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976.6 

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1378314 


M.  L. 


GENEALOGY  COLLECTION 


bthJ 


ALLEN  COUNTY  PUBLIC  LIBRARY 


3  1833  01793  9874 


■  i 

1                   -liSBIl^ 

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!                                                                                                                          . 

H.  R  O'BEIRNE. 


* * 

LEADERS  AND  LEADING  MEN  - 


OF    THE 


INDIAN    TERRITORY 


WITH    INTERESTING 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


I. 

ChOCTAWS^nd  ChICKASAWS:!'-' 

With  a  Bkief  History  of  Each  Tribe  :     Its  Laws,  Customs, 
Superstitions  and  Religious  Beliefs. 


By  H.  F.   O'BEIRNE. 


PROFUSELY    ILLUSTRATED 


with  over  two  hundred  portraits  and  full-page  engravings. 


CHICAGO  : 

AMERICAN   PUBLISHERS'  ASSOCIATION. 

18  9  1. 


-* 


Entered  according'  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1891,  by  the 

AMERICAN  PUBLISHERS'  ASSOCIATION, 

In  the  OflSce  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  at  Washington. 


4. . '. * 


* iB 


PREFACE. 


The  Publication  of  Leaders  and  Leading  Men  of  the  Indian 
Territoky  is  tlie  result  of  a  universal  demand  throughout  the 
States  for  a  more  thorough  and  accurate  knowledge  of  the  Five 
Civilized  Tribes.  1378314 

The  aim  of  the  compiler,  however,  is  not  merely  to  intro- 
duce to  the  reading  public  the  Leading  Men  of  the  Indian  Territory, 
their  laws  and  customs,  etc.,  but  to  perpetuate  for  all  time  the 
memories  of  the  most  illustrious  among  the  great  American  abor- 
igines. To  have  permitted  the  ancient  inhabitants  of  our  republic 
to  pass  into  oblivion,  in  these  days  of  literary  enterprise,  would 
reflect  discredit  upon  the  philanthropy  of  the  present  generation, 
more  especially  now  that  the  tribal  governments  are  threatened 
with  approaching  dissolution. 

"En  passent"  let  us  hope  that  this  work,  seeing  that  it  sets 
forth  the  self-reliance  and  legislative  independence  of  each  distinc- 
tive government,  as  well  as  the  rapid  progress  in  business  and  ag- 
riculture, will  serve  as  a  strong  protest  against  any  undue  action 
on  the  part  of  the  United  States  to  deprive  these  people  of  a  coun- 
try which  they  purchased  and  paid  for,  and  which  is  theirs  by 
treaty  as  long  as  "grass  grows  and  water  runs."  The  compiler 
of  this  work,  who  has  lived  many  years  among  the  Indian  people, 
and  is  familiar  with  their  lives  and  mode  of  living,  has  prefixed  to 
the  numerous  biographies  a  brief  historic  sketch  of  each  Nation, 
with  a  criticism  of   their  laws,  customs  and  superstitions. 

The  present  book,  which  is  but  the  first  volume  of  a  work 

which  will  be  given  to  the  world  in  three  volumes,  treats  only  of 
^ — — qi 


Ij, fi< 

i        _  I'KKI  ACE. 

the  Chocta\v.s  and  Chickasaws.  Its  biographical  pages  will  be 
found  to  contain  glimpses  of  all  the  leading  men,  with  a  few  iso- 
lated exceptions,  who  from  timidity,  or  prejudice,  have  refused  to 
become  identified  with  their  more  ambitious  brethren.  It  will  be 
observed  that  a  few  sketches  contained  herein  are  those  of  resi- 
dent white  men  who  have  in  some  manner  become  identified  with 
the  institutions  and  industries  of  the  country. 

The  compiler  of  Leaders  and  Leading  Men  of  the  Indian 
Territory  is  under  obligation  to  the  many  contributors,  but 
especially  to  a  few  of  the  older  members  of  the  tribes,  who  have 
kindly  volunteered  their  services  on  several  occasions. 

H.  F.   O'Beirne. 


-* 


*- 


»rt 


INDEX. 


Alberson,  Wm.,  Clioctiiw  and  Chickasaw,  -  37 
Ainsworth,  Napoleon  B.,  Choctaw^      -       106 

Aiusworth,  W.  H., 61 

Adams,  Georg-3  W., 267 

Allen,  T.  J.,  M.  D.  -       -       -   .    -       -       -    53 

Byington,  HeniT,  Choctaw.    -       -       -  158 

Bassett,  William,  Clioctaw         -       -       -  39 

Bohannon,  Edward  A.,  Choctaw,        -  4i 

Bouton,  Madison,  Choctaw,       -       -       -  49 

Boyd,  Judge  Robert  L.,  Chickasaw,     -  276 

Burris,  Judg-e  Gabriel,  Choctaw      -       -  90 

Bourland,  Judge  Reuben,  Chickasaw,     -  273 

Bond,  John,  Choctaw,      -       -       -       -  193 

Burton,  R.  D.,  Choctaw  and  Creek,  -       -  85 

Beeler,  George  R.,  Chickasaw,       -       -  235 

Brown,  Wiley  Franklin,  Chickasaw,         -  283 

Baker,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  H.  F.,  Chickasaws,  235 

Burris,  Rev.  Colbert  E.,  Chickasaw,        -  246 

Brown,  Milton,  Chickasaw,           -       -  21" 

Byrd,  Gov.  Wm.  L.,  Chickasaw,        -       -  256 

Burks,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Dr.  W.  S..  Chicks.,  244 

Burney,  Edward  Sehon,  Chickasaw,       -  231 

Burks,  John  William,  Chickasaw,       -  301 

Brown,  Hon.  Josiah,  Chickasaw,      -       -  252 

Bohannon,  David,  Choctaw,          -       -  149 

Bryant,  Josiah  H.,  Choctaw,      .       -       -  185 

Bond,  Judge  Geo.  MefHin,  Choctaw,    -  86 

Bell,  T.  D.,  Choctaw, 108 

Butler,  Rev.  W.  L., 59 

Baker,  Everett  P.,        ....       .       -  265 

Bacon,  W.  H.,    -       -•      -        -       -        -  264 

Blossom.  D.  C, 81 

Betts,  C  E.,  Choctaw  and  Cliickasaw,  263 

Bilbo,  Charles  A.,  Choctaw,       -       -       -  40 

Cheadle,  Elias  Rector,  Choctaw,    -  -       148 

Choate,  G.  W.,  Choctaw,      -       -       -  201 

Cheadle,  James  Stewart,  Choctaw,  -       152 

Carries,  Ellis  H.,  Choctaw.         -       -  -    133 

Campbell,  Chas.  B.,  Chickasaw,    -  -       233 

Collins,  Charles,  Chickasaw,      -        -  -    279 

Collins,  Daniel,  Chickasaw,    -       -  -       241 

Cooper,  Wm.  W.,  M.  D.,  Chickasaw,  -    245 

Colbert,  Frank,  Chickasaw     -       -  -       246 


Colbert,  Humphrey,  Chickasaw,      ■       -  250 

Cochran,  William  L.,  Chickasaw,  -       -  211 

Chase,  Abel  Dustin,  Chickasaw,       -       -  216 

Colbert,  Hon.  Holmes,  Chickasaw,       -  296 

Campbell,  C.  L.,  Chickasaw,      •       -       -  286 

Collins,  Edward,  Chickasaw,  -       -       -  315 

Chigley,  Hon.  Nelson,  Chickasaw,   -       -  274 

Carter,  Judge  B.  W.,  Chickasaw,  -       -  249 

Crutchfield,  Lewis,  Cherokee,    -       -       -  67 

Campbell,  H.  A.,  Choctaw,      -       -       -  45 

Cobb,  J.  McKinney,  Choctaw,   -       -       -  155 

Camp,  Joseph  Bradford,  Choctaw,       -  4J 

Crowder,  Robert,  ------  lOii 

Coleman,  Richard  B,,  Choctaw,     -       -  69 

Colbert,  James  Allen,  Chickasaw,    -       -  270 

Clark,  V/m.  Ashbury,       -       -       -       -  105 

Clarke.  W.  T.,         --.-.-  131 

Cobi>.  John  A„ 189 

Coniior,  S.  A.,  M.  D., 136 

Collins,  Tom, 127 

Doyle,  Edmund  A.,       -       -       -       -       -  73 

Dwight,  Simon  T.,  Choctaw,  -       -       -  131 

Dulin,  Janjos,  Chickasaw,  .       -       -       -  243 

Dillard,  Cenj  .Cliickasaw  and  Choctaw,  74 

Durant,  Morgan.,  Choctaw,     -       -       -  42 

Dunn,  Alfred  A.,,  Choctaw,        -       -       -  34 

Durant,  Rev.  Dickson,  Choctaw,  -       -  33 

Davis,  Arthur  W.,  Choctaw,      -       -       -  35 

Durant,  W.  A.,  Choctaw,         -       -       -  61 

Dunn,  W.  M.,  Choctaw,       .       -       -       -  87 

Doyle,  J.  D.,  Choctaw.     -       .       -       -  68 

Davis,  Rev.  William  M.,      -       .       -       -  54 

Davison,  James,         -----  260 

Durant,  Judge  Alexander,         -       -       -  172 

Eastman,  Charles  Edward,  Chickasaw,  248 

Easton,  J.  H.,  Chickasaw.  -       -       -       -  317 

Erwin,  Columbus  C,  Choctaw,     -       -  173 

Everidge,  Joe  W.,  Choctaw,       -       -       -  120 

Ellis,  Jackson  W.,  Cherokee,          -       -  56 

Folsom,  Alfred  W.,  Choctaw,    -       -       -  130 

Farr,  John  Gist,  Choctaw,       -       -       -  174 

Folsom,  Albert  P.,  Choctaw,      -       -       -  157 


®- 


* 


11  INOKX. 


Fr:izicr,  Cjinipboll,  ('lioctaw,            -  -    9-t 

FolsKiii,  K.  K.,  Choctuw,         -       .       .  (j^ 

Fi-:i7.ifr,  Loriiig'  '.V.,        .        -       -       .  .  205 

l-ianklin.  Hon.  Joseph  M.,  Cliiek;i?!iw.-  310 

FoUntii,  Allivil  KiiHTson,  CliDCtaw,  -  -  122 

Fiilsom,  JiTi-y,  Clioctnw,         -       -        -  120 

FishiT,  Marlin,  Cliuclaw,    -        -       -  -    124 

Fox.  Williiiin,  Chickasaw,        -       -       -  '£U 

FishiT,  Francis  Joseph,  Chickasaw.  -    242 

Fronian,  Perry.  Cliickasiiw,    -       -       -  279 

Frazicr,  Newton  Galloway,  Cliickasaw,-  215 

Franklin.  Juiljre  J.  H.,  Cliickasaw,       -  29-4 

Friiizell.  John.  Choctaw.     -       -       -  -      48 

Fisher.  I).  ().,  Choctaw  and  Chickasaw,-  ,56 

Folsoin,  Don  Juan.  Clioctaw,      -       -  -      71 

Folsoin,  Judgre  J.  C,  Choclaw,       -        -  70 

Farrinjrton,  C.  B., 58 

Fo.v.  Frank  M., 302 

Franklin.  E.  Q.,  Chickasaw,        -       -  -    244 

Gardner,  .Tosiah,  Choctaw,        -       -  -     6" 

Garland,  Joseph,  Choctaw,    -       -       -  1C4 

Garland,  William  G.,  Choctaw,          -  -    201 

Garland,  Michael  C,  Choctaw,      -       -  168 

Gooding',  J.  Franklin,  Chickasaw,    -  -    238 

GtKlfrey.  J.  H.,  Chickiisaw,     -       -       -  251 

Guy,  Governor  \V.  M.,  Chickasaw,  -  -    22(i 

Garvin,  Samuel  J.,  Choctaw,  -       -       -  44 

Gardner.  James  W'.,  Choctaw,  -       -  -     93 

Gardner,  Judjre  Green  W  ,      -       -       -  141 

Gardner, M'illi.am.  Choctaw,        -       -  -    124 

Garland,  Daniel  L.,  Choctaw.-       -        -  t)5 

Goodiny,  C.  E., 318 

Gardner,  Judjre  Jefferson,  Clioctaw,    -  174 

Guy,  James  Harris,  Chickasaw,       -  -    213 

Hotema.  Solomon  E.,  Choctaw,     -       -  135 

Haynes.  Dr.  W.  F.,         .       -       -        -  7(j 

Hi'nr.v,  Amos,  Clioctaw,           -       .       .  j(i7 

Harkins,  La  Fayette  C,  Choclaw,    -  -    206 

Homer,  Davis  A.,  Choctaw,    -       -       -  i,")4 

Harris,  Henry  C,  Choclaw,        -        -  -    103 

Hampton,  Benjamin,  Clioctaw,      -       -  195 

Heald,  Charles  Hobart,  Chickasaw,  -    233 

Hull.  Willialii.  Chickasaw,      -        -       -  314 

Hunting  and  Fishing-,          -       -       -  -    209 

Harris,  Tiplon  Shirley,  Chickasaw,      -  299 

Harris,  James  M..  Chickasaw,  -       -  -    313 

Harkins.  Giles  W..  Chickasaw,      -       -  275 

Harkins,  Col.  G.  W.,  Chickasaw,       -  -    254 

Hampton.  Julius  C..  Choctaw,       -       -  51 

Hodg-es.  John  M..  Chochiw,        -       -  -      27 

Ho<lg^e,  D.  W.,  Choctaw.    -       -       -        -  132 

Hodjfes,  Joseph  J..  Choctaw,      -        -  -      78 

Harrlsson.  John  M.,  Choclaw,        -       -  12<,) 

Harkins.  .\lonzo  J..  Choctaw,    -       -  -    137 

Howell, 'riiom.-is  1'.,  Choclaw,        -        -  150 

Howell,  John  T.,  Choctaw,          -        -  -     101 

Hampton,  Hon.  W.  W.,  Choctaw,          -  161 


Harrisson,  \Vm.  H.,  Choctaw. 
Hester,  G.  B.,  tfhoctaw,- 
Henegan,  J.  T.  &  Co.,  - 
Hancock,  C.  A., 
Haas,  Julius,  -       -       -       - 


In»olubbe,  Peter,  Clioctaw,    - 
Indian  Citizen,  The      .        -        -        - 
Important  Towns  and  Business  Points, 

J.imes.  Booker,  Chickasaw. 
James,  Walton,  Chickasaw,  - 
Jackman,  H.  T.,     -       -        -        -       - 
Johnson,  Montford  P.,  Chickasaw, 
Jones,  Willie  W.,  Choctaw, 
Jeter,  Joshua  Billings,  Chocta\\-.  - 
•Tackson,  Jacob,  Choctaw, 
Jones,  Cornelius,  Choctaw,     -       -        - 
Jeniiiiios,  Reagan  Webster,  Chickasaw-. 
Jones,  Wallace,  Choctaw,         ... 
James,  Julius,  Choctaw,      -       -       - 
James,  Judge  Silas,  Choctaw, 
James,  McKee,  Choctaw,    .       -       - 
Johnston,  Judge  Thomas  B.. 
Jones,  Wilson  N.,  Choctaw, 


Kingsbury,  Cyrus  H.,  Choctaw,    - 
Kennej',  John  Henry,  Chickasaw,    - 
Keel,  Hon.  Lewis,      -       -       -       .       . 
Kemp,  Simon,  Chickasaw,  -       -       - 
Kemp,  William  M.  M.,  Chickasaw. 
Keener,  Kev.  James  Lisbon, 
Keel,  Hon.  Hogan,  Chickasaw. 
Kimberlin,  W.  G.,  Chickasaw-,  - 

Lowrey,  T.  M.,  Choctaw, 
Lewis,  Simon  E.,  Choctaw, 
JiOwrance,  AVillis  BuT'ges,  Chickasaw, 
La  Flore,  Captain  Charles,  Choctaw,    - 
Lloyd,  Hev.  W.J.  B.,    -  -         - 

Lankford,  Dr.  J.  S.,  -  -  - 

Lankford,  J.  D.,  -  -  . 

liindsay,  Joseph  D., 
Laney,  W.  H..  •>  Cliicknsa-»v  Enterprise,' 
Leeper,  William  Perry,  Chickasaw, 

Mizc,  H.  M  , 

Myers,  J.  F.,  Chickasaw,- 
Myers,  Mrs.  Eula.  Chickasaw, 
McBride.  Hiram  Leon,  Choctaw. 
Milton,  Davis  Newton,  Choctaw,  - 
McPrayer,  John  E.,  Choctaw,  - 
McKinney,  Rev.  William  H.,  Choclaw, 
McKinney,  Alex.,  Chick,  and  Cheiokee, 
McCurtaln,  Jackson  F  ,  Choctaw,    - 
McCurtain,  Mrs.  Jack,  Choctaw, 


82 
30 
258 

74 


34 
155 
166 

305 

220 
125 

284 
130 
182 
207 
150 
284 
45 
44 
110 
113 
264 


295 
277 
236 
222 
199 
278 
234 


198 

-  309 

88 

-  57 
55 

-  53 
196 

'  255 

-  214 


237 
307 
46 
1*5 
188 
190 
290 
140 
145 


-►H 


*- 


-^ 


INDEX. 


Maurer,  Charles  J.,  Choctaw,        -       -  38 

McClure,  Hon.  Tecumseh  A.,  Chickasaw,  308 

Murray,  Dr.  H.  F.,  Chickasaw,      -       -  298 

McKinney,  Benjamin  F.,  Choctaw,         -  146 

Muncrief,  Samuel,  Choctaw,          -       -  116 

Martin,  Captain  Walker,  Choctaw,  -       -  100 

Manning-,  Thomas  Jefferson,  Choctaw,  41 

Maxfleld,  Charles  M., 266 

Meadows,  F.  C, 184 

Murrow,  Rev.  J.  S., 204 

McBride,  William, 262 

Myers,  M.  F., 47 

Montague,  Mickleborough  S.,       .       -  60 

McCurtain,  ex-Chief  Edmond,  Choctaw,  178 

Mosely,  Hon.  Palmer  S.,  -       -       -       ■  216 

Miller,  H.  T.,  "  Territorial  Topics,"  -       -  259 

Mashburn,  J.  H.,  Chickasaw,         -       -  231 

Mead,  Sanford  Miner,  Chickasaw,    -       -  247 


Nale,  Joseph  S.,  Choctaw,       ... 

Nuttall,  A.  H., 

Norman,  W.  A.,  ------ 

Noble,  William,     -       -       -       -       . 
Nelson,  Col.  Coleman  Enoch,  Choctaw, 
Nail,  Joel  H.,  Choctaw,         -       .       - 


Oakes,  Lem.  W.,  Choctaw, 
Oakes,  Thomas  E.,  Choctaw, 
Officer,  Rev.  R.  W.,    - 
Oakes,  Samuel  L.,  Choctaw, 


157 

266 
259 

69 
169 

40 


184 
142 

187 
206 


Paul,  Hon.  Samuel,  Chickasaw,    -       -  282 

Phillips,  Thomas  J.,  Chickasaw,       -       ■  272 

Parker,  J.  Wesley,  Chickasaw,      -       -  291 

Price,  WilUam  N.,  Chickasaw,  -       -       -  306 

Perry,  Calvin  C,  Choctaw,     -       -       -  117 

Pate,  Georg-e  A.,  Choctaw,         -       -       -  161 

Perkins,  Henry,  Choctaw,       -       -       -  153 

Poyner,  Dr.  William, 265 

Phillips.  Felix  R., 289 

Purcell  Register,  ------  257 


Quick,  Edward,  Chickasaw,    - 


Roebuck,  David,  Choctaw,         -       -       -  118 

Rennie,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Alex.,  Chickasaw,  293 

Rennie,  John,        ------  ;300 

Rogers,  Walter  Scott,       -       -       -       -  165 

Ream,  Robert  L.,  Chickasaw,    -       -       -  242 

Rodgers,  B.  F.,  Choctaw,         -       -       -  97 

Rowley,  H.  B.,  Choctaw,     -       -       -       -  151 

Robinson,  McKee  F,,  Choctaw,      -       -  139 

g  ___„„.. _■ .,-     ^ ..^^-z 


Robinson,  Rev.  Calvin,  Choctaw, 
Riley,  Joseph  H.,  Chickasaw, 


Settell,  Fritz,  Choctaw,       -       -       . 
Shaffer,  F.  E.,      -       -       .       -       -       . 
Sawyers,  William  M.,  - 
Standley,  Captain  J.  S.,  Choctaw, 
Stewart,  James  W.,  Choctaw,    - 
Stead,  Dr.  J.  M.,  Cherokee, 
Scrapie,  Charles  A.,  Choctaw,    • 
Smizer,  Butler  S„  Choctaw,    -       -       - 
Secor,  William  H.,  Jr„  Choctaw, 
Stovall,  Hon.  James  M.,  -       -       -       . 
Smith,  Rev.  Franklin  B.,    - 
Smith,  Jourdan  Anderson,     -       -       - 

Surrell,  A.  M., 

Surrell,  John  R.,        .       -       -       .       . 
Saddler,  Joseph,  Chickasaw,     - 
Shannon,  William  Thomas,  Chickasaw, 
Shelton,  Dr.  A.  W.,  Chickasaw, 
Skeen,  Cicero  A.,  Chickasaw, 
Second  Choctaw  Regiment  Sketch, 
Stewart,  Charles  P.,  Choc,  and  Chick., 
Smallwood,  Mrs.  Annie,  Choctaw,    - 
Stark,  Dr.  Tollis  H.,  Choctaw, 
Stewart,  Samuel  F.,  Choctaw, 
Sacra,  Richard  C,  Choctaw,       , 
Smallwood,  B.  F.,  Choctaw,    -       -       . 
Smallwood.  Richard,  Choctaw, 
Stewart,  Wiley,  Choctaw,       -       .       - 


Thompson,  Alexander,  Choctaw,     - 
Toole,  Alfred,  Choctaw,   .       -       -       - 
Turner,  Mazeppa,  Chickasaw,  - 
Telle,  AUinton,  Choctaw,        -       -       . 
Thomas,  Oliver,  Choctaw,  -       -       - 
Tennent,  Dr.  Lewis  C,  Choctaw,  - 
Turnbull,  John  P.,  Choctaw,     . 
Thompson,  Joseph  B.,  Choctaw,   - 
Thompson,  Thomas  Benj.,  Chickasaw, 
Turnbull,  Edmond,  Chickasaw,     - 
Tally,  William,  Chickasaw, 
Truax,  George  Henry,  Chickasaw, 
Turnbull,  T.  B.,  Choctaw, 
Twin  City  Topics,      -       -       -       .       - 


Vinson,  Charles  Stewart,  Choctaw, 
Vail,  J.  W.,  Choctaw, 


Watkins,  Jonathan  J.,  Choctaw, 
Winston,  Hon.  Charles  K.,  Choctaw, 
Walker,  Isham,  Choctaw,   - 
Waite,  Frederick  T.,  Chickasaw,  - 
Walker,  Henry  T.,        ...       -       - 


107 
236 


126 

84 

73 

93 

99 

66 

115 

117 

72 

267 

54 

260 

202 

225 

230 

232 

219 

280 

127 

48 

43 

47 

44 

43 

50 

42 

109 


83 

98 

312 

89 

65 

58 

183 

162 

285 

285 

231 

311 

48 

142 


170 
102 


194 

2ft3 
186 
218 
273 


-* 


*- 


-* 


IV  INDKX. 


Wilson.  Newton  G.,  Cliifkitsaw,    -  -       344 

Wrlglit.  cx-Gov.  Allen,  Choeiiiw,    -  ai 

Wurd.  Chiirk's.  Clioctiiw,         -       -  -       i:}8 

Ward.  Henry  P..  Clux-taw,          -       -  -    114 

Wilson,  Dr.  George  J.,     -       -       -  -       261 

Williunis.  W.  G.. 84 

Woods,  Rev.  Bonjamin  J,,  Choctaw,  -       180 

Ward,  Robert  J.,  Choctaw,         -       -  -    181 

Wilson,  John  D..  Choctaw,      -       -  -       179 

Walker,  Tandy  C,.  Chick,  and  Choc.  -    316 

Wallace,  S.  W.  Chickasaw,      -      -  -      233 


Worley,  J.  C,  Chickasaw,  -       -       -  -    273 

Wilson,  Joseph  B., Chickasaw,       -  -       278 

Waite,  Amos  R.,  Chickasaw,     -       -  -    281 

Webb,  John  M.,  Chickasaw,    -       -  -       219 

Walner,  John  H„  Chickasaw,    -       -  -    278 

Wrig-ht.  Isaac  Strickland,  Chickasaw,  283 

Ward,  William  G.,  Choctaw,      -       -  -      38 

Ward,  J.  L.,  Choctaw,       .       -       -  -       147 

Yarborough.  George  A.,  Chickasaw,  -    305 

York,  William  C,  Cherokee,  -       -  -         75 


i 


Old  Council  House  at  Na-na-wya. 


•i*- 


-hc 


THE  CHOCTAWS. 


Up  to  tlie  present  date  the  world 
is  without  a  history  of  this  an- 
cient people.  Indeed  so  little  is 
known  of  their  habits,  customs 
and  mode  of  government  that  the 
brief  imperfect  sketch,  such  as 
we  are  forced  to  confine  ourselves 
to,  will  be  a  matter  of  no  small 
interest  to  many  who  are  totally 
ignorant  on  the  subject.  How- 
ever, be  it  understood  that  the 
compiler  of  this  work  waives  all 
pretense  of  historic  research  be- 
yond the  limitation  of  such  knowl- 
edge as  he  was  enabled  to  gain 
from  contact  with  the  oldest  and 
most  intelligent  members  of  the 
tribe.  Such  knowledge,  however, 
is  very  limited,  as  few  who  are 
now  living  can  detail  any  events 
prior  to  the  treaty  of  1830.  Pro- 
fessor Cushman,  of  Greenville, 
Texas,  whose  father  lived  among 
the  Choctaws  in  the  old  state,  has 
been  for  the  past  six  years  en- 
gaged in  writing  a  voluminous 
history  of  the  tribe,  the  comple- 
tion of  which  is  being  looked  for- 
ward to  with  universal  interest. 
During  the  presidency  of  Mr. 


Jackson  we  find  the  Choctaws  oc- 
cupying a  considerable  tract  of 
country  in  Mississippi  and  living 
under  the  government  of  a  king 
who  usually  inherited  the  royal 
office. 

Prior  to  the  revolutionary  war 
several  kings  were  appointed  by 
the  British,  and  still  further  back 
the  French  were  instrumental  in 
choosing  the  crowned  head. 

Next  in  order  came  the  chiefs, 
each  "  iksa,"  or  clan,  having 
one  principal  and  subordinate 
chiefs.  The  captains  and  war- 
riors ranked  next,  being  domin- 
ant over  the  tillers  of  the  soil, 
etc.,  etc.  The  principal  "iksas" 
or  clans  were  the  Hyah-pah-tuk- 
kalo  (twin  lakes),  Okalla-fal-lah- 
ya  (longpeople),  Okalla-hun-nah- 
lay  (six  towns),  Chickasaw-hay 
(Chickasaws),Koon-chas,  and  the 
Imok-lu-sha. 

These  clans  lived  apart  from 
each  other  and  never  married  out- 
side their  own  '.'iksa,"  it  being 
a  very  serious  breach  of  the  law 
and  punishable  until  1830,  when 
the  act   was    happily  repealed. 


* 


-* 


18 


LKADKUS   AND   LKADIN'G    INIEV 


*- 


Of  the  above-named  clans  that  of 
the  ilyah-pah-tuk-kalo  was  pre- 
dominant, its  people  being  the 
most  powerful  and  enlightened 
in  the  arts  of  war  and  peace. 
The  royal  house,  or  the  house  of 
kings,  was  of  the  Hyah-pah-tuk- 
kalo.  It  was  called  the  "  Ilattak- 
i-hollatah"  (Beloved  of  the  Peo- 
ple), and  no  Choctaw,  save  of 
the  royal  blood,  was  permitted  to 
sit  upon  the  throne.  Of  this 
house  was  Moshola-tub-by,  son  of  ' 
the  last  king  and  grand  uncle  to 
David  and  Israel  Folsora,  whose 
children  are  well  and  widely 
known  in  the  Choctaw  nation  at 
present.  The  relationship  ex- 
isting between  this  family  and 
ex-President  Cleveland's  wife  was 
established  in  1886  by  the  late 
Judge  Rufus  Folsom,  senator 
from  Toboksy  county. 

The  extreme  in  every  respect 
of  the  Hyah-pah-tuk-kalos  were 
the  Okalla,  Hun-nah-lays,  or  Six 
Towns,  who  were  of  a  lower  caste, 
a  people  without  ambition,  edu- 
cation or  the  nobler  traits  which 
marked  the  royal  "iksa,"  Of 
them  it  is  avowed  that  they  made 
use  of  carrion  or  the  carcasses  of 
dead  fish  and  animals.  This  was 
of  conrse  in  an  early  day,  before 
religion  and  education  had  placed 
them  on  a  footing  with  the  other 
clans.      In    the     year    1820     a 


small  body  of  these  people  who 
dwelt  on  the  banks  of  Hyah-wah- 
nah,  orJrVinding  Waters,  arose 
in  arms  and  assassinated  a  white 
trader.  Their  brethren,  who  had 
been  always  friendly  to  the 
whites,  were  so  enraged  at  this 
act  that  they  proceeded  to  punish 
the  lawless  Hyah-wah-nahs.  But 
the  latter,  fearing  the  result  of 
their  crime,  left  the  country  en 
masse  and  went  to  Louisiana;  af- 
terward wandering  from  place  to 
place  in  Texas  and  New  Mexico 
until  1840,  when  they  stole  a 
march  into  the  Choctaw  Nation, 
settling  on  the  borders  of  what  is 
now  called  "  Ilyah-wah-nah  prai- 
rie," within  twelve  miles  north- 
east of  Atoka.  From  some  cause 
orotherthey  did  notlong  remain 
in  possession  of  their  beautiful 
location,  one  which  was  admira- 
bly adapted  for  an  aboriginal  set- 
tlement, the  hills  being  full  of 
game  and  the  waters  of  the 
mountain  creek  well  stocked  with 
fish.  It  is  believed  by  some  that 
they  were  driven  from  the  coun- 
try by  their  brethren  and  com- 
pose that  little  band  now  re- 
siding in  southeastern  Texas. 
The  ruins  of  their  houses,  which 
were  built  chiefly  of  rock,  may 
be  seen  at  the  present  day  on 
the  borders  of  the  creek  which 
bears  their  name. 


-* 


>h- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


'>h 


19 


•?<- 


Like  other  aboriginal  races, 
the  Choctaws  believed  in  the 
Great  Spirit  before  the  advent  of 
the  early  missionaries.  But  in- 
stead of  obstinately  setting  their 
faces  against  the  truth,  as  the  ma- 
jority of  tribes  have  done,  these 
people,  with  characteristic  eager- 
ness for  knowledge,  flocked  to- 
gether to  listen  to  the  word  of 
God  from  the  lips  of  Kingsberry, 
Byington  and  other  dissemina- 
tors of  Christian  doctrine.  While 
the  Choctaws  embraced  Christian- 
ity with  apparent  readiness,  yet 
they  by  no  means  considered 
themselves  under  obligation  to 
forsake  their  ancient  rites,  cus- 
toms and  superstition^,  and  it 
was  not  until  1834  or  thereabouts, 
when  stringent  laws  were  enacted, 
that  they  forsook  the  horrible 
practice  of  burning  to  death  or 
otherwise  torturing  and  killing 
persons  accused  of  witchcraft. 
This  custom,  however,  has  been 
completely  abandoned  amongthe 
Choctaws  for  twenty  years.  The 
Chickasaws,  however,  resorted  to 
it  as  recently  as  seven  years  ago, 
when  several  unfortunates  under- 
went martyrdom. 

The  Medicine  man,  or  conjur- 
ing doctor,  has  also  become  un- 
popular through  the  enactment  of 
a  law  passed  in  1837,  forbidding 
him  to  receive  fees  in  the  shape 


of  horses,  hogs,  guns  or 'cattle, 
should  the  patients  die  under  their 
care.  But  should  they  succeed 
in  raising  the  sick,  they  are  en- 
titled to  any  remuneration  offered 
them.  Education  and  the  pres- 
ence of  modern  medical  science 
has  ruined  the  demand  for  the 
conjuring  doctor,  who  is  now  al- 
most a  personage  of  the  past. 

REMOVAL    FROM    MISSISSIPPI. 

Soon  after  consenting  to  the 
allotment  of  their  lands  in  Miss- 
issippi and  the  adoption  of  the 
United  States  laws,  the  Choctaw 
people  became  aware  of  their  true 
position.  Abrief  experience  was 
sufficient  to  prove  to  them  the  im- 
possibility of  becoming  amenable 
to  the  situation.  Thus  it  came 
about  that  they,  with  one  voice, 
petitioned  the  United  States  to 
remove  them  to  a  new  country 
and  once  more  endow  them  with 
the  rights  of  self-government. 
This  brought  about  the  treaty  of 
Dancing  Kabbit  Creek,  which  re- 
sulted in  their  selling  their  lands 
east  of  the  Mississippi  and  pur- 
chasing the  tract  now  occupied  by 
them  and  the  Cliickasaws.  It 
was  agreed  that  the  proceeds  of 
the  sale  was  to  be  placed  in  the 
treasury  and  paid  within  a  cer- 
tain time  with  interest  at  five  per 
cent  up  to  date  of  payment.   But 


-* 


LEADERS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


tlir  paviiK'iit  was  deferred  for 
halfact'iitury;  the  interest, which 
wouUl  have  swelled  the  original 
sum  to  many  millions,  was  only 
allowed  for  two  years  and  the 
princijial  cut  down  so  that  the  en- 
tire sum  (»nly  an)<)Uiited  to  about 
slJ)41,S0r)  when  divided.  The 
•treaty  was  followed  by  a  univer- 
sal preparation  for  the  new  land, 
many  of  the  very  old  as  well  as 
the  very  young  sharing  in  the 
toilsome  jounicy. 

We  shall  not  dwell  u])on  the 
hardships  undergone  by  these  pa- 
tient people,  not  a  few  of  whom 
perished  in  their  pilgrimage.  The 
greater  number  "sojourned  in 
Eagle,  Towsen,  Bok-tuk-kalo  and 
other  eastern  counties.  Among 
these  was  Nathaniel  Folsom,  the 
father  of  twenty-four  children, 
who,  stricken  with  the  palsy,  died 
and  was  buried  on  Mountain 
Fork.  October.  1833,  in  the  same 
grave  with  his  sister,  Mrs.  Kobin- 
son,  mother  of  Kev.  Calvin  Rob- 
inson.of  Caddo,  who  passed  away 
just  three  days  before  her  brother. 
So  disastrous  were  the  efl'ects  of 
this  march  that  a  number  of  the 
emigrants  who  had  come  to  pros- 
pect for  future  settlements  return- 
ed at  once  to  Mississippi,  believ- 
ing the  new  country  to  be  sickly 
in  the  extreme. 

It    was  not  until  lS4()or   '45 


that  the  Choctaws  had  all  arrived 

and  setted  themselves  ])erman- 
ently  in  their  new  dominion.  At 
this  period  and  for  many  years 
after  we  find  the  most  important 
centers  of  trade  at  Doaksville 
and  Boggy  Dei)ot.  The  latter 
point  (which  is  now  abandoned 
with  the  exception  of  Governor 
Wright's  old  residence)  was  vis- 
ited by  whites  and  Indians  from 
a  distance  of  two  hundred  miles, 
who  came  to  trade  with  the  mer- 
chants, who  in  their  turn  were 
supplied  from  Jefferson,  Texas, 
and  New  Orleans,  La. 
^Wonderful  has  been  the  change 
^in  the  condition  of  this  country 
and  its  inhabitants  within  the 
past  fifty  years.  This  we  have 
no  hesitation  in  attributing  to 
the  great  advantages  derived  from 
self-government.  A  comparison 
between  the  Indians  who  remain- 
ed in  the  old  states,  subservient 
to  the  American  laws  and  the 
members  of  the  five  civilized 
tribes,  will  do  much  toward  il- 
lustrating the  extraordinary  in- 
fluence that  self-government 
exerts  over  a  proud  but  conquer- 
ed race. 

GOVERNMENT,    LAWS      AND    EDUCA- 
TION. 

The  Choctaws  have  an   excel- 
lent code  of   laws  and  wise  law- 


S 


>B- 


OF   THE   INDIAK   TERRITORY. 


21 


-* 


•it- 


makers,  but  unfortunately  do  not 
always  elect  the  best  material  to 
till  the  executive  chair.  Men  of 
brilliancy  and  great  individuality 
are  rarely  popular  as  candidates 
for  this  office.  The  Ohoctaws 
prefer  a  man  whom  they  can  rule 
to  one  who  can  rule  them,  and 
they  usually  attain  their  desire  in 
this  respect.  The  principal  chief 
or  governor  is  elected  for  a  term 
of  two  years.  Next  in  point  of 
importance  come  the  district 
chiefs,  of  which  there  are  four,  one 
for  each  of  the  following  named 
districts:  Pushmataha,  Hotub- 
bee,  Mosholatubbee  and  Apuck- 
shanubbee.  Each  of  those  dis- 
tricts is  divided  into  counties  pre- 
sided over  by  county  judges, 
while  there  are  sheriffs  and  other 
inferior  officers,  all  of  whom  are 
elected  by  public  ballot.  The  ju- 
dicial power  of  the  Nation  is 
vested  in  one  supreme  court  be- 
sides the  circuit  and  county 
courts.  The  supreme  court  is 
composed  of  three  district  judges, 
one  of  whom  is  styled  chief  jus- 
tice. These  courts  are  carried  on 
with  the  same  degree  of  formali- 
ty that  is  observed  in  the  United 
States.  The  legal  code  which  is 
kept,  or  meant  to  be  kept,  in 
subjection  to  the  treaty,  is  quite 
volutninous,  increasing  at  every 
council  of  the   legislative    body. 


The  legislature  meets  early  in 
October  of  each  year  and  con- 
tinues for  a  period  of  from  five 
to  seven  weeks,  the  members  of 
both  houses  receiving  five  dollars 
per  day.  The  meeting  is  held  at 
Tus-ka-homa,  Wade  county,  where 
a  handsome  and  costly  capitol 
was  erected  some  six  or  seven 
years  ago.  The  senate  is  com- 
posed of  four  senators  from  each 
district,  elected  for  a  term  of  two 
years,  while  the  members  of  the 
house  of  representatives  are  elect- 
ed by  the  voters  in  each  county 
in  ratio  of  one  representative  to 
every  one  thousand  citizens.  In 
order  to  be  a  member  of  either 
of  these  bodies  it  is  necessary  to 
be  possessed  of  Indian  blood, 
notwithstanding  a  treaty  provis- 
ion to  the  contrary.  The  business 
of  the  legislature  is  usually  trans- 
acted in  the  native  tongue  and 
interpreted  into  English.  The 
principal  chief  is  armed  with  a 
veto  which  is  all-powerful  unless 
a  majority  of  two-thirds  be  used 
to  defeat  him.  As  a  seat  in  the 
legislature  is  one  of  the  highest 
honors  that  can  be  conferred  upon 
a  citizen,  the  competition  during 
elections  is  brisk  and  exciting. 
Many  of  .the  Ohoctaws  are  gifted 
with  oratorical  powers  to  a  very 
great  extent,  their  important 
measures  frequently  calling  forth 


-* 


*- 


-* 


l.EADKIiS    AND   I.KADIXO   MEX 


eloquent  reasoning  and  sound 
logic.  At  the  annual  council 
meeting  eoniinittees  are  appoint* 
ed  to  examine  into  the  accounts 
of  the  i>ast  year  and  make  a])- 
}>ropriations  for  the  next.  The 
royalties,  annually  turned  in  by 
the  National  Agent,  Permit  and 
other  collectors  amount  to  about 
s2.50,0(M>  per  annum,  so  that  af- 
ter having  defrayed  the  expenses 
of  government  and  made  the 
usual  appropriations  for  school- 
ing of  children  in  the  States, 
there  is  usually  a  large  credit 
balance  in  the  treasury.  The 
home  education  is  also  very  lib- 
eral. Besides  the  neighborhood 
schools,  scattered  here  and  there 
over  the  length  and  breadth  of 
the  land,  there  are  four  acade- 
mies or  institutes,  namely:  Arm- 
strong Academy  (the  manual 
labor  school),  Spencer  Academy, 
Wheelock  Academy  and  New 
Hope  Academy.  These  insti- 
tutes are  kept  u])  by  the  govern- 
ment at  a  large  expense  and  un- 
der the  guidance  of  qualiiied 
teachers  in  every  branch  of  learn- 
ing. A  school  superintendent  is 
elected  whose  duty  it  is  to  look 
after  educational  interests. 

The  (Mioctaw  youths  as  a  rule 
are    diligent     pu]>ils     and     ac 
quire    knowledge    rajiidly    from 
a  teacher  to  whom  thev  have  be- 


come attached,  but  should  their 
instructor  render  himself  ob- 
noxious, no  fear  of  personal  chas- 
tisement will  coerce  them  into 
obedience.  The  majority  of  pu- 
pils learn  with  great  rapidity  and 
have  very  retentive  memories. 
The  natural  ambition  of  the  race 
is  never  better  illustrated  than  in 
the  young  man  on  his  return  from 
a  few  years'  schooling  in  the 
States.  He  is  completely  meta- 
morphosed. His  tastes  are  aspir- 
ing; his  manner  courteous  as  a 
Frenchman,  and  his  dress  fastid- 
ious, sometimes  even  to  the  verge 
of  folly. 

The  young  girls  advance  very 
rapidly  under  favorable  circum- 
stances, and  many  become  excel- 
lent musicians,  artists,  linquists 
and  ready  conversationalists. 
Their  beauty  and  accomplish- 
ments cause  them  to  be  much 
sought  after  by  United  States 
citizens  sojourning  in  the  coun- 
try. In  accordance  with  the 
treaty  and  constitution,  any  white 
man  who  marries  a  Choctaw 
agreeable  to  provisions  of  the 
law  is  entitled  to  all  the  rights 
and  privileges  of  a  citizen  by 
blood.  Within  the  past  few  years 
the  marriage  license  has  been 
raised  from  twenty-five  dollars  to 
one  hundred  dollars,  but  the  pay- 
ment of  the  license  is  frequently 


-* 


>b' 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


23 


-* 


evaded  by  a  trip  to  Texas  or  over 
the  border,  which  is  a  very  good 
temporary  subterfuge,  as  a  wom- 
an still  preserves  her  national 
rights  whether  her  husband  be 
legally  married  to  her  or  not. 

AREA,  POPULATION,  NATURAL  FEA- 
TURES, PRODUCTS. 

The  Choctaw  Nation  covers 
an  area  of  10,450  square  miles 
and  an  acreage  of  6,688,000.  It 
is  therefore  the  largest  of  the 
Five  Nations.  Its  population  be- 
fore the  census  of  1890  including 
freed  men  and  adopted  citizens 
was  estimated  at  eighteen  thou- 
sand. If  we  include  the  white 
population  settled  within  its 
borders,  it  would  almost  double 
these  figures.  Of  this  great  tract 
of  land  scarcely  one-third  is  fitted 
for  agricultural  purposes,  espec- 
ially in  the  eastern  counties  where 
the  surface  is  broken  by  moun- 
tain chains  whose  long  and  rath- 
er narrow  valleys  are  not  always 
the  most  fertile.  The  prairie  land 
of  Blue  county  is  exceptionally 
good,  while  the  bottom  lands  on 
the  South  Canadian  are  highly 
productive,  yielding  enormous 
crops  of  corn,  cotton,  etc.  Kich 
tracts  of  land  are  also  to  be  found 
here  and  there  adjacent  to  the 
waters  of  Red  River,  Blue  and 
the  various  branches    of    Boggy 


*- 


Creek.  The  country  throughout 
is  splendidly  watered  and  well 
adapted  to  stock  raising.  But 
the  chief  wealth  of  the  Choctaw 
Nation  is  and  will  henceforth  be 
dependent  upon  the  apparently 
inexhaustible  coal  beds,  which 
are  now  being  developed  with 
great  rapidity.  The  income  ac- 
cruing to  the  citizens  from  this 
source,  together  with  the  annual 
royalty  collected  by  the  national 
government,  is  immense.  The 
coal  region  extends  over  a  wide 
strip  of  country  running  north 
from  Denison  to  the  waters  of  the 
South  Canadian,  a  distance  of 
over  one  hundred  miles,  the  out- 
croppings  being  visible  through- 
out the  entire  region.  Besides 
coal  the  Choctaw  Nation  is  un- 
doubtedly rich  in  copper,  lead 
and  silver,  though  no  very  im- 
portant discoveries  have  yet  come 
to  light.  Since  the  establishment 
of  railroads  timber  has  been  a 
great  source  of  revenue  to  the 
Nation,  a  large  quantity  of  which 
is  cut  down  and  shipped  annu- 
ally. Walnut,  bois  d'arc  and  the 
various  growths  of  pine  and  oak, 
reach  perfection  in  the  high  and 
low  lands;  for  here  is  a  country 
whose  natural  aspect  varies  from 
the  ruggedness  of  the  Rockies  to 
the  low  lands  of  Florida,  rich  in 
tropical  vegetation. 


't' 


•i^ 


-* 


24 


LEADEKS   AND    LEADING   MEX 


The  natural  scenery  of  the 
Choctaw  Nation,  especially  in  the 
eastern  ]>ortioii,  is  not  surpassed 
l»y  aiiythini^  in  the  southwest, 
this  side  of  the  Sierra  Madre 
Mountains.  Its  diversity  of  land- 
scape is  remarkable,  exhibiting 
a  rare  panorama  within  the  lim- 
its of  a  day's  travel.  East  of  the 
Kiametia  range  the  country  is 
very  sparsely  settled  and  few  hab- 
itations are  to  be  met  with  in  the 
Sans  Bois,  Sugar  Loaf  and  Pusli- 
ma-lin  Mountains.  In  these  re- 
gions bear,  panther,  mountain 
lion,  and  other  wild  animals  are 
to  be  met  with;  while  deer,  tur- 
key and  smaller  game  are  plenti- 
ful. 

Regarding  the  Indian  people, 
it  is  worthy  of  observation  that 
the  full-bloods  never  erect  their 
dwellings  beside  a  public  high- 
way, nor  within  proximity  to  each 
other,  but  rather  seek  an  isolated 
spot  at  the  foot  of  some  hill  and 
close  to  water.  Here  they  culti- 
vate a  small  patch  of  corn  and 
raise  their  hogs,  upon  which  food 
they  chiefly  subsist.  Here  we  re- 
fer only  to  the  small  minority  or 
unenlightened  portion  of  the  pop- 
ulation, for  the  vast  majority  of 
the  Ohoctaws  are  equal  in  point 
of  intelligence — more  inde])end- 
ent  and  better  housed  and  fed 
than  the  jieasantry  of  European 


countries.  Of  the  educated  citi- 
zens of  this  Nation,  be  it  said, 
that  in  proportion  to  the  oppor- 
tunities they  have  received,  in 
the  same  ratio  are  they  equal  to 
the  Anglo-American  race,  intel- 
lectually, morally  and  often 
financially,  for  many  of  them  ex- 
hibit strong  traits  of  acquisitive- 
ness and  economy.  Physically, 
however,  the  Choctawsare  far  in- 
ferior to  their  pale  brethren, 
many  passing  away  every  year 
from  the  ravages  of  pulmonary 
diseases,  which  are  very  common, 
especially  among  the  half-breeds. 
The  prevalence  of  consumption 
may  be  accounted  for  by  the  an- 
cient custom  of  intermarriage 
with  their  own  kindred  or  clan. 

PROGRESS-EECENT  HISTORIC  FACTS. 

An  interim  of  fifty  years  from 
the  emigration  of  the  Choctaws 
to  the  present  time,  during  which 
the  race  enjoyed  the  grand  priv- 
ilege of  self-government,  miss- 
ionary influence  and  the  example 
of  many  good  and  industrious 
white  men  who  married  amongst 
them,  and  behold  the  marvelous 
change!  The  bow  and  arrow  is 
exchanged  for  the  plow;  the  spear 
head  for  the  pen,  a  weapon  which 
many  of  the  Choctaws  can  nse 
with  singular  ease  and  grace. 
The  "Tonfulla"  patch,  too,  has 


-* 


*- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY, 


25 


* 


become  a  three-hundred-acre  field 
more  or  less,  for  some  of  the 
farms  in  the  Choctaw  and  Chick- 
asaw Nations  cover  5,000  acres. 
Add  to  this  the  large  pastures 
stocked  with  Durham,  Hereford, 
Polled  Angus  and  Gallowaj  im- 
ported cattle,  and  you  have  an 
illustration  of  the  modern  Choc- 
taw farm.  Can  as  much  be  said 
for  the  progress  of  any  race  un- 
der God's  blue  heaven  during  the 
brief  period  of  fifty  years  ?  And 
yet  withal  this,  there  are  law- 
makers in  the  United  States  who 
publicly  avow  that  the  Indian 
Domain  of  the  five  tribes  is  a 
waste  uncultivated  tract.  How 
will  the  following  strike  the  ear 
of  the  New  England  farmer.  In 
1888  the  town  of  Ardmore,  Chick- 
asaw Nation,  was  established. 
In  the  fall  and  winter  of  1889 
and  1890,  17,000  bales  of  cotton 
were  purchased  and  shipped  from 
that  point.  Facts  of  this  nature 
are  proof  positive  that  the  Choc- 
taw and  Chickasaw  Nations  are 
pushing  rapidly  to  the  front  in 
commerce.  Coalmining  has  also 
greatly  increased  within  the  past 
twelve  months,  the  Coal  Gate 
mines  being  added  to  the  old 
established  shafts  at  McAlester 
and  Lehigh. 

Some  four  years  ago  a  move- 
ment was  set  on   foot  by  Hon. 


Green  McCurtain  and  others  to 
take  the  coal  from  the  individual 
citizens  and  turn  the  proceeds 
into  the  national  fund.  The  de- 
fense was  championed  and  fierce- 
ly contested  by  John  M.  Hodges, 
member  for  Atoka  county,  backed 
by  Governor  B.  F.  Smallwood, 
Simon  Hotema  and  others,  and 
the  movement  defeated.  But 
revolution  pervaded  the  atmos- 
phere of  that  council  from  the 
commencement  to  the  end, 
and  Governor  McKinney  was 
forced  to  veto  a  bill  (introduced 
at  the  instigation  of  a  Presbyter- 
ian divine)  forbidding  the  Roman 
Catholics  the  right  to  establish 
a  mission  in  the  Choctaw  Nation. 
To  the  irrepressible  member  for 
Atoka  county  is  due  the  credit  of 
having  caused  the  defeat  of 
this  unconstitutional  and  unjust 
measure. 

Having  drifted  into  history  we 
cannot  do  less  than  make  honor- 
able mention  of  the  greatest  chief 
of  modern  Choctaw  history,  Jack 
M'Curtain,  who  was  the  most  prac- 
tical and  progressive  of  all  their 
executive  ofiicers.  His  example 
did  much  toward  bringing  about 
the  prosperity  now  enjoyed  by 
his  people.  His  supporters  form- 
ed themselves  into  a  party  after 
his  death,  and  the  McCurtain 
combination  has  elected  its  candi- 


-* 


*- 


26 


l.EADERS   AND   LEADING   MEX 


date  every  term  till  1888,  when 
B.  F.  Smaliwood,  a  man  of  great 
popularity,  and  the  leader  of  the 
opposite  party,  was  called  to  the 
executive  chair.  In  1890,  how- 
ever, when  the  same  contest  was 
repeated,Wilson  Jones  was  elect- 
ed. Mr.  Jones  has  been  national 
treasurer  for  several  years,    and 


is  one  of  the  richest  men  in   the 
Choctaw  Nation. 

The  most  important  event  of 
the  past  twelve  months  was  the 
appropriation  and  payment  of  the 
"Net  Proceeds  Claim,"  the  dis- 
tribution of  which  threw  a  large 
sum  of  money  into  general  circu- 
lation. 


*- 


->i» 


3c(icl  ^ 


*- 


-•i« 


LANGUAGE  AND  EARLY  HISTORY. 


*- 


LANGUAGE. 
The  Choctaw  and  Chickasaw 
languages  are  almost  synono- 
mous,  the  construction  the  same, 
a  few  words  only  differing  in  sig- 
nification. The  vocabulary  is 
very  limited.  Some  French  words 
have  crept  in  their  dictionary 
from  early  contact  with  the 
French  hunters  and  traders  of 
Mississippi.  The  late  Gov.  Al- 
len Wright,  though  a  progressive 
man,  did  much  to  perpetuate  the 
mother  tongue  by  the  publication 
of  a  lexicon  and  school  books, 
and  the  translation  of  sacred 
works  into  the  Choctaw.  Some 
of  the  words  are  peculiarly  soft 
and  pleasing  to  the  ear.  At 
their  revival  meetings  the  Choc- 
taws  chaunt  their  hymns  in  the 
native  dialect.  Their  method  of 
singing  is  peculiar,  and  not  a  few 
of  their  airs  are  original,  possess- 
ing a  weirdness  which  sets  the 
old  Irish  minor  completely  in  the 


shade.  But  the  aboriginal  lan- 
guage is  fast  dying  out,  and  is 
only  taught  in  a  few  of  the  re- 
mote neighborhood  schools. 


EARLY  INTER-MARRIAGE. 
Inter-makkiage  between  white 
settlers  and  the  Choctaws  and 
Chickasaws  must  have  com- 
menced at  a  very  early  day  if 
we  are  to  judge  from  the  number 
of  Celtic  and  Anglo-Saxon  names 
that  figure  in  the  vocabulary  of 
'^Leaders  and  Leading  Men." 
By  observation  the  reader  will 
learn  that  the  Celtic  or  Irish 
blood  predominates  among  the 
Mixed  race.  Harris,  McCurtain, 
Harrisons,  Howell,  McKinney, 
Harkins,  and  a  host  of  others 
are  Irish.  The  Scotch  and  En- 
glish follow ;  while  wc  have, 
strange  to  say,  few  French  names 
among  the  citizens,  although  the 
latter  race  greatly  associated 
themselves    with    the    Choctaws 


-^ 


*- 


-* 


LANGUAGE     AND    EARLY    HLSTORY, 


in  Mississippi  at  an  early  date. 
It  is  difficult  to  account  for  this 
unless  we  attribute  it  to  the  fact 
that  the  French  are  not  by  nature 
a  marrying  people. 


