Sand Springs, Oklahoma

History

The city was founded in 1911, by Oklahoma philanthropist Charles Page, who envisioned Sand Springs as a haven for orphans and widows. He helped found and develop Sand Springs as a model city that included all components of a total community.

Wealthy businessman Charles Page bought 160 acres of land in Tulsa County, Oklahoma in 1908, intending to build a home for orphan children. The initial tent housing twenty seven children, abandoned by the Hook & Anchor Orphanage in Tulsa, was soon replaced by a frame building housing fifty children. He also decided to form a community called Sand Springs on land west of the children's home, offering free land to anyone who wished to move there and a $20,000 bonus (the amount varied and he also offered free utilities) to companies that would relocate there. In 1911, Page created the Sand Springs Railway, an interurban connecting Sand Springs to Tulsa. The townsite was laid out in 1911. Sand Springs was incorporated as a city in 1912, with a population of 400.

Page built the Sand Springs Power Plant in 1911, on the southeast corner of Main Street and Morrow Road. It anchored an area that Page intended to use for industrial development. There were several significant additions to the facility, and it remained the sole source of electric power for Sand Springs until 1947.

Some of the earliest manufacturing industries were: Kerr Glass Manufacturing; Commander Mills, Kerr, Hubbard and Kelley Lamp and Chimney; Southwest Box Company and Sinclair Prairie Refining Company. Medical and social welfare institutions other than the Sand Springs Home included the Oakwood Sanitorium for nervous and mental diseases, Poole Hospital, the Salvation Army Maternity Home, and the Sand Springs School for the Deaf. Sand Springs became one center of glass production in Oklahoma. Kerr Glass Manufacturing moved to Sand Springs from Chicago in 1913. It and the Alexander H. Kerr company, which made fruit jars, were the only glass companies remaining in business as recently as 1955.

The Home that Charles Page started all those years ago is still there today. What used to be the Widows Colony now accepts single mothers with two or more children.

An EF2 tornado hit Sand Springs on March 25, 2015, killing one resident, and damaging 50 mobile homes.

Geography

Sand Springs is located at 36°8′23″N 96°6′32″W (36.1398102, -96.1088911). According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 21.0 square miles (54.3 km²), of which, 18.7 square miles (48.4 km²) of it is land and 2.3 square miles (5.9 km²) of it (10.84%) is water.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 17,451 people, 6,564 households, and 4,870 families residing in the city. The population density was 934.2 people per square mile (360.7/km²). There were 6,979 housing units at an average density of 373.6 per square mile (144.3/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 85.85% White, 1.85% African American, 7.13% Native American, 0.44% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.47% from other races, and 4.25% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.06% of the population.

There were 6,564 households out of which 38.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.3% were married couples living together, 12.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.8% were non-families. 22.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.59 and the average family size was 3.05.

In the city, the population was spread out with 28.4% under the age of 18, 8.3% from 18 to 24, 28.9% from 25 to 44, 22.2% from 45 to 64, and 12.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 92.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.0 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $40,380, and the median income for a family was $47,258. Males had a median income of $38,120 versus $25,373 for females. The per capita income for the city was $18,193. About 6.7% of families and 9.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.6% of those under age 18 and 7.6% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

The economy of Sand Springs is largely focused on promoting small business, with a very active chamber of commerce.

According to the Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History & Culture, the most significant businesses in 2000 were: Webco Industries, Sheffield Steel Corporation, Rader Diagnostic Center, Smith-Fibercast, Cust-O-Fab, Piping Companies Incorporated, and Baker Petrolite.

Education

The Sand Springs Public School District is the largest employer in the city. It contains five elementary schools, two middle schools, three high schools, and a groundbreaking early childhood program.

There are also four Private Schools in Sand Springs.

Media

Sand Springs has one print newspaper, the Sand Springs Leader. The paper is published every Thursday.

On Tuesday, April 21, 2015, The Tulsa World announced that its parent company BH Media, a division of Berkshire Hathaway, the Omaha-based investment holding company led by billionaire Warren Buffett had purchased several suburban newspapers, including the Sand Springs Leader.

Sand Springs also has an online-only news source, Sandite Pride News which specializes in Sand Springs sports coverage.

Notable people