Pittsburg County sits in eastern Oklahoma where the McAlester area, Lake Eufaula, the Canadian River, and the ridged terrain toward the southeast create several distinct map patterns. The maps on this page separate those patterns into county boundaries and roads, ranked city locations, water and terrain, and elevation so that readers can compare the same places from different perspectives.
The map files shown below can also be downloaded as high-resolution JPG images from the download box later in the article. They are useful for printing, classroom reference, trip planning, and general geographic orientation when you want a clearer view than a small web map provides.
Table of Contents
Where Pittsburg County sits in eastern Oklahoma
Pittsburg County stretches across a large part of eastern Oklahoma. The Oklahoma Historical Society identifies McIntosh County to the north, Haskell and Latimer counties to the east, Atoka and Pushmataha counties to the south, and Hughes and Coal counties to the west. The outline is not a simple rectangle. Along the north and northeast, the boundary bends around river and reservoir features, while the southern half extends farther down into a broader block of upland and ridge country.
McAlester is the county seat and the clearest orientation point on the general map. Krebs and Alderson lie just to its east, Crowder and Indianola are farther north, and Carlton Landing appears near the Lake Eufaula shoreline in the northeast. Hartshorne is east of McAlester, while Savanna, Kiowa, and Pittsburg lie to the south. Once those names are located, the county becomes much easier to read because they provide anchors for comparing roads, waterways, and relief.
County boundary, roads, and settlements around McAlester
The general map shows U.S. 69 as one of the most important north-south routes through the county. It comes down from the Crowder area, passes through McAlester, and continues toward Savanna and Kiowa. Around McAlester, U.S. 270 and state highways connect westward and eastward, while State Highway 31 provides another eastbound connection toward Alderson and the Hartshorne side of the county. These labels make the map practical when the first question is simply how the major communities are connected.
The northeast looks quite different from the central road network. Carlton Landing sits close to the broad Lake Eufaula water body, and the northern boundary follows the Canadian River and reservoir shoreline through a series of bends. In the south, the map contains many smaller streams but fewer large water surfaces. Hartshorne appears near State Highway 63 on the eastern side, and the long southeastern extension reaches into more strongly ridged terrain.
This general map works best as the starting layer. Find a community or road first, then compare the same place on the water and elevation maps. That sequence helps distinguish between a town that is close to a reservoir, a town in a lower valley, and a town near the higher ridges. The map is intended for general reference and does not replace legal parcel boundaries, a survey, or current road-control information.
How the main cities are distributed
The city distribution map highlights McAlester, Krebs, Hartshorne, Quinton, Kiowa, and Haileyville. McAlester is the largest city shown and occupies a central-northern position in the county. Krebs is immediately to the east, making the pair easy to recognize as a closely spaced urban area. Hartshorne and Haileyville are farther southeast, while Quinton is separated from that cluster in the northeast.
Kiowa provides a useful southern reference point. Its location shows how far the settled corridor extends away from McAlester before the county continues into a broad southern landscape with fewer major-city markers. The northwest and far southeast also have relatively few highlighted cities, so the map emphasizes that population centers are not spread evenly across the entire county.
The ranked labels are most useful for relative orientation rather than as a substitute for the latest population table. For current population counts, readers should check U.S. Census Bureau data directly. On this page, the value of the city map is its ability to show where the principal communities sit in relation to one another and to the county boundary. That becomes especially helpful when the same locations are compared with Lake Eufaula, the Canadian River, and the higher southeastern terrain.
Canadian River, Lake Eufaula, and the interior creek network
The Canadian River is the dominant named river on the water map. It follows the northern edge of Pittsburg County and connects into the extensive Lake Eufaula water system toward the northeast. That broad water area explains the irregular outline seen on the general county map. Small arms and tributary valleys extend southward from the lake, giving the northern half a much more water-shaped appearance than the far south.
Inside the county, Little Wildhorse Creek, Big Wildhorse Creek, and Coal Creek are among the named streams that help organize the drainage pattern. Several small lakes are clustered in the central part of the county, including Lake McAlester, Lake Talawanda No. 1, Lake Talawanda No. 2, and Oklahoma State Prison Lake. Farther south, Brown Lake and Dow Lake are shown along with Peaceable Creek, Brushy Creek, and Rock Creek.
The shaded relief behind the blue water features adds useful context. Creeks tend to occupy lower corridors between hills and ridges, so the water map lets the reader see both the named drainage features and the terrain that surrounds them. It is still a reference map rather than a flood-risk, navigation, water-quality, or legal-access product. Anyone making a safety, property, or regulatory decision should consult the appropriate current agency data.
Elevation change and the stronger ridges in the southeast
The elevation map makes the county’s internal contrast especially clear. Its legend reports an actual elevation range of about 171 to 467 meters and a mean of about 228 meters for the mapped area. Greens cover much of the north and center, indicating generally lower terrain, while tan and brown tones identify higher ridges and hilltops. Because the colors are locally scaled for Pittsburg County, the same color should not be treated as an identical elevation on a different county map.
