Arkadelphia’s history is
mostly unwritten
The public archives hold only 4 old photos of Arkadelphia. The rest are in attics, shoeboxes and the historical society. Help start the collection.
The story
from WikipediaRead it all ↗The area that became Arkadelphia was inhabited by Indigenous peoples before European-American settlement, including Caddo and Quapaw peoples in the broader region. The site of modern Arkadelphia developed on a bluff overlooking the Ouachita River. In 1809, Adam Blakely established a blacksmith shop at the site, which became known as Blakelytown.
In 1811, John Hemphill began operating a salt works nearby, often described as one of Arkansas's earliest manufacturing establishments. By 1812, Jacob Barkman had opened river traffic on the Ouachita River to New Orleans, first by pirogue and later by keelboat.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Timeline
built from the dates on the items belowStart Arkadelphia’s collection
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Arkadelphia’s history is told.
0 of 10 decades since 1900 have photos 🔁Retake an old viewMustering in the "Hempstead Rifle…, 1861: stand where they stood+15 📦Share a family photoSign in to add one+10Famous people from Arkadelphia
See all 23 →
Arkadelphia, decade by decade
1990s
21 historic places in Arkadelphia
21 places in Arkadelphia are on the National Register of Historic Places, the country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
Where they are
When they were listed
Listed 1972Magnolia Manor
Listed 1974James E. M. Barkman House
Listed 1974Clark County Library
Listed 1977Flanagin Law Office
Listed 1978Clark County Courthouse
Listed 1982Domestic Science Building
Listed 1985Habicht-Cohn-Crow House
Listed 1996Arkadelphia Confederate Monument
Listed 1998Capt. Charles C. Henderson House
Listed 1999Rose Hill Cemetery
Listed 2001Thompson, C.E., General Store and House
Listed 2002Arkadelphia Boy Scout Hut
Listed 2004Nannie Gresham Biscoe House
Listed 2005Peake High School
Listed 2006Arkansas 7/51 Bridge
Listed 2006W.H. Young House
Listed 2007Helena National Guard Armory
Listed 2011Arkadelphia Commercial Historic DistrictListed 2023Henderson State University Historic DistrictListed 2025Ross. Jane. HouseListed 2025John Duke Wells Health, Physical Education, and Recreation BuildingThen & now
No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as Mustering in the "Hempstead Rifles," Arkansas Volunteers, at (1861) and it appears here side by side.
🔁 Retake this view · +15Stories next door
nearby towns’ historyFrom Wikimedia Commons (4) and the National Register (2). Images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.