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McCurtain County, Oklahoma

Coordinates: 34°07′N 94°46′W / 34.11°N 94.77°W / 34.11; -94.77
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Not to be confused with McCurtain, Oklahoma.

McCurtain County
County
The McCurtain County Courthouse is located downtown in Idabel.
The McCurtain County Courthouse is located downtown in Idabel.
Map of Oklahoma highlighting McCurtain County
Location within the U.S. state of Oklahoma
Map of the United States highlighting Oklahoma
Oklahoma's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 34°07′N 94°46′W / 34.11°N 94.77°W / 34.11; -94.77
Country United States
State Oklahoma
Founded1907
Named forAn influential Choctaw Indian family
SeatIdabel
Largest cityIdabel
Area
 • Total
1,902 sq mi (4,930 km2)
 • Land1,850 sq mi (4,800 km2)
 • Water52 sq mi (130 km2)  2.8%
Population
 (2020)
 • Total
30,814
 • Estimate 
(2022)
30,931
 • Density16.6/sq mi (6.4/km2)
Congressional district2nd

McCurtain County is a county in the southeastern corner of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. As of the 2020 census, its population was 30,814.[1] Its county seat is Idabel.[2] It was formed at statehood from part of the earlier Choctaw Nation in Indian Territory.[3] The name honors an influential Choctaw family who lived in the area. Jackson McCurtain and Edmund McCurtain served in the Confederate Army before their terms as chief, while Green McCurtain was the last chief when Oklahoma became a state in 1907.[4]

History

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McCurtain County National Bank in Broken Bow, Oklahoma

The area now included in McCurtain County was part of the Choctaw Nation before Oklahoma became a state. The territory of the present-day county fell within the Apukshunnubbee District, one of three administrative superregions comprising the Choctaw Nation, and was divided among six of its counties: Bok Tuklo, Cedar, Eagle, Nashoba, Red River, and Towson.[5] In the 1820s, it was a major part of Miller County, Arkansas Territory.

The area was sparsely populated, with no roads or bridges and no towns. Post offices were established at small trading posts along the various trails. Towns began to form when the Arkansas and Choctaw Railway (later the St. Louis and San Francisco Railway) was built across the area in 1902. Between 1910 and 1921, the Choctaw Lumber Company laid tracks for the Texas, Oklahoma and Eastern Railroad from Valliant, Oklahoma, to DeQueen, Arkansas. These roads still served the area at the beginning of the 21st century.[3]

Initially, the county experienced difficulty functioning because of lack of funds. When the Choctaws accepted their land allotments, their homesteads were not taxable for 21 years. No roads were built until a decade after statehood. With no bridges, ferries carried people and vehicles across the major streams.[3]

Beavers Bend State Park was opened in 1937, establishing the region as a tourism destination due to the variety of recreational activities it offers.

On April 2, 1982, the county was struck by an F5 tornado.[6]

Death of Henry Lee Johnson

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Main article: Death of Henry Lee Johnson

Henry Lee Johnson was a 15-year-old boy who was murdered in 1980 in Idabel after entering the parking lot of the Black Hat Club, a "whites-only club". His murder resulted in a riot in Idabel that left two more men dead.[7]

2023 audio recording scandal

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Main article: 2023 McCurtain County, Oklahoma audio recording scandal

In April 2023, the McCurtain Gazette-News released audio recordings of discussions among local officials about hiring a hit man to murder the paper's publisher and a reporter, Chris Willingham, and lamenting that lynching Black people was no longer acceptable. Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt said that he was "both appalled and disheartened to hear of the horrid comments made by officials in McCurtain County". Stitt called for the local officials to resign, including "McCurtain County Sheriff Kevin Clardy, District 2 Commissioner Mark Jennings, Investigator Alicia Manning, and Jail Administrator Larry Hendrix."[8] Over 100 people gathered outside the county courthouse calling on the officials to resign.[9]

In response, the McCurtain County Sheriff's Office released a statement on Facebook reading:

There is and has been an ongoing investigation into multiple, significant violation of the Oklahoma Security of Communications Act ... which states that it is illegal to secretly record a conversation ... Many of these recordings, like the one published by media outlets on Friday, have yet to be duly authenticated or validated. Our preliminary information indicates that the media-released audio recording has, in fact, been altered.  ... In addition to being illegally obtained, the audio does not match the "transcription" of that audio, and is not precisely consistent with what has been put into print. Multiple agencies are assisting in this ongoing investigation. ... There will be continued press releases from this agency as the investigation comes to a close and findings are forwarded to the appropriate authorities for felony charges to be filed on those involved.[10]

Jennings resigned on April 19.[9] The Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation is investigating the incident.[9] Willingham also filed a federal lawsuit alleging that Manning "told a third party during a teleconference that Chris Willingham exchanged marijuana for sexually explicit images of children from a man who had been arrested on child sex-abuse image charges".[9]

