Fort Smith Arkansas by Kathy Alexander.
(The laws referenced in this article were still on the books, though likely not enforced when this was originally published over a decade ago)
Judge Isaac Parker, often called the “Hanging Judge,” from Fort Smith, Arkansas, ruled over the lawless land of Indian Territory in the late 1800s. Over almost two decades, nearly 80 men were hanged at Fort Smith.
Arkansas has the only active diamond mine in the United States.
It is illegal to mispronounce Arkansas while in the state. It must be pronounced, “Arkansaw.”
It is safer per capita to live in New York City than in Pine Bluff, Arkansas.
Elevations in Arkansas range from 54 feet above sea level in the far southeast corner to 2,753 feet above at Mount Magazine, the state’s highest point.
It is illegal for dogs to bark after 6:00 p.m. in Fayetteville.
The community of Mountain View is called the Folk Capital of America. The little town preserves the pioneer way of life and puts it on display for visitors at the Ozark Folk Center State Park from March through October.
The road to the White House for President Bill Clinton began in Hope and then led to Hot Springs, Fayetteville, and Little Rock.
While it is legal to shoot bears in Arkansas, waking a sleeping bear to photograph it is prohibited.
Arkansas contains over 600,000 acres of lakes and 9,700 miles of streams and rivers.
Arkansas contains seven national park sites, over 2.9 million acres of national forests, seven national scenic byways, three state scenic byways, and 52 state parks.
In Arkansas, it is illegal to keep an alligator in your bathtub.
Fordyce Bathhouse in Hot Springs, Arkansas by Kathy Alexander.
Since the 1830s, the area known as Hot Springs National Park has bathed notables such as Franklin D. Roosevelt, Babe Ruth, and Al Capone. The park is entirely surrounded by the city of Hot Springs.
Located just outside of Murfreesboro, Crater of Diamonds State Park allows dedicated prospectors to search for precious gems, including diamonds, amethysts, garnets, jaspers, agates, and quartz.
Clark Bluff overlooking the St. Francis River contains chalk to supply the nation for years.
Sam Walton founded his Wal-Mart stores in Rogers, Arkansas, on July 2, 1962.
The Arkansas River is the longest stream to flow into the Mississippi-Missouri River system. Its total length is 1,450 miles.
Milk was designated as the official state beverage in 1985.
The largest freestanding rock formation in Eureka Springs has a base circumference of about 10 inches and a top measuring almost 10 feet across.
Ouachita National Forest is the oldest national forest in the South.
Legend of Boggy Creek Movie Poster.
A southern version of Bigfoot, the Boggy Creek Monster, has been sighted near Fouke, Arkansas. Said to be seven feet tall and hairy all over, it kills chickens, cattle, dogs, and other livestock.
The state prohibits viewing moose from airplanes, and it is against the law to push a live moose out of a moving airplane.
The World’s Championship Duck Calling Contest is held annually in Stuttgart.
Mount Ida is known as the Quartz Crystal Capital of the World.
In October 1999, in Little Rock, Arkansas, 20-year-old convicted killer Kenneth Williams crawled into a 500-gallon barrel of hog slop in a prison kitchen and escaped in when it was towed to a prison farm. The slop barrel didn’t have a grate over its opening then, but it does now. Williams was recaptured a few days later.
Pine Bluff is known as the world center of archery bow production.
Alma, Arkansas, is the Spinach Capital of the World and commemorates this by painting its water tower as the “world’s biggest can of spinach.”
Booger Hollow, Arkansas Double Decker Outhouse by Kathy Alexander.
Dover, Arkansas, has an operational double-decker outhouse at the Booger Hollow Trading Post.
General Douglas MacArthur, soldier, and statesman, was born in Little Rock in 1880.
Established near the mouth of the Arkansas River in 1686, Arkansas Post was the first permanent white settlement in the state.
The state’s geographic center is located in Pulaski, 12 miles northwest of Little Rock.
The first woman elected to the U.S. Senate was from Arkansas — Hattie Caraway, elected in November 1932.
