Corning is a city in Clay County, Arkansas, United States. The population was 3,377 at the 2010 census. It is one of the two county seats of Cl…Corning is a city in Clay County, Arkansas, United States. The population was 3,377 at the 2010 census. It is one of the two county seats of Clay County, along with Piggott. The original settlement was approximately one mile east and was called Hecht City, named for brothers Levi and Solomon Hecht, who operated a lumber mill on Black River. Hecht City moved to the present site of Corning in 1871, when the Cairo and Fulton Railroad surveyed the land for the proposed route. The railroad through the settlement was completed by 1872. On February 5, 1873, the name was changed from Hecht City to Corning, in honor of H. D. Corning, an engineer with the railroad.