Coweta, Oklahoma

Last updated

Coweta, Oklahoma
City
Fall Festival Sept. 2007.jpg
Coweta Fall Festival, September 2007, courtesy of Caleb Long
OKMap-doton-Coweta.PNG
Location of Coweta, Oklahoma
Coordinates: 35°57′47″N95°39′42″W / 35.96306°N 95.66167°W / 35.96306; -95.66167
CountryUnited States
State Oklahoma
County Wagoner
Area
[1]
 • Total10.71 sq mi (27.73 km2)
 • Land10.58 sq mi (27.41 km2)
 • Water0.12 sq mi (0.32 km2)
Elevation
663 ft (202 m)
Population
 (2020)
 • Total9,654
 • Density912.13/sq mi (352.16/km2)
Time zone UTC-6 (Central (CST))
 • Summer (DST) UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP code
74429
Area code(s) 539/918
FIPS code 40-17800 [2]
GNIS feature ID1091781 [3]
Website City of Coweta

Coweta is a city in Wagoner County, Oklahoma, United States, a suburb of Tulsa. As of 2010, its population was 9,943. [4] Part of the Creek Nation in Indian Territory before Oklahoma became a U.S. state, the town was first settled in 1840. [5]

Contents

History

Oklahoma Farmers parade in downtown Coweta, 1905 Oklahoma Farmers 1905.jpg
Oklahoma Farmers parade in downtown Coweta, 1905

Before statehood, when the Five Tribes or Five Civilized Tribes were moved to Indian Territory from the Southeastern United States, the area that is now Coweta was designated as part of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation. Coweta was named after a Lower Creek town on the Chattahoochee River in southwestern Georgia. It was first settled by Muscogee about 1840.

In 1843, Robert Loughridge, a Presbyterian minister, arrived in the area and established a mission, named "Koweta". He had gained Creek Council approval for this the year before. Loughridge left Koweta in 1850 to supervise the newly completed Tullahassee Mission School. Both schools closed in 1861 at the outbreak of the American Civil War, when missionaries left the Territory. [5]

In 1867 after the Civil War, the Creek Indians adopted a constitution related to the model of the United States. In addition to government, it established six districts for their nation. Everything northeast of the Arkansas River, including Tulsa, became the Coweta district. The political center of this district was located in a log courthouse on Coweta Creek, about a quarter mile west of present-day center of downtown Coweta. The post office was established on May 24, 1897, and took its name from Koweta Mission. [6]

As a result of negotiations with the congressionally appointed Dawes Commission, regarding the allotment of tribal communal lands in 1897–1898, the Creek courts’ jurisdiction was turned over to the federal government.

Notable events in 1903 included the arrival of the Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad in Coweta; founding of the community's first newspaper, The Courier; construction of the first public school for whites; and installation of a telephone line. [5]

The Creek Nation had already established numerous schools for Indian children in their territory well before this time. The tribal school system was funded from federal annuities paid following Creek removal to Indian Territory. By the later 19th century, the Creek Nation encouraged the founding of more schools: Wealaka Mission School (1882), which replaced Tullahassee; Asbury Manual Labor School, transferred from Alabama; Harrell Institute (1881); Bacone College (1885); and Levering, Nuyaka, and Yuchi Mission schools. In this period, they had seven boarding schools for Indian children, three boarding schools for descendants of Creek Freedmen, including what was known after 1883 as the Tullahassee Manual Labor School; and 65 day schools. [7]

Geography

Coweta is located at 35°57′47″N95°39′42″W / 35.96306°N 95.66167°W / 35.96306; -95.66167 (35.963155, -95.661586). [8] Coweta is on the Arkansas River, 30 miles (48 km) southeast of Tulsa and 30 miles (48 km) northwest of Muskogee. [5]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 7.7 sq mi (20 km2), of which 0.1 sq mi (0.26 km2) (1.56%) is covered by water.

Climate

Coweta has a temperate climate of the humid subtropical variety (Köppen Cfa) with a yearly average precipitation of 43.9 inches (1,120 mm) and average snowfall of 1.8 inches (46 mm). [9]

Demographics

Historical population
CensusPop.Note%±
1910 1,187—
1920 1,31811.0%
1930 1,274−3.3%
1940 1,45514.2%
1950 1,60110.0%
1960 1,85816.1%
1970 2,45732.2%
1980 4,55485.3%
1990 6,15935.2%
2000 7,13915.9%
2010 9,94339.3%
2020 9,654−2.9%
U.S. Decennial Census [10]

As of the census [2] of 2000, 7,139 people, 2,582 households, and 1,988 families were residing in the city. The population density was 942.1 people/sq mi (363.6/km2). The 2,827 housing units averaged 373.1/sq mi (144.0/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 75.78% White, 4.08% African American, 11.85% Native American, 0.21% Asian, 1.75% from other races and 6.32% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 3.80% of the population.

