When I was a child, my paternal grandparents lived in Augusta (Woodruff County). I don’t have many memories of the town, but thanks to my dad, I’ve learned a lot about my ancestors and the place they lived.
According to a historical marker in Augusta, Chickasaw Indians settled on a bluff overlooking the White River. Many years later, white settlers began moving into the area. In 1847, native Philadelphians John Elliott and William Polite opened a general store. In 1848, Thomas Hough moved to the area and had the town surveyed and laid out. Hough named the town after his niece, Augusta Cald.
Augusta was officially incorporated in July 1860. At that time, it was in Jackson County. It became the Woodruff County seat when the county was created in November 1862.
By 1861, Augusta had become home to over 600 residents. In 1852, Hough built a church that was shared by Methodist and Presbyterian congregations.
Augusta suffered a great deal of damage during the Civil War. The river landing made the town a natural target for Union forces. In 1864, citizens left the town in droves when Union troops arrived. Soldiers tore down houses and used the materials to build shelters for their camps. Augusta’s more upscale residences were used as headquarters for officers. A small skirmish between Union and Confederate forces took place at Augusta in August 1864 and ended in a Union victory.
The town recovered during Reconstruction and began a new era of prosperity, as riverboat traffic greatly increased. When the railroads proposed crossing the county, the leaders of Augusta rejected the idea, thinking that river trade was all the town needed to thrive. So the railroads bypassed Augusta, and as a result, river traffic began to dwindle. This caused the town leadership to build a short line railroad in 1887, which was called the Augusta and White River Street Railway. The small railroad connected Augusta with the Bald Knob and Memphis Railroad. The Augusta and White River Street Railway ended operations in 1958.
In 1930, a $614,734 bridge was completed across the White River, which opened U.S. Highway 64. The highway was a direct route across the U.S. and the bridge closed the final gap in the highway without a ferry. A celebration was held with a parade across the bridge and many political leaders and other dignitaries in attendance. The bridge was replaced with a modern four-lane bridge in 2001.
Like many towns during the Great Depression, Augusta greatly suffered. Crop prices dropped, river traffic all but ceased to exist and the Bank of Augusta was forced to close. The local school almost shut down, but Augusta businessman Ed Bonner loaned the school $10,000. The teachers agreed to work one month out of every eight months without compensation. People raised their own produce, hunted, fished and traded their surplus for commodities they couldn't produce themselves.
During World War II, most of the men in the town entered the armed forces, leaving their families to deal with the rationing of food, gasoline and other necessities. But in spite of the Great Depression and World War II, Augusta survived both eras with steady growth in both population and economy.
Today, the city is home to several factories and retail stores. Augusta is surrounded by rich farmland that produces rice, soybeans and cotton. The nearby Rex Hancock/Black Swamp and Henry Gray/Hurricane Lake Wildlife Management Areas bring many sportsmen to the area.
The old Presbyterian church has been preserved by the city and turned into a local history museum. The church was visited by future U.S. President Woodrow Wilson as a young boy, as his brother-in-law, Rev. A.R. Kennedy, was its pastor from 1878-1879. A marker commemorating Wilson’s visit stands at the former church.
It’s always enjoyable for me to write about my state’s history, but even more so when I can write about a place to which I have a personal connection, like Augusta.
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