THE  BALURSHA  OR  BELOXI 

CLAN. 
The  above-named  people,  adopt- 
ed by  the  Choctaw  Council  in 
October,  1858,  are  believed  to 
have  been  originally  members  of 
the  Choctaw  family  who,  leaving 
Mississippi  at  an  early  date,  wan- 
dered into  the  southwest  in  search 
of  better  hupting  grounds.   Under 


the  leadership  of  their  adventur- 
ous chief,  '"Tox-i-tubbee,"  they 
roamed  at  large  through  Texas 
and  Mexico,  picking  up  words 
from  various  dialects  of  the  plain 
Indians  and  grafting  them  on 
the  Choctaw  language.  Finding 
it  impossible  to  maintain  their 
hunting  grounds,  and  subject  to 
the  treatment  of  hostiles  at  the 
hands  of  the  Texas  pioneers,  the 
little  band  moved  to  the  Choctaw 
Nation,  and  are  now  located  east 
of  Kiowa,  in  the  Keel  settlement 
— Charlie  Keel  being  one  of 
their  leadine;  men. 


♦i-- 


* 


*- 


-* 


BIOGRAPHICAL. 


JOHN  M.  HODGES. 

[OHOCTAW.] 

This  popular  legislator  was  born 
in  Sugar  Loaf  county,  Choctaw 
Nation,  in  1850, the  son  of  Joseph 
Hodges,  a  white  man,  and  Ce- 
belle  Wall,  of  the  Koonchas  and 
Iraoklusba's.  In  1868,  in  his 
eighteenth  year,  he  was  elected 
county  judge  of  Bok-tuk-kallo 
county,  and  two  years  afterward 
filling  the  unexpired  term  of  cir- 
cuit judge.  This  was  followed 
by  his  appointment  as  revenue 
collector  and  succeeded  by  that 
of  circuit  clerk.  In  1882  hecred- 
itably  filled  an  unexpired  terra 
in  the  Council,  and  in  1883  was 
elected  inspector  of  revenues. 
Before  the  lapse  of  two  years  he 
was  elected  to  the  House,  and 
re  elected  four  years  in  succes- 
sion. In  1888  he  went  to  the 
Senate  with  a  large  majority,  and 
the  following  year  was  chief  cora- 
missioner  of  the  Net  Proceeds 
Claim,  nearly  one  million  of 
money  passing  through  his  hands 
during  the  distribution.  In  1890 
he  was  once    more  elected  mem- 


ber of  the  Lower  House.  On  the 
adoption  of  the  freedmen  in 
1885,  the  subject  of  this  sketch 
was  one  of  the  commissioners. 
Since  the  age  of  seventeen  years 
(when  he  became  postmaster 
in  Bok-tuk-kallo  county)  John 
Hodges  has  never  been  out  of 
ofiice.  His  decisions,  when  coun- 
ty judge,  at  the  age  of  eighteen 
years,  indicated  his  extraordinary 
force  of  character.  As  a  law- 
maker he  has  no  superiors,  and 
as  a  statesman  few  equals  among 
his  brethren.  Aggressive  in  the 
extreme,  blunt  in  manner,  and 
uncompromising  in  all  things, 
John  is  not  without  his  enemies. 
But  his  friends  are  sufficiently 
numerous  to  send  him  to  any  of- 
fice which  he  desires.  Within 
the  past  few  years  he  has  pur- 
chased a  great  deal  of  property, 
and  added  much  to  the  appear- 
ance of  Atoka  by  building  a  row 
of  attractive  residences,  his  own 
private  mansion  being  the  hand- 
somest dwelling  in  the  Choctaw 
Nation.  He  owns  a  large  mer- 
cantile house  in  Atoka  besides  a 


*- 


-* 


John  M.  Hodges. 


*- 


LEADERS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


27 


hotel,  and  has  part  interest  in 
other  business  establishments 
elsewhere.  His  coal  property  is 
also  very  valuable.  In  short, 
John  M.  Hodges  is  one  of  the 
richest,  most  influential,  talented 
and  progressive  citizens  in  his 
country.  His  wife,  who  was  a 
Miss  McKinney,  is  attractive  and 
hospitable.  She  entertains  fre- 
quently, and  then  always  in  the 
handsomest  manner,  a  party  at 
the  Hodges  house  being  invar- 
iably looked  forward  to  with  an 
unusual  degree  of  pleasure. 


*- 


CAPTAIN  G.  B.  HESTER. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

No  MERCHANT  in  the  Indian  Ter- 
ritory is  more  highly  respected, 
nor  has  a  better  business  record 
than  Captain  G.  B.  Hester,  who 
was  known  as  a  trader  in  the  old 
quarters  at  Boggy  as  far  back  as 
the  year  1858.  He  was  born  in 
1831,  in  Granville  county,  JST.C, 
andcame  to  Tishomingo  in  1855. 
From  thence  he  moved  to  Caddo, 
where  he  clerked  for  a  few  years 
for  Major  Harlan,  after  which 
he  settled  down  in  Boggy.  At 
the  commencement  of  the  war  he 
was  appointed  quartermaster  and 
commissary  in  the  First  Choctaw 
Regiment,  and  served  in  most  of 
the  principal  engagements.  In 
1865  he  w^as  chosen  cotton  agent 


for  the  Creek  Indians,  who  were 
at  that  time  squatting  in  the 
Chickasaw  Nation,  and  in  a  state 
of  almost  utter  destitution,  having 
but  little  to  eat  and  nothing  to 
wear.  In  this  capacity  Captain 
Hester  acquitted  himself  honor- 
ably, displaying  the  tact  and  rare 
business  qualifications  for  which 
he  has  since  become  remarkable. 

In  1866  the  subject  of  this 
sketch  entered  business  with  J. 
P.  Kingsberry,  and  this  gentle- 
man dying  the  year  following, 
Hester  shouldered  the  responsi- 
bility of  the  firm,  with  the  wife  of 
deceased  as  a  silent  partner.  The 
partnership  continued  for  nine 
years,  and  dissolved  in  1876, 
when  Captain  Hester  purchased 
the  entire  business.  He  now 
carries  from  fifteen  to  seventeen 
thousand  dollars  worth  of  goods, 
and  purchases  on  an  average 
five  hundred  bales  of  cotton  annu- 
ally, which  he  buys  in  the  seed, 
and  gins  at  his  own  establishment. 

Mr.  Hester  married  a  Miss 
Lizzie  Fulton,  of  Tunnel  Hill, 
Georgia,  a  lady  in  the  truest 
sense  of  the  term.  His  eldest 
daughter,  Fannie,  the  wife  of 
Edward  Perry,  Esq.,  of  Denison, 
Texas,  died  in  November,  1885. 
The  second  daughter,  "Daisy," 
married  Robert  L.  Owen,  ex-In- 
dian agent,  on  Dec.  20,  1889. 


-* 


-* 


28 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TEURITORY, 


AVILSOX  X.  JONES. 

PRINCIPAL  CHIEF  f)F  CHOCTAW  NATION. 

The  present  principal  chief  of 
tlie  Choctaws  was  born  in  Mis- 
sissippi in  1831,  and  is  the  young- 
est son  of  xsathaniel  Jones,  who 


*- 


WILSON  N.  .JONES. 

emigrated  to  the  Choctaw  Nation 
in  1833. 

Nathaniel  was  annuity  captain, 
and  afterward  served  as  a  mem- 
ber of  the  legislature  at  the  early 
councils,  w^ien  the  council  house 
was  situated  at  Nana  Wya. 

The  subject  of  our  sketch  be- 
longs to  the  Ok-la-fa-lay-a  clan. 
In  1849  he  commenced  farming 
without  any  capital  whatever. 
Ilis  results  were  very  limited  for 
the  first  few  years,  but  he  soon 
began   accumulating  enough  to 


secure  a  fair  start.  He  succeed- 
ed so  far  as  to  be  in  a  position 
to  open  a  mercantile  establish- 
ment on  a  capital  of  five  hundred 
dollars.  In  1866  or  186T  he 
took  a  Kansas  man  named  Jim 
Myers  as  partner,  who  contrib- 
uted three  or  four  hundred  dol- 
lars to  the  stock.  After  four 
years  of  hard  labor  they  succeeded 
in  accumulating  money  enough 
to  purchase  a  thousand  head  of 
cattle.  Myers  drove  the  cattle 
to  market  and  disposed  of  them 
in  Kansas,  probably  at  Fort 
Scott,  but  forgot  to  return  and 
divide  the  proceeds  with  his  part- 
ner. Tlie  consequence  was  that 
Wilson  Jones  lost  his  labor  of 
four  years,  a  sum  amounting  to 
at  least  five  thousand  dollars. 
But  Mr.  Wilson  went  bravely  to 
work  again,  aud  collecting  what 
debts  were  due  to  the  house  and 
three  hundred  dollars'  worth  of 
cattle,  turned  in  by  Mr.  W.  W. 
Hampton,  satisfied  his  creditors 
and  saved  the  business,  enabling 
him  to  purchase  a  fresh  stock  of 
goods.  There  being  little  money 
among  the  Clioctaws  at  the  time, 
Mr.  Jones  was  obliged  to  take 
stock  in  payment  for  his  sales; 
but  he  had  a  fine  range  and  per- 
mitted his  cattle  to  accumulate 
year  by  year.  When  the  rail- 
road  was   located  he  opened  a 


*- 


LEADERS    AND   LEADING   MEN 


29 


*- 


store  at  Shawnee,  fifteen  miles 
from  Caddo,  where  he  continued 
in  business  thirteen  or  fourteen 
years  with  great  success,  increas- 
ing his  stock,  until  at  the  present 
time  he  is  the  largest  cattle 
owner  in  the  Indian  Territory. 
At  one  time  he  loaned  B.  J. 
Hampton  and  L.  A.  Morris  five 
thousand  dollars  to  start  in  busi- 
ness at  Caddo.  They  used  his 
name  in  purchasing  their  goods, 
and  failing  in  business,  Wilson 
Jones  was  held  accountable  for 
the  amount,  nothing  being  left 
to  liquidate  the  debts  (says  Mr. 
Jones)  but  a  few  remnants.  He 
also  says  that  he  has  had  to  pay 
as  much  as  twenty  thousand  dol- 
lars to  satisfy  the  demands  of 
the  St.  Louis  merchants  for  simi- 
lar debts  as  the  Hampton-Morris. 

Of  late  Mr.  Jones  devotes  his 
whole  attention  to  stock-raising. 

In  1884  Wilson  Jones  was 
elected  district  trustee,  and  in 
1887  treasurer,  which  office  he 
held  until  1890,  when  he  was 
elected  principal  chief  of  the 
Choctaw  Nation.  He  was  first 
married  to  Col.  Pickins'  daugh- 
ter, by  whom  he  had  two  chil- 
dren, both  of  whom  are  dead. 
In  1855  he  married  Louisa  La 
Flore,  by  whom  he  has  had  four 
children,  all  of  whom  are  dead. 
William,  the  last  surviving  mem- 


ber of  his  family,  was  waylaid 
and  shot  in  1889.  His  mother 
died  a  long  time  before.  In 
1876  Mr.  Jones  married  Isabell 
Heaston,  daughter  of  Col.  Heas- 
ton,  of  Bennett  county,  Arkan- 
sas, by  whom  he  had  two  chil- 
dren, both  of  whom  are  dead. 

Mr.  Jones  has  about  seventeen 
thousand  six  hundred  acres  of 
land  under  fence,  five  hundred 
and  fifty  of  which  are  under  cul- 
tivation, the  rest  in  pasture.  He 
also  owns  five  thousand  head  of 
cattle,  three  thousand  of  which 
are  beef  stock.  Besides  this  he 
has  seventy-five  head  of  horses. 
His  brand  is  W.  J.  He  has  also 
an  interest  in  coal  claims,  cotton 
gin  and  half  ownership  in  a  large 
mercantile  establishment  with  W. 
H.  Ainsw^orth,  of  Caddo. 

Without  education.  Governor 
Jones  is  a  man  of  extraordinary 
intelligence,  unflagging  energy 
and  tenacity  of  purpose.  He  is 
a  wonderful  financier,  when  we 
consider  that  he  is  wholly  desti- 
tute of  book  learning.  Had  he 
had  the  opportunities  of  educa- 
tion now  offered  to  his  people, 
there  is  no  knowing  what  he 
might  have  achieved.  He  is  a 
man  of  great  popularity,  and  will 
undoubtedly  give  full  satisfaction 
to  his  supporters  in  the  discharge 
of  his  responsible  duties. 


•K- 


-^ 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


31 


EX-GOV.  ALLEN  WRIGHT. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

This  remarkable  and  rarely  gift- 
ed aborigine  was  born  in  Novem- 
ber, 1826,  close  to  the  site  of 
the  present  city  of  Jackson,  Mis- 
sissippi. Others  avow  that  he 
first  saw  light  on  the  left  bank 
of  the  Tak-nnk-i  river  in  the  same 


•i<- 


EX-GOV.  ALLEN  WRIGHT. 

state.  Little  is  known  concern- 
ing the  history  of  his  parentage, 
save  that  his  mother,  a  full-blood 
of  the  Hyah-pah-tuk-kalo"iksa," 
died  the  year  previous  to  the 
emigration  of  1833.  Of  the  sub- 
ject of  this  sketch,  whatever  may 
be  said,  it  is  quite  evident  that  he 
was  a  full-blood — an  aborigine 
of  rare  intellectual  qualities  and 
inspired  with  an  energy  of  pur- 


pose  which  almost  amounted  to 
an  inspiration. 

There  is  a  tradition  to  the  ef- 
fect that  young  Allen  emigrated 
with  his  father,  brothers  and  sis- 
ters to  the  Choctaw  Nation  in 
1833,  but  avoided  the  compan- 
ionship of  the  tribe  and  traveled 
by  themselves  in  a  small  group, 
arriving  at  Luk-fata,  Bok-tuk-kalo 
county,  in  March,  1834,  in  very 
great  distress.  However  this  may 
be,  we  know  that  the  subject  of 
this  sketch  at  the  age  of  ten  years, 
with  extraordinary  eagerness, 
commenced  learning  to  read 
English  from  a  teacher  named 
Joseph  Dukes,  residing  near 
where  Skelton  Depot  now  stands. 
After  the  death  of  his  father  he 
was  taken  in  hand  by  Cyrus 
Kingsberry ,  a  missionary  from  the 
old  state,  and  in  1841  entered 
Spencer  Academy.  His  progress 
was  extraordinary,  and  in  1848 
he  and  four  others  were  selected 
to  go  to  college  in  the  States.  He 
chose  Delaware  College,  and  the 
following  year  went  to  Prince- 
ton until  1850,  when  he  entered 
Union  College,  Schenectedy,  N. 
Y.,  and  graduated  in  two  years 
(1852).  After  this  he  went  to 
the  Union  Theological  Seminary 
in  New  York  City,  and  graduated 
in  divinity,  returning  to  the 
Choctaw  Nation,  where  he  was 


*b- 


32 


-^ 


LEADERS   AND   LEADING    MEN 


iininediatelj  placed  in  charge  of 
Armstrong  Academy.  Allen 
Wriglit  was  licensed  to  preach 
the  gospel  in  1S46.  and  ten 
years  afterward  was  ordained  by 
the  Indian  Presbytery.  In  1856 
he  was  drawn  into  politics  and 
elected  member  of  Council.  Dur- 
ing the  ten  years  which  followed 
he  was  called  to  many  important 
offices,  and  when  absent  as  a  del- 
egate to  Washington  in  1866, 
was  made  principal  chief  without 
his  knowledge.  In  1868  he  was 
re-elected  against  a  very  strong 
combination.  It  was  during  this 
time  that  a  plan  was  formed  to 
cripple  the  political  influence  of 
Allen  Wright  by  accusing  him 
and  the  delegates  of  misappro- 
priating national  funds.  Their 
scheme  was  successful  so  far 
that  when  Allen  was  again 
brought  out  for  Governor  in  1876 
he  was  easily  defeated.  This 
was  the  last  office  which  he 
sought  to  gratify  the  wishes  of 
his  people,  nor  did  he  act  in  be- 
half of  the  Choctaws  since  the 
administration  of  Jack  McCur- 
tain.  On  that  occasion  he  went 
to  Washington  in  company  with 
Capt.  Stanley  to  defend  the  ac- 
tion of  the  general  council 
against  self-appointed  delegates, 
and  to  prosecute  the  claim  against 
the   M.  K.  &   T.    railroad.    Ex- 


« 


Governor  Wright  after  this  time 
devoted  much  of  his  leisure  to 
literature.  He  was  the  best  Choc- 
taw scholar  of  his  Nation,  and 
gave  to  the  world  a  dictionary  of 
the  language  and  a  set  of  school 
books.  Besides  this  he  translated 
several  volumes  of  the  Choctaw 
and  Chickasaw  laws,  as  well  as 
reproducing  a  portion  of  the 
scriptures  and  the  popular  hymns 
in  the  Native  language.  He  was 
married  in  February,  1857,  ^o 
Harriett  Newell  Mitchell,  a  mis- 
sionary lady  from  Dayton,  Ohio, 
of  great  refinement  and  amiabil- 
ity, who  has  since,  as  well  as  be- 
fore her  marriage,  devoted  the 
greater  part  of  her  time  to  mis- 
sionary labor.  He  had  eight  chil- 
dren: Liffey,  Frank,  Allen,  Mary, 
Annie,  Kate,  Clare  and  Alfred. 

Ex-Governor  Wright  was  taken 
sick  late  in  November,  1885,  and 
died  of  pneumonia  on  May  2. 
His  de.ath  w^as  looked  upon  as  a 
natioutil  calamity,  and  his  people 
on  losing  him  felt  that  they  had 
indeed  and  unquestionably  lost 
the  most  useful  member  of  their 
Nation,  He  was  pre-eminently 
the  scholar  of  his  tribe  and  ver- 
satile in  the  highest  degree. 
While  he  invariably  sought  the 
society  of  the  learned  and  refined, 
he  was  equally  at  home  with  the 
most  illiterate  of  his  tribe. 


-^ 


^- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERIIITOKY. 


33 


-•5 


^- 


REV.  DICKSON  DURANT. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

Dickson  Dueant  was  the  son  of 
Fisher  Durant,  a  full -blood 
Choctaw.  He  was  born  in  1838 
in  Mississippi,  near  the  Big 
Black  river,  or  Lonesa-chita,  and 
emigrated  with  his  parents  in 
1842,  stopping  in  Boktukkalo 
county  at  Skelton  Depot,  where 
he  lived  for  years.  In  1849  he 
settled  at  Carriage  Point,  in 
the  Chickasaw  Nation.  At  four- 
teen years  of  age,  when  visiting 
a  camp  meeting  presided  over 
by  a  missionary  named  Silas 
Kingsbury  (afterward  adopted 
by  the  tribe),  he  became  a  con- 
vert to  the  Christian  religion 
through  the  interpretation  of  the 
fourteenth  verse,  third  chapter 
of  John.  The  interpreter,  Jona- 
than Dwight,  so  impressed  upon 
the  youth  the  significance  of  this 
verse  that  he  determined  to  learn 
English  in  order  to  penetrate  the 
mystery  of  Christ.  With  this  in 
view,  he  left  his  people  and  trav- 
eled through  the  States,  working 
at  one  farm  and  then  another 
until,  at  the  end  of  three  years, 
he  could  speak  and  read  the 
English  language  correctly,  be- 
sides having  a  general  knowledge 
of  the  Scriptures.  On  his  return 
to  his  people  he  married  Kate 
Harney,  an  orphan  girl,  and  with 


nothing  but  an  ax  and  a  camping 
outfit,  commenced  his  career  by 
opening  a  small  farm  near  Car- 
riage Point,  which  he  soon  sold 
out,  moving  to  Melon  Creek, 
where  he  remained  three  years. 
From  this  point  he  moved  to 
Fisher''s  Prairie,  Jacks  Fork 
county,  till  the  war  commenced, 
when  he  came  to  Durant,  where 
he  resides  at  the  present  time. 
For  seventeen  years  Mr.  Durant 
was  an  ordained  preacher  in  the 
Presbyterian  church,  but  left  it 
in  1885  and  joined  the  Congre- 
gationalists.  During  the  twenty- 
two  years  of  his  mission  he  has 
never  received  a  cent  for  his  la- 
bors, but  devotes  the  profits  of 
his  farm  to  traveling  among 
those  who  need  the  word  of  God. 
In  1889  he  went  to  Southeastern 
Texas  to  preach  to  the  Alabama 
Indians,  and  in  July,  1890,  re- 
turned on  the  same  mission  by 
invitation  of  the  tribe.  He  has 
been  superintendent  of  Sunday 
schools  for  twenty-seven  years. 
When  the  war  broke  out  Mr. 
Durant  entered  the  Choctaw 
brigade  under  Colonel  Walker, 
and  was  in  action  at  Leutonia, 
both  battles  of  Cabin  Creek,  and 
the  fight  at  Camden,  Arkansas. 
In  the  former  engagement  he 
was  wounded  by  a  shell  in  the 
left    side,    the     effect   of  which 


-* 


34 


-^ 


LEADKUS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


causes  him  to  limp  and  disables 
him  for  heavy  physical  labor. 
He  has  six  children — Melvina, 
John  Wesley,  Mattie,  Fannie, 
Mollie  and  Rosey,  by  his  first 
wife.  His  son,  now  twenty  years 
of  age,  has  returned  from  the 
Arkansas  College,  Batesville, 
where  he  received  a  sound  busi- 
ness and  classical  education,  and 
is  a  young  man  of  much  promise. 
The  Rev.  Dickson  Durant  is 
now  fiftj'-two  years  of  age  and 
in  sound  health. 


PETER  INTOLUBBE 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  1852;  was  the  son  of  Peter 
Intolubbe,  captain  of  the  Choc- 
taw Light  Horse,  a  full-blood  In- 
dian, his  wife  being  half  white. 
Young  Peter  was  educated  at  the 
Israel  Folsom  neighborhood 
school  in  Blue  county.  During 
his  father's  life,  who  was  in  those 
days  considered  wealthy,  the 
young  man  was  overseer  of  the 
stock  farm;  marrying  at  the  early 
age  of  nineteen  Evelyn  McGee, 
daughter  of  Sam  McGee,  of  Ben- 
nington. His  wife  died  in  1881 
after  having  had  five  children, 
all  of  whom  died  but  Colbert, 
aged  eleven  years.  In  1883  he 
married  Savanna  Shaw,  from 
whom  he  was  divorced  two  years 


afterward.  In  1872  Intolubbe 
was  appointed  deputy  sheriff  of 
Blue  county.  At  the  expiration 
of  his  term  he  commenced  farm- 
ing, and  has  at  this  time  a  farm 
of  two  hundred  acres,  one  hun- 
dred and  sixty  of  which  is  plant- 
ed in  corn  and  cotton,  and  rented 
to  three  white  families.  He  is 
at  date  of  this  writing  a  candi- 
date for  the  office  of  district 
chief,  against  five  competitors. 


*- 


ALFRED  A.  DUNN,  M.  D 

[CHOCTAW.] 

One  of  the  most  promising  young 
professional  men  in  the  Indian 
Territory  is  Alfred  A.  Dunn,  son 
of  the  late  William  N.  Dunn,  M. 
D.,  Atoka.  He  was  born  in  1801 
in  Choctaw  county,  Alabama, 
and  was  educated  in  Meridian, 
Miss.,  graduating  in  medicine 
at  the  University  of  Louisville, 
Ky.,  in  March,  1887.  The  sub- 
ject of  this  sketch  is  a  descend- 
ant of  theHyapah-tuk-kallo  clan, 
his  mother's  name  being  Yates, 
while  his  grandmother  was  Mil- 
lie Nail,  belonging  to  one  of  the 
most  renowned  families  among 
the  Choctaws.  Having  graduated. 
Doctor  Dunn  spent  a  short  time 
in  Atoka,  after  which  he  moved 
to  Thackerville;  and  finally,  in 
1888,  made  his  home  in  the  beau- 
tiful and   rapidly  growing   town 


* 


1378311 


ti-- 


OF   THE    INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


-* 


35 


of  Purcell,  where  in  partnership 
with  Dr.  Steade  he  is  conducting 
an  extensive  practice  and  a  well 
stocked  drug  store.  Dr.  Dunn 
has  also  several  farms, containing 
one  thousand  live  hundred  acres 
in  cultivation,  which  is  worked 
by  fifteen  renters.  His  mother, 
younger  brother  and  one  sister 
are  still  residing  in  Atoka,  I.  T. 


*- 


ARTHUR  W.  DAVIS. 

Arthur  W.  Davis,  a  white  man, 
is  the  son  of  Arthur  Davis,  of 
Christian  county,  Ky.  He  set- 
tled in  the  Choctaw  Nation,  at 
South  Canadian,  in  1872,  his 
brothers,  Mathew,  John  R.  and 
Levi,  having  accompanied  him. 
In  1874  he  married  Manda  Leiv- 
sey,  daughter  of  M.  T.  Leivsey,. 
of  Mountain  View,  State  county, 
Arkansas,  by  whom  he  had  four 
children,  three  boys  and  one  girl. 
He  went  to  school  at  Greenville, 
Texas,  and  in  Howard  county, 
Mo.,  and  at  the  outbreak  of  the 
war  joined  the  Nineteenth  Ar- 
kansas infantry  ;  was  at  the  bat- 
tle of  Elkhorn,  and  was  taken 
prisoner  in  1862  at  the  Arkan- 
saw  Post  and  carried  to  Camp 
Douglas,  Illinois,  and  was  ex- 
changed at  Peterborough,  Va.  ; 
went  to  Richmond,  Va.,  and  took 
charge    of    Battery    No.  11    for 


some  time;  after  which  he  joined 
Bragg's  army,  in  Middle  Tennes- 
see, at  Wartrace  ;  in  the  battle 
of  Chicamauga  was  wounded  in 
the  breast  and  arm  October  21, 
1863;  was  at  the  battles  of  Mis- 
sionary Kidge  and  Ringgold  Gap ; 
was  under  Gen.  Joe  E.  Johnston 
in  his  retreat  to  the  sea  when 
pursued  by  General  Sherman  ; 
was  in  the  battle  of  Atlanta,  in 
186-1,  where  the  South  made  its 
final  stand.  In  this  engagement 
he  was  shot  through  the  right 
arm,  from  the  eiFects  of  which  he 
has  lost  the  use  of  his  hand. 
Retiring  from  service  in  1864,  he 
went  to  Rockwall,  Texas,  where 
he  and  his  brothers  owned  a 
Spanish  claim  ot  3,400  acres. 

For  many  years  Mr.  Davis 
clerked  for  his  brother,  John  R. 
Davis,  who  had  the  tie  contract 
in  the  Choctaw  Nation  and  was 
a  general  merchant  at  Durant. 
He  also  farmed  for  his  brother 
Mathew,  a  citizen  of  the  Choc- 
taw Nation  by  marriage,  for 
whom  he  cultivated  four  hundred 
acres  of  land,  and  who  has  six 
hundred  acres  under  fence.  At 
the  present  time  Mr.  Arthur  W. 
Davis  has  charge  of  Mr.  Hiram 
McBride's  general  mercantile 
store  at  Durant.  He  is  a  soci- 
able, kindly  disposed  gentleman, 
and  has  many  friends. 


-* 


*- 


3(5 


LKADEKS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


DAVID  OSRORN  FISHER. 

[CHOCTAW  AND  CHICKASAW.] 

OsBOKN  Fisher  was  born  in  Au- 
gust, 1850  ;  is  the  son  of  Joseph 
Fisher,  a  Kentuckian,  and  Mar- 
tha Hayes,  a  Choctaw  of  the 
Oka-la-fal-laya  clan.  He  first 
saw  the  light  on  Pearl  river,  Mis- 
sissippi, and  came  to  Fort  Tow- 


*- 


DAVID  OSBOEN  FISHER. 

sen,  Choctaw  Nation,  in  1832. 
For  three  years  he  went  to  school 
at  the  old  Choctaw  Academy  un- 
der the  supervision  of  Richard 
M.  Johnson.  In  1837  he  moved 
to  Fort  Washita  and  entered  the 
employment  of  Gooding,  who 
kept  a  trading  post  and  general 
supply  store.  After  four  years' 
service  at  that  point,  he  moved 


to  Bok-tuk-kal-lo  county,  where 
he  was  employed  in  assisting 
Dan  Saftrons,  who  had  a  con- 
tract to  feed  a  recently  arrived 
emigration  of*  Choctaws.  Five 
years  afterward  he  moved  to 
Panola  county,  on  Red  river,  and 
opened  a  large  farm.  At  the 
age  of  twenty-three  he  married 
Elizabeth  Kemp,  sister  of  Judge 
Ben  Kemp,  by  whom  he  had  six 
children,  all  of  whom  are  dead 
but  Joseph,  aged  twenty-five 
years.  At  the  youthful  age  of 
twenty-one  Osborn  Fisher  was 
elected  County  Judge  of  Bok- 
tuk-kal-lo  county,  and  soon  after- 
ward served  as  representative  of 
Kiamiclii  county  at  the  Choctaw 
Council.  During  the  war  he  was 
quartermaster  of  the  Choctaw 
and  Chickasaw  regiment  under 
Colonel  Tandy  Walker;  after 
which,  in  1865,  he  moved  to  Se- 
bastian county,  Arkansas,  where 
he  opened  a  farm,  cotton  gin, 
etc.  Three  years  afterward  he 
was  burned  out  and  moved  to 
Perryville,  and  from  there  to 
Briar  Creek,  Pickins  county, 
where  he  went  into  the  stock 
business,  and  then  moving  from 
that  point  to  Atoka,  Choctaw 
Nation.  Here  he  represented 
Atoka  county  in  the  legislature, 
and  in  1873  made  his  debut  in 
Chickasaw  politics  by  represent 


-* 


*- 


OF  THE  INDIAN  TERRITORY. 


37 


* 


iiig  Pickins  county  at  the  Na- 
tional Legislature. 

We  should  have  previously 
stated  that  Mr.  Fisher  was  a 
member  of  both  tribes,  having 
been  adopted  by  the  Chickasaws 
through  an  act  of  the  legislature 
passed  during  the  vear.  In  the 
latter  part  of  18T4  he  was  com- 
missioned, in  company  with  Col. 
Lem  Reynolds,  as  a  delegate  to 
Washington,  which  office  fre- 
quently devolved  upon  him  dur- 
ing the  years  which  followed. 
In  1877,  while  the  subject  of 
this  sketch  was  living  at  Atoka, 
he  was  again  called  to  represent 
Pickins  county  at  the  Chickasaw 
National  Council,  and  two  years 
afterward  moved  to  the  capital, 
at  Tishomingo,  disposing  of  his 
live  stock  to  Commissioner  D. 
N.  Robb,  of  Atoka,  and  the  toll 
bridge  to  J.  J.  McAlester.  Hav- 
ing moved  to  the  capital,  Mr. 
Fisher  purchased  the  mercantile 
business  of  Byrd  &  Bro.,  in 
which  branch  he  has  continued. 

During  the  administration  of 
Gov.  Jonas  Wolf  he  was  appoint- 
ed National  Interpreter,  and  Na- 
tional Treasurer  in  the  Byrd  ad- 
ministration of  1888,  which  office 
he  was  forced  to  resign  owing  to 
an  overpress  of  business.  Mr. 
Fisher  has  six  hundred  acres  un- 
der cultivation   and    gives    em- 


ployment to  at  least  thirteen  fam- 
ilies. He  married  Mattie  Mc- 
Sweeney  in  1868,  by  whom  he 
has  three  daughters — Mary,  Ag- 
nes and  Blanche,  the  eldest  being 
fourteen  years  of  age. 


WILLIAM  ALBERSON. 

[CHOCTAW  AND  CHICKASAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  is  the 
son  of  Wilson  Alberson,  his 
mother's  maiden  name  being 
Mary  Moseley,  sister  to  Hon. 
Palmer  Moseley,  National  Su- 
perintendent of  the  board  of  ed- 
ucation. William  was  born  close 
to  Boggy  Depot,  about  1860, 
and  was  educated  at  the  Chick- 
asaw Academy  by  Prof.  Harley, 
in  1872-3-4  and  '75,  where  he 
learned  to  speak  English  with 
evident  ease.  In  1876  he  mar- 
ried Lizzie  Shenohey,  but  she 
died  in  1889,  and  in  1890  he  was 
wedded  to  Sarah  Hamilton,  after 
which  he  gave  his  farm  to  the 
children  of  his  first  wife,  and  is 
at  present  employed  erecting  new 
improvements.  On  the  disfran- 
chisement of  the  white  citizens 
in  1889,  Alberson  was  appointed 
to  fill  the  unexpired  term  of 
Thomas  Chapman  in  the  House 
of  Representatives.  He  is  now  a 
member  of  the  Chickasaw  Mili- 
tia— Tishomingo  Company  under 
Captain  Wilson  Jimmy. 


-* 


->b 


38 


LEADERS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


*- 


WILLIAM   G.WARD. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

Born  November,  1847,  iu  Panola 
county,  I.  T.,  north  of  Old  War- 
ren, Texas;  is  the  son  of  Joseph 
Ward,  a  citizen  of  Newberry, 
and  Elizabeth  Thompson,  daugh- 
ter to  Giles  Thompson,  of  Boggy 
Depot,  I.  T.  Moving  to  Spring- 
town,  Farker  county,  Texas,  in 
his  youth,  he  remained  there 
eleven  years,  where  he  received 
education  at  the  public  school. 
In  1865  he  moved  to  Thompson's 
Cow  pen  (as  it  was  then  called)  in 
Blue  county,  where  he  lived  until 
1868,  moving  the  same  year  to 
''Limestone  Gap,-'  where  he 
married  Eliza,  daughter  of  Caleb 
McDaniell  Beck,  a  Cherokee. 
During  the  war,  while  in  Parker 
county,  Mr.  Ward  joined  the 
County  Militia,  at  eighteen  years 
of  age,  scouting  all  along  the 
border  until  the  close  of  the  war. 
In  1870,  and  the  two  following 
years,  he  was  employed  tending 
his  father's  stock,  after  which  he 
moved  to  his  present  property, 
five  miles  from  Caddo,  where  he 
has  six  liundred  and  forty  acres 
in  pasture  and  two  hundred  in 
cultivation.  In  1889  he  was 
elected  representative  for  Blue 
county,  and  is  now  a  candidate 
for  re-election.  In  1886  he  joined 


the  Wheel,  and  the  second  year 
became  Territorial  treasurer,  and 
president  of  the  subordinate 
Wheel  of  Blue  county  in  1890. 
Has  eight  children — four  boys 
and  four  girls;  the  oldest  being 
named  Timothy,  now  twenty-one 
years  of  age. 


CHARLES  J.  MAURER. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

Among  the  earliest  white  settlers 
in  the  Choctaw  Nation  were 
Charles  J.  Maurer  and  his  father, 
both  of  whom  were  native  born 
Alsatians  from  the  Rhine  dis- 
trict. Charlie  was  but  four  years 
old  in  1850  when  he  arrived  in 
Red  River  county,  I.  T.,  settling 
close  to  Pine  Creek  church,  north 
of  Clarksville.  His  father  pur- 
sued his  trade  of  wagon  making 
at  Doaksville,  and  in  1860  moved 
his  shop  to  Boggy,  at  that 
period  the  most  important  trad- 
ing post  in  the  Indian  Territory, 
being  the  center  of  commerce 
for  the  native  and  white  settlers 
living  within  two  hundred  miles 
west,  and  the  same  distance 
north  and  south.  Young  Mau- 
rer when  only  sixteen  years  of 
age  assisted  in  J.  P.  Kingsberry's 
mercantile  house,  and  in  1868 
became  a  citizen  through  his 
marriage    with     Mary   Freeney, 


-^ 


^- 


OF   THE  INDIAN  TERRITORY. 


-39 


-* 


sister  to  Claj  Freeney,  of  Blue 
county,  an  extensive  stockman. 
By  this  union  Mr.  Maurer  has 
two  children — Leonidas,  aged 
sixteen  years,  and  Cecil,  thirteen. 
After  an  experience  of  some 
years  in  the  establishment  of  G. 
B.  Hester  in  1884,  he  opened 
business  in  his  own  name  at 
Boggy,  and  has  ever  since 
been  steadily  accumulating.  He 
has  three  farms  containing  over 
one  thousand  acres  under  fence, 
three  hundred  and  fifty  of  which 
are  in  cultivation.  Besides  this 
he  is  the  owner  of  some  700 
head  of  cattle  and  other  stock. 
Mr.  Maurer  has  never  interfered 
in  political  or  public  matters,  and 
is  much  respected  by  the  Indian 
people. 


*- 


WILLIAM  BASSETT. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

Born  in  St.  John's,  Canada, 
in  186-i,  educated  in  the  city  of 
New  York,  William  remained  at 
the  home  of  his  parents  until 
1882,  when  he  emigrated  to 
Atoka,  Indian  Territory,  where 
his  uncle,  O.  Hebert,  a  wealthy 
business  man,  resided.  The  sub- 
ject of  this  sketch  was  soon  em- 
ployed by  his  relative  as  clerk  in 
his  mercantile  house,  where  he 


made  rapid  progress  in  acquiring 
a  knowledge  of  the  business.  In 
1885,  after  the  death  of  his 
uncle,  he  married  his  cousin, 
Louisiana  E.  Hebert,  who  is  one- 
sixteenth  Choctaw,  being  a  niece 
to  Mrs.  E.  A.  Flack,  who  repre- 
sented one  of  the  most  ancient 
families  of  the  tribe.  Mrs.  Flack 
died  last  June  at  the  age  of 
nearly  eighty.  Her  nieces,  neph- 
ews and  other  relatives  were  al- 
most numberless  throughout  the 
Nation,  so  that  her  death  was 
deeply  regretted. 

In  1885  Will  Bassett  accepted 
the  position  of  chief  clerk  in  the 
business  house  of  Messrs.  Robb 
&  Blossom,  and  continues  so  in 
the  same  house  till  the  present 
day.  He  is  also  owner  of  four 
hundred  acres  of  good  farming 
land  as  well  as  five  hundred  head 
of  cattle.  He  is  a  young  man 
of  great  steadiness  and  sterling 
social  qualities.  His  family  con- 
sists of  two  children,  Clare  and 
Mamie,  aged  two  and  four  years, 
respectively.  On  the  election  of 
Henry  Ward  to  the  oflice  of 
County  Judge,  Mr.  Bassett  was 
appointed  clerk  of  the  County 
Court. 

Mr.  Bassett  has  become  very 
popular,  and  has  a  host  of  friends 
and  acquaintances  in  the  city  of 
Atoka. 


-* 


40 


LKADKRS   AND   LEADING   3IEX 


CIIAS.  A.  HII.BO. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

Born  in  Leake  county,  Missis- 
sippi, in  1857;  son  of  William 
Bilbo.  Charles  was  educated  at 
King's  College,  Bristol,  Tennes- 
see, and  came  to  Caddo,  Choc- 
taw Nation,  in  1885  ;  after  which 
he  entered  the  mercantile  estab- 


* 


OHAS.    A.   BILBO. 

lishment  of  W.  H.  Ainsworth 
for  two  years.  In  1890  he 
opened  a  drug  store  and  confec- 
tionery business  in  Caddo,  where 
he  is  also  proprietor  of  a  livery 
stable.  lie  is  also  owner  of 
three  farms  of  250  acres,  besides 
a  pasture  containing  2,000  acres, 
which  he  rented  out  at  the  rate 
of  four  dollars  per  head  per  an- 


num until  the  passage  of  an  act 
forbidding  the  introduction  of 
alien's  cattle  into  the  Nation. 
Mr.  Bilbo  married  Miss  Ella  Mc- 
Coy, daughter  of  Dr.  McCoy,  of 
Caddo,  in  1890.  He  is  highly 
connected,  being  a  nephew  of 
Mrs.  Flack,  of  Atoka,  one  of  the 
oldest  citizens  of  the  Indian  Ter- 
ritory. 


JOEL  H.  NAIL. 

[  CHOCTAW.] 

One  of  the  prosperous  stockmen 
of  the  Choctaw  Nation,  was  born 
in  1850,  being  the  son  of  Jona- 
than Nail,  who  came  to  Doaks- 
ville  in  1833.  Joel  went  to  col- 
lege at  Lebanon,  Tennessee, 
where  in  1860  he  fell  in  love 
with  Nettie  Merrett,  daughter  of 
William  Merrett,  and  married 
her.  Mr.  Nail,  after  several 
changes  of  fortune,  finally  set- 
tled on  his  present  estate  in  Blue 
county,  in  1882,  where  he  has 
four  hundred  acres  under  culti- 
vation, three  thousand  head  of 
stock,  and  three  thousand  acres 
of  pasture,  besides  building  prop- 
erty in  Caddo  and  the  Nails  Ho- 
tel, of.  which  he  is  at  present  the 
proprietor.  He  is  also  an  enthu- 
siastic lover  of  racing,  and  has 
always  kept  the  best  race  stock 
in  the  district. 


->i* 


*- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY, 


41 


-* 


*- 


EDWARD  A.BOHANNON. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

Born  in  Blue  county,  March, 
1863.  The  subject  of  this  sketch 
was  the  son  of  Edward  Bohan- 
non,  who  emigrated  from  Mis- 
sissippi in  1852.  The  young 
man  and  his  two  brothers,  David 
and  Leonidas,  were  left  under 
their  mother's  charge  at  an  early 
age,  and  until  1885  assisted  her 
on  the  family  homestead.  Ed- 
ward made  the  most  of  the  limit- 
ed education  he  was  enabled  to 
receive  at  Durant,  but  was  for 
several  years  incapable  of  active 
exertion  through  the  effects  of 
three  bullet  wounds  which  he  re- 
ceived on  Christmas  night,  1884, 
at  the  hands  of  a  man  named 
Callaghan.  The  shots  were  fired 
while  young  Bohannon  was  ob- 
serving the  dancers,  and  the  pis- 
tol was  so  close  to  him  that  each 
shot  burned  his  clothing.  The 
severity  of  his  wounds  obliged 
him  to  adopt  the  business  of  book 
agent  and  fur  trader  until  1889, 
when  he  was  appointed  a  member 
of  the  U.  S.  Indian  Police.  Be- 
sides this,  Edward  Bohannon 
holds  the  appointment  of  special 
peace  officer  for  the  town  of 
Caddo,  for  which  he  receives  an 
income  from  the  citizens.  Since 
he  has  become  a  guardian  of  the 
public  welfare  it  is  notable  that 


the  town  has  enjoyed  absolute 
freedom  from  lawlessness  and 
rowdyism. 

THOS.  J.  MANNING,  M.D. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

Thomas  Jefferson  Manning  was 
born  in  Walker  county,  Georgia, 
in  1832  ;  graduated  at  Nashville, 
Tenn.;  commenced  the  practice 
of  his  profession  at  Doaksville, 
Choctaw  Nation,  in  1856,  while 
General  Cooper  was  Indian  agent. 
After  that  he  moved  to  Boggy 
Depot,  where  he  practiced  for  a 
short  time  till  his  marriage  to 
Matilda  La  Flore,  daughter  of 
Forbes  La  Flore ;  after  which  he 
abandoned  his  profession  for  that 
of  farming  and  stock  raising. 
In  these  pursuits  Dr.  Manning 
has  been  quite  prosperous,  hav- 
ing acquired  one  thousand  head 
of  cattle,  four  hundred  head  of 
stock  and  a  farm  of  five  hundred 
acres  under  cultivation,  employ- 
ing annually  thirty  hands.  In 
the  second  year  of  the  war  he 
joined  Sim  Folsom's  battalion 
in  the  capacity  of  stafi"  surgeon  ; 
served  at  Newtonia,  and  soon 
after  retired  from  the  service. 
Mr.  Manning  has  six  children — 
Angle,  Forbes,  Tommie,  Charlie, 
Cornelia  and  Arthur,  the  oldest 
being  twenty-two  and  the  young- 
est eight  years  old. 


-* 


-* 


4:^ 


LEADERS   AND    LEADING    MEN 


RICHARD  SMALLWOOl). 

[CHOCTAW.] 

Born  in  ISG-i  at  Doaksville, 
Choctaw  Kation,  Indian  Terri- 
tory ;  attended  the  neighborhood 
school  until  1872,  when  he  went 
to  the  American  College,  at 
Paris,  Texas,  where  he  remained 
for  one  year;  then  the  following 


RICHARD  SMALLWOOD. 

year  to  the  Jesuit  College,  Osage 
Mission,  Kansas.  In  1875  he 
commenced  clerking  for  John  A. 
Dillon,  a  merchant  of  Atoka,  re- 
maining with  him  for  three  years; 
after  which  time  he  opened  in 
the  butcher  business  in  the  same 
place  and  remained  at  it  for  sev- 
eral years.  In  1888  he  married 
Miss  Rose  Cooke,  of  Denison, 
only  daughter  of  N.  L.   Cooke, 


of  Louisville,  Ky.  Mrs.  Small- 
wood  is  an  accomplished  and 
entertaining  lady  and  an  excel- 
lent musician.  Richard  was  ap- 
pointed by  his  uncle,  Governor 
Smallwood,  in  1888,  as  National 
Coal  Weigher  for  the  Southwest- 
ern Coal  Improvement  Company, 
which  position  he  still  holds. 
Mr.  Smallwood  is  a  young  man 
of  considerable  ability,  and  is 
popular  among  his  people.  He 
is  the  last  of  the  Smallwoods,  one 
of  his  brothers  having  been  killed 
and  the  other  died  from  small- 
pox in  Mexico  while  Auditor  for 
the  Santa  Fee  Railroad  Co. 


MORGAN  DURANT. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  at  Bennington  in  1872,  be- 
ing the  son  of  the  late  Joseph 
Durant  and  Sophia  J.  Covender, 
who  is  part  Chickasaw  and  part 
Choctaw.  Morgan's  father  died 
in  March,  1883,  having  come 
from  Mississippi  at  an  early  age. 
The  Widow  Durant  has  six  chil- 
dren, Morgan  being  the  second 
son.  He  went  to  school  at  Ben- 
nington for  seven  years,  and  is 
now  preparing  to  complete  his 
education  at  Lexington,  Ky.  The 
family  homestead  contains  sev- 
eral hundred  acres  under  culti- 
vation, which  is  chiellv  rented  out. 


-* 


*- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY, 


43 


-* 


*- 


MRS.  ANNIE  SMALLWOOD. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

Born  in  1833  in  De  Sota  county, 
Mississippi.  This  lady  is  the 
daughter  of  a  white  man  named 
Moore,  her  mother  being  a  full- 
blood  Choctaw.  At  an  early  age 
she  left  the  old  state  and  settled 
in  Kiamichi  county.  While 
young  she  married  John  Small- 
wood,  a  man  of  much  political 
prominence  in  his  Nation,  hav- 
ing been  member  of  the  Council 
for  many  years.  John  Small- 
wood  was  a  brother  to  ex-Chief 
Smallwood,  who  was  chief  ad- 
ministrator from  1888  until  1890. 
By  this  union  Mrs.  Smallwood 
had  four  children — Ben,  Susan, 
John  and  Dick.  Ben  and  John 
are  both  dead,  while  Dick,  the 
youngest  son,  is  National  coal 
weigher  at  Coalgate,  Susan  has 
been  married  for  many  years  to 
John  A.  Dillon,  of  Atoka,  with 
whom  the  subject  of  this  sketch 
has  resided  for  sixteen  years  past. 
Mrs.  Smallwood  is  possessed  of 
property  in  the  city  as  well  as  a 
small  stock  of  cattle.  Although 
in  her  fifty-seventh  year,  she  is 
still  full  of  life  and  energy, 
devoting  much  of  her  time  toiler 
little  grandchildren,  to  whom  she 
is  greatly  attached.  Few  of  Mrs. 
Smallwood's  neighbors  have  not 


received  proofs  of  her  benevo- 
lence and  kindly  nature  in  times 
of  trouble  and  sickness.  She  is 
highly  connected  both  on  her 
father  and  mother's  side;  her 
nephew,  William  Byrd,  being 
Governor  of  the  Chickasaw  Na- 
tion, while  her  brother-in-law  is 
ex-Principal  Chief  of  Choctaws. 


RICHARD  C.  SACRA. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

Richard  was  born  in  Sedalia  in 
1857,  and  educated  in  Sherman, 
Texas.  He  married  Cleming 
Davis,  daughter  of  Dr.  Davis,  of 
Doaksville,  at  Davison,  in  1875, 
and  in  this  manner  procured  his 
right  in  the  Territory.  When 
settling  down  on  Glass  Creek 
he  took  a  stock  of)cattle  with  him 
to  the  country,  which  he  has 
since  disposed  of,  investing  in 
thoroughbred  English  Herefords, 
of  which  he  has  at  least  five  hun- 
dred head.  They  were  purchased 
in  Louisville,  Ky.  About  eight 
months  ago  Mr.  Sacra  left  his 
home  farm  to  come  to  Purcell 
for  the  benefit  of  his  children's 
education,  and  during  that  time 
he  has  been  running  a  large  liv- 
ery business,  which  he  sold  out 
about  August  8,  1890.  Mr.  Sa- 
cra now  has  some  2,400  acres 
enclosed,  and  gives  labor  to  about 
forty  hands.  He  has  five  children 


-* 


-* 


44 


LKADEUs   AM)    LKADING   MEX 


SAMUEL  J.  GARVIX. 

[  CHOCTAW.] 

Samuel  was  born  in  Kentucky 
in  IS-ii;  emigrated  to  Fort  Ar- 
buska,  Chickasaw  Nation,  in 
1866,  and  commenced  tlie  busi- 
ness of  stock  raising,  which  he 
has  pursued  ever  since.  In  1873 
Mr.  Garvin  moved  to  Little 
AVashita  near  the  Comanche  line, 
and  held  his  large  herd  in  the 
neighborhood  of  these  Indians, 
who,  however,  were  peacefully 
disposed  except  on  one  occa- 
sion in  1874,  when  he  was 
obliged  to  move  his  family  and 
send  them  east,  owing  to  an  out- 
break among  the  wild  tribes.  In 
1884  the  subject  of  this  sketch 
came  to  Whitehead,  and  in  1889 
purchased  James  Renne's  inter- 
est in  the  mercantile  business  in 
that  town — shortly  afterward 
opening  branch  houses  at  Beef 
Creek  and  Feola.  Besides  this 
he  has  two  thousand  acres  of 
land  under  cultivation  and  forty- 
five  renters.  Recently  he  has 
been  disposing  of  his  large  herd 
of  cattle,  but  has  still  twenty-five 
hundred  head  bearing  his  well- 
known  brand.  In  1869  Mr. 
Garvin  married  Susan,  diuighter 
of  Mr.  Muncrief,  and  thus  be- 
came a  citizen  of  the  country. 
His    residence  at   Wliitebead   is 


one   of  the   handsomest  in  that 
part  of  the  Territory. 


SAMUEL  F.STEWART. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

Mr.  Stewart  was  born  January 
6,  1869,  at  Mount  Yernon,  Blue 
county.  He  is  the  eldest  son  of 
Wiley  Stewart,  of  Caddo.  Sam- 
uel was  sent  to  Spencer  Academy 
in  1884,  where  he  remained  to 
complete  his  education  until 
1887.  In  1889  he  married  Bet- 
tie,  daughter  of  Wade  Hampton, 
since  which  period  he  has  de- 
voted his  attention  to  farming. 
He  is  now  a  candidate  for  Rang- 
er of  Blue  county. 


*- 


JULIUS  JAMES. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

Mr.  James  was  born  in  1863;  is 
the  son  of  A.  W.  James,  of  Blue 
county,  his  mother  being  Mary 
A.  Folsom,  daughter  of  Daniel 
Folsom.  Julius  spent  three  years 
at  Spencer  Academy,  where  he 
received  his  education.  After 
returning  from  thence  he  devoted 
himself  to  farming  and  opened 
two  farms  in  Blue  county,  from 
both  of  which  he  is  now  receiv- 
ing income.  Mr.  James  is  first 
cousin  of  Judge  Julius  Folsom, 
of  Atoka,  and  is  otherwise  highly 
connected  in  the  country.  He 
comes  of  the  H3'ah-pah-tuk-kalos. 


-* 


*- 


* 


OF   THE    ]NDIAX    TERRITORY. 


45 


H.  A.  Cx\MPBELL. 

[CHOOTAW.] 

Mr.  Campbell  is  a  son  of  John 
Campbell,  of  Philadelphia,  Pa., 
and  was  born  in  1843  in  the 
same  city.  When  twenty-five 
years  of  age  (in  1868)  he  com- 
menced freighting  from  Leaven- 
worth to  Fort  Cobb.  At  this 
time  the  Indians  of  the  plains 
were  hostile,  and  Hugh  had 
many  escapes.  In  one  instance 
he  was  pursued  a  distance  of 
sixty  miles  by  some  thirty  or 
forty  Comanches,  but  succeeded 
in  gaining  shelter  at  Elm  Springs 
before  his  pursuers  reached  him. 
In  1873  he  settled  in  Paul's  Val- 
ley and  married  Julia  Gardner, 
niece  of  Zack  Gardner,  by  whom 
he  has  six  children — Kate,  Jen- 
nie, Johnnie,  Rebecca,  Mary 
and  Anita,  the  oldest  aged  fif- 
teen years. 

In  1889  Mr.  Campbell  entered 
Mr.  Garvin's  mercantile  estab- 
lishment, but  has  devoted  most 
of  his  time  to  farming,  and  has 


five  hundred  acres  under  cultiva- 
tion, which  is  all  rented  out. 


WALLACE  JONES. 

