Prior to establishment of its post office with the name “Rattan”, the area was called Sulphur Springs, Indian Territory. Sulphur Springs, located 3/4 mile south-southeast of the highway intersection of OK 3 and OK 93 in present-day Rattan, was county seat of Cedar County, Choctaw Nation. It was established by the Choctaws’ Doaksville Constitution of 1860 and, in the manner of most Choctaw county seats, served a part-time role as legal and political center. It was never a sizeable permanent settlement and boasted almost no mercantile or retail stores.