• Oversee the orderly development of the Port of Muskogee and the Port Industrial Park and to maximize the use of the McClellan-Kerr Arkansas River Navigation System.
• Encourage, support and participate in educational programs that enhance the public’s awareness of the value of the inland waterway system and to work to ensure it is preserved for the benefit of future generations.
  

Our History

Over the last 50 years, Oklahoma has been the beneficiary of a series of comprehensive, water resource development projects that are nothing short of spectacular and perhaps unparalleled in our nation’s history. These projects literally transformed the landscape of Oklahoma … forever. This is best illustrated by the fact that Oklahoma, once a dust bowl state, today has more shoreline miles than any other state. The McClellan-Kerr Arkansas River Navigation System is the crown jewel of these projects. Authorized by Congress in 1946, this multi-purpose project was the largest public works project undertaken. As is the case with all federal waterway projects, the $1.3 billion federal investment was justified by the expectation that the national benefits would, in a reasonable time, exceed the cost. The benefits included flood control, hydropower, navigation, water supply, wildlife conservation, and recreation. Not all water resource development projects live up to their expectations. In this case; however, the economic impact can be documented to support the conclusion that the federal dollars were invested wisely. According to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, flood control benefits alone saved more than $1.3 billion in damages prevented from 1974 through 1987. More than 1 billion kilowatt hours of electricity is produced annually at one half the cost of electricity produced by coal, insuring that the region’s power costs are competitive nationwide.

The Muskogee City-County Port Authority was created by an Act of the Oklahoma Legislature in 1963. The first Board members were Harold Scoggins, Harold Ivens, Morton Woods, Jr., Hank Slaight, W.S. Warner, Jr., and John Bond.

The emergence of Muskogee and Tulsa as port cities began when the waterway was just ten years away from completion. A group of twenty-three Tulsa business people toured the Ohio River Valley to learn how and to what degree industrial growth was stimulated by river traffic. Following that tour, the Metropolitan Tulsa Chamber of Commerce established a Port Authority Committee. The Muskogee Chamber of Commerce spearheaded a special commission, as well, to assess the potential for port development.

After exhaustive studies, sites for port development were selected on the Arkansas River at Muskogee, the present site of the Port of Muskogee, and along the Verdigris River at the present site of the Tulsa Port of Catoosa.

Master plans for development of the two ports were developed and the voters approved the initial public investments, which have led to the growth and progress evident at each of the facilities today.