Lawrence County

Lawrence County was created on January 15, 1815, by the Missouri Legislature, which had jurisdiction over the region until Arkansas became a territory in 1819. The county seat is Walnut Ridge. The county was named for Capt. James Lawrence, a naval officer killed in the War of 1812. The landscape of Lawrence County is flat-topped rolling hills in the western half and flat fertile delta river bottomland in the eastern half. The economy is made up of agriculture, with rice, soybeans, and milo as leading crops. Cattle, poultry, and light manufacturing also contribute to the economy. There are three highways that make it convenient to ship in and out of the county. Three rivers, the Strawberry, Spring, and Black flow through the county. Lake Charles along with Lake Charles State Park offers fishing, hiking, picnicking and water sports. The park consists of 645 acres with 96 campsites scattered among the trees. The Shirey Bay-Rainey Brake Wildlife Management Area is a 10,500 acre tract between the Strawberry and Black Rivers and is managed primarily for water fowl. It also has excellent fishing. Thirty-one of the state’s present counties were carved from the original Lawrence County. The original courthouse was at Powhatan and was destroyed by fire in 1885. The archives were saved because they were stored in a stone vault and today they are a part of the Powhatan State Park Museum’s regional archive. In 1963 the two districts at Powhatan and Walnut Ridge were consolidated. Some of the oldest records in Arkansas that were written by quill with homemade ink is now stored at the abandoned 1888 courthouse in Powhatan.

8708861110

County Officials				Phone		Fax		E-Mail
County Judge		Dale Freeman		(870) 886-1110		(870) 886-1125		lawjudge@bscn.com
County Clerk		Tina Stowers		(870) 886-1111		(870) 886-1122		lawrenceclerk@arkansasclerks.com
Circuit Clerk		Michelle Evans		(870) 886-1112		(870) 886-1128		lawcocircuit@yahoo.com
County Sheriff		Jody Dotson		(870) 886-2525		(870) 886-2504		lcsds1@sbcglobal.net
County Collector		Stephanie Harris		(870) 886-1114		(870) 886-9871		lawcotax@yahoo.com
County Treasurer		Lyda Ann Harris		(870) 886-1116		(870) 886-1117		lawcotre@bscn.com
County Assessor		Farrah Matthews		(870) 886-1135		(870) 886-5904		assessorlawco@yahoo.com
County Coroner		Everett Hart		(870) 886-3566
Justice of the Peace		Ernest Briner
Justice of the Peace		Nathan Crafton
Justice of the Peace		Jim Jones
Justice of the Peace		Kenny Jones
Justice of the Peace		Alex Latham
Justice of the Peace		Tracy Moore
Justice of the Peace		Jeff Reese
Justice of the Peace		Donald Richey
Justice of the Peace		Douglas Wayland