Stonewall is a town in Pontotoc 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. Named for Confederate General

Stonewall Jackson Thomas Jonathan "Stonewall" Jackson (January 21, 1824 – May 10, 1863) was a Confederate general during the American Civil War, considered one of the best-known Confederate commanders, after Robert E. Lee. He played a prominent role in nearl ...

, the settlement's post office was established in December, 1874.

History

Before Stonewall was a town, it was primarily 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 classified as ...

tribes land. Robert L. Cochran was a Georgia man who settled Stonewall first by opening up a trading post on the original site of Stonewall. The site was declared Pontotoc, which would become the county name in the present. Along with the settling of Cochran's store a post office opened there in 1858. The settlement was then named Stonewall in honor of confederate war general

. By the late 1800s, Stonewall had increased in population and had multiple businesses open such as a cotton gin, good stores, a hotel, and stagecoach station. In the early 1900s Stonewall was on the rise with the expansion of the railroad from

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, a ...

that passed through Ada. A debate was in place about whether they wanted to move the town closer to the railroad, but many didn't want to leave due to Stonewall being a "historically significant as the seat of Pontotoc County in the Chickasaw Nation, Indian Territory". Eventually some moved and the original site would be renamed to Frisco. The new Stonewall site was now official and with the recent move of businesses and post office, the population was thriving. In 1930, Stonewall was unaffected by the Great Depression due to oil booms within the town. However, with the oil boom brought environmental destruction. The local creek was flooded with waste and polluted, causing locals to take action by digging wells. In 1932 Charles "Pretty Boy" Floyd and his accomplice

George Birdwell George William Birdwell (February 19, 1894 - November 23, 1932) was an American bank robber and Depression-era outlaw. He was one of Pretty Boy Floyd's closest known associates and also teamed with a number of fellow Oklahoma-based bandits, mos ...

robbed the Stonewall Bank. They escaped with $600 and had assaulted two bank officers. While on the run Floyd and Birdwell kidnapped a man on a motorcycle as they fled away from the town. Today Stonewall is a smaller town after the reroute of Highway 3 away from the town, causing business to slow down and steady. There are a few businesses within in the town; however, many people are employed in Ada.

Geography

Stonewall is located at (34.651099, -96.526655). 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 the ...

, the town has a total area of , all land.

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 2010, there were 470 people, 186 households, and 106 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 238 housing units at an average density of 734.8 per square mile (287.2/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 70.6%

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 on ...

, 2.6%

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 ...

, 14.7% Native American, 0.2% 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 11.7% from two or more races.

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 were 3% of the population. Of the 195 households, 19.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 32.8% 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, 16.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 43% were non-families. 37.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 33.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.32 and the average family size was 3.06. In the town, the population was spread out, with 26.5% under the age of 18, 7.4% from 18 to 24, 20.5% from 25 to 44, 25.9% from 45 to 64, and 20.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 82.6 males. The median income for a household in the town was $19,135, and the median income for a family was $22,813. Males had a median income of $20,500 compared to $14,792 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 town was $9,741. About 23.5% of families and 25.9% 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 25.8% of those under age 18 and 29.3% of those age 65 or over.

High School Baseball

Stonewall High School Longhorn athletics has won two high school boys baseball state championships, the first in the spring of 1979 and the second in the fall of 2000.

References

External links

Reminiscences of Old Stonewall
{{authority control Towns in Pontotoc County, Oklahoma Towns in Oklahoma