1850 — A company led by Major Elias Rector and Colonel Matthew Leeper headed out of Fayetteville on this day, bound for the gold fields of California. The group traveled northwesterly to Fort Scott, Kansas, and then followed the Santa Fe Trail to Fort Laramie, Wyoming. They then went southwesterly on the Emigrant Trail through Salt Lake City and on to Placerville, California.
1863 — Early on this morning in 1863, Confederate forces attacked Union troops headquartered in Fayetteville. The confederates fired cannon from East Mountain and charged with cavalry from the hollow toward the Tebbetts House. They were repulsed by the Union infantry and cavalry. The hottest part of the Battle of Fayetteville occurred near the intersection of Dickson Street and College Avenue. The New York Times reported that the fighting lasted about four hours and that the rebels under command of General Cabell “retreated in disorder toward Ozark.” In a similar dispatch, The World of New York City reported that the Union troops, all of whom were believed to be Arkansas recruits, had fought without artillery and many of the Union soldiers had been unarmed.
1880 — A tornado struck Fayetteville on this day, destroying the Baum Building on the east side of the square, yanking the facade of the Thomas Boles store away from the building, damaging the Mountain House on Center Street, and killing several people, including one who was hit by a piano from the Tremont Hotel, which was also destroyed.
1938 — Lake Wedington opened to the public on this date. Developed by the National Forest Service through workers hired by the Works Progress Administration, the park offered opportunities for boating, swimming, fishing and hiking.
1968 — Barry Goldwater, former Republican candidate for president, visited Fayetteville on this day and spoke at the University of Arkansas.