Lawrence County, Arkansas


Lawrence County is a county located in the U.S. state of Arkansas. As of the 2010 census, the population was 17,415. The county seat is Walnut Ridge. Lawrence County is Arkansas's second county, formed on January 15, 1815, and named for Captain James Lawrence who fought in the War of 1812. It is an alcohol prohibition or dry county.

Geography

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

Major highways

As of the 2000 census, there were 17,774 people, 7,108 households, and 5,011 families residing in the county. The population density was 30 people per square mile. There were 8,085 housing units at an average density of 14 per square mile. The racial makeup of the county was 97.78% White, 0.44% Black or African American, 0.57% Native American, 0.05% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.12% from other races, and 1.02% from two or more races. 0.68% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 7,108 households out of which 30.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.70% were married couples living together, 9.60% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.50% were non-families. 26.70% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 2.92.
In the county, the population was spread out with 24.00% under the age of 18, 9.60% from 18 to 24, 25.90% from 25 to 44, 23.20% from 45 to 64, and 17.40% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 93.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.40 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $27,139, and the median income for a family was $32,163. Males had a median income of $26,288 versus $18,518 for females. The per capita income for the county was $13,785. About 13.90% of families and 18.40% of the population were below the poverty line, including 25.50% of those under age 18 and 20.10% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Over The past few election cycles Lawrence County has trended heavily towards the GOP. The last democrat to carry this county was John Kerry in 2004.
YearGOPDemOthers
201671.49% 4,06422.22% 1,2636.30% 358
201263.83% 3,53632.27% 1,7883.90% 216
200857.58% 3,35736.67% 2,1385.75% 335
200444.61% 2,95153.58% 3,5441.81% 120
200043.48% 2,62653.89% 3,2552.63% 159
199629.69% 1,82359.47% 3,65210.85% 666
199230.65% 2,12459.84% 4,1469.51% 659
198849.91% 3,20549.51% 3,1790.58% 37
198460.50% 4,03938.86% 2,5940.64% 43
198046.60% 3,24550.94% 3,5472.46% 171
197624.82% 1,70875.08% 5,1670.10% 7
197269.45% 3,98130.55% 1,7510.00% 0
196828.77% 1,78825.96% 1,61345.27% 2,813
196436.35% 2,01363.16% 3,4980.49% 27
196044.28% 1,80051.02% 2,0744.70% 191
195640.12% 1,58458.33% 2,3031.55% 61
195240.84% 1,57057.39% 2,2061.77% 68
194818.60% 49774.89% 2,0016.51% 174
194433.83% 92766.06% 1,8100.11% 3
194025.36% 85273.93% 2,4840.71% 24
193616.91% 45782.50% 2,2300.59% 16
19328.58% 29389.54% 3,0561.88% 64
192839.03% 77460.72% 1,2040.25% 5
192423.18% 26161.19% 68915.63% 176
192028.72% 69969.27% 1,6862.01% 49
191614.87% 29885.13% 1,7060.00% 0
191215.15% 21864.56% 92920.30% 292
190831.79% 58364.78% 1,1883.44% 63
190442.41% 53453.38% 6724.21% 53
190032.96% 47666.34% 9580.69% 10
189616.42% 33781.78% 1,6791.80% 37

Education

Public education is available from four school districts:

Cities