3777 State Hwy 98
Wright City, OK 74766

Wright City is a town in McCurtain County, Oklahoma, United States, along the Little River. The population was 848 at the 2000 census.

Wright City was once home to a Weyerhaeuser plant; it closed permanently in mid March 2009 due to the slowedlumber industry. Weyerhaeuser was Wright City's economic power engine, and its closing affected 165 employees.

[edit]Geography

Wright City is located at 34°3′50″N 95°0′13″W (34.063789, -95.003551)^[3].

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 0.8 square miles (2.1 km²), all of it land. Just east of Wright City is a small community referred to as Herndon.

[edit]Information

Wright City, formerly known as Bismark and Wright, is located ten miles northeast of Valliant and two miles north of Little River on State Highway 98 in western McCurtain County. The Choctaw Lumber Company, a subsidiary of the Dierks Lumber and Coal Company, founded the town around 1909 as the site for a major processing plant that utilized abundant timber harvested from the region's virgin forests.

On March 24, 1910, a post office charter was issued for Bismark, a name chosen by the Dierks brothers, company founders, for a Nebraska town where they formerly operated a lumber outlet. The name of the town and post office changed to Wright during World War I because of public association of the Bismark name with that of the former German chancellor. The new name was chosen to honor William Wiley Wright, the county's first war casualty. On May 18, 1920, the name was altered to Wright City.

The "company town" included a sawmill, planer, railroad maintenance shops, housing, and stores, a bank, hotel, and ice factory, and provision for fire and police protection. The lumber conglomerate also provided land for construction of a school and churches. The company, then known as Dierks Forests, Inc., divested itself of residential and other properties unrelated to the primary mission on August 13, 1965. In 1966 the town achieved incorporation and elected its first officials. As Wright City was no longer just a "mill town," citizens took the initiative to create an independent, distinctive municipality. A business district was developed, utilities were upgraded and expanded, and new schools, a community building, and a medical center were built.

In 1969 the Weyerhaeuser Company of Tacoma, Washington, purchased the Dierks's holdings, including the Wright City production complex and continued the operations, which remained the primary economic base of the community until March 2009 when all operations of the mill ceased due to low demand for lumber and the worsening economy. The town population initially was included in a large census tract and not counted separately until 1950 when the residents numbered 1,121. In the 1920s the population was estimated to be less than five hundred. In 1980 the count stood at 1,168 but by 1990 had decreased to 836. At the turn of the twenty-first century the town had 848 residents.

Wright City hosts one of the oldest continuous rodeos in Oklahoma, known as Little Cheyenne, held each July 1 through 4. In 1933 a few local cowboys started it as a rodeo, barbecue, and dance. Since 1935 the American Legion William Wright Post Number 74 has sponsored the event.

[edit]Demographics

As of the census^[1] of 2000, there were 848 people, 302 households, and 233 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,017.6 people per square mile (394.5/km²). There were 326 housing units at an average density of 391.2/sq mi (151.6/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 46.93% White, 7.31% African American, 38.44% Native American, 0.24% from other races, and 7.08% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.24% of the population.

There were 302 households out of which 39.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.3% were married couples living together, 18.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 22.8% were non-families. 21.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.81 and the average family size was 3.28.

In the town the population was spread out with 32.2% under the age of 18, 6.8% from 18 to 24, 27.4% from 25 to 44, 22.1% from 45 to 64, and 11.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 91.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.9 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $29,196, and the median income for a family was $31,917. Males had a median income of $30,694 versus $13,667 for females. The per capita income for the town was $13,032. About 18.2% of families and 19.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 24.7% of those under age 18 and 22.6% of those age 65 or over.

[edit]References

1. ^ ^a b "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
2. ^ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
3. ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. Retrieved 2011-04-23.