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Black Rock, Arkansas

12 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1934 and the latest in 1983. It stands in Black Rock Township. It lies in ZIP code area 72415. It stands on Fall Creek. The Survey maps it on the Black Rock quadrangle. 590 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 312 feet above sea level.

Research this city

Black Rock within Lawrence County

On record in Black Rock

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 1 record

Population over time

3 figures

Black Rock fell from 717 to 590 between 2000 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
2000717
2010662-55 (-8%)
2020590-72 (-11%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

7 surveys from 12 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

42 since 1998

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 42 fires within 5 miles of Black Rock between 1998 and 2020, burning about 895 acres in total. None started naturally. 9 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
Missing data/not specified/undetermined18
Debris and open burning12
Arson/incendiarism9
Equipment and vehicle use2
Smoking1

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
13 September 2011Missing data/not specified/undetermined2.0 acresArkansas Forestry Commissionnot named
7 August 2012Debris and open burning30 acresArkansas Forestry Commissionnot named
27 August 2007Debris and open burning1.0 acresArkansas Forestry Commissionnot named
24 August 2007Equipment and vehicle use5.0 acresArkansas Forestry Commissionnot named
9 July 1998Equipment and vehicle use1.0 acresArkansas Forestry Commissionnot named
24 June 2016Missing data/not specified/undetermined2.0 acresArkansas Forestry Commissionnot named
3 April 2011Missing data/not specified/undetermined45 acresArkansas Forestry Commissionnot named
20 April 1999Debris and open burning1.0 acresArkansas Forestry Commissionnot named

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Lawrence County

Mines and quarries near this place

10 of 26 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 26 workings within 5 miles of Black Rock: 23 past producers, 3 producers. 3 still produce. What was taken out: Sand and Gravel, Construction, Lead, Zinc, Limestone, Dimension, Stone, Crushed/Broken. 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
Campbell Zinc Co's Shaft 1Lead, Zinc, DolomitePast Producer
Casper MineZincPast Producer
Ben M HoganLimestone, DimensionPast Producer
Black Rock Quarry & MillStone, Crushed/BrokenProducer
Toles QuarryLimestone, DimensionProducer
Verkler QuarryStone, Crushed/BrokenProducer
Adams ProspectsLead, ZincPast Producer
Campbell Zinc Co's Shafts 2 & 3Lead, ZincPast Producer
UnkLead, ZincPast Producer
UnkSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer

