Grandfield, Oklahoma
Encyclopedia
Grandfield is a city in Tillman County
, Oklahoma
, United States
. The population was 1,038 at the 2010 census
.
According to the United States Census Bureau
, the city has a total area of 0.8 square miles (2.1 km²), all of it land.
of 2000, there were 1,110 people, 434 households, and 295 families residing in the city. The population density
was 1,387.9 people per square mile (535.7/km²). There were 534 housing units at an average density of 667.7 per square mile (257.7/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 71.98% White, 9.37% African American, 3.51% Native American, 0.18% Asian, 11.17% from other races
, and 3.78% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 18.92% of the population.
There were 434 households out of which 31.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.0% were married couples
living together, 10.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.0% were non-families. 30.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 3.10.
In the city the population was spread out with 25.9% under the age of 18, 7.7% from 18 to 24, 24.1% from 25 to 44, 22.8% from 45 to 64, and 19.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 92.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.0 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $21,500, and the median income for a family was $27,222. Males had a median income of $23,281 versus $16,250 for females. The per capita income
for the city was $13,823. About 20.7% of families and 26.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 38.6% of those under age 18 and 10.8% of those age 65 or over.
, approximately 480000 acres (1,942.5 km²) bounded on the south by the Red River
and presently located in parts of Comanche, Cotton, and Tillman counties, was the last settled territory in Oklahoma. Native control of the land traces to the Quapaw
, who ceded it to the United States in 1818. The Choctaw and Chickasaw accepted the area in the 1820s and 1830s but lost it as a result of the Reconstruction Treaty of 1866. By the terms of the Medicine Lodge Treaty of 1867 a reservation that included the Big Pasture was set-aside for the Kiowa
, Comanche
, and Apache
. The land became part of Oklahoma Territory
in December 1906.
Opening bids to quarter-sections of the Big Pasture to prospective homesteader began on December 3 and ended on December 15, 1909. There were over 100,000 bids for the available 1,830 quarter-sections. Bids varied from $5,800.00 to $7,376.00.
Prior to the opening of the area, the United States platted five official townships: Randlett, Ahpeatone, Isadore, Quanah and Eschiti. The only town remaining today is Randlett
. Eschiti was the official town nearest the present site of Grandfield.
Problems began when the Wichita Falls and Northwestern Railroad
missed Eschiti by two miles and Kell City (named after the railroad’s promoter) sprang up along the railroad's route.
By 1907, Eschiti had an official United States Post Office and Kell City had the railroad. Citizens from both towns were in heated competition for new settlers and businesses moving to the area.
To try to settle the differences, Reverend Andrew J. Tant, a Baptist Minister and homesteader, went into partnership with Frank Kell and offered free lots to businesses if they would relocate to the Tant farm, which would eventually become Grandfield. Since the Tant farm was only about a mile from Kell City, people willingly moved. Free lots were also promised to all churches and schools. Observers at that time wrote they could look through their windows and see lines of houses being moved. According to Mrs. Lawrence Hooks, an early settler, she once cooked breakfast in Eschiti and dinner in Grandfield, without leaving her house.
A committee appealed to the United States Post Office to establish a post office. Assistant Postmaster General Charles P. Grandfield was helpful in granting the request. Consequently, the town was named in his honor. On January 16, 1909, Grandfield citizens voted, almost unanimously, for incorporation, and the post office opened January 21, 1909. In 1910 the population stood at 830.
The town's founders and early residents came from a variety of locations, backgrounds, cultures and religions; the States of Kentucky, Tennessee, Kansas, Missouri, Arkansas and Texas were well represented, and a substantial number of newly arrived European immigrants also made their homes in Grandfield.
Tillman County, Oklahoma
Tillman County is a county located in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. As of 2000, the population was 9,287. The county seat is Frederick. .-Geography:According to the U.S...
, 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...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The population was 1,038 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...
.
Geography
Grandfield is located at 34°13′49"N 98°41′16"W (34.230213, -98.687646).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 0.8 square miles (2.1 km²), all of it land.
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
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 1,110 people, 434 households, and 295 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 1,387.9 people per square mile (535.7/km²). There were 534 housing units at an average density of 667.7 per square mile (257.7/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 71.98% White, 9.37% African American, 3.51% Native American, 0.18% Asian, 11.17% 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 3.78% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 18.92% of the population.
There were 434 households out of which 31.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.0% 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, 10.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.0% were non-families. 30.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 3.10.
In the city the population was spread out with 25.9% under the age of 18, 7.7% from 18 to 24, 24.1% from 25 to 44, 22.8% from 45 to 64, and 19.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 92.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.0 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $21,500, and the median income for a family was $27,222. Males had a median income of $23,281 versus $16,250 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 $13,823. About 20.7% of families and 26.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 38.6% of those under age 18 and 10.8% of those age 65 or over.
