Arkansas...
Arkansas was the 25th state and officially became part of the Union in 1836. This great state is known as the “Land of Opportunity,” possibly because it is the only state in the U.S. that has diamond mining. The Mississippi River makes up the eastern border for Arkansas and perhaps this has something to do with why the French called the inhabitants, “downriver” people. In fact, the state got its name from early French explorers who gave it the name “Arkansas” which is how the French word for “downriver” people is phonetically spelled out.

The other borders of Arkansas touch its neighboring states Louisiana, Mississippi, Texas, Tennessee, Oklahoma, and Missouri. Arkansas has varying geography with the lowlands along the Mississippi River and great mountainous ranges of the Ouachita and Ozark Mountains. The state flower of Arkansas is the apple blossom, the state tree is the pine tree, and the capital of Arkansas is Little Rock.