Petrified Tree Photo Arkansas Northwest Vintage Original Photograph

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Seller: memorabilia111 ✉️ (808) 100%, Location: Ann Arbor, Michigan, US, Ships to: US & many other countries, Item: 176288039977 PETRIFIED TREE PHOTO ARKANSAS NORTHWEST VINTAGE ORIGINAL PHOTOGRAPH. A VINTAGE ORIGINSL PETRIFIED WOD PHOTOGRAPH FROM NORTHWEST ARKANSAS MEASURING APPROXIMATELY 6 1/2 X 4 5/8 INCHES 16 PAUL'S PHOTOS 3702 Lakewood Ave. CHICAGO NO. had-147.15 CLOSEUP OF ONE OF THE PETRIFIED HICKORY LOGS FROM THE BURIED "PETRIFIED FOREST" IN ARKANSAS


This morning I’m writing at a table made of recovered bald cypress wood dredged from the muck of a Louisiana swamp. The logs were cut before the Civil War, but while being floated to sawmills, the heaviest, sappiest trees sank. These logs became embedded in the muck at the bottom of the swamp, slowly responding to the new environment. In the 1990s techniques for finding and retrieving these large, old-growth logs were developed. The wood from these submerged logs is darker and heavier than bald cypress cut from standing trees, but they are a long way from turning to stone. Given enough time the logs would have become petrified, morphing into fossilized stone trees. Traveling in the western states I’m drawn to sites with big petrified trees. Earlier this week I stopped by the Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument in south-central Colorado to look at some 15-foot-diameter fossil trunks of giant redwoods. Petrified wood – whether broken fragments or entire logs – are not especially rare, but they are always interesting. The western states do not have a lock on petrified wood for many fine specimens have been found along several Arkansas rivers. The process of turning living tissue into stone is a slow one, probably taking hundreds of thousands of years. For a fossil to form – and petrified wood is a fossil – it must be buried quickly and be in an anaerobic environment so the tissue does not decay. Once entombed in the muck the infill with minerals can begin. In environments with very high concentrations of silicates the process will progress faster whereas in drier environs the replacement will be slow. The redwoods at Florissant Fossil Beds were growing in a moist, relatively mild climate about 34 million years ago when a series of volcanic eruptions buried the trees in fifteen feet of ash and debris. Lava flows blocked natural drainage ways and a lake formed around the trees. The tops of the trees fell and eventually rotted away but the basal portion of the trunks, encased in the volcanic ash and submerged in the lake water, were mummified. Without oxygen, these wooden stumps did not rot but slowly turned to stone. Silicates, calcites and pyrites in the volcanic ash dissolved and became concentrated in the muck surrounding the stumps. The saturated solution began to infiltrate the open vessels of the stumps and slowly infill the microscopic cavities of the tissue in a process called permineralization. Once the cavities were filled with minerals the carbon matrix surrounding these microscopic cavities was replaced in a process simply called replacement. The array of colors seen in petrified wood is due to the presence of a whole assemblage of trace elements that were around when the mineral solution was infiltrating the wood. The Florissant Fossil Bed site is a treasure trove for paleontologists studying life in the past. More than 1,500 species of plants, insects and animals have been painstakingly split from the thin sheets of shale found in the area. The eruption that killed the redwoods and encased their bases in ash was just the first in a series of eruptions that went on for the next several million years. Life, as it will, returned to the new lake dammed by the volcanic flow. Future eruptions spewed more ash into the lake, burying insects and leaves in a shallow sediment. Some of the best plant and insect fossils known have been split from these thin sheets of shale. Most petrified wood – such as Arizona’s Petrified Forest National Park – are from logs that have washed in from a flooded river and been deposited in a delta region where they were covered by subsequent floods. Standing trunks are only formed when the trees are buried in volcanic ash and the wood is not destroyed by fire. Last summer I visited an area in Oregon that had been visited by a fairly recent lava flow. The molten stone encased the trunks of the Ponderosa pines, quickly incinerating the trunk. But the lava had cooled enough to form a perfect mold of the tree trunk. Over time these hollow molds can fill with debris that, if buried long enough, can turn to stone as well. This would represent a fossil cast, not petrified wood. Northwest Arkansas (NWA) is a metropolitan area and region in Arkansas within the Ozark Mountains. It includes four of the ten largest cities in the state: Fayetteville, Springdale, Rogers, and Bentonville, the surrounding towns of Benton and Washington counties, and adjacent rural Madison County, Arkansas. The United States Census Bureau-defined Fayetteville–Springdale–Rogers Metropolitan Statistical Area includes 3,213.01 square miles (8,321.7 km2) and 576,403 residents (as of 2022),[2] ranking NWA as the 98th most-populous metropolitan statistical area in the U.S. and the 13th fastest growing in the United States. Northwest Arkansas doubled in population between 1990 and 2010. Growth has been driven by the three Fortune 500 companies based in NWA: Walmart, Tyson Foods, and J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. as well as over 1,700 suppliers and vendors drawn to the region by these large businesses and NWA's business climate. There are also several large private employers like Simmons Foods in Siloam Springs. The region has also seen significant investment in amenities, including the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, the Walmart AMP, and the NWA Razorback Regional Greenway. Etymology "We’re like five siblings, if you will, fighting for crumbs that fall off the table instead of joining together with a common voice and say the same thing that this is the No. 1 highway project in Northwest Arkansas." Uvalde Lindsey[3] The term "Northwest Arkansas" is commonly used to refer to the rapidly growing cities of Benton and Washington counties in the geographic corner of the state. Northwest Arkansas, often abbreviated NWA, has become known as a cohesive region due to the efforts of the Northwest Arkansas Council, an association of community and business leaders formally organized in 1990 to promote regionalization and cooperation among area stakeholders. The first two chairs of the NWA Council were Alice Walton and John Paul Hammerschmidt. One of the first prominent uses of the region's name came on July 8, 1937, when the newspaper known as the Fayetteville Daily Democrat (The Democrat pre 1893) was renamed the Northwest Arkansas Times.[4] Another major initiative using the region's name was the Northwest Arkansas National Airport (often referred to by its IATA airport code, XNA), which opened in 1998.[5] Other regional priorities advocated for by the NWA Council include Interstate 49 (initially built at I-540), the Northwest Arkansas Community College (NWACC), the Northwest Arkansas Naturals minor-league baseball team, and the Northwest Arkansas Razorback Regional Greenway 36 miles (58 km) hard-surface trail. The region is also sometimes known as "the 479" after the telephone area code that serves the region, though the Fort Smith metro also uses the 479 area code.[6] Occasionally, the Fort Smith metro is included in "Northwest Arkansas", though it is within the geographically distinct Arkansas River Valley region and separated from the subject region by the sparsely populated Boston Mountains. Geography See also: Geography of Arkansas Northwest Arkansas is located in the Southern United States. It is within the Upper South, characterized by the Ozarks. The southern part of NWA is a high and deeply dissected plateau, full of sparsely populated oak-hickory forest, separating the region from the Arkansas River Valley to the south. Places adjacent to Northwest Arkansas Political geography Settlements were initially founded in the 19th century and early 20th century as individual communities, with Fayetteville, Springdale, Rogers, and Bentonville serving as historic population centers in the area. Growth began during the mid-20th century, a period of suburbanization largely rooted in automobile dependency. Thus the Northwest Arkansas cities expanded toward one another along major transportation corridors, in some cases becoming seamlessly connected urban areas such as Prairie Grove and Farmington along US 62 now connected to Fayetteville's southwest side.[7] The transition from individual communities separated by rural or agricultural lands accelerated rapidly in the 1990s and early 2000s, as the population of the region doubled.[5] Cities began rapidly annexing unincorporated lands, especially near the four-largest focal cities, adding an additional 45.5 square miles (118 km2) or 16% of incorporated size between 2000 and 2004.[8] The Northwest Arkansas Regional Planning Commission (NWARPC, the region's metropolitan planning organization) expanded its planning area to include all of Benton and Washington counties in 2003.[9] Annexations along transportation corridors spurred the need for expanding roadways, including along US 62 southwest of Fayetteville and northeast of Rogers, and Highway 59 north from Siloam Springs.[9] The United States Census Bureau definition includes Benton, Washington, and Madison counties in Arkansas. Until 2018, the Census Bureau also included McDonald County, Missouri. Cities Partial view of Fayetteville's locally famous Dickson Street. Fayetteville Main article: Fayetteville, Arkansas Fayetteville is the county seat of Washington County, home to the University of Arkansas, and the principal city of Northwest Arkansas. As of the 2020 census, the city had a total population of 93,949.[10] The city is the second most populous in Arkansas and serves as the county seat of Washington County. It's also known for Dickson Street, perhaps the most prominent entertainment district in the state of Arkansas, which itself contains the Walton Arts Center. Blocks from Dickson Street is the Fayetteville Historic Square, which hosts the nation's number one ranked Fayetteville's Farmer's Market.[11] Fayetteville was also ranked 8th on Forbes Magazine's Top 10 Best Places in America for Business and Careers in 2007.[12] Business insider named Fayetteville the 2nd best place to live in the South in 2016. Springdale Main article: Springdale, Arkansas Springdale is a city in Washington and Benton Counties. According to the 2020 census, the population of the city is 87,315. Springdale is currently Arkansas's fourth-largest city, behind Little Rock, Fort Smith, and Fayetteville. Springdale is the location of the headquarters of Tyson Foods Inc., the largest meat producing company in the world, and has been dubbed the "Chicken Capital of the World" by several publications. In 2008, the Wichita Wranglers of AA minor league baseball's Texas League moved to Springdale and play in Arvest Ballpark as the Northwest Arkansas Naturals. Rogers Main article: Rogers, Arkansas Rogers is a city in Benton County. As of the 2020 census, the city is the sixth most populous in the state, with a total population of 69,913. Rogers is famous as the location of the first Wal-Mart. In June 2007, BusinessWeek magazine ranked Rogers 18th in the 25 best affordable suburbs in the South. In 2010, CNN Money magazine ranked Rogers as the 10th Best Place to Live in the United States. Two of the city's biggest attractions are the outdoor concert venue the Walmart AMP and the open air shopping mall the Pinnacle Hills Promenade. The city is the home town of American country music singer-songwriter Joe Nichols, and Marty Perry, as well as David Noland. It is also where comedian Will Rogers married Betty Blake. Bentonville Main article: Bentonville, Arkansas Bentonville is the county seat of Benton County. At the 2020 census, the population was 54,210, up from 38,284 in 2010 ranking it as the state's 9th largest city. It is home to the headquarters of Walmart, which is the largest retailer in the world, and Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art. Crystal Bridges, founded by Sam Walton's daughter Alice Walton and designed by world-renowned architect Moshe Safdie, is home to some of America's finest works of art as well as Frank Lloyd Wright's Bachman-Wilson House.[13] Southern Living magazine recently cited Bentonville as "the South's next cultural mecca."[14] Cityscapes Bentonville Bentonville   Downtown Fayetteville Downtown Fayetteville   University of Arkansas Campus, Fayetteville University of Arkansas Campus, Fayetteville   Rogers Rogers   Emma Avenue, Springdale Emma Avenue, Springdale   Arvest Ballpark, Springdale Arvest Ballpark, Springdale   Sager Creek, Siloam Springs Sager Creek, Siloam Springs Geology The split between the Springfield Plateau and the Boston Mountains occurs in the center of Washington County, Arkansas very near Fayetteville. The rough, mountainous terrain south of Fayetteville is the Boston Mountains while the more-habitable Springfield Plateau contains the cities of Springdale, Bentonville and Rogers to the north. Main article: The Ozarks NWA is located within the Ozark Mountains, a deeply dissected plateau within the U.S. Interior Highlands, the largest mountainous region between the Appalachians and the Rocky Mountains. Although the topography varies widely within the region, the Ozark geology is present throughout. Roughly at Fayetteville, the geology splits between the Boston Mountains to the south and the Springfield Plateau to the north. The Ouachita orogeny exposed the older limestones of the Springfield Plateau, resulting in a softer terrain, while the Boston Mountains retained steep, sharp grade changes. The Ozarks are covered by an oak-hickory-pine forest, with large portions of protected forestland remaining NWA. Approximately 25% of this forest has been cleared for development and agricultural uses.[15] Hydrology White River at Spider Creek Most of NWA is within the White River watershed, with the western portions being contained within the Illinois River watershed. Within NWA, the White River is impounded at several locations, the most important of which is at Beaver Dam, forming the 13,700 acres (5,500 ha) Beaver Lake. This reservoir was created in the 1960s for flood control, recreational, and energy production uses. It also serves as the water supply for most of NWA, with Beaver Water District treating potable water and selling it directly to the four largest NWA municipalities. The Illinois River watershed is a sensitive watershed that has been the subject of controversy within the area for many years. The phosphorus load of the Illinois has been subject of controversy, eventually resulting in litigation between Oklahoma and Arkansas reaching the United States Supreme Court in 1992. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has classified the Illinois as Section 303(d) of the Clean Water Act, listing it as an "impaired and threatened water" due to the high phosphorus loads.[16] Parks The Northwest Arkansas region is known for its natural environment, and outdoor recreation.[citation needed] When selecting a name for the new minor league baseball team in the early 2000s, Northwest Arkansas Naturals was selected in honor of the region's natural resources, including a waterfall in the initial logo to symbolize the region's over 130 naturally occurring waterfalls.[17] The region offers thousands of acres of public land under various agencies, ecoregion type, and function. Despite rapid suburbanization, over half of Washington and 40% of Benton county remained forested in 2015.[18] The region has maintained an open space plan since 2015, and has considered a sales tax to fund purchases of open lands by the Northwest Arkansas Land Trust.[19] An expansive trail network has been built across Northwest Arkansas, centered on the Northwest Arkansas Razorback Regional Greenway, a 38-mile (61 km) primarily off-road shared-use paved trail connecting the region's major cities, employer headquarters, schools, parks and cultural amenities. Upon completion in 2015, the Greenway connected to 68 miles (109 km) of other hard-surfaced trails and over 100 miles (160 km) of soft-surface nature trails throughout the region.[20] Northwest Arkansas has drawn endorsement from the mountain biking community, earning a 'Regional Ride Center' designation from the International Mountain Bicycling Association in 2015, the first granted to a region rather than a city.[21] Mountain biking trail development has continued, adding mileage in the state parks along natural features.[22] The most popular[citation needed] water destination is Beaver Lake. Beaver Lake has approximately 449 miles (723 km) of natural shoreline, with limestone bluffs, natural caves, and a variety of trees and flowering shrubs. Paved access roads wind through twelve developed parks, all of which have campsites offering electricity, fire rings, drinking water, showers, and restrooms. Other facilities, such as picnic sites, swimming beaches, hiking trails, boat launch ramps, and sanitary dump stations are also available.[23] Nine rivers can be canoed, paddled, or floated seasonally when stream flows permit, including the nearby Buffalo National River and nearby Illinois River, King's River, and Elk River.[24] The University of Arkansas offers equipment rental and outdoor excursions into the Ozarks for students.