WASHINGTON – The Ninth Annual Red River Heritage Symposium will take place Sat., July 25 at Historic Washington State Park. The conference topics will focus on the theme “The World Turned Upside Down” in regards to the impact of the end of the Civil War and Reconstruction in the Great Bend Region of the Red River.
The event will take place at the 1914 Schoolhouse Auditorium of Historic Washington State Park. Specific topics and speakers include: “Arkansas and Reconstruction” by Dr. Tom DeBlack of Arkansas Tech University at Russellville; “Stand Watie—Confederate Brigadier General” by Paul Ridenour, Independent Historian; “Freedmen’s Bureau in Southwest Arkansas” by Leita Spears, Historic Washington State Park; and “Showdown on the Red River: Marshall H. Twitchell and Reconstruction in Red River Parish, Louisiana” by Dr. Ted Tunnell, retired Professor of Virginia Commonwealth University at Richmond.
An all day Friday and Saturday morning workshop for teachers on resources related to the theme in the Red River region will also take place. Lunch is included both days.
A total of twelve credit hours will be available for teachers to earn by attending both days of the symposium. Cost for attending the workshop will be $40. Workshop presenters will include Historic Washington State Park staff, and staff members from the Butler Center of Arkansas Studies and the Department of Arkansas Heritage who will do sessions on incorporating history topics into curriculum standards for the classroom.
On Saturday morning, a tour will be provided to the Civil War entrenchments dug at the end of the Civil War at Dooley’s Ferry near Spring Hill, Arkansas. For others interested in the tour the cost will be $15 per person, which includes lunch. Seating is limited, so call the Park Visitor Center to reserve your spot on the tour.
Cost for attendance to the symposium is $30 with an evening meal included. The time-frame for the event is 1-8 p.m. A discount price of $60 will be offered to teachers who wish to attend both the workshop and symposium. Teachers attending both the workshop and symposium will be eligible for 12 credit hours. Check in will begin in the morning at 8 a.m. at the 1874 Hempstead County Courthouse Visitor Center. Registration must be made by July 22. Contact 870-983-2684 to register.
