First Newspaper in McCurtain County Oklahoma Was Published in Garvin Oklahoma 74736

The first newspaper in McCurtain County Oklahoma was Published in Garvin Oklahoma 74736

Garvin, Oklahoma 74736 is now one of the smaller towns in McCurtain County Oklahoma. That was not always the case. You know the old saying, "Time Changes Things" ? Well this is one solid example of that being true.

When the current location for Garvin was chosen by the Choctaw Townsite Commission in 1902, it soon became larger in both population and business development than both Purnell (renamed Idabel) and Valliant.

James Kirk moved his trading post into the townsite.

Other businesses and professional offices included churches, the Garvin Graphic Newspaper, a Federal Commissioner Office, G M Barett's Law Office (who became County Attorney in 1910...that's another post soon) , A sawmill, barrell hoop mill, a school (with 50 students in 1904), a cotton gin, and a telephone system even in 1905!

Garvin which started out as the post office for Wheelock Academy, (my great grandmother was buried there) continued to grow until 1910 when the large native limestone rock church was built by the Presbyterians. It was a beautiful church with stained-glass windows. The Presbyterians spent $12,000 to construct the church which in 1910 was a large sum of money.

The church in later years had been listed on the National Register of Historic Places but was torn down in recent years due to safety issues with the terrible condition that it had fallen into. Garvin's current population is reported at 139. There is a store and a fire department. Children living there usually attend school at either Valliant, Idabel, Forest Grove, or Holly Creek.

Garvin is a small community now located on highway 70. A good community to live in that is about 8 1/2 miles west of Idabel, Oklahoma 74745 and about 9 1/2 miles east of Valliant Oklahoma 74764. It has rural water available to it's residents. There is no public sewer system. A great place to be centrally located in our area with a newly renovated 4 lane highway. If you are interested in living in Garvin Oklahoma or the rural area around it, please give me a call and let's visit about your needs.

Railroad Photo courtesy of Click

Various sources were read to learn about Garvin including:

A Standard History of Oklahoma written by Joseph B Thoburn in 1916.

Oklahoma Place Names by George Shirk

The Oklahoma Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture - The Oklahoma Historical Society