Butterfield Overland Mail Centennial Commission (Ark.)

The Butterfield Overland Mail Company was established by John Butterfield of Utica, N.Y., in 1857. He contracted with the U.S. Postmaster General to transport the mail from the Mississippi River to San Francisco, Calif., including a major route from Memphis to Fort Smith and a route form St. Louis through Missouri and northwest Arkansas to Fort Smith, including Elkhorn Tavern and Fayetteville. The Butterfield Overland Mail Centennial Commission was formed in Arkansas in the 1950s as a part of the national celebration with W.J. Lemke of Fayetteville as its chairman. Others on the commission included Ted R. Worley of the Arkansas History Commission and J.H. Atkinson of Little Rock Junior College. National committee members included H. Bailey Carroll of Texas, Lewis C. Jones of New York, and William J. Peterson of Iowa. Along with local events commemorating the anniversary along the different routes, a Centennial Caravan was organized from Tipton, Mo., to San Francisco, Calif.