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The creation of Craighead County occurred February 19, 1859, in the
Arkansas Legislative in Little Rock, Arkansas. Senator William A. Jones,
representing St. Francis and Poinsett Counties, sponsored an Act to create
a new county from parts of Greene, Mississippi and Poinsett Counties. One
of the Senators opposed to the creation of a new county was Senator Thomas
B. Craighead who represented Crittenden and Mississippi Counties. Senator
Craighead did not want to lose a large part of Buffalo Island. The loss of
rich farmland and revenue from his section were the main reasons for Craig
head's non-support of the Act.
Senator Craighead was not in the chamber when Jones pushed the bill for
final passage. When Craighead was informed of the passage of the bill, he
was surprised to learn that Senator Jones had named the new county in
honor of him. Senator Craighead followed Jones' act with a resolution for
the naming of Craighead County's new county seat Jonesboro after Senator
Jones.
The original Craighead County Courthouse was a two-story frame building.
This building was destroyed by fire on February 14, 1869. The fire was
set by the Northern biased militia based in the courthouse.
A frame building just west of Court Square was used to conduct county
business until 1876. Craighead County moved its records back across
Union Street to a new frame Courthouse. Then, two years later, another
fire destroyed the Courthouse, its records and eight other businesses in
downtown Jonesboro. Due to these fires, Craighead County's records are
only continuous back to March 28, 1878.
In 1886 a new Courthouse was completed. This building stood until 1934
and was torn down to make room for the present main portion of the
Courthouse.
The present Courthouse was dedicated on April 3, 1935. The new Craighead
County Courthouse Annex was added to the main Courthouse and was
dedicated November 5, 1995.
This new annex to the Craighead County Courthouse marks a new chapter in
the history of Craighead County. It was built on the site of the old
Malone Theater and where a Civil War skirmish occurred over 133 years
ago.
In 1883, an Act to establish a second county seat in Lake City was put
into effect. A courthouse was erected in 1901, and this facility
presently serves persons in that area. As the two locations are
approximately 16 miles apart, these two locations provide convenient
services for all residents of Craighead County.
Craighead County's industry is strong and well-diversified. Some of the
County's most important products are bricks, chemicals, clothing and
shoes, concrete products, dairy products, feed and fertilizer, electric
motors, furniture, lumber, wood products and food products.
Southeast of Jonesboro is St. Francis Floodway, which offers fishermen
and duck hunters ample sport, as do the rivers, creeks and bayous in the
County.
Arkansas State University, the second largest state-supported
institution of higher education in the state, is located at Jonesboro.
From a small agricultural college founded in 1909, Arkansas State has
grown into a major University. Its beautiful 800 acre campus is designed
so that students of the University can walk from one academic building or
service area to another in 10 minutes or less.
-from the website of Craighead County
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