Lee County, Arkansas

{{Infobox U.S. county

| county = Lee County

| state = Arkansas

| type = County

| ex image = Lee County Courthouse 001.jpg

| ex image cap = Main façade of the Lee County Courthouse, 2014

| named for = General Robert E. Lee

| seal =

| founded = {{Start date and age|1873|4|17}}

| seat wl = Marianna

| largest city wl = Marianna

| area_total_sq_mi = 620

| area_land_sq_mi = 603

| area_water_sq_mi = 17

| area percentage = 2.7%

| population_as_of = 2020

| population_total = 8600

| pop_est_as_of = 2023

| population_est = 8201 {{loss}}

| density_sq_mi = auto

| district = 1st

| time zone = Central

| web = leecounty.arkansas.gov

}}

Lee County is a county located in the U.S. state of Arkansas. With its eastern border formed by the Mississippi River, it is considered to be part of the Arkansas Delta. As of the 2020 census, the population was 8,600.{{cite web|title=Census - Geography Profile: Lee County, Arkansas|url=https://data.census.gov/profile/Lee_County,_Arkansas?g=0500000US05077|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=January 20, 2023}} The county seat is Marianna.{{cite web|url=http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx|access-date=June 7, 2011|title=Find a County|publisher=National Association of Counties}}

The county was established by the state legislature on April 17, 1873, during the Reconstruction era. It was named for General Robert E. Lee, who served as General in Chief of the Armies of the Confederate States during the American Civil War.{{Cite report |last=Gannett |first=Henry |author-link=Henry Gannett |year=1905 |title=The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States |url=https://archive.org/stream/bulletinofunited258gann#page/n189/mode/2up |series=U.S. Geological survey. Bulletin no. 258 |edition=2nd |location=Washington |publisher=Government Printing Office |page=184 |lccn=05000751 |oclc=1156805 |via=United States Geological Survey}}

History

The area of the Delta was developed largely for cotton as a commodity crop before the Civil War, based on the labor of enslaved African Americans. It continued as an important crop into the 20th century, when it was worked by African-American sharecroppers and tenant farmers. In the post-Reconstruction era, whites struggled to re-establish white supremacy, by violence and intimidation of black Republican Party voters in this area and throughout the South. At the turn of the century, the state legislature passed measures that effectively disenfranchised most blacks for decades. The Equal Justice Initiative reported in 2015 that the county had 15 lynchings of African Americans from 1877 to 1950,[https://eji.org/sites/default/files/lynching-in-america-third-edition-supplement-by-county.pdf Lynching in America/ Supplement: Lynchings by County: Arkansas - Lee County]{{Dead link|date=February 2020 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}, 3rd Edition, 2015, p. 2 most in the decades near the turn of the 20th century. This was the third-highest of any county in the state. To escape the violence and oppression, thousands of African Americans left the state in the Great Migration to northern and western cities, especially after 1940. Mechanization of farming and industrial-scale agriculture have decreased the need for workers. The rural county has continued to lose population because of the lack of work opportunities. There has been a decrease in population every decade since 1940.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of {{convert|620|sqmi}}, of which {{convert|603|sqmi}} is land and {{convert|17|sqmi}} (2.7%) is water.{{cite web|url=http://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/counties_list_05.txt|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=August 27, 2015|date=August 22, 2012|title=2010 Census Gazetteer Files}}

=Major highways=

=Adjacent counties=

=National protected area=

St. Francis National Forest (part)

Demographics

{{US Census population

|1880= 13288

|1890= 18886

|1900= 19409

|1910= 24252

|1920= 28852

|1930= 26637

|1940= 26810

|1950= 24322

|1960= 21001

|1970= 18884

|1980= 15539

|1990= 13053

|2000= 12580

|2010= 10424

|2020= 8600

|estyear=2023

|estimate=8201

|estref={{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/data/tables.html|title=Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2023|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=March 30, 2024}}

