Clinton, Oklahoma
Encyclopedia
Clinton is a city in Custer
Custer County, Oklahoma
Custer County is a county located in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. It was named in honor of General George Armstrong Custer. As of 2000, the population was 26,142. Its county seat is Arapaho.-Geography:...

 and Washita
Washita County, Oklahoma
Washita County is a county located in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. As of 2000, the population was 11,508. Its county seat is New Cordell. It was formerly located in Cloud Chief, Oklahoma....

 counties in the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...

 of Oklahoma
Oklahoma
Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...

. The population was 9,033 at the 2010 census
United States Census, 2010
The Twenty-third United States Census, known as Census 2010 or the 2010 Census, is the current national census of the United States. National Census Day was April 1, 2010 and is the reference date used in enumerating individuals...

.

History

The community began in 1899 when two men, J.L. Avant and E.E. Blake, decided to locate a town in the Washita River Valley.

Because of governmental stipulations that an Indian could sell no more than one half of a 160 acre (0.6474976 km²) allotment, the men made plans to purchase 320 acres (1.3 km²) from four different Indians - Hays, Shoe-Boy, Nowahy, and Night Killer - and paid them each $2,000 for 80 acres (323,748.8 m²) to begin the small settlement of Washita Junction.

Congressional approval for the sale was granted in 1902 and Washita Junction quickly developed. The first businesses were the townsite office, a newspaper called the Custer County Chronicle, and the First National Bank Building. When a post office was started, the postal department would not accept the name of Washita Junction, so the town was named after the late Judge Clinton Irwin. The Frisco Railroad later turned the town into an important shipping center for the area.

Clinton also benefited from the presence of U.S. Highway 66, fostering the locally famous Pop Hicks Restaurant, which opened in 1936. The longest running restaurant on Route 66 burned down in 1999. Like most other cities and towns on Route 66, Clinton was also the home of many other tourist businesses including several restaurants, cafes, motels and gasoline service stations. Today, cross-country generally passes Clinton to the south on Interstate 40, but Clinton remains a popular tourist stop as one of the largest cities in Western Oklahoma between Oklahoma City and Amarillo, Texas. Much of the old U.S. 66 route that passed through the city is now designated as an I-40 business loop.

In 1942, the federal government built a naval airfield at nearby Burns Flat and named it Naval Air Station Clinton. During the World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

 period, the population of Clinton grew to nearly 7,000 residents. In 1949, Naval Air Station Clinton was deactivated and the airfield was deeded to the City of Clinton, specifying that the land could be recaptured in case of national emergencies. Later, the government leased the site back and used it as Clinton-Sherman Air Force Base
Clinton-Sherman Air Force Base
Clinton-Sherman Air Force Base is a former United States Air Force Strategic Air Command base located near the town of Burns Flat in Washita County, Oklahoma, 15 miles southwest of the city of Clinton, Oklahoma....

 a bomber base supporting 4123rd Strategic Wing, then the 70th Bombardment Wing
70th Intelligence Wing
The 70th Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Wing is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the Air Force Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Agency. It is stationed at Fort George G...

, Heavy of the Strategic Air Command
Strategic Air Command
The Strategic Air Command was both a Major Command of the United States Air Force and a "specified command" of the United States Department of Defense. SAC was the operational establishment in charge of America's land-based strategic bomber aircraft and land-based intercontinental ballistic...

 (SAC), operating B-52 Stratofortress
B-52 Stratofortress
The Boeing B-52 Stratofortress is a long-range, subsonic, jet-powered strategic bomber operated by the United States Air Force since the 1950s. The B-52 was designed and built by Boeing, who have continued to provide maintainence and upgrades to the aircraft in service...

 and KC-135 Stratotanker
KC-135 Stratotanker
The Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker is an aerial refueling military aircraft. It and the Boeing 707 airliner were developed from the Boeing 367-80 prototype. The KC-135 was the US Air Force's first jet-powered refueling tanker and replaced the KC-97 Stratotanker...

 aircraft. Purchasing more land, the site soon expanded to more than 3500 acres (14 km²), where both the U.S. Air Force and the U.S. Navy utilized the airfield for both operational and training purposes. When military operations were de-emphasized, the Clinton-Sherman base was designated for closure in 1969. The entire complex was deeded to the City of Clinton in 1971 and three years later became the Clinton-Sherman Industrial Airpark
Clinton-Sherman Industrial Airpark
The Clinton-Sherman Industrial Airpark, also known as the Oklahoma Spaceport is a newly authorized spaceport near Burns Flat, Oklahoma, in the western part of the state...

.

Clinton was the one time home of the National Highway 66 Association which operated for almost thirty years beginning after World War II. Though the association was disbanded in the 1980s, it instilled in Clinton an adhering interest in the Mother Road and the town became home to the first state sponsored Route 66 Museum in the nation.

