Stilwell is a city in and the county seat of Adair County, Oklahoma, located in the Ozark Mountain region near the Arkansas border. The city recorded a population of 3,700 at the 2020 census and serves as the commercial and governmental center for rural Adair County. Stilwell is home to the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians in Oklahoma, a presence that reflects the deep Cherokee heritage of the region. The city is best known as the Strawberry Capital of the World, a title proclaimed by the Oklahoma governor and legislature in 1949. Strawberry cultivation has long been central to the area's economy and identity, and the community's annual Strawberry Festival, held the second Saturday in May, has drawn tens of thousands of visitors and remains one of Oklahoma's signature events. Although strawberry acreage has declined over time, the fruit remains a defining symbol of Stilwell. The surrounding landscape is one of forested hills and valleys typical of the Ozarks, and the area's heritage is closely tied to the Cherokee Nation and the United Keetoowah Band. Public education is provided by the Stilwell Public Schools, and the city's location places it within reach of Tahlequah and the Illinois River to the west and the Arkansas border to the east. The strawberry industry shaped Stilwell's twentieth-century identity, when the area shipped fruit across the region and the festival grew into a statewide draw. Cherokee culture remains woven into community life, with the United Keetoowah Band headquartered in the city. The Ozark hills, with their forests and clear streams, provide a scenic setting for a small city that serves as both an agricultural center and a gateway to eastern Oklahoma's outdoor recreation. Today Stilwell functions as a small, agricultural-anchored county seat whose identity blends Cherokee heritage, strawberry farming, and the natural beauty of the Oklahoma Ozarks. The city offers a quiet, small-town way of life while serving as the hub for the surrounding rural county.