Enid, Oklahoma

History

In summer 1889, M.A. Low, a Rock Island official, visited the local railroad station then under construction, and inquired about its name. At that time, it was called Skeleton station. Disliking the original name, he renamed the station Enid after a character in Alfred Lord Tennyson's Idylls of the King. However, a more fanciful story of how the town received its name is popular. According to that tale, in the days following the land run, some enterprising settlers decided to set up a chuckwagon and cook for their fellow pioneers, hanging a sign that read "DINE". Some other, more free-spirited settlers, turned that sign backward to read, of course, "ENID". The name stuck.

During the opening of the Cherokee Outlet in the Land Run of 1893, Enid was the location of a land office which is now preserved in its Humphrey Heritage Village, part of the Cherokee Strip Regional Heritage Center. Enid, the rail station, (now North Enid, Oklahoma) was the original town site endorsed by the government. It was platted by the surveyor W. D. Twichell, then of Amarillo, Texas.

The Enid-Pond Creek Railroad War ensued when the Department of the Interior moved the government site 3 mi (5 km) south of the station prior to the land run, which was then called South Enid. During the run, due to the Rock Island's refusal to stop, people leaped from the trains to stake their claim in the government-endorsed site. By the afternoon of the run, Enid's population was estimated at 12,000 people located in the Enid's 80-acre (320,000 m²) town plat. Enid's original plat in 1893 was 6 blocks wide by 11 blocks long consisting of the town square on the northwest end, West Hill (Jefferson) school on the southwest end, Government Springs Park in the middle southern section, and East Hill (Garfield) school on the far northeast corner. A year later, the population was estimated at 4,410, growing to 10,087 by 1907, the year of Oklahoma statehood.

The town's early history was captured in Cherokee Strip: A Tale of an Oklahoma Boyhood by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Marquis James, who recounts his boyhood in Enid.

He writes of the early town:

A trip to Enid was surely a marvelous treat, the stairways one saw being the very least of it. First off, on the edge of the prairie was a house here and house there--and not so many of them sod houses, either. Quite a few were even painted. Pretty soon the stores began, with the buildings touching each other and no front yards at all, only board sidewalks shaded by wooden awnings. Then you came to the Square. You never saw so many rigs or so many people.

Enid experienced a "golden age" following the discovery of oil in the region in the 1910s and continuing until World War II. Enid's economy boomed as a result of the growing oil, wheat, and rail industries, and its population grew steadily throughout the early 20th century in conjunction with a period of substantial architectural development and land expansion. Enid's downtown had the construction of several buildings including the Broadway Tower, Garfield County Courthouse, and Enid Masonic Temple. In conjunction with the oil boom, oilmen such as T.T. Eason, H.H. Champlin, and Charles E. Knox built homes in the area. Residential additions during this period include Kenwood, Waverley, Weatherly, East Hill, Kinser Heights, Buena Vista, and McKinley. Union Equity, Continental, Pillsbury, General Mills, and other grain companies operated mills and grain elevators in the area, creating what is now the Enid Terminal Grain Elevators Historic District, and earning Enid the titles of "Wheat Capital of Oklahoma", "Queen Wheat City of Oklahoma," and "Wheat Capital of the United States"

Geography

Located in Northwestern Oklahoma, Enid sits at the eastern edge of the Great Plains. It is located at 36°24′2″N 97°52′51″W (36.400583, -97.880784), 70 miles (110 km) north of Oklahoma City. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 74.1 square miles (192 km²), of which 74.0 square miles (192 km²) is land and 0.1 square miles (0.26 km²) (0.12%) is covered by water.

Climate

Enid's weather conditions are characterized by hot summers, cold, often snowy winters, and thunderstorms in the spring, which can produce tornadoes. The greatest one-day precipitation total by an official rain gauge in Oklahoma was in Enid when 15.68 inches (398.3 mm) fell on October 11, 1973. Temperatures can fall below 0 °F or −17.8 °C in the winter, and reach above 100 °F or 37.8 °C in the summer. The highest recorded temperature was 118 °F (47.8 °C) in 1936, and the lowest recorded temperature was −20 °F (−28.9 °C) in 1905. On average, the warmest month is July, January is the coolest month, and the maximum average precipitation occurs in May.

