Badges from J. Fred Maxfield’s illustrious Batesville career

J. Fred Maxfield was the son of Martha and Charles Wesley (C.W.) Maxfield, one of Batesville’s founding families. This collection of three badges represents the community service he provided for the citizens of Batesville, including his Batesville Fire Department badge, in which he rose to the rank of captain, his Deputy Sheriff of Independence County badge, and his Mayor of Batesville badge.

OIRM is honoring our military personnel this month with a display in our atrium of the military insignia of our local heroes. This weekend we hosted our Rick Finley Day with a small exhibit of Rick’s memorabilia and thought it appropriate to honor those veterans of varied branches of service with a cabinet display in the atrium. We thank our citizens who stopped by this Saturday to honor Rick Finley and invite everyone to come by to see both exhibits.

J. Fred Maxfield lived from 1897 – 1970. He was an avid hunter with his father, Charles. Hunting apparel and his double-barrel shotgun are also cared for by the museum, but these items are not currently displayed. His hometown training was rewarded with a marksmanship medal during his military career.

Mr. Maxfield was a graduate from the Western Military Academy, served his country during World War I, and was active in the Arkansas State Guard from 1942-1944.

He and his wife, Effie, had two children, Linda and Lucy Anne. Anne Maxfield Strahl generously donated the majority of the J. Fred Maxfield items in OIRM’s collection, and we are grateful to have this integral part of Batesville’s history.

A Small Taste of Americana

In anticipation of Memorial Day, Old Independence Regional Museum will have a small exhibit directly inside the front door in the atrium. This exhibit will display examples of Americana and tributes to our community.

One of these examples includes a framed prototype of a block of postage stamps executed in 1983 commemorating street cars. This block contains four distinct streetcar moments in time.

• New York City, 1832: Debut of the first American streetcar. With a fare of 12 cents, this horse-drawn streetcar rode on metal wheels situated on a metal track.
• Sulphur Rock, 1926: Provided by the Hill-Fontaine Cotton Company of St. Louis, the first streetcar in Sulphur Rock ran on either side of the highway. The existing trolley in Batesville ended its run near the turn of the 20^th century; the trolley car was subsequently donated to Sulphur Rock to replace the original trolley. Sam Tuggle was a long-time stockholder in the line, acting as an operator, then passing the reins (literally) to John “Skipper John” Huddleston and his large, white mule, Dick. The model of horsecar donated by Batesville was called a “bobtail”, and Dick pulled the bobtail for 16 years, carting people from Huddleston’s Hotel on Main Street in Sulphur Rock to the surrounding area. In 1926 the Department of Transportation announced it would build a road from Batesville to Newark that would pass through Sulphur Rock. Sam Tuggle was not pleased the road would impinge on his right-of-way – the trolley ran on either side of the proposed road – and balked at the idea. Vigilante townspeople in Sulphur Rock realized the DOT was seriously considering re-routing traffic around Sulphur Rock and took matters in their own hands, tearing out several sections of the trolley line. Mr. Tuggle realized he was beat and removed the remaining lines. Sulphur Rock still commemorates its trolley with its annual Trolley Car Days.
• Montgomery, 1886: The first electric streetcar system, the Capital City Street Railway, begins operations. The line ran for exactly 50 years with a grand ceremony retiring the beloved streetcars in favor of buses in 1936.
• New Orleans, 1923: The St. Charles streetcar of New Orleans is still in operation, shuttling visitors and locals to many well-known destinations around the city. This distinction makes it the oldest operating streetcar in the world.

Rick Finley Day, May 20, 2023

Old Independence Regional Museum will host Rick Finley Day on May 20, 2023 from 11:00 – 1:00 to commemorate the day 34 years ago Rick Finley of Batesville lost his life in the line of duty serving as a Special Agent of the United States Drug Enforcement Agency. He was on special assignment in the upper Huluga Valley region of Peru. The mission was a joint United States and Peruvian Anti-Drug Force tasked with the destruction of cocaine labs.  

In the summer of 1989 Rick was once again deployed to Peru on the second year of this mission. The previous year the Agents lodged in the Peruvian village Tingo Maria. In 1989 anti-government Communist guerrillas had become so active in the Huluga Valley that it was not safe to continue to base the Agents in the village; therefore they were flown back and forth from Lima to the area of operations.