[CHOCTAW.  ] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  is  the 
son  of  the  late  Solomon  Jones 
and  nephew  of  Wilson  Jones, 
treasurer  of  the  Choctaw  Nation. 
Wallace  was  born  at  Shawnee- 
toM'n,  Red  River  county,  in  1838, 
and  came  of  the  Oka-la-fal-lay-a 
clan.  In  1858  he  married  Eliza 
Kincaid,  daughter  of  Andy  Kin- 
caid,  on  whose  place  he  now  re- 
sides. He  has  one  son  and  two 
daughters — Jane,  aged  twenty- 
eight  years;  Ida,  aged  thirteen, 
and  Henry,  aged  fifteen  years. 
During  the  early  portion  of  the 
war  Wallace  Jones  was  in  Col. 
Sim  Folsom's  command,  since 
which  time  he  has  lived  a  peace- 
ful and  Christian  life. 


-* 


i>- 


4fi 


LKADEKS    AND    LEADING    MEN 


IlIRAM  LKON  MCBRIDE. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

BoKN  ill  Prairie  e<»imty.  Ark.,  in 
1858.  He  received  private  tui- 
tion at  his  home  nntil  1860  and 
came  to  Atoka,  Indian  Territory, 
in  187(1,  wliere  he  attended  pri- 
vate school  tauglit  by  Prof.  O. 
C.  Hall,  of  tliat  place.     He  con- 


*- 


irAMILTON    LEON    M  BEIDE. 

tinned  under  his  tuition  for  about 
four  years,  taking  a  situation  as 
clerk  in  1874  with  D.  M.  Jones, 
a  merchant  at  McAlester.  He 
worked  for  Mr.  Jones  two  years 
when  he  was  employed  by  J.  J. 
McAllester,  of  the  same  place. 
He  remained  in  McAllester's  em- 
ploy for  three  years,  till  he 
sohl  his   interest  in  the  business. 


Hiram  then  made  an  engagement 
with  C.  C.  Rooks,  a  merchant 
of  Stonewall,  Chickasaw  Nation, 
where  he  clerked  until  the  spring 
of  1883,  when  he  returned  to 
Atoka,  and  with  his  brother  Will 
and  Joseph  Lindsey  purchased 
the  building  and  stock  of  goods 
of  A.  B.  Cass,  an  extensive  mer- 
chant in  that  place.  They  re- 
stocked tliis  house  and  for  sev- 
eral years  did  an  extensive  busi- 
ness over  the  entire  Nation,  Ato- 
ka at  that  time  being  the  trade 
center  of  a  large  scope  of  coun- 
try. In  1885  they  purchased  the 
interest  of  Mr.  Lindsey,  and  in 
1887  sold  the  building  to  Lank- 
ford  Bros,  and  moved  their  stock 
to  Lehigh,  forming  a  partnership 
with  John  M.  Hodges  &  Bros, 
merchants  of  that  place,  and  four 
months  later  sold  their  interest 
to  J.  J.  McAllester.  Then  with  J. 
J.  McAllester,  D.  N.  Eobb,  G. 
G.  Pvandell  and  Will  McBride, 
he  formed  a  stock  company 
known  as  the  Choctaw  Mercantile 
Co.,  chartered  under  the  law  of 
Missouri,  which  company  ap- 
pointed Hiram  McBride  general 
manager.  The  house  now  car- 
ries one  of  the  largest  stock  of 
goods  in  the  Territory.  In  1884 
Mr.  McBride  married  Miss  Kate 
Moore,  daughter  of  Dr.  Moore 
and  niece  of  Mrs.  Robb,  of  Ato- 


1^- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


47 


-* 


kaof  the  Hyah-pali-tukkalo clan. 
She  died  shortly  after  their  mar- 
riage. In  1886  he  married  Miss 
Leviza  Colbert,  of  Colbert  Sta- 
tion, Choctaw  Nation,  a  charm- 
ing and  highly  cultured  young 
lady,  and  second  daughter  of 
James  Colbert.  They  have  had 
two  children,  one  of  whom  is  liv- 
ing, Hattie,  aged  eighteen  months. 
Mr.  McBride  is  considered  one 
of  the  most  competent  merchants 
in  the  Territory,  as  a  buyer  and 
salesman  having  few  equals.  He 
is  possessed  of  untiring  energy, 
perseverance  and  is  very  popular 
with  all  classes,  and  is  respected 
by  his  employes.  Besides  his 
mercantile  interests  he  has  an 
interest  in  the  South  Western 
Coal  Improvement  Co.,  also  an 
interest  in  those  operated  by  J. 
Gould  in  Lehigh.  He  has  a  four- 
hundred-acre  farm,  one  hundred 
of  which  is  planted  in  orchard, 
and  another  unimproved  farm  of 
two  hundred  acres.  Hiram  is 
second  son  of  John  McBride, 
of  North  Carolina,  of  Scotch  de- 
scent. His  mother  was  a  Davis, 
sister  of  J.  D.  Davis,  one  of  the 
oldest  families  of  this  country. 


*- 


TOLLIS  H.  STARK,  M.D. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  in  Au- 
gust, 1833,  at  Woodville,  Miss.  In 


1870  he  commenced  the  practice 
of  medicine  at  Fort  Smith,  Ar- 
kansas ;  after  which  he  removed 
to  Bennington,  where  he  now  re- 
sides, receiving  a  good  practice 
and  living  upon  a  farm  well  sit- 
uated, and  in  point  of  agriculture 
complete  in  every  detail.  In 
1873  he  married  Miss  B.  M. 
Hall,  daughter  of  John  Hall, 
through  which  alliance  he  became 
a  citizen  of  the  Choctaw  Nation. 
Dr.  Stark  is  a  Knight  of  the 
Palm  and  Shell. 


M.  F.  MYERS. 
The  above-named  merchant,  who 
was  located  for  seven  years  in 
the  Arbuckle  Mountains  and 
moved  in  October,  1889,  to 
Washita  Station,  established  his 
present  business  with  a  stock  of 
over  four  thousand  dollars'  worth 
of  miscellaneous  goods.  His 
chief  business  man,  Mr.  J.  L. 
Butt,  is  the  son  of  James  Butt, 
of  Henderson  county.  He  was 
born  in  September,  1866,  and 
went  to  school  at  Pine  Grove, 
his  education  being  completed 
at  Tennessee  Colony,  Anderson 
county,  Texas.  The  early  por- 
tion of  his  life  was  spent  in  farm- 
ing with  his  father  and  brothers; 
after  which  he  moved  to  the 
Chickasaw  Nation  and  entered 
the  mercantile  business. 


-* 


-* 


48 


l.EADEKS   AND    LKADINO    MEX 


JOHN  FRINZELL. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

Mr.  FRiNZKLLwas  born  in  Bava- 
ria, Germany,  in  1842  ;  came  to 
Atoka, Indian  Territory,  in  1870, 
where  he  opened  the  first  black- 
smith and  wagon  factory  in  the 
county.  In  1874  he  married 
Amelia  Smallwood,  daughter  of 
ex-Governor  Smallwood,  and  by 
this  union  he  has  four  children, 
one  of  whom,  John  Francis,  aged 
fourteen,  survives.  Mr.  Frin- 
zell  being  an  excellent  mechanic, 
has  built  up  a  large  trade  for 
himself,  and  is  a  sober,  industri- 
ous citizen  and  highly  respected 
by  everybody.  He  owns  two 
farms  close  to  Atoka,  containing 
150  acres  under  cultivation,  and 
a  small  stock  of  cattle. 


^- 


T.  B.  TURNBULL. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  brief  sketch 
is  the  son  of  Brashear  TurnbuU, 
and  was  born  at  Mount  Pleas- 
ant, Blue  county,  in  November, 
1851.  He  was  educated  at  Arm- 
strong, and  in  1879  married  Ad- 
elina  Dwight;  after  which  he 
was  elected  County  Ranger,  and 
held  that  office  till  1885,  when 
he  was  called  to  the  House  of 
Representatives,  occupying  the 
seat  during  two  terms.     In  1889 


and  1890  Mr.  Turn  bull  served  as 
school  trustee  of  the  Pushma-ta- 
ha  district,  for  which  office  he  is 
at  present  a  candidate.  His 
mother,  Jericho  Perkins  (sister 
of  the  late  Judge  David  Perkins), 
is  still  living,  and  is  now  over 
seventy  years  of  age.  He  has 
four  children — Elizabeth,  Timo- 
thy, Walter  and  Charlie,  the  old- 
est being  nine  years  of  age. 


CHARLES  F.STEWART. 

[CHOCTAW    AND  CHICKASAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  in 
1854,  being  the  eldest  son  of 
Wiley  Stewart,  of  Caddo,  Choc- 
taw Nation.  In  1878  he  mar- 
ried Josephine,  daughter  of  the 
late  Captain  J.  D.  Harris, 
national  Superintendent  of  educa- 
tion for  the  Chickasaws.  In  1885 
Charles  was  appointed  a  member 
of  the  Indian  police,  in  1887  con- 
stable of  Pontotoc  county,  and 
the  following  year  deputy  U.  S. 
Marshal,  all  of  which  appoint- 
ments he  threw  up  in  1890  and 
commenced  farming.  He  is  now 
living  at  Wynne  Wood,  close  to 
which  town  he  has  some  two- 
hundred  and  sixty  acres  under 
cultivation.  Besides  two  step- 
children, Mr,  Stewart  has  four  by 
his  present  wife,  Wiley,  Frank, 
and  Earl,  the  oldest  ten  and  the 
youngest  four  years  of  age. 


^ 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


49 


* 


•fr- 


JOSEPH  BRADFORD  CAMP. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

Mr.  Camp  was  born  in  October, 
1839,  in  Campbell  county,  Geor- 
gia, and  educated  at  Claybourne 
Parish,  Louisiana.  In  1858  he 
came  to  the  Choctaw  Nation  and 
remained  with  Jonathan  Nail, 
for  whom  he  worked,  for  over  a 
year  and  a  half.  Thence  he  re- 
moved to  Boggy  Depot,  where 
in  1859  he  married  Martha  Flint, 
a  native  school  teacher.  In  1861 
he  joined  the  First  Choctaw  reg- 
iment, under  Col.  Tandy  Walker, 
changed  into  Col.  Bob  Taylor's 
Texas  regiment,  and  soon  after- 
ward left  the  service.  In  1863 
his  wife  died,  and  in  1866  he 
moved  to  the  Washita,  locating 
close  to  the  Rock  Crossing,  where 
he  remained  six  years.  In  1873 
he  came  to  his  present  home, 
where  he  is  comfortably  situated, 
having  seven  hundred  acres  of 
fine  land  under  cultivation,  be- 
sides five  hundred  head  of  mares, 
mules  and  horses,  and  five  hun- 
dred head  of  stock  cattle.  In 
1867  he  was  married  to  Mary 
Howell,  sister  of  Dr.  Howell,  by 
whom  he  has  four  children — Jos- 
eph, Rose,  Ella  and  Alice,  the 
eldest  being  nineteen  years  of 
age.  Mr.  Camp  is  a  good  sports- 
man and  a  very  fine  shot. 


MADISON  BOUTON. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  Roxburgh,  New  York, 
in  January,  1839.  In  1870  he 
came  to  the  Choctaw  Nation, 
and  two  years  afterward  married 
Christina  Folsom,  daughter  of 
the  late  Israel  Folsom,  by  which 
he  became  a  citizen  of  the  Na- 
tion. Mr.  Bouton  was  engaged 
in  stock  raising  and  farming  un- 
til his  death,  which  happened  on 
September  18,  1885.  At  five 
o'clock  on  the  fatal  evening, 
while  the  deceased  was  making  a 
contract  with  one  of  his  renters 
on  the  streets  of  Caddo,  Willie 
Jones,  son  of  the  present  Treas- 
urer of  the  Choctaw  Nation,  step- 
ped up  to  him  and  shot  him 
twice,  once  in  the  heart  and  once 
in  the  back.  No  direct  cause 
has  ever  been  traceable  to  the 
origin  of  the  trouble  between 
Jones  and  Bouton,  as  they  were 
apparently  on  friendly  terms. 
The  deceased  had  three  children 
— W.  J.  Bouton,  aged  fifteen 
years,  Nellie,  fourteen,  and  An- 
nie, eleven  years.  In  1888  Mrs. 
Bouton  married  Mr.  H.  Bates, 
a  popular  and  highly  respected 
gentlemen  of  Caddo.  They  have 
a  handsome  residence  and  enter- 
tain with  hospitality. 


-* 


50 


LKADICUS    AND    LEADING    MEN 


B.  F.SMxVLLWOOD. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

PUINCIPAL  CHIEF  OF  THE   CHOCTAW  NATION. 

Benjamin  F.  Smallwood  was 
born  about  the  year  1829  in  the 
State  of  Mississip]>i,  and  emi- 
grated with  tlie  mass  of  his  peo- 
ple to  tlie  Choctaw  Nation.  His 
first  scliooling  was  received  at 
Shawnectown,  on  Red  River,  af- 


* 


B.    F.    SMALLWOOD. 

ter  which  he  went  to  Spencer 
Academy  for  some  time.  On 
leaving  this  institute  he  devoted 
several  years  to  farming  on  his 
father's  place,  in  Kiamichi  coun- 
ty, and  in  1847  commenced  cat- 
tle-raising and  agriculture  for 
himself.  In  1840  he  married 
Miss  Annie  Burney,  a  Chicka- 
saw of  the  house  of  Ima-te-po, 


by  whom  he  had  seven  children, 
two  of  whom  are  living — Amelia 
and  Lorinda.  In  1862  Ben 
Smallwood  opened  a  mercantile 
business  in  Kiamichi  county,  but 
moved  to  Atoka  in  the  following 
year,  where  he  continues  in  the 
stock  and  farming  business,  be- 
ing located  about  ten  miles  from 
Atoka  and  four  miles  from  Le- 
high. (A  portrait  of  his  pictur- 
esque residence  will  be  found  in 
this  volume.)  Since  the  age  of 
eighteen  years  Ben  has  been 
holding  office  among  his  people, 
commencing  as  Ranger  of  Kia- 
michi county  and  graduating  up- 
ward to  Chief  Executive.  From 
1847  until  1887,  excepting  the 
years  of  the  war,  he  has  held  the 
office  of  representative,  being 
four  times  speaker  of  the  House. 
For  many  years  he  has  figured 
as  the  leader  of  a  strong  party, 
but  was  defeated  by  small  major- 
ities until  the  year  1888,  when 
he  out-voted  Wilson  N.  Jones 
and  was  inaugurated  Principal 
Chief  of  his  Nation.  In  1890 
the  same  contest  took  place;  but 
Governor  Smallwood  had  grown 
weary  of  official  responsibilities 
and  made  no  effi^rt  whatever  to 
secure  his  re-election.  The  con- 
sequence was  that  his  vote  fell 
considerably  below  the  previous 
term,   while  Wilson  Jones,  who 


-^ 


i\ 


*- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


51 


* 


*- 


had  worked  with  energy  through- 
out, polled  a  much  larger  vote 
than  before.  It  is  therefore  as- 
sumed that  the  latter  will  take 
his  seat,  although  this  will  not 
be  rendered  certain  until  the 
meeting  of  the  Council  in  Octo- 
ber next.  Governor  Smallwood 
was  a  captain  during  the  war  in 
the  Second  Choctaw  regiment 
and  experienced  a  good  deal  of 
service.  He  is  a  man  of  fine 
physical  exterior ;  his  face  is 
handsome  and  indicates  force  of 
character,  while  his  chest  is  broad 
and  his  limbs  strongly  built, 
and  in  height  he  is  a  little  above 
the  average.  He  is  an  excellent 
statesman  and  legislator,  but 
prefers  a  quiet  home  life,  with  an 
occasional  hunting  trip  in  com- 
pany with  Governor  Throckmor- 
ton, of  Texas,  to  hunting  votes 
for  the  coming  election.  No 
man,  however,  loves  his  people, 
or  is  more  truly  patriotic,  than 
Mr.  Smallwood.  Such  has  ever 
been  his  reputation,  and  such  it 
is  likely  to  remain.  His  prop- 
erty consists  of  a  farm  of  five 
hundred  acres,  beautifully  lo- 
cated, and  containing  four  min- 
eral springs — one  of  iron,  an- 
other carrying  sulphur,  and  so 
on.  These  springs  undoubtedly 
possess  valuable  curative  proper- 
ties.     He  has  also  a  large  herd 


of  improved  stock.     He  is  a  de- 
scendant of  the  Okla-falaya  clan. 


JULIUS  C.  HAMPTON. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

Son  of  Nicholas  H.  Hampton,  of 
Blue  county,  was  born  near  Tal- 
lihena  in  the  Choctaw  Nation,  in 
1859,  where  his  father  resided 
until  1865,  when  at  the  close  of 
the  war  he  moved  fifteen  miles 
east  of  Caddo,  bringing  with  him 
his  slaves,  which  were  not  yet 
set  free.  In  1885  the  subject  of 
this  sketch  married  Jennie  Dav- 
enport, and  after  her  death, 
four  years  later,  wedded  Peggy 
Downing,  daughter  of  Ned  Down- 
ing, a  Cherokee  refugee.  In 
1879  he  was  appointed  circuit 
clerk  under  Judge  Loring  Fol- 
som,  and  clerk  of  the  House  of 
Representatives  in  1885  and 
1886.  In  1889  was  clerk  of  the 
Net  Proceeds  Commission,  of 
which  Dr.  E.  Poe  Harris  was 
secretary.  Some  years  previous- 
ly Mr.  Hampton  was  employed 
by  Allinton  Telle,  supervisor  of 
census  to  take  the  census  of  the 
Senatorial  district.  He  is  now 
devoting  his  attention  to  cattle 
and  farming.  Of  the  latter  he 
has  three  hundred  acres  of  land 
under  cultivation  and  ernploys 
nine  work-hands.  He  has  one 
son,  Walter,  aged  two  years 


-* 


-* 


LEADERS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


T.  J.  ALLEN,  M.  D. 

This'  most  popular  and  able  re- 
presentative of  the  medical  pro- 
fession was  born  in  Washington 
county,  Arkansas,  in  1831),  and 
attended  college  at  Boonsbor- 
ough  until  1858,  after  which  he 
studied  in  Yan  Buren,  Arkansas, 
for  two  years  under  Dr.  Dibbell. 


T.    J.    ALLEN,   M.  D. 

In  1860  he  attended  lectures  at 
Jefferson  College,  where  he  was 
appointed  surgeon  in  the  Confed- 
erate service  under  General 
McCullough,  with  whom  he  re- 
mained until  the  death  of  the 
gallant  officer.  "When  General 
T.  Herman  took  command  in  the 
latter  part  of  1862,  Dr.  Allen  be- 


came medical  purveyor  for  the 
first  army  corps,  until  the  end  of 
1863,  when  he  was  sent  to  the  hos- 
pital as  assistant  surgeon.  Dur- 
ing the  events  which  followed  in 
quick  succession  Dr.  Allen  was 
ever  up.and  doing.  His  first  ex- 
perience in  the  Indian  Territory 
was  when  sent  thither  to  report 
to  General  Gano,  after  which  he 
was  ordered  to  Louisiana,  and 
soon  after  to  Mansfield  fight — to 
Paris,  Texas.  A  history  of  his 
adventures  during  a  four  years' 
campaign  would  occupy  a  large 
volume.  In  1866  Dr.  Allen 
moved  to  Boggy  Depot,  Indian 
Territory,  and  afterward  to  Sher- 
man, Texas,  where  he  held  of- 
fice as  alderman  for  two  years, 
and  was  appointed  by  Governor 
Cooke  as  Cattle  Inspector  for 
Northern  Texas.  In  1882  he 
settled  in  Lehigh,  moving  to  his 
present  home  at  Coalgate  in 
1890.  During  this  time  he  has 
been  company  physician  and 
surgeon  for  nearly  nine  years. 
He  was  married  in  1868  to  Miss 
Helen  S.  Gatewood,  of  Sherman, 
by  whom  he  has  four  children, 
Arthur,  Minnie,  James  and 
Juanita.  His  wife  dying  in  1886, 
he  married  Miss  Eugene  Lank- 
ford,  of  Belton,  Tex.,  sister  of  Dr. 
Lankford;  of  Atoka,  in  1888.  Dr. 
Allen  is  one    of  the   oldest    resi- 


-* 


*- 


* 


OF   THE   INDIAN  TERRITORY. 


53 


dent  non-citizen  physicians  in  the 
Indian  Territory,  and  has  a  very 
extensive  practice.  His  skill  has 
secured  for  him  a  reputation 
difficult  to  acquire.  Besides  his 
value  as  a  medical  man,  his  sterl- 
ing worth  as  a  friend  and  genial 
companion  has  raised  him  high 
in  the  estimation  of  all  men,  his 
greatest  fault  being  that  of  open 
hearted  and  free-handed  gener- 
osity. The  doctor  has  witnessed 
all  the  principal  battles  fought 
in  the  Trans-Mississippi  depart- 
ment, and  proudly  carries  the 
scars  of  three  engagements. 


*- 


J.D.  LANKFORD. 

This  gentleman  was  born  in  Pon- 
totoc county, Mississippi,  in  1861; 
is  the  son  of  N.  A.  Lankford,  an 
extensive  farmer  and  very  popu- 
lar in  his  county.  The  young 
man  having  completed  his  edu- 
cation, in  1880  moved  to  Cam- 
eron, Texas,  where  he  sold  goods 
for  one  year.  Soon  afterward  he 
went  to  Lehigh,  Indian  Territory, 
where  he  remained  twelve 
months.  His  next  move  was  to 
Atoka.  Here  he  entered  busi- 
ness in  partnership  with  his 
brother,  Dr.  J.  S.  Lankford,  and 
in  1887  started  a  branch  house 
at    Lehigh,   selling  out    in    two 


years  afterward  to  Messrs.  Cobb 
and  Hillard.  Since  that  time  he 
purchased  his  brother's  half  in- 
terest in  the  Atoka  establish- 
ment, which  is  one  of  the  largest 
drug  houses  in  the  Indian  Terri- 
tory.    In    1886     Mr.    Lankford 


J.    D.    LANKFORD. 

married  Miss  Emmaetta  Sullivan, 
of  Atoka,  one  of  the  most  attrac- 
tive young  ladies  in  the  city. 
The  subject  of  this  sketch  is  a 
young  business  man  of  excep- 
tional ability  and  great  promise, 
and  has,  in  an  unusually  short 
time,  made  for  himself  a  reputa- 
tion which  is  quite  enviable.  His 
friends  are  numerous  throughout 
the  Indian  Territory. 


-* 


54 


LKADERS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


REV.  WILLIAM  M.  DAVIS. 
Tnisgentlemau  was  born  in  Giles 
county,  Tennessee,  in  1837.  At 
the  breaking  out  of  the  war 
William  entered  Gen,  Yan  Dorn's 
army  (confederate  service),  en- 
listing in  Captain  Dan  Jones' 
company,  the  regiment  being 
then  under  the  command  of  Col. 
King,  and  later  in  charge  of 
Col.  Johnson.  After  the  confed- 
erates had  evacuated  Corinth, 
Gen.  Van  Dorn,  regardless  of 
the  bloodshed,  rushed  Col.  John- 
son and  his  men  back  into  the 
fortified  town.  Captain  Jones' 
company  being  at  the  front.  The 
slaughter  was  dreadful,  only 
seven  men  surviving  of  one  hun- 
dred which  constituted  Jones' 
company.  Johnson  was  killed 
with  the  flower  of  his  regiment. 
Tan  Dorn  suffered  for  this  blood- 
thirsty attack  as  well  as  for  other 
bad  actions  of  his  life;  being 
shot  by  a  man  whose  domestic 
peace  ho  had  ruined — a  little  be- 
fore the  termination  of  the  war. 
Mr.  Davis,  after  years  of  hard 
service  in  defence  of  his  dear 
southern  home,  began  preaching 
in  1867,  and  soon  afterward 
married  Melissa  J.  Diggs,  daugh- 
ter of  Rev.  Wm.  Diggs,  of 
Henry  county,  Tennessee,  who 
was  once  a  noted  revivalist.  By 
this  union  Mr.    Davis    had    six 


children:  Cooper,  aged  twenty- 
two  years;  Martha  Ellen,  Min- 
nie Eva,  Julia  Edna,  Selina 
Eunice  and  William  Elbert.  In 
1875  he  was  sent  to  Stringtown, 
Choctaw  Nation,  by  the  Metho- 
dist Mission  Board,  and  has  re- 
sided there  thirteen  years.  In 
1888  he  moved  with  his  family 
to  Atoka,  where  he  has  since 
made  his  home.  Rev.  Mr.  Davis 
has  worked  untiringly  among  the 
Indian  people  for  many  years, 
and  Heaven  has  crowned  his  ef- 
forts with  success.  He  has  a 
very  high  opinion  of  the  Choc- 
taw people,  "  the  warmth  and 
devotion  with  which  these  people 
worship,"  says  Mr.  Davis,  "  is  a 
contrast  to  the  luke-warmness 
displayed  by  too  many  of  their 
pale  brethren."  The  Meth- 
odist religion  has  the  largest 
membership  in  the  Indian  Terri- 
tory, there  being  fully  sixty 
white  and  Indian  preachers. 


*- 


REV.  FRANKLIN  B.  SMITH. 
This  gentleman  was  born  near 
Albany,  New  York;  graduated 
at  the  Classical  Seminary,  of 
Paw  Paw,  Illinois,  where  he  had 
remained  four  years,  till  1874. 
It  was  then  Franklin  commenced 
his  career  as  a  teacher,  and  after 
over  three  years'  experience,  in 
1878,  he    married    Miss    Sophia 


-* 


>B- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY 


55 


-fb 


Fodd,  of  Freedom,  Illinois.  Here 
he  taught  at  the  Institute  and 
devoted  some  of  his  time  to  farm- 
ing from  1878untill88tl:.  When 
about  to  leave  that  part  of  the 
state  he  was  requested  to  assume 
management  of  the  Institute, 
but  preferred  working  in  the  pub- 
lic schools.  Professor  Smith  was 
principal  at  Naperville,  Walnut 
and  the  high  school  at  Macomb, 
Illinois,  remaining  one  year  at 
eacli  place,  and  finally  settled  in 
Atoka  in  1887,  where  better  in- 
ducements were  offered.  Since 
then  he  has  been  in  charge  of  the 
Atoka  Baptist  Academy. 

The  scholastic  list  of  this  acad- 
emy when  Professor  Smith  took 
charge  in  1887  was  one  hundred 
and  five;  this  year  it  has  increased 
to  one  hundred  and  seventy-four. 
Such  progress  can  only  be  at- 
tributed to  the  reputation  ac- 
quired by  the  principal,  who  is, 
besides  being  an  excellent  teach- 
er in  ordinary  branches,  a  man 
of  superior  education  and  culture. 
He  is  a  devoted  student  of  met- 
aphysics, and  has  written  some 
poems  of  much  merit.  Mr. 
Smith  having  been  a  divinity  stu- 
dent, soon  after  his  arrival  in 
Atoka  began  assisting  Rector 
Murrow,  of  the  Baptist  church, 
and  has  since  given  much  of  his 
time  to  church  business.      He  is 


*- 


kind,  charitable  and  very  gentle 
in  his  treatment  of  his  pupils, 
who  are  much  attached  to  him, 
and  thus  learn  more  rapidly. 

DR.  J.  S.  LANKFORD. 
Dr.  Lankford  was  born  in  1858; 
graduated  in  medicine  at  the  Un- 
iversity  of   Louisville  in    1880. 
Dr.  Lankford  located,  for  a  short 
time  at  Sulphur  Springs,    Texas, 
after  which  he  came    to  Atoka, 
Indian  Territory,  in  1882,  where 
he   shortly  married    Miss   Belle 
Gatewood,  of  Sherman,  daughter 
of  Col.  James  M.  Gatewood,  of 
Missouri,  a   statesman   of  much 
prominence.     By  this  union  he 
has  had  six  children,  five  of  whom 
are    living.     Their    names    are: 
Lettie,  Earle,  Eugenie  F.,  Anna 
L.,  and  Esther  B.   Dr.  Lankford 
ranks  among  the  first  physicians 
of  the  Indian  Territory,  and  has 
a   large   practice.      He    is   vice- 
president   of  the  Medical   Asso- 
ciation of  the  Territory,  and  Lo- 
cal Surgeon  of   the  M.  K.  &  T. 
R.  R,  besides  being  medical  ref- 
eree for  the  Mutual   and  Equita- 
ble Life   Insurance   Companies. 
Dr.  Lankford's  charity  in  bestow- 
ing medical  attendance  on  poor 
and  homeless  people  is  the  best 
illustration  we    can  give    of   his 
true  character.     He  has   been  a 
prominent  mason  for  many  years. 
■ lie 


-^ 


LEADEUS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


JACKSON  W.  ELLIS. 

[CHEROKEE,] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  Sweet  Town,  Cherokee 
Nation,  in  1859.  In  youth  he 
attended  the  public  schools,  and 
as  early  as  sixteen  years  of  age 
went  to  work  on  a  farm.  Jack- 
son was  the  only  son  of  the  late 


JACKSON  W.   ELLIS. 

Edward  Ellis,  who  with  his  broth- 
er Samuel,  was  killed  at  Fort 
Gibson  during  the  war  while 
correlling  the  horses  of  their  com- 
pany. At  the  age  of  twenty-one 
Jackson  was  appointed  deputy 
sheriff  of  Tahlequah  district,  also 
sherifi"  of  commissioners'  court; 
and  later,  in  1872,   deputy  war- 


den of  the  National  Penitentiary, 
and  in  the  same  year  commis- 
sioner of  the  quarantine  district. 
In  1876  he  went  into  the  drug 
business  until  1878,  when  he 
clerked  for  the  two  years  follow- 
ins:  in  a  mercantile  house.  In 
1885  he  was  appointed  deputy 
United  States  Marshal  for  West- 
ern District  of  Arkansas,  and  the 
same  year  was  appointed  on  the 
Indian  police- force.  He  had  not 
been  employed  in  this  capacity 
over  six  weeks  when  in  self-de- 
fense he  shot  down  Bud  Trainer 
on  the  streets  of  Tahlequah. 
Jackson  then  moved  to  Fort  Gib- 
son, where  he  was  appointed  city 
marshal.  Here  lie  shot  and 
killed  Dick  Yan,  who  resisted 
arrest.  Dick  was  the  murderer 
of  Captain  Sixkiller  of  the  In- 
dian police,  and  a  noted  desper- 
ado. From  thence  he  went  to 
Atoka,  where  he  was  appointed 
otticerofthe  peace.  During  his 
four  years  here  he  shot  and  ar- 
rested Daniel  Fields,  an  escaped 
convict.  Soon  afterward  he  shot 
and  killed  Harry  Finn,  a  desper- 
ado who  had  killed  his  father  in 
Missouri,  and  was  following  the 
business  of  a  whisky  peddler. 
This  was  followed  by  the  shoot- 
ing and  capture  of  Charley  Car- 
ter, a  desperado  and  murderer, 
whom  the  officer  was  tracing  for 


•i^- 


•i* 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


57 


* 


fearless,  determined  man    and  a 
line  specimen  of  his  race. 


*- 


some  time.  Jackson  Ellis  also 
shot  and  captured  Watson  and 
Whitrock,  both  whisky  venders 
and  desperate  men.  In  all  these 
instances  Officer  Ellis  never  out- 
stepped the  bounds  of  duty;  such 
is  the  public  verdict,  and  all  law- 
abiding  citizens  feel  themselves 
indebted  to  this  fearless  officer 
for  clearing  the  country  of  so 
many  "  terrors  to  society." 

In  1890  Jackson  W.  Ellis,  in 
partnership  with  D.  J.  Folsom, 
commenced  the  practice  of  law 
in  Atoka,  but  the  former  was 
soon  afterward  appointed  consta- 
ble for  bhe  second  division  United 
States  court  at  South  McAlester, 
under  Judge  Shackleford,  which 
office  he  is  now  holding.  The 
subject  of  this  sketch  married 
Miss  Beatrice  Becklehymer  by 
whom  he  had  two  children,  neith- 
of  whom  survived,  their  mother 
following  them  to  the  grave  in 
1883.  In  1885  he  married  Miss 
Cordelia  C.  Smith,  daughter  of 
N.  J.  Smith,  of  Cherokee,  prin- 
cipal chief  of  the  eastern  band  of 
Cherokees.  Mrs.  Ellis  is  a  young 
woman  of  great  personal  attrac- 
tiveness, highly  educated  and  pos- 
sessing talents  which  in  the  so- 
cial scale  place  her  on  a  footing 
with  the  most  accomplished  of 
her  sex.  Jackson  Ellis  is  fully 
six  feet  five  inches    in   height,  a 


REV.  W.  J.  B.  LLOYD. 

This  well-known  and  deservedly 
popular  member  of  the  Presby- 
terian Missionary  Band  was  born 
in  South  Carolina  in  1843,  and 
came  to  the  Indian  Territory  in 
1870.  His  first  trip  extended 
from  Double  Springs,  Chicka- 
saw Nation,  to  the  mouth  of 
Kiamichi,  in  the  Choctaw  coun- 
try. In  1883  he  moved  to  Arm- 
strong, where  he  organized  the 
present  National  Academy,  the 
building  being  erected  under  his 
personal  supervision.  He  also 
opened  an  extensive  farm  and 
instructed  his  pupils  in  the  art  of 
agriculture.  The  National  Coun- 
cil, however,  in  the  fall  of  1889, 
without  any  notification,  ordered 
Mr.  Lloyd  to  resign  and  obliged 
him  to  give  up  control  of  the  in- 
stitution which  he  had  been  the 
chief  factor  in  establishing.  The 
people  living  in  the  Armstrong 
and  Bennington  neighborhoods 
will  not,  however,  permit  Mr. 
Lloyd  to  resign  his  pastoral  du- 
ties in  the  neighborhood,  so  that 
he  is  still  in  the  county.  His 
church  has  increased  in  member- 
ship from  twenty-five  to  one  hun- 
dred and  twenty-five. 


-* 


*- 


-* 


58 


LEADERS   AND    LEADING   MEN 


DR.  LEWIS  C.  TENNENT. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  in 
Edgefield  Disti'ict,  South  Caro- 
lina, November  8,  1847.  In 
1851  he  moved  with  his  parents 
to  Marietta,  Cobb  county,  Geor- 
gia ;  remained  three  years  at  the 
Georgia  Military  Institute,  and 
joined  the  Confederate  service, 
remaining  with  his  regiment  un- 
til the  end  of  the  war. 

Graduating  in  1869  at  At- 
lanta Medical  College,  he  com- 
menced the  practice  of  medicine 
at  North  Fork  Town,  in  the 
Creek  Nation,  where  he  re- 
mained three  years.  He  mar- 
ried Miss  Emma  H.  McDuflf, 
daughter  of  A.  J.  McDuff,  a 
Choctaw,  and  grand-niece  to  ex- 
Chief  Greenwood  La  Flore,  of 
Mississippi.  In  the  fall  of  1874 
Dr.  Tennent  moved  to  his  farm 
in  South  Canadian,  where  he 
continued  his  practice.  In  1872 
he  moved  to  the  Creek  capital, 
and  afterward  to  McAlester  in 
1882,  where  he  opened  up  in  the 
drug  business ;  after  which  he 
entered  the  general  mercantile 
trade,  continuing  in  it  until  1887, 
when  he  sold  out  his  interest. 
and  has  since  devoted  himself 
exclusively  to  medicine.  In  1886 
he  was  appointed  president  of 
the  Choctaw  Medical  Board. 


Dr.  Tennent  has  been  the 
father  of  eleven  children,  only 
four  of  whom  are  living — Carrie 
E.,  Gilbert  L.,  William  J.  K.  and 
Robert. 

Dr.  Tennent  is  a  physician  of 
considerable  note,  a  man  of 
many  talents,  and  possessing  a 
sound  education.  He  is  a  de- 
scendant of  Rev.  Wm.  Tennent, 
of  Log  College,  which  was  after- 
ward merged  into  Princeton  Col- 
lege, New  Jersey.  He  owns  an 
improved  farm,  thirteen  houses 
and  lots  in  McAlester,  besides  a 
small  herd  of  cattle. 


C.  B.  FARRINGTON. 
The  subject  of  this  sketch  (who 
is  a  non-citizen)  was  born  at 
Beaver  Dams,  Wisconsin,  and  is 
a  son  of  Eben  F.  Farrington,  a 
native  of  Massachusetts.  He 
was  educated  at  Hardin  College, 
Mexico,  Mo.,  and  went  to  Deca- 
tur, Texas,  in  1873,  where  he 
became  a  member  of  Captain 
Stephen's  Wise  County  Rangers 
in  the  following  year ;  w^as  in 
several  skirmishes  with  the  Co- 
manches,  among  others  the  cele- 
brated light  in  Loring's  Yalley. 
After  retiring  from  the  service  he 
entered  the  business  house  of 
Charlie  Moore,  where  he  re- 
mained for  two  years.  In  1879 
he  opened  business  in  Audubon, 


*- 


-^ 


*- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY, 


59 


•i^- 


Wise  county,  but  closed  out  in 
18S3,  aiTiving  in  Caddo  the  fol- 
lowing year.  Here  he  went  into 
business  with  C.  A.  Hancock  as 
clerk  for  the  Agricultural  Wheel 
organization,  and  is  now  secre- 
tary for  the  Blue  County  Wlieel 
and  agent  for  the  C.  Brand  Detec- 
tive and  Protective  Association. 

JMr.  Farrington  married  Miss 
Charlotte  Rogers,  a  native  of 
North  Carolina,  by  whom  he  has 
two  children,  the  oldest  being 
six  years. 

REV.  W.  L.BUTLER. 

Rev.  Butler  was  born  July, 
1859,  near  Oxford,  Mississippi. 
In  early  youth  he  was  sent  to 
the  public  school  until  eight 
years  of  age,  after  which  he  re- 
mained at  home  until  sixteen 
years  old,  attending  school  dur- 
ing the  winter  months.  In  1876 
he  went  to  Pleasant  Hill  Acade- 
my, and  later  to  Prof.  Paul  Gra- 
ham's Select  School,  Ozark, 
Ark.,  finishing  his  education  (in- 
cluding theology  and  divinity) 
at  the  Central  Collegiate  Insti- 
tute, Alton,  Arkansas,  after 
which  he  was  licensed  to  preach 
by  the  quarterly  conference  of 
the  Methodist  church — south 
Ozark  circuit.  Joining  the  con- 
ference in  1879.  he  was  sent  by 
Bishop    Price  in    the    following 


year  to  take  charge  of  Flint 
Creek  Station,  Cherokee  Nation. 
Was  ordained  deacon  in  1881, 
andelderin  1883;  came  to  Tah- 
lequah  in  1882  and  in  1886  re- 
moved to  Atoka,  Choctaw  Na- 
tion, where  he  is  in  charge  of  the 
Atoka  and  Caddo  Stations,  and 
wheie  it  is  to  be  hoped  he  is 
permanently  settled.  In  1881 
he  married  Miss  Helen  Daugh- 
erty,  niece  of  Charles  Fargo,  ex- 
Senator  of  Sequoyah  District, 
Cherokee  Nation,  by  whom  he 
has  two  children:  Gracie,  seven 
years;  and  Bessie,  three  years. 

Rev.W.  L.  Butler  has  been  on 
the  stafi'  of  the  Brother  in  Red 
for  over  live  years.  This  paper 
is  devoted  to  the  religious  and 
educational  interestsof  the  people 
of  the  Indian  Country,  and  Mr. 
Butler  has  been  contributing  to 
its  excellent  articles  on  these 
subjects.  Besides  being  a  good 
writer,  brother  Butler  is  an  elo- 
quent speaker.  Among  the 
younger  ministers  of  the  gospel 
none  are  more  popular  in  this 
respect,  as  well  as  for  liis  charity 
and  liberality  to  all  men.  He 
is  a  diligent  laborer  and  has 
been  secretary  of  the  Indian  Mis- 
sionary Conference  for  some  time 
past.  No  minister  that  we  know 
has  a  more  brilliant  future  than 
Rev.  AV.  L.  Butler. 


H" 


GO 


LKADEKS    AND   I>EADTNG   >IEX 


M.  S.  MONTAGUE. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
boru  in  St.  Charles  county,  Mo., 
in  1S4S.  and  attended  private 
school  until  fourteen  years  of 
age,  when  he  went  to  Sanford 
University,  St.  Charles  county, 
Mo..  leaving  there  at  seventeen 


MICKLEBOROUGH   S.   MONTAGUE. 

years  of  age  for  Jones'  Commer- 
cial College.  St.  Louis,  where  he 
graduated  in  1866.  In  1867 
he  went  to  Montana,  where  he 
carried  on  a  small  business  until 
1869,  when  he  returned  to  St. 
Louis  and  was  appointed  cashier 
of  the  Grafton  Stone  and  Trans- 
portation Co.,  which  appoint- 
ment he  held  for  two  years. 
This  office  was  followed  bv  oth- 


•i<- 


ers  of  even  greater  responsibil- 
ity ;  after  which  he  associated 
himself  with  Caruth  &  Byrnes' 
Hardware  Co.,  St.  Louis,  and 
for  eleven  years  traveled  for  that 
house.  In  1886  he  came  to  Mc- 
Alester  Mines,  and  at  Krebs  em- 
barked in  the  general  mercantile 
business  with  T.  J.  Phillips,  a 
leading  citizen  of  that  country, 
and  which  business  he  carries  on 
till  the  present  day.  Messrs. 
Phillips  &  Montague  carry  a 
well-assorted  stock  of  goods,  rep- 
resenting at  least  thirty  thousand 
dollars,  and  do  an  immense  min- 
ing and  country  trade. 

Mr.  Montague  has  been  post- 
master at  Krebs  for  over  two 
years.  He  was  married  in  1870 
in  St.  Louis  to  Miss  Annie, 
daughter  of  F.  A.  Kinnon, 
wholesale  merchant  of  that  city. 
Mrs.  Montague  is  a  lady  of  good 
breeding,  cultivation  and  refine- 
ment, with  many  amiable  traits 
of  character.  She  was  educated 
at  St.  Joseph's  Convent,  St. 
Louis.  The  issue  of  their  mar- 
riage is  three  children,  two  of 
whom  are  living — Miss  Annie, 
who  graduated  at  Linton  Wood, 
St.  Charles,  Mo.,  in  1890,  and 
Dempsor  Wishart,  born  in  1890. 
Mr. Montague  is  a  man  of  uncom- 
mon business  ability  and  is  justly 
esteemed  for  his  many  qualities. 


-* 


*- 


-* 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


61 


W.  A.  DURANT. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

W.  A.  Ddrant  is  the  son  of  the 
late  Sylvester  Durant,  of  Ben- 
nington, Choctaw  Nation,  who 
at  the  time  of  his  death  was  a 
member  of  the  House  of  Rep- 
resentatives of  the  National 
Council.      W.     A.     Durant    was 


*- 


durant. 


born  in  1866,  and  his  father 
dying  while  he  was  yet  a  boy,  he 
was  obliged  to  educate  himself 
through  the  result  of  physical 
labor  until  the  last  two  years  of 
his  college  career,  which  was 
provided  for  by  an  appropria- 
tion of  the  Choctaw  school  funds. 
He  was  educated  at  the  Arkan- 
saw  College,    Batesville,   where 


he  graduated  in  a  classical  course 
in  1886,  after  four  years  of  close 
attention  to  his  studies.  On  his 
return  he  commenced  the  study 
of  law,  and  was  soon  observed 
practicing  in  the  Choctaw  courts. 
Later  on,  when  D.  N.  Robb  was 
appointed  United  States  Commis- 
sioner at  Atoka,  Mr.  Durant  en- 
tered into  partnership  with  Parks 
&  Owenby,  of  Paris,  and  has 
added  much  to  the  influence  of 
that  well-established  firm.  Dur- 
ing the  disbursement  of  the  "Net 
Proceeds  Claim"  he  assisted  his 
cousin,  Hon.  Alexander  Durant, 
ox-Suprerne  Judge  of  the  Choc- 
taws;  Messrs.  Locke  &  Yail  and 
other  lawyers,  to  adjust  certain 
claims,  and  by  this  means  real- 
ized a  handsome  sum.  Mr.  Du- 
rant has  a  farm  of  three  thousand 
acres,  five  hundred  of  which  is 
under  cultivation,  so  that  he  an- 
nually employs  at  least  fifteen 
laborers.  He  is  a  most  promis- 
ing young  man,  possessing  a  fine 
address  and  talents  far  beyond 
the  average,  backed  up  by  en- 
ergy and  industry  and'a  fixity  of 
purpose  far  beyond  his  years. 


W.  H.  AINSWORTH. 
Mr.    Ainsworth    was    born    in 
1835  in  Simpson  county,  Missis- 
sippi,   and    is    a    son   of   David 
Ainsworth,    originally    of    Ken- 


-•it 


h^ 


-^ 


62 


LEADERS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


tucky.  In  1.S52  lie  came  to 
Skullyville,  Choctaw  Nation, 
where  his  brother,  J.  G.  Ains- 
worth,  had  been  residing  for  ten 
years.  On  his  arrival  in  the 
Choctaw  country,  W.  11.  be- 
came an  overseer,  which  busi- 
ness, as  well  as  freighting,  the 
young  man  followed  till  he  moved 
to  Caddo  in  1872,  where  eight 
years  afterward  he  conducted 
an  extensive  mercantile  busi- 
ness, which  has  been  growing 
steadily  until  the  present.  In 
1859  he  married  a  Miss  Hill, 
daughter  of  G.  L.  Hill,  of  Bas- 
trop county,  Texas.  Mr.  Ains- 
wortli  has  no  famil}'.  but  some 
years  ago  he  adopted  a  little  girl. 
He  is  uncle  of  N.  B.  Ainsworth, 
of  McAlester,  and  T.  D.  Ains- 
worth, of  Skullyville,  two  lead- 
ing citizens  and  office-holders  of 
the  Choctaw  Nation. 


This   gentleman     was 


*- 


F.  E.  FOLSOM. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

born    in 

1852,  the  son  of  Israel  Folsom, 
of  Blue  county.  The  subject  of 
this  sketch  went  to  school  at 
Armstrong,  where  he  received 
his  education,  and  at  an  early 
age  commenced  farming  and 
stock  raising    on  a  small   scale. 


On  the  death  of  his  father  and 
mother  he  was  left  in  possession 
of  the  old  homestead  which  he 
occupied  for  some  time,  after 
which  he  rented  it  out  and  open- 
ed a  new  farm  on  the  prairie  in 
t!ie  vicinity  of  Caddo,  having  in 


F.  E.   FOLSOM. 

all  two  hundred  acres  under  cul- 
tivation, six  hundred  and  forty 
acres  in  pasture,  and  a  good 
stock  of  cattle.  In  1878  he 
married  MoUie  Pitchlyn,  daugh- 
ter of  Pushmataha  Pitchlyn,  by 
whom  he  has  four  children,  Min- 
nie, Ewing,  Columbus  and  Car- 
roll, the  oldest  being  eleven 
years  and  the  youngest  three 
years  of  age. 


-* 


Granny  Houston. 


I 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


-* 


65 


DANIEL  L.  GARLAND. 

[  CHOCTAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  in 
Hood  county^  Texas,  in  1864; 
attended  public  school  until  1884, 
and  came  to  McAlester  in  the 
same  year,  where  he  worked  in 
T.  J.  Phillips'  mercantile  house 
until  1888.  Determined  to  labor 
for  himself,  he  opened  out  a  large 
stock  of  drugs,  which  business 
he  pursues  with  success.  In 
1888  he  married  Miss  Inez  Toole, 
youngest  daughter  of  Alfred 
Toole,  a  merchant  of  South  Can- 
adian. Mrs.  Garland  is  a  lady 
of  refinement  and  amiability. 
The  subject  of  this  sketch  is  a 
nephew  of  T.  J.  Phillips,  one  of 
the  leading  merchants  of  the 
Choctaw  Nation.  Mr.  Garland 
owns  seven  hundred  acres  of 
farm  land,  the  greater  part  of 
which  is  in  pasture,  and  which 
he  is  about  to  stock  the  coming 
spring.  He  is  a  young  man  of 
excellent  business  capacity  and 
very  popular.  His  only  child, 
NomaOllie  Lue,  is  two  years. 


*- 


OLIVER  THOMAS. 

[  CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  the  state  of  Indiana  in 
1830,  and  attended  the  public 
schooluntil  1851,  when  he  moved 
to  Bonham,  Texas,  with  his  fath- 


er. Oliver  was  educated  for  the 
bar,  and  had  taken  out  a  license 
for  practicing  law,  but  was  oblig- 
ed to  discontinue  it  owing  to  his 
delicate  health.  He  worked  at 
the  trade  of  blacksmith  for  four 
years  in  Texas,  and  in  1857 
moved  to  Blue  county,  Choctaw 
Nation,  and  afterward  to  Lime- 
stone Springs,  where  he  married 
Mrs.  Anolatubby,  daughter  of 
William  Trahern,  of  Mississippi, 
and  from  that  time  has  devoted 
his  attention  to  farming  and 
stock  raising.  His  wife,  who  died 
in  1881.  was  a  niece  of  Mrs. 
Flack,  of  Atoka,  of  the  Okla-fal- 
laya  clan.  She  had  three  chil- 
dren,none  of  whom  survived.  In 
1882  he  married  Miss  Secon, 
about  one-eighth  Choctaw,  an 
amiable  young  lady  of  good  edu- 
cation. By  lier  he  has  three 
children,  two  of  whom  are  living, 
Oliver  Grover  and  Pearl.  Mr. 
Thomas  served  one  year  during 
the  war  in  Col.  Sim  Folsom's 
regiment.  Captain  Watkin's  com- 
pany. He  is  now  very  comfor- 
tably situated,  having  a  good 
home,  seventy-live  acres  under 
cultivation  and  two  hundred  head 
of  stock  cattle.  He  is  a  good 
manager,  a  successful  farmer, 
and  is  much  respected  in  his  lo- 
cality, of  which  he  is  one  of  the 
oldest  residents. 


-« 


66 


LEADERS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


.lAMKS  M.  STKAl),  M.  D. 

[CHEROKEE.] 

A  RATHER  strang-e  experience 
was  that  of  James  Stead,  born  in 
Bourbon  county, Kan.,  1861.  His 
father  and  mother  (^the  former  a 
Clierokee  by  descent)  had  emi- 
grated from  Phihidel|)hia.  Penn., 


*- 


JAMES  M.    STEAD. 

and  were  soon  afterward  di- 
vorced, his  father  joining  the 
army  at  the  opening  of  the  war. 
Before  two  years  had  expired 
Mrs.  Stead  learned  of  her  late 
husband's  death,  and  the  report 
spread  until  nobody  questioned 
the  truth  of  the  sad  intelligence. 
Mrs.  Stead  and  her  sister  ac- 
cordingly returned  to  their  old 
home  in  Philadelphia,  and  before 


many  years  the    young    hero  of 
this  sketch  had  a  step-father. 

In  1875,  the  commencement 
of  his  fifteenth  year,  James  be- 
came restless  for  adventure,  and 
determined  to  go  to  Mexico,  but 
never  got  farther  than  "•  Xo 
Man's  Land,"  north  of  the  Indian 
Territory,  where  he  met  with 
some  cattle  men  and  became  a 
cowboy  in  a  short  time.  During 
the  years  which  he  spent  in  that 
country  he  had  frequently  heard 
of  a  family  named  Stead  living 
at  Johnsonville  in  fhe  Chickasaw 
Nation,  and  often  determined  to 
visit  them  for  curiosity  sake.  In 
1885,  some  months  after  the 
young  man's  return  to  civilization, 
and  while  at  a  ball  in  the  city  of 
Cincinnati,  he  met  with  a  lady 
who  assured  him  that  his  father 
was  alive  and  living  some  where 
in  the  Indian  country.  This  was 
enough:  Stead  started  back  to 
' '  No  Man's  Land,"  and  choosing 
the  fleetest  horse  on  the  ranch, 
rode  to  Johnsonville,  and  there 
found  his  father  in  the  midst  of 
a  family  of  daughters,  and  sur- 
rounded by  peace  and  plenty. 
They  had  been  parted  for  twen- 
ty-three years.  After  this  event 
the  young  man  returned  to  Cin- 
cinnati, and  in  two  years  after- 
ward graduated  in  medicine,  and 
was  married  the  same  year  (1887) 


-* 


*- 


>b 


OF   THE   INDIAN    TEKUITORY. 


to  Miss  Mary  E.  Thill,  a  pretty 
and  polishedyoiinglady  of  Ohio's 
capital.  The  doctor  is  now  lo- 
cated in  Purcell,  where,  in  part- 
nership with  Dr.  Dunn,  he  car- 
ries o!i  a  large  drug  business, 
while  their  professional  practice 
is  perhaps  the  most  extensive  in 
the  county. 


*- 


LOUIS  CRUTCHFIELD. 

[CHEROKEE.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  Yinita  in  1847,  his  father 
being  white  and  his  mother  a 
Cherokee.  When  cpiite  a  child 
he  moved  with  his  parents  close 
to  Dallas,  Texas,  from  thence  to 
Collin  county,  and  on  the  death 
of  his  parents  to  Decatur,  in  1866, 
Soon  afterward  he  went  to 
Eureka,  Kansas,  where  he  re- 
mained three  years,  coming  to 
Denison,  Texas,'  in  1874,  which 
town  was  then  in  its  infancy. 
Soon  after  this  he  began  trading 
in  sheep  between  Corpus  Christi 
and  JSTew  York.  On  one  occa- 
sion, with  twelve  hundred  head, 
he  walked  from  Corpus  Christi 
to  Denison,  a  distance  of  over 
six  hundred  miles,  a  trip  which 
occupied  him  four  weeks.  After 
this  Mr.  Crutchfield  devoted  his 
attention  for  a  while  to  the  pur- 
chase and  shipment  of  horses 
from    Austin,  Texas,  to  Kansas, 


on  which  he  made  a  profit  of 
eight  dollars  per  head  on  picked 
stock.  After  this  he  sliipped  cat- 
tle from  Caddo,  I.  T.,  to  Kansas, 
where  he  purchased  a  large  flock 
(eleven  thousand  head)  of  sheep 
and  drove  them  to  Paul's  Yalley, 
many  of  which  he  traded  for 
horses.  Mr.  Crutchfleld  is  lo- 
cated on  Wilson  Jones'  place 
near  Caddo,  where  he  holds  a 
herd  of  sheep  and  raises  corn, 
millet  and  other  crops. 


