Clay County is a county located in the U.S. state of Arkansas. Originally incorporated as Clayton County, as of the 2020 census, its population was 14,552. The county has two county seats, Corning and Piggott. It is a dry county, in which the sale of alcoholic beverages is restricted or prohibited.

When Clay County was created as Arkansas's 67th county on 24 March 1873 (along with Baxter County), it was named Clayton County, after John M. Clayton, then a member of the Arkansas Senate and a brother of then-U.S. Senator Powell Clayton, though some sources suggest it may have been named for Powell Clayton instead.

Two years later on 6 December 1875, the county's name was shortened to "Clay" by the Arkansas General Assembly. Some claim it was renamed for the statesman Henry Clay, while others say John M. Clayton remained its official namesake. The name change apparently was inspired by lingering distrust of Powell Clayton, as he had declared martial law and suspended elections in the county in 1868 when he was Governor of Arkansas and it was still part of Greene County.

The first county seat was Corning, established in 1873, with the arrival of the St. Louis, Iron Mountain and Southern Railway, as the first incorporated town in the county. The county seat was moved to Boydsville in 1877, in what was known as "Old Bradshaw Field", because people living east of the Black and Cache Rivers had difficulty getting to Corning during the flood season. However, this caused problems for those living west of the rivers, and in 1881 Corning was re-established as the seat of the Western District, with Boydsville remaining the seat for the Eastern District. With the arrival of the St. Louis, Arkansas and Texas Railroad in 1882, other towns such as Greenway, Rector and Piggott experienced growth. In 1887, the Eastern District seat was moved to Piggott, and the dual county seat system remains in place today. Important county functions (such as the Quorum Court) alternate between Piggott and Corning as their venues.

In the early 20th century, Clay, Greene, and Craighead counties had sundown town policies forbidding African Americans from living in the area.

On 6 April 1972, Sheriff Douglas Batey and deputies Glen Ray Archer and Troy Key were shot and killed while trying to serve a warrant on Bert Grissom. Grissom opened fire as soon as the men stepped out of their car. He later surrendered without resistance to another deputy, and was tried, convicted, and sentenced to life in prison. William Thomas Pond became sheriff, but he died in an automobile accident on 8 June 1973. Four of the five police officers who have lost their lives serving the Clay County Sheriff's Office died in these two incidents.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 641 square miles (1,660 km), of which 639 square miles (1,660 km) is land and 2.0 square miles (5.2 km) (0.3%) is water.

• Future Interstate 57
• U.S. Highway 49
• U.S. Highway 62
• U.S. Highway 67
• Highway 90
• Highway 119
• Highway 139

• Butler County, Missouri (north)
• Dunklin County, Missouri (east)
• Greene County (south)
• Randolph County (west)
• Ripley County, Missouri (northwest)

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1880	7,213		—
1890	12,200		69.1%
1900	15,886		30.2%
1910	23,690		49.1%
1920	27,276		15.1%
1930	27,278		0.0%
1940	28,386		4.1%
1950	26,674		−6.0%
1960	21,258		−20.3%
1970	18,771		−11.7%
1980	20,616		9.8%
1990	18,107		−12.2%
2000	17,609		−2.8%
2010	16,083		−8.7%
2020	14,552		−9.5%
2023 (est.)	14,201		−2.4%
U.S. Decennial Census 1790–1960 1900–1990 1990–2000 2010

Clay County racial composition

Race	Number	Percentage
White (non-Hispanic)	13,574	93.28%
Black or African American (non-Hispanic)	40	0.27%
Native American	44	0.3%
Asian	14	0.1%
Pacific Islander	5	0.03%
Other/Mixed	548	3.77%
Hispanic or Latino	327	2.25%

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 14,552 people, 6,444 households, and 4,140 families residing in the county.

As of the 2000 census, there were 17,609 people, 7,417 households, and 5,073 families residing in the county. The population density was 28 people per square mile (11 people/km). There were 8,498 housing units at an average density of 13 per square mile (5.0/km). The racial makeup of the county was 98.1% White, 0.2% Black or African American, 0.7% Native American, 0.1% Asian, 0.2% from other races, and 0.1% from two or more races. 0.8% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 7,417 households, out of which 28.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.6% were married couples living together, 8.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.6% were non-families. 28.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 2.87.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 23.1% under the age of 18, 7.7% from 18 to 24, 25.3% from 25 to 44, 24.6% from 45 to 64, and 19.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 93.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.3 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $25,345, and the median income for a family was $32,558. Males had a median income of $24,375 versus $17,146 for females. The per capita income for the county was $14,512. About 13.4% of families and 17.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 21.2% of those under age 18 and 22.7% of those age 65 or over.

