John M. Harrel

John Mortimer Harrell (December 14, 1828 - July 4, 1907)[1] was a prominent lawyer in Little Rock, Arkansas from the 1850s to 1870s. He composed the very first telegram sent from Little Rock to Memphis. During the Civil War he distinguished himself as a cavalry officer in the operations of the West.[2] After the war, Harrell served as Commander of the Southern Arkansas Division, United Confederate Veterans.[3]

John Mortimer Harrell
John M Harrell
Born	(1828-12-14)December 14, 1828 Gatesville, North Carolina
Died	July 4, 1907(1907-07-04) (aged 78) San Antonio, Texas
Buried	Hollywood Cemetery, Hot Springs, Arkansas
Allegiance	Confederate States of America
Service/branch	Confederate States Army
Years of service	1861–1865
Rank	Colonel
Commands held	Harrell's Arkansas Cavalry Battalion
Battles/wars	American Civil War
Other work	Author of The Brooks and Baxter War and the Arkansas section of the 12 volume book: Confederate Military History.

In 1861 he was the political editor of the Old Line Democrat. He was the editor of the Southern States, a weekly that succeeded the Old Line Democrat. In 1876 he was one of the editors of the Arkansas Gazette. Soon after this he removed to Hot Springs, where he continued to reside for many years, until the death of his wife, when he moved out of the State. In about 1880 he was the editor of the Hot Springs Telegraph.[2]

During Reconstruction, he was a Democrat and served as secretary of the Democratic convention in 1867. He wrote extensively about politics in Little Rock during this time, keeping newspaper clippings and long commentaries on the articles. His writings were posthumously published in 1893 as "The Brooks and Baxter War", and are one of the most prominent sources on the Brooks-Baxter War. Harrell also wrote the volume on Arkansas in the Confederate Military History.[2]