinger doubts he’ll come back to Madison County to live.

But when and if they return, they’ll be greeted by family and land.

“Will they ever come back?” Bolinger asked. “In time they will, but it’ll be a while because they’ve got to be where they can make a living.”

Northwest Arkansas, Pages 7 on 07/26/2010

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