Greenland, AR

Greenland sits in the Boston Mountains three miles south of Fayetteville, in a valley landscape that once went by several names. The settlement began as Frog Pond, was renamed Rugby by the railroad in 1882, became Staunton in 1886, and took the name Greenland in 1909. Fruit farming gave the early community a working base: strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, and apples were shipped from the railroad depot, and families also raised chickens and worked small farms. The railroad and the White River valley shaped this place from a named community into a city.

ATTRBrandonrush / CC BY-SA 3.0

Current Greenland is tied closely to school, aviation, and nearby Fayetteville. Greenland School District's Pirates remain the main local institution, with the city library and community center nearby; City Council and Planning Commission meetings are held at the community center. Drake Field, Fayetteville's general-aviation airport, borders the city's east side, while Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport is another area facility. Greenland's school, community center, airport edge, and old depot tell the story of a fruit-shipping railroad stop that became part of the Fayetteville orbit.