Yell County, Arkansas

Yell County, Arkansas
Yell County Courthouse, Dardanelle
Map of Arkansas highlighting Yell County
Location in the U.S. state of Arkansas
Map of the United States highlighting Arkansas
Arkansas's location in the U.S.
Founded December 5, 1840
Named for Archibald Yell
Government
• Sheriff
Bill Gilkey
Seat Danville (western district);
Dardanelle (eastern district)
Largest city Dardanelle
Area
 • Total 949 sq mi (2,458 km2)
 • Land 930 sq mi (2,409 km2)
 • Water 19 sq mi (49 km2), 2.0%
Population (est.)
 • (2016) 21,552
 • Density 24/sq mi (9/km2)
Congressional district 4th
Time zone Central: UTC−6/−5
Website yellcounty.net

Yell County is a county in the U.S. state of Arkansas. As of the 2010 census, the population was 22,185.[1] The county has two county seats, Dardanelle and Danville.[2] Yell County is Arkansas's 42nd county, formed on December 5, 1840 from portions of Scott and Pope counties. It was named after Archibald Yell, who was the state's first member of the United States House of Representatives and the second governor of Arkansas; he later was killed in combat at the Battle of Buena Vista during the Mexican–American War. It is an alcohol prohibition or dry county.

Yell County is part of the Russellville, AR Micropolitan Statistical Area.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 949 square miles (2,460 km2), of which 930 square miles (2,400 km2) is land and 19 square miles (49 km2) (2.0%) is water.[3]

Major highways

Adjacent counties

National protected areas

Demographics

Historical population
CensusPop.%±
18503,341—
18606,33389.6%
18708,04827.1%
188013,85272.1%
189018,01530.1%
190022,75026.3%
191026,32315.7%
192025,655−2.5%
193021,313−16.9%
194020,970−1.6%
195014,057−33.0%
196011,940−15.1%
197014,20819.0%
198017,02619.8%
199017,7594.3%
200021,13919.0%
201022,1854.9%
Est. 201621,552[4]−2.9%
U.S. Decennial Census[5]
1790–1960[6] 1900–1990[7]
1990–2000[8] 2010–2016[1]
Age pyramid Yell County[9]

As of the 2000 census,[10] there were 21,139 people, 7,922 households, and 5,814 families residing in the county. The population density was 23 people per square mile (9/km²). There were 9,157 housing units at an average density of 10 per square mile (4/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 86.63% White, 1.47% Black or African American, 0.58% Native American, 0.69% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 8.99% from other races, and 1.62% from two or more races. 12.73% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 12.00% reported speaking Spanish at home.[11]

There were 7,922 households out of which 33.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.50% were married couples living together, 10.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.60% were non-families. 23.20% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.80% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.61 and the average family size was 3.04.

In the county, the population was spread out with 25.80% under the age of 18, 8.90% from 18 to 24, 28.30% from 25 to 44, 22.00% from 45 to 64, and 15.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.30 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $28,916, and the median income for a family was $33,409. Males had a median income of $23,172 versus $18,148 for females. The per capita income for the county was $15,383. About 11.70% of families and 15.40% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.20% of those under age 18 and 12.80% of those age 65 or over.

Government

The chief officer of the law in Yell County, as in all Arkansas counties, is the sheriff. The current sheriff of Yell County is Bill Gilkey, who has served since 1998. In 2017, he became the longest currently-serving sheriff in Arkansas, after 19 years in the office. He is also the longest-serving sheriff in the county's history.[12] He has announced that he will retire after his term ends in 2022. Gilkey has sat on state boards such as the Arkansas Crime Lab Board and is still currently on the Arkansas Act 309 Board.

Gilkey is credited with the creation of the Yell County Law Enforcement Center in 2016, which replaces two of the county's older jails that did not meet state standards, and houses the sheriff's office. The new building also houses CID offices, revenue office, and an updated E911 dispatch center.[13]

