History of Monticello

Monticello sits in the hill country of Drew County, on what the National Register files call the Monticello Ridge. When the county was created in 1846, its court first met in a home and then at a school in Rough and Ready, a hilltop village about a mile south of today’s downtown. A few years later the county laid out a new seat around a courthouse square. The town’s name is said to honor Thomas Jefferson’s home in Virginia.

The railroad reached Monticello in the 1880s. In 1910 the state opened an agricultural school here that grew into the University of Arkansas at Monticello, and in 1932 a new courthouse went up on South Main Street. This page collects dated photos, maps and public records from that history, with a link to every source.

Then and now

Then, 1886

Hand-colored 1886 fire insurance map of downtown Monticello. The county courthouse sits alone in the middle of the block bounded by North, Main, Gaines and Academy streets, with rows of pink brick and yellow frame stores on the blocks around it.

Sanborn fire insurance map of downtown Monticello. The county courthouse stands in the center of the square. Photo: Library of Congress, Geography and Map Division, Sanborn Maps Collection, April 1886. Public domain (per Library of Congress). Source

Now, 2014

A brick walkway between brick pillars and rose beds leads to a fountain in the middle of a grassy town square, with a bank and other businesses across the street behind it.

The old courthouse square is now a small park with a fountain. Photo: Brandonrush, Wikimedia Commons, May 15, 2014. CC BY-SA 3.0. Source

In 1886 the county’s brick courthouse, built in 1870 and 1871, stood in the middle of the square, ringed by stores. It was torn down in 1932, when the new courthouse opened two blocks south on Main Street. The old square has been an open public space ever since and is now a small park.

Maps through the years

Sanborn fire insurance maps show Monticello building by building: pink for brick, yellow for frame. Here is the first sheet of each edition in the Library of Congress collection, from 1886 to 1920, followed by a recent photo. Swipe or scroll sideways to see them all, and select a map to open it full size.

April 1886

Hand-colored 1886 fire insurance map of downtown Monticello. The county courthouse sits alone in the middle of the block bounded by North, Main, Gaines and Academy streets, with rows of pink brick and yellow frame stores on the blocks around it.

Sanborn fire insurance map of downtown Monticello. The county courthouse stands in the center of the square. Library of Congress, Geography and Map Division, Sanborn Maps Collection, April 1886. Public domain (per Library of Congress). Source

May 1891

Hand-colored 1891 fire insurance map sheet of downtown Monticello, showing blocks of pink brick and yellow frame buildings along the streets, with a round title seal near the top.

The May 1891 Sanborn fire insurance map of Monticello, a single sheet. Library of Congress, Geography and Map Division, Sanborn Maps Collection, 1891-05. Public domain (per Library of Congress). Source

February 1897

Hand-colored 1897 fire insurance map sheet of downtown Monticello, showing blocks of pink brick and yellow frame buildings along the streets, with a round title seal near the top.

Sheet 1 of the February 1897 Sanborn fire insurance map of Monticello (3 sheets). Library of Congress, Geography and Map Division, Sanborn Maps Collection, 1897-02. Public domain (per Library of Congress). Source

August 1903

Hand-colored 1903 fire insurance map title sheet for Monticello, with a round title seal, a small color-coded key map of the map sheets covering town, a printed index, and blocks of outlying buildings below.

Sheet 1 of the August 1903 Sanborn fire insurance map of Monticello (5 sheets). Library of Congress, Geography and Map Division, Sanborn Maps Collection, 1903-08. Public domain (per Library of Congress). Source

May 1908

Hand-colored 1908 fire insurance map title sheet for Monticello, with a round title seal, a small color-coded key map of the map sheets covering town, a printed index, and blocks of outlying buildings below.

Sheet 1 of the May 1908 Sanborn fire insurance map of Monticello (6 sheets). Library of Congress, Geography and Map Division, Sanborn Maps Collection, 1908-05. Public domain (per Library of Congress). Source

July 1912

Hand-colored 1912 fire insurance map title sheet for Monticello, with a round title seal, a small color-coded key map of the map sheets covering town, a printed index, and blocks of outlying buildings below.

Sheet 1 of the July 1912 Sanborn fire insurance map of Monticello (8 sheets). Library of Congress, Geography and Map Division, Sanborn Maps Collection, 1912-07. Public domain (per Library of Congress). Source

October 1920

Hand-colored 1920 fire insurance map title sheet for Monticello, with a round title seal, a small color-coded key map of the map sheets covering town, a printed index, and blocks of outlying buildings below.