[25] The Botanical Garden of the Ozarks opened in 2007, and includes seasonal plantings in a small area, a wildflower meadow, a lakeside hiking trail, and a self-guided tree identification tour. National forest Main article: Ozark National Forest State parks and areas Main articles: List of Arkansas state parks and List of Wildlife Management Areas in Arkansas The region contains three state parks. Hobbs State Park - Conservation Area, the largest state park in Arkansas, is jointly managed by the Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism, Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission, and the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission.[26] Devil's Den State Park is a popular hiking and camping destination near Winslow. Prairie Grove Battlefield State Park preserves the history of the Civil War Battle of Prairie Grove. The three-county region also contains two natural areas, Garrett Hollow Natural Area, Sweden Creek Natural Area, and four wildlife management areas (Beaver Lake WMA, McIlroy Madison County WMA, Wedington WMA, White Rock WMA). Culture and contemporary life Art and entertainment Partial view of Fayetteville's Dickson Street. Crystal Bridges art Museum looking northwest. The Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville opened in 2011.[27] The museum, funded by Sam Walton's daughter, Alice Walton, and designed by world-renowned architect Moshe Safdie, is home to a permanent collection of works, as well as rotating exhibits throughout the year. The Walton Arts Center is Arkansas' largest performing arts center. It is located in Fayetteville near the campus of the University of Arkansas and serves as a cultural center for the Northwest Arkansas area. The theater was opened in 1992 and was funded largely by the Walton family (of Wal-Mart). The center is host to many musicals, plays, and other artistic and educational events throughout the year. The Walton Arts Center is also home to the Symphony of Northwest Arkansas, currently under the direction of Paul Haas.[28] TheatreSquared is Northwest Arkansas's regional professional theatre. Its four-play season and annual Arkansas New Play Fest are attended by an audience of 22,000, including educational outreach program to approximately 10,000 students and their teachers. The company was recognized by the American Theatre Wing in 2011 as one of the nation's ten most promising emerging theatres. The Arts Center of the Ozarks is the region's oldest community theatre. Since its inception in 1967, the ACO has grown from a small arts organization into a cultural center of regional significance. Located in downtown Springdale, the ACO offers a full season of mainstage plays and musicals, children's programs, visual arts exhibits, and classes in a variety of creative outlets. The Bentonville square features the Wal-Mart Visitors Center. Located in Sam Walton's original Bentonville variety store, the Wal-Mart Visitors Center traces the origin and growth of Wal-Mart. The center was created as an educational and informative facility as well as a museum. Dickson Street and the surrounding area in downtown Fayetteville is the main entertainment district of the region, located just off the University of Arkansas campus. The area is dense with restaurants, bars, and shops. Dickson Street is home to the Walton Arts Center, the Bikes, Blues, and BBQ Festival, and many parades. Festivals Bikes, Blues, & BBQ motorcycle rally on Dickson Street in Fayetteville with over 400,000 people attending over four days[29] Since 2015, the Bentonville Film Festival has taken place in the first week of May. Over 85,000 attendees take part in this week-long event.[30] Since 1974, the Dogwood Festival has brought around 30,000 people to Siloam Springs and its parks for a 3-day event. Food, crafts, entertainment, flea market items, and KidZone activities make for a fun day for all ages. Held the weekend of the last Sunday in April each year.[31] In 2009, the City of Fayetteville began assisting in the sponsorship of All Out June, Northwest Arkansas' pride festival for the LGBT community. The event is considered Arkansas' largest, and is organized by the NWA Center for Equality and the NWA Pride Parade Organization. Walmart Shareholder's Meeting at Bud Walton Arena brings over 5,000 employees to Fayetteville from around the world.[32] Since 2011, the World Championship Squirrel Cook Off in Bentonville[33] Battle of Prairie Grove Reenactment, hundreds of Civil War reenactors camp and fight at Prairie Grove Battlefield State Park in December of even-numbered years[34] Format Festival, a festival combining music, art, and technology, was started in 2022 and runs for a weekend in September in Bentonville. Format is produced by C3 Presents, who also started well-known festivals like Austin City Limits Music Festival and Lollapalooza. Sports View of Razorback Stadium during a visit from ESPN's College Gameday The sporting scene is large in Northwest Arkansas, primarily due to the presence of the University of Arkansas Razorbacks, Arkansas’ most successful, followed, and loved sports teams. The Razorbacks have a huge economic impact on the area, drawing fans from every corner of the state during football, basketball, and baseball seasons. The Razorbacks currently field 19 total men's and women's varsity teams (8 men's and 11 women's) in 13 sports. The men's varsity teams are baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golf, tennis, and indoor and outdoor track and field; the 11 women's varsity teams are basketball, cross country, golf, gymnastics, soccer, swimming and diving, indoor and outdoor track, tennis, softball and volleyball. The Razorbacks compete in NCAA Division I (Division I FBS in football) and are currently members of the Southeastern Conference (Western Division). Facilities include: Reynolds Razorback Stadium, Bud Walton Arena, Baum Stadium, Randal Tyson Indoor Track Center, and the John McDonnell Field. In early 2008, Northwest Arkansas welcomed a Double-A minor league baseball team, formerly known as the Wichita Wranglers, to Springdale, where they became the Northwest Arkansas Naturals. The Naturals play at Arvest Ballpark. On July 12, 2023, the United Soccer League announced they have entered a partnership with a group, USL Arkansas, to bring USL Championship and USL Super League teams to Northwest Arkansas. The teams will play in a new 5,000-seat stadium set to be built near the Pinnacle Hills Promenade in Rogers. Demographics Historical population Census Pop. Note %± 1840 12,151 — 1850 18,503 52.3% 1860 31,719 71.4% 1870 39,328 24.0% 1880 55,627 41.4% 1890 77,142 38.7% 1900 85,731 11.1% 1910 83,334 −2.8% 1920 86,639 4.0% 1930 87,842 1.4% 1940 91,793 4.5% 1950 99,789 8.7% 1960 101,137 1.4% 1970 137,299 35.8% 1980 189,982 38.4% 1990 222,526 17.1% 2000 325,364 46.2% 2010 440,121 35.3% 2020 546,725 24.2% 2022 (est.) 576,403 5.4% U.S. Decennial Census[35] 1790–1960[36] 1900–1990[37] 1990–2000[38] 2010–2016[39] Region compared to State & U.S.  Northwest Arkansas is the second-largest population center in the state, behind Central Arkansas. The two regions rank as 105th and 80th nationally by population, respectively. The region is the fastest-growing in the state, and the 12th fastest-growing in the United States, with a 24.22% growth rate between 2010 and 2020.[44] Rather than a central city with suburbs model, Northwest Arkansas emerged as a unified region of disconnected cities that grew and amalgamated over time. Thus, the official Census Bureau name Fayetteville–Springdale–Rogers Metropolitan Statistical Area is simply a listing of the three largest cities in the region at the time of naming.[45] Northwest Arkansas residents and visitors at the Fayetteville Farmer's Market Over half of Northwest Arkansas's population resides within the largest four cities, Fayetteville, Springdale, Rogers, and Bentonville, with each having demographic characteristics congruent with its largest employer. Fayetteville, home to the University of Arkansas, contains the highest proportion of adults over 25 with a bachelor's degree or higher, at 44.8%, significantly above the other communities, and in line with major metropolitan areas. Bentonville, home to white-collar workers at the Walmart Home Office and the ancillary vendor community, has the highest per-capita income in the region.[45] Springdale and Rogers contain significant manufacturing and construction industries, and a corresponding high percentage of Blue-collar workers and major foreign-born populations.[46] Over 10% of businesses in Springdale and Rogers are Hispanic-owned.[45] Approximately half of Northwest Arkansas residents are transplants from a different state or country. Population, land area & population density (2016 Census Bureau estimates) County Ref. Population Land mi2 Land km2 Pop. /mi2 Pop. /km2 Benton County[47] 258,291 847.36 2,194.65 261.2 100.85 Washington County[48] 228,049 941.97 2,439.69 215.6 83.24 Madison County[49] 16,072 834.26 2,160.72 18.8 7.26 Northwest Arkansas 525,032 3,163.07 8,192.31 166.0 64.09 Arkansas 2,988,248 52,035.48 134,771.27 56.0 21.62 Race and ethnicity The region is less diverse than Arkansas and United States averages, with a 1.9% black population accounting for much of the proportional difference. The national trends of an increasing non-white proportion of the population and migration from rural areas to urban areas has also been seen in Northwest Arkansas and statewide since the 1990s, though the non-white population growth has lagged national averages.[50] Historically, the northwestern half of the state was predominantly settled by whites in small farms for subsistence agriculture due to the hilly terrain and rocky soils, rather than the slave-intensive labor of plantation agriculture typical in the fertile and flat Arkansas Delta.[51] Northwest Arkansas institutions have placed different priority on diversity within the region. University of Arkansas Chancellor John A. White designated diversity the top institutional goal in 2010, seeking to create a campus community in line with state and national averages.[52] The Northwest Arkansas Council listed "Promote racial, cultural, and ethnic diversity in Northwest Arkansas" last among priority placemaking objectives within the 2015 strategic plan.[53] The city of Gentry has a dense community of Hmong Americans, many resettled by the United States after the North Vietnamese invasion of Laos and subsequent Indochina Migration and Refugee Assistance Act.[54] Hmong National Development, a subsidiary of Hmong American Partnership, has an office in Fayetteville and Fairview, Missouri, one county north of the official Northwest Arkansas boundary. Gentry School District was the epicenter of cultural conflicts among Hmong, Hispanic, and white residents in the early 2000s.[55] A 2016 study of blacks and Hispanics in Arkansas cities found median incomes rising for blacks and declining for Hispanics in Bentonville.[56] Sexual orientation and gender identity 2018 NWA Pride Festival on Dickson Street in Fayetteville The Northwest Arkansas Center for Equality has sponsored the Northwest Arkansas Pride parade since 2006. The parade runs from the Fayetteville Historic Square down Dickson Street in Fayetteville.[57] A state poll in 2017 showed 84% of Arkansans believe LGBT residents should have equal employment rights, and 78% believing equal rights to housing should be afforded. Arkansan support for equal treatment in adoptions (43%), and gay marriage (35%), were significantly below national averages, 61% and 64%, respectively.[58] Arkansas is one of three states which does not prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity.[59] Fayetteville and Eureka Springs have recently worked to provide legal protections for LGBT residents. Fayetteville has worked legislatively and through the court system since 2014 to establish protections for LGBT residents in the city. The Fayetteville City Council passed Ordinance 119 in August 2014 by a 6–2 vote at 3:20 am, after an extended public comment period, which included testimony from LGBT residents who had encountered discrimination.[60] Ordinance 119 extended protections, including against termination and eviction, and created a Civil Rights Commission to investigate violations. An opposition group gathered enough signatures to put repealing the ordinance to the voters of Fayetteville, who repealed the ordinance by a 52–48% margin.[61] The City Council put a similar measure, the Uniform Civil Rights Protection Ordinance 5781, to a public vote in September 2015, which passed 53–47%.[62] In the interim, Republican State Senator Bart Hester, who represents northwestern Benton County in Northwest Arkansas, proposed the Intrastate Commerce Improvement Act in response to the Fayetteville Ordinance, which prohibited municipalities in Arkansas from creating new protected classes in Arkansas.[63] The Arkansas General Assembly passed the act, known as Act 137.[64] In February 2017, the Arkansas Supreme Court declared Ordinance 5781 unconstitutional for violating Act 137, but did not rule on the act's constitutionality, which has been questioned.[62] The ruling drew national attention to Arkansas, and comparisons to HB 2 in North Carolina.[59] Northwest Arkansas' All Out June, a pride festival for its LGBT community, is considered Arkansas' largest, and is organized by the NWA Center for Equality and the NWA Pride Parade Organization. 2000 As of the census[65] of 2000, there were 347,045 people, 131,939 households, and 92,888 families residing within the MSA. The racial makeup of the MSA was 89.70% White, 1.22% African American, 1.53% Native American, 1.19% Asian, 0.29% Pacific Islander, 4.03% from other races, and 2.04% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 8.32% of the population. Over the past decade or more, Northwest Arkansas has been one of the fastest growing regions in the South. The median income for a household in the MSA was $32,469, and the median income for a family was $38,118. Males had a median income of $27,025 versus $20,295 for females. The per capita income for the MSA was $16,159. Economy Booming prosperity accompanying a tremendous increase in the area's population has made Northwest Arkansas a recognized economic success. Many migrants come from Northeast Arkansas and Central Arkansas to work in this booming area. The state's population grew 13.7 percent between 1990 and 2000, but the two-county metropolitan statistical area accounted for one-third of that growth. Benton and Washington counties grew 47 percent between 1990 and 2000. Almost all of the people who moved to those counties then were from California, Oklahoma, Missouri, Kansas, Texas and other parts of Arkansas.[66] Estimates put the two-county population at roughly 373,055 by December 2004. Even during national economic turmoil, Northwest Arkansas has experienced 8.2 percent job growth. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, in February 2008 the Northwest Arkansas region as a whole had an unemployment rate of 4.1%.[67] This unemployment rate gave Northwest Arkansas a rank of 41 out of 369 metropolitan areas in the United States. Per capita income in Northwest Arkansas is $31,191, according to the most recent figures from the United States Census Bureau.[68] This is approximately $7,000 below the average per capita income.[68] Bentonville is world-renowned as a retail capital of the world, as it is headquarters to Walmart. Springdale is home to Fortune 75 company Tyson Foods, the world's leading producer of poultry and beef, and second-largest producer of pork. J.B. Hunt Transport Services in Lowell, is the nation's largest publicly owned truckload carrier, with international networks in Canada and Mexico. The region has been noted for its transplants. The area has seen a number of transplants moving to the area from larger metropolitan areas in pursuit of jobs and amenities at a lower cost of living.[69] Wealthy enclaves such as Pinnacle in Rogers and amenities built to cater to transplants to the area have transformed the economies and cultures of Northwest Arkansas's formerly small, quiet towns.[70] Transplants from states like Texas, California, and Colorado have flooded into the area in recent years, leaving cities like Dallas, Los Angeles, and Denver in pursuit of NWA's low cost of living, laidback lifestyle, and natural amenities. Human resources Education Cane Hill College in Canehill, Arkansas Northwest Arkansas has a strong tradition of education. Cane Hill College was founded in western Washington County in 1834; the first college in Arkansas, and Arkansas College was founded in Fayetteville in 1850.[a] Though both colleges are now defunct, these institutions laid the groundwork for establishing the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville in 1871, today the largest and best-known university in the state. Seven of the top ten school districts in Arkansas are within Benton or Washington counties, including Haas Hall Academy, a top 100 high school nationwide.[71] As of July 2016, 85.3% of Northwest Arkansas residents over age 25 held a high school degree or higher and 30.9% holding a bachelor's degree or higher. The Northwest Arkansas rates are above Arkansas averages of 84.8% and 21.1%, and near national averages of 86.7% and 29.8%, respectively.