For the Week in Clark County History, we combed through bound copies of the Daily Siftings Herald housed in the archives at Ouachita Baptist University. Here are some front-page news briefs from editions dating 10, 20 and 30 years ago.
10 years ago (2013)
The Caddo Valley City Council was in discussion over how to address the influx of water rescues the town’s fire department was making on the Caddo River.
A Houston, Texas, man was sentenced by a Clark County jury to 30 years in an Arkansas prison after he pleaded guilty to transporting 104 pounds of marijuana from Texas to Little Rock.
The Arkadelphia Board of Directors began discussion on plans to finish the city’s Youth Sports Complex to include a softball field and a paved parking lot.
20 years ago (2003)
During an outdoor ceremony that included remarks from Lt. Gov. Win Rockefeller and U.S. Rep. Mike Ross, four clients at the Arkadelphia Human Development Center received the key to their new homes on Lower Dam Pike in Caddo Valley. Having the clients move closer to independent living and purchase their own homes was touted as unique to the Arkadelphia campus.
Clark County sheriff’s deputies harvested about 300 marijuana plants near Hollywood. Authorities did not indicate whether an arrest had been made and would not name the suspected growers.
A gift from Frank D. Hickingbotham added a 40,000-square-foot facility to Ouachita Baptist University’s School of Business. Hickingbotham’s donation covered roughly half of construction expenses for the namesake hall.
30 years ago (1993)
Arkadelphia city officials and U.S. Rep. Bob Arnold rode in a Missouri Pacific-donated caboose from Gum Springs to the train depot, where it was to become a permanent fixture at a park. A $49,450 state grant to the Chamber of Commerce was to cover the cost of insulation, new windows and doors, and a new heating and cooling system.
The City of Caddo Valley was seeking options to fund a new fire station, which would later be built near City Hall.
Six homes on South 13th Street, Arkadelphia, were being built. What made the new housing noteworthy was the material that went in to constructing them: metal frames and roofs.