Sheet 1 of the October 1920 Sanborn fire insurance map of Monticello (12 sheets). Library of Congress, Geography and Map Division, Sanborn Maps Collection, 1920-10. Public domain (per Library of Congress). Source

Now, 2014

A brick walkway between brick pillars and rose beds leads to a fountain in the middle of a grassy town square, with a bank and other businesses across the street behind it.

The old courthouse square is now a small park with a fountain. Brandonrush, Wikimedia Commons, May 15, 2014. CC BY-SA 3.0. Source

Business and industry

Landmarks

  • Drew County Courthouse, 210 S. Main St.: Built in 1932 to plans by architect H. Ray Burks, with Art Deco styling in its National Register record. It is the county’s fourth courthouse. Listed on the National Register in 1997. National Register file
  • Monticello Commercial Historic District: The downtown blocks around the old courthouse square, with brick commercial buildings dating from about 1890 to 1961. Listed in 2011. National Register file
  • Monticello Post Office, 211 W. Gaines St.: A 1937 Art Deco post office with a 1941 terra cotta sculpture by Berta Margoulies. Listed in 1998. National Park Service
  • Ridgeway Hotel Historic District, 200–206 E. Gaines St.: The five-story Ridgeway Hotel, the tallest building downtown, and two neighboring commercial buildings. Its National Register file ties them to the town’s commercial growth during the Great Depression. Listed in 2009. National Park Service
  • Rough and Ready Cemetery, about 1 mile southeast of the Monticello Civic Center on Arkansas 19: The only surviving trace of Rough and Ready, the county’s first seat. The first known burial was in 1847. Listed in 1999. National Park Service
  • Monticello North Main Street Historic District: Blocks along North Main Street and Westwood Avenue. Listed in 1979. National Park Service
  • Historic houses: Hotchkiss House, 509 N. Boyd St. (listed 1976); Garvin Cavaness House, 404 S. Main St. (1980); Robert Lee Hardy House, 207 S. Main St. (1982); Lambert House, 204 W. Jackson St. (1983). National Register database
  • St. Mary's Episcopal Church, 115 S. Main St.: Listed on the National Register in 1996. National Park Service
  • UAM campus: Harris and Horsfall halls (dedicated 1932, listed 2026), the Fine Arts Building (completed 1935, listed 2025), the Science Building (completed 1940, listed 2021), the Student Union (completed 1952, listed 2021) and the Fourth District Faculty House (listed 2022). UAM timeline
  • Monticello Confederate Monument, Oakland Cemetery: Listed on the National Register in 1996. National Park Service

Notable people

  • John Shirley Wood (1888–1966): Born in Monticello. As an Army major general he trained the 4th Armored Division and led it across France in 1944. Syracuse University Libraries
  • Rodney Shelton Foss (1919–1941): Born in Monticello. Navy ensign killed at Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii, on Dec. 7, 1941. The destroyer escort USS Foss was named for him. Naval History and Heritage Command
  • William Frank Norrell (1896–1961): Born in Milo, Ashley County. He studied at the A&M college in Monticello, practiced law in town and served in the U.S. House from 1939 until his death in 1961. He is buried in Oakland Cemetery. U.S. House History
  • Catherine Dorris Norrell (1901–1981): Went to high school in Monticello and directed the music department at Arkansas A&M. After her husband’s death she won a special election on April 18, 1961, and served in Congress until January 1963. She later served as a deputy assistant secretary of state. U.S. House History
  • William Ferguson Slemons (1830–1918): Practiced law in Monticello from 1855, served in the U.S. House from 1875 to 1881 and was Drew County judge from 1903 to 1907. He died in Monticello in 1918. U.S. House History
  • Hershel Wayne Gober: Born in Monticello on Dec. 21, 1936. He directed Arkansas’s veterans affairs department and later served as deputy U.S. secretary of veterans affairs, twice acting as secretary. Encyclopedia of Arkansas

Last checked Oct. 18, 2026.

Key facts

Timeline

  1. Drew County is created

    On Nov. 26 the Arkansas Legislature creates Drew County from part of Bradley County and names it for Gov. Thomas S. Drew.

    Source

  2. First county court meets

    The first county court meets on March 22 at the home of Alexander M. Rawles. The oldest known burial at Rough and Ready Cemetery also dates to 1847.

    Source

  3. Court meets at Rough and Ready

    Court meets at the Rodgers School in Rough and Ready, a hilltop village about a mile south of today's downtown.

    Source

  4. 1849–1851

    Monticello is laid out

    Commissioners pick a permanent county seat. Fountain C. Austin deeds an 83-acre tract, and a town said to be named for Thomas Jefferson's Virginia home is laid out on a grid around a courthouse square. Court first meets in Monticello in October 1850.

