McAlester
Sign in to saveAlso known as McAlester, Oklahoma, McAlester, OK, South McAlester, South McAlester, Oklahoma, South McAlester, OK, MacAlister, MacAlister, Oklahoma, MacAlister, OK
city in Oklahoma, United States
Key facts
- Country
- United States
- State
- Oklahoma
- County
- Pittsburg
- Named after
- J. J. McAlester
- Mayor
- Justin Few
- Total
- 17.93 sq mi (46.43 km )
- Land
- 17.80 sq mi (46.10 km )
- Water
- 0.13 sq mi (0.33 km )
- Elevation
- 742 ft (226 m)
- Density
- 1,020.9/sq mi (394.16/km )
- Time zone
- UTC-6 ( Central (CST) )
- Summer dst
- UTC-5 (CDT)
- Zip codes
- 74501–74502
- Area codes
- 539/918
- Fips code
- 40-44800
- Website
- www .cityofmcalester .com
via Wikipedia infobox
Wikidata facts
- Official name
- McAlester
- Population
- 18171
- Area
- 41.747938
- Elevation
- 224
- Official website
- www.cityofmcalester.com
- Image
- McAlesterLibraryOK.jpg
- Households
- 7097
Show 6 more facts
- Commons category
- McAlester, Oklahoma
- postal code
- 74502
- inception
- 1872-01-01
- P8168
- Guardi
- water as percent of area
- 0.8248
- per capita income
- 24768
via Wikidata · CC0
~16 min read
Article
McAlester is a city in and the county seat of Pittsburg County, Oklahoma. As of the 2020 census, McAlester had a population of 18,171. The town gets its name from James Jackson McAlester, an early settler and businessman who later became lieutenant governor of Oklahoma. Known as "J. J.", McAlester married Rebecca Burney, the daughter of a full-blood Chickasaw family, which made him a citizen of the Chickasaw Nation.
McAlester is the home of the Oklahoma State Penitentiary, the former site of an "inside the walls" prison rodeo that ESPN's SportsCenter once broadcast. The prison's nickname, Big Mac, was derived from its location in the town.