Greer County is a

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

located along the southwest border of the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...

Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...

. As of the 2010 census, the population was 6,239. 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 ...

is Mangum. From 1860 to 1896, the state of

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

claimed an area known as

Greer County, Texas Greer County, a county created by the Texas legislature on February 8, 1860 (and was named for John Alexander Greer, Lieutenant Governor of Texas), was land claimed by both Texas and the United States. The region of Greer County is now in present ...

, which included present-day Greer County along with neighboring areas. In 1896 it was designated as a county in

Oklahoma Territory The Territory of Oklahoma was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 2, 1890, until November 16, 1907, when it was joined with the Indian Territory under a new constitution and admitted to the Union as th ...

under a ruling by the US Supreme Court. The rural Greer County is home to

Quartz Mountain State Park Quartz Mountain State Park is located in southwest Oklahoma at the western end of the Wichita Mountains, east of Mangum, Oklahoma and north of Altus, Oklahoma. The nearest community is Lone Wolf, Oklahoma, about northeast of the park. It is op ...

, near the community of

Lone Wolf, Oklahoma Lone Wolf is a town in Kiowa County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 438 at the 2010 census, a decline of 12.4 percent from 500 in 2000. The town was named for Chief Lone Wolf (1843–1923), a warrior chief of the Kiowa who fought to ...

. It is also home to the

Oklahoma State Reformatory The Oklahoma State Reformatory is a medium-security facility with some maximum and minimum-security housing for adult male inmates. Located off of State Highway 9 in Granite, Oklahoma, the facility has a maximum capacity of 1042 inmates. The med ...

, located in

Granite Granite () is a coarse-grained (phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies undergro ...

. Its population has declined since 1930 due to changes in agriculture and migration to cities for work.

History

After a dispute over the 1819 Adams-Onís Treaty and the related 1828 Treaty of Limits, the governments of both the United States and the state of Texas claimed ownership of some 1.5 million acres (6,000 km²) in what was then operated as

. The county was named for former Texas lieutenant governor, John A. Greer.Wilson, Linda D. ''Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture''. "Greer County.
Retrieved March 5, 2015. Litigation followed, and in the case of ''United States v. State of Texas'' , with a ruling issued on March 16, the Supreme Court, having original jurisdiction over the case, decided in favor of the United States. The county was assigned to the Oklahoma Territory on May 4, 1896. When Oklahoma was admitted as a state, Greer County was established according to its current boundaries; the remaining former county area was organized as Harmon,

Jackson Jackson may refer to: People and fictional characters * Jackson (name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the surname or given name Places Australia * Jackson, Queensland, a town in the Maranoa Region * Jackson North, Qu ...

, and part of Beckham counties. The town of Mangum, designated as the county seat in 1886 when this was part of Texas, continued as the seat of Greer County, Oklahoma. From its establishment until at least 1903, Greer County was a sundown county, prohibiting African Americans from living in the county. Originally developed for agriculture, the rural county had its peak of population in 1930. Mechanization of agriculture reduced the need for farm labor, and the population has declined as people migrated to cities for work. Among the county attractions is

(known from 2002 to 2020 as Quartz Mountain Nature Park), near the community of

Lone Wolf A lone wolf is a wolf not belonging to a pack. Lone wolf or Lone Wolf may also refer to: Literature *''Lone Wolf'', a book by Kathryn Lasky, part of the series called ''Wolves of the Beyond'' *''Lone Wolf and Cub'', a 1970 Japanese graphic nov ...

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 (0.7%) is water. Western Greer County lies in the Gypsum Hills, while the eastern one-third is in the Red Bed Plains physiographic region. The county is drained by the

North Fork Red River The North Fork Red River, sometimes called simply the "North Fork", is a tributary of the Red River of the South about long, heading along the eastern Caprock Escarpment of the Llano Estacado about southwest of Pampa, Texas.United States Board ...

Elm Fork Red River The Elm Fork Red River is a river in Oklahoma. It flows into the North Fork of the Red River near Quartz Mountain State Park Quartz Mountain State Park is located in southwest Oklahoma at the western end of the Wichita Mountains, east of Mangum, ...

, and

Salt Fork Red River The Salt Fork Red River is a sandy-braided stream about long, heading on the Llano Estacado of West Texas about north of Claude of Armstrong County, Texas, flowing east across the Texas Panhandle and Western Oklahoma to join the Red River abo ...

Major highways

* U.S. Highway 283 * State Highway 6 * State Highway 9 * State Highway 34

Adjacent counties

* Beckham County (north) * Kiowa County (east) * Jackson County (south) * Harmon County (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 incl ...

of 2000, there were 6,061 people, 2,237 households, and 1,442 families residing in the county. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: 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 term.Matt RosenberPopul ...

was 10 people per square mile (4/km²). There were 2,788 housing units at an average density of 4 per square mile (2/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 81.46%

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 ...

, 8.78%

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 ...

, 2.47% Native American, 0.26%

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 ...

, 0.02%

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 ...

, 3.99% 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 3.02% from two or more races. 7.44% of the population were

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, 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 Vic ...

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 2,237 households, out of which 25.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.00% were married couples living together, 9.60% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.50% were non-families. 33.40% of all households were made up of individuals, and 19.80% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.27 and the average family size was 2.87. In the county, the population was spread out, with 20.00% under the age of 18, 9.10% from 18 to 24, 28.40% from 25 to 44, 22.40% from 45 to 64, and 20.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 123.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 129.60 males. The median income for a household in the county was $25,793, and the median income for a family was $30,702. Males had a median income of $24,318 versus $18,641 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 $14,053. About 15.00% of families and 19.60% 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 28.40% of those under age 18 and 14.80% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

Economy

The county's economy has been based on farming and raising livestock. In 1907, the main crops were cotton, corn, oats, wheat and alfalfa. Livestock raised includes cattle, horses, mules, swine, sheep and goats. The

is located in

in the county and provides some jobs.

Communities

Cities

Mangum (county seat)

Towns

Willow Willows, also called sallows and osiers, from the genus ''Salix'', comprise around 400 speciesMabberley, D.J. 1997. The Plant Book, Cambridge University Press #2: Cambridge. of typically deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist s ...

Unincorporated communities

Brinkman

Reed Reed or Reeds may refer to: Science, technology, biology, and medicine * Reed bird (disambiguation) * Reed pen, writing implement in use since ancient times * Reed (plant), one of several tall, grass-like wetland plants of the order Poales * ...

Notable people

* Edward Everett Dale (1879–1972), historian; professor at the

University of Oklahoma The University of Oklahoma (OU) is a Public university, public research university in Norman, Oklahoma. Founded in 1890, it had existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two Territories became the state of Oklahom ...

* William T. Ponder (1891–1947), World War I flying ace * Victor E. Wickersham (1906–1988), U.S. politician; member of the U.S. House of Representatives

References

External links

Mangum Main Street

Greer County Chamber of Commerce

Old Greer County Museum & Hall of Fame

Greer County Extension Service

Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture - Greer County

Oklahoma Digital Maps: Digital Collections of Oklahoma and Indian Territory
{{authority control 1896 establishments in Oklahoma Territory Populated places established in 1896 Sundown towns in Oklahoma