:''Inola'' is also a spider genus (

Pisauridae Nursery web spiders (Pisauridae) is a family of araneomorph spiders first described by Eugène Simon in 1890. They resemble wolf spiders (Lycosidae) except for several key differences. Wolf spiders have two very prominent eyes in addition to the o ...

). Inola is a town in

Rogers County Rogers County is located in the northeastern part of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. As of the 2020 census, the population was 95,240, making it the sixth-most populous county in Oklahoma. The county seat is Claremore. Rogers County is included i ...

, Oklahoma, United States. It is included in the Tulsa Metropolitan Statistical Area (TMSA). The population was 1,788 at the 2010 census, a 12.5 percent increase from 1,589 at the 2000 census.MuniNetGuide: Inola, Oklahom

. ''Inola'' is a Cherokee language, Cherokee word meaning "Black Fox."Larry O'Dell, "Inola" ''Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture''
Accessed March 19, 201

/ref> The town styles itself as "The Hay Capital of the World."

History

In 1889, the

Kansas and Arkansas Valley Railway The Kansas and Arkansas Valley Railway (“K&AV”) was owner of 170.64 miles of single track, standard gauge steam railroad line, consisting of a 164.63 mile mainline from a junction near Van Buren, Arkansas through Oklahoma to Coffeyville, Kansa ...

(later acquired by the

Missouri Pacific Railway The Missouri Pacific Railroad , commonly abbreviated as MoPac, was one of the first railroads in the United States west of the Mississippi River. MoPac was a Class I railroad growing from dozens of predecessors and mergers. In 1967, the railroad ...

) built a line from Wagoner through the Foyil area on to the

Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to th ...

state line. The area was then just inside the northeastern corner of the Creek Nation in Indian Territory. A post office was established in March 1890 with the name Foyil. It was closed in September 1890, but reopened in April 1891. By 1901, the population was estimated at 100 people. The Dawes Commission had the town platted in 1902, before the Creek allotment. Strip mines began producing coal nearby before statehood in 1907, causing a small boom in population. Inola's population was 405 in 1920. As the coal industry began to decline, so did the town's population. The 1930 census reported only 399 residents. The decline continued through the post

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

era, reaching 294 in 1950. A turnaround began in the 1950s as residents began commuting to

Tulsa Tulsa () is the second-largest city in the state of Oklahoma and 47th-most populous city in the United States. The population was 413,066 as of the 2020 census. It is the principal municipality of the Tulsa Metropolitan Area, a region with ...

. Inola's population grew to 584 in 1960 and 984 in 1970. The 1980 census showed 1,550 residents, increasing to 1,589 in 2000 and 1,788 in 2010.

Geography

Inola is located at (36.133182, -95.523938). According to the

United States 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 t ...

, the town has a total area of , of which is land and (0.91%) is water.

Demographics

Economy

The town has emerged as a

bedroom community A commuter town is a populated area that is primarily residential rather than commercial or industrial. Routine travel from home to work and back is called commuting, which is where the term comes from. A commuter town may be called by many o ...

for

, about 28 miles to the west. In October of 2020, tissue paper maker Sofidel opened a $360 million production factory in Inola. The 1.8 million-square-foot plant includes a mill that transforms pulp into paper, and a conversion facility that makes the finished product. The factory employs more than 300 people, and that number is expected to double with a second operational phase.

Black Fox Power Plant

The Black Fox Nuclear Power Plant was a nuclear power plant proposed by the Public Service Company of Oklahoma (PSO) in May 1973. The facility was to be built approximately outside of Inola, and encompass the use of two General Electric (GE) Boiling Water Reactors. PSO argued there would be great economic growth and better schools in the town. Many residents, as well as outsiders, were convinced it would be a dangerous to locate such a facility in their backyards. After nine years of court battles and minor earthquakes in the area, the decision was abandoned in 1982 and no complex was built.

References

External links

- Inola Public Schools

''Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture'' - Inola

Official Inola, OK website
{{authority control Towns in Rogers County, Oklahoma Towns in Oklahoma Tulsa metropolitan area