McDonald

Formed March 3, 1849 (99^th county)

McDonald County (23,308), Pineville (2,136)

The Modern 1977 courthouse replaced an 1870 structure.  The building was remodeled in 1998.  The facility is on Main Street between 6^th and 7^th streets.  United States Highway 71 by passes the town 10 blocks southwest of the courthouse.  The architectural firm of Hood-Rich provided the designs for this building.  Local paintings are displayed on the inside walls.  Rutledge was the first county seat until 1857 when Pineville assumed the position.  McDonald County was created on March 3, 1849 from Newton County as the 99^th county.  It is named for Revolutionary War hero Alexander McDonald.  The county seat name is a geographical description of local trees. 

McDonald County government consists of a sheriff and 3 Commissioners.  One Circuit Court Judge serves McDonald and Newton counties and One County Court Judge serves McDonald County.  The county is in the southwest corner of the state on the border with both Oklahoma and Arkansas.  Springfield, Missouri is northeast and Tulsa, Oklahoma is southwest of the county.  The county center is 5.1 miles East-Northeast of Pineville.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Newton and Barry counties and Arkansas and Oklahoma. 

The area of the county is 540 square miles.  It is 71 out of 115 in the state.  It ranks 48 out of 115 in population in the state.  It has a density of 43.2 persons per square mile making it 42 out of 115 in the state.  McDonald County has 33.5% of its population in its incorporated areas.  Interstate Highway 49 travels north to south through the county from Newton County to Arkansas.  United States Highway 71 parallels Interstate Highway 49 and is the temporary Interstate in the south where the Interstate has not been completed.  The county is a rectangle.  Pineville is located in the southwest quarter of the county.  Anderson is in the northwest quarter of the county.  Pineville is the county seat and the largest city.  Pineville is 9.2% of the county population.  This county is in the Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers Metropolitan Statistical Area.