These days, Trumann makes its own kind of music

Baldwin pianos used to be made in Trumann. Baldwin opened its factory in 1980, and sold out to Gibson in 2001. Gibson closed its piano line in 2006 and moved all the jobs to China. Baldwin made banjos for a couple of years in DeQueen, Ark., and then shut down that plant. The company does not have a good record of longevity in Arkansas, nor did the company leave good memories to its unemployed workers.

Parker Hannifin also had a plant in Trumann, but closed in 2005 and sent those jobs to its site in Apodaca Nuevo Leon, Mexico. Parker Hannifin’s web site claims the company is “the global leader in motion and control technologies.” The site also says the corporation values its “empowered workforce operating in a supportive environment (that) fosters innovative ideas and solutions. We encourage our employees to pursue ideas, and more importantly, we listen to them.”

http://www.parker.com/portal/site/PARKER/menuitem.e631b67dc0285c0566b049e1237ad1ca/?vgnextoid=243880961f66e010VgnVCM1000000308a8c0RCRD&vgnextfmt=EN

Former Parker workforce members in Trumann might say “Bullshit” to corporate propaganda, but such is industrial employer vis a vis employee reality.

In 2010, Trumann had a population of 7,243, its highest-ever head count. Of those residents, 94.3 percent were white. Median household income was $26,533. About 21.2 percent of the overall population lived below the poverty line.

Trumann is in Poinsett County in Northeast Arkansas. The county is named after Joel Roberts Poinsett (1779-1851) first American Minister to Mexico and a former Secretary of War. While in Mexico, Poinsett saw the flor de la noche Buena – Christmas Eve flower. He sent samples to the United States, where the plant became known as Poinsettia.

A Facebook page on Things to do in Trumann lists several restaurants. Trumann has a Walmart, too.

I-555 goes through the west side of town.

Here is a link to a satellite image: https://www.google.com/maps/@35.6616262,-90.5421516,13591m/data=!3m1!1e3

Lots of fields surround Trumann.