Entry Category: Johnson - Starting with L

Lamar is a second-class city in the Arkansas River Valley and the Interstate 40 corridor. Located a few miles east of Clarksville (Johnson County), Lamar is notable for its schools and for being the home of two acting governors of Arkansas. The region that would become Lamar first entered recorded history during the Trail of Tears, when Lieutenant Joseph Whipple Harris led a party of 125 Cherokee across Arkansas to Indian Territory (present-day Oklahoma). Harris led the group on a trail that passed through Johnson County, camping on a ridge near the present site of Lamar on May 2, 1834. Later parties traveling to Indian Territory followed the same route. A segment of road believed to be the route used by …