Mississippi County was created on 1 November 1833and was formed fromCrittenden County. Mississippi County is named after the Mississippi River, which borders the land. Like Logan County, Mississippi County has two seats of government - one at Osceola and the other at Blytheville. Mississippi County is bordered by Dunklin County, MO (northwest), Pemiscot County, MO (north), Dyer County, TN (northeast), Lauderdale County, TN (east), Tipton County, TN (southeast), Crittenden County (south), Poinsett County (southwest), Craighead County (west). Cities, Towns & Communities include Bassett, Birdsong, Blytheville, Burdette, Dell, Dyess, Etowah, Gosnell, Joiner, Keiser, Leachville, Luxora, Manila, Marie, Osceola, Victoria, Wilson
Parts of Mississippi County were used to form the following counties: Craighead 1859. Other county boundry changes occured when Part of Crittenden annexed 18 January 1861.
The Official County Website is located at http://www.mcagov.com .
See Extended History for More information. Arkansas History Commission information shows record loss from a courthouse fire in 1865.
PLEASE READ!! Please call the clerk's department to confirm hours, mailing address, fees and other specifics before visiting or requesting information because of sometimes changing contact information. Arkansas History Commission information shows record loss from a courthouse fire in 1865.
Mississippi County Clerk of Circuit Court has Court Records from 1865 and Land Records from 1844 and is located at 200 West Walnut Street, Blytheville, 72315; (870) 762-2332 . The circuit clerk is the clerk of the circuit, chancery court, and juvenile court and usually acts as the ex-officio recorder of the county. The administrative duties of the clerk are to maintain a record of all proceedings of the circuit, chancery and juvenile courts and to prepare the dockets for these courts. They are also the ex-officio county recorder; and is responsible for recording deeds, mortgages, liens, and surety bonds, and many other orders and instruments which involve property within the county
Mississippi County Clerk has Marriage Records from 1867 and Probate Records from 1865 200 West Walnut Street, Blytheville, 72315; (870) 762-2411 . Although probate court is a court of equity and is presided over by the chancery judge, prior to 1937 it was a function of the county court, and under the amended procedure, the county clerk still operates ad the clerk of the probate court. As clerk to the probate court, the clerk files all instruments making them a matter of record in descendent estate cases, and swears in all witnesses in contested estates. The clerk, also in this capacity, maintains all records relative to adoptions and guardianship cases within the county. Although probate court is a court of equity and is presided over by the chancery judge, prior to 1937 it was a function of the county court, and under the amended procedure, the county clerk still operates ad the clerk of the probate court
Below is a list of online resources for Mississippi County Court Records. Email us with websites containing Mississippi County Court Records by clicking the link below:
Arkansas Immigration & Emigration Records - Immigration records help the family historian to understand the movements of their ancestry as they relocated to different parts of the world.
Click Here to Search Arkansas Birth, Marriage & Death Records! - Birth, marriage, and death records are connected with central life events. They are prime sources for genealogical information. Look also for baptism, christening, and burial records in this collection.
Vital Records, 4815 West Markham St Little Rock, AR 72205, Please allow up to approximately 4-6 weeks for processing of all type of certificates when ordered through the mail. They have the following records:
Birth Certificates: Birth records maintained by Arkansas Vital Records start with February 1, 1914 through the present. Vital Records does have a limited number of birth records prior to 1914. The birth records dated prior to 1914 were filed with Arkansas Vital Records after 1914. They have original copies of Little Rock and Fort Smith births dating from 1881.
Cost: The cost of a birth record is $12.00 for the first copy and $10.00 for each additional copy ordered of the same record at the same time. If no record is found or no copy is made, state law requires that we keep $12.00 for a searching fee. The customer may request a refund of any amount paid over the required $12.00 search fee. Please do not send cash in the mail.
Death Certificates: Death records maintained by Arkansas Vital Records start with February 1, 1914 through the present. Arkansas Vital Records does have a limited number of deaths occurring prior to 1914 for Little Rock and Fort Smith dating from 1881. The Arkansas History Commission has a death index of deaths occurring in Arkansas from 1914 through 1949. This is only an alphabetical listing of deaths occurring in Arkansas. The History Commission does not have copies of the death records.
