BlockBefore

Arkoma, Oklahoma

25 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1879 and the latest in 1987. It stands in the Arkoma census division. It lies in ZIP code area 74901. The Survey maps it on the South Fort Smith quadrangle. 1,806 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 522 feet above sea level.

Arkoma within Le Flore County

On record in Arkoma

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

Arkoma fell from 2,180 to 1,806 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
20002,180
20101,989-191 (-9%)
20201,806-183 (-9%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

13 surveys from 25 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

12 since 1993

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 12 fires within 5 miles of Arkoma between 1993 and 2020, burning about 274 acres in total. None started naturally. 5 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/incendiarism5
Missing data/not specified/undetermined4
Debris and open burning2
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
15 September 2011Debris and open burning1.0 acresArkansas Forestry Commissionnot named
3 August 2011Missing data/not specified/undetermined1.0 acresArkansas Forestry Commissionnot named
9 July 2013Missing data/not specified/undetermined3.0 acresArkansas Forestry Commissionnot named
21 March 1996Missing data/not specified/undetermined2.0 acresOklahoma Division of Forestrynot named
15 March 2004Arson/incendiarism16 acresArkansas Forestry Commissionnot named
13 March 2001Equipment and vehicle use29 acresOklahoma Division of Forestrynot named
10 March 1993Missing data/not specified/undetermined2.0 acresOklahoma Division of Forestrynot named
27 February 2006Debris and open burning130 acresCherokee Nation TribeSTATE 216

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Le Flore County

Mines and quarries near this place

9 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 9 workings within 5 miles of Arkoma: 6 past producers, 3 producers. 3 still produce. What was taken out: Sand and Gravel, Construction, Clay, Aggregate, Light Weight. 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
Rescolite CompanyAggregate, Light WeightPast Producer
Fort Smith PitClayPast Producer
Unknown Shale PitClayPast Producer
Unknown Shale PitClayPast Producer
General Inn QuarrySand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer
Jeffrey Sand CoSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer
Preston QuarrySand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer
Unknown Gravel PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Unknown Gravel PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer

Every working recorded in Le Flore County

Storms near this place

52 since 1995

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Arkoma in 52 storm reports between 1995 and 2026: 27 thunderstorm wind, 17 hail, 5 flash flood, 2 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
April 2022HailArkoma$50,000Golf ball size hail damaged homes, businesses, and vehicles.
June 2009Thunderstorm WindArkoma$50,000Thunderstorm winds estimated at 80 miles an hour blew out windows and damaged roofs.
April 2011Flash FloodArkoma$25,000Homes and businesses were flooded.
August 2019Thunderstorm WindArkoma$20,000Strong thunderstorm wind uprooted a tree onto a house.
April 2017HailArkoma$15,000no account filed
May 2019Tornado (EF0)Arkoma$10,000This is the first segment of a two-segment tornado. This tornado developed on the south side of Arkoma, where large tree limbs were snapped and the roofs of homes were damaged. The tornado quickly moved into Sebastian County, Arkansas. Based on the damage in Arkoma, maximum estimated wind in this segment of the tornado was 75 to 85 mph.
November 1998Thunderstorm WindArkoma$10,000Shingles were blown off roofs.
May 2021Thunderstorm WindArkoma$5,000Strong thunderstorm wind blew down trees and power lines.
April 2014Thunderstorm WindArkoma$5,000Strong thunderstorm wind damaged homes and blew over a four wheeler.
July 2012Thunderstorm WindArkoma$5,000Strong thunderstorm wind blew down power lines.
May 2011Thunderstorm WindArkoma$5,000Large trees and multiple power lines were blown down by strong thunderstorm winds.
June 1996Thunderstorm WindArkoma$5,000no account filed
June 2024Thunderstorm WindArkoma$2,000Strong thunderstorm wind snapped large tree limbs and blew down power lines.
June 2023Thunderstorm WindArkoma$2,000Strong thunderstorm wind blew down power lines.
June 2023Thunderstorm WindArkoma$2,000Strong thunderstorm wind blew down power lines and snapped large tree limbs.
May 2019Thunderstorm WindArkoma$2,000Strong thunderstorm wind snapped large tree limbs and blew down power lines.
October 2007Thunderstorm WindArkoma$1,000Thunderstorm winds estimated at 60 miles an hour blew down large tree limbs. The falling tree limbs caused power outages.
May 2000Thunderstorm WindArkoma$100Thunderstorm winds blew down a few large tree limbs.
June 1996Thunderstorm WindArkoma$100no account filed
May 2024Thunderstorm WindArkoma-Strong thunderstorm wind blew down trees.
May 2022FloodArkoma-The Poteau River near Panama rose above its flood stage of 29 feet at 3:45 pm CDT on May 5th. The river crested at 36.20 feet at 4:45 pm CDT on the 6th, resulting in moderate flooding. Agricultural land was flooded from near Panama to near Arkoma, and county roads were closed. The river fell below flood stage at 4:15 am CDT on the 8th.
July 2020Thunderstorm WindArkoma-Strong thunderstorm wind blew down trees.
December 2015FloodArkoma-Portions of Highway 9A were closed from Arkoma to the US-271 junction.
May 2015Flash FloodArkoma-At least one home was evacuated due to rapidly rising water.
May 2013Thunderstorm WindArkoma-Large tree limbs were blown down by strong thunderstorm wind.
April 2012Thunderstorm WindArkoma-Strong thunderstorm wind blew down several small trees.
May 2011Flash FloodArkoma-Locally heavy rainfall resulted in flooding of several county roads.
June 2009Thunderstorm WindArkoma-Thunderstorm winds estimated at 70 miles an hour blew down a tree.
August 2006Thunderstorm WindArkoma-Thunderstorm winds estimated at 70 miles an hour blew down trees.
September 2005Thunderstorm WindArkoma-Thunderstorm winds estimated at 60 miles an hour blew down large tree limbs.
June 2001Thunderstorm WindArkoma-Thunderstorm winds estimated at 70 miles an hour blew down a large tree.
June 1999Flash FloodArkoma-Several Arkoma streets were flooded.
May 1999Flash FloodArkoma-There was street flooding in Arkoma.
May 1995Thunderstorm WindArkoma-Severe thunderstorms developed in southeast Oklahoma during the evening of May 17th. Thunderstorm winds gusted to 60 miles an hour in Wilburton, two miles east of McCurtain, and in Arkoma. Strong thunderstorm winds blew down several large tree limbs in Spiro, and dime-size hail fell at Haileyville.
April 2026HailArkoma-no account filed
April 2022HailArkoma-no account filed
April 2017HailArkoma-no account filed
March 2015HailArkoma-no account filed
April 2014HailArkoma-no account filed
April 2014HailArkoma-no account filed
April 2011HailArkoma-no account filed
April 2008HailArkoma-no account filed
April 2008HailArkoma-no account filed
March 2006HailArkoma-no account filed
March 2006HailArkoma-no account filed
March 2004Thunderstorm WindArkoma-no account filed
January 2000Thunderstorm WindArkoma-no account filed
March 2000HailArkoma-no account filed
May 2000HailArkoma-no account filed
April 1999HailArkoma-no account filed
April 1998Thunderstorm WindArkoma-no account filed
November 1997HailArkoma-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Le Flore 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
Peno Corner2.3 miles25
Cedars5.6 miles25
Braden6.0 miles15
Cedar Knobb7.5 miles23
Pocola8.8 miles23
Murry Spur8.9 miles15
Fort Coffee9.2 miles15
Skullyville11.2 miles14

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 ArkomaAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q673693The 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 1089693. 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.