October 2, 1905

The enmity that many Harrison residents felt for the African-American population came to a head following the financial collapse of the Missouri and North Arkansas Railroad and the attendant loss of jobs and income. A white mob stormed the jail, took two black prisoners and several others outside the city limits, whipped them, and ordered them to leave town. In what became known as the Harrison Race Riots, the mob then went on a rampage in the black community, burning homes and shooting out windows before ordering the black residents to leave town.