Green Country (Oklahoma)

Possible definitions of Green Country. The borders as officially defined by the Oklahoma Department of Transportation denoted by shades of darker reds; The counties of the Tulsa Metropolitan Area denoted in darkest red; possible inclusion of Southeastern Oklahoma in pink.

Located in northeast Oklahoma, Green Country is a heavily-wooded area of the state with many rolling hills and mountains and much foliage, as opposed to western and central Oklahoma, which have geography similar to the rest of the Great Plains region of the United States. Average precipitation totals in Green Country are generally above 40 inches per year, making it considerably wetter and greener than most of the state. The area is one of the most populous regions of Oklahoma, and contains Tulsa, the state's second-largest city.

Its name was devised in the 1960s by the Oklahoma Department of Tourism and Recreation as one of six travel destination regions within the state, but is the most historically significant of all of them, as the name's usage can be traced to the early part of the 20th century.^[1]

Alternate definitions

The term "Green Country" may be used unofficially to describe all of eastern Oklahoma, though southeastern Oklahoma has its own official regional designation, Kiamichi Country. An alternate usage of the term can include solely the immediate vicinity of Green Country's principal city, Tulsa; the Tulsa Metropolitan Area or the city of Tulsa proper is often referred to as "Green Country" in its own right.^{[citation needed]} In this case, the terms "Tulsa Metropolitan Area" and "Green County" are used interchangeably.

Geography

Near Natural Falls State Park

The official borders of "Green Country," according to the Oklahoma Department of Transportation, include all of northeastern Oklahoma, reaching in the northwest to include Osage County, Okfuskee County in the southwest, the Canadian River in the south, and the Kansas, Missouri and Arkansas state lines in the north, northeast, and east.

The region is anchored by the Tulsa Metropolitan Area, which includes the cities of Tulsa, Broken Arrow, Jenks, Owasso, and Bixby, among others. Muskogee, Bartlesville, Vinita, and Tahlequah are other cities.

Northeastern Oklahoma has the most diversified agricultural economy in the state,^{[citation needed]} as well as the state's second largest city, Tulsa. In addition to the area's abundance of foliage and rolling hills, it has more lakes than any other geographical area of Oklahoma, as well as more than half of the state's registered state parks.^[2] Oklahoma is one of only four states with more than 10 ecoregions, but six of its 11 ecoregions are located in northeastern Oklahoma.^[2]

The heavily-wooded Ozark Mountains and their foothills dominate most of northeast Oklahoma from the immediate Tulsa vicinity south and eastward towards the Arkansas state line, containing both evergreen pine and deciduous forests. In its western counties, the far eastern extent of the Great Plains transition to woodlands through the Cross Timbers region. This area includes most of Oklahoma's portion of the Flint Hills, some of which is protected by the Tallgrass Prairie Preserve near Pawhuska, one of the last remnants of tallgrass prairie in the United States. Prairie terrain is most apparent in a strip of Green Country's northern section, which borders Kansas, running roughly from Bartlesville to Miami, where the landscape can most accurately be described as a mix of true prairie and forest. A small portion of the Ouachita Mountains extend into the southern areas of northeast Oklahoma, though the Ozark highlands are the primary range in the area.

Infrastructure

The Arkansas River, Green Country's largest river, as it runs through Tulsa.

The Tulsa International Airport is the primary commercial flight operation in Green Country, delivering flights to major cities in the United States. Also in the area, the Tulsa Port of Catoosa and Port of Muskogee are Oklahoma's only seaports, connecting the state directly with international trade routes. From either of these two ports, goods may be transported via the Arkansas River's connection to the Mississippi River.

The area's highway system is dominated by turnpikes. Toll roads account for the primary highways in and out of the city of Tulsa in almost every direction. The Will Rogers Turnpike serves the city to the northeast, the Turner Turnpike to the southwest, the Cimarron Turnpike to the west, The Muskogee Turnpike to the southeast, and the Cherokee Turnpike to the east.

Interstate 44 is the primary thoroughfare, and runs diagonally through Green Country, exiting on the southwest and northeast corners. All portions of the road through northeastern Oklahoma exists as a toll road, except for in the city of Tulsa. Interstate 40 straddles the southernmost border of Green Country, while other important highways include the north-south Highway 75 (not a turnpike), The Muskogee Turnpike, the north-south Highway 69, Highway 169, and the east-west Highway 412. In addition, Historic U.S. Route 66 is an active road the entire way (with breaks) between the Kansas line and Stroud, the southwestern most town in the region.

Important cities and towns

Tulsa Owasso Broken Arrow Bartlesville Jenks Bixby

Claremore Okmulgee Muskogee Miami Tahlequah Vinita

Oologah Sapulpa Sand Springs Stilwell Nowata Pawhuska

See also

• Tulsa Metropolitan Area
• Eastern Oklahoma

External links

• Green Country Marketing Association
• Green Country North Eastern Oklahoma Business and Events Showcase - Features 48,000 Businesses and Hundreds of Local Events

References

1. ^ Arnett, David (2003-09-15). "Vision of the Future Now, Part 3". Tulsa Today. http://www.tulsatoday.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=421&Itemid=2. Retrieved 2007-04-21. 
2. ^ ^{a b} [1] [Oklahoma Department of Tourism]