| Tahlequah, Oklahoma | |
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| — City — | |
| Tahlequah, September 14, 2008 | |
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Tahlequah, Oklahoma
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| Coordinates: | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Oklahoma |
| County | Cherokee |
| Cherokee Nation | founded 1838; second capital city |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Jason Nichols (politician) |
| Area | |
| • Total | 12.0 sq mi (31.1 km2) |
| • Land | 12.0 sq mi (31.1 km2) |
| • Water | 0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2) |
| Elevation | 797 ft (243 m) |
| Population (2010) | |
| • Total | 15,753 |
| Time zone | Central (CST) (UTC-6) |
| • Summer (DST) | CDT (UTC-5) |
| ZIP codes | 74464-74465 |
| Area code(s) | 539/918 |
| FIPS code | 40-72100[1] |
| GNIS feature ID | 1098721[2] |
Tahlequah (Cherokee: ᏓᎵᏆ,[3] pronounced /ˈtælɨkwɑː/ tal-ə-kwah) is a city in Cherokee County, Oklahoma, United States located at the foothills of the Ozark Mountains. It was founded as a capital of the original Cherokee Nation in 1838 to welcome those Cherokee forced west on the Trail of Tears. The city's population was 15,753 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Cherokee County[4]. The main campus of Northeastern State University is located in the city. Tahlequah is also the capital of the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians and the modern Cherokee Nation.
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Many linguists believe the word 'Tahlequah' (Tah-le-quah) and the word 'Teh-li-co' are the same as 'di li gwa,' the Cherokee word for grain or rice. (See Cherokee Nation Lexicon (dikaneisdi) at cherokee.org under culture/language. Scholars report the Cherokee word 'di li gwa' describes a type of native grain, with a red hue that grew in the flat open areas of east Tennessee. One particular area, Great Tellico (Tellico Plains TN), was named for the grass with the red seed tops that grew in the flat open areas. Others interpret a word 'tel-i-quah' as 'plains;' however, there is no word for 'plains' in the Cherokee lexicon and the word 'tel-i-quah' is not found in the lexicon. The idea that 'tahlequah' means 'plains' lends weight to the belief that the name refers to the wide open grassy areas of Great Tellico (Tellico Plains TN). When the Cherokees first arrived in the Tahlequah OK area, they viewed the native grasses that grew in the open areas around the foothills of the Ozarks. It reminded them of the grassy open ‘Overhill’ areas of Tellico, so they called their new home 'di li gwa' (tah-le-quah or teh-li-co), the open place where the grass grows.
Local legend states the name is derived from Cherokee words meaning 'just two' or 'two is enough.' Supposedly three tribal elders had planned to meet to determine the location of the Cherokee Nation's permanent capital. Two elders arrived and waited for the third. As dusk approached, they decided that 'two is enough.' According to tribal elders and Cherokee County elders, this legend first began to circulate in the 1930s. Tahlequah was a settlement as early as 1832 and the Eastern and Western Cherokees joined their governments at Tahlequah in 1839. Tahlequah had a name long before it was chosen as the Cherokee capital.
Tahlequah has the distinction of being the capital of both the Cherokee Nation and the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians.
There are several markers of Cherokee and Native American heritage found across town: street signs and business signs appear in the Cherokee language along with English, mostly in the syllabary created by Sequoyah, a Cherokee scholar of the 1820s.
The Cherokee Supreme Court Building, located in downtown Tahlequah and constructed in 1844, is the oldest public building in Oklahoma.[5]
Tahlequah is located at (35.912869, -94.971526)[6].
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 12.0 square miles (31.1 km²), all land.
As of the census[1] of 2000, there were 14,458 people, 5,703 households, and 3,125 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,202.8 per square mile (464.4/km²). There were 6,245 housing units at an average density of 519.5 per square mile (200.6/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 59.01% White, 2.53% African American, 26.86% Native American, 0.53% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 4.10% from other races, and 6.93% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 7.26% of the population.
There were 5,703 households out of which 26.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 37.6% were married couples living together, 13.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 45.2% were non-families. 34.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.28 and the average family size was 3.00.
In the city the population was spread out with 22.2% under the age of 18, 25.2% from 18 to 24, 23.4% from 25 to 44, 16.1% from 45 to 64, and 13.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 26 years. For every 100 females there were 88.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 82.5 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $23,238, and the median income for a family was $34,811. Males had a median income of $25,066 versus $21,327 for females. The per capita income for the city was $13,371. About 18.5% of families and 26.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 28.2% of those under age 18 and 12.6% of those age 65 or over.
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