8 Most Unconventional Towns In Arkansas

Don't mispronounce Arkansas. It's the only state with a law dictating the correct pronunciation. Thankfully there's no criminal penalty for saying "Ar-kansas" rather than "Arkansaw," but you might Arkan-see some dirty looks. Laws like this, combined with unique history and geography, make Arkansas one of the most unconventional states. It might, therefore, seem easy to pick its most unconventional towns. Too many choices, however, can cause decision paralysis. But thanks to big attractions like the Fouke Monster, Gurdon Light, and Hope Watermelon Festival, certain small towns stand out above all others. Stand with these strange but striking settlements in the Natural State.

Fouke

Fouke is a funny name with a very creepy connection. In the 1970s, tiny Fouke became famous for sightings of a Bigfoot-like creature. Said to stand about seven feet tall and weigh 300 pounds, the Fouke Monster made headlines and inspired the Boggy Creek film franchise. Townsfolk monetized their unfriendly neighborhood ape-man by building Monster Mart, a convenience store/souvenir shop/museum literally in the clutches of a giant sculpted monster. Moreover, they launched the Fouke Monster Festival, an annual multi-day celebration with food, tours, vendors, guest speakers, and a screening of 1972's The Legend of Boggy Creek at the Fouke Community Center. See it all for yourself in April 2025.

Gurdon

During a long stopover in the railroad town of Gurdon, several lumbermen founded a fraternal organization called the Concatenated Order of Hoo-Hoo. Subversive in a silly way rather than the sinister way of, say, the Freemasons, the Hoo-Hoos adopted Lewis Carroll-coined whimsical words and picked the unlucky black cat as their mascot. As luck would have it, Hoo-Hoo is now the "oldest industrial fraternal organization in the United States."

Hoo-Hoo HQ is a quirky cabin on Main Street that also serves as a museum. Just a short walk away is the Egyptian-style Hoo-Hoo Monument, topped with two stone cats. To see a non-Hoo-Hoo oddity, "head" to the abandoned tracks outside of Gurdon for the Gurdon Light, which is thought to be the ghostly lantern of a decapitated brakeman.

Mountain View

Ironically, sound is the main draw of Mountain View. Dubbed the "Folk Music Capital of the World," this Ozark hub has almost as many music stores, venues, and festivals as it does residents. Fewer than 3,000 people rub elbows with eclectic tourists while shopping at the Dulcimer Shoppe, vibing at the Mountain View Bluegrass Festival, and "pickin'" on the Courthouse Square. After seeing fifty-six unique shows in Mountain View, see the uniquely named settlement of Fifty-Six, which sits about 10 miles northwest of town near the also unique Blanchard Springs Caverns. There, you can explore a three-level "living cave" where stalactites and stalagmites are ever-changing.

Murfreesboro

Murfreesboro is a diamond in the rough where you can find diamonds in the rough. For $15 if you are an adult, $7 if you are between 6 and 12, and free if you are under 6, you can search a volcanic field for millions of dollars worth of diamonds. This field, which skirts Murfreesboro in Southwest Arkansas, was mined by private entities before being bought by the state in 1972. Now called Crater of Diamonds State Park, it parts with around 700 diamonds annually. Among the largest taken in recent years weighed 7.46 and 9.07 carats. The largest ever taken from the field (and from the United States in general) weighed 40.23 carats and sold for over a million dollars adjusted for inflation. If you score big, spend some of your riches in Murfreesboro proper at Hawkins Variety Store and/or Caddo Antiques Gifts and More.

Walnut Ridge

It's no Strawberry Fields, but Walnut Ridge is forever linked to The Beatles. This 5,400ish-person city is the only place in Arkansas the Fab Four ever visited. It happened in September 1964 during The Beatles' North American Tour. They didn't perform in Walnut Ridge (its Community Center probably wasn't sufficient), but they stopped there while flying to and from their friend's Missouri ranch. Though brief, a visit from the world's biggest band to one of Arkansas' smallest towns is something to celebrate, and Walnut Ridge does year-round. It has its own Abbey Road lined with Beatles murals, Beatles cutouts, and a commemorative area called Beatles Park. Moreover, it hosts the Beatles at the Ridge musical festival each September.

Ponca

For over 100 years, elk were extirpated in Arkansas. They were brought back in the 1930s but vanished under mysterious circumstances. Another reintroduction project was tried in the 1980s. This one worked, and now there are roughly 450 wild elk in the state, all of which roam the area around Ponca in the Ozark Mountains. Aside from being a hotspot for resurrected wildlife, Ponca is a hub for explorers along the Buffalo National River. Choose your own adventure—and mode for adventure—at the Buffalo Outdoor Center or Lost Valley Canoe & Lodging. If you want to really get out there, visit the Arkansas Grand Canyon southeast of town. Though much more valley-like than canyon-like, it spans 1.3 million acres.

Hope

Hope is known for two things: Bill Clinton and watermelon. In 1980, those vastly different things merged. As Arkansas' then-governor, Clinton attended the Hope Watermelon Festival, a historic melon-bration in his birth town. Fast forward 45 years, and you can still see watermelons and traces of Bill Clinton in Hope. In August, admire President William Jefferson Clinton Birthplace Home National Historic Site, tour the Hope Visitor Information Center/Amtrak Station, and attend the 49th Annual Hope Watermelon Festival. Melons in the range of 200 pounds are often displayed at the fest.

Eureka Springs

While it's hard to rank eight of the most unconventional towns in already unconventional Arkansas, Eureka Springs is the undisputed leader. This small Ozark settlement might as well be another country. A tourist can find Victorian architecture mixed with LGBTQ+ bars, postmodern art, and alleged ghosts mixed with lions, tigers, and bears.

Although you must go slightly out of town to see such animals at Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge, most of the other attractions can be found in or near the 1886 Crescent Hotel & Spa, a sprawling Victorian estate considered "America's Most Haunted Hotel." Ghost tours are offered nightly. Of course, you can also sleep there . . . if you dare.

Wrapping Up

Arkansas has no shortage of unique communities, which is why Fouke, Gurdon, Mountain View, Murfreesboro, Walnut Ridge, Ponca, Hope, and Eureka Springs are so impressive. Even among sizeable, scandalous cities, these small settlements stimulate with such sights as the Concatenated Order of Hoo-Hoo, Monster Mart, Crater of Diamonds State Park, Arkansas Grand Canyon, Beatles Park, and 1886 Crescent Hotel & Spa. Which of them will you Arkan-see in Arkan-saw?