Carter County, Oklahoma

Carter County is a county in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. As of the 2020 census, the population was 48,003.[1] Its county seat is Ardmore.[2] The county was named for Captain Ben W. Carter, a Cherokee who lived among the Chickasaw.[3]

Not to be confused with Carter, Oklahoma.

Carter County
County
Carter County Courthouse in Ardmore
Carter County Courthouse in Ardmore
Map of Oklahoma highlighting Carter County
Location within the U.S. state of Oklahoma
Map of the United States highlighting Oklahoma
Oklahoma's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 34°15′N 97°17′W
Country United States
State Oklahoma
Founded1907
SeatArdmore
Largest cityArdmore
Area
 • Total834 sq mi (2,160 km2)
 • Land822 sq mi (2,130 km2)
 • Water12 sq mi (30 km2)  1.4%
Population
 (2020)
 • Total48,003
 • Density58/sq mi (22/km2)
Time zoneUTC−6 (Central)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district4th
Websitecartercountyok.us

Carter County is part of the Ardmore Micropolitan Statistical Area. It is also a part of the Texoma region.

History

Prior to statehood, the present Carter County, Oklahoma, was part of Pickens County in the Chickasaw Nation of the Indian Territory.[4]

After the Civil War, the government of the United States forced the Chickasaw government to allow railroads built across its territory. The Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe Railway (controlled by the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway, AT&SF) built a line north from Texas to Purcell.

In 1901-1903 the Arkansas and Choctaw Railway (acquired by the St. Louis and San Francisco Railway in 1907) built a line from Arkansas to Ardmore. Oil production spurred further railroad development. In 1913–14, the Oklahoma, New Mexico and Pacific Railway constructed a line from Ardmore west to Ringling. In 1916, the Ringling and Oil Fields Railway laid tracks north from Ringling Junction to Healdton. These last two rail lines were abandoned in 1976.[3]

Oil and gas production began very early in the 20th century. The Healdton field opened in 1913, and led to the development of Ardmore as a major oil production center. However, a disastrous fire occurred in Ardmore in 1915, when a railroad car exploded, killing 43 people and destroying much of the downtown. Ardmore and the local oil industry recovered, and the city also became a manufacturing center. Akron Tire and Rubber Company built and operated a plant in Ardmore as early as 1915. In 1970, Uniroyal built a tire plant there. It was acquired by Michelin North America in 1990. By the start of the 21st century, manufacturing was the largest component of the county economy.[3]

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 834 square miles (2,160 km2), of which 822 square miles (2,130 km2) is land and 12 square miles (31 km2) (1.4%) is water.[5]

The county contains parts of several physiographic regions, including the Arbuckle Mountains, the Coastal Plains, the Red Bed plains and the Cross Timbers. The northern part of the county drains to the Washita River, while several creeks drain the southern part directly to the Red River.[3]

Geology

The Healdton Field, encompassing Healdton and located in the western portion of Carter County, produces from the Pennsylvanian Healdton sands of the Hoxbar Group and the Ordovician massive carbonate Arbuckle Group.[6] The field is located on the "Healdton uplift", a northwest–southeast trending anticline, which formed with the Wichita Orogeny, and is 8 miles long and up to 3 miles wide.[7] This was followed by deposition of the Healdton sandstones and shales on pre-Pennsylvanian eroded rocks and subsequent folding during the Arbuckle Orogeny.[8] A prospector named Palmer drilled a shallow well, 425 feet, near an oil seep in the 1890s but Federal Law prohibited oil development on "Indian lands" until the early 1900s.[9] Therefore, the discovery of the field is credited to the drilling of No. 1 Wirt Franklin in 1913.[9]

Major highways

Adjacent counties

Demographics
Historical population
CensusPop.Note%±
191025,358—
192040,24758.7%
193041,4192.9%
194043,2924.5%
195036,455−15.8%
196039,0447.1%
197037,349−4.3%
198043,61016.8%
199042,919−1.6%
200045,6216.3%
201047,5574.2%
202048,0030.9%
U.S. Decennial Census[10]
1790-1960[11] 1900-1990[12]
1990-2000[13] 2010[14]
Age pyramid for Carter County, Oklahoma, based on census 2000 data.

As of the census of 2000, there were 45,621 people, 17,992 households, and 12,648 families residing in the county.[15] The population density was 55 inhabitants per square mile (21/km2). There were 20,577 housing units at an average density of 25 units per square mile (9.7/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 77.4% White, 7.60% Black or African American, 7.92% Native American, 0.60% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 1.13% from other races, and 4.45% from two or more races; 2.78% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. According to the 2020 census, its population was 48,003.[1]

As of 2000, there were 17,992 households, out of which 32.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.50% were married couples living together, 12.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.70% were non-families. 26.60% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.47 and the average family size was 2.98. In the county, the population was spread out, with 26.20% under the age of 18, 7.90% from 18 to 24, 26.70% from 25 to 44, 23.20% from 45 to 64, and 16.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.00 males.

