Carlisle, Arkansas was founded in 1872 by a man named Samuel McCormick. However, people did not begin to move into the area until the introduction of rice in 1886.

Most Historians generally accept that W.H. Fuller introduced rice into the Grand Prairie region in which Carlisle in located. In the summer of 1886, Fuller traveled south to Louisiana on a hunting trip. During his stay there, Fuller noticed several rice farms in the area. Due to the abundance of rapidly growing, tall grass in the Grand Prairie, the soil always contains a large amount of decaying land matter. Because of this, Mr. Fuller decided to try growing rice in the fertile prairie soil of his home. Several years later, Fuller went back to Louisiana and purchased some rice seed, a drilling rig, and water well construction materials. He returned home to Lonoke County in the winter of 1903 and installed a well and machinery to prepare for the crop the following spring. For the first planting, Mr. Fuller needed money to establish a farm. He received about one thousand dollars from the residents of Carlisle, Hazen, and neighboring towns. The first harvest yielded five thousand two hundred and twenty-five bushels of rice from seventy acres of land. (Centennial 2) This first crop started the rice business in the Grand Prairie area and showed the people there was a profit to be had from farming rice. The John Morris farm (still in the rice farming business today) in Carlisle was also used to experiment with rice farming that year. The first irrigation system ever used in the state of Arkansas was implemented on the Morris farm. This was an extremely important development, as rice farming requires large amounts of water and would probably not have been possible in many areas without an irrigation system.

In order to process the rice grown, grain mills had to be constructed. The first rice mill in Carlisle was built in 1908 by the Carlisle Rice Milling Company. At the time of its construction, this was the largest rice mill in the state. In 1916, the company changed its name to the Arkansas State Rice Milling Company, under which it functioned until 1965. The name was then changed to Riviana Foods, Inc., now a nation-wide rice producer.

Note:
W. H. Fuller (William Henry Fuller) and John Morris (John Mark Morris) were brother-in laws. Their wives were Margaret A (Thompson) Fuller (mother: Eliza J Utterback)and Emma C (Thompson) Morris (mother: Abby Minerva Hulbert) who were the daughters of Christopher Thompson of Ireland.

Marriages:
16 Mar 1847 Harrison,​Ohio to Eliza Utterback
15 Jun 1856 Defiance,Ohio to Minerva Hurlburt
17 Sep 1876 Defiance,Ohio to Abigail N Blair