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Bella Vista, Arkansas

18 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1899 and the latest in 1979. It stands in Township 4. It lies in ZIP code area 72714. It stands on McKisic Creek. The Survey maps it on the Bentonville North quadrangle. 30,104 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 1,148 feet above sea level.

Bella Vista within Benton County

On record in Bella Vista

Buildings and businesses the archive holds for this place. Each opens its own page, with the source record it came from.

On the National Register 12 records

Population over time

2 figures

Bella Vista grew from 26,461 to 30,104 between 2010 and 2020. These are the recorded population figures Wikidata holds for this place, reached through the Geographic Names Information System number this page is keyed on rather than by name, so they belong to this place and not to another of the same name. Most are census counts, but not all are: an early figure may be a founding or settlement estimate, and an estimate published within five years of a census is left out. The change column is computed, and is left blank where more than 20 years separate a figure from the one before it, because a gap that long is not a change between two counts.

YearPeople Change
201026,461
202030,104+3,643 (+14%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

8 surveys from 18 printed sheets

Matched by testing this settlement's coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet in the United States Geological Survey's historical collection. Each opens the scanned sheet at the Survey.

Fires near this place

14 since 1999

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 14 fires within 5 miles of Bella Vista between 1999 and 2019, burning about 324 acres in total. None started naturally. 7 were recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Reported cause Fires
Arson/incendiarism7
Missing data/not specified/undetermined5
Debris and open burning1
Equipment and vehicle use1

The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.

DateCause SizeReported by Name on the report
26 August 2011Equipment and vehicle use8.0 acresArkansas Forestry Commissionnot named
17 July 2012Missing data/not specified/undetermined5.0 acresArkansas Forestry Commissionnot named
9 April 2019Missing data/not specified/undetermined3.0 acresArkansas Forestry Commissionnot named
8 April 2019Missing data/not specified/undetermined5.0 acresArkansas Forestry Commissionnot named
5 April 2007Arson/incendiarism86 acresArkansas Forestry Commissionnot named
2 April 2010Arson/incendiarism10 acresArkansas Forestry Commissionnot named
21 March 2014Arson/incendiarism1.0 acresMissouri Department of Conservationnot named
29 February 2016Debris and open burning25 acresArkansas Forestry Commissionnot named

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Benton County

Mines and quarries near this place

5 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 5 workings within 5 miles of Bella Vista: 5 unknowns. None of them still produces. What was taken out: Sand and Gravel, Construction, Stone. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Where SiteCommodity StatusRecorded
UnkStoneUnknown
UnkStoneUnknown
UnkSand and Gravel, ConstructionUnknown
UnkSand and Gravel, ConstructionUnknown
UnkSand and Gravel, ConstructionUnknown

