The Americana Series Monthly Challenge – February 2023: Arkansas

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The Americana Series Monthly Challenge – February 2023: Arkansas

1bhabeck
Jan 31, 2023, 11:29 pm

Each month, we will visit a different state in the United States of America for the Monthly Reading Challenge in the Mystery & Suspense Extra! Group. This month, we are travelling to the last of the 50 states – Arkansas.

The Americana Series Monthly Challenge – February 2023: Arkansas


History
Arkansas, is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. Arkansas is the 29th largest by area and the 34th most populous state, with a population of just over 3 million at the 2020 census. The capital and most populous city is Little Rock, in the central part of the state, a hub for transportation, business, culture, and government. The northwestern corner of the state, including the Fayetteville–Springdale–Rogers Metropolitan Area and Fort Smith metropolitan area, is a population, education, and economic center. The largest city in the state's eastern part is Jonesboro. The largest city in the state's southeastern part is Pine Bluff.

Previously part of French Louisiana and the Louisiana Purchase, the Territory of Arkansas was admitted to the Union as the 25th state on June 15, 1836. Much of the Delta had been developed for cotton plantations, and landowners there largely depended on enslaved African Americans' labor. In 1861, Arkansas seceded from the United States and joined the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War. On returning to the Union in 1868, Arkansas continued to suffer economically, due to its overreliance on the large-scale plantation economy. Cotton remained the leading commodity crop, and the cotton market declined. Because farmers and businessmen did not diversify and there was little industrial investment, the state fell behind in economic opportunity. In the late 19th century, the state instituted various Jim Crow laws to disenfranchise and segregate the African-American population. During the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s, Arkansas and particularly Little Rock were major battlegrounds for efforts to integrate schools.

White interests dominated Arkansas's politics, with disfranchisement of African Americans and refusal to reapportion the legislature. Only after the civil rights movement and federal legislation passed were more African Americans able to vote. The Supreme Court overturned rural domination in the South and other states that had refused to reapportion their state legislatures or retained rules based on geographic districts. In a series of cases in the 1960s during the height of related civil rights activities, the Warren Court invoked a one person, one vote principle, applying the Equal Protection Clause of the constitution and holding that states had to organize their legislatures by districts that held approximately equal populations, and that these had to be redefined as necessary after each decade's census.

Following World War II in the 1940s, Arkansas began to diversify its economy and see prosperity. During the 1960s, the state became the base of the Walmart corporation, the world's largest company by revenue, headquartered in Bentonville. In the 21st century, Arkansas's economy is based on service industries, aircraft, poultry, steel, and tourism, along with important commodity crops of cotton, soybeans and rice.

Geography


Arkansas is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage language, a Dhegiha Siouan language, and referred to their relatives, the Quapaw people. The state's diverse geography ranges from the mountainous regions of the Ozark and Ouachita Mountains, which make up the U.S. Interior Highlands, to the densely forested land in the south known as the Arkansas Timberlands, to the eastern lowlands along the Mississippi River and the Arkansas Delta.

Fun Facts
The name Arkansas has been pronounced and spelled in a variety of fashions. The region was organized as the Territory of Arkansaw on July 4, 1819, with the territory admitted to the United States as the state of Arkansas on June 15, 1836. The name was historically /ˈɑːrkənsɔː/, /ɑːrˈkænzəs/, and several other variants. Historically and modernly, the people of Arkansas call themselves either "Arkansans" or "Arkansawyers". In 1881, the Arkansas General Assembly passed Arkansas Code 1-4-105 (official text):
Whereas, confusion of practice has arisen in the pronunciation of the name of our state and it is deemed important that the true pronunciation should be determined for use in oral official proceedings.
And, whereas, the matter has been thoroughly investigated by the State Historical Society and the Eclectic Society of Little Rock, which have agreed upon the correct pronunciation as derived from history, and the early usage of the American immigrants.
Be it therefore resolved by both houses of the General Assembly, that the only true pronunciation of the name of the state, in the opinion of this body, is that received by the French from the native Indians and committed to writing in the French word representing the sound. It should be pronounced in three (3) syllables, with the final "s" silent, the "a" in each syllable with the Italian sound, and the accent on the first and last syllables. The pronunciation with the accent on the second syllable with the sound of "a" in "man" and the sounding of the terminal "s" is an innovation to be discouraged.
(Note: Citizens of the state of Kansas often pronounce the Arkansas River as /ɑːrˈkænzəs ˈrɪvər/, in a manner similar to the common pronunciation of the name of their state.)

The city of Texarkana sits right on the Arkansas–Texas state line. Texarkana has two governments, one for the side of Arkansas, and the other for the side of Texas. Standing in both states is the Texarkana post office building.


President Theodore Roosevelt established the Ouachita National Forest in 1907. The forest is considered the oldest in the South. The Ouachita Mountains are known for their unusual ridges that run east to west instead of north to south.


