Marion is a city in and the county seat of Crittenden 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 12,345 at the 2010 census, a 38.7% increase since 2000. The city is part of the

Memphis Memphis most commonly refers to: * Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt * Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city Memphis may also refer to: Places United States * Memphis, Alabama * Memphis, Florida * Memphis, Indiana * Mem ...

metropolitan area. It is the second largest city in Crittenden County, behind

West Memphis West Memphis is the largest city in Crittenden County, Arkansas, United States. The population was 24,520 at the 2020 census, ranking it as the state's 20th largest city. It is part of the Memphis metropolitan area, and is located directly acro ...

History

Early history

Although Marion was incorporated in 1896, the community predates that significantly. The site of Marion was part of

Louisiana (New Spain) Louisiana (, ), was a province of New Spain from 1762 to 1801. It was primarily located in the center of North America encompassing the western basin of the Mississippi River plus New Orleans. The area had originally been claimed and controlle ...

from 1764 to 1803, when it became

Louisiana (New France) Louisiana or French Louisiana was a administrative divisions of France, district of New France. In 1682 the French explorer René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de la Salle erected a cross near the mouth of the Mississippi River and claimed the whole ...

. Some of the oldest land titles in the area are from Spanish

land grant A land grant is a gift of real estate—land or its use privileges—made by a government or other authority as an incentive, means of enabling works, or as a reward for services to an individual, especially in return for military service. Grants ...

s from a time prior to the

Louisiana Purchase The Louisiana Purchase () was the acquisition of the Louisiana (New France), territory of Louisiana by the United States from the French First Republic in 1803. This consisted of most of the land in the Mississippi River#Watershed, Mississipp ...

. After the Louisiana Purchase the area was part of the

Arkansas Territory The Arkansas Territory was a organized incorporated territory of the United States, territory of the United States from July 4, 1819, to June 15, 1836, when the final extent of Arkansas Territory was admitted to the United States, Union as the ...

. During the 1830s the

Trail of Tears The Trail of Tears was the forced displacement of about 60,000 people of the " Five Civilized Tribes" between 1830 and 1850, and the additional thousands of Native Americans and their black slaves within that were ethnically cleansed by the U ...

(the forced removal of Native Americans from

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

, and

Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...

) passed through the area. In 1837, two commissioners had been appointed by Crittenden county court to select a site for a new county seat. County residents Marion Tolbert and his wife Temperance gave a deed to the commissioners "for the county of Crittenden for county purposes" on June 25, 1837. A town was laid out and named Marion in honor of the man who gave the land for the site. The town of Marion was officially made the county seat of Crittenden County, Arkansas.Biographical and Historical Memoirs of Eastern Arkansas, Goodspeed Publisching, 1890, page 391 Soon after the county seat was moved from its first location of Greenock on the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the main stem, primary river of the largest drainage basin in the United States. It is the second-longest river in the United States, behind only the Missouri River, Missouri. From its traditional source of Lake Ita ...

to Marion, a wooden frame building was constructed in the town for holding court. At an unknown point, the building was destroyed by a tornado. In the late 1850s, the first railroad in the state of Arkansas, the Memphis & Little Rock Railroad, laid tracks 5.5 miles south of the town.

American Civil War and after

During the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

the steamboat ''Sultana'' was destroyed in an explosion on April 27, 1865, as it was transporting released Union POWs near Mound City, just east of Marion. It is estimated that 1,500 soldiers and crew were killed, the largest loss of life in a maritime accident in US history. This tragedy is commemorated by a historic marker placed by the

Daughters of the American Revolution The National Society Daughters of the American Revolution (often abbreviated as DAR or NSDAR) is a lineage-based membership service organization for women who are directly descended from a patriot of the American Revolutionary War. A non-p ...

. By 1873, construction started on a two-story brick county courthouse in Marion. This building burned in 1908 and was later replaced with the current brick courthouse. The initial contract for the courthouse and jail was $60k, and due to unknown circumstances construction took many years to finish. In the 1880s, the town received its first proper railway connection when the

St. Louis–San Francisco Railway The St. Louis–San Francisco Railway , commonly known as the "Frisco", was a railroad that operated in the Midwest and South Central United States from 1876 to November 21, 1980. At the end of 1970, it operated of road on of track, not includ ...

built a line through the town to make a connection between

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 ...

and Memphis. In 1954, a local Black man, Isadore Banks, was murdered by a mob in the town. He was chained to a tree, covered with gasoline and burned. Nobody was ever charged in the killing.

