Marzell W. Smith
Local educational icon dies at 91 Marzell Smith remembered as soft-spoken sage who inspired community with love By: Joan Hershberger – El Dorado News-Times A chapter in El Dorado history came to a close on the final day of 2013 with the passing of Marzell Smith at the age of 91. A soft-spoken woman, she impacted the community through her passion for education and
Rance Olison: Giving Back
Paying back: El Dorado native honors mother, community with annual food giveaway By Tia Lyons [email protected] Giving back and helping others were principles that were instilled in Rance Olison while growing up in the Fairview Addition in the 1960s. Under the watchful eye of his mother, the late Carrie Buggs, and the adults in the tight-knit community, Olison absorbed the many lessons they taught, and he is passing them
Trinca Shoe Shop closing after nearly a century of service
By JOAN HERSHBERGER For The Sunday News EL DORADO — Go back in time to a smiling shop keeper who works from dawn to dusk, doing whatever it takes to support his family. Go back in time and remember when real leather shoes could be repaired, re-soled or re-heeled to wear again. Go back — but only for a couple of more weeks — to the Trinca Shoe Shop in El Dorado, opened in 1936
EHS first black valedictorian and salutatorian
Outstanding students make local history Davis and Griffin EHS’s first black valedictorian, salutatorian By: Tia Lyons – El Dorado News-Times Victoria Davis, left, and Cordell Griffin, both of El Dorado High School, were honored at a reception at the Elks Club Friday evening. Davis was valedictorian and Griffin was salutatorian of this year’s graduation class at EHS. When Victoria Davis and Cordell Griffin walked
CNN Lists El Dorado Among “Best Small Town Comebacks’
‘The pride of South Arkansas’ CNN story lists El Dorado among ‘best small town comebacks’ By: Tia Lyons – El Dorado News-Times A view of downtown El Dorado at the corner of Main Street and Jefferson Avenue shows the Bradford Pear trees in full bloom. On Monday, El Dorado was listed by CNN Travel as one of America’s best small town comebacks. Despite
El Dorado, AR Makes CNN List of Best Small Towns
El Dorado, Arkansas: Raising the boom Then: Home to a 1920s oil rush that brought high hopes, rows of new buildings and 30,000 people to “Arkansas’ Original Boomtown,” the golden opportunity of El Dorado’s namesake gave way to the Great Depression and perpetual economic hardship. By 1980, the town’s commercial district was barely ticking. Now: Thanks to one huge civic mobilization, mass restorations, a
Black Businesses from Back in the Day from Pete Sims:
Alexandria Barber, Cleaning & Pressing Liberty Street Amos Chicken Shack Liberty Street Andrews Funeral Home Hill Street / East Main Streets Barnes Radio service 1444 South Jackson Grady Brown Hotel Cook Street???? Bucket of Blood Fordville L. B. Burks, Tailor Liberty Street Calluns Grocery 731 South Smith Street Candley Grocery Hawthrone Street Coats of Colanthis Lodge Hall Liberty Street The Continential Club Liberty Street
St. Louis Addition Not What It Was by Shea Wilson News-Times Staff 03/24/94
In its heyday, the St. Louis addition attracted such notable jazz and blues artists as Louis Armstrong and B. B. King to El Dorado. Establishments such as The Plaza were popular night spots for the black community, drawing large crowds from all over South Arkansas to the neighborhood, located just off of North West Avenue. While many businesses catered to the area’s entertainment needs,
El Dorado or Union County from 1929 to 1959: The Good Old Days by Pete Sims
Life for Blacks was hard. I can truly say there was no welfare as we know it today. We were taught to share whatever we had with others. There were no locks on doors or anything. I don’t have the time to share with you about hog killing time, churning the milk to make butter and all those good things we did. All I
El Dorado Days Events
Friday – June 29, 2012 – July 3, 2012 9:30 American Legion Mooney Man, DJ Sunday – July 1, 2012 3:00 @ St. James Baptist Church Memorial Service Bishop Calloway, Speaker Posthumously honoring the L. J. Gurst Family Wednesday – July 4, 2012 3:00 El Dorado Recreational Complex Picnic caterer: Ole Abe Feed House Wednesday – July 4, 2012 9:30 @ American