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BHistory
History · Sulphur

Sulphur dates to 1882, and 4 of its places are on the National Register

More historic than 59% of U.S. towns · #38 of 131 in Oklahoma. What drives it

Most of Sulphur was built recently: 9% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1973. 4 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 25 buildings. Below: 10 old photos and papers, maps from 1903 on, and the census since 1900.

1882founded
4on the National Register
9%homes built before 1940
10old photos & papers
7famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Sulphur’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Sulphur began

When was Sulphur founded?

1882

Sulphur dates its founding to 1882 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1900.

First census: 1,198 in 19002020 census: 5,065144 years

How historic is Sulphur?

B

More historic than 59% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1895.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Sulphur’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Sulphur is more historic than 59% of U.S. towns, #38 of 131 in Oklahoma. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.

B
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Sulphur’s overall grade.
Founding era1882, from Wikidata: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 19408.5% of homes (±3.4) · typical OK town 7.0% · U.S. 8.4%C+National Register4 listings, 28 historic buildings, 57.4 per 10,000 residents · typical OK town 5.9 · U.S. 2.4A
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 59%
NewerOlder
Oklahoma towns of 2,500+ (131)Ahead of 72%

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 Sulphur’s 57.4 sits above most of its state (89% of Oklahoma towns have fewer) while its 28 historic buildings outnumber those of 81% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C to B+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±3.4 points). Two sources give 1882.

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 Sulphur’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

Mapped building by building5 fire insurance maps, 1903 to 1918, drew every building in Sulphur.A historic districtThe Historic Downtown Sulphur Commercial District takes in 25 historic buildings.Landmarks on the Register4 places on the National Register.
★ What stands out · Every building

Sulphur, building by building, 1903–1918

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.

Sulphur fire insurance map, 1903, sheet 11903Sheet 1 of 2
Edition
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

On the National Register

4 listings protect 28 historic buildings

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
4
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
28
each building in a district counts
first listed
1984
Murray County Courthouse
Murray County CourthouseSulphur ArmoryTravertine Nature CenterHistoric Downtown Sulphur Commercial District
BuildingsDistricts

Architectural styles listings

Neo-Egyptian Revival1
Works Progress Administration1
Park Service Modern1
Late Victorian1
Italianate Commercial1
Late Gothic Revival1
Murray County CourthouseNeo-Egyptian Revival
Sulphur ArmoryWorks Progress Administration
Travertine Nature CenterPark Service Modern
All 4 listings
Historic Downtown Sulphur Commercial DistrictDistrict · listed 2001

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

The story

How Sulphur came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Sulphur.

Read it all →

This area was part of Pickens County, Chickasaw Nation, in the Indian Territory during the late 19th century. The first known settler was Noah Lael, son-in-law of former Chickasaw Governor Cyrus Harris, who built a ranch south of Pavilion Springs in 1878. In 1882, Harris sold the ranch to Perry Froman, a part Chickasaw rancher. The Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture says the ranch house was the first residence in Sulphur.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Sulphur, 1880 to 1967

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1880In the archive1940 Census Enumeration District Maps - Oklahoma - Murray County - Sulphur - ED 50-13, ED…
  3. 1882
    FoundingSulphur is established
  4. 1895Post officeThe Sulphur post office opens
  5. 20th century
  6. 1915Born hereJames Robert Hightower is born here
  7. 1917In the archiveArt class. Training School for Deaf Mutes. See 4843-4851. Location: Sulphur, Oklahoma
  8. 1931Born hereWayne Bennett is born here
  9. 1947Born hereJohn Sparks is born here
  10. 1957Born hereDanny Hilliard is born here
  11. 1967On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Sulphur, decade by decade