Mammoth Spring in the north of the state is the world’s 7th largest spring. Over nine million gallons of water flow from it hourly, at a constant cool temperature of 58°F (14°C).


The Crater of Diamonds mine in the state park of the same name is the only active diamond mine in the US and the only one in the world that is open to the public. The three largest diamonds ever found in the US were uncovered in the area. The largest American diamond, named Uncle Sam, was an impressive 40.23 carats. Though the diamond was mostly clear, minerals in the ground during its formation caused it to have a pink hue.


Arkansas has a bizarre phenomenon called the Dover Lights: an unexplained illumination that’s visible from a neighboring overlook in an uninhabited valley of the Ozark Mountains. Local legend claims that the unexplained illumination is caused by restless spirits of soldiers from Spain who died while searching for treasure.


Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art has one of the most extensive collections of art from American artists spanning different styles. Warhol's pop art can be found alongside Americana art by Rockwell. What makes the museum even more special is that it's not in a simple building. The structure takes up 120 acres of the Ozark forest. The buildings are quite modern but are also made to look like they're part of nature. There are even miles of hiking trails around the property.


The World's Championship Duck Calling Contest held in the state. Since 1936, it's been a source of state pride. The contest is held every five years in Stuttgart over Thanksgiving weekend. Preliminaries are held across the country, so only the best duck callers compete in the final championship.


A high school in Arkansas’s capital was a battleground for civil rights in 1957. In 1954 it was deemed that segregation in public schools was unconstitutional, but it took some time for this to take effect in Arkansas. The issue came to a tipping point in 1957 with the Little Rock Nine, a group of nine African American students who attempted to enroll at Little Rock Central High School. The governor of Arkansas was strongly opposed to the idea though, so he ordered the state’s National Guard forces to attend the high school to prevent the Little Rock Nine from entering. When news of this reached president Dwight D. Eisenhower, he immediately made moves to intervene. After three weeks of attempts to reach out and reason with the governor of Arkansas, the president had to resort to force. As a result, the president sent 1000 troops from the 101st Airborne division of the US army to escort the children to school. This event is seen to be a cornerstone of the US civil rights movement.


Arkansas has its own version of Bigfoot. Most people may have heard of the US folk legend Bigfoot, otherwise known as a Sasquatch. Less known, though, is Arkansas’s very own version – the Fouke Monster. This legendary beast is said to be about 7 feet (2 meters) tall and appears similar to other hominids like gorillas but is covered in long, dark hair. It’s been reported to be around the area of Miller County, Arkansas, since the 1960s, rising to national attention in the 70s. The Fouke Monster’s rise to fame is attributed to an incident on the night of May 2, 1971, when it reportedly attacked someone’s home.


More than half of the entire state is forested. As of 2010, there were around 18,720,000 acres (75,757 km²) of forestland in Arkansas, which makes 56% of the total area of the state. Across all this forestland, there are approximately 11.8 billion trees. Interestingly enough, not even half of the forested areas of Arkansas are part of national forests – just 13%. Private landowners actually own the vast majority, owning a massive 58%!


Notable Residents

Only one US President has come from Arkansas. William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American retired politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and again from 1983 to 1992, and as attorney general of Arkansas from 1977 to 1979. A member of the Democratic Party, Clinton became known as a New Democrat, as many of his policies reflected a centrist "Third Way" political philosophy. He is the husband of Hillary Clinton, who was a U.S. senator from New York from 2001 to 2009, secretary of state from 2009 to 2013 and the Democratic nominee for president in the 2016 presidential election.

William “Bill” Doolin was the founder of the Wild Bunch, which specialized in robbing banks, trains, and stagecoaches in Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Kansas in the 1890s was born in 1858 on a farm in Johnson County north of Clarksville. Originally a member of the Dalton Gang, he formed his own gang around 1893 and the Wild Bunch became the premier terrorizers of the West until Doolin was captured in a Eureka Springs bathhouse by Deputy U.S. Marshal Bill Tilghman in January 1896. He later escaped federal custody and was shot and killed by a U.S. Marshall near Lawson, Oklahoma Territory on August 25, 1896.


Arkansas's culture is observable in museums, theaters, novels, television shows, restaurants, and athletic venues across the state. Notable people from the state include politician and educational advocate William Fulbright; former president Bill Clinton, who also served as the 40th and 42nd governor of Arkansas; general Wesley Clark, former NATO Supreme Allied Commander; Walmart founder and magnate Sam Walton; singer-songwriters Johnny Cash, Charlie Rich, Jimmy Driftwood, and Glen Campbell; actor-filmmaker Billy Bob Thornton; poet C. D. Wright; physicist William L. McMillan, a pioneer in superconductor research; poet laureate Maya Angelou; Douglas MacArthur; musician Al Green; actor Alan Ladd; basketball player Scottie Pippen; singer Ne-Yo; Chelsea Clinton; actress Sheryl Underwood; and author John Grisham.

