Case Notes

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Town file

Chickasha, Oklahoma

Chickasha, Oklahoma (Grady County, Oklahoma) is the town in one episode of Small Town Murder, the comedy true-crime podcast: episode 214, "Shot, Stabbed, Beaten, Cut & Chained" (11 March 2021). Charles Keene, known to everybody as Buck, was born on 5 May 1956 and grew up to be a large, violent man of more than 200 pounds.

Town
Chickasha
County
Grady County
State
Oklahoma
Country
USA
Episodes
214
Approximate location
35.041, -97.947
N ↑Public placePublic placePublic placePublic placeTown centre (approximate places)
Static locations; no street basemap. OpenFreeMap © OpenMapTiles Data from OpenStreetMap.

Episode 214 / 11 March 2021 / 155 min / full

Shot, Stabbed, Beaten, Cut & Chained

"We're going to Chickasha, Oklahoma, spelled C-H-I-C-K-A-S-H-A; it's in central Oklahoma, in Grady County, area code 405." about 0:07:16

The case: Murder of Charles 'Buck' Keene (January 1983). Read the case file.

The figures, as told in 2021

Population
16,256
Median age
about 37 and a half
Median household income
$40,376
Median home value
$71,400
Two-bedroom rent
about $700 a month
Cost of living
about 78
Religious
47.5%
Property crime
▲ about 20% above
Violent crime
▲ about 25% higher

History, in brief

  • Chickasha was founded by Hobart John Stone Whitley, a land developer, banker, farmer and Rock Island Railroad executive. about 0:08:32
  • The town was founded in 1892 when the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railways built a track through what was then Indian territory; a post office followed in June 1892. about 0:09:27
  • The Chickasha Cotton Oil Company, one of the earliest industrial plants in the town, was established in 1899. about 0:09:27
  • When founded, Chickasha was in Pontotoc County, in what was the Chickasaw nation's territory. about 0:09:55
  • The Oklahoma Industrial Institute and College for Girls was established in Chickasha in 1908. about 0:10:29
  • Local rancher J.B. Sparks donated the land for the school in memory of his daughter Nelly, a Chickasaw descendant whose allotment the land had been part of. about 0:11:10
  • The Nelly Sparks dormitory commemorated her; the school was renamed the Oklahoma College for Women in 1916. about 0:11:44
  • It became co-educational in 1965 and was renamed the Oklahoma College of Liberal Arts. about 0:11:53
  • It was renamed again in 1975 as the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma. about 0:12:29
  • The Wilson and Bone Flying School opened in October 1941 to train US Army Air Force cadets; over 8,000 cadets completed training there during the Second World War. about 0:12:37
  • After the war the facility became Chickasha Municipal Airport. about 0:12:57
  • The army built and used Borden General Hospital during the war; the site now holds Grady Memorial Hospital, Five Oaks Medical Group, Southern Plains Medical Center and Borden Park. about 0:13:08
  • A prisoner of war camp was established on the site in 1944; it is now the Grady County fairgrounds. about 0:13:26
  • Chickasha was hit by an F2 tornado in 1999. about 0:15:21

The reviews read out

5 stars

"A basic Oklahoma town where people like high school football on Friday nights and church on Sundays; a good place to settle down quietly."
about 0:16:30

3 stars

"A great small town with the basic commodities such as Walmart and McDonald's, mostly friendly people and a cool downtown area."
about 0:17:24

3 stars

"A very safe place apart from the occasional mishaps; the reviewer complains about waiting too long at stop lights with no other cars around."
about 0:17:45

3 stars

"A town where almost anything can happen; there is crime but it is not that bad, with a few things to do such as bowling, laser tag, playgrounds, a library and a thrift store."
about 0:19:22

Open the episode file

Nearest Small Town Murder towns

Everything here is as told in the episode, on the date it went out; figures and places may have changed since. Endings are covered: open an episode and use the spoiler switch to read them.