Bayou Meto Highway 144 begins at Big Bayou Meto Use Area at the mouth of Bayou Meto at the
Arkansas River in southeastern
Jefferson County. It crosses the Bayou Meto into
Arkansas County. The route runs east through agricultural land, becoming a
section line road shortly before terminating at US 165/AR 1/GRR south of
Gillett. As of 2016, the route had an
annual average daily traffic (AADT) of 340 vehicles per day (VPD).
Lake Village Highway 144 begins at US 165 near
Jerome on the county line between
Ashley and
Drew County, where it runs east as a section line road into
Chicot County. The route crosses flat agriculture and
aquaculture operations, intersecting
Highway 293 in western Chicot County. Highway 144 intersects
US 65/
US 278/GRR at
McMillan Corner, and a
concurrency begins southbound. US 65/US 278/AR 144 run south into
Lake Village, the
county seat of Chicot County. Highway 144 breaks east from the concurrency toward downtown Lake Village at a junction with US 82, with US 65/US 82/US 278 continuing south toward
Louisiana and
Mississippi. Highway 144 enters the city as St. Mary's Street, passing the
New Hope Missionary Baptist Church Cemetery, Historic Section, which is listed on the
National Register of Historic Places. The route continues east along the southern edge of downtown Lake Village toward
Lake Chicot, where it turns north at an intersection with
Highway 159. Highway 144 continues north along the lake, serving as the eastern boundary of the
Lake Village Commercial Historic District before eviting the city limits. The route intersects two segments of Highway 257 before intersecting a Mississippi River levee, where the route terminates. ==History==