Alfalfa County in north-central Oklahoma is centered on Cherokee, with Helena, Carmen, Aline, Jet, Goltry, Burlington, Byron, and other small communities spread across a broad agricultural landscape. Kansas borders the county to the north, Woods County lies west, Grant County east, and Major and Garfield counties to the south. U.S. 64 and State Highways 11, 8, 38, 45, and 58 provide the strongest road references. Great Salt Plains Reservoir and the Salt Fork Arkansas River dominate the eastern-central geography. High-resolution JPG originals of all four supplied maps are available in the download ZIP.
The county is not a uniformly flat plain. A broad low area follows the Salt Fork and Great Salt Plains, while higher ground rises across the southwest and along the eastern edge. Medicine Lodge River descends from the north and joins the Salt Fork before the combined flow reaches the reservoir. Cherokee sits west of that low basin and provides the clearest administrative and transportation reference for the surrounding rural communities.
Table of Contents
Cherokee divides the northern settlements from the southern farm towns
The general county map places Cherokee near the center, where the courthouse, street grid, and multiple county roads are concentrated. Oklahoma’s county-government almanac notes that Cherokee was chosen as the Alfalfa County seat in a 1909 election. On the map, that role is easy to understand: Cherokee sits between Burlington and Byron to the north and Helena, Carmen, and Aline farther south, while roads also lead east toward the Great Salt Plains area.
Burlington sits in the northwestern portion near State Highway 11, while Byron and Amorita provide northern and north-central references closer to the Kansas line. Settlement is sparse across this upper half, and long straight roads cross open agricultural land. Near the northeastern side, drainage channels become more pronounced as the land approaches the low basin west of the reservoir and the higher eastern edge.
The southern half contains Carmen and Aline on the west, Helena near the center, and Goltry toward the southeast. Jet lies close to the southeastern side of Great Salt Plains Reservoir and is easy to locate with U.S. 64 and State Highway 38. The road grid is generally more regular across these farming areas, although creek valleys interrupt the straight pattern in several places.
Oklahoma Department of Transportation provides an official Alfalfa County map and maintains a county office in Cherokee near U.S. 64. Those resources confirm the importance of Cherokee and U.S. 64 within the local transportation network. The supplied map is intended for geographic orientation, not live construction, closure, or traffic information.
The city view concentrates on Cherokee, Helena, and the southern communities
The city-distribution map highlights Helena, Cherokee, Carmen, Goltry, Jet, and Aline. Cherokee occupies the central position, Helena lies south of it, Carmen and Aline sit to the southwest, and Jet and Goltry form the eastern and southeastern references. Burlington and Byron are not included among these six highlighted places, so the simplified view emphasizes the central and southern settlement pattern.
The CITY INDEX prints values beside the six community names, but those figures belong to the supplied map and are not reused here as current official population estimates. Census dates and local boundaries can differ. The durable geographic information is the arrangement: Cherokee anchors the center, Helena the south-central area, Carmen and Aline the southwest, and Jet and Goltry the Great Salt Plains side and southeast.
Returning to the road map adds useful context. Cherokee sits within the central road network, Jet aligns with U.S. 64 and State Highway 38, and Helena and Goltry are tied to the southern routes around Highways 45 and 58. Carmen and Aline occupy the southwestern side where the terrain begins to rise away from the broad central lowland.
Salt Fork Arkansas River and Great Salt Plains form the eastern basin
The Salt Fork Arkansas River is the dominant watercourse on the map. It enters from the west, bends across the central county, and receives the Medicine Lodge River from the north. Downstream of that junction, the river reaches Great Salt Plains Reservoir, creating a broad water-and-lowland complex in the eastern-central part of Alfalfa County.
Driftwood Creek and Still Creek cross the northwestern side, while Little Sandy Creek and Sandy Creek drain toward the lower terrain north and east of the main river. Cottonwood Creek forms a long southwestern corridor toward the reservoir basin. West Clay Creek and East Clay Creek divide the south-central area, and Spring Creek and Wagon Creek provide strong southeastern drainage references.
Great Salt Plains is the county’s most distinctive natural feature. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service states that Salt Plains National Wildlife Refuge lies within Alfalfa County and includes salt flats, wetlands, mixed-grass prairie, rolling sand hills, forested areas, and the open water of Great Salt Plains Reservoir. Oklahoma’s official tourism site also places Salt Plains State Park near Jet, making the reservoir’s southeastern side an important recreation access point.
The water layer is designed to show relative locations of rivers, creeks, and the reservoir. It does not provide current lake levels, flood-hazard boundaries, legal shorelines, or safe boating conditions. Crystal digging, fishing, and other refuge activities can also be seasonal or restricted to designated areas, so current U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Oklahoma State Parks information should be checked before a visit.
