Skiatook, Oklahoma

Skiatook (Skī·ǎ·tōōk or Skī·ǎ·tǒǒk versus Skī·tōōk or Skī·tǒǒk) is a city in Osage and Tulsa counties in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. Located in the northeastern part of the state, about twenty miles north and west of Tulsa, it is a suburb of Tulsa. The population was 7,397 at the 2010 census, an increase of 37.1 percent from 5,396 at the 2000 census.

History

William C. Rogers, last hereditary Chief of the Cherokees, founded Skiatook in 1872, when he established a trading post in the Cherokee Nation just to the south of Bird Creek where the stream was easily crossed. When a post office was established in Rogers' store in the 1880s, the place was named Ski-a-took. An Osage Indian, Skiatooka, was a frequent trader at the post, so it has been suggested this may be the connection which resulted in the town's name. In 1892, the name was changed from Ski-a-took to its present form.

Historical records have conflicting data as to the origin of Skiatook's name. One story is that the town was founded on land which was the home of a prominent Osage Indian, Skiatooka, and the community around his home was called Skiatooka's Settlement.