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Cleveland County (formerly known as Dorsey 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 ...
located in the
U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...
of
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 ...
. Its population was 7,550 at the 2020 U.S. census. The
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 ...
and largest city is Rison. Cleveland County is included in the Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR Metropolitan Statistical Area.


History

The Arkansas legislature established Dorsey County as Arkansas's 71st county on April 17, 1873, naming it for Stephen W. Dorsey, the U.S. Senator from Arkansas. When he was indicted for defrauding the Post Office, they renamed it on March 5, 1885, for
Grover Cleveland Stephen Grover Cleveland (March 18, 1837June 24, 1908) was the 22nd and 24th president of the United States, serving from 1885 to 1889 and from 1893 to 1897. He was the first U.S. president to serve nonconsecutive terms and the first Hist ...
, the newly elected
President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...
. The Battle of Marks' Mills, the pivotal engagement in the Union Army's ill-fated Camden Expedition during the U.S. Civil War, took place in what is now Cleveland County. This engagement resulted in a crushing victory for Confederate forces, though the victory ultimately proved to be hollow when Federal General Frederick Steele and the rest of his army managed to escape from Camden to
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 ...
.


Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.2%) is water.


Major highways

* U.S. Highway 63 * U.S. Highway 79 * U.S. Highway 167 * Highway 8 * Highway 11 * Highway 15 (now US 63) *
Highway 35 The following highways are numbered 35: The Karakoram Highway (Urdu language, Urdu: شاہراہ قراقرم, ''Śāhirāh-i Qarāquram''), also known as the KKH, National Highway 35 (Urdu language, Urdu: قومی شاہراہ ۳۵), N-35, and ...
* Highway 54 * Highway 97 * Highway 114 * Highway 133 * Highway 189 * Highway 212


Adjacent counties

*
Grant County Grant County may refer to: Places ;Australia * County of Grant, Victoria ;United States * Grant County, Arkansas * Grant County, Indiana * Grant County, Kansas *Grant County, Kentucky Grant County is a county located in the northern pa ...
(northwest) * Jefferson County (northeast) * Lincoln County (east) * Drew County (southeast) * Bradley County (south) * Calhoun County (southwest) * Dallas County (west)


Demographics


2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 7,550 people, 3,217 households, and 2,254 families residing in the county.


2000 census

As of the 2000 United States Census, there were 8,571 people, 3,273 households, and 2,513 families residing 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 3,834 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 84.79%
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 ...
, 13.22%
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 ...
or
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 ...
, 0.32% Native American, 0.14% Asian, 0.04%
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 ...
, 0.68% from other races, and 0.83% from two or more races. 1.62% 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 3,273 households, out of which 34.90% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.70% 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, 9.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.20% were non-families. 21.40% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.60 and the average family size was 3.00. In the county, the population was spread out, with 26.20% under the age of 18, 7.90% from 18 to 24, 27.70% from 25 to 44, 24.70% from 45 to 64, and 13.60% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.40 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.20 males. The median income for a household in the county was $32,405, and the median income for a family was $38,164. Males had a median income of $31,282 versus $21,172 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 $15,362. About 11.40% of families and 15.20% 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 21.50% of those under age 18 and 15.70% of those age 65 or over.


Communities


Cities

* Kingsland * Rison (county seat)


Census-designated places

* New Edinburg *
Rye Rye (''Secale cereale'') is a grass grown extensively as a grain, a cover crop and a forage crop. It is grown principally in an area from Eastern and Northern Europe into Russia. It is much more tolerant of cold weather and poor soil than o ...
* Staves * Woodlawn


Townships

* Bowman * Hudgin * Harper ( Herbine) * Hurricane (
Rye Rye (''Secale cereale'') is a grass grown extensively as a grain, a cover crop and a forage crop. It is grown principally in an area from Eastern and Northern Europe into Russia. It is much more tolerant of cold weather and poor soil than o ...
) * Kingsland ( Kingsland) * Lee *
Miller A miller is a person who operates a mill, a machine to grind a grain (for example corn or wheat) to make flour. Milling is among the oldest of human occupations. "Miller", "Milne" and other variants are common surnames, as are their equivalents ...
( Woodlawn) * Niven-Jackson * Redland ( New Edinburg) * Rison ( Rison) * Rowell * Saline * Smith *
White Oak ''Quercus'' subgenus ''Quercus'' is one of the two subgenera into which the genus ''Quercus'' was divided in a 2017 classification (the other being subgenus ''Cerris''). It contains about 190 species divided among five sections. It may be calle ...
( Staves) * Whiteville (Randall)


Government


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, and district boundaries are drawn by the county election commission. The Cleveland County Quorum Court has nine 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 9 Republicans. Justices of the Peace (members) of the Quorum Court following the elections are: * District 1: Ricky Neal (R) * District 2: Melody Spears (R) * District 3: Dwayne Ashcraft (R) * District 4: Pat Keegan-Potter (R) * District 5: Donnie Herring (R) * District 6: Owen Rushing (R) * District 7: Bruce T. Brown (R) * District 8: Jeffrey Smith (R) * District 9: Charles Rodgers (R) Additionally, the townships of Cleveland County are entitled to elect their own respective constables, as set forth 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 ...
. 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: * Harper: Dave Morrison (D)


Politics

Cleveland County has trended heavily towards the Republican Party in recent presidential elections. As of 2024 the last Democrat to carry the county was
Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...
, an Arkansas native, in 1996.


Education

School districts serving portions of the county: * Cleveland County School District * Malvern Special School District * Star City School District * Woodlawn School District


Notable people

* Monroe Schwarzlose, a
turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...
farm A farm (also called an agricultural holding) is an area of land that is devoted primarily to agricultural processes with the primary objective of producing food and other crops; it is the basic facility in food production. The name is used fo ...
er and political maverick who polled 31 percent of the vote against
Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...
Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...
in the 1980 Democratic
primary Primary or primaries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups and labels * Primary (band), from Australia * Primary (musician), hip hop musician and record producer from South Korea * Primary Music, Israeli record label Work ...
. He won in Cleveland County. * Harvey Parnell, the 29th
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 ...
, 1928-1933 * Youell Swinney, the only major suspect in the Texarkana Phantom slayings, hailed from Cleveland County. He was the son of a Baptist minister. * Coach Paul "Bear" Bryant was born in Moro Bottom. * Tyrell Johnson plays safety in the NFL was born and raised in Rison.


See also

* List of lakes in Cleveland County, Arkansas * National Register of Historic Places listings in Cleveland County, Arkansas


References


External links

*
Cleveland County, Arkansas
at ''
Encyclopedia of Arkansas The Central Arkansas Library System (CALS) ''Encyclopedia of Arkansas'' is a web-based encyclopedia of the U.S. state of Arkansas, described by the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) as "a free, authoritative source of information abo ...
'' {{coord, 33, 53, 50, N, 92, 10, 12, W, region:US-AR_type:adm2nd_source:dewiki, display=title 1873 establishments in Arkansas Little Rock–North Little Rock–Conway metropolitan area Pine Bluff metropolitan area Populated places established in 1873