There isn’t evidence that Spain “brought Mesoamericans to Arkansas” in any large, documented number. What the historical record does show is that Spanish rule in Arkansas was mainly a frontier period with a small European population at Arkansas Post, while the area was already home to Native peoples such as the Quapaws.

What the sources show

  • The Arkansas Post history notes that the first Spanish census of Louisiana listed Arkansas Post at 50 people, including 10 slaves.
  • A broader history of Spanish Arkansas describes the region as frontier territory inhabited by the Quapaws and other Indigenous nations.
  • The available Arkansas history sources do not indicate a known migration of “Mesoamericans” to Arkansas as a distinct group.

Likely interpretation

If your question is about whether Spain transported Indigenous laborers or captives from Mexico or elsewhere in Mesoamerica into Arkansas, the answer is: I could not find evidence of a documented, countable group for Arkansas specifically. The better-supported history is Spanish administration, a small settler presence, and existing Native communities already in the region.

In plain terms

  • Short answer: probably none that historians can clearly count for Arkansas based on the sources here.
  • What Spain did bring: a small number of European officials, settlers, and enslaved people to Arkansas Post, not a large Mesoamerican population.

TL;DR: Arkansas history sources point to a small Spanish-era population and Indigenous nations already living there, not a documented Mesoamerican influx.