Lakeport Plantation Joins Arkansas Civil War Sesquicentennial Passport Program

For Immediate Release

3/10/2011

The Lakeport Plantation and Lake Chicot State Park are two of 23 stamping sites for the Arkansas Civil War Sesquicentennial Passport Program.  According to a press release from the Arkansas Civil War Sesquicentennial Commission:  Travelers in Arkansas can visit sites around the state to learn about Arkansas’s Civil War history while earning prizes through the Arkansas Civil War Sesquicentennial Passport Program, Arkansas Civil War Sesquicentennial Commission Chairman Tom Dupree announced today.

“The Arkansas Civil War Sesquicentennial Commission welcomes everyone to visit the state’s many Civil War sites by participating in the Arkansas Civil War Sesquicentennial Passport Program,” Dupree said. “Visitors can get their passports stamped at 23 different places around Arkansas and can visit other Civil War-related properties while they are in the area. Once all 23 stamps are acquired, visitors can send in the back cover of their passport to receive an official Arkansas Civil War Sesquicentennial coin or patch.”

Arkansas Civil War Sesquicentennial Passports can be acquired at any of Arkansas’s Welcome Centers, at the participating stamping sites, by writing Arkansas Civil War Sesquicentennial Commission, 1500 Tower Building, 323 Center Street, Little Rock, AR 72201, or by e-mailing acwsc@arkansasheritage.org.

Other Stamping Sites in Southeast Arkansas include: Arkansas Post National Memorial (Gillette vic, Arkansas County), St. Charles Museum (St. Charles, Arkansas County), the Delta Cultural Center (Helena-West Helena, Phillips County), and the Phillips County Museum (Helena-West Helena, Phillips County).  Associated Sites in Southeast Arkansas include: Ditch Bayou Battlefield (Lake Village vic. Chicot County), Helena Confederate Cemetery (Phillips County), and the Drew County Historical Museum (Monticello, Drew County).   For more information on the Passport Program and a full list of stamping sites and associated sites visit http://www.arkansascivilwar150.com/civil-war-sites/passport/

The Lakeport Plantation house is an Arkansas State University Heritage Site.  Built for Lycurgus and Lydia Johnson in 1859, the Greek Revival home is one of Arkansas' premiere historic structures and is now the only remaining antebellum plantation home in Arkansas on the Mississippi River.  The Johnson family retained ownership of the house until 1927, when the Chicot County plantation was purchased by Sam Epstein.  The house was added to the National Register in 1974 and was gifted to Arkansas State University in 2001 by the Sam Epstein Angel Family.  Following a massive restoration effort, the home opened to the public on September 28, 2007.