Dallas County

Dallas County was formed January 1, 1845, from Bradley and Clark counties and named in honor of George M. Dallas, who had been elected Vice President of the United States in 1844. Dallas County is known for its rolling hills and pine Forests. The world's first southern pine plywood plant was built in Fordyce, and timber resources still drive its economy. Georgia-Pacific Corp. is the county's largest employer. Tri-County Lake, where Dallas, Calhoun, and Cleveland counties meet, offers water recreation activities. The Ouachita River, the longest and largest river in the Ouachita Mountain region, forms the western county line and provides floating and fishing. The Cotton Belt route through the town of Fordyce, the county seat, brought prosperity when it arrived in Dallas County in 1882. Fordyce is Arkansas' only single county seat to have been moved from a central location when the railroads bypassed its original site of Princeton. In April of each year, the weeklong "Fordyce on the Cotton Belt Festival" is held which draws not only the local citizens but many tourists as well.