Baxter County is a

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

in the

Ozark Mountains The Ozarks, also known as the Ozark Mountains, Ozark Highlands or Ozark Plateau, is a physiographic region in the U.S. states of Missouri, Arkansas, and Oklahoma, as well as a small area in the southeastern corner of Kansas. The Ozarks cover ...

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the West South Central region of the Southern United States. It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma ...

. Created as Arkansas's 66th county on March 24, 1873, the county has eight incorporated municipalities, including Mountain Home, its largest city and

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

. The county is named for Elisha Baxter, the tenth

governor of Arkansas The governor of Arkansas is the head of government of the U.S. state of Arkansas. The Governor (United States), governor is the head of the Executive (government), executive branch of the Politics and government of Arkansas, Arkansas government a ...

. It is coterminal with the Mountain Home Micropolitan Statistical Area. The county is located in a steep section of the Ozark Mountains sometimes known as the Twin Lakes Area because it is bordered by two of Arkansas's largest lakes,

Bull Shoals Lake Bull Shoals Lake is an artificial lake or reservoir in the Ozark Mountains of northern Arkansas and southern Missouri, United States. It has hundreds of miles of lake arms and coves, and common activities include boating, water sports, swimming, ...

and

Norfork Lake Norfork Dam impounds the North Fork River in the U.S. state of Arkansas, creating Norfork Lake. The large reservoir is maintained by the United States Army Corps of Engineers and spans Baxter County, Arkansas, Fulton County, Arkansas and Ozar ...

. On its southern border are the White River,

Norfork Tailwater The Norfork Tailwater is the segment of the North Fork River below Norfork Dam in north central Arkansas. The Norfork Tailwater is about long and stretches from the dam below Lake Norfork to the White River at Norfork. The community of Salesv ...

and the

Buffalo National River The Buffalo National River, in Northern Arkansas, was the first National River to be designated in the United States. The Buffalo River is long. The lower flow within the boundaries of an area managed by the National Park Service, where the s ...

. Occupying 587 square miles (170,000 ha), the county's population was 41,627 as of the 2020 Census, ranking Baxter the 66th largest and 16th most populous of the 75 counties in Arkansas. The

is Mountain Home. The county contains five protected areas, including parts of the

Ozark National Forest The Ozarks, also known as the Ozark Mountains, Ozark Highlands or Ozark Plateau, is a physiographic region in the U.S. states of Missouri, Arkansas, and Oklahoma, as well as a small area in the southeastern corner of Kansas. The Ozarks cover ...

, Bull Shoals-White River State Park, and two Wildlife Management Areas. The natural environment of nearby Norfork and Bull Shoals lakes and the surrounding countryside has attracted tourists from around the country for many years. Educational institutions have also played a role in the life of the community. Other historical features such as the Jacob Wolf House and Cold Water School preserve the history and culture of Baxter County. Baxter County is served by three public school districts: Mountain Home, Cotter, and Norfork, and contains one public community college: Arkansas State University–Mountain Home (ASUMH). Baxter Health serves as a healthcare hub for the region. Although no

Interstate highways The Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways, commonly known as the Interstate Highway System, or the Eisenhower Interstate System, is a network of controlled-access highways that forms part of the National H ...

serve Baxter County, the county has access to two concurrent United States highways: U.S. Highway 62 (US 62) and US 412, and thirteen Arkansas state highways. Baxter County is served by two public use airports: Baxter County Airport and Gaston's White River Resort Airstrip, two electric service providers, and fifteen public water systems providing

potable water Drinking water or potable water is water that is safe for ingestion, either when drunk directly in liquid form or consumed indirectly through food preparation. It is often (but not always) supplied through taps, in which case it is also calle ...

to customers in the county.

History

Baxter County was created by the 19th Arkansas General Assembly on March 24, 1873, from parts of Fulton,

Izard Izzard may refer to: * Izzard, an 18th-century dialectal name for the letter Z * Izzard (fanzine), ''Izzard'' (fanzine), a science fiction fanzine __NOTOC__ Surname * Bob Izzard, 1930s Australian rugby league player * Brad Izzard, 1980s Australia ...

, Marion, and Searcy counties. It was named for Elisha Baxter, who was

at the time. The small community of Mountain Home was named temporary county seat; and was later named permanent county seat. In 1945, Baxter County voted to take the county "dry"—liquor sales prohibited—in 1945 by a vote of 548 to 432. The liquor sales prohibition was overturned in 1978 in the heaviest voter turnout in county history to that date, with 6,175 for the manufacture and sale of intoxicating liquors and 5,991 against. A narrow margin of 184 votes took the county "wet".

