Garvin County is a county in south-central Oklahoma, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 27,576. Its

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...

Pauls Valley Pauls Valley is a city in and the county seat of Garvin County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 5,992 at the 2020 census, a decline of 3.2 percent from the figure of 6,187 in 2010. It was settled by and named for Smith Paul, a North ...

. In 1906, delegates to Constitution Convention formed Garvin County from part of the

Chickasaw Nation The Chickasaw Nation (Chickasaw: Chikashsha I̠yaakni) is a federally recognized Native American tribe, with its headquarters located in Ada, Oklahoma in the United States. They are an Indigenous people of the Southeastern Woodlands, original ...

Indian Territory The Indian Territory and the Indian Territories are terms that generally described an evolving land area set aside by the United States Government for the relocation of Native Americans who held aboriginal title to their land as a sovereign ...

. The county was named for Samuel J. Garvin, a local Chickasaw rancher, merchant and banker. Its economy is largely based on farming, ranching and oil production.

History

Garvin County came into existence on November 16, 1907, the day Oklahoma became a state. The territory within the present-day county had been a part of

Pickens County, Chickasaw Nation Pickens County was a political subdivision of the Chickasaw Nation in the Indian Territory from 1855, prior to Oklahoma being admitted as a state in 1907. The county was one of four that comprised the Chickasaw Nation. Following statehood, its terr ...

in the

.Charles Goins, ''Historical Atlas of Oklahoma'' (Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 2006), plate 105. An election held June 20, 1908, resulted in county citizens choosing Pauls Valley as the county seat over the towns of Wynnewood and Elmore City. Oil was discovered in the southwestern part of the county known as Robberson Field in the 1920s. The Golden Trend pool, which ran from the northwest to the southern parts of the county developed later.

Geography

According to the

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (1.4%) is water. The county lies between the Red Bed plains and the Sandstone Hills physiographic regions. The main waterways are the

Washita River The Washita River () is a river in the states of Texas and Oklahoma in the United States. The river is long and terminates at its confluence with the Red River, which is now part of Lake Texoma () on the TexasOklahoma border. Geography The ...

, Rush Creek and Wildhorse Creek.

Major highways

Interstate 35 Interstate 35 (I-35) is a major Interstate Highway in the central United States. As with most primary Interstates that end in a five, it is a major cross-country, north–south route. It stretches from Laredo, Texas, near the Mexican border ...

* U.S. Highway 77 * U.S. Highway 177 * State Highway 7 * State Highway 19 * State Highway 29 * State Highway 145

Adjacent counties

* McClain County (north) * Pontotoc County (east) * Murray County (southeast) * Carter County (south) * Stephens County (southwest) * Grady County (northwest)

Demographics

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...

of 2000, there were 27,210 people, 10,865 households, and 7,605 families residing in the county. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical ...

was 34 people per square mile (13/km²). There were 12,641 housing units at an average density of 16 per square mile (6/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 84.93%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White o ...

, 2.55%

Black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ...

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 7.36% Native American, 0.23%

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

, 0.04%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...

, 1.54% from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 3.34% from two or more races. 3.40% of the population were

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties forme ...

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

of any race. There were 10,865 households, out of which 30.70% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.40% were married couples living together, 10.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.00% were non-families. 26.90% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.30% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was 2.96. In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.80% under the age of 18, 8.10% from 18 to 24, 26.00% from 25 to 44, 23.10% from 45 to 64, and 17.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 92.70 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.80 males. The median income for a household in the county was $28,070, and the median income for a family was $34,774. Males had a median income of $28,033 versus $18,940 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the county was $14,856. About 11.40% of families and 15.90% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...

, including 18.60% of those under age 18 and 14.30% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

Economy

While oil and gas production are important to the county economy, agriculture has been the major industry for employment since statehood. In 1907 crops of alfalfa, broomcorn, cotton, onions, potatoes, and hay produced in the county were valued at $2.5 million. By the 1930s over had been planted with paper shelled

pecan The pecan (''Carya illinoinensis'') is a species of hickory native to the southern United States and northern Mexico in the region of the Mississippi River. The tree is cultivated for its seed in the southern United States, primarily in Georgia, ...

trees. By 1961 the Lindsay area harvested more broomcorn than any other region in the world, and the county slogan became "We sweep the world."

Communities

Antioch Antioch on the Orontes (; grc-gre, Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπὶ Ὀρόντου, ''Antiókheia hē epì Oróntou'', Learned ; also Syrian Antioch) grc-koi, Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπὶ Ὀρόντου; or Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπ� ...

* Elmore City * Erin Springs * Fort Arbuckle * Foster * Hennepin * Hoover *

Katie Katie is an English feminine name. It is a form Katherine, Kate, Caitlin, Kathleen, Katey and their related forms. It is frequently used on its own. People Sports * Katie Boulter (born 1996), British tennis player * Katie Clark (born 1994), Bri ...

* Lindsay * Maysville * Paoli *

(county seat) * Pernell * Purdy * Stratford * Tussy * Wallville * Wynnewood

References

External links

Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture - Garvin County

Oklahoma Digital Maps: Digital Collections of Oklahoma and Indian Territory

Garvin County Sheriff's Office
{{Coord, 34.71, -97.31, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-OK_source:UScensus1990 1906 establishments in Indian Territory Populated places established in 1906