Fort Smith is located on the Arkansas-Oklahoma border, where it is bisected by the Arkansas River and sandwiched between the Ouachita and Ozark national forests. Built on the flats left by the meandering river, the city is level and green but enjoys easy access to mountains. Fort Smith sees the sun more than 200 days out of the year and experiences temperate weather during most months. The winters are generally mild, with less than seven inches of snow on average, while the summers are warm and often humid. Fort Smith sits at the edge of the reputed "Tornado Alley," and in spring of 1996 its downtown was devastated by a class F2 (on the Fujita scale based on damage, with F1 being lowest to F5 being highest) twister.
Area: 52.94 square miles (2000)
Elevation: Approximately 463 feet above sea level
Average Temperatures: January, 36.1° F; July, 81.5° F; annual average, 61° F
Average Annual Precipitation: 40.9 total inches of precipitation; 6.2 inches of snow