First, prayers and love to those affected by last Sunday’s deadly storms. Our hearts grieve with all of our extended Arkansas family experiencing loss and pain.
As I write this, it’s the gloomy Monday after. The extent of the devastation is just beginning to be realized.
And it seems impossible to find any kind of silver lining in the dark, destructive storm clouds.
Still, as I watched the continuous storm coverage (sincere thanks to all the meteorologists and media, our steadfast messengers), I encountered a rare little Treat.
Treat, Arkansas.
I had to look it up. The unincorporated community in Polk County, according to wikipedia.org, was “named for one of its earliest settlers, Polk Treat.”
Treat is just one of those little state gems (speaking of gems, there’s also an Opal and of course, a Jasper) that shyly shine on Doppler maps.
The more the meteorologists zoomed in on the maps, the more I marveled at all the obscure and uniquely named towns, townships and communities that make up our state.
Like Fifty-Six. Located in Stone County, Fifty-Six has a population (according to the U.S. Census Bureau 2012 figures) of only slightly more than three times its name: 177.
And Lick Mountain. A township in Conway County, Lick Mountain should not be confused with Lick Skillet. According to the Encyclopedia of Arkansas website, Lick Skillet was the name of the campsite used by railroad construction workers that became modern-day Brinkley (Monroe County). “Legend has it that when the day’s work was completed, the railroad crew cooked dinner over a campfire and retired for the evening only when the last ‘skillet was licked.’”
How dear.
Or how Deer. Deer is an unincorporated community in Newton County.
Other intriguing names that gave me a small smile on a serious night: Tag, Ozone, Point Peter, Weiner, Tomahawk, Camp, Zion, Purdy, Timbo (which I’ve since been informed was the longtime home of late singer Jimmy Driftwood) and Venus.
The Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism maintains a whole special page on its website devoted to the Natural State’s “Colorful Names” (arkansas.com/ things-to-do/history-heritage/colorful-names). After all, Arkansas is home to locales including Ben Hur, Gobbler, Peanut, Stumptoe and Welcome Home.
“With an array of communities such as Hogeye, Greasy Corner, Ink, Snowball, Romance, Apt and Smackover, Arkansas may seem to have a monopoly on funny city names,” the site says.
“Hardly. The state’s southwestern neighbors in Texas have funny town names, such as Grit, Noodle, Cut and Shoot. Remote and Boring are small towns in Oregon. Eden and Hell are just a few miles apart in Michigan, and even uptown New York has an Owl’s Head and Hoosick.”
Sunday night made me realize I want to be better acquainted with the storied state I call home in person, not just in forecasts.
After all, Arkansas truly has Heart.
Heart, Arkansas, I learned last Sunday, is in Fulton County. Email:jchristman@arkansasonline.com Spin Cycle is usually a smirk at pop culture. But not today.
Style, Pages 49 on 05/04/2014