Editing Webbers Falls, Oklahoma

{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2024}}
{{Infobox settlement
| official_name            = Webbers Falls, Oklahoma
| settlement_type          = [[Town]]
| nickname                 = 
| motto                    = 
| image_skyline            = 
| imagesize                = 
| image_caption            = 
| image_flag               = 
| image_seal               = 
| image_map                = OKMap-doton-WebbersFalls.PNG
| mapsize                  = 250px
| map_caption              = Location of Webbers Falls, Oklahoma
| image_map1               = 
| mapsize1                 = 
| map_caption1             = 
| 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        = [[Muskogee County, Oklahoma|Muskogee]]
| government_footnotes     = 
| government_type          = 
| leader_title             = 
| leader_name              = 
| leader_title1            = 
| leader_name1             = 
| established_title        = 
| established_date         = 
| 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 |access-date=September 20, 2022 |archive-date=January 19, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220119173812/https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer |url-status=live }}</ref>
| area_magnitude           = 
| area_total_km2           = 10.87
| area_land_km2            = 10.85
| area_water_km2           = 0.02
| area_total_sq_mi         = 4.20
| area_land_sq_mi          = 4.19
| area_water_sq_mi         = 0.01
| population_as_of         = [[2020 United States census|2020]]
| population_footnotes     = 
| population_total         = 338
| population_density_km2   = 31.14
| population_density_sq_mi = 80.67
| pop_est_as_of            = 
| pop_est_footnotes        = 
| population_est           = 
| timezone                 = [[North American Central Time Zone|Central (CST)]]
| utc_offset               = -6
| timezone_DST             = CDT
| utc_offset_DST           = -5
| elevation_footnotes      = <ref name=gnis/>
| elevation_ft             = 482
| coordinates              = {{Wikidatacoord|Q950962|region:US-OK_type:city|display=inline,title}}
| postal_code_type         = [[ZIP code]]
| postal_code              = 74470
| area_code                = [[area codes 539 and 918|539/918]]
| blank_name               = [[Federal Information Processing Standard|FIPS code]]
| blank_info               = 40-79650<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 |archive-date=December 27, 1996 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/19961227012639/https://www.census.gov/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
| blank1_name              = [[Geographic Names Information System|GNIS]] feature ID
| blank1_info              = 2413461<ref name=gnis>{{GNIS|2413461}}</ref>
| website                  = 
}}
'''Webbers Falls''' is a town in southeastern [[Muskogee County, Oklahoma|Muskogee County]], [[Oklahoma]], United States. The population was 616 at the 2010 census, a decline of 14.9 percent from the figure of 724 recorded in 2000.<ref>CensusViewer: Population of the city of Webbers Falls, Oklahoma. Retrieved March 18, 2012.[http://censusviewer.com/city/OK/Webbers%20Falls] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130615161343/http://censusviewer.com/city/OK/Webbers%20Falls |date=June 15, 2013 }}</ref>

The name comes from a seven-foot waterfall in the [[Arkansas River]]{{efn| The falls had been named ''La Cascade'' by French explorers during the early 18th Century. They are now submerged in the [[Robert S. Kerr Reservoir]], created by the construction of Robert S. Kerr Lock and Dam.}} named in honor of Walter Webber, a [[Cherokee]] chief who established a trading post here in 1818.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.okhistory.org/publications/enc/entry.php?entry=WE007 |title=Webbers Falls &#124; the Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture |access-date=May 26, 2022 |archive-date=October 29, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201029000133/https://www.okhistory.org/publications/enc/entry.php?entry=WE007 |url-status=live }}</ref> He was a leader among the Western Cherokee, also called "Old Settlers". They had a treaty with the United States government by 1828, which helped settle some conflicts with the [[Osage people]], who had been forced to give up land to the Cherokee.

