Dallas County Museum, Fordyce, Arkansas

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Dallas County Museum, Fordyce, Arkansas Features exhibits on our local military heroes, forestry, railroads, geology, communications, Dr. T. (Mailing address is P.O.

Box 703, Fordyce, AR 71742) The Dallas County Museum is home to a vast collection of displays relative to our region and housed in a beautiful, two-story building in Fordyce, Arkansas. Our new Sports Museum is across the street with awards and memorabilia from county schools and noted Dallas County residents. Our Mission Statement: The Dallas County Museum in Fordyce, Arkansas, exists to collect, preserve, record, and disseminate the history of Dallas County and the surrounding area and to assist with cultural, social, and economic development.

Notes From the Dallas County MuseumBy Melrose Smith Bagwell The Dallas County Museum, Chicot Trace-Robert Abernethy Chap...
10/15/2026

Notes From the Dallas County Museum
By Melrose Smith Bagwell
The Dallas County Museum, Chicot Trace-Robert Abernethy Chapter Daughters of the American Revolution, GFWC Sesame Blue, and Ouachita Valley Chapter Colonial Dames 17th Century will have their annual Veterans Day program on Sunday afternoon, November 8, 2026, at 2 p.m. at the First Baptist Church in Fordyce. A reception for all Veterans, their families and friends, and all interested citizens will be held at the Dallas County Museum following this program. Veterans of all wars are invited to attend this program and reception so we can let you know how much we thank you for your service.
Now we have more information about the early churches in and around Sparkman. Mr. W. P. Launius held the first meetings of the Assembly of God Church in his Shoe Shop. About 1925, as the crowds grew, Mr. Launius purchased a large tent and erected it on a vacant lot to the rear of his shop so they could have services. A few years later the members and friends furnished the labor and built a tabernacle. In 1940, while Reverend Zac Launius was serving as pastor, they constructed the first brick church building in Sparkman.
Two Missionary Baptist Churches consolidated and became the West Main Baptist Church.
New Alabama Church organized October 19, 1903 at Fairview Community, five miles west of Sparkman, and Oak Grove Church organized May 1924, was located four miles north of Sparkman. These two churches met together October 23, 1927 and voted to consolidate and locate at Sparkman. They came together as one body under the name of Second Baptist church of Sparkman on November 11, 1927.
There are no records of Old Alabama Church. There is a cemetery in the woods where the church once stood, off Highway 7, four miles north of Sparkman. A man by the name of Alabama gave the land for the church, school and cemetery so they named the church the Alabama Church. New Alabama Southern Baptist Church was built in 1914 and was named for Old Alabama Church. It stood about ½ mile from Rock Springs Methodist Church. Reverend J. I. Cossey, a student at Ouachita College was the first pastor. He was later elected President of the Southern Baptist Convention. A tornado blew the church away in 1924 and New Alabama was never rebuilt. Part of the lumber from New Alabama Church was used to build West Main Missionary Baptist Church.
St. James A. M. E. Church (black) first building was constructed in 1916 under the leadership of the first pastor, Reverend H. C. Baxter. The church was rebuilt in 1944 when Reverend W. C. Burks was pastor. The third church was built in 1954 with Reverend O. J. DeLamar as pastor. The old Mt. Carmel Church at Pine Grove was torn down and the lumber donated for this building.
The First Baptist Church (black) was organized in 1914 in a house across the street from where the church stood in 1976. The church was organized by Reverend M. T. Perry, the first pastor, with the following named persons: Reverend T. A. Johnson, Sister Maggie Cowans, Brother Tom Smith, Sister Ada Smith and Brother Calvin Sims.
In the year 1936, Elder Ben Pattillo came to Sparkman and held a two-week meeting in a building which was rented from Henry Jefferson. Afterwards, the Church of God in Christ (black) was organized with eleven charter members and Reverend H. W. Wilson was the pastor. A church was built under his leadership, but it burned. The church was rebuilt with Elder Paul Williams as pastor and Elder Earl Williams as assistant pastor. This information was furnished to Mattie D. DeLaughter Mizell by Ozella Wells, the only one of the charter members still living in 1976.
The Fohrell Library was built in 1965 with a liberal donation by the E. E. Fohrell family as a memorial to Mr. Fohrell. The property was then deeded to the city of Sparkman. The building consisted of a large reading room, rest room and kitchenette.

