Mississippi County, Arkansas

Mississippi County is the easternmost county in the U.S. state of Arkansas. As of the 2020 census, the population was 40,685. There are two county seats, Blytheville and Osceola. The county is named for the Mississippi River which borders the county to the east. Mississippi County is part of the First Congressional District in Arkansas.

The Blytheville, AR Micropolitan Statistical Area includes all of Mississippi County.

History

Pre-European Exploration

Extant early settlements include the Eaker Site and the Sherman Mound.

1812 New Madrid Earthquake

Local oral tradition held that prior to the major earthquakes of 1812, the lands in Mississippi County were higher in elevation compared to now and were not prone to flooding. Though the earthquake was named for New Madrid, Missouri, as that was the only town in the area with any population, the actual epicenter of the quake was three miles below what is now Blytheville, Arkansas.

Antebellum Period

American settlers were recorded in the area as early as 1828. These early settlers include John Troy, the first Mississippi County Judge and namesake of Troy township and G.C. Barfield, the first county surveyor and namesake of Barfield Landing.

Mississippi County was created on November 1, 1833, when it was split off from Craighead County. By 1836, when Arkansas achieved statehood, the county's white population had slightly increased and the local Native population was pushed in the eastern part of the county, towards what is now Big Lake. The first county seat was a small community called Cornwall, which was located at on the banks of the Mississippi River, on the remains of an old Spanish "encampment." Osceola was named as the County Seat in 1833, and later incorporated in 1843.

The Federal Swamp Act of 1850 granted federally controlled swamp lands to their respective state governments for sale. According to the 1852 surveyor general's report, Mississippi County had the largest amount of swamp and "Sunken" lands of any county in the country.

Reconstruction Period

Following the American Civil War, Mississippi County was one of 10 counties in Arkansas put under martial law due to increased activity from the Ku Klux Klan. In 1872, a series of racial and political confrontations known as the Black Hawk War took place. The genesis of this was the murder of "Carpetbagger" Charles Fitzpatrick by the county Sheriff J.B. Murray over Fitzpatrick's allegations of Murray's embezzlement of school funds.

20th century

During World War 2, a B-25 pilot training school was constructed at Blytheville, with satellite landing strips at Manilla and in the Missouri Bootheel. The facility was later reopened in 1954 at Blytheville Air Force Base, and hosted a squadron of B-52s from 1959 to 1992.

In 1987, Nucor Steel opened a steel plant at Barfield Landing on the Mississippi River. In 2014, U.S. Steel opened a steel plant at Osceola. Mississippi County is now reportedly the largest steel producing county in America.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (2.1%) is water.

Major highways

* Interstate 55
* U.S. Highway 61
* U.S. Highway 78
* Highway 14
* Highway 18
* Highway 18 Business
* Highway 77
* Highway 118
* Highway 119
* Highway 135
* Highway 136
* Highway 137
* Highway 137 Spur
* Highway 140
* Highway 150
* Highway 151
* Highway 158
* Highway 181
* Highway 239
* Highway 239 Spur
* Highway 947

Adjacent counties

* Dunklin County, Missouri (northwest)
* Pemiscot County, Missouri (north)
* Dyer County, Tennessee (northeast)
* Lauderdale County, Tennessee (east)
* Tipton County, Tennessee (southeast)
* Crittenden County (south)
* Poinsett County (southwest)
* Craighead County (west)

National protected area

* Big Lake National Wildlife Refuge

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 40,685 people, 16,389 households, and 10,635 families residing in the county.

2010 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 46,480 people living in the county. The racial makeup of the county was 60.5% White, 33.9% Black, 0.3% Native American, 0.5% Asian, <0.0% Pacific Islander, 0.1% from some other race and 1.2% from two or more races. 3.6% were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

2000 census

As of the 2000 census, there were 51,979 people, 19,349 households, and 13,911 families living in the county. The population density was . There were 22,310 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 64.45% White, 32.70% Black or African American, 0.26% Native American, 0.38% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 1.07% from other races, and 1.12% from two or more races. 2.25% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 19,349 households, out of which 36.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.00% were married couples living together, 17.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.10% were non-families. 24.70% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.70% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.64 and the average family size was 3.15.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 29.60% under the age of 18, 9.90% from 18 to 24, 27.50% from 25 to 44, 20.80% from 45 to 64, and 12.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 91.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.70 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $27,479, and the median income for a family was $32,648. Males had a median income of $29,645 versus $19,782 for females. The per capita income for the county was $13,978. About 19.00% of families and 23.00% of the population were below the poverty line, including 31.10% of those under age 18 and 19.80% of those age 65 or over.

