Bixby, Oklahoma facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Bixby, Oklahoma
City
Nickname(s):  "The Garden Spot of Oklahoma"
Motto(s):  "A Community Of Choice"
Location of within Tulsa County, and the state of Oklahoma
Bixby, Oklahoma Location in Oklahoma
Country	United States
State	Oklahoma
Counties	Tulsa, Wagoner
Government
• Type	Council–manager
Area
• Total	26.76 sq mi (69.30 km2)
• Land	25.70 sq mi (66.57 km2)
• Water	1.05 sq mi (2.73 km2)
Elevation	600 ft (183 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	28,609
• Density	1,112.97/sq mi (429.73/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central (CST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
ZIP code	74008
Area codes	539/918
FIPS code	40-06400
GNIS feature ID	1090185
Website	bixbyok.gov

Bixby is a city in Oklahoma, located in Tulsa and Wagoner counties. It's a suburb of the bigger city of Tulsa. In 2020, about 28,609 people lived there. Back in 2010, Bixby became the 19th largest city in Oklahoma.

Bixby is often called "The Garden Spot of Oklahoma." This nickname comes from its history of growing lots of crops. Even though it's growing fast, Bixby is still known for its green grass (sod) and fresh vegetables. Many people also like to buy fresh produce here.

History

The old bridge across the Arkansas River is now a path for joggers.

The area where Bixby is today was first settled in the late 1800s. A man named Alexander Posey, who was part of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation, and his family lived here. He started a small community called "Posey on Posey Creek." It had a few shops and a blacksmith.

In 1895, the town got its own post office. Bixby was named after Tams Bixby, who was a leader of the Dawes Commission. This commission helped divide up land in what was then called Indian Territory. The town officially became Bixby in 1902. Many people moved here because the land near the river was very good for farming.

In 1904, the Midland Valley Railroad built train tracks and a station about half a mile north of the original town. This caused Bixby to split into two parts for a short time! The new part of town was even planned so its streets didn't line up with the old ones.

However, businesses from the old town soon moved to the new location. They built strong brick buildings there. Bixby officially became its own town in 1906. It had about 400 people and covered 160 acres. The first mayor and town leaders were chosen in 1907. A two-story brick school was built in 1911, and a traffic bridge was built over the Arkansas River that same year. For a while, it was said to be the longest bridge west of the Mississippi River.

Another small community called Fry was located north of Bixby. It had a post office from 1896 to 1909. The first newspaper in Bixby, the Bixby Bulletin, started in 1905 and was published for 100 years.

Bixby grew even more when natural gas was found nearby in 1905-1906, and oil fields were discovered in 1913. But farming stayed very important for a long time. Early farmers grew cotton, wheat, and alfalfa. In the 1930s, they started growing more vegetables like cantaloupes, potatoes, and sweet corn.

By 1941, Bixby became a major place for shipping fresh produce by train. That's when it got its nickname, "The Garden Spot of Oklahoma." This name is still on the town's seal and vehicles today. Over time, many farms started growing sod (grass for lawns) or were used for new homes. Not many people in Bixby work in farming now, but the town still celebrates its farming past every June with the "Green Corn Festival."

A famous American writer, Washington Irving, visited this area in 1832. He wrote about his trip in a book called A Tour on the Prairies. He camped near the Arkansas River in what is now Bixby. The town has a special place called Washington Irving Park and Arboretum to remember his visit. The park has a stage that looks like Irving's home in New York. There's also a bronze statue of him. Each October, students from Bixby Middle School perform a play based on Irving's "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" in the park. The park also hosts fun events like the "Bixby BBQ & Music Festival" in May and the "Deutschesfest" in September.

In 2009, CNN Money.com listed Bixby as one of the "100 Best Places to Live."

Geography

Bixby is located at 35°57′39″N 95°52′42″W / 35.96083°N 95.87833°W / 35.96083; -95.87833. The city covers about 25.1 square miles (65 square kilometers). Most of this area is land, with about 1 square mile (2.7 square kilometers) being water. The Arkansas River flows through the middle of the town, dividing it into northern and southern parts. The original town center is south of the river.

Demographics

In 2010, Bixby had 20,884 people living there. There were 7,658 households, which are groups of people living together. About 30.4% of these households had children under 18. Most households (64.4%) were married couples.

The people living in Bixby were mostly White (84.2%). There were also people who identified as African American (1.6%), Native American (5.9%), and Asian (1.6%). About 4.9% of the population was Hispanic or Latino.

The average age of people in Bixby was 34 years old. About 28.8% of the population was under 18. Many adults in Bixby have a college degree, with 37.8% of people over 25 holding a bachelor's degree or higher.

Points of interest

• Washington Irving Memorial Park and Arboretum
• SpiritBank Event Center
• Plummer’s Service Station from 1921 in downtown Bixby. This old gas station is being restored by the Bixby Historical Society.

Education

Bixby Public Schools is the school district for Bixby. There are many schools in the district, including:

• Bixby High School
• Bixby 9th Grade Center
• Bixby Middle School (for 7th and 8th graders)
• Bixby North Intermediate
• Bixby Central Intermediate
• Bixby East Intermediate
• Bixby East Elementary
• Bixby North Elementary
• Bixby Central Elementary
• Upcoming Bixby West Intermediate and Elementary schools.

In the 2011 school year, about 5,000 students attended Bixby schools.

Media

Newspaper

Bixby has a local newspaper called the Bixby Bulletin. It comes out every Thursday. A company called Community Publishers owns it.

Television

If you have Cox Communications cable, you can watch Bixby's local government channel on 24.3. This channel shares information about the city government, city council meetings, and upcoming events. It also shows local sports and weather.

Communications

Bixby Telephone Company, also known as BTC Broadband, has been providing phone services since 1914 and internet services since 1993. It was one of the first companies in Oklahoma to offer very fast internet using fiber optic cables in some neighborhoods. BTC Broadband also works with new housing developments to make sure they have fiber optic internet ready to go.

Notable people

Many interesting people have lived in Bixby, including:

• Rodney Carrington, a comedian
• Coop, an artist known for hot rod art
• Butch Davis, a football coach
• "Cowboy" Bill Watts, a professional wrestler
• Chris Harris, a football cornerback
• Tanner Berryhill, a NASCAR driver
• Corey Kent, a country singer
• Shane Stewart, a World of Outlaws driver
• Roy Foster, a baseball outfielder for the Cleveland Indians (Guardians)
• Barbara Starr Scott (1939–2020), a tribal councilor for the Cherokee Nation

See also

In Spanish: Bixby (Oklahoma) para niños