Notes From the Dallas County MuseumBy Melrose Smith Bagwell A cafeteria was added to the campus of the Sparkman School t...
10/09/2026

Notes From the Dallas County Museum
By Melrose Smith Bagwell
A cafeteria was added to the campus of the Sparkman School to replace the outside soup kitchen. A home economics building was added to the campus in the 1930s. This white frame building was used for that purpose until 2010 when the home economics program was dropped and the Sparkman school’s china was gifted to the Dallas County Museum. There must be at least a hundred place setting of this beautiful white china. We enjoy using it at least once a month!
A frame gymnasium served the basketball athletes, including the famous Sparklers in the 1920s and 1930s. This building was torn down in 1953 and a new red brick gym was built in the same location. Students could now go to the new gym to use the restrooms!
The Sparkman School District started out with an enrollment of 132 in 1914. It continued to grow steadily as the town grew and country schools consolidated with Sparkman. At the beginning of public education in Arkansas, Dallas County was proud to have a public school in every community with a total of 57 school districts. (There’s a map in the school room at the Dallas County Museum that shows these 57 districts.) Those that consolidated with Sparkman were: Dalark, Manning, Nix, Holly Springs, Ouachita, Pine Grove, New Hope, Harrison, Fairview, Shady Grove and Princeton.
The enrollment peaked in 1973-1974 with 557 students. In 2004, the Sparkman School District was forced by state law to consolidate with the Harmony Grove Camden District because enrollment was below 350.
In 2011, after hearing that the Arkadelphia School District was offering their graduates scholarships for college tuition, some concerned Sparkman parents decided to do the same for Sparkman graduates. Afraid that more of the Sparkman students would move to Arkadelphia to get scholarships, the Sparkman Scholarship Foundation was formed and announced the Sparkman Promise. After meeting certain criteria, students could get their tuition paid for college.
This information was taken from Josephine Amis Manning’s book, History of Sparkman, Arkansas 1976-2011. She has a number of other pages in this book concerning the Sparkman School.
Now I am wondering if my mother (Cora Mae Manning) was one of the students that attended the early school in Sparkman. I know she was living in Sparkman at the age of 21 in 1921 when she married my father (Jesse B. Smith of Jacinto). The wedding took place at her home in Sparkman. In 1913, she was living in the Tulip/Carthage area when her father died. I will need to do some research on that.
When the town of Sparkman was started in 1913, there naturally were no churches of any denomination within the limits of the new town. However, very soon, people began to arrange for religious services. There was a large warehouse located where the Taylor Gin was later located. This became the meeting place for a community Sunday School in which all denominations participated and met each Sunday afternoon. Mr. Bill Sinquefield was the superintendent. People came from miles around to attend. At the close of Sunday School, they all walked to the depot to see the four o’clock train come in. Very often, after the train had gone, there was a Sunday afternoon band concert, composed of 14 local men and boys (in 1915) under the direction of Prof. Chaplin. There was a band stand constructed that year.
The First Baptist Church of Sparkman, with the assistance of Reverend George W. McNew, was organized in the early part of 1914 with nineteen charter members. Construction of a church building was started immediately and was completed and occupied by the fall of 1914. All denominations and members of the community Sunday School moved to this new church when they occupied the new building. They continued to worship together until the churches of other denominations could be organized. Mr. H. O. Thweatt was the first Sunday School Superintendent. Reverend George Richardson was the first pastor.
The Sparkman United Methodist Church was organized in 1916 with ten charter members and became a part of the Willow Circuit. At that time, it was the Methodist Episcopal Church South. Reverend Thomas D. Spruce was the first pastor and Reverend B. A. Few, for whom the Ben Few Campground was named, was the Presiding Elder. A building was constructed and the membership grew to about thirty in the first year.

