Little River, Randolph Counties Join the Party: Updates to the Arkansas Wet/Dry Map

by Tyler Knapp - March 29, 2019

Updates to the Wet/Dry Status of Arkansas Counties map include changes from recent elections and new map features.

State law in Arkansas allows local governments to pass laws governing the sale of alcohol in their area. The result is a patchwork of areas that allow, limit or prohibit the sale of alcohol. 

• Only 15 of 75 Arkansas counties allow the sale of all types of alcohol in all areas. Another 27 of 75 counties include areas that limit the type of alcohol that can be sold or areas that ban the sale of alcohol all together. The largest group of counties, 33 of 75, prohibit the sale of alcohol countywide.
• Little River and Randolph counties are the most recent to allow the sale of alcohol, with about 60% of voters in each county casting ballots in favor of legalization in November 2018.

In addition to these changes, the updated map includes new features. 

1. The first shows which political divisions (towns, cities, incorporated places, townships, voting districts and judicial districts) of Arkansas' 27 damp counties prohibit the sale of alcohol or limit sales to specific types of alcohol.

2. The second update shows which municipalities have approved the sale of alcohol on Sundays. Of more than 300 municipal governments in the state, only 12 have approved Sunday sales.

Geographic Oddities

There are several areas of Arkansas that were once bordered by now defunct political divisions. For example, Precinct 614 (north of Jacksonville in Pulaski County) is no longer a recognized voting district, but restrictions on alcohol sales in the area remain in force. The status of each of these areas as "defunct" is included in the geography's notes.

Please be aware, however, that the boundaries of these areas are approximations. Due to limited availability of data, they were drawn using historical descriptions and maps as reference. Each of the sources used for drawing these areas can be found in the details pane of the map application.

Download the Data

If you would like to view the data used to create this map download it here.