Editing Gore, Oklahoma

{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2024}}
{{Infobox settlement
|official_name            = Gore, Oklahoma
|settlement_type          = [[Town]]

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<!-- Maps -->
|image_map                = OKMap-doton-Gore.PNG
|mapsize                  = 250px
|map_caption              = Location of Gore, Oklahoma
|image_map1               = 
|mapsize1                 = 
|map_caption1             =

<!-- Location -->
|subdivision_type         = [[List of sovereign states|Country]]
|subdivision_name         = United States
|subdivision_type1        = [[U.S. state|State]]
|subdivision_name1        = [[Oklahoma]]
|subdivision_type2        = [[List of counties in Oklahoma|County]]
|subdivision_name2        = [[Sequoyah County, Oklahoma|Sequoyah]]

<!-- Government -->
|government_footnotes     = 
|government_type          = 
|leader_title             = Mayor
|leader_name              = 
|leader_title1            = Vice Mayor
|leader_name1             = 
|leader_title2            = City Clerk
|leader_name2             =

<!-- Established -->
|established_date         = Date of Decision: January 29, 1902, Officially Established: May 24, 1902

<!-- Area -->
|unit_pref  = Imperial
|area_footnotes           = <ref name="TigerWebMapServer">{{cite web|title=ArcGIS REST Services Directory|url=https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer|publisher=United States Census Bureau|accessdate=September 20, 2022}}</ref>
|area_magnitude           = 
|area_total_km2           = 5.92
|area_land_km2            = 5.91
|area_water_km2           = 0.01
|area_total_sq_mi         = 2.29
|area_land_sq_mi          = 2.28
|area_water_sq_mi         = 0.00

<!-- Population -->
|population_as_of         = [[2020 United States census|2020]]
|population_footnotes     = 
|population_total         = 951
|population_density_km2   = 160.83
|population_density_sq_mi = 416.56

<!-- General information -->
|timezone                 = [[North American Central Time Zone|Central (CST)]]
|utc_offset               = -6
|timezone_DST             = CDT
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|elevation_footnotes      = <ref name=gnis/>
|elevation_ft             = 535
|coordinates              = {{coord|35|32|30|N|95|06|47|W|region:US-OK|display=inline,title}}
|postal_code_type         = [[ZIP code]]
|postal_code              = 74435
|area_code                = [[area codes 539 and 918|539/918]]
|blank_name               = [[Federal Information Processing Standard|FIPS code]]
|blank_info               = 40-30300<ref name="GR2">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov |publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]] |access-date=January 31, 2008 |title=U.S. Census website }}</ref>
|blank1_name              = [[Geographic Names Information System|GNIS]] feature ID
|blank1_info              = 2412692<ref name=gnis>{{GNIS|2412692}}</ref>
|website                  = www.townofgore.org
|footnotes                = 
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}}
'''Gore''' is a town in western [[Sequoyah County, Oklahoma|Sequoyah County]], [[Oklahoma]], United States. It is part of the [[Fort Smith, Arkansas]]-Oklahoma [[Fort Smith metropolitan area|Metropolitan Statistical Area]]. The population was 977 at the 2010 census, an increase of 15 percent over the figure of 850 recorded in [[United States Census, 2000|2000]].<ref>Census Viewer: Population of the City of Gore, Oklahoma. Retrieved April 3, 2012 [http://censusviewer.com/city/OK/Gore] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130615135038/http://censusviewer.com/city/OK/Gore|date=June 15, 2013}}</ref>

Gore claims to be the "[[trout]] capital of [[Oklahoma]]", with great fishing in [[Tenkiller Ferry Lake|Lake Tenkiller]], the [[Illinois River (Arkansas)|Illinois River]], and the [[Arkansas River]].<ref>[http://www.townofgore.org/index.html Gore, Oklahoma] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304002138/http://www.townofgore.org/index.html |date=March 4, 2016 }} Accessed March 18, 2015.</ref>

==History==
This community began as a small settlement in [[Indian Territory]] known as Campbell, named for Dr. W. W. Campbell, who, along with Joe Lynch, operated a ferry across the Arkansas River between Campbell and [[Webbers Falls, Oklahoma|Webbers Falls]].  [[Tahlonteeskee, Oklahoma|Tahlonteskee]], the capital of the Western Cherokee from 1828–1839, was near here, just two miles to the north of town.{{efn|After the Eastern Cherokee were relocated to Indian Territory and united with the Western Cherokees, [[Tahlequah]] became the Cherokee capital. Thereafter, Tahlonteskee became the courthouse of the Illinois District of the Cherokee Nation until 1846.<ref name="EOHC-Gore"/>}}   In 1829, [[John Jolly]], chief of the [[Cherokee Nation (1794–1907)|Cherokee Nation–West]], built a home in this area.

