South Central Oklahoma, or Arbuckle Country, as officially defined by the Oklahoma Department of Tourism, is an amorphous 10-county region in the state of Oklahoma. It is centered around the Arbuckle Mountains, an ancient, eroded range traversing some 70 miles (110 km) across the region, and surrounded by rivers and lakes, notably Lake Texoma, Lake Murray and Lake of the Arbuckles.
The Chickasaw Nation of Oklahoma lies wholly within the region, with the tribal capitol building located at Tishomingo and its headquarters in Ada. The Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma covers the eastern third of the region. Its headquarters are in Durant, and its capitol building, now museum, is in Tuskahoma.
The region, also known by its former Okla. Department of Tourism designation, Lake and Trail Country, has three distinct centers of commerce and culture, Ardmore, Ada, and Durant, though it retains a largely rural nature, and is populated with many small towns and ranches. It also contains a large portion of the cross timbers region, transitioning from a heavily wooded area (with native oaks, elms and other eastern varieties) to a rolling savanna in the west, occasionally broken by cedar and mesquite trees. In addition to abundant water resources latent in the Arbuckle-Simpson Aquifer, the region has some of the highest oil & gas production in the state, with Carter County seated as the largest producer in the state.
Read more about South Central Oklahoma: Geography, Tourism, Demographics, Cities & Towns
Famous quotes containing the words south, central and/or oklahoma:
“We have heard all of our lives how, after the Civil War was over, the South went back to straighten itself out and make a living again. It was for many years a voiceless part of the government. The balance of power moved away from it—to the north and the east. The problems of the north and the east became the big problem of the country and nobody paid much attention to the economic unbalance the South had left as its only choice.”
—Lyndon Baines Johnson (1908–1973)
“The best laws cannot make a constitution work in spite of morals; morals can turn the worst laws to advantage. That is a commonplace truth, but one to which my studies are always bringing me back. It is the central point in my conception. I see it at the end of all my reflections.”
—Alexis de Tocqueville (1805–1859)
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—M.F.K. Fisher (1908–1992)