Arkansas

Arkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Arkansas shares a border with six states, with its eastern border largely defined by the Mississippi River. Its diverse geography ranges from the mountainous regions of the Ozarks and the Ouachita Mountains, which make up the U.S. Interior Highlands, to the eastern lowlands along the Mississippi River. The capital and most populous city is Little Rock, located in the central portion of the state.

The name Arkansas is a French pronunciation of a Quapaw word meaning "land of downriver people". The pronunciation "arkansaw" was made official by an act of the state legislature in 1881.

The Little Rock-North Little Rock-Pine Bluff Combined Statistical Area had 829,032 people in the 2006 census estimates and is the largest in Arkansas.

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Arkansas County
Ashley County
Baxter County
Benton County
Boone County
Bradley County
Calhoun County
Carroll County
Chicot County
Clark County
Clay County
Cleburne County
Cleveland County
Columbia County
Conway County
Craighead County
Crawford County
Crittenden County
Cross County
Dallas County
Desha County
Drew County
Faulkner County
Franklin County
Fulton County
Garland County
Grant County
Greene County
Hempstead County
Hot Spring County
Howard County
Independence County
Izard County
Jackson County
Jefferson County
Johnson County
Lafayette County
Lawrence County
Lee County
Lincoln County
Little River County
Logan County
Lonoke County
Madison County
Marion County
Miller County
Mississippi County
Monroe County
Montgomery County
Nevada County
Newton County
Ouachita County
Perry County
Phillips County
Pike County
Poinsett County
Polk County
Pope County
Prairie County
Pulaski County
Randolph County
Saline County
Scott County
Searcy County
Sebastian County
Sevier County
Sharp County
St. Francis County
Stone County
Union County
Van Buren County
Washington County
White County
Woodruff County
Yell County

Looking for information on Arkansas in the Civil War? Get information on important Civil War battles that took place in Arkansas, such as the Battle of Pea Ridge, Battle of Prairie Grove, and the Battle of Helena.

After a divided Arkansas seceded from the Union in 1861, it became a strategic target for both North and South because of its location on the Mississippi River and its role as a gateway to the Southwest. Included among the state's more than 750 military engagements were a number of major conflicts.

The war's largest battle west of the Mississippi was fought at Pea Ridge in March 1862. Participating were some 26,000 soldiers. The Union victory dashed Confederate hopes of occupying Missouri.

In December, 1862, more than 11,000 Confederates battled Union forces at Prairie Grove in a failed attempt to prevent federal occupation of Fort Smith.

The control of Arkansas River commerce was at stake when 30,000 Union troops overwhelmed 5,000 Confederates at Arkansas Post in January 1863, while control of the Mississippi figured in the Battle of Helena on July 4, 1863.

Union forces occupied Little Rock on Sept. 10, 1863, despite numerous skirmishes. The state's Confederate government moved its capital to the town of Washington.

In the spring of 1864, 13,000 federal troops headed southwest from Little Rock in an attempt to complete the Union conquest of the state. That failed venture is now known as the Red River Campaign.

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Arkansas Counties

The Civil War in Arkansas