Johnson County

Johnson County was formed in November 1833, from Pope County and was named for Benjamin Johnson, one of Arkansas' early jurists. Clarksville is the county seat, which was the location for the state's first school for deaf children in 1851, the same site of today's University of the Ozarks. The landscape is rugged terrain in the northern half and rolling farmlands, forested ridges, isolated mountains, and lakes in the southern half. The entire northern half of Johnson County is Ozark National Forest that has two wildlife management areas. Little and Big Piney Creeks in the northeast corner and White Rock in the northwest offers hunting, fishing, canoeing, hiking and camping. The southern half of the county is river valley farm country where peaches, cattle, vegetables, soybeans, and grains are grown. Diversified industry is scattered over the county. Johnson County has an annual Peach Festival that started back in 1936. As of the 2000 census, Johnson County had a population of 22,781 residents.