Little Flock (Benton County)

Historical Population as per the U.S. Census:

Little Flock is a residential community in northwestern Arkansas, Benton County, located north of Rogers (Benton County) and east of Bentonville (Benton County). Although it remained unincorporated until 1970, Little Flock was established in the 1840s. The city’s principal landmark is the Little Flock Primitive Baptist Church, which was organized in 1843.

The Osage claimed northern Arkansas as hunting ground at the time of the Louisiana Purchase, but a series of treaties with the Osage and other tribes opened the land for white settlers. James Harvey Wight was one of the first to homestead in the area that is now Little Flock; his neighbors included Noah Hornbeck, Theopholus Wallace, Amos Osborn, and Benjamin Walker.

In 1843, several families met in a log schoolhouse to found a Baptist church. Drawing inspiration from a verse in the Bible—Luke 12:32, which says, “Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom”—they named their congregation Little Flock Regular Baptist Church; in the 1890s, the name became Little Flock Primitive Baptist Church. The congregation’s first church building was erected in 1858. Three years later, it was used to shelter Confederate soldiers before the Battle of Pea Ridge, fought a few miles north of Little Flock in March 1862.

In 1866, after the Civil War had ended, a school was built next to the Baptist church on Simeon Wight’s farm. The two-room schoolhouse remained in operation for seventy-five years. The first teacher was Z. T. Conley. The Little Flock school was consolidated into School District No. 36 in 1941. That same year, Cal Haskins bought the school building and demolished it, using the lumber to build a house on Brush Creek.

Around 1970, a sanitation company employed by the City of Rogers acquired land near Little Flock, intending to use that land for waste disposal. Resident Grace Herr learned of the planned landfill and helped to organize the Little Flock Improvement Association. Advised by attorney Gene Coffelt of Bentonville, the association arranged to incorporate Little Flock as a second-class city. The incorporation was completed on November 16, 1970. The cities of Rogers and Bentonville opposed the incorporation of the city, but circuit court judge William Enfield ruled in favor of Little Flock. A city government was elected the next year. The proposed landfill was never created.

A historical marker was placed on Little Flock Primitive Baptist Church in 1976, noting the presence of Confederate soldiers there in 1861. That same year saw the completion of a city hall and community building. In 1979, a volunteer fire department was established. The population of Little Flock, estimated to be around 200 when it first was incorporated, had grown to 663 by 1980 and to 944 by 1990. Oddly, the census of 2000 and the census of 2010 reported the same population: 2,585 residents. In 2020, it was 3,055. Little Flock is served by the Rogers Public School District.

Aside from the historic Baptist church, Little Flock is almost completely residential. The Lost Springs Golf Course is on the south side of the city, and the Rogers Municipal Airport (also called Carter Field Airport) is just east of Little Flock. Many Rogers stores and businesses have been built on Highway 62 just south of Little Flock.

For additional information:
Goodspeed’s 1889 History of Benton County, Arkansas. Bentonville, AR: Benton County Historical Society, 1993.

History of Benton County, Arkansas. Rogers, AR: Benton County Heritage Committee, 1991.

“Little Flock Celebrates 10^th Anniversary.” Benton County Pioneer 25 (Fall 1980): 75–76.

“Little Flock Primitive Baptist: 130 Years Old.” Benton County Pioneer 19 (Winter 1973-4): 26.

“Little Flock School—1917.” Benton County Pioneer 24 (Summer 1979): 36–37.

Steven Teske
Butler Center for Arkansas Studies