Browse / United States / Oklahoma / Alva
Alva
Oklahomacity
Alva
Total population
4,982
Median home value
$133,600
Bachelor's+
Median income
$40,709
Founded
1893
Demographic figures from US Census Bureau · ACS 5-year estimates. Overview below cites Wikipedia and may reference a different year.
City facts
Facts from Wikidata (CC0).
Overview
Alva is a city in and the county seat of Woods County, Oklahoma, United States, along the Salt Fork Arkansas River. The population was 5,028 at the time of the 2020 Census, up from 4,945 at the 2010 census. The main campus of Northwestern Oklahoma State University is in Alva.
Read more on WikipediaHistory & geography
History
Alva was established in 1893 as a United States General Land Office for the Cherokee Outlet land run, the largest of the land rushes that settled western and central Oklahoma. The site was chosen for its location on the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway and likely named for a railroad attorney, Alva Adams, who had become governor of Colorado. When the Southern Kansas Railway began extending its line from Kiowa, Kansas, across the Cherokee Outlet in 1886, Alva became the first railroad station southwest of Kiowa. The line was operational in 1887, in time for the opening of the Unassigned Lands. Northwestern Territorial Normal School, now Northwestern Oklahoma State University ("NWOSU"), was established in 1897 in Alva by the Oklahoma Territorial Legislature. Alva is also the location of the Oklahoma Department of Corrections minimum-security Charles E. Johnson Correctional Center housing 630 male felon drug offenders.
Geography
Alva is located in the northeastern quadrant of Woods County, northeast of Woodward, northwest of Enid and southwest of Wichita, Kansas. Its geographic coordinates are (36.801931, -98.665959).
Excerpted from the corresponding Wikipedia article (CC BY-SA).
Demographics & economy
Race & ethnicity
Source: US Census Bureau — American Community Survey, 5-year estimates.
Geography
Coordinates & boundaries from the US Census TIGER/Line shapefiles.
Climate
Current forecast
Forecast for Alva, OK from NOAA NWS API.
Air quality
Industrial & pollution facilities
Natural hazard risk
Health (adults)
Age-adjusted prevalence estimates from CDC PLACES (latest release).
Walkability
Amenities nearby
Wildlife & biodiversity
Schools
Largest nearby schools
- ALVA HSHigh · Alva · 263 students · 12.5:1 ratio
- ALVA MSMiddle · Alva · 241 students · 14.2:1 ratio
- WASHINGTON ESElementary · Alva · 235 students · 14.7:1 ratio
- LONGFELLOW ESElementary · Alva · 156 students · 14.2:1 ratio
- LINCOLN ESElementary · Alva · 144 students · 14.4:1 ratio
Public K–12 schools within ~10 mi from Urban Institute Education Data Portal (NCES Common Core of Data, 2022).
Earthquake history
Photos
Sights & places nearby
Notable people from here
People born within ~10 km, from Wikidata (CC0). Click any name for their Wikipedia article.
Nearby places in Oklahoma
Geography & sun
Elevation, sunrise/sunset and daylight from Open-Meteo. Solar climatology from NASA POWER.
Nearby airports
Public attention
Pageview totals from the Wikimedia Pageviews API.
Books about Alva
Search results from Open Library.
Recent natural events nearby
- Wildfire Burnt Canyon, Woodward, OklahomaWildfires · 2026-08-15 · 36 mi
- Wildfire Semi 270, Woodward, OklahomaWildfires · 2026-08-01 · 51 mi
- Wildfire Black Kettle, Roger Mills, OklahomaWildfires · 2026-09-14 · 90 mi
- Wildfire GRACEMONT, Caddo, OklahomaWildfires · 2026-09-13 · 104 mi
- Wildfire Calvary Creek, Washita, OklahomaWildfires · 2026-09-15 · 114 mi
- Wildfire 2690, Caddo, OklahomaWildfires · 2026-08-21 · 115 mi
- Wildfire B.B, Osage, OklahomaWildfires · 2026-08-06 · 122 mi
- Wildfire BISON, Osage, OklahomaWildfires · 2026-08-21 · 129 mi
Wildfires, storms and other events from NASA EONET (last 12 months, within 250 mi).
Ground air-quality sensors
Recently spotted species
Research-grade observations from iNaturalist (within ~15 mi).
Nearest stream gauge
Events
Gallery
Sources
- • Wikipedia
- • US Census Bureau (ACS 5-year estimates)
- • NOAA National Weather Service
- • Wikidata
- • NCES via Urban Institute Education Data Portal
- • iNaturalist
- • CDC PLACES
- • Open-Elevation
- • Open-Meteo / sunrise-sunset.org
- • Wikipedia Pageviews API
- • Open Library
- • NASA EONET