Clarksville dates to 1836, and 19 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 75% of U.S. towns · #13 of 123 in Arkansas. What drives it
Most of Clarksville was built recently: 7% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1986. 19 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 45 buildings. Below: 10 old photos and papers, maps from 1888 on, and the census since 1850.
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1841.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Clarksville’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Clarksville is more historic than 75% of U.S. towns, #13 of 123 in Arkansas. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Clarksville’s overall grade.
Arkansas towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Arkansas town has 20.5 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Clarksville’s 66.1 sits above most of its state (76% of Arkansas towns have fewer) while its 63 historic buildings outnumber those of 86% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B to A−. The pre-1940 share (±2.5 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1836.
Founding year: Wikipedia (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →
What stands out about Clarksville’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The community began as settlers arrived to the Arkansas Territory. After the Osage tribe was relocated by treaty, Cherokee settlers came to Arkansas by 1800 and primarily lived along the Arkansas River. A federal Indian trading factory under Matthew Lyon was established at Spadra in 1818, now at the west end of Lake Dardanelle on the Arkansas River, a Clarksville location now occupied by Spadra Marina. A historical marker, dedicated in 1984, sits on Spadra Bluff, near the original river town of Spadra. The area was reserved for the Cherokee, so most early settlers of Johnson County did not move into the area until after 1828, the year the Cherokee gave up their land.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.
In 1836, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Clarksville’s post office opened in 1841, and the census of 1850 counted 398 people here.
How does Clarksville rank for history?
Clarksville is more historic than 75% of U.S. towns, #13 of 123 in Arkansas. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
What is on the National Register in Clarksville?
19 listings: 17 buildings, among them the Capt. Archibald S. McKennon House (listed 1976, the first), 1 historic district, the Clarksville Commercial Historic District, with 45 contributing buildings, and 1 object. 63 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Clarksville?
7% of Clarksville’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.5 points), against a typical 3.1% for an Arkansas town; the median home was built in 1986.
Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
From Wikimedia Commons (4), the Library of Congress (6), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (19), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
1935
1935
1935
1935
1987
1987