Donald Trump boasted that he attracted a record-setting crowd to a livestock arena at the Arkansas State Fairgrounds on Wednesday night, but photos taken while he spoke inside the Barton Coliseum tell a different story.

Minutes before the billionaire Republican presidential candidate arrived on stage – nearly two hours late – the general manager of the state fair told the crowd that they had set a record.

'In 1974 we had ZZ Top here and we set our all-time record of 11,451,' Ralph Shoptaw said on stage. 'I have just been informed that we have broken that record. Over 11,500. So welcome, Mr. Trump to Barton Coliseum.'

Shoptaw didn't say who informed him of the head-count. He also did not respond to a request for comment.

When Trump entered the arena and looked out over a half-empty venue, he claimed Shoptaw was the fire marshal and reiterated that he had set a new attendance record.

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Donald Trump boasted that he attracted a record-setting crowd despite seats near him obviously being empty

Not exactly full: A man Trump thought was the local fire marshal announcing that the audience had broken a four-decade-old attendance record was actually the general manager of the state fair. This photo was shot while Trump was speaking

The Barton Coliseum seats 10,195 people when all the seats are filled and the floor is at capacity for concerts, but Trump claimed he had drawn '12K' people to hear him. This photo was shot while Trump was speaking

The view from the pit: Reporters and most photographers were cordoned off in an area opposite The Donald and prohibited from mingling with his crowd. This photo shows the audience size while Trump (center, in the distance) spoke

Trump has drawn legitimate five-figure crowds to arenas in the past, but the Arkansas event's audience was likely half the size he made it out to be

'Amazing!' Trump began his speech. 'So we broke the record, and I asked the fire marshal, 'Please come up because nobody's going to believe me. Please come up'.'

'That's a long-time record that we broke,' he repeated. 'Incredible.'

Ralph Shoptaw, the man who announced an apparently record-breaking crowd count in Arkansas, is the general manager of the state fair

DailyMail.com showed some photos, taken during Trump's speech, to Trump press secretary Hope Hicks and asked for comment.

'I wasn't in attendance,' she replied via email from New Hampshire.

Then she repeated Trump's error: 'I can only go by what the fire marshal said to the crowd. Hope you enjoyed the speech.'

The City of Little Rock's fire marshal's office was not available for comment after hours.

A sheriffs deputy who asked not to be named because he is not authorized to speak to reporters said there was no official fire marshal crowd-count made.

Shortly after Trump finished his speech, he tweeted: 'THANK YOU to everyone in Little Rock, Arkansas tonight! A record crowd of 12K.'

Trump has drawn remarkable seas of humanity to many of his high-energy rallies, including some genuine head-counts of more than 20,000.

He often remarks on the size of his devoted audiences and claims that the only time the news media show their sheer enormity is when cameras pan to show unruly protesters.

But the Barton Arena has just 7,150 seats, according to the fair's website, and room for another 3,045 in floor seating, for a total of 10,195.

While Trump's fans were standing, not sitting, the floor was less than one-half full and some sections of seats remained mostly empty – suggesting the crowd was perhaps half of what was announced from the stage.

Donald Trump's plane was forced to make an emergency landing on his flight to Arkansas

The event started nearly two hours late – at 7:45 p.m. – after Trump's private jet was forced to make an emergency landing en route to Arkansas.

The Boeing 757 began suffering from engine trouble and Trump's pilots made a safe landing at Nashville International Airport in Tennessee at 4:40 p.m., according to the Federal Aviation Administration, which will investigate the incident.

The billionaire real estate mogul traveled the rest of the way in a small charter aircraft, a campaign spokeswoman said.

Trump addressed his lateness saying it was 'rough' getting there, but there was 'no way' he would head back to New York instead of continue on to Little Rock. He added: 'I love Arkansas.'

The supporters who were kept waiting brought enthusiasm and patriotism with them in advance of Trump's 52-minute stump speech.

A young woman who sang the National Anthem was forced to switch keys halfway through after she realized she had begun the song too high for her quivering voice to hit the dramatic ending notes.

The Trump supporters helped her out of the embarrassing jam, suddenly singing along with her for the tune's last few lines and applauding her wildly as she recovered.

The Arkansas Republican primary won't take place until March 1. But early voting begins February 16.

The state's elections are part of what has been termed the 'SEC Primary' – traditionally known as 'Super Tuesday' – now renamed after a college athletic conference that covers much of the deep south.

Pictures like this one, shot with a zoom lens, give the impression of a crowd bursting against the confines of a giant arena, but in this case it would be misleading

When Trump tweeted his thanks to his loyal Arkansas supporters, his claimed audience size had grown to a boasted 12,000 and a photo depicted a packed concert venue

What they lacked in numbers... they made up in enthusiasm, including this quartet of young men sitting behind Trump near the last row