The settlement was also known as Illinois Station or "Illinois Station, Campbell Post Office."  It became a stage stop on the route between [[Fort Gibson]] and [[Fort Smith, Arkansas|Fort Smith]]. A post office designation of Campbell was assigned to Dr. Campbell's store in 1888. Also in 1888, the [[St. Louis, Iron Mountain and Southern Railway]] (later the [[Missouri Pacific Railway]]) built a rail line through the settlement.<ref name="EOHC-Gore">[http://www.okhistory.org/publications/enc/entry.php?entry=GO012 Larry O'Dell, "Gore". ''Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture''.] Retrieved April 3, 2012.</ref>

By 1909, the town had a bank, two lumber companies, a flour mill, a cotton gin, two hotels, and numerous retail outlets. The town changed its name on October 22, 1909, in honor of Oklahoma Senator [[Thomas Gore]], who was serving as one of Oklahoma's U. S. senators immediately after statehood. A fire destroyed most of the business district in 1909. Gore had a population of 319 by the 1910 U. S. census.<ref name="EOHC-Gore"/>

The town almost got a second rail line in 1917 when Congress approved construction by the [[Webbers Falls Railroad]] of a bridge over the Arkansas from [[Webbers Falls, Oklahoma|Webbers Falls]].<ref>{{cite web|url=  https://books.google.com/books?id=hvS8qPOyeKYC&dq=%22webbers+falls+railroad%22&pg=PA2621 |title= Webbers Falls Railroad|year= 1917|accessdate=September 26, 2022}}</ref>  However, that railroad was instead scrapped in 1918.<ref>{{cite web|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=YnwAAAAAYAAJ&dq=%22webbers+falls+railroad%22&pg=PA275 |title=Buying Whole Railroads and Reducing Them to Junk|year=1918 |publisher=Current Opinion, Volume 65, p.274-275, October 1918|accessdate=September 26, 2022}}</ref>

[[Kerr-McGee]] built the [[Sequoyah Fuels Corporation]] uranium mill on a {{convert|300|acre|ha}} tract located {{convert|3|mi|km}} east of Gore to convert uranium ore into [[uranium hexafluoride]] (UF<sub>6</sub>).{{efn|The product was shipped to another plant near Oklahoma City, where it was used to make fuel rods for nuclear reactors.<ref name="EOHC-Gore"/>}} The UF<sub>6</sub> plant was bought by [[General Atomics]] in 1988, and closed in 1993.<ref name="EOHC-Gore"/>

==Demographics==
{{US Census population
|1910= 316
|1920= 329
|1930= 297
|1940= 334
|1950= 387
|1960= 334
|1970= 478
|1980= 445
|1990= 690
|2000= 850
|2010= 977
|2020= 951
|footnote=U.S. Decennial Census<ref name="DecennialCensus">{{cite web |url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html|title=Census of Population and Housing|publisher=Census.gov|access-date=June 4, 2015}}</ref>
}}
As of the [[census]]<ref name="GR2" /> of 2000, there were 850 people, 368 households, and 257 families residing in the town. The population density was {{convert|372.4|PD/sqmi|PD/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. There were 416 housing units at an average density of {{convert|182.3|/sqmi|/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. The racial makeup of the town was 68.59% [[White (U.S. Census)|White]], 0.12% [[African American (U.S. Census)|African American]], 24.71% [[Native American (U.S. Census)|Native American]], 0.12% from [[Race (United States Census)|other races]], and 6.47% from two or more races. [[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Latino (U.S. Census)|Latino]] of any race were 0.82% of the population.

There were 368 households, out of which 28.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.0% were [[Marriage|married couples]] living together, 12.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.9% were non-families. 26.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.31 and the average family size was 2.78.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 23.9% under the age of 18, 8.8% from 18 to 24, 21.9% from 25 to 44, 26.9% from 45 to 64, and 18.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 89.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 81.7 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $27,266, and the median income for a family was $37,000. Males had a median income of $28,125 versus $27,188 for females. The [[per capita income]] for the town was $16,059. About 15.2% of families and 16.6% of the population were below the [[poverty line]], including 18.2% of those under age 18 and 21.1% of those age 65 or over.

==Notable people==

* [[Agnes Cowen]] (1927–1999), member of the [[Cherokee Nation Tribal Council]]
* [[Thomas Gore]], for whom the town is named, is claimed to have been an atheist
* [[Joshua Morrow]] of ''[[The Young and the Restless]]'' briefly attended school at Gore.
* [[Steve Owens (American football)|Steve Owens]], Gore is the birthplace of 1969 Heisman Trophy Winner.
* [[G. Steven Rowe]], Attorney General for the State of Maine is from Gore.<ref>[http://www.pressherald.com/home/governor/resume-aside-rowe-focused-on-his-next-job_2010-05-13.html "Resume aside, Rowe focused on next job"], ''[[Portland Press-Herald]]'', May 13, 2010.</ref>
* [[John Whisenant]], Professional basketball coach was born and raised in Gore.

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{reflist|35em}}

==External links==
* [http://www.townofgore.org Town website]
* [http://www.okhistory.org/publications/enc/entry.php?entry=GO012 ''Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture'' - Gore]

{{Sequoyah County, Oklahoma}}
{{Oklahoma}}

{{authority control}}

[[Category:Towns in Sequoyah County, Oklahoma]]
[[Category:Towns in Oklahoma]]
[[Category:Fort Smith metropolitan area]]
[[Category:Cherokee towns in Oklahoma]]
[[Category:Oklahoma populated places on the Arkansas River]]