Incorporation

The city of Marion was officially incorporated on March 5, 1896.

Italian settlement

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, many Italian immigrants settled in Marion to engage in agricultural work for local plantation owners, such as Will Dockery. Many families later opened various businesses and contributed significantly to the local economy. Several Italian businesses exist in Marion and the surrounding area, such as Veanos Italian Restaurant and Sicily's in

Geography

Marion is located in eastern Crittenden County. 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 ...

, Marion has a total area of , of which is land and , or 0.37%, is water. It is bordered by the city of

to the south and by

Sunset Sunset (or sundown) is the disappearance of the Sun at the end of the Sun path, below the horizon of the Earth (or any other astronomical object in the Solar System) due to its Earth's rotation, rotation. As viewed from everywhere on Earth, it ...

and Clarkedale to the north. Ecologically, Marion is located on the border between the Northern Backswamps (west Marion) and Northern Holocene Meander Belts (east Marion)

ecoregion An ecoregion (ecological region) is an ecological and geographic area that exists on multiple different levels, defined by type, quality, and quantity of environmental resources. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of land or water, and c ...

s within the larger

Mississippi Alluvial Plain The Mississippi River Alluvial Plain is an alluvial plain created by the Mississippi River on which lie parts of seven U.S. states, from southern Louisiana to southern Illinois (Illinois, Missouri, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi, Lo ...

. The Northern Backswamps are a network of low-lying overflow areas and

floodplain A floodplain or flood plain or bottomlands is an area of land adjacent to a river. Floodplains stretch from the banks of a river channel to the base of the enclosing valley, and experience flooding during periods of high Discharge (hydrolog ...

s historically dominated by

bald cypress ''Taxodium distichum'' (baldcypress, bald-cypress, bald cypress, swamp cypress; ; ''cipre'' in Louisiana) is a deciduous conifer in the family Cupressaceae. It is native to the southeastern United States. Hardy and tough, this tree adapts to a w ...

water tupelo ''Nyssa aquatica'', commonly called the water tupelo, cottongum, wild olive, large tupelo, tupelo-gum, or water-gum, is a large, long-lived tree in the tupelo genus ''(Nyssa)'' that grows in swamps and floodplains in the Southeastern United Stat ...

overcup oak ''Quercus lyrata'', the overcup oak, is an oak in the white oak group (''Quercus'' sect. ''Quercus''). The common name, overcup oak, refers to its acorns that are mostly enclosed within the acorn cup. It is native to lowland wetlands in the east ...

water hickory ''Carya aquatica'', the bitter pecan or water hickory, is a large tree, that can grow over tall of the Juglandaceae or walnut family. In the American South it is a dominant plant species found on clay flats and backwater areas near streams and r ...

, and

Nuttall oak ''Quercus texana'', commonly known as Nuttall's oak, is a fast-growing, large deciduous oak tree. It is a tree growing up to 85 feet (25 meters) tall, with dark brown bark. It has leaves with sharp pointed lobes somewhat similar to those of the ...

forest subject to year-round or seasonal inundation. The Northern Holocene Meander Belts are the flat floodplains and former alignments of the

, including

levee A levee ( or ), dike (American English), dyke (British English; see American and British English spelling differences#Miscellaneous spelling differences, spelling differences), embankment, floodbank, or stop bank is an elevated ridge, natural ...

oxbow lake An oxbow lake is a U-shaped lake or stream pool, pool that forms when a wide meander of a river is meander cutoff, cut off, creating a free-standing body of water. The word "oxbow" can also refer to a U-shaped bend in a river or stream, whether ...

s, and

point bar A point bar is a depositional feature made of alluvium that accumulates on the inside bend of streams and rivers below the slip-off slope. Point bars are found in abundance in mature or meandering streams. They are crescent-shaped and located on ...

s. Much of the

wetland A wetland is a distinct semi-aquatic ecosystem whose groundcovers are flooded or saturated in water, either permanently, for years or decades, or only seasonally. Flooding results in oxygen-poor ( anoxic) processes taking place, especially ...

s and

riverine A river is a natural stream of fresh water that flows on land or inside caves towards another body of water at a lower elevation, such as an ocean, lake, or another river. A river may run dry before reaching the end of its course if it run ...

habitat have been drained and developed for agricultural or urban land uses. The

Wapanocca National Wildlife Refuge The Wapanocca National Wildlife Refuge is a 5,484 acre (22 km2) wildlife refuge in Crittenden County, Arkansas, managed by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. Wapanocca National Wildlife Refuge was established in 1961 from land ac ...

