Arkansas 250 Historic Marker Honoring Chief Saracen and the Quapaw Nation to Be Unveiled in Pine Bluff

Ceremony on the shore of Lake Saracen returns an Indigenous story to the center of Arkansas’s semiquincentennial

PINE BLUFF, Ark. — On Monday, August 24, the Quapaw Nation, the City of Pine Bluff, the Arkansas250 Commission and the Pine Bluff Advertising & Promotion Commission will unveil an Arkansas 250 state historic marker recognizing Chief Saracen and the history of the Quapaw people in Arkansas.

The ceremony begins at 11 a.m. along the Lake Saracen Trail at Regional Park, ground that lies within the footprint of Pine Bluff’s Delta Rhythm & Bayous Cultural District and near the river corridor where Quapaw villages once stood. The program will run approximately 45 minutes and is free and open to the public.

The marker is one of a limited number placed across Arkansas as part of the Arkansas250 Commission’s statewide commemoration of the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. The Arkansas 250 markers are being installed and dedicated in communities throughout 2026 at sites the commission has identified as carrying national
significance.

Saracen, was born in the mid-1700s in the Quapaw homeland, near the Arkansas Post and became one of the most widely recognized Quapaw figures in Arkansas history. He is remembered in the historical record for recovering two children taken captive from a settler family, for his role in the 1783 Colbert Raid at Arkansas Post, and for his presence during the treaty era that culminated in the forced removal of the Quapaw from their Arkansas homelands. He is buried at St. Joseph Catholic Cemetery in Pine Bluff. Lake Pine Bluff was renamed Lake Saracen in his honor in 2007.

“This marker is meaningful to the Quapaw Nation because Arkansas is our homeland, and our connection to this place did not end with our removal. The treaty era represented a time of tremendous change, yet our people and the names of our past leaders, such as Saracen and Heckaton remain part of the land, part of Pine Bluff, and Arkansas. We appreciate the State of Arkansas and the City of Pine Bluff for recognizing the enduring history and presence of the Quapaw people.” — Everett Bandy, Executive Director of Culture, Quapaw Nation

“Pine Bluff has carried Saracen’s name for generations throughout our history, on our lake, on our landing, in our streets. What we have not always done is tell the whole story that name belongs to. This marker does that, and it does it alongside the Quapaw Nation rather than about them.” — Mayor Vivian Flowers, City of Pine Bluff

“The Quapaw Nation has played an important role in the story and historical foundation of Arkansas and that legacy continues today. We are proud to honor and champion the Nation’s enduring contributions, past and present. Arkansas250 gives us an opportunity to celebrate the people, culture and land that came before us and continue to shape the story we share today.”— Shea Lewis, Secretary, Arkansas Department of Parks, Heritage and Tourism, and Chairman, Arkansas250 Commission

“This marker exists because the Quapaw Nation, the state, the city and this community were willing to do the thoughtful and deliberate work together. It is a permanent piece of the Delta Rhythm & Bayous Cultural District, and it will be here long after us.”— Sheri Storie, Executive Director, Pine Bluff Advertising & Promotion Commission 

Program
Carlton Saffa of Saracen Casino Resort will serve as master of ceremonies. The program includes welcoming remarks from Mayor Flowers; context on the semiquincentennial and the state marker program from Secretary Lewis; an invocation and remarks from the Quapaw Nation; a historical reflection from Jimmy Cunningham, Director of Tourism Development for the Pine Bluff Advertising & Promotion Commission; and remarks from Sheri Storie on the partnership behind the marker.

The unveiling itself will be led by a representative of the Quapaw Nation, followed by a reading of the marker text and remarks by Jesse “Manz” McKibben of the Quapaw Nation Business Committee, and a moment of silence in remembrance of those removed from these lands. The program closes with the Quapaw Memorial Song, performed by Shawn Ellick. A reception will follow immediately at Saracen Casino, hosted by Carlton Saffa.

Visiting related sites
Attendees and visitors are encouraged to visit Saracen’s grave at St. Joseph Catholic Church, Saracen Landing, and the broader Delta Rhythm & Bayous Cultural District — the downtown corridor Pine Bluff has been developing to interpret the region’s music, civil rights and cultural history. The district added the Delta Rhythm & Bayous Blues & Wellness Plaza in February 2026.

About the Arkansas250 Commission
The Arkansas250 Commission was created in 2024 by Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders, who appointed 14 Arkansans to lead the state’s commemoration of the nation’s 250th anniversary. The commission is chaired by Shea Lewis, Secretary of the Arkansas Department of Parks, Heritage and Tourism. Its initiatives include a statewide historic marker program, a semiquincentennial exhibit at the Old State House Museum, and a commissioned artwork.

About the Quapaw Nation
The Quapaw Nation is a federally recognized tribe of approximately 6,000 citizens. The Quapaw Nation government is based in Quapaw, Oklahoma, located in the Quapaw Reservation. The Okáxpa, or “Downstream” people, trace their ancestral homelands from what is now known as the lower Ohio River, west to the Mississippi River to present-day St. Louis, south across present-day Arkansas into southern Oklahoma. Their modern land base is in the far corner of northeastern Oklahoma. The Nation serves its people with health care, housing, educational scholarships as well as cultural preservation. It operates Downstream Casino Resort in Oklahoma just off Interstate 44, just 4 miles east of Joplin, Missouri, Quapaw Casino in Quapaw and Saracen Casino Resort in the tribe’s ancestral homelands in Pine Bluff, Arkansas. The Quapaw Nation also operates a variety of other business ventures outside of gaming.