Although the Sooner State was one of the last states to join the Union (46th state), the oldest towns in Oklahoma are still loaded with history. Indian Territory and Oklahoma Territory were joined together under a new constitution and admitted to the Union as the State of Oklahoma in 1907. Many towns that existed in the Territory days are still in existence today. If you were curious about the oldest town in Oklahoma, then check out these places, all of which are loaded with history.
- Ada
Brad Holt/Flickr
okhistory/Facebook In the 1890s families settled in The Chickasaw Nation in an area then called Daggs Prairie, named for the James and John Daggs families. Jeff Reed, an original settler, submitted his daughter’s name for acceptance as the post office designation there, and on July 10, 1891, the settlement became known as Ada. This town was incorporated on April 1, 1901, and the population reached 4,349 in 1910. If you like history, you will have a great time exploring Ada, Oklahoma. Ada, OK, USA
- Ardmore
Matthew Rutledge/Flickr
okhistory/Facebook Ardmore, Oklahoma, an Indian Territory, began with a plowed ditch for a Main Street in the summer of 1887 in Pickens County, Chickasaw Nation. It owes much of its existence to the construction of the Santa Fe Railroad through the area during that time. It grew, as most frontier towns grew, over the years into a trading outpost for the region. A large fire in 1895 destroyed much of the fledgling town, which forced residents to rebuild nearly the entire town. Ardmore, OK 73401, USA
- Atoka
J Stephen Conn/Flickr
Public Domain/Wikimedia Atoka was founded by the Choctaw Indians in the 1850s, and named for Captain Atoka, a leader of the Choctaw Nation and the signer of the Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek, which began the process of re-locating the Choctaw people from Mississippi to Oklahoma in 1830. Atoka is the site of the oldest Catholic parish in the Indian Territory, the oldest chapter of the Freemasons in Oklahoma, and the oldest chapter of the Order of the Eastern Star in Oklahoma. The city was settled by the Choctaw and named in 1867. There is certainly a ton of historical significance in the old town of Atoka, Oklahoma. Atoka, OK 74525, USA
- Choctaw
choctawcity.org Choctaw physically became a community in 1890, but was not given actual status as a town until 1893 when a territorial governor was appointed for Oklahoma. It is the oldest chartered town in Oklahoma. Now there is a cool distinction for the town of Choctaw, Oklahoma. The town incorporated in April 1904. Choctaw, OK 73020, USA
- El Reno
Katsrcool/Wikimedia
Library of Congress /Wikimedia The city begun shortly after the 1889 Land Rush and named for the nearby Fort Reno. The city was originally located about five miles north of its present location, on the banks of the North Canadian River, bearing the name Reno City, which caused its mail to get mixed up with mail for Reno, Nevada. After the second time the town flooded, it was moved to its present location and changed its name to El Reno. Good thing El Reno, Oklahoma made this change and avoided that same problem. This word is Spanish for “the reindeer.” El Reno, OK, USA
- Enid
Drobinson/Wikimedia
okhistory/Facebook Enid was founded during the opening of the Cherokee Outlet in the Land Run of 1893, and is named after Enid, a character in Alfred, Lord Tennyson’s Idylls of the King. This unique etymology makes Enid, Oklahoma one-of-a-kind. During the run, due to the Rock Island’s refusal to stop, people leaped from the trains to stake their claim in the government-endorsed site. By the afternoon of the run, Enid’s population was estimated at 12,000 people located in the Enid’s 80-acre town plat. Enid, OK, USA
- Fort Gibson
J Stephen Conn/Flickr
okhistory.org This location is. considered the oldest city in Oklahoma. After the founding of Fort Gibson in 1824, military families, Indians desiring military protection and free African-Americans settled near the fort, forming a town. After the Army abandoned Fort Gibson in 1857, the Cherokee Nation took over the military stockade and renamed the town Keetoowah. The Army reoccupied Fort Gibson during the American Civil War, and the town again prospered as refugees from fighting elsewhere fled to the relative safety of the fort. As one of the oldest non-Indian settlements in Oklahoma, Fort Gibson had other firsts for Oklahoma, such as: the first telephone, first drama theater, first steamboat landing, first school for the blind, first highway to Fort Smith, the first interurban, which connected Fort Gibson to Muskogee. What a rich history Fort Gibson, Oklahoma has! Fort Gibson, OK 74434, USA
- Guthrie
Serge Melki/Flickr