An ice storm struck Northwest Oklahoma in late January 2002. The storm caused over $100 million of damage, initially leaving some 255,000 residences and businesses without power. A week later, 39,000 Oklahoma residents were still without power. Enid, with its population of 47,000, was entirely without electricity for days. The Oklahoma Association of Electric Cooperatives reported over 31,000 electrical poles were destroyed across the state. The American Red Cross set up a shelter at Northern Oklahoma College.

Some other notable storms in Enid's history include:

Demographics

As of the 2010 census, 49,379 people, 19,726 households and 12,590 families resided in the city. The population density was 670 per square mile (260/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 81.6% White, 3.6% African American, 2.3% Native American, 1.1% Asian, 2.2% Pacific Islander, 5.4% from other races, and 2.84% from two or more races. The population of Hispanic or Latino Americans more than doubled between 2000 and 2010, up from 4.74% in 2000 to 10.3% in 2010.

Of the 19,726 households, 28.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47% were married couples living together, 11.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.2% were not families. Households with individuals living alone accounted for 30.5% of households and 26.6% of households consisted of individuals 65 years of age or older living by themselves. The average household size was 2.41 and the average family size was 3.0. The median age of the population was 36.

Enid has been predominantly a Republican stronghold since its days as part of Oklahoma Territory, owing to the influence of settlers from neighboring Kansas. Several politicians have called Enid home, including Oklahoma Territory's last governor Frank Frantz; U.S. Representative Page Belcher; US Congressman and former Enid mayor, Milton C. Garber; Oklahoma Lieutenant Governor Todd Lamb; U.S. Representative George H. Wilson; and James Yancy Callahan, the only non-Republican territorial congressional delegate.

Of the people in Enid, 61.9% claim affiliation with a religious congregation; 9.4% are Catholic, 39.2% are Protestant, 1.1% are Latter Day Saints and 12.2% are another Christian denomination. By 1987, there were 90 churches of 27 different denominations of Christianity. Enid's Phillips University, although formally affiliated with the Disciples of Christ, was a product of religious collaboration between followers of the Disciples of Christ, Presbyterian Church, and Judaism. Although Phillips University has closed, Enid still has a number of private Christian schools, including St. Paul's Lutheran School. Enid is home to several Protestant churches including pentacostal Iglesia Cristiana El Shaddai (Hispanic) founded in 2001, four Lutheran congregations, Immanuel, founded in 1899, Trinity, founded in 1901, St. Paul, founded in 1909, and Redeemer, founded in 1934, and two Catholic congregations, St. Francis Xavier, founded in 1893, and St. Gregory, founded in 1971. St. Francis Xavier's Bishop Theophile Meerschaert was responsible for founding Calvary Catholic Cemetery in 1898.

Enid is the home of two Masonic Lodges, the Enid Lodge #80 and the Garfield Lodge #501. The Enid Lodge has many Jewish members. Historically, Enid was home to a small Jewish congregation called Emanuel, which met at the Loewen Hotel, founded by Al Loewen, a local merchant who also served on the committee to create Phillips University. The Enid Cemetery also has a Jewish section where many of early Enid's Jewish merchants are interred, including the founders of Kaufman's Style Shop, Herzberg's Department Store, Newman Mercantile, and Meibergen and Godschalk, Enid's first clothing store. Currently, no synagogues or mosques are in Enid.

Economy

When Enid participated in the City Beautiful movement in the 1920s, Frank Iddings wrote the city song, "Enid, The City Beautiful". "You're right in the center where the best wheat grows and you've got your share of the oil that flows," his lyrics read. These were the early staples of the Enid economy. Enid's economy saw oil booms and agricultural growth in the first half of the 20th century. The Great Depression, however, caused both of these staples to lose value, and many businesses in Enid closed. However, Enid recovered, prospering and growing in population until a second wave of bad economic times hit in the 1980s, when competition with the local mall and economic factors led Enid's downtown area to suffer. Since 1994, Enid's Main Street program has worked to refurbish historic buildings, boost the local economy, and initiate local events such as first Friday concerts and holiday celebrations on the town square.