[b] Primary and secondary education Northwest Arkansas public school districts range from small, rural districts to some of the largest districts in the state. Among the four large cities, each district contains two high schools, with the exception of Fayetteville Public Schools: Bentonville and Bentonville West, Rogers and Rogers Heritage, and Springdale and Springdale Har-Ber. These schools, combined with Fayetteville (and Van Buren from the Arkansas River Valley) constitute the 7A West Conference for athletics, the largest class in the state. The region's growth has led to many new schools throughout the region, including high schools. Rogers Heritage High School was established in 2008, Rogers New Technology High School, and Bentonville West High School opened in 2014. There are also several private, charter, parochial, and secular schools, including Shiloh Christian School in Springdale. Higher education Old Main, original University of Arkansas building. University of Arkansas The University of Arkansas (UA) is a public co-educational land-grant university. It is the flagship campus of the University of Arkansas System and is located in Fayetteville, Arkansas. It is noted for its strong architecture, agriculture (particularly poultry science), creative writing, and business programs. Sports are also important to the university, as they are home to the Arkansas Razorbacks.[73] John Brown University Northwest Arkansas Community College (NWACC) Ecclesia College Public library systems Entrance of the nationally recognized Fayetteville Public Library. The Fayetteville Public Library is the largest library in Northwest Arkansas. The other libraries in Washington County have formed the Washington County Library System (WCLS). Infrastructure Surface transportation I-49 runs south from Fayetteville into the Boston Mountains The region is mainly served by Interstate 49. A widening of I-49 to six lanes and improvements to interchanges, including Arkansas's first single-point urban interchange at Exit 85 [2], are currently in the final stages [3]. Other major highways that serve the area include US 62, US 71, US 71B, and US 412B. Aviation Northwest Arkansas National Airport (often referred to by its IATA airport code, XNA) is the primary commercial service airport in the region. The facility opened in 1998, supplanting Drake Field in Greenland, which remains as a general aviation facility. XNA has one concourse, with twelve gates. The three most popular destinations for the year-long period ending June 2017 were Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport, and O'Hare International Airport, hubs for American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, and United Airlines, respectively.[74] The Northwest Arkansas Council has prioritized attracting a low-cost carrier to the airport, and has had relative success with Allegiant Air, which offers three permanent and three seasonal destinations. The region has seven smaller, public use general aviation airports, including Drake Field, Rogers Executive Airport, Springdale Municipal Airport, Bentonville Municipal Airport, Siloam Springs Municipal Airport, Crystal Lake Airport, and Huntsville Municipal Airport. Beaver Lake Aviation, a wholly owned subsidiary of Walmart, is based in Rogers. Mass transit Razorback Transit bus on the campus of the University of Arkansas Two public transit agencies serve the area; Ozark Regional Transit is a general transit agency with around a dozen local routes, plus commuter, paratransit, and special purpose routes. Razorback Transit primarily serves University of Arkansas students, is fare-free, and has a service area limited to Fayetteville. It is also open to the general public. Intercity bus service is provided by Jefferson Lines in Fayetteville.[75] See also Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art McDonald Territory, a failed attempt by McDonald County, Missouri to leave Missouri and become part of Arkansas in 1961 Walton Arts Center Arkansas metropolitan areas Notes  Not the same institution as Lyon College, also founded as Arkansas College but in Batesville in 1872.  Calculated using the percentages and overall populations to total for the four-county area.[72] References Arkansas (/ˈɑːrkənsɔː/ ⓘ AR-kən-saw[c]) is a landlocked state in the South Central region of the Southern United States.[9][10] It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma to the west. Its name derives from the Osage language, a Dhegiha Siouan language, and referred to their relatives, the Quapaw people.[11] The state's diverse geography ranges from the mountainous regions of the Ozark and Ouachita Mountains, which make up the U.S. Interior Highlands, to the densely forested land in the south known as the Arkansas Timberlands, to the eastern lowlands along the Mississippi River and the Arkansas Delta. Arkansas is the 29th largest by area and the 34th most populous state, with a population of just over three million at the 2020 census.[5] The capital and most populous city is Little Rock, in the central part of the state, a hub for transportation, business, culture, and government. The northwestern corner of the state, including the Fayetteville–Springdale–Rogers Metropolitan Area and Fort Smith metropolitan area, is a population, education, and economic center. The largest city in the state's eastern part is Jonesboro. The largest city in the state's southeastern part is Pine Bluff. Previously part of French Louisiana and the Louisiana Purchase, the Territory of Arkansas was admitted to the Union as the 25th state on June 15, 1836.[12] Much of the Delta had been developed for cotton plantations, and landowners there largely depended on enslaved African Americans' labor. In 1861, Arkansas seceded from the United States and joined the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War. On returning to the Union in 1868, Arkansas continued to suffer economically, due to its overreliance on the large-scale plantation economy. Cotton remained the leading commodity crop, and the cotton market declined. Because farmers and businessmen did not diversify and there was little industrial investment, the state fell behind in economic opportunity. In the late 19th century, the state instituted various Jim Crow laws to disenfranchise and segregate the African-American population. White interests dominated Arkansas's politics, with disenfranchisement of African Americans and refusal to reapportion the legislature; only after the federal legislation passed were more African Americans able to vote. During the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s, Arkansas and particularly Little Rock were major battlegrounds for efforts to integrate schools. Following World War II in the 1940s, Arkansas began to diversify its economy and see prosperity. During the 1960s, the state became the base of the Walmart corporation, the world's largest company by revenue, headquartered in Bentonville. In the 21st century, Arkansas's economy is based on service industries, aircraft, poultry, steel, and tourism, along with important commodity crops of cotton, soybeans and rice. Arkansas's culture is observable in museums, theaters, novels, television shows, restaurants, and athletic venues across the state. Notable people from the state include politician and educational advocate William Fulbright; former president Bill Clinton, who also served as the 40th and 42nd governor of Arkansas; general Wesley Clark, former NATO Supreme Allied Commander; Walmart founder and magnate Sam Walton;[13] singer-songwriters Johnny Cash, Charlie Rich, Jimmy Driftwood, and Glen Campbell; actor-filmmaker Billy Bob Thornton; poet C. D. Wright; physicist William L. McMillan, a pioneer in superconductor research; poet laureate Maya Angelou; Douglas MacArthur; musician Al Green; actor Alan Ladd; basketball player Scottie Pippen; singer Ne-Yo; Chelsea Clinton; actress Sheryl Underwood; and author John Grisham. Etymology Pronunciation of Arkansas Duration: 2 seconds.0:02 Problems playing this file? See media help. The name Arkansas initially applied to the Arkansas River. It derives from a French term, Arcansas, their plural term for their transliteration of akansa, an Algonquian term for the Quapaw people.[14] These were a Dhegiha Siouan-speaking people who settled in Arkansas around the 13th century. Kansa is likely also the root term for Kansas, which was named after the related Kaw people.[14] The name has been pronounced and spelled in a variety of ways.[c] In 1881, the state legislature defined the official pronunciation of Arkansas as having the final "s" be silent (as it would be in French). A dispute had arisen between the state's two senators over the pronunciation issue. One favored /ˈɑːrkənsɔː/ (AR-kən-saw), the other /ɑːrˈkænzəs/ (ar-KAN-zəs).[c] In 2007, the state legislature passed a non-binding resolution declaring that the possessive form of the state's name is Arkansas's, which the state government has increasingly followed.[16][17] History This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources in this section. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (January 2022) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) Main article: History of Arkansas Early history Main articles: New France, Louisiana (New France), French and Indian War, Treaty of Paris (1763), New Spain, Louisiana (New Spain), and Treaty of Aranjuez (1801) Platform mounds were constructed frequently during the Woodland and Mississippian periods. Before European settlement of North America, Arkansas, was inhabited by indigenous peoples for thousands of years. The Caddo, Osage, and Quapaw peoples encountered European explorers. The first of these Europeans was Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto in 1541, who crossed the Mississippi and marched across central Arkansas and the Ozark Mountains. After finding nothing he considered of value and encountering native resistance the entire way, he and his men returned to the Mississippi River where de Soto fell ill. From his deathbed he ordered his men to massacre all the men of the nearby village of Anilco, who he feared had been plotting with a powerful polity down the Mississippi River, Quigualtam. His men obeyed and did not stop with the men, but were said to have massacred women and children as well. He died the following day in what is believed to be the vicinity of modern-day McArthur, Arkansas, in May 1542. His body was weighted down with sand and he was consigned to a watery grave in the Mississippi River under cover of darkness by his men. De Soto had attempted to deceive the native population into thinking he was an immortal deity, sun of the sun, in order to forestall attack by outraged Native Americans on his by then weakened and bedraggled army. In order to keep the ruse up, his men informed the locals that de Soto had ascended into the sky. His will at the time of his death listed "four Indian slaves, three horses and 700 hogs" which were auctioned off. The starving men, who had been living off maize stolen from natives, immediately started butchering the hogs and later, commanded by former aide-de-camp Moscoso, attempted an overland return to Mexico. They made it as far as Texas before running into territory too dry for maize farming and too thinly populated to sustain themselves by stealing food from the locals. The expedition promptly backtracked to Arkansas. After building a small fleet of boats they then headed down the Mississippi River and eventually on to Mexico by water.[18][19] Later explorers included the French Jacques Marquette and Louis Jolliet in 1673, and Frenchmen Robert La Salle and Henri de Tonti in 1681.[20][21] Tonti established Arkansas Post at a Quapaw village in 1686, making it the first European settlement in the territory.[22] The early Spanish or French explorers of the state gave it its name, which is probably a phonetic spelling of the Illinois tribe's name for the Quapaw people, who lived downriver from them.[23][c] The name Arkansas has been pronounced and spelled in a variety of fashions. The region was organized as the Territory of Arkansaw on July 4, 1819, with the territory admitted to the United States as the state of Arkansas on June 15, 1836. The name was historically /ˈɑːrkənsɔː/, /ɑːrˈkænzəs/, and several other variants. Historically and modernly, the people of Arkansas call themselves either "Arkansans" or "Arkansawyers". In 1881, the Arkansas General Assembly passed Arkansas Code 1-4-105 (official text): Whereas, confusion of practice has arisen in the pronunciation of the name of our state and it is deemed important that the true pronunciation should be determined for use in oral official proceedings. And, whereas, the matter has been thoroughly investigated by the State Historical Society and the Eclectic Society of Little Rock, which have agreed upon the correct pronunciation as derived from history, and the early usage of the American immigrants. Be it therefore resolved by both houses of the General Assembly, that the only true pronunciation of the name of the state, in the opinion of this body, is that received by the French from the native Indians and committed to writing in the French word representing the sound. It should be pronounced in three (3) syllables, with the final "s" silent, the "a" in each syllable with the Italian sound, and the accent on the first and last syllables. The pronunciation with the accent on the second syllable with the sound of "a" in "man" and the sounding of the terminal "s" is an innovation to be discouraged. Citizens of the state of Kansas often pronounce the Arkansas River as /ɑːrˈkænzəs ˈrɪvər/, in a manner similar to the common pronunciation of the name of their state. Settlers, such as fur trappers, moved to Arkansas in the early 18th century. These people used Arkansas Post as a home base and entrepôt.[22] During the colonial period, Arkansas changed hands between France and Spain following the Seven Years' War, although neither showed interest in the remote settlement of Arkansas Post.[24] In April 1783, Arkansas saw its only battle of the American Revolutionary War, a brief siege of the post by British Captain James Colbert with the assistance of the Choctaw and Chickasaw.[25] Purchase and statehood Main articles: Louisiana Purchase, District of Louisiana, Louisiana Territory, Missouri Territory, Organic act § List of organic acts, and Arkansas Territory Map of the Arkansas Territory Napoleon Bonaparte sold French Louisiana to the United States in 1803, including all of Arkansas, in a transaction known today as the Louisiana Purchase. French soldiers remained as a garrison at Arkansas Post. Following the purchase, the balanced give-and-take relationship between settlers and Native Americans began to change all along the frontier, including in Arkansas.[26] Following a controversy over allowing slavery in the territory, the Territory of Arkansas was organized on July 4, 1819.[c] Gradual emancipation in Arkansas was struck down by one vote, the Speaker of the House Henry Clay, allowing Arkansas to organize as a slave territory.[27] Slavery became a wedge issue in Arkansas, forming a geographic divide that remained for decades. Owners and operators of the cotton plantation economy in southeast Arkansas firmly supported slavery, as they perceived slave labor as the best or "only" economically viable method of harvesting their commodity crops.[28] The "hill country" of northwest Arkansas was unable to grow cotton and relied on a cash-scarce, subsistence farming economy.[29] Arkansas statehood, 100th anniversary issue; released on June 15, 1936 on the 100th anniversary of Arkansas statehood. The old state house is depicted at center, the fort surrounding the Arkansas Post at left with the present day state capitol building at right.[30] As European Americans settled throughout the East Coast and into the Midwest, in the 1830s the United States government forced the removal of many Native American tribes to Arkansas and Indian Territory west of the Mississippi River. Additional Native American removals began in earnest during the territorial period, with final Quapaw removal complete by 1833 as they were pushed into Indian Territory.[31] The capital was relocated from Arkansas Post to Little Rock in 1821, during the territorial period.[32] See also: Admission to the Union and List of U.S. states by date of admission to the Union When Arkansas applied for statehood, the slavery issue was again raised in Washington, D.C. Congress eventually approved the Arkansas Constitution after a 25-hour session, admitting Arkansas on June 15, 1836, as the 25th state and the 13th slave state, having a population of about 60,000.[33] Arkansas struggled with taxation to support its new state government, a problem made worse by a state banking scandal and worse yet by the Panic of 1837. Civil War and Reconstruction Main articles: Ordinance of Secession, Confederate States of America, and Arkansas in the American Civil War Lakeport Plantation, built c. 1859 In early antebellum Arkansas, the southeast Arkansas slave-based economy developed rapidly. On the eve of the American Civil War in 1860, enslaved African Americans numbered 111,115 people, just over 25% of the state's population.[34] A plantation system based largely on cotton agriculture developed that, after the war, kept the state and region behind the nation for decades.[35] The wealth developed among planters of southeast Arkansas caused a political rift between the northwest and southeast.[36] Many politicians were elected to office from the Family, the Southern rights political force in antebellum Arkansas. Residents generally wanted to avoid a civil war. When the Gulf states seceded in early 1861, delegates to a convention called to determine whether Arkansas should secede referred the question back to the voters for a referendum to be held in August.