Olean is a town in northern Miller County, Missouri, United States.

[3] The community was laid in 1881-1882 by the Jefferson City, Lebanon and Southwestern Railway which became the Missouri Pacific Railroad.

Ultimately, the railroad company imposed the name "Olean", after Olean, New York, apparently on a lark, as no documentation survives explaining any reasoning for choosing a city with no connections to the town in Missouri, which in turn had no connection to oil.

[7] At the turn of the 20th century, Olean contained a gristmill and a canning factory.

[8] The railroad left the community in 1962; its station is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The Olean Railroad Depot was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1993.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Olean has an area of 0.17 square miles (0.44 km2), all land.

[1] Blythe Creek passes through the southeast part of the town, flowing northeasterly toward South Moreau Creek, part of the Moreau watershed leading to the Missouri River.

The racial makeup of the town was 97.45% White, 1.27% Native American, and 1.27% from two or more races.