February 19, 1863

During the Civil War, the small town of Hopefield was burned by Union soldiers to counteract a local Confederate insurgency. The decision to burn the town had its roots in events initiated early the previous month, when, under orders from Trans-Mississippi Department commander Lieutenant General Theophilus H. Holmes, Captain James H. McGehee led his unattached company of Arkansas cavalry on an extended raid through Crittenden County with orders to scout the region, burn all cotton deemed vulnerable to capture, and generally annoy the Union enemy along the Mississippi River.