On June 18, 2024, Clardy lost his bid for reelection, placing third in the Republican primary with 18.26% of the vote.[11]

Geography

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Map of McCurtain County, 1909
Spillway at Broken Bow Lake

McCurtain County's location in southeastern Oklahoma places it within a 10-county area designated for tourism purposes by the Oklahoma Department of Tourism and Recreation as Choctaw Country.[12] According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has an area of 1,902 square miles (4,930 km2), of which 52 square miles (130 km2) (2.8%) are covered by water.[13]

It is the third-largest county in Oklahoma by area.[3] The terrain of McCurtain County varies from the foothills of the Ouachita Mountains in the northern part of the county to the rich Red River bottoms of the southern part. Sections of the Mountain Fork and Little River drainages lie in McCurtain County. The Glover River originates in McCurtain County and flows 33.2 miles (53.4 km) to its confluence with the Little River southeast of Wright City. Broken Bow Lake was created in 1968 by damming the Mountain Fork River; the river is one of the state's two year-round trout fisheries. The lowest point in the state of Oklahoma is on the Little River in McCurtain County, where it flows out of Oklahoma and into Arkansas.[3] McCurtain County is the only documented part of Oklahoma, together with Choctaw County, within the natural range of the American alligator.[14]

The county also contains the McCurtain County Wilderness Area, a 14,087-acre tract created in 1918 and managed by the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation, and the Little River National Wildlife Refuge, which is managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.[15]

The county contains the location (Smithville) with the highest annual average precipitation in the state, at 55.71 inches.[16]

Major highways

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Adjacent counties

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National protected areas

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Demographics

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Historical population
CensusPop.Note%±
191020,681—
192037,90583.3%
193034,759−8.3%
194041,31818.9%
195031,588−23.5%
196025,851−18.2%
197028,64210.8%
198036,15126.2%
199033,433−7.5%
200034,4022.9%
201033,151−3.6%
202030,814−7.0%
2021 (est.)30,884[17]0.2%
U.S. Decennial Census[18]
1790–1960[19] 1900–1990[20]
1990–2000[21] 2010–2019[1]

At the 2000 census, 34,402 people, 13,216 households, and 9,541 families lived in the county. The population density was 7/km2 (18/sq mi). The 15,427 housing units had an average density of 3/km2 (7.8/sq mi). The racial makup of the county was 70.54% White, 13.57% Native American, 9.30% Black or African American, 0.22% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 1.34% from other races, and 5.02% from two or more races; 3.09%[22] were Hispanic or Latino of any race, while 28.6% were of American, 7.6% Irish, and 5.9% English ancestry. Of the inhabitants, 94.4% spoke English, 2.9% Spanish, and 2.6% Choctaw as their first language. By 2020, its population declined to 30,814.[1]

Of the 13,216 households, 34.0% had children under 18 living with them, 53.3% were married couples living together, 14.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.8% were not families. Of households, 25.4% were one person and 11.0% were one person 65 or older. The average household size was 2.56 and the average family size was 3.06.

The age distribution was 28.2% under 18, 8.3% from 18 to 24, 26.2% from 25 to 44, 23.4% from 45 to 64, and 14.0% 65 or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.10 males.

The median household income was $24,162 and the median family income was $29,933. Males had a median income of $26,528 versus $17,869 for females. The per capita income for the county was $13,693. About 21.0% of families and 24.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 32.4% of those under 18 and 21.2% of those 65 or over.

Politics

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United States presidential election results for McCurtain County, Oklahoma[23]
Year Republican Democratic Third party(ies)
No.  % No.  % No.  %
2024 9,485 83.87% 1,696 15.00% 128 1.13%
2020 9,485 82.72% 1,858 16.20% 124 1.08%
2016 8,656 80.70% 1,802 16.80% 268 2.50%
2012 7,635 75.78% 2,440 24.22% 0 0.00%
2008 7,745 73.49% 2,794 26.51% 0 0.00%
2004 7,472 66.98% 3,684 33.02% 0 0.00%
2000 6,601 62.97% 3,752 35.79% 129 1.23%
1996 3,892 39.82% 4,350 44.51% 1,532 15.67%
1992 3,519 30.62% 5,082 44.21% 2,893 25.17%
1988 4,920 49.64% 4,928 49.72% 63 0.64%
1984 6,381 61.26% 3,994 38.34% 41 0.39%
1980 5,189 45.63% 5,953 52.35% 230 2.02%
1976 3,423 30.89% 7,560 68.23% 97 0.88%
1972 6,441 70.20% 2,568 27.99% 166 1.81%
1968 2,795 32.43% 2,944 34.16% 2,880 33.41%
1964 2,981 33.26% 5,982 66.74% 0 0.00%
1960 3,562 45.88% 4,202 54.12% 0 0.00%
1956 2,707 36.25% 4,761 63.75% 0 0.00%
1952 2,748 32.17% 5,793 67.83% 0 0.00%
1948 1,091 14.92% 6,223 85.08% 0 0.00%
1944 1,419 21.02% 5,322 78.83% 10 0.15%
1940 2,225 24.06% 6,994 75.63% 29 0.31%
1936 1,119 17.99% 5,089 81.80% 13 0.21%
1932 587 9.07% 5,886 90.93% 0 0.00%
1928 1,915 39.79% 2,877 59.78% 21 0.44%
1924 1,669 32.19% 3,279 63.24% 237 4.57%
1920 1,966 40.23% 2,603 53.26% 318 6.51%
1916 795 24.75% 1,763 54.89% 654 20.36%
1912 704 27.07% 1,059 40.72% 838 32.22%
1908 482 40.33% 565 47.28% 148 12.38%

