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Wewoka is a city in Seminole County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 3,430 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Seminole County.〔(【引用サイトリンク】accessdate=2011-06-07 )〕 Founded by John Horse and Black Seminoles in the late 1880s, Wewoka is the current capital of the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma. ==History== Wewoka's history begins with John Horse, who was also known as Gopher John.〔May, Jon D. "(HORSE, JOHN (ca. 1812-1882) )," Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture. (accessed July 30, 2013)〕 In the spring of 1849, Horse and a group of Black Seminoles founded a settlement near modern-day Wewoka.〔 Seeking safety and autonomy from the Creek Nation, they established a community located at the falls of a small stream, lying in the fertile lands between the North and South Canadian Rivers. The steady rush of water over the falls gave rise to the name We-Wo-Ka – meaning “Barking Water” in the Mvskoke (Seminole) language. Other historians claim he named the settlement ''Wewokea'' after Osceola's second wife who was of both Seminole and African ancestry. In autumn of 1849, Horse and Seminole chief Wild Cat led Seminole families into Mexico to avoid the attempts of slavers to raid families and capture people of African descent.〔 The Mexican government offered Wild Cat, Horse and other Seminoles land in Mexico if they could rid the land of renegades who were terrorizing Mexican citizens. Wild Cat was the next hereditary chief of the Seminole Nation but the government appointed its first chief John Jumper instead. The descendants of Wildcat and his band were split for a time between Wewoka, Texas, and Mexico until 1918. The city was founded in 1866 when Elijah J. Brown, an employee of the federal government led Seminole refugees from Leroy, Kansas to Indian Territory.〔Wilson, Linda D. "(WEWOKA )," Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture. (accessed July 30, 2013)〕 During the American Civil War, the Seminole Nation had sided with the Confederacy. When the Confederacy lost, the United States government required the Seminole to sign a new treaty. It required them to emancipate their slaves, give freedmen who wanted to stay in the territory full rights as citizens, including voting in the tribe. The Seminole Nation made Wewoka their capital city and Seminole Governor John Brown had a log house erected at Wewoka as the Seminole capitol in 1877.〔 Freedmen settled in Wewoka along with the Seminole and Elijah Brown was the only legal white settler in the county until the Oklahoma Land Run of 1889. In 1907, Wewoka became part of the state of Oklahoma, which was admitted to the union. In 1908 it was designated as the county seat of Seminole County, Oklahoma, winning out in an election against the city of Seminole, Oklahoma. The city developed around the house that Andrew Jackson Brown and his wife Mannie Lou built at 11th Avenue and Muskogee. Brown was the brother of Seminole Governor John Brown and the two owned and operated the Wewoka Trading Company.〔Wilson, Linda D. (TRADING COMPANY ), Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture. (accessed July 30, 2013)〕 They were prominent Seminole of Creek and Scottish ancestry. Descendants included two prominent Seminole chiefs, Lucy Brown McKellop and her husband John F. McKellop. The house still stands, the last remaining structure of the Nineteenth Seminole Republic. It straddles the border between the Seminole and Creek nations and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. In March 1923, oil was discovered a mile and a half southeast of Wewoka. R. H. Smith drilled the first commercial well in 1923 on St. Patrick's Day. Great wealth was realized by many Seminole in 1925 with the exploration of the Magnolia Petroleum Company. In the 1920s and 30's the great Seminole Oil Fields were the largest suppliers of oil anywhere in the world. In 1925 the population of Wewoka was 1,520. By 1927 the population increased to over 20,000, as adventurers and workers came, to make their fortunes. It rapidly had become the third-largest city in Oklahoma. From 1927 to the present, the oil companies took out as much as they could get. As the oil decreased, jobs and people left the city. By 1950 the population of Wewoka was 6,753 and in 1960 it was 6,300. The population continued a steady decline, but the city has continued as the commercial center of the region. The 1980s and 1990s were difficult for the city. Businesses left town and poverty greatly increased. The city leaders tried to protect themselves by refusing to allow competition, like Wal-Mart, to enter the city. Holdenville and Seminole do have Wal-Mart stores. Seminole's Wal-Mart has the super-center configuration offering groceries as well as dry goods. The crime rate in Wewoka during the 1980s increased; the radio commentator Paul Harvey called Wewoka "Little Chicago," because it had a higher crime rate per capita than the city of Chicago. The violence in the city caused people to avoid coming to Wewoka and gave the city a reputation that continues to linger. By the mid 1990s, new leadership began to turn commerce around in the city. The police force was increased and began to get the crime rate under control. The crime rate by 2001 was below average for the state of Oklahoma. The historic downtown received a face lift of new sidewalks, streets, lights and flowers. Wewoka was selected as one of Channel 5's Top Five Cities in 2004. The city of Wewoka continues to work to attract businesses and maintain population. The current population of Wewoka is just over 3,500. The projections show that the city will continue to decrease in the coming years. The ethnic diversity continues, with 52% white, 22% American Indian and 18% African American. The average household income is approximately $37,000 a year, a substantial increase over 2002. According to the demographic comparison, the number of households is decreasing, but the income of those living in Wewoka is increasing. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Wewoka, Oklahoma」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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