Downtown Mena Put In Historic Register'
Saturday, August 8, 2009 11:02 AM CDT
TImes Record Staff

The Mena Commercial Historic District has been named to the National Register of Historic Places.

The Mena district features buildings dating to 1896, the year of the town’s incorporation.

The National Register nomination for the district said the area exemplifies the growth of the town through its height in the 1950s.

The period encompasses the period of “Mena’s growth as a pivotal midpoint for the Kansas City, Pittsburgh and Gulf Railroad until 1910 and a thriving commercial center for west-central Arkansas.”

The nomination also relates the story of Arthur Stillwell, owner of the KCP&G Railroad, who promoted the development of Mena along the route of his railroad.

The construction of the railroad attracted considerable settlement to Mena. When the first train arrived in town in 1896, a settlement, mostly of tents and unstable wooden structures had already been constructed.

Mena developed as a boom town, with most of its commerce related to the railroad. Although the railroad moved most of its operations elsewhere in 1910, and passenger trains ceased operating in 1969, the town remained a commercial center.