Rector, Arkansas
14 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1935 and the latest in 1984. It stands in East Oak Bluff-Blue Cane Township. It lies in ZIP code area 72461. The Survey maps it on the Rector quadrangle. 1,862 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 285 feet above sea level.
On record in Rector
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 3 records
Rector Waterworks Buildinglisted 2009
Scatterville Cemeterylisted 1995- Rector Commercial Historic Districtlisted 2009
Population over time
2 figuresRector fell from 1,977 to 1,862 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.
| Year | People | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 1,977 | |
| 2020 | 1,862 | -115 (-6%) |
Topographic sheets covering this place
8 surveys from 14 printed sheetsMatched 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.
- 1935 USGS Rector quadrangle1:62500, 3 printings
- 1957 USGS Poplar Bluff quadrangle1:250000, 3 printings
- 1958 USGS Rector quadrangle1:62500, 2 printings
- 1959 USGS Poplar Bluff quadrangle1:250000
- 1960 USGS Poplar Bluff quadrangle1:250000
- 1960 USGS Rector quadrangle1:62500
- 1984 USGS Paragould quadrangle1:100000, 2 printings
- 1984 USGS Rector quadrangle1:24000
Fires near this place
4 since 1997Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 4 fires within 5 miles of Rector between 1997 and 2017, burning about 117 acres in total. None started naturally. None was 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 |
|---|---|
| Debris and open burning | 2 |
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2 |
The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.
| Date | Cause | Size | Reported by | Name on the report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25 August 1997 | Debris and open burning | 40 acres | Arkansas Forestry Commission | not named |
| 3 February 1998 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2.0 acres | Arkansas Forestry Commission | not named |
| 28 November 2017 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 60 acres | Arkansas Forestry Commission | not named |
| 11 November 1999 | Debris and open burning | 15 acres | Arkansas Forestry Commission | not named |
Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:
Mines and quarries near this place
10 of 15 shownRegional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 15 workings within 5 miles of Rector: 6 past producers, 5 unknowns, 4 producers. 4 still produce. What was taken out: Sand and Gravel, Construction. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Where | Site | Commodity | Status | Recorded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Guy Bucy | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| I Golden | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| I Stahl | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Johnson Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Melvin Copeland Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Producer | ||
| Stahl Gravel Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Stahl Gravel Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Stahl Gravel Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Producer | ||
| Tri-County Pit & Plant | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Producer | ||
| Trs Trucking Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Producer |
Storms near this place
46 since 1995Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Rector in 46 storm reports between 1995 and 2026: 23 thunderstorm wind, 18 hail, 4 flash flood, 1 tornado. 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.
| When | Event | Place named | Harm | What the report says |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January 2013 | Thunderstorm Wind | Rector | $250,000 | Straight line winds damaged a couple farm buildings and overturned two irrigation pivots. |
| March 2006 | Thunderstorm Wind | Rector | $75,000 | A farm shop collapsed. A hangar and an airplane were damaged at the Rector Airport. A portion of the roof was damaged at Crockett Oil Company. Some trees and power lines were knocked down. |
| August 2024 | Flash Flood | Rector | $50,000 | Several bridges were washed or under water between Rector and Greenway. |
| May 2004 | Thunderstorm Wind | Rector | $50,000 | Some sheds were destroyed and several trailers were damaged. Numerous trees were knocked down. |
| April 1998 | Thunderstorm Wind | Rector | $50,000 | One house was destroyed. A barn was spread out over a one-half mile area. Numerous trees were blown down. |