In the late 1830s and 1840, the mass of thousands of Cherokee from the Southeast were forcibly moved into [[Indian Territory]] as a result of the US policy of [[Indian Removal]].<ref name="webber">Foreman, Carolyn H. [http://digital.library.okstate.edu/Chronicles/v029/v029p444.pdf "Early History of Muskogee Falls"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060905040620/http://digital.library.okstate.edu/Chronicles/v029/v029p444.pdf |date=September 5, 2006 }}, ''[[The Chronicles of Oklahoma]]''</ref>

==History==
Webber had settled here with some of the first Cherokee to go to [[Indian Territory]] west of the Mississippi River; it was then considered part of Arkansas Territory. Having acquired a small fleet of [[keelboat]]s, he was able to stock the post with goods from other parts of the United States, so he opened a [[trading post]] and a portage service, as well as building a house. Of mixed-race Cherokee-European descent, Webber was married to a full-blood Cherokee. They had adopted many American ways and outfitted their house in European-American style. When English-speaking visitors came, one of their African-American slaves and domestic servants would translate.<ref name="webber"/> Webber also built a salt works, leasing the land for the latter from the Cherokee government, which held it communally as a tribe. In the early years when Webber was in the territory, there was considerable conflict with the [[Osage people]], who were forced by the United States government to give up some of their territory to the Cherokee, in a Treaty of 1828.<ref name="webber"/>

Webber was among the early leaders of the Cherokee in this area, one of their representatives when meeting with US agents and going to Washington, DC for meetings. The Western Cherokee resisted sharing their territory with immigrants to be resettled from the Southeast, as the US government proposed in 1834. They finally agreed that year, in exchange for an increased amount of land and annuities.<ref name="webber"/>

In the late 1830s and 1840, the mass of thousands of Cherokee from the Southeast were forcibly moved into [[Indian Territory]] as a result of the US policy of [[Indian Removal]].<ref name="webber"/> According to the Webbers Falls Historical Museum, this is the second-oldest town in the former [[Indian Territory]].

[[Joseph Vann]], a/k/a "Rich Joe" Vann, was among the thousands of Cherokee emigrants forced from Georgia during [[Indian Removal]]. He settled nearby and established a [[plantations in the American South|plantation]], where he worked some of his more than 200 slaves he brought with him.<ref name="miles">[https://books.google.com/books?id=ZVQvhgEuKZMC&dq=Cherokee+Slave+Escape+of+1842&pg=PA170 Tiya Miles, ''Ties that Bind: The Story of an Afro-Cherokee Family in Slavery and Freedom''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230602163605/https://books.google.com/books?id=ZVQvhgEuKZMC&dq=Cherokee+Slave+Escape+of+1842&pg=PA170 |date=June 2, 2023 }}, University of California Press, 2005, pp. 170-173</ref> At his direction, slaves built a house here that was a replica of his former antebellum mansion in Georgia, the [[Chief Vann House Historic Site|Chief Vann House]].<ref name="mayes">[http://www.okhistory.org/publications/enc/entry.php?entry=WE007 Linda Mayes Miller, "Webbers Falls," ''Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240526053135/https://www.okhistory.org/publications/enc/entry.php?entry=WE007 |date=May 26, 2024 }}, Retrieved March 16, 2012</ref> This area was within the reservation of the [[Cherokee Nation]].

A post office opened at Webbers Falls in 1856.<ref name="USACE">[https://www.swt.usace.army.mil/Locations/Tulsa-District-Lakes/Oklahoma/Webbers-Falls-Lock-and-Dam/History/ "History of Webbers Falls Lock and Dam."]  U. S. Army Corps of Engineers Tulsa District. Retrieved July 9, 2014.</ref>

===1842 Slave Revolt===
{{main|1842 Slave Revolt in the Cherokee Nation}}
On November 15, 1842, more than 25 slaves revolted in the largest action and escape in Cherokee territory.<ref name="EOHC-Revolt"/> Mostly from Joseph Vann's and his father's plantations, the slaves locked masters and overseers in houses and cabins, stole guns and ammunition, horses and mules, food, and other supplies, then started traveling south. Their goal was to reach Mexico, where they knew slavery had been abolished. They picked up about 10 slaves in [[Creek people|Creek]] territory along the way, and later freed a family of eight slaves from two slavecatchers, killing the latter.

