History

Lawton, Oklahoma was founded August 6, 1901.That was the time when the last of the Indian lands in the Oklahoma Territory, the Kiowa-Comanche-Apache reservation, was opened by the federal government for settlement. Rather than land runs used in other parts of the Territory, a lottery was introduced for land distribution on prairie land, by 160-acre plots, just south of Ft. Sill, a military post set up as a cavalry fort in 1869. Ft. Sill is currently the home of the Fires Center of Excellence for the United States Army.

Lawton struggled to grow through its early years but eventually began to grow from 35,000 people in 1950 to 80,000 in 1990. Currently, Lawton has approximately 99,000 residents, not including the Fort Sill Military Installation.

Lawton was also established as the county seat for Comanche County. It was first ruled by the county government appointed by the governor of the Oklahoma Territory. In late October of 1901, an election was held, and the Lawton city government was formed. The first officers elected were mayor, city clerk, judge, treasurer, city attorney, street commissioner, city marshal (Heck Thomas), eight city councilmen, a school board treasurer, and eight school board members. This is how the Lawton Police Department came into being.

Lawton is also just south of the Historic Wichita Mountains National Wildlife Reservation and is home to two lakes; Lake Lawtonka and Lake Ellsworth.

The Lawton Police Department currently employs 156 sworn Officers and 50 civilian personnel.