Notes From the Dallas County MuseumBy Melrose Smith Bagwell The Dallas County Museum’s educational exhibit at the Dallas...
10/02/2026

Notes From the Dallas County Museum
By Melrose Smith Bagwell
The Dallas County Museum’s educational exhibit at the Dallas County Fair about Friendship Quilts received “Best in Show” thanks to Sandra Parham Turner, who came up with the idea and implemented it with the help of Monda Blankenship, Hazel Hart, and myself. Thanks to Richard Ledbetter for helping dismantle it after the fair.
The Dallas County Museum has five Junior Docents. They are Carrington Clay, Mallery Hardman, Isbella Matkin, Brody Nance, and Bryant Robinson. They help us with Constitution Week, Veterans Day activities and any other time we need them.
On September 19th, the Chicot Trace-Robert Abernethy Chapter Daughters of the American Revolution and the Ouachita Valley Chapter Colonial Dames 17th Century held their meeting at the museum. At l0:30, they participated in “Bells Across America” in front of the museum. As the name of each signer of The Constitution of the United States of America was read the big Bunn School Bell was rung by Brody Nance, one of our Junior Docents. Junior Docents Carrington Clay and Isbella Matkin also participated and rang bells along with the other people that were present as each name was read. We do this each year so the bells of freedom can be heard all across America.
Last week I wrote about the Sparkman Sparklers, but Sparkman also had a junior girls basketball team called the Midgets, and the boys basketball and football teams were called the Sparkplugs according to the 1929 Spark yearbook.
The next yearbook published was the 1949 Sparkler. By that year the football program had been dropped but the boys and the girls basketball teams were still called the Sparkplugs and the Sparklers.
In the 1957-58 school year, junior and senior high football was added and still called the Sparkplugs.
In the 1960 Sparkler yearbook, the team mascot was called the Rebels, but a picture of a sparkplug was on the inside of the yearbook.
The Sparkman Training School integrated with the Sparkman High School in the 1969-1970 school year. The Sparkman Training School mascot was the Tigers and their school colors were black and gold. A new high school building was built for that year and it was decided that a new mascot would help all of the students to feel welcome in the new building. The new mascot was voted on by the students, and they became the Raiders.
This new school building was the third one and was built in the same general location as the first one. The first school in the “new” Sparkman was established in 1914 with an enrollment of 132. The first school building was a white frame two-story building with four rooms on each floor. The building was thought to be modern with up-to-date conveniences but still had no indoor restrooms. There was a staircase on each side of the building, one for the girls and one for the boys. Grades one through eleven were taught in this building.
Mr. H. O. Thweatt was the first principal. Miss Ethel Fite (Mrs. Scott Leamons) and Miss Ella Adams were teachers. In 1916 the enrollment was 165 and in 1917 it was 190.
The grounds were surrounded by a fence to keep livestock out. The neighbors’ goats learned to cross the stile and were known to enter the building and climb the stairs. The boys and girls played on separate playgrounds.
There was an outdoor kitchen where soup was cooked for the students in a large pot. Students brought their own bowl and spoon and washed them after lunch. Some students brought their own lunch but had to protect it while outside eating because of the livestock.
In 1926, the original school building was torn down and the lumber used to build several houses up the street. A new red brick building was constructed on the same site and the twelfth grade was added. It had an auditorium and office spaces but still no indoor restrooms. By this time an elementary building was built next to the high school and both buildings were served by large multi-seat outhouses. More about the Sparkman school next week.

Congratulations to Barbara Cox of Rison, the winner of our drawing for this beautiful vintage quilt book! Barbara, a mem...
10/01/2026

Congratulations to Barbara Cox of Rison, the winner of our drawing for this beautiful vintage quilt book! Barbara, a member of the Cleveland County Extension Homemakers Council, is a quilter, so we know she will love this book!

