Heber Springs is a city in and 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 ...

of Cleburne County,

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 ...

, United States. The population was 6,969 as of the 2020 Census.

Geography

Heber Springs is located near the center of Cleburne 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 ...

bypasses the center of the city to the east, leading north to Mountain View and south 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 ...

(via

U.S. Route 67 U.S. Route 67 is a major north–south U.S. highway which extends for 1,560 miles (2,511 km) in the Central United States. The southern terminus of the route is at the United States-Mexico border in Presidio, Texas, where it continues ...

). Searcy is to the southeast via Highway 16. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the city has a total area of , all land. The city was named for a series of natural springs that are located on the east side of town on Main Street.

Greers Ferry Lake Greers Ferry Lake is the reservoir formed by Greers Ferry Dam, a United States Army Corps of Engineers dam in Northern Arkansas. It is located about north of Little Rock, Arkansas, Little Rock. Geography The reservoir consists of two lakes co ...

and the Little Red River are located just north of the city, where

rainbow trout The rainbow trout (''Oncorhynchus mykiss'') is a species of trout native to cold-water tributary, tributaries of the Pacific Ocean in North America and Asia. The steelhead (sometimes called steelhead trout) is an Fish migration#Classification, ...

are stocked in the Little Red and can be fished below the

Greers Ferry Dam Greers Ferry Dam is located on the Little Red River in Cleburne County in the U.S. state of Arkansas. It impounds Greers Ferry Lake. The dam is located north of Little Rock. Building the dam Construction of the dam began in March 1959 and was ...

. The lake is a major tourism draw for swimming, boating, and personal watercraft, complemented by the Little Red River and

Sugarloaf Mountain Sugarloaf Mountain (, ) is a peak situated in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on a peninsula at the mouth of Guanabara Bay. Rising above the harbor, the peak is named for its resemblance to the traditional shape of concentrated refined loaf suga ...

along the eastern portion of the city.

Climate

The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild to cool winters. According to the

Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

system, Heber Springs has a

humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between ...

, abbreviated "Cfa" on climate maps.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 6,969 people, 2,868 households, and 1,890 families residing in the city.

2010 census

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2010, there were 7,165 people, 2,793 households, and 1,851 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 3,159 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 97.90%

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 ...

, 0.23%

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 ...

, 0.44% Native American, 0.39% Asian, 0.03%

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 ...

, 0.22% from other races, and 0.79% from two or more races. 1.80% 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 2,793 households, out of which 26.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.7% 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, 12.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.7% were non-families. 30.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.7% 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 2.72. In the city, the population was spread out, with 21.5% under the age of 18, 6.7% from 18 to 24, 23.4% from 25 to 44, 23.1% from 45 to 64, and 25.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females, there were 83.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 80.3 males. The median income for a household in the city was $29,599, and the median income for a family was $37,228. Males had a median income of $30,772 versus $19,720 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 city was $19,656. About 8.6% of families and 13.3% 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 17.6% of those under age 18 and 12.8% of those age 65 or over.

History

Initially named Sugar Loaf, Heber Springs was founded by Max Frauenthal. In 1881, Frauenthal bought land in Van Buren County from John T. Jones. He founded the Sugar Loaf Springs Company and plotted a town site which was incorporated as "Sugar Loaf" on October 4, 1882. In 1883, Frauenthal donated land for the courthouse square, built a frame courthouse to be used by the soon-to-be-created Cleburne County, and donated the land for Spring Park, thus securing the county seat for the new town. Frauenthal chose the name Cleburne County to honor Confederate General

Patrick Cleburne Major general, Major-General Patrick Ronayne Cleburne ( ; March 16, 1828November 30, 1864) was a senior Officer (armed forces), officer in the Confederate States Army who commanded infantry in the Western Theater of the American Civil War, West ...

