Clarendon, Arkansas
Encyclopedia
Clarendon is a city in Monroe County
, Arkansas
, United States
. The population was 1,960 at the 2000 census. The city is the county seat
of Monroe County
.
According to the United States Census Bureau
, the city has a total area of 2 square miles (5.2 km²), of which, 1.8 square miles (4.7 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square mile (0.258998811 km²) of it (6.15%) is water.
Clarendon is located at the mouth of the Cache River
, where it flows into the White River
.
of 2000, there were 1,960 people, 814 households, and 520 families residing in the city. The population density
was 1,072.9 people per square mile (413.5/km²). There were 925 housing units at an average density of 506.3 per square mile (195.2/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 68.47% White
, 30.20% Black
or African American
, 0.46% Native American
, 0.05% Asian
, and 0.82% from two or more races. 2.35% of the population were Hispanic
or Latino
of any race.
There were 814 households out of which 26.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.5% were married couples
living together, 16.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.1% were non-families. 33.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was 3.02.
In the city the population was spread out with 26.3% under the age of 18, 8.1% from 18 to 24, 24.1% from 25 to 44, 25.5% from 45 to 64, and 16.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 91.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.0 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $22,927, and the median income for a family was $30,250. Males had a median income of $25,972 versus $18,125 for females. The per capita income
for the city was $11,902. About 20.8% of families and 28.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 44.4% of those under age 18 and 26.5% of those age 65 or over.
groups. By 1799, French hunters and trappers had built cabins at the mouth of the Cache River
. It was the point where The Military Road from Memphis, Tennessee
to Little Rock crossed the White River
. The Military Road was begun in 1826 and completed in 1828. By that date, a ferry crossing and post office had been established in Clarendon, and the town served as the terminus for a stagecoach line to the west. The Military Road was used as the route for some groups of Native Americans
being relocated from eastern states to Oklahoma
during the forced relocations commonly known as the Trail of Tears
; Chickasaw
, Choctaw
, Creek
, and Cherokee
groups are known to have traveled along it. A railroad bridge across the White River was constructed in 1883 by the Texas and St. Louis Railway; the ferry operated until 1931 when it was replaced by a highway bridge.
The city of Clarendon was officially incorporated in 1859. In 1864, the city was burned to the ground by Union forces in retaliation for the sinking of the tinclad Union gunboat USS Queen City by forces under the command of Confederate Brigadier General Joseph O. Shelby. The town's charter was dissolved in 1884, and it was reincorporated in 1898.
In the early 1900s, Clarendon developed a number of industries, including lumber, staves and barrels, oars, and buttons made from the shells of the area's plentiful freshwater mussels. The mussels also provided freshwater pearls, which were bought and sold at the Clarendon Pearl Market. The Moss Brothers Bat Company supplied baseball bats to a number of major league baseball players during this era.
Like most of eastern Arkansas, Clarendon was devastated by the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927
. The main levee at Clarendon held until the White River reached a height of 38.5 feet, 8.5 above normal flood stage; the flood eventually crested at 44 feet. While no fatalities were reported, the town was inundated by water up to the second floor of many buildings, and the catastrophic inrush of water when the levee broke caused considerable damage to many buildings. The cleanup of mud and debris took many years.
The area around Clarendon today is primarily agricultural; tourism related to the area's hunting and fishing resources is the most common non-agricultural economic activity. The reported rediscovery of the ivory-billed woodpecker
in 2004-2005 in the Cache River and White River National Wildlife Refuges has brought new attention to the area. There are several duck callmakers in town. One Jim Stinson III, maker of Stinson Duck calls.
Monroe County, Arkansas
Monroe County is a county located in the U.S. state of Arkansas. As of 2010, the population is 8,149. The county seat is Clarendon, while its largest city is Brinkley...
, Arkansas
Arkansas
Arkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The population was 1,960 at the 2000 census. The city is the county seat
County seat
A county seat is an administrative center, or seat of government, for a county or civil parish. The term is primarily used in the United States....
of Monroe County
Monroe County, Arkansas
Monroe County is a county located in the U.S. state of Arkansas. As of 2010, the population is 8,149. The county seat is Clarendon, while its largest city is Brinkley...
.
Geography
Clarendon is located at 34°41′39"N 91°18′30"W (34.694035, -91.308411).According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the city has a total area of 2 square miles (5.2 km²), of which, 1.8 square miles (4.7 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square mile (0.258998811 km²) of it (6.15%) is water.
Clarendon is located at the mouth of the Cache River
Cache River (Arkansas)
The Cache River is a tributary of the White River, 213 mi long, in northeastern Arkansas in the United States. Its headwaters also drain a small portion of southeastern Missouri...
, where it flows into the White River
White River (Arkansas)
The White River is a 722-mile long river that flows through the U.S. states of Arkansas and Missouri.-Course:The source of the White River is in the Boston Mountains of northwest Arkansas, in the Ozark-St. Francis National Forest southeast of Fayetteville...
