Arkadelphia
Arkadelphia is a city in Clark County, Arkansas, United States. Population was 10,548 in the 2005 special census.[1]
Arkadelphia is the county seat of Clark County.[2]
The city is on the east edge of the Ouachita Mountain foothills. Arkadelphia is south of the mouth of the Caddo River. It has two colleges, Henderson State University and Ouachita Baptist University.
It has a hospital, Baptist Medical Center-Arkadelphia, and an Amtrak train station.
Its municipal airport, Dexter Bush Florence Memorial Field, was named in honor of an Arkadelphian who died in the Vietnam War. The airport is off U.S. Highway 67 on the south side of the city. The city is also home of the Clark County Fairgrounds.
History
William Blakeley built a blacksmith shop and home in 1808 on a bluff overlooking the Ouachita River from the west.
In 1809 or a short time later, John Hemphill built and began operating a salt works just across the Ouachita River. Hemphill's salt works are said to be Arkansas' first industry, according to a marker placed beside the site on Highway 7 South.
Arkadelphia was known as Blakeleytown until 1839, when the settlement adopted its present name. The name’s originator and precise date of origin are lost.
Later accounts agree that early settler James Trigg reported that when Arkadelphia became the county seat and thus needed a more dignified name, locals combined two Greek words for "arc of brotherhood" and changed the third letter.[3] Others surmise the "Ark" was derived from the state's name, "Arkansas."
References
- ↑ "Annual Estimates of the Population for All Incorporated Places in Arkansas" (CSV). 2005 Population Estimates. U.S. Census Bureau, Population Division. June 21, 2006.
- ↑ "Find a County". National Association of Counties.
- ↑ Encyclopedia of "Arkansas, http://www.encyclopediaofarkansas.net/encyclopedia/entry-detail.aspx?entryID=848
External links
• Arkadelphia Area Chamber of Commerce, http://www.arkadelphia.org/ • City of Arkadelphia • Clark County, http://www.clarkcountyarkansas.com/ • Arkadelphia School District, http://apsd.k12.ar.us/ • Encyclopedia of Arkansas History & Culture entry: Arkadelphia (Clark County)
