List of counties in Oklahoma facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Counties of Oklahoma |
|
|---|---|
| Location | State of Oklahoma |
| Number | 77 |
| Populations | 2,191 (Cimarron) – 808,866 (Oklahoma) |
| Areas | 371 square miles (960 km2) (Marshall) – 2,251 square miles (5,830 km2) (Osage) |
| Government | County government |
| Subdivisions | cities, towns, unincorporated communities, Indian reservations, census designated place civil townships (Statehood until mid 1930s) |
Oklahoma is a state in the United States. It has 77 areas called counties. This makes Oklahoma 20th in size among U.S. states. It is 17th in the number of counties. For example, Mississippi has 82 counties, and Arkansas has 75.
When Oklahoma first became a territory, it had only seven counties. These were Logan, Cleveland, Oklahoma, Canadian, Kingfisher, Payne, and Beaver. They were first known by numbers, like "First County" or "Seventh County." Any new counties added after that were given letters of the alphabet. Later, the first seven counties were given proper names.
In 1907, Oklahoma officially became a state. At that time, the Oklahoma Constitutional Convention named all the counties. Only two new counties have been created since then. When Oklahoma became a state, all counties had smaller areas called civil townships. But a few years later, a new rule allowed counties to get rid of these townships if they voted to. By the mid-1930s, all counties in Oklahoma had decided to remove their townships.
The Oklahoma Constitution has a rule about counties. A county can be closed down if all its taxable property is worth less than $2.5 million. If this happens, a special request must be signed by one-fourth of the people living there. Then, everyone in the county would vote. If most people vote to close the county, it will join a nearby county. It would join the county with the lowest value of taxable property.
Each county in the U.S. has a special code. This is called the Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS) code. The U.S. government uses it to identify counties. In the list below, each FIPS code links to information about that county. The area numbers in the table show only land area. They do not include any water areas.
Oklahoma's short name, or postal abbreviation, is OK. Its FIPS state code is 40.
Oklahoma's Counties: An Alphabetical List
Here is a list of all 77 counties in Oklahoma. You can see when each county was created. You can also learn about where its name came from.
| County |
FIPS code | County seat | Est. | Origin | Etymology | Density |
Population | Area | Map |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adair County | 001 | Stilwell | 1907 | Cherokee lands | William Penn Adair, a Cherokee tribal leader and soldier | 34.07 | 19,627 | 576 sq mi (1,492 km2) |
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| Alfalfa County | 003 | Cherokee | 1907 | Woods County | William H. "Alfalfa Bill" Murray, a former Governor of Oklahoma; also for the alfalfa crops grown there | 6.54 | 5,673 | 867 sq mi (2,246 km2) |
 |
| Atoka County | 005 | Atoka | 1907 | Choctaw lands | Captain Atoka, a well-known Choctaw leader | 14.85 | 14,525 | 978 sq mi (2,533 km2) |
 |
| Beaver County | 007 | Beaver | 1890 | Seventh County (part of the panhandle until 1907) | The Beaver River | 2.77 | 5,018 | 1,814 sq mi (4,698 km2) |
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| Beckham County | 009 | Sayre | 1907 | Greer County and Roger Mills County | J. C. W. Beckham, a Governor of Kentucky | 24.44 | 22,042 | 902 sq mi (2,336 km2) |
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| Blaine County | 011 | Watonga | 1890 | Part of Cheyenne and Arapaho reservation. | James G. Blaine, a U.S. Senator and Secretary of State | 9.19 | 8,539 | 929 sq mi (2,406 km2) |
 |