Geography

Baxter County is located within the Salem Plateau, a subregion of the

. Land near

, and along the White River are within the White River Hills subregion, known for steep, rocky soils, spring-fed mountain streams, and oak-hickory-pine forest. Eastern Baxter County and a small area around Mountain Home are within the Central Plateau subregion, known for comparatively flatter terrain more suited for hayfields, pastures, and housing, as well as

karst Karst () is a topography formed from the dissolution of soluble carbonate rocks such as limestone and Dolomite (rock), dolomite. It is characterized by features like poljes above and drainage systems with sinkholes and caves underground. Ther ...

. The county has a total area of , of which is land and (5.5%) is water. The county is located approximately southeast of Springfield,

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

, north of

Little Rock Little Rock is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Arkansas, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arkansas. The city's population was 202,591 as of the 2020 census. The six-county Central Arkan ...

, and southwest of

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an Independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Miss ...

. Baxter County is surrounded by sparsely populated Ozark counties on all sides: Fulton County to the east, Izard County to the southeast, Stone County to the south, Searcy County to the southwest, Marion County to the west, and Ozark County,

to the north.

Hydrology

Baxter County is within the White River watershed. The river has several important milestones in Baxter County: beginning along the western boundary of Baxter County, the White River is impounded to form the

reservoir A reservoir (; ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam, usually built to water storage, store fresh water, often doubling for hydroelectric power generation. Reservoirs are created by controlling a watercourse that drains an existing body of wa ...

by Bull Shoals Dam, which spans the Baxter- Marion county line. South of the dam, the White River forms the western boundary of Baxter-Marion county line until Buffalo City, when the

empties into the White, with the White continuing across Baxter County from west to east. South of Salesville, the North Fork of White River empties into the White via the

downstream of

Norfork Dam Norfork Dam impounds the North Fork River (Missouri - Arkansas), North Fork River in the U.S. state of Arkansas, creating Norfork Lake. The large reservoir is maintained by the United States Army Corps of Engineers and spans Baxter County, Arkans ...

. Within the county, Barren Fork, Big Creek, Bruce Creek, Hightower Creek, Leatherwood Creek, and Moccasin Creek are important watercourses.

Protected areas

Baxter County contains a small section of the

near Buffalo City where the river empties into the White River. Almost all land in Baxter County south of the White River is part of the

. Within this area, a subdivision of the Ozark National Forest known as the Leatherwood Wilderness is located along Highway 341 (Push Mountain Road). Another part of the Ozark National Forest is also protected in the Sylamore Wildlife Management Area (WMA). The WMA is known as a destination for hiking, fishing, and hunting

wild turkey The wild turkey (''Meleagris gallopavo'') is an upland game bird native to North America, one of two extant species of Turkey (bird), turkey and the heaviest member of the order Galliformes. It is the ancestor to the domestic turkey (''M. g. dom ...

, bear, squirrel, and

deer A deer (: deer) or true deer is a hoofed ruminant ungulate of the family Cervidae (informally the deer family). Cervidae is divided into subfamilies Cervinae (which includes, among others, muntjac, elk (wapiti), red deer, and fallow deer) ...

. Camping is available at Blanchard Springs Caverns, Gunner Pool, and Barkshed areas and a gun range is open to the public. The Ozark Highlands Trail passes through the Leatherwood Wilderness and Sylamore WMA. The Bull Shoals-White River State Park is along the downstream shoreline of

at the Bull Shoals Dam. The park contains campgrounds, a marina, and visitor center. The dam tailwater is well known for trout fishing. Norfork Lake WMA is a series of protected walk-in hunting areas along Lake Norfork covered in hardwood forest with some pine and ranging topography. The four Baxter County units are Indian Head Unit, Chapin Point Unit, Seward Point Unit, and the Bennett's Creek Unit. The WMA is managed for deer, turkey and small game and attracts waterfowl during migration.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there were 41,627 people and 18,936 households in the county. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

was . There were 22,699 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 92.5%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 0.2%

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.6% Native American, 0.6% Asian, 0.0002%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 0.8% from other races, and 5.3% from two or more races. 2.5% of the population were

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race. There were 18,936 households, out of which 21.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.9% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, and 26.6% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. 31.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 18.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. In the county, the population was spread out, with 17.5% under the age of 18, 3.9% from 18 to 24, 18.6% from 25 to 44, 26.6% from 45 to 64, and 31.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 53 years. For every 100 females there were 95.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.8 males. The median income for a household in the county was $43,504, and the median income for a family was $52,342.

