Town file
Jenks, Oklahoma
Jenks, Oklahoma (Tulsa County, Oklahoma) is the town in one episode of Small Town Murder, the comedy true-crime podcast: episode 339, "The Happiest Meal" (24 November 2022). Jenks, Oklahoma, sits in Tulsa County about twenty-five minutes from Tulsa, on the Arkansas River.
- Town
- Jenks
- County
- Tulsa County
- State
- Oklahoma
- Country
- USA
- Episodes
- 339
- Approximate location
- 35.998, -95.973
Episode 339 / 24 November 2022 / 171 min / full
The Happiest Meal
"We're going all the way to Jenks, Oklahoma; it's in Tulsa County, area code 539." about 0:06:21
The case: Murder of Trisha Stemple (October 24, 1996). Read the case file.
The figures, as told in 2022
- Population
- 24,257
- Median household income
- $90,039
- Median home value
- $257,700
- Two-bedroom rent
- about $1,023
- Cost of living
- 96
- Religious
- 64.1%
- Property crime
- ▼ about one third under
- Violent crime
- ▼ about one third under
History, in brief
- Jenks began in 1904 as a community site established by the Midland Valley Railroad. about 0:07:59
- It was named after William Henry Jenks, owner and director of the Midland Valley Railroad. about 0:09:21
- The town was officially platted in 1905 after a major petroleum discovery. about 0:09:34
- The Glen Pool oil well boosted the area. about 0:09:59
- As oil production waned the tank farms were dismantled and agriculture became the main industry. about 0:10:39
- In the 1920s Bulgarian immigrants came to Jenks to farm. about 0:10:49
- From the early 1900s through the 1950s the town flooded constantly, from the Arkansas River and Polecat Creek. about 0:12:12
- In the severe floods of the 1920s and 1930s the water covered every building in town except the three-storey school. about 0:12:30
- Two men and one woman stayed behind on top of the school with one shotgun, a small boat, food and a tent for a few weeks. about 0:12:54
- The Army Corps of Engineers built a levee around Jenks. about 0:15:09
- There was another flood in 1986, after which the levee was fixed. about 0:15:18
The reviews read out
2 stars
"The summers are very hot and the winters very cold; Jenks was once a river bed so it floods frequently, especially at the school; one day in March it was 80 degrees and the next day it snowed; allergy season is terrible."about 0:15:33
2 stars
"Most people like the quietness and relative wealth and commute to their jobs; there are very few fulfilling places to work in town, but Tulsa is 25 minutes away."about 0:16:59
5 stars
"Couldn't be better: still a small town feel as the population grows, one of the best school systems around, a fun downtown with antique shopping and axe throwing, the biggest Apple store in Oklahoma and a large aquarium; police are kind and respectful, though the fire department is a little slow."about 0:17:22
3 stars
"A wonderful town with a small town feel despite a large school; the only complaint is that Jenks police officers do not arrest people because it might look bad on the school."about 0:19:44
Nearest Small Town Murder towns
- Depew, Oklahoma33 miles
- Bartlesville, Oklahoma51 miles
- Eufaula, Oklahoma53 miles
- Dewey, Oklahoma55 miles
- McLoud, Oklahoma75 miles
- Cincinnati, Arkansas81 miles
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.