Notes From the Dallas County MuseumBy Melrose Smith Bagwell Sparkman didn’t begin a basketball program until the mid-192...
09/23/2026

Notes From the Dallas County Museum
By Melrose Smith Bagwell
Sparkman didn’t begin a basketball program until the mid-1920s, when a teacher at Sparkman, Mattie DeLaughter, took an interest in teaching the girls how to play.
The Sparklers began playing on a dirt court outside the high school, but as the girls talent began to show, larger and larger crowds began attending the games.
Admission to Sparkman games was $2.50, about double the standard admission price for high school games in that era, but they sold out anyway. This helped to finance the construction of an 800-seat gymnasium at Sparkman for the 1927-28 season.
During the years of 1927-1930 Sparkman achieved National attention with the “Sparkman Sparklers”, a winning girl’s high school basketball team. The Sparklers challenged every high school and college team in the state and won every one. January 27, 1928, they beat El Dorado 105-19, breaking the worlds scoring record. They made Ripley’s “Believe It or Not” on that one! Some other scores that year were: Sparklers 54 and Little Rock Independents 8, Sparklers 73 and Henderson Brown College 10. Total for the year, Sparklers 704 and Opponents 121. In 1929, the Sparklers scored 1,737 points to 406 against them. In three years, they scored 3,110 points to their opponents 729.
They entered the National Tournament in 1929 and 1930 at Wichita, Kansas. In the Semi-finals in 1929 they lost to the Dallas (Texas) Cyclones, an independent team, by a score of 19-14, making them third place winners. In 1930, they reached the finals but lost the National AAU Championship by three points to Sunoco (Independents) from Dallas, Texas by a score of 27-24.
Quinine Hamm was twice elected All American forward and twice named Captain of the First All American Team. She was introduced from the floor at the tournament as the greatest girls’ basketball player in the world. Other All-American players from Sparkman were: Marjorie Leonard, Irene Hamm, and Cozie Fite. Hazel Boen went on to play with another team the next year and made All American.
The names of the Sparkman Sparklers were: Quinnie Hamm, Marjorie Leonard, Irene Hamm, Cozie Fite, Ruby Selph, Mable Blakely, Vyrah Mann, Dorothy Butler, Hazel Boen, Selma Green and Frances Blakely. I think Quinnie and Irene were sisters.
It quickly became evident that only national-caliber independent teams could compete with the Sparkman Sparklers. At their peak, they were the hottest sports attraction in the Southwest region. The Sparkman Sparklers were inducted into the Dallas County Sports Hall of Fame in 2006.
Quinnie Hamm was inducted into the Arkansas Hall of Fame at the eighth Annual Banquet at the Marion Hotel Ballroom January 20, 1966.
Quinnie scored 114 points in one game and 1,245 in a season. In 2007, Quinnie was inducted into the Dallas County Sports Hall of Fame.
She was named Queen Elizabeth Hamm. When she started the first grade, her parents instructed her to tell the teacher that her name was Queen E. Hamm. She got a new name for the rest of her life when the teacher misunderstood “Queen E.” as “Quinnie.”
The Sparkman Sparklers kept in condition by running two or three miles to school each morning. There was a story that a man, chugging along in a Model-T Ford at about six miles an hour, pulled up and offered them a ride. “Thank you, sir, but we don’t have time,” Quinnie said. “We’re a little late already.” Quinnie’s daughter said this story is true.
After winning games like 164-9 over Malvern, 124-5 over Tomberlin, 106-5 over Cabot and 105-19 over El Dorado, most of the Sparkman Sparklers were offered basketball scholarships to Crescent College in Eureka Springs. A number of them went on to play basketball at Crescent College.
Quinnie played for Crescent Junior College, Tulsa Business College and Shreveport Draughon’s School of Business. Eventually she settled in Shreveport with her husband, John Ike Toler.
One of the Sparkman Sparklers, Cozie Fite married Kenneth Thomas of Fordyce and they had one son, Dr. Jack Thomas. After the death of Kenneth Thomas, Cozie married Rev. Rufus Sorrells of Fordyce.
Vyrah Mann lived and worked in Memphis, Tennessee. After she retired, she moved to Fordyce and lived with her sister, Mattie Mann Cone.
We have a wonderful Sparkman Sparklers display at the Dallas County Sports Museum. IF YOU HAVE NEVER VISITED THE DALLAS COUNTY MUSEUM HALL OF FAME AT THE DALLAS COUNTY SPORTS ANNEX, YOU ARE MISSING OUT.

