Roland is a town in Sequoyah County,

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 ...

, United States. It is part of the Fort Smith, Arkansas-Oklahoma Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 3,169 at the 2010 census, compared to the figure of 2,842 recorded in 2000.Larry O'Dell, "Roland," ''Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture''.
Accessed March 18, 2015.

History

This area was a dispersed rural community in the Cherokee Nation during the 19th century, until 1888, when the Kansas and Arkansas Valley Railway (KAVR) built a railroad line through it. Meanwhile, the formerly-dispersed residents coalesced into a small town called either Garrison or Garrison Creek. A post office was established in the town in 1902, and the town renamed itself as Roland in 1904. The 1910 census recorded 228 residents.

Geography

Roland is located at (35.418013, -94.514815). According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , of which is land and (0.75%)is water. Roland is east of

Muldrow Muldrow is a town in Sequoyah County, Oklahoma, United States. It is part of the Fort Smith, Arkansas-Oklahoma Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 3,466 at the 2010 census, an increase of 11.7 percent over the figure of 3,104 reco ...

and west of Fort Smith.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 2,842 people, 1,055 households, and 815 families in the town. The population density was . There were 1,132 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 73.89% White, 4.57% African American, 11.22% Native American, 0.14% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.77% from other races, and 9.36% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.10% of the population. There were 1,055 households, out of which 41.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.8% 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, 17.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 22.7% were non-families. 19.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.69 and the average family size was 3.09. In the town, the population was spread out, with 31.5% under the age of 18, 9.5% from 18 to 24, 29.0% from 25 to 44, 19.6% from 45 to 64, and 10.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females, there were 90.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.2 males. The median income for a household in the town was $29,015, and the median income for a family was $32,863. Males had a median income of $26,294 versus $19,779 for females. The per capita income for the town was $13,410. About 16.9% of families and 20.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 26.9% of those under age 18 and 13.3% of those age 65 or over.

Notable person

Joshua Wheeler Joshua Lloyd Wheeler (November 22, 1975 – October 22, 2015) was a United States Army soldier who was killed in Iraq during Operation Inherent Resolve. He was a master sergeant assigned to the elite Delta Force, and was the first American servi ...

(1975-2015); first American soldier to be killed in Iraq since 2011, born in Roland.

Notes

References

External links

The Official Roland Schools Website
{{authority control Towns in Oklahoma Towns in Sequoyah County, Oklahoma Fort Smith metropolitan area Populated places established in 1888