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Coal County
Coal County
County
	Park in Coalgate
	Location within the U.S. state of Oklahoma
	Oklahoma's location within the U.S.
	Coordinates: 34°36′N 96°18′W / 34.6°N 96.3°W
Country	United States
State	Oklahoma
Founded	1907
Seat	Coalgate
Largest city	Coalgate
Area
• Total	521 sq mi (1,350 km2)
• Land	517 sq mi (1,340 km2)
• Water	4.7 sq mi (12 km2) 0.9%
Population (2020)
• Total	5,266
• Density	10/sq mi (3.9/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	2nd

Coal County is a county located in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. As of the 2020 census, the population was 5,266.^[1] Its county seat is Coalgate.^[2]

History

Coal County was formed at statehood from the former Shappaway County (later renamed Atoka County) of the Pushmataha District of the Choctaw Nation in Indian Territory. A 3.5 miles (5.6 km) strip of Coal County was taken from the Pontotoc District of the Chickasaw Nation. Initially, the Oklahoma legislature named Lehigh as the county seat, but a special election held in 1908 resulted in the citizens choosing Coalgate as the county seat. Lehigh tried to sue because more people voted than were registered, but no court would hear the case.^[3]

Mining became a mainstay of the county's economy during the 1870s. The first coal mine opened on Chief Allen Wright's land. The industry activity peaked between 1910 and 1916 but declined sharply after World War I. Many of the mines closed by 1921, due to the refusal of mining companies of the area to unionize. Some mines reopened during World War II, but these closed by 1958, because of the rising cost of refining sulfur out of the coal mined.^[3]

Agriculture replaced mining as the main economic activity of the county. Even this business encountered severe difficulty in 1921–1923 when a boll weevil infestation wiped out the cotton crop. All five banks in the county failed as a result.^[4]

Geography

Coal County is in southeastern Oklahoma, in a 10-county area designated for tourism purposes by the Oklahoma Department of Tourism and Recreation as Choctaw Country.^[5] According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 521 square miles (1,350 km²), of which 517 square miles (1,340 km²) is land and 4.7 square miles (12 km²) (0.9%) is water.^[6] It is the fifth-smallest county in Oklahoma by area. The eastern part of the county lies in the Ouachita Mountains, while the western part has open prairie and lies in the Sandstone Hills physiographic region. The county is drained by the Clear Boggy and Muddy Boggy creeks.^[3]

Major highways

Adjacent counties

Hughes County (north)
Pittsburg County (northeast)
Atoka County (southeast)
Johnston County (southwest)
Pontotoc County (west)

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.	%±
1910	15,817	—
1920	18,406	16.4%
1930	11,521	−37.4%
1940	12,811	11.2%
1950	8,056	−37.1%
1960	5,546	−31.2%
1970	5,525	−0.4%
1980	6,041	9.3%
1990	5,780	−4.3%
2000	6,031	4.3%
2010	5,925	−1.8%
2020	5,266	−11.1%
U.S. Decennial Census^[7] 1790-1960^[8] 1900-1990^[9] 1990-2000^[10] 2010^[11]

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 5,295 people, 2,350 households, and 1,604 families residing in the county.^[12] There were 2,810 housing units.^[12] The racial makeup of the county was 74.3% White, 0.5% Black or African American, 16.7% Native American, 0.2% Asian, 0.5% from other races, and 7.8% from two or more races.^[12] 2.6% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.^[12]

There were 2,350 households, out of which 27.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.8% were married couples living together, 12.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.7% were non-families.^[12] 28.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.^[12] The average household size was 2.50 and the average family size was 3.06.^[12]

In the county, the population was spread out, with 25.5% under the age of 18, 7.2% from 18 to 24, 21.7% from 25 to 44, 27.8% from 45 to 64, and 17.8% who were 65 years of age or older.^[13] The median age was 41.0 years.^[13] For every 100 females there were 97.7 males.^[13] For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.5 males.^[13]

According to the 2013 American Community Survey, the median income for a household in the county was $34,867, and the median income for a family was $44,888.^[14] Male full-time, year round workers had a median income of $36,442 compared to $26,450 for female full-time, year round workers.^[14] The per capita income for the county was $19,752.^[14] About 15.8% of families and 21.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 35.9% of those under age 18 and 15.7% of those age 65 or over.^[14]

According to the 2000 census, 94.6% spoke English, 3.0% Spanish, 1.1% German and 1.1% Choctaw as their first language.