| Bryan County | 013 | Durant | 1907 | Choctaw lands | William Jennings Bryan, a U.S. Secretary of State and famous speaker | 53.87 | 48,967 | 909 sq mi (2,354 km2) |
 |
| Caddo County | 015 | Anadarko | 1901 | Indian Territory | From the Indian word "Kaddi" meaning life or chief | 20.51 | 26,214 | 1,278 sq mi (3,310 km2) |
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| Canadian County | 017 | El Reno | 1901 | Part of Cheyenne and Arapaho reservation | The Canadian River. | 195.37 | 175,829 | 900 sq mi (2,331 km2) |
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| Carter County | 019 | Ardmore | 1907 | Pickens County, Chickasaw Nation | A well-known family of early settlers | 58.98 | 48,596 | 824 sq mi (2,134 km2) |
 |
| Cherokee County | 021 | Tahlequah | 1907 | Originally settled by Cherokee Indians after the Trail of Tears | The Cherokee Nation of Indians | 64.16 | 48,185 | 751 sq mi (1,945 km2) |
 |
| Choctaw County | 023 | Hugo | 1907 | Choctaw Nation | The Choctaw Nation of Indians | 18.44 | 14,276 | 774 sq mi (2,005 km2) |
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| Cimarron County | 025 | Boise City | 1907 | Seventh County (part of the panhandle until 1907) | Cimarron River | 1.19 | 2,191 | 1,835 sq mi (4,753 km2) |
 |
| Cleveland County | 027 | Norman | 1890 | County 3 in Oklahoma Territory. | Grover Cleveland, who was President of the United States twice | 561.93 | 301,193 | 536 sq mi (1,388 km2) |
 |
| Coal County | 029 | Coalgate | 1907 | Atoka County, Choctaw Nation | Coal, which was the main product of the area at the time | 10.17 | 5,266 | 518 sq mi (1,342 km2) |
 |
| Comanche County | 031 | Lawton | 1907 | Kiowa, Comanche, and Apache reservation | The name Comanche comes from a Ute word meaning 'enemy, stranger'. | 113.73 | 121,574 | 1,069 sq mi (2,769 km2) |
 |
| Cotton County | 033 | Walters | 1912 | Lands of Quapaws, Choctaws, Chickasaws, Comanche Reservation, and Big Pasture | The main crop grown in the county, cotton | 8.52 | 5,427 | 637 sq mi (1,650 km2) |
 |
| Craig County | 035 | Vinita | 1907 | Cherokee Nation | Granville Craig, a well-known Cherokee farmer | 19.05 | 14,494 | 761 sq mi (1,971 km2) |
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| Creek County | 037 | Sapulpa | 1907 | Creek Nation | Creek Nation of Indians | 76.71 | 73,332 | 956 sq mi (2,476 km2) |
 |
| Custer County | 039 | Arapaho | 1891 | Cheyenne-Arapaho Reservation | George A. Custer, a U.S. Army leader during the Indian Wars | 28.64 | 28,266 | 987 sq mi (2,556 km2) |
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| Delaware County | 041 | Jay | 1907 | Delaware District of Cherokee Nation | Delaware Nation of Indians | 56.28 | 41,703 | 741 sq mi (1,919 km2) |
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| Dewey County | 043 | Taloga | 1892 | Cheyenne-Arapaho Reservation | Admiral George Dewey, a hero from the Spanish–American War | 4.29 | 4,286 | 1,000 sq mi (2,590 km2) |
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| Ellis County | 045 | Arnett | 1907 | Roger Mills and Woodward counties | Albert H. Ellis, a member of the Oklahoma Constitutional Convention | 2.97 | 3,648 | 1,229 sq mi (3,183 km2) |
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| Garfield County | 047 | Enid | 1893 | Cherokee Outlet | James Garfield, a President of the United States | 58.62 | 62,023 | 1,058 sq mi (2,740 km2) |
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| Garvin County | 049 | Pauls Valley | 1907 | Chickasaw Nation | Samuel Garvin, a well-known Chickasaw Indian and local business owner | 31.97 | 25,865 | 809 sq mi (2,095 km2) |
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| Grady County | 051 | Chickasha | 1907 | Pickens County, Chickasaw Nation | Henry W. Grady, an editor of a newspaper | 52.11 | 57,375 | 1,101 sq mi (2,852 km2) |