McCurtain County is home to a significant Native American population and had a Democratic registration advantage well into the 2010s, but has not voted for a Democratic presidential nominee in the 21st century. The rightward shift has continued to increase, with the vote shares of Republican presidential nominees increasing in every election since 2000, winning well over 70% of the vote during the Obama era and topping out with 83.8% for Donald Trump in 2024.

Voter Registration and Party Enrollment as of January August 31, 2023[24]
Party Number of Voters Percentage
Republican 8,953 54.46%
Democratic 5,491 33.40%
Independent 1,913 11.64%
Libertarian 83 0.50%
Total 16,440 100%

Economy

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Agriculture and forestry have dominated the county's economy. The dense forests that originally covered the area were cleared and processed within two decades after statehood. The cleared lands then became subsistence farms. Cotton was the main money crop, until the cotton market collapsed during the Great Depression. Cattle raising, as well as production of swine and poultry, replaced cotton farming in importance. Cotton farms in the Red River Valley began raising grains and forage, instead.[3]

Natural reseeding and active reforestation projects, both public and private, have replenished much of the harvested forest area. This revitalized the timber industry, which is again important to the county economy.[3] Limestone, sand and gravel are extracted for extensive local use.[3]

Communities

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Cities

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Towns

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Census-designated place

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Other unincorporated communities

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Notable people

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved April 18, 2023.
  2. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Coleman, Louis. "McCurtain County", Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture, Oklahoma Historical Society, 2009. Accessed April 4, 2015.
  4. ^ "Origin of County Names in Oklahoma". In: Chronicles of Oklahoma. Volume 2, Number 1. March, 1924. Archived August 14, 2017, at the Wayback Machine Retrieved February 14, 2014.
  5. ^ Morris, John W. Historical Atlas of Oklahoma (Norman: University of Oklahoma, 1986), plate 38.
  6. ^ "National Weather Service".
  7. ^ "Okla. Town Tense After Night of Rioting, Gunfire". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved May 2, 2021.
  8. ^ Smith, Jessie Christopher (April 17, 2023). "Gov. Stitt calls for McCurtain County officials to resign". The Oklahoman. Retrieved April 17, 2023.
  9. ^ a b c d Murphy, Sean (April 19, 2023). "Oklahoma official who discussed killing reporters resigns". Associated Press News.
  10. ^ Camper, Nick (April 18, 2023). "Calls for resignation after McCurtain County officials are allegedly caught on recording making disturbing comments". KFOR. Retrieved April 18, 2023.
  11. ^ "McCurtain County Sheriff Kevin Clardy defeated in Republican primary; two lead candidates will have runoff election in August | Texarkana Gazette". www.texarkanagazette.com. June 18, 2024. Retrieved June 24, 2024.
  12. ^ "Counties & Regions". Oklahoma Tourism and Recreation Department (Travel Promotion Division). Retrieved February 5, 2019.
  13. ^ "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Retrieved February 21, 2015.
  14. ^ "A Look at Oklahoma: A Student's Guide" (PDF). State of Oklahoma. 2005. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 30, 2006. Retrieved August 14, 2007.
  15. ^ "McCurtain County Wilderness Area." McCurtain County Tourism Authority. 2008. Retrieved October 8, 2013.
  16. ^ "Oklahoma Annual Rainfall and Climate Data". CoolWeather.net. Retrieved April 8, 2021.
  17. ^ "County Population Totals: 2010-2019". Retrieved February 8, 2021.
  18. ^ "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved February 21, 2015.
  19. ^ "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved February 21, 2015.
  20. ^ Forstall, Richard L., ed. (March 27, 1995). "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved February 21, 2015.
  21. ^ "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. April 2, 2001. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 9, 2022. Retrieved February 21, 2015.
  22. ^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
  23. ^ Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved March 29, 2018.
  24. ^ "Month End Registration Statistics by County" (PDF). September 1, 2023.
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