The state has given us a number of mystery authors such as Earlene Fowler, Charlaine Harris, John Grisham, Radine Trees Nehring, Joan Hess, and Amanda McKinney. Other authors include Maya Angelou, Charles Portis, Miller Williams, Kevin Brockmeier, Dee Brown and Shirley Abbott.

In honor of ARKANSAS, read a Mystery/Suspense book (any sub-genre will do!) that satisfies one or more of the following:

• A Mystery/Suspense book with "Tree," "School," "Diamond," "Monster," or "Outlaw" in the title OR has a Tree, a Diamond, or a Duck on the cover;

• A Mystery/Suspense book that takes place in Arkansas OR includes a character who is involved in retail OR has a politician as a primary character OR takes place during a war; and

• A Mystery/Suspense book where the author's FIRST and LAST initial (no middle initials or names) can be found in ARKANSAS.


Happy Reading ❤

2bhabeck
Jan 31, 2023, 11:31 pm

Brenda's Americana Challenge: February 2023 - Arkansas
0 of 3 Complete


In honor of ARKANSAS, read a Mystery/Suspense book (any sub-genre will do!) that satisfies one or more of the following:

• A Mystery/Suspense book with "Tree," "School," "Diamond," "Monster," or "Outlaw" in the title OR has a Tree, a Diamond, or a Duck on the cover;

• A Mystery/Suspense book that takes place in Arkansas OR includes a character who is involved in retail OR has a politician as a primary character OR takes place during a war; and

• A Mystery/Suspense book where the author's FIRST and LAST initial (no middle initials or names) can be found in ARKANSAS.

3Carol420
Edited: Feb 15, 2023, 8:28 am


Carol Visits with Bigfoot in Arkansas (Hope he likes tea and cookies!!)
💘 - ★
3/3 - Done - 2/15
1. A Mystery/Suspense book with "Tree," "School," "Diamond," "Monster," or "Outlaw" in the title OR has a Tree, a Diamond, or a Duck on the cover.
Wendigo - Vaughn C. Hardacker - 5★


💘2. A Mystery/Suspense book that takes place in Arkansas OR includes a character who is involved in retail OR has a politician as a primary character OR takes place during a war.
What's Done in Darkness - Laura McHugh - 4.5★ (Set in Arkansas)

💘3. A Mystery/Suspense book where the author's FIRST and LAST initial (no middle initials or names) can be found in ARKANSAS.
Dan's Hauntastic Haunts Investigates: Goodman Dairy- Alex Silver 3 ★ (A & S)

4Andrew-theQM
Edited: Feb 5, 2023, 5:34 pm

• A Mystery/Suspense book with "Tree," "School," "Diamond," "Monster," or "Outlaw" in the title OR has a Tree, a Diamond, or a Duck on the cover;

✔️Death of A Green Eyed Monster by R W Green ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

• A Mystery/Suspense book that takes place in Arkansas OR includes a character who is involved in retail OR has a politician as a primary character OR takes place during a war; and

✔️The Secret Servant by Daniel Silva ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2

• A Mystery/Suspense book where the author's FIRST and LAST initial (no middle initials or names) can be found in ARKANSAS.

Bones to Ashes by Kathy Reichs

5gaylebutz
Feb 2, 2023, 9:16 pm

I’m going to read Shakespeare’s Trollop by Charlaine Harris.
It takes place in Arkansas.

6Sergeirocks
Edited: Feb 12, 2023, 9:44 am

The Snuffbox Murders - Roger Silverwood 4★s (Author’s initials in ARKANSAS)
Evil For Evil - James R. Benn 4.5★s (Takes place during WWII)
The Money Tree Murders - Roger Silverwood 4★s (Has ‘Tree’ in the title)

7Sergeirocks
Feb 12, 2023, 9:54 am

>1 bhabeck: I can’t believe that’s the whole of the US states finished now…!

What a great job, Brenda, ☺️.

Huge Thanks, 👏👏.

8gaylebutz
Feb 12, 2023, 5:14 pm

Done - Shakespeare's Trollop by Charlaine Harris - 3.5 *
It's set in Arkansas.

I also think you did a great job Brenda! Thanks for gettting us through all 50 states!

9Carol420
Feb 15, 2023, 8:31 am



Yeah 50 of them. You did great. You could expand it my two more...Washington D.C and Puerto Rico.

10bhabeck
Feb 20, 2023, 5:24 pm

>9 Carol420: Actually, it's going to be expanded a bit for DC and the various territories - figured I might as well go all in after 50 months of doing this! LOL...

11bhabeck
Feb 20, 2023, 5:25 pm

>3 Carol420: >6 Sergeirocks: >8 gaylebutz: Congratulations! Well Done.

12Andrew-theQM
Feb 20, 2023, 5:40 pm

>10 bhabeck: An excellent achievement and commitment Brenda. Thanks and well done 👏👏👏🙌

13Sergeirocks
Feb 20, 2023, 7:07 pm

>10 bhabeck: More to look forward to… 👏🙂

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