1914 Map of Nowata

About this map

Bartlesville and Nowata anchor this northeastern Oklahoma landscape just before the First World War, serving as vital hubs for the region's expanding rail and agricultural network. The map reveals a densely settled rural society defined by its local institutions, with dozens of named schoolhouses such as Cotton Valley School, Dogtown School, and Cherokee Central School dotting the countryside. Transit is dominated by the Missouri Kansas and Texas and the Atchison Topeka and Santa Fe railroads, which linked the small prairie towns of Lenapah, Delaware, and Watova to larger markets. Along the Caney River and its tributaries like Hogshooter Creek, the terrain transitions into complex drainage patterns, where small post offices like Howden Elliott PO and Adair Woodrow PO once served as essential community nodes before the advent of more centralized postal services.