Also see Specific Destinations, Travel and Location Humor.
Page Toppers
- Apple Blossom Time
- Arkansas Sun
- Arkansas Traveler
- Arkansas You Run Deep in Me
- Down in Arkansas
- Down in Arkansaw
- How Far to Little Rock?
- Land of Opportunity
- Listen to the Mockingbird
- Little Rock Getaway
- Plane to Arkansas
- Somewhere Over Arkansas
Quotes
- I've just come back from Mississippi and over there when you talk about the West Bank they think you mean Arkansas. (Patrick Buchanan)
- If I could rest anywhere, it would be in Arkansas, where the men are of the real half-horse, half-alligator breed such as grows nowhere else on the face of the universal earth. (Davey Crockett)
- You know, in my hometown of Hope, Arkansas, the three sacred heroes were Jesus, Elvis, and FDR, not necessarily in that order. (Mike Huckabee)
Arkansas Symbols
- Nicknames: The Natural State; Land of Opportunity; The Wonder State; The Bowie State; The Razorback State; The Hot Springs state
- Motto: The people rule
- Songs: Oh, Arkansas (words and music by Terry Rose and Gary Klaff) and Arkansas (You Run Deep in Me)
- Historical Song: The Arkansas Traveler
- Folk Dance: Square Dance
- Musical Instrument: Fiddle
- Anthem: Arkansas
- Animal: White-tailed Deer
- Bird: Mockingbird
- Insect: Honeybee
- Tree: Pine
- Flower: Apple Blossom
- Gemstone: Diamond
- Mineral: Bauxite
- Rock: Quartz Crystal
- Beverage: Milk
- Fruit AND Vegetable: South Arkansas Vine Ripe Pink Tomato
- Grain: Rice
Facts About Arkansas
- Capital: Little Rock
- Residents: Arkansans
- State Name Origin: a Sioux word (acansa) meaning "downstream place" or an Algonquin word meaning "south wind"
- Admitted to Statehood: 15 Jun 1836
- Order of Admission: 25th state
- Length: 260 miles
- Width: 240 miles
- Area: 53,179 square miles
- Size Rank: 29
- Number of Counties: 75
- Lakes: over 600,000 acres
- Streams and Rivers: 87,617 miles
- The Arkansas River at 1,450 miles, is the longest stream to flow into the Mississippi-Missouri river system
- Geographic Center: 12 miles NW of Little Rock in Pulaski Co.
- Mean Elevation: 650 feet
- Highest Point: Magazine Mountain, 2,753 feet
- Lowest Point: Ouachita River, 55 feet
- Official Language: English (since 1987)
- Agricultural Products: food products, livestock, soybeans, rice, cotton paper,
- Commercial Products: paper, lumber and wood products, electronic equipment, industrial machinery, metal products, natural gas
- Average Annual Snowfall: 5.2 inches
- Average Annual Rainfall: 48.5 inches
- Average Winter High Temperature: 39.5 degrees
- Record Low Temperature: -29 degrees (13 Feb 1905 Pond)
- Average Summer High Temperature: 81.4 degrees
- Record High Temperature: 120 degrees (10 Aug 1936 Ozark)
- More information about Arkansas
chorus of Arkansas (You Run Deep in Me)
(Wayland Holyfield)
Oh, I may wander, but when I do
I will never be far from you.
You're in my blood and I know you'll always be.
Arkansas, you run deep in me.
The Arkansas State Creed
I believe in Arkansas as a land of opportunity and promise.
I believe in the rich heritage of Arkansas and I honor the men and women who created this heritage.
I believe in the youth of Arkansas who will build our future.
I am proud of my state. I will uphold its constitution, obey its laws, and work for the good of all its citizens.
Items of Interest
- The United States' only active diamond mine is located near Murfreesboro. It is operated as a tourist attraction.
- Mountain View is home to one of the largest producers of handmade dulcimers in the world.
- Clark Bluff overlooking the St. Francis River contains enough chalk to supply the nation for many years.
- Pine Bluff is the world center of archery bow production.
- The geographic center of the state is located in Pulaski, 12 miles northwest of Little Rock.
- The Colbert Incident at Arkansas Post in 1783 was the only Revolutionary War skirmish in the state.
Notable Natives
Some of these were born here, others just lived a while in the state.