After the first pursuers returned for reinforcements, the Cherokee National Council ordered about 87 men of the Cherokee Militia, under Captain John Drew, to apprehend the fugitives. The militia caught up with the fleeing slaves north of the [[Red River of the South|Red River]] on November 28. The militia returned the fugitives to [[Tahlequah, Oklahoma|Tahlequah]] on December 8. Five were executed for having killed two slavecatchers they encountered to free a fugitive slave family from the Choctaw reservation. Vann put his surviving slaves to work as laborers and coal stokers on his steamboats.<ref name="EOHC-Revolt">[https://www.okhistory.org/publications/enc/entry.php?entry=SL002 Burton, Art T. "Slave Revolt of 1842"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240526053134/https://www.okhistory.org/publications/enc/entry.php?entry=SL002 |date=May 26, 2024 }}, ''Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture,'' Retrieved May 25, 2020</ref>

===Civil War===
Cherokee Confederate General [[Stand Watie]] established a headquarters at Webbers Falls during the [[American Civil War|Civil War]]. In 1863, Union troops tried to capture Watie, but failed. Before leaving, they burned the town, including Vann's antebellum home.<ref name="mayes"/>

===20th century===
In 1907, Brewer's Academy opened as the first school. Named for Oliver Hazard Perry Brewer, a local politician who had served as the Cherokee Nation's Superintendent of Education in 1870 and 1876, and as the Board of Education President in 1881.<ref name="Jackson"/>

The town suffered a major fire that destroyed much of the business district in 1911. It was rebuilt in the following year, with the new structures mostly constructed of brick. These still stand.<ref name="Jackson"/>

The town got a rail line to [[Warner, Oklahoma]] in 1911 courtesy of the Webbers Falls, Shawnee and Western Railroad.<ref name=Railroads>{{cite web |url=https://digitalprairie.ok.gov/digital/collection/okresources/id/70321 |title=Webber Falls Railroad Company, Webber Falls, Shawnee and Western Railroad Company |publisher=Railroads of Oklahoma, June 6, 1870-April 1, 1978, p. 72-73 (accessed of Oklahoma Digital Prairie) |access-date=September 25, 2022 |archive-date=September 26, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220926212850/https://digitalprairie.ok.gov/digital/collection/okresources/id/70321 |url-status=live }}</ref> That railway, which connected to the [[Midland Valley Railroad]] at Warner, ceased operations in 1914, was reorganized as the [[Webbers Falls Railroad]] in 1916, but was dismantled by 1918.<ref name=Railroads/><ref name=Newspaper>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/16183074/railroad-and-marion-jefferson-maples/ |title=Will Put a New Service On The Webbers Falls Line |newspaper=Muskogee County Democrat |date=February 4, 1915 |page=9 |publisher=Muskogee County Democrat, February 4, 1915 (accessed on Newspapers.com) |access-date=September 24, 2022 |archive-date=September 26, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220926212850/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/16183074/railroad-and-marion-jefferson-maples/ |url-status=live }}</ref><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 |access-date=September 26, 2022 |archive-date=May 26, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240526053135/https://books.google.com/books?id=YnwAAAAAYAAJ&dq=%22webbers+falls+railroad%22&pg=PA275#v=onepage&q=%22webbers%20falls%20railroad%22&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref>

Construction in 1970 of the [[Webbers Falls Lock and Dam]] created Webbers Falls Reservoir and Robert S. Kerr Lock and Dam, created the [[Robert S. Kerr Reservoir]], both part of the [[McClellan-Kerr Arkansas River Navigation System]] (MKARNS), operated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. It has boosted the local economy by attracting outdoor enthusiasts for recreation opportunities. The town population increased 57 percent between 1980 and 2000, from 461 to 726.<ref name="mayes"/> However, the population declined significantly by 2010.

===21st century===
[[I-40 bridge disaster|The I-40 Bridge Disaster]] happened on May 26, 2002; a barge collided with a bridge support near Webbers Falls, causing a 580-foot section of the [[Interstate 40 in Oklahoma|I-40]] bridge to plunge into the [[Robert S. Kerr Reservoir]] on the [[Arkansas River]]. Automobiles and semi-trucks fell into the water, killing 14 people (including a three-year-old girl) and two horses. The bridge was repaired within two months, and reopened to traffic on July 29, 2002.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://newsok.com/article/894007 |title=Traffic flows again on I-40 bridge |publisher=NewsOK.com |date=July 30, 2002 |access-date=October 6, 2008 |archive-date=April 15, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150415153239/http://newsok.com/article/894007 |url-status=live }}</ref>

