Central Plaza (Oklahoma)

Lawton is a city in and the county seat of Comanche County, in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. Located in southwestern Oklahoma, approximately 87 mi (140 km) southwest of Oklahoma City, it is the principal city of the Lawton, Oklahoma, metropolitan statistical area. According to the 2020 census, Lawton's population was 90,381, making it the sixth-largest city in the state, and the largest in Western Oklahoma.Developed on former reservation lands of the Kiowa, Comanche, and Apache Indians, Lawton was founded by European Americans on 6 August 1901. It was named after Major General Henry Ware Lawton, who served in the Civil War, where he earned the Medal of Honor, and was killed in action in the Philippine–American War. Lawton's landscape is typical of the Great Plains, with flat topography and gently rolling hills, while the area north of the city is marked by the Wichita Mountains. The city's proximity to the Fort Sill Military Reservation, formerly the base of the Apache territory before statehood, gave Lawton economic and population stability throughout the 20th century.Although Lawton's economy is still largely dependent on Fort Sill, it has grown to encompass manufacturing, higher education, health care, and retail. The city has a council-manager government; the city council members are elected from single-member districts and the mayor is elected at-large. They hire a professional city manager to direct daily operations. Interstate 44 and three major United States highways serve the city, while Lawton-Fort Sill Regional Airport connects Lawton by air. Recreation can be found at the city's many parks, lakes, museums, and festivals. Notable residents of the city include many musical and literary artists, as well as several professional athletes.

The Carnegie Library in Lawton, Oklahoma is a Carnegie library building from 1922. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976.It is built of buff-tan brick with white limestone used for window trim and other ornamentation.It was originally a 52 by 52 feet (16 m × 16 m) square plan building, but a 1952 extension added 40 feet (12 m) to the north side.

Methodist Episcopal Church, South (also known as Centenary Methodist Church) is a historic church at 702 D Avenue in Lawton, Oklahoma. It was built in 1924 in a Classical Revival style and added to the National Register in 1985.

The First Christian Church in Lawton, Oklahoma is a historic church at 701 D Avenue. It was built in 1929 and added to the National Register of historic Places in 1985.It was designed by architect Walter T. Vahlberg in Gothic Revival style. It was built in 1928 but was soon destroyed by a fire, and it was rebuilt in 1929.According to its National Register nomination, it "is the best example of Gothic Revival style architecture in Southwest Oklahoma" and its stained glass windows are "the most impressive such windows" to be found in any church in that area.

The Mahoney–Clark House is a historic house in Lawton, Oklahoma. It was built in 1909 for Johanna Mahoney, the wife of John C. Mahoney. It was inherited by their daughter Loretta and her husband, Philip Henry Clark, in 1911. It was later acquired by the Lawton Heritage Association.The house was designed in the Spanish Revival architectural style. It has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since December 8, 1982.

The First Presbyterian Church of Lawton (also known as Centenary United Methodist Church of Lawton) is a historic church building at 8th Street and D Avenue in Lawton, Oklahoma. It was built in 1902 in a late-Gothic Revival style and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.It consists of an original 1902-built 41 by 125 feet (12 m × 38 m) brick building and a 1946 extension.

The Mattie Beal House is a historic house in Lawton, Oklahoma, U.S.. It was built in 1907-09 for Charles Warren Payne and his wife, Mattie Beal. It was acquired by the Lawton Heritage Association in 1973. It was designed in the Colonial Revival architectural style. It has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since August 19, 1975.Mattie Beal won the second draw in the 1901 land lottery of former Kiowa-Comanche-Apache reservation lands, which led to worldwide news coverage: "'Miss Mattie Beale, beautiful, blue-eyed, young telephone operator from Wichita, Kansas, draws claim number 2 in Kiowa-Comanche land opening...' That story in the Kansas City Journal was echoed, with pictures, in newspapers everywhere. Among the more than 500 letters proposing marriage were several from English nobility who'd read her story in the London Times.The house has a porte-cochere and a two-story "barn/garage/servants quarters structure".

The Museum of the Great Plains is a history museum located in Lawton, Oklahoma, USA. The museum’s major exhibits reveal the diverse cultures inhabiting the Great Plains region beginning with the arrival of the Paleo-Indians known as the Clovis culture at approximately 11,500 BCE. A variety of educational programs are offered year around. The museum is one of five partner museums in the Oklahoma Museum Network.

Comanche Nation College was a two-year, open admissions, American Indian tribal college. It was located in Lawton, Oklahoma, the capital of the Comanche Nation. The school was chartered in 2002 by the Comanche Nation Business Committee. Comanche Nation College operated until July 31, 2017.

Comanche Nation Casino, often known as Comanche Nation Entertainment, is a Native American casino geographically situated in the Southwest Great Plains Country of the United States. The American Indian casino is located in Lawton, Comanche County, Oklahoma with East Cache Creek serving as a picturesque. The gaming establishment, which opened in 2007, is operated and owned by the tribal sovereignty of the Comanche Nation of Oklahoma with the governing powers in Lawton.

Lawton High School (LHS) was the first high school built in Lawton, Oklahoma. Lawton High is located at 601 Northwest Fort Sill Boulevard in Lawton, Oklahoma. The school was originally housed in a building on 800 Southwest 'C' Avenue, which later came to be the Central Junior High building until the junior high was also moved to 1201 Northwest Fort Sill Boulevard. The current Lawton High School was built in 1954.

Lawton Public Schools is a public school district based in Lawton, Oklahoma, United States. The district serves most of the city of Lawton, a small portion of Medicine Park, and surrounding rural areas in central Comanche County. Secondary students living in the dependent districts of Bishop and Flower Mound also attend Lawton Public Schools.