Time travel, or something like it
When I started working on my book, I naively thought my collection of a dozen Eureka Springs histories would be enough source material.
I’ve since added about as many. Each tells compelling stories that change what I thought I knew.
Some shed light on particular eras of the town’s history. For example, Nellie Mills wrote two books about her childhood in Eureka Springs. The city itself was younger than Nellie when her family arrived.
Her “Early Days in Eureka Springs: 1880-1892” and follow-up “Other Days in Eureka Springs” mention several people I’m writing about, including Frank and Jesse James and the family of musical prodigy Emil Seidel.
Stories like Nellie’s are the closest thing we have to traveling back in time, giving glimpses into everyday life during Eureka Springs’ boom years.
“On July 14, of this year, 1890, was the only circus I ever knew of being shown in Eureka Springs,” one memory goes. “They had some good tumblers and trapeze performers. The elephant performed, too, and three dogs.”
I’m still trying to picture an elephant in Eureka Springs in 1890, before electricity or paved roads. For some reason, HBO’s “Carnivale” comes to mind.
Sometimes I have to dig deeper. Wikipedia and other sites have basic information about Lizzie Fyler, but to do her story justice, I had to read old newspaper and magazine articles, academic journals, and the report of the National Woman Suffrage Association’s 1884 convention. (Lizzie represented Arkansas there.)
I had a suspicion about how Lizzie died, but it took that legwork to confirm. It was definitely worth it – the twist changes her whole story.
If you want to hear more, I’ll read my chapter about Lizzie at this Thursday’s Poetluck starting at 6 p.m. at the Writers’ Colony at Dairy Hollow.
If you’ve never been to a Poetluck, it’s one of those “only in Eureka” things.
Don’t worry about bringing anything your first time; there’s always plenty to go around. For a potluck, the food is surprisingly good – less surprising when you learn that multiple current or former professional chefs attend regularly.
After dinner, people each have five minutes to read (or in the case of songwriters, sing and play) something, anything, that they wrote. As an arts center, Eureka Springs is home to many talented creators, and it is always fun to see who will show up. On top of that, writers from coast to coast staying at the colony for a residency often drop in, keeping the vibe fresh.
As I said, only in Eureka.
