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Statesman, Salem, On.,' Tuesday, Sept. 6, 1 9S5-See. 2) 7
Arkansas
THE UNITED STATES
. Exclusive Series In
THE STATESMAN
Surprises
Contrasts
and
o
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. Arkan
sas, ' as one writer described it,
"is far enough south to regard
ham hocks and turnip greens as
high style fare, far west enough
to serve them without batting an
eye to the guest who clomps to
the table in high-heeled boots."
The sUie, neighbor to Mis-"
souri, Texas, Oklahoma, Tennes
see and Mississippi, sits on top
of the Louisiana boot Like most
southern states, it is a cotton
producer .as well aa raiser of
corn, soybeans, rice, spinach and
alfalfa.
Arkansas is a land of surprises:
Almost half of its 73; counties
are without towns' of even 200
population. Yet, , in this rural
area, is one of the country's (lar
gest jet bomber bases. There jare
still some circuit-riding
ers in the Ozark area and some
towns are served with I library
books by a man who totes them
preach-
. . "M ; . ' -
' ' . . , I - -
. - - , . t - , - - " j ' " ' J
' ".'' f ' ' ' ! ! ', I . I ' " ' " '
in over the ridges, r
While many of the state's rur
al areas still rely on fiddlin, tur
key callin', and spittin contests
for entertainment, there are also
four television stations in the
state and the familiar antennas
can be found on homes of sharecroppers.
I
i
away , from the I
i i ;
L ? i
. - -t-v m it n r. t.
To add to the mixture of "back-i Only! an hour
woods" and bustling enterprise.
the state is a producer of oil and
gas, and minerals have an annu
al production value ox about
S12S million.
Famsns Alumni
Its famous alumni include Lum
and Abner, Bob Burns and Diz
zy Dean, Dorothy Shaver, Mor
gan Beatty and John Gould Flet
cher, Pulitzer prize winner in po
etry. In the political field, its most
recent contribution has been
Sen. J. William Fulbright, author
of the Fulbright exchange schol
arship program which has made
it possible for hundreds of young
Americans to teach and study
throughout the world.
The state comprises an area of
f 53,000 square miles. With Little i
) Rock as the pivot point, j the tour j
J norsrAPkaas lInd.'"10 Ita h business and
. . 4 i ne great rice-neid region comes
' next Since this area was largely
; " ' unpopulated prior to .this cen-
; tury, its inhabitants, descendants
midwesteen Germans and
are totally - different in
from adjoining cotton plant
"grand style" accommodations at
Hot Springs is the Ouachita Na
tional Forest The Ouachita Riv
er winds through the game-filled
forest past three dams which set
up a; 100 mile chain of lakes.
- Float fishing is i one of the
state's chief vacation commodi
ties with its center in the White
River country j of North-central
Arkansas. This sport provides
fishermen with j a crack at some
of the state's best fishing waters,
inaccessible except by boat
Aside from tie pleasant aspect
of fishing and lolling in the sun,
for the more industrial and am
bitious type, Arkansas can boast
a post-1945 boom, j ''t
A total of 68 manufacturing
plants have been located in the
metropolitan area of Little Rock
Arkansas
Population '1850) W09r
511 (30th). F
! ' :)
Area 13,105 sen are miles
(26th). .
I - .-.
Capital Little Rock.
Flower Apple Blossom.
targe cities Little Rock
10213, Fort Smith 53,037,
North Little Reck 44,097, Pine
Bluff 37,162.1
industrial outlook is reflected in
an increase in bank deposits from
$63,412,052 in; 1940 to $205,666,-
261 of which more than $37 mil
lion occurred since 1945. "
Since the start of World War
II, Arkansas has come to the fore
in aluminum , production. ' Its
known reserves of . bauxite ore
are sufficient to last for more
than 40 years at the present rate
of consumption. -
An Arkansas state geologist,
John C. Branner, found the
state's first bauxite deposits just
outside Little Rock in 1887. But
the bauxite-rich area was, barely
developed until World War II.
