Glenwood, AR

Glenwood sits along the Caddo River in the Ouachita Mountains, and the town grew up when railroads and timber turned the area into a working boomtown. The Memphis, Dallas and Gulf Railroad reached Glenwood in 1914, making it a rail junction and lumber center in the southern Ouachitas. These days the Caddo River Festival brings a downtown crowd each year, while Crater of Diamonds State Park is close enough to become part of the local geography. Glenwood’s map still reads in layers: rail line, timber town, river town, and the southwest Arkansas stop people use when they are headed for the water or the hills.