2010 census

As of 2010 Baxter County had a population of 41,513. The racial makeup was 95.96% Non-Hispanic whites, 0.16% blacks, 0.56% Native Americans, 0.41% Asians, 0.04% Pacific Islanders, 1.25% Non-Hispanics reporting more than one race and 1.66% Hispanic or Latino.

2000 census

As of the 2000 census, there were 38,386 people, 17,052 households, and 11,799 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 19,891 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 97.81% White, 0.11% Black or African American, 0.52% Native American, 0.34% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.22% from other races, and 0.97% from two or more races. 1.00% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. There were 17,052 households, out of which 22.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.00% were married couples living together, 7.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.80% were non-families. 27.50% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.21 and the average family size was 2.65. In the county, the population was spread out, with 19.00% under the age of 18, 5.80% from 18 to 24, 21.10% from 25 to 44, 27.40% from 45 to 64, and 26.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 48 years. For every 100 females there were 92.30 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.10 males. The median income for a household in the county was $29,106, and the median income for a family was $34,578. Males had a median income of $25,976 versus $18,923 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the county was $16,859. About 7.90% of families and 11.10% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 14.70% of those under age 18 and 8.90% of those age 65 or over.

Human resources

Education

The 2019

American Community Survey The American Community Survey (ACS) is an annual demographics survey program conducted by the United States Census Bureau. It regularly gathers information previously contained only in the long form of the United States census, decennial census ...

found 88.7% of Baxter County residents over age 25 held a high school degree or higher and 17.9% holding a bachelor's degree or higher. Baxter County exceeded statewide and nationwide averages for high school attainment (86.6% and 88.0%, respectively), but lags far behind on bachelor's degree attainment (23.0% and 32.1%, respectively).

Primary and secondary education

Three public school districts are based in Baxter County; Mountain Home School District is the largest school district in Baxter County, with Cotter School District serving the Cotter-Gassville area and the Norfork School District serving the southeast side of the county. Successful completion of the curriculum of these schools leads to graduation from Mountain Home High School, Cotter High School, or Norfork High School respectively. All three high schools are accredited by the

Arkansas Department of Education The Arkansas Department of Education (ADE) is a cabinet-level agency of the Arkansas state government overseeing public education for K-12, higher education institutions, and career and technical education. The ADE also contains the Arkansas ...

(ADE). Small areas in Baxter County are within the boundaries of Calico Rock School District, Mountain View School District, and Viola School District. The Big Flat School District was in the county until July 1, 1985, when it merged with the Fifty Six School District into the Tri-County School District. On July 1, 1993, the Tri-County district was dissolved, with portions going to various districts, including the Mountain View district.ConsolidationAnnex_from_1983.xls
"

. Retrieved on October 13, 2017.

Higher education

The lone institution of higher education in Baxter County is Arkansas State University-Mountain Home (ASUMH), a

public In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociology, sociological concept of the ''Öf ...

community college A community college is a type of undergraduate higher education institution, generally leading to an associate degree, certificate, or diploma. The term can have different meanings in different countries: many community colleges have an open enr ...

. Other nearby institutions include Ozarka College in

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

and North Arkansas College in Harrison.

Libraries

The Donald W. Reynolds Library serving Baxter County was opened in September 2010 at 300 Library Hill in Mountain Home. The library offers books, e-books, media, reference, programs, youth, special collections, and genealogy services.

Public health

Baxter Health in Mountain Home offers acute inpatient care,

emergency care Emergency medicine is the medical specialty concerned with the care of illnesses or injuries requiring immediate medical attention. Emergency physicians (or "ER doctors") specialize in providing care for unscheduled and undifferentiated pa ...

diagnostics Diagnosis (: diagnoses) is the identification of the nature and cause of a certain phenomenon. Diagnosis is used in a lot of different disciplines, with variations in the use of logic, analytics, and experience, to determine " cause and effect". ...

, surgery, OB/GYN, rehabilitation, therapy, and senior care services. The facility is rated as a Level 3 Trauma Center by the Arkansas Department of Health. The nearest Level 1 Trauma Centers are CoxHealth and Mercy Hospital Springfield, both in

Springfield, Missouri Springfield is the List of cities in Missouri, third most populous city in the U.S. state of Missouri and the county seat of Greene County, Missouri, Greene County. The city's population was 169,176 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 censu ...

