Laverne is a town in Harper County,

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

, United States. The population was 1,223 at the 2020 census.

History

Laverne's origin is traced to John Mollman's homestead, which he established in 1903. The site was then in Woodward County, Oklahoma Territory. A post office was established in 1896 with the name Laverne and continued operating until 1908. After 1908, mail addressed to Laverne was redirected to another post office named Speedmore (now defunct).May, Jon D. "Laverne." ''Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture''. 2009.
Accessed February 14, 2018. Mollman sold part of his acreage to a townsite promoter in 1911. The promoter platted the area and began selling lots. The

Wichita Falls and Northwestern Railway The Wichita Falls and Northwestern Railway, its affiliate the Northwestern Railway Company of Texas, and two subsidiaries collectively constructed a railway running from Wichita Falls, Texas through Altus, Oklahoma to Forgan, Oklahoma, with a bra ...

(WF&NW), a Missouri, Kansas and Texas Railway (Katy) subsidiary, reached the new settlement in spring, 1912. The community was named Laverne after the old post office was moved to the new site in May 1912. According to the ''Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture'', by June 1912, Laverne had 44 businesses, including the Laverne State Bank, the Fox Hotel (NR 78002236) and the Clover Hotel (NR 84003034). Both hotels were built in 1912.

Geography

It is at the intersection of U.S. Highway 283 and State Highway 149, southwest of Buffalo and northwest of

Oklahoma City Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Oklahoma, most populous city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat ...

. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the town has a total area of , all land. Lake Evans Chambers is to the west.

Demographics

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 1,097 people, 503 households, and 303 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 637 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 97.08%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 0.73% Native American, 0.09% Asian, 1.37% from other races, and 0.73% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 3.65% of the population. There were 503 households, out of which 26.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.9% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 7.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.6% were non-families. 38.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 21.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.18 and the average family size was 2.89. In the town, the population was spread out, with 23.6% under the age of 18, 7.2% from 18 to 24, 24.4% from 25 to 44, 21.1% from 45 to 64, and 23.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females, there were 88.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.8 males. The median income for a household in the town was $32,222, and the median income for a family was $38,984. Males had a median income of $31,667 versus $20,000 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the town was $20,424. About 8.9% of families and 13.0% 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 26.9% of those under age 18 and 3.5% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

The Laverne economy has been supported largely on agriculture, with broomcorn, wheat and cattle as the leading products until 1920. Hay replaced broomcorn, whose market has largely disappeared. Oil and gas production became important during the 1920s. Laverne acquired the nickname, "the Oil Capital of Northwest Oklahoma" during a short-lived boom in production during the 1950s. The Katy stopped rail service in 1972 and abandoned its line to Laverne. The local newspaper, ''Laverne Leader Tribune'', is published weekly.

Education

The Laverne public school system educates students from Harper and Ellis counties, as well as those from Beaver County.

Historic sites

The following in the Laverne area are NRHP-listed: * Beagley-Stinson Archeological Site * Clover Hotel * Fox Hotel * Laverne's North Main Street District * M. K. and T. Depot in Laverne * Sharp Lumberyard

Notable people

* Jane Jayroe, Miss America 1967, former news anchor at KOCO (

) and

KXAS KXAS-TV (channel 5) is a television station licensed to Fort Worth, Texas, United States, serving the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It is owned and operated by the NBC television network through its NBC Owned Television Stations division alongs ...

(

Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

), moved to Laverne with her family from

Sentinel Sentinel may refer to: Places Mountains * Mount Sentinel, a mountain next to the University of Montana in Missoula, Montana * Sentinel Buttress, a volcanic crag on James Ross Island, Antarctica * Sentinel Dome, a naturally occurring granit ...

during her childhood. A major street in Laverne was renamed for her. *

Jimmy Webb Jimmy Layne Webb (born August 15, 1946) is an American songwriter, composer, and singer. He achieved success at an early age, winning the Grammy Award for Song of the Year at the age of 21. During his career, he established himself as one of Am ...

, songwriter and musician, moved to Laverne and attended Laverne Public Schools for his junior year. After Laverne, he moved to

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

to start his career. According to numerous articles about Jimmy Webb he claims Laverne as his hometown in Oklahoma.

References

{{authority control Towns in Harper County, Oklahoma Towns in Oklahoma Populated places established in 1911