, who was killed in the

Battle of Franklin The Battle of Franklin was fought on November 30, 1864, in Franklin, Tennessee, as part of the Franklin–Nashville Campaign of the American Civil War. It was one of the worst disasters of the war for the Confederate States Army. Confederate L ...

in 1864. In 1910, Sugar Loaf's name was changed to Heber Springs in order to avoid confusion with another town with a post office named Sugar Loaf. Frauenthal chose the new name to honor John T. Jones's son, Dr. Heber Jones, who was a prominent physician in

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in Shelby County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. Situated along the Mississippi River, it had a population of 633,104 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Tenne ...

, where Frauenthal had since moved. The 200–300 feet long ''Swinging Bridge'' over the Little Red River was erected in 1912, closed for vehicles 1972 and kept for pedestrians in a recreational area and placed in

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 ...

in 1985. On 28 October 1989 30 to 50 young pedestrians rocked the span back and forth until the upstream steel cable of the

suspension bridge A suspension bridge is a type of bridge in which the deck (bridge), deck is hung below suspension wire rope, cables on vertical suspenders. The first modern examples of this type of bridge were built in the early 1800s. Simple suspension bridg ...

broke. The span flipped, the other cable broke and the bridge collapsed and fell 30 feet deep into the river. At least 5 people died, 18 were hurt.

Greers Ferry Dam

Located on the Little Red River, the dam was dedicated in October 1963 by President

John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), also known as JFK, was the 35th president of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963. He was the first Roman Catholic and youngest person elected p ...

just one month before his assassination. This event marks the only time a sitting president has visited Cleburne County.

Education

Public education for elementary and secondary students is provided by: * Heber Springs School District, the school district covering the city limits, with students graduating from Heber Springs High School.

Notable people

* Brandon Bell (recording engineer), Grammy Award winning record engineer, mix engineer and producer * Everett G. Burkhalter, represented the 27th District of California in the U.S. House of Representatives * Paul Caraway, High Commissioner of the U.S. Civil Administration of the Ryukyu Islands * Mike Disfarmer, photographer * Max Frauenthal, Civil War hero and founding father of Heber Springs * Laurell K. Hamilton, author of the "Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter" series and "Meredith Gentry" series * Johnnie Bryan Hunt, founder of J.B. Hunt Transport Services * Johnelle Hunt, co-founder of J.B. Hunt Transport Services * Tommy Land, Arkansas Commissioner of State Lands *

Mindy McCready Malinda Gayle McCready (November 30, 1975 – February 17, 2013) was an American country music singer. Active from 1995 until her death in 2013, she recorded a total of five studio albums. Her debut album, 1996's '' Ten Thousand Angels'', w ...

, country music singer (Committed suicide in Heber Springs) * Josh Miller, Republican member of 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 ...

from District 66, including Heber Springs * Colin O'More, concert singer, educator, and broadcasting executive * Almeda Riddle, folk singer * Fred Williams, NFL football player *

Stan Lee Stan Lee (born Stanley Martin Lieber ; December 28, 1922 – November 12, 2018) was an American comic book author, writer, editor, publisher, and producer. He rose through the ranks of a family-run business called Timely Comics which later bec ...

, 2007 USGA Senior Amateur Champion * Louis Lee, 2011 USGA Senior Amateur Champion

Points of interest

Heber Springs Cleburne County Courthouse 2-2025 Wikipedia

The Cleburne County Courthouse, the Cleburne County Farm Cemetery, the Dr. Cyrus F. Crosby House, the Mike Meyer Disfarmer Gravesite, the Clarence Frauenthal House, the Heber Springs Commercial Historic District, the Hugh L. King House, the T.E. Olmstead & Son Funeral Home, the

Rector House The Rector House is a historic house at 603 West Quitman Street in Heber Springs, Arkansas. It is a roughly rectangular single-story wood-frame structure, with a gable-on-hip roof that is on two sides extended at a lower slope across a wraparo ...

, and the Woman’s Community Club Band Shell, are all Heber Springs locations on the

References

External links

City of Heber Springs official websiteHeber Springs Area Chamber of Commerce
{{authority control Cities in Cleburne County, Arkansas Cities in Arkansas County seats in Arkansas Populated places established in 1882 1882 establishments in Arkansas