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Hughes County, Oklahoma
HughesCounty1909
1909 map of Hughes County
Map of Oklahoma highlighting Hughes County
Location in the state of Oklahoma
Map of the U.S
Oklahoma's location in the U.S.
Founded 1907
Named for W. C. Hughes
Seat Holdenville
Largest city Holdenville
Area
 - Total
 - Land
 - Water

815 sq mi (2,111 km²)
805 sq mi (2,085 km²)
10 sq mi (26 km²), 1.3%
Population
 - (2020)
 - Density

13,367
17/sq mi (7/km²)
Congressional district 2nd
Time zone Central: UTC-6/-5

Hughes County is a county located in south central U.S. state of Oklahoma. As of the 2020 census, the population was 13,367.[1] Its county seat is Holdenville.[2] The county was named for W. C. Hughes, an Oklahoma City lawyer who was a member of the Oklahoma Constitutional Convention.[3]

History[]

The area now occupied by Hughes County was part of Indian Territory in the 19th Century. The Creeks settled in the northern part, which fell within the Wewoka District of the Creek Nation, while the Choctaws settled in the southern, which fell within portions of Atoka County and Tobucksy County of the Choctaw Nation.[3] In 1834, Camp Holmes was established and used as a base for the Dodge-Leavenworth Expedition. It was near Edwards' Store on Little River, one of the first settlements in this area. Also, following Quapaw removal in 1834, several small groups of Quapaw dispersed throughout Indian Territory. There were absentee groups of Quapaw living along the Red River and in Creek, Choctaw and Cherokee territory. There was a Quapaw settlement near camp Holmes in Hughes County.[4]

When the Choctaw, Oklahoma and Gulf Railroad built in 1895, the Edward's settlement was moved north for access to the railroad. The town established there was named Holden, for James Franklin Holder, a railroad official. However, the Post Office Department would not accept that name because it was too similar to the name Holder. The town was renamed Holdenville. The post office opened November 15, 1895. Holdenville incorporated in 1898.[3]

Hughes County was created at statehood and named for W. C. Hughes,[5] an Oklahoma City lawyer who was a member of the Oklahoma Constitutional Convention.[3]

Geography[]

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 815 square miles (2,110 km2), of which 805 square miles (2,080 km2) is land and 10 square miles (26 km2) (1.3%) is water.[6] The county is located in the Sandstone Hills physiographic region. It is drained by the North Canadian River, Canadian River, and Little River.[3]

The county includes Holdenville and Wetumka lakes.[7]

Major highways[]

  • US 75 U.S. Highway 75
  • US 270 U.S. Highway 270
  • Oklahoma State Highway 9 State Highway 9
  • Oklahoma State Highway 27 State Highway 27
  • Oklahoma State Highway 48 State Highway 48

Adjacent counties[]

Demographics[]

Historical populations
Census Pop.
1910 24,040
1920 26,045 8.3%
1930 30,334 16.5%
1940 29,189 −3.8%
1950 20,664 −29.2%
1960 15,144 −26.7%
1970 13,228 −12.7%
1980 14,338 8.4%
1990 13,023 −9.2%
2000 14,154 8.7%
2010 14,003 −1.1%
U.S. Decennial Census[8]
1790-1960[9] 1900-1990[10]
1990-2000[11] 2010-2020[1]

As of the census[12] of 2000, there were 14,154 people, 5,319 households, and 3,675 families residing in the county. The population density was 18 people per square mile (7/km2). There were 6,237 housing units at an average density of 8 per square mile (3/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 72.77% White, 4.48% Black or African American, 16.18% Native American, 0.21% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.98% from other races, and 5.36% from two or more races. 2.49% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 94.3% spoke English, 2.6% Muskogee and 2.5% Spanish as their first language.

