Blackwell, Oklahoma
City
Looking east along West Doolin Avenue
Looking east along West Doolin Avenue
Location of Blackwell in Oklahoma.
Location of Blackwell in Oklahoma.
Coordinates: 36°48′05″N 97°18′03″W / 36.80139°N 97.30083°W / 36.80139; -97.30083
CountryUnited States
StateOklahoma
CountyKay
Government
 • MayorGlenn Cox
Area
[1]
 • Total5.58 sq mi (14.46 km2)
 • Land5.58 sq mi (14.46 km2)
 • Water0.00 sq mi (0.00 km2)
Elevation
[2]
1,024 ft (312 m)
Population
 (2020)
 • Total6,085
 • Density1,090.11/sq mi (420.89/km2)
Time zoneUTC-6 (Central (CST))
 • Summer (DST)UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP code
74631
Area code580
FIPS code40-06600 [3]
GNIS feature ID2409858[2]
WebsiteCity Website

Blackwell is a city in Kay County, Oklahoma, United States, located at the intersection of U.S. Highway 177 and State Highway 11 along Interstate 35 (exit #222). The population was 7,092 at the 2010 census and 6,085 in the 2020 Census.[4] Blackwell was established following the September 16, 1893 Cherokee Outlet land run by A. J. Blackwell.[5] Blackwell has an agricultural and fossil fuel based economy.

History

Founding

Boomer camp at Arkansas City, Kansas waiting for Land Run of 1893

Blackwell came into existence during the Cherokee Outlet Opening on September 16, 1893, in the run known as the Cherokee Strip Land Run. The town is named for A. J. Blackwell, who was the dominant force in its founding. Andrew Blackwell had settled in the area in 1882,[6] having married the former Rosa Vaught who was of Cherokee descent, he was eligible to found the city. Blackwell served as Justice of the Peace and Mayor of Blackwell.[6]

Blackwell's first school opened in September 1893 in a small, frame building with fifty-two students in attendance. A gradual enrollment increase created a need for ten teachers by 1899.[7]

A post office was established on December 1, 1893. Due to a struggle for regional prominence between Blackwell and nearby Parker, the post office was named Parker from April 2, 1894, to February 4, 1895. After that, the name reverted to Blackwell.[7]

Prior to the Civil Rights Movement Blackwell had a reputation as a sundown town,[8][9][10] having kept out African Americans through violent expulsion and the display of a sign warning them to leave town by sunset. Blackwell's expulsion of its African-American residents around 1893[11] is described in the 1967 book From Slavery to Freedom by John Hope Franklin.

Zinc smelter

Blackwell Zinc Smelter (Photograph used for a story in the Daily Oklahoman newspaper, September 23, 1958. Caption: 'The Blackwell Zinc Co. smelter employs upward of 1,000 persons in Blackwell and contributes an annual industrial payroll to the city estimated at $4 millions.')

The Blackwell Zinc Company smelter first began operations in 1917.[5] In 1974, the 80-acre[12] Blackwell Zinc Smelter facility ceased operations.[13] At the time, it was the city's largest employer, employing 800 people in 1972, and over 1,000 at its peak.[5] It also was one of the largest zinc smelter facilities in the United States.[14] After its closure the land was donated to the Blackwell Industrial Authority (BIA).[15] Soil from the land was repurposed throughout the city, leading to widespread contamination of air and water, including the Chikaskia River.[12] One of the plant's two Corliss stationary steam engines was moved to Pawnee Oklahoma and preserved; this engine is run for viewing by the public on the first weekend of May.

The Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality has been overseeing remediation of contamination at the industrial park, groundwater, and soil throughout parts of the city since 1992.[16] Phelps Dodge Corporation, a subsidiary of Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc, has owned the site since 1999.[17] On October 15, 2009, the City of Blackwell filed suit against Freeport-McMoRan calling the contamination a nuisance, and alleging that 58 million pounds of toxic waste remained in the city, causing illness within its 7,200 residents.[12][18] Following several changes of venue between Federal court and Kay County courts, the City of Blackwell and Freeport settled for 54-million dollars on February 4, 2010.[19][20]

