Bridgeport, OK
Posted by: 
hamquilter
N 35° 32.771 W 098° 22.640
14S E 556439 N 3933793
Located in rich farming land, Bridgeport was once a thriving town of 3,000 but today stands almost abandoned.
Waymark Code: WMZYHC
Location: Oklahoma, United States
Date Posted: 01/23/2019
Views: 1
In the 1890's Bridgeport got its name as being the place where stagecoaches could cross the Canadian River. The town stood poised to become a great trading and shipping center. It was crossed by two railway lines and located on rich farming land. By 1904, there were 76 businesses in town, including two banks, a flour mill and two hotels. By 1909, there were only 43 businesses remaining and the population had dropped to less than 1,000.
Two problems brought about the demise of Bridgeport. It stood near the Canadian River, which brought flooding to the area. The town has a long history of washed out bridges and flooding damage. There were also internal feuds between the citizens and businesses in town. Water quality differed from one side of the river to the other, and with the constant feuding, many citizens began to move out of Bridgeport to nearby Hinton. In 1940, the new highway came through about two miles south of town and bypassed the town. In 2014, the population was estimated to be 114, and today it is more like 90 at best. There are about 30 home/trailers in town and no businesses. Mail is received out of nearby Hinton.
The Photo shown above is the intersection of Main St. and Broadway and you can see, there is nothing there. The Abandonedok website shown below gives a very thorough history of the events and problems that Bridgeport faced over the years, and has many nice photos of the remaining buildings.