Category Archives: “Looking Back”

The Post Office: “Looking Back”

Reprinted here by special permission of the author, Cindy Beckman, a retired Conway High School history teacher who writes local history.

The establishment of a post office is very important to the development of a town. But for Conway, it would be many years before the post office found a permanent home.

Before the post office came, few people got mail. According to the reports of some old settlers, someone in the area would go to Little Rock every two or three months Continue reading

Guarding Conway: “Looking Back”

Reprinted here by special permission of the author, Cindy Beckman, a retired Conway High School history teacher who writes local history.

The Arkansas Army National Guard has been a part of Conway for nearly a century. Many Faulkner County residents have served in the Conway unit and even more have been touched by its presence in the community.

The Conway unit was organized and federally recognized on April 21, 1921 as the Headquarters Company, 5th Regiment of Infantry Continue reading

Caring for the Elderly: “Looking Back”

Reprinted here by special permission of the author, Cindy Beckman, a retired Conway High School history teacher who writes local history.

Throughout my elementary school years, one of my family’s weekly activities was to go visit my maternal grandfather, Will Starkey, at Richardson’s Rest Home. He had a stroke in 1966 which

left him unable to care for himself so he became a resident there. My paternal great-grandmother, Minda Holloway Burnett, Continue reading

The Industrialization of Conway: “Looking Back”

Reprinted here by special permission of the author, Cindy Beckman, a retired Conway High School history teacher who writes local history.

After the success of recruiting International Shoe Company to Conway, business leaders sought to recruit more industry to the growing city. Over the next three decades, the Faulkner County Industrial Development Corporation (FCIDC), the Conway Development Corporation (CDC) and the Chamber of Commerce would bring in more large industries and even create the first Industrial Park. Continue reading