There were 5,319 households, out of which 28.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.50% were married couples living together, 11.30% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.90% were non-families. 28.60% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 2.96.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 23.20% under the age of 18, 8.00% from 18 to 24, 27.20% from 25 to 44, 23.20% from 45 to 64, and 18.60% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 105.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 105.50 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $22,621, and the median income for a family was $29,153. Males had a median income of $22,337 versus $18,029 for females. The per capita income for the county was $12,687. About 16.70% of families and 21.90% of the population were below the poverty line, including 27.40% of those under age 18 and 17.60% of those age 65 or over.

Politics[]

Despite the county being home to a significant Native American population and a wide Democratic registration advantage, the county has not voted that way in presidential elections in the 21st century. Following the lead of most rural counties nationwide, the Republican Party candidate has won at least 60% of the vote in the county since 2008, with Donald Trump topping out at 79.8% of the vote in 2020.

Voter Registration and Party Enrollment as of January 15, 2019[13]
Party Number of Voters Percentage
style="background-color:#3333FF;" width=10px | Democratic 3,924 57.35%
style="background-color:#FF3333;" width=10px | Republican 2,027 29.63%
style="background-color:#ffffcc;" width=10px | Others 891 13.02%
Total 6,842 100%
United States presidential election results for Hughes County, Oklahoma[14]
Year Republican Democratic Third party
No.  % No.  % No.  %
2020 3,875 79.78% 919 18.92% 63 1.30%
2016 3,388 74.86% 961 21.23% 177 3.91%
2012 2,838 67.44% 1,370 32.56% 0 0.00%
2008 3,134 64.71% 1,709 35.29% 0 0.00%
2004 3,066 57.32% 2,283 42.68% 0 0.00%
2000 2,196 47.90% 2,334 50.91% 55 1.20%
1996 1,510 30.13% 2,748 54.83% 754 15.04%
1992 1,522 27.40% 2,850 51.31% 1,182 21.28%
1988 2,037 38.24% 3,259 61.18% 31 0.58%
1984 2,663 47.57% 2,901 51.82% 34 0.61%
1980 2,170 39.35% 3,211 58.22% 134 2.43%
1976 1,715 28.79% 4,185 70.27% 56 0.94%
1972 3,497 64.86% 1,787 33.14% 108 2.00%
1968 1,897 33.60% 2,578 45.67% 1,170 20.73%
1964 1,692 27.43% 4,477 72.57% 0 0.00%
1960 3,117 50.49% 3,057 49.51% 0 0.00%
1956 2,783 39.41% 4,278 60.59% 0 0.00%
1952 3,012 39.37% 4,639 60.63% 0 0.00%
1948 1,676 23.38% 5,492 76.62% 0 0.00%
1944 2,484 33.09% 5,009 66.73% 13 0.17%
1940 3,168 34.46% 6,005 65.31% 21 0.23%
1936 2,032 25.31% 5,990 74.60% 8 0.10%
1932 1,114 14.66% 6,485 85.34% 0 0.00%
1928 3,937 55.18% 3,169 44.41% 29 0.41%
1924 1,994 32.16% 3,996 64.45% 210 3.39%
1920 3,049 45.60% 3,487 52.15% 150 2.24%
1916 1,219 28.98% 2,187 52.00% 800 19.02%
1912 1,228 30.69% 1,769 44.21% 1,004 25.09%
1908 1,459 41.77% 1,649 47.21% 385 11.02%



Economy[]

Agriculture and cattle raising have long been important to the county economy. Primary crops have been cotton, wheat, corn, oats, peanuts, and soybeans. The most important other employers in the county are: Davis Correctional Center (which is operated by Corrections Corporation of America), Tyson Foods, Wes Watkins Technology Center, and Aquafarms, which has since gone out of business.[3]

Healthcare[]