2 decades in the archive, from the 1880s to the 1910s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1880s–1910s10 items
1940 Census Enumeration District Maps - Oklahoma - Murray County - Sulphur - ED 50-13, ED 50-14, ED 50-15, ED 50-16, ED…18801940 Census Enumeration District Maps - Oklahoma - Mu…Art class. Training School for Deaf Mutes. See 4843-4851. Location: Sulphur, Oklahoma1917Art class. Training School for Deaf Mutes. See 4843-4…Learning typesetting. Training School for Deaf Mutes. See 4843-4851. Location: Sulphur, Oklahoma1917Learning typesetting. Training School for Deaf Mutes.…Cabinet work. Training School for Deaf Mutes. See 4843-4851. Location: Sulphur, Oklahoma1917Cabinet work. Training School for Deaf Mutes. See 484…Learning to make shoes. Training School for Deaf Mutes. See 4843-4851. Location: Sulphur, Oklahoma1917Learning to make shoes. Training School for Deaf Mute…Sewing and darning. Training School for Deaf Mutes. See 4843-4851. Location: Sulphur, Oklahoma1917Sewing and darning. Training School for Deaf Mutes. S…Teaching a deaf-mute to talk. Training School for Deaf Mutes. See 4843-4851. Location: Sulphur, Oklahoma1917Teaching a deaf-mute to talk. Training School for Dea…[Teaching a deaf-mute to talk. Training School for Deaf Mutes. See 4843-4851.] Location: Sulphur, Oklahoma1917[Teaching a deaf-mute to talk. Training School for De…Crowded dormitory (one wall) in Training School for Deaf Mutes. See Gibbons report. Location: Sulphur, Oklahoma1917Crowded dormitory (one wall) in Training School for D…Marching to supper, Training School for Deaf Mutes. Crowded conditions. See Gibbons report. Location: Sulphur, Oklahoma1917Marching to supper, Training School for Deaf Mutes. C…
1920s–1990snothing yet
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.
Add from your album
Today8 recent
Ardmore Municipal Airport, Gene Autry, Lake of the Arbuckles, and2024Ardmore Municipal Airport, Gene Autry, Lake of the Ar…SulphurArmoryOK2014SulphurArmoryOKStatues at the Chickasaw Cultural Center during the 2012 Trail of Tears Conference in Sulphur, Oklahoma near the Chicka…2012Statues at the Chickasaw Cultural Center during the 2…Benches line a walking trail at the Chickasaw Cultural Center grounds during the 2012 Trail of Tears Conference in Sulp…2012Benches line a walking trail at the Chickasaw Cultura…A windy stone trail at the Chickasaw Cultural Center during the 2012 Trail of Tears Conference in Sulphur, Oklahoma nea…2012A windy stone trail at the Chickasaw Cultural Center …A close-up look at Chickasaw craftsmanship at the Chickasaw Cultural Center during the 2012 Trail of Tears Conference i…2012A close-up look at Chickasaw craftsmanship at the Chi…Untitled photo2007Untitled photoArbuckle mts2006Arbuckle mts
On the map

Sulphur on the map, 1967 to 1993

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Sulphur. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Sulphur on the 1967 USGS mapSulphur on the 1993 USGS map1967Sulphur North sheet · 1:24,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Sulphur.

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.

1940 Census Enumeration District Maps - Oklahoma - Murray County - Sulphur - ED 50-13, ED 50-14, ED 50-15, ED 50-16, ED…
Retake this view1940 Census Enumeration District Maps - Oklahoma - Murray County - Sulphur - ED 50-13, ED 50-14, ED 50-15, ED 50-16, ED…, 1880

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Sulphur’s page.

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Sulphur, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0003,5004,0004,5005,0005,5006,0001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 5,516

Between 1,198 and 5,516 people in every census since 1900.

13 censuses, 1900–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Sulphur’s Wikipedia page.

Famous people

7 famous people were born in Sulphur

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
J
James Robert HightowerAmerican sinologist · b. 1915
John SparksOklahoma Senator representing District 16, whic… · b. 1947
W
Wayne BennettAmerican musician · b. 1931
D
Danny HilliardAmerican politician · b. 1957
F
Frank LewisAmerican politician · b. 1939
L
Loyd ArmsAmerican football player and wrestler · b. 1919
Help out

Finish Sulphur’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old view1940 Census Enumeration District Maps -…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Questions about Sulphur’s history

What year was Sulphur founded?

In 1882, according to Wikidata. Sulphur’s post office opened in 1895, and the census of 1900 counted 1,198 people here.

How does Sulphur rank for history?

Sulphur is more historic than 59% of U.S. towns, #38 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 Sulphur?

4 listings: 3 buildings, among them the Murray County Courthouse (listed 1984, the first), and 1 historic district, the Historic Downtown Sulphur Commercial District, with 25 contributing buildings. 28 historic buildings in all.

How old are the homes in Sulphur?

9% of Sulphur’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.4 points), against a typical 7.0% for an Oklahoma town; the median home was built in 1973.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

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 (9), the Library of Congress (9), the National Register of Historic Places (4), 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.