Notes From the Dallas County MuseumBy Melrose Smith BagwellNow we continue with our history of Sparkman. The Malvern-Ca...
09/17/2026

Notes From the Dallas County Museum
By Melrose Smith Bagwell

Now we continue with our history of Sparkman. The Malvern-Camden Railroad was completed in 1913, and it’s believed that the first full run between Malvern to Camden was made on December 29, 1913. It continued to serve the area for many years with both freight and passenger trains daily for many years. After World War II, passenger service was discontinued.
The line was sold to the Rock Island, and they built a depot at the end of Main Street. H. McElwain was the first depot agent in Sparkman for the Rock Island and served in that capacity for more than two years. He was also named Postmaster and for a time filled both positions at the same time. The train made a round trip each day from Malvern to Camden, with a big round “turn around” near the depot in Camden.
Around 1965, the Rock Island Company started talking about closing the entire line from Malvern to Camden, but the citizens of Sparkman worked to keep the Railroad for freight service. The passenger train had been discontinued for many years.
The Sparkman Lumber Company under the management of Mr. Ray White shipped a lot of lumber by rail and was instrumental in securing the services of Eugene Warren, an attorney, who filed briefs with the Interstate Commerce Commission on December 4, 1968. He appeared before the Board in January and in February of 1969, Rock Island was granted the right to take up the Line from Sparkman to Camden (which they did) but were instructed to continue operation from Malvern to Sparkman. The freight office was closed in 1972. The depot which represented the hustle and bustle of by-gone days was torn down in 1974.

Notes From the Dallas County MuseumBy Melrose Smith Bagwell“We the people of the United States, in order to form a more ...
09/17/2026

Notes From the Dallas County Museum
By Melrose Smith Bagwell

“We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect Union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.” These 55 words, written 239 years ago, by Gouverneur Morris are the Preamble to our Constitution. They explain the purpose of the laws set down in the Constitution. We the people “in Order to Form a More Perfect Union” tells us why the Constitution was written. In “Establish Justice” we are guaranteed that we will all be treated fairly. “Insure Domestic Tranquility” promises that we can live together in peace. “Provide for the Common Defense” says that the citizens of the United States will be protected from any and all enemies. “Promote the General Welfare” states that everything will be done for the common good of the country and its citizens, and “Secure the Blessings of Liberty” simply means that we are a free people. This guarantee of freedom is the cornerstone of democracy.

There are two documents of paramount importance to American history: the Declaration of Independence, which forged our national identity, and the United States Constitution, which set forth the framework for the federal government that is still in use today. While Independence Day is a beloved national holiday, fewer people know about Constitution Week, an annual commemoration of the living document that upholds and protects the freedoms central to our American way of life.

The Daughters of the American Revolution initiated the observance in 1955, when the organization petitioned the U.S. Congress to dedicate September 17–23 of each year to the commemoration of Constitution Week. Congress adopted the resolution, and on August 2, 1956, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed it into Public Law #915. The celebration’s goals are threefold: to encourage the study of the historical events that led to the framing of the Constitution in September 1787; to inform people that the Constitution is the basis of America’s great heritage and the foundation of our way of life; and to emphasize U.S. citizens’ responsibility to protect, defend and preserve the Constitution.
Fordyce Mayor John MacNichol and Dallas County Judge Chris Stanfield along with Mayors of Sheridan, Rison, Kingsland, and Warren and County Judges of Grant, Cleveland and Bradley Counties have signed Proclamations proclaiming September 17-23, 2026 as Constitution Week in their respective areas.
On Saturday, September 19, Chicot Trace-Robert Abernethy Chapter DAR and Ouachita Valley Chapter Colonial Dames XVII Century will observe Bells Across America at 10:30 a.m. in front of the Dallas County Museum. The big Bunn School Bell will ring as the name of each signer of The Constitution of the United States of America is read. Everyone is invited to attend, bring your bell, and join in “Ringing the Bells of Freedom” around the United States of America.
The Dallas County Fair Parade will begin at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday. This is Dallas County Fair Week. The theme this year is “Boots, Barns, & Blue Ribbons”. We urge you to participate in the Dallas County Fair, and we invite you to see the Dallas County Museum’s educational booth at the fair.

Friends On The Food Place Bench, Main Street, Sparkman, AR, 2012, from William Knox Sorrells.
09/12/2026

Friends On The Food Place Bench, Main Street, Sparkman, AR, 2012, from William Knox Sorrells.

