Guymon, Oklahoma

Guymon ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Texas County, in the panhandle of Oklahoma, United States. an increase of 13.3% from 11,442 in 2010, and represents more than half of the population of the county, along with being the largest city in the Oklahoma Panhandle. Cattle feedlots, corporate pork farms, and natural gas production dominate its economy, with wind energy production and transmission recently diversifying landowners' farms. Guymon was the only town or city in Oklahoma in 2010 and 2020 in which the majority of the population was Hispanic.

History

thumb|left|Removing drifts of soil which block highways near Guymon during the Dustbowl.

thumb|Cowboys at Anchor D ranch in Guymon in 1917.

In the 1890s, Edward T. "E.T." Guymon, president of the Inter-State Land and Town Company, purchased a section of land west of the Beaver River, also known as the North Canadian River. The site grew very rapidly after the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railway (Rock Island) built a line from Liberal, Kansas, to Texhoma, Texas, in 1901. A community, first named Sanford by the U.S. Post Office Department, was situated along the line. It was renamed Guymon a month later by postal officials to avoid confusion with the town of Stratford, Texas, which was further down the line. Guymon incorporated in 1901. The town plat was filed in Beaver County, Oklahoma Territory, in 1904.

Geography

Located on the High Plains of the central Oklahoma Panhandle, Guymon sits north of Amarillo, Texas, and west-northwest of Woodward. Optima National Wildlife Refuge, Optima Lake, and the state-run Optima Wildlife Management Area lie roughly to the east along the North Canadian River. Guymon sits at an elevation of .

|date=October 2, 2010

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Demographics

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"

|+Guymon, Oklahoma – Racial and ethnic composition

!Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)

!Pop 2000

!Pop 2010

!% 2000

!% 2010

|White alone (NH)

|6,071

|4,858

|style='background: #ffffe6; |3,633

|57.97%

|42.46%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |28.02%

|Black or African American alone (NH)

|65

|147

|style='background: #ffffe6; |863

|0.62%

|1.28%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |6.66%

|Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)

|89

|94

|style='background: #ffffe6; |67

|0.85%

|0.82%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.52%

|Asian alone (NH)

|87

|304

|style='background: #ffffe6; |416

|0.83%

|2.66%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |3.21%

|Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)

|18

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0

|0.17%

|0.04%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.00%

|Other race alone (NH)

|16

|style='background: #ffffe6; |64

|0.04%

|0.14%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.49%

|Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)

|120

|122

|style='background: #ffffe6; |341

|1.15%

|1.07%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |2.63%

|Hispanic or Latino (any race)

|4,018

|5,896

|style='background: #ffffe6; |7,581

|38.37%

|51.53%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |58.47%

|Total

|10,472

|11,442

|style='background: #ffffe6; |12,965

|100.00%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |100.00%

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, Guymon had a population of 12,965. The median age was 30.6 years. 31.4% of residents were under the age of 18 and 9.9% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 105.2 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 108.1 males age 18 and over.

There were 4,325 households in Guymon, of which 43.0% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 47.8% were married-couple households, 21.8% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 24.7% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. The average household size was 3.28 persons. About 23.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

! Race !! Percent

| White || 37.4%

| Black or African American || 6.9%

| American Indian and Alaska Native || 3.4%

| Asian || 3.4%

| Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander || 0%

| Some other race || 30.8%

| Two or more races || 18.2%

| Hispanic or Latino (of any race) || 58.5%

The median income for a household in the city was $53,164. The per capita income for the city was $19,455. About 24.6% of the population was below the poverty line.

Recent developments

In 2022 the Hispanic population had increased to 57 percent of the population of Guymon. Guymon has been cited as an example of how immigration can save rural communities, most of which in Oklahoma and many other states have been losing population for decades.

Economy

thumb|Phillips 66 Well No.1 in Centennial Park in Guymon

Guymon is a hub for the local economy, which includes wheat farming, livestock, hog and dairy farming, manufacturing, and oil and natural gas production. A United States soil conservation station is located nearby. Local manufacturers produce agricultural tillage tools, pressure tanks, and formula feeds. The town of Goodwell, Oklahoma, home of Oklahoma Panhandle State University, lies to the southwest of Guymon.

