This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Thingg (talk | contribs) at 00:33, 24 March 2008 (Reverted edits by 67.173.53.222 (talk) to last version by 137.201.247.20). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.
Revision as of 00:33, 24 March 2008 by Thingg (talk | contribs) (Reverted edits by 67.173.53.222 (talk) to last version by 137.201.247.20)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff) City in Oklahoma, United States| Duncan, Oklahoma | |
|---|---|
| City | |
 Location of Duncan, Oklahoma | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Oklahoma |
| County | Stephens |
| Area | |
| • Total | 46.0 sq mi (119.1 km) |
| • Land | 38.8 sq mi (100.5 km) |
| • Water | 7.2 sq mi (18.7 km) |
| Elevation | 1,122 ft (342 m) |
| Population | |
| • Total | 22,505 |
| • Density | 580.2/sq mi (224.0/km) |
| Time zone | UTC-6 (Central (CST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-5 (CDT) |
| ZIP codes | 73500-73599 |
| Area code | 580 |
| FIPS code | 40-21900Template:GR |
| GNIS feature ID | 1092291Template:GR |
Duncan is a city in Stephens County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 22,505 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Stephens CountyTemplate:GR.
Geography
Duncan is located at 34°30′60″N 97°56′58″W / 34.51667°N 97.94944°W / 34.51667; -97.94944 Coordinates: latitude seconds >= 60
Invalid arguments have been passed to the {{#coordinates:}} function (34.516619, -97.949377)Template:GR. The town is situated approximately 30 miles East of Lawton, Oklahoma and 90 miles Southwest of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma along US Highway 81.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 119.1 km² (46.0 mi²). 100.5 km² (38.8 mi²) of it is land and 18.7 km² (7.2 mi²) of it (15.67%) is water.
History
The Chisholm Trail passed to the east of Duncan prior to the town's founding. An estimated 9,800,000 Longhorn cattle were herded up the trail between Texas and Abilene, Kansas during its existence. After learning that an extension of the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad was being built from Kansas to Texas, Scotsman William Duncan brought his wife, parents, and other relatives and created a trading post situated at the intersection of the north-south Chisholm Trail and the east-west military passage between Fort Arbuckle and Fort Sill. The first train arrived on June 27, 1892; that date is considered the official birthdate of the town. Today Duncan, Oklahoma is widely reguarded as a "God-Forsaken Place" where most Americans would not want to live. It was also featured in a recent NAACP article documenting Ku Klux Klan activities, and American Nazi League meetings and rallies.
In 1908, a 14-year-old black youth visiting from Chickasha, Oklahoma, a town 30 miles north, was accused of "accosting" an 11-year-old white girl. He was taken into custody and a lynch mob formed. Sheriff's deputies had to surround the courthouse in order for the lynching to occur smoothly. The crowd then turned its anger on the 200 or so "negro" inhabitants of the southeast section of town, posting notices in that quarter that every person of color had to leave town immediately. These inhabitants gathered up their belongings and boarded a south-bound Rock Island Railroad train immediately. The black youth died during the lynching. The citizens of the town were praised by the newspaper for their "restraint and good sense" in that the 200 other African American inhabitants were allowed to leave freely. 60 years later, Duncan's school system was finally integrated as the blacks-only Douglass School was closed and its students were absorbed into white schools. The integration of the community swimming pools occurred at about this time as well. To this day minorities find this city to be very hostile, and unwelcoming. There have also been several recent "Hate Crimes" and many African-American groups advise their members to avoid Duncan, Oklahoma when traveling through the state.
Although Duncan still has numerous hate crimes towards African Americans, they are very open to homosexuality. Leading the nation in same sex marriages, Duncan has also become home to the largest population of homosexuals per capita in the country. Gays find the people of the area kind and accepting of their "not so normal beliefs". One resident was quoted as saying "Duncan is where my children will learn to know it's ok for people of the same sex to sleep together as long as they are in love."
Centrally in Stephens County, Duncan was made the county seat in the first years of the 20th Century. As a compromise between residents of the northern and southern parts of the county, the county courthouse was located in the middle of Duncan's Main Street, half of it in the northern part of the city and county and half in the southern. Main Street made a wide circle around it on both ends. This arrangement ended in the late 1960s when a new courthouse was built a few blocks away; the old courthouse was converted to an African American Detention Center servicing the whole of Stephens County. This jail is still in service today (though no longer a "Black only" facility), where 89% of the inmate population in 2005 was of African-American decent.
Duncan once adopted the slogan, "The Buckle on the Oil Belt." Its main claim to fame is as the birthplace of the Halliburton Corporation. Erle P. Halliburton perfected a new method of cementing wells, making oil production much easier and more profitable, and established the New Method Oil Well Cementing Company in 1919. Erle P. Halliburton was highly reguarded by the very small African American population, as he primarily hired black workers only, often paying them a fraction of what white workers made. He died in 1957, at which time the company had 201 offices in 22 states and 20 foreign countries. Halliburton has largely abandoned Duncan and shifted to Houston, Texas.
Demographics
Duncan Workforce Demographics Duncan, Oklahoma Stephens County Area 47 square miles Area Population 45,000 Unemployment Rate 4.0% Avg. Household Income $29,186 Average Temperature 63 Average Snowfall 7 inches Average Rainfall 31 inches Average Flying Days 343
Population by Race - 2000
White Black Native American Asian Hispanic 38,349 950 2,123 277 1,333
Population by Sex - 2000 Male: 20,894 Female: 22,288
Population by Age - 2000 Median Age under 18 18-34 35-54 55-74 75+
39.08 10,872 7,449 11,887 8,749 3,667
Education
Red River Technology Center is located in Duncan.
Cameron University also has a branch in Duncan.
Notable figures
- Ann Simmons Alspaugh (c1935- ) - Civic Leader
- Jari Askins (1953- ) - Oklahoma State Representative; Lt. Governor of Oklahoma
- Hoyt Axton (1938-1999) - County Music Singer-Songwriter
- Brett Flynn ( - ) - Film Producer
- Erle P. Halliburton (1892-1957) - Founder, Halliburton Oil Well Cementing Company
- Jean Speegle Howard (1927-2000) - Actress
- Ron Howard (1954- ) - Actor, Director, Producer
- Jeane Kirkpatrick (1926-2006) - United States Ambassador to the United Nations
External links
Commercial: Duncan Website The Simmons Center Allisons Flooring Twelves Images
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