Prehistoric times found the land now called Adair County inhabited by Archaic and Woodland peoples. Caddoan and Osage peoples came later, it says at okhistory.org. In the 1700’s and early 1800s French and Spanish trapper-traders were early explorers. The first white pioneers were Creole, and after 1912 more pioneers came here. In 1825 the Osage sold the land that that is now Adair County to the United States.



As early as 1910 Cherokees began moving west, as settlers arrived on the east coast. Western Cherokee arrived as early as 1828 from Arkansas, with the Eastern Cherokee arriving from Georgia, Tennessee and North Carolina in the 1930’s.

The 2000 census showed 8,938 American Indians, 10,207 whites, 38 African Americans and 20 Asian Americans living in Adair County.

Adair County was established in 1906 at the Oklahoma Constitutional Convention from combining the Going Snake and Flint Districts of the Cherokee Nation. It was named for an influential Cherokee family, William Penn Adair, it says at okhistory.org. Stilwell became the County Seat around statehood, 1907, when the first governor, Charles Haskell was determined the winner after three elections. Before that Oklahoma was almost two states, including the State of Sequoyah.

The county is bordered on the north by Delaware County, on the east by the state of Arkansas, on the south by Sequoyah County and the west by Cherokee County. It has U.S. Highway 62 (east west) and U.S Highway 59 (north south), along with State Highway 51 and 100 (east west). It has 577.03 square miles of land and water including the Illinois River and Barren Fork, Evansville and Caney Creeks.

The construction of railroad tracks through the county by Kansas City, Pittsburg and Gulf Railway, later renamed Kansas City Southern, which traveled from Missouri to Mexico, changed the landscape and impacted the county. Geographically, the region is part of the Ozark Plateau foothills of the Boston Mountains, which were challenging for railroad tracks. Arthur Stilwell recounted his through Indian territory and the town was incorporated in 1897 and named for Stilwell. B.G. Fletcher moved his hard store to Stilwell and it was the oldest business in town until a fire in 2012. Today it is the site of Fletcher Park, dedicated in 2020.

Education is a priority, as evidenced by how many rural schools still operate and the three public schools in the county. Cherokees first established schools in Indian Territory, and one became Northeastern State University. Cherokees also brought a printing press from the east and operated the first newspaper in the area.

Agriculture has been the strength of the economy and a major source of employment and income since before statehood with cattle, horses, corn, wheat, oats, sorghums, and strawberries as principal products. In 1907 county farmers planted 16,299 acres of corn, 4,883 acres of wheat, 2,257 acres of oats, and 1,213 acres of cotton, with 4,799 cattle and 1,691 horses. Corn dominated in 1934 with 4,173 acres planted, 4,173 acres of wheat and 2,740 acres of oats. By 1935 there were 14,908 head of cattle.

By 1959 sorghums was the main crop with 6,200 acres planted, followed by 2,300 acres of corn and 2,100 of oats. In 1960-61 more land was dedicated to dairy and livestock pastures, cattle increasing to 26,000 in 1961. In 2000 35,000 acres of hay was harvested, wheat planted was 2,000 acres, and there were 55,000 head of cattle.

Stilwell Canning Company was established in 1941, which became Stilwell Foods in 1974, Mrs. Smiths Pies followed and today is Schwan’s.

Historic sites in the county include the Adair County Courthouse, an Opera house in Stilwell and Westville, Fort Wayne built in 1838, Old Baptist Mission, Howard Hotel in Watts, and Starr Springs.

Infamous gangs frequented Adair County including the Starrs, James brothers and Pretty Boy Floyd aka Charles Arther.

Rufus Allison served as the first mayor of Stilwell, in 2002 Marilyn Hill Russell become the first female mayor, and today, seventh generation Stilwellian Jean Ann Wright serves as mayor.

The first female Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation, the late Wilma Mankiller helped put Stilwell on the map, as have former House of Representative Speaker Larry E. Adair and football star Sam Clapham, who played for Stilwell High School, the University of Oklahoma and San Diego Chargers.

Historically the county includes 23 communities, many which have churches and community centers, and some still have schools: Bell, cherry Tree, Chewey, Christie, Elm Grove, Fairfield, Greasy, Lyons Switch Maryetta, Mulberry, Old Green, Peavine, Piney, Proctor, Rocky Mountain, Salem, Stilwell, Titanic, Watts, Wauhilla, Westville, West Peavine and Zion.

Daniel Boone’s youngest son, Captain Nathan Boone, helped survey the area for a military road. Founded in 1838, Watts is the northern most town in Adair County and named for John Watts, a Chickamunga Cherokee Chief. In 1913 a three story school house was built, replaced by a brick one in 1924. Frank C. Adair, the first county sheriff, and Frank Howard started the first bank, Guarantee Bank. There were three doctors, A.J. Sands, I.W. Rogers and Ezell W.G. White, two livery stables, several hotels, a bakery, a lumberyard, a hardware store and two drug stores.

Westville was named for James West, whose son was an attorney for the railroad. A.J. Edmonton published the town’s first newspaper in 1898, the first school was started in 1903 and Buffington Hotel was constructed around 1910. A Cherokee religious figure and political leader, Jesse Bushyhead, who helped bring opposing factions together to create the Cherokee Nation, is buried here. Robert Rogers Jr., grandfather of Will Rogers, is buried here.

“History is a record of the past. The history of the West, the history of Indian Territory and finally, the history one of Oklahoma’s smallest counties, Adair, is a record that should bring a feeling of pride to every citizen within its boundaries,” Lucy Jane Makoske, in Adair County History and Legend.