West-side city vanished away

Wednesday, November 30, 2011

It’s hard for me to fathom how what once was the biggest town in western Benton County could disappear, and almost without a trace. Other area towns have disappeared as well, but none were so prominent.

Yes, it’s true. Double Springs once boasted a population bigger than any other city in western Benton County with the possible exception of Maysville. It had a large mill, drug stores (plural), grocery stores, mercantile stores, a hotel and not just a school but an academy with a professor. It had doctors and dentists, churches, post offices (including one for the Confederate States of America) and a town square. Its population even surpassed that of Siloam Springs’ predecessor, Hico.

Though all but two of its buildings were reportedly burned down during the Civil War, it was rebuilt and booming in the late 1800s. But where is it today? There’s almost no trace. There is a house where the city once stood - remodeled but preserved - which comes from that era. Another house or two nearby date back to those times. But the town is gone. Only a cemetery remains with the family names of those who once lived and conducted business there.

In accounts I’ve read and heard, there is still a school house, built from the brickof the original academy, which stands enclosed in a barn. Which barn, however, I don’t know. An old community building still stands there, probably salvaged from the town which has now vanished. I’d sure like to know the history of that building if anyone remembers the story behind it. Some say the “Snack Shack” on Gentry’s Main Street came from there on a mule-drawn wagon, but accounts vary as to the building’s origins.

What happened to the town? I can only tell you what I’ve read. It was thriving before what is now the Kansas City Southern Railroad was constructed. When news of the coming railroad was heard, the townsfolk were sure it would pass through and make the city even bigger and more prominent in the area. But the railroad took another course, passing through west of the bustling city and causing other towns to spring up, change names and grow, towns like Gravette, Decatur and Gentry.

The coming of the railroad in the 1890s and stops along its route took business away from Double Springs and made it more profitable and even necessary for survival in the economy of the time for businesses to move closer to the tracks. After all, that is how local products were shipped out and needed products were shipped in.

Though Double Springs survived for a time and great efforts were made to bring in new business and preserve the town, in the end the city gave way and ceased to exist.

What is surprising today is the change in the importance of the railroad to the towns and cities which sprang up because of it. Though the rail lines still serve some large businesses and the local power plant, most local products come and go by truck and the rail stations and passenger trains are a thing of the past.

Perhaps, if Double Springs could have survived another 100 years, it would still be a bustling city today. After all, a state highway passes right through the old town site. An old store had to be torn down to build it, according to accounts I’ve read.

For those who’ve never heard of Double Springs, its name was changed to Bloomfield before it suffered its demise. The rural farming area just west of Gentry continues to bear its new name.

Is there a lesson in it for us all? Probably a number of them. Certainly, a number of economic factors and location are important for a city or town to grow. Times change and without the right mix, cities and towns, like Double Springs, can just vanish away.

Perhaps more important for us to recognize is that even the most ambitious efforts and plans of men in this world are eventually covered over in dust.

Randy Moll is the managing editor of the Westside Eagle Observer. He may be reached by email at [email protected] .

Opinion, Pages 5 on 11/30/2011