Statehood 1836

Arkansas

Arkansas was first claimed by France in 1682 as part of French Louisiana, with early French explorers naming the territory after the Quapaw people. Spain acquired the region via the Treaty of Fontainebleau in 1762, ruling it as a province of New Spain until retroceding it to France in 1801 under the Third Treaty of San Ildefonso. The United States acquired the territory as part of the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, and it was formally organized as the Arkansas Territory on July 4, 1819, before being admitted to the Union as the State of Arkansas on June 15, 1836.

Statehood
1836
Historic sites
2,962
Military engagements
280

Pre-contact era

Humans first arrived in Arkansas millennia ago, and many tribes used the region as hunting lands. The main tribe was the Quapaw, who settled in the Arkansas River delta after moving south from Illinois. Early French explorers gave the territory its name, a corruption of Akansea, a phonetic spelling from the Illinois language word for the Quapaw.

Colonial history

Early French explorers named the territory and gave Arkansas its name as a corruption of Akansea from the Illinois language.

Louisiana was a province of New Spain from 1762 to 1801. The actual transfer of authority was gradual; when Spain attempted to fully replace French authorities in 1767, French residents staged an uprising not suppressed until 1769.

Spain agreed to continue administering the colony until French officials arrived and formalized the transfer. The official transfer of ownership took place at the Cabildo in New Orleans on 30 November 1803.

Arkansas Territory existed as a formal U.S. territory from July 4, 1819, to June 15, 1836. Arkansas Post was the first territorial capital (1819–1821) and Little Rock was the second (1821–1836).

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Explore Arkansas records

2,962
National Register historic sites
National Register listings ›
280
Military engagements
Military history records ›
1
Civil War regiments
Union, Confederate, USCT ›
12
Indigenous groups
Heritage records ›
4
Notable figures
Born in Arkansas ›
4
Colonial-era events
1492 to early statehood ›
1
Archaeological sites
Prehistoric sites ›
Arkansas counties
Census population history ›
Sources

State history content adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. Historic sites data: National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

About Arkansas

When did Arkansas become a state?
Arkansas was admitted to the Union in 1836.
What European powers colonized Arkansas?
The territory that became Arkansas passed through several colonial periods. Early French explorers named the territory and gave Arkansas its name as a corruption of Akansea from the Illinois language. Louisiana was a province of New Spain from 1762 to 1801. The actual transfer of authority was gradual; when Spain attempted to fully replace French authorities in 1767, French residents staged an uprising not suppressed until 1769. Spain agreed to continue administering the
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