JOSIAH  GARDNER. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  at  Wheelock  in  1851.  and 
went  to  the  neighborhood  schools 
until  he  was  fifteen  years  of  age, 
after  which  he  lived  with  his  par- 
ents until  1871,  when  he  began 
farming  on  his  own  responsibili- 
ty. At  the  age  of  twenty-one  he 
married  Elizabeth  Beajis,  part 
Cherokee,  who  lived  three  years. 
In  1877  (two  years  later)  he  mar- 
ried Miss  SallieThunley,  a  Choc- 
taw, by  whom  he  has  no  family. 
Mr.  Joe  Gardner  is  a  fourth  son 
of  Jackson  Gardner,  of  theOkla- 
falaya  clan.  He  is  a  lawyer  by 
profession,  and  practices  in  the 
Choctaw  courts.  He  is  a  man  of 
sound  judgment  and  excellent 
sense. 


-* 


*- 


-* 


(>S 


l.EADEHS   AND   LEADING    3IEX 


^- 


T.  M.  LOWREY. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  in  Mis- 
sissippi about  1842;  came  to 
Skullyville,  Choctaw  Nation,  in 
1871,  and  two  years  afterward 
moved  to  Sans  Bois,  and  from 
thence  to  Canadian.  Before 
leaving  his  native  state  he  mar- 
ried Miss  Margaret  McGee,  by 
whom  he  had  three  children,  two 
of  whom  survived,  Agnes  and 
Lucy.  His  first  wife  dying  in 
1878,  he  married  Miss  C.  A. 
Chapman,  whose  father  was  a 
Mississippian  who  lived  among 
the  Indians  in  that  state.  The 
issue  of  this  marriage  was  seven 
children,  three  of  whom  survive, 
Thomas,  Effie  and  Nevada. 
After  living  some  years  in  the 
Chickasaw  Nation,  Mr.  Lowrey 
moved  to  Atoka,  and  from  thence 
to  North  Boggy,  six  miles  west 
of  Kiowa,  where  he  had  a  son- 
in-law  killed  by  the  Indians. 
Considering  the  country  danger- 
ous he  with  others  removed  to 
Savanna,  I.T.,  and  after  the  great 
mining  explosion,  purchased  a 
farm  near  Kiowa,  where  he  now 
resides.  Mr.  Lowrey's  father 
was  a  white  man  and  his  mother 
u  quadroon  Choctaw  related  to 
the  families  of  La  Flore  and 
Krebs.  His  mother  still  lives, 
but  his  father  died  in  1876,  aged 


seventy-six  years.  Mr.  Lowrey 
is  an  energetic,  industrious  citi- 
zen and  will  soon  become  inde- 
pendent. He  is  a  member  of 
the  Methodist  church  south. 


J.  D.  DOYLE. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  Boone  county,  Missouri, 
in  December,  1839,  and  received 
instructions  at  the  public  schools 
until  1855;  after  which  he  became 
a  dry  goods  clerk  for  several 
years.  When  the  Pike's  Peak 
fever  was  at  its  height  young 
Doyle  started  for  the  gold  fields 
of  Colorado  and  remained  there 
about  twelve  months,  when  he 
returned  to  his  native  State  and 
commenced  farming  in  Bates 
county.  At  the  outbreak  of  the 
war  he  enlisted  in  the  Missouri 
State  Guards,  and  later  in  the 
Thirteenth  Missouri  Infantry, 
Confederate  service,  where  he  re- 
mained till  the  close  of  the  war. 
After  two  years  in  Texas,  Mr. 
Doyle  came  to  the  Choctaw  Na- 
tion, where  he  farmed  and  taught 
school  until  1875,  when  he  mar- 
ried Miss  Minnie  Shultz,  of  Ato- 
ka county.  He  is  at  present  in 
the  mercantile  business  for  the 
Co-operative  Co.  of  Kiowa.  A 
member  of  the  Methodist  Church 
South,  and  a  good  Christian  man 


* 


*- 


-* 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


69 


*- 


RICHARD  B.  COLEMAN. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

This  once  prominent  merchant 
was  born  in  Springfield,  Mo^, 
August,  1846.  After  four  years' 
schooling  (in  June,  1861),  he 
joined  Lowry's  company  at  fif- 
teen years  of  age,  and  remained 
in  it  during  the  State  Guard  ser- 
vice; after  which  he  joined  the 
First  Missouri  under  Capt.  Rath- 
bourne.  Young  Coleman  expe- 
rienced a  good  deal  of  service 
and  continued  in  the  army  till  the 
termination  of  the  war. 

In  1865  Mr.  Coleman  went  on 
the  plains,  and  after  twelve 
months  of  "roughing  it,"  went 
to  clerking  in  a  country  store  in 
his  own  native  State.  In  1867 
he  opened  a  furniture  factory  in 
Denton,  Texas,  and  in  1873  was 
elected  Mayor  by  a  large  major- 
ity, and  afterward  organized  their 
city  government.  In  1878  he 
was  nominated  by  the  Greenback 
party  for  the  Legislature,  and 
came  within  six  votes  of  beating 
the  Democratic  candidate.  Judge 
S.  A.  Ventres.  In  1880  he  came 
to  MjcAester,  where  he  now  re- 
sides, and  there  embarked  in  the 
mercantile  business  ;  also  invest- 
ing in  a  stock  of  cattle.  In  the 
spring  of  1890  he  sold  his  inter- 
est in  merchandise,  and  is  now 
devoting  his  time  exclusively  to 


stock  cattle.  In  1869  he  mar- 
ried Miss  Eva  Withers,  daughter 
of  Capt.  Wash  Withers,  of  Clay 
county,  Mo. 


WILLIAM  NOBLE. 
Mk.  Noble  was  born  near  Spring- 
field, Mo.,  in  February,  1866. 
He  came  to  South  Canadian, 
Choctaw  Nation,  in  1870,  and 
went  to  school  in  that  town  till 
1882.  He  also  received  several 
terms  of  public  instruction  in  his 
native  State.  Taking  a  position 
as  telegraph  operator  in  the  M., 
K.  &  T.  office  at  South  Cana- 
dian, William  devoted  his  energy 
to  business,  and  soon  received 
his  reward  by  being  appointed  as 
Station  Agent,  which  office  he 
held  for  three  years.  Afterward 
he  was  transferred  to  Savanna 
and  Caddo,  respectively,  until 
1890,  when  he  was  appointed 
United  States  Commissioner  and 
postmaster  for  South  McAlester. 
(These  latter  offices  he  also  held 
while  located  at  South  Canadian 
and  Caddo). 

William  Noble  is  a  young  man 
of  industry  and  energy  and  good 
business  qualifications,  his  moral 
character  being  such  as  to  excite 
the  admiration  and  respect  of  all 
who  know  him.  His  father  and 
mother  are  now  residing  in  Okla- 
homa City. 


-* 


*- 


-^ 


LEADERS   AND    LEADING    MEN' 


JUDGE  J.  C.  FOLSOM. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

BoKN  June,  1831,  in  the  State  of 
Mississippi ;  son  of  Israel  Fol- 
soni,  of  the  royal  "iksa,"  who 
was  one  of  the  old  delegates  to 
Washington  and  leader  in  the 
treaty  negotiation  of  1855.    Ju- 


>i*- 


JUDGE  J.  C.    FOLSOM. 

lius  was  educated  at  Glostenbury 
Seminary,  after  which  he  entered 
the  store  of  A.  B.  Eastman,  on 
tlie  Washita,  Chickasaw  Nation, 
where  he  clerked  for  over  a  year. 
Returning  to  his  father's  home, 
east  of  the  river,  he  employed 
himself  for   some  years  looking 


after  the  family  property  and 
otherwise  assisting  his  father. 
In  December,  1858,  he  married 
Miss  Netta  Thompson,  by  whom 
he  had  eight  children,  only  two 
of  whom  survived,  Don  andJu- 
nia.  About  the  year  1803  he 
was  representative  of  Blue  coun- 
ty. It  was  then  that  he  was  ap- 
pointed by  the  council  to  act  as 
secretary  for  the  commission 
sent  out  to  negotiate  a  treaty  of 
peace  with  the  wild  Indian  tribes. 
In  1886  Mr.  Folsom  was  chosen 
one  of  six  delegates  from  the 
Choctaw  Nation  to  confer  with 
the  Five  Civilized  Tribes  as  to 
the  advisability  of  selling  Okla- 
homa to  the  government.  In  the 
same  year  he  was  elected  County 
Judge  of  Atoka  county,  and  dur- 
ing his  official  term  strove  hard 
to  have  the  laws  put  into  execu- 
tion. In  this  he  was  very  suc- 
cessful and  evinced  great  execu- 
tive ability  as  a  leader  and  states- 
man. 

In  March,  1888,  Judge  J.  C. 
Folsom  married  Hattie  Cofiiand 
at  Cherokee,  Kansas.  He  is  the 
owner  of  2,040  acres  of  land, 
1,500  of  which  are  in  cultiva- 
tion. He  has  besides  over  fifty 
head  of  cattle  and  a  good  stock 
of  horses.  Is  a  member  of  the 
Presbyterian  church  and  pro- 
gressive in  politics. 


* 


*- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TEllRITOKY. 


•it 


DON  JUAN  FOLSOM. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

Don  was  bom  in  August,  1866, 
in  Atoka  county,  Clioctaw  Na- 
tion ;  is  the  son  of  Judge  Julius 
Folsom,  bis  mother's  maiden 
name  being  Thompson,  In  1878 
and  '79  he  was  sent  to  the  Deni- 
son  (Texas)  Higli  School ;  after 
which  he  went  to  Roanoke  Col- 


* 


DON    JUAN    rOLSOM. 

lege,  Salem,  Virginia,  where  he 
remained  for  three  years,  return- 
ing to  Atoka  in  1884.  The  same 
year  be  was  elected  Clerk  of  the 
House  of  Representatives,  and 
in  1885  appointed  County  Clerk 
by  Silas  James,  Judge  of  Atoka 
county.  During  the  term,  before 
he  was  in  his  twentieth  year,  he 


purchased  a  half  interest  in  the 
"Independent,"  a  Choctaw  and 
Chickasaw  national  organ,  ed- 
ited byH.  F.  O'Beirne.  While 
connected  with  this  paper,  the 
young  man  exhibited  a  great 
deal  of  talent  as  a  writer,  and 
had  he  continued  in  the  field  of 
literature,  would  have  made  a 
success  in  that  capacity.  While 
his  father,  Judge  Julius  Folsom, 
w^as  in  office,  Don  continued  to 
serve  as  County  Clerk  until  the 
election  of  Governor  B.  F. 
Smallwood  to  the  executive  chair 
in  1888,  when  the  subject  of 
this  sketch  became  his  private 
secretary  and  tilled  the  office  till 
its  expiration.  In  the  meanwhile 
he  had  been  reading  law  for 
some  years,  and  in  1889  com- 
menced practicing  with  success 
from  the  first.  He  has  recently 
abandoned  everything  else  for 
his  profession,  and  is  apparently 
doing  a  good  business.  He  is 
connected  with  a  well-known  le- 
gal firm  in  Raris,  Texas.  In 
1886  Mr.  Folsom  married  Debo- 
rah Brown  (the  daughter  of  J. 
R.  Brown,  late  of  Atoka),  who 
was  one  of  Atoka's  belles  at  the 
time  of  her  marriage.  They 
have  three  children.  Daphne, 
Robb  and  Ethel.  He  was  the 
youngest  council  clerk  and  secre- 
tary ever  appointed  or  elected. 


-* 


*- 


-^ 


LEADERS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


WILLIAM  II.  SECOR,  JR. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  Fannin  county,  Texas, 
in  1865,  and  came  with  his  par- 
ents to  Boggy  Depot,  Choctaw 
Xation,  in  the  same  year.  His 
education  was  received  at  Atoka 
under  the  professorship  of  O.  C. 
Hall,  and  later  at  McAIester, 
in  Professor  Ross'  school.  Wil- 
liam was  naturally  devoted  to 
stock  and  entered  the  employ- 
ment of  different  stockmen  at 
various  periods.  By  his  own  en- 
ergy and  industry  he  has  now  ac- 
quired a  nice  herd  of  his  own  and 
devotes  his  attention  to  their  ac- 
cumulation. In  1889  he  married 
Miss  Annie  Brown,  a  Cherokee, 
by  whom  he  has  one  child,  Re- 
funa  May,  born  June,  1890. 
His  father,  W.  H.  Secor,  Sr.,  is 
a  farmer  in  good  circumstances. 


H.  M.  MIZE. 


^- 


This  well  known  hotel  keeper, 
who  up  until  recently  was  iden- 
tified in  the  business  at  South 
Canadian,  has  lately  removed  to 
the  new  and  progressive  town  of 
South  McAIester,  where  he  built 
a  fine  hotel,  which  is  being  fitted 
up  in  a    stylish   manner  to    suit 


the  tastes  of  the  most  fastidious 
knights  of  the  grip.  Mr.  Mize 
is  not  a  citizen  of  the  Indian 
country,  but  long  ago  made 
his  home  in  the  Choctaw  Nation, 
where  he  intends  to  remain  in 
the  capacity  of  hotel  keeper,  for 
which  he  has  a  special  aptitude, 
rendering  himself  very  popular 
with  his  guests,  whose  wants  he 
is  ever  on  the  alert  to  supply. 
Those  visiting  South  McAIester 
will  always  find  him  at  his  place 
of  business  ready  to  entertain 
them  right  royally. 


EDMUND  A.  DOYLE. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  Michigan  in  1846,  at- 
tended public  school  until  four- 
teen, after  which  he  went  to  the 
state  normal,  where  he  graduated 
at  nineteen  years  of  age.  Re- 
maining at  home  until  1868,  Ed- 
mund joined  a  government  sur- 
veying party,  and  worked  in  that 
capacity  through  Kansas,  Texas, 
and  the  Indian  Territory.  In 
1871  the  subject  of  this  sketch 
began  teaching  school  in  Texas, 
and  in  1873  came  to  the  Choc- 
taw Nation  and  taught  there  for 
two  years.  After  re- visiting 
Texas  and  teaching  there  until 
1877,   Mr.  Doyle  came  to  McAl- 


-* 


* 


-* 


OF   THE   INDIAN  TERRITORY. 


73 


ester,  where  he  has  since  made 
his  home,  devoting  his  energies 
to  educating  the  youth  of  that 
town.  He  married  Miss  Sue 
Jennings,  daughter  of  G.  A. 
Jennings,  of  Illinois,  the  issue  of 
the  marriage  being  four  children, 
Monita,  Stella,  Czarina  and 
Esther.  Mr.  Doyle  is  one  of  the 
oldest  masons  in  the  country, 
having  held  the  office  of  grand 
master  of  the  Territory,  and  all 
the  subordinate  offices,  both  of 
the  Blue  lodge  and  the  Royal 
Arch  Chapter.  He  is  a  lead- 
ing; member  of  the  Presbyterian 
church,  and  is  highly  esteemed 
and  beloved  by  those  who  know 
him. 


WILLIAM  M.  SAWYERS. 

This  artist  and  pictorial  delinea- 
tor of  the  American  aborigines 
was  born  at  Knoxville,  Tenn., 
in  1862.  When  an  infant  he 
came  to  Texas  with  his  parents, 
and  spent  seventeen  years  of  his 
early  life  on  the  frontier  of  that 
state  and  the  Indian  Territory. 
After  several  winters  of  cowboy 
experience  he  came  to  Silver  City, 
Indian  Territory,  and  accepted 
a  position  in  the  mercantile 
establishment  of  E,  B.  Johnson 
&  Co.,  w^here  he  remained  four 
years,  after  which    he  embarked 


*- 


in  business  for  himself,  opening 
the  first  store  on  the  Gulf,  Col- 
orado and  Santa  Fe  R.  R.,  where 
the  city  of  Purcell  now  stands. 
But  none  of  his  past  life  has  the 
attraction  for  him  that  surrounds 
his  intercourse  with  the  various 
wild  tribes  of  the  plains,  whom 
he  visited  repeatedly  with  the 
view  of  collecting  a  pictorial 
gallery  of  Indian  celebrities. 
Mr.  Sawyers  has  so  far  succeeded 
that  he  has  decidedly  the  best, 
and  in  fact  the  only  collection  of 
life  portraits  of  the  aborigines. 
In  the  summer  of  1890, 
meeting  with  the  compiler  of 
''Leaders  and  Leading  Men  of 
the  Indian  Territory. "he  entered 
into  an  agreement  to  furnish  por- 
traits of  some  of  the  Big  Indians 
of  the  Wild  West,  which  he  ac- 
complished in  a  brief  space  of 
time.  The  result  of  this  work 
may  be  seen  in  the  cuts  taken 
from  the  portraits  of  ''Quanab 
Parker,"  ''Big  Tree,"  "Wild 
Horse,"  and  other  of  the  wild 
Indians  produced  elsewhere  in 
this  volume.  Mr.  Sawyers  will 
travel  in  the  states  next  winter, 
giving  stereoptican  exhibitions  of 
the  Indian  war  dances,  etc.  His 
views  are  very  realistic,  and  the 
exhibitions  are  bound  to  be  fa- 
vorably received  wherever  he 
may  go. 


-* 


LKADERS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


C.  A.  IIANXOCK. 
The  subject  uf  tliis  sketch  was 
borii  October  19,  1857,  and  is 
the  son  of  J.  S.  Hancock,  now 
residing-  in  Caddo,  Blue  county, 
Choctaw  Nation.  The  young 
man  commenced  his  educational 
career  at  Columbus,  Texas,  after 


*- 


C.    A.    HANCOCK. 

which  he  went  to  school  at  Bax- 
ter Springs,  finishing  his  educa- 
tion at  Chetopa,  Kansas.  Dis- 
playing a  strong  aptitude  for  mer- 
cantile pursuits,  while  yet  a  young 
man.  C.  A.  Hancock  entered 
the  business  house  of  Messrs. 
Marchand  and  Feulon,  and  soon 
made  such  progress  in  the  trade, 
and  gained    such  extensive  cus- 


tom, that  he  undertook  the  man- 
agement of  a  business  in  his  own 
name  in  1883.  In  1887,  on  the 
organization  of  the  Agricultural 
Wheel  in  the  Choctaw  Nation, 
Mr.  Hancock  was  appointed  sut- 
tler  and  has  ever  since  been  do- 
ing business  with  the  members  of 
the  organization,  giving  the  ut- 
most satisfaction  in  his  dealings 
with  the  citizens  and  farmers  of 
Blue  county.  In  January,  1890, 
he  married  Miss  Julia  Sims,  a 
popular  and  attractive  young 
lady  of  Caddo.  Mr.  J.  S.  Han- 
cock, father  of  the  subject  of 
this  sketch,  was  born  in  Kick- 
man  county,  Kentucky,  in  1832, 
and  is  now  residing  with  his  son, 
whom  he  assists  in  auditing  the 
accounts  of  the  establishment. 
Mr.  Hancock  keeps  a  general 
stock  of  merchandise  amounting 
to  twenty-eight  thousand  dollars. 


BENJAMIN  DILLARD. 

[CHICKASAW    AND    CHOCTAW.] 

Benjamin  was  born  at  Carleton, 
Mississippi,  in  1857,  being  the 
son  of  Hamp  Dillard  by  his 
wife,  Elizabeth  La  Flore.  At 
three  years  of  age  he  emigrated 
to  Doaksville  with  his  brothers, 
Hamp  and  George,  and  started 
to  school  at  Skullyville  at  thir- 
teen years.  On  the  third  day  of 
his  arrival,  however,  he    fought 


->i* 


ii«- 


Or   THE   liSTDIAN  TERRITORY.    . 


-* 


75 


with  the  teacher,  and  to  escape 
his  father's  anger  not  only  fled 
from  home,  but  from  the  neigh- 
borhood, taking  shelter  at  the 
residence  of  his  uncle,  Forbes 
La  Flore,  for  whom  he  worked 
for  some  years.  In  1878  he 
married  Nancy  Love,  niece  to 
Justice  Overton  Love,  In  1882 
he  composed  one  of  a  posse  of 
men  employed  by  Sam  Paul  to 
assist  in  guarding  -  a  prisoner 
named  John  Harkins,  who, while 
endeavoring  to  make  his  escape 
received  a  death  shot  at  the 
hands  of  Paul.  Paul  was  arrest- 
ed and  Ben  Dillard  fled  from  the 
locality,  and  spent  some  four 
years  on  the  scout,  after  which 
he  gave  himself  up  and  was  clear- 
ed. The  only  public  oflice  Mr. 
Dillard  ever  held  was  that  of  Na- 
tional jailor,  which  appointment 
he  tilled  during  the  second  Over- 
ton administration.  He  has  a 
farm  of  seventy-five  acres,  and 
is  an  enthusiastic  follower  of  the 
Paul  or  progressive  party. 


*- 


WILLIAM  C.  YORK. 

[  CHEROKEE.] 

William  was  born  in  Wayne 
county.  Mo.,  February,  1852. 
William  attended  the  neighbor- 
hood schools  until  1873,  and  in 
the  latter  end  of  that  year  went 
to    North   Texas,  where    he   en- 


gaged in  the  stock  business.  He 
remained  there  for  two  years, 
after  which  he  came  to  Boggy 
Depot,  Choctaw  Nation,  and 
commenced  farming.  In  1876 
he  married  Miss  Sarah  Ward,  a 
Cherokee,  and  daughter  of  Sam 
Ward,  of  Boggy  Depot,  and 
cousin  of  Hon.    H.  P.  Ward,  of 


WILLIaM  C.    YORK. 

Kiowa.  By  this  marriage  they 
had  six  children,  Maud,  Ella, 
Leslie  O.,  Mabel  Lee,  Willie, 
Pearl  and  Benjamin.  After  his 
marriage  he  engaged  in  the  stock 
business  and  farming,  and  is  now 
the  owner  of  a  nice  little  stock 
of  cattle,  horses  and  hogs,  be- 
sides one  hundred  and  fifty  acres 
of  land  under  cultivation.  He 
has   also  a  good  coal  claim. 


-* 


7<) 


LEADEUS    AND    LEADING   MEN' 


DR.  W.  F.  IIAYNKS. 

This  popular  physician  and  busi- 
ness man  was  born  in  Septem- 
ber, 1848,  at  Cambridge,  Salem 
county,  Missouri.  He  was  edu- 
cated at  Miami  University,  Ox- 
ford, Ohio,  and  became  a  grad- 
uate of    medicine    at  the  Belle- 


*- 


DR.  W.  F.  HATNES. 

ville  Medical  Hospital  College, 
New  York.  His  father,  W. 
Haynes,  was  an  architect  or 
builder,  and  at  that  time  resided 
in  Lafayette  county,  where  the 
young  man  commenced  his  ca- 
reer as  a  physician;  afterward 
moving  to  Bates  county,  and 
thence  to  Denison,  Texas,  in 
1874.  Practicing  in  the  "Gate 
City  "  for  two  years.  Dr.  Haynes 


directed  his  attention  to  the  In- 
dian Territory,  where  good  phys- 
icians were  in  great  demand,  and 
soon  settled  down  at  Stringtown, 
wdiere  he  opened  a  drug  store. 
Two  years  afterward  he  married 
Miss  Hattie  Garner,  daughter  of 
J.  D.  Garner,  a  merchant  of  that 
place.  In  twelve  months  he 
purchased  the  mercantile  firm  of 
A.  Thompson  &  Co.,  and  in  1885 
!  his  father-in-law's  interest  in  bus- 
;  in  ess.  In  1878  he  had  taken 
his  brother-in-law,  George  Gar- 
ner, into  partnership,  but  has  re- 
cently bought  him  out,  and  now 
runs  the  firm  in  his  own  name. 

During  the  years  1877,  '78 
'79  Dr.  Haynes  held  the  tie  con- 
tract for  the- M.,  K.  &T.  railroad; 
but  owing  to  a  pressure  of  busi- 
ness was  obliged  to  give  it  up. 
In  a  comparatively  short  time  he 
has  accumulated  a  very  consid- 
erable share  of  this  world's 
goods.  He  is  the  owner  of  half 
an  interest  in  the  Haynes  &  Gar- 
ner block,  in  Denison,  his  prop- 
erty in  that  city  being  valued  at 
thirty-five  thousand,  not  includ- 
ing bank  stock  and  investments. 
His  business  house  at  Stringtown 
carries  about  sixteen  thousand 
dollars'  worth  of  goods,  so  that 
he  is  in  a  fair  way  of  further  ac- 
cumulation. Few  men  are  bet- 
ter worthy   of    success,  for  Dr 


-* 


*- 


->B 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


Ilajnes  has  invested  his  own 
means  most  liberally  in  every 
public  enterprise  started  in  his 
vicinity.  The  Stringtown  school- 
house  was  built  by  him  solely, 
while  the  Presbyterian  church  in 
the  same  town  owes  its  existence 
mainly  to  liimself  and  his  father- 
in-law.  For  three  years  past  he 
has  been  an  elder  in  the  Cumber- 
land Presbyterian  church,  and 
superintendent  of  the  Sunday- 
school  for  thirteen  years. 

As  a  business  man.  Doctor 
Haynes  has  few  equals  in  the 
Choctaw  jN^ation,  his  energy  and 
force  of  character  being  remark- 
able. His  wife  is  a  charming 
young  woman,  whose  amiability 
has  rendered  her  beloved  by  all. 


JULIUS  HAAS. 
This  gentleman  was  born  at  Wey- 
erbach,  Rhenish  Prussia,  in  1836; 
went  to  college  eight  years,  and 
in  1853  came  to  New  York,  mov- 
ing to  California  two  years  after- 
ward. Here  Mr.  Haas  tried 
mining,  but  drifted  into  the  mer- 
cantile business,  remaining  in 
the  far  west  until  1860.  He 
next  came  to  Jeffersonville,  Tex., 
and  embarked  in  the  hide  trade, 
which  occupied  his  attention  for 
eight  or  nine  months  in  that 
town.  After  this  he  made  his 
lieadquarters  at    St.    Louis,    and 


traveled  through  the  state  buying 
hides  and  furs  until  1870.  The 
year  previous  he  married  Miss 
Fannie  Sandheimer.  His  next 
move  was  to  Baltimore,  Mary- 
land, where  he  remained  two 
years,  and  in  1875  came  to  the 
Indian   Territory,  settling  down 


*- 


JULIUS  HAAS. 

for  good  at  Atoka,  where  he  still 
carries  on  his  business  of  buying 
and  selling  hides.  By  his  wife 
he  has  four  children,  Hugo,  Al- 
exander, Carrie  and  Gustave. 
The  former  is  serving  his  time  in 
the  mercantile  business.  Mr. 
Haas  is  one  of  the  oldest  inhabi- 
tants of  Atoka,  a  man  of  sterling 
worth,  whose  friendship  is  valued 
by  all  who  enjoy  it. 


»i^ 


-^ 


LEADKHS    AND    LEADING    MES 


JOSEPH  J.  HODGES. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

Mr.  Hodges  was  born  in  1857 
at  AVheelock,  Towsen  county, 
and  went  to  school,  first  in  Bok- 
tuk-kalo  county,  and  later  re- 
ceived instructions  from  Prof. 
O.  C.  Hall  in  Atoka. 


*- 


JOSEPH  J.   HODGES. 

Joseph  went  to  work  early  in 
life,  associating  himself  with  his 
father  in  agriculture,  and  mar- 
ried at  twenty-two  years  of  age. 
He  was  wedded  to  Rose  La 
Flore,  daughter  of  Henry  La 
Flore,  of  Atoka  county,  by  which 
union  he  has  three  children.  In 
1886  he  was  elected    Sheriff  of 


Atoka  county,  which  office  he 
held  for  two  years.  In  1888  he 
was  appointed  by  Governor 
Smallwood  as  National  Weigher 
at  No.  5  Mine,  which  position  he 
holds  at  the  present  time. 

Joe  is  a  brother  of  John  M. 
and  D.  W.  Hodges,  two  among 
the  most  prominent  legislators  in 
the  Choctaw  Nation.  He  is  very 
popular  among  all  classes  of 
})eople,  both  Choctaws  and  U. 
S.  citizens. 

Although  weighing  little  over 
one  hundred  and  thirty  pounds, 
Mr.  Hodges  is  a  man  of  extra- 
ordinary strength  and  activity,  a 
blow  from  his  right  hand  being 
almost  equal  to  the  kick  of  a 
mule.  While  farming  some  years 
ago  he  entered  into  a  contest  of 
skill  with  a  laborer  merely  for 
pastime,  but  unfortunately  dealt 
him  a  blow  in  the  chest  which 
knocked  him  dead  instantly. 
This  accident  was  a  terrible  shock 
to  Ml'.  Hodges,  who  did  not 
know  his  own  strength  until  that 
tinjc. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  owns 
two  hundred  and  twenty  acres  of 
land,  ninety-five  of  which  is  un- 
der cultivation.  He  has  also  a 
small  herd  of  cattle  and  ponies 
and  a  comfortable  home  near 
Lehiffh. 


-^ 


Laura,  Kiowa. 


-^ 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


81 


D.  C.  BLOSSOM. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  Milwaukee,  Wisconsin, 
in  1850;  came  to  Indian  Terri- 
tory in  1869,  and  established  a 
line  of  freight  between  Topeka, 
Emporia,  Newton  and  Wichita, 
(Kan.),  to    Fort    Sill    and  other 


*- 


D.  C,   BLOSSOM. 

points.  In  1870  and  '71,  freight- 
er from  the  M.  K.  &  T.  Kailroad 
to  different  points  of  the  road. 
In  1879  Mr.  Blossom  purchased 
a  general  stock  of  goods  in 
Shawnetown,  in  conjunction 
with  S.  Clay,  and  ran  that  busi- 
ness until    1881,    when   he  sold 


out  and  moved  toPaola,  Kansas, 
finally  settling  at  Atoka,  Choc- 
taw Nation,  in  1882,  where  he 
purchased  half  interest  in  D.  N. 
Robb's  business  house,  the  firm 
being  known  by  the  name  of 
Robb  and  Blossom.  In  1887  he 
purchased  his  partner's  interest, 
and  is  now  doing  an  extensive 
business  with  a  stock  of  goods 
amounting  to  over  twenty  thou- 
sand dollars  of  general  merchan- 
dise. 

Mr.  Blossom  is  a  superior  busi- 
ness man  and  is  very  popular 
throughout  the  country.  He  is 
an  elder  in  the  Presbyterian 
church,  and  Superintendent  of 
their  Sunday  School.  He  was 
married  in  1879  to  Miss  Emma 
Charles,  second  daughter  of  Joel 
Charles,  late  of  Hesperia,  Kan- 
sas, and  now  of  Long  Branch, 
California. 

Mr.  Blossom  has  four  children, 
Charles,  Eugene,  Edith  and  Her- 
bert. The  Protective  and  De- 
tective Association  of  Texas  is 
under  the  management  of  Mr. 
Blossom  in  the  Indian  Territory. 
This  Association  is  for  the  pro- 
tection of  stock,  and  is  largely 
patronized  by  stock  owners. 

Mr.  Blossom  is  surrounded  by 
a  wide  circle  of  friends  and  ac- 
quaintances, and   is  very  highly 

esteemed. 

— . li 


*- 


LKADEIJS    AND    LEADING   MEN 


WILLIAM   II.  IIARRISSOX. 

I  CHOCTAW.] 

William  was  ])orn  September  in 
the  year  of  1851  in  Red  River 
county,  Indian  Territory,  the  son 
of  Zadock  Harrisson  of  the  Okla- 
falya  clan,  and  Elizabeth  Ellis, 
dauijhter  of  John  Ellis,  the  well- 


•I^- 


WILLIAM     H.    HAKKISON. 

known  interpreter  for  the  gov- 
ernment in  the  State  of  Missis- 
sippi. Ellis  was  a  white  man, 
and  died  in  the  old  state,  having 
returned  to  transact  some  busi- 
ness which  was  left  unfinished. 
William  went  to  school  in  1861, 
receiving  much  of  his  education 
in  Paris,  Texas,  at  the  school 
kept  by  Miss  Fannie  Poindexter. 


In  1877  he  removed  to  Atoka, 
and  was  there  appointed  to  the 
office  of  deputy  sheriflf,  and  later 
to  that  of  Indian  Police.  In 
1888  he  ran  for  sheriff  and  was 
elected  by  large  odds.  At  the 
termination  of  his  office  in  1890, 
William  Harrisson  competed  for 
a  seat  in  the  house  of  representa- 
tives against  J.  M.  Hodges,  Liffy 
Wright,  Allen  Batiste,  Colson 
Palmer,  Henry  Wilson  and  three 
others,  and  won  by  a  majority 
of  fifty  over  the  second  candidate, 
John  M.  Hodges. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  is  a 
man  of  much  popularity  among 
his  people,  and  could  have  been 
elected  to  higher  oflices  than  he 
has  held,  but  for  a  certain  lack 
of  self-confidence.  While  an  of- 
ficer of  the  law  he  proved  himself 
fearless  and  was  in  many  a  tough 
spot,  but  always  succeeded  in 
arresting  his  man  without  unnec- 
essary bloodshed.  In  1878  he 
married  Scerilda  McCaslin,  a 
young  lady  from  Missouri,  by 
whom  he  has  three  children,  Ida, 
Etta  and  Ada. 

Among  the  many  families  of 
note  and  standing  in  the  Choc- 
taw Nation,  that  of  Mr.  William 
H.  Harrisson  holds  a  prominent 
part,  and  will  undoubtedly  con- 
tinue to  do  so. 


-* 


OF   THE   INDIAN  TERRITORY. 


* 


83 


ALEXANDER  THOMPSON. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  Marion  county,  Illinois,  in 
1838.  He  lived  with  his  parents 
until  thirteen  years  of  age,  and 
after  their  death  came  to  Boggy 
Depot,  Choctaw  Nation,  in  1853. 


ALEXANDER  THOMPSON. 

In  1863  he  engaged  in  the  salt 
business  at  the  old  salt  works  at 
that  place,  which  he  continued 
for  three  years.  At  the  close  of 
the  war  Alexander  commenced 
farming  and  raising  stock,  and 
in  1872  or '73  opened  a  mercan- 
tile   and      lumber    business    at 


Stringtown,  which  he  sold  out 
seven  years  afterward  to  Dr. 
Haynes,  resuming  his  old  calling, 
that  of*  cattle  raising.  About 
1882  he  again  disposed  of  his  in- 
terest in  stock,  and  once  more 
engaged  in  merchandise,  this 
time  at  Kiowa,  and  in  partner- 
ship with  W.  B.  Manners,  whom 
he  bought  out  the  year  following, 
soon  afterward  disposing  of  his 
interest  to  F.  E.  Shaffer,  who 
now  controls  the  business.  Mr. 
Thompson  then  devoted  himself 
wholly  to  stock,  and  has  twelve 
hundred  head  of  cattle,  three 
hundred  head  of  horses  and  nine 
hundred  and  sixty  acres  of  farm 
land,  besides  a  part  interest  in 
the  South  Western  Improvement 
Coal  Co.  In  1863  he  married 
Martha  Watkins,  a  daughter  of 
Theodore  "Watkins,  of  Tennessee, 
a  half  Chickasaw,  of  the  Colbert 
House.  The  issue  of  this  mar- 
riage was  ten  children,  four  of 
whom  are  living:  Richard  Cobb, 
John  Henry,  Rob  Roy  and  Al- 
exander. Alexander  Thompson 
is  a  very  popular  citizen,  a  genial, 
hospitable  neighbor,  fond  of  out- 
door amusements,  and  although 
over  hfty  years  of  age,  is  hard  to 
beat  in  the  hunting  field,  beinga 
first  class  shot  with  a  rifle.  He 
is  an  old  member  of  the  Oklaho- 
ma masonic  lodge. 


-* 


*- 


84 


LEADKKS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


¥.  K.  SHAFFER. 
The  above-named  inerchant  and 
general  man  of  business  was 
born  in  Hamilton,  Butler  county, 
Ohio,  in  1S5S.  and  attended  pub- 
lic school  in  his  native  town  until 
1875.  when  he  went  to  clerking 
in  a  ffrocerv  store  for  two  vears. 


*- 


F.   E.    SHAFFER. 

During  this  time  he  had  acquired 
a  thorough  knowledge  of  tel- 
egraphy, so  that  when  he  emi- 
grated to  Stringtown,  Choctaw 
Nation,  in  1879,  he  was  enabled 
to  take  the  position  of  agent  and 
operator  on  the  M.  K.  &  T.  rail- 
road. In  1880  he  was  appointed 
postmaster,  and  for  six  years 
held  that  ])osition  in  conjunction 
with    the    railroad   asrencv.      In 


1886  he  came  to  Kiowa,  where 
he  purchased  the  business  inter- 
est of  Alex.  Thompson,  general 
merchant,  the  largest  mercantile 
house  in  that  portion  of  the  coun- 
try. In  June,  1881,  he  married 
Miss  Ada  Garner,  third  daughter 
of  J.  D.  Garner,  of  Stringtown. 
and  one  of  the  oldest  merchants 
of  the  Indian  Territory.  Mrs. 
Shafier  is  a  young  woman  of  great 
personal  attractions  and  possess- 
ing many  accomplishments.  The 
issue  of  this  njarriage  is  three 
children,  two  of  whom  are  living, 
James  Samuel  and  Frank  Alex- 
ander. The  subject  of  this  sketch 
carries  a  well-assorted  stock  of 
about  twelve  thousand  dollars, 
and  is  himself  a  business  man  of 
excellent  judgment,  full  of  ener- 
gy and  enterprise,  and  destined 
to  make  a  financial  success.  Mr. 
Shaffer  is  a  popular  man  where- 
ever  he  is  known. 


W.  G.  WILLIAMS. 
This  popular  stockman  and  horse 
breeder  was  born  in  1839  in  Clay 
county,  Kentucky,  and  came  to 
the  Indian  Territory  in  August, 
1860,  where  three  years  after- 
ward he  married  Annie  Eastman. 
He  then  made  his  home  in  Paul's 
Yalley  until  1872,  when  he 
moved  to  Silver  City,  and  thence 
in    1879  to  the  Caddo  Reserva- 


-* 


*- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


-* 


85 


tion,  twelve  miles  east  of  Ana- 
darko,  where  he  has  ever  since 
resided. 

Mr.  Williams  has  some  three 
thousand  head  of  cattle,  besides 
five  hundred  acres  of  land  under 
cultivation.    But  his   specialty  is 


*- 


W.    y.    WILLIAMS. 

horses,  of  which  he  can  boast 
seven  hundred  head  of  mixed 
grades,  from  the  Indian  pony  to 
the  thoroughbred  Kentuckian. 
His  stallions,  "George"  and 
"Kenton,"  are  widely  known. 
Since  racing  was  forbidden  by 
the  Indian  agents,  Mr.  Williams 
has  sold  a  number  of  his  trained 
stock,  among  them  the  celebrated 
"Tom     Thumb,"    a     half-mile 


horse    that  has  recently  become 
famous  in  New  York  State. 

Before  the  war  Mr.  Williams 
ranched  in  the  Wichita  Moun- 
tains for  several  years,  where  he 
had  many  thrilling  adventures  in 
the  chase  of  elk,  bear  and  buffalo. 


R.  D.  BURTON. 

[CHOCTAW  AND    CREEK.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  No- 
vember 10,  1847,  near  Browns- 
ville, Hinds  county,  Mississippi. 
He  enlisted  in  the  Confederate 
army  in  1862,  and  continued  in 
the  service  until  the  war  closed, 
in  1865,  when  he  returned  to  his 
home  and  engaged  in  farming 
until  he  emigrated  to  the  Indian 
Territory  in  1870.  Shortly  af- 
ter locating  in  Skullyville  coun- 
ty, Choctaw  Nation,  Robert  Bur- 
ton married  Miss  Mary  C.  Mc- 
Duffy,  a  citizen  of  that  Nation, 
and  in  the  fall  of  the  same  year 
moved  on  the  Canadian  River 
and  engaged  in  farming  until 
1873.  About  this  time  he  had 
the  misfortune  to  lose  his  wife, 
who  died  at  Boggy  Depot;  after 
which  he  changed  his  location  to 
South  Canadian,  where  he  em- 
barked in  the  mercantile  busi- 
ness. Some  time  afterward  Mr. 
Burton  married  a  Creek  lady, 
Eliza,  the  daughter  of  Rev.  John 


-* 


1 


-* 


86 


LKADKKS    AND    LEADING    MEN 


Smith,  a  Baptist  minister  and 
merchant,  who  until  18S6  liad 
been  railroad  agent  and  post- 
master in  his  town.  By  this 
union  they  had  six  children  — 
Robert  O.,  Nathaniel,  Samuel  L. , 
Lydia  B.,  Abbie  L.,  and  Minnie 
O.  Mr.  Burton  is  a  business 
man  of  great  energy  and  ability, 
and  is  very  popular  at  home  and 
abroad. 


*- 


JUDGE  GEORGE  M.  BOND. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  Howard  county,  Mary- 
land, in  18J:7,  and  attended  the 
public  school  until  sixteen  years 
of  age,  when  he  went  to  work 
for  himself.  In  1871  he  moved 
to  Boiling  Springs,  Choctaw  Na- 
tion, where  he  commenced  teach- 
ing school,  and  for  sixteen  years 
continued  in  that  capacity.  In 
1876  he  married  Miss  Narcissa 
McClure,  eldest  child  of  Isaac 
McClure,  Senator  of  Sans  Bois, 
and  afterw^ard  of  Blue  county, 
and  District  Trustee  of  Schools 
of  the  Third  District.  The  issue 
of  this  marriage  is  Edmond  Mc- 
Cnrtain,  Rose,  Wallace,  Rebecca, 
B.  Frank  and  Ida  Maud.  After 
this  marriage  Mr.  Bond  went  to 
farming  and  stock  raising,  and 
in  1888  was  elected  County 
Judge  for  Tobuxey  county,  which 


office  he  still  holds.  For  the 
past  twelve  months  he  has  been 
engaged  as  partner  in  the  mer- 
cantile firm  entitled  the  •»  Grady 
Trading  Company,"  witli  other 
branches  at  four  or  live  different 
points  on  the  railroad. 

Judge   Bond   is   the   owner  of 


.JUDGE  BOND. 

some  six  hundred  head  of  cattle 
and  has  two  hundred  acres  of 
land  under  good  cultivation.  He 
also  owns  an  interest  in  all  the 
mines  that  have  been  opened 
by  the  Choctaw  Coal  and  Rail- 
way Company. 

Tiie  Judge  is  very  popular,  be- 
ing kind  and  affable  in  manner 
and  w^ell  calculated  to  attain 
jironiinence  among  his  people. 


-^ 


*- 


* 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


87 


DR.  W.  M.  DUNN.SR. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  near  Tallahasse,  Florida, 
December  8,  1828,  his  father's 
name  being  Bryant  Dunn,  a 
Georgian  by  birth  and  education. 
Dr.  Dunn   was  educated  for  the 


*- 


DR.   W.  M.    DUNN,  SR. 

medical  profession  in  Augusta, 
Ga.,  and  commenced  practice  in 
1853.  Moving  to  Choctaw  coun- 
ty, Mississippi,  in  the  following 
year. 

In  1857  he  married  Miss  Selina 
Yates,  daughter  of  Allen  Yates, 
an  extensive  farmer.  When  the 
war  broke  out  he    joined   Bragg 


as  a  sergeant,but  after  two  years' 
campaign  his  health  gave  way 
and  he  received  his  discharge. 
After  practicing  medicine  for 
some  years  in  Meridian,  Missis- 
sippi,he  moved  to  Atoka  in  1876, 
and  with  his  family  settled  in 
their  present  home.  By  his  wife, 
who  is  of  the  Hyah-pah-tuk-kalo 
clan,  he  has  had  seven  children, 
live  of  whom  are  at  present  liv- 
ing. The  oldest  (now  dead)  was 
Mrs.  P.  H.  Little.  The  next 
in  order  was  Margaret,  who  died 
in  infancy.  Dr.  A.  E.  Dunn, 
of  Purcell,  Chickasaw  Nation; 
W.  M.  Dunn,  Jr., of  Atoka,  Mrs. 
J.  R.  Harris,  Neosho,  Missouri; 
Mrs.  O.  E.  White,  of  Atoka;  and 
Miss  Lena  Dunn,  of  Atoka,  are 
the  surviving  members  of  the 
family. 

In  1884  Dr.  Dunn  was  forced 
to  retire  from  his  arduous  prac- 
tice owing  to  an  attack  of  Bright's 
disease,  which  unfortunately  car- 
ried him  off  in  1886.  As  a  phy- 
sician he  stood  high,  while  his 
benevolence  to  the  poor  needing 
his  treatment  was  proverbial.  A 
more  zealous,  painstaking  pro- 
fessional man  could  hardly  have 
been  met  with.  His  death  was 
universally  regretted,  and  his 
loss  was  felt  by  many  in  Atoka 
and  the  surrounding  neighbor- 
hood. 


-* 


*- 


-* 


88 


LEADERS   AND    LEADING   JIEX 


•H- 


followiiig  we  proceeded  to  Fort 
Smith  and  fought  the  battle  of 
Mazzard  Prairie.  While  the 
Kansas  troops  under  General 
Blount  were  guarding  stock  we 
surrounded  them,  and  after  a 
brisk  fight  captured  part  of  the 
Ninth  and  Kansas  Sixth.  The 
loss  on  our  side  was  small,  that 
suffered  by  General  Gano,  of 
Dallas,  being  the  most  severe. 
A  Choctaw  preacher,  while  ex- 
horting the  soldiers  against  rob- 
bing the  dead,  fell  with  a  bullet 
in  the  brain.  After  this  battle, 
we  returned  to  winter  quarters, 
and  soon  afterward  disbanded." 

The  Second  Choctaw  Regi- 
ment was  under  command  of  the 
celebrated  Colonel  Sim  Folsom, 
who  is  still  living.  The  most 
noted  Captains  were  Green 
Thompson  and  Theodore  Wat- 
kins,  while  Lieutenants  Emerson 
Folsom  and  Hobart  Heald  are 
worthy  of  the  highest  praise  for 
their  undaunted  bravery  throug;h 
out.  Of  Captain  Green  Thomp- 
son, recently  deceased,  it  is  said 
that  he  would  leisurely  leap  from 
his  saddle  in  front  of  a  battery 
and  light  his  pipe. 

General  Cooper  said  of  the 
Choctaws,  '^They  are  not  only 
the  bravest  soldiers  on  earth,  but 
the  most  sleepless  and  vigilant 
of  guards."' 


CAPT.  CHARLES  LA  FLORE. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  gallant  Captain  of  the  In- 
dian Police  was  born  near 
DoaksvilJe,  Towsen  county,  Choc- 
taw Nation,  in  18L1,  being  the 
son  of  Forbes  La  Flore,  leading 
citizen  of  the    Nation.     Charlie 


CAPTAIN  CHARLES  LA  FLORE. 

was  educated  at  Armstrong  Acad- 
emy, Paris  and  Fort  Smith,  but 
his  schooling  at  the  latfer  place 
was  cut  short  by  the  breaking  out 
of  the  war.  While  a  young  man 
he  married  Mary  Angelina,  a  sis- 
ter of  ex-Governor  Guy,  and  a 
niece  of  the  late  ex  Governor 
Harris.  She,  like  the  other  fe- 
male members  of  her  family, 
was  beautiful  as  well   as   accom- 


-* 


*- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERKITORY. 


89 


9f 


*- 


plished.  After  marriage  Charlie 
took  a  contract  for  supplying 
meat  to  the  refugee  Cherokces, 
who  had  sought  shelter  in  the 
Choctaw  Nation  during  the  war. 
After  two  years  spent  in  this  man- 
ner, he  moved  to  Clear  Boggy 
Creek,  where  lie  built  a  toll 
bridge  and  grist  mill.  Five 
years  following  he  took  up  his 
residence  close  to  Lehigh,  where 
Gov.  Smallwood  now  resides, 
and  in  1867  located  at  Lime- 
stone Gap,his  present  picturesque 
home.  In  1882  he  became  a 
member  of  the  Indian  Police 
force,  and  soon  afterward  receiv- 
ed the  commission  of  deputy  U. 
S.  Marshal.  Four  years  later  he 
was  made  Captain  of  the  Indian 
Police,  and  strange  to  say  is  alive 
and  well  after  four  years'  service 
in  that  most  perilous  position, 
which  few  men  have  held  over  a 
couple  of  years  untildeath  depriv- 
ed them  of  their  badge.  Both  his 
predecessors  in  this  office  were 
killed  within  one  year  and  a  half. 
The  subject  af  this  sketch  first 
rendered  himself  prominent  by 
the  killing  of  the  notorious  black 
desperadoes,  Dick  Glass  and  Jim 
Johnson,  in  company  with  Cap- 
tain Sixkiller.  They  were  shot 
down  at  the  first  fire,  while  a 
third  of  their  number  tried  to 
escape    on    horseback,    but   was 


run  into  by  La  Flore  and  captured 
after  a  ride  of  six  miles.  When 
Captain  Sixkiller  was  shot  dead  in 
the  public  street  a  few  years  later 
by  JefFNicolson  and  Black  Hoyt, 
La  Flore  was  present  and  in 
company  with  Officer  Keys  re- 
turned the  fire  which  resulted  in 
Nicolson's  death.  The  subject 
of  this  sketch  is  a  man  of  cool 
courage  and  determination,  that 
nothing  will  deter  from  his  duty. 
He  has  served  under  Furlong  as 
assistant  special  agent  on  the  M. , 
K.  &  T.  R.  P.,  a'nd  is  now  act- 
ing in  the  same  capacity  for  Cap- 
tain Kinney.  Captain  La  Flore 
has  five  daughters  living,  but  un- 
fortunately lost  his  only  son, 
"William  Forbes.  His  daughters 
are:  Anne,  Estelle,  Chick  and 
Chock  (twins),  Daisy  and  Maud. 
These  young  ladies  have  been 
given  all  the  advantages  of  edu- 
cation that  money  could  procure. 
They  are  bright  and  pretty,  and 
develop  talent  for  art  and  music. 


ALLIXTOX  TELLE. 
Born  in  1859  ;  graduated  at  tlie 
Southwestern  Presbyterian  Uni- 
versity, Clarksville,  Tenn. ;  after 
which  he  took  a  literary  and  law 
course  in  Albany,  New  York. 
Allinton  is  the  second  and  only 
surviving  son  of  Ima-no-bubbi, 
of   Mississippi,   and    belongs  to 


-* 


-* 


90 


LEADERS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


the  Chin  Okla-fa-lay-a.  His 
mother  was  Kate  Wright,  sister 
of  ex-Governor  Wright,  of  Boggy 
Depot.  In  1881  Allinton  opened 
a  farm  and  became  interpreter  in 
the  United  States  Court;  after 
which   he  began  the  practice  of 


*- 


ALLINTON  TELLE, 

law,  which  he  continues  with 
great  success  till  the  present. 
In  1884  he  was  a  candidate  for 
District  Attorney,  but  was  de- 
feated by  a  small  majority.  In 
1886  he  was  appointed  National 
Secretary  to  fill  the  unexpired 
term  of  Hon,  Thompson  McKin- 
ney,  and  was  elected  to  the  same 
office  the  year  following  hy  a 
large  majority.  During  his  offi- 
cial term,  which  elapsed  in  1889, 


Secretary  Telle  acquitted  himself 
in  a  manner  which  reflects  credit 
on  his  ability  and  bespeaks  for 
him  a  bright  future.  Among 
the  interpreters  and  translators 
of  the  Choctaw  language  Mr. 
Telle  holds  the  first  rank.  He  is 
also  an  excellent  writer  in  the 
English  language,  and  has  few 
equals  as  a  classical  scholar. 
His  property  consists  of  1,200 
head  of  cattle  and  250  acres  in 
cultivation,  six  lots  in  the  town 
of  Atoka,  and  half  interest  in  a 
block  at  South  McAlester,  Al- 
linton Telle  is  looked  upon  as 
the  most  popular  young  man  in 
his  nation. 


JUDGE  GABRIEL  BURRIS. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

This  venerable  and  highly-es- 
teemed Choctaw  was  born  in 
Mississippi  in  1816,  and  was 
chiefly  educated  by  the  well- 
known  Congressman,  Dick  John- 
son. 

Gabriel  moved  with  his  par- 
ents to  the  Choctaw  Nation  dur- 
ing the  general  emigration,  and 
for  some  years  assisted  them  on 
the  farm.  At  the  age  of  twenty- 
one  he  married  Miss  Iny-a-tubbe, 
niece  of  Captains  Tom  and  Dick 
Hayes,  both  leading  Choctaws  of 
their  time.  The  issue  of  this 
marriage  was  six  children,  only 


-* 


*- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


91 


-* 


two  of  whom  survive,  Isaac  and 
Phoebe,  now  Mrs.  Calvin  Perry, 
of  Atoka. 

At  the  first  Council  ever  held 
by  the  Choctaws  in  their  present 
Nation  Gabriel  Burris  was  elect- 
ed Representative  of  his  county, 
which  position  he  maintained  for 


* 


JUDGE  BURKIS. 

two  sessions.  In  1849  he  was 
again  called  forth  to  represent 
his  people  at  the  Boggy  Depot 
Council.  In  1861  he  was  ap- 
pointed Supreme  Judge  of  the 
Third  Judiciary  of  the  Choctaw 
Nation,  which  office  he  held  with 
honor  for  seven  years.  The  last 
public  appointment  filled  by  him 
was  that  of  Senator  for  Toboxy 
(Coal)  county,  in  1882. 


