Pope County

The history of Pope County began 186 years ago with the June 1813 establishment of an Indian agency. Major William L. Lovely was appointed as an agent to the Cherokee Indians and established the agency. This area was near the center of the Cherokee settlements in Arkansas. Dwight Mission was later located near the agency and was the first non-Indian settlement in Pope County established in 1820. The first school in Arkansas opened at the mission on January 1, 1822. Pope County was originally formed on November 2, 1829, from part of Crawford County. Later, part of Van Buren County was added to it and still later a part of Johnson and Yell Counties were added to it. It was named for John Pope, the third Arkansas Territorial Governor. The City of Pottsville lies east of Russellville and recently celebrated its 100'h anniversary. The history of the town really began in 1820 when Kirkbride Potts settled and homesteaded 160 acres. The historic Potts Inn in downtown Pottsville was built by Potts and completed about 1858. Potts Tavern is now on the National Register of Historic Places. Descendants of the family lived in the home until the 1960's. The home also served as a stagecoach stop and post office. To the north lies the Ozark National Forest with many and varied recreational areaas, hunting, fishing, camping floating, hiking trails and perhaps the only bayou in the country featuring whitewater. Holla Bend Natural Wildlife Refuge is one of the state's most outstanding areas for viewing and photographing wildlife, especially eagles and waterfowl and a significant wintering population of Canadian Geese. Arkansas Nuclear One is a landmark in London. State Parks include Lake Dardanelle State Park and Quita Park. The Corp. of Engineers has Sweeden Island Park, Lock and Dam Park. The Forest Service has Long Pool and Bayou Bluff Parks. Russellville is the county seat of Pope County. Pope County has 5 school district: Russellville, Atkins, Pottsville, Hector and Dover. Pope County has a population of 54,000. Pope County Officials in Picture Above: Left to Right (front row): Karen Martin, Assessor; Rita Chandler, Collector; and Fern Tucker, Circuit Clerk;  Left to Right (back row): Laura McGuire, County Clerk; David Garza, County Surveyor; Leonard Krout, Corner; Jim Ed Gibson, County Judge; Ken Coker, Circuit Judge; Aaron DuVall, Sheriff;  and Donna Wall, Treasurer.

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