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| Grant County | 053 | Medford | 1892 | County L | Ulysses S. Grant, a President of the United States | 4.08 | 4,083 | 1,001 sq mi (2,593 km2) |
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| Greer County | 055 | Mangum | 1896 | Greer County, Texas | John Alexander Greer, a Lieutenant Governor of Texas | 8.55 | 5,466 | 639 sq mi (1,655 km2) |
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| Harmon County | 057 | Hollis | 1909 | Greer County | Judson Harmon, a U.S. Attorney General and Governor of Ohio | 4.45 | 2,392 | 538 sq mi (1,393 km2) |
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| Harper County | 059 | Buffalo | 1893 | Woodward County | Oscar G. Harper, a clerk for the Oklahoma Constitutional Convention | 3.07 | 3,190 | 1,039 sq mi (2,691 km2) |
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| Haskell County | 061 | Stigler | 1907 | San Bois County of the Choctaw Nation | Charles N. Haskell, the first Governor of Oklahoma | 20.51 | 11,832 | 577 sq mi (1,494 km2) |
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| Hughes County | 063 | Holdenville | 1907 | Choctaw Nation and Creek Nation lands | William C. Hughes, a member of the Oklahoma Constitutional Convention | 16.65 | 13,436 | 807 sq mi (2,090 km2) |
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| Jackson County | 065 | Altus | 1907 | Greer County | Either Stonewall Jackson, a Confederate general, or Andrew Jackson, the seventh President of the United States | 30.72 | 24,669 | 803 sq mi (2,080 km2) |
 |
| Jefferson County | 067 | Waurika | 1907 | Comanche County and part of Chickasaw Nation | Thomas Jefferson, the third President of the United States | 7.04 | 5,347 | 759 sq mi (1,966 km2) |
 |
| Johnston County | 069 | Tishomingo | 1907 | Chickasaw Nation land | Douglas H. Johnston, a Governor of the Chickasaw Nation | 15.84 | 10,216 | 645 sq mi (1,671 km2) |
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| Kay County | 071 | Newkirk | 1895 | County K, Cherokee Strip | Originally called county "K" | 47.49 | 43,641 | 919 sq mi (2,380 km2) |
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| Kingfisher County | 073 | Kingfisher | 1907 | Unassigned Lands | Either for the kingfisher bird or King David Fisher, an early settler | 17.14 | 15,481 | 903 sq mi (2,339 km2) |
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| Kiowa County | 075 | Hobart | 1901 | Kiowa-Comanche-Apache Indian Reservations | The Kiowa Nation of Indians | 8.27 | 8,398 | 1,015 sq mi (2,629 km2) |
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| Latimer County | 077 | Wilburton | 1907 | Choctaw Nation land | James S. Latimer, a member of the Oklahoma Constitutional Convention | 13.19 | 9,526 | 722 sq mi (1,870 km2) |
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| LeFlore County | 079 | Poteau | 1907 | Choctaw Nation | A Choctaw Indian family with French roots | 31.27 | 49,596 | 1,586 sq mi (4,108 km2) |
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| Lincoln County | 081 | Chandler | 1891 | County A in Oklahoma Territory | Abraham Lincoln, the sixteenth president of the United States | 36.04 | 34,562 | 959 sq mi (2,484 km2) |
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| Logan County | 083 | Guthrie | 1891 | County 1 in Oklahoma Territory | John A. Logan, a general from the American Civil War | 71.18 | 53,029 | 745 sq mi (1,930 km2) |
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| Love County | 085 | Marietta | 1907 | Pickens County, Chickasaw Nation, Indian Territory | Overton Love, a Chickasaw judge and important landowner | 19.99 | 10,296 | 515 sq mi (1,334 km2) |
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| Major County | 093 | Fairview | 1907 | Woods County, Oklahoma Territory | John C. Major, a member of the Oklahoma Constitutional Convention | 7.92 | 7,581 | 957 sq mi (2,479 km2) |
