Forrest City is a city in and the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

of St. Francis County,

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the West South Central region of the Southern United States. It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma ...

, United States. It was named for General

Nathan Bedford Forrest Nathan Bedford Forrest (July 13, 1821October 29, 1877) was an List of slave traders of the United States, American slave trader, active in the lower Mississippi River valley, who served as a General officers in the Confederate States Army, Con ...

, a notable Confederate war hero who later became the first Grand Wizard of the

Ku Klux Klan The Ku Klux Klan (), commonly shortened to KKK or Klan, is an American Protestant-led Christian terrorism, Christian extremist, white supremacist, Right-wing terrorism, far-right hate group. It was founded in 1865 during Reconstruction era, ...

. Shortly after the end of the Civil War, he had a construction crew camped here, who were completing a railroad between

Memphis Memphis most commonly refers to: * Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt * Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city Memphis may also refer to: Places United States * Memphis, Alabama * Memphis, Florida * Memphis, Indiana * Mem ...

and

Little Rock Little Rock is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Arkansas, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arkansas. The city's population was 202,591 as of the 2020 census. The six-county Central Arkan ...

. The population was 15,371 at the 2010 census, an increase from 14,774 in 2000. The city identifies as the "Jewel of the

Delta Delta commonly refers to: * Delta (letter) (Δ or δ), the fourth letter of the Greek alphabet * D (NATO phonetic alphabet: "Delta"), the fourth letter in the Latin alphabet * River delta, at a river mouth * Delta Air Lines, a major US carrier ...

History

19th century

On October 13, 1827, St. Francis County, located in the east central part of Arkansas, was officially organized by the Arkansas Territorial Legislature in

, a Confederate General and later the first

Grand Wizard The grand wizard (sometimes called the imperial wizard or national director) is the national leader of several different Ku Klux Klan organizations in the United States and abroad. The title "Grand Wizard" was used by the first Klan which was fo ...

of the

, became interested in the area around Crowley's Ridge during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

. In 1866, General Forrest and C. C. McCreanor contracted to finish the Memphis & Little Rock Railroad from Madison located on the

St. Francis River The St. Francis River is a tributary of the Mississippi River, about long, in southeastern Missouri and northeastern Arkansas in the United States. The river drains a mostly rural area and forms part of the Missouri-Arkansas state line along th ...

to DeValls Bluff on the west bank of the White River. The route traversed the challenging Crowley's Ridge and

L'Anguille River L'Anguille River (pronounced "lan-GWEEL" "LANG-gill" or locally as "LANE-GEE") is a tributary of the St. Francis River, approximately 110 mi (175 km) long, in northeastern Arkansas in the United States. Via the St. Francis River, it is ...

bottoms. In 1868, train service through Forrest City was established. Forrest later built a commissary on Front Street. Colonel V.B. Izard began the task of designing the town at the same time. Most residents were calling the area "Forrest's Town," which was later named Forrest City and was incorporated on May 11, 1870. The county seat was initially located in the now defunct town of

Franklin Franklin may refer to: People and characters * Franklin (given name), including list of people and characters with the name * Franklin (surname), including list of people and characters with the name * Franklin (class), a member of a historic ...

until 1840, when it was moved to

Madison Madison may refer to: People * Madison (name), a given name and a surname * James Madison (1751–1836), fourth president of the United States * Madison (footballer), Brazilian footballer Places in the United States Populated places * Madi ...

. In 1855 it was moved to

Mount Vernon Mount Vernon is the former residence and plantation of George Washington, a Founding Father, commander of the Continental Army in the Revolutionary War, and the first president of the United States, and his wife, Martha. An American landmar ...

where the court house burned in 1856 destroying county records. This prompted a move back to Madison. The county seat was moved to Forrest City in 1874, where the courthouse was assigned to a wooden structure. When it burned shortly thereafter, county records were again destroyed. In 1889, the city was the site of a white race riot that resulted in their expulsion of African American leaders.

20th century

The Imperial Council of Jugamos, a fraternal organization of African Americans founded in 1910 by Wallace Leon Purifoy had its headquarters in Forrest City. The ''Forrest City Herald'' printed its constitution in 1916. The ''New Castle Herald'' noted the group and its officers in 1919. In 1940, Forrest City was a stop for the ''

Choctaw Rocket The ''Choctaw Rocket'' was a named passenger train operated by the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad between Memphis, Tennessee, Little Rock, Oklahoma City, and Amarillo. Initially designated as train No. 51 (westbound) and train No ...

'', a passenger train operated by the

Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad The original Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad (CRI&P RW, sometimes called ''Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railway'') was an American Class I railroad. It was also known as the Rock Island Line, or, in its final years, The Rock. At ...

