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History · Ponca

Ponca’s post office opened in 1903, and 2 of its places are on the National Register

2 places in town are on the National Register, among them two historic districts with 209 buildings between them. Below: 1 old photo or paper and maps from 1967 on.

1903first post office
2on the National Register
0.0%homes built before 1940
1old photo or paper
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Ponca’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Ponca began

When was Ponca founded?

1903

The Ponca post office opened in 1903, the earliest record of the town by name.

2020 census: 30123 years
Founding year: the first Ponca post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Ponca’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A historic districtThe Big Buffalo Valley Historic District takes in 202 historic buildings.A history waiting to be writtenOnly 1 old photo is in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.
★ What stands out · On the National Register

2 listings protect 209 historic buildings

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
2
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
209
each building in a district counts
first listed
1987
Big Buffalo Valley Historic District
Districts
Big Buffalo Valley Historic DistrictDistrict
All 2 listings
Valley Y RanchDistrict · listed 2023

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

Help out

Start Ponca’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Ponca’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Date a photo1 archive item has no date. Guess the decade.+2Retake an old viewBoxley Grist Mill, Boxley vicinity on S…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
The story so far

Ponca, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Ponca yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Ponca is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Newton County, Arkansas, United States. Ponca is located on Arkansas Highway 43, 10 miles (16 km) west of Jasper. Ponca has a post office with ZIP code 72670. Per the 2020 census, the population was 30.

Its first post office opened in 1903.

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

By decade

Ponca, decade by decade

Date unknown1 to date
Boxley Grist Mill, Boxley vicinity on State Route 43, Buffalo National RiverDate?Boxley Grist Mill, Boxley vicinity on State Route 43,…
Today2 recent
Ponca, AR2015Ponca, ARFishing the Buffalo2009Fishing the Buffalo
On the map

Ponca on the map in 1967

The U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Ponca.

Ponca on the 1967 USGS map1967Ponca sheet · 1:24,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Ponca.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Boxley Grist Mill, Boxley vicinity on State Route 43, Buffalo National River
Retake this viewBoxley Grist Mill, Boxley vicinity on State Route 43, Buffalo National River

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Ponca’s page.

Retake this view · +15
Famous people

Famous people close to Ponca

Nobody well known was born in Ponca itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
Ronnie HawkinsAmerican musician · b. 1935
Helen Gurley BrownAmerican author, publisher, and businesswoman · b. 1922
Gary MillerAmerican politician · b. 1948
Pat BurrellAmerican professional baseball outfielder · b. 1976
John Paul HammerschmidtAmerican politician · b. 1922
David Crockett GrahamAmerican Baptist missionary, anthropologist, ed… · b. 1884

Questions about Ponca’s history

What year was Ponca founded?

The Ponca post office opened in 1903, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

What is on the National Register in Ponca?

Two places: the Big Buffalo Valley Historic District (listed 1987) and the Valley Y Ranch (2023).

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (2), the Library of Congress (1), the National Register of Historic Places (2), U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.