INDEX Events Opinion Comics COVID Update Sports
No. 4
Vol. 2
June 03, 2021
The Republic of Arkadelphia
Photo Courtesy of The Republic of Arkadelphia
Among the several micronations in Arkansas is one that shares a name with the city of Arkadelphia.
Lance Brownfield Editor-in-Chief Arkadelphia was founded July 29, 2020 and has a population of six people including Prime Minister Joseph Hackely. Not the Arkadelphia that you and I know, but the micronation of the same name. The Republic of Arkadelphia, located in central
Arkansas, is comprised of three cities. The capital city of Edwin is surrounded by the Little Rock suburb of Sherwood, while Liam and Fort Sharp are both 30 to 45 minutes away. Founded as just one city, the two enclaves of Fort Sharp and Liam were added the next day. The republic also claims one overseas territory on the West Coast
of Ireland called Móinéar Fianna. “I decided to start the nation because I didn’t like the state flag of Arkansas,” said Hackely “Later it was due to political differences.” According to its Microwiki, the republic is a member of the Association of Ozark Micronations (AOMN) and the Multinational Association of the Americas. Other
member states of AOMN include Ethosia, Alexsandriya, the Hellenic Empire of Cimburn and the now defunct Socialist Republic of Ozark. The micronation’s government is a parliamentary representative democracy complete with a military and foreign relations to other micronations around the globe. Although there is currently no weaponry among the three branches, Arkadelphia has an Army, Navy and Air Force. “We do give international aid to the United States,” said the republic’s wiki. “Or as they call it, ‘taxes’” To check all the boxes, the Republic of Arkadelphia boasts a motto, an anthem and three official languages — English, Spanish and Irish, although only one “citizen” speaks more than English. The fledgling republic also has a national park and recently made a Twitter poll to ask if they should create an archive or a newspaper. Making an archive won with 56.3% of the 16 votes, which is for the best as they might have
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ended up naming their newspaper the Daily Siftings Herald or the Dispatch or something. “If you wish to visit and are worried you won’t be able to pay, don’t,” tweeted the micronation. “We are open to all currencies and on top of that we don’t have anything to sell really as our economy is a work in progress.” Originally named Blakelytown, John Hemphill settled the city of Arkadelphia in 1809. 30 years later, the city adopted its current name in 1839. The origin of the name has been lost to time, along with the exact reason for choosing it. “It literally translates to a place in Arkansas,” said Hackley “And yes I knew about the city, I have visited a couple times.” Perhaps one day there will be diplomatic relationships between Arkadelphia and Arkadelphia, (the city and the republic) but for now the Republic of Arkadelphia is focusing on building relationships with other micronations.
“Breaking Bad” Case Set for Trial Lance Brownfield Editor-in-Chief Two ex-Henderson chemistry professors are set for trial in July. Terry Bateman and Bradley Rowland were arrested in 2019 for manufacturing methamphetamine in the university labs at Reynolds Science Center. Because of the coronavirus, the courts have been shut down for 15 months. With so many cases on backlog and the decision by the Supreme Court to allow retrials again, the case could be delayed even further. Bateman and Rowland plead not guilty to all charges in February of 2020 before the pandemic hit the pause button. Even with the possible delays, the case is expected to reach trial before the end of the year. Check back for updates as the story develops.
Train Station Still Chugging Along Blanton Matthews Staff Reporter More than a century ago, Arkadelphia’s own train station opened on fifth street, connecting the little city to major metropolitan areas across the United States. Shortly after its opening in 1917, the world was plagued by the Spanish Flu pandemic. Schools, churches, and businesses closed, people wore masks and kept distant from each other, and of course public transportation was limited. It was a new world, not unlike the world we are in today. 104 years and several outbreaks later, the Arkadelphia station is reopening to its full schedule after a year of a more staggered schedule to lessen the spread of the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19. The station sits on the
Texas Eagle route, which spans from Chicago, IL to San Antonio, TX, where it connects with the Sunset Limited route between Los Angeles, CA and New Orleans, LA. Prior to the pandemic, trains arrived daily, one in each direction, but under pandemic restrictions northbound and southbound trains alternated six days a week, and did not come at all on Thursdays. In 2019, the Arkadelphia station serviced 1,389 passengers, per Amtrak statistics, steadily hovering around 1,300-1,400 for the last few years. While the 2020 annual report has yet to be released at time of writing, it is almost certain that the passenger count was significantly lower than years prior. The station has survived global pandemics, corporate mergers, natural disasters, and kept on chugging. Fittingly, it has also housed
Photo by Blanton Matthews
The train station in Arkadelphia was finished just as the Spanish Influenza pandemic broke out over a hundred years ago.
collections of the Clark County Historical Society since 2003. This collection includes a train caboose from the Missouri Pacific Lines, the original line the
station was part of before its acquisition by Union Pacific. The station was added to the US National Registry of Historic Places on June 11, 1992.
Trains once again arrive twice a day every day around 4:20 AM and 10:02 PM. The station is at 758 South Fifth Street. The historical museum is still
closed from the pandemic, its reopening has yet to be announced.
Photos by Lance Brownfield
Two traveling street musicians stopped in Arkadelphia on Monday, May 31. The couple from New Orleans were performing at a local gas station to earn some gas money. The duo live out of their van playing roadside shows all over the country. Both musicians are multi-instrumentalists and selfproclaimed “hippies.”
From Weather.com
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