It is named after Marcus LaRue Harrison, a surveyor who laid out the city along Crooked Creek at Stifler Springs. Landmarks include Boone County Airport, Boone County Courthouse and Duncan House. Harrison is the birthplace of John Paul Hammerschmidt, politician.
Harrison, Arkansas gifts and souvenirs: 37 designs made from Harrison's own map, landmarks and history, from $10 to $99. Printed to order and shipped free in the USA.
| Popular | Price |
|---|---|
| Harrison Hometown Ornament | $23 |
| Harrison Landmarks Photo Poster | from $40 |
| Harrison Vintage Travel Poster | from $40 |
| Harrison Varsity Crewneck | from $57 |
| Harrison Est. Tee | from $33 |
| Harrison Town Line Mug | from $26 |
Ceramic keepsake, gold ribbon
Nine local landmarks, archival matte
Its landmark photo in a classic travel-poster layout
A local landmark photo as a gallery print
Classic large-letter postcard art, filled with local photos
Six local landmarks as instant photos on kraft paper
The town's story in dates, from its own records, for home or classroom
Map of local landmarks, washable fabric
Heavy-blend fleece, street map printed on the back
Red heavy-blend crewneck, knit-stitch town print
Soft Bella+Canvas jersey
Kids' Bella+Canvas jersey, youth sizes
Bella+Canvas toddler jersey
Bella+Canvas baby bodysuit
Large-letter postcard art filled with local photos
Glossy ceramic, dishwasher safe
Large-letter postcard art filled with local photos, 11 oz ceramic
Weatherproof, for the front walk
24″×16″, printed coir-look fibers, rubber back
12″×12″ printed wood, ready to hang
Soft-touch, zip cover
A local landmark photo with the town name, 18″×18″
Sturdy all-over-print tote
Large-letter postcard art on a sturdy tote
Foam-front trucker, printed (not embroidered) with local photos
Glossy top, cork back
Soft fleece, 50″×60″
Six local landmarks as instant photos, soft fleece 50″×60″
20 oz, double-wall stainless
6″×4″ postcard, glossy front
6″×4″ postcard, glossy front
6″×4″ postcard, glossy front
6″×4″ postcard, glossy front
6″×4″ postcard, glossy front
6″×4″ postcard, glossy front
The town's earliest Sanborn fire-insurance map, drawn building by building and hand-coloured, from the Library of Congress
From the Library of Congress collections: a historic survey drawing or photograph of the town
Population 2010: 12,943 → 2020: 13,069
From Wikidata (CC0).
Native Americans were the earliest inhabitants of the area, probably beginning with cliff dwellers who lived in caves in the bluffs along the rivers. In later times, the Osage, a Siouan speaking people, were the main tribe in the Ozarks, and one of their larger villages is thought to have been to the east of the present site of Harrison. The Shawnee, Quapaw, and Caddo people were also familiar to the area.
The Cherokee arrived around 1816 and did not get along with the Osage. This hostility erupted into a full-scale war in the Ozark Mountains. By the 1830s, both tribes were removed to Indian Territory.
It is possible that the first Europeans to visit the area were some forty followers of Hernando de Soto and that they camped at a Native village on the White River at the mouth of Bear Creek. It is more likely that the discoverers were French hunters or trappers who followed the course of the White River.
In early 1857, the Baker–Fancher wagon train assembled at Beller's Stand, south of Harrison. On September 11, 1857, approximately 120 members of this wagon train were murdered near Mountain Meadows, Utah Territory, by a local Mormon militia and members of the Paiute Indian tribe. In 1955, a monument to memorialize the victims of the massacre was placed on the Harrison town square.
Boone County was organized in 1869, during Reconstruction after the Civil War. Harrison was platted and made the county seat. It is named after Marcus LaRue Harrison, a Union officer who surveyed and platted the town. The town of Harrison was incorporated on March 1, 1876.
The bank robber and convicted murderer Henry Starr was in Harrison on February 18, 1921, when Starr and three companions entered the People's State Bank and robbed it of $6,000. During the robbery, Starr was shot by the former president of the bank, William J. Myers. Starr was carried to the town jail, where he died the next morning.
On May 7, 1961, heavy rain caused Crooked Creek, immediately south of the downtown business district, to flood the town square and much of the southwestern part of the city. Water levels inside buildings reached 8 feet (2.4 m). Many small buildings and automobiles were swept away. According to the American Red Cross, four people died, 80 percent of the town's business district was destroyed, and over 300 buildings were damaged or destroyed in losses exceeding $5.4 million.
In 1982, Kingdom Identity Ministries, an anti-gay Christian Identity outreach ministry identified as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center, was founded in Harrison.
Harrison's Community Task Force on Race Relations was established in 2003 to "promote diversity and respond to racial-bias accusations against the city". City officials have made efforts to counteract organized racist activity with educational forums and billboards promoting tolerance. They also attempted to downplay the city's racist reputation and improve its image by editing the town's Wikipedia article.
In 2014, a peace march and vigil celebrating the life and legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. was held in downtown Harrison, hosted by the Arkansas Martin Luther King Jr. Commission. In December of the same year, a dedication was held for a Confederate monument in Harrison.
In 2017, Mayor Dan Sherrell and Boone County Judge Robert Hathaway signed proclamations recognizing June as Confederate Heritage and History Month.
Kevin Cheri, who became the first African-American employed in the area in 1978, received death threats shortly after his arrival, which prompted him to leave the area. He returned in 2007, and in 2019 was recognized by Mayor Jerry Jackson when Harrison issued its first-ever Black History Month proclamation.
In June 2020, a group of around 300 gathered in Harrison to protest police brutality in the murder of George Floyd while 15 people armed with rifles and displaying Confederate and American flags looked on.
As of October 2023, the Southern Poverty Law Center has said that Kingdom Identity Ministries (founded in Harrison) has a location in the city.
Adapted (trimmed) from the Wikipedia article Harrison, Arkansas, revision 1376504383 by its contributors, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
We share a part of every Harrison sale with local partners, and we'd love to print from your collection. Old photographs, maps and postcards make the best keepsakes.
Partner with usA favorite landmark, your street, a school or team, an anniversary gift, a different product. Tell us and we'll get back to you by email.
7 free coloring pages of Harrison, each traced from a photo of a local landmark. Print them at home, at school or for story hour.
Harrison's population was 13,069 in the 2020 U.S. Census, up from 12,943 in 2010.
Boone County Courthouse
Boone County Airport
Duncan House
Harrison Courthouse Square Historic District