Autumn Is The Time To Visit The Conway Cemetery State Park In Arkansas
By Carol Ann Carson|Published November 01, 2019
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Carol Ann Carson
Author
Arkansas native, Carol Ann Carson, has written for OnlyInYourState for three years now. She resides in Western Arkansas' Mountain Frontier but calls NWA home as well. The graduate of University of Arkansas - Fort Smith, Carol Ann earned her B.A. in English and will soon be pursing her M.A. in Library Science. She loves exploring the trails around the Buffalo National River and has yet to find a waterfall that wasn't her favorite.
Arkansas has plenty of fall activities to keep families entertained, educated, and reconnected with nature all throughout the season. Today’s fall trip happens to accomplish all three! The Conway Cemetery Historic State Park may be one of the more overlooked state parks in Arkansas, but it’s definitely worth the trip. There’s no better time to visit a cemetery than towards the end of fall so let’s take the trip to this tiny state park.
Near the southwest corner of Arkansas resides a teeny tiny state park.
This particular state park doesn't feature a lake or mountain like the majority of our parks, instead, it focuses on one cemetery. Even though it's only one little cemetery, this park is only the 7th smallest state park in Arkansas at 11.5 acres. The teeny tiniest is the Lower White River Museum State Park at only .4 acres.
The cemetery is the final resting place of James Sevier Conway.
Conway was the first Governor of Arkansas from 1836 to 1840. In addition to holding this title, he also founded Little Rock, assisted on the Arkansas-Louisiana boundary survey, and is the namesake for the city of Conway. The cemetery is on Walnut Hill near Bradley, on what used to be his cotton plantation.
Conway isn't the only person buried here. The cemetery has many members of Conway's family and other political figures. The majority of the headstones are from the 1800s!
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Conway must have been tired from all of his life's work since there's no record of any hauntings.
Different paranormal investigators have been out at the cemetery but there haven't been any consistent spooks. A chilly day in autumn is prime spirit time so you may be one of the firsts to feel a presence or two.
So you may not hear any "boos" but you'll probably catch a few "moos."
Regardless of whether or not you sense a chill in the air, this state park is guaranteed to leave you a little more educated about the early political figures of Arkansas. The park does have tables so you could even pack a picnic for a macabre lunch.
For more information, you can head to the state park website right here.
You can always share your state park adventures with us in our Facebook group, Arkansas Nature Lovers. You should join for your chance to be featured and to discover why there’s nothing better than Arkansas’ stunning nature.
Another state park to add your list (though really all 52 should be on there) is Arkansas’ oldest state park.
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