Lonoke

Formed April 16, 1873 (73^rd county)

Lonoke County (74,010), Lonoke (4,269), Cabot (26,571)

The red brick and concrete courthouse was built in 1928 and located on Center Street at 3^rd Street.  The site is two blocks north of United States Highway 70.  The architect was H. Ray Berks in Neo-Classical style.  There was an 1885 courthouse also located in Lonoke, the only county seat.  The county and county seat’s name is a derivation of Lone Oak, the name of a large red oak tree growing in the community.  Lonoke County was the birthplace of 1 Arkansas Governor, Joseph T. Robinson.  Prairie and Pulaski counties provided the land for Lonoke County on April 16, 1873 as the 73^rd county. 

Lonoke County government consists of a sheriff, assessor, treasurer, and coroner (executive).  It has 13 Quorum Court members (legislative.)  Three Circuit Court Judges and Three District Court Judges, an Attorney, and a County Clerk serve Lonoke County (judicial.)  The county is located in central Arkansas just to the east of Little Rock, Arkansas.  The center of the county is 2.1 miles South-Southwest of Lonoke.  The county is surrounded clockwise by White, Prairie, Arkansas, Jefferson, Pulaski, and Faulkner counties.  The county is a tall rectangle with two steps out on the east border and one step in on the west border.  Lonoke is near the county’s center.  Cabot is located in the extreme northwest corner of the county.  Lonoke is the county seat and Cabot is the largest city.  Lonoke is 5.8% of the county population while Cabot is 35.9% of the county population.  The county and county seat are pronounced LONE-OEK.  The largest city is pronounced KAB-UT.  

The area of the county is 802.4 square miles.  It is 19 of 75 in size.  It ranks 10 out of 75 in population in the state.  It has a density of 92.2 persons per square mile making it 10 out of 75 in the state.  Lonoke County has 61.4% of its population in its incorporated areas.  Interstate Highway 40 crosses east to west from Prairie County to Pulaski County.  United States Highways 67/167 cut the northwest corner going from White County, north, to Pulaski County, west.  United States Highway 70 parallels Interstate Highway 40, Prairie County to Pulaski County.  United States Highway 165 comes from Arkansas County in the southeast and goes west into Pulaski County.  The county is in the Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Ward