Cave City, Arkansas

Cave City, Arkansas
City
Location in Sharp County and the state of Arkansas Location in Sharp County and the state of Arkansas
Coordinates:
Country	United States
State	Arkansas
Counties	Independence, Sharp
Townships	Barren (Independence) Cave (Sharp)
Settled	1890
Founded by	James Andrew Laman and John William Laman
Area
• Total	2.6 sq mi (6.7 km2)
• Land	2.6 sq mi (6.7 km2)
• Water	0 sq mi (0 km2)
Elevation	676 ft (206 m)
Population (2010)
• Total	1,904
• Density	740/sq mi (280/km2)
Time zone	Central (CST) (UTC-6)
• Summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
ZIP code	72521
Area code(s)	870
FIPS code	05-12280
GNIS feature ID	0076551
Website	https://www.facebook.com/cavecityarkansas

Cave City is a city in Independence and Sharp counties in the U.S. state of Arkansas. The population was 1,904 at the 2010 census. The city was named for a large cave underneath the Crystal River Tourist Camp, which is the oldest motor court in Arkansas. Cave City is known for its award-winning "world's sweetest" watermelons and holds an annual watermelon festival in August.

Geography

Cave City is located at (35.948087, -91.550952). The town is centered around, and partially located above, the Crystal River, an underground body of water located in the multi-room Crystal River Cave, for which the town is named. The beginning and ending of the water source has never been determined.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 2.6 square miles (6.7 km²), all of it land.

List of highways

• U.S. Highway 167
• Arkansas Highway 58
• Arkansas Highway 230

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.		%±
1910	278		—
1920	243		−12.6%
1930	296		21.8%
1940	427		44.3%
1950	442		3.5%
1960	540		22.2%
1970	807		49.4%
1980	1,634		102.5%
1990	1,503		−8.0%
2000	1,946		29.5%
2010	1,904		−2.2%
Est. 2014	1,869		−1.8%
U.S. Decennial Census 2014 Estimate

As of the census of 2000, there were 1,946 people, 775 households, and 538 families residing in the city. The population density was 752.7 people per square mile (290.1/km²). There were 843 housing units at an average density of 326.1 per square mile (125.7/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 97.84% White, 0.57% Black or African American, 0.72% Native American, 0.05% Asian, and 0.82% from two or more races. 1.18% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

File:Cave City sign.jpg

The Cave City welcome sign boasts that the town is the "Home of the World's Sweetest Watermelon".

There were 775 households out of which 35.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.5% were married couples living together, 13.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.5% were non-families. 27.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 2.91.

In the city the population was spread out with 27.3% under the age of 18, 8.5% from 18 to 24, 25.8% from 25 to 44, 18.0% from 45 to 64, and 20.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 79.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 74.5 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $23,163, and the median income for a family was $27,292. Males had a median income of $21,397 versus $17,424 for females. The per capita income for the city was $11,925. About 17.0% of families and 21.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 26.3% of those under age 18 and 15.6% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Students in the area can attend the Cave City School District.