Cowlington is a town in LeFlore County, Oklahoma. As of the 2020 census, Cowlington had a population of 109.
History
The fertile soil of the Arkansas River bottom land, in which the present town of Cowlington is located, attracted settlement as soon as the Choctaw tribe migrated to Indian Territory. Many of these inhabitants fled during the American Civil War, returning only when hostilities had ceased. White men also came after the war and began leasing land. Among these were Coke and Fowler Cowling. A settlement formed that was informally known as Short Mountain. A post office named Cowlington, to honor the Cowling family, opened in the community in 1884.
At the time of its founding, Cowlington was located in the Moshulatubbee District of the Choctaw Nation.
Cowlington's economy was largely based on agricultural services. Area production included wheat, potatoes, cotton, and livestock. The town prospered because of its access to the steamboat trade on the river. Two floods along the Arkansas River, in 1898 and 1904, devastated the local economy, but the town recovered each time. However, railroads built lines through LeFlore County in the late 1800s, and began to supplant the steamboats. Fowler Cowlington tried to convince some of the railroads to build a track through Cowlington, but failed in this effort. More residents began to move away.
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, Cowlington had a population of 109. The median age was 51.2 years. 20.2% of residents were under the age of 18 and 24.8% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 87.9 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 81.2 males age 18 and over.
There were 48 households in Cowlington, of which 22.9% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 50.0% were married-couple households, 18.8% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 25.0% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 31.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
! Race !! Number !! Percent
|-
| White || 85 || 78.0%
|-
| Black or African American || 1 || 0.9%
|-
| American Indian and Alaska Native || 10 || 9.2%
|-
| Asian || 0 || 0.0%
|-
| Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander || 0 || 0.0%
|-
| Some other race || 1 || 0.9%
|-
| Two or more races || 12 || 11.0%
|-
| Hispanic or Latino (of any race) || 1 || 0.9%
|}
2000 census
As of the census