Celebrate the 150th Anniversary of Arkansas' Ratification of the 13th Amendment

University of Arkansas Libraries

The Old Main bell has changed a bit since the U.S. Bicentennial. Here, Joe Talley rings the Old Main bell on July 4, 1976. University Relations Photograph Collection, Special Collections (MC 1302).

"Let Freedom Ring" at 1 p.m. Tuesday, April 14, and join churches, schools, the Arkansas State Capitol, and individuals across the state in ringing bells 13 times at 1300 hours. The event celebrates Arkansas' ratification of the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, abolishing slavery. 

The momentous bell peal is sponsored by the Arkansas Civil War Sesquicentennial Commission, an organization created by the Arkansas General Assembly to coordinate observances of the 150th anniversary of the Civil War. The commission is a part of the Arkansas Historic Preservation Program, an agency of the Department of Arkansas Heritage.

The J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences and the Arkansas Alumni Association are participating on the Fayetteville campus and invite the community to listen for the Old Main chimes and the Bill and Jo Ella Toller Celebration Bell at the Janelle Y. Hembree Alumni House, both at 1 p.m.

And inside the University of Arkansas Libraries Special Collections Department, an indoor bell peal with a variety of hand bells will also begin at 1 p.m. All manner of bells and their ringers are welcome to participate in the celebration and proclamation in Mullins Library. Other organizations and religious institutions throughout Washington County will also participate in the "Let Freedom Ring" event, including the Washington County Historical Society on the grounds of the historic Headquarters House, Shiloh Museum for Ozark History in Springdale, and St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Fayetteville.

"The Arkansas General Assembly voted to approve the 13th Amendment on April 14, 1865," Tom Dupree, Arkansas Civil War Sesquicentennial Commission's chairman, said. "This was one of the most important milestones of the American Civil War…" and Special Collections is honored to participate in the commemoration of the state's ratification, which freed over 400,000 enslaved Arkansans.  "While the institution of slavery remains a stain on our nation's history, this commemoration celebrates the beginning of the journey toward equality for all Arkansans," said Timothy G. Nutt, head of Special Collections, and member of the sesquicentennial commission.

The 13th Amendment says: "Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction. Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation." More information on the Arkansas Civil War Sesquicentennial Commission's plans is available at their webpage, along with a calendar of events and a full list of Let Freedom Ring participants.