A gathering of family members of the original builder and local business figures gathered in the lobby this morning of 116 East Second Street to see the remodeled offices. Tena Pilkinton Carter, who sold the building to its current occupants, the Hempstead County Abstract and Title Company spoke first about James Harvey Betts, a founder and mayor of Hope who owned many properties downtown. .
The location was built 133 years ago by Betts and has been used throughout the 20th and 21st centuries by attorneys in the Pilkington family
“[James Harvey Betts] was the mayor from 1901 to 1902, and he had an eighth-grade education. And he was a contractor, a banker, head of economic development, mayor, and he was a people person. He used this office to handle all of his business, and he was very popular and died at 52,” Carter said to attendees. On a table to Carter’s right in a black and white photo was James Betts, a mustachioed gentleman with an expression of curiosity, looking on. He was Carter’s great grandfather on her mother’s side.
Carter asked Cathy Loe, Title and Closing Agent at the abstract and title firm, to speak next about the renovations that had occurred. Loe said the present spiffy condition of the offices “started with Tena.” The firm knew it needed to move from its past location on South Washington, near the old county courthouse, to be closer to the new one, now on East Third, just a short walk from East Second.
“We knew that Mr. [James] Pilkinton had an office down here,” Loe said. “And that he was getting out of it, and that we would like to have it as our building. That's when we talked to Tina. She could have taken us for whatever she wanted to take us for, because we wanted the building to be near the courthouse. That was important to us. But she gave us a great deal. All three of us were flabbergasted at how much she let us have the building for to repair it.” Loe added that Carter also contributed funds for the building’s renovation.
Loe pointed out the lobby’s white uniquely tiled ceiling. “We had them keep this ceiling because this is exactly what the ceiling looked like when her [Tena’s] father had the building. They were able to find new ceiling tiles that looked like the old ceiling tiles. Now the old ceiling tiles were kind of old. But we found these that look just like those and so we put them back up in here.”
Loe also told of the way the building will be used now, to house her office as well as that of her partner in the abstract and title company, Patricia Harris, also a title and closing agent and that of Randal Wright, currently Hope’s City Attorney.
Finally, Loe made clear that in overseeing the renovation work, she achieved a goal she had set from the start of the project. “We're proud to say that when we did these renovations, we kept it in the city of Hope. We didn't go to Texarkana. We didn't go to Little Rock. We didn't go anywhere else besides Hope. Hope people helped us renovate this building.”
Among those she credited were S&S Construction, which “did the majority of the work.” The four outdoor photos prominently displayed on the lobby’s western wall were by Rodney Steele. Heating and air was by Greenlee Sheet Metal. Electrical work was done by Scott Hardee. Johnson Plumbing did the pipes, and the roof was put on by Richard Powell.
Loe turned the floor over to Carter again, who added her thanks to Hope Appraisal Company for its accurate valuation of the property. She invited attendees to tour the abstract company’s offices and also invited attendees to see other properties that she had sold at other locations in the Hope Downtown, including the building now housing Tailgaters (which will soon be receiving a stuffed Bobcat courtesy of a hunting trip taken by James Betts’ great great great grandson) and the one housing One Twenty-Four, the beauty salon.
A cousin of Tena Pilkinton Carter, Katherine Beasley, presented a certificate to Carter on behalf of the rest of the family “For the love, wisdom and unshaken perseverance you have demonstrated in bringing about the rebirth of the historic properties of Hope, Arkansas. You stepped out, took the lead in our family and made this challenge become a reality.”
Mayor Don Still commended Carter and those involved in the renovation. “We’ve watched downtown go from what it was to what it is now. My goodness what a change,” he said, then mentioned the role of Hope Downtown Network in helping with the 116 East Second renovations. “They were instrumental,” Carter said.
James Betts was born and raised in Spring Hill and was brought to Hope along with several siblings by his mother after his father had died. Despite only living to be 52, he built a life in which he was a cotton broker, property owner, including of the legendary Capital Hotel that existed on the 100 block of South Main, part of which is still used for Tailgaters and other downtown shops. When he died, his funeral was attended by 500 people, Carter said.
After the speeches and presentation, chocolate cake, with American flag icing, was served.
Tena Pilkinton Carter, James Betts' great granddaughter, greets visitors at the recently renovated building Betts built 133 years ago
Hope Mayor Don Still commends Carter for her help in transforming present-day downtown Hope.
One of the photos by Rodney Steele that hangs in the 116 East Second lobby.