Every working recorded in Lawrence County

Storms near this place

60 of 88 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Black Rock in 88 storm reports between 1993 and 2025: 66 flood, 9 thunderstorm wind, 8 hail, 4 flash flood. No death or injury is recorded in these reports. 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
May 2017FloodBlack Rock$5,000,000Heavy rain brought the Black River at Black Rock to just under record levels in early May. Homes and businesses suffered minor damage from the flooding. Many road and bridges were also flooded and damaged. Thousands of acres of cropland was also flooded. The Lawrence County Dive team performed 14 rescues in the first couple days of May. They rescued people from their vehicle on County Road 514 on May 2nd. The dive team rescued two people from a home on May 3rd.
October 2009Flash FloodBlack Rock$76,000Heavy rain caused Coffee Creek to overflow producing flooding on several nearby roads.
April 2011FloodBlack Rock$65,000Heavy rain brought the Black River in Black Rock to just under record levels in late April that continued into mid May. The river remained above flood stage through the end of May. Homes and businesses sustained minor damage from the flooding. Evacuations of Black Rock and Portia, but Portia was spared from any damage. Many roads and bridges were also flooded and/or damaged. Portions of Black Rock and Powhatan Courthouse State Parks. Several thousand acres of cropland was flooded as well.
May 2011FloodBlack Rock$65,000Heavy rain brought the Black River in Black Rock to just under record levels in late April and the river remained above flood stage through the end of May. Homes and businesses sustained minor damage from the flooding. Black Rock and Portia were evacuated, but Portia was spared from any damage. Many roads and bridges were also flooded and/or damaged. Portions of Black Rock and Powhatan Courthouse State Parks were flooded. Several thousand acres of cropland was flooded as well.
March 2017Tornado (EF0)Black Rock$60,000Damage was primarily to metal roofing and some farm buildings and trees. Peak winds estimated at 75 mph.
September 1993Thunderstorm WindBlack Rock$50,000Several highway signs were knocked down, as well as some trees and power lines.
June 2018Thunderstorm WindBlack Rock$15,000Trees down across town.
August 2004HailBlack Rock$10,000no account filed
July 2005Thunderstorm WindBlack Rock$5,000Three power poles were knocked down.
January 2002Thunderstorm WindBlack Rock$5,000A few trees were blown down.
January 2012HailBlack Rock$1,000Quarter size hail fell in Black Rock.
March 2006Thunderstorm WindBlack Rock$1,000A couple of trees were blown down.
May 2004Flash FloodBlack Rock$1,000Several streets were flooded.
July 2002Flash FloodBlack Rock$1,000One home had water reach up to its steps.
January 2000FloodBlack Rock$1,000Several roads were covered with water across the county. A few drainage ditches were full.
August 2002HailBlack Rock$850no account filed
April 2003HailBlack Rock$150no account filed
May 2000HailBlack Rock$20no account filed
April 2025FloodBlack Rock-Major river flooding was observed at Black Rock along the Black River.
January 2025FloodBlack Rock-River flooding on the Black River at Black Rock would begin entering January and remain in minor flood stage through the middle of January. No crest would occur in the month of January.
January 2025FloodBlack Rock-River flooding took place on the Black River at Black Rock to end January and would continue into February. A crest in minor flood stage would take place on 1/31/2025 at 1815 LST of 21.54 feet.
May 2025FloodBlack Rock-Major river flooding was observed at Black Rock along the Black River.
May 2025FloodBlack Rock-Minor river flooding was observed at Black Rock along the Black River.
February 2025FloodBlack Rock-Minor flooding was observed along the Black River at Black Rock.
February 2025FloodBlack Rock-Minor flooding was observed at Black Rock along the Black River.
February 2025FloodBlack Rock-Minor flooding was observed along the Black River at Black Rock.
June 2025FloodBlack Rock-Minor river flooding was observed at Black Rock along the Black River.
August 2025Thunderstorm WindBlack Rock-Multiple trees were blown down in Black Rock.
June 2025FloodBlack Rock-Minor river flooding was observed at Black Rock along the Black River.
June 2025FloodBlack Rock-Minor river flooding was observed at Black Rock along the Black River.
June 2025FloodBlack Rock-Minor river flooding was observed at Black Rock along the Black River.
July 2025FloodBlack Rock-Minor river flooding was observed at Black Rock along the Black River.
January 2024FloodBlack Rock-Heavy rain brought flooding to the Black River at Black Rock on January 12-15, 2024.
February 2024FloodBlack Rock-Heavy rain in January brought continued flooding into early February 2024 on the Black River at Black Rock.
May 2024FloodBlack Rock-Minor river flooding was noted along the Black River at Black Rock.
May 2024FloodBlack Rock-Minor river flooding was noted along the Black River at Black Rock.
June 2024FloodBlack Rock-Heavy rain brought flooding to the Black River at Black Rock in mid June.
June 2024FloodBlack Rock-Heavy rains led to minor river flooding on the Black River at Black Rock between June 1 and June 5, the gage crested on June 1st at 2015 at 16.32 feet.
December 2024FloodBlack Rock-River flooding occurred on the Black River at Black Rock in late December; the river flooding would remain in minor flood stage with the crest and river flooding for this site continuing into mid January.
December 2024FloodBlack Rock-River flooding occurred on the Black River at Black Rock from mid to late December with the crest of the river at this site reaching 16.60 feet on December 19th at 0630. The rive flooding at this site would remain in minor flood stage.
November 2024FloodBlack Rock-The Black River at Black Rock entered minor flood stage in early November and remained in minor flood stage into mid November with a crest of 21.41 feet which occurred on November 6 at 9:15 PM CST.
July 2023Thunderstorm WindBlack Rock-A few trees were downed.
March 2023FloodBlack Rock-Heavy rain brought flooding to the Black River at Black Rock in early March which continued through the end of the month.
January 2023FloodBlack Rock-Heavy rain brought river flooding to the Black River at Black Rock in early January.
February 2023FloodBlack Rock-Heavy rain in the early part of February brought flooding to the Black River at Black Rock.
April 2023FloodBlack Rock-Heavy rain brought flooding to the Black River at Black Rock.
April 2023FloodBlack Rock-Flooding continued from March into early April on the Black River at Black Rock.
January 2022FloodBlack Rock-Heavy rainfall brought flooding to the Black River at Black Rock January 1-18, 2022.
February 2022FloodBlack Rock-Heavy rain brought flooding to the Black River at Black Rock in mid February.
April 2022FloodBlack Rock-Heavy rain in March brought flooding to the Black River at Black Rock that continued in early April.
May 2022FloodBlack Rock-The river forecast point at Black Rock remained at minor flood stage through most of the month of May.
March 2022FloodBlack Rock-Heavy rain in February brought flooding to the Black River at Black Rock that continued into early March.
March 2022FloodBlack Rock-Heavy rain brought minor river flooding to the Black River at Black Rock. This point remained above flood stage through March.
March 2021FloodBlack Rock-Heavy rains brought flash flooding to the Black River at Black Rock mid March through the end of the month.
April 2021FloodBlack Rock-Heavy rain brought flooding to the Black River at Black Rock in early April.
April 2021FloodBlack Rock-Heavy rain brought flooding to the Black River at Black Rock in mid April.
December 2021FloodBlack Rock-Heavy rain brought flooding to the Black River at Black Rock on December 22, 2021.
January 2021FloodBlack Rock-Heavy rain brought flooding to the Black River at Black Rock at the end of January 2021.
February 2021FloodBlack Rock-Heavy rain brought flooding to the Black River at Black Rock from January through February 8, 2021.
April 2021FloodBlack Rock-Heavy rain brought flooding to the Black River at Black Rock at the end of April.

Every storm recorded in Lawrence 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
Powhatan2.1 miles12
Portia2.2 miles12
Coffman3.2 miles12
Hogan3.9 miles13
Sloan4.7 miles13
Richwoods5.1 miles12
Denton5.9 miles13
Lauratown6.1 miles12

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 Black RockAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q79537The 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 76368. 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.