SW Arkansas Times

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — The City of Fayetteville will host an historical marker dedication Friday, June 16, to commemorate Nelson Hackett, whose 1841 escape from slavery in Fayetteville and extradition back from Canada played a critical role in the century-long process of American abolition and emancipation.

A ceremony will be held 6-6:30 p.m. at the Downtown Square Gardens at the northwest corner, where a plaque will be placed. Fayetteville Mayor Lioneld Jordan and JL Jennings, chair of the City’s Black Heritage Preservation Commission, will speak during the event. 

Also during the event, the City will display new street signs as part of the name change from Archibald Yell Boulevard to Nelson Hackett Boulevard, which the Fayetteville City Council approved in September 2022.

For pedestrian safety, part of the square will be blocked off to traffic. Event attendees should plan to access nearby parking via alternate routes. 

The plaque memorializing Hackett will be placed in a flowerbed. It tells Hackett’s story, including how he traveled nearly 1,000 miles during his escape and how “abolitionists throughout the Atlantic world fought to prevent Hackett’s extradition from setting a precedent.”

To learn more about Hackett, visit the University of Arkansas Nelson Hackett Project website: https://nelsonhackettproject.uark.edu. 

Original source can be found here.