Cost: The cost of a certified death certificate is $10.00 for the first copy and $8.00 for each additional copy issued at the same time for the same certificate. If no record is found or no copy is made, state law requires that we keep $10.00 for a searching fee. The customer may request a refund of any amount paid over the required $10.00 search fee. Please do not send cash in the mail.
Marriage & Divorce Certificates: Marriage records maintained in Arkansas Vital Records begin with January 1917. Arkansas Vital Records does not have any marriage records prior to 1917.
Divorce records maintained in Arkansas Vital Records begin with January 1923. Arkansas Vital Records does not have any divorce records prior to 1923. Records of marriage & divorce proceedings are available from the Mississippi County clerk of Probate Court that granted the decree.You can download an application online for Marriage Certificates or Divorce Certificates .
Cost: Arkansas Vital Records maintains a file of marriage and divorce coupons. These coupons are acceptable with organizations that require a certified record. The cost of a marriage or divorce coupon is $10.00 for each copy. If no record is found or no copy is made, state law requires that we keep $10.00 for a searching fee. The customer may request a refund of any amount paid over the required $10.00 search fee.
Order In Person: The certificates may be ordered by coming into this office. If you want the copy the same day, our hours for same day service are 8:00 A.M. until 3:00 P.M. Monday – Friday. The office is located at 4815 West Markham St Little Rock, AR 72205.
Order By Mail: Mail a check or money order (no cash) payable to the "Vital Records " along with the necessary information to the following address: Vital Records, PO Box 8184,
Little Rock AR 72203-8184. Please include return address on envelope and application form. Processing Time takes 4-6 weeks when ordered by MAIL or 2-5 Days when you Order Online.
Order On-Line: To obtain a certified copy of a vital record by on-line purchase with a credit card, please click below.
Below is a list of online resources for Mississippi County Vital Records. Email us with websites containing Mississippi County Vital Records by clicking the link below:
Search the Social Security Death Index for FREE - Search over 82 million death records and get genealogical information crucial to your family research. New content added weekly! Most comprehensive SSDI site online!
Research Death records In The World's Largest Newspaper Archive at NewpaperArchive.com! - Find thousands of historical Arkansas newspaper articles about deaths. Search for local articles about an old family friend that died many years ago or a celebrity that committed suicide. Historical newspapers contain a wealth of information about the deceased.
Click Here to Search Arkansas Voter Lists & Census Records! - Few, if any, records reveal as many details about individuals and families as do government census records. Substitute records can be used when the official census is unavailable.
Countywide Records: Federal Population Schedules that exist for Mississippi County, Arkansas are 1840, 1850, 1860, 1870, 1880, 1890 (fragment, see below), 1900, 1910, 1920 and 1930. Other Federal Schedules to look at when researching your family tree in Mississippi County, Arkansas are Industry and Agriculture Schedules 1850, 1860, 1870 and 1880. Slave Schedules exist for 1850 & 1860. The Mortality Schedules for the years 1850, 1860, 1870 and 1880.There are free downloadable and printable Census forms to help with your research. These include U.S. Census Extraction Forms and U.K. Census Extraction Forms
Below is a list of online resources for Mississippi County Census Records. Email us with websites containing Mississippi County Census Records by clicking the link below:
Genealogy Atlas has images of old American atlases during the years 1795, 1814, 1822, 1823, 1836, 1838, 1845, 1856, 1866, 1879 and 1897 for Arkansas and other states.
You can view rotating animated maps for Arkansas showing all the county boundaries for each census year overlayed with past and present maps so you can see the changes in county boundaries. You can view a list of maps for other states at Census Maps
You can view rotating animated maps for Arkansas showing all the county boundary changes for each year overlayed with past and present maps so you can see the changes in county boundaries . You can view a list of maps for other states and State Department of Transportation Maps at The Arkansas Department of Transportation has county maps the show the locations of churches, cemeteries, roads, ect... free for viewing or download here
Below is a list of online resources for Mississippi County Maps. Email us with websites containing Mississippi County Maps by clicking the link below:
Click Here to Search Arkansas Military Records! - Military and civil service records provide unique facts and insights into the lives of men and women who have served their country at home and abroad.