Being  by  nature  a  man  of 
great  modesty,  he  invariably 
shunned  political  prominence, 
and  all  offices  of  public  trust,  in 
every  instance  being  forced  to 
serve  his  country  at  the  call  of 
his  people,  which  was  done  at  a 
great  sacrifice  to  his  own  retiring 
disposition.  As  Supreme  Judge 
his  verdicts  and  rulings  met  with 
the  highest  approval,  while  his 
amiable  character  rendered  him 
not  only  esteemed,  but  much  be- 
loved by  his  people,  as  well  as 
the  United  States  citizens  so- 
journing in  the  country. 

Judge  Burris  owns  a  farm  of 
one  hundred  and  fifty  acres  un- 
der cuUivation,  besides  a  small 
herd  of  cattle  and  hogs.  Within 
the  last  five  years  he  has  been 
afflicted  with  growing  cataracts 
on  both  eyes,  which  have  recent- 
ly rendered  him  almost  blind, 
but  being  now  ripe  for  operation, 
it  is  to  be  hoped  he  will  regain 
his  sight  before  the  dawn  of  an- 
other year. 

Esteemed  and  beloved  by  all 
who  know  him,  Judge  Burris  re 
sides  at  his  country  home,  some 
five  miles  from  Coalgate,  a  cele- 
brated mining  town  in  the  Choc- 
taw Nation.  Not  far  from  his 
house  is  a  rich  coal  bed,  from 
which  he  or  his  son  Isaac  will 
pr(^bably  derive  rich  returns 


-* 


*- 


->b 


92 


LEADKUS   AND    LEADING   ME\ 


CAPTAIN  J.S.STAXDLEY. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  ill  Carroll  county.  Missis- 
sippi, March,  1841,  and  attend- 
ed private  schools  until  1857, 
when  he  went  to  a  Kentucky  Mil- 
itary Institute.     In  18G0  he  left 


*- 


CAPTAIN  J.   S.    STANDLEY. 

the  Institute  and  commenced  the 
study  of  law,  which  he  continued 
until  the  outbreak  of  the  civil 
war.  Young  Standley  joined  the 
Eleventh  Mississippi  Infantry 
under  the  command  of  Colonel 
Moore,  being  elected  first  lieu- 
tenant of  the  company,  of  which 
lie  afterward  became  Captain. 
When  peace  was  restored,  Cap- 


tain Standley  returned  to  his 
home  and  commenced  the  prac- 
tice of  law.  In  1873  he  emi- 
grated to  South  Canadian,  In- 
dian Territory,  and  soon  estab- 
lished his  right  in  the  Choctaw 
Nation.  In  1880  he  was  ap- 
pointed National  agent,  which 
othce  he  held  for  two  years.  He 
was  again  appointed  in  18 82, and 
resigned  in  the  following  year. 
In  1888  he  was  once  more  called 
upon  to  fill  the  same  office,  but 
was  forced  to  resign  before  the 
expiration  of  his  term  owing  to 
an  important  mission  to  Wash- 
ington, undertaken  by  him  in 
company  with  the  Chickasaw 
delegates,  with  the  object  of  ne- 
gotiating for  the  sale  of  the  west- 
ern lands.  Captain  Standley  was 
eminently  successful  in  this  un- 
dertaking, as  he  also  was  four 
years  previous  (in  1881),  in  se- 
curing the  adoption  of  the  freed- 
men,  and  the  approval  of  the 
United  States  authorities  on  his 
action.  Captain  Standley  mar- 
ried Miss  Alice  Posey,  daughter 
of  Humphrey  Marshall  Posey,  of 
Claiborn  county,  Mississippi,  in 
June,  1863.  The  issue  of  this 
marriage  was  ten  children,  five 
of  whom  are  living:  Norma, 
James  S.,  Eva,  Claude  and 
Leon  a.  After  his  wife's  death 
he  married  Mrs.  L.  C.  Harrisson, 


* 


>B- 


OF   THE   INDIAN  TEKHITORY. 


93 


daughter  of  Thos.  W.  Edwards, 
of  Leesburgh,  Ya.,  a  prominent 
lawyer  and  member  of  the  legis- 
hiture.  The  subject  of  this  sketch 
is  owner  of  some  five  hundred 
acres  of  land  under  cultivation, 
and  six  coal  claims,  three  of 
which  are  being  at  present  de- 
veloped. He  is  also  part  editor 
and  proprietor  of  the  Indian  Cit- 
izen, published  at  Atoka,  Choc- 
taw Nation.  Captain  Standley 
has  a  large  law  practice  in  the 
Choctaw  as  well  as  the  United 
States  courts.  He  is  an  elder  in 
the  Christian  church,  of  which 
he  has  been  a  member  for  twen- 
ty-five years,  and  is  much  resjDCct- 
ed  at  home  and  abroad. 


JAMES  W.  GARDNER. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  in  Blue 
county,  Choctaw  Nation,  in 
18i9.  Owing  to  the  death  of 
his  father  while  James  was  quite 
a  child,  the  youth  never  received 
the  benefit  of  a  school  education, 
being  obliged  to  remain  at  home 
and  look  after  the  wants  of  his 
widowed  mother.  In  1870  he 
married  Wm.  Lawson's  widow, 
whose  maiden  name  was  Emily 
Corn  well,  daughter  ot  William 
Cornwell,  of  Morgan  county, 
Kentucky.    Mrs.  Gardner's  moth- 


er was   an   Alexander,  a   Chero- 
kee by  blood. 

Mr.  Gardner  has  a  farm  of 
four  hundred  acres  close  to 
Wynne  Wood,  besides  some  thir- 
teen hundred  head  of  cattle.  He 
is  also  the  owner  of  nearly  one- 
half   the   town    site    of    Wynne 


J.  W.   GARDNER. 

Wood  and  some  five  or  six  resi- 
dences. 

Though  deprived  of  a  school 
education,  William  Gardner  is  a 
smart  and  successful  man  of  bus- 
iness, while  his  wife  is  a  woman 
of  excellent  sense  and  piety. 
They  have  four  children — Zacha- 
riah,  Benjamin,  Emiline  and 
James  Dolphus,  the  oldest  being 
seventeen  and  the  youngest  seven 


-* 


*- 


-* 


94 


LEADEKS    AND   LEADING   3IEN 


CAMPBELL  FRAZIER. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  in  Tow- 
sen  county,  September  15.  1839, 
and  attended  the  neighborhood 
school  from  1849  to  1852;  after 
which  he  was  placed  at  Spencer 
Academy  for  six  years. 

When    the   war  broke  out  in 


*- 


1860  Campbell  joined  the  Con- 
federate array,  and  continued  in 
the  service  until  the  close,  dur- 
ing which  time  he  served  as  or- 
derly sergeant  and  captain  of 
militia.  After  the  war  he  was 
appointed  county  clerk  of  Cedar 
county,  and  in  1868  was  elected 
clerk  of  the  lower  house.  In 
1872   he  was  appointed  district 


clerk,  which  office  he  held  until 
1880,  when  he  resigned  and 
moved  to  Sugar  Loaf  county, 
where  he  was  appointed  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Choctaw  light  horse. 
In  1881  he  was  appointed  circuit 
judge  of  the  Apuckshannubbee 
district,  and  in  1883  became  rep- 
resentative of  Cedar  county.  In 
1885  he  was  elected  clerk  of  the 
house  of  representatives,  and 
filled  the  same  office  in  1888. 
In  1890  he  was  elected  district 
attorney,  which  office  he  holds 
at  present.  In  1860  he  married 
Eliza  Hayes,  grand  daughter  of 
Tom  Hayes,  of  Cedar  county, 
who  died  two  years  afterward. 
In  1865  he  was  united  to  his  de- 
ceased wife's  cousin,  Mrs.  Eliz- 
abeth Hayes.  By  this  union  he 
has  one  surviving  son,  named 
Frank.  On  the  death  of  his  sec- 
ond wife  he  married  Miss  Sallie 
Williams  in  1872. 

Campbell  Frazier  is  the  young- 
est son  of  Han  is  Frazier,  who 
died  in  1844,  and  was  a  well 
known  man  in  his  day. 

The  subject  of  our  sketch  has 
forty-eight  acres  under  cultiva- 
tion, a  small  herd  of  cattle,  one 
hundred  and  fifty  head  of  hogs, 
and  three  undeveloped  coal 
claims.  He  is  a  man  of  good 
education  and  sound  sense,  and 
is  also  an  able  lawyer. 


-* 


Quanah  Parker. 


^- 


OF    llIE    INDIAX    TKKKITOUY. 


97 


-* 


B.  F.  RODGERS. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  in  1852. 
His  father,  William  Rodgers, 
moved  to  the  Cherokee  Nation 
about  that  time  and  devoted  him- 
self to  agriculture.  At  an  early 
age  he  was  sent   to   a   neishbor- 


B.  F.  RODGERS. 

hood  school  till  1862,  when  he 
moved  with  his  father  to  Jacks 
Fork  county,  Choctaw  Nation. 

At  the  age  of  twenty-one  years 
young  Rodgers  married  Mrs.  M. 
M.  Flint,  widow  of  J.  C.  Flint. 
Her  maiden  name  was  Passons, 
her  mother  being  Sophia  Krebs, 
the  daughter  of   a  distinguished 


Choctaw  family.  By  this  union 
B.  F.  Rodgers  has  three  children 
— William  Franklin,  Mary  Isa- 
belle  and  Isaac  La  Fayette.  He 
has  also  a  step-daughter,  Sophia 
A.  Flint. 

Mr.  Rodgers  has  identified 
himself  with  this  country  for  a 
great  number  of  years,  and  in 
such  a  favorable  light  that  he  is 
liked  and  respected  by  all  good 
men.  He  is  a  prominent  mem- 
ber of  the  Baptist  church,  having 
held  the  office  of  deacon  since 
1885  and  local  trustee  of  the 
Baptist  Academy  for  two  years. 
He  has  a  good  farm  of  three 
hundred  and  fifty  acres,  with 
some  eighty  acres  under  culti- 
vation. Also  one  hundred  head 
of  cattle  and  twenty  horses.  His 
residence,  within  two  and  a  half 
miles  of  Atoka,  situated  mid- 
ways on  the  Bald  Knob,  is  one 
of  the  most  picturesque  spots  in 
the  county,  while  the  valley  be- 
low is  fertile  and  well  watered. 
Mr.  Rodgers'  father  was  a  sur- 
veyor and  mechanic,  a  man  of 
excellent  business  ability  and 
well  educated.  He  died  in  1877 
near  Atoka. 

The  death  of  Mr.  Rodgers  was 
very  deeply  lamented  by  his  re- 
lations and  his  numerous  admir- 
ers. 


*- 


■* 


98 


LEADKKS   AND    LEADING   MEN 


CYRUS  H.  KINGSBURY. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  Kiamichi  county,  Choc- 
taw Nation,  in  May,  1859,  he 
being  the  second  and  only  sur- 
viving son  of  J.  P.  Kingsbury 
and  grandson  of  Kev.  C.  Kings- 
bury and  Kev.  E.  Hotchkiss. 
These  eminent  missionaries  were 
the  first  who  sowed  the  seeds  of 
Christianity  among  the  Choc- 
taws,  emigrating  with  them  from 
the  State  of  Mississippi. 

Through  the  adoption  of  his 
grandfather  Kingsbury,  the  sub- 
ject of  this  sketch  has  always 
been  looked  upon  as  entitled  to 
the  rights  and  privileges  of  a 
Choctaw  citizen.  He  was  edu- 
cated at  Westminster  College, 
Fulton,  Missouri,  and  in  1871 
engaged  in  the  stock  business, 
holding  his  cattle  with  those  of 
his  sister  Lucy,  now  Mrs.  Little- 
page,  within  a  short  distance  of 
Atoka.  Being  struck,  however, 
by  the  Oklahoma  fever  in  1889, 
he  incautiously  moved  his  herd 
to  the  promised  land,  where  he 
was  unfortunate  enough  to  lose 
all  but  three  hundred  head  of 
improved  cattle,  which  will  throw 
him  back  many  years.  He  has, 
however,  a  good  farm  of  one 
hundred    and   forty  acres  under 


cultivation  and  a  pasture  one 
mile  square,  besides  eighty  head 
of  stock  horses. 

There  is  no  young  man  in  the 
Choctaw  Nation  more  honorable 
or  more  gentlemanly  in  his  daily 
acts  and  business  than  Cyrus 
Kingsbury.  He  has  a  multitude 
of  friends,  but  not  an  enemy. 


ALFRED  TOOLE. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

Mk.  Toole  was  born  in  Febru- 
ary, 1818,  in  Wayne  county,  Mis- 
sissippi, and  commenced  busi- 
ness at  Marion,  Mississippi,  at 
the  age  of  twenty-three,  continu- 
ing in  the  mercantile  trade  for 
eight  years,  during  which  time 
he  was  continually  brought  into 
contact  with  the  Choctaw  people 
of  the  old  State.  His  next  move 
was  to  Choctaw  county,  Ala- 
bama, where  he  also  engaged  in 
farming  as  well  as  merchandise. 
Here  he  married  Miss  Belinda 
Y^ates,  of  the  celebrated  Kale 
family  of  the  Choctaw  Nation, 
then  residing  in  Alabama.  At 
that  time  this  young  lady  was  a 
student  of  the  Amiens  Mission, 
of  Mississippi,  an  institution  es- 
tablished for  the  education  of 
Indian  girls. 

Mrs.  Toole  is  of  the  Okla-fal- 


^- 


*- 


OF  THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


99 


-* 


ya  clan,  and  was  born  in  Febru- 
ary, 1822. 

In  1853  Mr.  Toole  opened  a 
boot  and  shoe  business  in  con- 
nection with  his  tannery,  which 
was  located  on  the  Toinbigbee 
River,  Choctaw  county,  Ala- 
bama. About  seventeen  years 
afterward  he  left  the  State  for 
Arkansas,  and  in  1878  moved  to 
South  Canadian,  in  the  Choctaw 
Nation,  Indian  Territory,  where 
he  now  resides.  He  has  been 
engaged  since  then  in  the  mer- 
cantile business,  farming  and 
stock-raising,  the  latter  now  call- 
ing for  his  especial  attention. 

The  subject  of  our  sketch  has 
been  a  Mason  for  forty-five 
years,  during  which  time  he  has 
filled  all  the  oflices,  being  now  a 
member  of  South  Canadian 
Lodge,  No.  22,  Choctaw  Nation. 

Mr.  Toole  has  seven  children, 
two  boys  and  five  girls — John 
O.,  Joseph  Y.,  Mary,  Octavio, 
Viola,  Orilla  and  Inez. 


* 


JAMES  W.  STEWART. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  York,  York  county, 
Pennsylvania,  forty  years  ago,  of 
what  are  considered  respectable 
parentage.  His  father  was  a 
man  of  considerable  intelligence, 
having   been    a    surveyor,  scriv- 


ener, and  for  a  number  of  years 
clerk  of  the  circuit  court  of  York 
county.  Pa.  James  began  his 
education  at  the  York  County 
Academy  and  finished  it  at  La- 
fayette College,  Easton,  Pa.; 
after  which  he  studied  law  for 
three  years  in  Chicago,  111.,  and 
was  then  admitted  to  the  bar; 
but  the  first  thing  at  which  he 
made  any  money  of  any  account 
was  teaching  school,  and  it 
seemed  the  surest  and  most  sys- 
tematic way  for  obtaining  that 
great  desideratum,  so  Mr.  Stew- 
art naturally  drifted  to  school 
teaching  as  a  profession.  He 
taught  school  in  six  States,  be- 
sides having  taught  ten  years  for 
the  Choctaws  and  Chickasaws  in 
the  Indian  Territory.  He  held 
the  position  of  County  Clerk  in 
Sobucksy  county,  Choctaw  Na- 
tion, and  at  present  is  filling  the 
position  of  National  Weigher  at 
Alderson,  Sobucksy  county,  in 
the  same  Nation. 

About  ten  years  ago  Mr.  Stew- 
art married  the  daughter  of  Mr. 
Wiley  Stewart,  of  Caddo,  Choc- 
taw Nation,  while  teaching  a 
National  school  at  that  place. 
His  wife's  name  before  marriage 
was  Esther  Stewart,  who  says 
that  marrying  didn't  change  her 
name,  and  that  she  is  glad 
of  it. 


-* 


1(H) 


1>EADEUS   AND   LEADING    MEX 


CAPT.  WALKKR  MARTIN. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  1825,  the  son  of  John 
H.  Martin,  of  Jefferson  county, 
Kentucky.  Coming  first  to  Wis- 
consin he  emigrated  in  1850  to 
California,  where  with  a  train  of 


4 

^ 

1 

.^  ^^;  - 

! 

■1 

.  '}% •  ijmg^^l^^.] 

*- 


CAPTAIN  WALKEK  MARTIN. 

two  hundred  wagons  he  crossed 
the  phiins.  After  a  sojourn  of 
three  years  he  returned  by  New 
York,  via  tlie  Isthmus  of  Pana- 
ma, arriving  in  1853  back  to  his 
native  place.  Growing  discon- 
tented with  home  he  soon  put 
out  for  the  Choctaw  Nation,  and 
establishing  himself  five  miles 
north      of     Atoka,     opened      a 


store  which  he  controlled  for 
two  years.  In  1855  Mr.  Martin 
traveled  over  the  state  of  Texas 
with  some  Kentucky  horses  and 
raked  in  many  a  goodly  pile  of 
"filthy  lucre.'' 

In  1861  he  joined  General 
Pierce's  army,  in  Yan  Buren's 
Frontier  Guards;  was  at  the  bat- 
tles of  Wilson  Creek  and  Pea 
Ridge.  Later  on  he  raised  a 
company  with  Jonathan  Nail, 
the  latter  being  Captain  and  Mr. 
Martin  first  lieutenant,  attaching 
themselves  to  the  Chickasaw  Ba- 
tallion,  under  Col.  Lem  Pey- 
nolds.  After  a  while  Jonath^in 
was  appointed  major,  while  the 
subject  of  this  sketch  became 
Captain  of  the  company.  Just 
after  the  surrender  in  1865,  Ma- 
jor Phillips,  with  two  thousand 
two  hundred  Federal  Cavalry 
from  Fort  Gibson,  came  as  far  as 
Stonewall,  where  he  was  attack- 
ed by  Chief  Jumper,  Captains 
Booker  James  and  Walker  Mar- 
tin, their  united  bands  not  ex- 
ceeding one  hundred  and  fifty 
men.  It  was  a  bold  attack,  the 
little  bunch  of  Indian  soldiers 
being  obliged  to  retreat  with  the 
loss  of  twenty-nine  men.  In 
1855  Mr.  Martin  married  Ade- 
laine  Folsom,  niece  of  old  Chief 
George  Harkins,  by  whom  he 
had  two  chihlren,  both  of  whom 


-* 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERIilTOKY. 


101 


* 


died.  After  the  death  of  his 
first  wife  he  married  Elizabeth, 
daughter  of  Lieutenant  Groves, 
of  Fort  Towsen,  bj  whom  he  has 
one  son  named  Zeno,  aged  twen- 
ty-one years.  After  farming 
some  years  in  Pickins  county, 
Mr.  Martin  settled  near  Atoka  in 
1884,  where  he  now  resides. 


*- 


JOHN  T.  HOWELL. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  at  Plymouth,  Tom  Bigby 
River, Mississippi,  in  1838,  being 
a  descendant  of  the  town  or  clan 
Hyah-pa-tuk-kola.  In  1840  he 
was  brought  to  Eagle  Town,  Choc- 
taw Nation,  and  educated  at 
Spenser  Academy,  his  education 
being  completed  at  Daingerfield, 
Titus  county,  Texas.  He  mar- 
ried, in  1872,  Jane  Colbert, 
daughter  of  Joe  Colbert,  cousin 
of  the  present  Frank  Colbert,  of 
Colbert  Station.  Mr.  Howell 
came  to  Washita  in  1865,  and 
spent  several  years  buffalo  hunt- 
ing, but  in  1866  the  Comanches 
and  Kiowas  became  troublesome 
and  robbed  him  of  fifty  head  of 
horses,  a  few  years  afterward 
carrying  ofi"  thirty-eight.  On 
these  occasions  the  young  man, 
with  some  of  his  neighbors,  pur- 


sued the  plain  Indians,  and  many 
fights  ensued,  but  he  has  never 
yet  been  able  to  recover  his 
stolen  stock,  or  indemnification 
for  the  same.  Mr.  Howell  erected 
the  first  gin  and  grist  mill  on  the 
Washita,  and  has  recently  built 
a    second    gin,    so  that  he  gins 


JOHN  T.  HOWELL. 

three  thousand  bales  per  year. 
His  farm,  which  comprises  nine 
hundred  acres  of  first  class  land, 
nearly  always  turns  out  one  bale 
of  cotton  to  the  acre.  He  pays* 
permits  for  twenty-five  renters. 
About  one  year  ago  he  disposed 
of  his  cattle,  and  now  keeps  not 
over  five  hundred  head.  He  has 
three  children:  Albert,  aged  sev- 
enteen years;  May  and  Brunette. 


-* 


*- 


-* 


102 


l.EADEllS   AND   LEADING   MEN 


J.  W.  VAIL. 

[CHOCTAW,] 

This  gentleman  was  born  in 
Jackson  county,  Alabama,  in 
1837,  being  the  son  of  D.  W. 
Vail,  a  leading  professor  of  lit- 
erature and  languages,  who  spent 
his  life  teaching.    His  son  James' 


J.   W.    VAIL. 

education,  however,  was  con- 
fined to  public  schools,  after 
which,  in  1866,  he  commenced 
farming  in  the  eastern  part  of 
Arkansas.  In  1869  he  moved  to 
the  Choctaw  Nation  and  engaged 
in  the  mercantile  business  with 
Jack  McCurtain,  afterward  prin- 
cipal Chief  of  the  Nation,  and 
the  greatest  among  the  Choctaw 
administrators. 


After  twelve  months  Mr.  Vail 
went  into  business  on  his  own 
responsibility  close  to  Tuskaho- 
ma,  the  capital,  and  there  re- 
mained for  four  years,  closing 
out  in  1875.  From  thence  he 
moved  to  Atoka  county  and  com- 
menced stock  raising,  and  im- 
proving a  large  place  now  owned 
by  J.  D.  Davis. 

J.  W.  Vail  married  Miss 
Frances  Folsom  in  1871.  This 
lady  is  the  daughter  of  Colman 
Folsom,  of  some  prominence 
in  his  conntry.  By  his  wife  he 
has  six  children  living:  Mattie 
A.,  James T.,  Willie  A.,  Charles 
E.,  Maud  K  and  Junia.  Mr. 
Vail  is  a  highly  respected  mem- 
ber of  the  Baptist  church;  a  man 
of  great  industry  and  persever- 
ance, who  by  his  energy  has 
made  himself  a  competence  that 
in  a  few  years  will  render  him 
independent. 

His  fifteen-acre  orchard  con- 
tains the  finest  quality  of  fruit  in 
the  Nation.  His  farm  is  under 
first  class  cultivation,  as  are  also 
his  stock,  sixty  head  of  which  are 
graded.  Mr,  VaiFs  home  is 
beautifully  situated  within  one 
mile  of  Atoka. 

Mr.  Vail  is  a  very  industrious 
man,  and  is  well  and  favorably 
known  throughout  the  Nation. 


*- 


-* 


p 


AtoKa  Academy,  Choctaw  Nation. 


*- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERUITORY. 


105 


-* 


WM.  A.  CLARK,  M.D. 
The  subject  of  this  sketch  is  the 
son  of  Rev.  Moses  Clark,  of 
Caddo,  Choctaw  Nation,  who 
previous  to  his  removal  to  this 
country  resided  in  Gilmer,  Geor- 
gia, where  William  Ashbury  was 
born.     The  young  man  was  ed- 


WM.  ASHBURY  CLARK,  M.  D. 

ucated  at  Stanford,  Kentucky, 
and  afterward  taught  school  in 
Lincoln  county  for  two  years. 
In  1873  he  commenced  reading 
medicine  in  Duncan  county, 
Missouri,  and  after  finishing  his 
studies  moved  to  the  neighbor- 
hood of  Armstrong  Academy, 
Choctaw  Nation,  1878,  where  he 
resided  till  the  fall  of  1881, 
when  he  moved  to  Durant,  in  the 


same  Nation.  After  a  few  years' 
practice  at  that  point  Dr.  Clark 
returned  to  the  Academy,  where 
he  remained  till  1885,  finally 
settling  down  to  his  professional 
career  in  Dnrant,  where  he  now 
resides.  In  1879  he  married 
Selina  Mowdy,  daughter  of  Jas. 
Mowdy,  of  Nashoba  county, 
Mississippi,  by  whom  he  had  four 
children,  two  of  whom  are  living 
— Nancy  Leither,  eight  years 
old,  and  Asberry  Bates,  five 
years. 

Dr.  Clark  is  the  oldest  prac- 
ticing physician  in  Blue  county, 
and  speaks  highly  of  the  treat- 
ment which  he  has  received  at 
the  hands  of  the  Choctaw  peo- 
ple, whom  he  has  found  scrupu- 
lously honest  in  their  dealings. 

Dr.  Clark,  in  company  with 
Dr.  Starks,  was  present  at  the 
hanging  of  Silas  Peters  in  1881 
(the  only  Choctaw  ever  hung  in 
his  own  country),  the  crime  be- 
ing horse  theft  on  second  convic- 
tion. This  is  the  only  ofiense 
punishable  by  the  gallows,  and 
is  looked  upon  as  a  more  de- 
grading crime  than  murder  in  the 
first  degree. 

Dr.  Clark  has  opened  a  large 
lumber  business  in  Durant,  where 
he  is  to  be  found  when  not  ac- 
tively engaged  in  his  professional 
duties. 


-* 


106 


LKADERS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


NAPOLEON  B.  AINSWORTH. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

This  leading  citizen  was  born  in 
1S56  at  Skullyville  in  the  Choc- 
taw Nation,  and  attended  neigh- 
borhood school  until  he  was  fif- 
teen years  of  age,  when  he  en- 
tered Roanoke  College,   Salem, 


NAPOLEON  B.    AINSWORTH. 

Virginia,  and  graduated  after 
four  years,  in  June,  1880,  secur- 
ing in  the  same  year  the  orator's 
medal.  He  went  from  there  to 
the  University  of  Virginia,  and 
attended  the  law  school  for  six 
months,  and  returning  home 
that  season,  was  appointed  drafts- 
man for  the  Council  by  Governor 
Jack  McCurtain.     At  the  termin- 


ation of  the  council  he  was  ap- 
pointed National  weigher  at  Mc- 
Alester,  which  office  he  resigned 
after  three  years  in  order  to  de- 
vote more  time  to  his  law  prac- 
tice. On  the  death  of  National 
Auditor  La  Flore,  N.  B.  Ains- 
worth  was  appointed  to  fill  his 
unexpired  term.  In  1887  he  was 
elected  to  fill  the  same  office, 
which  he  held  for  two  years. 

Mr.  Ainsworth  is  a  member 
of  the  bar  in  the  United  States 
Courts  of  the  Indian  Territory. 
He  has  gained  a  wide  reputation 
both  at  home  and  abroad  as  an 
able  and  fluent  advocate.  N. 
B.  Ainsworth,  with  one  or  two 
exceptions  (and  one  of  these  in 
his  own  brother)  is  considered 
the  most  thoroughly  educated 
man  in  the  Choctaw  Nation,  his 
knowledge  being  varied  and  very 
thorough  in  many  important 
branches  of  learning.  Mr.  Ains- 
worth married  Miss  Emily  K. 
Thompson  in  Roanoke,  Vir- 
ginia, in  1883,  the  issue  of  this 
marriage  being  three  children: 
Ben,  Pushmataha,  Helena  and 
Agnes.  He  is  owner  of  a  large 
farm  of  four  hundred  acres,  and 
owns  a  third  interest  in  the  7X 
ranch  with  Green  and  Edmond 
McCurtain,  also  half  interest  in 
the  X —  ranch  with  John  Simp- 
son, also  an  interest  in  the  mines 


*- 


-* 


*- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITOKY. 


107 


operated  by  the  Osage  Mining 
Company.  The  subject  of  this 
sketch  is  a  third  son  of  J.  G. 
Ainsworth,  deceased,  a  man 
highly  respected  during  his  life 
time,  who,  however,  was  not  a 
politician,  devoting  himself  to 
farming  and  stock  raising  at  his 
home  in  SkuUyville,  Choctaw 
Nation. 


REV.  CALVIN  ROBINSON. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  December,  1827,  and  is 
the  son  of  Amzi  Robinson,  of 
North  Carolina,  and  Emily  Fol- 
som,  of  the  Hyah-pah-tuk-kalo 
clan.  He  was  the  first  infant 
ever  baptized  in  the  Christian 
religion  in  the  Territory,  and  that 
at  the  hands  of  old  Silas  Kings- 
bury, the  Presbyterian  Mission- 
ary. Calvin  first  came  to  the 
Choctaw  Nation  in  1831,  his 
mother  dying  at  Mountain  Fork 
three  days  previous  to  Nathaniel 
Folsom,  both  of  whom  were 
buried  in  the  same  spot. 

Mr.  Robinson  was  married  in 
June,  1848,  to  Sophia  James,  by 
whom  he  had  ten  children,  all  of 
whom  died  except  McKee,  F. 
and  Corina.  After  the  death  of 
his  first  wife  he  married  in  1880 


Mary  Patterson,  a  Texas  lady,  by 
whom  he  has  a  son  by  the  name 
of  Christo  Chrisman. 

Calvin  was  ordained  in  the 
Cumberland  Presbyterian  church 
in  1876,  after  having  held  the 
ofiices    of    Ranger    and   Deputy 


*- 


CALVIN  ROBINSON. 

Sheriff'  for  two  years.  His  cler- 
ical appointments  are  at  present 
at  Tulla-hi-kia  and  Hash-ok-wa, 
for  which  duties  he  receives  the 
moderate  stipend  of  three  hun- 
dred dollars  per  annum. 

Rev.  Robinson  is  a  thorough 
Christian,  kind,  hospitable  and 
tolerant,  and  looks  young  and 
cheerful  at  sixty-three  years. 


Ids 


LEADKKS   AND    LEADING   MEN 


T.  D.  BKLL. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

In  1868,  at  the  aire  of  ten  years, 
vt)nnff  Bell  moved  from  the  state 
of  Missouri  to  Texas  with  his  fath- 
er and  mother.  In  the  old  state 
he  had  had  a  few  years'  instruc- 
tion in  the  public  school,  but  re- 


T.   D.  BELL. 

ceived  little  education  in  Texas, 
for  he  left  his  home  at  fourteen 
years  and  came  to  Blue  county, 
in  the  Choctaw  Nation,  where 
he  went  to  work  in  various  capa- 
cities with  the  confidence  of  a 
middle-aged  man.  We  find  him 
railroading  at  sixteen  close  to 
Kiowa,  wiiere  he  now  resides. 


•!•- 


In  1881  he  M'as  o-iven  char«:e 
of  Lehigh  engine  Xo,  3,  and  the 
following  year  went  to  Kansas, 
returning  in  January,  1883. 
Soon  afterward  he  married  the 
eldest  daughter  of  the  late  Joseph 
Ward,  of  Limestone  Gap,  and 
widow  of  Walton  Kelly.  Mrs. 
Bell  is  a  sister  of  Hon.  Henry 
Ward,  county  judge  of  Atoka 
county,  and  is  a  descendant  from 
one  of  the  most  ancient  families 
in  the  Choctaw  Kation.  The 
issue  of  this  marriage  is:  Hattie, 
Gordon,  and  T.  D.;  while  Mrs. 
Bell,  by  her  first  husband,  has 
five  children  living:  Joseph 
James,  William  W.,  Leona,  and 
Henry  and  John  (twins).  In 
1883  Mr.  Bell  met  with  a  simple 
accident,  which  unfortunately 
resulted  in  the  loss  of  his  hand. 
A  slight  cut  w4th  a  pocket  knife 
between  the  thumb  and  first  fin- 
ger caused  inflammation,  which 
necessitated  amputation  above 
the  wrist.  Notwithstanding  this 
inconvenience,  Mr.  Bell  is  a  suc- 
cessful farmer,  and  has  improved 
two  farms  besides  his  home  place. 
He  is  an  extensive  sorghum  man- 
ufacturer. A  few  years  ago  he 
turned  out  twenty-five  thousand 
gallons  of  molasses  on  fifteen 
acres  of  ground,  clearing  forty- 
five  dollars  per  aci-e  on  his  cane 
crop. 


-* 


*- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   T^TtRlTORY. 


109 


-^ 


I 


The  subject  of  this  sketch  is  a 
member  of  the  Methodist  church, 
while  his  wife  is  a  very  devoted 
adherent  of  the  Baptist  faith,  and 
a  lady  of  excellent  sense  and 
highly  respected  throughout  the 
country. 


WILEY  STEWART, 

[CHOCTAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  in  Ray 
county,  East  Tennessee,  in  1824. 
Son  of  James  Stewart,  who  set- 
tled in  Lamar  county,  Texas,  in 
1850,  and  died  in  1862.  Wiley 
married  IS^ancy  Folsom,  daugh- 
ter of  Samuel  Folsom,  in  the 
year  1847,  and  settled  down 
close  to  Armstrong  Academy, 
where  they  lived  for  five  years 
on  the  present  Wilburn  Hampton 
place.  Mrr  Stewart's  wife  is  of 
royal  blood,  being  grand-daugh- 
ter to  Nathaniel  Folsom,  and 
Peter  Fitchlyn,  of  theHyah-pah- 
tuk-kalo  clan. 

In  1859  the  subject  of  this 
sketch  ran  a  tan  yard  east  of 
Boggy  Creek,  and  after  two 
years  settled  on  what  is  now 
called  the  old  Stewart  place  near 
Armstrong,  where  he  resided 
thirteen  years.  In  1870  he  moved 
to  Mount   Vernon,  from  thence 


to  Caddo,  back  to  Armstrong, 
and  finally  settled  on  his  present 
estate  near  Caddo,  in  1885.  In 
1863  Mr.  Stewart  entered  the 
Choctaw  Militia  in  Jack  Folsom's 
company  (McCurtain  regiment), 
until  the  end  of   the   war,  when 


WILEY  STEWART. 

the  Militia «  surrendered  at    Fort 
Smith. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Wiley  Stewart 
have  had  eleven  children,  six  of 
whom  are  living:  Emma  Cooper, 
Nancy  Stewart,  Lulu  Walner, 
Charlie,  Samuel  F.,  and  Henry. 
Charlie  is  an  ofiicer  in  the  Indian 
Police  and  is  residing  at  present 
in  Wynne  Wood. 


'-J*- 


*- 


-* 


110 


I.KADEHS    AND    LP^ADING    >IEN 


JUDGE  SILAS  JAMES. 

[  CHOCTAW.] 

Silas  was  born  on  the  route  be- 
tween his  father's  old  home  in 
Mississippi  and  Skiilljvil-le  coun- 
ty, Choctaw  Nation,  in  the  year 
1S41.  After  spending  some 
years  in  that  county  he  moved  to 


JUDGE  SILAS  JAMES. 

Gaines,  where  he  remained  until 
1864,  moving  for  a  short  time  to 
the  Chickasaw  Nation.  In  the 
year  following  he  joined  the 
first  Choctaw  regiment,  enlisting 
in  Captain  Nail's  company.  Af- 
ter the  death  of  the  latter  and  the 
a]>pointment  of  Captain  William 
Pitchlyn,  Mr.  James  was  appoint- 
ed third  and    second    lieutenant 


^- 


successively.  Afterward,  when 
Strickland  took  charge  of  the 
company  he  was  promoted  to 
the  rank  of  first  lieutenant,  which 
office  he  held  until  the  conclusion 
of  the  war. 

In  1866  he  married  Mrs.  Aaron 
Frazier,  widow  of  Aaron  Frazier, 
a  Chickasaw,  by  whom  he  had 
six  children,  only  one  of  whom 
is  now  living,  Daniel,  aged  nine 
years.  In  1877  Silas  James  was 
appointed  county  clerk,  and  two 
years  afterward  was  elected  coun- 
ty judge  of  Atoka  county.  He 
was  re-elected  in  1881  and  again 
in  1883.  The  people  of  Atoka 
not  being  thoroughly  satisfied 
during  his  absence  from  the  judi- 
cial bench,  again  elected  him  in 
1SS5  and  1888.  He  is  now  own- 
er of  a  farm  of  one  hundred 
acres,  and  two  hundred  and  fifty 
head  of  stock  cattle.  Judge  Silas 
James  is  one  of  the  most  highly 
respected  citizens  in  the  Nation, 
being  loved  by  all  classes,  rich 
and  poor  alike.  He  is  kind  and 
charitable  to  his  fellow  men,  and 
possesses  a  heart  in  proportion 
to  his  size,  which,  when  reduced 
to  figures  means  six  feet  two  and 
one-half  inches  in  height,  two 
hundred  and  ten  pounds  in  weight 
and  stature  straight  as  an  arrow, 
and  character  equally  upright 


-* 


White  Horse,  Chief  of  the  Otoes 


*- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


113 


* 


MCKEE  JAMES. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  Gaines  county,  Choctaw 
Nation,  in  1850.  His  first  school- 
ing was  received  at  a  neighbor- 
hood school,  after  which  he  en- 
tered the  Colbert  Institute,  Chick- 


*- 


m'kEE  JAMES. 

asaw  Nation.  On  leaving  Col- 
lege McKee  went  to  live  with 
his  grand  aunt,  Mrs.  Frazier,  and 
remained  in  charge  of  her  stock 
until  about  1878,  when  he  mar- 
ried Miss  Perkins,  a  sister  of 
Henry  Perkins,  the  issue  of  this 
marriage  being  seven  children 
— Edward  W.,  Mary  Anne,  El- 
sie A.,  Benjamin  D.,  Josiah  F., 
Jessie  H.    and   John  Robinson, 


the  oldest  being  twelve  years  of 
age. 

McKee  spent  the  earlier  years 
of  his  life  farming  and  raising 
cattle  on  shares.  In  1884  he 
was  elected  Representative  of 
Atoka  county,  and  in  the  follow- 
ing year  Commissioner  for  Reg- 
istration of  the  Freedraen.  In 
1886  he  was  again  returned  to 
the  House,  where  he  became 
popular  as  a  member.  He  has 
a  farm  of  one  hundred  and  fifty 
acres  and  a  small  herd  of  cattle, 
besides  some  fifty  head  of  ponies 
and  five  hundred  head  of  hogs. 
Besides  this  he  owns  a  one-third 
interest  in  the  Coalgate  mines, 
he  being  the  original  discoverer 
and  claimant  of  that  famous  bed 
of  coal.  At  the  present  time  he 
is  Weigher  for  the  Nation,  as 
well  as  National  Timber  Con- 
tractor. 

McKee  is  still  a  young  man 
and  gifted  with  remarkafble  in- 
telligence and  social  qualities, 
which  render  him  beloved  by  all 
who  know  him.  Like  his  brother, 
Judge  Silas  James,  he  has  a  kind 
and  charitable  disposition,  with- 
out the  least  tendency  to  quarrel 
even  in  the  face  of  provocation, 
and  it  may  be  said  of  McKee,  as 
well  as  of  his  brother,  that  he  is 
without  a  living  enemy,  while 
his  friends  are  past  reckoning. 


-* 


*- 


114 


LEADERS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


HENRY  P.  WARD. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  ill  March,  1850,  at  Spring- 
town.  Parker  county,  Texas,  be- 
ing the  fourth  son  of  Joseph 
Ward,  of  Patterson,  New  Jer- 
sey, a  coach-maker  by  trade, 
who  emigrated  to  the  Indian  Ter- 
ritory in  1845,  and  married  a 
Miss  Thompson  of  Doaksville, 
a  member  of  the  Wall  and  Fol- 
som  families. 

Henry  Ward's  father  moved  to 
Texas  in  1855,  and  did  not  re- 
turn until  the  close  of  the  war, 
ten  years  afterward.    During  his 


*- 


HENRY  P.   WARD. 

stay   in   that    State    he   was   ap- 
pointed   Captain    of    the    Texas 


Rangers,    and     for    four    yeais 
guarded  the  frontier  settlements. 


MRS.  WARD. 

In  1865  he  moved  to  Blue  coun- 
ty, Choctaw  Nation,  and  in  five 
years  afterward  to  Atoka  county, 
settling  close  to  Limestone  Gap, 
where  he  died  in  the  fall  of  1872. 
Henry  received  most  of  his 
education  at  home,  and  reanained 
in  charge  of  his  mother's  affairs 
after  his  father's  death  until  his 
marriage  in  the  summer  of  1875, 
to  Miss  Mary  Dysart,  second 
daughter  of  James  A.  Dysart,  of 
Springfield,  Mo.  Miss  Dysart 
was  a  young  lady  of  many  vir- 
tues, and  as  a  wife  aiid  mother 
is  of  the  kind  to  be  loved  and  re- 
spected. 


*S 


*- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


115 


* 


*- 


In  the  neighborhood  of  Lime- 
stone Gap  Henrj  commenced 
agriculture,  and  in  1882  pur- 
chased an  additional  farm  west 
of  Kiowa,  where  he  now  resides, 
surrounded  by  all  the  home  com- 
forts obtainable  through  years 
of  energetic  industry.  He  has 
some  two  hundred  and  fifty  acres 
under  cultivation,  two  hundred 
and  seventy-five  head  of  cattle, 
as  well  as  one-fourth  interest  in 
a  large  coal  claim. 

The  first  important  oftice  held 
by  Mr.  Ward  was  that  of  Repre- 
sentative of  Atoka  county  in 
1888.  In  1889  he  was  appoint- 
ed by  Governor  Smallwood  to 
fill  an  unexpired  term  in  the  Sen- 
ate for  the  same  county,  and 
gave  the  greatest  satisfaction  on 
both  occasions,  which  was  proved 
by  the  large  majority  by  which 
he  was  elected  to  the  office  of 
County  Judge  in  August,  1890, 
and  which  otiice  he  now  holds. 
In  1885  he  joined  the  Methodist 
church  South,  and  in  1889  was 
chosen  superintendent  of  Sun- 
day schools  at  Little  Boggy. 
He  is  a  most  devoted  Christian 
at  home  and  abroad,  on  week 
days  as  well  us  on  the  Sabbath, 
and  is  very  justly  esteemed  and 
beloved  by  all  who  know  him. 

Out  of  ten  children  born  to  the 
family  but  six  have  survived — 


Ella  M.,  Ethel  M.,  Leo  Oliver, 
Louisa  E.,  William  David  and 
Eddie. 

Mrs.  Ward  is  a  citizen  of  the 
Cherokee  Nation,  thougli  she  has 
never  endeavored  to  establish 
her  claims. 


CHARLES  A.SEMPLE. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  in  Au- 
gust,   1849,    and   is  the   son    of 


C.  A.   SEMPLE. 

Allen  W.  Semple,of  Steuben ville, 
Ohio.  He  came  to  the  Indian 
Territory  in  1860,  and  married 
Minnie  Pitchlyn,  grand-daughter 
of  Hon.  Peter  Pitchlyn,  in  IS 79. 
Mr.  Semple  first  settled  at 
Spring  Bluff,  Kiamichi  coun- 
ty,   and    later    moved    to    Blue 


-* 


116 


* 


LEADEKS   AND   LEADING   MEN' 


county,  where  he  commenced  the 
milling  business,  including  a  corn 
mill,  saw  mill  and  cotton  gin. 
Besides  this  he  has  a  consider- 
able body  of  land  under  cultiva- 
tion and  several  hundred  head  of 
stock  cattle.  At  his  home,  close 
to  Caddo, he  has  a  large  yard  set 
apart  for  fattening  and  finishing 
cattle  for  shipment.  He  has 
five  children — Frank  P.,  aged 
ten  years;  W.  F.,  Eettie,  Julia 
and  Charles. 


*- 


SAM  MUNCRIEF. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  at  Fort 
Smith,  Arkansas,  in  1851,  his 
father  and  mother  being  both 
Choctaws.  When  a  child'his  par- 
ents moved  from  the  old  State 
and  settled  at  Fort  Arbuckle, 
while  Sam  was  sent  early  to 
school  at  the  Chickasaw  Male 
Academy,  Tishomingo.  Until 
his  marriage  in  1871  he  spent 
the  time  looking  after  his  father's 
stock,  but  soon  embarked  in  his 
own  interest  in  the  vicinity  of 
Fred,  west  of  Purcell,  where  he 
has  seven  hundred  head  and  a 
farm  of  eighteen  hundred  acres 
under  cultivation.  His  first  wife, 
Margaret  Hall,  dying  in  1883, 
he  married  John  Stowe's  widow, 
Josephine  Moss,  who  unfortu- 
nately died  in  1889,  leaving  him 


in  charge  of  a  family  of  four 
children — Mary  Jane,  Walter 
Lee,  Georgia  and  Sammy,  the 
oldest  of  whom  is  sixteen  years. 
Mr.  Muncrief  has  had  much 
experience  with  the  wild  Indians 


SAM  MUNCRIEF. 

while  residing  at  Fort  Arbuckle, 
and  lost  many  a  hoof  through 
the  agency  of  these  midnight 
marauders.  He  remembers  his 
father  and  a  party  of  his  friends 
pursuing  and  killing  nine  of  their 
number,  three  of  whom  fell  to 
the  share  of  Muncrief,  Sr.,  who 
riding  upon  them  with  a  double- 
barrel  shotgun  loaded  with  buck- 
shot, made  sure  of  his  game. 

Mr.  Muncrief  has  an  extensive 
claim  to  be  adjusted  by  the  In- 
dian Depredation  Committee. 


-« 


ti<- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY, 


Hi 


-1^ 


BUTLER  S.  SMIZER. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
bora  in  1862  in  Oldham  county, 
Kentucky,  and  educated  in  the 
same  county.  He  commenced 
teaching  public  school  in  Daviess 
county,  where  he  remained  three 


^'^/^ 


years.  Being  very  ambitious,  as 
well  as  industrious,  he  spent  the 
greater  part  of  his  leisure  hours 
studying  law,  till  he  came  to 
Atoka  in  1885,  where  he  took 
charge  of  the  Baptist  Academy 
for  three  years,  and  proved  him- 
self an  exceptionallj'  good  teach- 
er. Moving  from  Atoka,  be 
taught  the  McAlester  school  one 


k 


session,  but  returned  to  Atoka 
immediately  afterward,  and  in 
partnership  with  his  father-in- 
law,  Captain  J.  S.  Standley,  pur- 
chased the  "Independent,"  a 
weekly  paper  established  by  H. 
F.  O'Beirne,  changing  its  name 
to  that  of  the  "Indian  Citizen," 
which  he  is  editing  at  the  pres- 
ent time.  In  1886  he  married 
Norma  Standley,  a  young  lady 
of  more  than  ordinary  accom- 
plishments, by  whom  he  has  two 
children,  Norma  and  Stermon. 
Recently  Mr.  Smizer  has  com- 
menced the  practice  of  law,  at 
which  profession  he  will  no  doubt 
make  a  mark,  being  an  eloquent 
speaker  and  a  young  man  of  un- 
tiring application.  He  has  a 
farm  of  one  hundred  acres  under 
cultivation  within  a  few  miles  of 
Atoka,  wliich  is  at  present  in  the 
hands  of  renters. 


CALVIN  C.  PERRY. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  in  1835 
at  Shawnee-town,  Choctaw  Na- 
tion, and  educated  at  Old  Spen- 
cer Academy.  He  is  a  descend- 
ant of  the  Okla-fa-lay-a  clan.  In 
his  early  days  he  went  to  farm- 
ing and  stock-raising,  and  has 
adopted  the  same  mode  of  life 
till  the  present  day.     He  mar- 


-m 


•J*- 


-* 


118 


LKADEKS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


rled  a  daughter  of  Judge  Gabriel 
Burris,  of  Kiamichi  county,  by 
whom  he  has  six  children — So- 
phie, Simmie,  Eli,  Benjamin, 
Bill  and  Calvin.  His  eldest 
daughter   is   married  to  William 


CALVIN   C.  PERRY. 

Paxton,  son  of  the  great  Presby- 
terian divine  of  Springfield,  Mo. 
Mr.  Perry  ran  for  Represen- 
tative in  the  Push-ma-la-ta  dis- 
trict in  1883  and  1884  against 
McKee  James  and  J.  M.  Hodges, 
and  was  defeated  by  Governor 
La  Flore  for  National  Treasurer 
in  1879.  In  1888  he  was  ap- 
pointed a  Commissioner  of  Reg- 
istration for  the  registration  of 
the  freedmen.  During  the  war 
he  served  for  one  year  in  General 


Cooper's   command,  and   fought 
in  the  battle  of  Byrd  Creek. 

Mr.  Perry  is  a  member  of  the 
Progressive  party,  and  has  about 
one  thousand  acres  of  land  and 
nearly  one  thousand  head  of  cat- 
tle. He  is  now  residing  in  Ato- 
ka, where  he  has  a  very  pretty 
residence. 


DAVID  ROEBUCK. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  is  the 
second  son  of  William  Roebuck, 
of  Mississippi,  of  English  de- 
scent, who  held  many  important 
positions  among  his  people. 
David  was  born  in  November, 
181:1:,  and  attended  the  neigh- 
borhood school  until  seventeen 
years  of  age,  after  which  he  en- 
listed in  the  Choctaw  command 
of  the  Confederate  army;  Cap- 
tain Jerry  Wade's  company,  of 
Colonel  Sim  Folsom's  regiment. 
He  left  the  army  in  1865  and 
immediately  afterward  married 
Malina  Austin,  a  sister  of  Mrs. 
Jack  McCurtain,  and  in  the  same 
3'ear  commenced  farming  and 
stock  raising,  which  occupation 
he  still  continues.  In  1868  he 
was  elected  recording  secretary 
of  the  National  Senate,  and  in 
1873  journalist  for  the  Senate. 
Both  of  these    offices  were   held 


-* 


*- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY, 


* 


119 


Mr.    Roebuck    for  eighteen 


by 

years.  In  1889  he  was  elected  re- 
presentative for  his  county. 

Having  engaged  in  the  prac- 
tice of  law  in  1872,  the  subject 
of  this  sketch  gave  considerable 
attention  to  the  practice  of  his 
profession  during  the  years  that 
elapsed  until  the  present  time. 

Mrs.  Roebuck,  like  her  sister, 
received  a  liberal  education, 
which  she  utilized  by  teaching 
at  the   neighborhood   schools  in 


* 


DAVID   ROEBUCK. 

Kiamichi  county,  Goodland,  Cool 
Spring  and  Long  Creek.  She  is 
an  amiable  lady,  refined  and  hos- 
pital, and  extremely  popular. 

Mr.    and   Mrs.    Roebuck  have 
seven  children  living:  Mary  Jane, 


Ephraim,  Edward,  Ruda,  David, 
William  and  Josephus.  Their 
property  consists    of  eight   hun- 


MRS.     ROEBUCK. 

dred  acres  of  land,  two  hundred 
and  fifty  acres  under  cultivation, 
and  the  rest  in  pasture  and  or- 
chard; besides  three  hundred 
head  of  cattle,  and  interest  in  six 
coal  claims.  He  also  keeps  a 
hotel  at  the  Capital,  which  he 
runs  during  Council,  the  rest  of 
the  year  he  resides  at  Goodland. 
Mr.  Roebuck  is  a  man  of  fine 
physical  appearance,  and  an  ex- 
cellent speaker  (though  not  high- 
ly educated)  and  a  generous, 
whole-souled  neighbor,  greatly 
liked  by  all  his  acquaintances. 


-•i< 


•J- 


IJO 


I.KADKKS    ANI>    I.K.U)IN(J    MEN 


JERRY  FULSOM. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

This  geiitk'iDaii  was  born  in  Sans 
Bois  county  in  1852,  and  attend- 
ed neighborhood  schools  until 
1870.  In  the  same  year  he  was 
appointed  circuit  clerk,  which 
office  he  held  for  two  years.     In 


JERRY  rULSOM. 

18S-1  he  married  Miss  Nancy 
Riddle,  daughter  of  Jerry  Rid- 
dle, at  one  time  a  member  of 
the  Council.  The  issue  of  this 
marriage  was  two  children,  Jack- 
son  L.  and  Lizzie.  Their  mother 
dying  in  May,  18S7,  Mr.  Fulsom, 
three  years  afterward,  married 
his  late  wife's  sister,  by  whom 
lie  had  a  son  named  Peter.  In 
1S89  he  married    his  third  wife. 


Miss  Ella  Jones,  daughter  of 
Forbes  Jones,  of  Gaines  county. 
In  1878  he  was  elected  sheriff 
and  held  the  office  for  two  years, 
alter  which  he  became  prosecut- 
ing attorney  for  one  year.  He 
was  elected  member  of  the  lower 
House  in  1883,  and  in  the  same 
year  district  scliool  trustee,  hold- 
ing these  offices  for  two  years. 
In  1889  he  was  elected  county 
judge,  and  the  following  year 
was  called  upon  to  represent 
Sans  Bois  county  in  the  JS^ational 
Senate.  Mr.  Fulsom  has  seven 
hundred  acres  of  land  in  pasture 
and  under  cultivation,  three  hun- 
dred head  of  stock  and  two  hun- 
dred head  of  hogs,  and  a  sub- 
stantial and  comfortable  home. 
He  is  a  man  of  good  education, 
and  wdll,  no  doubt,  make  an 
able  Senator. 

Jerry  Fulsom  is  the  youngest 
son  of  the  late  ex-Chief  Peter 
Fulsom,  one  of  the  most  distin- 
guished and  popular  men  of  bis 
time,  who  died  in  188J:  after  a 
life  of  active  labor  for  his  coun- 
try. 


