Mayes County, Oklahoma

Mayes County, Oklahoma
Location in the U.S. state of Oklahoma
Oklahoma's location in the U.S.
Founded	November 16, 1907
Named for	Samuel Houston Mayes
Seat	Pryor
Largest city	Pryor
Area
• Total	684 sq mi (1,772 km2)
• Land	655 sq mi (1,696 km2)
• Water	28 sq mi (73 km2), 4.1%
Population (est.)
• (2013)	40,804
• Density	63/sq mi (24/km²)
Congressional district	2nd
Time zone	Central: UTC-6/-5
Website	mayes.okcounties.org

Mayes County is a county located in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. As of the 2010 census, the population was 41,259. Its county seat is Pryor Creek, Oklahoma. Named for Samuel Houston Mayes, Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation from 1895 to 1899, it was originally created at the Sequoyah Convention in August 1905.

According to the Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture, the area covered by what is now Mayes County has many prehistoric sites. There is evidence of human habitation dated before 6,000 B. C., plus 35 Archaic sites ( 6,000 B. C to 1 A. D.), 25 Woodland sites (1 A. D. to 1000 A. D.) and 31 Plains Village sites (1000 A. D. to 1500 A. D.

French voyageurs roamed the area in the early 18th Century, giving French names to many of the waterways and other local sites. Jean Pierre Chouteau established a trading post at the location of the present town of Salina, where he chiefly traded with the Osage tribe that had settled in the vicinity. Union Mission, near the present day town of Chouteau, Oklahoma was established in 1820. Rev. Samuel Worcestor set up the first printing press in this part of the United States at Union Mission in 1835.

In 1828, members of the Western Cherokee Nation began arriving in the area from their former lands in Arkansas. The Eastern Cherokee, who were forced from their homes in Tennessee, Georgia and North Carolina, followed during the 1830s. In 1841, the present Mayes County area became part of the Saline District of the Cherokee Nation.

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Wikipedia