1955 F5 tornado

Blackwell was a victim of the 1955 Great Plains tornado outbreak, a deadly tornado outbreak that struck the southern and central U.S Great Plains States on May 25–26, 1955. It produced at least 46 tornadoes across seven states including two F5 tornadoes in Blackwell, Oklahoma, and Udall, Kansas. The outbreak killed 102 from three tornadoes while injuring hundreds more. Unusual electromagnetic activity was observed, including St. Elmo's fire.[21]

The Blackwell tornado formed in Noble County at around 9:00 pm CDT before crossing through the eastern portions of the Kay County town of Blackwell as an F5 wedge tornado. Then about 400 yd (0.23 mi) wide (Grazulis 1991), It claimed the lives of 20 people in Blackwell and injured over 200 before crossing into and dissipating over Cowley County, Kansas. Along with destroying nearly 200 homes,[22] the tornado demolished two of the town's main employers, the Acme Foundry and the Hazel Atlas Glass plant. Four hundred homes were destroyed or swept away, and 500 other homes were damaged.[22] Sixty businesses were also destroyed and the local hospital sustained major damage. Most of the western half of the town was spared the worst of the damage.[22]

To commemorate the 1955 tornado, the Top of Oklahoma Historical Society Museum housed in the 1912 Electric Park Pavilion in Blackwell put on a special exhibition "F5 in 1955" which included a ‘tornado room’ which displayed artifacts, information, and photographs of the event. Over a year in the making, the exhibit occupied an entire room and was made possible with financial support from the city of Blackwell. “Working with the wonderful people at the Top of Oklahoma Museum and the Udall Historical Society was the best part of the creation of the “F5 in 1955” exhibit," said Dianne Braden, tornado survivor. "To commemorate the event and the loss of 107 people was important to all of us. There’s something for every age in the exhibit.”[23][24]

Geography

Blackwell is located along the Chikaskia River and to the east of Interstate 35. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 5.5 square miles (14 km2), of which, 5.4 square miles (14 km2) is land and 0.18% is water.

Climate

In May 1906, an L5 meteorite fell, landing in Blackwell, Oklahoma. On May 25, 1955, a deadly F5 tornado, part of the 1955 Great Plains tornado outbreak, struck Blackwell at approximately 9:30 pm and cut a swath of destruction through the northeastern portion of the city, roughly centered in the neighborhoods surrounding Riverside Park. 20 residents died and over 250 were injured. The tornado outbreak included another F5 tornado that struck Udall, Kansas killing 80 people and injuring over 270.[25] The outbreak spawned 19 tornadoes across Oklahoma, Texas and Kansas alone.[26][27]

Climate data for Blackwell, Oklahoma (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1954–2019)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °F (°C) 79
(26)		 92
(33)		 91
(33)		 98
(37)		 104
(40)		 109
(43)		 114
(46)		 114
(46)		 108
(42)		 98
(37)		 90
(32)		 80
(27)		 114
(46)
Mean daily maximum °F (°C) 46.9
(8.3)		 51.8
(11.0)		 61.3
(16.3)		 70.7
(21.5)		 79.2
(26.2)		 88.6
(31.4)		 93.8
(34.3)		 92.7
(33.7)		 84.8
(29.3)		 73.2
(22.9)		 60.0
(15.6)		 48.7
(9.3)		 71.0
(21.7)
Daily mean °F (°C) 34.6
(1.4)		 38.7
(3.7)		 47.8
(8.8)		 57.2
(14.0)		 67.1
(19.5)		 76.8
(24.9)		 81.5
(27.5)		 80.2
(26.8)		 72.2
(22.3)		 59.9
(15.5)		 47.2
(8.4)		 37.1
(2.8)		 58.4
(14.7)
Mean daily minimum °F (°C) 22.2
(−5.4)		 25.6
(−3.6)		 34.3
(1.3)		 43.6
(6.4)		 54.9
(12.7)		 64.9
(18.3)		 69.3
(20.7)		 67.7
(19.8)		 59.6
(15.3)		 46.6
(8.1)		 34.4
(1.3)		 25.5
(−3.6)		 45.7
(7.6)
Record low °F (°C) −10
(−23)		 −20
(−29)		 0
(−18)		 19
(−7)		 33
(1)		 46
(8)		 49
(9)		 46
(8)		 29
(−2)		 15
(−9)		 6
(−14)		 −12
(−24)		 −20
(−29)
Average precipitation inches (mm) 1.25
(32)		 1.41
(36)		 2.83
(72)		 3.92
(100)		 5.39
(137)		 5.14
(131)		 4.38
(111)		 4.12
(105)		 3.17
(81)		 3.61
(92)		 1.92
(49)		 1.68
(43)		 38.82
(986)
Average snowfall inches (cm) 2.0
(5.1)		 1.7
(4.3)		 1.4
(3.6)		 0.1
(0.25)		 0.0
(0.0)		 0.0
(0.0)		 0.0
(0.0)		 0.0
(0.0)		 0.0
(0.0)		 0.0
(0.0)		 0.1
(0.25)		 2.6
(6.6)		 7.9
(20)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) 4.5 5.2 6.9 7.8 9.3 9.1 7.7 7.8 6.4 6.5 5.2 5.2 81.6
Average snowy days (≥ 0.1 in) 1.2 0.9 0.5 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.1 1.1 3.8
Source: NOAA[28][29]

