Major General James G. Blunt

McArthur is an unincorporated community in Clayton Township, Desha County, Arkansas.[1] It is located on Arkansas Highway 1 northeast of McGehee.[2]

McArthur is one of two possible sites of the death of Hernando de Soto. The Natives of the region called the Mississippi River "Tamaliseu", while De Soto called it "Río del Espíritu Santo". Afraid of revealing to the Native Americans that he was a mortal and not a deity, he opted for a watery burial under the Mississippi.[3]

References

  1. ^ a b "McArthur, Arkansas". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey. Retrieved January 20, 2012.
  2. ^ Arkansas Atlas and Gazetteer (Map) (Second ed.). DeLorme. § 22.
  3. ^ Davidson, James West. After the Fact: The Art of Historical Detection Volume 1. Mc Graw Hill, New York 2010, Chapter 1, p. 1