06 Dec 2020 A historic return: The Toad Suck Ferry is back in Faulkner County

The Toad Suck Ferry was recently brought home to Old Ferry Landing Park because local citizens and officials put forth the effort to work with state and federal officials to make it happen. 

When the Toad Suck Lock and Dam was completed in the late 60’s, the Toad Suck Ferry became obsolete. Prior to that, the ferry had transported vehicles, animals and people across the Arkansas River between Faulkner and Perry Counties since 1820.  

From roughly 1958 until its final run in 1972, the ferry was a 1958 Clay Cross, that weighed 37 tons and held five or six vehicles. It was equipped with side paddle wheels powered by a Caterpillar diesel engine. In 1972, the ferry was transported to Norfork Lake, then to Bull Shoals Lake (Marion County).  It served as a ferry until 2016. 

At that time, the City of Conway was notified that the ferry could be purchased from the state. The cost was only $2,035, but the added expense of transporting it to Faulkner County and unloading it would be many times that amount and financially unfeasible.  

In early 2020, Judge Jim Baker and Mayor Bart Castleberry were introduced to the new Arkansas Department of Transportation (ARDOT) Director, Lori Tudor, and mentioned the Toad Suck Ferry. A few months later, District Engineer Jeff Wheeler called to offer to transport the ferry to Old Ferry Landing Park on the Faulkner County side of the Arkansas River. The only requirements were that the ferry be purchased from ARDOT, that the city and county provide escorts from the county line, and to arrange a way to unload the ferry from the ARDOT truck.  

Judge Baker and his wife, Linda, and Jack and Ginny Bell purchased the ferry and donated it to the City of Conway. “Ginny and I feel that there are very few opportunities to preserve local history and we should grab them when we can,” Bell said. 

He spent 12 years as chief of staff for the city and is currently the director of the Conway Regional Airport. 

In a joint effort between Faulkner County and the City of Conway, a concrete pad was constructed, and the Faulkner County Sherriff’s Department and the Conway Police Department agreed to escort the truck. 

Following a week of loading the ferry, the journey back home began on Oct. 25. ARDOT crews brought it safely to the newly poured concrete pad Old Ferry Landing Park. By noon the next day, it was unloaded with help from ARDOT personnel, Mark Ledbetter, The Faulkner County Road Department, Jacob Reynolds and the Conway Department of Transportation.  

The next phase will be to restore it as closely as possible to its initial look. It will be painted the original orange and the paddle wheels and pilot house will be restored. A rope barricade and commemorative plaque will be installed. The city will work with the Faulkner County Historical Society and the Faulkner County Museum Commission to complete these tasks.   

“These projects are important in preserving the heritage of our community,” Bell said. “Toad Suck and the ferry are obviously a huge part of Conway and Faulkner counties’ stories. We are fortunate in Conway to have a mayor and city council that feel this way as well. Without them neither of these projects would have been possible. We have a county judge and quorum court that see the importance of preserving history as well. We also have a good museum and an active historical society.”

Special thanks to Jack Bell for his contributions to this article.