Beckham County, Oklahoma

Beckham County
County
Beckham County Courthouse, Sayre, Oklahoma 2015
Location within the U.S. state of Oklahoma
Oklahoma's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 35°16′N99°41′W / 35.26°N 99.69°W / 35.26; -99.69
Country	United States
State	Oklahoma
Founded	November 16, 1907
Named for	J. C. W. Beckham
Seat	Sayre
Largest city	Elk City
Area
• Total	904 sq mi (2,340 km2)
• Land	902 sq mi (2,340 km2)
• Water	2.1 sq mi (5 km2)  0.2%
Population  (2020)
• Total	22,410
• Density	25/sq mi (9.6/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	3rd
Website	beckham.okcounties.org

Beckham County is a county located on the western border of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. As of the 2020 census, the population was 22,410. ^[1] Its county seat is Sayre. ^[2] Founded upon statehood in 1907, Beckham County was named for J. C. W. Beckham, who was Governor of Kentucky ^[3] and the first popularly elected member of the United States Senate from Kentucky. Beckham County comprises the Elk City, OK Micropolitan Statistical Area.

History

In 1855, the U.S. government leased the western part of the formerly reserved Choctaw and Chickasaw Nation lands, which became known as the Leased District. After the Civil War, the two nations were forced to cede the land to the US government under terms of new treaties required because they had been allies of the Confederacy. Under the treaties they were also required to emancipate their slaves and provide them with citizenship in their nations.

In 1869, the former Leased District was designated by the President as the Cheyenne and Arapaho Indian Reservation, following their removal from further west. During the 1880s, Texas cattlemen leased grazing land from the Cheyenne and Arapaho.

Under the Dawes Act of 1891, the government split up such communal lands, allocating plots to individual households of various tribes. After distribution was made, the government declared any additional lands on the reservation to be "surplus". In 1892, the government opened such surplus land to settlement by non-Indians, attracting numerous European-American settlers and immigrants. The area was designated as County F in the newly created Oklahoma Territory, until it was renamed Roger Mills County.

In 1896, Greer County, Texas was transferred to the Oklahoma Territory and became Greer County, Oklahoma, following a United States Supreme Court decision in the United States v. State of Texas boundary dispute case. At statehood, portions of land from both Roger Mills and Greer County were joined to form Beckham County. Sayre was named as the temporary county seat. A 1908 election after statehood made Sayre, Oklahoma the permanent seat. ^[3]

In 1910, a piece of southern Beckham County was returned to Greer County, Oklahoma.

The Gannett survey of 1927-1929 found that the true 100th Meridian, the boundary between Texas and western Oklahoma, was 3,800 feet (1,200 m) farther east than previously thought. The US Supreme Court ruled on March 17, 1930 that the strip of land must be returned to Texas, thereby reducing Beckham County's area slightly. ^[3]

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 904 square miles (2,340 km²), of which 902 square miles (2,340 km²) is land and 2.1 square miles (5.4 km²) (0.2%) is water. ^[4] The county is drained by the North Fork of the Red River and its tributaries: the Timber, Sweetwater, and Buffalo creeks. The northwestern part of the county is part of the High Plains. The rest of the county is part of the Gypsum Hills physiographic region. ^[3]

Major highways

• Interstate 40
• I-40 BL  / US 66
• U.S. Highway 283
• State Highway 6
• State Highway 30
• State Highway 34
• State Highway 55
• State Highway 66
• State Highway 152

Adjacent counties

• Roger Mills County (north)
• Custer County (northeast)
• Washita County (east)
• Kiowa County (southeast)
• Greer County (south)
• Harmon County (southwest)
• Collingsworth County, Texas (west)
• Wheeler County, Texas (northwest)

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1910	19,699		—
1920	18,989		−3.6%
1930	28,991		52.7%
1940	22,169		−23.5%
1950	21,627		−2.4%
1960	17,782		−17.8%
1970	15,754		−11.4%
1980	19,243		22.1%
1990	18,812		−2.2%
2000	19,799		5.2%
2010	22,119		11.7%
2020	22,410		1.3%
U.S. Decennial Census [5] 1790-1960 [6] 1900-1990 [7] 1990-2000 [8] 2010 [9]

Age pyramid for Beckham County, Oklahoma, based on census 2000 data.

As of the 2010 United States census, ^[10] there were 22,119 people, 8,163 households, and 5,485 families residing in the county. The population density was 24.5 people per square mile (9.5 people/km²). There were 9,647 housing units at an average density of 10.7 units per square mile (4.1/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 85% white, 4% black or African American, 2.8% Native American, 0.8% Asian, less than 0.01% Pacific Islander, 4.6% from other races, and 2.8% from two or more races. Twelve percent of the population was Hispanic or Latino. By 2020, its population was 22,410. ^[1]

In 2010, there were 8,163 households, out of which 34.6% included children under the age of 18, 50.9% were married couples living together, 11.1% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.1% had a male householder with no wife present, and 32.8% were non-families. Individuals living alone accounted for 27.6% of households and 11.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.48 and the average family size was 3.02. In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.1% under the age of 18, 9.9% from 18 to 24, 28.1% from 25 to 44, 25.2% from 45 to 64, and 12.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35.4 years. For every 100 females there were 105 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 112 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $45,726, and the median income for a family was $57,316. Males had a median income of $42,470 versus $27,075 for females. The per capita income for the county was $21,470. More than 12% of families and 15% of the population were below the poverty line, including 26% of those under age 18 and 14.4% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