. Service was discontinued in 1964. Evidence that

giant mastodons A mastodon, from Ancient Greek μαστός (''mastós''), meaning "breast", and ὀδούς (''odoús'') "tooth", is a member of the genus ''Mammut'' (German for 'mammoth'), which was endemic to North America and lived from the late Miocene to ...

roamed the slope was revealed in 1949 when workmen excavating for sewer improvements found bones of the massive beasts within the city limits. In 1988,

Forrest City High School Forrest City High School is a comprehensive public high school in Forrest City, Arkansas, United States. It is the sole high school administered by the Forrest City School District and its main feeder school is Forrest City Junior High School. ...

held its first integrated prom. After school integration was ordered in the mid-1960s, Forrest City eliminated school-sponsored dances and social activities. For 23 years, social clubs and individual families had organized a racially

segregated prom A segregated prom refers to the practice of United States high schools, generally located in the Deep South, of holding racially segregated proms for white and black students. The practice spread after these schools were integrated, and persists ...

21st century

In 2018, the city elected Cedric Williams as mayor; Williams is the third African American mayor in the city's history.

Geography

According to the

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, 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 U.S. Census Bureau is part of the U ...

, the city has a total area of , of which is land and (0.37%) of which is water. Forrest City is located on

Crowley's Ridge Crowley's Ridge (also Crowleys Ridge) is a geological formation that rises 250 to above the alluvial plain of the Mississippi embayment in a line from southeastern Missouri to the Mississippi River near Helena, Arkansas. It is the most p ...

, a geological phenomenon that rises above the flat

Mississippi Delta The Mississippi Delta, also known as the Yazoo–Mississippi Delta, or simply the Delta, is the distinctive northwest section of the U.S. state of Mississippi (and portions of Arkansas and Louisiana) that lies between the Mississippi and Yazo ...

terrain that surrounds it. This north-south running highland is some three miles wide and 300 feet above sea level. Several species of trees not indigenous to Arkansas are found here, including

beech Beech (genus ''Fagus'') is a genus of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to subtropical (accessory forest element) and temperate (as dominant element of Mesophyte, mesophytic forests) Eurasia and North America. There are 14 accepted ...

, butternut,

sugar maple ''Acer saccharum'', the sugar maple, is a species of flowering plant in the soapberry and lychee family Sapindaceae. It is native to the hardwood forests of eastern Canada and the eastern United States. Sugar maple is best known for being the ...

, and cucumber trees.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 U.S. census, there were 13,015 people, 4,358 households, and 2,655 families residing in the city.

Government and infrastructure

The

Federal Bureau of Prisons The Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) is a Federal law enforcement in the United States, federal law enforcement agency of the United States Department of Justice that is responsible for all List of United States federal prisons, federal prisons ...

Federal Correctional Complex, Forrest City is in Forrest City. The

United States Postal Service The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or simply the Postal Service, is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the executive branch of the federal governmen ...

operates the Forrest City Post Office.

Woodruff Electric Cooperative Woodruff Electric Cooperative is a non-profit rural electric utility cooperative headquartered in Forrest City, Arkansas, with district offices in Augusta and Moro, Arkansas. The Cooperative was organized in 1937. The Cooperative serves portion ...

, a non-profit rural electric utility cooperative, is headquartered in Forrest City.

Local landmarks

The Forrest City Chamber of Commerce is located in the 100-year-old Becker House. This house has served a variety of functions since being sold by the Becker family. It was an antique store and later a home furnishings boutique before being occupied by the Chamber. Forrest City had five sites listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

including: *

Campbell House Campbell House, or The Campbell House or variations, may refer to: ;in Canada * Campbell House (Toronto, Canada) ;in the United States :(sorted by state, then city/town) * Campbell House (Palmer, Alaska), in Matanuska-Susitna Borough, listed on t ...

* First United Methodist *

(aka, "Old Central") * Mann House * Stuart Springs

Education

Forrest City School District Forrest City School District 7 (FCSD) is a school district headquartered in Forrest City, Arkansas. In addition to Forrest City it serves other areas in central St. Francis County, including Caldwell, Colt, Madison, and Widener. The board ...

operates public schools, including

. Circa 2014 KIPP Delta established the grade 5-8 KIPP Forrest City College Preparatory School in Forrest City, which occupied several temporary buildings and a portion of a Catholic church which had a lease agreement with KIPP. In 2018 KIPP Delta asked the State of Arkansas for permission to close KIPP Forrest City and send students to the Helena-West Helena facility.

Notable people

Barrett Astin Barrett Astin (born October 22, 1991) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cincinnati Reds. Career Amateur Astin attended Forrest City High School in Forrest City, Arkansas, and p ...

, former professional baseball player,

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. The Reds compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Divisi ...

Little Buddy Doyle Little Buddy Doyle (March 20, 1911 – c. 1960) was an American Memphis blues and country blues guitarist, singer and songwriter. He was a working associate of the harmonica players Big Walter Horton and Hammie Nixon, the guitarist David "Honeybo ...

, blues guitarist, singer and songwriter * Lewis P. Featherstone, former U.S. Representative *

Al Green Albert Leornes Greene (born April 13, 1946), known professionally as Al Green, is an American singer, songwriter, pastor and record producer. He is best known for recording a series of soul hit singles in the early 1970s, including " Tired of ...

, singer and minister *

Willie Hale Willie George Hale (born August 15, 1945), often known by the name Little Beaver, is an American guitarist, singer and songwriter, who has been featured on many hit records since the 1960s. Early life and session musicianship Hale was born on Au ...