The uses and value of military records in genealogical research for ancestors who were veterans are obvious, but military records can also be important to re-searchers whose direct ancestors were not soldiers in any war. The fathers, grandfathers, brothers, and other close relatives of an ancestor may have served in a war, and their service or pension records could contain information that will assist in further identifying the family of primary interest. Due to the amount of genealogical information contained in some military pension files, they should never be overlooked during the research process. Those records not containing specific genealogical information are of historic value and should be included in any overall research design.
Below is a list of online resources for Mississippi County Military Records. Email us with websites containing Mississippi County Military Records by clicking the link below:
Revolutionary War Rolls, 1775-1783(The National Archives): View, Print Copy & Save Original Documents in NARA publication M246 include muster rolls, payrolls, strength returns, and other miscellaneous personnel, pay, and supply records of American Army units, 1775-83.
Southern Claims Commission from the State of Arkansas (The National Archives): View, Print Copy & Save Original Documents In the 1870s, southerners claimed compensation from the U.S. government for items used by the Union Army, ranging from corn and horses, to trees and church buildings.
Tax
records are available at the respective county courthouses and
in the Arkansas History Commission. Nearly 600 tax books, original
or microfilmed, for Arkansas counties are included in the collection
at the Commission. Legislation was enacted in Arkansas which
required that copies of early county tax records be sent to
the state auditor in Little Rock. Where county records were
lost, the state auditor's copies are especially valuable.
Personal property tax records have been published for
a few counties. Tax lists, along with other sources, are being
used to reconstruct the lost 1890 federal population census.
Below is a list of online resources for Mississippi County Tax Records. Email us with websites containing Mississippi County Tax Records by clicking the link below:
The Repositories
in this section are Archives, Libraries, Museums, Genealogical
and Historical Societies. Many County Historical and Genealogical
Societies publish magazines and/or news letters on a monthly,
quarterly, bi-annual or annual basis. Contacting the local societies
should not be over looked. State Archives and Societies are
usually much larger and better organized with much larger archived
materials than their smaller county cousins but they can be
more generalized and over look the smaller details that local
societies tend to have. Libraries can also be a good place to
look for local information. Some libraries have a genealogy
section and may have some resources that are not located at
archives or societies. Also, take a special look at any museums
in the area. They sometimes have photos and items from years
gone by as well as information of a genealogical interest. All
these places are vitally important to the family genealogist
and must not be passed over.
Below is a list of online resources for Mississippi County Genealogical Addresses. Email us with websites containing Mississippi County Genealogical Addresses by clicking the link below:
Arkansas Historical Association, 416 Old Main, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR 72701; 479-575-5884, 479-575-2775 FAX
Arkansas Newspapers & Periodicals Records - Newspapers and periodicals are the diaries of local communities. They are excellent sources of family history details - often recorded nowhere else. Look for obituaries, marriages, legal notices, and more found in our Historical Newspaper Archives.
Click Here to Search Arkansas Obituary Records! - This database is a compilation of obituaries published in U.S. newspapers, collected from various online sources. Obituaries can vary in the amount of information they contain, but many of them are genealogical goldmines, including information such as names, dates, places of birth and death, marriage information, and family relationships.
Some
church records for Arkansas churches are available at the Arkansas
History Commission. These include published church histories,
church records, newspapers, and manuscript collections.
Local county genealogical and historical organizations have copied, cataloged, and published records of local cemeteries. Most of these are in the collection at the Arkansas History Commission; many are in the DAR Library. Most of those in the DAR collection have been microfilmed by the FHL.
Below is a list of online resources for Mississippi County Cemetery & Church Records. Email us with websites containing Mississippi County Cemetery & Church Records by clicking the link below:
Find Obituaries in The World's Largest Newspaper Archive at NewpaperArchive.com! - Find thousands of Arkansas obituaries to help you research your family history. Search for a Arkansas newspaper obituary about your ancestor or a celebrity. Begin your search today and find death notices and funeral announcements printed in newspapers from Arkansas .
