Hamden, Oklahoma facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Hamden, Oklahoma
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 Hamden, Oklahoma
Location in Oklahoma
Hamden, Oklahoma
Location in the United States
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| Country | United States |
| State | Oklahoma |
| County | Choctaw |
| Time zone | UTC-6 (Central (CST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-5 (CDT) |
| GNIS feature ID | 1100472 |
Hamden is a small, quiet community in Oklahoma, United States. It's located in the northern part of Choctaw County. This community is about seven miles southeast of a town called Antlers. Hamden is special because it's an "unincorporated community." This means it doesn't have its own local government like a city or town. People living in Hamden are spread across both Choctaw and Pushmataha counties.
Contents
A Look Back at Hamden
Early Days and the Post Office
A long time ago, on March 31, 1894, a United States Post Office opened in Hamden. Back then, this area was known as Indian Territory. The post office served the community for many years until it closed on May 15, 1924.
The Railroad's Arrival
During the 1880s, a railway company called the St. Louis-San Francisco Railway, often known as the "Frisco," built a train line. This line stretched from north to south through the Choctaw Nation of the Indian Territory. It connected Fort Smith, Arkansas with Paris, Texas.
Train stations were built every few miles along the track. These stations helped open up the land for settlement. They also served as places for "section houses," where supervisors lived to manage their parts of the track. Trains could also stop at these stations to get water.
The spot where Hamden was built was chosen because it was close to a local creek. This creek was a good source of water for the trains. Other train stops were also set up nearby, both to the north and south.
Life in the Choctaw Nation
At that time, the area was not very crowded. It was known as Kiamitia County (or Kiamichi County) within the Choctaw Nation. Many Choctaw Indians lived there, farming or living off the land. There were not many roads or trails, so the Frisco Railroad was very important for travel.
The railroad offered six trains every day, three going in each direction. This continued until the late 1950s, when passenger trains stopped running. Freight trains, which carry goods, continued to operate until 1981, when the entire line closed down.
Hamden Today
In its busiest days, Hamden had many important businesses. It had a cotton gin, which processed cotton, a store, a school, and churches. Many homes were also built there.
Today, people still live in the Hamden area. The main things you can see there are a community center and the old foundations of the cotton gin. These foundations are located near the old railroad tracks and the creek.
