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| Judge Hickenbottom advanced Boone County |
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| Question: In a previous column, you mentioned the County Judge who was instrumental in the establishment of Boone County Hospital - now NARMC. Will you please tell more about this gentleman? |
 Answer: The County Judge you refer to was Judge Aubrey Hickenbottom (left). Born in 1901 to Emanuel and Ora Lee Rowlett Hickenbottom, Aubrey lived his entire life in Boone County. In Jesse Lewis Russell's book Behind these Ozark Hills, he said the following about the Judge:
"Hickenbottom was a striking example of what one may accomplish by the exercise of the near-lost art of rugged individualism. He succeeded in the avenues of both business and politics, against odds that would have been insurmountable for the average man."
"Aubrey began in the used car business, in a very modest way, and rose to leadership in that field - branching out as trader in most everything lose at both ends, and had long since reached a point where he had to no longer worry about how he was going to pay on his debts." |
| "In 1944, against what would seem as good judgment, he entered the Boone County political arena by submitting his name in the race for county judge. A count of political noses showed he did not have a chance to win; the chance being about two to one against a Republican candidate for success. He won with a few votes to spare. In his second race, he beat his opponent by almost two-to-one, which was indicative of an unsurpassed personal popularity." |
| The Hickenbottom family ancestor, Samuel, (Aubrey's grandfather) came to Boone County from Illinois and settled near the beautiful area of Coweta Falls. |
| Today, descendants still reside on Coweta Falls Road. |
 In 1927, Aubrey married Bernice Edmonson (left), daughter of Ben and Artensie Lokey Edmonson, a much loved and respected family from the White Oak community. Bernice was well known for her flower gardens, and scrapbooks from Town and Country Garden Club made during the 1950s verify her love of gardening and flower arranging. She served as president of that club, hosting meetings in the Hickenbottom home and sponsoring flower shows that were the pride of the club. Many garden club programs would feature slides of her roses and flower gardens.
This love of flowers must have run in the family, since this writer lived next door to Bernice's sisters, Eunice Clark and Myrtle Edmonson, and I will forever remember the beauty of their flower and vegetable gardens. |
| Aubrey and Bernice were parents of two children: a son, Robert Lee (Bobby), and a daughter, Imogene Hickenbottom Stapleton. Imogene continues to live on the Hickenbottom homeplace, with her son, L.A. Stapleton living on an adjoining property. |
| Hickenbottom served as county judge for five consecutive two-year terms. He was county judge at the time the Boone County Hospital was constructed and was a leader in getting the bond issue for construction approved. He was also instrumental in modernizing the old county home into the present Hillcrest Home, appointing the first board of directors and getting the first Quorum Court appropriation. |
| On October 31, 1957, Aubrey met an untimely death from six shots fired from a .38 Smith and Wesson pistol. The shooting took place in the alley between the Lyric Theater and the Daily Times office. Sheriff Spence Holder fired the shots that killed Hickenbottom, and a coroner's jury returned with a verdict of justifiable homicide. Many, many people disagreed with that verdict. |
| A friend of Aubrey's wrote a tribute that appeared in the local newspaper shortly after his death. Some exerpts from that tribute read as follows: "Energetic and tireless, he devoted his time to the public trust placed in him. A man of vision, he foresaw the need for the county hospital and worked until it became a reality. It was Judge Hickenbottom who gave his dynamic energy to the dream of a rest home for Boone County. Few men, indeed, leave so great a living monument to their memory." |
| "Aubrey Hickenbottom was noted as a friendly man. He was unselfish almost to a fault, and there were few people who cannot remember some kind act done for them or their families. If he had enemies, they were of his own choosing, for he was a man whom everybody liked." |
| The First Baptist Church was packed with friends for his funeral service, and some of the town's leading businessmen served as pallbearers. |
| I'm pleased you asked about Judge Aubrey. My father was among many who considered him a friend and held fond memories of that friendship for years. |
| Family files on many of Boone County's residents are housed in the Heritage Museum, located on the corner of South Cherry Street and Central Avenue. Hours are from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. We invite you to spend an afternoon at the museum. |
| This column appears Fridays in the Harrison Daily Times. Mail questions to Boone County Heritage Museum, P. O. Box 1094, Harrison, AR 72601. Marilyn Smith can be contacted at bchm@alltel.net |
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