Ashley County, Arkansas

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Ashley County, Arkansas
Map
Location in the state of Arkansas
Arkansas's location in the U.S.
Statistics
Founded	1848
Seat	Hamburg
Largest city	Crossett
Area - Total - Land - Water	939 sq mi (2,432 km²) 921 sq mi (2,386 km²) 18 sq mi (46 km²), 1.91%
Population - (2000) - Density	24,209 26/sq mi (10/km²)
Time zone	Central: UTC-6/-5
Named for: Chester Ashley, who represented Arkansas in the U.S. Senate.

Ashley County is a county located in the U.S. state of Arkansas, and was formed in 1848 from parts of Chicot, Drew and Union Counties. As of the 2000 census, the population was 24,209. The county seat is Hamburg. It is named for Chester Ashley. It is an alcohol prohibition or dry county.

1 Geography
- 1.1 Major highways
- 1.2 Adjacent counties
2 Demographics
3 Cities and towns
4 External links

[edit] Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 939 square miles (2,432 km²), of which, 921 square miles (2,386 km²) of it is land and 18 square miles (46 km²) of it (1.91%) is water.

[edit] Major highways

[edit] Adjacent counties

Drew County (north)
Chicot County (east)
Morehouse Parish, Louisiana (south)
Union Parish, Louisiana (southwest)
Union County (west)
Bradley County (northwest)

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^[1] of 2000, there were 24,209 people, 9,384 households, and 6,906 families residing in the county. The population density was 26 people per square mile (10/km²). There were 10,615 housing units at an average density of 12 per square mile (4/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 69.78% White, 27.10% Black or African American, 0.21% Native American, 0.18% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 1.73% from other races, and 0.96% from two or more races. 3.21% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 9,384 households out of which 33.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.80% were married couples living together, 13.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.40% were non-families. 23.90% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 3.02.

In the county the population was spread out with 26.80% under the age of 18, 8.30% from 18 to 24, 27.20% from 25 to 44, 23.90% from 45 to 64, and 13.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 93.30 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.60 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $31,758, and the median income for a family was $37,370. Males had a median income of $35,089 versus $19,501 for females. The per capita income for the county was $15,702. About 13.90% of families and 17.50% of the population were below the poverty line, including 25.70% of those under age 18 and 17.20% of those age 65 or over.