Of the 2,582 households, 43.0% had children under 18 living with them, 58.5% were married couples living together, 13.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.0% were not families. About 19.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.6% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.74, and the average family size was 3.14.

In the city, the age distribution was 30.9% under 18, 9.6% from 18 to 24, 31.0% from 25 to 44, 20.0% from 45 to 64, and 8.6% who were 65 or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.5 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $38,255, and for a family was $41,786. Males had a median income of $32,348 versus $21,772 for females. The per capita income for the city was $14,960. About 6.2% of families and 7.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.4% of those under age 18 and 11.1% of those age 65 or over.

Schools

The Coweta Public School District is the 29th-largest school district in the state, and as of October 2007, the district had 3,161 prekindergarten through 12th-grade students enrolled in six different schools; the district is also the largest in Wagoner County. [11]

Media

Coweta has one newspaper, the Coweta American. The paper is published every Wednesday. It is owned by BH Media Group.

Economy

Historically, Coweta's economy was based on agriculture' until the 1960s. Production of grain is still important, but cotton acreage has decreased greatly. Now, the city's largest employers are Coweta school system, Walmart (one retail store), and the City of Coweta. Many employed residents now commute to Tulsa, Broken Arrow, or Muskogee. [5]

Government

Coweta has a council-manager form of government. [5]

Points of interest

The Coweta Mission Bell Museum. Mission Bell Museum.jpg
The Coweta Mission Bell Museum.

Coweta is home to two sites on the National Register of Historic Places list. The Koweta Mission Site was added to the NRHP in 1973, but today, only a cemetery remains. The other historical site located in Coweta is the First Presbyterian Church of Coweta, commonly known as the Mission Bell Museum, which was added to the NRHP in 2003, and is owned and operated by the City of Coweta.

Notable people

See also

Related Research Articles

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Koweta Mission Site</span> United States historic place

Koweta Mission Site is a site near Coweta, Oklahoma, and listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The mission was started in 1843 by Presbyterian minister Robert Loughridge at Coweta, then the capital of the Creek Nation, Indian Territory. He named the mission "Koweta", after the Creek capital. The school operated until the American Civil War, when Loughridge and most missionaries left the territory.

Tullahassee Mission was a Presbyterian mission and school, founded on March 1, 1850, in the Creek Nation, Indian Territory by Robert Loughridge. This Presbyterian minister had been serving there since 1843, when he founded Koweta Mission. This mission was also originally built for Muscogee Creek students, and the community of Tullahassee developed there.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert McGill Loughridge</span>

Robert McGill Loughridge was an American Presbyterian missionary who served among the Creek in Indian Territory. He attended Miami University, Ohio, and graduated in 1837. Loughridge was ordained as a Presbyterian minister in October 1842.

Wealaka was a community established in 1880 in the Creek Nation, Indian Territory. It is notable as the site of Wealaka Mission, which operated a school from 1882-1907. This school was primarily for Muscogee Creek children, but European Americans could attend for a fee. After statehood in 1907, the site was sold to private owners.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lilah Denton Lindsey</span>

Lilah Denton Lindsey was a Native American philanthropist, civic leader, women's community organizer, temperance worker, and teacher. She was the first Muscogee woman to earn a college degree. She led numerous civic organizations and served as president of the Indian Territory Woman's Christian Temperance Union (WCTU).

References

  1. ↑ "ArcGIS REST Services Directory". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved September 20, 2022.
  2. 1 2 "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau . Retrieved January 31, 2008.
  3. ↑ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. October 25, 2007. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
  4. ↑ "Profile of General Population and Housing Characteristics: 2010". U.S. Census Bureau. Archived from the original on May 21, 2019. Retrieved July 17, 2011.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Walters, Norma. Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture. "Coweta."
  6. ↑ "How places got their names". Oklahoma Historical Society. Archived from the original on September 19, 2008. Retrieved January 18, 2008.
  7. ↑ "Challenge Bowl 2020 (Study Guide): Creek Schools" (PDF). Muscogee (Creek) Nation. 2020. pp. 16–17. Retrieved August 23, 2021.
  8. ↑ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. February 12, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
  9. ↑ Coweta, Oklahoma, Weatherbase.com. (accessed October 13, 2013)
  10. ↑ "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
  11. ↑ "Public Schools Database". Oklahoma Department of Education. Archived from the original on September 30, 2006. Retrieved April 24, 2008.
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