Editing Cimarron County, Oklahoma (section)

==History==
Cimarron County was created at statehood in 1907. Before the [[Oklahoma Organic Act]] was passed in 1890, the area had belonged to what was known as "No-Man's Land", also referred to as the "Public Land Strip". This was a relatively lawless area, with no organized government, and several outlaws sought refuge within its borders. In 1890, the strip became known as [[Beaver County, Oklahoma|Beaver County]], Oklahoma Territory. Informally, it was known as the "Oklahoma Panhandle". Only two communities were in the strip. One, Carrizo (near present-day [[Kenton, Oklahoma|Kenton]]),<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.historynet.com/oklahoma-panhandle-badmen-in-no-mans-land.htm |title= Oklahoma Panhandle: Badmen in No Man's Land |date= June 12, 2006 |publisher=HistoryNet.com|accessdate=January 18, 2021}}</ref> had 83 residents in 1890, while the other, [[Mineral City, Oklahoma|Mineral City]], had 93 residents. Otherwise, the land was used primarily by sheepherders from New Mexico.<ref name ="EOHC-CimarronCo">Young, Norma Gene. [http://www.okhistory.org/publications/enc/entry.php?entry=CI003 "Cimarron County,"] ''Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture'', 2009. Accessed March 28, 2015.</ref>

Several communities vied to become county seat after statehood: Boise City, Cimarron, [[Doby, Oklahoma|Doby]], Hurley, Willowbar, and Centerview. A county election in 1908 selected Boise City.<ref name ="EOHC-CimarronCo"/>

Railroads came late to this part of Oklahoma. The Elkhart and Santa Fe Railway built a line from [[Elkhart, Kansas]], through Cimarron County in 1925. It completed the link into New Mexico in 1932. Service ended in 1942. The same company built a line from Colorado to Boise City in 1931 and extended it into Texas in 1937. This line still operates and in 2000 was part of the [[BNSF]] system.<ref name ="EOHC-CimarronCo"/>

Cimarron County was affected by the [[Dust Bowl]] and was the site of the iconic 1936 photo titled ''[[Farmer and Sons Walking in the Face of a Dust Storm]]''.