Scott County ArArchives History - Books .....The Formation Of The County, Chapter 4 1922
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Book Title: History Of Scott County

CHAPTER IV. The Formation of the County

1. Early Political History
  Arkansas was a part of the Louisiana territory purchased from France in 1803.
In 1812 this immense domain was divided into the territory of Louisiana and the
district of New Madrid. In 1819 Arkansas was detached from the Missouri
territory and made a separate territory, with the seat of government at Arkansas
Post, James Miller was appointed governor. Scott County was at first a part of
Pulaski County, and later successively a part of Crawford and Pope counties.

  In 1833, Scott County was formed, being named for Judge Andrew Scott. In
addition to the region now included in the county, it also covered the townships
of Boon, Washburn and Reveille, which have since (1875) been cut off and made a
part of Logan County. The seat of justice was established at or near the present
town of Booneville and was known as Cauthron. The county officers appointed were
Elijah Baker, County Judge; S. B. Walker. Clerk; James Riley, Sheriff, and J. R.
Choate, Coroner. These officials held office for a term of two years. They were
succeeded in 1835 by James Logan, County Judge; Gilbert Marshall, Clerk; Charles
Humphrey, Sheriff, and Walter Cauthron, Coroner. In 1836, the state government
became effective by the admission of Arkansas territory as a state of the
Federal Union.

2. Close of Territorial Days
  The census of 1830 was taken while Scott County was yet comprehended in the
counties of Crawford and Pope. The enumerators were James Wilson for the
Crawford portion and John R. Scott for the Pope County part. Only the names of
heads of families were recorded, the other members of the family being merely
numbered. The population for the parts of the counties later embraced in Scott
was about 500. Many of these resided in the townships of Boon, Washburn and
Reveille, not now a part of this county.

  But the County was now rapidly filling up with people. They came up the
Fourche and Petit Jean valleys. The completion of the old military road from
Little Rock to Ft. Smith in 1824 gave impetus to immigration. The settlers came
over this road to Ft. Smith, then went north and south into the surrounding
country and found homes. A post road was established from Little Rock to Ft.
Smith during the same year, with post offices at Ft. Smith and Dardanelle. The
settlers of Scott County received their mail from one of these two offices prior
to 1835. The mail was delivered from the east once every two weeks. There was no
post office in the county before 1835, when the first one was established at
Booneville with Gilbert Marshall as first postmaster. The mail was delivered
weekly by a post rider from Old Dwight near Russellville. David P. Logan was the
first carrier. The contract schedule of mail delivery was as follows: From
Dwight by Dardanelle to Scott court house, seventy-five miles and back once a
week. Mail in the opposite direction left Scott court house every Saturday at
eight o'clock in the morning and arrived at Dwight the following Monday at
eleven in the morning.

  There was not a church or school in the county when the State was admitted to
the Union in 1836. It is known that religious services and private schools were
sometimes held by itinerant preachers and teachers in the homes of the settlers,
but no organized church or school was in existence. The church was even better
off than the schools, though, for ministers of the gospel were more numerous
than teachers. Reverend G. W. Sorrels, a Methodist minister, preached over the
western part of the State between the years of 1830 and 1840. He frequently held
services in Scott County, amidst the most primitive circumstances. The following
is a description of general conditions at this time:

  "James F. Gaines and wife came from Fayette County, Tenn., to Scott County in
1837 and settled on Fourche River. At that time there were no public roads and
few families had found their way to the valley. There was no preaching anywhere
in all that region of country and Mrs. Gaines was the only professor of religion
in all that country. She had been converted at an early age in west Tennessee
and had enjoyed the advantage of regular religious service. The wickedness of
this rude population was a great trial to this devoted Christian; for such was
the disregard of the Sabbath that it was the principal day for shooting, killing
beeves, visiting and engaging in trade. Two or three times a week they would
meet for a general carousal. There were children grown who did not know what a
preacher was, so dense was the ignorance of the people on religious questions.
At last Mrs. Gaines heard that a Methodist preacher would hold services nearby.
The news was well circulated and the whole community came out to see and hear
the preacher. They listened awhile, then sent their children to light their
pipes and smoked while the sermon was being delivered. After this the circuit
preacher, Adams, gave them a regular appointment for preaching, but very little
was accomplished until some Tennessee Methodists came out and settled in the
community. About 1842, Rev. John Cowle was appointed to the Ft. Smith circuit
and succeeded in establishing Methodism in Scott, Sebastian, and surrounding
counties."

  Travel during this period was over roads newly cut out of the forests. There
were no bridges and frequently the traveler would reach a stream, and finding it
swollen from heavy rains, would be compelled to halt and wait for the waters to
subside before a crossing could be made. These inconveniences of travel were
augumented by the presence in the forests and thickets of dangerous animals, too
frequently ready to attack the lonely traveler. What roads there were usually
followed an old Indian trail, and was little more than an enlargement of it.

  The western boundary of the State and County was surveyed and fixed by Joseph
C. Brown in 1824, but was resurveyed again by Henry E. McKee in 1877, and a
slight variation from the former line was recorded. This long strip came to be
known as the "Cherokee Strip." The land survey of the county was made between
the years 1830 and 1835. By this survey the land was divided into sections. Many
old landmarks of this survey may still be seen in the county.


Additional Comments:

HISTORY of Scott County Arkansas
By Henry Grady McCutchen

Printed in Arkansas
U. S. A.

Copyright, 1922, by H. G. McCutchen


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