New Cordell

History

Cordell began when H. D. Young opened a general store about 1.5 miles east of the present town, shortly after the Cheyenne and Arapaho lands were opened for non-Indian settlement in 1892. A post office named Cordell was established in the same year in Young's store. In 1897, A. J. Johnson and J. C. Harrell convinced Young to move his store to the present site, where water was more plentiful and of better quality than in Old Cordell. The new location became known as New Cordell. In 1900, Washita County residents voted to move the county seat from the town of Cloud Chief to New Cordell. The move was challenged in the court as illegal, because only the territorial legislature could authorize such an action. In 1904, the Oklahoma Territorial Supreme Court ruled that the county seat must return to Cloud Chief. A Cordell attorney, Sam Massengale, traveled to Washington, where he lobbied for a bill to make Cordell the official county seat. The bill passed the U. S. Congress in 1906. The county courthouse was destroyed by a fire in 1909. It was rebuilt by 1911 by the same architect who designed the Oklahoma State Capitol. Governor George Nigh called it, "...godfather of all courthouses in the state of Oklahoma." The Washita County Courthouse is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. In 1911, the Carnegie Foundation approved a grant to construct what became known as the Cordell Carnegie Community Library.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all land. The city is located approximately in the center of the county.

Race & ethnicity

Largest nearby schools

• CORDELL ES
  Elementary · Cordell · 358 students · 14.3:1 ratio
• CORDELL JHS
  Middle · Cordell · 137 students · 15.2:1 ratio
• CORDELL HS
  High · Cordell · 104 students · 10.4:1 ratio