Demographics

Historical population
CensusPop.Note%±
19002,283—
19103,26643.1%
19207,174119.7%
19309,52132.7%
19408,537−10.3%
19509,1997.8%
19609,5884.2%
19708,645−9.8%
19808,400−2.8%
19907,538−10.3%
20007,6681.7%
20107,092−7.5%
20206,085−14.2%
U.S. Decennial Census, 2020[4]

As of the census[3] of 2000, there were 7,668 people, 3,064 households, and 2,086 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,407.3 inhabitants per square mile (543.4/km2). There were 3,527 housing units at an average density of 647.3 per square mile (249.9/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 87.26% White, 4.13% Native American, 0.47% Asian, 0.13% African American, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 3.17% from other races, and 4.83% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 5.91% of the population.

There were 3,064 households, out of which 32.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.1% were married couples living together, 9.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.9% were non-families. 28.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.46 and the average family size was 3.01.

In the city, the population was spread out, with 27.0% under the age of 18, 9.0% from 18 to 24, 23.9% from 25 to 44, 21.5% from 45 to 64, and 18.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.7 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $25,835, and the median income for a family was $31,540. Males had a median income of $25,202 versus $16,704 for females. The per capita income for the city was $13,558. About 13.1% of families and 17.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 22.4% of those under age 18 and 10.4% of those age 65 or over.

Arts and culture

The Chikaskia River at Blackwell.
The Blackwell Public Library was constructed in 1921.

Parks, museums, and cultural events

The Top of Oklahoma Historical Society Museum is located in the Electric Park Pavilion and displays artifacts from the land run, antiques, and local history.[30][31] Blackwell hosts the Kay County Free Fair in September. Blackwell is served by 5 major parks including Riverside, Bagby, Rogers, Memorial, and Legion parks. Blackwell has a public pool, Blackwell Memorial Pool, which has one of the state's 12 Statue of Liberty replicas installed by the Boy Scouts of America in 1951.

The Blackwell Public Library offers a variety of community resources as well as events, classes, and workshops.

The 9-hole "Blackwell" course at the Blackwell Municipal Golf Course facility opened in 1926. It features 3,143 yards of golf from the longest tees for a par of 36. The course rating is 70.2 and it has a slope rating of 120 on Bermuda grass.[32]

Blackwell currently hosts the State of Oklahoma's first Barn Quilt Geo-Trail which consists of 60 uniquely designed barn quilts representing all 50 states of the U.S. as well as several uniquely created designs[33]

Historically, Blackwell also held the Tulips of Bloom Festival which celebrated springtime in Oklahoma.

Blackwell is home to eight locations on the National Register of Historic Places[34] including the brick WPA Armory, the Rivoli Theatre, and the Larkin Hotel where aviator Amelia Earheart stayed just six months prior to her disappearance.[35]

Sports

In 2023, The Pecos League announced that a new baseball team will be put in Blackwell, The Blackwell Fly Catchers.

