Hazen, AR

Hazen is a Prairie County city on the Grand Prairie, about 43 miles east of Little Rock. The town takes its name from Dr. William Cogswell Hazen, who settled in the area in 1854; his widow deeded the first town tract, the site was surveyed in 1873, and Hazen incorporated in 1884. Rail and farming set the pace: the Memphis and Little Rock Railroad reached the area in 1871, prairie hay shipped out, and later rice took over the fields. The old Rock Island Depot is a National Register landmark, while the Rice Festival arrives each October. Hazen's local shorthand is prairie, rail, rice, and a family name.