Sebastian County, Arkansas
Sebastian County is a county located in the U.S. state of Arkansas. As of the 2020 census, the population was 127,799, making it the fourth-most populous county in Arkansas. The county has two county seats, Greenwood and Fort Smith.
Sebastian County is part of the Fort Smith metropolitan area.
History
Early settlement
Following the upheaval caused by the 1811–1812 New Madrid earthquakes in Northeast Arkansas, Cherokee relocated in the area now known as Sebastian County; they were joined by Cherokee relocating from eastern states to form a sizeable community which would conflict with the Osage people who claimed nearby hunting grounds to the west. The United States Military constructed a fort at the confluence of the Arkansas River and the Poteau River, an area known as Belle Point. The fort was named Fort Smith after general Thomas A. Smith. A settlement of the same name grew around the fort, and remained even after the fort was abandoned. A second fort was built in 1836 at the same site and served as the western end of the Trail of Tears during Indian removal, ending the forced displacement at Indian Territory immediately west of Fort Smith. The combination of the historic land route and steamboats coming up the Arkansas River combined to make the area an important crossroads between east and west for American settlers expanding westward across North America during the "manifest destiny" period.Establishment
The Arkansas General Assembly created Sebastian County as Arkansas's 56th county on January 6, 1851, and named it for William K. Sebastian, United States Senator from Arkansas. Created from parts of Crawford, Polk, and Scott counties; Eaton Tatum's house at Jenny Lind served as temporary county seat while a five-person commission selected the permanent county seat.Now a commissioner, Tatum, sought to make Jenny Lind the permanent site. Though Fort Smith was the only community of any size within the new county, Jenny Lind was centrally located. The commissioners decided to establish a new town on of rural land, which had been donated by commissioner Reuben Coker, to be named Greenwood, in honor of Alfred B. Greenwood, who sat as the first circuit judge.
Fight for the county seat
With many residents finding the site unsuitable, a countywide election was held in 1852 that moved the county seat to Fort Smith. The seat was to be located on a block at N. 2nd Street & A Street donated by John Rogers. In 1854, another election was held returning the county seat to Greenwood. The Arkansas General Assembly established a compromise in 1860 to split Sebastian County into two judicial districts; giving Sebastian County two county seats, Fort Smith and Greenwood. The districts were named for their respective seats; the Fort Smith district consisting of the city limits and Upper Township, with the remainder of Sebastian County making up the Greenwood district. The districts had separate slates of elected officials, separate quorum court and district court, and tax assessment and collection were kept separate.Following the Civil War, the county seat discussion resumed during the politically charged Reconstruction Era, now between Union sympathizers who had moved around Fort Smith and pro-Confederate sentiment in Greenwood. In 1868, another vote was forced by Fort Smith supporters. Both sides claimed victory in a contested election, but by 1870, the Arkansas Supreme Court declared Fort Smith the seat and all court records were moved to Fort Smith. The Arkansas General Assembly restored the ability for the Sebastian County quorum court to meet in two places by passing a bill written by Caswell B. Neal, powerful member of the Arkansas House of Representatives from Greenwood. The following year, another bill from the General Assembly moved the offices of sheriff and county clerk to Fort Smith but restored the Greenwood district's ability to collect separate taxes. Tensions increased, with the sheriff raising the local militia and a posse alleged to be the Ku Klux Klan burning a residence near Greenwood. In 1872, the Arkansas Supreme Court ruled having separate elected officials and taxation destroyed the integrity of Sebastian County and restored Greenwood as the lone county seat, but allowed court to be held in both cities per the 1860 act of the General Assembly. During the 1874 Arkansas Constitutional Convention, future Governor of Arkansas William Fishback inserted a paragraph into the draft providing "Sebastian County may have two districts and two county seats", settling the matter when it was ratified as the current Constitution of Arkansas. The following year, the General Assembly provided for two districts, with names and limits as previously established. The districts functioned as separate counties legislatively and judicially, but had a common county judge, county clerk, sheriff, treasurer, and collector. Officials kept separate accounts and files for the two districts; it was the only of Arkansas's ten dual county seat counties with districts operating independently of each other. This idiosyncrasy would remain until Amendment 55 in 1874, which transformed county government in Arkansas.
