416 N. Campus Drive, MAIN 416
University of Arkansas
Fayetteville, AR 72701
479-575-5884
email: renwickh@uark.edu

Annual Conference

 

Law and Justice in Arkansas

April 10 – 12, 2025   
Fort Smith

 

The Arkansas Historical Association will host its 84th annual conference in Fort Smith, April 10-12, 2025. Presentations will cover a wide range of topics from all time periods that explore the history of Arkansas’s legal system, the enforcement and administration of the law, judicial cases and personalities, and challenges to injustice. 

Fort Smith was established as a U.S. military outpost in 1817 to keep peace between the Osage and Cherokee nations. The city that developed around the fort became a hub for migrants heading west, as well as a seat of law and justice, and headquarters for U.S. Marshals operating against outlaws sheltering in Indian Territory. The U.S. continued to use the greater Fort Smith area as a military base (Fort Chaffee) from World War II to Vietnam, processed Vietnamese and Cuban refugees there, and provided shelter to victims of Hurricane Katrina.

Please join us for engaging presentations from our speakers and conversations with fellow lovers of Arkansas history.

 

Registration available here.

       Registration: $25/attendee with option to purchase meals separately.

84th Conference Program 2025

       Full conference program including location details.

 

Location and Parking Maps

Conference Locations

Downtown Locations

Parking Map

 

 


 

Recent Past Conferences

2024 – Heber Springs
2023 – Arkadelphia
2022 – Little Rock
       Video recordings available here.
2021 – virtual
       Video recordings available here.
2019 – Stuttgart
2018 – Fort Smith
2017 – Pocahontas