Notes From the Dallas County MuseumBy Melrose Smith Bagwell In the early 1900s, the U. S. Government was anxious to have...
09/10/2026

Notes From the Dallas County Museum
By Melrose Smith Bagwell
In the early 1900s, the U. S. Government was anxious to have railroads built, especially in the areas where no means of transportation existed. Therefore, the government gave great quantities of land to the railroad companies and they, in turn, sold the land to get the money to build the railroad. Moore & Martin, a Real Estate company of Prescott, Arkansas, bought up a great deal of land along the new Rock Island Railroad in Dallas County. They bought the land where Sparkman is, formed a company known as “The Dallas Town Company” and promoted the “New Town on a New Railroad”. C. A. Doak was Manager of Dallas Town Company.
New Sparkman was laid off in a block of land one mile square (640 acres), and a plat was filed on August 1, 1913, by M. L. Moore, President of the Dallas Town Company. It was only a short distance from Old Sparkman.
The town site included one land owner, Mr. Herman Willis. He and his family lived in the western section and to the north of Main Street, on a portion of a 160-acre tract of land which he Homesteaded in 1899. The first town lots were sold in 1913, and the new town was called Sparkman after the old town.
On October 1, 1913, John T. DeLaughter made a written application to move the Sparkman Post Office to the site of the new town. The post office was moved to the new Sparkman on June 8, 1914, and Hutch McElwain was named postmaster.
At that time the population was 30 people. S. B. Horne had a saw mill and gin, J. T. DeLaughter had a general store and N. A. Roberts was the blacksmith. The population grew rapidly in 1914-1915 and new business firms were established. January 5, 1915 Sparkman was chartered by the Secretary of State and was the fifth town in Dallas County to be Incorporated.
In 1915, Sparkman had four doctors: Dr. C. A. Henry, Dr. Joe C. McFadden, Dr. J. Y. Smith and Dr. Marvin Taylor. In addition to his medical practice, Dr. Taylor also operated the Palace Drug Store but sold out to Will A. Stewart of Arkadelphia in the early part of 1917 only to buy it back a few years later. Dr. Taylor continued his practice until his death in July 1957. Dr. A. M. Lisenbee began his practice in 1927 and remained in Sparkman until his death in 1948. He also owned and operated the Sanitary Drug Store. Sparkman built a new clinic and on March 1, 1958, Dr. Wm. H. Haynie occupied the new clinic and began his practice. Following him was Dr. T. H. Pye and about two years later, Dr. R. H. Nunnally. July 1, 1964, Dr. George D. Taylor came home to Sparkman and began his practice.
Sparkman’s first hotel, known as Hotel Sparkman was built by a Mr. Dale from Dalark. He and his wife, assisted by Mrs. Rambo (Mr. Dale’s sister) operated the hotel for several years and sold it to Mr. and Mrs. J. H. Cole about 1916. A few years later it was sold to Dr. and Mrs. J. Y. Smith. They operated the hotel until it burned in about 1936.
About two blocks west from the railroad station was the Chamberlin Boarding House. Mrs. W. P. Chamberlin started the operation about 1915. This was a two-story frame building with a large family style dining room. Mrs. Chamberlin’s daughter, Flossie, had an up-to-date millinery shop on the first floor.
The first City Hall was a white frame building located next door to the Hotel Sparkman which burned when the hotel burned. It was rebuilt in the same location but was built of brick with a glass front and the jail was built in the rear.
The first printing office in Sparkman was started in 1914. The first newspaper, known as the “Sparkman News” was published April 7, 1915 with J. J. Burdine, Editor and Publisher. In 1917, the Editor was Charles A. Doak and James J. Burdine was Publisher and Business Manager. It continued to operated until 1920. From 1923-1930, the Sparkman paper was called “Sparkman Times” with Thomas H. Berry, Editor, and J. H. Beerstecher was the Publisher.

Address

221 N Main Street
Fordyce, AR
71742

Opening Hours

Wednesday 10am - 4pm
Thursday 10am - 4pm
Friday 10am - 4pm
Saturday 10am - 2pm

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