Editing Prescott, Arkansas (section)

==History==
The city of Prescott was not platted until 1873 during Reconstruction. It was to be a station stop for the [[List of Arkansas railroads|Cairo & Fulton Railroad]] then under construction.<ref name="encyclopediaofarkansas">{{cite web|url=http://encyclopediaofarkansas.net/encyclopedia/entry-detail.aspx?entryID=2422|title=Cairo and Fulton Railroad - Encyclopedia of Arkansas|publisher=encyclopediaofarkansas.net|access-date=November 15, 2014}}</ref> The railroad was constructed parallel to the [[Southwest Trail]]<ref name="encyclopediaofarkansas2">{{cite web|url=http://encyclopediaofarkansas.net/encyclopedia/entry-detail.aspx?entryID=2305|title=Southwest Trail - Encyclopedia of Arkansas|publisher=encyclopediaofarkansas.net|access-date=November 15, 2014}}</ref> through northern Nevada County. Prescott was incorporated on October 6, 1874.

The original town site consisted of 48 blocks, 24 on each side of the railroad. The streets were platted in a grid pattern from the railroad line. Streets running east–west use the railroad as a dividing line between their eastern and western halves, and streets running north–south use Main Street as a dividing line between their northern and southern halves.

Prescott grew quickly because the railroad provided a reliable way to transport local products to larger markets. The first post office opened in November 1873, and the first newspaper, ''The Banner'', was established in 1875. The Nevada County seat was moved to Prescott in 1877, which contributed to the town's commercial importance. It became a center of law and government in the county. By the late 1890s, Prescott had its own telephone system and water and light plant.

The timber industry became important to the region's early economy when in 1890, James H. Bemis & Benjamin Whitaker built the [[Ozan Lumber Company]] plant in Prescott. That same year, Dr. R. L. Powers began constructing the [[Prescott and Northwestern Railroad|Prescott & Northwestern Railroad]]. It transported lumber, peaches, cotton and other products. It also provided passenger service, connecting adjacent communities to the [[Missouri Pacific Railroad]] Depot in Prescott.

Historians have speculated on the naming of Prescott:<ref name="depotmuseum2">{{cite web|url=http://www.depotmuseum.org/articles.php?article=44|title=Welcome to Nevada County Depot and Museum|publisher=depotmuseum.org|access-date=November 15, 2014}}</ref> whether it was named after [[William Hickling Prescott]], of [[Salem, Massachusetts]], who was a friend of Cairo & Fulton Railroad officials [[Thomas Allen (representative)|Thomas Allen]] and [[Henry Gurdon Marquand|Henry Marquand]], or where it was named after the County Surveyor, W. H. Prescott.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Resources - Nevada County Depot and Museum |url=https://www.depotmuseum.org/resources.php?ref=6 |access-date=March 28, 2024 |website=www.depotmuseum.org}}</ref>