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Sam Peel, a prominent Arkansas business owner and civic leader with remarkable vision and unwavering dedication, played a pivotal role in Bentonville’s development and growth.
Born near Batesville in September 1855, Peel began his career as a merchant clerk, working for his dad. After a long political career and law practice, he ventured into the banking industry, co-founding the First National Bank of Bentonville and serving as its president for many years. Peel’s involvement in the banking sector contributed significantly to Bentonville’s financial stability and economic prosperity. He later expanded the bank to Fayetteville, and his son ran the operation for many years.
A Politician for Policy and Public Works
While Peel lost his mother at an early age and was left to be raised by his grandparents, his father still worked in community courts, and Sam clerked for him in the local county court. He served as the county clerk for Carroll County three different times and buried the city records in a cemetery vault during the Civil War to protect them from being burned.
He served with the Fourth Arkansas Infantry during the Prairie Grove, Pea Ridge and Wilson Creek battles. Returning from the war, he studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1865, beginning his law practice in Hindsville. Two years later, he moved his law office to Bentonville and started a partnership with his brother-in-law and future Arkansas Governor, James Berry.
From 1882 to 1893, Peel served in the U.S. Congress, known chiefly for his time as the prosecuting attorney in Arkansas’ Fourth Circuit. He was the first native-born Arkansas to serve in Congress. The Encyclopedia of Arkansas notes his commitment to “railroads and interstate commerce, agricultural experimental stations and the survey of Indian lands and tribes.” His service to the Native American tribes led him to chair the House Committee on Indian Affairs. This role opened the door for his niche law practice and continued political involvement into his retirement years.
Records indicate that Indian tribes would camp on his lawn in Bentonville and sign treaties on his front porch. He represented ongoing efforts to protect the Cherokee and Creek and was appointed attorney for the Five Civilized Tribes.
The Peel Mansion and Museum
Peel’s 1875 historic home, The Oaks, is a stunning example of Italianate Villa architecture. The house features a wraparound porch, intricate woodwork and beautiful stained-glass windows. A busy Walton Boulevard, which used to be a dirt road outside of town, passes right in front of the front door. Visitors can step back in time and experience the grandeur of Peel’s era while learning about his contributions to Bentonville’s development.
- Law books from Peel’s office
- Correspondence desk from Washington DC office
- Women’s room – courting candle, piano and furniture samples
- Pink throughout the home
- Dishes from Washington DC home, where his daughter served as his hostess for years in office
- Banister safe
- Peel Children rocking horse – few family artifacts in the home
- Notice the back staircase for the daughter’s protection
- Egg incubator
- Outdoor kitchen and pass-through service elevator
- Sell brochure for the home from 1906, brought in by a family member in 2023
- Todd Sanders, neon art in the garden
The Sam Peel House reminds visitors of Bentonville’s rich history and Peel’s significant role in shaping the city’s identity. It is a must-visit attraction for anyone interested in exploring Bentonville’s past and appreciating the legacy of one of its most influential figures.
Saving the Mansion
As we know it today, the Peel Mansion was almost not meant to be. When you visit the museum and experience the gardens, you will note that it is remarkably close to Walmart Store #100 and directly across the street from the Walmart Home Offices. Some may find the location odd, but their proximity saved the home.
1991, when Sam Walton purchased the land across the street from Walmart’s World Headquarters, he noted a worn-down home, dilapidated with vines growing through the room and an apparent haven for vagabonds. Helen Walton, heavily involved with historical tradition and garden preservation in Bentonville, researched and learned about Col. Samuel Peel, who built the home for his beloved wife and that it was the only remaining home of its time in the region.
She demanded the home be saved and restored. Further research indicated a large orchard once covered the land, including nearly 5000 apple trees on 180 acres. As they built the Walmart store, they found buried footprints and outlines of several “outbuildings” on the land behind the home, indicative of a large farming operation and a farm superintendent’s home and worker quarters.
The house is made of stone and bricks. Like most building materials of the time, the bricks were made on-site, and the flooring and finishes in the home are oak, no doubt harvested from the home site since it remains surrounded by oak trees. The home has 14 rooms, and eight fireplaces used as a heating system. After her family experienced a house fire and starvation during the Civil War, Mrs. Peel required a cellar under the home for safety and food storage for winter.
The Peel Mansion demonstrates a postwar era in which women cared for the home, entertained guests and, in the case of this family, created space for economic drivers to flourish.
Visiting the Mansion
Today, the Peel Foundation operates the museum and conducts FREE home tours with on-site docents. After checking in at the gift shop in a typical 1800 Ozark log cabin moved from Little Sugar Creek, guests may enter the botanical gardens and wander through the rose garden, butterfly garden and heirloom herb garden.
From Sept. 10-13, the museum hosts “school days,” where local 4th-grade school children visit on field trips to meet an actor resembling Mr. Peel and honor his birthday. Throughout the year, the museum hosts Storytimes for children, gardening and Victorian craft classes, and a special celebration each Christmas with period decorations.
Sam Peel Mansion and Museum
400 S. Walton | Bentonville
Website | Christmas at Peel | Upcoming Programs
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