The Life of Bill McGinley
By Cody Berry Back on the first of October, Mrs. Peggy Tull Roberson stopped by the Gann Museum to donate some newspaper clippings for our collection. The articles are about one of Saline County’s World War II veterans: the late William C. “Bill” McGinley. McGinley was not born here, he was born in Scott, Arkansas … Continued
Alderman Chenault’s Service in WWII
By Cody Berry Hubert Floyd Chenault was born in the Bland Community of Saline County on October 22, 1919, to Floyd Nelson and Annie Maude Ray Chenault. Chenault was drafted by the United States Navy on May 16, 1944, along with fellow Saline County men Sour Green, Lloyd Howard, John Taylor and Dub Davenport. Chenault … Continued
Did you know? The 48-Star Flag
By Cody Berry Did you know that during the Second World War, there were only 48 states? Well, there were, and at that time the American flag had 48 stars to represent them all. At the Gann Museum, we have a couple 48-star American flags in our new exhibit based on Arnold Wright’s book, My … Continued
Rationing During the Second World War
By Cody Berry After the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, the United States found itself fighting a war on both sides of the globe simultaneously. The US government created a system of rationing, which limited the amount of certain goods that a person or family could buy. Food items such as butter, … Continued
Benton’s Own Bill Brown
By Cody Berry Another one of the Saline County veterans featured in our new exhibit is Benton’s own Bill Brown. This is his story. Charles William “Bill” Brown was born in Benton on December 29, 1920, to Charles E. and Sammy Ashby Brown. Brown graduated from Benton High School in 1938 and joined the U.S. … Continued
The Story of Alvin Lloyd McNeil
By Cody Berry I recently wrote about Ewell Ross McCright who was a prisoner of war during WWII. Well, he wasn’t the only local veteran to have spent time in a POW camp. In the Gann Museum’s new exhibit, “My Country Called,” named after historian Arnold Wright’s book, we have some newspaper clippings and a … Continued
Introducing Our New Exhibit: My Country Called
By Cody Berry Over the past few months, I’ve been searching the building for anything that came from the 1940s in hopes of building a display on Saline County during the Second World War. This year marks eighty years since the end of WWII in 1945 and this is our tribute to the brave men … Continued
McCright’s Purple Heart
By Cody Berry I recently saw an announcement online about Purple Heart Day on August 7th. This made me think about the recipients of that award that I’ve been researching over the summer. One of them was a man from Benton named Ewell Ross McCright. McCright was born in Benton on December 4, 1917, to … Continued
Bauxite: The Death of a Dream
Pictured above: The Alcoa plant in Bauxite, originally built in 1952, but now owned and operated by the Almatis, Inc. By Cody Berry This week I wanted to cover the end of Bauxite as a company town. The end didn’t come because the mines were depleted or the aluminum industry shutdown after WWII. By 1944, … Continued
Saline County’s First Movie Theater
By Cody Berry The Bauxite Theater was built in 1918 and wcould seat 1,000 people. It was run by the town’s “Amusement Commitee,” which had 20 members.1 During the Great Depression of the 1930s, the Bauxite Theater was much more than a place to watch news reels and Hollywood movies. In November 1930, after the … Continued