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of, of which is land and is water. It is the second-smallest county by area in Arkansas.Major highways
- 20px Interstate 49
- 25px Interstate 540
- 20px U.S. Highway 64
- 20px U.S. Highway 71
- 25px U.S. Highway 271
- 20px State Route 10
- 20px State Route 22
- 20px State Route 45
- 20px State Route 59
- 20px State Route 96
Adjacent counties
- Crawford County
- Franklin County
- Logan County
- Scott County
- Le Flore County, Oklahoma
- Sequoyah County, Oklahoma
National protected areas
- Fort Smith National Historic Site
- Ouachita National Forest
Demographics
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 127,799. The median age was 38.2 years. 23.8% of residents were under the age of 18 and 16.6% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 95.5 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 93.1 males age 18 and over.The racial makeup of the county was 67.9% White, 6.3% Black or African American, 2.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 4.5% Asian, 0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 8.1% from some other race, and 10.7% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 15.1% of the population.
80.3% of residents lived in urban areas, while 19.7% lived in rural areas.
There were 51,312 households in the county, of which 30.6% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 44.5% were married-couple households, 19.6% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 28.5% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 29.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 56,749 housing units, of which 9.6% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 58.7% were owner-occupied and 41.3% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.0% and the rental vacancy rate was 9.9%.
2000 census
As of the 2000 United States census, there were 115,071 people, 45,300 households, and 30,713 families residing in the county. The population density was. There were 49,311 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the county was 82.34% White, 6.16% Black or African American, 1.57% Native American, 3.51% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 3.71% from other races, and 2.67% from two or more races. 6.70% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 19.6% were of American, 12.91% German, 11.0% Irish and 9.0% English ancestry according to Census 2000. 5.49% reported speaking Spanish at home, while 1.47% speak Vietnamese and 0.97% Lao.In 2000 there were 45,300 households, out of which 32.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.40% were married couples living together, 11.30% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.20% were non-families. 27.50% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 3.04.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 26.00% under the age of 18, 9.20% from 18 to 24, 29.50% from 25 to 44, 22.30% from 45 to 64, and 13.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.30 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.10 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $33,889, and the median income for a family was $41,303. Males had a median income of $30,056 versus $22,191 for females. The per capita income for the county was $18,424. About 10.40% of families and 13.60% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.60% of those under age 18 and 10.00% of those age 65 or over.
As of 2010 census the population of Sebastian County was 125,744. The racial makeup of the county was 72.83% Non-Hispanic white, 6.24% Non-Hispanic black, 1.88% Native American, 4.06% Asian, 0.09% Pacific Islander, 0.07% Non-Hispanics of some other race, 2.78% Non-Hispanics reporting two or more races and 12.82% Hispanics.
Government
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 Sebastian County Quorum Court has thirteen members. Presiding over quorum court meetings is the county judge, who serves as the chief operating 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.| Position | Officeholder | Party |
| County Judge | Steve Hotz | Republican |
| County Clerk | Sharon Brooks | Republican |
| Circuit Clerk | Susie Hassett | Republican |
| Sheriff | Hobe Runion | Republican |
| Treasurer/Collector | Lora Rice | Republican |
| Assessor | Zack Johnson | Republican |
| Coroner | Kenny Hobbs | Republican |
The composition of the Quorum Court following the 2024 elections is 9 Republicans and 4 Democrats. Justices of the Peace of the Quorum Court following the elections are:
- District 1: Johnny Hobbs
- District 2: Jackie Davis
- District 3: Shawn Looper
- District 4: James W. Butler
- District 5: John Spradlin
- District 6: Danny Wayne Aldridge
- District 7: Kenneth Williamson
- District 8: Valeria J. Robinson
- District 9: Rhonda Royal
- District 10: Dickie Robertson
- District 11: Jerry Ward
- District 12: Tommy Camp
- District 13: Lorrie A. Runion
- District 1: Charlie Carpenter
- District 2: Steve Wiley
- District 4: William Justin Hayes
- Upper Township: Paul Foley