Every working recorded in Benton County

Storms near this place

60 of 81 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Bella Vista in 81 storm reports between 1994 and 2026: 35 hail, 31 thunderstorm wind, 10 flash flood, 3 flood. The reports record 4 deaths. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
April 2011Flash FloodBella Vista2 killedWidespread heavy rainfall resulted in many county roads becoming flooded and closed. A vehicle was driven around a barricade and was washed off Opal Road at a low water bridge. Two people died in this vehicle.
May 2024FloodBella Vista1 killedA kayaker launched into Little Sugar Creek in Bella Vista, and was drowned in the dangerously high and fast water flow. Search and rescue efforts recovered his body on the 28th, when the water flow became safe enough to deploy boats to aid in the search, which up until then had only involved a foot search, ATVs, and drones along the creek.
May 2024FloodBella Vista1 killedA swimmer went into Little Sugar Creek in Bella Vista, and was drowned in the dangerously high and fast water flow. Search and rescue efforts recovered her body on the 28th, when the water flow became safe enough to deploy boats to aid in the search, which up until then had only involved a foot search, ATVs, and drones along the creek.
May 2024Thunderstorm WindBella Vista$20,000,000Strong thunderstorm wind damaged hundreds of homes, blew down numerous power poles, and uprooted many trees in a broad swath from northwest of Bentonville, across much of Bentonville, to near Little Flock.
August 2013Flash FloodBella Vista$1,000,000Several streets were flooding near the visitor center in town. Significant damage to roads and bridges occurred in this portion of the county.
May 2010LightningBella Vista$150,000Lightning struck a house and started a fire that consumed the entire structure.
May 2019Thunderstorm WindBella Vista$75,000Strong thunderstorm wind blew down trees onto three homes.
August 2024Thunderstorm WindBella Vista$60,000Strong thunderstorm wind blew down multiple trees onto homes.
March 2026HailBella Vista$50,000Large hail up to golf ball size damaged homes and vehicles.
March 2020HailBella Vista$50,000no account filed
March 1998Thunderstorm WindBella Vista$35,000Numerous trees blown down in Bella Vista. Newspaper clipping cited "trees down on cars,...trees down on houses,...and trees down on streets." Power lines blown down causing power outages.
May 2003Thunderstorm WindBella Vista$25,000Thunderstorm winds estimated at 70 miles an hour blew down several trees. One tree fell on a home and penetrated the roof.
January 2008HailBella Vista$25,000no account filed
May 2019HailBella Vista$20,000no account filed
April 2024Thunderstorm WindBella Vista$15,000Strong thunderstorm wind snapped large tree limbs, one of which fell through the roof of a home.
August 2012Thunderstorm WindBella Vista$15,000Strong thunderstorm wind blew down many large tree limbs, a few trees, and power lines. A tree fell onto a house.
May 2015Tornado (EF0)Bella Vista$10,000A tornado damaged barns and snapped large tree limbs. It was witnessed by several people in the area. Based on this damage, maximum estimated wind in the tornado was 70 to 80 mph.
July 2011Thunderstorm WindBella Vista$5,000Strong thunderstorm wind blew down trees and broke windows along Spanker Creek Road.
May 2005Thunderstorm WindBella Vista$5,000Thunderstorm winds estimated at 70 miles an hour blew down trees which then downed power lines as they fell.
July 1994Thunderstorm WindBella Vista$5,000Thunderstorm winds downed several trees.
May 2019HailBella Vista$5,000no account filed
April 2017Thunderstorm WindBella Vista$2,000Strong thunderstorm wind blew down a small tree onto a home, causing damage to the roof.
June 2009Thunderstorm WindBella Vista$1,000Thunderstorm winds estimated at 70 miles an hour blew down trees and power lines.
September 1996Thunderstorm WindBella Vista$100no account filed
April 2025Thunderstorm WindBella Vista-Strong thunderstorm wind blew down a tree northeast of Bella Vista.
January 2024Thunderstorm WindBella Vista-Strong thunderstorm wind blew down several trees on Oldham Road.
May 2024Thunderstorm WindBella Vista-Strong thunderstorm wind blew down several trees.
July 2023Thunderstorm WindBella Vista-Strong thunderstorm wind blew down a tree.
May 2020HailBella Vista-Half dollar size hail damaged vehicles and homes.
October 2019Flash FloodBella Vista-Portions of numerous roads in and around Bentonville were closed due to flooding.
October 2019Flash FloodBella Vista-Portions of Peach Orchard Road were flooded near Palladium Road.
September 2019Flash FloodBella Vista-Portions of several roads in Bella Vista and northern Bentonville were flooded.
August 2019Thunderstorm WindBella Vista-Strong thunderstorm wind uprooted a tree and snapped large tree limbs.
August 2019Thunderstorm WindBella Vista-Strong thunderstorm wind snapped large tree limbs in Bella Vista, some fell onto roads blocking them.
February 2018Flash FloodBella Vista-Heavy rainfall resulted in the flooding of portions of numerous roads across northern Benton County.
May 2017Thunderstorm WindBella Vista-Strong thunderstorm wind snapped large tree limbs.
April 2015Flash FloodBella Vista-Locally heavy rainfall of two to four inches that fell from a slow-moving thunderstorm flooded portions of Peach Orchard Road. The road was closed due to high water from Angel Falls to Pumpkin Hollow Road.
December 2015Flash FloodBella Vista-Pumpkin Hollow Road north of Bentonville was closed due to flooding.
July 2015Flash FloodBella Vista-Portions of multiple county roads were flooded, including Highways 62, 43, and 102.
July 2014Thunderstorm WindBella Vista-Strong thunderstorm wind blew down a tree and snapped numerous large tree limbs.
April 2014Thunderstorm WindBella Vista-Thunderstorm wind gusts to 60 mph were reported by trained storm spotters.
May 2013Flash FloodBella Vista-Portions of McNelly Road were flooded.
April 2013FloodBella Vista-Significant flooding occurred at Bella Vista Golf Course.
February 2012Thunderstorm WindBella Vista-Strong thunderstorm wind blew down a large tree onto a roadway.
August 2012Thunderstorm WindBella Vista-Thunderstorm wind gusts to 81 mph were measured by instrumentation located at the Cooper Elementary School on Highway 71.
June 2011Thunderstorm WindBella Vista-Spotter estimated thunderstorm wind gust of 60 miles per hour.
August 2011Thunderstorm WindBella Vista-Strong thunderstorm wind blew down numerous large tree limbs.
June 2009Thunderstorm WindBella Vista-Thunderstorm winds estimated at 70 miles an hour blew a tree down.
January 2008Thunderstorm WindBella Vista-Thunderstorm winds estimated at 70 miles an hour blew down trees.
September 2007Thunderstorm WindBella Vista-Thunderstorm winds estimated at 70 miles an hour blew down a large tree.
May 2004Thunderstorm WindBella Vista-Thunderstorm winds estimated at 60 miles an hour blew down large tree limbs.
March 2002Thunderstorm WindBella Vista-Thunderstorm winds estimated at 70 miles an hour blew a tree down.
April 1994HailBella Vista-Funnel clouds were observed near Bentonville.
April 1994HailBella Vista-Funnel clouds were observed near Bentonville.
March 2026HailBella Vista-no account filed
April 2026HailBella Vista-no account filed
March 2025HailBella Vista-no account filed
January 2024HailBella Vista-no account filed
May 2024HailBella Vista-no account filed
May 2024HailBella Vista-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Benton County

Nearest settlements

The eight closest, with where each one stands in the county. Distances are straight-line, computed from the Geographic Names Information System coordinates.

Map PlaceDistance Sheets
Miller2.0 miles17
Rago2.4 miles18
Summit (historical)3.1 miles18
Dug Hill3.2 miles18
Race (historical)4.0 miles17
Bentonville4.1 miles17
Rocky Comfort (historical)4.5 miles17
Seba5.1 miles17

Elsewhere

Matched on this settlement's Geographic Names Information System number rather than its name, so it cannot be a different place of the same name in another state.

Wikipedia article on Bella VistaAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q815783The structured record the population and elevation above come from. Public domain (CC0).

Provenance

This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 76292. The sheet list is computed by point-in-boundary test against the United States Geological Survey's historical topographic inventory. Both are works of the United States government and carry no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.

Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.

Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.

Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.