Helena Wedding

The city of Helena-West Helena represents a consolidation, effective on January 1, 2006, of two Arkansas cities: Helena and West Helena. Prior to consolidation Helena was comprised of 6323 people in 23.1 km. West Helena had 8689 people in 11.5 km. In a March 2005 vote among citizens of both cities, with some proposals extending back at least to 2002 the merger was completed. The combined city is located in Phillips County, typically one of the poorest of Arkansas' counties. Proponents of the consolidation had stated that combining the cities would strengthen the bargaining power for its surrounding region in competing for projects to improve the overall economy and standard of living. Among the combined city's council's first tasks was the hiring of a new police chief, Vincent Bell.

Following consolidation, Helena-West Helena inherits designation as the county seat of Phillips County, a designation formerly given to Helena.

Based on U.S. Census reports for both cities prior to the merger, the 2000 population of the area comprising Helena-West Helena was 15,012.