Road Trip: The Great River Road – Arkansas

The GOAT (greatest of all time) road trip award has to belong to the Great River Road, a National Scenic Byway that follows along the mighty Mississippi River for 3,000 miles through 10 states and is one of America’s longest and oldest National Scenic Byways. From Canada to the Gulf of Mexico along both sides of the Mississippi River, the iconic road allows road-trippers to experience the rich natural and cultural heritage of the lands shaped by the ever-changing river, and the Great River Road in Arkansas is no exception.

The Great River Road in Arkansas begins in the northeast corner near Blytheville as U.S. Highway 61/Interstate 55 and winds south to West Memphis where it becomes U.S. Highway 79 to Marianna and Helena-West Helena. While the Mississippi rarely shows itself along the Arkansas segment—a stop in Helena-West Helena, the only city in Arkansas on the river, is well rewarded.

The Great River Road – Arkansas

What Awaits You in Helena, Arkansas

Helena is at the Center of the Delta Blues

The #1 reason to stop in Helena on your Great American River Road excursion is for their world-renowned music heritage. Home to “King Biscuit Time” radio show and the world-famous King Biscuit Blues Festival, Helena continues to be at the center of the Delta blues music legacy that began in the 1940’s and 1950’s. As a historic port city, Helena, has always been a crossroads for artists from diverse backgrounds. King Biscuit Time, the longest running blues radio show in the country, served as an inspiration and launching point for many famous blues musicians and is credited with helping spread the Delta Blues upriver to Memphis and Chicago. When the show started in 1941, it was the only radio show in the country to feature African-American musicians.

You can catch the live broadcast of King Biscuit Time at the Delta Cultural Center every day from 12:15 to 12:45 p.m. Sadly, pioneering bluesman “Sunshine” Sonny Payne, the longtime host of King Biscuit Time, passed away on February 9, 2018, at the age of 92. Payne began working at KFFA in 1941 and hosted “King Biscuit Time” from 1951 through the end of 2017. Fortunately, Thomas Jacques followed in Sonny’s footsteps and keeps the show true to its tradition.

The World-Famous King Biscuit Blues Festival

Helena is also home to the world-famous King Biscuit Blues Festival, held for three days annually in October, and one of the nation’s foremost showcases of blues music. Thousands of blues enthusiasts converge on historic downtown Helena, Arkansas to hear the rousing performances of a uniquely American art form on the banks of the Mississippi River. Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Delbert McClinton, and Ruthie Foster were headliners at this year’s festival. Music icons the likes of Bonnie Raitt, B.B. King, Buddy Guy, Keb’ Mo’, Dr. John, and Taj Mahal have all headlined at the festival in the past.

Helena hosts several other festivals and events that celebrate American music and culture. Check Visit Helena’s website for arts and music festival dates to plan your trip around. For those interested in artist pilgrimages (it’s a thing!), many famous musicians have come from the Helena and Phillips County area, most notably Levon Helm (from Marvell), Conway Twitty, Sonny Williamson, and Robert Lockwood Jr.

History of Helena, Arkansas

Helena was incorporated in 1833 and prospered as a river port, while West Helena, incorporated in 1917, began as a railroad town. The hyphenated name is a result of the two towns uniting their school systems in 1946 and merging into one city in January 2006, keeping both names. For this article, we will shorten the name to Helena as Helena-West Helena is a bit of a mouthful.

For centuries, the Mississippi River has been the backbone of life in Helena —fertilizing its soil, supporting its farms and businesses, connecting people and cultures. At the time of pioneer settlement, most Delta terrain was lowlands and swamps, rich in virgin timber and wildlife. Located between Memphis, Tennessee and Vicksburg, Mississippi, Helena’s early growth was fueled by the steamboats that revolutionized river transportation. In 1826, a sawmill began operations near the waterfront and Helena’s economy thrived on the timber industry well into the 20th century.

Cotton and Agriculture in Helena, Arkansas

In the early 1800s, regular steamboat traffic made cotton plantations possible with easy transport of cotton crops on the Mississippi and Arkansas Rivers. At the time, cotton was not the leading crop in Helena as periodic flooding and poor drainage hindered large scale operations. Not until farmers began building levees and draining the land did cotton become King.

Although farmers throughout the state planted cotton, the dark earth of the Delta proved most hospitable, encouraging large crops each year in river counties (such as Phillips County where Helena is located). These counties, as did others in the Delta, had easy access to river transport and thus possessed an important shipping advantage over the state’s other cotton farmers. When the Civil War ended, slavery stopped as well, and wage labor, tenant farming, or a combination of the two became the most common means of production. Typical regional farm wages in 1866 were thirteen dollars per month for men and nine dollars per month for women. Tenant shares varied but usually ranged from twenty-five percent to fifty percent. Sometimes, there was little profit to share. Cotton prices fell after the Civil War and flat-lined through the late 1890s, killing off many Delta operators. {Encyclopedia of Arkansas}

Before mechanization displaced thousands of slaves, tenant farmers, and sharecroppers, cotton was the number one crop in Arkansas. Today, Helena is largely agricultural, producing ample crops of rice, cotton, milo, soybeans, and wheat.

Helena’s Civil War History

Helena’s unique history as an occupied Confederate city, that became a refuge for seekers, invites exploration of the issues that defined the Civil War. For generations, Helena’s Civil War history has focused on the seven Confederate generals from the town and the July 1863 Battle of Helena. Three of these generals’ headstones can be viewed in Helena’s Maple Hill and Confederate Cemeteries. While this is an important part of the community’s history, in 2008 a Civil War Helena Interpretive Plan was developed that revealed more of Helena’s vital role in the Civil War.

The plan identified 25 sites in Helena that provide an opportunity for interpretation and exhibits and is currently in the process of developing all 25 sites, with 40 interpretive panels already in place throughout the downtown area at sites including Fort Curtis, a ¾ replica Union earthworks fort. In addition to continuing the story of the  Battle of Helena and the area’s Confederate generals, these sites reveal stories of life under Union occupation, thousands of freed slaves, and the formation of United States Colored Troop regiments.

The African-American Experience During the Civil War

Helena is one of the most compelling sites in the nation to learn about African American experiences during the war. General Curtis’ march from southern Missouri to Helena, Arkansas in 1862. Freedom Park is a site dedicated to interpreting these experiences and is the first location in Arkansas designated by the National Park Service as a National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom site.

Explore the Outdoors in Helena

Helena River Park – camping, birding, grand vistas of the Mississippi

Buck Island

Delta Heritage Trail State Park

St. Francis National Forest and Mississippi River State Park

St. Francis River

White River National Wildlife Refuge

Louisiana Purchase State Park

Lakes: Bear Creek, Storm Creek, Old Town Lake and Horner Neck Lake

Because the river has changed its course over time there are many sites of historical and cultural significance that are not directly on the main Great River Road route, but well worth a brief side trip. The Arkansas Welcome Center at Helena-West Helena has a free map for explorers that depicts the Great River Road as the “spine” with a number of loops and spurs to direct visitors to these points of interest.