Claude A. Fuller began practicing law in 1898 and has been closely connected with the business interests of the town since that date. Mrs. Annie House, “the oldest newspaper woman in Arkansas,” came to Eureka Springs as a child in 1880. Sam A. Leath, our guide and historian, has had an active part in civic affairs since 1898. He has been connected with the Chamber of Commerce for many years. Jim Bradley, Joe Porch and Tom Walker are all old-timers who continue in business.
It would take many pages to list all the men and women, now dead or moved away, who contributed to the building of the town. I name only a few whom I have special reason to remember—Charley Stehm, Major J. W. True, Claude Pike, Harvey Fuller, Floyd Walker, W. N. Duncan, Dr. C. E. Davis, B. J. Rosewater, Dr. C. F. Ellis, Prof. C. S. Barnett, W. O. Perkins, Col. C. D. James, Mrs. Adelaide Wayland, Albert G. Ingalls, A. Q. Burns, William Kappen, H. T. Pendergrass, Dr. J. S. Porch, A. L. Hess, Major W. E. Penn, Earl Newport, Louie Webber, Louie Haneke, Eaton Cole, Dr. J. F. John, Dr. J. H. Webb, Dr. Charles Bergstresser, Dr. Pearl Tateman, Arch Kimberling, George Hardy, Harry Wickham, Lucien Gray, B. L. Rosser, Miss Nellie Mills, Mrs. Ida Wilhelm, A. J. Fortner, Mr. and Mrs. George Hurt, Dr. J. H. Huntington, Herman and Hugo Seidel, L. E. Lines, John Jennings, Dr. R. G. Floyd and M. M. Chandler. This list is very inadequate but, as stated above, it includes only those that I have special reason to remember. In the books written on Eureka Springs by Nellie Mills and Cora Pinkley Call will be found more complete lists of the old residents.
It took World War II to start an influx of homeseekers toward the Ozarks. This invasion came as an aftermath of the war and Eureka Springs received its share. At the opportune time, Marge Lyon and her genial husband, Robert (“the jedge”), moved into the community and Marge began telling the story of Eureka Springs and the Ozarks to a vast audience of readers with her column, “Marge of Sunrise Mountain Farm” in the Chicago Tribune. Marge was influential in starting thousands of people in quest of the fuller life of the countryside. Retirement people flocked to Eureka Springs to buy homes; others came to go into business. By 1950, Eureka Springs had been given the nickname, “Little Chicago,” because of the large number of people from that area.
The town of Eureka Springs owes Marge Lyon a vast debt of gratitude. Her lucid lines have lured thousands of visitors to the hills, many of whom came to stay and are now happily located far from the city’s noise and confusion. They have helped balance the town’s economy and have added to the culture and social life of the community.
In 1946, I located Ozark Guide magazine at Eureka Springs and have given the community a national journalistic voice that has an influence in bringing both tourists and homeseekers. Eureka Springs is the only Ozark town having an Ozark magazine with national spread. It lays the magic carpet for exit from the confusion of the city to the land of Ozark enchantment.
The assimilation of the newcomers into the social and economic life of the town has been successful. The ratio of newcomers to natives is now about fifty-fifty. It is almost impossible to tell an old-timer from a newcomer. The melting pot is doing its work.
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Eureka Springs is one of the two cities in Arkansas having a commission form of government. The other city is Fort Smith. In 1918, this system was adopted for our town. It provides for a commission of three persons, one of whom is selected to act as mayor. The present commission is composed of Mayor A. J. Russell, Ray Freeman and Col. C. C. King. Mr. Russell has been mayor for fourteen years.
Eureka Springs is a city of churches with the following denominations: Presbyterian, Methodist, Baptist, Christian, Assembly of God Nazarene, Episcopalian, Christian Science and Catholic. The Presbyterians have the oldest church building. It was built in 1886 following the completion of the Crescent Hotel. The same stone masons built both buildings.
The school system of the city is one of the best in the South. A modern building was erected in 1951 and it is the last word in convenience. Both the elementary and high schools have “A” ratings.