| May 2003 | Thunderstorm Wind | Rector | $25,000 | A barn was destroyed. Several farm shops and barns were damaged. A car and a truck were also damaged. A patio cover was blown away. Some trees were uprooted and some utility poles were blown down. |
| November 2000 | Thunderstorm Wind | Rector | $25,000 | A barn was destroyed. A church steeple was torn off. Several trees and power lines were blown down. |
| July 1999 | Thunderstorm Wind | Rector | $25,000 | A crop duster flipped over at the Rector airport. Several trees were knocked down. |
| January 1996 | Thunderstorm Wind | Rector | $20,000 | no account filed |
| March 2026 | Thunderstorm Wind | Rector | $15,000 | An outbuilding was destroyed, and a second one was partially damaged near the intersection of South Dodd Street and West 13th Street. Several trees were also downed. |
| June 1999 | Tornado (F0) | Rector | $15,000 | A tornado briefly touched down just east of Rector. An airplane was turned over. Several large tree limbs were blown down as well. |
| April 2006 | Hail | Rector | $10,000 | no account filed |
| May 2022 | Thunderstorm Wind | Rector | $5,000 | Trees down in Rector. |
| May 2000 | Thunderstorm Wind | Rector | $5,000 | Several power lines were blown down. |
| June 1999 | Thunderstorm Wind | Rector | $5,000 | Several power lines were knocked down. |
| May 2024 | Thunderstorm Wind | Rector | $3,000 | Numerous large tree limbs down and a downed power pole in Rector. |
| March 2022 | Thunderstorm Wind | Rector | $2,000 | Power lines down in Rector. |
| July 2021 | Thunderstorm Wind | Rector | $2,000 | Tree down close to the town of Rector. |
| July 1995 | Thunderstorm Wind | Rector | $2,000 | Several trees were blown down. |
| November 2005 | Thunderstorm Wind | Rector | $1,000 | A couple of trees were knocked down. |
| April 2008 | Hail | Rector | $1,000 | no account filed |
| May 1995 | Hail | Rector | $1,000 | no account filed |
| April 2003 | Hail | Rector | $250 | no account filed |
| April 1998 | Hail | Rector | $100 | no account filed |
| March 2002 | Hail | Rector | $20 | no account filed |
| July 2006 | Flash Flood | Rector | $10 | Flash flooding caused 3 to 4 inches of water on roads in the town of Rector. |
| June 2005 | Hail | Rector | $10 | no account filed |
| July 2005 | Hail | Rector | $10 | no account filed |
| March 2001 | Hail | Rector | $10 | no account filed |
| April 2026 | Thunderstorm Wind | Rector | - | Wind gusts estimated at 60 mph near Rector. |
| March 2025 | Hail | Rector | - | Quarter sized hail, 2 miles north of Rector, AR. |
| October 2021 | Flash Flood | Rector | - | Highway 49 was flooded between Rector and Greenway. |
| May 2020 | Thunderstorm Wind | Rector | - | A few trees were knocked down in Rector. |
| July 2012 | Hail | Rector | - | Quarter size hail fell north of Rector. |
| May 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | Rector | - | Straight line winds destroyed a shed in Rector. |
| June 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | Rector | - | Straight line winds knocked a few trees down and flipped a trampoline in the town of Rector. |
| August 2009 | Flash Flood | Rector | - | Heavy rain produced flash flooding in Rector. A few streets were flooded as a result. |
| May 2009 | Thunderstorm Wind | Rector | - | Winds were estimated at 60 mph in Rector. |
| August 2024 | Hail | Rector | - | no account filed |
| June 2023 | Hail | Rector | - | no account filed |
| April 2020 | Hail | Rector | - | no account filed |
| March 2015 | Hail | Rector | - | no account filed |
| May 2012 | Hail | Rector | - | no account filed |
| April 2010 | Hail | Rector | - | no account filed |
| June 2009 | Hail | Rector | - | no account filed |
| December 2008 | Thunderstorm Wind | Rector | - | no account filed |
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 | Place | Distance | Sheets |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pratt | 2.2 miles | 14 | |
| Heubner | 3.3 miles | 14 | |
| Hargrave Corner | 3.4 miles | 12 | |
| Leonard | 3.8 miles | 12 | |
| Hammett (historical) | 4.4 miles | 12 | |
| Mitchell | 6.0 miles | 12 | |
| Greenway | 6.6 miles | 12 | |
| Boydsville | 6.9 miles | 15 |
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 Rector | An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied. |
| Wikidata item Q79382 | The 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 58468. 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.