On May 22, 2019, two barges loaded with fertilizer broke loose from [[Muskogee County, Oklahoma|Muskogee County]] and were heading to [[Webbers Falls Lake]]. They were part of a tow that had been docked along the river because of the extremely high water level and the speed of the current. On the morning of May 23, 2019, the barges got stuck on some rocks and were later secured but, at around 10:40 AM the barges were on the loose after a helicopter attempted to safely secure the barges and around noon that same day hit the dam, which caused minor damage to the structure, but destroyed flood gates 7,8,and 9. The barges suffered major damage as they overturned and dumped their cargo into the flood, then sank to the base of the dam. Since the lake level had to be lowered significantly before the mangled barges could be removed, the flood gates could not be safely removed and the damaged gates repaired. This restricted traffic through the [[McClellan–Kerr Arkansas River Navigation System]] until late October 2019.

==Geography==
According to the [[United States Census Bureau]], the town has a total area of {{convert|3.9|sqmi|km2}}, of which {{convert|3.9|sqmi|km2}} is land and 0.26% is water.

==Demographics==
{{US Census population
|1900= 211
|1910= 380
|1920= 480
|1930= 415
|1940= 486
|1950= 489
|1960= 441
|1970= 485
|1980= 461
|1990= 722
|2000= 726
|2010= 616
|2020= 338
|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 |archive-date=July 1, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210701194652/https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
}}
As of the [[census]]<ref name="GR2" /> of 2000, there were 726 people, 288 households, and 209 families residing in the town. The population density was {{convert|186.6|PD/sqmi|PD/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. There were 364 housing units at an average density of {{convert|93.6|/sqmi|/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. The racial makeup of the town was 69.56% [[White (U.S. Census)|White]], 0.28% [[African American (U.S. Census)|African American]], 24.79% [[Native American (U.S. Census)|Native American]], 1.38% from [[Race (United States Census)|other races]], and 3.99% from two or more races. [[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Latino (U.S. Census)|Latino]] of any race were 2.48% of the population.

There were 288 households, out of which 33.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.5% were [[Marriage|married couples]] living together, 15.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.4% were non-families. 24.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.52 and the average family size was 2.89.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 28.2% under the age of 18, 9.0% from 18 to 24, 24.5% from 25 to 44, 21.9% from 45 to 64, and 16.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 86.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.1 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $19,300, and the median income for a family was $22,955. Males had a median income of $22,813 versus $17,031 for females. The [[per capita income]] for the town was $10,684. About 22.0% of families and 26.2% of the population were below the [[poverty line]], including 40.9% of those under age 18 and 14.9% of those age 65 or over.

==Notable people==
* [[Stand Watie]], Confederate General, retired here after the Civil War until his death in 1870.<ref name="Jackson">{{Cite web |url=https://www.cherokeephoenix.org/article/index/9833 |title=Jackson, Tessina. "Webbers Falls has history of booms, busts and tragedy." ''Cherokee Phoenix''.November 25, 2015. |date=November 25, 2015 |access-date=November 5, 2019 |archive-date=November 5, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191105230157/https://www.cherokeephoenix.org/article/index/9833 |url-status=live }}</ref>
* [[Joseph Vann|Joseph "Rich Joe" Vann]], (1798-1844) early Cherokee settler and operator of a steamboat business, who died in 1844 when his [[Lucy Walker steamboat disaster|steamboat, ''Lucy Walker'', exploded]] on the [[Mississippi River]].<ref name="Jackson"/>

==Notes==
{{Notelist}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
* Marguerite McFadden, "The Saga of 'Rich Joe' Vann," ''The Chronicles of Oklahoma'' 61 (Spring 1983).
* Marguerite McFadden, "Webbers Falls: Noted Historic Site in Muskogee County," ''The Chronicles of Oklahoma'' 51 (Spring 1973).

==External links==
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20020810185300/http://www.hq.usace.army.mil/cepa/pubs/jul02/story2.htm The I-40 Bridge Disaster]
* http://www.city-data.com/city/Webbers-Falls-Oklahoma.html
* https://www.travelok.com/listings/view.profile/id.8431 Webbers Falls Historical Museum

{{Muskogee County, Oklahoma}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Towns in Muskogee County, Oklahoma]]
[[Category:Towns in Oklahoma]]
[[Category:Populated places within the Cherokee Nation reservation]]
[[Category:Oklahoma populated places on the Arkansas River]]
[[Category:Populated places established in 1818]]