Bryan County, Oklahoma | |
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 Location within the U.S. state ofOklahoma | |
 Oklahoma's location within theU.S. | |
| Coordinates:33°58′N96°15′W / 33.97°N 96.25°W /33.97; -96.25 | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Oklahoma |
| Founded | 1907 |
| Seat | Durant |
| Largest city | Durant |
| Area | |
• Total | 944 sq mi (2,440 km2) |
| • Land | 904 sq mi (2,340 km2) |
| • Water | 39 sq mi (100 km2) 4.2% |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 46,067 |
| • Density | 51.0/sq mi (19.7/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−6 (Central) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−5 (CDT) |
| Congressional district | 2nd |
Bryan County is acounty in theU.S. state ofOklahoma. As of the2020 census, the population was 46,067.[1] Itscounty seat isDurant.[2] It is the only county in the United States named for Democratic politicianWilliam Jennings Bryan.
Bryan County comprises the Durant, OKmicropolitan statistical area, which is part of theDallas-Fort Worth and theTexoma region,TX-OKcombined statistical area. The city of Durant has the headquarters of theChoctaw Nation of Oklahoma.
Bryan County consists of 10Townships: Albany, Bennington, Bokchito, Brown, Caddo, Calera, Colbert, Kemp, Matoy, and Speairs.[3]
The area now known as Bryan County was occupied by the Choctaw tribe in 1831–2. After the tribe reestablished its government in the Indian Territory, it included much of the area withinBlue County, a part of thePushmataha District of the Choctaw Nation.[4]
In 1845, the tribe opened Armstrong Academy for boys near the community ofBokchito. The academy served asChahta Tamaha, the Choctaw capital, during the Civil War.
Bloomfield Academy, a school forChickasaw girls, was opened in 1852, just south of the present town ofAchille.[5]
Prior to the Chickasaw removal to Indian Territory, theChickasaw tribe bought part of the Choctaw allocation. The western quarter of today's Bryan County was made part of the Chickasaw District in 1837. When the two tribes formally separated into two distinct nations in 1855, the Chickasaw District became the Chickasaw Nation.[5]
During the late 1850s, the Butterfield Overland Mail and Stage route followed the older Texas Road across the present county. GeneralAlbert Pike establishedFort McCulloch for the Confederate Army near the present town ofKenefic on the Blue River. Although no Civil War battles occurred in the vicinity, the fort was garrisoned by more than a thousand Indian troops whose leaders were allied with the Confederates.[5]
After theMissouri, Kansas and Texas Railway (Katy) built a north–south line through this area in 1872, several new towns were created. One such town was Colbert, which became the seat of Blue County and the largest town in the Choctaw Nation. The St. Louis, San Francisco and New Orleans Railroad, later bought by theSt. Louis and San Francisco Railway (Frisco), built an east–west line in 1903.[5]
Just prior to statehood, when all tribal governments were dissolved, Blue County was extinguished. Bryan County was officially established on November 16, 1907, and Durant was designated as the county seat.[5]
The Bridge War, also called theRed River Bridge War or the Toll Bridge War, was a 1931 bloodless boundary conflict between the U.S. states of Oklahoma and Texas over an existing toll bridge and a new free bridge crossing the Red River betweenGrayson County, Texas and Bryan County, Oklahoma.
Bryan County is in southeastern Oklahoma, in a 10-county area designated asChoctaw Country for tourism purposes by theOklahoma Department of Tourism and Recreation.[6] According to theU.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 944 square miles (2,440 km2), of which 904 square miles (2,340 km2) is land and 39 square miles (100 km2) (4.2%) is water.[7]
The county is in the Coastal Plains physiographic region, and is drained mostly by theBlue River. TheWashita River originally drained much of the western part of the county, but now empties intoLake Texoma, which forms much of the southern boundary of the county.[5] The county is a major part of theTexoma region.
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1910 | 29,854 | — | |
| 1920 | 40,700 | 36.3% | |
| 1930 | 32,277 | −20.7% | |
| 1940 | 38,138 | 18.2% | |
| 1950 | 28,999 | −24.0% | |
| 1960 | 24,252 | −16.4% | |
| 1970 | 25,552 | 5.4% | |
| 1980 | 30,535 | 19.5% | |
| 1990 | 32,089 | 5.1% | |
| 2000 | 36,534 | 13.9% | |
| 2010 | 42,416 | 16.1% | |
| 2020 | 46,067 | 8.6% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census[8] 1790-1960[9] 1900-1990[10] 1990-2000[11] 2010[12] | |||
As of the2020 United States census, the county had a population of 46,067. Of the residents, 23.4% were under the age of 18 and 17.7% were 65 years of age or older; the median age was 36.9 years. For every 100 females there were 95.8 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 93.8 males.[13][14]
The racial makeup of the county was 67.3% White, 1.6%Black or African American, 14.8%American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%Asian, 3.0% from some other race, and 12.6% fromtwo or more races.Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 7.4% of the population.[14]
There were 17,954 households in the county, of which 31.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 27.8% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 27.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.[13]
There were 20,366 housing units, of which 11.8% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 62.6% were owner-occupied and 37.4% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.4% and the rental vacancy rate was 7.5%.[13]
As of thecensus of 2000, there were 36,534 people, 14,422 households, and 9,936 families residing in the county.[15] Thepopulation density was 40 people per square mile (15 people/km2). There were 16,715 housing units at an average density of 18 units per square mile (6.9/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 80.02%White, 1.42%Black orAfrican American, 12.16%Native American, 0.44%Asian, 0.04%Pacific Islander, 1.08% fromother races, and 4.84% from two or more races; 2.65% of the population wereHispanic orLatino of any race. 28.4% were ofAmerican, 10.1%Irish, 8.1%German and 6.7%English ancestry.
