Grady County is a

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

located in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. As of the 2010 census, the population was 52,431. 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 ...

is Chickasha. It was named for

Henry W. Grady Henry Woodfin Grady (May 24, 1850 – December 23, 1889) was an American journalist and orator who helped reintegrate the states of the Confederacy into the Union after the American Civil War. Grady encouraged the industrialization of the Sout ...

, an editor of the ''Atlanta Constitution'' and southern orator. O'Dell, Larry. ''Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture'' - Grady County
accessed March 6, 2015 Grady County is part of the

Oklahoma City Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, it ranks 20th among United States cities in population, an ...

, OK

Metropolitan Statistical Area In the United States, a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) is a geographical region with a relatively high population density at its core and close economic ties throughout the area. Such regions are neither legally Incorporated town, incorporate ...

History

Grady County was part of the land given to the Choctaw by the Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek, in exchange for property in the southeastern United States. In 1837, the

Chickasaw The Chickasaw ( ) are an indigenous people of the Southeastern Woodlands. Their traditional territory was in the Southeastern United States of Mississippi, Alabama, and Tennessee as well in southwestern Kentucky. Their language is classifi ...

joined the Choctaws, and in 1855 a treaty separated the two tribes, and the Chickasaw acquired an area that included much of Grady County. Most of the present Grady County became a part of Pickens CountyCharles Goins, ''Historical Atlas of Oklahoma'' (Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 2006), plate 105. in the Chickasaw Nation. Before the Civil War, Randolph B. Marcy blazed the California Road through this area, reporting a Waco and a Wichita village. In 1858, while the Comanches were holding a meeting with the Wichita, Choctaw, and Chickasaw, Federal troops attacked a party of Comanches. Although the commander of Fort Arbuckle had been informed about the meeting, the troops' commander, Major

Earl Van Dorn Earl Van Dorn (September 17, 1820May 7, 1863) started his military career as a United States Army officer but joined Confederate forces in 1861 after the Civil War broke out. He was a major general when he was killed in a private conflict. A g ...

, had not consulted him before the attack. As a result, the troops killed 60 Comanches and four Wichitas. Fearing a Comanche reprisal, the other tribes fled to safety at Fort Arbuckle. At the end of the Civil War, the Five Civilized Tribes and the Caddo, Delaware, Kiowa, Comanche, Apache, Cheyenne, Arapaho, and Osage signed a peace agreement and pledged to stand united against any unjust demands that the federal government made at the war's end. The agreement was known as the Camp Napoleon Compact. The first railroad in this area was built to the town of Minco in 1890 by the Chicago, Kansas and Nebraska Railway. The company was acquired by the

Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad The Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad (CRI&P RW, sometimes called ''Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railway'') was an American Class I railroad. It was also known as the Rock Island Line, or, in its final years, The Rock. At the end ...

(Rock Island) during the following year. In 1892, the Rock Island built a track connecting Chickasha, Ninnekah, and Rush Springs to the Texas border. The same railroad built a line from Chickasha to Mangum in 1900. The Oklahoma City and Western Railroad (sold to the

St. Louis and San Francisco Railway ST, St, or St. may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Stanza, in poetry * Suicidal Tendencies, an American heavy metal/hardcore punk band * Star Trek, a science-fiction media franchise * Summa Theologica, a compendium of Catholic philosophy ...

in 1907) constructed tracks from Oklahoma City to Chickasha, which it extended to the Texas border in the following year. Between 1906 and 1910, the Oklahoma Central Railway (sold to the

Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway , often referred to as the Santa Fe or AT&SF, was one of the larger railroads in the United States. The railroad was chartered in February 1859 to serve the cities of Atchison and Topeka, Kansas, and S ...

in 1914) built from Lehigh to Chickasha. The 1898 Curtis Act stripped the Chickasaw Nation of its authority, and communal land was forced into allotment, paving the way for statehood. When Oklahoma acquired statehood in 1907, the Chickasaw Nation ceased to exist, Grady County was organized and Chickasha was named the county seat. In 1911, Grady County annexed Washington, Prairie Valley, and the northern section of Dutton townships formerly in Caddo County, Oklahoma.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.4%) is water. The county lies in the

Red Bed Plains Red is the color at the long wavelength end of the visible spectrum of light, next to orange and opposite violet. It has a dominant wavelength of approximately 625–740 nanometres. It is a primary color in the RGB color model and a secondary ...