    Source

  5. 1851–1871

    Three courthouses on the square

    The county builds three courthouses on the square: a frame building in 1851, a second in 1856–57, and a brick courthouse with a 110-foot clock tower in 1870–71.

    Source

  6. 1880s

    The railroad arrives

    Monticello's first railroad arrives, running east and west one block south of the square.

    Source

  7. Sanborn map of downtown

    A Sanborn fire insurance map of Monticello is drawn, showing the courthouse in the middle of the square (see the photos above).

    Source

  8. 14,000 bales

    Monticello ships 14,000 bales from the 1889 cotton crop, according to Goodspeed's 1890 county history, which also calls the Bank of Monticello "the only bank in Southeast Arkansas."

    Source

  9. Fifteenth annual fair

    The Agricultural and Mechanical Fair Association of Southeast Arkansas holds its 15th annual fair at Monticello. Its district covers 11 Arkansas counties and four Louisiana parishes, according to Goodspeed.

    Source

  10. Telephone to Hamburg

    A telephone line links Monticello with Hamburg, according to Goodspeed.

    Source

  11. Oil mill and cotton mill

    The Monticello Oil Mill begins operating in October, and the new Anderson Cotton Mill is completed that fall, according to The Monticellonian.

    Source

  12. 1909–1910

    Agricultural school opens

    The Legislature creates the Fourth District Agricultural School on April 1, 1909. The board picks Monticello, on land offered by the family of Judge William Turner Wells, and classes begin on Sept. 14, 1910.

    Source

  13. A second railroad

    A second railroad, the Ashley, Drew and Northern, reaches town, running north and south a few blocks east of the square.

    Source

  14. 1925–1939

    The college gets new names

    The agricultural school is renamed the Agricultural and Mechanical College of the Fourth District in 1925 and Arkansas A&M College in 1939.

    Source

  15. Flood refugee camps

    During the Mississippi River flood of 1927, the Red Cross runs separate refugee camps at Monticello for white and Black flood victims, according to photograph records at the Butler Center for Arkansas Studies.

    Source

  16. New courthouse on South Main

    The old courthouse on the square is torn down. A new limestone courthouse designed by architect H. Ray Burks opens two blocks south at 210 S. Main St.

    Source

  17. Post office opens

    The Art Deco post office opens on West Gaines Street. A terra cotta sculpture by Berta Margoulies, paid for through a federal arts program, is added in 1941.

    Source

  18. Rodney Foss killed at Kaneohe Bay

    On Dec. 7, Ensign Rodney Shelton Foss, born in Monticello, is killed at Naval Air Station Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii, during the Japanese attack. The Navy later names the destroyer escort USS Foss for him.

    Source

  19. 1942–1944

    Jerome War Relocation Center

    During World War II the federal War Relocation Authority holds incarcerated Japanese Americans at the Jerome War Relocation Center in southeastern Drew and Chicot counties, whose post office was called Denson. The camp opens Oct. 6, 1942, and holds as many as 8,497 people, most from California and 811 from Hawaii. It is the last of the 10 camps to open and, in June 1944, the first to close. Arkansas's other camp, Rohwer, was in Desha County. After Jerome closed, the site became Camp Dermott, a prisoner-of-war camp for German soldiers, which opened in October 1944, according to the Densho Encyclopedia.

    Source

  20. 1963–1964

    Fires on the square

    Two fires change the square. On Dec. 12, 1963, fire destroys two buildings on the east side. On Jan. 23, 1964, fire destroys five of the seven two-story Italianate buildings on the south side.

    Source

  21. Arkansas A&M becomes UAM

    Arkansas A&M College joins the University of Arkansas System on July 1 and becomes the University of Arkansas at Monticello.

    Source

  22. Downtown joins the National Register

    The downtown blocks around the old square are listed on the National Register of Historic Places as the Monticello Commercial Historic District.

