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Photo of the commission of
Samuel
Ezra “S.E.” Tribble as Blevins mayor.
Tribble was born in Hempstead County
and
held various jobs, including farm hand,
transfer wagon driver and dairy
laborer.
He married Grace Stephens in 1916
and was elected mayor in 1940.
By
1947, the couple had moved to California,
where Grace died in 1968.
Tribble
died in 1971 in Blevins.
Husband and wife are both
buried in Blevins
beside
their two children who
preceded them in death. Photo
is courtesy of SARA.
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The Southwest Arkansas Regional Archives recently received
records donated by the City of Blevins in Hempstead County.
“These records are a fascinating look into what life was
like in rural, historical Blevins,” said Melissa Nesbitt, archival manager at
SARA. “We are grateful to have the opportunity to preserve these records for
future generations and to make them accessible to the public.”
The records date from 1914, when the city was incorporated,
through the 1990s. Documents include city council meeting minutes, city
ordinances, town incorporation and correspondence of account holders with the
Bank of Blevins. Researchers may be most interested in the Mayor’s Docket from
the 1910s. Those records list individuals’ offenses, including drunkenness,
fighting, carrying a pistol, gambling and disturbing the peace.
Blevins is a second-class city that is often overlooked in
historical studies. The settlement, which was named after a landowner in the
area, was omitted from reports during the Civil War and was not incorporated
until 1914. In the 1890s, the settlement was established as a stopping spot on
the Prescott and Northwest Railroad. The settlement received its first post
office in 1901.
The roads in northern Hempstead County, including through
Blevins, were improved by the Works Progress Administration during the Great
Depression. Vehicle traffic began to replace railroad traffic, and by 1945,
passenger trains were discontinued. All train services stopped by 1980, and the
track was removed in 1994.
Although the city’s population has fluctuated between around
200 to 370, Blevins had about 315 residents as of the 2010 U.S. Census.
For more information about Blevins or Hempstead County
history, contact SARA at 870-983-2633 or visit the branch at 201 Highway 195 in
Washington, Arkansas. Queries may also be emailed to southwest.archives@arkansas.gov.