Public safety

The Baxter County Sheriff's Office is the primary law enforcement agency in the county. The agency is led by the Baxter County Sheriff, an official elected by countywide vote every four years. Police departments in Cotter, Gassville, Lakeview, and Mountain Home provide law enforcement in their respective jurisdictions, with remaining municipalities contracting with the Baxter County Sheriff's Office for law enforcement services. The county is under the jurisdiction of the Baxter County District Court, a state district court. State district courts in Arkansas are courts of

original jurisdiction In common law legal systems, original jurisdiction of a court is the power to hear a case for the first time, as opposed to appellate jurisdiction, when a higher court has the power to review a lower court's decision. India In India, the S ...

for criminal, civil, and traffic matters. State district courts are presided over by an elected full-time judge. The district court has seven departments, one in each municipality of Baxter County. Superseding district court jurisdiction is the 14th Judicial Circuit Court, which covers Baxter, Boone, Marion, and Newton counties. The 14th Circuit contains four circuit judges, elected to six-year terms circuitwide.

Fire protection Fire protection is the study and practice of mitigating the unwanted effects of potentially Conflagration, destructive fires. It involves the study of the behaviour, Compartmentalization (fire protection), compartmentalisation, suppression and inve ...

is provided by nineteen agencies in Baxter County, together covering the entire county except areas within the major lakes. Cotter, Gassville, Norfork, and Mountain Home, each provide fire protection, in some cases extending beyond corporate limits. Rural areas are served by the Buford Volunteer, Clarkridge Volunteer, Cotter-Gassville Rural, Gamaliel, Grover Township, Hand Cove Fire Protection District, Henderson, Lone Rock Volunteer, Midway Volunteer, Northeast Lakeside, Oakland-Promise Land Volunteer, Rodney Volunteer, Salesville, Tracy Area, and the

United States Forest Service The United States Forest Service (USFS) is an agency within the United States Department of Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture. It administers the nation's 154 United States National Forest, national forests and 20 United States Natio ...

Culture and contemporary life

Baxter County has several facilities, monuments, and museums dedicated to preserving the history and culture of the area. Perhaps one of the most recognizable and important historic structures in Baxter County is the Cotter Bridge over the White River. Upon opening in 1930, the bridge opened Baxter County and north Arkansas to economic development and tourism by providing reliable transportation across the White River. Two facilities interpret the county's history and heritage: the Jacob Wolf House, a historic

log cabin A log cabin is a small log house, especially a minimally finished or less architecturally sophisticated structure. Log cabins have an ancient history in Europe, and in America are often associated with first-generation home building by settl ...

built in 1825, is operated as a

historic house museum A historic house museum is a house of historic significance that is preserved as a museum. Historic furnishings may be displayed in a way that reflects their original placement and usage in a home. Historic house museums are held to a variety of ...

by the

Arkansas Department of Parks, Heritage, and Tourism The Arkansas Department of Parks, Heritage, and Tourism (ADPHT) is a cabinet level agency in the executive branch of Arkansas state government responsible for promoting, protecting, interpreting, and managing the state's natural and cultural r ...

, and the Baxter County Heritage Center, located in the former Rollins Hospital in downtown Gassville. Five

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

(NRHP, complete county list) properties in the county relate to the history of education: Buford School Building, Cold Water School, and the Horace Mann School Historic District, as well as Big Flat School Gymnasium,

Old Cotter High School Gymnasium Cotter High School (CHS) is a comprehensive education, comprehensive public junior-senior high school for students in grades 7 through 12 located in Cotter, Arkansas, United States. It is the sole high school of Cotter School District. The teache ...

. Several buildings are preserved for connections to the county's economic and cultural history: Baxter County Courthouse, the Sid Hutcheson Building in Norfork, and several structures in the Mountain Home Commercial Historic District.

Annual cultural events

Trout fishing enthusiasts visit the White River in Baxter County year-round, with several annual events also celebrating trout fishing: the Cotter Trout Festival in Big Spring Park and the Sowbug Roundup at the Baxter County Fairgrounds are held in May, and the Southern Council Federation of Flyfishers Fair is held on campus at ASUMH in September. The Mountain Home Farmer's Market operates on the downtown square on Wednesdays and Saturdays, April–November. The Baxter County Fair is one of the most well-attended in Arkansas, and begins with a popular parade through downtown Mountain Home. Norfork Pioneer Days Heritage Festival is held annually on the third Saturday in May at the Jacob Wolf House. The David's Trail Endurance Run was founded in 2017 as an

ultramarathon An ultramarathon is a footrace longer than the traditional marathon distance of . The sport of running ultramarathons is called ultra running or ultra distance running. Various distances, surfaces, and formats are raced competitively, from the ...

around Lake Norfork in January.