okhistory/Facebook Guthrie, Oklahoma was established in 1887 as a railroad station called Deer Creek on the Southern Kansas Railway running from the Kansas-Oklahoma border to Purcell. The name was later changed to Guthrie, named for jurist John Guthrie of Topeka, Kansas. A post office was established on April 4, 1889. After the 1889 Land Run, Guthrie immediately gained 10,000 new residents who began to develop the town. It was rapidly improved and was designated as the territorial capital, and in 1907 as the first state capital of Oklahoma. In 1910 state voters chose the larger Oklahoma City as the new capital in a special election. Guthrie, OK, USA
- Moore
Pioneer Library System/Flickr
Pioneer Library System/Flickr The Moore, Oklahoma post office was established May 27, 1889, during the Land Run of 1889 and was named for Al Moore, an Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway employee. The town lore says that he was a “conductor or a brakeman, lived in a boxcar at the camp and had difficulty receiving his mail. He painted his name – “Moore” – on a board and nailed it on the boxcar. When a postmaster was appointed, he continued to call the settlement Moore. He certainly would be surprised to learn the town still bears his name today! When the town incorporated in 1893 the name was legalized. Moore, OK, USA
- Oklahoma City
Laura Heller/Flickr
okhistory/Facebook On July 15, 1890, Oklahoma City was incorporated. From April 22, 1889, to May 2, 1890, the towns and communities in the Unassigned Lands existed under provisional government because the federal government had not foreseen the need to establish laws to govern the new territory. Oklahoma City grew to become the largest city and capital of the state. Oklahoma City, OK, USA
- Purcell
David Dobbs/Wikimedia
Pioneer Library System/Flickr Purcell was founded as a railroad town in 1887, with the coming of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe. Amtrak still serves the town with the Heartland Flyer at the station near the old Santa Fe depot. Purcell was the only town on the border of the Unassigned Lands, and began attracting hopeful settlers even before the Land Run of 1889. Town lots went on sale April 5, 1887, and a post office was established 16 days later. Residents elected the town’s first mayor, James Taylor Bradley, on August 13, 1895. The town was incorporated on October 3, 1898. There are tons of historical sites in the town of Purcell, Oklahoma. Purcell, OK, USA
- Tahlequah
Caleb Long/Wikimedia Tahlequah, Oklahoma was established as a capital of the 19th-century Cherokee Nation in 1839, as part of the new settlement in Indian Territory after the Cherokee Native Americans were forced west from the American Southeast on the Trail of Tears. Tahlequah was a settlement as early as 1832. After the Western Cherokee agreed in 1834 to let the newer migrants settle near them, they joined their government with the Eastern Cherokee at Tahlequah in 1839. Tahlequah was named long before it was chosen as the Cherokee capital. Sometimes there is deep historical significance in a name! Tahlequah, OK 74464, USA
- Vinita
Paul Wever/Flickr Vinita was established in 1871 by Elias Cornelius Boudinot. It was the first city in the state with electricity. The city was first named “Downingville,” and was a primarily Native American community. It was later renamed “Vinita” after Boudinot’s friend, sculptor Vinnie Ream. The city was incorporated in Indian Territory in 1898. Today, Vinita, Oklahoma also features lots of great activities to do. Vinita, OK 74301, USA
- Wewoka
Jimmy Emerson DVM/Flickr
cityofwewoka.com Founded by John Horse and Black Seminoles in the late 1880s, Wewoka, Oklahoma is the current capital of the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma. In the spring of 1849, Horse and a group of Black Seminoles founded a settlement near modern-day Wewoka. They established a community located at the falls of a small stream, lying in the fertile lands between the North and South Canadian Rivers. The steady rush of water over the falls gave rise to the name We-Wo-Ka – meaning “Barking Water” in the Mvskoke (Seminole) language. In 1907, Wewoka became part of the state of Oklahoma, which was admitted to the union. It’s amazing when a town’s early history, like its original name, stays a part of it forever. Wewoka, OK 74884, USA
- Woodward
Popsiclecrawfish/Wikimedia
Public Domain/Wikimedia European-American settlers established the town of Woodward, Oklahoma in 1887 after construction of the railroad to that point for shipping cattle to markets. The town was on the Great Western Cattle Trail. Woodward ranked as one of the most extensive cattle shipping points in Oklahoma Territory. Some men rode for the large cattle outfits of the 1890s and later developed rodeo as a sport. Cow ponies, tied to hitching posts, lined the sandy Main Street. Woodward, OK 73801, USA
Now you have the answer to the question “what is the oldest town in Oklahoma?” Do you live in any of these towns? What stories have you heard about their early days? We would love to hear all of them, so please tell us in the comments section.