    Source

  • Hand-colored 1886 fire insurance map of downtown Monticello. The county courthouse sits alone in the middle of the block bounded by North, Main, Gaines and Academy streets, with rows of pink brick and yellow frame stores on the blocks around it.
    Sanborn fire insurance map of downtown Monticello. The county courthouse stands in the center of the square. Photo: Library of Congress, Geography and Map Division, Sanborn Maps Collection, April 1886. Public domain (per Library of Congress). Source
  • Black-and-white postcard view of two brick campus buildings, one long two-story building with a porch and one three-story building, across an open lawn with young trees and tree stumps. A red archive number, 19256, is written across the sky.
    Campus of the Fourth District Agricultural School, the school that became UAM. The red number is a printer's archive mark. Photo: Curt Teich & Co. postcard A19256, Newberry Library, Curt Teich Postcard Archives, 1910s. No known copyright (per Newberry Library, Teich postcards printed before 1964). Source
  • Black-and-white portrait of a young man with short combed hair in a high-collared gray West Point cadet jacket with rows of round buttons.
    John Shirley Wood, born in Monticello in 1888, in his West Point yearbook portrait. Photo: The Howitzer, 1912 (U.S. Military Academy yearbook), p. 142, via Wikimedia Commons, 1912. Public domain (per HathiTrust rights record). Source
  • The pale limestone Drew County Courthouse, three and a half stories tall, with tall columns across the center of the front and trees on both sides.
    Drew County Courthouse, 210 S. Main St., built in 1932. Photo: Brandonrush, Wikimedia Commons, May 15, 2014. CC BY-SA 3.0. Source
  • One-story tan brick and stone post office building with a flat roof and a centered entrance, with cars parked on the street in front.
    The 1937 Art Deco post office on West Gaines Street. Photo: Brandonrush, Wikimedia Commons, May 15, 2014. CC BY-SA 3.0. Source
  • Five-story tan brick building with even rows of windows and a metal fire escape down its left side, on a downtown street corner.
    The Ridgeway Hotel on East Gaines Street, the tallest building downtown. Photo: Brandonrush, Wikimedia Commons, May 15, 2014. CC BY-SA 3.0. Source
  • Stone campus building with a tall square entrance tower and arched windows, beside a tall pine and trees with yellow fall leaves.
    The Fine Arts Building at UAM, completed in 1935. Photo: UAMonticello, Wikimedia Commons, Nov. 18, 2015. CC BY-SA 4.0. Source
  • Metal arch sign reading Rough and Ready Cemetery over a gate in a chain-link fence, with pine and oak trees and scattered headstones in the grass beyond.
    Rough and Ready Cemetery, the last trace of the county's first seat. Photo: Valis55, Wikimedia Commons, Nov. 26, 2016. CC BY-SA 4.0. Source
  • A row of one- and two-story brick storefronts with awnings along a downtown Monticello street. The building on the left is painted teal and white and has tall arched upstairs windows.
    Storefronts in the Monticello Commercial Historic District. Photo: Brandonrush, Wikimedia Commons, May 14, 2014. CC BY-SA 3.0. Source
  • A brick walkway between brick pillars and rose beds leads to a fountain in the middle of a grassy town square, with a bank and other businesses across the street behind it.
    The old courthouse square is now a small park with a fountain. Photo: Brandonrush, Wikimedia Commons, May 15, 2014. CC BY-SA 3.0. Source
  • Hand-colored 1891 fire insurance map sheet of downtown Monticello, showing blocks of pink brick and yellow frame buildings along the streets, with a round title seal near the top.
    The May 1891 Sanborn fire insurance map of Monticello, a single sheet. Photo: Library of Congress, Geography and Map Division, Sanborn Maps Collection, May 1891. Public domain (per Library of Congress). Source
  • Hand-colored 1897 fire insurance map sheet of downtown Monticello, showing blocks of pink brick and yellow frame buildings along the streets, with a round title seal near the top.
    Sheet 1 of the February 1897 Sanborn fire insurance map of Monticello (3 sheets). Photo: Library of Congress, Geography and Map Division, Sanborn Maps Collection, February 1897. Public domain (per Library of Congress). Source
  • Hand-colored 1903 fire insurance map title sheet for Monticello, with a round title seal, a small color-coded key map of the map sheets covering town, a printed index, and blocks of outlying buildings below.
    Sheet 1 of the August 1903 Sanborn fire insurance map of Monticello (5 sheets). Photo: Library of Congress, Geography and Map Division, Sanborn Maps Collection, August 1903. Public domain (per Library of Congress). Source
  • Hand-colored 1908 fire insurance map title sheet for Monticello, with a round title seal, a small color-coded key map of the map sheets covering town, a printed index, and blocks of outlying buildings below.
    Sheet 1 of the May 1908 Sanborn fire insurance map of Monticello (6 sheets). Photo: Library of Congress, Geography and Map Division, Sanborn Maps Collection, May 1908. Public domain (per Library of Congress). Source
  • Hand-colored 1912 fire insurance map title sheet for Monticello, with a round title seal, a small color-coded key map of the map sheets covering town, a printed index, and blocks of outlying buildings below.
    Sheet 1 of the July 1912 Sanborn fire insurance map of Monticello (8 sheets). Photo: Library of Congress, Geography and Map Division, Sanborn Maps Collection, July 1912. Public domain (per Library of Congress). Source
  • Hand-colored 1920 fire insurance map title sheet for Monticello, with a round title seal, a small color-coded key map of the map sheets covering town, a printed index, and blocks of outlying buildings below.
    Sheet 1 of the October 1920 Sanborn fire insurance map of Monticello (12 sheets). Photo: Library of Congress, Geography and Map Division, Sanborn Maps Collection, October 1920. Public domain (per Library of Congress). Source

