This Entire Town In Arkansas Was Turned Into A State Park You Can’t Pass Up
By Daniella DiRienzo|Published March 11, 2022
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Daniella DiRienzo
Author
Though Daniella was born in New York and has lived in a couple of other states, Mississippi has been her home for more than 30 years. After graduating from the University of Southern Mississippi, Daniella began to hone her writing skills through various internships. In the years since, she’s had the privilege of having her articles appear in several publications, such as the Mississippi-based Parents & Kids Magazine. She’s also had the honor of interviewing actress Sela Ward for The Mississippi Arts and Entertainment Experience.
There are lots of spectacular state parks in Arkansas. However, none have a back-story quite like that of Davidsonville Historic State Park. The 163-acre park occupies what was once Davidsonville, Arkansas’ first boom town. Visitors today can learn about the once bustling town – all while enjoying typical state park perks. This is one park you don’t want to pass up!
Frontier history and modern-day fun unite at Davidsonville Historic State Park in Pocahontas.
The town of Davidsonville once occupied the park’s grounds. Founded in 1815, it quickly flourished, earning it the distinction of Arkansas’ first boom town.
Its success was short-lived, though. It was a ghost town by the time Arkansas became a state in 1836. A combination of things led to its demise, but the final nail in the coffin was when the Southwest Trail bypassed it.
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By the time the park was established in 1957, Davidsonville had been abandoned for more than a century, so not much of the original site is left.
However, visitors can still immerse themselves in the town’s history via a variety of exhibits, displays, and signage, which paint a vivid picture of the Davidsonville of yesteryear.
It has a lot of "state firsts" under its belt. Aside from being home to the state’s first post office, it was also home to one of the state’s earliest courthouses.
In addition to pioneer history, the park’s grounds are rich with Native American history.