Companies with corporate headquarters in Enid:

Companies with operations in Enid:

Historical companies in Enid:

Arts and culture

Enid is home to the annual Tri-State Music Festival which was started in 1932 by Russell L. Wiley, who was Phillips University band director from 1928 to 1934. From 1933 to 1936, Edwin Franko Goldman headlined the festival. The festival takes place each spring in Enid. In the summertime, Enid's Gaslight Theatre hosts a production of Shakespeare in the Park, as well as year-round theater productions. The Enid Symphony Orchestra was formed in 1905 and is the oldest symphony in the state, performing year-round in the Enid Symphony Center. Enid's Chautauqua in the Park takes place each summer in Government Springs Park, providing five nights of educational performances by scholars portraying prominent historical figures. The Chautauqua program was brought to Enid in 1907 by the Enid Circle Jewish Chautauqua and is now produced by the Greater Enid Arts and Humanities Council.

Enid's Cherokee Strip Regional Heritage Center preserves the local history of the Land Run of 1893, Phillips University, and Garfield County. The museum originated as the Museum of the Cherokee Strip in the 1970s, and reopened on April 1, 2011. Enid also commemorates its land run history each September by hosting the Cherokee Strip Days and Parade. The Humphrey Heritage Village next to the museum offers visitors a chance to see the original Enid land office and other historical buildings. Visitors to Enid's Railroad Museum of Oklahoma, located in the former Santa Fe Railway Depot, can see railroad memorabilia, explore historical trains, and watch model railroads in action. The Midgley Museum is operated by the Enid Masonic Lodge #80 and features the rock collection of the Midgley family. Leonardo’s Discovery Warehouse, located in the former Alton Mercantile building in downtown Enid, is an arts and sciences museum, which features Adventure Quest, an outdoor science-themed playground. Simpson's Old Time Museum is a Western-themed museum by local filmmakers Rick and Larry Simpson. The pair closed their downtown business, Simpsons Mercantile, in 2006 to convert the building into a movie set and museum. George's Antique Auto Museum features the sole existing Geronimo car, once manufactured in Enid. The Leona Mitchell Southern Heights Heritage Center and Museum records the history and culture of African Americans and Native Americans, featuring exhibits on Enid's former black schools (George Washington Carver and Booker T. Washington), and opera star Leona Mitchell. Enid also has a number of locations listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Sports

Enid has produced several athletes, including NFL football players Todd Franz, Steve Fuller, Ken Mendenhall, John Ward, Jeff Zimmerman, Jim Riley, and the CFL's Kody Bliss. Brothers Brent Price and Mark Price became NBA players, and Don Haskins is a Hall of Fame basketball coach. USSF soccer player Andrew Hoxie, Major League Baseball pitchers, Ray Hayward and Lou Kretlow, Olympian and runner, Chris McCubbins, and Stacy Prammanasudh, an LPGA golfer, all were born or lived in Enid.

Baseball

The Enid Harvesters (active from 1920 to 1924) were named as the 20th-best minor league farm team ever by Minor League Baseball. They had a 104-27 record in the 1922 season. The Harvesters, along with their earlier counterparts the Railroaders, were members of the Western Association. During the 1951 season, the team was an affiliate of the Houston Buffaloes, and were known as the "Enid Buffaloes" to match.

The Enid Majors youth baseball team won the American Legion Baseball World Series in 2005.

Several Enid teams played in the National Baseball Congress championships, winning the championship in 1945 by the Army Air Field (runners up in 1943 and 1944), in 1940 and 1941 by the Champlins, and in 1937 by the Eason Oilers (runners up in 1938).

Phillips University baseball teams, coached by Enid native Joe Record, went to the NAIA World Series three times during his tenure as head coach (1952–1981). Record was the NAIA Coach of the Year in 1973, and was inducted into the NAIA Hall of Fame in 1975.

