Throughout its nearly 188 years as a state, Arkansas has had several nicknames. Many of these nicknames were unofficial and often meant to be humorous rather than a serious representation of the state. As time passed, so did our state’s nicknames, as politicians and business leaders tried to steer the public perception of Arkansas away from the hillbilly-filled backward place Arkansas had long been known as.
One of Arkansas’ first recorded nicknames was the “Toothpick State.” This nickname is derived from the legendary knife known as the Arkansas Toothpick that was made in Washington (Hempstead County) by blacksmith James Black. Black is most famous for making a knife for one of the heroes of the Alamo, Jim Bowie. This knife was based on a Bowie design that Black was able to execute. Some experts consider the Bowie Knife and the Arkansas Toothpick the same, while others believe the knives were two separate knives made by the same blacksmith. The Arkansas Toothpick was a double-edged dagger often worn as a side weapon of early Arkansans. The knife was a common inexpensive sidearm and became a very popular accessory for men in frontier Arkansas. Unfortunately, the messy dispatching by knife of one Arkansas state representative by another in 1837, cemented the new state’s reputation as a lawless, rough-and-tumble land.
Another one of Arkansas’ earliest nicknames was the “Bear State.” In the early 19th century, Arkansas had a large population of Louisiana black bears, which is one of 16 black bear species found in the U.S. Sadly, so many bears were killed by residents throughout the years for their meat, fur and self-defense that the population of native black bears in Arkansas dwindled to fewer than 50 by the mid-20th century. While the black bear population has gradually increased in the past several years, the number of black bears in Arkansas is nowhere near what it once was.
Finally, Arkansas received an official state nickname in 1923 when the Arkansas General Assembly recognized the activities of the Arkansas Advancement Association, a group of prominent businessmen whose goal was to help improve the state’s image and attract business and tourism. The association’s most prominent leader was former Gov. Charles H. Brough, who traveled throughout the midwestern and southern parts of the country in the early 1920s. Brough promoted the natural resources of what he called the “Wonder State.” In 1923, the group persuaded the state Legislature to officially adopt the “Wonder State” as the state’s nickname.
In the 1940s, a group of Little Rock businessmen who called themselves the Committee of 100 began diligent efforts to promote economic development in Arkansas. Central to the group’s efforts was the changing of the state’s image. The group’s advertising and promotional material referred to Arkansas as the “Land of Opportunity.” In 1941, the phrase appeared for the first time on Arkansas auto license plates. In 1953, the Arkansas General Assembly changed the official nickname of the "Wonder State" to the "Land of Opportunity.”
During the 1980s, Arkansas’s outreach to tourists became more aggressive, reflecting a maturing understanding of tourism as a growth industry. In the mid-1980s, the Arkansas parks system began first promoting Arkansas “…is a natural” and then later to the current official nickname, “the Natural State.” In 1995, State Rep. Dennis Young successfully sponsored legislation to make the Natural State Arkansas’ official nickname.
The nickname “Arkansas: The Natural State” can be seen on all welcome signs at our state’s borders, state tourism publications and commercials, merchandise and granite markers in front of our state’s 14 welcome centers.
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