Greene County is a county in Arkansas, United States, on the eastern edge of Crowley’s Ridge in the Arkansas Delta. It had a population of 45,736 at the 2020 census and covers 578 square miles (1,500 km2) centred near 36°06′N 90°33′W.
Paragould is the county seat, and its postal code is 72450. The county has 2 cities, 3 incorporated towns and roughly four dozen unincorporated communities. It sits in the Central time zone.
Towns & Villages in Greene County
Greene County has a small incorporated core — Paragould and Marmaduke as cities, plus the towns of Delaplaine, Lafe and Oak Grove Heights — around which dozens of unincorporated rural communities and former post-office hamlets are scattered across the Delta and Crowley’s Ridge landscape. “Unincorp.” marks a place with no city or town government of its own.
| Place | Type | Pop. | ZIP |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paragould | City · seat | 29,537 | 72450 |
| Marmaduke | City | — | — |
| Delaplaine | Town | — | — |
| Lafe | Town | — | — |
| Oak Grove Heights | Town | — | — |
| Bard | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Beech Grove | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Bertig | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Bethel | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Black Jack | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Brighton | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Camp Ground | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Case | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Center Hill | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Coffman | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Cotton Belt | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Crowley | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Dixie | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Ebenezer | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Evening Star | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Fairview | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Faulknerville | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Finch | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Fontaine | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Fritz | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Gainesville | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Green High | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Halliday | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Hooker | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Hopewell | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Jay | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Lake Side | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Light | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Lorado | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Miller | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Mitchell Mill | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Morning Star | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Mounds | Unincorp. | — | — |
| New Hope | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Noxburn | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Pine Knot | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Rock Hill | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Stanford | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Stonewall | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Tunis | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Twin Oaks | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Unity | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Walcott | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Walnut Corner | Unincorp. | — | — |
| White Oak | Unincorp. | — | — |
The county has no formal system of civil townships, so places are listed as a single flat directory rather than grouped by township. “Walcott” appeared twice in an earlier version of this list; the duplicate has been removed.
ZIP Codes
- 72450 — Paragould (also serves Oak Grove Heights and most of the surrounding rural county)
Marmaduke, Delaplaine, Lafe and the county’s many unincorporated communities rely on Paragould’s or a neighboring county’s post office for mail service rather than a dedicated ZIP of their own; this page lists only the ZIP that can be confirmed.
Geography
Greene County straddles Crowley’s Ridge, a narrow, forested loess-and-till upland that rises above the flat farmland of the Arkansas Delta, with the eastern part of the county draining toward the St. Francis River basin and the western part toward the Cache and Black River systems. The terrain shifts from rolling ridge woodland in the west to broad, drained bottomland cropland — soybeans, rice, corn and cotton — in the east.
The county borders Clay County to the north, Dunklin County, Missouri to the east, Craighead County to the south, Lawrence County to the southwest and Randolph County to the northwest. Only Lawrence County and Dunklin County, Missouri currently have live county profiles on this site; Clay, Craighead and Randolph are named here without a link.
Demographics
Greene County had 45,736 residents at the 2020 census, a density of about 79 people per square mile. Paragould, with 29,537 residents, is by far the largest community and home to nearly two-thirds of the county’s population; Marmaduke is a distant second. Median household income in Greene County runs below the Arkansas median of $58,700, reflecting the county’s mix of row-crop agriculture and manufacturing employment rather than the higher-wage metro economies of central Arkansas.
Economy & Local Life
Agriculture — soybeans, rice, corn, cotton and cattle — anchors the rural economy, alongside manufacturing and healthcare centered on Paragould, home to Arkansas Methodist Medical Center, a 127-bed acute-care hospital. Paragould also hosts Crowley’s Ridge College and a Black River Technical College campus, giving the county seat a small-college presence unusual for a city its size.
History
Greene County was organized on November 5, 1833, and named for Nathanael Greene, the Revolutionary War general. Paragould itself formed in 1883 from the merger of two rival railroad towns, Paragoulding and Gould, whose combined name it still carries. Like much of Crowley’s Ridge, parts of the county enforced sundown-town policies excluding Black residents in the early 20th century, a history the county has since publicly acknowledged.
Getting There
US Highways 49, 63 and 412 cross the county, along with Arkansas Highways 1, 34, 69, 90, 135, 139, 141, 168, 228, 351 and 358.
- Jonesboro — about 20 miles south
- Memphis, Tennessee — about 82 miles southeast
- Poplar Bluff, Missouri — about 40 miles northeast
The nearest commercial airport is Memphis International Airport, roughly 90 minutes southeast by road.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Greene County, Arkansas?
It is in the northeastern corner of Arkansas, on Crowley’s Ridge, bordering Missouri to the east.
What is the population of Greene County?
45,736 people, per the 2020 census.
How big is Greene County?
578 square miles (1,500 km2).
What is the county seat of Greene County?
Paragould.
How many towns and cities are in Greene County?
Two cities (Paragould and Marmaduke), three incorporated towns (Delaplaine, Lafe and Oak Grove Heights), and roughly four dozen unincorporated communities.
What ZIP codes are in Greene County?
Paragould’s ZIP is 72450; most of the rest of the county is served through Paragould’s post office.
Why is Greene County on Crowley’s Ridge?
The ridge is a loess-covered upland running through the Arkansas Delta, and Paragould sits directly on its eastern edge, giving the county seat higher, better-drained ground than the surrounding farmland.
More counties in this state: Towns and villages in Arkansas.