Media

The county newspaper is '' The Baxter Bulletin'', a daily newspaper established in Mountain Home in 1901. The first newspaper published in Baxter County was the ''Quid Nunc'', from 1877 to 1880. The ''Baxter County Citizen'' was published in Mountain Home from 1880 until 1937. Mountain Home was also home to briefly operated papers named ''The North Arkansas Herald'' (monthly, ) and ''The Arkansas News'' (). Cotter has been home to five newspapers over the years, the longest lasting being the ''Cotter Courier'' (1903-c. 1918) and ''The Cotter Record'' (1911-1937). Publications lasting only a year or so include ''The White River Headlight'', ''The Screech Owl'', and the ''Bull Shoals Gazette''. ''The Ozark Clarion'' was briefly published at Three Brothers around 1912, and ''Norfork Enterprise'' ran briefly at Norfork. Baxter County is within the

designated market area A media market, broadcast market, media region, designated market area (DMA), television market area, or simply market is a region where the population can receive the same (or similar) television and radio station offerings, and may also incl ...

with the following local TV stations: KYTV (

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

, 33.1 ABC, 33.2 CW SD), KOLR (

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...

), KOZK (

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

KOZL-TV KOZL-TV (channel 27) is a television station in Springfield, Missouri, United States, affiliated with MyNetworkTV. It is owned by Nexstar Media Group alongside Osage Beach–licensed Fox affiliate KRBK (channel 49); Nexstar also provides certa ...

, KWBM,

KSPR-LD KSPR-LD (channel 33) is a low-power television station in Springfield, Missouri, United States, affiliated with ABC. It is owned by Gray Media alongside NBC affiliate KYTV (channel 3) and Branson-licensed CW affiliate KYCW-LD (channel 24) ...

(ABC), KBNS-CD, and KRBK (

Fox Foxes are small-to-medium-sized omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull; upright, triangular ears; a pointed, slightly upturned snout; and a long, bushy tail ("brush"). Twelve species ...

). The county is home to four FM radio stations: KCMH (FM) (91.5 FM, "Keep Christ Most High"), KKTZ (107.5 FM), KTLO-FM (97.9 FM), and KPFM (FM) (105.5 MHz), and one AM radio station: KTLO (AM) (1240 AM).

Government

The county government is a constitutional body granted specific powers by the

Constitution of Arkansas The Constitution of Arkansas is the Constitution, primary organizing law for the U.S. state of Arkansas delineating the duties, powers, structures, and functions of the Politics and government of Arkansas, state government. Arkansas' original ...

and the Arkansas Code. The quorum court is the legislative branch of the county government and controls all spending and revenue collection. Representatives are called ''justices of the peace'' and are elected from county districts every even-numbered year. The number of districts in a county vary from nine to fifteen based on population, and district boundaries are drawn by the Baxter County Election Commission. The Baxter County Quorum Court has eleven members. Presiding over quorum court meetings is the ''county judge'', who serves as the

chief operating officer A chief operating officer (COO), also called chief operations officer, is an executive in charge of the daily operations of an organization (i.e. personnel, resources, and logistics). COOs are usually second-in-command immediately after the C ...

of the county. The county judge is elected at-large and does not vote in quorum court business, although capable of vetoing quorum court decisions. The composition of the Quorum Court following the 2024 elections is 11 Republicans. Justices of the Peace (members) of the Quorum Court following the elections are: * District 1: Dennis Frank (R) of Lakeview * District 2: Mike McDonald (R) of Mountain Home * District 3: Rick Steiner (R) of Mountain Home * District 4: Dirk Waldrop (R) of Mountain Home * District 5: Maryanne Edge (R) of Mountain Home * District 6: Lisa House (R) of Gassville * District 7: Bob Nault (R) of Mountain Home * District 8: Eddie Griffin (R) of Mountain Home * District 9: Cameron Davis (R) of Mountain Home * District 10: Shannon Walker (R) of Gassville * District 11: Eric Payne (R) of Norfork Additionally, the townships of Baxter County are entitled to elect their own respective constables, as set forth by the

. Constables are largely of historical significance as they were used to keep the peace in rural areas when travel was more difficult. The township constables as of the 2024 elections are: * District 1: Douglas Stephenson (R) * District 2: Nathan Horn (R) * District 3: Kaleb Johnson (R) * District 4: Julie Little (R) * District 5: Bradley Beard (R) * District 6: Ryan Beasley (R) * District 7: Cade Seal (R) * District 8: Tyler Brown (R) * District 9: Billy Cox (R) * District 10: Ronald Weaver (R) * District 11: Frankie Baker (R)

Politics

In the

Arkansas Senate The Arkansas State Senate is the upper branch of the Arkansas General Assembly. The Senate consists of 35 members, each representing a district with about 83,000 people. Service in the state legislature is part-time, and many state senators have ...

