Poteau, Oklahoma is one of the fastest growing towns in Southeast Oklahoma. It is a growing, progressive city with an eye on the future and a historical heritage few other communities can match. It is the home of Cavanal, the World’s Highest Hill and the County Seat of LeFlore County. The Poteau Chamber of Commerce welcomes you to our city, where the people are friendly and the business community keeps Poteau “A Community in Motion.”
Listed twice in Norman Crampton’s book, “100 Best Small Towns in America,” Poteau offers the best of small-town living with a positive business atmosphere, where people can live, work and play. Poteau can proudly boast among other achievements after being voted “Top 200 Towns Outdoor Life Magazine in 2008, 2010 and 2011 for Outdoorsmen, Hunters and Anglers.” The 2012 Census lists the population of Poteau at 8,532 and the population of LeFlore County at 50,384.
Some of the amenities offered by the City of Poteau are two parks: Twyman Park with a pool and tennis court and the Bill J. Barber Park with a walking track, along with Poteau Area Recreational Complex (PARC), the site for baseball, softball and soccer fields. In the fall, fields are converted to playing fields for the Poteau Bandit Football League. Poteau also has a Skate Park for rollerblades, skate boards and bicycles.
Poteau’s location is in the east-central part of the state and is designated as the Mountain Gateway to the Winding Stair Recreational Area in the Ouachita National Forest, of which the Talimena National Scenic Byway is a part. Lake Wister State Park is just nine miles from Poteau and offers camping, fishing, boating and waterskiing. Other nearby sites includes the LeFlore County Museum at Hotel Lowrey, the Peter Conser Home, Heavener Runestone Park, the Kerr Country Mansion & Conference Center and Spiro Mounds Archeological Park. Scenic drives, fishing havens, hiking paths and equestrian trails are all nearby. Poteau is also home to the Tower Drive In, a digital tower Drive-In Movie Theatre, a roller skating rink and an updated state of the art bowling alley and two beautiful golf courses.
According to weatherbase.com, the average temperature for January is 39.3 degrees with a July average of 81.4 degrees and an annual temperature of 61 degrees. Poteau receives an average of 46.7 inches of rain and 5.4 inches of snow annually.