Jacob Conrad Yoes
Arkansas
By Henry E. "Gene" Yoes III
Colonel Jacob "Jake" Conrad Yoes is one of the most famous members of the Yoes families. He was born in West Fork, Arkansas on September 3, 1839, the son of William Conrad Yoes (1804-1891) and Kessiah Bloyd (1813-1845). It is claimed that his grandfather had immigrated to America and his father relocated to Arkansas around 1836.
Jacob was reared in the West Fork community, south of Fayetteville. He married Mary A. Reed, daughter of William D. Reed and Sarah Alexander (1817-1863) in 1858 and they had 11 children.
In the War Between the States, at age 23, he enlisted on the Union side and served as a sergeant in the US Army. After the war, he was elected to two terms as sheriff of Washington County and then served two terms in the state legislature. As a Union sympathizer, he had an inside track on federal jobs, and eventually served two terms as a United States Marshall for the Federal Court of the Western District of Arkansas in 1889. He served under the famous Judge Isaac Parker, the "Hanging Judge." He served until 1893.
Jacob was the owner of large plantations on the Arkansas River. He was also the owner of large mercantile interests along the Frisco railroad at Mountainburg, Chester, Armada, Winslow and West Fork. In February 1892, he bought the Dillard James Lands -- 707 acres -- and established headquarters at Moore's Rock. In 1901, he acquired 200 acres from Signey Austin land to escape the inconvenience and danger of overflow of the Arkansas River. He then moved his headquarters to this tract.
After the 1901 land purchase, he built a large cotton gin with seed houses, cotton houses, warehouses, a blacksmith shop, saw mill, and grist mill, as well as a large store building -- all for the use of the public. He also built a large, eight-room dwelling, and thus the wilderness became a prosperous business center.
Though never actually promoted to Colonel, he was given that title for his enterprising ways. After his death on September 6, 1906, at the age of 67, the citizens of his establishment honored his name by calling the place Yoestown. He is buried in the National Cemetery at Fort Smith, Arkansas. (History of Crawford County, Arkansas by Miss Clara B. Eno; History of Crawford County Arkansas compiled by Eula Hopkins and Commissioner Wanda M. Gray, 2001.)