From Alumina to Aluminum: The Hall-Heroult Process
By Cody Berry Last time we covered the Bayer Process which takes the alumina out of raw bauxite ore. This week we will cover the next step in the aluminum making process. In 1880, a 20-year-old first year student at Oberlin College in Ohio named Charles Martin Hall started his research into the production of … Continued
How Bauxite Built a Town
By Cody Berry We at the Gann Museum are pleased to announce that the museum has reopened after a very cold winter. Our new exhibit “How Bauxite Built A Town: 1896-1984″ pays tribute to the people who labored in and around the bauxite mines of Saline County during that time. The town of Bauxite holds … Continued
Lynda Hollenbeck: A Legend in Saline County Journalism
By Cody Berry Photo above of Lynda Hollenbeck courtesy of Destin Davis at the Saline Courier. On January 6, I learned about the passing of a legendary figure in modern Saline County history, the great Lynda Hollenbeck. Lynda was born in Cotton Plant, Arkansas on August 8, 1941, to Paul and Lillie Parnell. A graduate … Continued
Who was Mrs. Gann?
By Cody Berry Since March is Women’s History Month, I wanted to write a bit about some Saline County women. Last week I recounted my meeting with the local chapter of the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution, so this week, I wanted to talk about Mrs. Gann. Unlike Dr. Gann, Sr., who was … Continued
A Visit with The Daughters of the American Revolution
By Cody Berry A while ago when I was working at the Benton branch of the Saline County Library, I met Mrs. Belinda Jones, Organizing Regent of the Saline Crossing Chapter of the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution. She asked if I would be interested in having her group of ladies at the … Continued
Bruce “Sunpie” Barnes
Photography above provided courtesy of Bruce “Sunpie” Barnes. By Cody Berry Way back when I was writing entries for the CALS Encyclopedia of Arkansas, its editor Dr. Guy Lancaster, sent me an Arkansas Times article about Bruce “Sunpie” Barnes by David Ramsey. Dr. Lancaster asked if I was interested in writing an entry on Barnes … Continued
The Integration of Benton School District
By Cody Berry On February 4, 1965, the Benton Courier announced that the Benton School Board had officially agreed to comply with Civil Rights regulations in order to obtain federal funds through the National Defense Education Act. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 outlawed discrimination based on “race, color, or national origin,” so 1965 was … Continued
Charles Cunningham: A Life of Service
By Cody Berry Years ago, now, I met Charles Cunningham at a meeting in which the fate of the Palace Theater was being discussed before it was renovated. If only I had known more about him at the time. At some point I was asked to put an entry together on Benton’s Ralph Bunche Community, … Continued
Benton’s Ralph Bunche Community
By Cody Berry Saline County’s African American community has longstanding history. Since the county was founded in 1835, there have been people of color living here who were member of both free and enslaved families. In 1838, there were 416 slaves and two free black citizens living in Saline County. By 1860, there were 749 … Continued
The Gann Museum’s First Exhibits and Renovations
By Cody Berry This week’s story is focused on some of the renovations that the Gann Museum’s first board of directors undertook to convert the former library into a museum and its first exhibits. On May 22, 1980, someone known only as “B.F” wrote in the Benton Courier that the very first renovation the Gann … Continued