JOE  W.  EVERIDGE. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  Kiamichi  county  in  June, 
1853,   and    attended   the    neigli- 


^ 


-* 


*- 


-* 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


121 


borhood  schools  until  seventeen 
years  of  age.  He  is  the  son  of 
Hon.  Joel  Everidge,  Supreme 
Judge  of  the  Choctaw  Nation, 
and  a  man  of  rare  ability  and  in- 
fluence among  his  people.  The 
young  man  engaged  in  business 


*- 


JOE  W.  EVERIDGE. 

for  himself  in  1878,  and  was  soon 
appointed  Captain  of  the  Na- 
tional Light  Horse,  which  office 
he  held  for  four  years.  In  1882 
he  was  elected  Sheriff  of  Kiami- 
chi  county,  and  later  became  a 
member  of  the  Indian  Police 
force.  In  18 Si  he  was  elected  a 
member  of  the  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives, and  in  1885  was  ap- 
pointed a  member  of  the  Senate 


by  Governor  Edward  McCurtain. 
The  same  year  he  was  appointed 
District  Collector  for  the  Third 
district,  was  re-appointed  in 
1886,  and  held  the  office  for  two 
years.  In  1871  he  married  Miss 
Susan  Ervvin,  daughter  of  Calvin 
Erwin,  of  Doaksville,  Towsen 
county.  By  this  marriage  he 
has  six  children — Willie,  Emma, 
Joseph,  Ella,  Robert  and  Mary. 

Mr.  Everidge  has  a  farm  of 
six  hundred  and  forty  acres,  a 
part  of  which  is  under  cultiva- 
tion. He  also  owns  about  one 
hundred  head  of  stock  cattle. 

Few  men  are  as  popular  with 
the  masses  as  Joe  Everidge. 
Like  his  father,  he  is  tall  of  stat- 
ure and  powerfully  built,  fair 
complexioned  and  intelligent- 
looking.  He  is  descended  from 
the  Hyah-pah-tuk-kalo  clan  and 
about  one-ei2;hth  Choctaw. 


SIMON  T.  DWIGHT. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  September,  1865,  at 
Pigeon  Roost,  Jackson  county, 
and  attended  the  neighborhood 
schools  till  eleven  years  of  age, 
after  which  he  went  to  Spencer 
Academy  for  over  six  years, 
graduating  with  honors  at  Cen- 
ter College,  Danville,  Kentuckv, 


-* 


-fb 


122 


LEADERS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


in    1887,    after    four    years    of 
study. 

Ill  1888  yuung  Dwight  Avas 
appointed  Journalist  of  the 
House,  and  the  following  year 
was  elected  Representative.  In 
1890    he  w-as   re-elected   to    the 


SIMON    riMOTHV  DWIGHT. 

same  office,  which  he  is  now  fill- 
ing in  a  very  creditable  manner. 

Simon  is  the  eldest  son  of 
Timothy  Dwiglit,  a  prominent 
citizen  of  Jackson  county,  who 
(lied  in  1885.  Since  that  time 
his  son  has  been  looking  after 
the  home  property. 

Mr.  Dwight  belongs  to  the 
clan  of  Ok-la-fa-lay-a  through  his 
mother,   who   was    a    Miss    Wa- 


kaya.  In  November,  1889,  he 
married  Miss  Janey  Hunter,  of 
Bennington,  daughter  of  Bennie 
Hunter,  one  of  the  largest  stock- 
men in  the  Xation. 

Simon  is  a  young  man  of  re- 
markable intelligence,  and  pos- 
sesses an  enviable  education  and 
an  address  that  is  bright  and  con- 
genial. We  predict  that  before 
many  years  have  passed  away 
he  will  become  one  of  the  lead- 
ing men  among  his  people. 


>i* 


ALFRED  EMERSON  FOLSOM. 

[  CHOCTAW.] 

Emerson  is  the  second  son  of  the 
late  Israel  Folsom,  one  of  the 
great  men  of  his  Nation.  He 
was  born  in  August,  184-1,  and 
educated  at  the  Bromlet  school, 
Paris,  Texas,  Armstrong  Acad- 
emy, Choctaw  Nation,  and  Cane 
Hill  College.  Arkansas.  While 
at  the  latter  institution  his  ardent 
spirit  was  aroused  on  hearing  of 
the  outbreak  of  the  war,  and  in 
May,  1801,  he  joined  Bohan- 
non's  company,  remaining  with 
the  State  troops  until  the  fall  of 
that  year.  Six  months  later  we 
find  him  in  the  Second  Choctaw 
regiment  under  his  uncle.  Col. 
Sampson  Folsom.  On  the  reor- 
ganization of  this  company,  Em 


* 


*- 


* 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TEKllITOKY. 


123 


erson  was  appointed  Second 
Lieutenant,  in  the  meantime  re- 
fusing the  command  of  a  com- 
pany of  artillery.  Throughout 
the  war  he  displayed  remarkable 
courage  and  love  of  adventure. 
In  1865,  on  the  restoration  of 
of  peace,  he  became  clerk  to  In- 


*- 


dian  Agent  Egbert  Smith,  and 
later  drifted  into  the  mercantile 
business,  which  he  followed  five 
years.  In  1876  he  married 
Margaret  Campbell;  after  which 
he  devoted  himself  exclusively 
to  stock-raising.  By  his  mar- 
riage lie  had  three  children — 
Ida,  Alfred  and  Nellie.  In  1885, 
when  a  company  was  organized 


under  the  command  of  James 
Harris  Guy  to  capture  the  Lee 
gang  of  desperadoes,  the  subject 
of  our  sketch  volunteered.  The 
leader  and  five  of  the  party  en- 
tered the  enclosure  which  sur- 
rounded the  robbers'  stronghold, 
w4iile  the  remainder  of  the  com- 
pany i-emained  at  a  safe  distance. 
A  volley  from  the  besieged  un- 
horsed the  five  men,  instantly 
killing  Guy  and  three  of  his  men, 
while  Folsom  was  untouched,  his 
horse  being  shot  instead.  Drop- 
ping on  one  knee,  he  coolly  emp- 
tied the  magazine  of  liis  Win- 
chester tlirough  the  windows  of 
the  robbers'  quarters,  exposed 
the  while  to  a  sharp  lire  from 
within.  Strange  to  say,  he  es- 
escaped  untouched.  Governor 
Harris,  uncle  of  Lieutenant  Guy, 
commented  in  the  highest  terms 
on  the  daring  bravery  of  this 
act,  while  the  press  of  the  Indian 
Territory  was  loud  in  praise  of 
Emerson  Folsom. 

Mr.  Folsom  lost  his  wife  in 
1886,  and  two  years  later  mar- 
ried an  accomplished  and  refined 
young  lady,  Ollie  Pate,  a  Missis- 
si  ppian  by  birth  and  education, 
whose  father  a  few  years  ago 
had  moved  to  Atoka. 

Mr.  Folsom  is  greatly  admired 
for  his  many  good  and  noble 
qualities. 


-* 


-•!< 


124 


LEADERS   AND    LEADING    JIEX 


WILLIAM  GARDNER. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  in 
1830,  on  the  Tom  Bigby  Riv- 
er, Mississippi,  his  father  be- 
ing Jeremiah  Gardner  and  his 
mother  Clarissa  La  Flore,  both 
descended  from    the  Okala-hun- 


MKS.   WM.    GARDNER. 

na-lay.  William  came  from  the 
old  state  to  Towsen  county  with 
his  parents  in  1833,  and  went  to 
school  at  Wheelock,  New  Hope 
and  Newark.  In  1850  he  mar- 
ried Mary  Wilson.  After  he  had 
been  to  work  forE.  B.  Tims,  the 
sutler  at  Doaksville,  he  opened  a 
mercantile  business  for  himself 
at  Hamilton,  Blue    county,  and 


later  moved  to  the  Forks  of 
Boggy.  In  1858  he  was  appoint- 
ed treasurer  and  county  clerk, 
and  has  tilled  that  position  off 
and  on  for  thirty-two  years  until 
the  present  time. 

In  1861,  at  the  breaking  out 
of  the  M^ar,  he  joined  the  Militia 
(Reason  Jones'  company),  but 
being  needed  by  the  people  of 
his  neighborhood  he  was  forced 
to  remain  at  home.  At  the  con- 
clusion, of  the  war  Mr.  Gardner 
put  up  a  store  at  Armstrong 
Academy,  but  soon  moved  to 
his  present  home  at  Bennington. 
He  has  had  three  children:  Rob- 
ert C.,  aged  thirty-two  years; 
Clara,  aged  thirty-four;and  Sallie, 
twenty-five.  His  little  grandson, 
W.  A.,  the  eldest  son  of  Robert 
C,  is  residing  with  his  grand 
parents. 

MARTIX   FISHER. 

[CHOUTAW.] 

Among  the  early  settlers  in  Jacks 
Fork  county  was  Martin  Fisher, 
who  was  born  in  Adams  county, 
Pennsylvania,  in  the  month  of 
September,  1840.  When  five 
years  of  age  he  moved  with  his 
parents  to  Montgomery  county, 
Maryland,  where  he  attended  a 
neighborhood  school  until  four- 
teen years  of  age.  Afterward 
he  went    to    Mount    St.    Marv's 


fb- 


-* 


*- 


OF   THE   INDIAN    TERRITORY. 


125 


-•i^ 


*- 


College,  Emmetsburg,  finishing 
liis  education  at  Caul  vert  Col- 
lege, New  Windsor,  and  St. 
John's  College,  Frederick,  Mary- 
land. At  the  age  of  twenty  he 
joined  the  Sixth  Virginia  cav- 
alry, in  which  regiment  he  re- 
mained till  the  close  of  the  war. 
Though  severely  wounded  at  the 
battle  of  Brandy  Station,  on  the 
Rappahannock,  yet  he  stood 
bravely  to  his  colors.  He  was 
also  in  both  battles  of  Manasses 
and  throughout  the  campaigns 
of  the  Valley  till  the  day  of  his 
capture,  April  1,  1865. 

After  some  years'  experience 
in  the  mercantile  and  other  busi- 
ness in  the  States,  Mr.  Fisher 
settled  in  the  Choctaw  Nation  in 
1873  at  Atoka,  where  he  was 
employed  as  a  clerk  for  two 
years.  In  1878  he  opened  a 
store  in  the  mountainous  region 
of  Jacks  Fork  county,  and  contin- 
ued in  that  business  till  1886, 
when  he  engaged  in  farming  and 
stock-raising.  Five  years  previ- 
ously he  had  become  a  citizen  of 
the  Nation  by  intermarriage,  but 
has  no  family.  He  owns  a  good 
farm,  under  excellent  cultiva- 
tion, and  a  nice  herd  of  cattle 
and  horses. 

Mr.  Fisher  is  an  industrious 
man,  and  is  well  and  favorably 
known  throughout  the  Nation, 


H.  T.  JACKMAN. 
This  popular  meichant  was  born 
in  Holmes  county,  Ohio,  in  1842, 
beiing  the  son  of  Henry  Jack- 
man,  of  the  same  county  and 
State.  He  was  educated  at 
Mount  Union,  Ohio,  and  while 
there,  in  1862,  enlisted  in  Com- 


H.  T.  JACKMAN. 

pany  G,  Eighty-sixth  Ohio,  un- 
der the  command  of  General 
Kelly.  This  company  was  called 
out  with  others  for  six  months' 
service  and  joined  in  the  cam- 
paign in  Western  Virginia,  so 
that  young  Jackraan,  though 
only  eight  months  carrying  the 
musket,  was  in  two  hard-fought 
battles — the  battle  of  Buchawow, 
against    Imboden's   Confederate 


-^ 


126 


LEADERS   AND   LEADING    >IEN 


cavalry,  and  the  battle  of  Bev- 
erley. After  his  return  from 
service  he  farmed  in  Illinois  and 
Missouri,  spending  two  years  in 
each  State;  after  which  he  came 
to  Stringtovvn,  Choctaw  Nation, 
in  1871,  and  there  engaged  in 
the  lumber  and  mercantile  busi- 
ness. In  18S5  he  moved  his 
stock  to  Tuskahoma,  then  in  the 
wilds  of  the  mountain  region 
bordering  the  Kiamiehi  River. 
There  he  contracted  for  and  com- 
pleted the  capitol  building  in  six 
months  at  a  cost  of  twenty-three 
thousand  five  hundred  dollars  to 
the  Choctaw  Nation.  (An  illus- 
tration of  this  handsome  build- 
ing will  be  seen  elsewhere). 

Mr.  Jackman  has  an  interest 
in  three  or  four  lumber  mills. 
and  is  still  doing  a  large  mer- 
cantile business.  He  is  also  the 
President  of  the  German  Bank 
at  Fort  Smith,  with  an  author- 
ized capital  of  two  hundred  and 
fifty  thousand  dollars.  He  was 
married  in  1870  to  Miss  Minerva 
Thompson,  niece  of  Giles  Thomp- 
son, of  Boggy  Depot,  by  whom 
he  has  two  sons,  Parker,  twenty- 
oneyearsof  age,  and  Albert,  six. 


*- 


FRITZ  SETTELL. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

Mr.  Settell  was  born   in    Han- 
over,   Germany,    in    1863,    and 


moved  with  his  parents  to  Mc- 
Alester  in  1867.  He  is  a  son  of 
Ed.  Settell,  who  has  been  in  the 
stock,  mercantile  and  hotel  busi- 
ness in  McAlester  since  1870. 
In  1872  he  went  to  school  at  St. 
Francis'    Institute,    Osage    Mis- 


sion, Kansas,  where  he  remamed 
till  his  marriage  in  1879  to  Mul- 
vany  Pitchlyn.  He  has  three 
children — Edward,  AVilliam  and 
Eose  Myrtle. 

Fritz  is  the  owner  of  three 
mercantile  stores,  which  carry  a 
stock  of  about  $35,000,  480 
acres  of  farm  under  cultivation, 
300  head  of  stock  cattle,  500 
head  of  hogs  and  an  undivided 
interest  in  63  coal  claims. 


-* 


^- 


LEADEUS   AND   LEADING   MEN 


127 


SKETCH  OF   SECOND  CHOC- 
TAW  REGIMENT. 

Tom  Collins,  an  old  citizen  of 
the  Chickasaw  Nation,  who  was 
born  in  Caldwell  county,  Ken- 
tucky, and  came  to  the  Indian 
Territory  in  1857,  has  the  fol- 
lowing   to    say    concerning   the 


*- 


TOM    COLLINS. 

Second  Choctaw  Regiment,  of 
which  he  became  a  member  at 
the  breaking  out  of  the  war.  We 
publish  his  account  w^ord  for 
word  : 

"I  enlisted  in  Company  A, 
Captain  Theodore  Watkins,  un- 
der command  of  Colonel  Sim 
Folsom,  early  in  April,  1SG3,  at 
Black  Jack  Point,    near  Atoka, 


the  headquarters  at  that  time  be- 
ing at  Camp  Waitey,  some  ten 
miles  distant.  One  hundred  and 
two  of  us  left  the  camp  in  June 
and  proceeded  to  Brazil,  where 
we  met  with  the  Kansas  troops 
under  General  Cloud,  and  had  a 
fight  with  them,  driving  them 
back  in  fifteen  minutes.  After 
this  we  followed  General  Steele 
to  Fort  Smith,  but  finding  the 
fort  garrisoned,  retreated  back  to- 
ward Camp  Waitey.  At  Gaines' 
Creek  we  had  a  fight  with  the 
Iowa  troops,  and  while  retreat- 
ing the  Federals  pursued  us  and 
captured  or  killed  Hamilton's 
company  D,  composed  of  sixty- 
eight  men,  bringing  up  the  rear. 
Neither  Captain  nor  men  were 
ev^er  afterward  heard  of.  We 
retreated  on  to  Perryville,  and 
meeting  the  Federals  at  night, 
had  a  lively  brush,  drove  them 
back,  and  proceeded  to  Camp 
Waitey,  where  we  remained  till 
September  1.  Hearing  that  Col. 
Stan  Waitey  had  captured  a 
steamboat  on  the  Arkansaw 
River,  and  that  the  negro  in- 
fantry from  Fort  Smith  were  ad- 
vancing to  '•'cut  him  off","  we 
marched  to  the  mouth  of  the 
Sans  Bois,  on  the  South  Cana- 
dian, and  meeting  with  the  blue- 
coat  freedmen,  drove  them  back 
to  quarters  and  retreated  to  Fort 


-•H 


*- 


12S 


-ib 


OF   THE   INDIAX   TEUKITOKY. 


Johnson,  on  the  Canadiiin  lliver. 
A  few  days  afterward  we  were 
apprised  of  the  advance  of  a  body 
of  P'ederal  cavah-y.  At  night 
we  crossed  the  Canadian  nine 
hundred  strong  and  surrounded 
a  body  of  four  liundred  blue 
coats,  who  turned  out  to  be 
Quantrell  and  his  band,  but 
which  fact  we  did  not  discover 
until  after  he  had  formed  to  fight 
us  the  following  morning.  The 
great  guerilla  and  his  men  re- 
turned with  us  to  camp,  where 
we  remained  for  two  weeks, 
when  we  went  into  winter  quar- 
ters till  November  1  close  to 
Alex.  McKinney's  place,  near 
Stringtown.  The  April  follow- 
ing we  renewed  the  campaign; 
entered  the  suburbs  of  Fort 
Smith;  defeated  the  Union  sol- 
diers at  "Nigger  Hill,"  and 
burned  the  entire  commissary. 
Here  we  made  a  bad  move,  for 
although  the  Federal  soldiers 
fled,  we  beat  a  retreat  when  we 
might  have  captured  the  town 
without  difficulty.  After  this  act 
General  Maxey  was  put  in  com- 
mand, and  we  proceeded  to 
Camden,  Arkansas,  where  we 
met  the  Sixth  and  Ninth  Kansas 
and  some  negro  regiments.  The 
fight  commenced  early  in  the 
morning ;  we  broke  their  lines, 
and     a      terrible     hand-to-hand 


^ 


struggle  was  engaged  in,  cover- 
ing fully  three  miles  of  ground. 
One  negro  regiment  was  com- 
pletely decimated,  only  one  es- 
caping to  tell  the  tale.  Old  John, 
afterward  in  the  employment  of 
Henry  La  Flore.  A  Choctaw 
boy  named  Willie  Folsom  alone 
slew  eight  negroes.  Two  hun- 
dred and  thirty  white  prisoners 
were  captured  by  the  command. 
No  engagement  of  any  conse- 
quence took  place  until  the  fol- 
lowing June,  when  the  Choctaw 
regiments,  after  leaving  winter 
quarters,  proceeded  to  Cabin 
Creek  and  attacked  a  large  train 
of  wagons  and  the  escort,  cap- 
turing an  abundance  of  supplies, 
fifteen  hundred  head  of  mules, 
sixty  wagons,  clothing,  etc.,  etc. 
Some  fifty  Federals  were  killed 
in  the  fight.  Thence  we  moved 
to  the  Canadian  and  camped  till 
the  fall,  when  we  moved  upon 
Elkhorn  and  attacked  the  Fed- 
erals under  General  Blount. 
But  here  we  met  with  an  unfor- 
tunate repulse,  for  our  powder 
was  bad  and  we  failed  to  do  any 
execution,  though  almost  in  per- 
sonal contact  with  the  enemy. 
Colonel  Bass,  of  Texas,  lost  sixty 
of  his  men,  and  many  of  the  com- 
mand were  drowned  or  killed 
while  crossing  the  stream  in 
rapid   retreat.      In    the    October 


-* 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


129 


-^ 


JOHNM.  HARRISSON. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
boi'ii  near  Nelson,  Kianiichi 
county,  in  1858.  His  father's 
name  was  Zadock  Harrisson, 
while  his  mother  was  a  Miss 
Ellis,  daughter  of  Ellis,  the  great 


^ 


JOHN  M.    HARRISSON. 

white  interpreter,  who  transact- 
ed business  between  the  United 
States  government  and  the  Choc- 
taw people  before  and  during 
their  removal  from  Mississippi. 
Ellis  married  a  daughter  of 
Mosho-la-tubbe,  the  most  distin- 
guished and  powerful  man  among 
his  people.  Thus  the  Harrisson 
family  are  descended  from  the 
ancient  ^'iksa"  of  the  kings. 


John  was  educated  at  Spencer 
Academy  and  Paris,  Texas,  after 
which  he  embarked  in  the  stock 
business  close  to  Caddo,  and 
was  then  in  very  good  circum- 
stances. In  1878  he  moved  to 
Atoka;  was  appointed  deputy 
sheriff  in  1886,  and  National 
coal  weigher  in  1888,  which  of- 
fice he  still  retains.  His  princi- 
pal business,  however,  is  that  of 
buying  and  selling  stock  at  which 
he  is  very  successful. 

In  1882  he  married  Bettie 
Walton,  daughter  of  Murray 
Walton,  a  Texan.  By  this  union 
he  has  two  girls,  Martha  and 
Cora.  John  Harrisson  is  a  hand- 
some looking,  intelligent  man, 
and  should  have  been  more 
prominent  in  this  country,  and  in 
fact  would  have  been  so,  had 
he  not  risked  his  fortune  with 
Governor  Smallwood  during  the 
number  of  years  that  that  party 
was  kept  in  the  shade.  His  fidel- 
ity to  the  cause  throughout  has 
gained  for  him  the  reputation  of 
being  a  man  of  great  stability. 
Mr.  Harrisson  has  a  farm  of  six- 
ty acres  at  Lehigh,  and  some 
fine  imported  horses. 

Mr.  Harrisson  has  great  busi- 
ability,  and  he  is  a  man  of  ac- 
knowledged integrity  and  ster- 
ling worth. 


-* 


*- 


* 


130 


LEADERS    AND   LEADING   MEN 


WILL  IK  \V.  JONES. 

[  CHOCTAW.] 

The  hite  ^Villie  AV.  Jones  was 
born  in  isc.o  at  Little  River, 
where  his  father,  W.  N.  Jones, 
National  Treasurer,  at  that  time 
resided.  He  was  educated  at 
Booneville,  Bolivar  and  Sprin^^- 


*- 


field,  Missouri,  liaving  received 
a  thorough  cour.se  in  English  and 
the  classics.  On  his  return  from 
college  he  commenced  to  look 
after  his  father's  immense  herds 
of  cattle,  and  in  1887  married 
Emilia,  daughter  of  James  Mc- 
Cauley,  of  Atoka.  In  1885  he 
became  merged  into  an  unfortu- 
nate quarrel,  which  resulted  in 
his  taking  the  life  of  M.Bouton. 


On  January  20,  1888,  this 
prosperous  young  man,  heir  to 
tlie  largest  property  in  the  Indian 
Territory,  was  in  his  turn  called 
upon  to  pay  the  life  penalty  at  the 
liands  of  a  party  of  men  whom 
he  had  always  looked  upon  as 
his  friends.  His  bodj'  was  found 
upon  the  sands  of  Red  River  the 
morning  after  his  death.  It  is 
rumored  that  the  quarrel,  if  not 
brought  on,  was  aggravated  by 
the  demon  of  whisky. 

W.  W.  Jones  leaves  a  wife 
and  one  son,  Wilson  Nathan, 
aged  three  years,  who  will  prob- 
ably fall  heir  to  the  immense 
herds  and  pastures  of  his  grand- 
father. 


ALFRED  W.  FOLSOM. 

[UHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  the  following 
sketch  was  born  in  January, 
181:0,  and  is  the  son  of  Samuel 
Folsom,  of  Bok-tuk-kalo,  Choc- 
taw Nation.  He  was  educated  at 
Armstrong  Academy,  and  at  the 
age  of  twenty-one  joined  the 
Chickasaw  Batallion  under  Col. 
Lem  Reynolds,  afterward  becom- 
ing First  Lieutenant  in  the  Choc- 
taw regiment  under  the  com- 
mand of  Col.  Sim  Folsom.  Dur- 
ing a  campaign  of  nearly  four 
years  Mr,  Folsom  experienced 
active   service   at  the  battles  of 


-* 


yb- 


-fb 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERKITOKY. 


131 


Bird  Creek,  Cabin  Creek,  Cam- 
den and  Mazzard  Prairie.  In 
1864    he    married     Miss    Piney 


A.  W.    FOLSOM. 

Colbert,  daugliter  of  Robert  Col- 
bert, and  after  the  war  com- 
menced farming  and  stock-rais- 
ing in  Blue  coun^ty,  close  to 
Shawnee;  after  which  he  moved 
to  Bennington,  where  he  lives. 

During  the  administration  of 
Edmond  McCurtain  Mr.  Folsoni 
was  elected  as  Representative  of 
his  county  in  the  lower  house. 


*- 


W.  T.  CLARKE. 
This  gentleman  was  born  in  No- 
vember, 1845,  in  Morgan  coun- 
ty, Missouri,  and  is  the  son  of 
A.  M.  Clarke.  He  came  to  the 
Choctaw  Nation  in  1880,  where 


at  Caney  Switch  he  acted  as  sec- 
tion foreman  until  1885,  when 
he  opened  a  general  mercantile 
business  at  Durant.  He  was 
married  to  Mollie  Davis,  daugh- 
ter of  W.  B.  Davis,  of  Tennessee, 
by  whom  he  has  four  children — 
W.  F.,  Mamie,  Thos.  Horatio 
and  Lowrey,  the  oldest  being 
eight  years  of  age  and  the  young- 
est eighteen  months. 

Mr.  Clarke  was  educated  at 
Tipton,  Missouri.  The  early  por- 
tion of  his  life  was  spent  in  farm- 
ing and  shipping  cattle,  and  at 
present  he  is  making  money  in 
the  mercantile  business,  to  which 


W.  T.  CLARKE. 

he  is  admirably  adapted.  He  is 
a  gentleman  of  good  address  and 
deservedly  popular. 


-^ 


*- 


182 


1>KAUKKS    AND   LEADING    MEN 


1).  W.  IIODGE. 

[  CHOCTAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  in  Tow- 
sen  county,  Choctaw  Nation,  in 
1859,  the  son  of  Joseph  Hodge, 
a  white  man,  and  Cebelle  Wall, 
a  Choctaw  of  the  Koonchas  and 
Imok-lu-shas.      In    186Shewent 


*- 


to  school  at  Wheelock  and  left 
there  in  1874,  after  which  he  as- 
sisted his  father  until  1879,  when 
he  embarked  in  the  cattle  busi- 
ness in  Atoka  county  (first  on  a 
small  scale)  and  afterward  in- 
creasing until  he  sold  outin  1884, 
and  purchased  half  interest  in  his 
brother's  mercantile  business  at 
Lehigh. 

In    1888    "Maje,"as    he  was 


popularly  called,  tested  his  pop- 
ularity by  running  for  the  office 
of  representative  of  his  county 
against  five  competitors.  His 
majority  was  immense;  so  also 
was  it  when  he  ran  for  his  second 
term  in  the  House,  both  times  on 
the  Smallwood  ticket. 

In  1890  "Maje"  tried  the 
Senate — this  time  on  the  Jones 
ticket — his  chief  opponent,  Mar- 
tin Charleston,  an  old  Senator 
running  under  the  Smallwood 
colors.  Here  he  was  again  vic- 
torious, contrary  to  the  expecta- 
tions of  the  large  majority.  Mr. 
Hodge  was  the  youngest  repre- 
sentative and  Senator  at  the  time 
of  his  election  that  ever  filled 
these  positions  in  the  Indian  Ter- 
ritory. His  popularity  is  extra- 
ordinary, and  it  is  safe  to  pro- 
phesy that  before  a  very  distant 
date  he  will  occupy  the  highest 
position  in  his  country.  But  this 
popularity  is  not  only  confined 
to  his  own  Nation  and  national- 
ity, but  reaches  every  point 
where  he  is  known  in  or  outside 
the  Indian  Country. 

The  business  success  achieved 
by  D.  W.  Hodge  in  a  few  years 
is  rn  undoubted  proof  of  his 
executive  ability.  In  1879  he 
married  Alice,  daughter  of  Clay 
Harkins,  of  Atoka,  by  whom  he 
has  three  children:  David,  aged 


-* 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITOUY. 


133 


* 


nine  years;  Claudge,  seven  years; 
and  John,  two  years. 

A  few  years  ago  Mr.  Hodge 
disunited  with  his  brother  in  bus- 
iness, and  is  now  running  two 
stores,  one  at  Lehigh  and  the 
other  in  partnership  with  McAl- 
ester  at  Coalgate. 


ELLIS  H.  CARNES. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

One  of  the  rising  young  men  of 
the  Nation  is  Ellis  Carnes.     He 


ELLIS  H.    CAKNES. 

was  born  in  April,  1856,  in  Jacks 
Fork  county,  and  is  the  son  of 
Harris  Carnes,  at  one  time  a 
leading  man  among  the  people, 
but  now  incapacitated  through 
blindness      for    the  past    eight 


years.  Ellis  was  educated  at  the 
neighborhood  school,  andin  1875 
was  appointed  county  clerk, 
which  office  beheld  for  four  years. 
About  that  time  he  married  Miss 
Eliza  Anolatubbee,  by  whom  he 
has  one  living  child  named  Car- 
rie. 

In  1880  he  was  appointed  act- 
ing sheriff  of  the  county  for  one 
year,  and  in  1884  became  county 
judge  to  fill  the  unexpired  term 
of  A.  O.  Brown,  who  retired 
from  office.  In  the  same  year 
he  was  commissioned  as  one  of 
the  National  Light  Horse,  which 
position  he  held  for  two  years. 
He  was  afterward  re-appointed 
by  Chief  McKinney  for  one  year. 
In  1887  he  filled  an  unexpired 
term  in  the  National  Senalte. 

On  March  5,  1883,  Ellis  mar- 
ried Lizzie  Billy,  sister  of  Judge 
Isaac  Billy,  of  Jacks  Fork  county. 
By  this  marriage  he  has  three 
living  children:  Julius  Y.,  Mol- 
sey,  and  Minnie  May. 

Mr.  Carnes  owns  a  farm  of 
fifty  acres  of  good  land,  and  a 
small  herd  of  cattle  and  hogs. 
He  is  a  young  man  of  great  en- 
ergy and  progressive  in  his  views, 
and  is  not  only  popular  with  his 
own  people,  but  with  many  white 
men,  whom  he  has  from  time  to 
time  entertained  at  his  mountain 
home. 


-* 


-* 


LKADEUS    AND    LEADING   MEN 


135 


DAVIS  NEWTON  MILTON. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  Eagle  county  in  1837, 
and  was  educated  at  Armstrong 
Academy.  His  first  oflice  was 
that  of  deputy  sheriff,  after  which 
he  joined  the  Confederate  army 


D.   N.   MILTON. 

at  the  outbreak  of  tlie  war  and 
served  until  the  close.  lu  186J: 
he  married  Miss  Celie,  a  Choc- 
taw, by  whom  he  has  had  no 
family.  In  1867  he  was  appoint- 
ed circuit  clerk  until  1878,  when 
he  became  deputy  sheriff  of  Tow- 
sen  county.  In  1886  he  was 
elected  county  judge  and  re- 
elected in  1888.  In  1890  he  was 
called  to  the  senate,  in  which  ca- 


pacity he  now  serves  his  country. 
He  belongs  to  the  Hyah-pah- 
tuk-kalo  clan,  and  is  a  member 
of  the  Methodist  church;  a  good, 
charitable  christian,  and  highly 
esteemed  by  his  people. 

Mr.  Milton  has  a  good  home 
and  eighty  acres  under  cultiva- 
tion. 


*- 


SOLOMON  E.  HOTEMA. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

This  well  known  citizen  and  sen- 
ator was  born  in  1854  near 
Grant,  in  the  Choctaw  Nation. 
He  was  first  sent  to  a  neighbor- 
hood school,  and  later  on  to 
Spencer  Academy,  his  education 
being  completed  at  Roanoke 
College,  Salem,  Virginia. 

While  yet  a  youth  Solomon 
clerked  in  the  mercantile  estab- 
lishment of  Wilson  N.  Jones, 
now  principal  chief.  In  1881  he 
was  elected  county  clerk  of  Kia- 
michi  county,  and  was  county 
judge  in  1884,  '85  and  '86.  In 
1887  he  was  elected  to  the  house 
of  representatives  and  re-elected 
in  1888  and  1889.  In  1890  he 
was  called  to  the  senate,  which 
office  he  now  holds.  In  1889  he 
engaged  in  the  mercantile  busi- 
ness at  Grant,  C.  N.,  where  he 
has  a  good  trade.  In  April, 
1883,  he  married  Nancy  Cole- 
man, daughter  of  John  Coleman, 


-<^ 


•i^- 


136 


-« 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TKIIKITOUY. 


a  Choctaw,  by  whom  he  has 
three  children,  one  of  whom  is 
living,  named  Cornelia,  born  in 
1887. 

Mr.  Hotema  has  a  small  farm 
and  a  herd  of  one  hundred  head 
of  cattle  and  two  hundred  hogs. 

The  subject  of  our  sketch  be- 
longs to  the  Ok-la-han-nali  clan, 
and  is  a  full-blood.  He  has  had 
a  fine  education,  classical  as  well 
as  English,  and  is  one  of  the 
best  speakers  in  the  Choctaw  leg- 
islature. He  is  also  a  man  of 
excellent  moral  character,  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Presbyterian  church, 
and  a  kind,  good  neighbor. 


^- 


S.  A.  COXXOR.M.D. 
Dr.  Connor  was  born  in  Kosci- 
usko county,  Mississippi,  in  1858; 
graduated  at  the  Louisville  Med- 
ical College  in  February,  1881, 
and  commenced  the  practice  of 
medicine  in  his  own  county.  In 
1883  he  moved  to  Texas,  where 
he  remained  but  a  short  time, 
coming  to  Savanna,  Choctaw 
Nation,  and  in  six  months  after- 
ward was  appointed  surgeon  and 
physician  for  the  Atoka  Coal 
Mining  Co.  He  occupied  this 
position  most  successfully  until 
1887,  when  the  great  mining  ex- 
plosion broke  up  the  camp  and 
forced  the  company  to  fields  fur- 
ther south.     Taking  up  the  same 


position  at  Lehigh,  Dr.  Connor 
is  now  enjoying  a  large  practice 
and  has  gained  the  confidence  of 
all  classes,  professionally  and 
otherwise.  In  1886  he  married 
Lelia  Smith,  of  Sherman,  Texas, 
but  unfortunately  lost  his  wife 
before  he  was  married  a  year. 
Dr.  Connor  is  the  fifth  son  of 


S.   A.  CONNOR,  M.  D, 

Dr.  B.  J.  Connor,  who  was  an 
extensive  practitioner  before  the 
war,  but  who  has  recently  de- 
voted his  attention  to  stock-rais- 
ing and  agricultui-e. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  is  a 
gentleman  of  refinement,  of 
good,  sound  sense,  and  warmly 
devoted  to  his  profession,  which 
he  rightly  judges  to  be  the  noblest 
of  all  callings. 


-* 


^- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


137 


-* 


ALONZO  J.  HARRINS. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  in  I860 
in  Atoka  county,  Choctaw  Na- 
tion. He  went  to  the  neighbor- 
hood school,  after  which  he  as- 
sisted his  father,  Henry  Chiy 
Harkins,  of  Atoka  county,  in  the 


*- 


A.   J.   HAKKINS. 

stock  and  fanning  business.  He 
continued  thus  employed  until 
1882,  when  he  married  Mrs.  J. 
Harkins,  widow  of  Col.  D.  F. 
Harkins,  of  Atoka  county,  who 
was  a  Choctaw  delegate  to  Wash- 
ington, besides  holding  from 
time  to  time  many  of  the  princi- 
pal offices  in  the  Nation.  By  his 
marriage  he  has    two   children. 


one  of  whom   is   living.  La  Fay- 
ette, aged  six  years. 

After  his  marriage  Alonzo 
started  stock-raising  and  farm- 
ing, and  took  a  clerkship  with 
John  D.  Hardin,  a  merchant  of 
Atoka,  and  later  with  A.  B.  Cass, 
of  the  same  town.  Since  then 
he  has  served  in  the  McBride 
Bros,  mercantile  house  for  sev- 
eral years.  In  1887  he  pur- 
chased the  Atoka  mill  and  gin, 
then  owned  by  McBride  Bros., 
and  at  the  request  of  the  people 
of  Atoka  substituted  a  new  out- 
fit of  the  most  improved  machin- 
ery. This  business  he  ran  for 
one  season,  selling  out  to  John 
M.  Hodges  &  Co.  at  the  close  of 
the  year.  In  1889  he  went  in  as 
a  partner  in  the  general  mer- 
chandise business  with  D.  W. 
Hodges,  of  Colgate,  Choctaw 
Xation,  but  being  appointed  Na- 
tional Agent  to  fill  the  unex- 
pired term  of  Captain  Standley, 
he  sold  his  interest  to  his  partner 
in  the  same  year  and  returned  to 
Atoka,  when  he  went  again  to 
work  for  John  M.  Hodges  as  a 
clerk.  In  1889  he  was  elected 
a  member  of  the  Choctaw  Coun- 
cil. He  is  a  descendant  of  the 
Oka-la-fay-a  clan  and  a  young- 
man  of  superior  business  capac- 
ity; is  reliable,  steady  and  highly 
respected  among  all  classes.    He 


-* 


fb- 


188 


LEADEUS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


owns  a  jtrottv  residence  in  Atoka, 
three  good  farms  of  one  hundred 
and  sixty  acres  under  cultivation, 
one  hundred  head  of  stock  cat- 
tle, two  hundred  and  twenty 
acres  in  city  property,  and  a  coal 
claim  of  considerable  value. 


CHARLES  WARD. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  close  to  Red  River,  Choc- 


^- 


CHARLES   WARD. 

taw  Nation,  in  1849,  and  moved 
to  Texas  with  his  parents,  re- 
turning with  them  at  the  close  of 
tlie  war.  Education  being  diffi- 
cult to  procure  in  those  days  of 
strife,  Charles  had  little  oppor- 
tunity afi'orded    him    in  that    re- 


spect, most  of  his  learning  being 
acquired  beneath  the  parental 
roof.  In  1870  he  opened  a  farm 
and  built  a  home  close  to  Kio- 
wa, and  soon  acquired  a  small 
stock  of  cattle.  In  187-1:  he  mar- 
ried Mary  Elizabeth  Summers, 
of  Missouri,  by  whom  he  has  five 
children  living — Charles  Oliver, 
Benjamin  F.,  Mary  Elizabeth, 
Vv^illiam  Giles  and  Aaron.  In 
1889  he  held  the  office  of  Dep- 
uty County  Clerk,  and  in  1890 
was  appointed  Deputy  Sheriff  of 
Tobocksy  county. 

Mr.  Ward  is  an  elder  of  the 
Christian  church,  and  has  been 
Sunday  school  superintendent  for 
many  years.  "He  has  served  as 
a  member  of  the  petit  jury  of 
the  Moshallatubby  district,  as 
also  on  the  grand  jury  (United 
States  Courts,  Second  Division  ) 
at  South  McAlester  in  the  fall  of 
1890.  Some  years  ago,  seeing 
the  necessity  of  a  school  and 
church  house  in  his  neighbor- 
hood, he  took  the  responsibility 
upon  himself,  and  with  the  aid 
of  J.  S.  Doyle  erected  the  build- 
ing. The  school  has  since  been 
conducted  under  good  manage- 
ment, Mr.  AVard  being  the  local 
trustee.  Since  that  time  a  par- 
sonage has  been  built,  and  the 
neighborhood  is  now  in  a  thriv- 
ing condition. 


* 


*- 


OF   THE   INDIAN  TERRITORY. 


139 


Mr.  Ward  left  his  old  home  at 
one  time  and  settled  close  to 
Caddo,  in  Blue  county,  but  not 
liking  the  neighborhood,  he  soon 
after  returned  to  Tobocksy  coun- 
ty, and  settled  within  eight  miles 
of  his  old  place.  He  has  about 
one  hundred  and  twenty-five 
acres  under  cultivation,  one  hun- 
dred head  of  cattle,  one  hundred 
and  fifty  head  of  hogs,  twenty 
head  of  stock  horses,  and  a  small 
herd  of  sheep. 

Charles  is  a  brother  of  Judge 
Henry  Ward,  of  Atoka  county, 
and  like  Henry,  is  highly  es- 
teemed for  his  warm,  generous 
and  charitable  nature,  as  well  as 
for  his  strict  honesty  of  purpose 
and  truly  Christian  bearing.  Of 
these  young  men,  as  well  as 
others  of  the  family,  it  is  said 
that  a  profane  word  has  never 
yet  soiled  their  lips. 


*- 


MCREE  F.  ROBINSON. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  is  a 
son  of  Bev.  Calvin  Bobinson,  of 
Blue  county;  was  born  in  1S56, 
and  married  Lorena  Daney,  the 
daughter  of  Watson  Daney.  He 
was  educated  at  Old  Spencer,  in 
Cedar  county,  which  school  he 
attended   for  four  years.    After 


marrying  he  opened  a  farm  and 
took  charge  of  stock,  moving 
one  year  ago  to  his  present  resi- 
dence and  renting  out  the  old 
place.  In  1887  he  was  attacked 
by  a  spinal  disorder,  which  was 
mistaken    by  his    physician    for 


M  KEE  F.   ROBINSON. 

consumption,  and  for  which  he 
found  no  relief  until  he  met  a 
traveling  physician  named  Dr. 
Harteman,  who  has  since  treated 
him  with  great  success. 

Mr.  Bobinson  has  four  chil- 
dren— Coleman  D.,  Carrie  L., 
Nannie  and  Ella,  the  oldest  be- 
ing seven  and  the  youngest  one. 
He  believes  in  progressive  ac- 
tion and  is  a  Bresbyterian  in  his 
belief. 


* 


-fif 


14(1 


LKADEKS  AND  I.EADIXG  MEN 


JACKSON   F,  MCCURTAIN. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  chief  among  all  chiefs  of  the 
Choctaws,  Jackson  F.  McCur- 
tain,  was  born  in  Mississippi, 
March  4,  1830.  In  1833  he 
moved  with  his  parents  to  the 
Choctaw  Nation .  This  illustrious 


JACKSON  F.  M  CURTAIN. 

man  received  but  a  scanty  educa- 
tion, having  spent  but  two  years 
at  Spencer  Academy.  In  1859 
he  was  elected  representative  of 
his  county,  and  in  1861,  at  the 
outbreak  of  the  war,  w^as  chosen 
Captain  of  the  first  Choctaw  reg- 
iment, under  General  Cooper. 
His  valorous  behavior  throughout 
the  early  campaigns  w^as  reward- 
ed by  promotion  to  the    rank  of 


lieutenant  colonel  of  the  second 
Choctaw  batallion,  and  in  this 
capacity  he  exhibited  many  of 
the  qualities  which  mark  his 
military  genius.  At  the  end  of 
the  war  he  immediately  took  a 
prominent  position  in  National 
politics,  being  elected  to  the  Sen- 
ate in  18(36.  w^hich  office  he  held 
until  the  death  of  Chief  Garvin 
in  1880.  Being  President  of  tlie 
Senate  at  the  time  he  became 
principal  chief  to  fill  the  unex- 
pired term.  At  the  next  general 
election  McCurtain  carried  the 
country  by  an  overwhelming 
majority,  and  two  years  after 
ward  became  his  own  successor, 
thus  serving  two  terms,  and  near- 
ly half  of  a  third  term,  in  suc- 
cession. Had  not  the  hand  of 
death  deprived  the  nation  of  the 
influence  of  this  wise  and  pro- 
gressive administrator  it  is  very 
probable  that  to-day  he  would 
have  been  principal  chief,  No 
man  has  since  been  found  as  well 
fitted  to  govern  the  Choctaw 
people. 

What  Cyrus  Harris  was  to  the 
Chickasaws,  Jack  McCurtain  was 
to  the  Choctaws.  But  the  latter 
was  stronger,  more  aggressive, 
and  more  magnetic.  He  died 
at  Tuskahoma  in  1885,  leaving 
one  child  by  his  first  wife,  Maria 
Reillv,    and  six    by  his    second 


-* 


^- 


* 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TEKKITORY, 


141 


wife,  Jane  Austin,  a  sketch  of 
whose  life  will  be  found  in  this 
volume.  Mr.  McCurtain's  first 
child  is  the  present  Mrs.  Lewis 
Garvin,  the  others  are  Cornelia, 
Ligia  Ann,  Allen  Cornelius, 
Lucinda  Frances,  Ida  Norah, 
and  Lizzie  Dunlap. 

Inscribed  on  the  monument  of 
the  departed  chief  are  the  fol- 
lowing lines, 

IN  MEMORIAM. 

An  liouest  man  here  lies  at  rest 
As  e'er  God  with  his  image  blest; 
The  fi'iend  of  mau,  the  friend  of  truth; 
The  friend  of  age,  the  guide  of  youth. 
Few  liearts  like  his  with  virtue  wurmed, 
Fewliearts  with  linowledge  so  informed; 
If  there's  another  world,  he  lives  in  bliss;  — 
If  there  is  not  he  made  the  best  of  this. 


*- 


JUDGE  G.  W.  GARDNER. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  January,  18-14,  at  Little 
River,  being  the  son  of  Jeremiah 
Gardner,  who  came  to  the  Indian 
Teriitory  in  1833,  and  was  a  de- 
scendant of  the  Oka-la-hun-na-li. 
Green  attended  school  at  Arm- 
sti'ong  until  1861,  when  he  joined 
Captain  Reason  Jones'  company 
under  Colonel  Sim  Folsom.  In 
1864  he  married  Harriet  James, 
and  afterward  Arabella,  daugh- 
ter of  Daniel  Folsom.  In  1870 
he  was  appointed  Clerk  of  the 
Supreme  Court,  and  in  1872 
Clei-k  of  Blue  county,  which  office 


he  held  until  1877,  when  he  was 
appointed  County  Judge  to  fill 
the  unexpired  term  of  S.  Gardner. 
In  August,  1878,  he  was  elected 
to  the  same  oflice,  which  he  oc- 


JUUGE  G.  W.   GARDNER. 

cupied  until  1886,  when  he  was 
appointed  Clerk  of  the  Citizen- 
ship Committee,  and  one  year 
after  Recording  Secretary  of  the 
House.  In  1888  he  was  re-elect- 
ed Judge  of  his  own  county, 
which  oflice  he  still  retains,  but 
is  now  in  the  field  as  a  candidate 
for  Representative  of  Blue. 

Judge  Green  has  eight  chil- 
dren— Edward,  Daniel,  Mary, 
Robert,  Willie,  Donnie,  Bessie 
and  Jessie,  the  oldest  aged  nine- 
teen and  the  youngest  three. 


'* 


*- 


142 


* 


OK   THE   INDIAN   TEKItlTOKY 


THOMAS  K.  OAKKS. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

TiiK  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
boni  at  Goodwater,  C.  N., 
in  184(3,  where  he  also  received 
his  education.  In  18G9,  one 
year  after  leaving  School,  he 
nuirried  Miss  Emily  Duncan, 
daughter  of  Rev.  H.  A.  Duncan, 
of  Tahlequah,  Cherokee  Nation. 
His  first  wife  dying  in  child-birth 
Mr.  Oakes  married  Miss  Mar- 
garet Ervin,  in  IS 71,  in  Towsen 
county,  by  whom  he  has  five 
children.  Mrs.  Oakes  is  a  sis- 
ter of  Columbus  C.  Ervin,  of 
Doaksville,  a'very  popularjcitizen. 

The  first  public  ofiice  held  by 
Thog.  E.  Oakes  was  that  of  su- 
preme clerk,  which  he  filled  for 
six  years.  In  1882  he  was  elect- 
ed county  judge,  occupying  the 
bench  until  his  election  to  the 
House  of  Representatives  in 
1884.  In  1885  he  became  coun- 
ty judge  and  served  two  years. 
In  1888  he  was  appointed  dis- 
trict collector  of  the  third  dis- 
trict, a  position  he  now  holds. 

Thomas  E.  became  a  member 
of  the  Masonic  order  in  1883 — 
Doaksville  lodge  No.  2,  and  was 
made  worshipful  master  in  1885. 
He  is  the  owner  of  two  farms 
containing  three  hundred  and 
fifty  acres  under  cultivation,  and 
a  small   herd  of  cattle. 


•i<- 


TIIK  TWIN  CITY  TOPICS. 
A  si'icv  little  seven-column  folio 
weekly  made  its  appearance  in 
McAlester,  Choctaw  Nation,  in 
the  latter  end  of  1889  under  the 
title  of  the  Twin  City  Topics, 
bearing  at  its  masthead  the  name 
of  H.  E.  Thomas. 

The  Twin  City  Topics  unre- 
servedly espoused  the  cause  of 
the  present  administration,  al- 
though its  editor  ignores  pfirty 
feeling,  and  devotes  himself 
exclusively  to  the  Choctaw  peo- 
ple at  large.  In  November, 
1890,  Mr.  Thomas  was  enabled 
to  enlarge  his  paper  to  a  six 
column  quarto,  which  places  the 
publication  on  a  footing  with  the 
largest  weekly  in  the  Indian 
Territory.  The  circulation  of 
the  Twin  City  Topics  has  rapidly 
increased  since  the  council  meet- 
ing of  1890,  and  its  value  as  an 
advertising  organ  is  unquestion- 
able. H.  E.  Thomas  embarked 
in  journalism  in  Denisou,  Texas, 
in  1879,  where  he  established 
the  Herald-Times,  which  news- 
paper he  conducted  for  two  years. 
Some  time  afterward  he  started 
the  Siftings  at  Fort  Worth,  edit- 
ing its  columns  until  1887,  when 
he  sold  out  to  the  Southwestern 
Publishing  Co.  After  three  years 
in  the  real  estate  business  he  es- 
tablished  the  Twin  City  Topics. 


-* 


Cora  Caruth,  Wichita. 


*- 


OK   THK    INDIAN   'lERRITOKY. 


145 


-* 


MRS.  JACK  MCCURTAIN. 

[CHOUTAW.] 

As  A  model  of  her  sex,  Mrs. 
McCurtain  ranks  quite  as  high  as 
her  ilhistrioiis  husband.  She  was 
born  in  August,  1842,  at  Doaks- 
ville,  Choctaw  Nation,  the  eldest 
daughter  of  Louis  Austin,  a  full- 


MES.  JACK  m'cUKTAIN. 

blood  Choctaw  of  extraordinary 
mechanical  genius,  who,  without 
any  education,  erected  thrashing 
machines,  mills,  gins,  wagons, 
etc.,  all  of  which  he  utilized, 
when  his  home  was  far  away 
from  the  borders  of  civilization. 
Austin  also  built  a  small  tannery, 
made  leather,  and  during  leisure 
hours  manufactured  shoes  forthe 


members  of  his  family.  No  In- 
dian has  before  or  since  develop- 
ed mechanical  genius  to  such  an 
extent.  Mrs.  McCurtain^'s  mother 
was  a  Miss  Mollie  Webster,  one- 
quarter  white,  but  lacking  in  edu- 
cation. Yet  these  good  parents 
furnished  their  children  with  edu- 
cations to  fit  them  for  any  calling 
in  life.  The  subject  of  this  sketch 
went  to  school  for  eight  years. 
She  spent  five  years  at  Wheelock 
National  Academy  and  three  at 
Edgeworth's*  Seminary,  Pitts- 
burgh, Pennsylvania,  where  she 
graduated.  In  1S61  she  return- 
ed to  Doaksville  and  soon  enter- 
ed upon  the  career  of  a  teacher, 
in  which  she  was  eminently  suc- 
cessful. Some  of  the  prominent 
young  law-makers  of  to-day  re- 
member with  pleasure  their  early 
instructions  at  Miss  Austin's 
school.  In  1865  this  lad}^  mar- 
ried Hon.  Jack  McCurtain,  the 
issue  of  their  marriage  being  five 
children,  whose  names  will  be 
found  in  the  life  sketch  of  their 
illustrious  father.  Upon  tlie 
death  of  the  great  chief  his  wife 
had  a  splendid  monument  erect- 
ed to  his  memory,  which  cost 
overfour  hundred  dollars.  Mrs. 
McCurtain  is  a  lady  of  the  intel 
lectual  type,  refined  and  of  deli- 
cate sensibilities.  She  is  gentle, 
tender-hearted  and   charitable. 


*- 


-* 


*- 


146 


LEADERS  AND  LEADING  MEX 


RKNJAMIX   V.  Mt'KIXNKY. 

[CHOCTAW  AND  CHICKASAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  near 
Atoka.  Choctaw  jS^ation,  in  Sep- 
tember, 1807,  and  is  the  son  of 
the  hite  Alexander  McKinney  (a 
Cherokee  adopted  by  the  Choc- 
taws  on  his  emigration  from  Mis- 
sissippi with  that  tribe). 

Ben  was  sent  to  the  Aiken  In- 
stitute, Paris,  and  afterward  to 
the  Osage  Mission,  which  he  left 
in  November,  1883,  and  in  the 
following  month  married  Mar- 
garet Pursley,  daughter  of  Joshua 
Pursley,     of     McAlester.      The 


B.  F.  M  KINNEY. 

bride  and  bridegroom  were  aged 
respectively  sixteen  and  thirteen 


years  t)f  aged  when  united  in 
wedlock,  being  about  the  young- 
est couple  ever   married  in  the 


MRS.   M  KINNEY. 

Choctaw  Nation.  Immediately 
afterward  Ben  went  to  work  in 
dead  earnest  and  opened  a  farm 
on  Twelve-mile  Prairie,  three 
miles  from  Blue,  and  which  now 
contains  nine  hundred  acres  of 
and  in  a  condition  for  planting 
next  year.  Besides  this  he  has 
a  pasture  of  six  hundred  and 
forty  acres  and  some  three  hun- 
dred head  of  good  stock,  all  of 
wdiich  he  has  acquired  through 
energy  and  enterprise  and  the 
richness  of  the  lands,  which  have 
yielded  a  large  rental  at  the 
hands  of  a  thrifty  tenantry.    His 


* 


*- 


OF   THE   IXDIAN   TERKITORY. 


147 


* 


children,  Clara  Louisa  and  Ben 
Alexander,  are  two  and  a  half 
_^and  one  year  old,  respectively. 

Mr.  McKinney  has  never  rnn 
for  an  office  of  any  kind,  nor  is 
he  likely  to  sacrifice  his  peaceful 
and  prosperous  career  by  em- 
barking in  politics.  He  is,  how- 
ever, a  member  of  the  Progres- 
sive party  and  will  continue  to 
vote  the  straight  ticket. 


*- 


J.  L.  WARD. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  Weatherford,  Parker 
county,  Texas,  in  1861,  being 
the  son  of  Joseph  Ward,  of  New 
Jersey,  who  served  as  a  Captain 
in  the  Union  army  during  the 
war.  The  subject  of  this  sketch 
moved  with  his  family  to  the  In- 
dian Territory  when  quite  a  child, 
and  was  educated  at  a  public 
school  until  1870,  after  which  he 
received  private  tuition  for  fully 
ten  years. 

