The St. Louis Red Stockings and the Little Rock champion amateur basesball team, the Accidentals, played two games in the fall of 1875. The Red Stockings won both games.
A Yellow Fever epidemic of the lower Mississippi Valley stirs city officials to ban travel into Little Rock.
In the Autumn of 1878 Reverend George A. Buerkle with a group of German immigrants, settle a new community called Stuttgart. They will experiment with a new crop, rice.
A tournament was held in Little Rock to determine which was the best amateur baseball team. The tournament was called the Foul Flag Championship. The Accidental Base Ball Club won but the the Independents were voted as the best team and presented with a prize bat worth 100 dollars!
Poindexter Dunn, lawyer, Confederate officer and cotton planter, began his first term as U.S. Representative today.
A group of physicians led by P.O. Hooper of Little Rock incorporate the University of Arkansas Medical School. The school has 20 students enrolled at its 113 West Second Street location.
The first telephone exchange in Arkanas has located in Little Rock. (A telephone exchange is defined as a "central system of switches and other equipment that establishes connections between individual telephones." It is also known as a switchboard.)
Large timber companies are moving into the state to harvest the vast amount of forests available. (This boom continues until the 1920's.)
Swiss and German immigrants with the leadership of Josheph Bachman establish the town of Altus as the wine producing area of the state.
General Douglas MacArthur is born at the Little Rock Arsenal in Little Rock. He will become a top graduate of West Point and supreme allied commander of trooops in the Pacific during WWII.
Max H. Aronson (Gilbert M. "Bronco Billy" Anderson), actor, writer, producer is born in Little Rock. He becomes the first cowboy movie star.
Thomas J. Churchill, former planter and Confederate general, became governor of Arkansas today.
James K. Jones began his term as U.S. Representative. (He will later serve three terms as U.S. Senator.) Jones is an attorney and a Confederate veteran.
Lizzie Dorman Flyer reports that the Arkansas Woman Suffrage Association (AWSA) has organized in. (The organization will disband in 1885.)
There are 23 banks operating in Arkansas (4 national and 19 state and private).
Sonora Louise Smart, considered the "Mother" of Father's Day, is born in Jenny Lind, Arkansas.
The African-American fratenal order, Mosaic Templars, is founded in Little Rock by two former slaves, Josh Bush and J. H. Conico. It will incorporate the following year.
Oscar Miller will receive the Bronze Star for his bravery during World War I. He was killed at a battle near Gesnes, France, 1918.
Adolphine Fletcher (Terry) is born in Little Rock, Arkansas. She will become a leader in social issues such as the right to vote for women. She also worked to improve education in the state.
The Knights of Labor organize in Hot Springs, Arkansas. The Knights' goal was to "unite all producers of wealth regardless of craft, race, or gender to fight against the emerging “wage system”—conditions that caused workers to labor for wages their entire lives."
James H. Berry is sworn in as the 14th governor of the state. Berry's experience includes teaching, practicing law and fighting in the Civil War.
John H. Rogers, attorney and former federal judge was sworn in as U.S. Representative in Washington, D.C.
Clifton R. Breckinridge, grandson of John Breckinridge, attorney general under President Jefferson, was sworn in as U.S. Representative for Arkansas.
Cleburne County, in the northern section of the state, is created from White, Van Buren, and Independence Couties.
In 1881 the Arkansas State Legislature approved a two year levy of taxes to fund and operate an instution for the mentally ill. The Arkansas State Lunatic Asylum (Arkansas State Hospital) opened in 1883.
This legislation declared that all marriages between blacks and whites to be illegal. This was in addition to an earlier law passed in 1837.
The Baptist Institute (later Arkansas Baptist College) is established at the annual meeting of the Negro Baptist Convention of Arkansas to educate African-Amerlican ministers and teachers.
Simon P. Hughes, former state Attorney General, begins his term as governor of the state. He is the fifteenth governor of the state.
Former U.S. Representative, James K. Jones, was sworn in as a U.S. Senator for Arkansas today. Jones is not only a politician but an attorney and Confederate veteran.
Thomas Chipman McRae began serving as U.S. Representative for the Third District today. McRae is a Democrat and is an attorney and banker. (He will later become the 26th governor of Arkansas.)
James H. Berry, fourteenth governor of the state, was sworn in as U.S. Senator in Washington, D.C. Berry is a Democrat.
The great Southwest Railroad Strike of 1886 has hit the state.The Railroads of Railroad magnate Jay Gould have shut down in 5 states. The strike will persist for three weeks.
Electic lights are used for the first time in 9 bussinesses in dowtown Little Rock. The initial experience went so well that additional businesses wish to sign up!
John Gould Fletcher is born into the prominent Little Rock Fletcher family. He will be the first Southern poet to receive the Pulitzer Prize in Poetry (1939).
The Chicago White Stockings (Cubs) hold their spring baseball season in the Spa City. "The reason he((manager)) brought the team to Hot Springs was so the players could boil out the alcoholic microbes.”
Bethel Institute (later Shorter College) opens in the basement of the Bethel AME Church in Little Rock. The school will later move to what is now North Little Rock.
A professional baseball team is organized in Little Rock called the Little Rock Base Ball Association. The team included a part-time circus performer and a convicted murderer. Their games will be played at Association Park and 11th and High Streets.
Ouachita Baptist College, named for the Ouachita River, opens its doors for the first term today. The school occupies the former Arkadelphia Baptist High School facility. J.W. Conger, formerly of Prescott, will be the president of the school.
The first hosptial established in Arkansas is founded in Ft. Smith. Its name has changed through the years. Today it is called Spark's Regional Medical Center.
Luther G. Presley is born on Beckett Mountain near Rose Bud, Arkansas. He will later write the lyrics to the famous songs, "When the Saints Go Marching In" and "I'd Rather Have Jesus."
The Geological Survey of Arkansas is reestablished with John C. Branner as the state geologist.
Bauxite is discovered by state geologist John C. Branner in Saline County. Eventually a town will grow up around the area called, Bauxite. Bauxite is a rock that is used to make aluminum.
The first streets in the capital city of Little Rock are being paved with cobblestones and the first sewer lines are being laid.
The first minor league baseball league is established in Arkansas. Teams from around the state will be included as well as teams from Joplin, Webb City and Springfield, Missouri. The home field for the Association was at Association Park located at 11th and High Streets.
In the process of arresting Dave Smith for horse stealing and whiskey running, Deputy Frank Dalton was shot and killed. Deputy J.R. Cole was also wounded but was able to escape and go for help.
Florence B. Price, the first African-American female symphonic composer in the United States is born in Little Rock, Arkansas,.
The Lutheran Church of Little Rock is constructing a new church.
Sisters of Charity of Nazareth open Charity Hospital in Little Rock. It later becomes known as St. Vincent Infirmiry.
The state of Arkansas establishes the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station at the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville.
The Arkansas Equal Suffrage Association (AESA) organizes with Clara McDiarmid as their leader. (The organization will disperse soon after Ms. MCDiarmid's death)
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