Adair

Formed November 16, 1907 (27^th county)

Adair County (19,494), Stilwell (3,706)

The 1931 Art Deco structure is situated near downtown Stilwell.  It is located at West Division and South 2^nd Streets (United States Highway Business 59).  United States Highway 59 is two blocks to the east of the courthouse.  J. J. Haralson designed this tan brick and masonry building.  The building was enlarged in 1967.  It is the only courthouse in Stilwell, the only county seat, since its founding on November 16, 1907.  The county was named for a well-known Cherokee Native American family.  The county was formed from the Cherokee Nation as the 27^th county.  Arthur E. Stilwell, railroad developer is the name source for the county seat. 

Adair County government consists of a sheriff and 3 Commissioners.  Five District Court Judges serve Adair, Cherokee, Muskogee, Sequoyah and Wagoner counties.  The county is situated in northeast Oklahoma, southeast of Tulsa, Oklahoma, on the border with Arkansas.  The Illinois River is in the northern part of the county.  The county center is 8.7 miles North of Stilwell nearer Baron.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Delaware County and Arkansas and Sequoyah and Cherokee counties. 

The area of the county is 576 square miles.  It is 64 out of 77 in the state.  It ranks 41 out of 77 in population in the state.  It has a density of 33.8 persons per square mile making it 31 out of 77 in the state.  Adair County has 27.4% of its population in its incorporated areas.  United States Highway 59 enters from Delaware County on the north and exits into Sequoyah County on the south.  United States Highway 62 crosses east to west from Arkansas to Cherokee County.  The county is a tall rectangle with its eastern border slanting slightly from north to south.  Stilwell is south and slightly east of center.  Stilwell is the county seat and the largest city.  It is 19.0% of the county population.