The most pronounced relief appears in the southeast, where long narrow ridges repeat across the landscape. The Oklahoma Historical Society notes that the Ouachita Mountains extend into the southeastern part of Pittsburg County, and that broader regional pattern is visible in the elevation surface. The eastern middle section also contains several higher ridges, while the Lake Eufaula side of the county includes lower valleys broken by smaller hills.
This map is useful for understanding the general topographic setting of a route or for comparing a creek valley with the higher land around it. It is not a survey-grade elevation product. The surface has been generalized to show the county as a whole, so exact building heights, engineering slopes, and parcel-level elevations should be obtained from more detailed USGS data or a professional survey.
What becomes clearer when the maps are compared
McAlester is a good example of why the maps work better together. On the general map, it appears where several important roads meet. On the city map, it is the dominant settlement among the highlighted places. On the water map, it sits south of the Canadian River and Lake Eufaula system and near a group of smaller interior lakes. On the elevation map, the McAlester area is less rugged than the long ridges that dominate the county’s southeast.
Hartshorne and Haileyville show a different combination. They appear east-southeast of McAlester on the city map, close to one another and closer to the more strongly dissected terrain. Moving from the general map to the elevation map makes it easier to see why the eastern side feels different from the flatter-looking center. Quinton, meanwhile, lies farther northeast and closer to the lake-influenced drainage landscape.
For a classroom exercise, a student can choose one town and locate it on every map, then describe how its road access, nearby water, and terrain differ from another town. For travel planning, a reader can first identify the road corridor and then check whether the destination sits near large water bodies or stronger relief. For print use, the general map is convenient when labels matter most, while the elevation and water maps are better when the physical landscape is the main subject.
Coal, railroads, and the historical geography of the county
Pittsburg County’s settlement pattern also has a strong historical dimension. According to the Oklahoma Historical Society, the county name reflected comparisons between the area’s coal production and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Coal mining and rail transportation shaped communities around McAlester and nearby towns such as Krebs, Hartshorne, and Savanna. That history helps explain why several towns are relatively close together along established transportation corridors rather than being evenly spaced across the county.
The county was created at Oklahoma statehood in 1907, with McAlester serving as the county seat. The same landscape that appears on the modern maps has therefore supported several overlapping stories: river and reservoir boundaries in the north, coal and transportation corridors around the central towns, and more mountainous terrain to the southeast. Looking at those elements together gives more context than reading a road map alone.
Using the downloadable files
The WebP images embedded in this article are optimized for quick viewing in a browser. The downloadable JPG versions preserve a larger image size and are more suitable when you want to print the map, zoom into labels, or place it in a presentation. When printing, keep the original aspect ratio rather than stretching the image to fill a page, because stretching can distort roads, labels, and the county outline.
These maps are best treated as general reference products. For official boundary work, the U.S. Census Bureau TIGER/Line files are a better source. For detailed hydrography, consult USGS National Hydrography datasets, and for elevation analysis use the USGS 3D Elevation Program. Road construction, closures, property ownership, flood regulation, and other time-sensitive or legal questions should always be checked against the responsible agency’s current records.
Download the map files
Use the box below to download the high-resolution JPG versions shown on this page. The ZIP groups the county, city, water-and-terrain, and elevation images so they can be saved together for printing or offline reference.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the easiest place to use as an orientation point in Pittsburg County?
McAlester is the easiest starting point for most readers. It is the county seat, appears prominently on the general map, and sits where several major roads meet. From McAlester, you can move north toward Crowder and the Lake Eufaula side of the county, east toward Krebs and Hartshorne, or south toward Savanna and Kiowa. Using that central reference makes the county’s irregular outline much easier to understand.
Where are the Canadian River and Lake Eufaula on these maps?
The Canadian River follows the northern edge of the county, while the broad Lake Eufaula water system occupies the north and northeast. The general map shows how that water helps shape the county boundary, and the water map provides the clearer view of tributaries, lake arms, and nearby interior streams. Carlton Landing and Quinton are useful place names for orienting yourself on the lake side of the county.
Can the elevation colors be used as exact survey elevations?
No. The elevation map is designed to show county-wide differences in terrain, including lower valleys and the stronger southeastern ridges. The legend provides a useful overall range, but the surface is generalized and locally scaled. Exact parcel, construction, or engineering elevations require detailed source data or professional surveying.
Map File Information
Download the original high-resolution JPG map files for Pittsburg County in one ZIP archive for printing, zoomed reference, or personal study.
- Included Files: county map, city distribution map, terrain and water map, and elevation map
- File Type: JPG
Related Maps
Sources and references
- Official Pittsburg County website
- Oklahoma Historical Society – Pittsburg County
- U.S. Census Bureau TIGER/Line Shapefiles
- USGS National Hydrography
- USGS 3D Elevation Program
Place names and geographic descriptions in this article are based on the supplied county maps and the official or trusted reference sources above. Boundaries, roads, hydrography, and elevation datasets can be updated, so consult the latest agency source when precision or current operational information is required.
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.
