7,935 people (2024 Census estimate, −3.8% since 2020)
648 square miles of land · 12 people per square mile
“Highest” and “lowest” are just order, not grades: a high rank for poverty or hazard losses means more of it. Each figure's source is in its section below.
8 active community water systems list Prairie County in the area they serve, reporting 29,289 people served in all (a system that crosses county lines counts its whole population).
| GRAND PRAIRIE REGIONAL WATER groundwater · local government · AR0000738 | 16,330 served |
| SE WHITE COUNTY WATER ASSOC buys surface water · local government · AR0000594 | 5,018 served |
| DES ARC WATERWORKS groundwater · local government · AR0000449 | 4,245 served |
| HAZEN WATERWORKS groundwater · local government · AR0000452 | 1,838 served |
| DEVALLS BLUFF WATERWORKS groundwater · local government · AR0000450 | 600 served |
| EAST PRAIRIE COUNTY PWA groundwater · local government · AR0000458 | 545 served |
| BISCOE WATERWORKS groundwater · local government · AR0000448 | 463 served |
| ULM WATERWORKS buys groundwater · local government · AR0000451 | 250 served |
Source: U.S. EPA Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS), active community systems, . Look up any system's violations and test results with EPA's search using its ID.
About 46 people were held in Prairie County's jail, in Vera's latest figure (2019), or 922 per 100,000 residents ages 15–64. In 2014 it was about 22.
Source: Vera Institute of Justice, Incarceration Trends (built from federal Bureau of Justice Statistics jail surveys). Counties without their own jail, or that share one, may show no figure.
2 school districts have their office in Prairie County. School taxes are usually the largest part of a property tax bill.
Spent $7.9 million — $7.2 million to run schools, about $11,303 per student, plus $498,000 on buildings and equipment. Money in: $1.1 million local (mostly property tax), $5.8 million state, $1.5 million federal. Long-term debt: $5.9 million.
Spent $7.8 million — $7.3 million to run schools, about $13,137 per student, plus $287,000 on buildings and equipment. Money in: $1.3 million local (mostly property tax), $5.3 million state, $1.8 million federal. Long-term debt: $6.4 million.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2023 Annual Survey of School System Finances. Districts are listed by the county of their main office; some serve neighboring counties too.
Source: County Health Rankings & Roadmaps 2025 (University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute), which gathers federal data (CDC, Census, and others); measures cover different recent years. Blank lines aren't reported for small counties.
Overall risk: Very Low compared with other U.S. counties. FEMA estimates natural hazards cost Prairie County about $9 million a year on average in buildings, crops and lives. Ability to bounce back (community resilience): Relatively Low; social vulnerability: Very High.
Source: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025), expected annual loss. Ratings compare counties nationwide; they're estimates, not predictions.
88 bridges in Prairie County: 32 in good condition, 48 fair, and 8 poor (9.1%). “Poor” means a main part — the deck, the beams, or the supports — is rated 4 or lower on the federal 0–9 scale. It doesn't mean unsafe to drive; unsafe bridges are closed.
| US 63 Log 10.70 over WOLF BAYOU · built 1934 | 3,700 vehicles a day |
| US 63 Log 8.69 over LAGRUE CREEK RELIEF · built 1934 | 3,700 vehicles a day |
| US 63 Log 8.51 over LAGRUE CREEK · built 1934 | 3,700 vehicles a day |
| Cypress St. over CARR LAKE RELIEF · built 1931 | 357 vehicles a day |
| CR 950 (Old 70) over UPSHAW BAYOU · built 1931 | 296 vehicles a day |
| SH 86 Log 0.15 over Oak Creek · built 1931 | 268 vehicles a day |
Source: Federal Highway Administration, National Bridge Inventory (2025 submission). Includes state, county and city bridges.
Federal grants paid for $8.6 million of work in Prairie County in fiscal 2025, about $1,040 per resident — to the county, cities, schools, hospitals, nonprofits and others.
Source: USAspending.gov, grants by place of performance, fiscal 2025 (Oct. 2024 to Sept. 2025). Search it by county to see each award.
From Grants.gov: posted grants listing county governments as eligible, soonest deadline first; research-only and overseas programs left out; list updated 2026-10-13, refreshed weekly. 62 are open in all. Cities, towns, school districts and nonprofits have their own lists there.
General election: Tuesday, November 3, 2026. Last day to register to vote: 2026-10-05. Early voting: 2026-10-19 to 2026-11-02. Absentee application due (by mail, email, or fax): 2026-10-27. Absentee ballot hand-delivered by you: last day: 2026-10-30. Election Day — and mailed absentee ballots must arrive: 2026-11-03. Provisional ballot: show your ID by noon: 2026-11-09. General runoff (only where a race needs one): 2026-12-01.
Source: Arkansas Secretary of State, 2026 election calendar · Fayetteville Flyer, Oct. 5, 2026 · sos.arkansas.gov — voting in Arkansas
The budget, property tax rates, audits, local officials and offices for Prairie County come from the county's own records, which we haven't gathered — not gathered, never hidden. See what a full county site looks like, or ask to have Prairie County built: brayden.ozark@gmail.com.
More of Arkansas: the state government and every county in Arkansas.
Nearby counties: Lonoke County (20 mi) · Monroe County (22 mi) · Woodruff County (30 mi) · White County (31 mi) · Arkansas County (39 mi) · Pulaski County (43 mi).