David Solomon Jr. was born on July 19, 1916, in Helena, Phillips County, Arkansas.
Solomon received his undergraduate degree at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri. He graduated from Harvard Law School in 1939, after which he returned to Helena to begin practicing law. Solomon served in the US Army during World War II, eventually reaching the rank of master sergeant.
Solomon was elected city attorney in Helena in 1950, a position that he held for ten years. In 1975 Governor David Pryor appointed Solomon to the Arkansas State Highway Commission. He served as director of Worthen Bank, First National Bank of Phillips County, and Southern Bancorp. Solomon was president of the White River Drainage District for fifty years and a member of the executive committee of the Mississippi Valley Flood Control Association. He was chair of the South-Central region of the Anti-Defamation League during the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s.
Solomon helped form the Industrial Development Corporation in Helena, which worked to bring new industry to the city. In 2011 Legal Aid of Arkansas recognized Solomon as the Volunteer Attorney of the Year for Phillips County, and in 2014 he was honored by the Arkansas Bar Foundation for seventy-five years of service at the Bar.
#1: Composite image of early photo of David Solomon Jr. and still frame from Pryor Center video interview
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#2: David Solomon paternal family record of births and deaths, typed on back of Ware & Solomon Dry Goods and Men's Wear envelope
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#3: David Solomon family record of births and deaths
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#4: David Solomon's family: (top row, left to right) Meyer Cook, Ella Solomon Cook, Lafe Solomon, Henry Solomon, Sophie Solomon, Joe Solomon; (middle row) Dave Solomon Sr. (father), Sarah Solomon; (front row) Louis Solomon, Ruth Cook, Pauline Solomon (paternal grandmother), Myrtle Solomon, Phillip Solomon; portrait, Moses Solomon (paternal grandfather)
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#5: Home of David Solomon's maternal grandparents, Louis and Hannah Elkas, in Leota Landing, Mississippi
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#6: Solomon Brothers Building, Helena, Arkansas, 1907
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#7: David Solomon's mother, Pauline Elkas (Solomon)
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#8: Back of previous image of David Solomon's mother, Pauline Elkas (Solomon)
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#9: David Solomon (front row, center) with (from left) his cousin, Kitty Elkas; grandfather, Louis Elkas; sister, Hannah Solomon; and cousin, Dorothy Elkas; (back row, from left) aunt and uncle, Beckye and Ike Elkas; and mother, Pauline Elkas Solomon; written on back of photo: "Beckye and Ike lived in Chicago - family visited every year"; Chicago, Illinois
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#10: David Solomon's mother, Pauline, (top step, on left) with her sisters-in-law, Addie and Jennie (to her left); Retta (bottom step); and Sophie (standing)
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#11: David Solomon's father, David Solomon Sr., in a trick-shot photo
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#12: David Solomon's parents, Pauline and David Solomon Sr.
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#13: David Solomon's father, David Solomon Sr., and his sister, Hannah
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#14: David Solomon with his mother, Pauline Elkas Solomon; father, David Solomon Sr.; and sister, Hannah Pauline Solomon
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#15: David Solomon
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#16: David Solomon
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#17: David Solomon and his sister, Hannah Pauline Solomon
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#18: David Solomon and his sister, Hannah Pauline Solomon
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#19: David Solomon as a child dressed in a World War I uniform
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#20: David Solomon and his sister, Hannah Pauline Solomon
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#21: David Solomon with his mother, Pauline Elkas Solomon; father, David Solomon Sr.; and sister, Hannah Pauline Solomon, at 727 Poplar, Helena, Arkansas
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#22: David Solomon (front row, center) with the Elkas and Solomon families; Leota Landing, Mississippi
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#23: Back of previous image of David Solomon (front row, center) with the Elkas and Solomon families; Leota Landing, Mississippi
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#24: David Solomon on Traveler, a retired racing horse
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#25: David Solomon's report card (front), Helena High School, 1925-26
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#26: David Solomon's report card (back), Helena High School, 1925-26
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#27: Yearbook photo of David Solomon's sister, Hannah Pauline Solomon, 1927-28
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#28: Freshman class role and picture in The Knot Hole newspaper, Helena, Arkansas; April 26, 1929
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#29: David Solomon's maternal grandfather, Louis Elkas
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#30: David Solomon (front row, 4th from left), age 14, at Boy Scout camp in Heber Springs, Arkansas, 1930
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#31: David Solomon (1st row standing, 2nd from right), Helena High School graduating class photo, 1932
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#32: David Solomon (left) with Larry Levy at the Zeta Beta Tau house, Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, 1935
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#33: David Solomon while in college
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#34: David Solomon, US Army Tech Sergeant
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#35: War Ration Book issued to David Solomon's son, David Philip Solomon, ca. 1945
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#36: David Solomon with his wife, Miriam Elkas Solomon; Colorado, ca. 1940s
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#37: David and Miriam Solomon celebrating his 55th birthday at Winchester Cathedral in England, 1971
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#38: David Solomon; written on back of photo: "Summer 1968 on way to joining Lafe in Finland where we received the call that Papa had died"
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#39: David Solomon, Arkansas Constitutional Convention, summer 1969
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#40: Top image: David Solomon (center) being sworn in as a member of the Arkansas State Highway Commission by Chief Justice Carlton Harris, with Representatives Ernest Cuningham and J. B. Smith and Governor David Pryor, 1975; Bottom image: David Solomon (left) with Governor David Pryor
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#41: David Solomon (second from left) at his swearing-in ceremony for the Arkansas State Highway Commission, with (from left) Lawrence Blackwell, (wife) Miriam Solomon, Governor David Pryor, and ASHC director, Henry Gray, 1975
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#42: David Solomon in his law office
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#43: David Solomon in a cotton field
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#44: David and Miriam Solomon in Tiananmen Square; Peking, China, 1980
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#45: David and Miriam Solomon, Christmas 1982
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#46: David and Miriam Solomon, Alaska, 1983
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#47: David Solomon celebrating his 85th birthday with his family at Villa d'Este, Lake Como, Italy, 2001
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#48: David Solomon at Temple Beth El, Helena-West Helena, Arkansas
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#49: David Solomon with his sons on the David Solomon push boat
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#50: Behind-the-scenes photo from Pryor Center interview with David Solomon; Helena-West Helena, Arkansas, 2012
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#51: Behind-the-scenes photo from Pryor Center interview with David Solomon; Helena-West Helena, Arkansas, 2012
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#52: Still frame from Pryor Center video interview with David Solomon; Helena-West Helena, Arkansas, 2012
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
