Cherokee, Oklahoma
| Cherokee, Oklahoma | |
|---|---|
| City | |
Alfalfa County Courthouse in Cherokee
|
|
 Location within Oklahoma |
|
| Coordinates: 36°45′16″N 98°21′24″W / 36.75444°N 98.35667°WCoordinates: 36°45′16″N 98°21′24″W / 36.75444°N 98.35667°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Oklahoma |
| County | Alfalfa |
| Area | |
| • Total | 1.473 sq mi (3.8 km2) |
| • Land | 1.473 sq mi (3.8 km2) |
| • Water | 0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2) |
| Elevation | 1,181 ft (360 m) |
| Population (2010) | |
| • Total | 1,498 |
| • Estimate (2015) | 1,560 |
| • Density | 1,000/sq mi (390/km2) |
| Time zone | Central (CST) (UTC-6) |
| • Summer (DST) | CDT (UTC-5) |
| ZIP code | 73728 |
| Area code | 580 |
| FIPS code | 40-13750 |
| GNIS ID | 1091235 |
Cherokee is a city and county seat of Alfalfa County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 1,498 at the 2010 census, a loss of 8.1 percent from 1,630 at the 2000 census.
After the land opening of 1893, developers wanted to attract railroads to build through the former Cherokee Outlet to transport the large wheat crops to markets. The Kansas and Oklahoma Construction Company, through its subsidiary the Cherokee Investment Company, bought 100 acres (40 ha) along its route, platted the town which it named Cherokee, and held a sale of lots on February 9, 1901. Cherokee officially incorporated in July 1901. Two years later, the Kansas City, Mexico and Orient Railroad (later owned by the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway) constructed a line through Cherokee. To gain access to the railroad, residents of the nearby community of Erwin, which already had a post office by that name, relocated to Cherokee. This post office was renamed "Cherokee" in March, 1903.
By 1905, a second railroad, the Denver, Enid, and Gulf, built a line through the community. The community was soon transformed into a dominant regional center for agricultural services, banking, wholesale-retail trade, and transportation, providing markets and services to the surrounding smaller communities, such as Ingersoll, Burlington, Driftwood, Byron, and Amorita. The town grew around its twin railroad depots, and by 1909 Cherokee had three banks, three newspapers, three mills (flour, alfalfa, and planning), a concrete block plant, and a school desk factory. There were also Baptist, Catholic, Christian, Friends, Methodist, and Presbyterian churches.
Alfalfa County itself - named after Governor 'Alfalfa Bill' Murray - was created at the time of statehood in 1907, when the state reorganized several counties out of part of what was once the much larger Woods County. Cherokee's status as the official county seat of Alfalfa County was confirmed in January 1909. The city's incorporation was reconfirmed in March of that same year.
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Wikipedia