Click Here to Search Arkansas Family Tree Records! - The use of published genealogies, electronic files containing genealogical lineage, and other compiled sources can be of tremendous value to a researcher.
When view family trees online or not, be sure to only take the info at face value and always follow up with your own sources or verify the ones they provide. Below is a list of online resources for Mississippi County Family Trees, web forums and other family type information . Email us with websites containing Mississippi County Family Trees, web forums and other family type information by clicking the link below:
Genealogy Encyclopedia: General Abbreviations, Early Illnesses, Nickname Meanings, Worldwide Epidemics, Early Occupations, Common Terms, Censuses Explained, Free Genealogical Forms
Nichols and Related Families of Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virgina.
Arkansas Family & Local History Records - The Family & Local Histories Collection lets you read journals, memoirs, and other first-hand historical narratives right on your computer. Gathered from some of the world's finest libraries, these materials may provide hard-to-find town, county, and state information; tax records and wills; military, church, and court records; as well as photographs, stories, and maps.
Mississippi County was created November 1, 1833, of territory cut from Crittenden County and was named for the mighty river forming its entire eastern boundary. Osceola was the original county seat, but Blytheville became the seat of justice for the northern section in 1870 that created dual county seats. The landscape of Mississippi County is flat, fertile, Delta farmland. The economy is made up of diversified farming and light manufacturing. Cotton Boll Vocational and Technical School and Mississippi County Community College offer a variety of educational experiences. Mississippi County Community College was the first solar-powered college in the nation. Big Lake National Wildlife Refuge is the oldest federal refuge in Arkansas and offers good hunting and fishing. Both courthouses are unique. The Blytheville courthouse building features a lot of marble with mahogany woodwork, the Osceola Courthouse building features colorful, baked stone tile, marble and wrought iron staircases. The first floor is windowless and designed to be protected from possible flooding from the Mississippi River. History from early times in the county is stored in both locations.
Located in northeast Arkansas, Mississippi County was established by Act of the Territorial Legislature on November 1, 1833, and was named for the Mississippi River which forms the entire eastern boundary.
The City of Osceola was the original county seat. The County became a dual seat by Act 81 of 1901. This Act divided Mississippi County into Judicial Districts, the Osceola District and the Chickasawba District. The Blytheville Court House was first erected in 1902. In 1919, the present Blytheville Court House was erected.
Mississippi County's rich Delta soil still supports a large but more various farming industry; including cotton and soybeans. Additionally, the County is a strong producer of wheat and rice. The drastic move away from labor intensive methods, however, has brought new challenges to the county's people and their leaders. The move toward a more machine intensive output allows for increased productivity and capital use.
After a period of population loss, due to the closing of Eaker Air Force Base, which effected employment numbers, the county began to work to attract industry that would create a broader and more stable economic base.
Mississippi County now has Nucor-Yamato and Nucor Steel in Blytheville, and other steel processing plants which officials say, makes this County one of the top steel producers in the country. American Greetings, Creative Foods LLC, Maverick Tube Corp., Coil Tec, Terra International, Milwaukee Tool, Siegel-Roberts, NIBCO, and other businesses of various kinds thrive over Mississippi County.
Cotton Boll Technical Institute, and the first all solar-powered college in the nation, Mississippi County Community College is now Arkansas Northeastern College, offers a variety of educational experiences to upgrade the skills of the work force at every level.
Mississippi County leaders have implemented intensive grant research and application projects. Recently, the County received a $2.9million Enterprise Community Grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and has received designation through the Foundation for the Mid-South (funded by Pew Charitable Trusts) as a Workforce Alliance Community to increase work force labor skills and training initiatives.
Big Lake National Wildlife Refuge, the oldest federal refuge in Arkansas, is the only comparatively large area remaining in northeast Arkansas that contains a significant amount of virgin timber. About 5,000 acres has been designated as a National Natural Landmark. It contains the 500-acre Bald Cypress Research National Area of century-old cypress trees. Evidence has been found of almost 25 centuries of human occupancy of this region.