Brad Holt/Flickr
okhistory/Facebook
In the 1890s families settled in The Chickasaw Nation in an area then called Daggs Prairie, named for the James and John Daggs families. Jeff Reed, an original settler, submitted his daughter’s name for acceptance as the post office designation there, and on July 10, 1891, the settlement became known as Ada. This town was incorporated on April 1, 1901, and the population reached 4,349 in 1910. If you like history, you will have a great time exploring Ada, Oklahoma.
Ada, OK, USA
Matthew Rutledge/Flickr
Ardmore, Oklahoma, an Indian Territory, began with a plowed ditch for a Main Street in the summer of 1887 in Pickens County, Chickasaw Nation. It owes much of its existence to the construction of the Santa Fe Railroad through the area during that time. It grew, as most frontier towns grew, over the years into a trading outpost for the region. A large fire in 1895 destroyed much of the fledgling town, which forced residents to rebuild nearly the entire town.
Ardmore, OK 73401, USA
J Stephen Conn/Flickr
Public Domain/Wikimedia
Atoka was founded by the Choctaw Indians in the 1850s, and named for Captain Atoka, a leader of the Choctaw Nation and the signer of the Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek, which began the process of re-locating the Choctaw people from Mississippi to Oklahoma in 1830. Atoka is the site of the oldest Catholic parish in the Indian Territory, the oldest chapter of the Freemasons in Oklahoma, and the oldest chapter of the Order of the Eastern Star in Oklahoma. The city was settled by the Choctaw and named in 1867. There is certainly a ton of historical significance in the old town of Atoka, Oklahoma.
Atoka, OK 74525, USA
choctawcity.org
Choctaw physically became a community in 1890, but was not given actual status as a town until 1893 when a territorial governor was appointed for Oklahoma. It is the oldest chartered town in Oklahoma. Now there is a cool distinction for the town of Choctaw, Oklahoma. The town incorporated in April 1904.
Choctaw, OK 73020, USA
Katsrcool/Wikimedia
Library of Congress /Wikimedia
The city begun shortly after the 1889 Land Rush and named for the nearby Fort Reno. The city was originally located about five miles north of its present location, on the banks of the North Canadian River, bearing the name Reno City, which caused its mail to get mixed up with mail for Reno, Nevada. After the second time the town flooded, it was moved to its present location and changed its name to El Reno. Good thing El Reno, Oklahoma made this change and avoided that same problem. This word is Spanish for “the reindeer.”
El Reno, OK, USA
Drobinson/Wikimedia
Enid was founded during the opening of the Cherokee Outlet in the Land Run of 1893, and is named after Enid, a character in Alfred, Lord Tennyson’s Idylls of the King. This unique etymology makes Enid, Oklahoma one-of-a-kind. During the run, due to the Rock Island’s refusal to stop, people leaped from the trains to stake their claim in the government-endorsed site. By the afternoon of the run, Enid’s population was estimated at 12,000 people located in the Enid’s 80-acre town plat.
Enid, OK, USA
okhistory.org
This location is. considered the oldest city in Oklahoma. After the founding of Fort Gibson in 1824, military families, Indians desiring military protection and free African-Americans settled near the fort, forming a town. After the Army abandoned Fort Gibson in 1857, the Cherokee Nation took over the military stockade and renamed the town Keetoowah. The Army reoccupied Fort Gibson during the American Civil War, and the town again prospered as refugees from fighting elsewhere fled to the relative safety of the fort. As one of the oldest non-Indian settlements in Oklahoma, Fort Gibson had other firsts for Oklahoma, such as: the first telephone, first drama theater, first steamboat landing, first school for the blind, first highway to Fort Smith, the first interurban, which connected Fort Gibson to Muskogee. What a rich history Fort Gibson, Oklahoma has!