In  1880  he  commenced  stock 
raising,  and  three  years  after- 
ward married  Lettie  Simmons,  an 
English  girl,  whom  he  met  with 
in  Atoka  county.  By  this  mar- 
riage he  has  four  children  living: 
Colman  James,  Lucy  Elizabeth, 
David  Robb,  and  Joseph  Henry. 


In  1890  Mr.  Ward  was  appoint- 
ed on  the  Indian  Police.  He 
has  one  hundred  and  fifty  acres 
of  good  farm  land,  one  hundred 
and  thirty  of  which  is  under  cul- 
tivation, besides  two  hundred 
head    of    stock    cattle.      He    is 


a  brother  of  Judge  Henry  Ward, 
late  Senator  of  the  second  dis- 
trict, while  his  second  brother, 
William,  has  recently  been  elect- 
ed as  representative  of  the  third 
district  of  the  Choctaw  Nation. 
Joseph  Ward  is  a  young  man 
of  excellent  business  qualifica- 
tions, is  energetic,  ambitious, 
and  persevering.  These  traits  are 
sufficient  to  suggest  great  possi- 
bilities for  his  future  career. 


-* 


148 


LKADKItS    AND    LEADING   MEN 


p:lias  rector  ciikadlk. 

[  CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  tliis  sketch  was 
born  in  Gaines  County,  Choctaw 
Nation,  in  1S59,  and  attended 
the  neighborhood  school  until 
the  age  of  twenty-one  years.  He 
is  the  third  son  of  the  late  James 
Steward  Cheadle,  wlio  was  Coun- 
ty Judge  of  Coal  county,  Choc- 
taw Nation,  and  District  Judge 
of  the  Chickasaw  Nation  for  one 
term. 

Rector  married  Mary  Harkins 
in  1889.  She  is  a  daughter  of 
Col.  G.  W.  Harkins,  of  Chicka- 


E.   R.  CHEADLE. 


*- 


saw     fame.     Mrs.     Cheadle,     a 
beautiful  and  accomplished  young 


ladv,   died    in  less   than    half  a 
year  after  her  marriao;e.      * 


>IKS.  CHEADLE. 

Mr.  Cheadle  was  admitted  to 
the  bar  in  1890,  and  being  a 
very  brilliant  young  man,  has 
undoubtedly  a  bright  career  be- 
fore him.  He  is  an  old  Mason 
for  so  young  a  man,  and  has 
held  the  office  o^  Secretary  of 
South  Canadian  Lodge,  No.  22, 
for  quite  a  length  of  time.  He 
owns  one  thousand  and  fifty 
acres  of  farm  land,  four  hundred 
and  fifty  acres  of  which  are 
under  cultivation;  also  four  hun- 
dred head  of  stock  cattle,  seven- 
ty-five head  of  horses  and  mules, 
and  two  hundred  head  of  hogs. 
Besides  these  he  holds  one-third 


-* 


*- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


149 


-* 


interest  in  four  rich  coal  claims 
on  the  M.,  K.  &  T.  Kailroad. 

On  his  mother^s  side  Mr.  Chea- 
dle  belongs  to  the  Oka-la-fa-lay-a 
clan,  while  his  father  was  a 
Chickasaw  of  the  house  of  Cush- 
ke-re. 

When  only  eight  years  of  age 
the  late  Mrs.  Cheadle  went  to 
Bloomfield  Academy.  At  the 
expiration  of  her  school  career 
in  1885,  at  the  age  of  sixteen, 
she  was  appointed  music  teacher 
by  the  superintendent  at  that 
institution,  and  three  years  after- 
ward held  the  same  position  in 
the  Chickasaw  Male  Academy, 
until  she  married  Elias  Rector 
Cheadle,  of  South  Canadian. 
She  was  remarkable  not  only  for 
her  amiable  disposition  and  re- 
finement of  manner,  but  for  her 
many  natural  talents.  She  was 
an  excellent  musician  and  an 
artist  with  both  pencil  and  brush. 
She  died  May  26,  1889,  four 
months  after  her  marriage. 


*- 


DAVID  BOHANNON. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

David  was  born  in  Blue  county 
in  1860,  the  son  of  Ed.  Bohan- 
non.  His  mother's  name  was 
Lucy  A.  Robinson,  of  the  Hyah- 
pah-tuk-kalo.  After  preparatory 
education    in    a    neighborhood 


school,  David  went  to  Spencer 
Academy  in  1872,  where  he  re- 
mained for  two  years.  His  father 
dying  while  he  was  a  boy,  he 
lived  with  his  mother  and  work- 
ed for  some  years  on  a  cattle 
ranch. 
In  1887  he  was  appointed  dep- 


uty sheriff  and  the  following  year 
was  placed  on  the  Indian  Police. 
On  the  establishment  of  the 
Paris  Federal  court,  he  was  ap- 
pointed deputy  United  States 
Marshal  under  R.  B.  Regan.  In 
1888  he  ran  against  Levi  Gar- 
land for  sheriff  of  Blue  county, 
and  missed  it  by  only  seven  votes. 
Mr.  Bohannon  owns  nine  hun- 
dred acres    of    good  land,   two 


-* 


fi^ 


-* 


1.50 


LEADKliS   AND    LEADING   MEN 


liu!i(lrc'(l  and  tweiity-live  of  which 
is  lunler  cultivation,  lie  has  also 
11  small  stock  of  cattle.  In  1885 
he  married  Miss  Sarah  Atkinson, 
a  yoiihiii;  hidy  from  Mississippi, 
bv  whom  he  has  had  but  one 
child,  which  died  shortly  after 
birth.  J\lr.  Bohannon  is  one  of 
the  best  otticers  in  the  Territory, 
and  is  respected  and  liked  by 
all  who  know  him. 


THOS.  P.  HOWELL,  M.D. 

[  CHOCTAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  at  Ea- 
gletown,    L,   T.,   in    1849,    and 


THOS.  r.  HOWELL,  M.  D. 

is  the  son  of  Calvin  H.  Howell, 
of  Mississippi,  of  the  Hyali-pah- 
tuk-kalo  clan.      He  was  educated 


at  Cumberland  L^iiiversity,  Leb- 
anon, Tennessee,  and  graduated 
in  medicine  at  the  Maryland 
University,  Baltimore,  in  1872. 
In  1873  he  came  to  Atoka,  Choc- 
taw Nation,  and  entered  into 
partnership  with  Dr.  I.  AV.  Fol- 
som;  after  which  he  moved  to 
Paul's  Valley,  Chickasaw  Na- 
tion, and  after  twelve  months' 
practice  made  his  home  at  Wash- 
ita, near  old  Fort  Arbuckle.  In 
1875  he  married  Lizzie  J.,  the 
daughter  of  Thomas  Grant. 

Dr.  Howell  holds  two  thou- 
sand five  hundred  head  of  cattle 
and  has  eight  hundred  acres  under 
cultivation,  so  that  he  gives  em- 
ployment to  some  twenty  men. 
Besides  this  he  has  a  lucrative 
professional  practice.  He  is  at 
present  a  candidate  for  the  honor 
of  representing  Pickins  county  in 
the  Choctaw  Legislature  on  the 
Progressive  ticket.  He  is  de- 
servedly one  of  the  most  popular 
men  in  the  Chickasaw  Nation. 


CORNELIUS  JONES. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  Kiamichi  county  in  1835, 
and  attended  the  neighborhood 
school  for  two  years.  He  en- 
gaged in  farming  and  stock-rais- 
ing for  himself  while  yet  a  young 


*- 


-* 


>h- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


151 


<i<- 


raan  till  the  breaking  out  of  the 
war,  when  he  joined  General 
Cooper's  command.  In  1860  he 
married  Miss  M.  Battise,  by 
whom  he  had  one  boy  named 
Sydney,  who  died  in  1875.  His 
wife  lived  but  three  years  after 
their  union.  In  1856  he  mar- 
ried Miss  W.  Hayes,  daughter  of 
Jack  Hayes,  a  Choctaw,  who 
died  without  issue  in  1871. 
Mr.  Jones  married  his  third  wife 
in  1874,  Miss  Nancy  Pickens, 
daughter  of  Hon.  Ben  Pickens, 
an  influential  man  among  the 
Choctaws,  having  held  some  of 
the  principal  offices  in  the  Na- 
tion. The  issue  of  this  marriage 
is  two  livi-ng  children,  Caroline 
and  Josiah.  His  wife  dying  in 
1876,  Mr.  Jones  was  united  in 
marriage  to  Miss  S.  La  Flore, 
daughter  of  Adam  La  Flore,  in 
1887. 

Cornelius  was  appointed  Cap- 
tain of  the  Choctaw  Light  Horse 
in  1884,  and  held  the  position 
two  years.  In  1887  he  was  elect- 
Sergeant-at-Arms  for  both  houses 
of  the  Legislature,  and  the  fol- 
lowing year  represented  Blue 
county  in  the  lower  house. 

Mr.  Jones  is  the  owner  of  two 
hundred  head  of  stock  cattle, 
seventy-five  head  of  horses,  one 
hundred  and  fifty  head  of  hogs, 
and  a  good  home,  with  one  hun- 


dred and  fifty  acres  under  culti- 
vation. He  belongs  to  the 
Kooncha  clan,  and  is  popular 
and  very  highly  respected  by  his 
people. 


H.  B.  ROWLEY. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born    in    Sturgis,    Michigan,    in 


:.  ■^■J^'^Si^'ST^v^"?':^'^^^^*^ 


H.  B.   ROWLEV. 

1859,  and  attended  public  school 
until  1877.  Shortly  after  this 
he  acquired  the  art  of  telegraphy, 
and  was  employed  by  different 
railroad  companies  for  fourteen 
or  fifteen  years,  during  which 
time  he  held  some  responsible  po- 
sitions. In  1890  he  was  appoint- 
ed cashier  for  the  Choctaw  Coal 


-•H 


152 


LEAUEKS   AND   LEADING   3IEN 


and  liiiilroad  Co.  In  188-i  he 
married  Czarina  Ward,  sister  of 
Henry  Ward,  Representative  for 
Atoka  county,  a  young  lady  of 
remarkable  refinement  and  pleas- 
ing disposition,  who  unfortu- 
nately died  within  two  years  af- 
ter their  marriage,  leaving  one 
child.  Harry  G.,  who  is  five  years 
old. 

Mr.  Rowley  has  one  hundred 
and  seventy  acres  of  farm  land 
and  one  hundred  and  fifty  head 
of  stock  cattle.  He  is  a  young 
man  of  great  energy  and  ambi- 
tion, and  is  favorably  looked 
upon  by  the  whole  community. 
He  has  one  of  the  finest  rock 
residences  in  the  country,  which 
was  completed  in  1886  by  his 
uncle,  H.  O.  Tuttle,  of  Sturgis, 
while  on  a  visit  to  his  nephew  at 
Kiowa,  Indian  Territory. 


•3?- 


JAMES  S.  CHEADLE. 

[  CHOCTAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  July  7, 
1830  in  Mississippi,  and  moved 
to  the  Choctaw  Nation  with  the 
Chickasaws  in  1836.  In  1852 
he  married  Susan  Riddle,  the 
daughter  of  Capt.  John  Riddle. 
Captain  Riddle  was  very  influen- 
tial and  stood  high  with  his  peo- 
ple. James  S.  Cheadle  was  the 
father  of  six  children,  three  boys 
and  three  girls,  namely:  Sophro- 


nia  E.,  Douglas  C,  Amos,  Al- 
media,  Elias  Rector  and  Susan 
Cheadle.  Rector  is  the  only  sur- 
vivor of  his  fathers  family. 

James  Cheadle  was  Circuit 
Judge  of  the  Chickasaw  Nation 
one  term  and  was  County  Judge 


JAMES  STEWARD  CHEADLE. 

of  Tobocksy,  Choctaw  Nation, 
for  several  terms.  He  was  also 
appointed  a  commissioner  on  the 
part  of  the  Choctaws  to  meet  and 
treat  with  the  Chickasaws  on  cer- 
tain occasions  of  great  import- 
ance. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  is 
highly  respected  by  his  people, 
and  especially  noted  for  his  fair 
and  liberal  dealings  with  all  he 
came  in    contact;    therefore  he 


-* 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


153 


-* 


had  many  friends.  The  greater 
part  of  his  life  was  devoted  to 
stock-raising  and  farming.  He 
died  October  1,  1876,  sincerely 
and  deservedly  regretted. 


HENRY  PERKINS. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  Blue  county  in  Decem- 
ber, 1841,  being  the  oldest  sou 
of  Judge  David  Perkins,  of  the 
Hyah-pah-tuk-kalo  clan,  and  his 
mother  being  of  the  Lucas  fam- 


*- 


HENRY  PERKINS. 

ily.  While  quite  young  he  was 
a  member  of  the  Light  Horse, 
and  in  1852  was  appointed 
County  Judge    of    Blue   county, 


being  re-elected  to  the  same  office 
in  1886.  Li  1874  he  was  a 
Representative  at  the  Council. 

David  Perkins  was  a  dfevoted 
Christian,  a  member  of  the  old 
school  Presbyterians,  and  an 
elder  in  that  church  at  the  time 
of  his  death  in  1886. 

Henry  Perkins  was  educated 
at  a  neighborhood  school,  and 
did  not  learn  to  speak  English 
until  he  came  in  contact  with  his 
renters  and  farm  hands.  He 
married  Mary  Fry,  a  Choctaw, 
by  whom  he  had  no  children. 
After  her  death  he  was  united  in 
matrimony  to  Emily  Hampton, 
the  issue  of  their  marriage  being 
two  children,  Alice  and  Edia. 
On  the  death  of  his  second  wife 
he  married  a  Miss  Ramsey,  by 
whom  he  has  no  family. 

Mr.  Perkins  joined  Sim  Fol- 
som's  regiment  in  1862,  and  was 
orderly  sergeant  of  Company  J 
during  the  latter  part  of  the  war. 
In  1865  he  commenced  farming 
and  stock-raising.  In  1867  he 
was  appointed  Judge  of  Elec- 
tion, which  office  he  still  holds. 
He  also  held  the  office  of  Deputy 
Sherifl'for  seven  years  and  Coun- 
ty Clerk  for  three  terms.  He  is 
a  man  of  excellent  sense,  honest 
and  good-natured,  and  is  well 
thought  of  throughout  the  entire 
count  rv. 


Hi 


^ 


154 


LEADKKS   AND    LEADING   HEN' 


-^ 


DAVIS  A.  HOMER. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  was  born  at 
Goodlaiid.  Choctaw  jS'atioii,  in 
1862.  and  attended  neighborhood 
school  for  three  3'ears.  In  1872 
he  was  phiced  at  Spencer 
Academy    and    there    remained 


DAVIS   A.    HOMER. 

seven  years,  completing  his  edu- 
cation in  1879.  Davis  niider- 
went  an  examination  before  the 
Choctaw  National  school  board 
and  engaged  teaching  in  the  pub- 
lic schools  for  a  period  of  four 
years  at  different  places.  In 
1883  he  commenced  the  studv  of 


law,  and  in  the  following  year 
began  practicing  in  the  Choctaw 
courts,  and  some  years  later  be- 
came a  licensed  practitioner  in 
the  United  States  courts.  His 
first  National  office  was  that  of 
county  ranger,  to  which  he  was 
appointed  in  1882.  In  1885  he 
became  county  clerk,  and  in  1887 
was  elected  district  attorney  and 
re-elected  in  1890. 

Davis  Homer  is  the  son  of 
Aaron  Homer,  deceased,  who  at 
the  time  of  his  death,  in  1884, 
was  member  of  the  general  coun- 
cil. He  was  a  full-blood  Choc- 
taw, belonging  to  the  Okla-fa- 
lay-a  clan.  His  mother  was 
about  one-quarter  white.  Davis 
niarried  Miss  Selina  Hayes  in 
1883,  by  whom  he  has  three 
children:  Mary,  Dorah  and 
Aaron.  He  is  the  owner  of  two 
hundred  and  twentv  acres  of  land 
under  fence,  one  hundred  and 
thirty  of  which  is  under  cultiva- 
tion, the  remainder  in  pasture. 
He  has  also  one  hundred  and 
fifty  head  of  cattle  and  five  un- 
developed coal  dims.  Davis 
Homer  is  a  cheerful,  intelligent 
go  ahead  young  man,  with  plenty 
of  pluck  and  ambition,  and  with- 
out doubt  is  among  the  best  of 
the  young  lawyers  now  forging 
to  the  front. 


*- 


-* 


^- 


-f^ 


OV   THK   INDIAN   'J'ERRITOKY. 


loo 


J.  MCRINNEY  COBB. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

Tins  gentleman  was  born  near 
Doaksville  in  1846,  being  a  son 
of  James  Cobb,  His  education 
was  completed  at  Spencer  Acad- 
emy. In  1871  he  married  Jane 
Chiglej,  sister   of  Hon.  Xelsoii 


^ 


J.   m'kINNEY   COBB. 

Cbigley.  Owing  to  an  unfortu- 
nate affair,  which  ended  fatally 
for  an  acquaintance  of  his,  Mr. 
Cobb  left  the  Choctaw  Xation  in 
1870  and  settled  on  the  Washita 
near  Dougherty,  where  he  now 
resides.  The  event  referred  to 
was  the  death  of  Jobe  Wilson, 
after  a  "-ball  pi  a  \',"  eight  miles 
west  of    Boggy  Depot,    on   the 


night  of  June  2,  1877,  Mr.  Cobb 
being  obliged  to  shoot  him  in 
self-defense.  The  case  was  tried 
by  Justice  Vinson  at  the  Push- 
ma-ta-ha  court  grounds  in  Au- 
gust, 1886,  and  dismissed. 

Mr.  Cobb  served  actively  in 
the  Choctaw  brigade  throughout 
the  war.  In  1869  he  was  elect- 
ed Sheriff  of  Kiamichi  county, 
Choctaw  Nation,  and  in  the  fol- 
lowing year,  on  his  removal  to 
the  Chickasaw  country,  he  was 
elected  a  member  of  the  House 
of  Representatives,  which  office 
he  held  three  years.  In  1889 
be  became  Permit  Collector,  and 
still  holds  that  position. 


THE  INDIAX  CITIZEN. 

Published  at  Atoka,  Choctaw 
Nation,  Indian  Territory,  by  J, 
S,  Standley  &  B.  S.  Smiser.  The 
style  of  this  firm  is  "Indian 
Citizen  Pub,  Co,,"  successor  to 
the  Atoka  Independent  and  the 
Lehigh  News, 

The  first  issue  of  the  Indian 
Citizen  was  circulated  March  2, 
1 889,  It  now  has  over  one  thou- 
sand circulation,  a  well-fitted 
office  for  any  kind  of  work  in 
the  printing  line,  and  its  circula- 
tion is  rapidly  increasing.  It 
has  just  finished  the  publication 


-* 


*- 


-•i« 


156 


LiSADERS   AND   LEADIXG   >IEX 


of  tlie  Revised  Laws  of  the 
Chickasaw  Nation,  both  in  the 
English  and  the  native  language, 
the  former  consisting  of  350 
pages  and  the  latter  400. 

Its  location  is  central  in  the 
Choctaw  Nation,  and  is  destined 
to  continue  one  of  the  leading 
journals  of  the  Nation. 


ROBERT  CROWDER. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of   this   sketch    was 
born  in  Mississippi  in  1842,  and 


•it- 


emigrated  with  the  Choctaws  to 
this  country,    settling    with    his 


parents  in  Kiamichi  county.  At 
the  age  of  twenty-one  he  mar- 
ried Louisa,  eldest  daughter  of 
William  Pitchlyn,  delegate  to 
Washington.  The  issue  of  this 
marriage  was  one  girl,  named 
Alice,  born  in  18SG.  Robert 
married  his  present  wife  at  Skul- 
iyville  county,  where  he  lived  for 
two  years.  Moving  back  to 
Kiamichi  county  he  commenced 
stock  raising,  and  was  appointed 
deputy  sheriff,  which  office  he 
retained  for  two  years. 

In  1874,  on  the  death  of  Wil- 
liam Riddles,  in  Gaines  county, 
he  adopted  his  two  orphan  chil- 
dren, Peter  and  Almitia. 

He  has  a  farm  of  five  hundred 
acres,  one  hundred  of  which  is 
under  cultivation.  Besides  this 
he  is  the  owner  of  three  hun- 
dred head  of  cattle,  thirty  head 
of  horses  and  four  hundred  head 
of  hogs.  He  also  owns  three 
good  coal  claims,  and  will  have 
the  Choctaw  R.  R.  Company 
passing  through  his  place  in  a 
few  months.  Mr.  Crowder  is  a 
sensible,  industrious  citizen,  and 
has  made  himself  a  substantial 
and  comfortable  home  at  Gar- 
rets Bluff.  During  the  late  war 
he  served  under  Capt.  Sim  Fol- 
som,  second  Choctaw  regiment, 
for  two  years. 


-* 


*- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERKITORY. 


157 


-^ 


JOSEPH  S.  NALE. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

Mr.  Nale  was  born  in  Gaines 
county,  Choctaw  Nation,  in  1858, 
and  attended  a  neighborhood 
school  until  1878,  when  he  went 
to  stock  raising  and  farming. 
He  is  the  eldest  son  of  Ben  Nale 


J.  S.  NALE. 

and  Margaret  Riddle,  both  Choc- 
taws  of  the  clan  of  Ok-la-fa-lay-a. 
He  was  appointed  on  tlie  Indian 
Police  in  June,  1885,  and  in 
August,  1886,  as  Sheriff  of  To- 
bocksj  county,  and  again  in  1800. 
In  1885  he  married  Miss  Vicey 
Smith,  a  Choctaw.  The  issue  of 
this  marriage  was  one  child,  born 
October,  1889,  named  Sephronia. 


Joseph  S.  Kale  is  a  cousin  of 
Joel  Nale,  an  extensive  stock- 
man, and  is  considered  one  of 
the  best  officers  that  ever  filled 
an  office  in  his  county.  He  is 
diligent,  straightforward  and  re- 
liable, and  is  very  popular  with 
citizens  and  non-citizens.  He  is 
the  possessor  of  a  good  farm  of 
one  hundred  and  fifteen  acres, 
all  of  which  is  under  cultivation; 
one  hundred  head  of  stock  cat- 
tle, thirty  head  of  horses  and  po- 
nies, and  one  hundred  and  fifty 
head  of  hogs. 


ALBERT  P.  FOLSOM. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  in 
Skullyville  county  in  December, 
1866,  and  attended  the  neigh- 
borhood school  till  fifteen  years 
of  age,  completing  his  education 
at  Booneville,  Missouri,  in  1885. 
He  then  went  to  live  with  his 
guardian.  Turner  Daniels,  one 
year  (his  father  having  died  in 
1873  and  his  mother  in  1876). 
In  July,  1887,  he  was  united  in 
marriage  to  Susan  K.  Brashiers, 
fourth  daughter  of  Judge  Turner 
Brashiers,  a  man  of  considerable 
note.  The  issue  of  this  marriage 
is  Cladius  Conrad,  born  Febru- 
ary 8,  1890. 

In  1888  Mr.  Folsom  was  elect- 
ed Representative  of  Skullyville 


-* 


*- 


158 


LEADERS   AND   LEADING   2HEN 


comity,  and  re-elected  in  1880 
and  1890.  He  is  about  the 
youngest  man  wlio  has  ever  be- 
come a  member  of  the  Choctaw 
Council,  and  still  continues  the 
junior  member  of  the  House. 
He  is,  however,  by  no  means  be- 
hind his  brother  membeis,  evinc- 
ing more  than  ordinary  talent. 
The  very  fact  of  his  election 
three  times  in  succession  is  evi- 
dence of  his  ability  as  a  legisla- 
tor. He  has  also  a  good  com- 
mercial education,  a  pleasing 
address,  and  is  popular  every- 
where. His  father  was  the  son  of 
Col.  David  Folsom,  at  one  time 
First  Chief  of  the  Choctaws  and 
a  member  of  the  Hyah-pah-tuk- 
kalo  clan. 

The  subject  of  our  sketch  has 
a  nice  farm,  a  small  herd  of  cat- 
tle and  hogs,  and  some  excellent 
horses.  He  is  comfortably  situ- 
ated, and  will  no  doubt  event- 
ually become  a  leading  man. 


HENRY  BYINGTON. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  January  7,  1851;  son  of 
Cyrus  Byington,  of  Blue  county, 
and  grandson  of  Nitakeche,  chief 
of  the  Kooncba  clan  of  Choc- 
taws. Henry  was  educated  at 
Armstrong  Academy  and  La- 
donia,     Texas,    after    which    he 


clerked  for  Wilson  Jones  at 
Caddo,  for  five  years.  In  1883, 
under  Judge  L.  S.  W.  Folsom, 
he  was  appointed  clerk  of  the 
circuit  court,  since  which  he  has 
been   deputy  county  clerk  under 


HENKY  BYINGTON. 

Judge  Green  Gardner.  Mr.  By- 
ington has  recently  taken  out 
license  to  practice  law  in  the 
courts  of  the  Choctaw  Nation. 
He  is  now  farming  and  has  three 
hundred  and  twenty  acres  under 
fence.  His  wife's  maiden  name 
wasLorenaMosely,  by  whom  he 
has  two  sons,  Cyrus,  aged  eigh- 
teen; and  Richard,  four  years. 
In  his  possession  are  a  large  sil- 
ver medal  and  a  sword  stick  pre- 
sented to  his  grandfather,  Nita- 
keche,  by  Andrew  Jackson. 


Ko-mul-tali,  Kiowa. 


OF  THE   INDIAN  TERRITORY. 


161 


-* 


HON.  W.  W.HAMPTON. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  president  of  the  Choctaw 
Senate  was  born  in  Mississippi, 
January,  1841,  and  emigrated  in 
1849  to  Bok-tuk-kalo  county, 
Choctaw  Nation,  with  his  father, 
Nicholas    Hampton.      In    1862 


*- 


HON.    W.    W.   HAMPTON. 

William  joined  the  second  Choc- 
taw regiment,  under  Col.  Samson 
Folsom,  and  remained  in  the 
service  until  1865.  The  follow- 
ing year  he  moved  to  Bennington 
and  married  Susan,  daughter  of 
Adam  La  Flore.  His  first  ofiico 
was  that  of  county  clerk  in  1860, 
which  office  he  again  held  at  the 
termination  of  the  war.    In  1 


and  '69  he  was  appointed  clerk 
of  the  circuit  court  under  Judge 
Loring  S.  Fulsom,  He  was 
elected  sergeant-at-arms  for  both 
houses  at  the  council  of  1867. 
In  1871  journalist  for  the  Senate, 
and  in  1873  and  '74  he  served 
two  terms  as  representative  of 
Blue  county  in  the  lower  House. 
In  1875  he  was  commissioned  as 
a  member  of  the  committee  on 
the  court  of  claims.  In  1884  he 
was  appointed  clerk  of  the  su- 
preme court,  and  at  the  expira- 
tion of  that  term  he  became  pros- 
ecuting attorney  for  the  Pushma- 
taha district.  In  1886  he  was 
elected  to  the  upper  House,  and 
two  years  afterward  became  pres- 
ident of  the  Senate,  which  office 
he  still  occupies. 

Mr.  Hampton  has  two  children : 
John,  aged  eighteen  years-;  and 
Elizabeth,  married  to  Solomon 
Mackay,  He  owns  a  large  farm 
and  ranch,  his  private  house 
being  one  of  the  handsomest  in 
Blue  county. 


GEORGE  A.  PATE. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

Mr.  Pate  w'as  born  in  Carroll 
county,  Mississippi,  in  February, 
1854;  was  educated  at  Somerville 
Institute,  Noxabee  county,  Mis- 
sissippi, and  in  1874  married 
Miss  Maggie  A.   McMath.     He 


i"- 


-* 


IG: 


l.KADKKS   AND    LEADING   ISIEN 


has  one  child  as  the  issue  of  that 
marriage.  His  wife  died  in  1884. 
He  was  married  again,  in  1885, 
to  a  daughter  of  J.  L.  C.  Pate, 
by  whom  he  has  tliree  children. 
He  was  quite  a  prominent  poli- 
tician in  the  State  of  Mississippi, 


G.  A.  PATE. 

and  resigned  the  office  of  County 
Judge  w^hen  he  left  there.  In 
1885  he  moved  to  the  Choctaw 
Nation,  where  he  was  adopted 
by  the  Choctaw  Council  in  the 
same  year.  He  has  been  a  farm- 
er and  stock-raiser  since  living 
in  the  Choctaw  Nation  till  the 
spring  of  1890,  when  he  com- 
menced the  practice  of  law  in 
Atoka  with  Mr.  A.  Telle,  under 


the  firm  name  of  Telle  &  Pate. 
He  is  a  young  man  of  great 
promise,  a  deacon  in  the  Chris- 
tian church  at  Atoka,  and  very 
popular. 


JOSEPH  B.  THOMPSON. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  in  Ce- 
dar county,  December,  1861,  ed- 
ucated at  Spencer  Academy,  C. 
N.  ,and  Mount  Harmon  Institute, 
Northfield,  completing  his  edu- 
cation at  Roanoke  College,  Sa- 
lem, Virginia,  where  he  remain- 
ed until  1886.  Joseph  com- 
menced his  career  by  school 
teaching,  and  was  appointed 
county  clerk  of  Cedar  county  in 

1889.  The  year  following  he 
was  elected  representative  to  the 
lower  House. 

The  subject  ot  this  sketch  mar- 
ried Miss  Betsey  Ann  Tims,  part 
Choctaw,  by  whom  he  has  one 
child,  Alexander,  born  in  March, 

1890.  Mr.  Thompson  is  the  son 
of  Key.  John  Thompson,  who 
has  been  a  Presbyterian  minister 
for  the  past  twenty  years  in  Ce- 
dar county.  Joseph  is  a  young 
man  of  great  ambition,  and  is 
one  of  the  youngest  members  of 
the  legislature.  He  has  a  small 
farm  of  twenty  acres  under  culti- 
vation and  a  comfortable  home. 


*- 


-* 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


163 


-^. 


HENRY  C.  HARRIS. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

This  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  Eagle  county,  Choctaw 
Nation,  July  14,  1837,  and  edu- 
cated at  a  private  school  until 
1856,  after  which  he  went  to 
Armstrong  Academy,  one  of  the 


*- 


HENRY  C.   HARRIS. 

national  institutions.  At  the  out- 
break of  the  war  he  joined  the 
Confederate  army,  where  he 
served  three  years  as  a  regular 
soldier  and  courier  in  the  quar- 
termaster's department.  Receiv- 
ing his  discharge  owing  to  ill- 
health,  he  returned  to  Red  River 
county  and  engaged  in  farming 
and  raising  stock.      On  January 


1,  1863,  he  married  Maggie  Lee, 
daughter  of  William  Lee,  of  Ar- 
kansas. By  this  union  he  has 
five  living  children — James  W., 
Walter  C,  Bent  S. ,  Laura  B. 
and  JMattie  J. 

In  1868  Mr.  Harris  was  elect- 
ed representative  of  his  county, 
and  served  creditably  for  six 
years.  In  1880  he  was  appoint- 
ed by  Gov.  Jack  McCurtain  as 
district  collector,  which  position 
he  filled  for  four  years.  He  was 
re-appointed  in  188-1,  during 
Edmond  McCurtain's  adminis- 
tration, and  in  1886  received  the 
appointment  of  lumber  inspector 
and  collector.  In  1888  he  was 
chosen  as  supreme  judge  to  fill 
the  unexpired  term  of  A.  R.  Du- 
rant,  and  in  1889  was  appointed 
district  school  trustee  in  place  of 
Thos.  Barington,  whose  term  was 
unexpired.  In  November  of  the 
same  year  he  was  chosen  dele- 
gate to  negotiate  with  the  United 
States  commissioners  for  the  sale 
of  the  lease  lands  west  of  ninety- 
eight;  and  in  December  of  the 
same  year  was  appointed  dele- 
gate to  Washington  with  the 
same  object,  which  office  he  still 
holds. 

Mr.  Harris  has  a  comfortable 
home  at  Harris'  Ferry,  on  Red 
River,  where  he  owns  four  hun- 
dred   acres  of    rich    land   under 


-* 


*- 


164 


LEADERS  AXD  LEADING  MEN 


cultivation,  one  hundred  and 
fifty  head  of  stock  cattle,  thirty 
head  of  horses,  and  four  hundred 
head  of  hogs.  He  also  owns  a 
grist  mill,  saw  mill  and  cotton 
gin,  and  a  coal  claim  on  the 
'Frisco  railroad,  which  is  now 
being  developed. 

Henry  Harris  is  about  one- 
sixteenth  Choctaw,  a  nephew  of 
the  illustrious  old  chief,  Peter 
P.  Pitchlyn,  and  a  man  of  much 
influence  and  greatly  respected 
by  all  classes  of  people.  He  is 
thoroughly  practical  in  his  views 
and  honorable  in  his  business 
transactions. 

Mr.  Harris  is  one  of  the  oldest 
Masons  in  the  Choctaw  Nation. 


JOSEPH  GARLAND, 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  Towsen  county  in  1836, 
and  was  placed  at  a  neighbor- 
hood school  until  1848,  after 
which  he  went  to  IsTorwalk  Acad- 
emy, where  he  remained  until 
1852. 

The  first  office  held  by  Joseph 
Garland  was  that  of  sheriff,  to 
which  he  was  elected  in  1856, 
^und  held  until  the  breaking  out 
of  the  year.  In  1859  he  married 
Miss  M.  Harrisson,  daughter  of 
William  Harrisson,  a   Choctaw, 


by  whom  he  had  eight  children, 
four  of  whom  are  living — Lo- 
rena,  William  G. ,  Joe  R.  N.  and 
Frank.  In  1860  he  joined  the 
Confederate  army  under  Gen- 
eral Cooper  in  the  capacity  of 
sergeant  of  his  company,  and  in 


JOSEPH  GARLAND. 

1865  was    elected    captain.     In 

1866  he  became  county  judge, 
and  held  the  office  till  his  resig- 
nation in  1868,  when  he  moved 
to  his  present  home  in  Sans  Bois 
county.  On  arriving  there  he 
was  immediately  appointed  coun- 
ty judge  to  fill  an  unexpired 
term,  and  re-elected  in  1870. 
In  18T2  he  represented  his  coun- 
ty in  the  lower  house,  and  was 
also  appointed  a  delegate  to  Ok- 


-* 


^- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


165 


-* 


mulgee  to  a  general  convention 
consisting  of  representatives  of 
the  five  civilized  tribes  and  the 
wild  tribes  located  west  of  nine- 
ty-eight. In  1876  he  was  elect- 
ed supreme  judge  of  the  Choctaw 
Nation,  which  position  he  still 
holds,  and  has  been  held  by  him 
longer  than  any  other  man. 

Mr.  Garland  is  the  owner  of  a 
fine  farm  of  land  of  over  three 
hundred  acres  under  cultivation, 
one  hundred  head  of  cattle,  and 
fifty  horses.  Upon  his  personal 
character  and  his  standing  in  the 
country  there  is  no  need  of  com- 
ment. Enough  that  he  has  served 
as  supreme  judge  for  fourteen 
years,  during  which  time  he  has 
been  held  in  admiration  and  re- 
spect by  all  classes.  He  is  a 
learned  man,  not  only  in  legal 
lore,  but  possesses  a  vast  fund  of 
knowledge  on  various  topics. 

Judge  Garland  is  an  old  Mason. 


*- 


WALTER  SCOTT  ROGERS. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  the  Cherokee  Nation, 
in  1861,  and  moved  to  Jacks 
Fork  county,  C.  N.,  in  1865. 
Walter  went  to  a  neighborhood 
school  until  he  was  eleven  years 
of  age,  after  which  he  lived  with 
his  father,  Jolm  Penn  Rogers,  a 


Georgian  Cherokee,  until  1880, 
when  he  started  business  on  his 
own  account.  The  death  of  his 
father  in  the  same  year  placed 
him  on  his  own  resources,  but  he 
soon  afterward  married  Sarah 
Hogue,  daughter  of   Rev.  R.  J. 


Hogue,  one  of  the  oldest  mission- 
aries in  the  land.  The  issue  of 
this  marriage  was  Walter  Penn, 
and  John  Hogue,  aged  two  and 
three  years.  Mr.  Rogers  has  a 
comfortable  home,  and  controls 
five  hundred  head  of  stock  cattle. 
He  is  an  energetic,  reliable  and 
business  like  young  man,  who  is 
highly  esteemed  and  respected 
in  his  neighborhood. 


-* 


^ 


KK) 


-* 


LKADKUS  AND  LEADING  MKN 


*- 


IMPORTANT   TOWNS  AND 

BUSINESS  POINTS. 
Up  till  1887  there  were  few 
towns  of  any  note  in  eitlier  the 
Choctaw  or  Ciiickasaw  Nations. 
Tliose  situated  on  the  M. ,  K.  & 
T.  liailroad  were  the  most  im- 
portant, Atoka  and  Caddo  being 
the  trading  points  for  a  hirge 
scope  of  country  east  and  west. 
Citizens  residing  in  the  Chicka- 
asaw  Nation  frequently  traveled 
from  forty  to  sixty  miles  to  pur- 
chase goods  at  these  towns.  The 
completion  of  the  Gulf,  Colorado 
and  Santa  Fe  Railroad  from 
Gainesville,  Texas,  north  to  the 
Canadian  River  has  wrought  a 
wondrous  change.  Thousands 
availed  themselves  of  the  oppor- 
tunity to  gain  a  footing  in  the 
Indian  country  ;  towns  sprung 
up  as  if  by  magic,  and  in  two 
years  the  Chickasaw  people  were 
on  a  commercial  footing  with 
their  Choctaw  neighbors. 

Ardmore,  some  forty  miles 
north  of  Gainesville,  in  less  than 
two  years  after  its  establishment 
shipped  seventeen  thousand  bales 
of  cotton  to  the  Northern  mar- 
kets. It  has  a  population  of 
about  two  thousand,  good  busi- 
ness houses  and  handsome  dwell- 
ings. It  is  also  the  seat  of  the 
United  States  Federal  Court. 

Purcell,  the  northern  gateway 


to  the  Chickasaw  Nation,  is 
beautifully  situated  on  the  banks 
of  the  Canadian  River.  Though 
not  quite  as  populous,  nor  lo- 
cated as  well  for  the  cotton  trade 
as  Ardmore,  yet  its  prospects  are 
equally  bright,  and  many  believe 
with  good  cause  that  it  will 
eventually  become  a  great  busi- 
ness center.  It  is  the  finest  site 
for  a  city  in  the  Indian  Terri- 
tory, and  remarkably  healthy. 

Paul's  Valley,  also  on  the 
Santa  Fe  Railroad,  is  situated 
right  in  the  heart  of  the  beauti- 
ful and  fertile  valley  of  the 
Washita.  It  is  a  flourishing  lit- 
tle town,  as  is  also  Wynne  Wood, 
whose  enterprising  merchants 
are  competing  for  their  share  of 
the  trade. 

Prior  to  the  advent  of  the  Gulf, 
Colorado  and  Santa  Fe  Railroad 
Tishomingo  and  Stonewall  were 
the  chief  trading  points  in  the 
Chickasaw  Nation.  Neither  of 
these  places  could  boast  of  over 
forty  or  fifty  residents,  except 
the  former  during  council  term, 
it  being  the  seat  of  the  national 
government.  Tishomingo,  how- 
ever, is  a  pretty  little  place,  sit- 
uated on  the  Pennington,  one  of 
the  many  picturesque  mountain 
streams  that  adorn  the  south- 
western portion  of  the  Indian 
Territory. 


-* 


*- 


* 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TEUIIITORY. 


167 


The  immense  and  still  increas- 
ing mercantile  trade  of  the  Choc- 
taw Nation  is  largely  due  to  the 
almost  inexhaustible  coal  fields, 
which  are  being  rapidly  devel- 
oped since  the  advent  of  the 
Choctaw  Coal  and  Railway  Co. 
The  town  of  South  McAlester  is 
at  present  the  chief  point  on  this 
road.  It  is  located  at  its  junc- 
tion with  the  M.,  K.  and  T.  Rail- 
road, three  miles  south  of  the  old 
town.  South  McAlester,  though 
recently  established,  was  made 
the*  seat  of  the  United  States 
Federal  Court  in  1890,  and  bids 
fair  to  be  a  good  business  point. 

As  a  social  and  educational 
center,  Atoka,  on  the  M.,  K.  and 
T.  Railroad,  takes  first  rank. 
This  town  has  four  large  church 
edifices,  Baptist  and  Presbyte- 
rian academies,  and  many  hand- 
some dwellings.  Owing  to  its 
advantages  in  this  respect,  as 
well  as  to  its  superior  class  of  in- 
habitants, Atoka  is  invariably 
sought  after  by  those  desirous  of 
making  permanent  homes  in  the 
Choctaw  Nation. 

In  point  of  popuhition  McAl- 
ester and  its  mining  camps  have 
the  advantage  and  lead  the  list 
with  three  thousand  five  hundred 
people  or  thereabouts,  the  ma- 
jority of  these  being  miners  and 
their  families.      This   town  con- 


s- 


tains some  fine  mercantile  estab- 
lishments and  is  an  excellent 
business  point.  The  McAlester 
coal  has  a  great  and  widespread 
reputation. 

Lehigh,  a  brisk  mining  town, 
situated  eight  miles  northwest  of 
Atoka,  is  scarcely  inferior  to 
McAlester  in  population,  while 
its  mercantile  establishments  and 
business  enterprise  is  in  every 
respect  equal. 

The  coal  recently  mined  at 
Coalgate,  six  miles  from  Lehigh, 
by  the  Denison  and  Washita 
Railroad,  is  by  many  considered 
superior  to  the  best  McAlester 
samples. 

Caddo  is  pleasantly  situated  in 
a  fine  farming  neighborhood 
some  thirty  miles  north  of  Deni- 
son,  on  the  M.,  K„  and  T.  Rail- 
road. It  is  the  largest  of  the  ag- 
I'icultural  towns,'  and  ships  a 
quantity  of  cotton  to  the  North- 
ern markets.  Its  population  is 
between  six  and  seven  hundred, 
while  its  business  houses  and  ho- 
tel accommodations  are  not  in- 
ferior to  any  of  its  sister  towns. 

South  Canadian,  the  most 
northern  point  in  the  Nation, 
commands  a  large  trade  from 
one  of  the  richest  farming  dis- 
tricts in  the  Indian  Territory. 
The  valley  of  the  South  Cana- 
dian   is    unsurpassed     for     the 


-* 


*- 


168 


LEADERS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


growth  of  corn,  cotton  and  small 
grain,  while  the  farms  in  that 
portion  of  the  country  are  usu- 
ally larger  than  those  further 
south.  There  are  four  mercan- 
tile establishments  in  this  little 
town,  conducted  by  enterprising 
business  men. 

Tuskahoma  is  situated  on  the 
St.  Louis  and  San  Francisco 
Railroad.  As  a  business  point  it 
is  of  little  importance  further 
than  the  fact  that  it  is  the  seat  of 
government  and  contains  the  na- 
tional capitol,  a  very  solid  and 
handsome  structure.  This  build- 
ing is  located  in  a  beautiful  val- 
ley, surrounded  by  lofty  moun- 
tains, and  is  two  miles  from  the 
Tuskahoma  depot. 

On  the  same  railroad  are  four 
small  towns  of  some  importance 
— Goodland,  Antlers,  Grant  and 
Tallihena. 


*- 


MICHAEL  C.  GARLAND, 

[  CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  December,  1865,  at 
Wheelock,  Towsen  county,  and 
is  the  son  of  C.  Garland  and 
nephew  of  Hon.  Joseph  Gar- 
land, supreme  judge  of  the  Choc- 


taw Nation.  Isaac,  Peter,  Mau- 
rice and  Joel  Garland,  citizens 
of  high  repute  in  the  Nation,  are 
also  uncles  of  the  subject  of  our 
sketch.  His  mother's  maiden 
name  was  Sallie  La  Flore,  of  the 
Ok-la-fa-lay-a  clan. 

Michael  was  educated  at  Spen- 
cer Academy,  and  after  leaving 
school  engaged  in  breeding  cat- 
tle for  others.  In  1887  he  moved 
to  Blue  county,  where  he  mar- 
ried Louisa  McCauley,  sister-in- 
law  of  the  late  Willie  Jones  and 
daughter  of  James  McCauley,  a 
citizen  by  marriage,  and  greatly 
respected  by  all  who  know  him. 
For  three  years  he  has  ridden  as 
a  deputy  marshal's  posse,  but 
has  recently  settled  down  to  a 
home  life,  having  rented  the 
farm  which  was  improved  by  the 
late  Willie  Jones,  son  of  the 
present  governor  of  the  Choctaw 
Nation.  He  has  some  forty 
acres  under  cultivation  and  a 
small  herd  of  cattle  and  hogs. 

At  the  council  meeting  of  1890 
Mr.  Garland  was  appointed  na- 
tional coal  weigher  at  the  McAl- 
ester  mines,  a  very  profitable 
office,  and  for  which  he  appears 
well  adapted.  He  is  a  smart, 
gentlemanly  young  man,  of  good 
address,  and  refined  in  appear- 
ance. 


-•J 


*- 


OF   THE   INDIAlSr   TERRITOKY, 


169 


« 


COL.  COLEMAN  E.  NELSON. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

Few  men  are  as  well  and  as  fa- 
vorably known  in  the  Choctaw 
Nation  as  Col.  Coleman  Enoch 
Nelson.  This  gentleman  was 
born  in  Mississippi  in  1831,  and 
emigrated  with  his  parents   two 


*B- 


COL,  NELSON. 

years  later.  He  was  placed  at 
Spencer  Academy  in  181:1:,  and 
left  there  in  1816.  Though  en- 
gaged in  the  mercantile  business 
in  1860,  he  gave  it  up  to  join  the 
army,  and  organized  Company 
G  of  the  First  Choctaw  Batallion, 
of  which  he  was  appointed  cap- 
tain. Owing  to  ill-health,  how- 
ever, he  received  his  discharge 
in   1862.    In    1864    he  was    ap- 


pointed commissary  for  the  refu- 
gees by  Gov.  P.  P.  Pitchlyn, 
which  office  he  held  till  the  con- 
clusion of  the  war. 

Colonel  Nelson  first  became  a 
member  of  the  council  in  1857, 
and  was  re-elected  continually 
till  1869,  in  which  year  he  first 
held  the  responsible  office  of 
national  attorney,  serving  in  that 
capacity  till  1877,  when  he  was 
elected  national  treasurer.  After 
six  years'  experience  in  national 
finance,  he  was  again  called  upon 
to  occupy  the  office  of  national 
attorney,  and  served  two  years. 
In  1888  he  retired  from  politics 
and  declined  to  accept  any  fur- 
ther public  preferment.  But  on 
the  death  of  Joe  P.  Folsom  (his 
successor)  he  agreed  to  fill  the 
unexpired  term,  and  is  at  present 
attorney  general.  In  1850  he 
married  Miss  Rhoda  Underwood, 
daughter  of  Kaney  Underwood, 
a  Chickasaw,  well  known  in  his 
country.  The  issue  of  this  mar- 
riage was  eight  children,  five  of 
whom  are  living — Gabriel,  Al- 
fred, Sukie,  Pachel  and  Isaac. 
Of  these  three  are  married  and 
reside  in  the  county. 

Col.  Nelson  owns  a  thousand 
and  fifty-two  acres  of  land,  four 
hundred  and  twelve  of  which  are 
under  cultivation;  and  four  hun- 
dred and  fifty  head  of  cattle,  be- 


->B 


->b 


170 


LKADERS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


sides  two  good  lionie  places  and 
an  interest  in  the  Lehigh  coal 
mines.  In  1880  he  again  en- 
gaged in  the  mercantile  business 
with  Ills  son-in-law,  C.  S.  Vinson, 
of  Xelson,  which  business  they 
are  still  carrying  on. 

Mr.    Nelson   was   licensed  to 


^- 


MRS.   NELSON. 

preach  t!ie  gospel  in  1868,  and 
in  1873  was  ordained  a  deacon, 
and  1889  an  elder  of  the  Meth- 
odist church  south.  In  1883  he 
built  a  church  close  to  Antlers, 
known  by  the  name  of  ' '  Nelson's 
Chapel,"  which  cost  him  twelve 
hundred  dollars. 

The  subject  of  our  sketch  is 
one-fourth  white.  On  his  moth- 
er's side  he  belongs  to  the  Koon- 


cha  and  on  his  fathei-'s  to  the 
Ok-la-fa-lay  a  clan.  He  is  well 
educated,  and  as  a  lawyer  has 
few  equals  among  his  race.  The 
number  of  high  offices  which  he 
has  occupied  since  the  beginning 
of  his  political  career  serve  to 
show  the  repute  in  which  he  is 
held  by  his  people.  Almost 
every  office  has  been  his  save 
that  of  principal  chief,  and  it  is 
but  reasonable  to  suppose  that 
before  many  years  his  services 
will  be  rewarded  by  the  greatest 
gift  that  can  be  bestowed  at  the 
hands  of  the  people. 

Mrs.  Nelson  is  a  full-blooded 
Chickasaw,  a  member  of  the 
Methodist  church  South,  a  kind- 
hearted  and  charitable  lady,  and 
a  loving  mother. 

Colonel  Nelson's  home  place 
is  at  present  at  Antlers. 


CHARLE  S.  VINSON. 

[CHOUTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  Blue  county  in  1813,  and 
educated  at  Spencer  and  Arm- 
strong academies.  At  the  out- 
break of  the  war  in  1861  he  volun- 
teered in  the  First  Choctaw  and 
Chickasaw  regiments,  serving  for 
one  year.  In  1862  his  father, 
Hiram  Vinson,  a  Georgia  gen- 
tleman,  died,   and  his  son  took 


->B 


*- 


OF    THE    INDIAN    TERIIITOKY. 


171 


-* 


charge  of  the  business  of  the  farm 
and  ranch.  In  18G8  he  married 
Miss  Rochelle  Battise,  who  died 
in  1872  without  an j  family.  His 
next  wife  was  Sophie  McKinney, 
by  whom  he  had  three  children, 
one  of  whom,  Eliza  Vinson,  is 
living.  His  second  wife  dying 
in  1882,  he  then  married  Kachel 
Nelson,  by  w^hom  he  has  a  girl. 

Mr.  Vinson  was  elected  dis- 
trict attorney  in  1874,  and  held 
the  office  for  five  years.  In  1879 
he  was  elected  national  attorney, 
and  continued  in  this  office  for 
four  years.  In  1883  he  became 
a  member  of  the  lower    house, 


*- 


CUAULES    STEWART    VINSON. 

and   in  1885  was  appointed  cir- 
cuit judge  of  the  third  district. 


In  1888  he  was  re-elected,  and 
is  still  holding  this  responsible 
position. 


MRS.   R.   VINSON. 

At  the  present  time  Mr.  Vin- 
son is  in  partnership  with  his 
father-in-law,  Colonel  Nelson, 
engaged  in  the  mercantile  busi- 
ness at  the  Nelson  postoffice. 
He  also  owns  one  hundred  and 
forty  acres  of  farming  land  un- 
der cultivation  and  a  comfortable 
homestead.  Since  1879  he  has 
been  a  member  of  the  Methodist 
church,  and  is  now  a  local 
preacher.  He  became  a  member 
of  the  Masonic  order  in  188'i. 

Mr.  Vinson  is  a  man  of  great 
force  of  character  and  ability, 
and  is  one  of  the  best  authorities 
on  legal  points  in  his  Nation. 


-* 


-^ 


LEADERS   AND    LEADING   I>IEN 


JUDGE  ALKX.  DURAXT. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  Janu- 
ary 21,  1839,  in  Tvler  county, 
Mississippi,  and  moved  to  this 
country  in  1845,  attending  the 
neighborhood  school  until  sixteen 
years    of    age.     At  nineteen   he 


JUDGE  DTTRANT. 

was  appointed  secretary  of  the 
second  judicial  district  court  till 
the  war  broke  out,  when  he  was 
appointed  lieutenant  of  his  com- 
pany. After  the  restoration  of 
peace  he  applied  himself  to  law, 
and  took  out  a  license  to  practice 
in  1867.  Two  years  afterward 
he  taught  a  neighborhood  school, 
and  the  same  season  was  elected 


to  the  house  of  representatives, 
where  he  served  two  years,  ris- 
ing to  the  dignity  of  speaker  of 
the  house.  In  1873  he  became 
Journalist  of  the  senate,  and  in 
1875  was  elected  national  secre- 
tary for  two  years.  During  this 
term,  in  company  with  another 
delegate,  he  represented  the 
Choctaw  Nation  at  the  grand 
council  held  at  Okmulgee,  Creek 
Nation.  In  1876  he  became  at- 
torney general  for  two  years, 
and  in  1878  supreme  judge  to 
fill  the  unexpired  term  of  Joel 
Hudson.  His  fitness  for  this 
important  office  caused  his  elec- 
tion in  1885,  and  he  occupied 
the  judicial  bench  for  one  term; 
after  which  he  filled  a  vacant 
seat  in  the  senate.  In  1886,  in 
company  with  Col.  Nelson  and 
Capt.  Standley,  he  was  delegated 
to  confer  with  the  Chickasaws  in 
regard  to  the  royalties.  In  1889 
he  was  appointed  United  States 
interpreter  for  the  Paris  court 
and  deputy  clerk  for  the  Federal 
court.  These  offices  being  very 
remunerative,  Mr.  Durant  spends 
a  great  deal  of  his  time  in  that 
city.  He  married  Sallie  Roberts, 
daughter  of  Push  Roberts,  a 
Choctaw,  and  a  man  well  known 
among  his  people. 