[36] Arkansas did not secede until Abraham Lincoln demanded Arkansas troops be sent to Fort Sumter to quell the rebellion there. On May 6, the members of the state convention, having been recalled by the convention president, voted to terminate Arkansas's membership in the Union and join the Confederate States of America.[36] Cannons at Battle of Pea Ridge site Arkansas held a very important position for the Rebels, maintaining control of the Mississippi River and surrounding Southern states. The bloody Battle of Wilson's Creek just across the border in Missouri shocked many Arkansans who thought the war would be a quick and decisive Southern victory. Battles early in the war took place in northwest Arkansas, including the Battle of Cane Hill, Battle of Pea Ridge, and Battle of Prairie Grove. Union general Samuel Curtis swept across the state to Helena in the Delta in 1862. Little Rock was captured the following year. The government shifted the state Confederate capital to Hot Springs, and then again to Washington from 1863 to 1865, for the remainder of the war. Throughout the state, guerrilla warfare ravaged the countryside and destroyed cities.[37] Passion for the Confederate cause waned after implementation of programs such as the draft, high taxes, and martial law. Under the Military Reconstruction Act, Congress declared Arkansas restored to the Union in June 1868, after the Legislature accepted the 14th Amendment. The Republican-controlled reconstruction legislature established universal male suffrage (though temporarily disfranchising former Confederate Army officers, who were all Democrats), a public education system for blacks and whites, and passed general issues to improve the state and help more of the population. The State soon came under control of the Radical Republicans and Unionists, and led by Governor Powell Clayton, they presided over a time of great upheaval as Confederate sympathizers and the Ku Klux Klan fought the new developments, particularly voting rights for African Americans. End of Reconstruction and late 19th century In 1874, the Brooks-Baxter War, a political struggle between factions of the Republican Party shook Little Rock and the state governorship. It was settled only when President Ulysses S. Grant ordered Joseph Brooks to disperse his militant supporters.[38] Following the Brooks-Baxter War, a new state constitution was ratified, re-enfranchising former Confederates and effectively bringing an end to Reconstruction. In 1881, the Arkansas state legislature enacted a bill that adopted an official pronunciation of the state's name, to combat a controversy then simmering. (See Law and Government below.) After Reconstruction, the state began to receive more immigrants and migrants. Chinese, Italian, and Syrian men were recruited for farm labor in the developing Delta region. None of these nationalities stayed long at farm labor; the Chinese especially, as they quickly became small merchants in towns around the Delta. Many Chinese became such successful merchants in small towns that they were able to educate their children at college.[39] Construction of railroads enabled more farmers to get their products to market. It also brought new development into different parts of the state, including the Ozarks, where some areas were developed as resorts. In a few years at the end of the 19th century, for instance, Eureka Springs in Carroll County grew to 10,000 people, rapidly becoming a tourist destination and the fourth-largest city of the state. It featured newly constructed, elegant resort hotels and spas planned around its natural springs, considered to have healthful properties. The town's attractions included horse racing and other entertainment. It appealed to a wide variety of classes, becoming almost as popular as Hot Springs. Rise of the Jim Crow laws and early 20th century See also: Elaine massacre A group of African American boys in Little Rock in 1938. In the late 1880s, the worsening agricultural depression catalyzed Populist and third party movements, leading to interracial coalitions. Struggling to stay in power, in the 1890s the Democrats in Arkansas followed other Southern states in passing legislation and constitutional amendments that disfranchised blacks and poor whites. In 1891 state legislators passed a requirement for a literacy test, knowing it would exclude many blacks and whites. At the time, more than 25% of the population could neither read nor write. In 1892, they amended the state constitution to require a poll tax and more complex residency requirements, both of which adversely affected poor people and sharecroppers, forcing most blacks and many poor whites from voter rolls. By 1900 the Democratic Party expanded use of the white primary in county and state elections, further denying blacks a part in the political process. Only in the primary was there any competition among candidates, as Democrats held all the power. The state was a Democratic one-party state for decades, until after passage of the federal Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Voting Rights Act of 1965 to enforce constitutional rights.[40] Between 1905 and 1911, Arkansas began to receive a small immigration of German, Slovak, and Scots-Irish from Europe. The German and Slovak peoples settled in the eastern part of the state known as the Prairie, and the Irish founded small communities in the southeast part of the state. The Germans were mostly Lutheran and the Slovaks were primarily Catholic. The Irish were mostly Protestant from Ulster, of Scots and Northern Borders descent. Some early 20th-century immigration included people from eastern Europe. Together, these immigrants made the Delta more diverse than the rest of the state. In the same years, some black migrants moved into the area because of opportunities to develop the bottomlands and own their own property. Black sharecroppers began to try to organize a farmers' union after World War I. They were seeking better conditions of payment and accounting from white landowners of the area cotton plantations. Whites resisted any change and often tried to break up their meetings. On September 30, 1919, two white men, including a local deputy, tried to break up a meeting of black sharecroppers who were trying to organize a farmers' union. After a white deputy was killed in a confrontation with guards at the meeting, word spread to town and around the area.[citation needed] Hundreds of whites from Phillips and neighboring areas rushed to suppress the blacks, and started attacking blacks at large. Governor Charles Hillman Brough requested federal troops to stop what was called the Elaine massacre. White mobs spread throughout the county, killing an estimated 237 blacks before most of the violence was suppressed after October 1.[41] Five whites also died in the incident. The governor accompanied the troops to the scene; President Woodrow Wilson had approved their use. Map of the flood of 1927 in Arkansas The Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 flooded the areas along the Ouachita Rivers along with many other rivers. Based on the order of President Franklin D. Roosevelt given shortly after Imperial Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor, nearly 16,000 Japanese Americans were forcibly removed from the West Coast of the United States and incarcerated in two internment camps in the Arkansas Delta.[42] The Rohwer Camp in Desha County operated from September 1942 to November 1945 and at its peak interned 8,475 prisoners.[42] The Jerome War Relocation Center in Drew County operated from October 1942 to June 1944 and held about 8,000.[42] Fall of segregation After the Supreme Court ruled segregation in public schools unconstitutional in Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas (1954), some students worked to integrate schools in the state. The Little Rock Nine brought Arkansas to national attention in 1957 when the federal government had to intervene to protect African-American students trying to integrate a high school in the capital. Governor Orval Faubus had ordered the Arkansas National Guard to help segregationists prevent nine African-American students from enrolling at Little Rock's Central High School. After attempting three times to contact Faubus, President Dwight D. Eisenhower sent 1,000 troops from the active-duty 101st Airborne Division to escort and protect the African-American students as they entered school on September 25, 1957. In defiance of federal court orders to integrate, the governor and city of Little Rock decided to close the high schools for the remainder of the school year. By the fall of 1959, the Little Rock high schools were completely integrated.[43] Geography Main article: Geography of Arkansas View from the Ozark Highlands Scenic Byway in Boxley Valley Boundaries Arkansas borders Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, Oklahoma to the west, Missouri to the north, and Tennessee and Mississippi to the east. The United States Census Bureau classifies Arkansas as a southern state, sub-categorized among the West South Central States.[10] The Mississippi River forms most of its eastern border, except in Clay and Greene counties, where the St. Francis River forms the western boundary of the Missouri Bootheel, and in many places where the channel of the Mississippi has meandered (or been straightened by man) from its original 1836 course.[citation needed] Terrain The Ozarks rise behind a bend in the Buffalo River from an overlook on the Buffalo River Trail. Arkansas can generally be split into two halves, the highlands in the northwest and the lowlands of the southeast.[44] The highlands are part of the Southern Interior Highlands, including The Ozarks and the Ouachita Mountains. The southern lowlands include the Gulf Coastal Plain and the Arkansas Delta.[45] This split can yield to a regional division into northwest, southwest, northeast, southeast, and central Arkansas. These regions are broad and not defined along county lines. Arkansas has seven distinct natural regions: the Ozark Mountains, Ouachita Mountains, Arkansas River Valley, Gulf Coastal Plain, Crowley's Ridge, and the Arkansas Delta, with Central Arkansas sometimes included as a blend of multiple regions.[46] The flat terrain and rich soils of the Arkansas Delta near Arkansas City are in stark contrast to the northwestern part of the state. The southeastern part of Arkansas along the Mississippi Alluvial Plain is sometimes called the Arkansas Delta. This region is a flat landscape of rich alluvial soils formed by repeated flooding of the adjacent Mississippi. Farther from the river, in the southeastern part of the state, the Grand Prairie has a more undulating landscape. Both are fertile agricultural areas. The Delta region is bisected by a geological formation known as Crowley's Ridge. A narrow band of rolling hills, Crowley's Ridge rises 250 to 500 feet (76 to 152 m) above the surrounding alluvial plain and underlies many of eastern Arkansas's major towns.[47] Northwest Arkansas is part of the Ozark Plateau including the Ozark Mountains, to the south are the Ouachita Mountains, and these regions are divided by the Arkansas River; the southern and eastern parts of Arkansas are called the Lowlands.[48] These mountain ranges are part of the U.S. Interior Highlands region, the only major mountainous region between the Rocky Mountains and the Appalachian Mountains.[49] The state's highest point is Mount Magazine in the Ouachita Mountains,[50] which is 2,753 feet (839 m) above sea level.[4] Cedar Falls in Petit Jean State Park Arkansas is home to many caves, such as Blanchard Springs Caverns. The State Archeologist has catalogued more than 43,000 Native American living, hunting and tool-making sites, many of them Pre-Columbian burial mounds and rock shelters. Crater of Diamonds State Park near Murfreesboro is the world's only diamond-bearing site accessible to the public for digging.[51][52] Arkansas is home to a dozen Wilderness Areas totaling 158,444 acres (641.20 km2).[53] These areas are set aside for outdoor recreation and are open to hunting, fishing, hiking, and primitive camping. No mechanized vehicles nor developed campgrounds are allowed in these areas.[54] Hydrology The Buffalo National River is one of many attractions that give the state its nickname, The Natural State Arkansas has many rivers, lakes, and reservoirs within or along its borders. Major tributaries to the Mississippi River include the Arkansas River, the White River, and the St. Francis River.[55] The Arkansas is fed by the Mulberry and Fourche LaFave Rivers in the Arkansas River Valley, which is also home to Lake Dardanelle. The Buffalo, Little Red, Black and Cache Rivers are all tributaries to the White River, which also empties into the Mississippi. Bayou Bartholomew and the Saline, Little Missouri, and Caddo Rivers are all tributaries to the Ouachita River in south Arkansas, which empties into the Mississippi in Louisiana. The Red River briefly forms the state's boundary with Texas.[56] Arkansas has few natural lakes and many reservoirs,[quantify] such as Bull Shoals Lake, Lake Ouachita, Greers Ferry Lake, Millwood Lake, Beaver Lake, Norfork Lake, DeGray Lake, and Lake Conway.[57] Flora and fauna The White River in eastern Arkansas Arkansas's temperate deciduous forest is divided into three broad ecoregions: the Ozark, Ouachita-Appalachian Forests, the Mississippi Alluvial and Southeast USA Coastal Plains, and the Southeastern USA Plains.[58] The state is further divided into seven subregions: the Arkansas Valley, Boston Mountains, Mississippi Alluvial Plain, Mississippi Valley Loess Plain, Ozark Highlands, Ouachita Mountains, and the South Central Plains.[59] A 2010 United States Forest Service survey determined 18,720,000 acres (7,580,000 ha) of Arkansas's land is forestland, or 56% of the state's total area.[60] Dominant species in Arkansas's forests include Quercus (oak), Carya (hickory), Pinus echinata (shortleaf pine) and Pinus taeda (loblolly pine).[61][62] Arkansas's plant life varies with its climate and elevation. The pine belt stretching from the Arkansas delta to Texas consists of dense oak-hickory-pine growth. Lumbering and paper milling activity is active throughout the region.[63] In eastern Arkansas, one can find Taxodium (cypress), Quercus nigra (water oaks), and hickories with their roots submerged in the Mississippi Valley bayous indicative of the deep south.[64] Nearby Crowley's Ridge is the only home of the tulip tree in the state, and generally hosts more northeastern plant life such as the beech tree.[65] The northwestern highlands are covered in an oak-hickory mixture, with Ozark white cedars, cornus (dogwoods), and Cercis canadensis (redbuds) also present. The higher peaks in the Arkansas River Valley play host to scores of ferns, including the Physematium scopulinum and Adiantum (maidenhair fern) on Mount Magazine.[66] Arkansas wildlife is famous for the white-tailed deer, elk, and bald eagle. The white-tailed deer is the official state mammal.[67] Climate Further information: Climate change in Arkansas Winter at Historic Washington State Park in Hempstead County Arkansas generally has a humid subtropical climate. While not bordering the Gulf of Mexico, Arkansas, is still close enough to the warm, large body of water for it to influence the weather in the state. Generally, Arkansas, has hot, humid summers and slightly drier, mild to cool winters. In Little Rock, the daily high temperatures average around 93 °F (34 °C) with lows around 73 °F (23 °C) in July. In January highs average around 51 °F (11 °C) and lows around 32 °F (0 °C). In Siloam Springs in the northwest part of the state, the average high and low temperatures in July are 89 and 67 °F (32 and 19 °C) and in January the average high and low are 44 and 23 °F (7 and −5 °C). Annual precipitation throughout the state averages between about 40 and 60 inches (1,000 and 1,500 mm); it is somewhat wetter in the south and drier in the northern part of the state.[68] Snowfall is infrequent but most common in the northern half of the state.[55] The half of the state south of Little Rock is apter to see ice storms. Arkansas's record high is 120 °F (49 °C) at Ozark on August 10, 1936; the record low is −29 °F (−34 °C) at Gravette, on February 13, 1905.[69] Arkansas is known for extreme weather and frequent storms. A typical year brings thunderstorms, tornadoes, hail, snow and ice storms. Between both the Great Plains and the Gulf States, Arkansas, receives around 60 days of thunderstorms. Arkansas is located in Tornado Alley, and as a result, a few of the most destructive tornadoes in U.S. history have struck the state. While sufficiently far from the coast to avoid a direct hit from a hurricane, Arkansas can often get the remnants of a tropical system, which dumps tremendous amounts of rain in a short time and often spawns smaller tornadoes.