Jackson County is located in the

Arkansas Delta The Arkansas Delta is one of the six natural regions of the state of Arkansas. Willard B. Gatewood Jr., author of ''The Arkansas Delta: Land of Paradox'', says that rich cotton lands of the Arkansas Delta make that area "The Deepest of the Deep ...

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 ...

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 ...

. The

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 ...

is named for

Andrew Jackson Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before Presidency of Andrew Jackson, his presidency, he rose to fame as a general in the U.S. Army and served in both houses ...

, a national hero during the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 was fought by the United States and its allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom and its allies in North America. It began when the United States United States declaration of war on the Uni ...

. By the county's formation in 1829, Jackson had become the seventh

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 ...

. Jackson County is home to seven incorporated

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

s and four incorporated cities, including Newport, the 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 also the site of numerous unincorporated communities and

ghost town A ghost town, deserted city, extinct town, or abandoned city is an abandoned settlement, usually one that contains substantial visible remaining buildings and infrastructure such as roads. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economi ...

s. Occupying , Jackson County is the 41st largest county of the 75 in Arkansas. As of the 2020 Census, the county's population was 16,755. Based on population, the county is the 44th-largest county in Arkansas. Although terrain rises in the west, most of Jackson County is within the Arkansas Delta, characterized by largely flat terrain with fertile soils. Historically covered in forest, bayous and swamps, the area was cleared for agriculture by early settlers. It is drained by the White River. 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 ...

are located in Jackson County, two United States highways (

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 ...

(US 67) and

US 167 U.S. Route 167 is a north-south United States Highway within the U.S. states of Louisiana and Arkansas. It runs for from Ash Flat, Arkansas at U.S. Route 62/ U.S. Route 412 to Abbeville, Louisiana at Louisiana Highway 14. It goes through th ...

) and fifteen Arkansas state highways run in the county. A

Union Pacific Railroad The Union Pacific Railroad is a Railroad classes, Class I freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Pacific is the second largest railroad in the United Stat ...

line also crosses the county.

Geography

According to the

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

, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (1.2%) is water.

Major highways

Interstate 57 Interstate 57 (I-57) is a north–south Interstate Highway that exists in two segments. It runs through Arkansas, Missouri, and Illinois. I-57 parallels the old Illinois Central Railroad for much of its route north of Interstate 55, I-55. T ...

* U.S. Highway 67 * U.S. Highway 167 * Highway 14 * Highway 17 * Highway 18 * Highway 18 Spur * Highway 33 * Highway 37 * Highway 42 * Highway 69 * Highway 69 Spur * Highway 87 * Highway 145 * Highway 157 * Highway 224 * Highway 226 * Highway 367 * Highway 384 * Airport Highway 980

Adjacent counties

* Lawrence County (north) * Craighead County (northeast) * Poinsett County (east) * Cross County (southeast) * Woodruff County (south) * White County (southwest) * Independence County (west)

National protected area

* Cache River National Wildlife Refuge (part)

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 16,755 people, 6,137 households, and 3,758 families residing in the county.

2000 census

As of the 2000 census, there were 18,418 people, 6,971 households, and 4,830 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 7,956 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 80.57%

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 ...

, 17.56%

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 ...

, 0.33% Native American, 0.18% Asian, 0.01%

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 ...

, 0.40% from other races, and 0.95% from two or more races. 1.27% 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 6,971 households, out of which 27.70% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.20% 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, 13.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.70% were non-families. 27.90% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.40 and the average family size was 2.92. In the county, the population was spread out, with 22.20% under the age of 18, 11.50% from 18 to 24, 26.00% from 25 to 44, 23.80% from 45 to 64, and 16.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 91.20 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.80 males. The median income for a household in the county was $25,081, and the median income for a family was $32,661. Males had a median income of $26,744 versus $17,830 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 $14,564. About 13.20% of families and 17.40% 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 25.00% of those under age 18 and 16.70% of those age 65 or over.

Government and infrastructure

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 Jackson County Quorum Court has nine members. Presiding over quorum court meetings is the county judge, who serves as the chief executive officer 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 after the 2024 elections is 8 Republicans and 1 Democrat. Justices of the Peace (members) of the Quorum Court following the elections are: * District 1: Rusty Kinder (R) * District 2: Tommy Young (R) * District 3: David R. Howard (R) * District 4: Bryan Smith (R) * District 5: Clay Young (R) * District 6: Mark Harmon (R) * District 7: Jerry W. Mann (D) * District 8: Lendol Falwell (R) * District 9: Robby Stewart (R) Additionally, the townships of Jackson 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: * Brock: James Brock (R) * Clark: Chris Clark (R) * McGee: Patrick McGee (R) * Thatcher: Dylan Thatcher (R)

Infrastructure

The Grimes Unit and the

McPherson Unit McPherson Unit is a Incarceration of women in the United States, prison for women of the Arkansas Department of Corrections, located in Newport, Arkansas, off Arkansas Highway 384, east of central Newport. Established in 1998, the prison houses ...

, prisons of the

Arkansas Department of Correction The Arkansas Department of Corrections (DOC), formerly the Arkansas Department of Correction, is the state law enforcement agency that oversees inmates and operates state prisons within the U.S. state of Arkansas. DOC consists of two divisions, ...

, are located in Newport, off of

Arkansas Highway 384 Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, 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 Okla ...

, east of central Newport. The prison houses the state's death row for women.Haddigan, Michael.
They Kill Women, Don't They?
'' Arkansas Times''. April 9, 1999. Retrieved on August 15, 2010. The Jackson County Sheriff's Office is the primary county-wide law enforcement agency.

Politics

Communities

Cities

* Campbell Station * Diaz * Grubbs * Newport (county seat) * Swifton * Tuckerman

Towns

* Amagon * Beedeville * Jacksonport * Tupelo * Weldon

Unincorporated communities

* Balch * Centerville *

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

* Heffington * Kenyon * Macks * Midway * Olyphant * Possum Grape

Ghost towns

* Colerain * Estico * Mt. Pinson * Myrickville * Sneed

Townships

Jackson County Arkansas 2010 Township Map large

* Barren * Bateman (contains part of Newport) *

Bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class (biology), class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the Oviparity, laying of Eggshell, hard-shelled eggs, a high Metabolism, metabolic rate, a fou ...

(contains most of Tuckerman) * Breckinridge (contains Tupelo and Weldon) * Bryan *

Cache Cache, caching, or caché may refer to: Science and technology * Cache (computing), a technique used in computer storage for easier data access * Cache (biology) or hoarding, a food storing behavior of animals * Cache (archaeology), artifacts p ...

* Cow Lake (contains Beedeville) * Glaize *

Glass Glass is an amorphous (non-crystalline solid, non-crystalline) solid. Because it is often transparency and translucency, transparent and chemically inert, glass has found widespread practical, technological, and decorative use in window pane ...

(contains Swifton) * Grubbs (contains Grubbs) * Jefferson (contains Campbell Station and Jacksonport, part of Diaz and Tuckerman) * Richwoods (contains Amagon) * Union (contains most of Diaz and Newport) *

Village A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban v ...

(contains part of Diaz and Newport) Source:

Government and politics

Jackson County is represented in the Arkansas State Senate by the Republican Ronald R. Caldwell, a real estate businessman from Wynne in Cross County.

References

External links

Jackson County official website
{{authority control 1829 establishments in Arkansas Territory Populated places established in 1829