In 2000, the median income for a household in the county was $29,405, and the median income for a family was $36,729. Males had a median income of $30,018 versus $20,877 for females. The per capita income for the county was $15,511. About 12.70% of families and 16.60% of the population were below the poverty line, including 21.70% of those under age 18 and 12.40% of those age 65 or over. Per 2021 census estimates, the county's median household income was $52,906 and it had a poverty rate of 14.2%.[1]

Politics
Voter Registration and Party Enrollment as of May 31, 2023[16]
Party Number of Voters Percentage
Democratic 8,419 28.07%
Republican 15,656 52.20%
Others 5,919 19.73%
Total 29,994 100%
United States presidential election results for Carter County, Oklahoma[17]
Year Republican Democratic Third party
No. %No. %No. %
2020 14,699 75.46% 4,470 22.95% 310 1.59%
2016 13,752 74.20% 4,002 21.59% 780 4.21%
2012 12,214 71.34% 4,908 28.66% 0 0.00%
2008 13,241 70.27% 5,603 29.73% 0 0.00%
2004 12,178 65.32% 6,466 34.68% 0 0.00%
2000 9,667 58.74% 6,659 40.46% 132 0.80%
1996 6,769 42.83% 6,979 44.16% 2,056 13.01%
1992 5,947 32.38% 7,171 39.04% 5,250 28.58%
1988 8,430 50.98% 7,988 48.31% 117 0.71%
1984 11,578 64.96% 6,161 34.57% 83 0.47%
1980 9,262 57.34% 6,509 40.29% 383 2.37%
1976 6,668 44.25% 8,319 55.20% 83 0.55%
1972 9,368 66.41% 4,577 32.45% 161 1.14%
1968 5,127 35.73% 5,807 40.47% 3,414 23.79%
1964 4,986 31.90% 10,645 68.10% 0 0.00%
1960 6,288 42.69% 8,441 57.31% 0 0.00%
1956 5,974 39.01% 9,341 60.99% 0 0.00%
1952 5,974 36.76% 10,276 63.24% 0 0.00%
1948 2,147 18.48% 9,474 81.52% 0 0.00%
1944 2,446 20.99% 9,184 78.81% 24 0.21%
1940 3,270 23.79% 10,441 75.96% 35 0.25%
1936 2,247 19.26% 9,387 80.44% 35 0.30%
1932 1,733 15.25% 9,633 84.75% 0 0.00%
1928 6,538 55.80% 5,086 43.41% 92 0.79%
1924 3,164 29.13% 7,134 65.68% 564 5.19%
1920 3,561 35.14% 5,997 59.18% 575 5.67%
1916 1,013 20.64% 2,949 60.09% 946 19.27%
1912 652 20.24% 1,860 57.75% 709 22.01%

Communities

Cities

Towns

Unincorporated communities

See also

References
  1. "Carter County, Oklahoma". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
  2. "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  3. O'Dell, Larry. "Carter County," Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture, 2009. Accessed March 28, 2015.
  4. Charles Goins, Historical Atlas of Oklahoma (Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 2006), plate 105.
  5. "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Retrieved February 18, 2015.
  6. Latham, J.W., Petroleum Geology of Healdton Field, Carter County, Oklahoma, in AAPG Memoir 14, Geology of Giant Petroleum Fields, Halbouty, M.T., editor, Tulsa: American Association of Petroleum Geologists, p. 255
  7. Latham, J.W., Petroleum Geology of Healdton Field, Carter County, Oklahoma, in AAPG Memoir 14, Geology of Giant Petroleum Fields, Halbouty, M.T., editor, Tulsa: American Association of Petroleum Geologists, pp. 256-257
  8. Latham, J.W., Petroleum Geology of Healdton Field, Carter County, Oklahoma, in AAPG Memoir 14, Geology of Giant Petroleum Fields, Halbouty, M.T., editor, Tulsa: American Association of Petroleum Geologists, pp. 255-256
  9. Latham, J.W., Petroleum Geology of Healdton Field, Carter County, Oklahoma, in AAPG Memoir 14, Geology of Giant Petroleum Fields, Halbouty, M.T., editor, Tulsa: American Association of Petroleum Geologists, p. 256
  10. "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved February 18, 2015.
  11. "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved February 18, 2015.
  12. Forstall, Richard L., ed. (March 27, 1995). "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved February 18, 2015.
  13. "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. April 2, 2001. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 27, 2010. Retrieved February 18, 2015.
  14. "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on June 6, 2011. Retrieved November 8, 2013.
  15. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
  16. "Voter Registration Totals". OK Elections Interactive Statistics Beta. May 31, 2023. Retrieved June 25, 2023.
  17. Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved March 28, 2018.

34.25°N 97.29°W / 34.25; -97.29

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