Elevation from about 332 to 454 meters surrounds a broad central lowland
The elevation legend reports an actual county range of about 332 to 454 meters, with a mean near 386 meters. The lowest green terrain spreads across the central area east of Cherokee and around Great Salt Plains Reservoir. The Salt Fork and Medicine Lodge junction occupies the same low basin, creating a wide contrast with higher terrain on several sides.
The west and especially the southwest rise into orange and brown terrain. West and southwest of Carmen and Aline, tributaries cut into elevated surfaces and create a more rolling appearance than the central basin. The northwestern side also contains patches of higher ground, but elevations decrease toward the Salt Fork corridor.
A second major rise follows the eastern county edge. East and northeast of Great Salt Plains Reservoir, the terrain climbs quickly into a long brown belt, sharply contrasting with the low lake margin. Additional high ground appears across the southern interior, so the county is better understood as a central low basin bordered by several elevated areas rather than as a single uniformly sloping plain.
Brown represents the high end of Alfalfa County’s local elevation scale, with the map showing a maximum of about 454 meters. The elevation layer is useful for county-scale comparison, not site engineering. Exact parcel elevations, road grades, drainage design, and construction measurements should come from original USGS data or professional surveying.
Compare Jet and Carmen from Cherokee to see the county’s contrast
Using Cherokee as a fixed reference reveals a strong east-west difference. Heading toward Jet brings the map into the Salt Fork and Great Salt Plains lowland, where the reservoir and low river terrain become dominant. Moving toward Carmen and Aline instead leads away from the central basin into higher southwestern ground.
The northern comparison is more subtle. Burlington and Byron occupy broad agricultural country near the Kansas line, divided by the Medicine Lodge River and smaller creeks. Farther east, the terrain rises again beyond the Great Salt Plains basin, so the northern half contains both open plains and abrupt elevation changes near the eastern edge.
Helena, Goltry, and Aline show the southern pattern. Creek valleys such as the West and East Clay systems cut through broad farm country, while higher ground becomes more common toward the southwest and southern interior. Viewing the road, water, and elevation maps together is the best way to connect these small towns with the larger physical landscape.
Choose the Alfalfa County map for roads, water, or terrain
Use the general county map when you need Cherokee, Helena, Carmen, Jet, Goltry, Burlington, U.S. 64, and State Highways 11, 38, 45, and 58 together. The city-distribution map is cleaner when the goal is comparing the six highlighted communities. Choose the water map for the Salt Fork Arkansas River, Medicine Lodge River, Great Salt Plains Reservoir, and the county’s main creeks.
The elevation map is the clearest choice for comparing the central basin and reservoir lowland with the higher southwest and eastern edge. The WebP previews on the page are convenient for quick viewing, while the high-resolution JPG originals in the ZIP below are better for printing and zooming into small road and stream labels. These maps are regional reference products and should not replace legal parcel records, live navigation, flood determinations, farm drainage engineering, or survey-grade elevation data.
Frequently Asked Questions
How are Cherokee and Great Salt Plains Reservoir positioned on the map?
Cherokee sits near the center of the county, while Great Salt Plains Reservoir lies to the east. The Salt Fork Arkansas River crosses the lower terrain north and east of Cherokee before reaching the reservoir, making the relationship especially clear on the water map.
Where do the Salt Fork Arkansas River and Medicine Lodge River meet?
Medicine Lodge River descends from the north and joins the Salt Fork in the central part of the county. Downstream, the combined flow continues toward Great Salt Plains Reservoir, and the elevation map shows the junction as part of the broad central lowland.
Can the 332–454 meter elevation range be used for surveying?
No. The elevation layer is intended for county-scale comparison of the central basin and surrounding higher terrain. Exact parcel heights, road grades, agricultural drainage design, and construction measurements should come from original USGS data or a professional survey.
Map File Information
The download ZIP contains high-resolution JPG originals of the Alfalfa County general map, city distribution map, water map, and elevation map.
- File Type: JPG
Related Maps
Sources and references
- Oklahoma Almanac · County Government – Cherokee county-seat history and Great Salt Plains regional information
- City of Cherokee – official municipal information for Cherokee
- U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service · Salt Plains National Wildlife Refuge – Alfalfa County salt flats, Great Salt Plains Reservoir, wetlands, prairie, and refuge landscape
- Oklahoma Department of Transportation · County Maps – official Alfalfa County road and transportation reference
- USGS National Hydrography – rivers, streams, reservoirs, and hydrography reference data
- USGS 3D Elevation Program – elevation and terrain reference data
Green Map creates custom-edited map images using open geographic data sources such as geoBoundaries, Natural Earth, OpenStreetMap, and government open data. These maps are edited visual materials, not raw data files, and are provided for education, documents, presentations, and graphic reference.
