Many folks in Northwest Arkansas know that Tontitown was founded by Italian immigrants who had first come to the United States lured by promises of land and opportunity at Sunnyside Plantation in Southeast Arkansas. Conditions at Sunnyside, though, fell far short of the promises, prompting several dozen families to migrate again to an area west of Springdale and establish Tontitown.

Historian Lauren Braun-Strumfels of Cedar Crest College will explore another side of the collapse of the Sunnyside experience — its profound impact on U.S. migration policy — in a talk at 6 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 25, at the Tontitown City Hall (235 E. Henri De Tonti Blvd.), sponsored by the U of A Humanities Center and the Tontitown Historical Museum.