- G. M. "Broncho Billy" Anderson - actor (Little Rock)
- Maya Angelou (1928- ) - dancer, poet, author (wrote I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings)
- Harry Asmore - Pulitzer Prize-winning author
- Lou Brock - baseball player
- Helen Gurley Brown - feminist, editor
- Paul "Bear" Bryant - football coach
- Glen Campbell - singer (Delight)
- Dolores Cannon - author
- Hattie Caraway (1878-1950) - first woman elected to the U.S. senate (Jonesboro)
- Johnny Cash (1932-2003) - country singer (Kingsland)
- Eldridge Cleaver (1935-1998) - Black activist (Wabaseka)
- William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton (1946- ) - 42nd U.S. president, governor of AR (Hope)
- Jay Hanna "Dizzy" Dean (1910-1974) - baseball player (Lucas)
- Orval Faubus - former governor (Combs)
- John Gould Fletcher - poet, Pulitzer Prize-winning author (Little Rock)
- J. William Fulbright - politician
- John Grisham (1955- ) - author (Jonesboro)
- John H. Johnson - publisher (Arkansas City)
- Scott Joplin (1867-1917) - composer, musician (Texarkana)
- Alan Ladd - actor (Hot Springs)
- Douglas MacArthur (1880-1964) - statesman, Five-Star General in the U.S. Army (Little Rock)
- Wilbur Mills - politician
- Albert Pike - soldier, poet, teacher
- Scottie Pippen (1965- ) - NBA player (Hamburg)
- Dick Powell - actor (Mountain View)
- Sarasen (1735-1832) - last Quapaw leader in AR (buried in Pine Bluff)
- Mary Steenburgen (1953- ) - actress
- Edward Durrell Stone - architect (Fayettville)
- Barry Switzer - football coach
- Conway Twitty - country singer
- Sam Walton (1918-1992) - founder of Wal-Mart (first store was in his hometown of Bentonville)
The Arkansas State Flag
Set on a red background, a white diamond represents the only place in North America where diamonds are found. The 25 white stars in the blue band around the diamond identify AR as the 25th state. The state name is centered in the diamond. Three stars below the name represent the three countries the territory belonged to (France, Spain and the US). The star above the name represents Arkansas' membership in the Confederate States of America. The colors are from the US flag.
How to tell if an Arky has been using your computer:
- The monitor is up on blocks.
- Outgoing faxes have tobacco stains on them.
- The extra RAM slots have Dodge truck parts in them.
- The password is 'Bubba'.
- There is a gun rack mounted on the monitor.
- There's a Skoal can in the CD-ROM drive.
- The keyboard is camouflaged.
- The mouse is referred to as a 'critter'.
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Songs about Arkansas
- Arkansas - Terry Melcher (1974)
- Arkansas Soul - Bill Goodwin (1970)
- Arkansas State Prison - Bobby Womack (1970)
- Arkansas Sun - Eddy Raven (1973)
- Arkansas Traveler - Michelle Shocked (1992)
- Arkansas Twist - Bobby Lee Trammell (1962)
- Corn-Fed Arkansas Girl - Luke Wills (1948)
- Delight, Arkansas - Glen Campbell (1969)
- Down in Arkansas - Jimmie Driftwood (1963)
- Fast Train Through Arkansas - Valerie Smith (1998)
- Happy Little Home in Arkansas - Grandpa Jones (1951)
- Hard Times in Arkansas - Arkie Shibley (1959)
- I Can See Arkansas - Steve Wariner (1990)
- Last of the Arkansas Greyhounds - Leo Kottke (1971)
- Plane to Arkansas, A - Big Bill Lister (1949)
- Somewhere Over Arkansas - Marty Brown (1996)
- State of Arkansas - The Weavers (1959)
- That's the Way They Do in Arkansas - Jimmie Driftwood (1963)
- Three Miles South of Cash in Arkansas - Carolina Cotton (1951)
- Thunder Rollin' 'Cross Arkansas - Victor Mecyssne (1998)
- When Panthers Roamed in Arkansas - Kate Campbell (2004)
Songs about Little Rock
- How Far to Little Rock? - The Clinch Mountain Boys (1960)
- Little Girl From Little Rock - Marilyn Monroe (1953)
- Little Rock - Collin Raye (1994)
- Little Rock Getaway - Paul Buskirk (1993)
- Rock Me Back to Little Rock - Jan Howard (1970)
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