Salina, Oklahoma

Infobox Settlement
official_name = Salina, Oklahoma
settlement_type = Town
nickname =
motto =

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mapsize = 250px
map_caption = Location of Salina, Oklahoma


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subdivision_type = Country
subdivision_name = United States
subdivision_type1 = State
subdivision_name1 = Oklahoma
subdivision_type2 = County
subdivision_name2 = Mayes

government_footnotes =
government_type =
leader_title =
leader_name =
leader_title1 =
leader_name1 =
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established_date =

unit_pref = Imperial
area_footnotes =

area_magnitude =
area_total_km2 = 2.9
area_land_km2 = 2.7
area_water_km2 = 0.2
area_total_sq_mi = 1.1
area_land_sq_mi = 1.0
area_water_sq_mi = 0.1

population_as_of = 2000
population_footnotes =
population_total = 1422
population_density_km2 = 531.0
population_density_sq_mi = 1375.2

timezone = Central (CST)
utc_offset = -6
timezone_DST = CDT
utc_offset_DST = -5
elevation_footnotes =
elevation_m = 195
elevation_ft = 640
latd = 36 |latm = 17 |lats = 33 |latNS = N
longd = 95 |longm = 9 |longs = 9 |longEW = W

postal_code_type = ZIP code
postal_code = 74365
area_code = 918
blank_name = FIPS code
blank_info = 40-64950GR|2
blank1_name = GNIS feature ID
blank1_info = 1097656GR|3
website =
footnotes =

Salina is a town in Mayes County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 1,422 at the 2000 census.

History

In 1541 the Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto and expedition passed through the area as did the 1721 expedition of Bernard De La Harpe who named many of the local streams.

Jean Pierre Chouteau established the first trading post in 1796 at the junction of the Grand/Neosho River and Saline Creek to trade with the Osage Indians. Remembered today as one of the first permanent "white" settlements in present day Oklahoma, at that time the area was part of the Province of Louisiana.

The United States took possession of the land that included present day Salina with the Louisiana Purchase in 1803.

By 1817 keelboats were landing goods there from Ft. Smith, Arkansas and the area was part of what was known as "Indian Territory". That year son Auguste Pierre Chouteau and partner Joseph Revoir received an exclusive license to trade with the Osage. However in 1802 the Spanish government of the time took the monopoly away. In response, Chouteau convinced the Osage tribe under the leadership of Cashesgra, or "Big Trek" to migrate into Indian Territory near the trading post, ensuring survival of the business.

In 1820 Epaphras Chapman was authorized by the War Department to establish the Union Mission, near the mouth of Chouteau Creek to educate and convert the Osage Indians. The mission had the first printing press in present day Oklahoma. The government then began to move Native American tribes to the area.

The Indians boiled salt from the water rising from limestone rock about a mile south of the trading post. [U. S. House Report No. 87, pp. 28, 29, 20th Congress, second session: Foreman, ibid., 70] They included one hot water geyser that shot boiling water 8 to 10 feet into the air. Chouteau obtained the springs in a treaty in 1825 then sold them to Sam Houston in 1830. A Cherokee, Captain John Rogers began making salt from the springs and named them Grand Saline. He built his home nearby. Washington Irving visited him there October 6, 1832 accompanied by Sam Houston [Trent, William P., and George S. Hellman: The Journals of Washington Irving, III, 133] . In 1838 the government began moving Cherokee to the area as part of the Indian Removal Act.By 1839 Rogers was operating 115 kettles. He lost the salt works in 1844 to the Cherokee Nation under a new law. The Cherokee then leased it to Lewis Ross (brother of Chief John Ross) who built a nice home there and operated the salt business using slave labor. Ross drilled a deep well for salt water and accidentally hit the first vein of oil in Oklahoma in 1859. It flowed at the rate of 10 barrels a day for a year. He operated two stores in Salina. In 1862 Union soldiers came down the Grand River to Salina unopposed and set all slaves free. They ransacked the Ross home, had the slaves load everything on wagons and hauled it across the border to Kansas [ [http://digital.libraries.ou.edu/whc/pioneer/papers/6652%20Lonian.pdf University of Oklahoma Digital Collections] ] . The Cherokee Nation in 1872 purchased the home for $26,000 for the Cherokee Orphan Asylum. It was destroyed by fire in 1899.

Cherokee Chief Samuel Houston Mayes established a ferry and mercantile business on the Grand River in 1906. During his term as Chief the Dawes Commission of 1902/1906 divided the Cherokee lands into allotments of approximately 110 acres (40 acres for Freedmen)

The establishment of the Old Chouteau Trading Post at Salina was commemorated on October 10, 11, 1938 and became a local annual celebration. Among those speaking at the inaugural were Governor Elect Leon C. Phillips, Dr. M. L. Wardell of the University of Oklahoma, Mr. Thomas J. Harrison of Pryor, and Yvonne Chouteau descendant of Jean Pierre Chouteau.

In June 1952, county attorney Jack Burris was assassinated at his home near Salina in one of the most famous unsolved murders in Oklahoma history.

Geography

Salina is located at coor dms|36|17|33|N|95|9|9|W|city (36.292576, -95.152608)GR|1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 1.1 square miles (2.9 km²), of which, 1.0 square miles (2.7 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.2 km²) of it (8.04%) is water.

Demographics

As of the censusGR|2 of 2000, there were 1,422 people, 562 households, and 351 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,375.2 people per square mile (533.0/km²). There were 668 housing units at an average density of 646.0/sq mi (250.4/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 59.56% White, 0.14% African American, 34.74% Native American, 0.07% Asian, 0.28% from other races, and 5.20% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.04% of the population.

There were 562 households out of which 29.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.2% were married couples living together, 12.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.4% were non-families. 33.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.40 and the average family size was 3.10.

In the town the population was spread out with 25.6% under the age of 18, 9.4% from 18 to 24, 24.9% from 25 to 44, 23.1% from 45 to 64, and 16.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 93.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.6 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $23,519, and the median income for a family was $31,000. Males had a median income of $26,552 versus $17,292 for females. The per capita income for the town was $11,928. About 16.2% of families and 20.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 24.7% of those under age 18 and 27.5% of those age 65 or over.

References

External links