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Letters,
photographs, business records
Manuscript
Collection 790
About
the McIlroy Family
The
McIlroy papers pertain to three Washington County, Arkansas,
pioneer merchant families--Powell, Rhea, and McIlroy. Dr.
Samuel Powell (1810-1898) and his wife, Sarah Burns (1811-1904),
migrated from Tennessee to Arkansas around 1829 and settled
in western Washington County near Prairie Grove, where Dr.
Powell practiced medicine. Their daughter, Elizabeth Cornelia
(1836-1929), married William Husband Rhea (1825-1884) in 1854.
Mr. Rhea also migrated from Tennessee and settled in western
Washington County around 1836 in what became known as Rhea's
Mill. In addition to operating a general store at Rhea's Mill,
the Rhea family also operated stores in Cincinnati and Maysville.
Mr.
and Mrs Rhea had several children, one of whom was Sarah Ann
(1868-1953). She married James Hayden McIlroy (1868-1939)
in 1889. He was the son of William McIlroy (1812-1886), the
founder of McIlroy Bank and Trust Company (Fayetteville).
In addition to establishing one of the oldest banks in Arkansas,
the McIlroy family established the first wholesale grocery
company and owned and operated the first water company. Sarah
A. McIlroy was a member of the Idle Hour Club, one of the
oldest women's clubs in Fayetteville. James H. and Sarah A.
McIlroy had three children; Hayden McIlroy (1891-1961), Cornelia
Stuart (1894-1962), and Mertye Bagby (1896-1977).
About
the Collection
Hayden
McIlroy of Fayetteville, Arkansas, donated the McIlroy family
papers to Special Collections on August 1, 1986.
The
papers consist of correspondence, photographs, and business
records and have been grouped into four series; Powell-Rhea,
Rhea-McIlroy, Lincoln land records, and Photographs.
Processed
by Anthony J. Wappel, Special Collections, University of Arkansas
Libraries, Fayetteville, Arkansas, in October 1988.
Contents
of the Collection (6 boxes + 1 volume)
Series 1. Powell-Rhea Family. Box 1.
Series 2. Rhea-McIlroy Family. Boxes 2-3.
Series 3. Lincoln Land Records. Box 4.
Series 4. Photographs. Boxes 5-6.
Series 1. Powell-Rhea Family.
Box 1.
Series
1 consists of correspondence, family records, and business
records pertaining to the Joseph D. Powell and William Husband
Rhea families. The family records include an 1845 statement
concerning the Innes family of Scotland (Powell family), Elizabeth
Powell's 1854 marriage certificate, a Union Army discharge
paper, family [Bible?] records, a 1940 memorial book for Alice
Jane Rhea, and clippings entitled "Civil War Ledger."
Box
1
1. Correspondence, 1865-1867.
2. Correspondence, 1870-1887.
3. Family records, 1845-1884.
4. Family records, 1940.
5. Family records, [clippings], n.d.
6. Mr. W. H. Rhea account book, 1850-1866.
7. Mrs. E. C. Rhea account book, 1885-1897.
Volume 1. Mr. W. H. Rhea account book, 1860-1895.
Series
2. Rhea-McIlroy Family. Boxes 2-3.
Series 2 consists of correspondence, obituaries, and business
records pertaining to the Sarah A. Rhea and James H. McIlroy
families. Business records include receipts and vouchers held
by William McIlroy as well as the minutes of the Fayetteville
Water Company and the Johnson Canning Company, companies managed
by James Hayden McIlroy.
Box 2
1. Correspondence, 1889-1897.
2. Correspondence, 1903-1916.
3. Correspondence, 1918-1919.
4. Correspondence, 1926-1953.
5. McIlroy obituaries, 1884-1968.
6. Mertye McIlroy Bagby ephemera, 1896-1956.
Box 3
1. William McIlroy receipts, 1857-1860.
2. William McIlroy receipts, 1861-1865.
3. William McIlroy receipts, 1866-1870.
4. William McIlroy receipts, 1871-1874.
5. William McIlroy receipts, 1875-1879.
6. William McIlroy receipts, 1892-1894.
7. William McIlroy receipts, n.d.
8. Fayetteville Water Company, 1894-1906.
9. Fayetteville Water Company, 1903-1906.
10. Johnson Canning Company, 1929-1935.
Series
3. Lincoln Land Records. Box 4.
This series consists of Rhea-McIlroy land records from the Lincoln
and Rhea's Mill area of Washington County, Arkansas.
Box 4
1. Deeds, 1859-1867.
2. Deeds, 1871-1879.
3. Deeds, 1887-1889.
4. Deeds, 1890-1899.
5. Deeds, 1905-1909.
6. Deeds, 1913-1916.
7. Deeds, 1926-1939.
8. Deeds, 1940-1950.
9. Sale, 1941-1964.
10. Abstracts, 1942-1964.
Series
4. Photographs. Boxes 5-6.
This series consists of Powell-Rhea photographs, Rhea-McIlroy
photographs, and McIlroy-Bagby photographs. Powell-Rhea photographs
(circa 1860-1900) include family photographs and photographs
of Rhea's Mill. Rhea-McIlroy photographs (circa 1890-1960) include
family photographs and photographs of McIlroy businesses. The
McIlroy-Bagby photographs (ca 1920-1970) include photographs
of Mertye McIlroy Bagby, her son, Bill Bagby, and a collection
of family photographs taken by Fayetteville photographer, Julius
Herman Field.
Box 5
1. Powell family, [6].
2. W. H. and E. C. Rhea, [4].
3. Rhea children, [6].
4. Rhea children, [5].
5. Rhea children, [2].
6. Rhea album and unidentified Rheas, [3].
7. Rhea's Mill, [3].
8. J. H. McIlroy, [5].
9. J. H. McIlroy, [3].
10. Sarah A. McIlroy, [4].
11. Sarah A. McIlroy, [4].
12. Sarah A. McIlroy (Idle Hour Club), [2].
13. McIlroy children (Cornelia), [4].
14. McIlroy children (Cornelia), [4].
15. McIlroy children (Mertye Bagby), [4].
16. McIlroy children (Mertye), [4].
17. McIlroy children (William Hayden) [3].
18. McIlroy businesses [2].
Box
6
1. Mertye Bagby, [7 snapshots].
2. Mertye Bagby, [20 snapshots].
3. Mertye Bagby, [25 snapshots].
4. Bill Bagby, [4].
5. Field photographs, [5].
6. Field photographs, [4].
Last modified: Friday, January 23, 2009 |