The Northern Oklahoma College Enid Jets baseball team were conference champions in 2002, 2003, and 2005. They were Region II champions in 2002 and 2004, and runners up in 2009. They were Southwest District Champions in 2002, and also received third place in the NJCAA World Series in that year.

Basketball

The Oklahoma Storm USBL franchise called Enid home. Through their eight years in Enid (2000-2007 seasons), they won their division more than once and the USBL Championship in 2002.

Football

The Enid High School Plainsmen have won six state football championships (1919, 1942, 1964, 1965, 1966, and 1983). They went to the Oklahoma State Championship football game in 2006 and lost to the Jenks Trojans.

The Phillips University football teams, coached by John Maulbetsch, beat the University of Oklahoma and University of Texas football teams and lost only one game in the 1918 and 1919 seasons. When Phillips defeated Texas 10-0 in Austin, Texas, in October 1919, the Longhorns had not lost a game since 1917.

The newest football team in Enid is the Enid Enforcers, a semiprofessional/minor-league team playing in the Central Football League. Their first season of play was in the spring of 2008. Made up of players from Enid and the surrounding areas, the team has achieved national ranking status three times, amassing a CFL League Championship in 2012, two Northern Division Championships, and 47 league All-star players, while helping numerous young men gain college athletic scholarships and boasting a 40-13 record in just five years.

Education

Enid has several institutions of education and is served by two school districts: Enid Public Schools and Chisholm Public Schools. Pioneer-Pleasant Vale Schools's elementary school, often referred to as Pleasant Vale Elementary. The Cimarron Montessori School and Summerhill Childrens House are the city's two Montessori style schools. Several private Christian schools representing a variety of denominations are also located in Enid: Bethel Bible Academy, Emmanuel Christian School, Enid Adventist School, Hillsdale Christian School, Saint Joseph Catholic School, and Saint Paul's Lutheran School. Enid High School, Chisholm High School, and Oklahoma Bible Academy are the city's largest secondary education schools. Autry Technology Center serves as the city's only vocational education institution, Northern Oklahoma College as its community college, and Northwestern Oklahoma State University (NWOSU) provides bachelor and graduate level education. Enid was formerly home to Phillips University, which closed in 1998.

The Public Library of Enid and Garfield County, established in 1899, also serves as an educational resource for the community. Enid was once home to a Carnegie library, which opened in 1910. After years of funding shortages, the building was condemned in 1957, and the library's current modernist building was opened in 1964.

Media

The Enid News & Eagle is the city's daily newspaper. Historically, the city had 28 newspapers. The Enid Eagle began publication on September 22, 1893. The Enid Daily Wave (later the Enid Morning News) began on December 11, 1893. In February 1923, the papers were combined to form the Enid Publishing Company.

Enid has two local television stations:

Historically, Enid was home to television station KGEO, an ABC affiliate from July 2, 1954 to 1958 when it moved its transmitter to Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The station is now KOCO-TV.

KQOB 96.9 FM broadcasts in a classic hits format. Stations KNID 107.1 FM and KOFM 103.1 FM specialize in country music. KAMG 92.1 FM, KKRD 91.1 FM, KLGB-LP 94.3 FM, and K226BR 93.1 FM are devoted to religious content. KCRC 1390 AM broadcast sports games. KGWA 960 AM and KZLS 1640 AM is a talk radio station, and KXLS 95.7 FM plays various musical genres.

Healthcare

Enid has a number of medical clinics and two hospitals. INTEGRIS Bass Baptist Health Center has 207 beds throughout its three facilities. Bass is the oldest hospital in Enid, founded in 1910, and incorporated in 1914 as Enid General Hospital and Training School for Nurses. St. Mary's Regional Medical Center, a 245-bed facility with 127 licensed professionals, was established in 1915 as Enid Springs Sanatorium. Both Enid hospitals are affiliated with the Oklahoma Hospital Association, and their CEOs are FACHE certified. Clinics include the Garfield County Health Department, and Veterans Affairs Clinic. Vance Air Force Base Clinic is operated by the 71st Medical Group which consists of the 71st Medical Operations and Support Squadrons.