Fort Gibson, OK 74434, USA
Serge Melki/Flickr
Guthrie, Oklahoma was established in 1887 as a railroad station called Deer Creek on the Southern Kansas Railway running from the Kansas-Oklahoma border to Purcell. The name was later changed to Guthrie, named for jurist John Guthrie of Topeka, Kansas. A post office was established on April 4, 1889. After the 1889 Land Run, Guthrie immediately gained 10,000 new residents who began to develop the town. It was rapidly improved and was designated as the territorial capital, and in 1907 as the first state capital of Oklahoma. In 1910 state voters chose the larger Oklahoma City as the new capital in a special election.
Guthrie, OK, USA
Pioneer Library System/Flickr
The Moore, Oklahoma post office was established May 27, 1889, during the Land Run of 1889 and was named for Al Moore, an Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway employee. The town lore says that he was a “conductor or a brakeman, lived in a boxcar at the camp and had difficulty receiving his mail. He painted his name – “Moore” – on a board and nailed it on the boxcar. When a postmaster was appointed, he continued to call the settlement Moore. He certainly would be surprised to learn the town still bears his name today! When the town incorporated in 1893 the name was legalized.
Moore, OK, USA
Laura Heller/Flickr
On July 15, 1890, Oklahoma City was incorporated. From April 22, 1889, to May 2, 1890, the towns and communities in the Unassigned Lands existed under provisional government because the federal government had not foreseen the need to establish laws to govern the new territory. Oklahoma City grew to become the largest city and capital of the state.
Oklahoma City, OK, USA
David Dobbs/Wikimedia
Purcell was founded as a railroad town in 1887, with the coming of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe. Amtrak still serves the town with the Heartland Flyer at the station near the old Santa Fe depot. Purcell was the only town on the border of the Unassigned Lands, and began attracting hopeful settlers even before the Land Run of 1889. Town lots went on sale April 5, 1887, and a post office was established 16 days later. Residents elected the town’s first mayor, James Taylor Bradley, on August 13, 1895. The town was incorporated on October 3, 1898. There are tons of historical sites in the town of Purcell, Oklahoma.
Purcell, OK, USA
Caleb Long/Wikimedia
Tahlequah, Oklahoma was established as a capital of the 19th-century Cherokee Nation in 1839, as part of the new settlement in Indian Territory after the Cherokee Native Americans were forced west from the American Southeast on the Trail of Tears. Tahlequah was a settlement as early as 1832. After the Western Cherokee agreed in 1834 to let the newer migrants settle near them, they joined their government with the Eastern Cherokee at Tahlequah in 1839. Tahlequah was named long before it was chosen as the Cherokee capital. Sometimes there is deep historical significance in a name!
Tahlequah, OK 74464, USA
Paul Wever/Flickr
Vinita was established in 1871 by Elias Cornelius Boudinot. It was the first city in the state with electricity. The city was first named “Downingville,” and was a primarily Native American community. It was later renamed “Vinita” after Boudinot’s friend, sculptor Vinnie Ream. The city was incorporated in Indian Territory in 1898. Today, Vinita, Oklahoma also features lots of great activities to do.
Vinita, OK 74301, USA
Jimmy Emerson DVM/Flickr
cityofwewoka.com
Founded by John Horse and Black Seminoles in the late 1880s, Wewoka, Oklahoma is the current capital of the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma. In the spring of 1849, Horse and a group of Black Seminoles founded a settlement near modern-day Wewoka. They established a community located at the falls of a small stream, lying in the fertile lands between the North and South Canadian Rivers. The steady rush of water over the falls gave rise to the name We-Wo-Ka – meaning “Barking Water” in the Mvskoke (Seminole) language. In 1907, Wewoka became part of the state of Oklahoma, which was admitted to the union. It’s amazing when a town’s early history, like its original name, stays a part of it forever.
