Gosnell and the Blytheville Area of Mississippi County
Gosnell is a small city in Mississippi County in the far northeastern corner of Arkansas, adjacent to Blytheville. The population is approximately 3,306, and the community developed largely around the presence of Eaker Air Force Base, which operated from 1942 until its closure in 1992 under the Base Realignment and Closure process. Many current residents are descendants of families who settled near the base during its active years.
The closure of Eaker AFB removed thousands of military and civilian jobs from the area, and Mississippi County has never fully recovered economically. The former base property has been partially repurposed as the Arkansas Aeroplex, a mixed-use industrial and aviation facility, but employment levels remain far below what the base once provided. Agriculture, particularly cotton and soybean farming, forms the backbone of the remaining local economy.
Gosnell sits in the Mississippi Alluvial Plain, where the land is perfectly flat and the soil is rich from centuries of river deposits. The Mississippi River runs along the eastern border of the county, and Blytheville to the north serves as the nearest commercial center. Interstate 55 passes through Blytheville, connecting the area to Memphis about sixty miles south. Healthcare and retail options in Gosnell itself are minimal, with most services available in Blytheville or across the state line in Tennessee.
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Gosnell is a small city in Mississippi County in the far northeastern corner of Arkansas, adjacent to Blytheville. The population is approximately 3,306, and the community developed largely around the presence of Eaker Air Force Base, which operated from 1942 until its closure in 1992 under the Base Realignment and Closure process. Many current residents are descendants of families who settled near the base during its active years.
The closure of Eaker AFB removed thousands of military and civilian jobs from the area, and Mississippi County has never fully recovered economically. The former base property has been partially repurposed as the Arkansas Aeroplex, a mixed-use industrial and aviation facility, but employment levels remain far below what the base once provided. Agriculture, particularly cotton and soybean farming, forms the backbone of the remaining local economy.
Gosnell sits in the Mississippi Alluvial Plain, where the land is perfectly flat and the soil is rich from centuries of river deposits. The Mississippi River runs along the eastern border of the county, and Blytheville to the north serves as the nearest commercial center. Interstate 55 passes through Blytheville, connecting the area to Memphis about sixty miles south. Healthcare and retail options in Gosnell itself are minimal, with most services available in Blytheville or across the state line in Tennessee.
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