Humnoke (Lonoke County)

Historical Population as per the U.S. Census:

Humnoke is a city in southern Lonoke County, situated upon the Grand Prairie. It is located on Highway 165 between Stuttgart (Arkansas County) and England (Lonoke County); however, its unique name derives from the city’s place between Humphrey (Arkansas and Jefferson counties) to the south and Lonoke (Lonoke County) to the north.

The Grand Prairie was not inviting to nineteenth-century settlers, especially southern Lonoke County, covered as it is with wetlands, brakes, and oxbow lakes. Early in the twentieth century, however, new arrivals to the area discovered that the climate and terrain were ideal for rice farming. Stuttgart became a center of the rice industry, and towns and cities like Humnoke began to dot the landscape.

Local historians credit Dee Bayne as the founder of Humnoke in 1904. Other early settlers in the city included Jack Noble, Tom Jones, James Murphy, Riley Campbell, and A. J. Coleman. A post office was established in 1912; the building also served as a general store. In the midst of American involvement in World War I, residents made improvements to the settlement, including a drainage system for the community and the installation of electric service. Railroad and automobile traffic brought visitors into Lonoke County and allowed area farmers to ship their crops to market.

During World War II, the flatlands of the Grand Prairie proved to be ideal for air fields where military pilots were trained. The Stuttgart Army Air Field was not far from Humnoke, and smaller landing strips were built in many nearby places. The city of Humnoke was incorporated during the war, in September 1942.

Humnoke had its own school district for many years, but school consolidation reduced Lonoke County to four school districts. As of 2013, Humnoke is part of the Carlisle (Lonoke County) school district. Humnoke includes a variety of small businesses, including Dismuke’s Affiliated Foods, as well as a Baptist church, a United Methodist church, and a Pentecostal Church of God. The city celebrates a Fall Fest in October or November each year. In 2010, the population of Humnoke was 284 and was predominately white.

For additional information:
City of Humnoke. http://www.humnoke.com (accessed June 4, 2022).

McGraw, Shirley, and Carol Bevis. Lonoke County Arkansas, A Pictorial History. Virginia Beach, VA: Donning Company, 1998.

Steven Teske
Butler Center for Arkansas Studies