Pope County, Arkansas

Pope County
County
Pope County Courthouse
Location within the U.S. state of Arkansas
Arkansas's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 35°25′35″N 93°01′55″W / 35.426388888889°N 93.031944444444°W / 35.426388888889; -93.031944444444
Country	United States
State	Arkansas
Founded	November 2, 1829
Named for	John Pope
Seat	Russellville
Largest city	Russellville
Area
• Total	831 sq mi (2,150 km2)
• Land	813 sq mi (2,110 km2)
• Water	18 sq mi (50 km2)  2.2%
Population  (2020)
• Total	63,381
• Estimate  (2021)	63,789 [1]
• Density	76/sq mi (29/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	4th
Website	www.popecountyar.com

Pope County is a county in the U.S. state of Arkansas. As of the 2020 census, the population was 63,381.^[2] The county seat is Russellville.^[3] The county was formed on November 2, 1829, from a portion of Crawford County and named for John Pope, the third governor of the Arkansas Territory. Pope County was the nineteenth (of seventy-five) county formed. The county's borders changed eighteen times in the 19th century with the creation of new counties and adjustments between counties. The current boundaries were set on March 8, 1877.^[4]

Pope County is geographically diverse, with the Arkansas River Valley and its farmlands and towns in the southern portion and the Ozarks covering nearly two-thirds of the county to the north, including a portion of the rugged Boston Mountains, a deeply dissected plateau. Approximately 40% of the county is in the Ozark National Forest.

Pope County is an alcohol prohibition or dry county.

Pope County is part of the Russellville, Arkansas, Micropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Pope and Yell County.