Yell County Sheriff's[14]
Name Year Elected Year Left Total Years Notable Accomplishments
Theodore P Sadler 1840 1846 6
  • First county sheriff
S. Kirkpatrick 1846 1852 6
Joseph Garrett 1852 1854 2
J. C. Herin 1854 1856 2
Joseph Gault 1856 1862 6
Lorenzo Free 1862 1863 1
O. Wood 1863 1864 1
William Henry Ferguson 1864 1871 7
Jesse George 1871 1872 1
J. A. Wilson 1872 1874 2
Reuben E. Cole 1874 1880 6
Levi L. Briggs 1880 1882 2
Joseph L. Davis 1882 1886 4
H. B. McCarrell 1886 1890 4
Joseph Haston Howard 1890 1892 2
Sam Gordon Albright 1892 1896 4
B. H. Burnett 1896 1900 6
James M. Cole 1900 1904 4
William Franklin Briggs 1904 1906 2
William L. Tatum 1906 1910 4
Theodore Riley Gault 1910 1914 4
Will T. Caviness 1914 1919 5
J. N. George 1919 1923 4
Joe D. Gault 1923 1926 3
Baxter Gatlin 1927 1930 3
Buford Compton 1931 1946 15
Earl E Lad 1947 1956 9
Herman D. McCormick 1957 1968 11
Carlos Mitchell 1969 1976 7
  • Construction of the old Danville Jail (Replaced in 2016)
  • Construction of the old Dardanelle Jail (Replaced in 2016)
Hartsell Lewis 1977 1978 1
Denver Dennis 1979 1988 9
Mike May 1989 1992 3
Loyd W. Maughn 1993 1998 5
  • Construction of Juvenile Detention Center (1997)[15]
Bill Gilkey 1999 2022 23
  • Construction of New Law Enforcement Center and Jail (2016)
  • Longest serving sheriff in Yell Count (2016)
  • Longest current serving sheriff in the state of Arkansas (2016)
Presidential elections results
Yell County vote
by party in presidential elections [16]
Year GOP Dem Others
2016 71.56% 4,608 22.98% 1,480 5.45% 351
2012 67.66% 4,042 28.82% 1,722 3.52% 210
2008 63.09% 3,808 33.18% 2,003 3.73% 225
2004 55.23% 3,678 43.75% 2,913 1.02% 68
2000 49.75% 3,223 47.26% 3,062 2.99% 194
1996 31.77% 2,111 56.43% 3,749 11.80% 784
1992 32.79% 2,506 54.49% 4,165 12.72% 972
1988 55.84% 3,535 43.64% 2,763 0.52% 33
1984 59.56% 4,051 39.39% 2,679 1.06% 72
1980 44.65% 3,187 51.87% 3,702 3.48% 248
1976 25.04% 1,932 74.96% 5,785
1972 66.48% 3,310 33.52% 1,669 0.00% 0
1968 34.44% 1,819 28.65% 1,513 36.91% 1,949
1964 30.86% 1,527 68.86% 3,407 0.28% 14
1960 37.96% 1,303 58.49% 2,008 3.55% 122
1956 40.70% 1,381 59.18% 2,008 0.12% 4
1952 39.54% 1,243 59.92% 1,884 0.54% 17
1948 16.85% 408 77.08% 1,866 6.08% 147
1944 22.94% 489 77.02% 1,642 0.05% 1
1940 9.08% 224 90.64% 2,236 0.28% 7
1936 11.78% 318 88.22% 2,382 0.00% 0
1932 11.88% 272 87.77% 2,010 0.35% 8
1928 27.65% 802 71.91% 2,086 0.45% 13
1924 19.15% 334 75.34% 1,314 5.50% 96
1920 34.21% 1,042 63.20% 1,925 2.59% 79
1916 27.12% 781 72.88% 2,099 0.00% 0
1912 17.18% 436 55.20% 1,401 27.62% 701
1908 34.70% 1,040 58.16% 1,743 7.14% 214
1904 44.32% 913 52.38% 1,079 3.30% 68
1900 33.73% 798 65.68% 1,554 0.59% 14
1896 26.32% 812 73.29% 2,261 0.39% 12

Education

Public education

Early childhood, elementary and secondary education within Yell County is provided by four public school districts:

Dissolved School Districts

Public libraries

The Arkansas River Valley Regional Library System, is headquartered in Dardanelle and serves multiple counties and consists of one central library and six branch libraries, including the Yell County Library, a branch library in Danville.

