Blog

 Judge Match: On this day in 1824, a game of ‘whist’ in Arkansas Post gets heated. In a game of whist, Judge Joseph Selden contradicted a lady player’s account of the score and Judge Andrew Scott, who was also playing, demanded an apology from Selden on behalf of the lady. Selde... Read More

Here’s more about Charles M. McDermott (1808–1884), a medical doctor, minister, plantation owner, Greek scholar, charter member of the Southern Pacific Railroad Company and inventor. His patented inventions include an iron wedge, iron hoe, a cotton-picking machine, and a “flying machine.”... Read More

Have you ever heard of the Great Raft on the Red River? It took the Freeman-Custis crew 14 days to maneuver around it. What was it exactly? The Great Raft was an impressive mess—a gigantic logjam, or a series of “rafts,” on the Red River in present day Arkansas, Louisiana and Texas.&nbs... Read More

Historic Places: Built in 1912-13, the Bedford Brown Bethell House in Des Arc, Prairie County, has been called one of the most elegant old homes in the Grand Prairie region of Arkansas.  Bedford Brown Bethell, the original owner, was born August 23, 1846, in Tulip Ridge.  In th... Read More

Arkansas’s National Landmarks: The Eaker Site is a large, prehistoric archaeological site located near Blytheville in Mississippi County. The area was designated as a National Historic Landmark on June 19, 1996. The Eaker Site, located on land that was formerly Eaker Air Force ... Read More

Creativity Arkansas: The Mosaic Templars Cultural Center’s “Creativity Arkansas” collection began in 2008 and showcases artwork created by African American artists with a connection to Arkansas. The collection, which preserves and documents Arkansas history through visual arts, celebrates ... Read More

The Department of Arkansas Heritage (DAH) was created in 1975 to preserve and promote Arkansas’s natural and cultural heritage as a source of pride and enjoyment for all. Originally, the agency had a different name. The original legislation named the agency the Department of Arkansas Natu... Read More

 Historic Places: The Louisiana Purchase Marker is located at the junction of Phillips, Lee and Monroe counties in eastern Arkansas. The marker commemorates the “initial point” from which land surveys of the territory acquired through the Louisiana Purchase of 1803 were surveyed. The ... Read More

  The Arkansas Literary Festival is sure to bring crowds to Little Rock this weekend. The Department of Arkansas Heritage and two of our museums are proud to help support this important annual event. The following sessions, workshops and panels are sponsored by DAH, Mosaic Templars Cultu... Read More

Born in Little Rock in 1940, Grammy award-winning Ferrell “Pharoah” Sanders, noted jazz saxophonist, is recognized as a pioneer of the “free jazz” movement. Collaborations with artists such as Sun Ra and John Coltrane remain his most noted work, but his solo efforts stretch over four deca... Read More