Politics

Coal County is in many respects typical of Oklahoma politics. Once a predominantly Democratic county, its elections have become dominated by the Republican Party in recent years, although even today, Republicans only have a plurality in party registration. In 1972, Richard Nixon became the first Republican to ever carry the county in a presidential election,^[15] and was the only one to do so until the 2000 election. Coal County extremely narrowly supported two Democrats amidst national Republican landslides: James M. Cox by 24 votes in 1920 and Walter Mondale by 25 votes in 1984. The county swung 41 points Republican in the 2008 presidential election, the largest swing of any county in the country.^[16]

Voter Registration and Party Enrollment as of November 30, 2024^[17]
Party		Number of Voters	Percentage
	Democratic	1,552	38.87%
	Republican	1,909	47.81%
	Libertarian	21	0.53%
	Others	511	12.80%
Total		3,993	100.00%

United States presidential election results for Coal County, Oklahoma^[18]
Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party(ies)
Year	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2024	2,155	84.91%	345	13.59%	38	1.50%
2020	2,091	82.84%	374	14.82%	59	2.34%
2016	1,898	79.12%	411	17.13%	90	3.75%
2012	1,710	72.49%	649	27.51%	0	0.00%
2008	1,672	73.59%	600	26.41%	0	0.00%
2004	1,396	53.71%	1,203	46.29%	0	0.00%
2000	1,196	50.64%	1,148	48.60%	18	0.76%
1996	734	32.25%	1,205	52.94%	337	14.81%
1992	714	25.50%	1,448	51.71%	638	22.79%
1988	891	39.25%	1,365	60.13%	14	0.62%
1984	1,259	49.10%	1,284	50.08%	21	0.82%
1980	926	38.09%	1,442	59.32%	63	2.59%
1976	769	29.97%	1,774	69.13%	23	0.90%
1972	1,461	67.05%	680	31.21%	38	1.74%
1968	669	29.64%	963	42.67%	625	27.69%
1964	721	30.89%	1,613	69.11%	0	0.00%
1960	1,019	44.54%	1,269	55.46%	0	0.00%
1956	920	36.57%	1,596	63.43%	0	0.00%
1952	1,106	38.66%	1,755	61.34%	0	0.00%
1948	464	17.93%	2,124	82.07%	0	0.00%
1944	760	27.90%	1,959	71.92%	5	0.18%
1940	1,148	32.48%	2,377	67.24%	10	0.28%
1936	603	19.08%	2,550	80.70%	7	0.22%
1932	300	9.72%	2,788	90.28%	0	0.00%
1928	1,283	42.82%	1,681	56.11%	32	1.07%
1924	800	25.17%	1,772	55.74%	607	19.09%
1920	1,744	43.63%	1,768	44.23%	485	12.13%
1916	824	29.12%	1,418	50.11%	588	20.78%
1912	571	25.33%	1,109	49.20%	574	25.47%
1908	722	33.55%	906	42.10%	524	24.35%

Communities

Cities

Coalgate (county seat)
Centrahoma
Lehigh
Tupelo

Towns

Census-designated place

Clarita

Other unincorporated communities

NRHP sites

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

Benjamin Franklin Smallwood House, Lehigh
Coalgate School Gymnasium-Auditorium, Coalgate
Keel Creek Bridge, Coalgate
Merchants National Bank Building, Lehigh
United States Post Office Coalgate, Coalgate

References

^ "Coal County, Oklahoma". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
^ ^a ^b ^c Milligan, James C. "Coal County," Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture, 2009. Accessed March 28, 2015.
^ "Focus on Coal County." Archived October 12, 2010, at the Wayback Machine Oklahoma Ad Valorem Forum. Oklahoma Tax Commission. March 2010. Retrieved February 21, 2010.
^ "Counties & Regions". Oklahoma Tourism and Recreation Department (Travel Promotion Division). Retrieved February 5, 2019.
^ "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Retrieved February 19, 2015.
^ "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved February 19, 2015.
^ "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Archived from the original on August 11, 2012. Retrieved February 19, 2015.
^ Forstall, Richard L., ed. (March 27, 1995). "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved February 19, 2015.
^ "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 19, 2015.
^ "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on June 6, 2011. Retrieved November 8, 2013.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g United States Census Bureau. "DP-1 Profile of General Population and Housing Characteristics: 2010 - 2010 Demographic Profile Data - Coal County, Oklahoma," Archived February 13, 2020, at archive.today American Fact Finder, Accessed July 5, 2015.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d United States Census Bureau. "QT-P1 Age Groups and Sex: 2010 2010 Census Summary File 1 - Coal County, Oklahoma," Archived February 13, 2020, at archive.today American Fact Finder, Accessed July 5, 2015.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d United States Census Bureau. "DP03 Selected Economic Characteristics: 2009-2013 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates - Coal County, Oklahoma," Archived February 13, 2020, at archive.today American Fact Finder, Accessed July 5, 2015.
^ Mendedez, Albert J.; The Geography of Presidential Elections in the United States, 1868-2004; pp. 281-283 ISBN 0786422173
^ Maxwell, Brandt. "Bonus List". www.geographylists.com. Retrieved March 28, 2018.
^ "Voter Registration Totals". OK Elections Interactive Statistics Beta. May 31, 2023. Retrieved June 25, 2023.
^ Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved March 28, 2018.