W T "Tom" BLACKBURN

December 9, 1858 - May 10, 1924

*Obituary
Rogers Democrat
Thursday, May 15, 1924

BLACKBURN, W.T. [Tom) - Rogers relatives and friends were surprised and shocked when a telegram was received Saturday night bringing word of the sudden death of W.T. {Tom} Blackburn who fell dead Saturday in Little Rock while on his way home from the sash factory where he was working. Mrs. Blackburn has been in the hospital in Little Rock for several months in a very serious condition and the first thought was that a mistake had been made in the telegram but later word confirmed the correctness of the first message. The body arrived in Rogers Monday morning and funeral services were held at the Central M.E. church that afternoon at two o'clock, conducted by the pastor, Rev. J. Wilson Crichlow, with the Masonic order in charge. Burial was in the Rogers cemetery by the graves of two children who had died a number of years ago. The body was accompanied to Rogers by Clifford Stringfield Blackburn who is attending the University of Arkansas. Mr. Blackburn had not resided in Rogers for many years, having left here in 1897 and had for twenty or more years been a resident of Danville, this state. He had been working in Little Rock for the last two years and Mrs. Blackburn had been at their home in Danville until she was stricken several months ago and taken to the hospital in Little Rock. Both Mr. and Mrs. Blackburn were born and raised in Benton county and were representatives of several pioneer families of this section. Mr. Blackburn was a son of Josiah Blackburn, oldest son of Sylvanus Blackburn who settled at War Eagle in the early '30s, coming from Tennessee. He was born at War Eagle and was 65 years, five months and three days old when he died. In 1883 he married Miss Lula Stringfield, a daughter of J.K.P. Stringfield and a granddaughter of Peter Van Winkle, founder of the Van Winkle settlement on War Eagle. The Van Winkles, Blackburns and Stringfields were the lumber kings of Northwest Arkansas in their day and have many descendants in every town in this country. To Mr. Blackburn and wife were born three children, only one of whom is living, Prof. Clifford Blackburn, who has taught several years at Danville and attended the U. of A. between terms there. Mr. Blackburn is survived by two sisters, Mrs. F.C. Roberts of War Eagle and Mrs. Louisa Robertson of Logan, Utah and one brother, J.N. Blackburn, of this city and is a cousin of Mrs. Arthur Miller and Mrs. Ed Kruse. Practically all of his life was spent in some branch of the lumber business and he was a sawmill and planing mill specialist, a fine machinist, a carpenter and builder. He had been a Mason for years and stood high in the degrees of that order. When he left Rogers he was one of the best known men of the city and while he is remembered now only by relatives and older residents, his death has brought back to them a rush of memories of an upright character and a good citizen.

Contributed on 3/25/13 by judyfrog
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Record #: 852244

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