Communities

Cities

Towns

Unincorporated communities

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 Yell County are listed below; listed in parentheses are the cities, towns, and/or census-designated places that are fully or partially inside the township. [17][18]

  • Birta
  • Bluffton
  • Briggsville
  • Centerville
  • Chula
  • Compton
  • Crawford
  • Danville (Corinth, Danville)
  • Dardanelle (Dardanelle)
  • Dutch Creek
  • Ferguson (Belleville)
  • Galla Rock
  • Gilkey
  • Gravelly Hill
  • Herring
  • Ions Creek
  • Lamar (Plainview)
  • Magazine
  • Mason
  • Mountain
  • Prairie
  • Richland
  • Riley (Havana)
  • Rover
  • Sulphur Springs
  • Ward (Ola)
  • Waveland

Notable people

Fallen Officers

Yell County Sheriff's Department

LT Kevin Mainhart

LT Kevin Clyde Mainhart - May 11, 2017

Lieutenant Kevin Mainhart was shot and killed while conducting a traffic stop of a vehicle involved in a domestic disturbance. He was responding to the domestic disturbance call when he encountered a vehicle connected to the call on Highway 27 and Slo Fork Road. During the course of the stop the subject fatally shot him. A passerby located his body and called 911, who then dispatched appropriate response teams. Additional units responded to the home of the original call and located two murder victims at the location. The subject surrendered to authorities after barricading himself in a nearby home for several hours.The subject plead guilty to capital murder and was sentenced to life in prison without parole.Lieutenant Mainhart was a U.S. Air Force veteran. He joined the Yell County Sheriff's Department after retiring from the West Memphis, Arkansas, Police Department. He is survived by his wife, two sons, parents and brother[19].

Ola Police Department

Chief Doyle Lee Holstein - August 6, 1995

Chief Doyle Holstein was shot and killed at a domestic disturbance call. He was shot as he stood at the end of a hallway which led to the bedroom where the suspect was hiding. The suspect was apprehended and, after being deemed mentally incompetent, was sentenced to a term in a mental institution. Chief Holstein had served with the agency for over 23 years and is survived by his wife, six sons, and two daughters, and his mother[20].

Trivia

  • In the novel True Grit, the heroine Mattie Ross is from near Dardanelle in Yell County.
  • First Sergeant William Ellis of the 3rd Wisconsin Cavalry, was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for his valor and bravery above and beyond the call of duty at Dardanelle. At 10 a.m. on January 14, 1865, approximately 1,500 Confederates attacked the Union forces entrenched on the outskirts of the town and a fierce four-hour battle was waged. In the end Confederate Colonel William H. Brooks was unable to overcome the Union defenders of the town and was forced to retreat. It was during this battle that Ellis held his position even after receiving three wounds and would not withdraw for medical attention until he received a fourth wound and was ordered to retire by his commanding officer.
  • Yell County was the birthplace of Gretchen McNairy, a moe character from the animated TV series Lukas. The county is referenced several times, and is often portrayed as a land of milk and honey, despite its depressing poverty, since it is the only place where Gretchen's parents actually loved her.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved May 19, 2014.
  2. ↑ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved 2011-06-07.
  3. ↑ "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Retrieved August 27, 2015.
  4. ↑ "Population and Housing Unit Estimates". Retrieved June 9, 2017.
  5. ↑ "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 27, 2015.
  6. ↑ "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved August 27, 2015.
  7. ↑ Forstall, Richard L., ed. (March 27, 1995). "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 27, 2015.
  8. ↑ "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. April 2, 2001. Retrieved August 27, 2015.
  9. ↑ Based on 2000 census data
  10. ↑ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2011-05-14.
  11. ↑ http://www.mla.org/map_data_results&state_id=5&county_id=149&mode=geographic&order=r
  12. ↑ "Gilkey is longest-tenured sheriff in Arkansas". River Valley Leader. Retrieved 2018-02-12.
  13. ↑ "Photos: Yell County Law Enforcement Center nears completion", River Valley Leader, January 5, 2016.
  14. ↑ Yell County Court House Records
  15. ↑ "Wayback Machine". 2014-01-08. Retrieved 2018-10-09.
  16. ↑ "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". Retrieved November 18, 2016.
  17. ↑ 2011 Boundary and Annexation Survey (BAS): Yell County, AR (PDF) (Map). U. S. Census Bureau. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-10-19. Retrieved 2011-08-24.
  18. ↑ "Arkansas: 2010 Census Block Maps – County Subdivision". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved May 29, 2014.
  19. ↑ "Lieutenant Kevin Clyde Mainhart". The Officer Down Memorial Page (ODMP). Retrieved 2018-10-09.
  20. ↑ "Chief of Police Doyle Lee Holstein". The Officer Down Memorial Page (ODMP). Retrieved 2018-10-09.

Coordinates: 34°59′54″N 93°27′09″W / 34.99833°N 93.45250°W / 34.99833; -93.45250

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.