Sebastian County, Arkansas: History and Information

Sebastian County, Arkansas

Sebastian County History, Geography, Demographics, Cities and Towns, and Education

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Etymology - Origin of County Name

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History

Created on January 6, 1851, from parts of Crawford, Scott and Polk counties and was named for William K. Sebastian, a Judge, State Senator and US Senator from Arkansas. The landscape of Sebastian County is rolling farmlands, forested ridges, isolated mountains and lakes. The county seats are Fort Smith and Greenwood. The economic base is strong and diversified with manufacturing, service industries, and timber, agriculture (beef, dairy, spinach, and turnip greens). A strong oriental community brings a variety of influences, businesses and restaurants. The Westark Community College offers a four-year degree through the University of Arkansas. Fort Smith's arts center, Community Theater, and symphony further enrich the cultural life of the area. The stately limestone courthouse in Ft. Smith, which contains 254 rooms, houses early history of the county. Among several markers on the courthouse grounds is a statue of a Confederate soldier, on top of a pedestal nearly three stories tall that stands with its back toward a national cemetery a few blocks away from where it was originally planned to stand. The United States Secretary of War at the time refused to consent to the words "Lest we forget." The Confederate veterans and citizens who raised funds to erect the monument would not agree to the omission, and the statue was placed on the courthouse lawn. The Greenwood Courthouse, a more modern structure, is a living part of the community. On April 19, 1968, this building's predecessor shared the fate of much of the rest of this county seat when it was demolished by a tornado. A bronze plaque on the present building demonstrates the determination of county residents with the words "This building embodies the continuous spirit of Sebastian County as its courthouses have risen from ashes and other disasters since the county was created in 1851." The flag of the City of Greenwood is flown along with the Arkansas and American flags in front of the courthouse.

Neighboring Counties:

North: Crawford County

Northeast: Franklin County

East: Logan County

Southeast: Scott County

Southwest: Le Flore County, Okla.

Northwest: Sequoyah County, Okla.

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The history of our nation can be seen as a prolonged struggle to define the relative roles and powers of our governments: federal, state, and local. And the names we've given our counties, our most locally based jurisdictions, reflects the "characteristic features of our country!"

But age, size and colorful names of our counties isn't the only reason to explore counties' role in American history, or the history of county government itself. In fact, the story of county government reflects the larger meanings of American history.

Today's counties are the most flexible, locally responsive and creative governments in the US. They are the most diverse, varying in size, population, geography, and governmental structure. In their politics and policies, they express a 1990's political slogan "Think globally, act locally."

Arkansas State...

Arkansas

Arkansas Counties

Sebastian County, Arkansas

Sebastian County History, Geography, Demographics, Cities and Towns, and Education

Etymology - Origin of County Name

Demographics:

History

Neighboring Counties:

Cities and Towns:

County Resources:

Sebastian County, Arkansas

County Resource Guide

Penn Foster High School