[citation needed] Monthly Normal High and Low Temperatures For Various Arkansas Cities City Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Avg Fayetteville[70] 44/24 (7/-4) 51/29 (10/-2) 59/38 (15/3) 69/46 (20/8) 76/55 (24/13) 84/64 (29/18) 89/69 (32/20) 89/67 (32/19) 81/59 (27/15) 70/47 (21/9) 57/37 (14/3) 48/28 (9/-2) 68/47 (20/8) Jonesboro[71] 45/26 (7/-3) 51/30 (11/-1) 61/40 (16/4) 71/49 (22/9) 80/58 (26/15) 88/67 (31/19) 92/71 (34/22) 91/69 (33/20) 84/61 (29/16) 74/49 (23/9) 60/39 (15/4) 49/30 (10/-1) 71/49 (21/9) Little Rock[72] 51/31 (11/-1) 55/35 (13/2) 64/43 (18/6) 73/51 (23/11) 81/61 (27/16) 89/69 (32/21) 93/73 (34/23) 93/72 (34/22) 86/65 (30/18) 75/53 (24/12) 63/42 (17/6) 52/34 (11/1) 73/51 (23/11) Texarkana[73] 53/31 (11/-1) 58/34 (15/1) 67/42 (19/5) 75/50 (24/10) 82/60 (28/16) 89/68 (32/20) 93/72 (34/22) 93/71 (34/21) 86/64 (30/18) 76/52 (25/11) 64/41 (18/5) 55/33 (13/1) 74/52 (23/11) Monticello[74] 52/30 (11/-1) 58/34 (14/1) 66/43 (19/6) 74/49 (23/10) 82/59 (28/15) 89/66 (32/19) 92/70 (34/21) 92/68 (33/20) 86/62 (30/17) 76/50 (25/10) 64/41 (18/5) 55/34 (13/1) 74/51 (23/10) Fort Smith[75] 48/27 (8/-2) 54/32 (12/0) 64/40 (17/4) 73/49 (22/9) 80/58 (26/14) 87/67 (30/19) 92/71 (33/21) 92/70 (33/21) 84/62 (29/17) 75/50 (23/10) 61/39 (16/4) 50/31 (10/0) 72/50 (22/10) Average high °F/average low °F (average high °C/average low°C) Cities and towns See also: List of cities and towns in Arkansas, Arkansas metropolitan areas, and List of townships in Arkansas Cleveland County Courthouse in Rison Little Rock has been Arkansas's capital city since 1821 when it replaced Arkansas Post as the capital of the Territory of Arkansas.[76] The state capitol was moved to Hot Springs and later Washington during the American Civil War when the Union armies threatened the city in 1862, and state government did not return to Little Rock until after the war ended. Today, the Little Rock–North Little Rock–Conway metropolitan area is the largest in the state, with a population of 724,385 in 2013.[77] The Fayetteville–Springdale–Rogers Metropolitan Area is the second-largest metropolitan area in Arkansas, growing at the fastest rate due to the influx of businesses and the growth of the University of Arkansas and Walmart.[78] The state has eight cities with populations above 50,000 (based on 2010 census). In descending order of size, they are Little Rock, Fort Smith, Fayetteville, Springdale, Jonesboro, North Little Rock, Conway, and Rogers. Of these, only Fort Smith and Jonesboro are outside the two largest metropolitan areas. Other cities in Arkansas include Pine Bluff, Crossett, Bryant, Lake Village, Hot Springs, Bentonville, Texarkana, Sherwood, Jacksonville, Russellville, Bella Vista, West Memphis, Paragould, Cabot, Searcy, Van Buren, El Dorado, Blytheville, Harrison, Dumas, Rison, Warren, and Mountain Home.[citation needed]    Largest cities or towns in Arkansas Source:[79] Rank Name County Pop. Rank Name County Pop. Little Rock Little Rock Fort Smith Fort Smith 1 Little Rock Pulaski 198,606 11 Hot Springs Garland 36,915 Fayetteville Fayetteville 2 Fort Smith Sebastian 88,037 12 Benton Saline 35,789 3 Fayetteville Washington 85,257 13 Sherwood Pulaski 31,081 4 Springdale Washington 79,599 14 Texarkana Miller 30,259 5 Jonesboro Craighead 75,866 15 Russellville Pope 29,318 6 Rogers Benton 66,430 16 Jacksonville Pulaski 28,513 7 North Little Rock Pulaski 65,911 17 Bella Vista Benton 28,511 8 Conway Faulkner 65,782 18 Paragould Greene 28,488 9 Bentonville Benton 49,298 19 Cabot Lonoke 26,141 10 Pine Bluff Jefferson 42,984 20 West Memphis Crittenden 24,860 Demographics Main article: Demographics of Arkansas Population Map of Arkansas, showing density of population by county. Map of Arkansas, with many southern and eastern counties recording population losses with the rest of the state showing moderate gains. Benton and Faulkner counties were the most rapidly growing in population between 2000 and 2010. Left: Arkansas's population distribution. Red indicates high density in urban areas, green indicates low density in rural areas. Right: Map showing population changes by county between 2000 and 2010. Blue indicates population gain, purple indicates population loss, and shade indicates magnitude. The United States Census Bureau estimated that the population of Arkansas was 3,017,804 on July 1, 2019, a 3.49% increase since the 2010 United States census.[80] At the 2020 U.S. census, Arkansas had a resident population of 3,011,524. From fewer than 15,000 in 1820, Arkansas's population grew to 52,240 during a special census in 1835, far exceeding the 40,000 required to apply for statehood.[81] Following statehood in 1836, the population doubled each decade until the 1870 census conducted following the American Civil War. The state recorded growth in each successive decade, although it gradually slowed in the 20th century. It recorded population losses in the 1950 and 1960 censuses. This outmigration was a result of multiple factors, including farm mechanization, decreasing labor demand, and young educated people leaving the state due to a lack of non-farming industry in the state.[82] Arkansas again began to grow, recording positive growth rates ever since and exceeding two million by the 1980 census.[83] Arkansas's rate of change, age distributions, and gender distributions mirror national averages. Minority group data also approximates national averages. There are fewer people in Arkansas of Hispanic or Latino origin than the national average.[84] The center of population of Arkansas for 2000 was located in Perry County, near Nogal.[85] According to HUD's 2022 Annual Homeless Assessment Report, there were an estimated 2,459 homeless people in Arkansas.[86][87] Historical population Census Pop. Note %± 1810 1,062 — 1820 14,273 1,244.0% 1830 30,388 112.9% 1840 97,574 221.1% 1850 209,897 115.1% 1860 435,450 107.5% 1870 484,471 11.3% 1880 802,525 65.6% 1890 1,128,211 40.6% 1900 1,311,564 16.3% 1910 1,574,449 20.0% 1920 1,752,204 11.3% 1930 1,854,482 5.8% 1940 1,949,387 5.1% 1950 1,909,511 −2.0% 1960 1,786,272 −6.5% 1970 1,923,295 7.7% 1980 2,286,435 18.9% 1990 2,350,725 2.8% 2000 2,673,400 13.7% 2010 2,915,918 9.1% 2020 3,011,524 3.3% Source: 1910–2020[88] Race and ethnicity Per the 2019 census estimates, Arkansas was 72.0% non-Hispanic white, 15.4% Black or African American, 0.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.5% Asian, 0.4% Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander, 0.1% some other race, 2.4% two or more races, and 7.7% Hispanic or Latin American of any race.[89] In 2011, the state was 80.1% white (74.2% non-Hispanic white), 15.6% Black or African American, 0.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.3% Asian, and 1.8% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race made up 6.6% of the population.[90] As of 2011, 39.0% of Arkansas's population younger than age 1 were minorities.[91] Ethnic composition as of the 2020 census  Race and ethnicity[92] Alone Total White (non-Hispanic) 68.5%   73.2%   African American (non-Hispanic) 14.9%   16.2%   Hispanic or Latino[d] — 8.5%   Asian 1.7%   2.2%   Native American 0.7%   3.4%   Pacific Islander 0.5%   0.6%   Other 0.3%   1.1%   Ethnic origins in Arkansas Map of counties in Arkansas by racial plurality, per the 2020 U.S. census Legend Arkansas Racial Breakdown of Population  Racial composition 1990[93] 2000[94] 2010[95] White 82.7% 80.0% 77.0% African American 15.9% 15.7% 15.4% Asian 0.5% 0.8% 1.2% Native 0.5% 0.7% 0.8% Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander – 0.1% 0.2% Other race 0.3% 1.5% 3.4% Two or more races – 1.3% 2.0% European Americans have a strong presence in the northwestern Ozarks and the central part of the state. African Americans live mainly in the southern and eastern parts of the state. Arkansans of Irish, English and German ancestry are mostly found in the far northwestern Ozarks near the Missouri border. Ancestors of the Irish in the Ozarks were chiefly Scots-Irish, Protestants from Northern Ireland, the Scottish lowlands and northern England part of the largest group of immigrants from Great Britain and Ireland before the American Revolution. English and Scots-Irish immigrants settled throughout the back country of the South and in the more mountainous areas. Americans of English stock are found throughout the state.[96] A 2010 survey of the principal ancestries of Arkansas's residents revealed the following:[97] 15.5% African American, 12.3% Irish, 11.5% German, 11.0% American, 10.1% English, 4.7% Mexican, 2.1% French, 1.7% Scottish, 1.7% Dutch, 1.6% Italian, and 1.4% Scots-Irish. Most people identifying as "American" are of English descent or Scots-Irish descent. Their families have been in the state so long, in many cases since before statehood, that they choose to identify simply as having American ancestry or do not in fact know their ancestry. Their ancestry primarily goes back to the original 13 colonies and for this reason many of them today simply claim American ancestry. Many people who identify as of Irish descent are in fact of Scots-Irish descent.[98][99][100][101] According to the American Immigration Council, in 2015, the top countries of origin for Arkansas' immigrants were Mexico, El Salvador, India, Vietnam, and Guatemala.[102] According to the 2006–2008 American Community Survey, 93.8% of Arkansas's population (over the age of five) spoke only English at home. About 4.5% of the state's population spoke Spanish at home. About 0.7% of the state's population spoke another Indo-European language. About 0.8% of the state's population spoke an Asian language, and 0.2% spoke other languages.[clarification needed dubious] Religion Religion in Arkansas (2014)[103] Religion Percent Protestant 70% Unaffiliated 18% Catholic 8% Muslim 2% Mormon 1% Other 1% Like most other Southern states, Arkansas is part of the Bible Belt and predominantly Protestant. The largest denominations by number of adherents in 2010 were the Southern Baptist Convention with 661,382; the United Methodist Church with 158,574; non-denominational Evangelical Protestants with 129,638; the Catholic Church with 122,662; and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints with 31,254. Some residents of the state have other religions, such as Islam, Judaism, Wicca/Paganism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and some have no religious affiliation.[104] In 2014, the Pew Research Center determined that 79% of the population was Christian, dominated by evangelicals in the Southern Baptist and independent Baptist churches. In contrast with many other states, the Catholic Church as of 2014 was not the largest Christian denomination in Arkansas. Of the unaffiliated population, 2% were atheist in 2014.[105] By 2020, the Public Religion Research Institute determined 71% of the population was Christian.[106] Arkansas continued to be dominated by evangelicals, followed by mainline Protestants and historically black or African American churches. Economy See also: Economy of Arkansas, List of Arkansas companies, and Arkansas locations by per capita income The Simmons Tower in Little Rock is the state's tallest building. Once a state with a cashless society in the uplands and plantation agriculture in the lowlands, Arkansas's economy has evolved and diversified. The state's gross domestic product (GDP) was $119 billion in 2015.[107] Six Fortune 500 companies are based in Arkansas, including the world's #1 retailer, Walmart; Tyson Foods, J.B. Hunt, Dillard's, Murphy USA, and Windstream are also headquartered in the state.[108] The per capita personal income in 2015 was $39,107, ranking 45th in the nation.[109] The median household income from 2011 to 2015 was $41,371, ranking 49th in the nation.[110] The state's agriculture outputs are poultry and eggs, soybeans, sorghum, cattle, cotton, rice, hogs, and milk. Its industrial outputs are food processing, electric equipment, fabricated metal products, machinery, and paper products. Arkansas's mines produce natural gas, oil, crushed stone, bromine, and vanadium.[111] According to CNBC, Arkansas is the 20th-best state for business, with the 2nd-lowest cost of doing business, 5th-lowest cost of living, 11th-best workforce, 20th-best economic climate, 28th-best-educated workforce, 31st-best infrastructure and the 32nd-friendliest regulatory environment.[citation needed] Arkansas gained 12 spots in the best state for business rankings since 2011.[112] As of 2014, it was the most affordable state to live in.[citation needed] As of July 2023, the state's unemployment rate was 2.6%; the preliminary rate for December 2023 is 3.4%.[113] Industry and commerce Arkansas's earliest industries were fur trading and agriculture, with development of cotton plantations in the areas near the Mississippi River. They were dependent on slave labor through the American Civil War.[114] Today only about three percent of the population are employed in the agricultural sector,[115] it remains a major part of the state's economy, ranking 13th in the nation in the value of products sold.[116] Arkansas is the nation's largest producer of rice, broilers, and turkeys,[117] and ranks in the top three for cotton, pullets, and aquaculture (catfish).[116] Forestry remains strong in the Arkansas Timberlands, and the state ranks fourth nationally and first in the South in softwood lumber production.[118] Automobile parts manufacturers have opened factories in eastern Arkansas to support auto plants in other states. Bauxite was formerly a large part of the state's economy, mined mostly around Saline County.[119] Tourism is also very important to the Arkansas economy; the official state nickname "The Natural State" was created for state tourism advertising in the 1970s, and is still used to this day. The state maintains 52 state parks and the National Park Service maintains seven properties in Arkansas. The completion of the William Jefferson Clinton Presidential Library in Little Rock has drawn many visitors to the city and revitalized the nearby River Market District. Many cities also hold festivals, which draw tourists to Arkansas culture, such as The Bradley County Pink Tomato Festival in Warren, King Biscuit Blues Festival, Ozark Folk Festival, Toad Suck Daze, and Tontitown Grape Festival.[citation needed] Transportation This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources in this section. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (January 2022) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) Main articles: List of Arkansas railroads, Aviation in Arkansas, and Arkansas Highway System See also: List of Arkansas railroads and List of airports in Arkansas The Greenville Bridge crosses over the Mississippi River into Shives. Transportation in Arkansas is overseen by the Arkansas Department of Transportation (ArDOT), headquartered in Little Rock. Several main corridors pass through Little Rock, including Interstate 30 (I-30) and I-40 (the nation's 3rd-busiest trucking corridor).[120] Arkansas first designated a state highway system in 1924, and first numbered its roads in 1926. Arkansas had one of the first paved roads, the Dollarway Road, and one of the first members of the Interstate Highway System. The state maintains a large system of state highways today, in addition to eight Interstates and 20 U.S. Routes. In northeast Arkansas, I-55 travels north from Memphis to Missouri, with a new spur to Jonesboro (I-555). Northwest Arkansas is served by the segment of I-49 from Fort Smith to the beginning of the Bella Vista Bypass. This segment of I-49 currently follows mostly the same route as the former section of I-540 that extended north of I-40.[121] The state also has the 13th largest state highway system in the nation.[122] The Missouri and Northern Arkansas Railroad Arkansas is served by 2,750 miles (4,430 km) of railroad track divided among twenty-six railroad companies including three Class I railroads.[123] Freight railroads are concentrated in southeast Arkansas to serve the industries in the region. The Texas Eagle, an Amtrak passenger train, serves five stations in the state Walnut Ridge, Little Rock, Malvern, Arkadelphia, and Texarkana. Arkansas also benefits from the use of its rivers for commerce. The Mississippi River and Arkansas River are both major rivers. The United States Army Corps of Engineers maintains the McClellan-Kerr Arkansas River Navigation System, allowing barge traffic up the Arkansas River to the Port of Catoosa in Tulsa, Oklahoma. There are four airports with commercial service: Clinton National Airport (formerly Little Rock National Airport or Adams Field), Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport, Fort Smith Regional Airport, and Texarkana Regional Airport, with dozens of smaller airports in the state. Intercity bus services across the state are provided by Flixbus, Greyhound Lines, and Jefferson Lines.[124][125] Public transit and community transport services for the elderly or those with developmental disabilities are provided by agencies such as the Central Arkansas Transit Authority and the Ozark Regional Transit, organizations that are part of the Arkansas Transit Association. Local transit map Government This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources in this section. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (January 2022) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) Main article: Politics and government of Arkansas As with the federal government of the United States, political power in Arkansas is divided into three branches: executive, legislative, and judicial. Each officer's term is four years long. Office holders are term-limited to two full terms plus any partial terms before the first full term.[126] Executive Main article: Governor of Arkansas See also: List of governors of Arkansas and Arkansas Cabinet The governor of Arkansas is Sarah Huckabee Sanders, a Republican, who was inaugurated on January 10, 2023.[127][128] The six other elected executive positions in Arkansas are lieutenant governor, secretary of state, attorney general, treasurer, auditor, and land commissioner.[129] The governor also appoints the leaders of various state boards, committees, and departments. Arkansas governors served two-year terms until a referendum lengthened the term to four years, effective with the 1986 election. Individuals elected to these offices are limited to a lifetime total of two four-year terms per office. In Arkansas, the lieutenant governor is elected separately from the governor and thus can be from a different political party.