Four historical markers have been approved in three counties in commemoration of the Civil War Sesquicentennial by the Arkansas Civil War Sesquicentennial Commission, Chairman Tom Dupree announced.
The markers include two for Hempstead County and one each for Conway and Ashley counties.
The additions bring to 99 the number of Civil War Sesquicentennial Historical Markers in 58 counties approved by the commission, whose stated goal is to have a marker in each of the state’s 75 counties by the end of the sesquicentennial observance in 2015.
In Hempstead County, a Confederate State Capital marker will be placed at the 1836 Hempstead County Courthouse in Historic Washington State Park in Washington to commemorate Washington’s time as the Confederate seat of state government. The marker is sponsored by Historic Washington State Park.
The second marker, Hempstead County in the Civil War, will be at the Washington Cemetery. It will commemorate Confederate troops and politicians for the county and is sponsored by the Pioneer Washington Restoration Foundation.
A Conway County in the Civil War/Murder of John Clayton marker will commemorate the Union and Confederate troops raised in the county and the Reconstruction-era murder of a Republican politician. The marker will be located adjacent to the United Methodist Church in Plumerville, which is also the sponsor.
A Third Arkansas Infantry Regiment marker will be located at the Ashley County Courthouse in Hamburg to commemorate a Confederate infantry unit raised in the area. The marker is sponsored by the Col. Francis Vivian Brooking Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution.
The commission’s Historical Marker Program works with local partners to tell stories of how the 1861-1865 Civil War affected communities in Arkansas. Those interested in more information on the program can visit the commission’s website at arkansascivilwar150.com.