Logan County, Arkansas

Logan County (formerly Sarber County) is a county located in the U.S. state of Arkansas. As of the 2020 census, the population was 21,131.^[1] Its two county seats are Booneville and Paris.^[2]

Logan County
County
Logan County Courthouse, Paris
Location within the U.S. state of Arkansas
Arkansas's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 35°13′29″N 93°44′26″W
Country	United States
State	Arkansas
Founded	March 22, 1871
Named after	James Logan
Seat	Paris (northern district); Booneville (southern district)
Largest city	Booneville
Area
• Total	732 sq mi (1,900 km2)
• Land	708 sq mi (1,830 km2)
• Water	23 sq mi (60 km2)  3.2%
Population  (2020)
• Total	21,131
• Estimate  (2024)	21,457
• Density	29/sq mi (11/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	4th

History

The Arkansas General Assembly defined the state's 64th county on March 22, 1871, incorporating parts of Scott, Yell, and Pope counties (later adding part of Franklin County). They named it Sarber County for John Newton Sarber (1837–1905), an attorney and Republican state senator from Yell County. He had introduced the resolution to organize the county. Born and reared in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, he had moved with his widowed father and family to Kansas in 1855. Sarber became influential in the Arkansas legislature, introducing bills to establish a public school system for the first time, and what developed as the University of Arkansas. In 1873, Sarber was appointed U.S. marshal of the U.S. Western District Court at Fort Smith.^[3]

Conservative white Democrats viewed Sarber as a carpetbagger because he was a Union Army veteran who had decided to settle in Arkansas. There he had married Susan Rebecca Rose in 1867. She was the daughter of Moreau Rose, an early pioneer and a Confederate supporter, and his wife. The Sarber couple had six children together; five survived to adulthood.

After white Democrats regained control of the state legislature in 1875, they renamed Sarber County for James Logan (1792-1859), a Kentucky-born early settler in the area who had served in the territorial legislature, from Crawford County, and the first state legislature, from Scott County (part of the latter was absorbed into Logan County).^[4]

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 732 square miles (1,900 km²), of which 708 square miles (1,830 km²) are land and 23 square miles (60 km²) (3.2%) are water.^[5] The highest natural point in Arkansas, Magazine Mountain at 2,753 feet (839 m), is located in Logan County.

Major highways

• Highway 10
• Highway 22
• Highway 23
• Highway 60
• Highway 309

Adjacent counties

• Johnson County (north)
• Pope County (northeast)
• Yell County (southeast)
• Scott County (south)
• Sebastian County (west)
• Franklin County (northwest)

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1880	14,885		—
1890	20,774		39.6%
1900	20,563		−1.0%
1910	26,350		28.1%
1920	25,866		−1.8%
1930	24,110		−6.8%
1940	25,967		7.7%
1950	20,260		−22.0%
1960	15,957		−21.2%
1970	16,789		5.2%
1980	20,144		20.0%
1990	20,557		2.1%
2000	22,486		9.4%
2010	22,353		−0.6%
2020	21,131		−5.5%
2024 (est.)	21,457	[6]	1.5%
U.S. Decennial Census[7] 1790–1960[8] 1900–1990[9] 1990–2000[10] 2010[11]

Age pyramid Logan County^[12]

2020 census

Logan County racial composition^[13]

Race	Number	Percentage
White (non-Hispanic)	18,586	87.96%
Black or African American (non-Hispanic)	225	1.06%
Native American	228	1.08%
Asian	328	1.55%
Pacific Islander	8	0.04%
Other/Mixed	1,116	5.28%
Hispanic or Latino	640	3.03%

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 21,131 people, 8,417 households, and 5,839 families residing in the county.

2000 census

As of the 2000 census,^[14] there were 22,486 people, 8,693 households, and 6,302 families residing in the county. The population density was 32 people per square mile (12 people/km²). There were 9,942 housing units at an average density of 14 per square mile (5.4/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 96.46% White, 1.05% Black or African American, 0.65% Native American, 0.15% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.39% from other races, and 1.28% from two or more races. 1.21% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 8,693 households, out of which 32.90% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.70% were married couples living together, 10.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.50% were non-families. 24.40% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.50% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.53 and the average family size was 3.00.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 25.90% under the age of 18, 7.50% from 18 to 24, 26.70% from 25 to 44, 23.90% from 45 to 64, and 16.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 98.40 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.20 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $28,344, and the median income for a family was $33,732. Males had a median income of $24,472 versus $18,681 for females. The per capita income for the county was $14,527. About 11.40% of families and 15.40% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.20% of those under age 18 and 19.60% of those age 65 or over.

