Ponca City City Map Poster

About Ponca City

Ponca City is the county seat of Kay County. It is located in the Oklahoma Panhandle and lies within an area known historically as "The Great American Desert." Ponca City was founded by oil magnate Frank Phillips on July 4, 1901. The city was named after the Ponca Tribe of Nebraska, who were forced to relocate to Indian Territory in 1877 along with other tribes from eastern areas following passage of Congressional bills that opened their lands for white settlement. In 1902, Phillips built a wooden pipeline carrying crude oil from his refinery near Bartlesville into northern Texas (then a separate state). This led to development and growth at what became known as "Oil Creek," which later became part of present-day Ponca City; it also led to growth elsewhere in north central Oklahoma including nearby Enid (named for Frank's wife Ida), Medford ("Medford" being an acronym for Midland Empire Refinery & Natural Gas Company) and Stillwater ("Still Water" referring both literally and figuratively).