| Phillips County, Arkansas | |
|
Phillips County courthouse in Helena-West Helena, Arkansas
|
|
Location in the state of Arkansas |
|
Arkansas's location in the U.S. |
|
| Founded | May 1, 1820 |
|---|---|
| Seat | Helena-West Helena |
| Area - Total - Land - Water |
727.29 sq mi (1,884 km²) 692.67 sq mi (1,794 km²) 34.62 sq mi (90 km²), 4.76% |
| Population - (2010) - Density |
21,757 31/sq mi (12.13/km²) |
| Congressional district | 1st |
Phillips County is a county located in the U.S. state of Arkansas. As of 2010, the population was 21,757. The county seat is Helena-West Helena.[1] Phillips County is Arkansas's seventh county, formed on May 1, 1820, and named for Sylvanus Phillips, the area's first-known white settler and representative to the first Territorial Legislature of the Arkansas Territory.
The Helena-West Helena Micropolitan Statistical Area includes all of Phillips County.
Arkansas Attorney General Bruce Bennett was born in Phillips County in 1917 but reared and lived his adult years in El Dorado, the seat of Union County, Arkansas in southern Arkansas.[2]
Contents |
According to the 2000 census, the county has a total area of 727.29 square miles (1,883.7 km2), of which 692.67 square miles (1,794.0 km2) (or 95.24%) is land and 34.62 square miles (89.7 km2) (or 4.76%) is water.[3]
| Historical populations | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1830 | 1,152 |
|
|
| 1840 | 3,547 | 207.9% | |
| 1850 | 6,935 | 95.5% | |
| 1860 | 14,877 | 114.5% | |
| 1870 | 15,372 | 3.3% | |
| 1880 | 21,262 | 38.3% | |
| 1890 | 25,341 | 19.2% | |
| 1900 | 26,561 | 4.8% | |
| 1910 | 33,535 | 26.3% | |
| 1920 | 44,530 | 32.8% | |
| 1930 | 40,683 | −8.6% | |
| 1940 | 45,970 | 13.0% | |
| 1950 | 46,254 | 0.6% | |
| 1960 | 43,997 | −4.9% | |
| 1970 | 40,046 | −9.0% | |
| 1980 | 34,772 | −13.2% | |
| 1990 | 28,838 | −17.1% | |
| 2000 | 26,445 | −8.3% | |
| 2010 | 21,757 | −17.7% | |
| [4][5][6] | |||
As of the census[8] of 2000, there were 26,445 people, 9,711 households, and 6,768 families residing in the county. The population density was 38 people per square mile (15/km²). There were 10,859 housing units at an average density of 16 per square mile (6/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 59.04% Black or African American, 39.25% White, 0.43% from other races, 0.32% Asian, 0.17% Native American, 0.01% Pacific Islander, and 0.78% from two or more races. 1.44% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 9,711 households out of which 34.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.30% were married couples living together, 25.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.30% were non-families. 27.60% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.69 and the average family size was 3.29.
In the county the population was spread out with 32.20% under the age of 18, 9.40% from 18 to 24, 23.20% from 25 to 44, 21.20% from 45 to 64, and 13.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 84.70 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 77.70 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $22,231, and the median income for a family was $26,570. Males had a median income of $24,675 versus $17,520 for females. The per capita income for the county was $12,288. About 28.70% of families and 32.70% of the population were below the poverty line, including 45.50% of those under age 18 and 26.20% of those age 65 or over.
The Helena-West Helena statistical area had the largest drop in population, at −20.89%, of any statistical area in the country for the period 2000-2009.
Townships in Arkansas are the divisions of a county. Each township includes unincorporated areas and some may have incorporated towns or cities within part of their space. Townships have limited purposes in modern times. However, the US Census does list Arkansas population based on townships (often referred to as "minor civil divisions"). Townships are also of value for historical purposes in terms of genealogical research. Each town or city is within one or more townships in an Arkansas county based on census maps. The townships of Phillips County are listed below with the town(s) and/or city that are fully or partially inside them listed in parentheses. [9][10]
School districts serving Phillips County include the Helena-West Helena School District, the Marvell-Elaine School District, and the Barton-Lexa School District.
Previously the Lake View School District served a portion of the county. On July 1, 2004, the Lake View district merged into the Barton-Lexa district. Previously the Elaine School District served another portion of the county. On July 1, 2006, the Elaine district merged into the Marvell district.[11]
Marvell Academy, a private school, is in unincorporated Phillips County, near Marvell.[12] Marvell was founded in 1966.[13] It was originally founded as a segregation academy.[14]
| Monroe County | Lee County | Tunica County, Mississippi | ||
| Coahoma County, Mississippi | ||||
| Phillips County, Arkansas | ||||
| Arkansas County | Desha County | Bolivar County, Mississippi |
|
||||||||||||||