Arkansas Post National Memorial

From Midwest National Parks:

On this day in 1960, Arkansas Post National Memorial was established. The Arkansas Post was the first European settlement in the lower Mississippi River Valley when Henri de Tonti established it in 1686 as a French trading post on the banks of the lower Arkansas River. The French and Spanish traded with the Quapaw, and the post was of strategic value to the French, Spanish, and later Americans. It was designated as the first capital of the Arkansas Territory in 1819.

In 1960, the site was protected as a National Memorial and National Historic Landmark; it commemorates the history of several cultures and time periods: the Quapaw, French, Spanish, an American Revolutionary War skirmish in 1783, and a Civil War battle in 1863. Over time, the Arkansas River eroded much of the historic settlements away. Learn more at https://www.nps.gov/arpo/index.htm

#MidwestNPS National Park Service 


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