Visitors Guide to Attractions
in Cross & Poinsett Counties, Arkansas
Poinsett and Cross Counties constitute the middle portion of the Crowley's Ridge Parkway National Scenic Byway region. The region has two excellent state parks with natural features to visit: Lake Poinsett State Park and Village Creek State Park. Other attractions in the area are Parkin Archeological State Park, which explores a Mississippi Period Native American village, the Southern Tenant Farmers Museum, which interprets a farm labor movement that began during the Great Depression, and an interesting post office mural in Wynne.
Arkansas State Cemetery at Birdeye
Birdeye, Arkansas
This cemetery, located in the community of Birdeye, east of Cherry Valley in Cross County in located in the rolling hills of Crowley’s Ridge, will be the final resting place for veterans, their spouses and eligible dependents. It is the fifth veterans cemetery in Arkansas, and the second operated by the state.
Cross County Museum
Wynne, Arkansas
The Cross County Museum and Archives is operated by the Cross County Historical Society and is located in a former four room elementary school building that was built in 1937. Three restored classrooms now contain galleries that showcase the different eras of Cross County history including prehistoric fossils, the Native American Mound Builder culture, the early agricultural era, railroad memorabilia, and a tribute to the County’s veterans. The building also houses genealogical records, county maps, newspaper files, Cross County archives, and a small library.
Lake Poinsett State Park
Harrisburg, Arkansas
Situated among the scenic rolling hills atop Crowley’s Ridge in northeastern Arkansas is Lake Poinsett State Park on the northern end of the 640-acre lake that was constructed to provide fishing recreation. The park offers camping, picnic areas, a nature/hiking trail, a playground, a pavilion, and boat/kayak rentals. Interpretative programs are available throughout the year, including guided-kayak tours and annual special events.
Parkin Archeological State Park
Parkin, Arkansas
Parkin Archeological State Park preserves and interprets the Parkin site on the St. Francis River where a 17-acre Mississippi Period, Native American village was located from 1000 to 1550 CE. The Parkin site has been designated as a National Historic Landmark by the U.S. National Park Service and features a visitor Center that includes an auditorium, exhibit area, gift shop, and archeological laboratory. The site’s interpretive staff offers audiovisual programs, site tours, workshops, and other educational programs, and special events, and activities. The site also features a one-room schoolhouse that served the children of saw mill workers during the first half of the 20th century.
Southern Tenant Farmers Museum
Tyronza, Arkansas
The Southern Tenant Farmers Museum focuses on the tenant farming system of agriculture in the South and the farm labor movement that arose in response to this system. The museum is located in the historic Mitchell-East Building which served as unofficial headquarters for the Southern Tenant Farmers' Union during its formative period. Established in 1934 by eleven white and seven African American people at Sunnyside School near Tyronza, the union grew into a national organization and was a forerunner of later labor and civil rights movements.
St. Francis Sunken Lands Wildlife Management Area
Craighead, Poinsett & Greene Counties, Arkansas
The Sunken Lands WMA is an area in northeast Arkansas that was created by the New Madrid Earthquakes of 1811-12. The area became nationally famous as a hunting and fishing area in the early 20th century. Some isolated stands of old growth bald cypress still exist on the area, and there are excellent opportunities for bird watching and wildlife viewing. The Payneway Moist Soil Unit is protected from hunting and hosts a variety of shorebirds, eagles and several duck species.
Village Creek State Park
Wynne, Arkansas
Village Creek State Park sits atop Crowley's Ridge and is covered with a lush, mixed hardwood forest including oak and hickory and uncommon hardwood trees. At 6,911 acres, Village Creek is Arkansas' largest state park. The park has five hiking trails totaling seven miles and there are twenty-five miles of multi-use trails that allow horseback riding. The park has both a traditional campground, a horse campground, and cabins. At Lake Dunn there is a bait shop and dock where fishing boats, electric motors, kayaks, and pedal boats can be rented. Golfers will enjoy The Ridges at Village Creek, the park's 27-hole, Andy Dye signature course. The Visitor Center houses an audiovisual theater, grocery store, gift shop, and offices. The adjacent Discovery Room exhibits the geologic and cultural history, as well as some of the common wildlife of Crowley's Ridge.
Wynne Post Office & Mural
Wynne, Arkansas
The Wynne Post Office is one of 21 Arkansas post offices that had murals installed in their lobbies between 1939 and 1942. Ethel Magafan was commissioned to create a mural. Her work is a scene set against the Delta landscape. In the left background is a large cotton field with pickers. The African-American man and woman in the left foreground carry their loaded bags to a wagon where a group of workers are having their bags weighed and emptied.
Nearby Attractions
Bootheel Missouri
The Missouri Bootheel is the southeastern most part of the state and is composed of the counties of Dunklin, New Madrid, and Pemiscot. Explore what the region once was like at the area’s many conservation areas. Learn the history of New Madrid, the great earthquakes of 1812-13, the role the town played in the Civil War, and the town’s history at several museums and historic sites in the town. Get a great view of the Mississippi from New Madrid’s riverfront. Other regional history can be found in museums in the towns of Kennett and Malden.
Northeast Arkansas along the Great River Road
Northeastern Arkansas along the Mississippi River offers its visitors a variety of attractions. The downtown districts of Blytheville and Osceola have distinctive architecture in their downtown districts. The small communities of Manila and Earle have county museums covering the history and culture of the region. At Sans Souci Landing visitors can get a great up close view of the Mississippi River. Nature lovers will find plenty to do at Big Lake National Wildlife Refuge and Wapanocca National Wildlife Refuge.
Western Tennessee
The Western Tennessee counties of Lake, Obion, Dyer, Lauderdale, and Tipton offers it visitors a variety of historical, natural, and cultural activities. History can be found everywhere in Western Tennessee at such places as Fort Pillow State Historic Park, the Alex Haley Home and Interpretive Center, and many county museums. Nature can be explored at Reelfoot Lake, Tennessee’s largest natural lake, and at Fort Pillow State Historic Park as well as the Tipton County Museum, Veterans Memorial & Nature Center. Unique architecture can be seen at the Tipton and Lauderdale County courthouses and their surrounding downtown districts and Confederate soldier monuments dot the landscape. Theater lovers will delight in the atmosphere of the Ruffin Theater in Covington.
For Travelers Heading Up the River
The Mississippi Meets the Ohio River Region
After the Mississippi River passes St. Louis it begins to change character. When the Mississippi River meets the Ohio River at Cairo, Illinois it is halfway on its journey to the sea. It is here that the brown muddy water of the Mississippi begins to mingle with the clearer water of the Ohio. Without the locks and dams the Mississippi begins to wind and curve so much so that the distance by water from Cape Girardeau to the Gulf of Mexico is twice the distance as a crow flies. The region where the Mississippi River meets the Ohio River is an area of transition in several respects both in terms of the flora and fauna but the culture begins to take on that of the Deep South. The Meeting the Ohio region of the Middle Mississippi River Valley offers it visitors a wide variety of options of activities to do and sites to see. Whether you’re looking for historical or cultural sites or a place to enjoy nature you’ll find it in this part of the country.
