Marion Co TOC

This is an old yellowed brittle copy of a newspaper from the Mining era of Marion Co. It was sent to me by John Headrick. He tells me that he found it in his father's old papers. Many thanks to John for sharing this with us. I knew that some of the mining towns published newspapers but this is the first copy I've ever seen.

The photos in this newspaper are very dim. I've done the best I can with them.

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No other district in the United States produces the large variety or high grade carbonate ores that are produced by this district. There are probably a hundred different textures and colors of this ore, and he week seldom passes but what some one brings in a sample new to the field. It all grades high in metal content, running from 40 per cent to 49. This ore is in strong demand by the smelters on account of its purity.

Rush is animated and noisy. The dynamite broadsides never stop, neither do the engines that pull the mills. The noise of rending grinding rock is always present, night and day. The town lives right up to its name. It keeps busy, rushingly busy. It is a poor place for a lazy man to light. It is a poor location for a pessimist. The spirit of optimism floats over the camp. That is what has made it and what will make it grow finally into one of the largest mining towns in the south. Backed up by it's ore bodies and this optimistic do or die spirit, it will finally cover the green-clad hills and hollows in this section.

Because Rush is a mining camp, do not think that it is bad. It may be a little rough but it lacks the bad men, bad booze and gambling games of the old western camps. Rush is a good mining camp. It does not tolerate the bootlegger, the gambler or the bad man. If you are bad and are contemplating moving to Rush, go to Little Rock, or Fort Smith, or Cotter, or Yellville, or somewhere else. A bad man will get a warm reception here.

Rush is genial and friendly. The folks that came to Rush and built it, brought in that rare old Ozark mountain hospitality with them. There are no strangers in Rush. After you are here fifteen minutes you are one of us. That is if you are not bad, and haven't come from a smallpox camp or something like that.

Rush has a larger payroll than any town of its size in the state. Every two weeks the mines peel their roll for a good many thousand dollars. This payroll is what makes this place hum, and it is growing larger every month.

Rush offers opportunities to the zinc miner. There are a thousand prospects in the mountains around here that have never been found yet. They ought to be found. They will help the man who finds them and the (continued on page two)