Muldrow is a town in Sequoyah County, in the Arkansas River Valley of eastern Oklahoma, just west of the Arkansas state line. It is part of the Fort Smith, Arkansas–Oklahoma metropolitan area and sits directly along Interstate 40, which ties it to Fort Smith a short drive to the east and to the larger Oklahoma highway network. The community took shape in the late 1880s, when the Kansas and Arkansas Valley Railway built its tracks through the region. A post office was established in 1887 and named for Henry Muldrow, a federal official of the era, giving the town its name. For much of its history Muldrow served as a small agricultural and trading center for the surrounding Sequoyah County countryside, and it retains that rural character today. The local economy is built around manufacturing, healthcare, retail, and agriculture. Metal fabrication and plastics operations are part of the industrial base, and regional employers include an automotive parts plant, a poultry-processing facility, and Mercy Hospital Muldrow. The town's position within the Fort Smith metro area also means many residents commute to larger employers across the river in Arkansas. Muldrow has grown steadily in recent decades, with the census counting about 3,100 residents in 2000 and roughly 3,300 by 2020. Public education is provided by Muldrow Public Schools, which enrolls about 1,600 students across elementary, middle, and high school campuses. The town's recreation centers on Muldrow City Park, with the Arkansas River and nearby Corps of Engineers campgrounds offering boating, fishing, and camping on the area's edges. That combination of small-town pace, river-valley setting, and quick freeway access to Fort Smith defines life in Muldrow.