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Welcome to the new CALS Encyclopedia of Arkansas

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. It will also benefit people outside the state who are seeking information about Arkansas. 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. The CALS Encyclopedia of Arkansas is a work in progress. We are continually adding new entries, photographs, maps, videos, and audio files, so check back frequently to see what’s new.

Photo Of The Day
John Eakin

Jurist and newspaper editor John Eakin was publisher of the Washington Telegraph, the only state newspaper to remain in operation throughout the Civil War. Eakin, who preferred to sign his name Jno (a common abbreviation for John at the time), was a strong supporter of women’s rights, served on the state Supreme Court, and was a member of the 1874 state constitutional convention. Eakin died in 1885.

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This Day in Arkansas History
May 30, 1923

Thomas Stevenson Drew, a Lawrence County judge who was instrumental in the founding of Pocahontas (Randolph County) and who served as Arkansas’s third governor, was reinterred in Pocahontas over forty years after his death in Lipan, Texas. Drew was the first person to be elected governor by a plurality instead of a majority and the only governor to resign his office because of personal financial difficulties.

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