Poinsett County is a county located in the U.S. state of Arkansas. As of the 2020 census, the population was 22,965. The county seat is Harrisburg. Poinsett County is included in the Jonesboro–Paragould Combined Statistical Area.
The Monticello Commercial Historic District encompasses a portion of the historic business district of Monticello, the seat of Drew County, Arkansas. The district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2011.
The Plymouth Historic District encompasses a cluster of five civic buildings and the town common of Plymouth, New Hampshire. The buildings are arrayed on the west side of Plymouth's town common, laid out not long after the town's settlement in 1763. The 2-acre (0.81 ha) district includes the town hall/court house, the Pemigewasset National Bank building, and the US Post Office building, as well as the Old Grafton County Courthouse. The Plymouth Congregation Church also falls within the district bounds, but is not considered contributing. The district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1986.
The El Dorado Commercial Historic District encompasses the historic commercial heart of downtown El Dorado, Arkansas. The city serves as the seat of Union County, and experienced a significant boom in growth during the 1920s, after oil was discovered in the area. The business district that grew in this time is anchored by the Union County Courthouse, at the corner of Main and Washington Streets, where the Confederate memorial is also located. The historic district listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2003 includes the city blocks surrounding the courthouse, as well as several blocks extending east along Main Street and south along Washington Street. Most of the commercial buildings are one and two stories in height and are built of brick. Notable exceptions include the Exchange Bank building, which was, at nine stories, the county's first skyscraper, and the eight-story Murphy Oil building. There are more than forty contributing properties in the district.
The Newport Downtown Historic District encompasses the 19th century heart of Newport, New Hampshire, the county seat of Sullivan County. The district includes the major commercial and civic buildings which line Main Street between Depot Street and the Sugar River. The district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1985.
The Prescott Commercial Historic District encompasses the historic commercial core of Prescott, Arkansas, the county seat of Nevada County. Prescott was laid out in 1873, after the railroad was built through the area that is now Nevada County, and the railroad has played a significant role in the city's development. The railroad today bisects the commercial core of the city, which extends for several city blocks away from the railroad. The historic district includes all of the major civic buildings of the city, including the courthouse, post office, and the old Prescott City Jail.
The Magnolia Commercial Historic District encompasses the historic heart of Magnolia, the county seat of Columbia County, Arkansas. It includes the courthouse square and most of the buildings which face it, as well as buildings along Calhoun and Jackson Streets. The centerpiece of the district is the square itself and the Columbia County Courthouse, a Renaissance Revival structure built in 1905 to a design by W. S. Hull. The square is lined with mostly brick-faced buildings built between about 1899 and 1910, and between 1938 and 1958, when the city experienced a second building boom. The oldest known surviving building, then as now housing a pharmacy, is located at 111 S. Court Square. One prominent building from the second building phase is the Cameo Theater Building, an Art Deco design built in 1948.
The DeQueen Commercial Historic District encompasses part of the commercial heart of downtown De Queen, Arkansas. The district is centered on the block containing the Sevier County Courthouse, a three-story brick Colonial Revival structure built in 1930. It includes buildings facing the courthouse square on West DeQueen Avenue, West Stilwell Avenue, and North Third Street, and extends an additional block eastward to North Second Street. This commercial heart of the city was developed mainly between 1900 and 1920, and includes 21 historically significant buildings. Notable among them is the former Hayes Hardware Building at 314 West DeQueen, built c. 1900, and the Bank of DeQueen at 221 West DeQueen, also built c. 1900.
The DeWitt Commercial Historic District encompasses part of the historic downtown of De Witt, Arkansas, the seat of the southern district of Arkansas County. It consists of roughly six square blocks, focused on Courthouse Square, location of the Southern District Courthouse. This area was platted out when De Witt was established as the new county seat of Arkansas County in 1854, replacing the Arkansas Post, which was not centrally located within the county after numerous other counties had been carved out of its territory. The city's growth remained modest until the arrival of the railroad in the 1890s, and saw most of its civic growth between then and the 1920s. The district includes 54 historically significant buildings, 32 of which face Courthouse Square. The oldest buildings in the district lie just north of Courthouse Square, either facing the square or in North Main or Gibson Streets.
The Stuttgart Commercial Historic District encompasses a portion of the commercial center of Stuttgart, Arkansas. The district extends along Main Street between 1st and 6th Streets, and includes a few buildings on the adjacent numbered streets as well as Maple and College Streets, which parallel Main to the west and east, respectively. The majority of the district's 76 buildings were built between about 1900 and 1920, and are brick commercial structures one or two stories in height. Notable among these buildings are the Riceland Hotel, the Standard Ice Company Building, and the county courthouse.
The Lepanto Commercial Historic District encompasses the traditional commercial heart of the small city of Lepanto, Arkansas. The district includes one block of Greenwood Avenue between Berry and Holmes Streets, and portions of two more blocks at either end, as well as two blocks of Berry Street, with a few buildings on adjacent streets. Lepanto was founded in 1903, but its surviving commercial architecture only dates as far back as c. 1915, when the Portis Company cotton gin was built at the eastern end of the district. Other early buildings include the triangular c. 1920 Arlington Light and Power building at 320 Greenwood, and the unusual Barton's of Lepanto building at 111 Berny Street, built as a wood frame lumber yard office c. 1920; its walls were bricked in 1955 when it was converted to a hardware store.
The Marked Tree Commercial Historic District encompasses the historic commercial center of Marked Tree, Arkansas. It includes one city block of Frisco Street, between Nathan and Elm Streets, as well as two adjoining buildings on Elm Street. This area was developed commercially beginning with the arrival of the railroad in the 1880s, and was focused around the railroad depot, which no longer stands. All of the fifteen buildings in the district were built between 1910 and 1937, and exhibit typical early 20th-century commercial architecture, mostly executed in brick.
