Davidsonville Historic State Park Campground

Arkansas is the natural state, and after staying in two of their state parks, and two Army Corps of Engineers parks in the state, I can understand why.

Arkansas nature is simply beautiful.

They revere their natural assets and have recently passed legislation to tax themselves so that it can be kept jn pristine condition and preserved. One sees that in campground improvements in Petit Jean, and again here in Davidsonville historic Park, where the campground seems to have been recently upgraded. Sites are paved and level. As others have noted, there is good space between sites. This is not a large campground. The restrooms are new and clean. There is a nearby lake. There is a trail that takes you to an historic area that explains how Davidsonville was the first platted city in Arkansas. Beautiful visitors center. Occasional interpretive presentations. Make sure that you visit two nearby parks as well, Powhatan historical park and lake Charles, the latter of which also has a campground.

That one is larger and some of the sites offer water views, unlike here, but generally speaking, this appears to be the more recently upgraded park, and except for a few sites on the water at lake Charles I’d prefer to stay here again.

Ever found a park so beautiful and enjoyable you don’t want to post it on Instagram so you can help keep it a secret? That’s Davidsonville for us.

The park is beautiful. Nice open green space in old township, lovely walking trails, and 2 great playgrounds. Kids enjoyed learning here.

Camping is fantastic. Nice level sites, full hookups, clean bathrooms with double showers. Ice and wood were both available at visitor center and for fair prices. HW bundle was $3. This park was so quiet. We could hear the birds and crickets at supper time. The forest at the edges of the campground and trees in the campground make this place picturesque.

Highly recommend.

Very quirt on our stay max was 4 out of 20 sites occupied. Verizon wireless works well with 1 to 2 bars LTE. Very nice clean park with paved sites and roads. Sites are relatively level. Full and partial hookups. Nice short trails, Black river access and small lake for boat play. Kid friendly with playground. Very quiet, very little road noise and light train activity in distance.

Arkansas State Parks remain among our top places to stay. Davidsonville though small was top notch. A few days prior to arrival, we received a confirmation email that they were in fact open as these were COVID times. The day of arrival we received a phone call asking us to authorize full credit card payment and that we would not need to check in at the visitors’ center. Upon arrival we proceeded to AAA site 4, which was a pull through with FHUs plus a separate gravel patio space. Site also had a small BBQ plus a fire pit with BBQ rack. Our rate per night reflects a senior discount. The CG has 20 RV sites with 12 having 50 amp, water and sewer. Eight sites have water and 50 amp. There’s also a primitive tent area with 10 sites. There’s a bathhouse and dump station. Our pull through had shade where pull-through site 1 had no shade. Some sites have a clear southern sky for satellite but our site did not unless we had about 50’ of coax. Both ATT and Verizon were about two bars. The nearest Walmart, grocery etc. were in Pocahontas about 11 miles away. Davidsonville was a great place to walk your dogs. Our favorite dog walk started at the marked trail near our site that led to the Scott cemetery then to Black River boat ramp, then picked up the Black River trail at the old Davidsonville town site that led to the 12 acre Trapper Lake where we got the trail with the same name back around to the campground. See trail map picture. The distance was around 2 miles and took about 50 minutes. Fairly easy walk but ensure this time of year you put on plenty of bug stray as the ticks and flies were out with a vengeance. Take the time to go over to the visitors’ center and check out the old Davidsonville displays and walk the grounds. You can also rent canoes and paddle boats for use in the lake.

Davidsonville Historic State Park located on Hwy. 166 South, thirteen miles south of Pocahontas, AR is on the site of former Davidsonville.

Today the state park has a total of 30 campsites; 12 of the sites have full hookups with 50-amp service, 8 of the sites have water and 50-amp electric and there are 10 tent sites. The campground also has modern restrooms with showers.

When we stayed there mid-week in July the campground was not crowded and had a fairly large number of open spots. We also found that the mosquitos were plentiful after dark. 😊

Even though we had full hookups we took showers just to check them out. The showers/restrooms were clean – the showers were free and had plenty of hot water.

In addition to the campground there is a lake for fishing, with a barrier-free fishing pier. Paddle boats are also available for rent. There is a boat ramp on the Black River, numerous hiking trails (some barrier-free), picnic areas and a playground. The park also has a modern visitor center with a museum and “small gift shop area”. Artifacts from the archeological excavations are on display in the museum along with a replica of era float boat.

The day we were schedule to arrive we knew we were going to be later than the normal check-in time. We called the park and were guaranteed there was no problem with us coming in late. We had made and paid for our reservation online. We arrived well after dark, found our campsite and setup quickly. In the morning we realized that the three large trees that had should have been around the campsite had been cut down. We spoke with the park rangers in the morning and they said the trees had been cut down because they had started to die – they were cut as a safety factor. Since there was no shade at the campsite we were in we asked if it was possible to relocate to a different site. The rangers were very accommodating and told us we could pick any site that was open and unreserved. We moved from Campsite #1 just across the road to Campsite #2.

The campground is located thirteen miles south of Pocahontas, six miles north of Black Rock, AR and sixteen miles west of Walnut Ridge, AR. Black Rock is a very small community with limited dining and shopping options. Pocahontas, being a large town, had a much better selection of restaurants and stores.

The $40.32 fee includes all taxes and online reservation costs.

Very beautiful, well maintained park. Numerous level sites, very clean baths and showers. Most of the campground is nearly new and is beautiful nestled among the trees. Being able to reserve and pay online is a huge benefit. I arrived after hours and left before hours so it worked perfectly. Go here, stay here. Handicapped spaces available and bathroom/showers are also accessible.

When you are coming from the south don't let some of the sketchy areas surprise you, there is a rose just beyond a few unsightly thornes.