Dierks, AR

Dierks is a city in Howard County, Arkansas, in the valley of Holly Creek along the southern edge of the Ouachita Mountains. The 2020 census counted 916 people. U.S. Route 70 passes through on Front Street and Main Avenue, running about 36 miles northeast to Glenwood and 21 miles southwest to De Queen. Dierks Lake, a reservoir on the Saline River, lies about seven miles northwest of the city limits, so the local map runs from a small creek valley to a larger water-and-timber recreation area.

ATTRTony Webster from Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States / CC BY 2.0

Timber is the older economic thread. The city took its name from Hans Dierks, one of the brothers behind the Dierks Lumber and Coal Company, whose mill began operating in 1918; the Dierks mill is now operated by Weyerhaeuser. Every August, the Pine Tree Festival brings that history into Jack Clawson Memorial Park with a parade, craft and food vendors, loader and saw competitions, live music, and antique cars and tractors. The Dierks Branch Library is part of the Southwest Arkansas Regional Library system. The local scoop is a Howard County mill town where U.S. 70, Holly Creek, Dierks Lake, and a timber festival all point to the same regional story.