Residents protest demolition plans of Thaden home in Bentonville

The house at 703 W. Central Ave. in Bentonville was recently sold and is set to be demolished.
The house at 703 W. Central Ave. in Bentonville was recently sold and is set to be demolished.

BENTONVILLE -- Some residents said the pending demolition of two homes in the city's West Central Avenue Historic District shined a spotlight on the need to preserve local history.

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NWA Democrat-Gazette

Cherie Clark of Bentonville discusses the historical importance Tuesday of the house at 703 W. Central Ave. in Bentonville The house was recently sold and is set to be demolished. The house was once home to Louise Thaden, an aviation pioneer and namesake of Bentonville’s airport.

A group of people held peaceful protests in front of 701 and 703 W. Central Ave. a few hours Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. Signs read "Save our history," "Stop destroying our historic homes," and "Shame on them."

Scott Family Statement

“The Scott family has been engaged and deeply committed to the quality of life in Bentonville and throughout Northwest Arkansas for decades. We continue to be today, including our investment in downtown Bentonville and its future. While we understand the historical concerns that have been expressed, given our family history here it’s disappointing to see the negative comments that a few people have made about our family. At the same time, we appreciate the many positive and supportive comments we have received in recent days from neighbors and others in the community.”

Source: Staff Report

Cottage Home XNA bought the homes on West Central Avenue and two other homes at 106 and 108 S.W. F St., which sit behind 701 W. Central Ave. for $1.8 million together, according to county property records. The homes were bought separately between October 2015 and April 2016.

Cottage Home XNA is a company owned by members of the Scott family, Eric Scott confirmed Wednesday.

Eric Scott is the son of Lee and Linda Scott. Lee Scott is a former CEO of Wal-Mart.

"We considered renovating the homes, but given the state they are currently in, particularly the interior of the homes, renovation is just not practical from a financial or structural standpoint," Eric Scott, said in an email. "Our plans for the property are not certain at this time, but we envision single-family homes on the property at some point in the future."

The homes are in the West Central Avenue Historic District, which is one of three historic districts the city has registered with the Arkansas Historic Preservation Program, said Leah Whitehead, president of the Benton County Historical Society. The other two are on Southeast Third Street and the downtown Square.

A historic district is surveyed and recorded, but it doesn't protect individual structures from change or demolition, Whitehead said.

Demolition permits have been issued, large dumpsters are stationed on the properties, an orange construction fence surrounds the house at 701 W. Central Ave., signs stating "No Trespassing," "Private Property" and "Keep Out" in orange letters are posted in various places.

"They're both jewels," said Randy McCrory, a local historian and memorabilia collector. "They're things that really should stay as historical monuments to Bentonville's past, and yet they're going to be torn down."

McCrory, who lives in Rogers and is passionate about Bentonville history, was one of the protesters who took to the sidewalk with signs opposing the demolition. He said the house at 703 W. Central Ave. is the second most historical home in Bentonville behind the Peel Mansion because it was once home to Louise Thaden.

Thaden, an accomplished female pilot who was a friend and competitor with Amelia Earheart, was born in Bentonville in 1905, and her family moved into the house on West Central Avenue in 1919, according to Monte Harris, adult programs assistant at the Rogers Historical Museum and a Bentonville resident.

Harris, whose family has lived in Benton County for five generations, did extensive research on Thaden and her family for an exhibit about the aviator that was on display in the Rogers Historical Museum from 2003 to 2005.

Thaden's two children attended the exhibit opening.

"They said the only house they remembered in Bentonville was their grandmother's house at 703 W. Central," Harris said.

The museum also has a photograph of Thaden outside the home in winter, she added. Thaden's two children are on a sled in the snow, and the white brick building at 701 W. Central Ave. can be seen in the background.

Thaden's family, whose last name was McPhetridge, bought the home on West Central for $1,800, according to property deeds Harris has looked at. Thaden would have been about 14 years old at the time, Harris said.

Thaden graduated from Bentonville High School in 1921 and went to study at the University of Arkansas for three years. She left for Wichita, Kan., before graduating, Harris said.

She would visit Bentonville often and even eventually bought a house a block away from her home on West Central Avenue, but she couldn't convince her husband to move back to her home town, Harris said. She never lived in the second house and sold it after about a year.

Enda McPhetridge lived in the house on West Central Avenue until she sold it in 1945, according to Harris.

The home at 701 W. Central Ave. also has historical significance as Samuel Allen Jefferson built it around the 1880s for two of his unmarried daughters, Harris said, explaining the Jeffersons were pioneers of Bentonville, arriving in 1836 and playing major roles in the city's development.

The property was also a Baptist Church through the 1980s, before being sold as a residential dwelling in 1988, according to property records.

Cherie Clark, a 30-year-old Bentonville native, said she's watched the city change over the last several years as development has taken place.

She's said the majority of changes have been good and progress is needed to help the community grow, but there's a real need not being met to preserve the city's history.

Seeing these two "iconic, historic homes" be prepped for demolition was what prompted her to action, she said. She was informed of their fate through one of McCrory's Facebook posts and also protested in front of the homes.

"Long-time natives of Bentonville and long-time residents of Bentonville just cannot keep quiet anymore," she said. "I feel like we needed to step up, take a stand and be better about preserving our historic homes, historic buildings and local history 10 years ago. Unfortunately, that was not done."

Not every historic structure can be saved, Clark said, but its history can be recorded, whether through photographs, a landmark plaque explaining what was there or some other means.

Eric Scott said his family would be open to discussing a marker of some kind if there was interest by city officials.

Clark said she understands the properties are private and the Scotts have every right to do what they want with them, but the situation is an example of the community needing to take ownership of recording the city's history.

Harris said she's seen the trend in older homes being demolished in downtown Bentonville to make way for development and the loss of the homes on West Central Avenue might be a turning point.

"Both of those houses, I can't tell you how broken-hearted we all are losing those homes," Harris said. "This has caused people to stop and think how we can change the process. I just don't know how many more houses we're going to lose. This might be the time we stop and say there has to be a better way."

There was a major effort in the late 1990s to establish a certified local government to regulate and protect historic structures in historic areas of downtown, namely West Central Avenue and the railroad addition on Southeast Third Street, said Troy Galloway, community and economic development director.

It was never created as it received opposition from neighbors who were concerned about sacrificing property rights, he said. The city hasn't looked into that option again since but would if residents wanted to organize and see what their options were to protect the historic nature of neighborhoods, Galloway said.

He added the activity at the homes on West Central Avenue and Southwest F Street is being in accordance with city code and within the property owner's rights.

Bentonville has so much history prior to Wal-Mart being established, but it will be lost if no one fights for it, Clark said.

"Look at all we've accomplished today, but we has to preserve that history," she said. "We are what we came from."

NW News on 05/12/2016

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