, and is mostly covered with rolling prairie. The

Canadian River The Canadian River is the longest tributary of the Arkansas River in the United States. It is about long, starting in Colorado and traveling through New Mexico, the Texas Panhandle, and Oklahoma. The drainage area is about .Washita River runs through the middle.

Major highways

* Interstate 44 * H.E. Bailey Turnpike * U.S. Highway 62 * U.S. Highway 81 *

U.S. Highway 277 U.S. Route 277 (US 277, US-277) is a north–south United States Highway that is a spur route of U.S. Route 77. It runs for 633 miles (1,019 km) across Oklahoma and Texas. US 277's northern terminus is in Newcastle, Oklahoma at Inter ...

* State Highway 9 * State Highway 17 * State Highway 19 * State Highway 92

Adjacent counties

* Canadian County (north) *

McClain County McClain County is a County (United States), county located in south central Oklahoma. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 41,662. Its county seat is Purcell, Oklahoma, Purcell. The county was named for Charles M. ...

(east) *

Garvin County Garvin County is a county in south-central Oklahoma, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census, the population was 27,576. Its county seat is Pauls Valley, Oklahoma, Pauls Valley. In 1906, delegates to Constitution Convent ...

(southeast) * Stephens County (south) * Comanche County (southwest) *

Caddo County Caddo County is a county located in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. As of the 2010 census, the population was 29,600. Its county seat is Anadarko. Created in 1901 as part of Oklahoma Territory, the county is named for the Caddo tribe who were ...

(west)

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 45,516 people, 17,341 households, and 12,797 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 41 people per square mile (16/km²). There were 19,444 housing units at an average density of 18 per square mile (7/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 87.31%

White White is the lightness, 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 diffuse reflection, reflect and scattering, scatter all the ...

, 3.06%

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 ha ...

or ( United States Census), 4.85% Native American, 0.34% Asians, 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 Ocea ...

, 1.12% from other races, and 3.28% from two or more races. 2.89% 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 for ...

or Latino of any race. There were 17,341 households, out of which 34.70% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.50% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...

living together, 9.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.20% were non-families. 22.90% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.50% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.58 and the average family size was 3.02. In the county, the population was spread out, with 26.70% under the age of 18, 9.30% from 18 to 24, 27.70% from 25 to 44, 23.20% from 45 to 64, and 13.10% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.30 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.30 males. The median income for a household in the county was $32,625, and the median income for a family was $39,636. Males had a median income of $30,306 versus $21,108 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 $15,846. About 10.40% of families and 13.90% 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 ...

, including 16.90% of those under age 18 and 14.60% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

Communities

* Agawam * Alex *

Amber Amber is fossilized tree resin that has been appreciated for its color and natural beauty since Neolithic times. Much valued from antiquity to the present as a gemstone, amber is made into a variety of decorative objects."Amber" (2004). In M ...

* Bradley * Blanchard * Bridge Creek * Chickasha (county seat) * Cox City * Middleberg * Minco * Ninnekah * Norge * Pocasset * Rush Springs * Tabler * Tuttle *

Verden Verden can refer to: * Verden an der Aller, a town in Lower Saxony, Germany * Verden, Oklahoma, a small town in the USA * Verden (district), a district in Lower Saxony, Germany * Diocese of Verden (768–1648), a former diocese of the Catholic Chur ...

NRHP sites

The following sites in Grady County are listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artist ...

: *

Chickasha Downtown Historic District Chickasha is a city in and the county seat of Grady County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 16,036 at the 2010 census. Chickasha is home to the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma. The city is named for and strongly connect ...

, Chickasha * Grady County Courthouse, Chickasha * Griffin House, Chickasha * Jewett Site, Bradley * Knippelmeir Farmstead, Minco vicinity *

Minco Armory Minco may refer to: *Minco, Oklahoma *Minco Products, a sensors, heaters and circuit board manufacturer