Welcome to the Encyclopedia of Arkansas

This Day in Arkansas History

January 10, 1963

Arkansas lawyer and politician Mark Pryor was born in Fayetteville (Washington County). Pryor worked in private practice for ten years before being elected to the Arkansas House of Representatives, serving from 1991 to 1995. In 2002, Pryor narrowly defeated incumbent Tim Hutchinson for the U.S. Senate, assuming the seat previously held by his father, David Pryor. He was known as a centrist and conservative who received national attention after speaking on his religious views in Bill Maher’s film Religulous. Pryor lost his Senate seat in 2014 to Tom Cotton after his opponent highlighted Pryor’s support for President Barack Obama’s healthcare reform efforts.

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About the Encyclopedia

The CALS Encyclopedia of Arkansas is a free, authoritative source of information about the rich history, geography, and culture of Arkansas. It is updated regularly to ensure the people of Arkansas have an accurate and accessible resource to explore our heritage. We invite you to browse our text entries and media galleries to learn more about the people, places, events, legends, and lore of the 25th state. We are continually adding new entries, photographs, maps, videos, and audio files, so check back frequently to see what’s new.

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New to Arkansas?

Our overview page covers everything you would want to know about our beautiful state, including state symbols, demographics and more!

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