Fayetteville History

The Arkansas Territory and the subsequent state of Arkansas sanctioned enslavement of people through laws until the Civil War and emancipation.

Until 2023, there were no streets or buildings in Fayetteville known to have been named for men or women who had been enslaved prior to the Civil War. That year, the city renamed Archibald Yell Boulevard in honor of Nelson Hackett, an enslaved person living in Fayetteville in the 1840s who fled Arkansas and sought freedom in Canada. Hackett, however, was extradited back to Arkansas after being accused of theft by his enslaver, Alfred Wallace.

His case and extradition, signed by Archibald Yell, set in motion a decision by Great Britain and its broader dominion, including Canada, to refuse extradition of people who came to their countries seeking freedom from slavery in recognition that freedom and liberty have a higher moral value than nonviolent crimes such as theft of property.

A partial list of places in Fayetteville named for people or families who enslaved other people prior to emancipation during the Civil War includes: 

• Appleby Road, named for the Hezekiah Appleby family, which enslaved a minimum of five people according to the 1850 census: a 24-year-old woman, three girls age 7, 4 and 2, and one boy age 5. 

• The former Archibald Yell Boulevard, named for an early territorial circuit judge appointed at Fayetteville and after statehood elected Arkansas’ first U.S. representative and its second governor. Archibald Yell enslaved dozens of people in the 1830s and 1840s who labored on his south Fayetteville farm. While governor, he signed an extradition warrant for Nelson Hackett of Fayetteville, who had escaped slavery in Fayetteville and fled to Canada. 

• Deane Street, named for the family of Charles Deane, who enslaved at least 13 people prior to the Civil War. 

• Dickson Street, named for the family of Joseph Dickson, a business owner who enslaved at least 12 people prior to the Civil War.  

• Freyschlag Creek, an earlier name for Mud Creek no longer in use. It was named for the George Freyschlag family, which enslaved at least five people prior to the Civil War. 

• Garland Avenue, named for Augustus Hill Garland, a governor, U.S. senator and U.S. attorney general after the Civil War. During the war, he served in the Confederate Congress. Prior to the war, he and his family enslaved at least three women. 

• Gregg Avenue and Gregg House, named for Lafayette Gregg, who enslaved at least two people prior to the Civil War. He served in the Union Army during the war and was a state Supreme Court justice after the war. Gregg also donated land for the first Black school in the city and was one of the trustees of property in South Fayetteville designated for use by the city’s Black residents and which became Oak Cemetery.  

• Gunter Street, named for the family of Thomas Gunter, who enslaved at least three people prior to the Civil War. He served as a U.S. representative from 1873-1883. 

• Hill Hall, a former U of A residence hall no longer standing, was named for Daniel Harvey Hill, a Confederate lieutenant general and later president of the Arkansas Industrial University from 1877 to 1884. Living in Virginia prior to the Civil War, his family enslaved an undetermined number of people. After the war, Hill published a Southern magazine that promulgated notions of the “Lost Cause,” a glorification of Southern white culture, chivalry, honor and military prowess, defeat during the war notwithstanding. In Fayetteville, Hill and his family lived on Duncan Avenue near Hill Avenue, but Hill Avenue does not appear to have been named for the Hill family. A historic plaque on Duncan Avenue between Center Street and Treadwell Street marks the location of his house in Fayetteville. 

• Jefferson Elementary, the former elementary school, was named for President Thomas Jefferson, who enslaved more than 600 people during his lifetime.  

• Lafayette Street, named for Lafayette Gregg, who enslaved at least two people prior to the Civil War. He served in the Union Army during war and was a state Supreme Court justice after the war. Gregg also donated land for the first Black school in the city and was one of the trustees of property in South Fayetteville designated for use by the city’s Black residents and which became Oak Cemetery.  

• Leeper Drive, named for the family of Matthew Leeper, who enslaved at least five people prior to the Civil War.  

• McIlroy Avenue, named for the family of William McIlroy, a banker and business operator who enslaved at least six people prior to the Civil War. 

• Pettigrew Street, named for the family of James and Zebulon Pettigrew, who together enslaved at least 13 people before the Civil War.  

• Pollard Avenue, named for the family of Thomas and Waid Pollard, who between them enslaved at least six people prior to the Civil War.  

• Reagan Street, named for the family of John and William Reagan, who together enslaved at least seven people prior to the Civil War.  

• Ridge House, named for the family of Sarah Bird Northrup Ridge, who enslaved at least eight people while living in the house during the 1840s. 

• Rieff House, named for the family of Americus, John and Joseph Rieff, who together enslaved at least 19 people.  

• Skelton Cemetery, named for the family of Anderson and William Skelton, who together enslaved at least 10 people. 

• Stirman Avenue, named for the family of James Stirman, who enslaved at least five people prior to the Civil War.  

• Stone Street, named for Stephen and Amanda Stone. He was a business owner and their family enslaved at least six people. After the Civil War, the Stones sold a plot of land for $10 on the south side of town to the Black community of Fayetteville for its use, and they eventually developed it as Oak Cemetery. 

• Sutton Street, named for the family of Isabel Sutton, who enslaved at least four people prior to the Civil War.  

• Van Buren Avenue, named for either President Martin Van Buren or the Arkansas town of Van Buren, which was also named for Martin Van Buren, who was known to have enslaved at least one person prior to the Civil War. Van Buren also hired both free Blacks and enslaved people as servants at Decatur House in Washington, D.C.

• Walker Cemetery, named for the family of David Walker, who was a lawyer, judge, Union delegate, state Supreme Court justice and chair of the state’s Secession Convention on the eve of the Civil War. The Walker family enslaved at least 20 people, primarily for agricultural labor. 

• Walker-Stone House, named for David Walker, a judge prior to the war who built the house and enslaved at least 20 people, and the subsequent owner, Stephen Stone, a business owner who enslaved at least six people.  

• Washington Avenue, Washington County, Washington Elementary and Washington Mountain, named for President George Washington, who enslaved at least 123 people at the time of his death. His wife, Martha, enslaved another 194 people at that same point. 

• Wilson Street, named for the family of Alfred and William Wilson, who together enslaved at least 23 people prior to emancipation. Wilson Park is named for Mattie Wilson, the mother of Charles Morrow Wilson. Both mother and son were born post-Civil War.