Jonesboro (/ˈdʒoʊnzbʌrə/) is a city located on Crowley's Ridge in the northeastern corner of the U.S. State of Arkansas.

At the time of the European encounter, historic tribes included the Osage, the Caddo, and the Quapaw.

[citation needed] After the United States acquired this territory in the Louisiana Purchase of 1803, American settlers eventually made their way to an area near Jonesboro.

It was named after State Senator William A. Jones[8] in recognition of his support for the formation of Craighead County.

Four black men were arrested in conjunction with the crime, and after their trial, The Jonesboro Lynching of 1881 took place at midnight on March 12.

Around midnight, between 200 and 300 masked men surrounded the church, overpowered the guards, and broke in the doors and windows.

Once again, the crowd dispersed, "leaving the bodies of their victims dangling in the air and presenting a horrible spectacle in the moonlight."

Shortly after the city was named county seat, the highest point in Jonesboro was identified and a courthouse was planned for construction.

Another building was constructed on the same site, but it fell to a fire in 1878, a major one that destroyed most of downtown Jonesboro.

[citation needed] The St. Louis Southwestern Railway, known as the Cotton Belt Railroad was constructed through Jonesboro, with its tracks passing just north of the center of the city.

[citation needed] Wade Thomas was lynched on December 26, 1920, in downtown Jonesboro.

[13][14] On September 10, 1931, Governor Harvey Parnell authorized the Arkansas National Guard to be deployed in Jonesboro to quell the Church War, a clash between the followers of Joe Jeffers and Dow H. Heard, the pastor of the First Baptist Church of Jonesboro.

Jeffers' supporters also attacked the mayor and police chief, resulting in front-page coverage of the incident in The New York Times.

[citation needed] It is the principal city of the Jonesboro, Arkansas Metropolitan Statistical Area.

[citation needed] As of the 2020 United States census, there were 78,576 people, 29,688 households, and 19,637 families residing in the city.

[28] The mall closed in 2020 due to tornado damage; currently, the only stores in operation at Turtle Creek are Dillard's, JCPenney, and Target.

Craighead Forest Park is a city-owned park located on Crowley's Ridge featuring a 60-acre fishing lake, camping facilities, hiking/biking trails, nature areas, picnic sites and recreational fields.

[33] In 2004 the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission opened the 160-acre Forrest L. Wood Crowley's Ridge Nature Center in south Jonesboro, adjacent to Craighead Forest Park.

The center includes exhibits on the origins and history of the Ridge, wildlife, educational models and displays, land and water features, hiking trails, an observation tower and an auditorium.

The museum focuses on the history and cultural heritage of Northeast Arkansas and the Mississippi River Delta region.

New York Institute of Technology College of Osteopathic Medicine maintains a second location on Arkansas State University's campus in Wilson Hall.

[citation needed] Intercity bus service to the city is provided by Greyhound Lines.