Important Arkansas historical events and significant anniversaries for May 21, with notable births and deaths of people with Arkansas connections for this date. Information is drawn from state archives, historical societies, contemporary newspapers and other media archives, and legal records. Much of this information comes from the Encyclopedia of Arkansas, an online publication. ChatGPH has collected this data.
On May 21, 1542, explorer Hernando de Soto died at Guachoya in what is now southeastern Arkansas. Encyclopedia of Arkansas entries on de Soto and early settlement place that death in present-day Chicot County and note its importance in the first sustained European intrusion into the region.
After the March 10, 1820, Allen-Oden duel on an island in the Arkansas River, Robert Allen died of his wound on May 21, 1820…