Benton

Formed April 7, 1870 (63^rd county)

Benton County (7,644), Ashland (553)

The white brick Industrial building replaced a pleasant 1872 courthouse.  The year of the building and architect for the current courthouse are unknown.  It was remodeled in 2002 to become the courthouse.  It is located on Ripley Street west of 3^rd Street.  Ripley Street is Mississippi State Highway 370 in the town.  Benton County was established on April 7, 1870 from parts of Marshall and Tippah counties as the 63^rd county with Ashland as the only county seat.  It is named for Missouri Senator Thomas Hart Benton.  The county seat is named for the estate of American Statesman Henry Clay. 

Benton County government consists of a sheriff, an administrator, an attorney, a collector, a coroner, an assessor and a clerk (executive).  It has 5 Supervisors (legislative.)  Two Chancery Court Judges serve Benton, Calhoun, Lafayette, Marshall, and Tippah counties, Three District Court Judges serve Benton, Calhoun, Chickasaw, Lafayette, Marshall, Tippah, and Union counties and a court clerk serves Benton County (judicial.) The county is on the northern border with Tennessee.  Memphis, Tennessee is northwest and Jackson, Mississippi is south of the county.  The county center is 8 miles South of Ashland nearer Gravestown.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Tennessee and Tippah, Union, and Marshall counties. 

The area of the county is 407 square miles.  It is 77 out of 82 in the state.  It ranks 78 out of 82 in population in the state.  It has a density of 18.8 persons per square mile making it 69 out of 82 in the state.  Benton County has 17.7% of its population in its incorporated areas.  United States Highway 72 goes east to west in the county from Tippah County to Marshall County.  United States Highway 78 cuts the southwest corner from Marshall County, west, to Union County, south.  The county looks like a fat capital letter T.  Ashland is in the northern third of the county.  Hickory Flat is on the southern border of the county.  Ashland is the county seat and the largest city.  Ashland is 7.2% of the county population.