According to linguist Keith Baca, the name Arcola may be derived from the Choctaw language meaning "jar".

[4] In his 2015 travel book entitled Deep South: Four Seasons on Back Roads, author Paul Theroux describes it as a "ghost town.

"[5] According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 0.2 square miles (0.52 km2), all land.

As of the 2020 United States Census, there were 304 people, 95 households, and 65 families residing in the town.

It is also home to the Deer Creek Academy, an independent private school founded in the 1970s.