Government

Blackwell is a Home Rule Charter City, which is governed by Council-City Manager form of government. The current City Manager is Jerry Wieland.[36] The City Council consists of Robert Husted, Chad Shepherd, Jon Webb and Richard Braden, with Mayor's position currently held by T.J. Greenfield. The Chief of Police is Dewayne Wood and the Fire Chief is Cordell Hanebrink.

Education

The Blackwell School District consists of Blackwell Elementary, Blackwell Middle School, and Blackwell High School. As recently as 2017 Huston, Northside, Parkside, and Washington Elementary Schools were used for Pre-K through 5th grade classes. The former school sites are all listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Blackwell's school mascot is the Maroon Spirit, which was memorialized in the Maroon Park on Main Street with a mural painted by the Blackwell High School art class depicting the Maroon Spirit with the names of the seniors given the title of "Maroon Spirit" and "Miss BHS" dating back to the early 1900s. Historically, Oklahoma Baptist College served the city's higher education needs between 1901 and 1913.[5]

Media

Blackwell's local paper is the Blackwell Journal-Tribune. A local radio station KOKB 1580 AM, used to broadcast local sports as well as Northern Oklahoma College's KAYE and the Ponca City-based KLOR.

Infrastructure

Blackwell has a full-service city government, that includes, electricity, water, sewage, recreation, police and fire services. The police department has 17 full-time officers, a jail and operates 24 hours per day. The Blackwell Fire Department is a full-time fire department, staffed with 20 paid firefighters/EMT/Paramedics and also provides ambulance service to Blackwell and the surrounding communities.

Transportation

Blackwell is served by Interstate 35, US Route 177, and Oklahoma State Highway 11.[37]

Blackwell is home to the Blackwell-Tonkawa Municipal Airport (ICAO: KBKN, FAA LID: BKN, formerly 4O3) with neighboring Tonkawa, Oklahoma.

Historically, Blackwell had multiple rail lines, including the Blackwell and Southern Railway built south from Braman through town to Tonkawa, and the Hutchinson and Southern Railway built east from Medford through town to Ponca City, both lines being acquired by the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway by 1900.[38][39][40] The town also was linked by the Blackwell, Enid and Southwestern Railway, later acquired by what became the St. Louis-San Francisco Railway, which was built southwest from town to Enid and beyond.[41][42] Rail abandonments have since occurred, but Blackwell continues to have freight rail service through the Blackwell Northern Gateway Railroad.[43][44]

Healthcare

Blackwell and the surrounding communities are served by Stillwater Medical Center's Blackwell branch, a 53-bed facility with 24-hour emergency services and Heli-Pad.

