Sunday, November 18, 2012

'Lincoln,' Lincoln and Little Rock: Some Arkansawyers Were Blue

Union Gen. Frederick Steele
This isn't a history blog, and it's not going to become one. However, the past never really leaves us. Its fruits, its by-products are all around us. To understand a place and the present, any place, a place like Little Rock, you have to know its story and its history.

The Jenny and I went to see an early show of Stephen Spielberg's "Lincoln" yesterday, and it was mesmerizing. About 20 minutes to 30 minutes before the end, President Abraham Lincoln tells Confederate Vice President Alexander Stephens that even if quickly readmitted to the Union, the southern states will not be able to block the 13th Amendment abolishing slavery. He explains this is because all the northern states will ratify it, and he already controls Louisiana, Tennessee and ARKANSAS. Friendly Reconstruction governments already existed in those states because their capitals and large sections of them were retaken earlier in the war. Stephens, despite being an avowed white supremacist, recognizes the reality of this, and you can see the defeat on his face. (BTW, casting Jack Earle Haley as Stephens — brilliant!) Lincoln then says, "Slavery is done. It's finished."

My master's thesis was on Gen. Frederick Steele and the politics of wartime Reconstruction in Arkansas, so I really enjoyed this tiny little factoid in the middle of this big, sprawling historical film. I also was so proud of my state and the small role it played in ending slavery. Not many people know or acknowledge it, but the number of Arkansawyer who wore the blue and fought for the United States in the Civil War totaled at least 36,000. That's a conservative estimate. Many Southerners did NOT want to secede. Many Ozark Arkansans were passionate defenders of the Union. Little Rock probably was predominantly secessh, but after 1863, it was the the headquarters of the military Department of Arkansas and a reconstituted state government under Isaac Murphy. Murphy, on the final vote tally, was the lone dissenting vote in the Arkansas secession convention of 1861. (Notice they did not put it to a popular vote).

So, Murphy and other unionist leaders bravely were trying to bring Arkansas back into the United States well before the conclusion of the larger conflict. Murphy was not a carpetbagger either. They did a lot of that work here in Little Rock. Much of it with the help of other loyal, patriotic Arkansawyers — obviously with a big assist from Steele and the Feds. In the course of doing that, they ultimately helped free thousands and thousands of other Arkansawyers, African-American Arkansans, from bondage. Many African-American Arkansawyer men also took up arms against the Confederates knowing they would be killed if captured. They fought and died for their own freedom and the freedom of their families, too. Often we talk about Southerners as if they only were white. They weren't. In fact, I'd dare say a good part of Southern culture stems from the influence and contributions of African-Americans who were Southerners.

As we come up on the 150th anniversaries of the Civil War during the remainder of this year and in 2013, 2014 and 2015, let's all remember the role Little Rock, Arkansawyers and Arkansas played not just in fighting for the Gray but in fighting for the Blue, the Stars and Stripes and Emancipation. I don't see Lee's surrender at Appomattox to be a defeat for the South. It was a defeat for one element of the South. It was a triumph for the Union nationwide, North and South.

Sunday, November 4, 2012

Arkansas Cornbread Festival A Delicious Addition to Little Rock Scene

cornbread festival, South Main Street, Little Rock, foodie
Folks at the 2012 Arkansas Cornbread Festival
on South Main Street in Little Rock
Although it's a small benefit to you to tell you about an annual event after the fact, it's still a benefit. Hey, you'll be up on it next year, and in 2013, it'll still only be the third annual Arkansas Cornbread Festival.

Finally, let it not be said that there's nothing to do in the Rock. This and some other festivals prove it. I could have gone Friday to a beer festival in the Argenta district of North Little Rock. I could have gone last week to the cheese dip festival. Guess I'll have to put those two on my own to-do for 2013.

First, if you're on a diet, then not to worry. Samples are bite size. The Jenny and I sampled a dozen or more offerings but didn't get too full. To one end of the multi-block stretch of South Main Street, there were some hot dog stands and other food vendors if you wanted to make a lunch out of the visit.

I can honestly swear on the Bible that I did not have one piece of bad cornbread. Even the worst was merely above ordinary. My favorite was the sampling from the El Dorado folks. It was deep fried and had a hush-puppiness to it. The Boulden Prize for Best Beans & Cornbread goes to Redbones. Their black beans had a smoky, meaty flavor you might expect from a BBQ place but its extra flavorful quality won me over.

Turnout was quite good, and it was nice to see this unabashedly Southern staple get its due. Entrees tend to dominate such affairs. I fully expect this festival to continue to grow and possibly become a genuine big deal in a few years.

The South Main setting was a plus. Jenny and I sought momentary refuge from the unexpectedly hot sun and air at the Green Store on South Main. She had a honey-ginger soda from the soda fountain, and I had some sweet cream-and-pear ice cream from the same. We cooled ourselves and our palettes, then went back for our second and final round of cornbread.

If I had one suggestion, then it would be a less confusing ballot. Each booth should have had a unique number instead of having, for example, two 5s — one for the professional competition between restaurants and caterers and one for amateurs. That probably would have worked better had there not also been a short Overall category. Also, next year, throw in a water vendor somewhere in the center of the strip of cornbread booths. Such a thing likely could be a good moneymaker for the festival if it's in the 80s again for the festival in 2013.

Keep it on your calendar for next autumn.

Rating: Arkansas Cornbread Festival — A.