Big Lake Wildlife Management Area is one of the last remaining large tracts of bottomland hard-woods in northeast Arkansas and offers good hunting and fishing. The southern end contains a unique cypress-tupelo brake that is outstanding for bird watching, thus making Mississippi County popular with bird watchers and outdoor sports fans.
This information was researched from This Is Arkansas, 1993; Mississippi County Arkansas: Through The Years; and The Delta Historical Review, Summer, 1993.
Sesquicentennial Facts About Mississippi County
Mississippi County was once a part of Arkansas County then Phillips County and Crittenden County, from which it was separated by the Territorial Legislature November 1, 1833, and named Mississippi County from the river that is her eastern boundary line.
The original boundary extended as far west as the St. Francis river and embraced 1,000 square miles.
The first County seat, which was located opposite the first Chickasaw Bluffs was called Cornwall.
The first white settlers in the County of whom there is any knowledge, were Carson's and William Kellums; They were hunters and lived and hunted peacefully with the Indians.
Carson's Lake Township and Kellums Ridge took their names from these men who were here as early as 1812, at which time the Country was visited by a great earthquake known as the New Madrid earthquake.
The Quapaws, for whom Arkansas is named, were a powerful nation and possessed nearly the whole of the State. They were here as early as 1720. In 1824 Robert Crittenden effected a treaty with them, which ceded the reservation and title of "Tribe" to Arkansas. They then removed to the Indian Territory that is now Oklahoma.
Mississippi County has many Indian names, such as Osceola, Chickasawba, Shawnee and Tyronza.
Osceola, one of the earliest settlements in this Territory existed for a number of years as a collection of log huts on the Mississippi River. The town was named for the then famous Seminole Chief who was at one time a visitor among resident Indian tribes here in 1832, as Florida history reveals that Osceola was one of five Florida Indian Chiefs sent to Arkansas with the idea in mind of an exchange of Arkansas land for the Seminole land in Florida.
The Indian population of Mississippi County was located about Barfield, Chickasawba, Big Lake, Little River, and Shawnee Village and near Carson Lake. Generally the same place where the white settlements were first made.
An Arkansas Journal published soon after the new Madrid earthquake gave in account of how the Indians sought to avert the danger of the shocks by reviving an almost obsolete religious rite among the aborigines in imploring the Great Spirit to avert his wrath. (Find story herein).
ARMOREL
To go to Armorel one leaves Blytheville out the Main Street East to the Armorel Road.
Armorel received its name by R.E. Lee Wilson who owned thousands of acres of land here so he named it AR from Arkansas, MO from Missouri and his own initials R.E.L. --making Armorel.
BONDSVILLE
A thriving community in the western part of the county west of Osceola where the family members operate a store and big farming interests there.
BUFFALO ISLAND
Buffalo Island is a small strip of land lying in eastern Craighead County and western Mississippi County in northeast Arkansas. It lies between Little River and Big Lake on the east and the St. Francis River on the west. It varies in width from 10 to 16 miles and is about 40 miles long.
Buffalo Island, which was once a high ridge covered with cane, got its name from the fur traders, the first white men to come into the area. Seeing the great herds of Buffalo that inhabited the Island, they spoke of the area as Buffalo Island.
BURDETTE
This was the original site of Three States Lumber Company.
This large Lumber Company was a Pioneer in the Lumber industry in Mississippi County, owning thousands of acres of wild timber in the early 1900's.
EVADALE
Originally named Idaho Landing as it was here, Lee Wilson first had a sawmill and a tramway run out to the Mississippi River, where the lumber was perhaps rafted to Memphis. In those days managing a raft of logs was an art not given to everyone.
Later Idaho Landing was named for a niece of Mr. Lee Wilson's.
FRENCHMAN'S BAYOU
About twenty-five miles south of the County seat Osceola, is a most attractive stretch of country extending for about six miles, embracing several thousand acres highly cultivated with houses and buildings above general sections of the county.
