Remmel, Catherine, Carpenter and Hamilton: Who were they?
The lakes and the dams on the Ouachita River are named after family and associates close to Harvey Couch, the founder of Arkansas Light & Power, which later became Arkansas Power & Light, which later became Entergy Arkansas.
Remmel Dam was named after Colonel H. L. Remmel, who, at Couch’s request, used his influence with Secretary of War John Weeks to get Weeks to quickly arrange a meeting that resulted in approval of the elusive license to build the dam.
The lake formed by Remmel Dam was named after Couch’s only daughter, Catherine, who was six years old when the dam was completed.
Carpenter Dam was named after Flavius Carpenter, an ex-riverboat captain, who guided Couch on horseback along the Ouachita River charting probable spots for a dam. Carpenter was an instrumental advisor throughout the development of hydro projects on the Ouachita. Flavius’ grandson, Flave Carpenter Sr. contracted to work for Entergy as an economic developer in the 1980s. Then in 1996, Flave Carpenter, Jr. went to work at AP&L as a trade show manager to help recruit industries to Arkansas. The great-grandson later transitioned to being a customer service manager in Searcy before retiring from Entergy Arkansas in 2022 after a 26-year career.
Couch named Lake Hamilton, the lake formed by Carpenter Dam, after his friend and attorney Hamilton Moses. Moses served as general counsel for Arkansas Power and Light Company from 1919 to 1941, president and chairman of the board of the company from 1941 to 1952, and chairman of the board from 1952 until his retirement in 1956.