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December 12, 1838 | ||
Help Wanted | ||
Arkansas Trails has several counties and projects up for adoption. If you would be interested in adopting a county or project look at the Arkansas Trails County Page. If you find one that you would like to adopt e-mail the State Administrator State Administrator.[ Being a County or State Administrator is fun and rewarding. If you have an interest in the history of Arkansas and the genealogy of it's residents please consider it. If you think "there is no way I can do this" there are many people ready, willing and able to help you. It's not near as difficult as you might think. ] | History |
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Desha County is Arkansas's 40th county, formed on December 12, 1838, and named for Captain Benjamin Desha who fought in the War of 1812. Desha County was detached from Arkansas and Chicot counties. State representative Stephen Ryan led legislative efforts after south Arkansas County citizens filed petitions declaring their area isolated by the Arkansas and White rivers. Justices of the peace met at William Sexton's house, Wellington Landing, to form a county court. On March 4, 1839, they elected county officers, including John Morris as judge, George Watson Jr. as circuit and county clerk, A. C. Jamison as sheriff, Sexton as treasurer, and Gardner Cooper as surveyor. J. Smith was state senator. The Sexton house was the temporary county seat until 1841, when commissioners chose Bellville (later Red Fork). Napoleon was designated county seat in 1843. A federal $55,000 U.S. Marine hospital was built there in 1855. During the Civil war, county records were moved by wagon to Richland Township and later to Clarksville, Texas. Some records were never recovered. When President Franklin Roosevelt ordered the relocation of Japanese Americans from the West Coast in 1942, a 17,000-acre compound, Rohwer Japanese Interment Camp, was built at Rohwer near McGehee to house more than 8,400 internees. Desha citizens were disgruntled. They distrusted the Japanese because of the bombing of Pearl Harbor and also complained that the U.S. government fed the internees a better diet than locals could afford. Rohwer Relocation Center became the county’s largest city until it was closed in 1945. Rohwer Relocation Center’s cemetery is now a national monument. | Links |
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Free Records Search at Familysearch Org | ||
Desha County Cemetery Listings on Arkansas Gravestone Project | ||
Desha County Cemetery Records on Interment Net | ||
Desha County Cemetery Listing at Find A Grave | ||
Arkansas Dept of Health | ||
Arkansas Dept of Health Division of Vital Records, Slot 44 4815 West Markham Street Little Rock, AR 72205 (501) 661-2174 Fax: (501) 663-2832 |
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Arkansas State Archives | ||
Arkansas History Commission One Capitol Mall Little Rock, AR 72201 501.682.6900 [email protected] |
The History Commission, the official state archives, is a facility in which those interested in Arkansas history may engage in research. The staff does not undertake research requests from the public. The Research Room is open from 8:00 A.M. to 4:30 P.M., Monday through Saturday. It is closed on state holidays. If you are traveling long distances, please call to confirm hours/days of operation at 501.682.6900. | |
Arkansas Genealogical Society
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Court Clerk 604 President St. Arkansas City, AR 71630 Phone (870)877-2411 Fax (870)877-3407 | County Clerk 604 President St. Arkansas City, AR 71630 Phone (870)877-2323 Fax (870)877-3413 | Desha County Historical Society 209 Oak Street McGehee, AR 71654 | E-Mail Lists and Message Boards |
Arkansas Mail List on Rootsweb | ||
Desha County Mailing List on Rootsweb | ||
Desha County Message Board on Rootsweb | ||
Desha County Message Board on Genforum | Adjacent Counties |
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Arkansas County |
Phillips County |
Chicot County |
Drew County |
Lincoln County |