Sources

  1. Drew County Courthouse, National Register nomination (1997), Arkansas Historic Preservation Program. Accessed .
  2. Monticello Commercial Historic District, National Register nomination (2011), Arkansas Historic Preservation Program. Accessed .
  3. Rough and Ready Cemetery (NRIS 99001376), National Park Service, NPGallery. Accessed .
  4. Monticello Post Office (NRIS 98000920), National Park Service, NPGallery. Accessed .
  5. Ridgeway Hotel Historic District (NRIS 08000952), National Park Service, NPGallery. Accessed .
  6. UAM History, University of Arkansas at Monticello. Accessed .
  7. Foss (DE-59), Naval History and Heritage Command. Accessed .
  8. NORRELL, William Frank, U.S. House of Representatives: History, Art & Archives. Accessed .
  9. NORRELL, Catherine Dorris, U.S. House of Representatives: History, Art & Archives. Accessed .
  10. SLEMONS, William Ferguson, U.S. House of Representatives: History, Art & Archives. Accessed .
  11. John Shirley Wood Papers, Syracuse University Libraries. Accessed .
  12. War Relocation Centers, National Park Service. Accessed .
  13. Confinement and Ethnicity: An Overview of World War II Japanese American Relocation Sites, Chapter 7: Jerome Relocation Center, National Park Service (Burton et al., 1999). Accessed .
  14. Jerome (Brian Niiya), Densho Encyclopedia. Accessed .
  15. Aerial views of the 1927 flood refugee camps at Monticello (records 29573 and 29688), Butler Center for Arkansas Studies, Arkansas Studies Research Portal. Accessed .
  16. Monticello (Drew County), Encyclopedia of Arkansas. Accessed .
  17. Lynching in America: county data supplement (updated November 2024), Equal Justice Initiative. Accessed .
  18. Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Monticello, Drew County, Arkansas, April 1886, Library of Congress. Accessed .
  19. Campus 4th District Agricultural School (postcard A19256), Newberry Library, Curt Teich Postcard Archives. Accessed .
  20. Biographical and Historical Memoirs of Southern Arkansas, vol. 2 (Goodspeed Publishing, 1890), Internet Archive. Accessed .
  21. The Monticellonian, Oct. 4, 1901, page 3, Library of Congress, Chronicling America. Accessed .
  22. The Monticellonian, Nov. 15, 1901, page 2, Library of Congress, Chronicling America. Accessed .

SE Arkansas Weather

7-day · Monticello / SE AR National Weather Service, Little Rock

Sunday 43° 0% Clear , Sunday, October 18: low 43, 0 percent chance of precipitation, Clear. Sunrise 7:14 AM, sunset 6:30 PM. Opens the weather calendar for this day. Sunday 74° 47° 0% Sunny , Sunday, October 18: high 74, low 47, 0 percent chance of precipitation, Sunny. Sunrise 7:14 AM, sunset 6:30 PM. Opens the weather calendar for this day. Monday 78° 45° 0% Sunny , Monday, October 19: high 78, low 45, 0 percent chance of precipitation, Sunny. Sunrise 7:15 AM, sunset 6:28 PM. Opens the weather calendar for this day. Tuesday 81° 50° 0% Sunny , Tuesday, October 20: high 81, low 50, 0 percent chance of precipitation, Sunny. Sunrise 7:16 AM, sunset 6:27 PM. Opens the weather calendar for this day. Wednesday 84° 50° 0% Sunny , Wednesday, October 21: high 84, low 50, 0 percent chance of precipitation, Sunny. Sunrise 7:16 AM, sunset 6:26 PM. Opens the weather calendar for this day. Thursday 85° 52° 0% Sunny , Thursday, October 22: high 85, low 52, 0 percent chance of precipitation, Sunny. Sunrise 7:17 AM, sunset 6:25 PM. Opens the weather calendar for this day. Friday 85° 52° 0% Sunny , Friday, October 23: high 85, low 52, 0 percent chance of precipitation, Sunny. Sunrise 7:18 AM, sunset 6:24 PM. Opens the weather calendar for this day.

Clear, with a low around 43. Northeast wind around 5 mph.