[130] Legislative Main article: Arkansas General Assembly The Arkansas General Assembly is the state's bicameral bodies of legislators, composed of the Senate and House of Representatives. The Senate contains 35 members from districts of approximately equal population. These districts are redrawn decennially with each US census, and in election years ending in "2", the entire body is put up for reelection. Following the election, half of the seats are designated as two-year seats and are up for reelection again in two years, these "half-terms" do not count against a legislator's term limits. The remaining half serve a full four-year term. This staggers elections such that half the body is up for reelection every two years and allows for complete body turnover following redistricting.[131] Arkansas voters elected a 21–14 Republican majority in the Senate in 2012. Arkansas House members can serve a maximum of three two-year terms. House districts are redistricted by the Arkansas Board of Apportionment. In the 2012 elections, Republicans gained a 51–49 majority in the House of Representatives.[132] The Republican Party majority status in the Arkansas State House of Representatives after the 2012 elections, is the party's first since 1874. Arkansas was the last state of the old Confederacy to not have Republican control of either chamber of its house since the American Civil War.[133] Following the term limits changes, studies have shown that lobbyists have become less influential in state politics. Legislative staff, not subject to term limits, have acquired additional power and influence due to the high rate of elected official turnover.[134] Judicial Main article: Courts of Arkansas Arkansas's judicial branch has five court systems: Arkansas Supreme Court, Arkansas Court of Appeals, Circuit Courts, District Courts and City Courts. Most cases begin in district court, which is subdivided into state district court and local district court. State district courts exercise district-wide jurisdiction over the districts created by the General Assembly, and local district courts are presided over by part-time judges who may privately practice law. 25 state district court judges preside over 15 districts, with more districts created in 2013 and 2017. There are 28 judicial circuits of Circuit Court, with each contains five subdivisions: criminal, civil, probate, domestic relations, and juvenile court. The jurisdiction of the Arkansas Court of Appeals is determined by the Arkansas Supreme Court, and there is no right of appeal from the Court of Appeals to the high court. The Arkansas Supreme Court can review Court of Appeals cases upon application by either a party to the litigation, upon request by the Court of Appeals, or if the Arkansas Supreme Court feels the case should have been initially assigned to it. The twelve judges of the Arkansas Court of Appeals are elected from judicial districts to renewable six-year terms. The Arkansas Supreme Court is the court of last resort in the state, composed of seven justices elected to eight-year terms. Established by the Arkansas Constitution in 1836, the court's decisions can be appealed to only the Supreme Court of the United States. Federal Both Arkansas's U.S. senators, John Boozman and Tom Cotton, are Republicans. The state has four seats in U.S. House of Representatives. All four seats are held by Republicans: Rick Crawford (1st district), French Hill (2nd district), Steve Womack (3rd district), and Bruce Westerman (4th district).[135] Politics Main article: Politics and government of Arkansas Party registration as of June 2, 2021[136] Party Total voters Percentage Nonpartisan 1,552,641 87.93% Republican 123,726 7.01% Democratic 88,508 5.01% Other 806 0.05% Total 1,765,681 100.00% The Clinton Presidential Center in Little Rock Arkansas governor Bill Clinton brought national attention to the state with a long speech at the 1988 Democratic National Convention endorsing Michael Dukakis. Some journalists suggested the speech was a threat to his ambitions; Clinton defined it "a comedy of error, just one of those fluky things".[137] He won the Democratic nomination for president in 1992. Presenting himself as a "New Democrat" and using incumbent George H. W. Bush's broken promise against him, Clinton won the 1992 presidential election with 43.0% of the vote to Bush's 37.5% and independent billionaire Ross Perot's 18.9%. Most Republican strength traditionally lay mainly in the northwestern part of the state, particularly Fort Smith and Bentonville, as well as North Central Arkansas around the Mountain Home area. In the latter area, Republicans have been known to get 90% or more of the vote, while the rest of the state was more Democratic. After 2010, Republican strength expanded further to the Northeast and Southwest and into the Little Rock suburbs. The Democrats are mostly concentrated to central Little Rock, the Mississippi Delta, the Pine Bluff area, and the areas around the southern border with Louisiana. Arkansas has elected only three Republicans to the U.S. Senate since Reconstruction: Tim Hutchinson, who was defeated after one term by Mark Pryor; John Boozman, who defeated incumbent Blanche Lincoln; and Tom Cotton, who defeated Pryor in 2014. Before 2013, the General Assembly had not been controlled by the Republican Party since Reconstruction, with the GOP holding a 51-seat majority in the state House and a 21-seat (of 35) in the state Senate following victories in 2012. Arkansas was one of just three states among the states of the former Confederacy that sent two Democrats to the U.S. Senate (the others being Florida and Virginia) for any period during the first decade of the 21st century. In 2010, Republicans captured three of the state's four seats in the U.S. House of Representatives. In 2012, they won election to all four House seats. Arkansas held the distinction of having a U.S. House delegation composed entirely of military veterans (Rick Crawford, Army; Tim Griffin, Army Reserve; Steve Womack, Army National Guard; Tom Cotton, Army). When Pryor was defeated in 2014, the entire congressional delegation was in GOP hands for the first time since Reconstruction. Reflecting the state's large evangelical population, Arkansas has a strong social conservative bent. In the aftermath of the landmark Supreme Court decision Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, Arkansas became one of nine states where abortion is banned.[138] Under the Arkansas Constitution, Arkansas is a right to work state. Its voters passed a ban on same-sex marriage in 2004, with 75% voting yes,[139] although that ban has been inactive since the Supreme Court protected same-sex marriage in Obergefell v. Hodges. Arkansas retains the death penalty. Authorized methods of execution include the Electric chair.[140] Military The Strategic Air Command facility of Little Rock Air Force Base was one of eighteen silos in the command of the 308th Strategic Missile Wing (308th SMW), specifically one of the nine silos within its 374th Strategic Missile Squadron (374th SMS). The squadron was responsible for Launch Complex 374–7, site of the 1980 explosion of a Titan II Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) in Damascus, Arkansas.[141] Taxation Taxes are collected by the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration.[142] Health See also: List of hospitals in Arkansas UAMS Medical Center, Little Rock As of 2012, Arkansas, as with many Southern states, has a high incidence of premature death, infant mortality, cardiovascular deaths, and occupational fatalities compared to the rest of the United States.[143] The state is tied for 43rd with New York in percentage of adults who regularly exercise.[144] Arkansas is usually ranked as one of the least healthy states due to high obesity, smoking, and sedentary lifestyle rates,[143] but according to a Gallup poll, Arkansas made the most immediate progress in reducing its number of uninsured residents after the Affordable Care Act passed. The percentage of uninsured in Arkansas dropped from 22.5 in 2013 to 12.4 in August 2014.[145] The Arkansas Clean Indoor Air Act, a statewide smoking ban excluding bars and some restaurants, went into effect in 2006.[146] Healthcare in Arkansas is provided by a network of hospitals as members of the Arkansas Hospital Association. Major institutions with multiple branches include Baptist Health, Community Health Systems, and HealthSouth. The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) in Little Rock operates the UAMS Medical Center, a teaching hospital ranked as high performing nationally in cancer and nephrology.[147] The pediatric division of UAMS Medical Center is known as Arkansas Children's Hospital, nationally ranked in pediatric cardiology and heart surgery.[148] Together, these two institutions are the state's only Level I trauma centers.[149] Education Main article: Education in Arkansas See also: List of colleges and universities in Arkansas, List of high schools in Arkansas, and List of school districts in Arkansas Arkansas has 1,064 state-funded kindergartens, elementary, junior and senior high schools.[150] The state supports a network of public universities and colleges, including two major university systems: Arkansas State University System and University of Arkansas System. The University of Arkansas, flagship campus of the University of Arkansas System in Fayetteville was ranked #63 among public schools in the nation by U.S. News & World Report.[151] Other public institutions include University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, Arkansas Tech University, Henderson State University, Southern Arkansas University, and University of Central Arkansas across the state. It is also home to 11 private colleges and universities including Hendrix College, one of the nation's top 100 liberal arts colleges, according to U.S. News & World Report.[152] In the 1920s the state required all children to attend public schools. The school year was set at 131 days, although some areas were unable to meet that requirement.[153][154] Generally prohibited in the West at large, school corporal punishment is not unusual in Arkansas, with 20,083 public school students[e] paddled at least one time, according to government data for the 2011–12 school year.[155] The rate of corporal punishment in public schools is higher only in Mississippi.[155] Media [icon] This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (March 2017) As of 2010 many Arkansas local newspapers are owned by WEHCO Media, Alabama-based Lancaster Management, Kentucky-based Paxton Media Group, Missouri-based Rust Communications, Nevada-based Stephens Media, and New York-based GateHouse Media.[156] Culture This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources in this section. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (January 2022) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) Main article: Culture of Arkansas Van Buren Confederate Monument at the Crawford County Courthouse in Van Buren, Arkansas The culture of Arkansas includes distinct cuisine, dialect, and traditional festivals. Sports are also very important to the culture, including football, baseball, basketball, hunting, and fishing. Perhaps the best-known aspect of Arkansas's culture is the stereotype that its citizens are shiftless hillbillies.[157] The reputation began when early explorers characterized the state as a savage wilderness full of outlaws and thieves.[158] The most enduring icon of Arkansas's hillbilly reputation is The Arkansas Traveller, a painted depiction of a folk tale from the 1840s.[159] Though intended to represent the divide between rich southeastern plantation Arkansas planters and the poor northwestern hill country, the meaning was twisted to represent a Northerner lost in the Ozarks on a white horse asking a backwoods Arkansan for directions.[160] The state also suffers from the racial stigma common to former Confederate states, with historical events such as the Little Rock Nine adding to Arkansas's enduring image.[161] Art and history museums display pieces of cultural value for Arkansans and tourists to enjoy. Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville was visited by 604,000 people in 2012, its first year.[162] The museum includes walking trails and educational opportunities in addition to displaying over 450 works covering five centuries of American art.[163] Several historic town sites have been restored as Arkansas state parks, including Historic Washington State Park, Powhatan Historic State Park, and Davidsonville Historic State Park. Arkansas features a variety of native music across the state, ranging from the blues heritage of West Memphis, Pine Bluff, Helena–West Helena to rockabilly, bluegrass, and folk music from the Ozarks. Festivals such as the King Biscuit Blues Festival and Bikes, Blues, and BBQ pay homage to the history of blues in the state. The Ozark Folk Festival in Mountain View is a celebration of Ozark culture and often features folk and bluegrass musicians. Literature set in Arkansas such as I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou and A Painted House by John Grisham describe the culture at various time periods. Sports and recreation The flooded, forested bottomlands of east Arkansas attract wintering waterfowl. Sports have become an integral part of the culture of Arkansas, and her residents enjoy participating in and spectating various events throughout the year. Team sports and especially collegiate football are important to Arkansans. College football in Arkansas began from humble beginnings, when the University of Arkansas first fielded a team in 1894. Over the years, many Arkansans have looked to Arkansas Razorbacks football as the public image of the state.[164] Although the University of Arkansas is based in Fayetteville, the Razorbacks have always played at least one game per season at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock in an effort to keep fan support in central and south Arkansas. Arkansas State University became the second NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) (then known as Division I-A) team in the state in 1992 after playing in lower divisions for nearly two decades. The two schools have never played each other, due to the University of Arkansas's policy of not playing intrastate games.[165] Two other campuses of the University of Arkansas System are Division I members. The University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff is a member of the Southwestern Athletic Conference, a league whose members all play football in the second-level Football Championship Subdivision (FCS). The University of Arkansas at Little Rock, known for sports purposes as Little Rock, joined the Ohio Valley Conference in 2022 after playing in the Sun Belt Conference; unlike many other OVC members, it does not field a football program. The state's other Division I member is the University of Central Arkansas (UCA), which joined the ASUN Conference in 2021 after leaving the FCS Southland Conference. Because the ASUN does not plan to start FCS football competition until at least 2022, UCA football is competing in the Western Athletic Conference as part of a formal football partnership between the two leagues. Seven of Arkansas's smaller colleges play in NCAA Division II, with six in the Great American Conference and one in the Lone Star Conference. Two other small Arkansas colleges compete in NCAA Division III, in which athletic scholarships are prohibited. High school football also began to grow in Arkansas in the early 20th century. Baseball runs deep in Arkansas and was popular before the state hosted Major League Baseball (MLB) spring training in Hot Springs from 1886 to the 1920s. Two minor league teams are based in the state. The Arkansas Travelers play at Dickey–Stephens Park in North Little Rock, and the Northwest Arkansas Naturals play in Arvest Ballpark in Springdale. Both teams compete in Double-A Central. Hunting continues in the state. The state created the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission in 1915 to regulate hunting.[166] Today a significant portion of Arkansas's population participates in hunting duck in the Mississippi flyway and deer across the state.[167] Ducks Unlimited has called Stuttgart, Arkansas, "the epicenter of the duck universe".[168] Millions of acres of public land are available for both bow and modern gun hunters.[167] Fishing has always been popular in Arkansas,[citation needed] and the sport and the state have benefited from the creation of reservoirs across the state. Following the completion of Norfork Dam, the Norfork Tailwater and the White River have become a destination for trout fishers. Several smaller retirement communities such as Bull Shoals, Hot Springs Village, and Fairfield Bay have flourished due to their position on a fishing lake. The National Park Service has preserved the Buffalo National River in its natural state and fly fishers visit it annually. Attractions Blanchard Springs Caverns in Stone County Arkansas Post National Memorial at Gillett Blanchard Springs Caverns Buffalo National River Fort Smith National Historic Site Hot Springs National Park Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site Pea Ridge National Military Park President William Jefferson Clinton Birthplace Home National Historic Site Arkansas State Capitol Building List of Arkansas state parks See also Index of Arkansas-related articles Outline of Arkansas Spanish Empire History of Louisiana USS Arkansas, 5 ships flag Arkansas portal flag United States portal Notes  Elevation adjusted to North American Vertical Datum of 1988.  