OPINION | TOM DILLARD: Building and rebuilding county courthouses
On an unseasonably warm June 3, 1895, the citizens of Monroe County celebrated the erection of a new county courthouse in Clarendon. It was built voluntarily by the citizens of the county at no cost t...
January 17, 2021
Tom Dillard: Historically speaking, memorable moments seem to arrive in January
Recently, I reviewed a list of historic events in Arkansas and was struck by the number of interesting goings-on that occurred in Januaries of yesteryear.
The first day of any year will have historic...
January 10, 2021
Tom Dillard: Arkansas lost important chroniclers of its past in 2020
The past year has been challenging for everyone, including the history community. Research facilities such as libraries and archives have struggled with limited public access. Many museums have instit...
January 3, 2021
Tom Dillard: Affair left one dead, one on trial and one who perhaps found God
Last week I wrote about a love triangle in 1890s Fort Smith which resulted in Julia Bourland, wife of prominent businessman Fagan Bourland, attempting to murder her husband's lover, Maud Allen. Today ...
December 27, 2020
OPINION | TOM DILLARD: Neither love triangles nor murder anything new in the news
Julia Bourland, wife of a prominent Fort Smith businessman, shot to death Maud Allen, her husband's mistress, in the spring of 1897, bringing an end to a lurid public scandal which over the previous y...
December 20, 2020
OPINION | TOM DILLARD: Arkansas politics not as much fun as they used to be
The level of political discourse seems awfully low during this election season. It is easy to forget that Arkansas has always had an abundance of over-the-edge political leaders. During the territoria...
December 13, 2020
OPINION | TOM DILLARD: A prolific proponent of the paranormal
One of the most remarkable men of Arkansas history was Harold Sherman of near Mountain View in Stone County.
He was a writer, a playwright, an authority on extrasensory perception and the paranormal ...
December 6, 2020
Tom Dillard: Prolific proponent of the paranormal was unique Arkansas character
One of the most remarkable men in Arkansas history was Harold Sherman, who lived near Mountain View in Stone County.
He was a writer, a playwright, an authority on extrasensory perception and the par...
December 6, 2020
Tom Dillard: UA Press packages the past; you just add the ribbon
With the holidays approaching, I have been busy shopping for Christmas gifts.
For friends and family with an interest in our state's history, I search the online catalog of the University of Arkansas...
November 29, 2020
UA Press packages the past
With the holidays approaching, I have been busy shopping for Christmas gifts.
For friends and family with an interest in our state's history, I search the online catalog of the University of Arkansas ...
November 23, 2020
Tom Dillard: Daisy Bates, Johnny Cash first of many who should be remembered
Fundraising to create statues of Daisy Bates and Johnny Cash for Statuary Hall in the U.S. Capitol is reported to be going well, with about one-half of the needed $1 million pledged.
I am happy to se...
November 22, 2020
Tom Dillard: Horrors of Coal Hill remembered more than century later
I have driven by the Coal Hill exit on Interstate 40 for decades. Every time I see that sign, I am reminded of the "Coal Hill Horrors."
In the late 19th century the town was the site of abuse of stat...
November 15, 2020
Tom Dillard: Pike County has long been a 'diamond in the rough'
The general gloom of the pandemic was pushed aside recently by the news that my younger brother, Rick, is moving back to Arkansas after decades of living in Texas. He is building a home near his daugh...
November 8, 2020
Tom Dillard: Author Brooks Blevins lauded for definitive history of the Ozarks
Brooks Blevins, an Izard County resident and Noel Boyd Professor of Ozarks Studies at Missouri State University in Springfield, Mo., told me recently that he has submitted the manuscript for the final...
November 1, 2020
OPINION | TOM DILLARD: Treatment of those in the tombs
Death was a constant presence in the lives of our ancestors. Treatment of the dead has changed over time, and attitudes have grown accustomed to the distant connection we have with the bodies of the d...
October 25, 2020