Pryor Creek, city in and county seat of Mayes County, Oklahoma, United States
Pryor Creek is a small city in northeastern Oklahoma situated along a creek of the same name. The town has a straightforward layout mixing older and newer buildings, with streets organized around the historic railroad route that is now crossed by US Highway 69 and State Highway 20.
The town was renamed Pryor Creek in 1887 and officially adopted the name in 1898 after originally being called Coo-Y-Yah. Growth accelerated through the railroad, with the first mayor Lee Mills elected in 1894, and explosive expansion followed 1940 when the Pensacola Dam brought electricity and a munitions plant during World War Two employed thousands of workers.
Pryor Creek was originally called Coo-Y-Yah, a Cherokee word meaning place of huckleberries. The town keeps this native heritage alive, honoring Captain Nathaniel Pryor, an early settler whose name defined the place and whose connections to Cherokee, Osage, and Choctaw communities shaped its foundation.
The town is well reached via US Highway 69 and sits about an hour west of Tulsa. Visitors find parks such as Earl Ward Park with a golf course and Whitaker Park offering fishing, while nearby lakes provide boating and camping with outdoor activities possible year-round in the mild climate.
A tornado in 1942 destroyed much of the main street and damaged many homes, a tragic event that brought the community together for rebuilding. Today the town attracts visitors from across the region for music festivals like Rocklahoma and Born and Raised.
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