Notable people

See also

References

  1. ↑ "ArcGIS REST Services Directory". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved September 20, 2022.
  2. 1 2 U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Blackwell, Oklahoma
  3. 1 2 "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
  4. 1 2 "Quick Facts". U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved November 10, 2020.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Wilson, Linda D.Blackwell, Oklahoma Oklahoma Historical Society
  6. 1 2 "Blackwell, Andrew Jackson," Herringshaw's Encyclopedia of American Biography of the Nineteenth Century. Chicago, IL, USA: American Publishers Association, p 117, 1902.
  7. 1 2 Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History & Culture Archived December 16, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
  8. ↑ "Sundown Towns by James W. Loewen". Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved July 24, 2014.
  9. ↑ Loewen, James W. Sundown Towns: A Hidden Dimension of American Racism. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2005.'
  10. ↑ "Race War Threatened". Marietta Daily Leader. Marietta, Ohio. February 12, 1898. p. 1 – via Chronicling America. Blackwell, a town 30 miles north of here not located on railroad, is on the verge of a race war. The people of Blackwell have never allowed a Negro to live in the town. Some days ago Col. Blackwell, founder of the town, procured a colony of Negroes to settle in Blackwell and gave each family a residence lot. The Negro families have commenced arriving at Blackwell and the whites declare they shall not live there, and the Negroes say they will stay in the town in spite of the whites. Trouble is expected.
  11. ↑ Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History & Culture Archived 2011-08-05 at the Wayback Machine
  12. 1 2 3 Welch, Judy, "Oklahoma town suing over contamination Archived 2008-05-30 at the Wayback Machine", News Cow, April 17, 2008
  13. ↑ Blackwell Zinc Co. Operational History Report, United States Environmental Protection Agency
  14. ↑ "City of Blackwell, Oklahoma Receives Major Settlement in Environmental Case". Archived from the original on July 8, 2011. Retrieved September 17, 2010.
  15. ↑ "Warranty Deed" December 30, 1974
  16. ↑ Fact Sheet: Blackwell Zinc Smelter Site In Blackwell Oklahoma Archived September 23, 2010, at the Wayback Machine, Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality, June 2007
  17. ↑ "Lawsuit claims Blackwell polluted from old zinc smelter" April 14, 2008
  18. ↑ CJ200915 City of Blackwell vs. Freeport
  19. ↑ Rowen, Sharon, "Public Hearing Held On Blackwell Lawsuit Archived July 19, 2011, at the Wayback Machine", The Ponca City News, February 19, 2010
  20. ↑ Settlement Agreement
  21. ↑ https://www.weather.gov/oun/events-19550525
  22. 1 2 3 Grazulis, Thomas P (July 1993). Significant Tornadoes 1680-1991. St. Johnsbury, VT: The Tornado Project of Environmental Films. ISBN 1-879362-03-1.
  23. ↑ Ponca City News. "Exhibit opens on 1955 tornado in Blackwell" August 8, 2020.
  24. ↑ Oklahoma Municipal League. "City of Blackwell invests in its history by restoring the Top of Oklahoma Historical Society Museum" February 18, 2020."
  25. ↑ "NWS Norman, Oklahoma - The Blackwell Tornado of 25 May 1955". Archived from the original on October 8, 2006.
  26. ↑ Oklahoma Tornado Table
  27. ↑ KWTV 9 1956 TV Special about Blackwell OK tornado Archived July 4, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
  28. ↑ "NOWData - NOAA Online Weather Data". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved December 15, 2023.
  29. ↑ "Summary of Monthly Normals 1991-2020". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved December 15, 2023.
  30. ↑ "Top of Oklahoma Historical Society Museum".
  31. ↑ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on June 25, 2010. Retrieved December 24, 2010.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  32. ↑ "Blackwell Municipal Golf Course, Blackwell, OK". GolfLink. Retrieved January 21, 2021.
  33. ↑ "Top of Oklahoma Barn Quilt Trail". TravelOK.com - Oklahoma's Official Travel & Tourism Site. Retrieved May 14, 2020.
  34. ↑ "Oklahoma National Register Properties". Archived from the original on June 20, 2010. Retrieved December 22, 2010.
  35. ↑ "Amelia Earhart has a Police Record in Oklahoma! | Rotary Club of Oklahoma City". Retrieved May 14, 2020.
  36. ↑ "Home - City of Blackwell, Oklahoma". Cityofblackwell.com. Retrieved April 19, 2022.
  37. ↑ "Blackwell, Oklahoma". Google Maps. Retrieved March 24, 2023.
  38. ↑ "Valuation Docket No. 625, Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway Company et al, decided May 3, 1927, pp. 127, 237, 253 & 471". 1927. Retrieved March 24, 2023.
  39. ↑ "Tonkawa". Oklahoma Historical Society. Retrieved March 24, 2023.
  40. ↑ "The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway Company". Railroads of Oklahoma, June 6, 1870-April 1, 1978, pp. 29-38 (accessed on Oklahoma Digital Prairie). Retrieved March 24, 2023.
  41. ↑ "The Blackwell, Enid and Southwestern Railroad Company". Railroads of Oklahoma, June 6, 1870-April 1, 1978, pp. 68-69 (accessed on Oklahoma Digital Prairie). Retrieved March 24, 2023.
  42. ↑ Frisco.org. "Frisco Hobart Subdivision". Retrieved March 24, 2023.
  43. ↑ "Oklahoma 2018-2020 State Railroad Map" (PDF). Oklahoma Department of Transportation. Retrieved March 24, 2023.
  44. ↑ "Blackwell Northern Gateway Railroad Company-Lease Renewal Exemption-Oklahoma Department of Transportation and Blackwell Industrial Authority". Federal Register, 11/17/2010. Retrieved September 23, 2021.
  45. ↑ "OSU Hall of Fame to Induct Zink", Tulsa World, March 4, 1994. Accessed June 20, 2015.
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