Lamar is a city in Johnson County,

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the O ...

, United States. The population was 1,605 at the 2010 census, up from 1,415 at the 2000 census.

Geography

Lamar is located in southeastern Johnson County at (35.440546, -93.392764), in the valley of Cabin Creek.

U.S. Route 64 U.S. Route 64 (US 64) is an east–west United States highway that runs for 2,326 miles (3,743 km) from Nags Head in eastern North Carolina to just southwest of the Four Corners in northeast Arizona. The western terminus is at U.S. Route 1 ...

is Lamar's Main Street and leads northwest to Clarksville, the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...

, and south to

Knoxville Knoxville is a city in and the county seat of Knox County in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 United States census, Knoxville's population was 190,740, making it the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Division and the state' ...

Interstate 40 Interstate 40 (I-40) is a major east–west Interstate Highway running through the south-central portion of the United States. At a length of , it is the third-longest Interstate Highway in the country, after I-90 and I-80. From west to ea ...

crosses US 64 south of Lamar at Exit 64 and leads west to Fort Smith and southeast to Russellville.

Little Rock ( The "Little Rock") , government_type = Council-manager , leader_title = Mayor , leader_name = Frank Scott Jr. , leader_party = D , leader_title2 = Council , leader_name2 ...

is southeast of Lamar via I-40. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of t ...

, Lamar has a total area of , of which , or 0.38%, are water.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the

2020 United States census The United States census of 2020 was the twenty-fourth decennial United States census. Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2020. Other than a pilot study during the 2000 census, this was the first U.S. census to of ...

, there were 1,719 people, 747 households, and 486 families residing in the city.

2000 census

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...

of 2000, there were 1,415 people, 529 households, and 362 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 585 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 95.97%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White o ...

, 0.14%

Black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ...

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 1.13% Native American, 0.21%

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

, 0.64% from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 1.91% from two or more races. 3.46% of the population were

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties forme ...

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

of any race. There were 529 households, out of which 35.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.6% were married couples living together, 12.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.4% were non-families. 28.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.54 and the average family size was 3.05. In the city, the population was spread out, with 25.8% under the age of 18, 9.6% from 18 to 24, 27.4% from 25 to 44, 21.5% from 45 to 64, and 15.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.0 males. The median income for a household in the city was $23,317, and the median income for a family was $27,143. Males had a median income of $23,309 versus $16,207 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the city was $11,852. About 14.8% of families and 17.7% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...

, including 18.7% of those under age 18 and 15.2% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Public education for early childhood, elementary and secondary students is primarily provided by the Lamar School District, which includes: * Lamar Elementary School, serving pre-kindergarten through grade 3. * Lamar Middle School, serving grades 4 through 7. * Lamar High School, serving grades 8 through 12.

Notable people

Lee Cazort, the youngest ever

Speaker of the Arkansas House of Representatives The Speaker of the Arkansas House of Representatives is the speaker (presiding officer) of the Arkansas House of Representatives, the lower house of the Arkansas General Assembly. They serve as the leader and head of the Arkansas House, and can co ...

and youngest ever

Lieutenant Governor of Arkansas The lieutenant governor of Arkansas presides over the Arkansas Senate with a tie-breaking vote, serves as acting governor of Arkansas when the governor is out of state and assumes the governorship in cases of impeachment, removal from office, deat ...

, attended public school in Lamar before moving to Fort Smith.

References

{{authority control Cities in Johnson County, Arkansas