Government and Politics

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 Logan County Quorum Court has eleven 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.^[15][16]

Logan County, Arkansas Elected countywide officials^[17][18][19]

Position	Officeholder	Party
County Judge	Ray Gack	Republican
County Clerk	Brent Anderton	(Unknown)
Circuit Clerk	April Hice	Republican
Sheriff	Jason Massey	Republican
Treasurer	Lori L. Krepps	Republican
Collector	Brittany Porter	Republican
Assessor	Shannon Cotton	Republican
Coroner	Blake Schluterman	Republican

The composition of the Quorum Court following the 2024 elections is 10 Republicans and 1 Democrat. Justices of the Peace (members) of the Quorum Court following the elections are:^[18][20]

• District 1: Charlie Sparks (R)
• District 2: Gary Rhinehart (R)
• District 3: Michael B. Schluterman (R)
• District 4: Joyce Koch (D)
• District 5: Bill Wright (R)
• District 6: Jeffrey O'Neal (R)
• District 7: Bobby Cobb (R)
• District 8: Dalton Haller (R)
• District 9: Sam Tabler (R)
• District 10: Dr. Christopher Loftin (R)
• District 11: Brenda Haley Brewer (R)

Additionally, the townships of Logan County are entitled to elect their own respective constables, as set forth by the Constitution of Arkansas. Constables are largely of historical significance as they were used to keep the peace in rural areas when travel was more difficult.^[21] The township constables as of the 2024 elections are:^[20]

• Ellsworth: Michael Huber (R)
• Short Mountain: John Paul Wells (R)
• Tomlinson: Hillard Turner (D)

Politics

Over the past few election cycles, Logan County has trended heavily towards the GOP. The last Democrat (as of 2024) to carry this county was Bill Clinton in 1996.

United States presidential election results for Logan County, Arkansas^[22]

Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party(ies)
	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2024	6,567	80.04%	1,464	17.84%	174	2.12%
2020	6,441	78.31%	1,544	18.77%	240	2.92%
2016	5,746	72.54%	1,715	21.65%	460	5.81%
2012	5,079	69.28%	2,009	27.40%	243	3.31%
2008	5,350	67.66%	2,286	28.91%	271	3.43%
2004	5,076	59.36%	3,361	39.31%	114	1.33%
2000	4,487	55.42%	3,283	40.55%	326	4.03%
1996	2,966	37.07%	3,832	47.89%	1,204	15.05%
1992	3,408	39.23%	3,995	45.99%	1,284	14.78%
1988	2,203	62.87%	1,254	35.79%	47	1.34%
1984	5,663	63.14%	3,206	35.75%	100	1.11%
1980	4,511	50.61%	4,098	45.98%	304	3.41%
1976	2,909	35.07%	5,313	64.06%	72	0.87%
1972	4,964	71.42%	1,956	28.14%	30	0.43%
1968	2,341	36.02%	1,998	30.74%	2,160	33.24%
1964	2,265	38.42%	3,604	61.13%	27	0.46%
1960	2,014	42.28%	2,636	55.33%	114	2.39%
1956	2,081	47.17%	2,307	52.29%	24	0.54%
1952	2,103	44.85%	2,567	54.75%	19	0.41%
1948	902	28.26%	2,130	66.73%	160	5.01%
1944	1,279	35.98%	2,269	63.83%	7	0.20%
1940	1,065	27.34%	2,831	72.66%	0	0.00%
1936	770	22.38%	2,663	77.41%	7	0.20%
1932	645	20.32%	2,493	78.54%	36	1.13%
1928	1,455	42.42%	1,967	57.35%	8	0.23%
1924	937	32.06%	1,457	49.85%	529	18.10%
1920	1,871	49.51%	1,840	48.69%	68	1.80%
1916	1,183	36.96%	2,018	63.04%	0	0.00%
1912	333	12.98%	1,319	51.40%	914	35.62%
1908	1,151	38.65%	1,716	57.62%	111	3.73%
1904	1,007	43.92%	1,237	53.95%	49	2.14%
1900	848	34.88%	1,557	64.05%	26	1.07%
1896	946	34.51%	1,786	65.16%	9	0.33%

Communities

Cities

• Booneville (county seat)
• Magazine
• Paris (county seat)
• Ratcliff
• Scranton

Towns

• Blue Mountain
• Caulksville
• Morrison Bluff
• Subiaco

Census-designated place

• New Blaine

Unincorporated communities

• Carolan
• Prairie View

Townships

Townships in Arkansas are the divisions of a county. Each township includes unincorporated areas; some may have incorporated cities or towns within part of their boundaries. Arkansas townships have limited purposes in modern times. However, the United States census does list Arkansas population based on townships (sometimes referred to as "county subdivisions" or "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 and publications. The townships of Logan County are listed below; listed in parentheses are the cities, towns, and/or census-designated places that are fully or partially inside the township. ^[23][24]

• Barber
• Blue Mountain (Blue Mountain)
• Boone (Booneville)
• Cane Creek
• Cauthron
• Clark (Subiaco)
• Delaware
• Driggs
• Ellsworth
• Johnson
• Logan
• Mountain
• Petit Jean
• Reveilee (Magazine)
• River (Morrison Bluff, Scranton)
• Roseville
• Shoal Creek (CDP New Blaine)
• Short Mountain (Paris)
• Six Mile (Caulksville, Ratcliff)
• Sugar Creek
• Tomlinson
• Washburn

Notable residents

• Katharine Anthony, American biographer
• James Bridges, born in Paris, Arkansas, screenwriter and film director
• Dizzy Dean, born in Lucas, Arkansas, major league baseball player^[25]
• Paul Dean, born in Lucas, Arkansas, brother of Dizzy Dean and major league baseball player^[25]
• Jon Eubanks, Republican member of the Arkansas House of Representatives from Paris, Arkansas; a farmer and Certified Public Accountant
• General John P. McConnell, Chief of Staff, USAF
• Robert Johnson, lived in Lucas, Arkansas, at the time of the 1920 census. Renowned Bluesman.

See also

• List of lakes in Logan County, Arkansas
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Logan County, Arkansas