, Baxter County is within the 23rd District, which also contains Marion County and parts of Boone, Fulton, and Izard counties, and has been represented by Scott Flippo (R) since 2015. In the

Arkansas House of Representatives The Arkansas House of Representatives is the lower house of the Arkansas General Assembly, the state legislature of the US state of Arkansas. The House has 100 members elected from an equal number of constituencies across the state. Each distr ...

, Baxter County is split among three districts: the 3rd District ( Stetson Painter, R, since 2023), the 4th District ( Jack Fortner, R, since 2023), and the 27th ( Steven Walker, R, since 2023). At the presidential level, Baxter County was ancestrally reliably Democratic, voting for the Democratic nominee in every election through 1952. In 1956, Baxter County backed Republican

Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was the 34th president of the United States, serving from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, he was Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionar ...

, and ever since it has grown increasingly Republican, being one of only three counties in the state to support

Gerald Ford Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr. (born Leslie Lynch King Jr.; July 14, 1913December 26, 2006) was the 38th president of the United States, serving from 1974 to 1977. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, Ford assumed the p ...

against

Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (October 1, 1924December 29, 2024) was an American politician and humanitarian who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party ...

in 1976. The only Democrat after 1948 to win a majority was

Lyndon Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), also known as LBJ, was the 36th president of the United States, serving from 1963 to 1969. He became president after assassination of John F. Kennedy, the assassination of John F. Ken ...

in 1964, and the only subsequent Democrat to carry Baxter County was Arkansas native Bill Clinton in 1992.

Taxation

Property tax A property tax (whose rate is expressed as a percentage or per mille, also called ''millage'') is an ad valorem tax on the value of a property.In the OECD classification scheme, tax on property includes "taxes on immovable property or Wealth t ...

is assessed by the Baxter County Assessor annually based upon the fair market value of the property and determining which tax rate, commonly called a ''millage'' in Arkansas, will apply. The rate depends upon the property's location with respect to city limits, school district, and special

tax increment financing Tax increment financing (TIF) is a public financing method that is used as a subsidy for redevelopment, infrastructure, and other community-improvement projects in many countries, including the United States. The original intent of a TIF program i ...

(TIF) districts. This tax is collected by the Baxter County Collector between the first business day of March of each year through October 15 without penalty. The Baxter County Treasurer disburses tax revenues to various government agencies, such as cities, county road departments, fire departments, libraries, and police departments in accordance with the budget set by the quorum court. Sales and use taxes in Arkansas are voter approved and collected by the

Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration The Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration (commonly DFA within the state) is a department of the government of Arkansas under the Governor of Arkansas. The DFA is a cabinet level agency in the executive branch of government respons ...

. Arkansas's statewide

sales Sales are activities related to selling or the number of goods sold in a given targeted time period. The delivery of a service for a cost is also considered a sale. A period during which goods are sold for a reduced price may also be referred ...

and

use tax A use tax is a type of tax levied in the United States by numerous state governments. It is essentially the same as a sales tax but is applied not where a product or service was sold but where a merchant bought a product or service and then conv ...

has been 6.5% since July 1, 2013. Baxter County has an additional sales and use tax of 1.25% since January 1, 2019. Within Baxter County, the City of Mountain Home has had an additional 2.125% sales and use tax since July 1, 2021, and Cotter has had an additional 2% since January 1, 2022, with the remaining incorporated communities having 1.00% sales and use tax rates. The

Arkansas State Treasurer The treasurer of Arkansas acts as the head banker for the State of Arkansas, handling deposits, withdrawals, redemptions of state warrants, and investments of state funds. The position was created in 1819 when Arkansas became a Territory (countr ...

disburses tax revenue to counties/cities in accordance with tax rules.