Now Reynolds Metals Company
and Aluminum Company of Am
erica each have three plants in
the state. r
- Approximately 97 per cent of
domestic bauxite produced in this
country v comes from Arkansas
with the value running to $11
million in a recent year. In addi
tion, it now feeds some 35 man
ufacturing plants fabricating al
uminum in Arkansas. - ' '
-
of
Ji Czechs,
I outlook
j ers.
mm
i-
Pine Forests
South of the Arkansas river is
t
hickory, gum, cypress and pine
-"w . -,, . .
tnt a region sim ncn in pine tor-
i'r. 'tl Si" ' ;.-Ui i ) a 1 r ' r
- " fr"Vv,y'l ' - -d? came aown me xwississipi
fssVV-r VIfn , , 'n "nd "countered a tribe !
I:X Wv ' - 1rNp;d- irjt -..C ' " -" . "s called the Arkansas a
- ",. 'X - ; vrV T. , rf.tCX ,1 The first settlement w!
- V : ' ;-cl ' , i S- . vV2L - I 1686 t Arkansas posl
,V H urdn. r .,TJ7' I miles above the mouth of
make lumbering second among
the state's resources, j In the f
southwest are the oil fields. Just ;
north of them is another area of
pinewoods and scenic artas. The i
northwest corner is a flourishing
industrial area but is also rich
J in apple orchards and vineyards.
mm4 a taic s capildl.ijlUie nOCK,
LiS' has not one hut thr ranitnic
the restored Territorial i Capitol,
(k recaiung aays 01 xne ibzus; the
i state capitol built in 1835; and
tne impressive capitol completed
in 1911. j .
Arkansas was first explored by
DeSoto. In 1673, the French ex
plorers, Marquette and Joliet,
er of the same name. Settlement
was ex-
; i ,f . er ot tne same name. S
' of the state, however.
YA
A
r- M-r2f J ire'ne'y slow and inhabitants
, ',15X I I -?Z?? 1 were when the United States
, " -'r rsri. 4 acquired the territory as I part of
' viK- . "w.vv Vi v-. ,d e Louisiana Purchase in 1803.
i r - I ' wc. I in i8iz. tne area was!
separa
ted from Louisiana and (became
; ;
a Dan 01 Missouri, il nram a
- -
territory in its own right j in 1819,
now Oklahoma.
territorial status
becoming a state on
- S " "1 lerruory in us ov
fT including what is
. I 11 retainl itj '
- " v?v for 17 years, beco
-I June 15, 1836.
' ' 1 The sUte't .t
tourist business .
brings in about $200 million a
i i. . il.
I year ana empaasis on tne state s
" temperate climate promises te
i duosi inai iigure sun aigucr.
Capital of the vacation area is
Hot Springs, oldest resort town 'iKj- i
in the state and seat of the old- T'vj
K- "V 4"' ;. . - . ,.-mmiri.i. x nnr.nn.. . w y. . - -r '
V z - - - . - v" -.-v. . r , '
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Little Reck, Ark.-Highe$t point
in Arkansas is 2785-foot Mag
azine Mountain in Logan
County.' A portion, of the vis
ta is shown above. Below ie a
major oil refinery at . El Dor
ado.
- - -
' ! : 1 i . Little Rock, Ark. Hot Springs - - - - -m - - -,
i 3 : ,.L-..- ..i.i ,$ -Cs. . - ill 'il. . .4
fTrr ... -v;:;T , ; j tal ef Arkansas, comprises C. ' . I ,1
' , . , . ' , ' ""X"- "If1 a national park the first in fc - '" - 1 I
"l V- :f r t,j -the nation. If. population l . ' ; 1 " ! J.
St V" ' . - ' AiV. I JX! ' approximates 35,000, but ?H ' P ' iPf f.
fc'i- t . - ' " " x. . . r f j . . .a , i i rw ' . 1 n nai an esTimaiea owv.vwi m i a i i-a i , - - !-'. S
LWV Af ' V...,t5 -:i vrfc ' 0-t''- Jrf J 1 : 5 IntemationaHy known as a ' " -
"r5; .f . 'yzf:-1 i .P. .nd .. . i.k..w. pi.y. - -
sSArf' U - ' H tl ? ''--ir fround and mountain re--
rW-tl - - I Atvi SV l I i treat. At -the left, giant -
itiKm V V -'A-'V ' I r bluff, dwarf fishermen on . Z
-1 &&fj7if 'XL ' " ! A'-f I Whit. River, and below I.
MrA the state capitol at Little :rZ . -
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