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| Marshall County | 095 | Madill | 1907 | Pickens County, Chickasaw Nation, Indian Territory | The maiden name of a mother of a Constitutional Convention member | 43.05 | 15,970 | 371 sq mi (961 km2) |
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| Mayes County | 097 | Pryor | 1907 | Saline District, Cherokee Nation | Cherokee leader Samuel Houston Mayes | 60.81 | 39,889 | 656 sq mi (1,699 km2) |
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| McClain County | 087 | Purcell | 1907 | Chickasaw Nation land | Charles M. McClain, a member of the Oklahoma Constitutional Convention | 82.58 | 47,072 | 570 sq mi (1,476 km2) |
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| McCurtain County | 089 | Idabel | 1907 | The McCurtain family, a well-known Choctaw landowning group | 16.56 | 30,660 | 1,852 sq mi (4,797 km2) |
 |
|
| McIntosh County | 091 | Eufaula | 1907 | Creek Nation land | The McIntosh family, a well-known Creek landowning group | 31.62 | 19,603 | 620 sq mi (1,606 km2) |
 |
| Murray County | 099 | Sulphur | 1907 | Chickasaw Nation land | Governor of Oklahoma William H. "Alfalfa Bill" Murray | 32.90 | 13,754 | 418 sq mi (1,083 km2) |
 |
| Muskogee County | 101 | Muskogee | 1907 | Muskogee District of Creek Nation and part of Illinois and Canadian Districts of Cherokee Nation | Muskogee Nation of Indians | 81.91 | 66,677 | 814 sq mi (2,108 km2) |
 |
| Noble County | 103 | Perry | 1897 | County P in Oklahoma Territory. | U.S. Secretary of the Interior John Willock Noble | 14.80 | 10,832 | 732 sq mi (1,896 km2) |
 |
| Nowata County | 105 | Nowata | 1907 | Cooweescoowee District of Cherokee Nation | The town of Nowata, Oklahoma. The name might come from a word meaning welcome or from a sign saying No wata (no water). | 16.70 | 9,438 | 565 sq mi (1,463 km2) |
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| Okfuskee County | 107 | Okemah | 1907 | Creek Nation land | Creek town of the same name in Cleburn County, Alabama | 18.08 | 11,300 | 625 sq mi (1,619 km2) |
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| Oklahoma County | 109 | Oklahoma City | 1891 | Unassigned Lands in Indian Territory, County 2 in Oklahoma Territory | From two Choctaw words okla and humma, meaning people and red | 1,140.85 | 808,866 | 709 sq mi (1,836 km2) |
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| Okmulgee County | 111 | Okmulgee | 1907 | Creek Nation land | Creek word meaning boiling water | 53.13 | 37,035 | 697 sq mi (1,805 km2) |
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| Osage County | 113 | Pawhuska | 1907 | Coterminous with Osage Reservation | The Osage Indian Reservation, home to the Osage Nation | 20.49 | 46,130 | 2,251 sq mi (5,830 km2) |
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| Ottawa County | 115 | Miami | 1907 | Multiple tribal reservations in Indian Territory. | Ottawa Native American people | 64.30 | 30,287 | 471 sq mi (1,220 km2) |
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| Pawnee County | 117 | Pawnee | 1897 | Cherokee Outlet, then County Q in Oklahoma Territory | The Skidi Pawnee Native American people | 27.83 | 15,864 | 570 sq mi (1,476 km2) |
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| Payne County | 119 | Stillwater | 1890 | County 6 in Oklahoma Territory in 1889, renamed to Payne County in 1907 | David L. Payne, important in opening Oklahoma for settlement | 121.50 | 83,352 | 686 sq mi (1,777 km2) |
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| Pittsburg County | 121 | McAlester | 1907 | Choctaw Nation land | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania | 33.29 | 43,479 | 1,306 sq mi (3,383 km2) |
