1. On June 8, 1861, two regiments from Arkansas joined the Confederate Army in Virginia during the Civil War. The regiments, led by Colonel James Fleming Fagan and Colonel John Edward Murray, would go on to participate in several major battles, including the Battle of Shiloh and the Battle of Nashville.
2. On June 8, 1874, the Brooks-Baxter War began in Little Rock, Arkansas. The conflict, which lasted for several months, was a power struggle between Governor Elisha Baxter and former governor Joseph Brooks over the results of the 1872 gubernatorial election. The dispute ultimately led to violence and the intervention of federal troops.
3. June 8, 1925, marked the birth of William O. Mills, an Arkansas native who would go on to become a pioneering human rights lawyer. Mills worked on several prominent cases, including the landmark Brown v. Board of Education decision, and was a founding member of the National Conference of Black Lawyers.
4. On June 8, 1953, Little Rock Central High School was named a National Historic Landmark. The school, which had been the site of the 1957 desegregation crisis, is recognized for its role in the struggle for civil rights in the United States.
5. June 8, 1976, saw the opening of the William J. Clinton Presidential Library in Little Rock, Arkansas. The library, which is located on the banks of the Arkansas River, houses millions of documents and artifacts related to the Clinton presidency and serves as a popular tourist attraction in the state.