Rector is a city in southeastern

Clay County Clay County is the name of 18 counties in the United States. Most are named for Henry Clay, U.S. Senator and statesman: * Clay County, Alabama * Clay County, Arkansas (named for John Clayton, and originally named Clayton County) * Clay County, Fl ...

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the West South Central region of the Southern United States. It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma ...

, United States. The population was 1,977 at the 2010 census.

History

Rector is named after

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

Henry Massey Rector Henry Massie Rector (May 1, 1816August 12, 1899) was an American politician and lawyer who served as the sixth governor of Arkansas from 1860 to 1862. Early life and education Henry Massie Rector was born in Louisville, Kentucky, the son of ...

(1816–1899).Tracy L. Johnson,
Rector (Clay County)
" ''Encyclopedia of Arkansas History and Culture'', 2017. In 1881 the Texas and St. Louis Railroad laid out the town of Rector about to the south of an existing settlement named Scatterville, and the population of Scatterville gradually migrated to the new town.Rachel Silva,
Walks Through History: Rector CHD
" Arkansas Historic Preservation Program website, August 14, 2010.

Geography

Rector is located in southern Clay County along the southeastern edge of

Crowley's Ridge Crowley's Ridge (also Crowleys Ridge) is a geological formation that rises 250 to above the alluvial plain of the Mississippi embayment in a line from southeastern Missouri to the Mississippi River near Helena, Arkansas. It is the most p ...

U.S. Route 49 U.S. Route 49 (US 49) is a north–south United States highway. The highway's northern terminus is in Piggott, Arkansas, at an intersection with U.S. Route 62 (US 62). Its southern terminus is in Gulfport, Mississippi, at an intersection ...

passes through the city, leading northeast to

Piggott Pigot, Pigott, Piggott, Pigotts or Piggotts may refer to: People * Pigot (surname), including a list of people with this name * Pigott (surname), including a list of people with the surname Pigott or Piggott Places * Piggott, Arkansas, Unit ...

and southwest to

Marmaduke ''Marmaduke'' is a newspaper comic strip revolving around the Winslow family and their Great Dane, Marmaduke, drawn by Brad Anderson (cartoonist), Brad Anderson from November 15, 1954 to 2015. Publication history The strip was created by wri ...

. In the southern part of the city,

Arkansas Highway 90 Arkansas Highway 90 (AR 90, Ark. 90, and Hwy. 90) is an east–west state highway in northeast Arkansas. The route of runs from Main Street in Ravenden to Route 84 at the Missouri state line. The route is an entirely undivided surface highway ...

(Main Street) intersects US 49. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, Rector has a total area of , all land. Though a small portion of the town and surrounding area lies along Crowley’s Ridge, the majority of the town and surrounding land is flat and well-suited to farming.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 1,862 people, 805 households, and 460 families residing in the city.

2000 census

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, the racial makeup of the city was 98.26%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 0.55%

Native American Native Americans or Native American usually refers to Native Americans in the United States. Related terms and peoples include: Ethnic groups * Indigenous peoples of the Americas, the pre-Columbian peoples of North, South, and Central America ...

, 0.20% Asian, and 0.99% from two or more races. 0.89% of the population were

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race. There were households, out of which 25.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.6% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 10.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.6% were non-families. 35.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 24.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.20 and the average family size was 2.83. In the city, the population was spread out, with 21.7% under the age of 18, 7.3% from 18 to 24, 22.7% from 25 to 44, 23.8% from 45 to 64, and 24.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females, there were 83.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 76.8 males. The median income for a household in the city was $21,051, and the median income for a family was $29,330. Males had a median income of $27,650 versus $19,293 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the city was $14,931. About 17.9% of families and 23.9% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 33.3% of those under age 18 and 31.6% of those age 65 or over.

Annual cultural events

The Rector Labor Day Picnic features a rodeo, a parade, beauty pageants, and is a popular political campaign stop.

Education

Public education is primarily provided by the

Rector School District Rector School District is a public school district based in Rector, Arkansas, United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a ...

, which leads to graduation from

Rector High School Rector High School is a public high school in Rector, Arkansas, United States. It is one of three public high schools located in Clay County and serves the communities of Rector, Piggott, Greenway, Lafe, and Corning. It is the sole high sch ...

. The Rector School District was known as Clay County Central School District from 1985 until 2000. The current school district mascot is the cougar.

Notable people

Dale Alford Thomas Dale Alford Sr. (January 28, 1916 – January 25, 2000) was an American ophthalmologist and politician from the U.S. state of Arkansas who served as a conservative Democrat in the United States House of Representatives from Little Rock from ...

, member of the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

* Jerry Bookout, Arkansas politician * Bill Carter, entertainment, law, Gaither Homecoming Videos *

Maurice Copeland Maurice Copeland (June 13, 1911 – October 3, 1985) was an American actor. He had supporting roles in films such as ''Arthur'', '' The Pope of Greenwich Village'' and ''Trading Places''. Copeland was a member of the Pasadena Community Play ...

, actor * Edwin A. Doss, colonel for the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...

Skeets McDonald Enos William McDonald (October 1, 1915March 31, 1968), better known as Skeets McDonald, was an American country and rockabilly musician popular during the 1950s and 60s. Best known for the Slim Willet-penned song " Don't Let the Stars Get in Your ...

, Rockabilly artist, famous for the song "

Don't Let the Stars Get in Your Eyes "Don't Let the Stars Get in Your Eyes" is a country song about a man away from home who is worried that his paramour may unwittingly stray from their relationship. It was written by Winston L. Moore (whose stage name was Slim Willet) and published ...

References

External links

* * {{authority control Cities in Clay County, Arkansas Cities in Arkansas Populated places established in 1881 1881 establishments in Arkansas