This week, we delve into a lesser-known chapter of Ozark history: the Free Black Colony that thrived in Marion County, Arkansas, before the Civil War. Through the lives of two pioneering African Americans, David Hall and Peter Caulder, we uncover the resilience and struggles of a free black community that flourished against the odds—only to face tragic expulsion under state law.
David Hall (1783–1852?) was a free African American who, along with his wife Sarah (Sallie), moved from Tennessee to Bull Shoals in Marion County in 1819. Settling along the White River, the Hall family cleared land, cultivated crops, and raised livestock. David Hall became a prominent figure, establishing the first still in Marion County and trading whiskey and deer hides to support his family. Over time, his sons and sons-in-law expanded their landholdings, purchasing farmland through the Batesville land office.
Despite Arkansas’s restrictive laws targeting free blacks, Hall and others in Marion County found a measure of autonomy. Marion County’s remote location and a lenient sheriff allowed them to farm, own land, and even possess firearms for hunting. By 1850, Marion County was home to at least 129 free black individuals—the largest concentration in the state. This community thrived through agriculture, trade, and landownership, creating a rare pocket of prosperity for free African Americans in the antebellum South.
However, this fortune was short-lived. A murder trial in the 1850s involving James Hall, a free black man, and a white defendant began to shift local attitudes. The final blow came in 1859, when the Arkansas General Assembly passed a law expelling all free blacks from the state. The community was forced to abandon their homes, farms, and years of hard-earned progress, scattering to uncertain futures.
Peter Caulder (1795?–1861?) was another remarkable figure in this story. Born in Marion County, South Carolina, Caulder served in the War of 1812 alongside his father, Moses Caulder in the 3rd U.S. Rifles in 1814 after British troops burned Washington, D.C. He played a key role in establishing Fort Smith in 1817. Alongside fellow African American soldiers like Martin Turner and Joseph Clark, Caulder honed skills in tracking, hunting, and survival during his military career.
After leaving the army, Caulder married Eliza Hall, David Hall’s daughter, and settled on a homestead above the White River, near what became known as Caulder Mountain in the Oakland area. For over thirty years, he lived a self-sufficient life, paid taxes, raised seven children, and earned the respect of his neighbors. Like David Hall, Caulder embodied the independence and resilience of free black settlers in the Ozarks.
Yet, in 1859, Act 151 to Remove Free Black from the State of Arkansas, the expulsion law, upended Caulder’s life. Forced to leave the home he had built over three decades, Caulder’s later years remain a mystery. His son, David Caulder, carried on the family’s legacy by serving in the Union’s Twelfth Missouri State Cavalry and settling in Missouri.
The stories of David Hall and Peter Caulder illuminate the perseverance of free African Americans in the Ozarks, as well as the systemic oppression they faced. Their contributions to the early frontier and their eventual expulsion reveal a complex and often overlooked history of race and settlement in Arkansas. These narratives remind us of the resilience and struggles of those who sought freedom in the wilderness of the Ozarks, leaving an indelible mark on our region’s past.
If you would like more information on the free Black Colony, you can read more about it in A Stranger and a Sojourner: Peter Caulder, Free Black Frontiersman in Antebellum Arkansas by Billy D. Higgins.
We are incredibly thankful for 𝐑𝐚𝐩𝐩’𝐬 𝐁𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐞𝐧 𝐁𝐫𝐞𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐧𝐲 and their unwavering support of 𝙍𝙚𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙘𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙊𝙪𝙧 𝙍𝙤𝙤𝙩𝙨! This is local programming at it’s best when we have the opportunity to keeping our community connected, and we couldn’t do it without the generosity of businesses like 𝐑𝐚𝐩𝐩’𝐬. So, the next time you’re in Mountain Home, be sure to stop by 𝐑𝐚𝐩𝐩’𝐬 𝐁𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐞𝐧 𝐁𝐫𝐞𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐧𝐲 and thank Russell Tucker and the amazing crew for their support to Sip – Savor – Sojourn – 𝙍𝙚𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙘𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙊𝙪𝙧 𝙍𝙤𝙤𝙩𝙨.
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