Clinton is also home to the Clinton Daily News a is a six-day daily newspaper. The publication is edited by Rod Serfoss and has a circulation of 4,500. The newspaper has been published continuously from its inception in 1927 to the current day.

Geography

Clinton is located at 35°30′34"N 98°58′27"W (35.509369, -98.974063), sitting at an elevation of 1,592 feet (485 m). The town is located on historic U.S. Route 66
U.S. Route 66
U.S. Route 66 was a highway within the U.S. Highway System. One of the original U.S. highways, Route 66 was established on November 11, 1926 -- with road signs erected the following year...

, which is now Interstate 40
Interstate 40
Interstate 40 is the third-longest major east–west Interstate Highway in the United States, after I-90 and I-80. Its western end is at Interstate 15 in Barstow, California; its eastern end is at a concurrency of U.S. Route 117 and North Carolina Highway 132 in Wilmington, North Carolina...

.

According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...

, the city has a total area of 8.9 square miles (23.2 km²), of which, 8.9 square miles (23.1 km²) of it is land and 0.04 square miles (0.1 km²) of it (0.22%) is water.

Climate



Demographics

As of the census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...

of 2000, there were 8,833 people, 3,331 households, and 2,265 families residing in the city. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...

 was 989.1 people per square mile (381.9/km²). There were 3,818 housing units at an average density of 427.5 per square mile (165.1/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 68.92% White, 5.82% African American, 6.39% Native American, 0.78% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 13.62% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

, and 4.45% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 18.99% of the population.

There were 3,331 households out of which 32.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.7% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...

 living together, 11.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.0% were non-families. 28.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 3.14.

In the city the population was spread out with 27.6% under the age of 18, 8.9% from 18 to 24, 25.7% from 25 to 44, 20.5% from 45 to 64, and 17.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 93.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.3 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $27,051, and the median income for a family was $32,242. Males had a median income of $24,588 versus $18,596 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...

 for the city was $14,606. About 14.6% of families and 18.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.9% of those under age 18 and 11.1% of those age 65 or over.

Events

The municipal airport
Clinton Regional Airport
Clinton Regional Airport is a city-owned public-use airport located three miles northeast of the central business district of Clinton, a city in Custer County and Washita County, Oklahoma, United States.- Facilities and aircraft :...

 in Clinton was the site of the first crash of a C-5 Galaxy
C-5 Galaxy
The Lockheed C-5 Galaxy is a large military transport aircraft built by Lockheed. It provides the United States Air Force with a heavy intercontinental-range strategic airlift capability, one that can carry outsize and oversize cargos, including all air-certifiable cargo. The Galaxy has many...

 (68-0227) on September 27, 1974.http://okwreckchasing.org/680227.html

Notable residents

  • Toby Keith
    Toby Keith
    Toby Keith Covel , best known as Toby Keith, is an American country music singer-songwriter, record producer and actor. Keith released his first four studio albums — 1993's Toby Keith, 1994's Boomtown, 1996's Blue Moon and 1997's Dream Walkin, plus a Greatest Hits package for various divisions of...

     http://music.aol.com/artist/toby-keith/39797/main
  • Scott Hendricks
    Scott Hendricks
    Scott Hendricks is an American record producer who has worked with several country music artists. He has had over 80 top 10s, and 45 number 1 hits. Between 1995 and 1997, he was also the president and chief executive officer of Capitol Records Nashville...

  • James R. Winchester
    James R. Winchester
    James Winchester is an American lawyer and judge who is current serving as Justice on the Oklahoma Supreme Court.-Early life:Born in Clinton, Oklahoma in 1953, Winchester received his Bachelor of Arts from the University of Oklahoma and his Juris Doctor from Oklahoma City University...


Schools

Clinton has three elementary schools, one middle school and one high school within the public school system. There is also an alternative school that is part of the public school system.

Sports

Clinton is known for its high school football team, the "Red Tornadoes". The Red Tornadoes have won 15 state championships (1965, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1978, 1982, 1984, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007) which ranks currently second in the state of Oklahoma behind Ada
Ada, Oklahoma
Ada is a city in and the county seat of Pontotoc County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 16,008 at the 2000 census. As of 2009, the city population was estimated at 17,019....

.

Band

Clinton is known for the Pride of Clinton Marching/Symphonic Band. The band is known around the state for their success in marching and concert seasons for years. They have obtained ones at marching and concert contest, also known as Sweepstakes, as well as the Sweepstakes Accent.

National Register of Historic Places

  • Clinton Armory
  • Crawford House
  • McLain Rogers Park
  • Y Service Station & Café

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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