The name Frenchman's Bayou presumably came from the fact that in 1628 LaSalle on February 24th threw up a Fort and built a cabin on the first Chickasaw Bluff (the present Fort Pillow). He named the place Prudhomme after Peter Prudhomme, one of his men who was lost on the West side of the Mississippi River for eleven days while hunting, and came up in a starved condition rejoining his comrades at the Fort.
LaSalle erected a great cross on the Bluff and also the arms of France, taking possession of the Country in the name of his king.
The Fort was known to the French inhabitants of Louisiana as late as 1825 as Fort Prudhomme. We assume Prudhomme was an unpronounceable name for our settlers thus became known as the Frenchman's Bayou.
GOSNELL
Leaving Blytheville on Chickasawba Avenue one reaches the Gosnell Road upon, after traveling one and three-tenths miles one comes to the place of the famous Chickasawba Indian Mound twenty five feet high and base circumference approximately one hundred-thirty feet.
This mound must have been either a Signal or a Temple Mound as no pottery or skeleton bones have been found here.
GRIDER PARK
This Memorial Park is located on the Grider plantation south of Osceola and was named for Lieutenant McGavock Grider of the Royal Flying Corps, killed at Armentieres, France June 18, 1918.
The park is a ten acre wooded grove, outlined sharply against the flat treeless fields that surround it.
INDIAN SIGNAL MOUND
This Indian signal mound is on the John W. Edringtion farm out Highway 40. When this was a wilderness, this section was an Indian village where was one of the largest living mounds in Mississippi County.
The tall single mound was used for signaling -- here fires were lighted, sending signals of smoke skyward to be seen by neighboring tribes. The tribes were Choctaw, Chickasaw, Osage and Cherokee gypsies.
Some laws of the Lodge were: Be kind, be hospitable, always assume that your guest is tired, cold and hungry. If even a hungry dog enters your lodge, you must feed him. Protect your guest as one of the family, feed his horse, and beat your dogs if they harm his dog.
The women of the lodge are the keepers of the fire, but the men should help with the heavier sticks. Do not talk to your mother-in-law at any time or let her talk to you. She should drop her eyes, and leave the lodge in silence when the son-in-law enters.
KEISER
Among Mississippi County's Pioneers was Fred W. Keiser who lived directly south of Osceola and was the father of two sons, Fred and John and three daughters Mary, Irene, and Ive Maud.
LEACHVILLE
Leachville was named for Joshua Gilbert Leach of Holly Springs, Mississippi, who acquired the present site and much surrounding land in the 1890's.
MANILA
Manila formerly known as Big Lake Island was founded in 1852 by Ed Smith. It was in the heart of fine virgin timber consisting of red oak, cypress, gum and walnut which brought in the lumber industry.
At one time it was a fish center with 40 tons per day being shipped out, also large quantities of turtles and ducks.
Hunting and fishing was quite an industry in its early days.
Manila was originally known as Cinda, honoring the first postmaster's daughter, Sam Bunch, postmaster in 1898.
TOMATO
Tomato--Between Luxora and Blytheville, known for its odd name, received much mail because of the name, which was given years and years ago by a group of community folks seeking a name for the Post Office. When the argument was on in the little store the owner turned to her small daughter who was stocking shelves and asked her what she would call it. She happened to have a can of tomatoes in hand and she replied, " Why don't you call it Tomato?" which they did. Located next to the Mississippi River, Tomato was subject to flooding each spring as the river rose. Travel by boat was the only way in or out of Tomato during these floods.
VICTORIA AND MARIE
These two places reflect the devotion R.E. Lee Wilson held for his two daughters as Victoria was the oldest child and Marie the youngest child of this benevolent and philanthropic citizen of Mississippi County.
VIOLET CEMETERY
One of the oldest landmarks in Osceola is Violet Cemetery in the heart of the city. Here is at rest the major part of Osceola's pioneers.
WEST RIDGE
Is also an active community with a Home Demonstration Club, a school, church and other helpful organizational features supported by the substantial land owners in this fair section of Mississippi County.
