Archibald Yell

Archibald Yell (August 9, 1797 – February 22, 1847) was an American attorney and politician in Arkansas. He was a member of the United States House of Representatives and second governor of Arkansas.

Biography
Yell was born in North Carolina, and as a child moved to Tennessee with his parents. His family first settled in Jefferson County in the eastern part of the state, then moved to Rutherford in Middle Tennessee, and finally settled in Bedford County to the south.

As a youth, Yell participated in the Creek War, serving in 1813 and early 1814 under General Andrew Jackson, who became a special friend. In 1814 and 1815, during the War of 1812, he served with Jackson in Louisiana, including in the Battle of New Orleans.

Yell returned to Tennessee, and read law as a legal apprentice. He was admitted to the bar in Fayetteville, Tennessee. In 1818, he joined Jackson’s army during the First Seminole War in Florida.

Political career
Active in the Democratic Party, Yell moved to the Arkansas Territory in 1831 to head the federal land office in Little Rock. The federal government offered him the governorship of the Florida Territory the following year, but he declined.

He was a strong supporter and personal friend of President James K. Polk. Just prior to taking office in 1835, Polk sent Yell to Texas to advocate for its annexation to the union. In 1835, he was appointed by the James K. Polk administration as an Arkansas territorial judge. He is reported to have single-handedly retrieved a criminal from a local saloon and physically brought him to his court.

Yell was elected to the United States House of Representatives in 1836, after Arkansas was admitted to the Union. He served one term, from 1836 to 1839. While in Washington, he was a strong supporter of Texan statehood and favored a stronger military. Around this time that Yell formed the first Masonic lodge in Arkansas at Fayetteville.

In 1840, Yell was elected governor of Arkansas. He focused on internal improvements, as infrastructure was needed to benefit planters and farmers. He also worked to better control banks and supported public education.

Yell resigned his post as governor to run again for Congress in 1844, and won the seat. Yell is reported to have been the consummate campaigner. At one stop during the campaign, he is said to have won a shooting match, donated meat to the poor, and bought a jug of whiskey for the crowd.

Soon after he took his seat in Congress, the Mexican-American War began. Yell returned to Arkansas and formed the 1st Arkansas Volunteer Cavalry. Several of his men later achieved notability in Arkansas, including the future governor John Selden Roane, and future Confederate generals Albert Pike, Solon Borland, and James Fleming Fagan. His cavalry compiled a record of insubordination. During the Mexican-American War, Yell was commissioned as a Brigadier General in the United States Army.

Family life
Yell met Mary Scott in Bedford County, Tennessee, where they were neighbors. They married in 1821 after he had started to establish his law practice. She had one daughter, Mary, who was born January 5, 1823. Mary Scott Yell died from complications following their daughter's birth.

A few years later, Yell married Nancy Moore of Danville, Kentucky. They had four children before her death.

Yell later married Maria (McIlvaine) Ficklin, a widow. They had no children. Maria died October 15, 1838 in Arkansas, while Yell was serving in the US Congress.

Yell’s nephew James Yell became a Major General of the Arkansas state militia during the Civil War.

Death
On February 22, 1847, Yell was killed in combat at the Battle of Buena Vista in Mexico. He was buried three times: once in Mexico, and twice in Fayetteville, Arkansas.

Yell was originally buried on the battlefield in Mexico. His body was removed and returned to Arkansas for burial at Waxhaws Cemetery in Fayetteville. When Evergreen Cemetery was established in the city, the Masons arranged for his body to be relocated and reinterred in the Masonic section of that cemetery.

Legacy
Yell County, Arkansas, and the town of Yellville, Arkansas were both named for Yell.

During the American Civil War, a Confederate unit was formed in Helena, Arkansas, and became known as the “Yell Rifles”.