Fort Coffee is a town in Le Flore County, Oklahoma, United States. Originally constructed as a U. S. Army fort in 1834, it was named for U. S. General John Coffee, a veteran of the Seminole Wars. As of the 2020 census, Fort Coffee had a population of 335.
History
The town of Fort Coffee traces its beginnings to 1832, when the Choctaw Indian tribe was removed from the southeastern United States and transported to land in the eastern part of Indian Territory (now in the state of Oklahoma). Most of the travel was by water, and the site of Fort Coffee became a port on the Arkansas River.
In 1843, the Choctaw nation allowed the Methodist Episcopal church to establish the Fort Coffee Choctaw Boys Academy in the buildings. This school continued until the outbreak of the Civil War, when Confederate forces commanded by General Stand Watie occupied the site. The Union Army recaptured the fort in 1863. Most of the buildings were burned during this time. Several small houses were built using the foundation stones. about 11 miles from the Arkansas border.
Demographics
Racial and ethnic composition
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
|+Fort Coffee town, Oklahoma – Racial and ethnic composition<br><small></small>
!Race / Ethnicity <small>(NH = Non-Hispanic)</small>
!Pop 2000
!Pop 2010
!
!% 2000
!% 2010
!
|-
|White alone (NH)
|108
|92
|style='background: #ffffe6; |83
|26.21%
|21.70%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |24.78%
|-
|Black or African American alone (NH)
|259
|282
|style='background: #ffffe6; |173
|62.86%
|66.51%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |51.64%
|-
|Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)
|16
|18
|style='background: #ffffe6; |28
|3.88%
|4.25%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |8.36%
|-
|Asian alone (NH)
|0
|4
|style='background: #ffffe6; |1
|0.00%
|0.94%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.30%
|-
|Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)
|0
|0
|style='background: #ffffe6; |0
|0.00%
|0.00%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.00%
|-
|Other race alone (NH)
|0
|0
|style='background: #ffffe6; |0
|0.00%
|0.00%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.00%
|-
|Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)
|29
|24
|style='background: #ffffe6; |44
|7.04%
|5.66%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |13.13%
|-
|Hispanic or Latino (any race)
|0
|4
|style='background: #ffffe6; |6
|0.00%
|0.94%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |1.79%
|-
|Total
|412
|424
|style='background: #ffffe6; |335
|100.00%
|100.00%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |100.00%
|}
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, Fort Coffee had a population of 335. The median age was 49.1 years. 17.0% of residents were under the age of 18 and 25.7% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 81.1 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 90.4 males age 18 and over.
0.0% of residents lived in urban areas, while 100.0% lived in rural areas.
There were 148 households in Fort Coffee, of which 19.6% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 39.2% were married-couple households, 23.0% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 31.8% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 33.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 19.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
W. D. Mayo Lock and Dam, part of the McClellan–Kerr Arkansas River Navigation System,
is just northeast of town, while a boat ramp with access to the river above W. D. Mayo Lock and Dam is just north of town.