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| Pontotoc County | 123 | Ada | 1907 | Chickasaw Nation | Pontotoc is a Chickasaw word meaning cat tails growing on the prairie | 53.33 | 38,396 | 720 sq mi (1,865 km2) |
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| Pottawatomie County | 125 | Shawnee | 1891 | Creek Nation and Seminole Nation lands. | The Pottawatomie Native American people | 93.64 | 73,791 | 788 sq mi (2,041 km2) |
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| Pushmataha County | 127 | Antlers | 1907 | Pushmataha District of the Choctaw Nation | The Pushmataha District of the Choctaw Nation | 7.73 | 10,800 | 1,397 sq mi (3,618 km2) |
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| Roger Mills County | 129 | Cheyenne | 1895 | County F in Oklahoma Territory | U.S. Senator Roger Q. Mills | 2.89 | 3,295 | 1,142 sq mi (2,958 km2) |
 |
| Rogers County | 131 | Claremore | 1907 | Cooweescoowee District, Cherokee Nation, Indian Territory | Clem V. Rogers, a member of the Oklahoma Constitutional Convention and father of entertainer Will Rogers | 148.52 | 100,248 | 675 sq mi (1,748 km2) |
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| Seminole County | 133 | Wewoka | 1907 | Seminole Nation | The Seminole Native American people | 37.29 | 23,565 | 632 sq mi (1,637 km2) |
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| Sequoyah County | 135 | Sallisaw | 1907 | Sequoyah District and part of Illinois District, Cherokee Nation | Sequoyah (George Guess), who invented the Cherokee syllabary | 59.79 | 40,291 | 674 sq mi (1,746 km2) |
 |
| Stephens County | 137 | Duncan | 1907 | Comanche County, Oklahoma Territory | John Hall Stephens, a Texas congressman who supported Oklahoma becoming a state | 50.19 | 44,014 | 877 sq mi (2,271 km2) |
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| Texas County | 139 | Guymon | 1907 | Seventh County (part of the panhandle until 1907) | The neighboring U.S. state of Texas | 10.00 | 20,371 | 2,037 sq mi (5,276 km2) |
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| Tillman County | 141 | Frederick | 1907 | Comanche County, Oklahoma | U.S. Senator Benjamin Tillman of South Carolina | 7.88 | 6,869 | 872 sq mi (2,258 km2) |
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| Tulsa County | 143 | Tulsa | 1907 | Cherokee Nation and Creek Nation land. | Comes from Tulsey Town, Alabama, an old Creek settlement. | 1,198.01 | 682,868 | 570 sq mi (1,476 km2) |
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| Wagoner County | 145 | Wagoner | 1907 | Cherokee Nation land | Bailey P. Waggoner, a lawyer for the Missouri Pacific Railroad, which started the town of Wagoner | 158.58 | 89,280 | 563 sq mi (1,458 km2) |
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| Washington County | 147 | Bartlesville | 1907 | Cooweescoowee District of Cherokee Nation. | First President of the United States George Washington | 128.79 | 53,706 | 417 sq mi (1,080 km2) |
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| Washita County | 149 | New Cordell | 1897 | County H in Oklahoma Territory | The Washita River | 10.69 | 10,736 | 1,004 sq mi (2,600 km2) |
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| Woods County | 151 | Alva | 1893 | County M in Oklahoma Territory. | Kansas politician Samuel Newitt Wood | 6.65 | 8,564 | 1,287 sq mi (3,333 km2) |
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| Woodward County | 153 | Woodward | 1893 | County N in Oklahoma Territory | Santa Fe Railroad director B. W. Woodward | 16.06 | 19,947 | 1,242 sq mi (3,217 km2) |
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See also
- Oklahoma
- County (United States)
- List of Oklahoma counties by socioeconomic factors
- Lists of U.S. county name etymologies
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List of counties in Oklahoma Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.