The Tribes That Shaped Northwest Arkansas

The Legacy of Northwest Arkansas’s First Inhabitants

Author

Tad Moore
November 21, 2024 • Est. Read Time: 8 minutes

I recently accepted an invitation to join my friends from The Ozark Podcast on a public land hunting trip down near White Rock Mountain.

It was an uneventful morning, but sitting together afterward, we got to telling stories.

Kyle Plunkett pulled an arrowhead out of his bag that he’d found on a previous trip and told me that he kept it in his pack as a sort of good luck token. “Makes me think about the people who hunted these lands way before our ancestors even got here.”

I love coming across artifacts like this in the Ozark hills. As a kid, I found a rock that appeared to have been shaped by some craftsperson long ago. On one side, it looks like a smiling face. On the other, it frowns. It has a hole worked through the top, suggesting it may have been worn on a string or necklace once, but it was broken. Perhaps its original wearer dropped it while hiking a long time ago.

Did he or she go back to look for it?

Could they have imagined that decades later, some chunky jr. high kid would stumble upon it one day when the internet was out, and he had nothing better to do than go exploring the woods near his house?

We’re often too distracted and too disconnected from the land we live on to even notice the history under our feet. But sometimes, we’re lucky enough to stumble across evidence of previous lives, and it reminds us that we’re just a small part of a larger story being told in these hills.

It sparks that childlike curiosity—that we too often stuff down—which asks simple yet profound questions like, “Who used to live here?” and “What were they like?”

As November is National Native American Heritage Month, it feels fitting to share a brief history of Northwest Arkansas’s first residents.

The Osage Nation

Prior to European settlement, the most prominent tribe to have dealings in what is now called Northwest Arkansas was the Osage Nation.

Known for their complex social structures, warrior culture, and sophisticated trade networks, the Osage called much of Missouri, Arkansas, Kansas, and Oklahoma home. While there is little evidence of them having made permanent dwellings in the Ozarks, it is apparent they frequented this region. Probably as part of their seasonal hunting grounds.

Many places in Northwest Arkansas bear the name Osage as an homage to the tribe that once cared for these lands. In 2023, the highest peak in the Ozark Mountains was renamed Wahzhazhe Summit, the traditional name of the tribe.

The Osage's sophisticated understanding of the land influenced early settler knowledge of hunting, fishing, and survival in the Ozarks. The Osage managed trade routes through this area, and their acts of diplomacy set a cultural and economic foundation that influenced the region long after their primary territory was forced westward in the 19th century.

The Caddo Nation

While the Caddo primarily dwelt in southeast Arkansas, their broader influence across the state left a cultural impact on the region. Caddo trails and waterways connected regions across the state, likely influencing travel routes later used by other tribes and settlers.

Known for advanced agricultural practices, the Caddo cultivated crops like maize, beans, and squash, influencing farming techniques used by later tribes and settlers throughout the state. The Caddo were also part of extensive trade networks, exchanging pottery, tools, and food with neighboring tribes, likely bringing their goods and cultural practices indirectly through Northwest Arkansas.

Renowned for intricate pottery, Caddo craftsmanship is highly valued and found in museums throughout Arkansas, including near Benton and Washington counties. Their pottery provides insight into early Indigenous life and artistry.

The Cherokee Nation

Although not indigenous to Arkansas, the Cherokee migrated to the state in the early 19th century after being pushed out of their ancestral lands in Georgia, eastern Tennessee, and the Carolinas. The U.S. government encouraged this migration through treaties, promising the Cherokee land in Arkansas Territory. This was before the tragic forced relocation event known as the Trail of Tears.

By 1817, a group called the "Old Settlers" established permanent dwellings in Northwest Arkansas, becoming the first people group to do so. They didn’t just survive here—they built farms, started schools, established government systems, and developed strong communities. Their resilience and ability to adapt are a testament to their determination to hold onto their identity, even in the face of displacement.

The Cherokee's resilience and self-governance influenced the broader development of the region. However, their arrival led to tensions with the Osage, who saw the influx of settlers as encroaching on their ancestral hunting grounds. Disputes often required mediation by U.S. officials, which underscores just how much the tribes had to wrestle with—not just settlers coming in but also each other—thanks to policies that forced them into tighter and tighter spaces.

Still, the Cherokee left a deep mark on this area, from early schools to farming methods that shaped the land. Their story is woven into the roots of Northwest Arkansas.

Lasting Legacy

It’s easy to walk these hills today and forget what came before. But when you find an arrowhead in a creek bed or catch the word “Osage” in the name of a local business, you’re reminded: this land has a history that goes back way before us.

The Osage, Caddo, and Cherokee all left their fingerprints here. From the Osage’s seasonal hunting trips and trade routes to the Caddo’s artistry and agriculture to the Cherokee’s perseverance in carving out a home—they all played a role in shaping the story of this region.

I have no known ancestral connection to any of these tribes, and I likely share more DNA with the people who contributed to their displacement. So why should I care about their history in these lands?

I’ll give you two reasons that matter to me:

  1. I believe our humanity is inextricably linked to the land on which we live, and we have a responsibility to steward it well. What if much of our identity crisis stems from our disconnection to the places we live and our chronic escapism into the digital? We’re made of the same stuff as the dirt we walk on. As were those who lived here first. So, learning even a little about the history of our home roots us in time and space, helps us learn from the mistakes of previous generations, and inspires us with stories of resilience as we live out our small scene in the larger story of history.

Okay… that got a bit heady and philosophical. I’ll give you a more lighthearted and less pretentious-sounding reason.

  1. History is freaking cool and fun to learn about. Go read a book.

The information shared here doesn’t scratch the surface of the rich history and culture that exists to be explored. I’d invite you to read more in the sources listed below. Or, a great place in Northwest Arkansas where you can take a deep dive is the Museum of Native American History in Bentonville.

MONAH provides a place to experience the diverse Indigenous cultures of the Americas through prehistoric and historical art—plus, they have a full skeleton of a wooly mammoth in their collection… which is pretty cool.

Thanks for reading!

Sources