Transportation

The main highways serving the City of Enid are U.S. Highway 81 Van Buren and U.S. Highway 412 Owen K. Garriott. U.S. Highway 64 runs west down Garriott and U.S. Highway 60 runs east. Both of these highways join together with highway 81 in North Enid, Oklahoma. State Highway 45 also runs through North Enid on Carrier Road.

Railroad development in Garfield County began four years prior to the land opening, and Enid became a central hub within the county, with rail systems running in ten directions. Historical railroads included Enid and Tonkawa Railway, Enid and Anadarko Railway, Blackwell, Enid and Southwestern Railway, Enid Central Railway and the Denver, Enid and Gulf Railroad. Enid's railroad history is displayed at the Railroad Museum of Oklahoma which is housed in the former Santa Fe railroad Depot. The Rock Island Depot is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Grainbelt Corporation, BNSF Railway, and Union Pacific Railroad currently run operations through Enid.

From 1907 to 1929, Enid also had its own streetcar system, operated by Enid City Railway. The street cars were later replaced by buses, following a declaration by the Enid government that made streetcars illegal.

Since 1984, the Transit, operated by Enid Public Transportation, has been in operation, providing on-demand shuttle services. The Transit also offers service to Oklahoma City’s Will Rogers Airport, Greyhound Bus Service, and Amtrak Train Station.

Airports

Utilities

Enid's electricity is provided by Oklahoma Gas & Electric and natural gas by Oklahoma Natural Gas Company. The City of Enid provides water, wastewater, and trash collection services. Internet, television, and telephone providers include Suddenlink Communications, Pioneer Telephone, and AT&T.

Notable people

Enid's Frank Frantz was the seventh and final Oklahoma Territorial Governor. Enid has been home to several successful entrepreneurs from oilman Herbert Champlin to casino owner, Sam Boyd, founder of the Boyd Gaming Corporation. The arts have also flourished among Enid natives, from Native American painter Paladine Roye to Pulitzer Prize winning author Marquis James. Two Oklahoma State Poets Laureate, Bess Truitt and Carol Hamilton, grew up in Enid.

Actors Richard Erdman, Glenda Farrell, Lynn Herring, and Thad Luckinbill were all born in Enid, as was Emmy Award winning director, Sharron Miller. Many musicians have called Enid home, including songwriter Gibson Hughes, jazz great Sam Rivers, jazz pianist Pat Moran McCoy, folk singer and banjoist Karen Dalton, fingerstyle guitarist Michael Hedges and opera singer Leona Mitchell, with the last two having streets in Enid bearing their names. Mitchell's brother, Hulon Mitchell Jr (Yahweh Ben Yahweh) was the founder of the religious group, Nation of Yahweh. Attorney Stephen Jones defended Timothy McVeigh after the Oklahoma City bombing.

A number of military heroes have also come from Enid, including former US Army Special Forces operator Bo Gritz, Medal of Honor recipient Harold Kiner, and Pearl Harbor hero USAF General Kenneth M. Taylor. Enid has a history of aviation professionals from aviation pioneer Clyde Cessna, founder of the Cessna Aircraft Company, to Irving Woodring, one of the Army's Three Musketeers of Aviation. Cessna's pioneering flights earned him the nickname the "Birdman of Enid". One of Enid's main streets is named after Astronaut Owen K. Garriott, and Enid's air force base is named for Medal of Honor recipient Leon Vance. Mark Kelly, bass player of the Christian rock band Petra calls Enid home. Former White House photojournalist David Scott Holloway, recipient of the Getty Grant and photographer for Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown on CNN was born in Enid, attending Longfellow Jr. High School, before his family moved near Waukomis where he attended Pioneer Pleasantvale High School.