Communities

Seven incorporated cities and one town are located within the county. The largest city and county seat is Mountain Home, located centrally between Bull Shoals Lake and Lake Norfork. Mountain Home had a population of 12,825 at the 2020 census and is the focal point of the Mountain Home, AR, Micropolitan Statistical Area, which includes all of Baxter County. Cotter and Gassville are located west of Mountain Home. Briarcliff, Norfork, and Salesville are small towns with populations under 1,000 south of Mountain Home. Lakeview is a small municipality on Bull Shoals Lake. The small town of Big Flat is located in the southern part of Baxter County, and partly in Searcy County. The United States Census Bureau has also designated four unincorporated communities as

Census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counte ...

Gamaliel Gamaliel the Elder (; also spelled Gamliel; ''Rabban Gamlīʾēl hazZāqēn''; ''Gamaliēl ho Presbýteros''), or Rabban Gamaliel I, was a leading authority in the Sanhedrin in the early first century CE. He was the son of Simeon ben Hillel a ...

and Henderson near Norfork Lake, Buffalo City near the Buffalo National River, and Midway between Mountain Home and Lakeview.

Other unincorporated communities

Baxter County has dozens of unincorporated communities and ghost towns within its borders. This is due to early settlers in Arkansas tending to settle in small clusters rather than incorporated towns. Some communities, including Bennett's, Cumi, Custer, and Hand were inundated during creation of Lake Norfork. For example, communities like Clarkridge and Monkey Run had a post office or other buildings at some point in their history. Other communities are simply a few dwellings at a crossroads, or a residential area near a cove or point on the lake that have adopted a common place name over time. Some are officially listed as populated places by the United States Geological Survey, and others are listed as historic settlements. * Advance *

Amos Amos or AMOS may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Amos'' (album), an album by Michael Ray * Amos (band), an American Christian rock band * ''Amos'' (film), a 1985 American made-for-television drama film * Amos (guitar), a 1958 Gibson Fl ...

* Arkana * Arkawana * Buford * Cartney * Colfax * County Line * Culp * Diamond Bay * Dogwood Park * Fawn Park * Heritage Estates * Holiday Hills * Hopewell *

Jordan Jordan, officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is a country in the Southern Levant region of West Asia. Jordan is bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the east, Saudi Arabia to the south, and Israel and the occupied Palestinian ter ...

* Kingswood Estates * Lakeside Terrace * Lone Rock * Mallard Point * McPhearson * Norfork Lake Estates * Norfork Village * Old Joe * Rodney * Shady Grove * Shipp * Spring Lake Estates * Sycamore Heights * Sycamore Spring * Three Brothers * Timber Lake Manor * Whiteville * Woods Point Landing

Historic communities

Berry A berry is a small, pulpy, and often edible fruit. Typically, berries are juicy, rounded, brightly colored, sweet, sour or tart, and do not have a stone or pit although many pips or seeds may be present. Common examples of berries in the cul ...

* Casteel * Chastain * Conville *

Covey A herd is a social group of certain animals of the same species, either wildness, wild or Domestication, domestic. The form of collective animal behavior associated with this is called ''herding''. These animals are known as gregarious animals ...

* Herron *

Independence Independence is a condition of a nation, country, or state, in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the status of ...

* Jonesdale * Laytonville * Spencer * Wake

Townships

Baxter County Arkansas 2010 Township Map large

Infrastructure

Aviation

The county contains one public owned/public use airport: Baxter County Airport, a small, rural airport west of Mountain Home with over 11,000 annual operations, almost entirely

general aviation General aviation (GA) is defined by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) as all civil aviation aircraft operations except for commercial air transport or aerial work, which is defined as specialized aviation services for other ...

. The county contains three private airfields, including Gaston's White River Resort Airstrip, which is available for public use. The nearest commercial service airport is

Springfield–Branson National Airport Springfield–Branson National Airport (formerly Springfield–Greene County Airport, Springfield Municipal Airport, and Springfield–Branson Regional Airport) is northwest of Springfield, in Greene County, Missouri, United States. The airpo ...

Major highways

Baxter County is not served by any Interstate highways; the nearest access to the Interstate system is

Interstate 44 Interstate 44 (I-44) is an Interstate Highway in the central United States. Although it is nominally an east–west road as it is even-numbered, it follows a more southwest–northeast alignment. Its western terminus is in Wichita Falls, T ...