, which preserves some of the year-round flooded bald cypress forest typical of this ecoregion prior to development for row agriculture lies north of Marion. Marion is west of

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 ...

, which has a

humid subtropical 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 la ...

climate.

Notable citizens

Sid Eudy Sidney Raymond Eudy (December 16, 1960 – August 26, 2024) was an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler, best known for his tenures in the WWE, World Wrestling Federation (WWF) and World Championship Wrestling (WCW), wrestling ...

- Pro Wrestler, "Sid Vicious" * John Tate - Heavyweight boxing champion * Asa Hodges - Politician, Slave Holder, and Lawyer

Transportation

Major highways

Marion is bisected by

Interstate 55 Interstate 55 (I-55) is a major Interstate Highway in the central United States. As with most primary Interstates that end in a five, it is a major cross-country, north–south route, connecting the Gulf of Mexico to the Great Lakes. The ...

US 61 U.S. Route 61 or U.S. Highway 61 (U.S. 61) is a major United States highway that extends between New Orleans, Louisiana and the city of Wyoming, Minnesota. The highway generally follows the course of the Mississippi River and is designat ...

and is located just to the north of its junction with

Interstate 40 Interstate 40 (I-40) is a major east–west transcontinental Interstate Highway System, Interstate Highway in the Southeastern United States, southeastern and Southwestern United States, southwestern portions of the United States. At a leng ...

prior to their crossing the

, ''en route'' to

. U.S. Highway 64 is the major east–west route through the town.

Arkansas Highway 77 Highway 77 (AR 77, Ark. 77, and Hwy. 77) is a north–south state highway in Northeast Arkansas. The route of runs from US Highway 70 (US 70) in West Memphis north through small towns and agricultural areas of the Arkansas Delta to ...

is a major north–south arterial road, east of Interstate 55, and Highway 118 is the major north–south arterial road, west of Interstate 55.

Aviation

Marion is served for general aviation by the

West Memphis Municipal Airport West Memphis Municipal Airport is a city-owned public-use airport located three miles (5 km) west of the central business district of West Memphis, in Crittenden County, Arkansas, United States. The airport is southwest of General DeWit ...

(KAWM). General DeWitt Spain Airport is a civil aviation airport just north of downtown Memphis.

Memphis International Airport Memphis International Airport is a civil-military airport located southeast of downtown Memphis in Shelby County, Tennessee, United States. It is the primary international airport serving Memphis. It covers and has four runways., effective A ...

is located south of Memphis; it provides commercial aviation through numerous carriers and is the international cargo hub for

FedEx FedEx Corporation, originally known as Federal Express Corporation, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate holding company specializing in Package delivery, transportation, e-commerce, and ...

Rail

Union Pacific The Union Pacific Railroad is a 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 States after BNSF, ...

operates a intermodal facility west of Marion.

BNSF Railway BNSF Railway is the largest freight railroad in the United States. One of six North American Class I railroads, BNSF has 36,000 employees, of track in 28 states, and over 8,000 locomotives. It has three Transcontinental railroad, transcontine ...

also operates an intermodal yard in Marion. Limited passenger rail is available on

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...

Central Station Central stations or central railway stations emerged in the second half of the nineteenth century as railway stations that had initially been built on the edge of city centres were enveloped by urban expansion and became an integral part of the ...

in nearby Memphis. The ''City of New Orleans'' runs twice daily on a north–south route from

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

Water

Crittenden County and West Memphis jointly operate a port on the Mississippi River. The International Port of Memphis lies just across the Mississippi River via

. The International Port of Memphis is the fourth-largest inland port in the United States.

Community

Because of its proximity to Memphis and Interstate highways, Marion offers the activities and enrichment of a large city while maintaining the character of a small community. In addition to the many community events common to any town, each May Marion hosts the Esperanza Bonanza, a festival that includes live music, a barbecue competition, a rodeo, a golf tournament, a carnival, and games for adults & children. More recently Marion has begun "Christmas on the Square" in early December co-sponsored by the local Kiwanis Club and the Marion Chamber of Commerce. Marion is served by the Woolfolk Public Library which is jointly operated by Crittenden County and the city of Marion. It was named in honor of a local author and newspaper editor, Margaret Woolfolk. Outdoor recreation is a big part of community life, from organized youth sports to individual and family activities. Marion is located less than 1 hour from 12 Arkansas, Tennessee or Mississippi state parks. Additional outdoor recreation is available at

about north of town. The nearby community of Horseshoe Lake offers opportunity for water sports.