• County Judge: Mike Patterson
• County Clerk: Pat Poole
• Sheriff & Collector: Terry Miller
• Circuit Clerk: Janet Kilbreath
• County Treasurer: Carolyn Morrisett
• District Judge: David Copelin
• Quorum Court Justices: David Cagle, Greg Ahrendt, Doyne Holifield, Joey Henderson, David Hatcher, Dennis Haynes, Mark Watson, & Burton Eddington, Jeff Douglas.

United States presidential election results for Clay County, Arkansas

Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party(ies)
	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2024	3,968	79.89%	907	18.26%	92	1.85%
2020	4,086	78.83%	962	18.56%	135	2.60%
2016	3,781	72.71%	1,199	23.06%	220	4.23%
2012	3,225	63.11%	1,738	34.01%	147	2.88%
2008	3,032	55.02%	2,244	40.72%	235	4.26%
2004	2,759	45.26%	3,264	53.54%	73	1.20%
2000	2,254	38.20%	3,527	59.78%	119	2.02%
1996	1,512	25.79%	3,848	65.63%	503	8.58%
1992	1,647	23.26%	4,848	68.47%	585	8.26%
1988	2,766	44.33%	3,442	55.16%	32	0.51%
1984	3,767	53.02%	3,279	46.15%	59	0.83%
1980	3,091	42.17%	3,985	54.37%	254	3.47%
1976	1,893	25.05%	5,664	74.95%	0	0.00%
1972	4,381	69.39%	1,933	30.61%	0	0.00%
1968	2,410	37.91%	1,663	26.16%	2,285	35.94%
1964	1,999	37.57%	3,280	61.64%	42	0.79%
1960	2,543	55.67%	1,908	41.77%	117	2.56%
1956	1,711	41.60%	2,368	57.57%	34	0.83%
1952	2,105	47.75%	2,277	51.66%	26	0.59%
1948	878	28.41%	2,069	66.94%	144	4.66%
1944	1,422	42.31%	1,934	57.54%	5	0.15%
1940	1,029	37.03%	1,676	60.31%	74	2.66%
1936	795	30.83%	1,778	68.94%	6	0.23%
1932	397	17.22%	1,891	82.00%	18	0.78%
1928	1,254	46.31%	1,435	52.99%	19	0.70%
1924	1,084	39.85%	1,429	52.54%	207	7.61%
1920	1,536	43.99%	1,775	50.83%	181	5.18%
1916	973	33.29%	1,950	66.71%	0	0.00%
1912	622	24.91%	1,299	52.02%	576	23.07%
1908	1,009	38.08%	1,527	57.62%	114	4.30%
1904	752	42.03%	968	54.11%	69	3.86%
1900	627	34.15%	1,195	65.09%	14	0.76%
1896	475	23.35%	1,537	75.57%	22	1.08%

Agriculture is the cornerstone of Clay County's economy. Farmers throughout the county grow a wide variety of crops. Rice is the dominant crop, but significant amounts of cotton, soybeans, corn, hay, and milo are also grown. Industry is limited to a handful of factories located in the cities of Piggott, Corning, and Rector.

Public education of elementary and secondary school students is provided by:

• Corning School District
• Greene County Tech School District
• Piggott School District
• Rector School District

• Datto
• McDougal
• Nimmons
• Success

• Scatterville
• Moark
• Palatka

Townships in Arkansas are the divisions of a county. Each township includes unincorporated areas; some may have incorporated cities or towns within part of their boundaries. Arkansas townships have limited purposes in modern times. However, the United States census does list Arkansas population based on townships (sometimes referred to as "county subdivisions" or "minor civil divisions"). Townships are also of value for historical purposes in terms of genealogical research. Each town or city is within one or more townships in an Arkansas county based on census maps and publications. The townships of Clay County are listed below; listed in parentheses are the cities, towns, and/or census-designated places that are fully or partially inside the township.

• Battle of Chalk Bluff
• List of lakes in Clay County, Arkansas
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Clay County, Arkansas
• List of sundown towns in the United States

36°22′39″N 90°26′07″W / 36.37750°N 90.43528°W / 36.37750; -90.43528