Opening of the Hugoton-Panhandle Gas Field led to the establishment of two carbon black plants, the Dandee Manufacturing Company (makers of farming equipment), an ice plant, the OK Welding Manufacturing Company, a feed mill, the Phillips Petroleum cracking plant, and the Southwestern Public Service Company generating plant. The Guymon Municipal Hospital (later renamed Memorial Hospital of Texas County) opened in 1949.

Government

Guymon has a council-manager form of government.

Education

Guymon residents are served by the Guymon School District. The school system began in the 1902–3 school year. The first high school building was built in 1917. Guymon schools were closed for one year during the Great Depression because funds were insufficient to keep them operating. The school district opened a new high school in 1954. This was replaced with a new facility in 1974.

;High school

Guymon High School - Grades: 9-12

;Middle school

Guymon Junior High School - Grades: 7-8

;Elementary schools

North Park - Grades: 5-6
Academy - Grades: 3-4
Prairie - Grades: 1-2
Academy "C" - Grade: kindergarten
Homer Long - Grade: kindergarten
Carrier - Grade: Pre-Kindergarten

More than 80% of high school students qualify for a reduced-price school lunch, a common proxy for poverty.

About 30% of residents lack a high school diploma.

Media

Guymon has one newspaper and four radio stations, although one is a translator.

Guymon Herald, printed since 1891, is the only daily newspaper for the entire Oklahoma Panhandle.
KKBS 92.7 FM - Rock
KBIJ 99.5 FM - Regional Mexican
KGYN 1210 AM - News and Sports Talk
K215CV 90.9 FM - Christian Contemporary (Air1)

Recreation

thumb|Centennial Park in Guymon (2021)

Golden Mesa Casino is 2 1/2 mi west on US Hwy 54.
Sunset Hills golf course – an 18-hole par-71 municipal course - is open to members and guests in Guymon.
Sunset Lake and Thompson Park – a 32-acre stocked municipal lake - is open to fishing year-round, with paddle boats, an operating miniature train, ducks to be fed, playground equipment for children, picnic tables, and covered pavilions.
No Mans Land Rifle and Pistol Club – a 50-station handgun and rimfire rifle range - is open to members of the club, located near Sunset Lake and Thompson Park, and open for use during daylight hours.
Nearby Optima National Wildlife Refuge offers bird and wildlife viewing opportunities, and the Optima Wildlife Management Area, run by the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation, offers hunting opportunities.

Infrastructure

Transportation

thumb|Rock Island Caboose in Centennial Park in Guymon (2019)

Guymon is served by US-54, US-64, US-412, SH-3, and SH-136, some of said roads being partially concurrent or completely concurrent with others through Guymon.

Guymon Municipal Airport is a city-owned, public-use airport located two nautical miles (3.7 km) west of the central business district of Guymon.

Commercial air transport is available out of Liberal Mid-America Regional Airport in Kansas, about 41 miles northeast of town.

Rail freight service is available from the Union Pacific Railroad.

Notable people

Jeremy Sochan (b. 2003) - Basketball player for the San Antonio Spurs, was born in Guymon but relocated to Southampton as an infant.
Michael D. Brown (b. 1954) – former FEMA director was born in Guymon in 1955.
Claudia Bryar (1918–2011) - film and television actress, was born in Guymon.
F. Hiner Dale (1881–1968) – Judge and founder of Guymon law firm of Wright, Dale, and Jett
Gordon Grice (b. 1965) – award-winning nature writer, was born in Guymon.
Ross Rizley (1892–1969) - former U.S. Representative, is buried in Guymon.
Sammi Smith (1943–2005) - country music star - born Jewel Faye Smith

References

External links

City of Guymon
Guymon Daily Herald
Guymon Pioneer Days Rodeo
Main Street Guymon
Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture – Guymon