When Dr. Joe Bennett talks about downtown Harrison, he does not have to imagine what the square was like in the 1930s. He was there. His memories reach back to a downtown filled with stores, restaurants, buses, pharmacies and people coming into Harrison from throughout North Central Arkansas. But when he talks about childhood, two…
If you’ve driven past Rush Plaza at the corner of Rush Avenue and Walnut Street, you might think you know the building. Step inside, and it’s a different story. There’s the soaring two-story interior. The unmistakably mid-century ceiling. Brass railings. An enormous old bank vault. And wrapped around that vault is a mural depicting one…
Today, most people pass the Bennett Building without a second thought. They see Dollar General, another familiar stop on the square, another modern storefront in a small-town downtown. But the walls behind that sign have been something very different for nearly a century. Dr. Joe Bennett remembers when the corner itself looked nothing like it…