Even some fictional characters hold Enid as their home town, including Paul and Amanda Kirby (portrayed by Téa Leoni) in Jurassic Park III, Maggie Gyllenhaal's character, journalist Jean Craddock, in Crazy Heart, and in The Rifleman, Lucas McCain and his son Mark lived in Enid, Oklahoma before settling in North Fork, New Mexico Territory.

Some even claim two figures from the Abraham Lincoln assassination lived and died in Enid. In 1901, Osborn H. Oldroyd wrote The Assassination of Abraham Lincoln Flight, Pursuit (sic), Capture, and Punishment of the Conspirators which claimed that Sgt. Boston Corbett, the man who killed John Wilkes Booth in Virginia, resided in Enid, employed as a medicine salesman. Local legend holds that Corbett is buried in one of the unmarked graves in the Enid Cemetery. In 1907, Finis L. Bates wrote The Escape and Suicide of John Wilkes Booth. The book claimed that David E. George, a tenant at the Grand Avenue Hotel who committed suicide by poison in 1903, was actually John Wilkes Booth. After sitting for years in Penniman's Funeral Home, George's mummified body later toured the carnival circuit. The 1937 short film The Man in the Barn by Jacques Tourneur revisits the story of David E. George as Booth.

In popular culture

Enid was ranked the 28th best place in the USA to raise a family in a 1998 Reader's Digest poll. and in the March 2004 issue of Inc. listed as one of the top 25 small cities in the USA for doing business. Good Morning America listed Enid as one of its top five up and coming areas in a January 2006 episode.

Hollywood has come to Enid, shooting scenes from Dillinger in front of the Mark Price Arena and the Grand Saloon, the 1955 short film Holiday for Bands features Enid's Tri-State Music Festival, and portions of the film The Killer Inside Me were filmed in Enid's downtown square. According to television, Enid has been the site of hauntings and exorcisms as Ghost Lab featured Enid as part of an investigation of sites claimed to be haunted by John Wilkes Booth, and A Current Affair in a segment on expensive religious exorcisms.

Enid has been the subject of songs, such as the song "Greeted in Enid" by Hank Williams, Jr. from his 1995 album Hog Wild, which tells the story of a woman he met in Enid. It has been the subject of ridicule, by comedian Bill Hicks who used to make fun of this town in his act, including a routine on a man named Elmer Dinkley, most likely fictional.

Enid is also mentioned in passing in a few popular novels and films. In chapter 12 of The Grapes of Wrath, Enid is one of the towns that feeds into Route 66 from the north via Route 64.

The movie Twister (1996) references the city just before the chasers leave Aunt Meg's house to chase the "Hailstorm Hill" Tornado. The storm warning on the television broadcast states that the latest warning has been issued "for Garfield County, including the city of Enid". (Subtitles may be needed to find this out.)

In the 1995 novel, Left Behind by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins, primary character Chloe Steele Williams returns home from California by a flight that lands in Enid to make connections. The Enid Woodring Regional Airport was the only operable airport in the area during the 48 hours after the "vanishings".

In Harry Turtledove's 2016 baseball-themed fantasy novel The House of Daniel, the early scenes take place in Enid.

In the television series Night Court, Bull goes on a game show and one of the contestants is a computer programmer from Enid.

In Jurassic Park III, Paul Kirby mentions that his business is located in Enid, Oklahoma. At the end of the movie, as the survivors look out at a flock of Pteranodons flying free, Alan Grant muses they must be looking for new nesting grounds. Amanda Kirby mutters in response "I dare them to nest in Enid, Oklahoma!"

During World War II, two Victory Ships from Kaiser's Richmond, California shipyard were named after Enid and Phillips University, the SS Enid Victory and the SS Phillips Victory. In 1999, astronomer Tom Stafford of Oklahoma, named an asteroid after Enid.

In the CBS series The Big Bang Theory, character Sheldon Cooper contemplates moving to Enid because of its "low crime rate" and "high speed internet" service, but decides against it because the city lacks a model railroad store.'. In fact, contrary to Sheldon's claim, Enid hosts the Railroad Museum of Oklahoma.

Sister city