Ouachita

Formed November 29, 1842 (43^rd county)

Ouachita County (22,648), Camden (10,618)

The clock tower dominates the tan brick structure in Camden.  William Peterson and Thomas Harding were the designers of this Classical Revival and Art Deco style courthouse built in 1933.  The building was renovated in 2002.  An 1889 version was also in Camden, the only county seat.  Jefferson and Scott Alley streets intersection near the building’s location.  United States Highway Business 79 is two blocks north of the site.  Ouachita County is named for the Ouachita River, which crosses the middle of the county from north to south.  Ouachita is Native American for “big hunt.”  Camden was named for Charles Pratt, First Earl of Camden.  Ouachita County was the birthplace of 3 Arkansas Governors, George W. Hays, Benjamin T. Laney, Jr., and David H. Pryor.  Ouachita County was formed on November 29, 1842 from Union County as the 43^rd county. 

Ouachita County government consists of a sheriff, assessor, treasurer, and coroner (executive).  It has 11 Quorum Court members (legislative.)  Six Circuit Court Judges serve Ouachita, Calhoun, Cleveland, Columbia, Dallas, and Union counties and Two District Court Judges, an Attorney, and a County Clerk serve Ouachita County (judicial.)  The county is in southwest Arkansas.  El Dorado, Arkansas is located to the southeast of the county and Texarkana, Arkansas to the west.  The center of the county is 8.5 miles West of Camden.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Dallas, Calhoun, Union, Columbia, Nevada, and Clark counties.  Camden is slightly east of center.  Camden is the county seat and the largest city.  It is 46.9% of the county population.  The county is pronounced WASH-I-TA.

The area of the county is 739.6 square miles.  It is 25 of 75 in size.  It ranks 29 out of 75 in population in the state.  It has a density of 30.6 persons per square mile making it 28 out of 75 in the state.  Ouachita County has 59.0% of its population in its incorporated areas.  United States Highway 79 crosses diagonally from Calhoun County in the northeast to Columbia County in the south.  United States Highway 278 crosses east to west from Calhoun County to Nevada County.  A fat C is the shape of this county.  The county is in the Camden Micropolitan Statistical Area.