November 27, 1922

More than 200 masked and robed men drove through Smackover in cars, carrying signs that warned “gamblers and others of the lawless element” to leave the area within twenty-four hours. The vigilantes, possibly members of the Ku Klux Klan (KKK), killed at least one person, shot at others, and destroyed buildings, and there were widespread reports of floggings and even cases of people being tarred and feathered. This multi-day riot mirrored other vigilante actions in the newly established oil fields in Arkansas.