The Geographic Names Index System (GNIS) of the United States Geological Survey (USGS) indicates that the official name of this feature is Magazine Mountain, not "Mount Magazine". Although not a hard and fast rule, generally "Mount X" is used for a peak and "X Mountain" is more frequently used for ridges, which better describes this feature. Magazine Mountain appears in the GNIS as a ridge,[3] with Signal Hill identified as its summit.[4] "Mount Magazine" is the name used by the Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism, which follows what the locals have used since the area was first settled.  The region was organized as the Territory of Arkansaw on July 4, 1819, but the territory was admitted to the United States as the state of Arkansas on June 15, 1836. The name was historically pronounced /ˈɑːrkənsɔː/, /ɑːrˈkænzəs/, and several other variants. The residents of Arkansas have called themselves either "Arkansans" or "Arkansawyers". In 1881, the Arkansas General Assembly passed the following concurrent resolution, now Arkansas Code 1 April 105:[15] Whereas, confusion of practice has arisen in the pronunciation of the name of our state and it is deemed important that the true pronunciation should be determined for use in oral official proceedings. And, whereas, the matter has been thoroughly investigated by the State Historical Society and the Eclectic Society of Little Rock, which have agreed upon the correct pronunciation as derived from history, and the early usage of the American immigrants. Be it therefore resolved by both houses of the General Assembly, that the only true pronunciation of the name of the state, in the opinion of this body, is that received by the French from the native Indians and committed to writing in the French word representing the sound. It should be pronounced in three (3) syllables, with the final "s" silent, the "a" in each syllable with the Italian sound, and the accent on the first and last syllables. The pronunciation with the accent on the second syllable with the sound of "a" in "man" and the sounding of the terminal "s" is discouraged by Arkansans. Despite this, the state's name is still frequently mispronounced, especially by non-Americans; in fact, it is spelled in Cyrillic with the ar-KAN-zəs pronunciation. Citizens of the state of Kansas often pronounce the Arkansas River as /ɑːrˈkænzəs/, in a manner similar to the common pronunciation of the name of their state.  Persons of Hispanic or Latino origin are not distinguished between total and partial ancestry.  This figure refers to only the number of students paddled, regardless of whether a student was spanked multiple times in a year, and does not refer to the number of instances of corporal punishment, which would be substantially higher. The Ozarks, also known as the Ozark Mountains, Ozark Highlands or Ozark Plateau, is a physiographic region in the U.S. states of Missouri, Arkansas, Oklahoma and the extreme southeastern corner of Kansas. The Ozarks cover a significant portion of northern Arkansas and most of the southern half of Missouri, extending from Interstate 40 in central Arkansas to Interstate 70 in central Missouri. There are two mountain ranges in the Ozarks: the Boston Mountains of Arkansas and the St. Francois Mountains of Missouri. Wahzhazhe Summit (formerly known as Buffalo Lookout), is the highest point in the Ozarks at 2,561 feet (781 m), and is located in the Boston Mountains, 3.4 miles (5.5 km) east of Pettigrew, Newton County, Arkansas. Geologically, the area is a broad dome with the exposed core in the ancient St. Francois Mountains. The Ozarks cover nearly 47,000 square miles (120,000 km2), making it the most extensive highland region between the Appalachians and Rockies. Together with the Ouachita Mountains, the area is known as the U.S. Interior Highlands. The Salem Plateau, named after Salem, Missouri, makes up the largest geologic area of the Ozarks. The second largest is the Springfield Plateau, named after Springfield, Missouri, nicknamed the "Queen City of the Ozarks". On the northern Ozark border are the cities of St. Louis and Columbia, Missouri. Significant Ozark cities in Arkansas include Fayetteville, Bentonville, Springdale, Eureka Springs, and Fort Smith. Branson, just north of the Arkansas–Missouri border, is a tourist destination where Ozark culture is popularized. Etymology The toponym Ozarks may derive from an English-language adaptation of the French abbreviation aux Arcs (short for French: aux Arcansas, meaning "of/at/to the Arkansas (Quapaw) [plural]").[1][2] In the decades prior to the French and Indian War of 1754 to 1763, aux Arkansas referred to France's trading post at Arkansas Post, located in the wooded Arkansas Delta lowland area above the confluence of the Arkansas River with the Mississippi River.[3][4][5] Other possible etymological origins include French: aux arcs meaning "[land] of the arches",[6] in reference to the dozens of natural bridges formed by erosion and collapsed caves in the Ozark region. These include Clifty Hollow Natural Bridge (actually a series of arches) in Missouri,[7] and Alum Cove in the Ozark–St. Francis National Forest. By the early 20th century, the term "Ozarks" had entered common parlance.[8][9][need quotation to verify] Physiographic subregions Elevation map of the Ozarks The Ozarks consist of five physiographic subregions: the Boston Mountains of north Arkansas and Cookson Hills of east Oklahoma; the Springfield Plateau of southwest Missouri, northeast Oklahoma, and northwest Arkansas and including Springfield, Joplin and Monett/Aurora in Missouri, Tahlequah in Oklahoma, and Fayetteville and Harrison in Arkansas; the White River Hills along the White River, including Branson and Mountain Home to Batesville; the Salem Plateau or Central Plateau, which includes a broad band across south central Missouri and north central Arkansas including the Lebanon, Salem and West Plains areas; the Courtois Hills of southeastern Missouri; the Osage-Gasconade Hills around the Lake of the Ozarks; the Saint Francois Mountains; and the Missouri River and Mississippi River border areas along the eastern and northeastern flanks. Karst features such as springs,[10] losing streams, sinkholes and caves are common in the limestones of the Springfield Plateau and abundant in the dolomite bedrock of the Salem Plateau and Boston Mountains.[11] Missouri is known as "The Cave State" with over 7,300 recorded caves, second in number only to Tennessee. The majority of these caves are found in the Ozark counties.[11][12] The Ozark Plateaus aquifer system affects groundwater movement in all areas except the igneous core of the St. Francois Mountains.[13][14][15][16] Geographic features include limestone and dolomite glades, which are rocky, desert-like areas on hilltops. Kept open by periodic fires that limit growth of grasses and forbs in shallow soil, glades are home to collared lizards, tarantulas, scorpions, cacti and other species more typical of the Desert Southwest.[17][18] The Boston Mountains contain the highest elevations of the Ozarks, with peaks over 2,500 feet (760 m), and form some of the greatest relief of any formation between the Appalachians and Rocky Mountains. The Ouachita Mountains to the south rise a few hundred feet higher, but are not geographically associated with the Ozarks. The Boston Mountains portion of the Ozarks extends north of the Arkansas River Valley 20 to 35 miles (32 to 56 km), is approximately 200 miles (320 km) long,[19] and is bordered by the Springfield and Salem Plateau to the north of the White River. Summits can reach elevations of just over 2,560 feet (780 m), with valleys 500 to 1,550 feet (150 to 470 m) deep. Turner Ward Knob is the highest named peak. Found in western Newton County, Arkansas, its elevation is 2,463 feet (751 m). Nearby, five unnamed peaks have elevations at or slightly above 2,560 feet (780 m). Drainage is primarily to the White River, with the exception of the Illinois River, although there also is considerable drainage from the south slopes of the Boston Mountains to the Arkansas River. Major streams of this type include Lee Creek, Frog Bayou, Mulberry River, Spadra Creek, Big Piney Creek, Little Piney Creek, Illinois Bayou, Point Remove Creek, and Cadron Creek. Many Ozark waterways have their headwaters in the uplands of the Boston formation, including the Buffalo, Kings, Mulberry, Little Red and White rivers.[20] Topography is mostly gently rolling in the Springfield and Salem plateaus, whereas the Saint Francois Mountains are more rugged. Although the Springfield formation's surface is primarily Mississippian limestone and chert, the Salem Plateau is made of older Ordovician dolomites, limestones, and sandstones.[21] Both are rife with karst topography and form long, flat plains. The formations are separated by steep escarpments that dramatically interrupt the rolling hills. Although much of the Springfield Plateau has been denuded of the surface layers of the Boston Mountains, large remnants of these younger layers are present throughout the southern end of the formation, possibly suggesting a peneplain process.[22] The Springfield Plateau drains through wide, mature streams ultimately feeding the White River.[23] Geology The St. Francois Mountains in the northeastern Ozarks are the eroded remnants of an ancient range which form the geological core of the highland dome. The igneous and volcanic rocks of the St. Francois Mountains are the exposed remains of a Proterozoic mountain range hundreds of millions of years old. The remaining hills are the exposed portion of an extensive terrane (the Spavinaw terrane in part) of granitic and rhyolitic rocks dating from 1485 to 1350 mya that stretches from Ohio to western Oklahoma.[24] The core of the range existed as an island in the Paleozoic seas. Reef complexes occur in the sedimentary layers surrounding this ancient island. These flanking reefs were points of concentration for later ore-bearing fluids which formed the rich lead-zinc ores that have been and continue to be mined in the area. The igneous and volcanic rocks extend at depth under the relatively thin veneer of Paleozoic sedimentary rocks and form the basal crust of the entire region.[25] Grey dolomite laid down c. 500 mya nonconformally overlies reddish rhyolite that formed close to 1500 mya in the St. Francois Mountains. A major unconformity in the region attests that the Ozarks were above sea level for several hundred million years from the time of the volcanism in the Precambrian until the mid-Cambrian with an erosionally produced relief of up to 1,500 feet (460 m).[25] The seas encroached during the late Cambrian producing the Lamotte Sandstone, 200 to 300 feet (61 to 91 m) thick, followed by carbonate sedimentation. Coral reefs formed around the granite and rhyolite islands in this Cambrian sea. This carbonate formation, the Bonneterre, now mostly dolomite, is exposed around the St. Francis Mountains, but extends in the subsurface throughout the Ozarks and reaches a thickness of 400 to 1,500 feet (120 to 460 m).[25] The Bonneterre is overlain by 500 to 600 feet (150 to 180 m) of dolomite, often sandy, silty or cherty, forming the Elvins Group and the Potosi and Eminence formations. Withdrawal of the seas resulted in another unconformity during the latest Cambrian and early Ordovician periods. Hydrothermal mineralizing fluids formed the rich lead ore deposits of the Lead Belt during this time.[25] Outcrop of Roubidoux sandstone along a bluff in Douglas County, Missouri Sedimentation resumed in the Ordovician with the deposition of the Gunter sandstone, the Gasconade dolomite and the prominent Roubidoux sandstone and dolomite. The sandstone of the Roubidoux forms prominent bluffs along the streams eroding into the southern part of the Salem Plateau. The Roubidoux and Gunter sandstones serve as significant aquifers when present in the subsurface. The source of the sands is considered to be the emerging Wisconsin Dome to the northeast.[25] The Ozark region remained as a subsiding shallow carbonate shelf environment with a significant thickness of cherty dolomites such as the Jefferson City, Cotter and Powell formations.[25] Portions of the Ozark Plateau, the Springfield Plateau of southwest Missouri and northern Arkansas, are underlain by Mississippian cherty limestones locally referred to as "Boone chert", consisting of limestone and chert layers. These are eroded and form steep hills, valleys and bluffs. The Boston Mountains are a high and deeply dissected plateau. The rocks of the region are essentially little disturbed, flat-lying sedimentary layers of Paleozoic age. The highest ridges and peaks are capped by Pennsylvanian sandstone such as the basal Atoka and the "Middle Bloyd".[26] The deeply eroded valleys are cut into Mississippian limestone and below that layer Ordovician dolomite. During the Pennsylvanian period the Ozark Plateau was uplifted as a result of the Ouachita orogeny. During the late Paleozoic the deep ocean basin that existed in central and southern Arkansas was lifted when South America collided with North America, creating the folded Ouachita Mountains and uplifting the Ozark plateau to the north. Ecology and conservation Formal conservation in the region began when the Ozark National Forest was created by proclamation of President Theodore Roosevelt in 1908 to preserve 917,944 acres (3,714.79 km2) across five Arkansas counties. Another 608,537 acres (2,462.66 km2) were added the following year. The initial forest included area as far south as Mount Magazine and as far east as Sylamore.[27] In 1939, Congress established Mark Twain National Forest at nine sites in Missouri. Wildlife management areas were founded in the 1920s and '30s to restore populations to viable numbers. In the 1930s and 1940s Aldo Leopold, Arthur Carhart and Bob Marshall developed a "wilderness" policy for the Forest Service. Their efforts bore fruit with The Wilderness Act of 1964 which designated wilderness areas "where the earth and its community of life are untrammeled by men, where man himself is a visitor and does not remain", though this included second growth public forests like the Mark Twain National Forest.[28] Land was also added to Ozark National Forest during this period, with over 544,000 acres (2,200 km2) in total additions. Some land was reclaimed by the government through the Resettlement Administration during the Great Depression.[27] In 1976, Congress established the Hercules Glades Wilderness, the first of 13 designated wilderness areas in the Ozarks. In 1986, Congress established the Ozark Plateau National Wildlife Refuge in northeast Oklahoma. Protected areas ensure the recovery of endangered and threatened species of animals and plants, including the red wolf, Ozark big-eared bat, Indiana bat, eastern small-footed bat, southeastern bat, southeastern big-eared bat; longnose darter, Ozark cavefish, Ozark cave crayfish, Bowman's cave amphipod, Ozark cave amphipod, bat cave isopod; and Ozark chinquapin. It is a habitat of migratory birds and contains geological, archeological, historical, and paleontological resources. Commercial farms and processing operations are known to raise levels of chemical and biological contaminants in Ozark streams, threatening water supplies, recreational use and endangered native species.[29][30][31][32][33] Lakes and streams Big Spring, the largest freshwater spring in the Ozarks, discharges 304 million US gallons (1,150,000 m3) of water per day into the Current River. Canoers on the Current River in the Ozark National Scenic Riverways Roark Bluff on the Buffalo National River View of the Ozarks from Ha Ha Tonka State Park on Lake of the Ozarks, Camden County, Missouri Many of the rivers and streams in the Ozarks have been dammed. Most of the dams in the region were initially built for the dual purpose of flood control and hydropower generation but have also become major economic drivers through recreational use in places such as Branson, Missouri, and Mountain Home, Arkansas. The Army Corps of Engineers among others, operates multiple dams in the Ozarks region. Some of the largest lakes created by these dams are on the White River. Beginning in 1911 with the construction of Powersite Dam on the White River near Branson, Missouri and the impoundment of Lake Taneycomo the Ozarks rivers have been harnessed for electrical power, recreation, and flood control. After the President Franklin D, Roosevelt signed the Flood Control Act of 1938, six large flood control dams were constructed on the White River and its tributaries. Beaver Dam on the White River - Beaver Lake Table Rock Dam on the White River - Table Rock Lake Bull Shoals Dam on the White River - Bull Shoals Lake Norfork Dam on the North Fork River - Norfolk Lake Greers Ferry Lake on the Little Red River - Greers Ferry Lake Clearwater Dam on the Black River - Clearwater Lake Multiple smaller lakes have been created by dams in the White River basin from 1911 through 1960. These smaller lakes include Lake Sequoyah,[34] a small recreational fishing lake east of Fayetteville, Arkansas, formed in 1961; Sequoyah is the uppermost impoundment on the White River. Below Sequoyah (northeast of Fayetteville) is Beaver Lake, formed in 1960. The White River continues northeasterly into Table Rock Lake (1958) in Missouri, which feeds directly into Lake Taneycomo, where the river zigzags southeasterly into Arkansas forming Bull Shoals Lake along the Arkansas-Missouri line. Completed in 1952, Bull Shoals is the furthest downstream lake on the White River proper. Norfork Lake was formed by damming the North Fork River, a tributary of the White River, in 1941. Additional large lakes in the Ozarks region include Lake of the Ozarks, Pomme de Terre Lake, and Truman Lake in the northern Ozarks. These three lakes were formed by impounding the Osage River and its tributary the Pomme de Terre River in 1931, 1961 and 1979 respectively. Grand Lake o' the Cherokee in northeast Oklahoma, on the western portion of the Ozark Plateau, was created in 1940 with the damming of the Grand River. Stockton Lake was formed in 1969 by damming the Sac River near the city of Stockton, Missouri, and supplements the water supply of Springfield in nearby Greene County. The creation of the lakes significantly altered the Ozark landscape and affected traditional Ozark culture through displacement.