“On a lonely road quite long ago, A trav’ler trod with fiddle and a bow”*

by chuckofish

On this day in 1836, the Arkansas Territory was admitted to the Union as the 25th state. In 1861 Arkansas withdrew from the United States and joined the Confederate States of America during the Civil War. It returned to the U.S. in 1868.

Screen Shot 2018-06-14 at 10.25.28 AM.pngArkansas borders Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, Oklahoma to the west, Missouri to the north, and Tennessee and Mississippi to the east. Considering it is our neighbor to the south, I am not at all well acquainted with this state. I have been there only twice. The OM and I visited Eureka Springs, an historic Victorian town in the Ozarks, years ago, and daughter #1 and I drove to Bentonville a few years ago to see the Crystal Bridges Museum.

Historically, the Arkansas River, a major tributary of the mighty Mississippi, is a very important river, especially in regards to the Santa Fe Trail, which, you know, interests me a great deal.

Screen Shot 2018-06-14 at 10.36.31 AM.pngHowever, I can’t say I have a great desire to go to Little Rock.

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The William J. Clinton Presidential Library kind of looks like a giant double-wide…seriously, did they do that on purpose?

The Fort Smith National Historic Site might be interesting to visit with Judge Parker’s courtroom…

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…but I’m not putting it on my bucket list. Instead I will suggest we watch a movie starring one of these illustrious sons of Arkansas:

Alan Ladd in Shane (1953)

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Billy Bob Thornton in Sling Blade (1996)

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Dick Powell in Murder My Sweet (1944)

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Arthur Hunnicutt in El Dorado (1967)

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…or True Grit (1969) which stars Glen Campbell, who haled from Arkansas. Fort Smith actually plays an important part in the action of the film as does Judge Parker, the “hanging” judge.

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Of course, one of the most famous sons of Arkansas is Johnny Cash.

How can you top that?

Have a good weekend! Mine will be a quiet one. The wee babes don’t return from Florida until Monday night!

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We miss them!

*The music for the Arkansas state song, “The Arkansas Traveler,” was written by Colonel Sanford (Sandy) Faulkner (about 1850). Lyrics were added by the Arkansas State Song Selection Committee in 1947.