Okmulgee dates to 1868, and 27% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 83% of U.S. towns · #2 of 131 in Oklahoma. What drives it
16 places in town are on the National Register, among them the Creek National Capitol, a National Historic Landmark, and three historic districts with 141 buildings between them. Below: 3 old photos and papers, maps from 1894 on, and the census since 1910.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1869.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Okmulgee’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Okmulgee is more historic than 83% of U.S. towns, #2 of 131 in Oklahoma. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Okmulgee’s overall grade.
Oklahoma towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Oklahoma town has 5.9 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Okmulgee’s 137 sits above most of its state (96% of Oklahoma towns have fewer) while its 155 historic buildings outnumber those of 92% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B to A+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±3.3 points). Two sources give 1868.
Founding year: Wikidata (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →
What stands out about Okmulgee’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Okmulgee has been the capital of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation since 1868, when it was founded following the Civil War. The Creek Nation began restoring order after that conflict. They had allied with the Confederacy during the war and needed to make a new peace treaty with the United States afterward as a result. They passed a new constitution and elected Samuel Checote as their first principal chief after the war.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Okmulgee.
Every building
Okmulgee, building by building, 1894–1920
Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.
1894Sheet 1 of 1
Edition
Sheets
BrickWoodStone
Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
Then & now
Stand where they stood
No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.
Retake this viewCreekCapital1878, 1878
Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Okmulgee’s page.
Okmulgee’s post office has been open since 1883. Another post office, Obmulkee, opened and closed inside today’s town.
Obmulkee
1869–1883
Okmulgee
1883–today
18601940today
3cemeteries and burying grounds inside Okmulgee
OakwoodOkmulgeeWoodlawn
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about Okmulgee’s history
What year was Okmulgee founded?
In 1868, according to Wikidata. Okmulgee’s post office opened in 1869, and the census of 1910 counted 4,176 people here.
How does Okmulgee rank for history?
Okmulgee is more historic than 83% of U.S. towns, #2 of 131 in Oklahoma. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
What is on the National Register in Okmulgee?
16 listings: 12 buildings, among them the Creek National Capitol (a National Historic Landmark since 1961), 3 historic districts, the Okmulgee Downtown Historic District, the Harmon Athletic Field and the Okmulgee Country Club and Golf Course, with 141 contributing buildings, and 1 structure. 155 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Okmulgee?
27% of Okmulgee’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.3 points), against a typical 7.0% for an Oklahoma town; the median home was built in 1960.
Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
From Wikimedia Commons (3), Wikidata (3), the National Register of Historic Places (16), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
★ Landmark
1880