Hughes County has one level 4 hospital, Holdenville General Hospital, a city-owned hospital (public trust) under the Holdenville Public Works Authority, opened in 1969 as a 55 licensed bed general medical-surgical hospital. The hospital experienced a fire on May 18, 2002. On June 30, 2002, the renovated hospital reopened with 25 licensed beds, and on July 1, 2002, was re-designated by CMS as a Critical Access Hospital. This designation effects the way Medicare reimburses the hospital. In 1998, the city formed the Holdenville Hospital Authority. In July 2011, the hospital became a Tier 1 Affiliate with St. Anthony Hospital. This allows collaboration between the hospitals to improve services and support for patient transfers to higher levels of care when needed.[15]

In 1979 Hughes County Commissioners established a 522 Ambulance Service Board, and Opened Hughes County EMS. Hughes County EMS is an ALS level service licensed by the State of Oklahoma, with Paramedics on every unit. The system operates 4 units, 2 out of Holdenville (EMS 1 and EMS 3) and Horntown (EMS 2 and EMS 4) during certain times of the year, Horntown functions as a posting point with the crews in Calvin and Wetumka.[3]

Communities[]

  • Allen
  • Atwood
  • Calvin
  • Carson
  • Dustin
  • Gerty
  • Holdenville (county seat)
  • Horntown
  • Lamar
  • Spaulding
  • Stuart
  • Wetumka
  • Yeager

NRHP sites[]

The following sites are in Hughes County are listed on the National Register of Historic Places:

  • Dustin Agricultural Building, Dustin
  • Holdenville Armory, Holdenville
  • Holdenville City Hall, Holdenville
  • Levering Mission, Wetumka
  • Moss School Gymnasium, Holdenville
  • Spaulding School Gymnasium--Auditorium, Spaulding
  • Stuart Hotel, Stuart
  • John E. Turner House, Holdenville
  • Wetumka Armory, Wetumka
  • Wetumka Cemetery Pavilion and Fence, Wetumka

References[]

  1. ^ a b "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/40/40063.html. 
  2. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx. 
  3. ^ a b c d e f g James C. Milligan, "Hughes County." Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture. Retrieved January 18, 2013.
  4. ^ Baird, David (1975). The Quapaw People. Indian Tribal Series. 
  5. ^ "Origin of County Names in Oklahoma". Chronicles of Oklahoma. Oklahoma Historical Society. March 1924. pp. 75–82. http://digital.library.okstate.edu/Chronicles/v002/v002p075.html. 
  6. ^ "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. http://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/counties_list_40.txt. 
  7. ^ "Hughes" (PDF). Oklahoma Encyclopedia Online. Oklahoma Department of Libraries. 2005. http://www.odl.state.ok.us/almanac/2005/counties/hughes.pdf. 
  8. ^ "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html. 
  9. ^ "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. http://mapserver.lib.virginia.edu. 
  10. ^ Forstall, Richard L., ed (March 27, 1995). "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. https://www.census.gov/population/cencounts/ok190090.txt. 
  11. ^ "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000". United States Census Bureau. April 2, 2001. https://www.census.gov/population/www/cen2000/briefs/phc-t4/tables/tab02.pdf. 
  12. ^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. https://www.census.gov. 
  13. ^ "Oklahoma Registration Statistics by County". January 15, 2019. https://www.ok.gov/elections/documents/20190115%20-%20Registration%20By%20County%20(vr2420).pdf. 
  14. ^ Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS. 
  15. ^ "Holdenville General Hospital" (in en-US). http://holdenvillehospital.com/. 

Further reading[]

  • Womack, Craig, Rosemary McCombs Maxey, and Southern Spaces staff. "Fife Family Cemetery", Southern Spaces, September 15, 2008.

External links[]

Coordinates: 35°02′N 96°16′W / 35.04, -96.26

Template:Hughes County, Oklahoma

This page uses content from the English language Wikipedia. The original content was at Hughes County, Oklahoma. The list of authors can be seen in the page history. As with this Familypedia wiki, the content of Wikipedia is available under the Creative Commons License.
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