Elaine
Elaine is a community known nationwide as the location of the 1919 massacre in which hundreds of African Americans were murdered. The conflict began when African American farmers were meeting in a church to discuss working conditions. A shooting incident occurred outside the church, which quickly escalated to mob violence on the part of white people in Elaine and surrounding areas.
Many African Americans who survived were left without homes or crops, leading to poverty that still exists in the town today. An Elaine Legacy Center has been established in the town to memorialize those whose lives and livelihoods were lost, as well as working toward strengthening the community, helping with small business start-ups, providing youth programs, and other efforts to uplift the community. An Elaine Memorial was unveiled in Helena (the county seat) during the centennial anniversary of the riot in 2019, but a memorial tree planted in remembrance in Elaine was chopped down by vandals.
One project that started as a way to engage the youth of the community has taken on a life of its own with “Birdhouses for Elaine,” and the town is working on becoming the “Birdhouse Capital of America.” The project engages youth and adults alike in building, painting, decorating and hanging birdhouses throughout the community. Some of the birdhouses are functional, actually providing a shelter for birds, while others are purely decorative.
Elaine, located 25 miles southwest of Helena-West Helena and 90 miles southwest of West Memphis, is on the Great River Road National Scenic Byway. Though stories differ, the town is believed to be named for the daughter of Harry Kelley, an investor who granted railroad right-of-way and land for a depot when the railroad through the area was completed in 1906.