In 1885, a Little Rock newspaper offered a free plow with each prepaid subscription of $12.
Scott Joplin, the popular musician and composer, was born in Texarkana.
Hope, Arkansas, is the self-proclaimed Watermelon Capital of the World. It’s also the birthplace of former President Clinton.
Bonnie and Clyde.
After a car accident in which Bonnie Parker was severely burned, she and Clyde Barrow hid out at a tourist court in Fort Smith in 1933.
An Arkansas law provides that school teachers who bob their hair will not get a raise.
The word Arkansas is from the Quapaw Indian language, which means south wind.
In 1783, the only Revolutionary War skirmish in the state occurred at Arkansas Post, called the Colbert Incident.
The Buffalo River is among the few remaining unpolluted, free-flowing rivers in the lower 48 states.
The fiddle was designated as the official state instrument in 1985.
In Fayetteville, it is illegal to kill any living creature.
Forty-seven hot springs flow from the southwestern slope of Hot Springs Mountain at an average temperature of 143 F.
The Ozark National Forest covers more than one million acres.
Cotter, Arkansas, is known as Trout Capital, USA.
Tracy Lawrence, the male country singing sensation, hails from Foreman, Arkansas.
Diamonds were discovered in 1906 when a Pike County farmer, John M. Huddleston, found them where Crater of Diamonds State Park is now.
Walking one’s cow down Fayetteville’s Main Street after 1:00 PM on Sunday is unlawful.
Early in the 20th century, ostrich riding and racing were popular activities at Cockburn’s Ostrich Farm in Hot Springs.
The entire city limits of Eureka Springs is designated as a Historic District and listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Eureka Springs, Arkansas Streets by Kathy Alexander.
There is an Alligator Farm in Hot Springs that has a petting zoo.
Magnolia, Arkansas, is home to the world’s largest barbecue grill. The “Boys Toys” store displays the 70+ foot-long charcoal grill.
In 1876, two rival newspaper editors in Fayetteville brought their editorial disagreements to a street fight. They agreed that the loser would sell his newspaper and leave town. He did.
In the state of Arkansas, a man can legally beat his wife, but not more than once a month.
In Arkansas, voters are allowed only five minutes to mark their ballots.
In Lavaca, Arkansas, sits a giant Budweiser Beer Can, which is a large farmer’s silo painted to look like his favorite beverage.
In Little Rock, no person shall sound the horn on a vehicle at any place where cold drinks or sandwiches are served after 9:00 p.m.
The Band Museum in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, is the only museum in the country devoted to band instruments and the history of the band movement in America.
Country crooners Glen Campbell, Johnny Cash, Charlie Rich, Tracy Lawrence, and Conway Twitty were all born in Arkansas.
Bill Doolin.
William “Bill” Doolin founded the Wild Bunch, which specialized in robbing banks, trains, and stagecoaches in Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Kansas in the 1890s was born in 1858 on a farm in Johnson County north of Clarksville. Originally a member of the Dalton Gang, he formed his own gang around 1893. The Wild Bunch became the premier terrorizers of the West until Doolin was captured in an Eureka Springs bathhouse by Deputy U.S. Marshal Bill Tilghman in January 1896. He later escaped federal custody and was shot and killed by a U.S. Marshall near Lawson, Oklahoma Territory, on August 25, 1896.
Pine Bluff is the only city in the nation to host the 13-15-year-old Babe Ruth World Series four times.
Near Dover, Arkansas, there is an overlook with a view of Ozark Valley. Here, the “Dover Lights” appear, an unexplained phenomenon that appears, flickers, and sways in various colors. Some say they are the ghosts of Spanish Conquistadors searching for their lost gold in the Ozark foothills.
Emerson, Arkansas, holds the Purplehull Pea Festival and World Championship Rotary Tiller Race.
The flirtation between men and women on the streets of Little Rock can result in a 30-day jail term.
Compiled and edited by Kathy Alexander/Legends of America, updated April 2024.
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