Wagoner County, Oklahoma

Wagoner County, Oklahoma
Wagoner County Courthouse in Wagoner, Oklahoma
Location in the state of Oklahoma
Oklahoma's location in the U.S.
Founded	1907
Named for	Henry "Bigfoot" Wagoner
Seat	Wagoner
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water	591 sq mi (1,531 km²) 563 sq mi (1,458 km²) 28 sq mi (73 km²),
PopulationEst.  - (2012)  - Density	75,030 127/sq mi (49/km²)

Wagoner County is a county located in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. It is part of the Tulsa Metropolitan Area. As of 2010, the population was 73,085, an increase of 27.1 percent from the 57,491 recorded by the 2000 census. Its county seat is Wagoner.

History

According to archaeological studies, this area was inhabited by Caddoan Mound Builders during the period A.D. 300 to 1200.

The western area of Wagoner County was settled by the Creek after their forced removal in Alabama in the 1820s. The eastern portion of the county was settled by the Cherokee.

During the Civil War in 1865, the present county was the scene of the Battle of Flat Rock (also known as the Hay Camp Action). Confederate troops led by Brig. General Stand Watie and Brig. General Richard Gano captured 85 Union troops and killed even more that were harvesting hay.

In 1905, the Sequoyah Convention proposed creating two counties from this area. The western half would be named Coweta and the eastern half would have been named Tumechichee. However, failure of the attempt to create the state of Sequoyah negated the proposal. In 1907 at Oklahoma Statehood, Wagoner County was organized. The towns of Porter and Coweta vied with Wagoner as the county seat. The county was named after the town of Wagoner, which won the election. The town was named after Henry "Bigfoot" Wagoner, a Katy Railroad dispatcher from Parsons, Kansas.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,531 km² (591 mi²). 1,458 km² (563 mi²) is land and 73 km² (28 mi²) (4.75%) is water. It is part of the Ozark Highlands. The Verdigris River divides the east and west parts of the county. The Arkansas River forms part of the western and southern boundaries. Grand River also flows south through the county. It was dammed in 1942 to create Fort Gibson Lake.

Adjacent counties

• Rogers County (northwest)
• Mayes County (northeast)
• Cherokee County (east)
• Muskogee County (south)
• Tulsa County (west)

Demographics

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1910	22,086		—
1920	21,371		−3.2%
1930	22,428		4.9%
1940	21,642		−3.5%
1950	16,741		−22.6%
1960	15,673		−6.4%
1970	22,163		41.4%
1980	41,801		88.6%
1990	47,883		14.5%
2000	57,491		20.1%
2010	73,085		27.1%
Est. 2012	75,030		2.7%
U.S. Decennial Census

As of the census of 2010, there were 73,085 people,in the county. The population density was 47.74/km². There were 23,174 housing units at an average density of 16/km² (41/mi²). The racial makeup of the county was 80.07% White, 3.75% Black or African American, 9.38% Native American, 0.51% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.85% from other races, and 5.41% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.50% of the population.

There were 21,010 households out of which 37.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 65.90% were married couples living together, 9.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 20.50% were non-families. 17.70% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.70% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.73 and the average family size was 3.08.

In the county the population was spread out with 28.10% under the age of 18, 7.90% from 18 to 24, 28.50% from 25 to 44, 25.40% from 45 to 64, and 10.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 97.70 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.90 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $56,819, and the median income for a family was $62,997. The per capita income for the county was $24,976. About 8.3% of families and 12.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.5% of those under age 18 and 5.8% of those age 65 or over.

Voter Registration and Party Enrollment as of January 15, 2012
Party		Number of Voters	Percentage
	Democratic	16,035	41.47%
	Republican	18,909	48.91%
	Unaffiliated	3,718	9.62%
Total		38,662	100%

Politics

Presidential election results

Year	Republican	Democrat
2008	70.88% 21,441	29.12% 8,810
2004	67.57% 19,081	32.43% 9,157
2000	60.33% 12,981	38.31% 8,244

Cities and towns

Bixby Broken Arrow Catoosa Coweta

Fair Oaks Okay Porter

Tullahassee Tulsa Wagoner

Unincorporated communities

Neodesha Oneta Rocky Point

Redbird Taylor Ferry Toppers

Former community

New Tulsa, Oklahoma - Dissolved in 2001. Now part of Broken Arrow.

National Register of Historic Places sites

Main article: National Register of Historic Places listings in Wagoner County, Oklahoma

First Presbyterian Church of Coweta

The Cobb Building

The following sites in Wagoner County are listed on the National Register of Historic Places:

Cobb Building, Wagoner First National Bank of Wagoner, Wagoner First Presbyterian Church of Coweta, Coweta John W. Gibson House, Wagoner Koweta Mission Site, Coweta A. J. Mason Building, Tullahassee William McAnally House, Wagoner Collin McKinney House, Wagoner Miller-Washington School, Red Bird Newport Hotel and Restaurant, Wagoner

Amos Parkinson House, Wagoner Frederick Parkinson House, Wagoner Red Bird City Hall, Red Bird Rio Grande Ranch Headquarters Historic District, Okay St James Episcopal Church, Wagoner Tullahassee Mission Site, Tullahassee Van Tuyl Homeplace, Porter Wagoner Armory, Wagoner Way House, Wagoner