.
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 1,960 people, 814 households, and 520 families residing in the city. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 1,072.9 people per square mile (413.5/km²). There were 925 housing units at an average density of 506.3 per square mile (195.2/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 68.47% White
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, 30.20% Black
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
or African American
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, 0.46% Native American
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, 0.05% Asian
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 0.82% from two or more races. 2.35% of the population were Hispanic
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
or Latino
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
of any race.
There were 814 households out of which 26.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.5% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 16.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.1% were non-families. 33.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was 3.02.
In the city the population was spread out with 26.3% under the age of 18, 8.1% from 18 to 24, 24.1% from 25 to 44, 25.5% from 45 to 64, and 16.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 91.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.0 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $22,927, and the median income for a family was $30,250. Males had a median income of $25,972 versus $18,125 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the city was $11,902. About 20.8% of families and 28.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 44.4% of those under age 18 and 26.5% of those age 65 or over.
History
The area around Clarendon was originally populated by various Native AmericanNative Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
groups. By 1799, French hunters and trappers had built cabins at the mouth of the Cache River
Cache River (Arkansas)
The Cache River is a tributary of the White River, 213 mi long, in northeastern Arkansas in the United States. Its headwaters also drain a small portion of southeastern Missouri...
. It was the point where The Military Road from Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
to Little Rock crossed the White River
White River (Arkansas)
The White River is a 722-mile long river that flows through the U.S. states of Arkansas and Missouri.-Course:The source of the White River is in the Boston Mountains of northwest Arkansas, in the Ozark-St. Francis National Forest southeast of Fayetteville...
. The Military Road was begun in 1826 and completed in 1828. By that date, a ferry crossing and post office had been established in Clarendon, and the town served as the terminus for a stagecoach line to the west. The Military Road was used as the route for some groups of Native Americans
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
being relocated from eastern states to Oklahoma
Oklahoma
Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
during the forced relocations commonly known as the Trail of Tears
Trail of Tears
The Trail of Tears is a name given to the forced relocation and movement of Native American nations from southeastern parts of the United States following the Indian Removal Act of 1830...
; Chickasaw
Chickasaw
The Chickasaw are Native American people originally from the region that would become the Southeastern United States...
, Choctaw
Choctaw
The Choctaw are a Native American people originally from the Southeastern United States...
, Creek
Creek people
The Muscogee , also known as the Creek or Creeks, are a Native American people traditionally from the southeastern United States. Mvskoke is their name in traditional spelling. The modern Muscogee live primarily in Oklahoma, Alabama, Georgia, and Florida...
, and Cherokee
Cherokee
The Cherokee are a Native American people historically settled in the Southeastern United States . Linguistically, they are part of the Iroquoian language family...
groups are known to have traveled along it. A railroad bridge across the White River was constructed in 1883 by the Texas and St. Louis Railway; the ferry operated until 1931 when it was replaced by a highway bridge.
The city of Clarendon was officially incorporated in 1859. In 1864, the city was burned to the ground by Union forces in retaliation for the sinking of the tinclad Union gunboat USS Queen City by forces under the command of Confederate Brigadier General Joseph O. Shelby. The town's charter was dissolved in 1884, and it was reincorporated in 1898.
In the early 1900s, Clarendon developed a number of industries, including lumber, staves and barrels, oars, and buttons made from the shells of the area's plentiful freshwater mussels. The mussels also provided freshwater pearls, which were bought and sold at the Clarendon Pearl Market. The Moss Brothers Bat Company supplied baseball bats to a number of major league baseball players during this era.
Like most of eastern Arkansas, Clarendon was devastated by the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927
Great Mississippi Flood of 1927
The Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 was the most destructive river flood in the history of the United States.-Events:The flood began when heavy rains pounded the central basin of the Mississippi in the summer of 1926. By September, the Mississippi's tributaries in Kansas and Iowa were swollen to...
. The main levee at Clarendon held until the White River reached a height of 38.5 feet, 8.5 above normal flood stage; the flood eventually crested at 44 feet. While no fatalities were reported, the town was inundated by water up to the second floor of many buildings, and the catastrophic inrush of water when the levee broke caused considerable damage to many buildings. The cleanup of mud and debris took many years.
The area around Clarendon today is primarily agricultural; tourism related to the area's hunting and fishing resources is the most common non-agricultural economic activity. The reported rediscovery of the ivory-billed woodpecker
Ivory-billed Woodpecker
The Ivory-billed Woodpecker is or was one of the largest woodpeckers in the world, at roughly 20 inches in length and 30 inches in wingspan. It was native to the virgin forests of the southeastern United States...
in 2004-2005 in the Cache River and White River National Wildlife Refuges has brought new attention to the area. There are several duck callmakers in town. One Jim Stinson III, maker of Stinson Duck calls.
External links
- City History from semi-official site( dead link ? )