city, seat (1907) of Pittsburg county, southeastern Oklahoma, U.S., south of Eufaula Reservoir and Dam and the South Canadian River. It originated as a trading post, built in 1870 by James McAlester (later lieutenant governor of the state) in Choctaw territory at the intersection of the Texas and California trails. The arrival of the railroad in 1872 stimulated the working of local coal deposits. McAlester has aerospace-aviation and marine industries and is the site of the U.S. Army Ammunition Depot. Oil, gas, agriculture, clothing manufacture, and food processing are additional economic factors. The city is the site of the Oklahoma State Penitentiary, McAlester Consistory Temple (home of the Scottish Rite Masons), and the International Temple of the Order of the Rainbow for Girls (founded 1922). Inc. 1906. Pop. (1990) 16,370; (2000) 17,783.