History
The Big PastureBig Pasture
The Big Pasture was of prairie land, in what is now southwestern Oklahoma. The land had been reserved for grazing use by the Kiowa, Comanche, and Apache tribes after their reserve was opened for settlement by a lottery conducted during June through August 1901...
, approximately 480000 acres (1,942.5 km²) bounded on the south by the Red River
Red River (Mississippi watershed)
The Red River, or sometimes the Red River of the South, is a major tributary of the Mississippi and Atchafalaya Rivers in the southern United States of America. The river gains its name from the red-bed country of its watershed. It is one of several rivers with that name...
and presently located in parts of Comanche, Cotton, and Tillman counties, was the last settled territory in Oklahoma. Native control of the land traces to the Quapaw
Quapaw
The Quapaw people are a tribe of Native Americans who historically resided on the west side of the Mississippi River in what is now the state of Arkansas.They are federally recognized as the Quapaw Tribe of Indians.-Government:...
, who ceded it to the United States in 1818. The Choctaw and Chickasaw accepted the area in the 1820s and 1830s but lost it as a result of the Reconstruction Treaty of 1866. By the terms of the Medicine Lodge Treaty of 1867 a reservation that included the Big Pasture was set-aside for the Kiowa
Kiowa
The Kiowa are a nation of American Indians and indigenous people of the Great Plains. They migrated from the northern plains to the southern plains in the late 17th century. In 1867, the Kiowa moved to a reservation in southwestern Oklahoma...
, Comanche
Comanche
The Comanche are a Native American ethnic group whose historic range consisted of present-day eastern New Mexico, southern Colorado, northeastern Arizona, southern Kansas, all of Oklahoma, and most of northwest Texas. Historically, the Comanches were hunter-gatherers, with a typical Plains Indian...
, and Apache
Apache
Apache is the collective term for several culturally related groups of Native Americans in the United States originally from the Southwest United States. These indigenous peoples of North America speak a Southern Athabaskan language, which is related linguistically to the languages of Athabaskan...
. The land became part of Oklahoma Territory
Oklahoma Territory
The Territory of Oklahoma was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 2, 1890, until November 16, 1907, when it was joined with the Indian Territory under a new constitution and admitted to the Union as the State of Oklahoma.-Organization:Oklahoma Territory's...
in December 1906.
Opening bids to quarter-sections of the Big Pasture to prospective homesteader began on December 3 and ended on December 15, 1909. There were over 100,000 bids for the available 1,830 quarter-sections. Bids varied from $5,800.00 to $7,376.00.
Prior to the opening of the area, the United States platted five official townships: Randlett, Ahpeatone, Isadore, Quanah and Eschiti. The only town remaining today is Randlett
Randlett, Oklahoma
Randlett is a town in Cotton County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 511 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Randlett is located at .According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , all of it land....
. Eschiti was the official town nearest the present site of Grandfield.
Problems began when the Wichita Falls and Northwestern Railroad
Wichita, Tillman and Jackson Railway
The Wichita, Tillman and Jackson Railway is a shortline railroad subsidiary of the Rio Grande Pacific Corporation that operates two disconnected lines in Oklahoma and Texas, mostly owned by the state of Oklahoma. The line for which it is named extends from Wichita Falls, Texas to Altus, Oklahoma,...
missed Eschiti by two miles and Kell City (named after the railroad’s promoter) sprang up along the railroad's route.
By 1907, Eschiti had an official United States Post Office and Kell City had the railroad. Citizens from both towns were in heated competition for new settlers and businesses moving to the area.
To try to settle the differences, Reverend Andrew J. Tant, a Baptist Minister and homesteader, went into partnership with Frank Kell and offered free lots to businesses if they would relocate to the Tant farm, which would eventually become Grandfield. Since the Tant farm was only about a mile from Kell City, people willingly moved. Free lots were also promised to all churches and schools. Observers at that time wrote they could look through their windows and see lines of houses being moved. According to Mrs. Lawrence Hooks, an early settler, she once cooked breakfast in Eschiti and dinner in Grandfield, without leaving her house.
A committee appealed to the United States Post Office to establish a post office. Assistant Postmaster General Charles P. Grandfield was helpful in granting the request. Consequently, the town was named in his honor. On January 16, 1909, Grandfield citizens voted, almost unanimously, for incorporation, and the post office opened January 21, 1909. In 1910 the population stood at 830.
The town's founders and early residents came from a variety of locations, backgrounds, cultures and religions; the States of Kentucky, Tennessee, Kansas, Missouri, Arkansas and Texas were well represented, and a substantial number of newly arrived European immigrants also made their homes in Grandfield.
External links
- Grandfield Chamber of Commerce Website
- http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http://geocities.com/grandfieldpolicedepartment/&date=2009-10-25+03:40:14 Grandfield Police Department
- Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture - Grandfield