Northwest Arkansas' Green Book locations that are still standing

During Black History Month, we're looking at the local venues listed in the Green Book travel guides.

• The books, printed between 1936 and 1966, listed businesses that Black travelers could safely visit during the Jim Crow era.

Why it matters: The sites — and, in some cases, the vacant lots where they used to stand — are a reminder of how recently segregation was legal and what history we decide to preserve.

State of play: Only three locations in NWA — all in Fayetteville — are consistently listed in copies of the Green Book saved online by the New York Public Library. All are just a few blocks east of the old Washington County courthouse.

• Two were homes where Black travelers could rent rooms — the N. Smith home at 259 E. Center St. and the Mrs. S. Manuel at 313 N. Olive Ave.
• Both locations are now empty lots.

The third site was a hotel called "Mebbs" at 9 N. Willow Ave., but a researched entry at FayettevilleHistory.com speculates the location was actually owned by Emma Webb.

• Kirk Deffenbaugh, who's lived across the street from the building since 1952 confirmed to Axios that a couple with the last name Webb owned the hotel.
• He remembers that Black truck drivers stayed there as they traveled up and down U.S. 71.

An Axios analysis of the Green Book reveals that Arkansas locations first appeared in 1940.

• Cities noted in that year were Arkadelphia, El Dorado, Fayetteville, Fort Smith, Helena, Hot Springs, Little Rock, Pine Bluff, Russellville and Texarkana. A total of 52 locations — from hotels to barbershops — were listed.
• In 1966, there were 19 Arkansas cities with nearly 60 locations where Black travelers could seek respite, food or services.

The bottom line: By the last edition of the book, dated 1966-67, only the N. Smith home on Center St. was still listed in NWA.