 It was incorporated on June 11, 1892 as Ashdown, and rapid growth began in 1895 following the railroad reaching town.The Arkansas and Choctaw Railroad connected Ashdown to Arkinda, and the growth of the Kansas City Southern Railway, the Frisco and the Memphis, Dallas and Gulf Railroad continued to grow the city and her timber industry, which had been utilizing steamboats and flatboats to ship lumber.Following World War II, Ashdown's economy began to diversify.