A stone sign welcomes visitors at the top of the hill at the intersection of Arkansas Highways 59 and 72. Gravette is the fastest growing town in Benton County -- not in population, but in area. The community of Hiwasse and adjacent areas have been annexed and have become a part of the city, and the addition of nearly 6,000 acres nearly tripled Gravette's size.
The north-south line of the Kansas City Southern Railroad also passes through the town. A colorful mural painted by Gravette High School art students has been mounted at the south side of the city.
The terrain in Gravette includes prime farmland, forest-covered hills and a commercial district to foster new development along a new highway which is under construction. This bypass is to become a part of Interstate 49 in the major north-south highway system.
Gravette, with almost 3,300 residents, is a unique and special community. It boasts a top-notch school system with state-of-the-art facilities, its own hospital with a 24/7 emergency room, a medical clinic, eye clinic, dental offices and many other thriving businesses. A senior activity and wellness center provides a meeting and activity place for senior citizens and offers monthly blood pressure screens and blood sugar tests. It also provides a Meals-on-Wheels service for those who are home bound. The senior center bus provides transportation for shopping trips every Friday and for a monthly evening out.
Gravette is also home to the Westside Eagle Observer, a combined newspaper which serves Gravette, Decatur, Gentry and the surrounding communities. The weekly publication hits the news racks and is delivered to mailboxes each Wednesday and provides a wealth of local news, sports and information which no visitor or resident will want to miss. And there's an online version, too, to help keep people informed. For more information on the newspaper, visit www.eagleobserver.com.
A special pride of Gravette is the AdvancEd accredited (K-12) school system which includes a performing arts center, football stadium, regulation track, field house and recently-completed baseball and softball fields. The curriculum includes honors courses, art, drama, speech, foreign languages, forensic and career tech classes.
Gravette is now the home of the Western Benton County Career Center which offers HVAC and welding classes for students from Gravette, Decatur, Gentry and Bentonville schools. Plans are to add advanced welding and machining classes in the 2017-18 school year. The 149-square-mile school district provides modern classrooms and facilities at all its campus locations. Upper elementary, elementary, kindergarten and prekindergarten facilities round out the educational facilities for nearly 2,000 students. Its millage rate is among the lowest in the state and its teacher salaries rank in the top 10 state-wide. A private religious school, affiliated with Gravette's Church of God (Holiness), is also located here.
The amenities are many in this people-friendly community where children can still ride their bikes along paved streets and play in the parks and playgrounds. The Gravette Civic Center houses a Boys & Girls Club, which is adjacent to the municipal swimming pool. The Civic Center and pool will see improvements this year, using capital improvement sales tax funds. A modern, computer-equipped public library on Main Street provides educational opportunities for children and adults alike.
The Gravette Historical Museum is housed in a restored home constructed with bricks that were fired at the site. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is filled with early-period furnishings. An exhibit hall sits adjacent the historic home. The rustic pre-modern facade facility houses a growing number of exhibits reflective of early-day Gravette. The annex building houses a schoolroom with pictures of Gravette High School graduating classes and barber shop and newspaper office displays which will be open by Gravette Day. The old Presbyterian Church has been donated to the city and funds set aside to help with its restoration.
New sidewalks were built in 2016 connecting senior housing to the Senior Center and hospital and along a section of Highway 59 through the busiest part of town. Gravette citizens approved a sales tax measure last March and work is being done on a major repair and upgrade of Main Street, which is slated to be completed at mid-year. This includes new street, water line, sidewalks and street lights from Highway 59 to Third Avenue.
Gravette parks include playgrounds, a tennis court and walking trails. Pop Allum Park boasts five lighted ball fields and a popular skate park and serves more than 350 area children each summer. At the edge of the park complex, the head of a walking trail leads to an enjoyable experience for nature lovers and birders. A new pavilion, restroom and playground were completed last August at Old Town Park and have already seen heavy use. The city was recently awarded a grant from the State of Arkansas to complete Phase 1 of the bike and pedestrian trail system. Funds from a 2016 bond issue will provide funding for ball field and trail upgrades and new soccer fields, as well as several ball fields and trails at the Hiwasse community center.
Kindley Memorial Park honors Gravette's own World War I air ace, Captain Field Kindley. Its shady area is a favorite picnic spot, complemented by a playground, a 1950s-era Air Force jet fighter and a historic bandstand. Old Town Park, so named because an old community, Nebo, was once located there in the mid to late 1800s, is just east of downtown Gravette and is often host to annual Gravette Day events and the seasonal farmers' markets, complete with musicians and native music, which are enjoyed by all.
The city hosts several special events, the most important being the annual Gravette Days celebration during the second weekend of August. It commemorates the town's founding in 1893; and several thousand people, including many school alumni, enjoy all types of festivities and one of the best parades in the area. On the Fourth of July, a fireworks display in Pop Allum Park attracts a huge crowd. A traditional parade also ushers in the Christmas holiday season.
Gravette is a planned and zoned community governed by a mayor and city council. The city supports a certified full-time police force, including a canine officer added in 2016, and a well-equipped all-volunteer fire department which has recently added the tallest ladder truck in Benton County to its equipment. A full-time paramedic-staffed ambulance service also serves the city and surrounding communities. A new planning commission was formed in 2016.
