Lawton is a city, seat of Comanche County, southwestern Oklahoma, close to the Wichita Mountains; incorporated 1901. A trade center of a wheat-growing and cattle-raising area, it has manufacturing industries producing tires, jewelry, cosmetics, clothing, and also processed food. Cameron University (1909) is here, and Fort Sill (1869), a U.S. Army field artillery center, is actually nearby; at the fort are a large museum, the grave of the Apache leader Geronimo, and several historical buildings. A large wildlife refuge is also near the area. The city expanded rapidly after the Kiowa-Comanche-Apache tribal lands were opened to white settlement in 1901. It is named for General Henry W. Lawton, who was killed in the Philippines.
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