Batesville in Independence County, Arkansas — The American South (West South Central)

Agricultural Wheel Political Platform 1887

Photographed by Duane and Tracy Marsteller, April 22, 2023

1. Agricultural Wheel Political Platform 1887 Marker

Inscription. • Pay off the national debt • Repeal laws that favors capital • Prevent aliens from owning land • Abolish national banks • Government operations on a cash basis • End agricultural futures trading • Establish a graduate income tax • Prohibit importation of foreign labor • Nationalize transportation and communication • Direct election of national politicians • Free trade and no import duties • Establish a luxury tax • Free public education • No renewal of patents

Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Government & Politics. A significant historical year for this entry is 1887.

Location. 35° 46.06′ N, 91° 39.025′ W. Marker is in Batesville, Arkansas, in Independence County. It is at the intersection of River Street and South Broad, on the left when traveling south on River Street. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 431 River St, Batesville AR 72501, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is on Arkansas’ Ozark Plateau.

It is also in the American South

and specifically in the Upper South.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

the Louisiana Purchase,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Pioneer Cemetery (approx. 0.2 miles away); Independence County Courthouse (approx. ¼ mile away); Independence Bell (approx. ¼ mile away); Batesville Confederate Monument (approx. ¼ mile away); Wade Building (approx. ¼ mile away); Independence County First County Court House

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(approx. ¼ mile away); Williams Building (approx. ¼ mile away); Hail Building (approx. ¼ mile away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Batesville.

Also see . . .
1. The Wheel Store, National Register of Historic Places nomination (PDF). Excerpt:

The Wheel Store was built on land bought by the county cooperative arm of the Agricultural Wheel, a post-Civil War agrarian reform organization composed of farmers, sharecroppers and ordinary lower-class laborers from many trades . Built by this organization's local chapter, it originally housed a cooperative store on the first floor and a meeting hall above. It stands as a monument to the most active and significant farmer movement originating in Arkansas.

(Submitted on April 26, 2023, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.)

2. Agricultural Wheel. The Agricultural Wheel was a state farmers’ union, founded in the Arkansas Delta, which expanded into ten other states, mostly in the South but reaching as far north as Wisconsin. (Edward J. Chess, Encyclopedia of Arkansas) (Submitted on April 26, 2023, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.)

Photographed by Duane and Tracy Marsteller, April 22, 2023

2. Agricultural Wheel Political Platform 1887 Marker

The Wheel Store image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Duane and Tracy Marsteller, April 22, 2023

3. The Wheel Store

The building, erected in 1887, housed a store and meeting space for a local chapter of the Agricultural Wheel, an agrarian reform group established in Arkansas in 1882. It is on the National Register of Historic Places.

Credits. This page was last revised on April 26, 2023. It was originally submitted on April 26, 2023, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. This page has been viewed 349 times since then and 27 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on April 26, 2023, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.