Elaine, Arkansas
| Elaine, Arkansas | |
|---|---|
| City | |
 Location in Phillips County and the state of Arkansas |
|
| Coordinates: 34°18′31″N 90°51′15″W / 34.30861°N 90.85417°WCoordinates: 34°18′31″N 90°51′15″W / 34.30861°N 90.85417°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Arkansas |
| County | Phillips |
| Area | |
| • Total | 0.5 sq mi (1.3 km2) |
| • Land | 0.5 sq mi (1.3 km2) |
| • Water | 0 sq mi (0 km2) |
| Elevation | 167 ft (51 m) |
| Population (2000) | |
| • Total | 865 |
| • Density | 1,730/sq mi (665.4/km2) |
| Time zone | Central (CST) (UTC-6) |
| • Summer (DST) | CDT (UTC-5) |
| ZIP code | 72333 |
| Area code(s) | 870 |
| FIPS code | 05-20950 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0048832 |
Elaine is a city in Phillips County, Arkansas, United States. The population was 865 at the 2000 census.
It is best known as the location of the Elaine massacre of 1919, in which an estimated 237 blacks were killed in the rural county by rampaging white mobs. This was one of the worst incidents of racial violence in American history.
In 1919, two whites tried to break up a meeting of black sharecroppers who were trying organize a farmers' union to get better conditions of payment and accounting from white landowners of cotton plantations. After a white man was killed, hundreds of other whites poured into the area, attacking blacks. Governor Charles Hillman Brough requested federal troops to stop what was called the Elaine Race Riot. White mobs spread throughout the county, and an estimated 237 blacks were killed, and five whites. The governor accompanied the troops to the scene; their use had been approved by U.S. President Woodrow Wilson. Sharecroppers generally remained at a disadvantage in dealing with white landowners.
At 6:15 PM, April 26, 2011, a tornado – part of the April 25–28, 2011 tornado outbreak – hit the Elaine area. The tornado was classified as an EF-0, with estimated wind speeds of 75 miles per hour (121 km/h; 65 kn). The tornado's path of destruction was 200 yards (180 m) wide and the tornado travelled a path of 21.5 miles (34.6 km) along Highway 61 and across the Mississippi state line, ending near Lula, Mississippi. Most of the tornado's damage was concentrated in Friars Point and Coahoma, Mississippi.
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