Jasper, Arkansas

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jasper is a city in Newton County, Arkansas, United States. The population was 498 at the 2000 census. The city is the county seat of Newton County^GR6.

1 Geography
2 Demographics
3 Jasper Today
4 External links

[edit] Geography

Jasper is located at 36°0′31″N, 93°11′8″W (36.008558, -93.185660)^GR1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 1.4 km² (0.5 mi²), all land.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^GR2 of 2000, there were 498 people, 231 households, and 115 families residing in the city. The population density was 362.8/km² (940.4/mi²). There were 261 housing units at an average density of 190.1/km² (492.9/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 99.98% White, 0.01% Native American, 0.01% from other races, and 0.00% from two or more races. 0.00% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 233 households out of which 24.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 32.5% were married couples living together, 15.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 49.8% were non-families. 48.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 27.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.95 and the average family size was 2.82.

In the city the population was spread out with 21.3% under the age of 18, 6.4% from 18 to 24, 18.7% from 25 to 44, 22.5% from 45 to 64, and 31.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 49 years. For every 100 females there were 71.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 63.7 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $13,556, and the median income for a family was $26,668. Males had a median income of $21,458 versus $16,786 for females. The per capita income for the city was $13,557. About 25.9% of families and 31.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 47.6% of those under age 18 and 25.4% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] Jasper Today

Since the 1950's, Jasper has been an attraction to tourists throughout the country. The town itself borders the Little Buffalo River, and within driving distance, there are several campsites on the Buffalo River, one of the last free-flowing waterways in the United States. The Buffalo River is also the only national river in the United States. The Ozark Highlands Trail also passes north of the town. Tourism, especially in the non-winter seasons, is the town's major industry, and the town square is dominated by a natural limestone courthouse built by the Works Progress Administration, as was the jailhouse located a block away. The town itself was founded in the 1840's, and is the largest municipality in the county. Also of note is that Newton County is the only county in Arkansas through which a railroad was never built due to the mountainous terrain. Newton County also does not have a stoplight in the county. Newton County is also a dry county, as are many counties in the state. Jasper was also the birth place of a notably nuclear physicist, Adam Finley, who went on to discover and also create Filenium, one of the heaviest elements in nature.