[35][36][37][38] The streams provided water and power to communities, farms and mills concentrated in the valleys prior to impoundment.[39] Many cemeteries, farm roads, river fords and railways were lost when the lakes came, disrupting rural culture, travel and commerce. Baxter County, Arkansas, alone saw nearly 400 people displaced to make way for the reservoir created by Norfork Dam. The town of Forsyth, Missouri, was relocated in its entirety to a spot 2 miles (3 km) from its previous location. Prior to damming, rivers and streams in the White and Osage River basins were of similar character to the current conditions of the Buffalo, Elk, Niangua, Gasconade, Big Piney, Current, Jacks Fork, Eleven Point and Meramec rivers.[35] Because of the success of the Army Corps efforts to dam the large rivers in the Ozarks, the Ozarks Society began protests to keep the other rivers in the Ozarks free flowing. The Buffalo National River was created by an Act of Congress in 1972 as the nation's first National River, administered by the National Park Service. The designation came after over a decade of battling a proposed Army Corps dam in the media, legislature, and courts to keep the Buffalo River free flowing. The Ozark Society, the main force behind the dam protest, still leads the fight to keep the Buffalo River pristine and protected. Today, the Buffalo River sees approximately 800,000 visitors camping, canoeing, floating, hiking, and tubing annually.[40] In Missouri, the Ozark National Scenic Riverways[41] was established in 1964 along the Current and Jacks Fork rivers as the first US national park based on a river system. The Eleven Point River is included in the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System[42] established in 1968. These parks and rivers are a major economic driver for some of the least populated counties in Arkansas and Missouri, attracting up to 1.5 million tourists annually. Many other waterways and streams have their headwaters in the Boston Mountains portion of the Ozarks such as the Mulberry River, the White River, War Eagle Creek, Little Mulberry Creek, Lee Creek, Big Piney Creek, and the Little Red River. To the south, the Arkansas River valley separates the Boston Mountains from the Ouachita Mountains.[43] Missouri Ozark rivers include the Gasconade, Big Piney, and Niangua rivers in the north central region. The Meramec River and its tributaries Huzzah Creek and Courtois Creek are found in the northeastern Ozarks. The Black and St. Francis rivers mark the eastern crescent of the Ozarks. The James, Spring and North Fork rivers are in south-central Missouri. Forming the west central border of the Ozarks from Missouri through Kansas and into Oklahoma are the Spring River and its tributary, Center Creek. Grand Falls, Missouri's largest natural waterfall, a chert outcropping, includes bluffs and glades on Shoal Creek south of Joplin. All these river systems see heavy recreational use in season, including the Elk River in southwestern Missouri and its tributary Big Sugar Creek. Ozark rivers and streams are typically clear water, with baseflows sustained by many seeps and springs, and flow through forests along limestone and dolomite bluffs. Gravel bars are common along shallow banks, while deep holes are found along bluffs.[44] Except during periods of heavy rain or snow melt – when water levels rise quite rapidly – their level of difficulty is suitable for most canoeing and tubing. Fish hatcheries are common due to the abundance of springs and waterways.[37] The Neosho National Fish Hatchery was built in 1888; it was the first federal hatchery. The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission, Missouri Department of Conservation and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service operate numerous warm and cold water hatcheries and trout parks;[45][46] private hatcheries such as at Rockbridge[47] are found throughout the region. Regional economy Traditional economic activity The Ozarks contain ore deposits of lead, zinc, iron and barite. Many of these deposits have been depleted by historic mining activities, but much remains and is currently being mined in the Lead Belt of southeastern Missouri. Historically, the lead belt around the Saint Francois Mountains and the Tri-State district lead-zinc mining area around Joplin, Missouri, have been important sources of metals. Mining practices common in the early 20th century left significant abandoned underground mine problems and heavy metal contamination in topsoil and groundwater in the Tri-State district.[48][49] Much of the area supports beef cattle ranching, and dairy farming is common across the area. Dairy farms are usually cooperative affairs, with small farms selling to a corporate wholesaler, who packages product under a common brand for retail sales. Petroleum exploration and extraction also takes place in the Oklahoma portion of the Ozarks, as well as in the east half of the Boston Mountains in Arkansas. Logging of both softwood and hardwood timber species on both private land and in the National Forests has long been an important economic activity. The majority of the Ozarks is forested. Oak-hickory is the predominant type; eastern junipers are common, with stands of pine often seen in the southern range. Less than a quarter of the region has been cleared for pasture and cropland.[50] Forests that were heavily logged during the early-to-mid-20th century have recovered; much of the remaining timber in the Ozarks is second-growth forest. However, deforestation of frontier forest contributed through erosion to increased gravel bars along Ozark waterways in logged areas; stream channels have become wider and shallower, and deepwater fish habitat has been lost.[15] CCC lookout on White Rock Mountain, Franklin County, Arkansas The numerous rivers and streams of the region saw hundreds of water-powered timber and grist mills.[51][52] Mills were important centers of culture and commerce; dispersed widely throughout the region, mills served local needs, often thriving within a few miles of another facility. Few Ozark mills relied on inefficient water wheels for power; most utilized a dam, millrace and water turbine.[53] During the New Deal, the Civilian Conservation Corps employed hundreds in the construction of nearly 400 fire lookouts throughout the Ozarks at 121 known sites in Arkansas[54] and 257 in Missouri.[55] Of those lookouts, about half remain, and many of them are in use by the U.S. Forest Service. A 2007 report by the National Trust for Historic Preservation deemed these fire lookouts and related structures as one of America's 11 Most Endangered Historic Places.[56] In the 1960s, federal activity promoted modernization, especially through better transportation and tourism. The Ozarks Regional Commission sponsored numerous projects.[57] Current economic activities This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources in this section. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Ozarks" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (October 2018) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) Tourism is the growth industry of the Ozarks as evidenced by the growth of the Branson, Missouri, entertainment center celebrating traditional Ozark culture.[38][58] The rapidly growing Northwest Arkansas metropolitan area has also become a tourist hub, drawing nationwide attention for the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, Arkansas.[59] Poultry farming and food processing are significant industries throughout the region. The Tyson Foods corporation and ConAgra Foods each operates several hundred poultry farms and processing plants throughout the Ozarks. Schreiber Foods has operations throughout southern Missouri. The trucking industry is important to the regional economy, with national carriers based there including J. B. Hunt, ABF, and Prime, Inc. Springfield remains an operational hub for the BNSF Railway. Logging and timber industries are also significant in the Ozark economy, with operations ranging from small family-run sawmills to large commercial concerns. Fortune 500 companies such as Wal-Mart, Leggett & Platt, Bass Pro Shops, and O'Reilly Auto Parts are based in the Ozarks. The area is home to several Missouri wine and spirit regions, including the Ozark Highlands and Ozark Mountain American Viticultural Areas, and the Ozark Highland Spirits Region. There are a number of microbreweries throughout the region.[60] Culture See also: Culture of Missouri See also: Culture of Arkansas "Ozark" also refers to the distinctive culture, architecture,[56][61] and dialect shared by the people who live on the plateau. Early settlers in Missouri were pioneers who came west from the Southern Appalachians at the beginning of the 19th century,[37][62] followed in the 1840s and 1850s by Irish and German immigrants. Much of the Ozark population is of English, Scots-Irish, and German descent, and the Ozark families from which the regional culture derived[62] tend to have lived in the area since the 19th century.[63] The first public school in Jasper County, Missouri Early settlers relied on hunting, fishing, trapping, and foraging to supplement their diets and incomes.[37] Today hunting and fishing for recreation are common activities and an important part of the tourist industry. Foraging for mushrooms (especially morels) and for ginseng is common and financially supported by established buyers in the area. Other forages include poke, watercress, persimmons and pawpaw; wild berries such as blackberry, black raspberry, raspberry, red mulberry, black cherry, wild strawberry and dewberry; and wild nuts such as black walnut and even acorns.[64] Edible native legumes, wild grasses and wildflowers are plentiful, and beekeeping is common.[65] Print and broadcast media have explored Ozark culture broadly. Books set in the Ozarks include Where the Red Fern Grows, The Shepherd of the Hills,[58] and As a Friend.[66] The 1999 film Ride with the Devil, based on the book Woe to Live On,[67] depicts conflict in southwest Missouri during the Civil War.[68] Winter's Bone,[69] a novel by Daniel Woodrell (author of Woe to Live On), reflects on contemporary methamphetamine culture and its impact on families on the plateau. Released as a feature film in 2010, Winter's Bone received the Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival, as well as other awards. Several early and influential country-music television and radio programs originated from Springfield in the 1950s and '60s, including ABC-TV's Ozark Jubilee and The Slim Wilson Show on KYTV. The Clampett clan of The Beverly Hillbillies TV show provide a stereotypical depiction of Ozark people. Ozark musicians include Porter Wagoner and old-time fiddler Bob Holt.[70] Netflix drama series Ozark takes place in Osage Beach, Missouri and revolves around the well-to-do Byrde family as their lives are uprooted and they are forced to move from Chicago to the Ozarks after a money laundering scheme goes wrong. The series focuses on the Byrdes' dealings in the Ozarks, as well as their interactions with local Ozark crime families. The series premiered on July 21, 2017.[71] Examples of commercial interpretations of traditional Ozark culture include the two major family theme parks in the region, Silver Dollar City and the now defunct Dogpatch USA, and the resort entertainment complex in Branson. Ozark Folkways in Winslow, Arkansas, and Ozark Folk Center State Park in Mountain View, Arkansas, interpret regional culture through musical performance and exhibitions of pioneer skills and crafts. Traditional Ozark culture includes stories and tunes passed orally between generations through community music parties and other informal gatherings.[72] Many of these tunes and tales can be traced to British origins[73] and to German folklore. Moreover, historian Vance Randolph attributes the formation of much Ozark lore to individual families when "backwoods parents begin by telling outrageous whoppers to their children and end by half believing the wildest of these tales themselves."[62] Randolph collected Ozark folklore and lyrics in volumes such as the national bestseller Pissing in the Snow and Other Ozark Folktales (University of Illinois Press, 1976), Ozark Folksongs (University of Missouri Press, 1980), a four-volume anthology of regional songs and ballads collected in the 1920s and 1930s,[73] and Ozark Magic and Folklore (Courier Dover Publications, 1964).[62] Evidenced by Randolph's extensive field work, many Ozark anecdotes from the oral tradition are often bawdy, full of wild embellishments on everyday themes.[74][75] In 1941–42, commissioned by Alan Lomax of the Archive of Folk Culture, Randolph returned to the Ozarks with a portable recording machine from the Library of Congress and captured over 800 songs, ballads and instrumentals.[76] Selected from among these several hundred recordings, 35 tracks were released on Various Artists: Ozark Folksongs (Rounder Records) in 2001.[73] Artist's Point, located along the Boston Mountains Scenic Loop in Crawford County, Arkansas Square dances were an important social avenue throughout the Ozarks into the 20th century.[77][78][79] Square dances sprang up wherever people concentrated around mills and timber camps, springs, fords, and in towns small and large. Geographically isolated communities saw their own local dance tunes and variations develop.[77][78] Of all the traditional musicians in the Ozarks, the fiddler holds a distinct place in both the community and folklore.[77][78] Community fiddlers were revered for carrying local tunes; regionally, traveling fiddlers brought new tunes and entertainment, even while many viewed their arrival as a threat to morality.[70][77][78][79] In 2007, Gordon McCann, a chronicler of Ozarks folklife and fiddle music for over four decades, donated a collection of audio recordings, fieldnotes and photographs to Missouri State University in Springfield.[80] The collection includes more than 3,000 hours of fiddle music and interviews recorded at jam sessions, music parties, concerts and dances in the Ozarks. Selected audio recordings along with biographical sketches, photographs and tune histories were published in Drew Beisswenger and Gordon McCann's 2008 book/37-track CD set Mel Bay Presents Ozarks Fiddle Music: 308 Tunes Featuring 30 Legendary Fiddlers With Selections from 50 Other Great Ozarks Fiddlers. From 1973 to 1983, the Bittersweet project, which began as an English class at Lebanon High School in Missouri, collected 476 taped and transcribed interviews, published 482 stories, and took over 50,000 photographs documenting traditional Ozark culture.[81] Population influx since the 1950s,[36][38] coupled with geographically lying in both the Midwest and Upper South, proximity to the Mississippi embayment, the Osage and Northern Plains, contributes to changing cultural values in the Ozarks. Theme parks and theatres seen to reflect regional values have little in common with traditional Ozark culture. Community tradition bearers remain active, in decreasing numbers, far afield of commercial offers.[82][83] Religion Ozark religion, like that of Appalachia, was predominantly Baptist and Methodist during periods of early settlement; it tends to the conservative or individualistic, with Episcopalians, Assemblies of God, Baptists including Southern Baptists, Church of Christ, Pentecostals, and other Protestant denominations present, as well as Catholics.[84][85] Religious organizations headquartered in the Ozarks include the Assemblies of God and Baptist Bible Fellowship International in Springfield and the General Association of General Baptists in Poplar Bluff. See also flag Missouri portal National Forests of the Ozarks Mark Twain National Forest – United States historic center Ozark–St. Francis National Forest – United States National Forest located in the state of Arkansas Ozark National Rivers and Wild Scenic Riverways Buffalo National River – national river in northern Arkansas, USA Ozark National Scenic Riverways – National park Eleven Point National Wild and Scenic River – park in Oregon County, Missouri, United States of America Hiking Trail Systems of the Ozarks Ozark Trail – long-distance multi-use trail in Missouri and Arkansas, United States Ozark Highlands Trail – hiking and backpacking trail in Arkansas U.S. Wilderness Areas in the Ozarks Ozark Highlands (ecoregion) List of U.S. multistate regions Missouri Ozark Forest Ecosystem Project The Old Ozark Auto Trail – auto trail Green Country – Area of Oklahoma, USA Cookson Hills – Hills in Oklahoma, United States Carthage Underground – mine in Missouri, United States of America Ships named Ozark USS Ozark (1863) – American river monitor USS Ozark (BM-7) – U.S. Navy ship built launched in 1900 USS Ozark (LSV-2)
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