Healthcare

Marion and Crittenden County were served by Crittenden Regional Hospital a 152-bed JCAHO Accredited facility in nearby

until its closure in 2014. Starting in 2016 Crittenden Regional Hospital was converted into a female correctional facility and renamed East Central Arkansas Community Correction Center. Marion and Crittenden County have been served by Baptist Memorial Hospital-Crittenden which opened on December 13, 2018.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 13,752 people, 4,543 households, and 3,198 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 12,345 people and 4,278 households in the city. The population density was . The racial makeup of the city was 68.1%

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 ...

, 28%

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 ...

, 0.4% Native American, 1.5% Asian, 1.4% from two or more races. 2.0% 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. 88% of the population had a high school diploma and 28% reported a bachelor's degree or higher. 2.5% of the population is foreign born and 4.4% report a language other than English being spoken at home. The home ownership rate was 71.3% at a median value of $142,200. The

median household income The median income is the income amount that divides a population into two groups, half having an income above that amount, and half having an income below that amount. It may differ from the mean (or average) income. Both of these are ways of und ...

was $60,051. 7.3% of the population are 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 ...

Education

Crittenden County is served by

Mid-South Community College Arkansas State University Mid-South, formerly Mid-South Community College (MSCC), is a public community college in West Memphis, Arkansas. ASU Mid-South offers degree programs, technical courses, community educational offerings, and intercollegi ...

in West Memphis. The college offers bachelor's and master's degree programs in conjunction with

Arkansas State University Arkansas State University (A-State or ASU) is a public university, public research university in Jonesboro, Arkansas, United States. It is the flagship campus of the Arkansas State University System and the second-largest university in the st ...

, the

University of Arkansas The University of Arkansas (U of A, UArk, or UA) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Fayetteville, Arkansas, United States. It is the Flagship campus, flagship campus of the University of Arkan ...

, the

University of Central Arkansas The University of Central Arkansas (Central Arkansas or UCA) is a public university in Conway, Arkansas, United States. Founded in 1907, the university is one of the oldest in the state. As the state's only normal school at the time, UCA has hist ...

Arkansas Tech University Arkansas Tech University (ATU) is a public university in Russellville, Arkansas, United States. The university offers programs at both baccalaureate and graduate levels in a range of fields. The Arkansas Tech University–Ozark Campus, a two-yea ...

and

Franklin University Franklin University is a private university with its main campus in Columbus, Ohio, United States. It was founded in 1902 to serve the needs of students beyond traditional undergraduate age. On-site courses are offered at the university's campu ...

Public schools

The Marion School District serves most of the city while a small portion is zoned to the

West Memphis School District West Memphis School District is a public school district that is owned by Drew Davis. Headquartered in West Memphis, Arkansas. United States, covering sections of Crittenden and St. Francis counties. It serves most of West Memphis, the munic ...

. Marion district schools: *Visual and Performing Arts Magnet School (grades pre-k through 6th grade) (West Memphis) *Math, Science, and Technology Magnet School (grades K through 6th) *Herbert Carter Global Magnet School (grades K through 6th) *Marion Middle School (grade 7) *Marion Jr. High School (grades 8 through 9) * Marion High School (grades 10–12) The sole high school of the West Memphis district is

Academies of West Memphis Academies of West Memphis (AWM), formerly West Memphis High School, is an accredited Comprehensive education, comprehensive public high school for students in grades ten through twelve in West Memphis, Arkansas, United States. The school is adm ...

(formerly West Memphis High School).

Private schools

* West Memphis Christian School, PK-12 (West Memphis) *Crittenden Pentecostal Academy, K-12 (West Memphis) * St. Michael's Catholic School, PK-6 (West Memphis)

Notes

References

External links

City of Marion official websiteMarion Chamber of Commerce"Marion" entry
''Arkansas Encyclopedia of History and Culture'' {{authority control Cities in Crittenden County, Arkansas Cities in the Memphis metropolitan area County seats in Arkansas U.S. Route 64 Interstate 55 Cities in Arkansas 1896 establishments in Arkansas Populated places established in 1896