Mary Ann Ritter Arnold, the mayor of Marked Tree and former president of E. Ritter & Co., died Thursday evening. She was 90.
Arnold was known for her business success throughout north-central and northeast Arkansas, and her passion for promoting Marked Tree left a mark of its own on the town of 2,500 in Poinsett County.
Her efforts were crucial in the revitalization of its business district, and she became Marked Tree’s first female mayor in September 2013 when she was elected to fill the remaining term of Wayne Nichols. Arnold was re-elected in 2014 at age 86.
“Those were her roots,” said her daughter, Melissa Wrenn, noting that the family’s ties to the area date to the mid-19th century. “Her heart just remained there. She had a deep love for family and community, and she was very loyal.
“Unlike the way a lot of us do these days, spreading ourselves moving around, she just wanted to return to those roots and help move it forward any way she could.”
Arnold’s son Ritter also noted his mother’s love for Marked Tree, recalling the time his father, Sidney, asked her where she thought they should retire.
“She said, ‘I don’t know where in the hell you’re going, but I’m staying right here,’” Ritter said.
In 1976 Arnold became president of E. Ritter & Co., a family-owned company based in Marked Tree that distributes agricultural supplies and telecommunication services throughout northeast and north-central Arkansas.
The company was established in the early 20th century by Arnold’s great-grandfather, Ernest Herman Ritter Jr., according to The Encyclopedia of Arkansas History and Culture, and became one of the state’s most successful family-owned businesses.
Arnold assumed her role as president after the death of her cousin, Louis Newsom. Arnold made her pitch for the position even though she had no formal training or business management.
“Because she was the daughter, she wasn’t included in learning about the business,” Wrenn said. “The more she learned, the more she felt able to run it herself even though her college education was in home economics.
“I think she had to convince people that her experience budgeting for a family could translate into running a business.”
Arnold spent the next 16 years serving as president and eventually became chairman of the board.
“I think she certainly believed in herself when she took the job,” Ritter said. “I think she believed in her heart and ability, and that she had a reasonable shot with the help of several longtime company employees.”
Arnold was a member of the Agriculture Council of Arkansas, the National Cotton Council, the U.S. Rice Council and many other organizations. She was inducted in the Arkansas Agricultural Hall of Fame in 1998, and in 2015 she was an inaugural inductee into the Arkansas Women’s Hall of Fame.
Wrenn said her mother always looked for ways to improve the family’s business and her community.
“She had a bucket list of things she tried to complete, knowing this day would come,” Ritter said. “And she would have finished it if she hadn’t kept putting items in the bucket.”