|align-fn=center

|footnote=U.S. Decennial Census{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html|title=U.S. Decennial Census|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=August 27, 2015}}
1790–1960{{cite web|url=http://mapserver.lib.virginia.edu|title=Historical Census Browser|publisher=University of Virginia Library|access-date=August 27, 2015}} 1900–1990{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/population/cencounts/ar190090.txt|title=Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990|publisher=United States Census Bureau|editor-last=Forstall|editor-first=Richard L.|date=March 27, 1995|access-date=August 27, 2015}}
1990–2000{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/population/www/cen2000/briefs/phc-t4/tables/tab02.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100327165705/http://www.census.gov/population/www/cen2000/briefs/phc-t4/tables/tab02.pdf |archive-date=March 27, 2010 |url-status=live|title=Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000|publisher=United States Census Bureau|date=April 2, 2001|access-date=August 27, 2015}} 2010{{cite web|title=State & County QuickFacts|url=http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/05/05077.html|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=May 23, 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110607033110/http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/05/05077.html|archive-date=June 7, 2011}}

}}

Image:USA Lee County, Arkansas age pyramid.svg data]]

=2020 census=

class="wikitable"

|+Lee County Racial Composition{{Cite web|title=Explore Census Data|url=https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?g=0500000US05077&tid=DECENNIALPL2020.P2|access-date=December 7, 2021|website=data.census.gov}}

!Race

!Num.

!Perc.

White

|3,424

|39.81%

Black or African American

|4,657

|54.15%

Native American

|18

|0.21%

Asian

|13

|0.15%

Pacific Islander

|0.01%

Other/Mixed

|271

|3.15%

Hispanic or Latino

|216

|2.51%

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 8,600 people, 3,206 households, and 1,994 families residing in the county.

=2010 census=

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 10,424 people living in the county. 55.3% were Black or African American, 42.0% White, 0.5% Native American, 1.6% were Hispanic or Latino (of any race), 0.4% Asian, 0.7% of some other race and 1.2% of two or more races.

=2000 census=

As of the 2000 United States Census,{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=May 14, 2011|title=U.S. Census website}} there were 12,580 people, 4,182 households, and 2,960 families living in the county. The population density was {{convert|21|/mi2|/km2|disp=preunit|people |people}}. There were 4,768 housing units at an average density of {{convert|8|/mi2|/km2|disp=preunit|units |units}}. The racial makeup of the county was 57.24% Black or African American, 41.41% White, 2.19% Hispanic or Latino of any race, 0.27% Asian, 0.16% Native American, 0.52% from other races, and 0.40% from two or more races.

There were 4,182 households, out of which 31.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.20% were married couples living together, 23.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.20% were non-families. 27.20% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.80% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.59 and the average family size was 3.14.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 26.00% under the age of 18, 10.20% from 18 to 24, 28.70% from 25 to 44, 21.10% from 45 to 64, and 14.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 111.40 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 118.40 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $20,510, and the median income for a family was $25,846. Males had a median income of $26,900 versus $19,505 for females. The per capita income for the county was $10,983. About 24.70% of families and 29.90% of the population were below the poverty line, including 38.80% of those under age 18 and 27.60% of those age 65 or over.

Government and infrastructure

= 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 Lee County Quorum Court has nine members. Presiding over quorum court meetings is the county judge, who serves as the chief executive 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.{{Cite web |title=Quorum Courts |url=https://encyclopediaofarkansas.net/entries/quorum-courts-6348/ |access-date=2025-04-04 |website=Encyclopedia of Arkansas |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |title=Office of County Judge |url=https://encyclopediaofarkansas.net/entries/office-of-county-judge-5720/ |access-date=2025-04-04 |website=Encyclopedia of Arkansas |language=en-US}}

class="wikitable"

|+Lee County, Arkansas Elected countywide officials{{Cite web |title=Lee {{!}} Association of Arkansas Counties |url=https://www.arcounties.org/counties/lee/ |access-date=2025-04-04 |website=www.arcounties.org}}https://www.arcounties.org/site/assets/files/6033/november_races.pdf{{Cite web |title=Election Night Reporting |url=https://results.enr.clarityelections.com/AR/Lee/115807/web.307039/#/summary?v=313686/ |access-date=2025-04-04 |website=results.enr.clarityelections.com}}

!Position

!Officeholder

!Party