The city has its own water and sewer systems and also provides water for families in surrounding rural areas through a 150-plus mile system. Kurt Maddox is Gravette's mayor. More information on the city can be obtained by calling the city hall, 479-787-5757, or visiting the city's new website at www.cityofgravette-ar.gov.
The Greater Gravette Chamber of Commerce works to advance the business, professional and industrial interests of the community and the surrounding area. The Chamber plans a "Smoke on the Border" barbecue competition the first weekend in April, sanctioned by the Kansas City Barbecue Society, and the annual Gravette Day celebration the second Saturday in August also draws a large crowd.
Gravette has an abundance of businesses, including restaurants, small shops and larger chain stores like Dollar General, Sonic, Subway, Mama DeLuca's Pizza and a new Simple Simon's Pizza. Two grocery stores, Harps and CV's $avers Club, opened last year. A women's clothing boutique, a reclaimed furniture and home decor shop and a leather shop all opened on Main Street last year. A hardware store supplies needs for a growing population, and a state and county satellite office offers services involving those entities. The Gravette Station recently began offering a drop-off location and rental site for U-Haul trucks, trailers and related moving items.
Churches, too, are an integral part of Gravette, with a wide variety to choose from and even more in neighboring towns and communities.
Gravette, like the other towns and cities on the west side of Benton County, is close enough to the metropolitan areas of Bentonville, Rogers, Springdale and Fayetteville for residents to take advantage of colleges and universities, museums and attractions, but is far enough away to enjoy a slower pace and a more hometown atmosphere.
Whether coming to visit or stay, you will find a ready welcome in Gravette. The city lives up to the message on its million-gallon water tower, which stands over downtown and identifies Gravette as "The Heart of Hometown America."
Hiwasse
East along Arkansas Highway 72 is the community of Hiwasse, now a part of Gravette. The community still retains its own identity and has its own post office, bank branch, restaurant and strip mall with room for new businesses. Residents enjoy an annual Hiwasse Day festival held each fall at the community center. Hiwasse is largely an agricultural community, but it is home to a growing business community as well. The Highway 549 interchange is scheduled to open this spring, giving Hiwasse residents the advantage of almost instant access to I-49.
The community is served by the Gravette Police Department and has its own Gravette satellite fire station. The area is also served by Gravette Schools. Gravette's Master Plan and capital improvements project include locating a park with sports fields and walking trails in Hiwasse. These will include tennis, basketball and volleyball courts, a children's playground and pavilion with trails looping around and through the park. Improvements to the community center, including needed updates, a catering kitchen and upgraded meeting space, and a new fire station for the volunteer firemen are also planned.
Sulphur Springs
The city of Sulphur Springs is nestled in a valley along Butler Creek and close to the Missouri state line. It was once a major health spa and popular tourist resort. It has many historic buildings constructed of native limestone, reminding visitors of the city's rich history. City residents are working to restore and revitalize the town's unique features, with a $12,000 grant from the Arkansas General Improvement Fund last year to help with cleaning up and restoring derelict properties in town.
Sulphur Springs has its own post office and a mayor-council government. It operates its own water and sewer systems and has a volunteer fire department. Its public library is located in a former school house which is on the National Register, and the city's museum boasts of items and documents dating back to the late 1800s when the town was founded. Children attend school in the Gravette consolidated system.
The town's main feature is its big, tree-shaded park and the meandering Butler Creek which feeds a small lake there. Lake La Balladine was cleaned out and refilled last spring and new playground equipment was installed in the summer. The town hosts an annual fishing derby for youngsters each year. Springs, for which the town is named, still flow in the city park area. Work has been ongoing to improve streets and playground areas in the park. Residents and visitors enjoy a patriotic Independence Day celebration and a community-wide Christmas event each year which bind the 500-plus residents together.
Between Sulphur Springs and Gravette, along Arkansas Highway 59, is the Old Spanish Treasure Cave. They say the cave was used by Spanish Conquistadors to hide treasure hundreds of years ago. The cave is open for tours and the owners are offering showings of popular movies in the council room at the cave, providing entertainment for young and old. They are just waiting for that treasure to be found somewhere in the miles of underground passageways. Meanwhile guests can enjoy visiting the nearby gift and rock shop and panning for gem stones in a sluice set up in front of the cave.
Maysville
The unincorporated community of Maysville lies west of Gravette at the intersection of Arkansas Highways 43 and 72 and is located right on the Arkansas-Oklahoma state line. It had its beginnings shortly after Arkansas first became a state in 1836 and is reputedly the oldest town in Benton County.
The community is also rich in Civil War history, with the site of Camp Walker and old Fort Wayne nearby and the Battle of Maysville occurring there. It lies along the old western military road which ran south from Fort Leavenworth in Kansas to Fort Gibson, Indian Territory.
The community was platted in the 1800s but was never incorporated. Its growth and development were cut short when the railroad bypassed the town before the turn of the last century. Some of the county's top agricultural land adds a special prosperity to its citizens.
In spite of its smallness, the town has well served area residents on both sides of the state line with businesses and churches. Its small post office still serves many in the area. And children in the community and surrounding area also attend school in Gravette.
General News on 04/19/2017