Arkansas - Facts and Figures. GENERAL INFORMATION Capital Statehood Little Rock June 15, 1836 the 25th state State nickname Name for residents State motto The Natural State Arkansans Regnat populus (The people rule) Abbreviation AR LAND Total area 137,733 sq km 53,179 sq mi Rank among states in total area Land area 28th 134,874 sq km 52,075 sq mi Highest point Magazine Mountain 839 m/2,753 ft Forested land as a share of total area Federally owned land as a share of land area 56.3 percent (2002) 12 percent (2002) PEOPLE Population Rank among states in population Ten-year population growth Population density 2,834,797 (2007 estimate) 32nd 13.7 percent (1990-2000) 21 persons per sq km (2006 estimate) 54 persons per sq mi (2006 estimate) Urban population Largest cities (by population) Little Rock 52.5 percent (2000) 184,422 (2006) Fort Smith 83,461 (2006) Fayetteville 68,726 (2006) North Little Rock 58,896 (2006) Jonesboro 60,489 (2006) Ethnic groups Whites Blacks Native Americans 80 percent (2000) 15.7 percent (2000) 0.7 percent (2000) Asians 0.1 percent (2000) Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders 0.1 percent (2000) Mixed heritage or not reporting 2.8 percent (2000) Hispanics (of any race) 3.2 percent (2000) HEALTH AND EDUCATION Life expectancy Infant mortality rate 74.3 years (1989-1991) 8 deaths per 1,000 live births (2004) Residents per physician 494 people (2005) Residents per hospital bed 295 people (2005) Share of population not covered by health insurance Number of students per teacher (K-12) Government spending per student (K-12) Share of students attending private school Share of people over age 25 with high school diploma 18.9 percent (2006) 14.7 (2003) $7,275 (2002-2003) 5.9 percent (1999) 80.5 percent (2006) GOVERNMENT State government Governor Mike Beebe (term ends January 2011) Legislature Senate, 35 members House of Representatives, 100 members National representation Members of the U.S. Senate 2 Members of the U.S. House of Representatives 4 Electoral votes 6 ECONOMY Gross state product (GSP) Income per capita $92 billion (2006) $25,724 (2004) GSP by economic sector Agriculture, forestry, and fishing 3.9 percent (2004) Industry Construction 4.5 percent (2004) Manufacturing 18.4 percent (2004) Mining 0.4 percent (2004) Transportation and utilities 7.1 percent (2004) Services Finance, insurance, and real estate 13.7 percent (2004) G overnment Information technology 12.8 percent (2004) 4 percent (2004) Retail trade 7.4 percent (2004) Wholesale trade 6.6 percent (2004) Other services 21 percent (2004) Employment Number of workers 1,365,000 (2006 estimate) Unemployment rate 5.3 percent (2006 estimate) Share of workers in unions 4.8 percent (2005) ENERGY, COMMUNICATIONS, AND TRANSPORTATION Electricity production Share from geothermal, solar, and wind 3.7 percent (2005 estimate) Share from hydroelectric 6.4 percent (2005 estimate) Share from nuclear 28.6 percent (2005 estimate) Share from thermal 61.2 percent (2005 estimate) Daily newspaper circulation per 1,000 people Share of households with Internet access Number of library books circulated per resident Length of highways 161 newspapers per 1,000 people (2006 estimate) 42.4 percent (2003 estimate) 4.3 books per person (2002) 158,779 km (2005) 98,661 mi (2005) Length of interstate highways 1,056 km (2005) 656 mi (2005) Length of railroad tracks 4,332 km (2004) 2,692 mi (2004) Airports 9 (2007) SOURCES The Association of American Railroads (www.aar.org), Bureau of Economic Analysis (www.bea.doc.gov), Bureau of Labor Statistics (www.bls.gov), Census Bureau (www.census.gov), Energy Information Administration (www.eia.doe.gov), Federal Aviation Administration (www.faa.gov), Federal Highway Administration (www.fhwa.dot.gov), Forest Service (www.fs.fed.us), General Services Administration (www.gsa.gov), National Agricultural Statistics Service (www.usda.gov/nass), National Center for Education Statistics (nces.ed.gov), National Center for Health Statistics (www.cdc.gov/nchs), National Telecommunications and Information Administration (www.ntia.doc.gov). Microsoft ® Encarta ® 2009. © 1993-2008 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.