In 2000, there were 14,422 households, out of which 30.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.00% weremarried couples living together, 10.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.10% were non-families. 26.60% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.50% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.47 and the average family size was 2.98. In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.80% under the age of 18, 11.70% from 18 to 24, 25.70% from 25 to 44, 22.30% from 45 to 64, and 15.40% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 95.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.40 males.
According to the 2000 census, the median income for a household in the county was $27,888, and the median income for a family was $33,984. Males had a median income of $26,831 versus $20,087 for females. Theper capita income for the county was $14,217. About 14.00% of families and 18.40% of the population were below thepoverty line, including 21.40% of those under age 18 and 17.00% of those age 65 or over.
| Voter Registration and Party Enrollment as of May 31, 2023[16] | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Number of Voters | Percentage | |||
| Democratic | 7,171 | 28.11% | |||
| Republican | 13,829 | 54.21% | |||
| Others | 4,508 | 17.67% | |||
| Total | 25,508 | 100% | |||
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 1908 | 1,044 | 27.93% | 2,215 | 59.26% | 479 | 12.81% |
| 1912 | 711 | 18.49% | 2,278 | 59.25% | 856 | 22.26% |
| 1916 | 1,267 | 25.30% | 2,974 | 59.40% | 766 | 15.30% |
| 1920 | 3,127 | 38.83% | 4,502 | 55.90% | 424 | 5.27% |
| 1924 | 1,780 | 25.17% | 4,593 | 64.95% | 699 | 9.88% |
| 1928 | 3,014 | 43.37% | 3,885 | 55.90% | 51 | 0.73% |
| 1932 | 825 | 9.70% | 7,681 | 90.30% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1936 | 1,362 | 14.35% | 8,106 | 85.43% | 20 | 0.21% |
| 1940 | 2,190 | 19.36% | 9,095 | 80.42% | 25 | 0.22% |
| 1944 | 1,677 | 18.90% | 7,180 | 80.91% | 17 | 0.19% |
| 1948 | 1,366 | 14.99% | 7,748 | 85.01% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1952 | 3,340 | 33.14% | 6,739 | 66.86% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1956 | 2,939 | 33.91% | 5,729 | 66.09% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1960 | 3,845 | 46.48% | 4,428 | 53.52% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1964 | 2,652 | 30.89% | 5,934 | 69.11% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1968 | 2,727 | 33.24% | 3,214 | 39.17% | 2,264 | 27.59% |
| 1972 | 5,397 | 61.91% | 3,144 | 36.06% | 177 | 2.03% |
| 1976 | 2,848 | 27.67% | 7,410 | 71.99% | 35 | 0.34% |
| 1980 | 3,980 | 37.61% | 6,410 | 60.57% | 192 | 1.81% |
| 1984 | 6,246 | 53.07% | 5,475 | 46.52% | 48 | 0.41% |
| 1988 | 4,615 | 40.13% | 6,849 | 59.55% | 37 | 0.32% |
| 1992 | 3,452 | 25.63% | 6,259 | 46.47% | 3,757 | 27.90% |
| 1996 | 3,943 | 34.79% | 5,962 | 52.60% | 1,430 | 12.62% |
| 2000 | 6,084 | 51.80% | 5,554 | 47.28% | 108 | 0.92% |
| 2004 | 8,615 | 59.99% | 5,745 | 40.01% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 2008 | 9,307 | 67.77% | 4,426 | 32.23% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 2012 | 9,520 | 72.12% | 3,681 | 27.88% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 2016 | 10,478 | 75.83% | 2,804 | 20.29% | 536 | 3.88% |
| 2020 | 12,344 | 77.27% | 3,323 | 20.80% | 309 | 1.93% |
| 2024 | 13,999 | 78.59% | 3,569 | 20.04% | 244 | 1.37% |
Agriculture,tourism,manufacturing, anddistribution are bedrocks of the county's economy. Tourism attractions includeLake Texoma, Lake Durant, theChoctaw Casino Resort,Choctaw Casino Bingo andFort Washita.
Major employers in the region include the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma, the headquarters of the J.C. Potter meat processing facility, Durant's Historic Central Business District and Retail District, a Cardinal Glass Industries manufacturing facility, AllianceHealth Durant,[18] aBig Lots distribution center, the headquarters ofFirst United Bank and First Texoma National Bank, Indian Nation Wholesale, and Wal-Mart.
The following sites in Bryan county are on theNational Register of Historic Places.
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Places adjacent to Bryan County, Oklahoma | |
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Municipalities and communities ofBryan County, Oklahoma,United States | ||
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| City |  | |
| Towns | ||
| CDPs | ||
| Other communities | ||
| Ghost towns | ||
| Indian reservations | ||
| Footnotes | ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties | |
| International | |
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| National | |
| Other | |
