It’s probably safe to say most people from my generation were familiar with Bob Dorough, even if they didn’t know his name. He was musical director of Schoolhouse Rock!, the animated television series that ran during the 1970s and early ’80s on Saturday mornings between cartoons on ABC. He also wrote and sang on many of the catchy three-minute songs that taught math, grammar and civics lessons, including the songs “Three Is a Magic Number” and “Conjunction Junction.”
Dorough was born in Cherry Hill, Arkansas in 1923, grew up in Texas and became part of the New York jazz scene in the 1950s. When we got word at KUAR Monday, April 23 that he had died that day in Mount Bethel, Pennsylvania at age 94, I reached out to musicologist Stephen Koch, host of the weekly Arkansongs feature that runs on public radio stations in the state. He met Dorough several times over the years in Arkansas and recorded an interview in 2006. With the interview, Stephen’s comments and clips of his music, I prepared an obituary for KUAR, which you can read here, as well as hear a five minute report I produced for the following morning.
AUDIO: Hear my report for KUAR on the death of Bob Dorough, which aired Tuesday, April 25.
I thought I knew a lot about Dorough, but learned a lot more while reporting on this. It was sad that we’d lost another musical treasure who got his start in Arkansas, but he had a great long life! I also filed a report that aired nationally on NPR’s All Things Considered.
The Perry depot in May 1965, photographed by Clifton Hull and recently scanned by Bill Pollard.
I’ve been working with the Perry County Historical and Genealogical Society as members have tried to come up with a plan to move and preserve the former Rock Island depot in Perry, Arkansas. The century-old building is an incredible relic of a different era in America when rails were the connection to the outside world.
After the Rock Island was shut down in 1980, that stretch of track became the Little Rock & Western Railway, which built a small locomotive servicing shed behind the depot. But today the shortline wants to build a new shop there and is giving the preservationists a limited time to move the depot. They’ve found a possible location a few hundred feet away, but an estimate for moving it is much more than they were hoping for. You can read my latest update, which includes a couple of recently scanned vintage images. Or to get more background on the project, including photos of the interior of the building, see my post from last August. The depot, which still has the semaphore train order signals, is the Rock Island’s last Arkansas depot still standing west of Little Rock.
Thanks to J. Bradley Minnick, host of the radio program Arts & Letters, for this exquisitely produced, hour-long look at the Rock Island Railroad in Arkansas. I was able to discuss the history of the railroad and include segments from several interviews I’ve recorded over the years with former employees. Featured on the program are L.T. Walker, Joe Rook, Guy Winters, as well as railroad historian Bill Pollard. Several pieces of original music are also included, which were specially recorded for this program. On the Arts & Letters web page you can also see a slideshow of several photos from my book “Rock Island Railroad in Arkansas.”
AUDIO: Hear KUAR’s Arts & Letters program on the Rock Island Railroad in Arkansas, which first aired on March 23, 2018.
This is the online home of Michael Hibblen, managing editor of Newsroom Ventures, which publishes six Arkansas newspapers. I've worked as a reporter, editor and manager for newspapers, radio and TV stations for more than three decades, with this website telling the story of my career. Also featured are outside interests I've researched. The views expressed here are my own and might not reflect those of my employers.
Preserving the Rock Island Depot at Perry
Since 2017, I've been part of a group working to preserve the former Rock Island Depot at Perry, Arkansas. To keep it from being demolished, we raised money to move the depot to an adjacent lot, still alongside the tracks, which is now owned by the city. The building has since been listed on the National Register of Historic Places and our group has become a 501(c)(3) nonprofit.
LEARN MORE ABOUT THE PRESERVATION OF THE DEPOT.
My Book
Released by Arcadia Publishing in 2017, Rock Island Railroad in Arkansas delves into the history of the railroad, which once had a huge footprint in Arkansas. The book features historic photos and tells the story of the Rock Island, which was shut down in March 1980. READ MORE ABOUT MY BOOK.
For 13 years, from May 2009 to December 2022, I worked for NPR station KUAR-FM 89.1 at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. That included 10 years as News Director while continuing to anchor and report. You can read and hear reports from that time on Little Rock Public Radio's website.
