Oxford was founded in 1871 at the site of a former trading post. Oxford was incorporated as a city in October 17, 1879. It was named after Oxford University, in England. The founding city officials were Ben Smith the elected mayor, Joseph Sleigh the elected police judge, George Walton the appointed city clerk. When Oxford was known as Napawalla, a post office had been established and Lafe Binkley was postmaster. When Oxford was founded, a new post office was opened and T.E. Clark was appointed postmaster.
Geography
Oxford is located at . According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of, all of it land. It is approximately thirty miles south of Wichita.
As of the census of 2010, there were 1,049 people, 434 households, and 292 families residing in the city. The population density was. There were 484 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the city was 94.9% White, 1.0% African American, 1.1% Native American, 0.4% Asian, 0.7% from other races, and 1.9% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.2% of the population. There were 434 households of which 27.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.2% were married couplesliving together, 8.1% had a female householder with no husband present, 3.0% had a male householder with no wife present, and 32.7% were non-families. 30.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.32 and the average family size was 2.83. The median age in the city was 44.7 years. 21.9% of residents were under the age of 18; 6.7% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 22.1% were from 25 to 44; 29.7% were from 45 to 64; and 19.5% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 48.7% male and 51.3% female.
2000 census
As of the census of 2000, there were 1,173 people, 465 households, and 327 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,401.8 people per square mile. There were 503 housing units at an average density of 601.1 per square mile. The racial makeup of the city was 95.99% White, 0.09% African American, 1.71% Native American, 0.17% Asian, 0.26% from other races, and 1.79% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.28% of the population. There were 465 households out of which 33.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.0% were married couples living together, 11.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.5% were non-families. 28.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.43 and the average family size was 2.95. In the city, the population was spread out with 25.7% under the age of 18, 6.2% from 18 to 24, 26.5% from 25 to 44, 20.5% from 45 to 64, and 21.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 87.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 79.8 males. The median income for a household in the city was $34,875, and the median income for a family was $42,500. Males had a median income of $36,250 versus $22,841 for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,479. About 4.3% of families and 5.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.0% of those under age 18 and 1.9% of those age 65 or over.
Oxford High School has produced several championship sports teams recently: district champions in football, regional champions in baseball, and tournament champions in basketball. Oxford High School has also produced academic Scholar's Bowl teams that have gone to state, in which it took 2nd place in 2008 and 4th in 2014.
