Choctaw, Oklahoma facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Choctaw, Oklahoma
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Choctaw City Hall
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| Motto(s):
"Celebrating the Past, Enjoying the Present, & Preparing for the Future."
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Location in Oklahoma County and the state of Oklahoma
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 Choctaw, Oklahoma
Location in the United States
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| Country | United States |
| State | Oklahoma |
| County | Oklahoma |
| Area | |
| • Total | 27.16 sq mi (70.34 km2) |
| • Land | 27.12 sq mi (70.25 km2) |
| • Water | 0.04 sq mi (0.09 km2) |
| Elevation | 1,155 ft (352 m) |
| Population
(2020)
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| • Total | 12,182 |
| • Density | 449.14/sq mi (173.42/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-6 (Central (CST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-5 (CDT) |
| ZIP code |
73020
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| Area code(s) | 405 |
| FIPS code | 40-14200 |
| GNIS feature ID | 2409457 |
| Website | http://www.choctawcity.org |
Choctaw is a city in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, United States, with a population of 12,182 at the 2020 census, a 9.3% increase from 2010. It is the oldest chartered town in Oklahoma Territory. The city is located approximately 10 miles (16.1 km) east of Oklahoma City and is part of the Oklahoma City metropolitan area.
Choctaw 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 officially celebrated its 100th anniversary in 1993. In 1950, Choctaw was in an agricultural area. It had a population of 355 in that year. Despite its name, the town has no cultural, historical or governmental ties to the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma. The tribal headquarters and casino are located in the southeastern part of the state in Durant, Oklahoma, and the Choctaw Capitol Building and annual Labor Day Festival are in Tuskahoma, Oklahoma.
Before Choctaw was chartered, the area included a part of William McClure's 7C Ranch and was known for a trading post and a camping spot near a spring.
A community emerged on the east 80 acres (32 ha) of land John S. Muzzy claimed in the 1889 land run and received a postal designation in early 1890.
The town incorporated in April 1904. When Oklahoma became a state in 1907, the town had 230 residents, four churches, a school, a bank, a newspaper and telephone service. By 1909, the town had three gins. The population grew very little during the Great Depression.
Contents
Geography
Choctaw is a city just east of Oklahoma City and has a total area of 27.1 square miles (70 km2), of which 27.1 square miles is land and 0.04 square miles (0.10 km2) is water.
Ecoregion and tourism region
Choctaw is located in the Cross Timbers ecoregion and the Frontier Country tourism region.
Climate
Choctaw has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classification: Cfa) and lies in an area known as Tornado Alley, characterized by frequent interaction between cold and warm air masses producing severe weather. An average of 54 tornadoes strike the state per year.
| Climate data for Choctaw, Oklahoma | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 50 (10) |
54 (12) |
63 (17) |
72 (22) |
79 (26) |
87 (31) |
93 (34) |
93 (34) |
84 (29) |
74 (23) |
62 (17) |
51 (11) |
72 (22) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 25 (−4) |
29 (−2) |
37 (3) |
46 (8) |
57 (14) |
65 (18) |
70 (21) |
69 (21) |
60 (16) |
48 (9) |
37 (3) |
28 (−2) |
48 (9) |
| Average precipitation inches (mm) | 1.55 (39) |
2.26 (57) |
3.11 (79) |
3.38 (86) |
5.44 (138) |
5.73 (146) |
2.58 (66) |
2.81 (71) |
4.56 (116) |
4.54 (115) |
2.69 (68) |
2.11 (54) |
40.76 (1,035) |
Demographics
| Historical population | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1900 | 230 | — | |
| 1910 | 242 | 5.2% | |
| 1920 | 199 | −17.8% | |
| 1930 | 242 | 21.6% | |
| 1940 | 289 | 19.4% | |
| 1950 | 355 | 22.8% | |
| 1960 | 623 | 75.5% | |
| 1970 | 4,750 | 662.4% | |
| 1980 | 7,520 | 58.3% | |
| 1990 | 8,545 | 13.6% | |
| 2000 | 9,377 | 9.7% | |
| 2010 | 11,146 | 18.9% | |
| 2020 | 12,182 | 9.3% | |
| Sources: | |||
Arts and culture
The town has a small museum dedicated to beer steins, the Stramski Collection.
Education
The majority of Choctaw is in the Choctaw-Nicoma Park School District. Choctaw High School is the zoned high school of the district.
Choctaw High School's Varsity Academic Team, coached by Paula Sendall, is ranked 1st in Oklahoma as of 2017 and has been invited to multiple national-level competitions after winning the 6A State Championship in February 2017. Choctaw public schools spend $4,133 per student. The average school expenditure in the U.S. is $6,058. There are about 15 students per teacher in Choctaw. Students graduating from Choctaw High School also have the opportunity to take advantage of the "Ticket to Rose" program at Rose State College. Ticket to Rose provides a scholarship for tuition and mandatory fees for all graduates of Choctaw High School.
Other parts of Choctaw are in Jones Public Schools and Oklahoma City Public Schools (OKCPS). Zoned schools of the OKCPS part include Willow Brook Elementary School (PreKindergarten-Grade 1), Spencer Elementary School (grades 2-4), Rogers Intermediate School (grades 5-6), and Star Spencer Mid-High School.
Choctaw contains a career technology school, the Eastern Oklahoma County Technology Center.
Notable people
- Josh Blackburn, former professional ice hockey goalie
- Lyle Boren, father of David L. Boren and former U.S. Congressman
- Joe Dickinson, former college football coach
- Gary Haught, former MLB pitcher
- Louis L'Amour, author
- Becka Leathers, wrestler
- Michael Maples, racing driver
- Ryan Merriman, actor
See also
In Spanish: Choctaw (Oklahoma) para niños
