March 20 marks the 50th anniversary of the Johnny Cash Bicentennial Concert at Wildcat Stadium in Rison.
In addition to being a huge event in Arkansas and Cleveland County, the occasion was a warmup for Cash’s gala performance for Flag Day in Washington, D.C., on June 14, 1977.
The Washington concert marked the 200th anniversary of the Continental Congress passing the Flag Act of 1777. The Rison event occurred in conjunction with the fifth annual Pioneer Arts & Crafts Festival of Cleveland County that ran from March 19-21, 1976.
Over that weekend, Cleveland County was the focus for bicentennial activities in Arkansas, attended by politicians and dignitaries from across the state. It was declared “Johnny Cash Day” in a proclamation read by then-Arkansas Gov. David Pryor.
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
The day included Cash’s welcome home to Kingsland, a special train ride on the Cotton Belt Line, a luncheon, parade and concluded with a concert.
An article in the Fordyce News-Advocate recorded the special day.
“There were five main events, starting with the welcome-home ceremony in Kingsland. … Cash, who accepted various awards and honorary degrees, was humble and gracious but quickly told the mass of fans, ‘This day is in honor of my father Ray Cash.'”
The article continued, “A 30-minute train ride from Kingsland to Rison was packed with interviews and camera shots …with 250 passengers aboard the train of seven cars.”
Melinda Wilson McKnight, then 19, was Cleveland County Bicentennial Queen and got to take the train excursion with the Cash family.
“It was an unforgettable day,” McKnight said. “When we got back to Rison, Lois Moore hosted a luncheon for Johnny and June, and I had the honor of being seated directly across from them. They were both just so friendly and I’ll never forget June ate all her lunch and most of Johnny’s too. She kept saying to him, ‘You don’t want that, do you?’ before sticking a fork in something else on his plate.”
The News-Advocate further describes events.
“The parade was next with Cash and family leading in a carriage. … The light rain that had begun to pepper down prior to the parade, stopped as Cash, his wife and parents rounded the corner atop a horse-drawn buggy.”
“The parade led to the football field where, despite the nagging threat of rain, the concert began immediately. … The sun broke through the cloudy skies but four hours later following the concert, the rain poured down.”
“Without hesitation, the tall man in black stepped to the microphone and with six words, easily lifted the entire crowd of over 10,000 people into the palm of his hand — ‘Hello, my name is Johnny Cash.'”
Numerous attendees of the ’76 concert remarked about how warm and cordial Johnny and June Cash were toward their audience. Cash performed on a specially built stage erected in the south end zone of the football field.
Joining him and his band were his wife June, along with the Carter Sisters. He kicked off the show with “Ring of Fire,” followed by “Ragged Old Flag.” The day prior, Cash had composed “Ridin’ on the Cotton Belt,” which he debuted in Rison.
During the concert, June said, “Johnny picked cotton in Arkansas and rode the Cotton Belt. I wormed tobacco in Virginia, and my daddy was a mail carrier on the Southern Pacific. Now, the Southern Pacific and Cotton Belt are together, just like Johnny and me.”
The News-Advocate reads, “Throughout the day, Cash made a plea to Americans, calling them back to trusting God.”
An Arkansas Historic Preservation marker commemorating the concert stands near the south end zone of Wildcat Stadium. A second plaque honoring Cash is located on the Cleveland County Courthouse lawn and a third is erected north of Kingsland at Crossroads Cemetery near the Cash birthplace.
During the program, he wore the Nudie Cohen “white tailed eagle suit.” Following the show, Cash and his entourage retired to the Moore home next door to Wildcat Stadium. Changing into his blue jean traveling clothes, Cash presented the Nudie suit to Lois Moore, who served as chairperson of the Cleveland County Historical Society, as well as chairing the Bicentennial celebration committee. He additionally donated the entire concert proceeds, roughly $25,000 to the Historical Society. Those funds were the beginning of Rison’s “Pioneer Village”, where a dozen historical structures were relocated and arranged to represent an early settlement community.
As of Nov. 21, 2024, the Nudie Cohen designed suit worn by Cash was welcomed home to the Cleveland County Courthouse for permanent display. A cousin to the man in black, Wayne Cash, shared the path taken by the suit on its return to Rison.
“It stood in a display case near the front entrance of the Courthouse for a number of years before being placed in random storage in a Pioneer Village building. During an inspection tour of the Village, members of Kick-Start Cleveland County discovered the renowned Nudie suit. The historic garment was rescued from ignobility and loaned to Cleveland, Ohio’s Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2016. It stood on display there for one year before making its way in 2017 to a place of prominence in the Dyess Colony Museum.”
At age 2, Cash, along with his mother, father and siblings, relocated from Kingsland to a newly established agricultural colony in Dyess (Mississippi County), where he spent his adolescent years.
The suit went on display during the inaugural Johnny Cash Heritage Festival in northwest Arkansas Oct. 19-21, 2017. The Cash Foundation entirely restored and preserved the suit and kept it in an airtight Plexiglas kiosk where tens of thousands visiting the Cash boyhood home saw it.
After a seven-year sojourn in Dyess, arrangements were made with the Cash family for return of the suit belonging to the Cleveland County Historical Society and its original home in Rison.
Watson Chapel Picture Frame shop owner Mike Hankins and his family constructed an airtight Lexan case to house the apparel where the suit is placed in the first floor, main hallway of the Cleveland County Courthouse.
A second set of Nudie Cohen apparel worn by Cash on March 20, 1976, was donated to the Arkansas State Archives where it remains.
No events are scheduled for the anniversary in Rison. However, the Pioneer Crafts & Homesteading Festival scheduled for April 10-11 in Rison’s Pioneer Village is expected to recognize Cash for his many contributions to Cleveland County and the nation.
A gallery from Cash’s 1976 concert in Rison is available online.