On the 20th of May 1989 the aircraft Rick Finley was on disappeared. The aircraft was located later in the rugged terrain of the Andes Mountains. Nobody aboard survived the crash. Victims included Peruvian Military and U.S. personnel. In addition to the loss of Rick Finley two other residents of Arkansas on board the aircraft.

Because of his commitment to service and country, the Drug Enforcement Agency had a formal dedication of the federal building in Detroit, Michigan, renaming it the Rick Finley Building. This framed picture has been loaned to us by Rick’s sister, Sheila Finley. Sheila has loaned the museum a series of awards, commendations, pictures, and articles showcasing Rick’s accomplishments. Along with these, we have had generous donations and gifts from Rick’s friends and family members to fill out this exhibit and explain the details of Rick’s achievements.

Saturday the 20th of May a proclamation by Mayor Rick Elimbaugh declaring the day Rick Finley Day in Batesville will be read by an official. Visitors and friends of Rick Finley are invited to view an exhibit about Rick, his life, and his death in service to his country. Please join us to celebrate this brave American who gave his life to make ours better.

Dutch Oven Cooking this Saturday

Join Cindy Bunch as she discusses cooking your favorite treat prepared in a Dutch oven – cobbler! Cindy will also give everyone a chance to create junk journals and scrapbook pages as we wait for our cobbler to become perfectly cooked. Come with old pictures you want to include in your scrapbook.

In anticipation to Saturday’s 1:00 event, let’s dive into the depths of the Dutch oven and answer the burning question – what is so Dutch about this cookware?

Cooking with cast iron is far from new. Originating in China over 2500 years ago, the art of cooking from an iron vessel has a long history. However, it took a while for the idea to spread since cast iron cookware did not surface in Europe until 1300 years later.

In the 1600s, craftsmen in the Netherlands cast pots using sand and brass, creating more detailed pots at a lower cost than using other materials. Abraham Darby, an enterprising English industrialist, became enamored with these pots. Upon his return to his homeland, he determined to use cast iron rather than brass, thereby creating the first “modern” sand-molded cast iron pot in 1707, which he baptized the Dutch oven after the area where he discovered the talented tradesmen who created cookware.

You may be familiar with an enameled version of the Dutch oven, which first appeared in 1891 thanks to another Dutchman, Johannes Berk Van Kampen. At the time, this enameled cookware was immensely popular, especially in France where it gained the moniker cocotte. Highly prized, these colorful enamel Dutch ovens have been a mainstay in French cuisine.

OIRM’s Dutch oven comes to us courtesy of Ms. Polly Livingston, whose parents, Mr. and Mrs. J. Fred Livingston, Sr. used it during the 1930s and ‘40s. We showcase many examples of cast iron cookware in our covered wagon on display. Batesville’s pioneers valued the versatility of cast iron since it could be used over an open fire while traveling as well as back at the homestead.

Mary Goodin’s Hand-Worked Linens

A few days ago we had a wonderful visit with Ms. Mary Goodin who generously donated a sizeable amount of beautiful, hand-crafted items from her large collection.

This 90” x 80” hand worked white floral embroidered bedspread is the first item pictured. It is in good shape with a few minor holes and stains. The large center floral pattern is worked with carefully created French knots of varied sizes and corded stitches. Smaller patterns similar in design to the center cascade down either lower corner of the spread. An interesting detail is the cutouts on the bottom end of the spread designed to go around bedposts. 

Second is an eye-catching 75” x 22” white floral embroidered dresser runner was crafted to match the bed spread. The runner is embroidered with different sized French knots and carefully worked corded flowers. For its age it is in very good condition. 

The third item truly had us scratching our heads until our volunteer, Clarice Jones, discovered information that gave the item concrete meaning.  Looking at it with little knowledge, it resembled a shoe rack, complete with tiny holes at either top corner where it may have hung from a wall or door. However, we were puzzled that each row contained three pockets. Why would a shoe holder have an odd number of pockets? With diligence, Clarice determined the rack was for shoes, but a specific type – slippers – which would be included as a pair in each one of the holders. This items is likewise hand crafted with the backing resembling a simple tea towel. A matching towel has been sewn into place, shaped as pockets to form the two rows of slipper holders.

We thank Ms. Goodin for her generous contributions and Clarice for her great sleuthing and accessioning skills.