Government

The county government is a constitutional body granted specific powers by the Constitution of Arkansas 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 Mississippi County Quorum Court has eleven 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 7 Republicans, 3 Democrats, and 1 Independent. Justices of the Peace (members) of the Quorum Court following the elections are:

* District 1: Drake Brown (R) of Manila
* District 2: Michael White (R) of Manila
* District 3: Neil Burge (R) of Blytheville
* District 4: Tobye McClanahan (R) of Blytheville
* District 5: Molly Jackson (R) of Blytheville
* District 6: Cecil McDonald (D) of Blytheville
* District 7: Butch Prunty (I)
* District 8: Ricky Ash (R) of Blytheville
* District 9: Harbans Mangat (D) of Osceola
* District 10: Betty Hepler (R) of Osceola
* District 11: Dr. Sumner R. "Reggie" Cullom Sr. (D) of Joiner

Additionally, the townships of Mississippi County are entitled to elect their own respective constables, as set forth by the Constitution of Arkansas. 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:

* Big Lake: Keith Hill (R)
* Burdette: Terry McCanless Sr. (R)
* Carson Lake: Sumner R. Cullom Jr. (R)
* Chickasawba: Rob Rounsavail (R)
* Dyess: Kenneth Gilmore (R)
* Golden Lake: Lucky Smith (R)
* Half Moon: Carl W. Foster (R)
* Hector: Mark Dixon (R)
* Little River: Roger Ferrell (R)
* Monroe: Jim Creecy (R)
* Neal: Steve Lancaster (R)
* Scott: Dennis E. Tucker Sr. (R)

Formerly a traditionally Democratic area, Mississippi County has voted Republican in the past five presidential elections.

Economy

The economy of Mississippi County transitioned from agriculture (especially cotton) to manufacturing (mostly steel production) beginning in the 1980s. Over $2.1 billion has been invested in plants and supporting infrastructure in the county, with major facilities being operated by Nucor and Big River Steel (a U.S. Steel company). As of 2021 Mississippi County is the second-largest steel producing county in the United States. The county's position near the center of the United States and along the Mississippi River allows the input for steel mills, scrap metal, to be shipped in on barges, often the most inexpensive method of shipping, and by railroad from Memphis. Company executives have also praised the work ethic of the rural farm families of the area as a natural fit for ironworkers.

Education

Public education

Mississippi County is home to the following public school districts, listed in order of student population:

* Blytheville School District
* Osceola School District
* Gosnell School District
* Southern Mississippi County School District
* Manila School District
* Buffalo Island Central School District
* Armorel School District

The following school districts are based outside of the county but serve portions:
* East Poinsett County School District
* KIPP: Delta Public Schools
* Nettleton School District

Libraries

Mississippi County is served by the Mississippi–Crittenden Regional Library System, which includes the Mississippi County Library System (central library) and 13 branch libraries in communities throughout the county.

Media

Radio

FM
*FM 88.3 KBCM Blytheville
*FM 93.9 KAMJ Gosnell
*FM 96.3 KHLS Blytheville
*FM 103.7 KBAI K279BJ Blytheville
*FM 107.3 KOSE-FM Osceola

AM
*AM 860 KOSE Wilson

Print

*NEA Town Courier, Newspaper, Blytheville, Arkansas
*The Osceola Times, Newspaper, Osceola, Arkansas

Television

There are no television stations in Mississippi County, Arkansas. Mississippi County, Arkansas is placed in the Memphis, TN Television Market. Those stations include:
* ABC- WATN 24
* NBC- WMC 5
* CBS- WREG 3
* Fox- WHBQ 13
* PBS- WKNO 10
* CW- WLMT 30
* Ion WPXX 50

However some residents in county may watch stations from the Jackson, TN, Jonesboro, AR, or Little Rock, AR Television Markets.

Communities

Cities

* Blytheville (county seat)
* Gosnell
* Joiner
* Keiser
* Leachville
* Luxora
*Manila
*Osceola (county seat)
* Wilson

Towns

* Bassett
* Birdsong
* Burdette
*Dell
* Dyess
* Etowah
* Marie
* Victoria

Census-designated places

* Armorel

Townships

* Big Lake (Manila)
* Bowen ( Gosnell)
* Burdette ( Burdette)
* Canadian (Huffman)
* Carson ( Marie)
* Chickasawba ( Blytheville)
* Dyess ( Dyess)
* Fletcher ( Luxora, Victoria)
* Golden Lake ( Wilson)
* Half Moon Lake
* Hector (Dell)
* Little River ( Etowah)
* McGavock ( Joiner)
* Monroe ( Keiser, Osceola)
* Neal ( Leachville)
* Scott ( Bassett)
* Whitton ( Birdsong)

See also

* Arkansas Highway 119 (1927–2022), former state highway in Mississippi County
* Island 35 Mastodon
* List of lakes in Mississippi County, Arkansas
* National Register of Historic Places listings in Mississippi County, Arkansas

References

External links

*

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1833 establishments in Arkansas Territory
Populated places established in 1833
Arkansas placenames of Native American origin
Arkansas counties on the Mississippi River