Wewoka, OK 74884, USA
Popsiclecrawfish/Wikimedia
European-American settlers established the town of Woodward, Oklahoma in 1887 after construction of the railroad to that point for shipping cattle to markets. The town was on the Great Western Cattle Trail. Woodward ranked as one of the most extensive cattle shipping points in Oklahoma Territory. Some men rode for the large cattle outfits of the 1890s and later developed rodeo as a sport. Cow ponies, tied to hitching posts, lined the sandy Main Street.
Woodward, OK 73801, USA
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The OIYS Visitor Center
Oldest Town in Oklahoma December 30, 2022 Danielle Schwartz What are the most charming small towns in Oklahoma? The most charming small towns in Oklahoma are full of the quaint feeling everyone loves on sweet getaways from the city.
Pauls Valley, Oklahoma Carlton Landing, Oklahoma Sulphur, Oklahoma Medicine Park, Oklahoma Tishomingo, Oklahoma Broken Bow, Oklahoma Alva, Oklahoma Poteau, Oklahoma Davis, Oklahoma Grove, Oklahoma
What are the smallest towns in Oklahoma? The smallest towns in Oklahoma are fun to visit, or if you are looking for a tiny-town lifestyle, to live in.
Blair, Oklahoma Clayton, Oklahoma Depew, Oklahoma
What are the most unique day trips in Oklahoma? The most unique day trips in Oklahoma are perfect for a quick trip away. Check them out:
Alabaster Caverns in Freedom Chickasaw National Recreation Area in Chickasaw Secret Oklahoma nature spots Pops Soda Ranch in Arcadia Washita Battlefield National Historic Site in Cheyenne Philbrook Museum in Tulsa The Air and Space Museum in Oklahoma City The Oklahoma Aquarium in Jenks
The OIYS Visitor Center
Oldest Town in Oklahoma
December 30, 2022
Danielle Schwartz
What are the most charming small towns in Oklahoma? The most charming small towns in Oklahoma are full of the quaint feeling everyone loves on sweet getaways from the city.
Pauls Valley, Oklahoma Carlton Landing, Oklahoma Sulphur, Oklahoma Medicine Park, Oklahoma Tishomingo, Oklahoma Broken Bow, Oklahoma Alva, Oklahoma Poteau, Oklahoma Davis, Oklahoma Grove, Oklahoma
What are the smallest towns in Oklahoma? The smallest towns in Oklahoma are fun to visit, or if you are looking for a tiny-town lifestyle, to live in.
Blair, Oklahoma Clayton, Oklahoma Depew, Oklahoma
What are the most unique day trips in Oklahoma? The most unique day trips in Oklahoma are perfect for a quick trip away. Check them out:
Alabaster Caverns in Freedom Chickasaw National Recreation Area in Chickasaw Secret Oklahoma nature spots Pops Soda Ranch in Arcadia Washita Battlefield National Historic Site in Cheyenne Philbrook Museum in Tulsa The Air and Space Museum in Oklahoma City The Oklahoma Aquarium in Jenks
The OIYS Visitor Center
The OIYS Visitor Center
The most charming small towns in Oklahoma are full of the quaint feeling everyone loves on sweet getaways from the city.
- Pauls Valley, Oklahoma
- Carlton Landing, Oklahoma
- Sulphur, Oklahoma
- Medicine Park, Oklahoma
- Tishomingo, Oklahoma
- Broken Bow, Oklahoma
- Alva, Oklahoma
- Poteau, Oklahoma
- Davis, Oklahoma
- Grove, Oklahoma
What are the smallest towns in Oklahoma?
The smallest towns in Oklahoma are fun to visit, or if you are looking for a tiny-town lifestyle, to live in.
- Blair, Oklahoma
- Clayton, Oklahoma
- Depew, Oklahoma
What are the most unique day trips in Oklahoma?
The most unique day trips in Oklahoma are perfect for a quick trip away. Check them out:
- Alabaster Caverns in Freedom
- Chickasaw National Recreation Area in Chickasaw
- Secret Oklahoma nature spots
- Pops Soda Ranch in Arcadia
- Washita Battlefield National Historic Site in Cheyenne
- Philbrook Museum in Tulsa
- The Air and Space Museum in Oklahoma City
- The Oklahoma Aquarium in Jenks
