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This Day in Arkansas History

April 19, 1890

A nine-acre campus, located north of Arkadelphia (Clark County), was purchased from Harriet Barkman. The new campus was separated from Ouachita Baptist College by two ravines and several blocks. Architect Thomas Harding was contracted to build a structure to house the college. Founded as Arkadelphia Methodist College, the school would eventually be called Henderson-Brown College (HBC). One hundred and ten students arrived to start the first term at HBC, a private, co-educational Methodist college, on September 3, 1890. In 1929, the Little Rock Conference of the Methodist Church decided to consolidate Henderson-Brown with Hendrix College in Conway (Faulkner County). The campus was turned over to the state, which ran the school as Henderson State Teachers College, which became Henderson State University in 1975.

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Scott Joplin

Known as the “King of Ragtime,” Scott Joplin composed more than forty ragtime piano pieces, including “Maple Leaf Rag” (which sold more than a million copies) and “The Entertainer” (which was used in the 1973 film The Sting). He spent his formative years in Texarkana (Miller County), and his major opera, Treemonisha, is set in the plantation area of Rondo (Lafayette County) north of Texarkana. He died in 1917.

 

Known as the “King of Ragtime,” Scott Joplin composed more than forty ragtime piano pieces, including “Maple Leaf Rag” (which sold more than a million copies) and “The Entertainer” (which was used in the 1973 film The Sting). He spent his formative years in Texarkana (Miller County), and his major opera, Treemonisha, is set in the plantation area of Rondo (Lafayette County) north of Texarkana. He died in 1917.

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About the Encyclopedia

The CALS Encyclopedia of Arkansas is a free, authoritative source of information about the rich history, geography, and culture of Arkansas. It is updated regularly to ensure the people of Arkansas have an accurate and accessible resource to explore our heritage. We invite you to browse our text entries and media galleries to learn more about the people, places, events, legends, and lore of the 25th state. We are continually adding new entries, photographs, maps, videos, and audio files, so check back frequently to see what’s new.

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