(I-44) in Springfield, Missouri. The main roadway across the county is a concurrency between US Highway 62 (US 62) and US 412, which run east-west across Baxter County on their route across the northern part of Arkansas. The highway also has two

business route A business route (or business loop, business spur, or city route) in the United States is a short special route that branches off a parent numbered highway at its beginning, continues through the central business district of a nearby city or to ...

s in Baxter County: U.S. Route 62 Business (US 62B) in Mountain Home and US 62B in Cotter. Thirteen

state highway A state highway, state road, or state route (and the equivalent provincial highway, provincial road, or provincial route) is usually a road that is either Route number, numbered or maintained by a sub-national state or province. A road numbered ...

designations serve the traveling public in the county, ranging from short connector routes to long highways traversing the entire county. Some numbers have multiple distinct segments in Baxter County.

Arkansas Highway 5 Arkansas Highway 5 (AR 5) is a designation for three List of state highways in Arkansas, state highways in Arkansas. The southern segment of runs from U.S. Route 70 in Arkansas, U.S. Route 70 (US 70) east of Hot Springs, Arkansas, Hot Springs ...

(AR 5) is the only route running continuously across the county from south to north, providing connectivity to Missouri in the north and Little Rock to the south. Highway 14 runs east-west across much of the state, running in southern Baxter County between

Marshall Marshall may refer to: Places Australia *Marshall, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong, Victoria ** Marshall railway station Canada * Marshall, Saskatchewan * The Marshall, a mountain in British Columbia Liberia * Marshall, Liberia Marshall Is ...

and Mountain View. Highway 101 and Highway 201 serve as north-south routes between Salesville and Norfork Dam and Missouri, respectively. Four routes serve as connections to lakes or rivers: Highway 126, Highway 177, Highway 178, Highway 342. Highway 341 (Push Mountain Road) runs in the Ozark National Forest. Arkansas Highway 345 serves to connect Cotter and Gassville. Highway 202 and Highway 263 run in the county only briefly.

Rail

The

Missouri and Northern Arkansas Railroad The Missouri & Northern Arkansas Railroad, LLC is a Class II Regional Railroad in the U.S. states of Missouri, Kansas, and Arkansas. The company is headquartered in Carthage, Missouri. It is not to be confused with the Missouri and North Arka ...

crosses the county along the White River, including a

rail yard A rail yard, railway yard, railroad yard (US) or simply yard, is a series of Track (rail transport), tracks in a rail network for storing, sorting, or loading and unloading rail vehicles and locomotives. Yards have many tracks in parallel for k ...

in Cotter.

Utilities

The North Arkansas Electric Cooperative, based in Salem, is a non-profit electric

utility cooperative A utility cooperative is a type of cooperative that is tasked with the delivery of a public utility such as electricity, water or telecommunications to its members. Profits are either reinvested for infrastructure or distributed to members in t ...

serving much of the Arkansas Ozarks, including the rural areas of Baxter County with electric service. Entergy Arkansas provides electricity for Mountain Home, Cotter, Gassville, and nearby populated outlying areas, and the area around Big Flat. The Arkansas Department of Health (ADH) is responsible for the regulation and oversight of public water systems throughout the state. Nine community water systems are based in Baxter County: Baxter-Marion Rural Water Association No. 1 (BMRWA #1), Big Flat Water System, City of Briarcliff, Community Water Association, City of Cotter, City of Gassville, Lakeview Midway Public Water Authority, City of Mountain Home Water & Wastewater Department, City of Norfork Water Department, and Northeast Public Water Authority. There are also six minor systems serving residential areas: Autumn Acres Mobile Home Park (MHP), Crestwood MHP, Edgewood Bay Association, Laurelwood Homeowners Association, Starlight Estates, and Tall Oaks MHP.

Notable residents

* Richard Antrim, naval rear admiral, World War II veteran and

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, military decoration and is awarded to recognize American United States Army, soldiers, United States Navy, sailors, Un ...

recipient * Lonnie D. Bentley, professor and the head of the Department of Computer and Information Technology at

Purdue University Purdue University is a Public university#United States, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, United States, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded ...

* Robbie Branscum, writer of children's books and young adult fiction * William U. McCabe, represented Baxter County in the

from 1921 to 1924, and in the

in 1931 until his death * Vada Sheid, longtime member of the

Arkansas General Assembly The General Assembly of Arkansas is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Arkansas. The legislature is a bicameral body composed of the upper house Arkansas Senate with 35 members, and the lower Arkansas House of Representatives with 1 ...

representing Baxter County * Carolyn D. Wright – poet, born in Mountain Home

Notes

References

External links

Baxter County government's website

Ozark Amateur Radio Club - website
{{Coord, 36, 18, 25, N, 92, 21, 17, W, region:US-AR_type:adm2nd_source:dewiki, display=title 1873 establishments in Arkansas Populated places established in 1873