Haskell County, Oklahoma: History
The area now comprising Haskell County was created at statehood primarily from the former Sans Bois County of the Choctaw Nation in Indian Territory. Sans Bois County was part of the Moshulatubbee District, one of three administrative super-regions comprising the Choctaw Nation. Small portions of present-day Haskell County fell within Gaines County and Skullyville County, Choctaw Nation.
In 1908, county voters picked Stigler over Keota and Whitefield as the county seat.
Underground coal mining was undertaken here in the early 20th century, creating jobs and attracting railroad construction to southern Haskell County. The San Bois Coal Company built more than 400 company houses in McCurtain and Chant (two towns that eventually merged into one) for their miners. In 1912, a large, underground explosion rocked the Number Two mine at McCurtain, killing 73 miners and bankrupting the San Bois Company. The McCurtain disaster and the declining demand for coal in the 1920s halted underground coal mining in the county.
Strip mining continued. The Lone Star Steel Company became the county's leading coal producer. Haskell County was the source of 20% of Oklahoma's coal production between 1950 and 1980.
Agriculture was the most important component of the county economy in the early 20th century. Cotton was the most important crop, followed by corn and oats. The collapse of cotton prices and the Great Depression caused a drop in population, as well as farm acreage. In 1934, the Federal Emergency Relief Administration helped over 85% of Haskell County's population. Ranching supplanted farming, which was forced to diversify. By 1964, livestock accounted for about 70% of the county's revenues.