Tag Archives: Cindy Beckman

Buying a Car: “Looking Back”

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

It was a 1977 silver Monte Carlo with a maroon interior. My Dad got it used at Bill Dean Chevrolet for my high school graduation. When I graduated from UCA, he got it painted and pinstriped at Mattison’s Body Shop. It was sweet! That classic long hood! What more could a girl want! Continue reading

The Frauenthals: “Looking Back”

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

In 1871, a small, ingenious, far-sighted man named Max Frauenthal came to Conway with the railroad crew and purchased a lot in the southeast block at Front and Oak. Although the city’s founder, A.P. Robinson, had intended for most business activity to occur along Main Street between Railroad Avenue (Parkway) and Court Street, Frauenthal built his mercantile store in the alley where the farmers left their horses and Continue reading

Dave Ward: “Looking Back”

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

If ever there were a more appropriately named street, it would have to be Dave Ward Drive. Dave Ward was a hard-working successful Conway businessman who built yellow school buses and in the process created hundreds of jobs for the local economy.

The road itself is a relatively recent addition Continue reading

Titan II Missiles: “Looking Back”

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

When the Soviets detonated their first atomic weapon after World War II, the United States had to develop ways of protecting Americans from nuclear attack. While much effort was spent building backyard bomb shelters and conducting civil defense drills, Continue reading