Voter Registration and Party Enrollment as of May 31, 2023 [11]
Party		Number of Voters	Percentage
	Democratic	2,300	20.09%
	Republican	7,328	64.01%
	Others	1,821	15.90%
Total		11,449	100%

United States presidential election results for Beckham County, Oklahoma ^[12]

Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party(ies)
	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2024	6,474	84.32%	1,093	14.24%	111	1.45%
2020	6,767	85.14%	1,048	13.19%	133	1.67%
2016	6,308	83.53%	960	12.71%	284	3.76%
2012	5,508	79.54%	1,417	20.46%	0	0.00%
2008	5,772	78.03%	1,625	21.97%	0	0.00%
2004	5,454	73.85%	1,931	26.15%	0	0.00%
2000	4,067	62.26%	2,408	36.86%	57	0.87%
1996	2,912	44.45%	2,797	42.70%	842	12.85%
1992	2,913	37.25%	2,947	37.69%	1,960	25.06%
1988	3,463	50.08%	3,388	48.99%	64	0.93%
1984	5,005	65.39%	2,601	33.98%	48	0.63%
1980	3,637	51.13%	3,298	46.37%	178	2.50%
1976	2,351	33.90%	4,530	65.32%	54	0.78%
1972	4,472	71.72%	1,608	25.79%	155	2.49%
1968	2,935	42.92%	2,354	34.42%	1,550	22.66%
1964	2,557	38.32%	4,115	61.68%	0	0.00%
1960	4,258	61.01%	2,721	38.99%	0	0.00%
1956	3,194	47.28%	3,561	52.72%	0	0.00%
1952	4,504	53.14%	3,972	46.86%	0	0.00%
1948	1,310	22.38%	4,544	77.62%	0	0.00%
1944	2,034	35.96%	3,608	63.78%	15	0.27%
1940	2,148	31.67%	4,598	67.79%	37	0.55%
1936	1,352	19.94%	5,372	79.23%	56	0.83%
1932	892	12.98%	5,979	87.02%	0	0.00%
1928	3,810	62.36%	2,201	36.02%	99	1.62%
1924	1,357	30.93%	2,496	56.90%	534	12.17%
1920	1,755	36.99%	2,347	49.46%	643	13.55%
1916	527	16.09%	1,850	56.49%	898	27.42%
1912	648	20.84%	1,566	50.37%	895	28.79%

Economy

The county economy has been based mainly on farming and raising livestock. The major crops have been cotton, wheat, alfalfa, kafir, milo maize, and broomcorn. Mineral industries have occasionally been significant. In the early 20th century, there was some salt production. A limited amount of oil and gas production began in the 1920s. ^[3]

Communities

Cities

• Elk City
• Erick
• Sayre (county seat)

Towns

• Carter
• Sweetwater (partially in Roger Mills County)
• Texola

Unincorporated communities

• Delhi
• Hext
• Mayfield
• Retrop

Education

School districts include: ^[13]

• Canute Public Schools
• Elk City Public Schools
• Erick Public Schools
• Hammon Public Schools
• Mangum Public Schools
• Merritt Public Schools
• Sayre Public Schools
• Sentinel Public Schools
• Sweetwater Public Schools

NRHP sites

Main article: National Register of Historic Places listings in Beckham County, Oklahoma

The following sites in Beckham County are listed on the National Register of Historic Places:

Edwards Archaeological Site, Carter Casa Grande Hotel, Elk City Hedlund Motor Company Building, Elk City Storm House, Elk City Whited Grist Mill, Elk City First National Bank (Erick, Oklahoma), Erick West Winds Motel, Erick Beckham County Courthouse, Sayre

Sayre Champlin Service Station, Sayre Sayre City Park, Sayre J. W. Danner House, Sayre Sayre Downtown Historic District, Sayre Sayre Rock Island Depot, Sayre Magnolia Service Station, Texola

References

1. "Beckham County, Oklahoma". United States Census Bureau . Retrieved May 9, 2023.
2. "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on July 12, 2012. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
3. Wilson, Linda D. "Beckham County," Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture, 2009. Accessed March 28, 2015.
4. "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Retrieved February 18, 2015.
5. "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved February 18, 2015.
6. "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved February 18, 2015.
7. Forstall, Richard L., ed. (March 27, 1995). "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved February 18, 2015.
8. "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 March 27, 2010. Retrieved February 18, 2015.
9. "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on June 6, 2011. Retrieved November 8, 2013.
10. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau . Retrieved January 31, 2008.
11. "Voter Registration Totals". OK Elections Interactive Statistics Beta. May 31, 2023. Retrieved June 25, 2023.
12. Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved March 28, 2018.
13. "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Beckham County, OK" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau . Retrieved October 13, 2024. - Text list

External links

• Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture - Beckham County
• Oklahoma Digital Maps: Digital Collections of Oklahoma and Indian Territory

35°16′N99°41′W / 35.26°N 99.69°W / 35.26; -99.69