Conway Cemetery Historic State Park, officially the Conway Cemetery State Park, is the final resting place of
James S. Conway, first
governor of Arkansas
The governor of Arkansas is the head of government of the U.S. state of Arkansas. The Governor (United States), governor is the head of the Executive (government), executive branch of the Politics and government of Arkansas, Arkansas government a ...
, and his wife, Mary J. Conway. It is a
Arkansas state park in
Lafayette County. No recreational or visitors' amenities are available at the state park.
Description and administrative history
The
Conway-Johnson family dominated Arkansas politics from territorial days until the
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...
. James Sevier Conway was the first
governor of Arkansas
The governor of Arkansas is the head of government of the U.S. state of Arkansas. The Governor (United States), governor is the head of the Executive (government), executive branch of the Politics and government of Arkansas, Arkansas government a ...
, serving from 1836 to 1840. He began many basic state programs, such as banks, roads, and prisons. Conway retired to his plantation near
Bradley, where he died in 1855. Several other prominent figures in early Arkansas politics were buried in the cemetery, including
U.S. Senator Ambrose Hundley Sevier.
Locals succeeded in acquiring state protection of the site with the passing of legislation acquiring the site in 1975. After receiving listing on the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...
two years later, the cemetery was given to the
Department of Parks, Heritage, and Tourism on March 27, 1984.
After paving of a parking lot and addition of picnic tables, the park was admitted to the park system in 1986. The park encompasses the old homesite and family cemetery of the Conway family.
See also
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List of Arkansas state parks
There are 52 state parks in the U.S. state of Arkansas, as of 2025. ''Note: this list of all 52 parks is the default reference for current individual Arkansas state parks.'' The state parks division of the Arkansas Department of Parks, Heritag ...
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List of National Historic Landmarks in Arkansas
The National Historic Landmarks in Arkansas represent Arkansas's history from the Louisiana Purchase through the Civil War and the Civil Rights Movement. It contains the landmarks designated by the U.S. Federal Government for the U.S. state o ...
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National Register of Historic Places listings in Lafayette County, Arkansas
References
External links
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1986 establishments in Arkansas
Buildings and structures in Lafayette County, Arkansas
Cemeteries on the National Register of Historic Places in Arkansas
National Register of Historic Places in Lafayette County, Arkansas
Protected areas established in 1986
Protected areas of Lafayette County, Arkansas
State parks of Arkansas