Green’s Dictionary of Slang

(US) slow, boring.

1860		E. Eden Semi-Attached Couple (1979) 140: I don’t believe that tiresome, poky brother of his.
1870		L.M. Alcott An Old-Fashioned Girl 113: Polly happened to be talking, or trying to talk, to one of the ‘poky’ gentlemen.
1888		‘Rolf Boldrewood’ Robbery Under Arms (1922) 364: The people that had them [...] had lived a pokey life in them for many a year.
1900		Ade More Fables in Sl. (1960) 128: It was the Lady President’s fault for having such a long and pokey Essay.
1911		S. Ford Torchy 278: Such a poky old trip, too! Nobody aboard but old married folks that played bridge all the time.
1915		M.G. Hayden ‘Terms Of Disparagement’ in DN IV:iii 215: pokey, dull; slow.
1922		S. Lewis Babbitt (1974) 183: It gets me why Dad doesn’t just pass out from being so poky.
1931		E. Clark Innocence Abroad 264: I’ve been rushed to destruction with two volumes of poky plays and some other childish writing.
1932		J. Dixon Free To Love 260: My guess is that your father’s big surprise is very plain and – pokey.
1949		‘Hal Ellson’ Duke 100: This pokey cat went about his business.
1955		‘Hal Ellson’ Rock 101: ‘Are you ready, Rock?’ she says like I’m the pokey one.
1964-69		S. James in Calt I’d Rather Be the Devil (1994) 13: The town consisted primarily of a general store and a gas station. It looked indistinguishable from other pokey Mississippi towns .