The Modern News Building is a historic commercial building at 216 North Main Street in downtown Harrisburg, Arkansas. It is a single-story rectangular brick building, with a flat roof and simple styling. A tall front steps down toward the rear of the building, with the side walls capped in ceramic tile. The original building measured only 40 feet deep, in 1915 an addition of 15 feet was added, then as additional 20 feet was added in 1952. The facade is three bays wide, with a center entry flanked by recessed windows. The brick facade was changed from the original design in 1953 as an attempt to modernize the building. Included in the gallery of this article, are a couple photos showing the original facade. A canvas awning extends across the facade. The building was built in 1896, and is significant as the home of The Modern News, which has been Harrisburg's newspaper until 2018. An account in an 1896 Modern News paper, revealed the correct date of construction to be 1896, rather than the more commonly believed date of 1888. Prior to 1896, it is believed the newspaper was run from the courthouse. L.D. Freeman purchased the newspaper in Harrisburg and changed its name in 1888. Before Freeman bought the business, the newspaper was called The Arkansas Tribune, and it is unclear of what date that started, though it would have been around 1873. It is local folklore that the original printing press that was being replaced was too large and heavy to remove from the structure, so someone went under the building, dug a hole deep enough for the press to fit, cut the floor out from underneath it, and buried it, sealing it with a new concrete floor throughout. It is a great pride the people of Harrisburg, Arkansas have that we possess most all of the original prints of the Modern News Paper in their original binding. Poinsett County Historical Society has worked with the Poinsett County Library to document these fragile historical documents by use of a scanner to help digitize them so they are more accessible to the public. The scans can be seen and studied at the local library just around the corner from the newspaper building. In addition to the collection of Modern News papers, several dozen original copies of The Arkansas Tribune from the 1870s are also still in existence. The building was sold in 2019 from an heir of the original founders. This building remains a local landmark, despite the newspaper closing its doors.
The Poinsett County Courthouse is located on a city block of downtown Harrisburg, Arkansas, bounded by Court, North Main, Market, and East Streets. It is a two-story granite and concrete structure, set on a raised foundation. The central block is topped by a tiled hip roof, with an octagonal tower set on a square base at its center. The front facade has a Classical Revival tetrastyle Corinthian portico with a fully enclosed gable pediment. Wings on either side of the main block are lower in height, but project beyond the main block's front and back. They are capped by low balustrade surrounding a flat roof. The courthouse was designed by Mitchell Seligman of Pine Bluff. Construction began in 1918 and it was completed in 1920. This courthouse was built to replace an earlier courthouse which had been destroyed by fire on May 4, 1917.
The Tyronza Commercial Historic District encompass much of the traditional commercial heart of the small city of Tyronza, Arkansas. It extends along the city's Main Street, southward from the railroad tracks for about three blocks, and includes 17 historically significant buildings, as well as Tyronza Park, a small city park. Most of the district's buildings were built between 1910 and 1930, the major period of Tyronza's growth, and are mostly typical commercial vernacular brick and masonry structures one and two stories in height. The oldest building in the district is the c. 1916 Bank of Tyronza building at 117 South Main. This building and a few others nearby now house a local history museum.
The Piggott Commercial Historic District encompasses the original center of the city of Piggott, Arkansas, as originally platted out in 1887. It is centered on the square where the Clay County courthouse is located, buildings facing the courthouse square, and also buildings along some of the adjacent streets. In addition to the courthouse, the district includes the c. 1910 railroad depot, city hall, two churches, the 1930s Post Office building, a cotton gin, and a grain storage yard. The town grew because of the railroad, and the plentiful timber in the area, whose harvesting fueled the early economy in the region. The oldest building in the district is the 1897 Clay County Bank at 188 West Main Street.
The Waldron Commercial Historic District encompasses the historic central business district of Waldron, Arkansas. This area, a five-block stretch of Main Street, was primarily developed between 1880 and 1920, but was an active commercial area from the town's incorporation in 1852. An unknown number of its early buildings were destroyed during the American Civil War. Most of the buildings are one and two story brick structures, with a variety of commercial architectural and vernacular styles present. The courthouse is a notable late building: it was built in 1933, and has Art Deco styling.
The Ozark Courthouse Square Historic District encompasses the historic late 19th-century center of Ozark, Arkansas. It includes an area two blocks by two blocks in area, bounded on the west by 4th Street, the north by West Commercial Street, the east by 2nd Street, and the south by West Main Street. Most of the buildings in the district were built between about 1890 and 1930, a period of significant growth occasioned by the arrival of the railroad, and are built either out of brick or locally quarried stone. Prominent buildings include the Franklin County Courthouse and the Bristow Hotel.
The Pine Bluff Commercial Historic District encompasses a portion of the historic city center of Pine Bluff, Arkansas. It extends from Barraque Street south along Main Street, extending in places to properties alongside streets. The area's commercial development began about 1840, when the courthouse square was laid out at Barraque and Main, and proceeded through the early 20th century. Most of the commercial properties of the district were built between 1880 and 1910, and are reflective architecturally of late 19th-century commercial building styles.
The Warren Commercial Historic District encompasses the historic commercial heart of Warren, Arkansas. The district's northern end is focused on the Bradley County Courthouse and Clerk's Office, and extends down Main Street to Church Street, with branches along cross streets and roads radiating from the courthouse square. This area was developed beginning in the 1840s, but its oldest buildings date to the 1890s, primarily brick commercial buildings. Of architectural note are the courthouse, a Beaux Arts structure built in 1903, and the Classical Revival Warren Bank building (1927).