, rhythm and blues guitarist, singer and songwriter *

John W. Henry John William Henry II (born September 13, 1949) is an American businessman and the founder of John W. Henry & Company, an investment management firm. He is the principal owner of Liverpool Football Club, the Boston Red Sox, the Pittsburgh Pengu ...

, principal owner,

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Founded in as one of the Ameri ...

Chris Hicky Chris Hicky is a writer/director from Forrest City, Arkansas, United States, best known for directing many of Keith Urban's music videos. Hicky has also directed videos for many other artists in the country music genre, including Dierks Bentley ...

, music video director * Mark W. Izard, 3rd Governor of the Nebraska Territory * Jason Jones, professional football player *

Don Kessinger Donald Eulon Kessinger (born July 17, 1942) is an American former professional baseball player and manager. He played in Major League Baseball as a shortstop from to , most prominently as a member of the Chicago Cubs, where he was a six-time Al ...

, born in Forrest City, professional baseball player and manager. *

Albert King Albert King ( Nelson; April 25, 1923 – December 21, 1992), was an American guitarist and singer who is often regarded as one of the greatest and most influential blues guitarists of all time. He is perhaps best known for his popular and ...

, blues artist *

Henry Loeb Henry Loeb III (December 9, 1920 – September 8, 1992) was an American politician of the Democratic Party, who was mayor of Memphis, Tennessee, for two separate terms in the 1960s, from 1960 through 1963, and 1968 through 1971. He gained ...

, mayor of

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in Shelby County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. Situated along the Mississippi River, it had a population of 633,104 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Tenne ...

* Cara McCollum, 2013

Miss New Jersey The Miss New Jersey competition is an annual pageant held to select the representative for the state of New Jersey in the Miss America pageant. Two Miss New Jersey winners have gone on to hold the title of Miss America: Bette Cooper who won i ...

Gilbert Morris Gilbert Leslie Morris (May 13, 1929 — February 18, 2016) was an American Christian author. He is also sometimes cited as Gilbert L. Morris or Gilbert Leslie Morris. Gilbert was born May 24, 1929, in Forrest City, Arkansas, the son of Osceola M ...

, award-winning Christian author * King Perry, jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, arranger, and bandleader *

Jimmy Rogers Jay or James Arthur "Jimmy" Rogers (June 3, 1924December 19, 1997) was an American Chicago blues singer, guitarist and harmonica player, best known for his work as a member of Muddy Waters's band in the early 1950s. He also had a solo career and ...

, football player * Cal Slayton, comic book artist *

Vernon Sykes Vernon Sykes (born October 2, 1951) is an American politician who served as the state Senator for the 28th district of the Ohio Senate from 2017 to 2024. The district included Akron, Barberton, Green, Portage Lakes, Sawyerwood, Lakemore and p ...

, member of

Ohio House of Representatives The Ohio House of Representatives is the lower house of the Ohio General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Ohio; the other house of the bicameral legislature being the Ohio Senate. The House of Representatives first met in ...

Dwight Tosh Dwight Crandall Tosh (born November 12, 1948) is a retired trooper of the Arkansas State Police from Jonesboro, Arkansas, who is a Republican member of the Arkansas House of Representatives for District 52 in Craighead, Poinsett, Jackson, an ...

, Republican member of the

Arkansas House of Representatives The Arkansas House of Representatives is the lower house of the Arkansas General Assembly, the state legislature of the US state of Arkansas. The House has 100 members elected from an equal number of constituencies across the state. Each distr ...

* Winston P. Wilson, U.S. Air Force Major General and

Chief of the National Guard Bureau The chief of the National Guard Bureau (CNGB) is the highest-ranking officer of the National Guard and the head of the National Guard Bureau. The position is a statutory office (), held by a federally recognized commissioned officer who has ser ...

Dennis Winston Dennis "Dirt" Winston (born October 25, 1955) is an American former professional football linebacker in the National Football League (NFL) for the Pittsburgh Steelers and the New Orleans Saints. He played college football at the University of Ar ...

, professional football player *

G. Wood George Wood (December 31, 1919 – July 24, 2000) was an American film and television actor, usually billed as G. Wood. Wood was born in Forrest City, Arkansas. He was one of four actors to appear in both the 1970 film ''M*A*S*H'' and the telev ...

, one of four actors to appear in both the 1970 film ''

M*A*S*H ''M*A*S*H'' (an acronym for Mobile Army Surgical Hospital) is an American media franchise consisting of a series of novels, a film, several television series, plays, and other properties, and based on the semi-autobiographical fiction of Richa ...

'' and the

television series A television show, TV program (), or simply a TV show, is the general reference to any content produced for viewing on a television set that is broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, and cable, or distributed digitally on streaming plat ...

''. * Marshall Wright, former member of the

References

External links

Forrest City website

Forrest City Chamber of Commerce
{{authority control 1870 establishments in Arkansas Cities in Arkansas Cities in St. Francis County, Arkansas County seats in Arkansas Nathan Bedford Forrest Populated places established in 1870