Although    Alex.    Durant    de- 
votes much  time  to  his  extensive 


•3E<- 


-lit 


i^- 


OF  THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


173 


*- 


legal  practice,  yet  lie  is  a  very 
large  planter,  and  has  fifteen 
hundred  acres  under  fence,  four 
hundred  of  which  is  under  culti- 
vation. He  has  also  a  fine  herd 
of  horses  and  a  number  of  cattle, 
besides  a  saw  and  grist  mill. 
He  is  a  stockholder  in  the  City 
National  bank  and  the  Paris 
Manufacturing  Co.,  of  Paris, 
Texas. 

Judge  Alex.  Dnrant  is  one  of 
the  first  lawyers  in  his  country, 
a  man  of  varied  information  and 
more  than  ordinary  talent.  He 
has  no  family. 

COLUMBUS  C.  ERWIN. 

[  CHOCTAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  in  De- 
cember, 1848,  near  Doaksville, 
Choctaw  Nation.  He  is  the  sec- 
ond son  of  C.  D.  Erwin,  a  farm- 
er and  stock-raiser,  the  oldest 
surviving  white  citizen  married 
in  the  Choctaw  Nation, 

The  subject  of  our  sketch  went 
to  a  neighborhood  school  for 
four  years,  and  afterward  served 
a  year  and  a  half  in  the  Confed- 
erate army.  In  1865  he  was  en- 
gaged in  driving  cattle,  and  con- 
tinued this  business  until  1870, 
when  he  married  MissM.  Hayes, 
daughter  of  Hickman  Hayes,  by 
whom  he  had  two  children,  Vi- 
ola and  Serian.    His  wife  dying 


in  1885,  he  married  a  Miss  Ever- 
idge,  daughter  of  Chief  Justice 
Everidge,  the  issue  of  this  mar- 
riage being  Joseph,  Myrtle  and 
Zirack  Proctor. 

In  1875  Mr.  Erwin  was  elect- 


ed to  the  lower  house,  which 
oflice  he  held  three  terms.  In 
1888  he  was  called  to  the  senate, 
and  served  a  term  of  two  years. 
Mr.  Erwin  has  a  comfortable 
home  of  fifty  acres  of  land  under 
cultivation  and  fifty  head  of  stock 
cattle.  He  is  a  man  of  great 
natural  intelligence,  energetic 
and  honorable  in  his  dealings, 
and  is  very  popular  among  his 
people.  He  also  belongs  to  Odd 
Fellows  Lodge,  No.  1,  of  Caddo. 


*- 


174 


T.EADEUS   AND    LKADING    MEN' 


JOHN  GISTFARR. 

[CHOCTAW.  ] 

This  gentleman  was  born  in  Un- 
ion District,  South  Carolina,  in 
1S47,  the  son  of  Thos.  G.  Farr, 
a  planter  residing  in  the  same 
state.  John  received  his  educa- 
tion in    Woifert    School,  South 


*- 


JOHN  GIST  FARR. 

Carolina,  and  Hickory  Plains, 
Arkansas.  He  came  to  the  Choc- 
taw Nation  in  1875,  and  engaged 
in  the  himber  trade  on  Red  River, 
close  to  the  Harris  Fei-ry,  from 
which  point  he  shipped  walnut 
to  New  Orleans  for  two  years. 
In  1877  he  was  united  in  mar- 
riage to  Annie  E.  Harris,  a 
daughter  of  Henry  Harris,  a 
prominent  citizen  in    his  county. 


By  tliis  union  he  has  three  chil- 
dren, Thos.  A.,  George  C,  and 
Elizabeth  I.  Mr.  Farr  spent 
eight  years  or  over  in  active  duty 
in  the  capacity  of  Deputy  United 
States  Marshal,  and  his  record  at 
headquarters  is  second  to  none 
in  the  Indian  Territory. 

In  1886  he  was  appointed 
district  collector  for  the  second 
district  of  the  Choctaw  Nation, 
and  held  the  position  for  two 
years.  In  the  spring  of  1889  he 
opened  a  law  office  at  his  present 
home  in  Antlers.  Choctaw  Nation. 
He  has  tv\'o  branch  offices,  one 
at  Paris,  Texas,  under  the  title  of 
Farr  &  Herd,  and  the  other  at 
McAlester,  styled  Wilson  &  Farr. 
Mr.  Farr  owns  two  farms  of  two 
hundred  and  fifty  acres  under 
cultivation,  a  small  herd  of  cattle 
and  a  half  interest  in  one  coal 
claim  on  the  Frisco  railroad, 
which  is  now  being  developed, 
besides  several  not  yet  opened. 
He  is  an  active  and  enterprising 
man  with  plenty  of  push  and  am- 
bition, and  a  speculative  turn  of 
mind.  He  is  well  and  favorably 
known  throughout  the  Territory 
and  northern  Texas. 


JUDGE  JEFF.  GARDNER. 

[  CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of   this  sketch  was 
born    near   Wheel oek,    Choctaw 


-^ 


Big  Tree,  Kiowa. 


^- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


177 


* 


J^ation,  in  Jnlj,  IStttt.  He  is 
the  eldest  son  of  Noll  Gardner, 
at  one  time  interpreter  for  the 
missionaries.  In  1855  he  was 
sent  to  Norfolk  school,  Towsen 
county,  and  the  following  j'ear 
went  to  Spencer  Academy,  where 
he  remained  two  years.    In  1862 


*- 


JUDGE  GARDNER. 

he  married  Lucy  James,  who 
lived  but  a  short  time.  The  is- 
sue of  this  marriage  was  one 
child,  named  Eliza.  In  1864  he 
married  Lucy  Christy,  daugh- 
ter of  James  Christy,  by  whom 
he  had  four  children — John, 
Willie,  Emma  and  Scott. 

Mr.  Gardner  engaged  in  farm- 
ing   and    stock-raising  in   1862, 


and  in  1864  was  appointed  coun- 
ty clerk,  and  the  following  year 
district  clerk.  In  1873  he  was 
called  to  represent  Eagle  and 
Norshoba  (Wolf)  counties  in  the 
senate,  and  in  1881:  was  elected 
national  treasuTcr,  which  office 
he  held  for  four  years  to  the 
complete  satisfaction  of  all  par- 
ties. In  1888  he  became  su- 
preme judge  of  the  Second  dis- 
trict, which  office  he  still 
holds. 

In  1878  Mr.  Gardner  engaged 
in  the  mercantile  business  at  Ea- 
gle Town,  and  becanne  United 
States  postmaster  at  the  same 
time.  His  second  wife  dying, 
he  married  Julia  Christy,  who  is 
still  living.  His  property  con- 
sists of  three  hundred  acres  of 
land  under  cultivation,  a  small 
herd  of  cattle,  and  a  substantial 
and  comfortable  home.  He  is 
perhaps  the  most  popular  man  in 
the  Choctaw  Nation,  and  is  un- 
doubtedly a  gentleman  of  the 
highest  principle,  conscientious 
almost  to  a  fault. 

On  several  occasions  he  has 
been  solicited  to  become  a  can- 
didate for  principal  chief,  but  his 
modesty  kept  him  in  the  back 
ground.  There  is  still  time,  how- 
ever,  and  we  shall  rejoice  to  see 
him  wear  the  executive  title  be- 
fore his  days  are  numbered. 


-* 


178 


LEADICKS   AND    LEADING   MEN 


KDMOXl)  M^'CURTAIX. 

[CHOCTAW.  ] 

EoMOND,  the  Successor  in  office 
and  the  younger  brother  of  the 
hite  iUustrions  Jack  McCnrtain, 
was  born  July  29,  1842,  in  Su- 
g:ar  Loaf  county,  and  attended 
neicrhborhood    schools    until  he 


<h- 


EX-CHIEF  EDMOND  m'cURTAIN. 

was  seventeen  years  of  age.  At 
the  outbreak  of  the  war  he  en- 
listed in  General  Cooper's  army 
and  served  throughout  the  entire 
campaign.  In  1866  he  was  elect- 
ed county  judge  of  Sans  Bois 
county,  and  four  years  later  be- 
came district  trustee,  which  post 
he  held  for  five  years.  At  the 
expiration  of  his  term  he  w^as  ap- 
pointed   superintendent    of    the 


pubHc  schools  of  the  Nation,  and 
in  1884  was  elected  governor 
over  his  people,  which  office  he 
held  for  two  years.  Governor 
McCurtain  was  a  wise,  progres- 
sive and  popular  chief  executive. 
In  1887  the  country  was  al- 
most over-run  with  criminals 
from  the  States,  and  Mr.  Mc- 
Curtain, in  order  to  assist  in  pre- 
serving the  peace,  accepted  the 
office  of  United  States  Marshal, 
hich  he  holds  until  this  day. 

In  1862  the  subject  of  this 
sketch  married  Susan  King,  by 
whom  he  has  three  children:  Po- 
lina,  Kittie  and  Jennie.  After 
his  first  wife's  death  he  was  unit- 
ed to  Harriett  Austin,  who  only 
lived  tw^o  years  and  some  months, 
bearing  him  two  children,  only 
one  of  whom  survived,  named 
George. 

His  third  marriage,  owing  to 
some  circumstance  or  other,  was 
not  as  felicitous  as  the  previous 
ones,  so  that  a  separation  soon 
follow^ed. 

He  is  at  present  married  to 
Clarissa  La  Flore,  daughter  of 
Isaac  La  Flore,  and  has  a  com- 
fortable and  hospitable  home  at 
Sans  Bois,  whose  doors  are  ever 
open,  not  alone  to  friends  and 
acquaintances,  but  to  the  poor 
and  weary  wayfarer,  whose  home 
(if  he  has  any)   may  be   a    thou 


* 


>b- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


179 


-* 


sand  miles  away.  The  host  of 
this  mansion  has  a  heart  in  pro- 
portion to  the  size  of  his  feody 
(which  is  saying  a  great  deal), 
and  within  his  doors  all  men  are 
alike. 

Gov.  McCurtain  has  three 
hundred  acres  of  land  under  cul- 
tivation, five  hundred  head  of 
stock,  and  an  interest  in  the  Simp- 
son mine,  now  in  operation. 
He  is  also  one-third  owner  in  the 
7X  ranch  with  his  brother  Green 
and  "Dime"  Ainsworth.  True 
to  the  old  clannish  instincts  in- 
herited from  his  Scottish  fore- 
fathers, Edmond  McCurtain  is 
a  strong  devotee  to  party.  In 
private  life  he  is  good-tempered, 
convivial  and  generous  to  a  fault, 
which  qualities  render  him  ex- 
ceedingly popular  among  his 
people. 


^- 


JOHN  D.  WILSON. 

[OHOCTAW.] 

Me.  Wilson  was  born  in  Feb- 
ruary, 1864,  and  went  to  a  neigh- 
borhood school  for  ten  years; 
thence  to  the  Chickasaw  Male 
Academy  at  Tishomingo,  where 
he  remained  three  years,  and 
completed  his  education  at  Spen- 
cer Academy,  Choctaw  Nation. 
In  1882  John  engaged  in  farm- 
ing and  stock-raising,  and  two 
years    afterward    established    a 


business  house  near  Doaksville. 
In  July,  1890,  he  was  appointed 
United  States  census  enumerator 
for  the  district,  and  at  the  meet- 
ing of  the  legislature  in  October 
of  the  same  year  was  elected 
secretary  of  the  lower  house. 
The   subject   of  our  sketch  is 


JOHN  D.   WILSON. 

the  second  son  of  the  well-known 
Towsen  county  judge,  John  Wil- 
son, who  has  held  many  impor- 
tant offices.  His  mother  was  a 
James,  and  he  is  a  nephew  of 
the  late  George  James,  a  popu- 
lar Chickasaw  citizen. 

John  D.  is  still  residing  with 
his  parents,  and  devotes  much 
of  his  time  to  the  stock  business. 
He  owns  four  hundred    and  sev- 


-* 


*- 


180 


-* 


LEADEUS   AND  LEADING  MEN 


entj'  head  of  chiefly  graded  stock 
cattle,  two  hundred  and  fifty 
liead  of  stock  horses,  and  four 
hundred  and  thirty  acres  of  land 
under  fence.  He  is  one-fourth 
Ciioctaw,  of  gentlemanly  bearing 
and  address,  and  is  intelligent 
and  well  educated. 

Mr.  Wilson  is  very  popular, 
and  has  no  doubt  a  bright  future 
before  him. 


REV.  B.  J,  WOODS. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  in  Kia- 
michi  Valley,  Choctaw  Nation, 
March  20,  1841,  and  attended 
school  for  twelve  years.  After 
his  education  was  completed  he 
engaged  in  the  stock  and  farm- 
ing business.  In  1863  he  mar- 
ried the  daughter  of  Rev.  Joseph 
Dukes,  council  member  for  many 
terms.  Mrs,  Josephine  Woods  is 
three-quarters  Choctaw.  She  has 
had  fifteen  children,  but  four  of 
whom  survive,  namely:  Stephen, 
Simon  H. ,  Gilbert  W.  and  Har- 
riet J.,  the  oldest  being  twenty 
years  of  age. 

At  the  breaking  out  of  the  war 
Ben  Woods  was  appointed  lieu- 
tenant in  Col.  S.  Folsom's  rem- 
ment  of  General  Cooj)er's  army. 
In  this  regiment  he  remained  un- 
til  the   surrender.      In   1867  he 


was  appointed  deputy  sheriff  of 
Wade  county,  and  in  1887  was 
called  to  serve  his  county  in  the 
legislature,  which  he  did  in  a 
creditable  manner  for  five  years. 
In  1883  he  was  ordained  a  min- 
ister of  the  Presbyterian  church, 
and  since  then  has  devoted  much 
of  his  time  to  the  welfare  of  his 


-*■?■  >  Ik  ^-<-  i  t'^  * — ' — '~^«i 

})anfeli.  He  is  a  taithtul  and  de- 
vout christian,  a  pains-taking 
worker,  and  a  charitable  neigh- 
bor. The  good  that  he  has  done 
in  the  neighborhood  of  his 
church  and  Sabbath  school,  near 
Talihena,  is  visible  on  all  sides. 
He  was  the  fourth  son  of  Horace 
Woods,  a  citizen  of  the  United 
States  until  his  intermarriao;e. 


>^' 


-qf 


*- 


I 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


181 


-* 


ROBERT  J.  WARD. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  at  Oak  Lodge  in  July,  1850, 
and  attended  the  neighborhood 
schools  nntil  1861.  At  the  ter- 
mination of  the  war,  however, 
Kobert  went  back  to  school  and 


•i- 


R.  J.   WARD. 

remained  there  until  1868.  In 
1875  he  commenced  clerking  for 
Tibbett  &  Parks,  general  mer- 
chants of  Oak  Lodge,  and  con- 
tinued in  that  capacity  for  seven 
years.  In  the  meantime  he  mar- 
ried Ida  Barker  in  1876.  Miss 
Barker  is  a  Cherokee  and  sister 
of  W.  H.  Barker,  of  Muskogee, 
speaker  of  the  Cherokee  lower 
house.     By  this    union    he    has 


eight  children,  six  of  whom  are 
living — Sarah  E.,  Susan  E., 
Cora  J.,  Robert  J.,  Ada  B.  and 
Irene  C. 

Mr.  Ward's  first  national  office 
was  that  of  sheriff  of  SkuUyville 
county,  which  was  followed  by 
that  of  membership  in  the  Choc- 
taw Light  Horse,  Doth  of  w^hich 
offices  he  resigned,  being  unable, 
owing  to  his  other  duties,  to  fill 
them.  From  1875  to  1882,  how- 
ever, he  found  leisure  time  to 
execute  the  duties  of  county 
and  circuit  clerk.  In  1882  he 
was  again  elected  sheriff  of  his 
own  county,  but  resigned  in 
1886  to  take  upon  himself  the 
responsibilities  of  national  agent, 
which  office  he  held  until  1888, 
when  he  was  called  upon  by  his 
people  to  represent  the  First  dis- 
trict in  the  national  senate.  He 
was  re-elected  in  1890,  and  now 
ranks  among  the  ablest  of  the 
law-makers. 

In  1889,  in  company  with 
Messrs.  Standley  and  Harris, 
Mr.  Ward  was  appointed  as  a 
delegate  to  confer  with  the  Cher- 
okee commissioners  at  Talequah 
in  regard  to  the  sale  of  lands 
west  of  the  ninety-eighth  meri- 
dian, and  in  December  of  that 
year  was  appointed  as  delegate 
to  Washington  on  the  same 
errand. 


-* 


182 


* 


LEADERS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


liobei't  is  a  son  of  the  late 
Jeremiali  AVard,  'wlio  held  many 
offices,  from  light  horse  to  cir- 
cuit judge. 

Mr.  Ward  belongs  to  the  Ok- 
la-fa-lay-a  clan.  He  is  a  man  of 
good  address,  gentlfemaulv  in 
appearance,  if  not  positively 
handsome,  and  bears  a  good  rep- 
utation as  to  integrity,  while  he 
is  liberal  and  very  good-natured, 
which  latter  qualities  render  him 
decidedly  popular.  He  is  the 
owner  of  a  farm  of  three  hun- 
dred acres  of  land  under  good 
cultivation,  a  small  herd  of  cat- 
tle, and  two  coal  claims,  one  of 
which  is  in  operation. 


JOSHUA  BILLINGS  JETER. 

[CHOCTA'W.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  at  We- 
tumka,  Alabama,  in  August, 
1852,  and  was  educated  at  Cen- 
tral Institute,  Alabama,  and 
Shilo  Academy,  near  Paris,  Tex. 
He  came  to  Kiamichi  county, 
Choctaw  Nation,  in  1872,  and 
there  commenced  teaching  public 
school,  which  profession  he  fol- 
lowed until  1884.  In  that  year 
he  was  elected  district  trustee  of 
the  Third  district,  and  held  the 
office  for  two  years.  In  188G, 
when  Thompson  McKinney  was 
a  candidate  for  principal  chief, 
J.  B.    Jeter  was  elected   to   the 


senate  from  Kiamichi  county. 
Pie  was  the  second  white  citizc^n 
who  had  ever  been  elected  to  the 
Chc^ctaw  legislature;  but  no  soon- 
er had  he  taken  his  seat  amoner 
the  law-makers  than  they  forced 
him  to  retire,  appointing  John 
Martin,  from    the   same  county, 


^- 


J.  B.   JETEK. 

in  his  place.  Mr.  Jeter  had 
voted  the  wrong  ticket  that  year. 
Two  years  later  he  might  have 
taken  his  seat  without  a  majority 
op])Osition. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  ol)- 
tained  his  citizenship  through 
marriage  with  Sarah  E.  Oakes, 
second  daughter  of  J.  W.  Oakes. 
The  issue  of  their  marriage  is  six 
children — Gertrude    E.,    Harriet 


-•H 


*- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERllITORY, 


183 


-* 


S.,   James  T.,    Francis  B.,    Wil- 
liam W.  and  Bonnie  B. 

Mr.  Jeter  owns  one  hundred 
acres  in  farm,  fifty  head  of  cat- 
tle, one  hundred  and  fifty  hogs, 
and  an  interest  in  three  undevel- 
oped coal  claims.  He  is  a  young 
man  of  excellent  education,  in- 
telligent, bright,  and  of  good 
moral  character,  a  Mason  and  a 
member  of  the  iPresbyterian 
church.  He  was  appointed  coal 
weigher  for  the  Nation  on  the 
Choctaw  Coal  and   Railway  Co. 


»f- 


JOHN  P.  TURNBULL. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

This  well-known  and  highly  re- 
spected citizen  was  born  in  Mis- 
sissippi in  July,  1833,  and  moved 
to  this  country  with  the  Choc- 
taws.  He  was  educated  at  a 
neighborhood  school  until  1845, 
and  finished  at  the  Presbyterian 
and  Baptist  missionary  acade- 
mies— Spencer  and  Armstrong. 
In  1852  he  engaged  in  the  stock 
business  and  farming,  and  in 
1857  married  his  cousin,  Judith 
Turnbull.  The  issue  of  this 
marriage  was  five  children,  two 
of  whom  are  living — Eliza  Ann 
and  Minerva.  His  wife  died 
February  •!,  1868,  after  which  he 
married  Harriet  Willard,  daugh- 
ter of  S.  M.  Willard,  quarter- 
master of  the  United  States  army. 


On  the  breaking  out  of  the  re- 
bellion Mr.  Turnbull  served  for 
twelve  months.  In  1868  he  was 
elected  national  secretary,  which 
office  he  held  for  six  years,  being 
re-elected  twice.  In  1875  he 
became  supreme  judge  of  his  dis- 


'? 

1 

'    H 

Pl^^^ftw''- 

.  .^1 

J.  p.   TUENBULL. 

trict,  and  served  two  terms.  In 
1883  he  was  elected  a  member 
of  the  house,  and  in  1881:  super- 
intendent of  the  public  schools, ' 
which  office  he  still  holds.  In 
1877  he  was  ordained  a  minister 
of  the  Presbyterian  church.  He 
is  a  most  energetic  minister  and 
a  devout  christian,  liberal,  char- 
itable and  loved  by  all  men. 

Mr.  Turnbull  has  not  been  out 
of  office  since  1868. 


-* 


184 


-^ 


LEADERS   AND    LEADING   ^lEN 


F.C.  MEADOWS 
This  gentleman  is  the  son  of  J. 
M.  J\J endows,  of  Carrollton,  Ga. 
F.  C.  was  born  in  1852,  and  was 
educated  at  Carrollton  Masonic 
Institute.  In  1879  he  married 
Emma  B.,  daughter  of  Major 
John  M.  Richardson,  of  Dainger- 


^- 


F.    C.    MEADOWS. 

field,  Morris  Co., Texas,  the  cere- 
mony taking  place  at  Sulphur 
Springs,  Hopkins  county.  By 
this  union  were  six  children, 
namely:  Clara,  Eugenie,  Clegg, 
Hugh  and  Louise,  the  oldest  be- 
ing ten  years  and  the  youngest 
one  year  and  a  half.  Mr.  Mead- 
ows has  had  five  brothers,  one  of 
them,  Joseph  Courtney,  came  to 
the  Nation  and  died  in  1884. 
The  subject  of  this  sketch  -em 


barked  in  the  drug  business  in 
Caddo  in  1877,  and  in  1880  was 
appointed  postmaster  at  that 
place,  which,  until  1887,  was  the 
largest  distributing  point  in  the 
Nation.  He  is  a  missionary 
Baptist  and  a  good  christian. 


LEM  W.  OAKES. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  Kiamichi  county,  Choc- 
taw Nation,  in  1857,  being  the 
fifth  son  of  Thomas  W.  Oakes, 
of  North  Carolina,  who  came  to 
this  Nation  in  1837,  and  married 
a  sister  ot  Chief  Justice  Ever- 
idge.  Mr.  Oakes  (senior)  built 
the  first  house  ever  erected  in  tlie 
Choctaw  Nation,  and  now  the 
property  of  Thomas  Ainsworth, 
at  Oak  Lodge.  Unfortunately 
the  old  gentleman  has  been  blind 
for  the  past  seven  years.  The 
subject  of  this  sketch,  L.  W. 
Oakes,  received  about  two  years' 
education  at  Springfield,  Mo. 
In  1879  he  engaged  in  farming 
and  married  Lucy  Smith,  daugh- 
ter of  Henry  Smith,  living  close 
to  Paris.  By  this  marriage  they 
have  six  children:  Bessie.  Lillie, 
Clarence,  Frank,  Mattie  and  No- 
la,  the  eldest  being  ten  years  of 
age.  In  1883  he  was  appointed 
third  district  collector,  and  held 
the  office   for  three    vears.       In 


->i< 


*- 


-* 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


185 


1888  he  was  elected    member  of 
the  Senate. 

Mr.  Oakes  has  a  comfortable 
home,  two  hundred  acres  of  land 
mider  fence,  one  hundred  of 
which  is  under  cultivation,  be- 
sides a  small  herd  of  cattle  and 
two  hundred  head  of  hogs.  This 
gentleman  is  pleasant  and  con- 
genial and  very  popular  wherever 
he  is  known.  He  has  been  a 
member  of  the  Masonic  order 
since  1884,  and  an  Odd  Fellow 
since  1882. 


*- 


JOSIAH  H.  BRYANT. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

Mr.  Bkyant  was  born  near  Du 
rant  in  1854,  and  is  the  son  of 
Jesse  Bryant,  of  Blue  county. 
He  went  to  school  at  Bonham, 
Texas,  till  1873,  during  which 
time  he  worked  to  pay  his  own 
tuition.  His  labors  were,  how- 
ever, rewarded  in  after  years  by 
the  national  government,  for  he 
has  never  been  out  of  office  since 
his  education  was  completed,  be- 
ing appointed  a  deputy  sheriff 
after  his  return  from  Bonham. 
In  1874  he  was  elected  sheriff, 
which  position  he  held  six  years. 
He  was  representative  under 
Jack  McCurtain's  administration 
in  1880,  but  retired  from  the 
house  when  the  'Frisco  Railroad 
Charter  bill  became  a  subject  of 


unpleasant  discussion  in  the  leg- 
islature. In  1881  he  was  re- 
elected to  the  shrievalty,  which 
he  held  one  term,  till  elected  dis- 
trict trustee  by  the  council  in 
1884.  In  1886,  during  Small- 
wood's  administration,  Mr.  Bry- 


J.  H.    BRYANT. 

ant  again  entered  the  house, 
where  he  was  elected  speaker  of 
the  representative  body,  an  office 
never  before  bestowed  upon  so 
young  a  man.  In  this  capacity 
he  surprised  the  expectations  of 
his  warmest  friends.  In  1889, 
on  the  death  of  Levi  Garland, 
he  was  appointed  by  Gov.  Small- 
wood  to  fill  the  unexpired  term 
of  the  late  sheriff  of  Blue  county. 
He  is  now  a  candidate   for  the 


* 


•i<- 


186 


LEADKUS   AND    LEADING   3IEN 


sGDate  against  W.  W.  Hampton, 
a  man  of  great  popularity. 

Mr.  Bryant  married  a  daugh- 
ter of  John  Lawson  in  1874.  He 
is  comfortably  situated,  having 
four  hundred  acres  of  farm  land 
and  eight  hundred  of  pasture. 


•i^ 


ISHAM  WALKER. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  Towsen  county,  in  June, 
1840,  and  was  educated  at  Spen- 
cer and  Armstrong  Academies, 
completing  his  schooling  in  1856. 
Desirous  of  learning  a  trade, 
Ishani  engaged  in  the  mill- 
wright's craft,  binding  himself 
to  a  tradesman  in  the  Choctaw 
Nation,  with  whom  he  moved  to 
Texas  and  remained  twelve 
months.  In  two  years  Isham 
learned  the  millwright  business. 
At  the  breaking  out  of  the  war 
he  served  in  a  Texas  regiment  for 
twelve  months,  and  then  pro- 
cured a  transfer  to  Col.  Sim  Fol- 
som's  Choctaw  regiment,  in 
which  he  served  until  the  close 
of  the  war  in  the  capacity  of 
Captain,  having  received  promo- 
tion in  1862.  In  1868  he  mar- 
ried Christina  McGee,  who  died 
without  issue  in  1869.  Twelve 
months  afterward  he  was  wedded 
to  Delilah  Brown,  daughter  of 
Phil  Brown,   a    Choctaw.       She 


died  soon  afterward  in  childbirth. 
In  1874  he  was  again  married, 
this  time  to  Eliza  Boston,  a  Cher- 
okee, who  died  in  three  years. 
In  the  same  year  he  was  united 
to    his    present    wife,    Phalena 


/"^ 

. 

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1 

1 

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i^h'^ 

^^ 

Rpi 

J^            \ 

HDinim    J 

^^^4 

mKi'iri       "Bir    '-^     ' 

^■iMl  ikW^ 

IS  HAM  WALKER. 

Foster,  a  Choctaw,  by  whom  he 
has  one  surviving  child,  Daniel 
Webster. 

Isham  Walker  has  filled  the 
following  offices:  Ranger  in 
1869;  district  attorney  in  1870 
(for  four  years);  in  1875  mem- 
ber of  the  House;  journalist 
in  1882;  Senator  in  1888;  Nat- 
ional auditor  in  1889,  which  of- 
fice he  holds  at  the  present  time. 
Mr.  Walker  was  appointed  by 
the  governor  (in   company    with 


-* 


*- 


OF   THE   INDIAN  TERRITORY. 


187 


* 


J.  M.  Hodges  and  Peter  Noel) 
as  commissioner  for  the  pay- 
ment of  the  Choctaw  Net  Pro- 
ceeds Claim.  In  1883  he  en- 
gaged in  preaching  for  the  Meth- 
odist church,  and  acted  as  inter- 
preter for  Parson  Keath  at  the 
Doaksville  circuit  in  the  Indian 
Missouri  Conference. 

Isham  Walker  is  the  son  of 
Sentinona,  a  full-blood  Choctaw 
of  the  Okla-ha-nali  clan,  who  held 
some  prominent  otiices  in  his 
day.  The  subject  of  this  sketch 
has  ninety-five  acres  of  good  land 
under  cultivation  and  fifty  head 
of  stock  cattle.  He  is  a  smart  bus- 
iness man,  and  has  been  always 
very  influential  among  his  people. 
He  is  also  well  educated  and 
fitted  to  cope  with  anybody  in 
financial  and  political  affairs. 
His  residence  is  at  Kullyinla, 
Red  River  county,  C.  N. 


*- 


REV.  R.  W.  OFFICER. 
The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  Murray  county,  Georgia, 
in  1845.  Young  Robert,  while 
a  boy  of  fifteen  years  of  age,  left 
school  and  joined  Gen.  Yaughn's 
army  in  the  capacity  of  sergeant. 
In  eighteen  months  afterward  he 
was  captured  at  Yicksburgh, 
Mississippi,  placed  on  parole  and 
exchanged  in  three  months.  Be- 
fore long  he   joined  Gen.  John 


H.  Morgan  as  scout  and  carrier 
on  his  staff  and  remained  with 
him  until  the  death  of  the  dash- 
ing leader  at  Greenville,  Tenn. 
Still  young  Officer  continued 
in  the  capacity  of  scout  until  the 


REV.    R.  W.  OFFICER. 

close  of  the  war,  when  he  enter- 
ed school  at  London,  Tennessee, 
and  finished  his  education  at 
Oak  Hill  Seminary.  Afterward 
he  became  a  Baptist  preacher  for 
six  years,  and  finally  joined  the 
Christian  church,  preached  as  an 
evangelist  through  Tennessee, 
Mississippi  and  Alabama  for 
nearly  three  years;  from  thence 
was  called  successively  to  Louis- 
burgh,  Tenn.,  and  Gainesville, 
Texas:  and  remained   two  vears 


* 


188 


-•!• 


I.KAUKIIS   AND    LKADIXO    MEN' 


at  tlie  latter  ]>laeo.  After  a  resi- 
idence  of  four  years  at  Paris,  Tex., 
he  opened  a  mission  in  the  Choc- 
taw Nation.  With  this  in  view  he 
moved  to  Atoka,  Indian  Territory, 
and  in  a  marvelously  short  space 
of  time  established  over  fifty 
churches  in  the  Territorv. 

Many  avow  that  he  has  done  as 
much  in  ten  years  by  himself  as 
other  denominations  have  done 
in  twenty  years.  Besides  his 
mission  work  he  has  secured 
homes  and  educated  about  thirty- 
four  orphan  Indian  children. 

Mr.  Officer  married  Miss  Lota 
Yenable,  of  Winchester,  Tenn., 
daughter  of  Col.  W.  E.  Venable, 
minister  to  South  America  during 
the  Buchanan  administration. 
By  his  wife  he  had  two  boys,  one 
of  whom  survives,  named  Leon. 
This  gentleman  owns  farming 
property  in  Arkansas  and  Col- 
orado, besides  a  tract  which  con- 
tains much  undeveloped  mineral. 
His  city  property  in  Atoka  is 
worth    twelve  thousand  dollars. 

Kev.  E.  \V.  Officer  is  a  large- 
hearted,  whole  souled,  fearless 
man,  with  a  wide  guage  mind, 
a  sound  brain  and  a  benevolence 
larffc  as  all  combined. 


^ 


JOHN  E.  MCRRAYER. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The   subject  of  this   sketch  was 


born  in  Mississippi  in  December. 
1857,  and  attended  a  neighbor- 
hood school  until  he  was  eighteen 
years  old,  after  which  he  went  to 
the  Charleston  high  school,  Ar- 
kansas, and  remained  there  until 
1877.  He  then  resolved  to  come 
to  the  Indian  Territory,  and  do- 
ing so,  settled  near  Fort  Smith, 
on  the  borders  of  the  Choctaw 
Xation.  In  1882  he  drove  a 
herd  of  cattle  to  the  Fan  Handle, 
in  Texas,  and  returned  the  fol- 
lowing year.  In  October,  1883, 
he  engaged  in  the  mercantile 
business  at  Tamaha,  and  contin- 
ued in  it  until  1897.  In  Sep- 
tember, 1836,  he  married  Vir- 
ginia Harrisson,  the  daughter  of 
Judge  Harrisson,  and  soon  after- 
ward drifted  into  the  cattle  bus- 
iness, wJiich  he  now  follows. 
By  his  marriage  he  has  one  son, 
named  Roma  Sanford. 

In  1888  Mr.  McBrayer  was 
appointed  circuit  clerk  of  the 
First  judicial  district,  and  in  1890 
was  re-appointed  to  the  same 
office.  He  has  one  hundred  and 
fifty  acres  of  land  under  cultiva- 
tion and  one  hundred  and  fifty 
head  of  cattle.  He  is  a  young 
man  of  good  address,  well  edu- 
cated, possessing  a  good  general 
business  knowledge,  and  from 
early  experience  is  well  able  to 
cope  with  the  world. 


-•J 


ii<- 


OF    I'lTE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


189 


-* 


JOHN  A.COBB.  M.D. 
The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  ill  McMinn  county,  East 
Tennessee,  in  1853,  attended 
public  school  until  1870,  when 
he  emigrated  to  Texas.  John 
took  to  fannino;  in  the  new  coun- 


*- 


JOHN  A.    COBB,    M.    D. 

try,  but  again  went  to  school  at 
Weston,  Collin  county,  in  1873, 
after  which  he  commenced  teach- 
ing at  Mount  Vernon;  and  from 
thence  moved  to  Marvin  College, 
Waxahachie,  where  he  received 
one  year's  instruction  from  old 
Dr.  M.  B.  Franklin,  following 
him  to  Grape  Yine  Masonic  In- 
stitute, wJiere  he  continued  his  stu- 
dy. In  1882  he  commenced  the 
study  of  medicine  at  the  Univer- 


sity of  Virginia,  and  graduated 
with  high  honors  in  the  medical 
department  of  the  University  of 
Louisiana,  even  though  he  was  a 
defeated  candidate  for  the  vale- 
dictorian of  Texas. 

He  commenced  practice  in 
Denison,  Texas,  in  xVpril,  1884, 
and  from  that  point  moved  to 
Caddo;  but  to  the  sorrow  of  the 
inhabitants  of  that  tow^n,  he 
moved  to  Lehigh  in  1888,  and 
entered  the  arena  of  competition 
against  physicians  who  had  been 
long  established  in  the  country. 
His  success  in  Caddo,  however, 
reached  the  ears  of  the  Leliigh 
people,  and  it  w^as  but  a  short 
time  until  he  commanded  a  large 
practice.  He  now,  in  partnership 
with  C.  H.  Hillier,ow^ns  the  prin- 
cipal drug  store  in  town,  while 
his  partner  in  practice,  Dr.  J.  H. 
Carson,  attends  to  the  profes- 
sional calls  at    Coalgate. 

Dr.  Cobb  married  Miss  Julia 
R.  Benson,  of  Sherman,  Texas, 
1884.  He  has  no  children 
except  two  adopted  Choctaws 
(twins),  over  whom  he  has  been 
appointed  as  guardian.  There 
is  no  more  pleasant,  sociable 
companion  than  Dr.  Cobb.  His 
natural  cheerfulness  of  disposi- 
tion has  no  doubt  a  salutory  ef- 
fect upon  his  patients,  as  very 
few  ever  die  under  his  charge, 


-•i- 


*- 


190 


-* 


LEADEItS   AND   LEADING   MEN 


REV.  W.  H.  MCRIXNEY. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  tliis  sketch  was 
})orn  January  2,  1861,  at  Ho- 
lubbj,  Choctaw  Nation,  and  at- 
tended the  neighborhood  school 
from  1868  to  1873,  after  which 
he  was  placed  at  Spencer  Acad- 


*- 


EEV.  W.  H.  M  KINNEY. 

emj  until  1877.  Thence  William 
was  transferred  to  Roanoke, 
where  he  remained  five  years, 
obtaining  his  A.  B.  in  1883.  In 
the  same  year  he  entered  the 
Divinity  School  at  Yale  College, 
where  he  secured  his  B.  D.  in 
1886. 

Returning  to  his  home  in  the 
Choctaw  Nation,  young  McKin- 


ney  commenced  life  by  uniting 
in  matrimony  with  Elsie  Hudson 
September  15,  1887,  by  whom 
he  has  one  child,  Carrie,  born  in 
October,  1888. 

On  his  return  from  college, 
William  found  his  elder  brother, 
Thompson  McKinney,  wearing 
the  honors  of  principal  chief, 
having  just  been  inaugurated. 
This  led  to  an  opening  for  the 
young  divine,  and  he  was  soon 
appointed  district  school  trustee. 
In  the  same  year  he  was  ordained 
minister  in  the  Presbyterian 
church,  and  took  charge  under 
the  Choctaw  presbytery.  Mr. 
McKinney,  however,  met  with 
an  unfortunate  mishap  in  the 
summer  of  1887.  While  return- 
ing from  Paris,  Texas,  with  sev- 
era  thousand  dollars  in  his  sad- 
dle-pockets, drawn  from  the 
treasury  to  defray  school  expen- 
ditures, Bella  Starr,  dressed  in 
male  attire,  and  a  male  accom- 
plice of  hers,  waylaid  and  robbed 
the  young  man  of  every  cent  in 
his  possession.  He  did  not  of 
course  recognize  the  robbers,  or 
the  truth  might  have  been 
brought  to  light  at  an  earlier 
date.  But  it  so  happened  that 
when  the  school  trustee  laid  his 
lamentable  story  before  the  coun- 
cil, and  in  this  manner  endeav- 
ored to  explain  the  cause  of  his 


John  Wilson  and  Dancing  Chief. 


i^- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


193 


* 


*- 


serious  deficiency,  the  all-wise 
legislators  turned  a  deaf  ear  to 
his  defense,  and  he  was  doomed 
to  bear  the  calumny  of  his  coun- 
trymen for  nearly  two  years. 
In  1879,  however,  the  truth  came 
to  light  in  the  following  manner: 
Immediately  after  the  assassina- 
tion ot  Bella  Starr,  the  author  of 
her  adventurous  life,  H.  F. 
O'Beirne,  made  his  way  into  her 
stronghold  on  the  Canadian,  and 
remaining  with  the  outlaws  until 
he  had  secured  the  object  of  his 
search,  returned  with  a  quantity 
of  manuscript  in  the  shape  of  a 
journal,  which  contained  a  very 
complete  history  of  her  desperate 
deeds  and  highway  robberies. 
The  last  item  on  the  dark  record 
was  the  attack  upon  William 
McKinney  and  the  robbery  of 
the  school  fund.  "Belle  Starr's 
Life,''  published  soon  afterward, 
developed  the  truth  and  banished 
the  cloud  that  darkened  the  rep- 
utation of  this  young  man,  who 
had  started  out  with  such  a  bril- 
liant career  before  him.  Mr. 
McKinney  bore  the  imputation 
with  great  patience  throughout, 
proving  himself  to  be  a  christian 
gentleman. 

Besides  his  clerical  duties,  the 
subject  of  our  sketch  has  devoted 
much  of  his  time  to  farming. 
He  has   one   hundred   and  fifty 


acres  under  cultivation  and  some 
two  hundred  head  of  cattle. 

Few  citizens  of  the  Choctaw 
Nation  have  received  so  thor- 
ough an  education  in  the  Latin 
and  Greek  classics,  while  he  is 
above  the  average  in  the  ordi- 
nary branches  of  English,  He 
belongs  to  the  Ok-la-fa-lay-a  clan. 


JOHN  BOND. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  Wade  county,  in  1853, 
his  father,  Isaac  Bond,  dying 
when  he  was  very  young,  so 
that  he  received  little  if  any  ed- 
ucation. He  was  raised  by  his 
uncle,  Anonchubba,  for  whom 
he  commenced  work  on  a  farm 
at  an  early  age.  In  1875  Mr. 
Bond  married  Lucretia  West, 
born  in  1844,  the  daughter  of 
Joseph  West,  of  Mississippi,  a 
Cherokee  by  blood,  who  emi- 
grated to  Texas  in  1847.  By 
this  marriage  he  has  five  children: 
Willie,  Henry,  Ida,  Susan  and 
an  infant.  The  oldest  of  these 
children  is  four  years  of  age. 

In  1878  the  subject  of  this 
sketch  was  elected  sheriff,  which 
ofiice  he  held  for  six  years,  but 
was  obliged  to  resign  owing  to 
ill  health.  In  1890  he  was  elect- 
ed Senator  of  Wade  county, 
Wiley-tubbee,  Barton  Jones  and 


* 


*- 


194 


l.EADKKS   AND    LEADING    5IEN 


Willis  Jefferson  being  also  can- 
didates. Mr.  Bond  has  a  small 
farm  and  a  small  stock  of  cattle 
and  hogs.  His  house  was  one 
of  the  first  built  in  Tuskahoma. 
His  wife  is  a  bright,  well  edu- 
cated woman,  who  spent  many 
years  in  teaching  in  the  neigh- 
boring schools.  H*er  parents 
dying  while  she  was  a  girl,  she 
was  obliged  to  go  into  service, 
and  was  afterward  adopted  by  a 
Mrs.  Willis,  who  moved  to  the 
Choctaw  Nation,  taking  up  her 
residence  at  Lenore,  in  Wade 
county,  early  in  the  seventies, 
where  she  died.  It  was  about 
this  time  that  Miss  West  and  Mr. 
Bond  met  for  the  first  time,  which 
meeting  resulted  in  marriage. 


^- 


JONATHAN  J.  WATKINS. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  March 
1,  1840,  in  Red  River  county, 
and  attended  the  neighborhood 
school  for  four  years,  completing 
his  education  at  Spencer  Acad- 
emy. In  1858  he  was  appointed 
county  clerk,  and  filled  the  office 
two  years.  On  the  breaking  out 
of  the  war  he  joined  the  Confed- 
erate army,  and  remained  in  the 
service  until  the  close. 

Mr.  Watkins  married  a  Choc- 
taw lady  in  1870,  but  separated 
from  her  four  years  afterward. 


In  1874  he  was  elected  county 
judge,  which  ofiice  he  held  for 
six  years.  In  1877  he  married 
Melinda  Harley,  sister  of  Thos. 
Harley,  of  Red    Oak,  by  whom 


J.  J.  WATKINS. 

he  had  no  issue.  He  was  elected 
district  attorney  in  1884,  which 
ofiice  he  held  six  years.  In  1890 
he  was  called  to  the  senate,  and 
is  now  representing  his  district 
in  that  capacity. 

Mr.  Watkins  is  an  honorable, 
trustworthy  man,  sincere  and 
good-natured,  and  has  the  good- 
will of  all  who  know  him.  He 
owns  about  seventy  acres  under 
fence  and  a  small  herd  of  cattle, 
horses  and  hogs.  He  belongs  to 
the  Ok-la-fa-lay-a  clan. 


* 


*- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


195 


* 


BENJAMIN  HAMPTON. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketcli  was 
born  in  Wade  county,  C,  N., 
April  24,  1853,  and  attended 
neighborhood  schools  until  1866, 
after  which  he  was  placed  at  the 
William  Fuller  School,  in  Paris, 


*- 


BENJAMIN  HAMPTON. 

Texas,  where  he  remained  one 
year.  In  1868  Ben  was  sent  to 
an  academy  in  Bonham,  Texas, 
where  he  stayed  two  years,  and 
in  18T0  completed  his  education 
at  Richmond,  Virginia.  In  1874 
he  married  Harriet  Belvin,  by 
whom  he  had  two  children,  who 
died  young,  his  wife  surviving 
her  marriage  but  three  years. 
Mr.    Hampton     married     again 


about  1879,  this  time  to  a  daugh- 
ter of  W.  B.  Simms,  of  Old 
Boggy,  a  white  man.  The  issue 
of  this  marriage  was  three  chil- 
dren, two  of  whom  are  living: 
Perry  and  Phoebe. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  en- 
gaged in  farming  and  stock  rais- 
ing in  1872,  which  he  still  pur- 
sues with  great  success.  He  is 
also  tie  contractor  for  the  M.,  K. 
&  T.  railroad,  to  which  position 
he  was  appointed  in  1887  by 
Thompson  McKinney,  P.  C.  C. 
N.,  and  re-appointed  by  his  suc- 
cessor, B.  F.  Smallwood,  P.  C. 
C.  N.,  in  1888.  In  1873  Mr. 
Hampton  was  elected  journalist 
for  the  House,  and  was  re-elect- 
ed five  or  six  times.  He  has  two 
thousand  two  hundred  acres  un- 
der fence,  three  hundred  acres  of 
which  is  under  cultivation.  Be- 
sides his  farms  he  is  the  owner 
of  six  or  seven  hundred  head  of 
cattle,  improved  grades,  and 
seventy-five  head  of  stockhorses 
For  years  it  has  been  his  great- 
est pride  to  improve  the  grade 
of  horses,  cattle  and  hogs  through- 
out the  country.  With  this  in  view 
he  has  imported  some  of  the 
best  Kentuckian  stock,  and  is 
therefore  in  a  position  to  cope 
with  anybody  in  the  Indian  Ter- 
ritory in  the  exhibition  of  su- 
perior blood  and  weight.      Mr. 


'^ 


^- 


196 


* 


I.EADEKS    AND    LKADING    MEN 


Hampton  is  of  fair  complexion, 
vt'iy  gentlemanly  looking,  and 
exti'emelj  fastidious  in  his  dress. 
In  outward  appearance  an  Anglo- 
Saxon,  in  heart  an  Indian.  He 
has  traveled  a  good  deal  in  the 
states;  is  well  informed  on  most 
subjects,  and  is  an  exceptionally 
smart  business  man.  He  resides 
at  Caddo,  in  the  Choctaw  Nation. 


*- 


JOSEPH  D.  LINDSAY. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
bornin  Hancock  Co.  Ky.,  in  1856, 
and  came  to  Atoka,  Choctaw  Na- 
tion, in  1873,  where  he  went  to 
work  in  an  humble  capacity  for 
Prof.  O.  C.  Hall,  J.  J.  Phil- 
lipps  and  others. 

J.  D.  Lindsay  is  one  of  the 
non-citizen  residents  of  the  Indian 
Territory,  who  has  long  been 
identified  with  the  country,  and 
whose  energy  and  industry  has 
been  rewarded  by  financial  suc- 
cess. In  1882  he  became  a  part- 
ner in  the  mercantile  business 
of  McBride  &  Co.,  and  two  years 
afterward  sold  out  and  opened  a 
general  goods  house  at  Silver 
City  in  company  with  Edward 
Johnson,  which  partnership  was 
dissolved  in  1880,  and  resulted 
in  Mr.  Lindsay  opening  a  store 


at  Minco,  the  then  terminus  of 
the  Chicago,  Rock  Island  &  Pa- 
cific R.  R.,  where  he  now  carries 
a  stock  of  some  ten  thousand 
dollars'  worth  of  goods.  Here 
he  has  a  liberal  trade,  which  in- 
cludes that  of  the  wild,  or  reser- 


JOSEPH  D.    LINDSAY. 

vation    Indians,    Wichitas,    Co- 
manches,  etc. 

Mr.  Lindsay  has  been  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Oklahoma  Lodge  No. 
4,  located  at  Atoka,  since  1877. 
In  1879  he  married  Mary  Ellen, 
daughter  of  John  McBride,  of 
Arkansas,  and  sister  of  Hiram 
and  William  McBride,  of  Atoka, 
by  whom  he  has  three  children: 
Hiram,  Joseph  D.,  William  A. 


-* 


*- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


197 


-* 


*- 


AMOS  HENRY. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  Sans  Bois  county  in  1848. 
He  is  a  son  of  the  late  Artembe, 
and  belongs  to  the  Hyah-pah- 
tuk-kalo  clan. 

Amos  recei*ved  a  limited  edu- 
cation at  the  Fort  Coffee  Acad- 
emy, and  in  1864:  joined  General 
Cooper's  command  in  Colonel 
Tandy  Walker's  regiment.  After 
a  nine  or  ten  months'  campaign 
the  war  ended. 

Mr.  Henry  married  his  first 
wife  in  1868,  by  whom  he  had 
no  family.  In  1870  he  married 
Lucy  Oks-ak-nibe,  by  whom  he 
has  one  son,  named  Wilburn 
Henry.  His  wife  died  in  1886. 
In  1880  he  was  elected  county 
ranger,  after  which  he  became 
representative  in  1881,  and  was 
re-elected  in  1882  and  1883.  In 
1885  he  was  elected  to  the  sen- 
ate, which  office  he  held  for  two 
years.  In  the  meanwhile  he  de- 
voted his  attention  somewhat  to 
agricultural  pursuits.  Since  the 
death  of  his  wife,  however,  he 
withdrew  from  politics  to  a  great 
extent,  ceasing  to  be  a  candidate 
for   oflice   until    1890,  when  he 


allowed  his  named  to  be  placed 
on  the  list  of  candidates  for  dis- 
trict school  trustee. 

In  the  fall  of  1890  Mr.  Henry 
says  he  was  put  to  a  great  deal 
of  trouble  and  expense  through 
a  renter  of  his  who  brought  suit 
against  him  at  South  McAlester 
for  the  recovery  of  a  hundred 
dollars  for  alleged  expenses  in 
keeping  twenty  acres  of  fence  in 
repair  for  four  years.  The  plain- 
tiff, taking  advantage  of  the  ab- 
sence of  a  contractor  and  Mr. 
Henry's  limited  knowledge  of 
the  English  language,  worked  up 
a  suit  against  him,  the  legal  ex- 
penses of  which  amounted  to 
over  two  hundred  dollars.  The 
jury  in  the  case,  we  learn,  were 
white  men,  and  the  plaintiff  came 
off  victorious,  to  the  astonish- 
ment of  Mr,  Henry,  who  de- 
nounces the  decision  as  unjust. 
This  gentleman  is  not  the  only 
Choctaw  who  complains  of  this 
species  of  justice  dealt  to  his 
countrymen  at  South  McAles- 
ter. 

Amos  Henry  has  always  filled 
in  a  very  creditable  manner  the 
numerous  ofiices  which  he  has 
held,  and  he  is  being  almost  con- 
stantly sought  after  to  fill  posi- 
tions of  public  trust,  which  he 
invariably  declines. 


->B 


•:r 


198 


-*h 


LEADERS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


SIMON  E.  LEWIS. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

Judge  Lewis  was  born  in  Tow- 
sen  county  in  December,  1840, 
and  was  educated  at  Spencer 
Academy.  When  the  war  broke 
out  he  enlisted  in  Gen.  Cooper's 
command,  and  served  four  years. 
Soon  after  the  war  he  married 
May  Hildebrand,  a  Cherokee,  by 
whom  he  had  one  child,  named 
Kathleen.  In  1875  he  was  united 
to  Eliza  Striplin,  a  white  girl, 
and  having  procured  a  divorce 
in  1876,  married  Julia  Hunter, 
by  whom  he  had  one   child  that 


SIMON  E.   LEWIS. 

died    in   infancy.     In    1877  his 
wife  died,  and  in  two  years  af- 


terward he  married  Mrs.  Mur- 
phy, widow  of  the  late  Benjamin 
Murphy,  of  Jacks  Forks  county, 


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■  ■   ^ 

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V:                      '3^''*'      ^^^^^^I^^^HHfe^i. 

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Wmm 

MRS.  LEWIS. 

the  issue  of  their  marriage  being 
four  living  children,  named  Si- 
mon Frazier,  George  Claburne, 
Julia  Alma  and  Ruth. 

In  1879  Mr.  Lewis  was  deputy 
sheriff  of  Sans  Bois  county;  from 
1881  till  1883  he  served  as  dep- 
uty circuit  clerk,  and  the  two 
years  following  was  regular  clerk. 
In  1883  he  was  appointed  circuit 
judge  to  fill  the  unexpired  term 
of  Rufus  Folsom,  and  in  1884 
was  elected  to  the  same  office, 
which  he  held  for  four  years.  In 
1888  he  was  appointed  district 
collector  of  the  first  district,  but 


-* 


*- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITOKY. 


199 


•f 


resigned  in  1890,  removing  to 
Ardmore,  Chickasaw  Nation. 

Judge  Lewis  is  one-eighth 
Choctaw,  a  man  of  learning,  and 
highly  esteemed  by  all.  His 
wife  is  a  lady  of  culture  and  re- 
finement. 

The  subject  of  our  sketch  has 
been  a  member  of  the  Masonic 
order  for  the  past  fourteen  years. 
He  is  the  owner  of  a  fine  farm, 
five  hundred  head  of  stock  cat- 
tle, and  has  an  interest  in  three 
coal  claims. 


REV.  JAMES  L.  KEENER. 
This  gentleman  was  born  in  Jan- 
uary, 1851,  in  Whitfield  county, 
Georgia,  and  educated  at  the 
Methodist  High  School,  Ooltowa, 
Tennessee.  The  young  man  be- 
gan his  career  of  usefulness  by 
teaching  school  at  Harrisson, 
Hamilton  county,  where  he  was 
licensed  to  preach  in  1875.  In 
the  following  year  he  moved  to 
Yell  county,  Arkansas,  where  he 
also  taught,  and  in  the  fall  of  the 
same  year  joined  the  Arkansas 
cofnerence.  He  traveled  during 
the  two  following  years,  and  in 
1888  once  more  located  and 
taught  school  until  1881,  in  the 
fall  of  which  year  he  moved  to 
the  Canadian  district  of  the  Cher- 
okee Nation,  where  he  served 
two  years  at  Webber's  Falls.    In 


1883  he  went  to  Boggy  Depot, 
Choctaw  Nation,  located  there 
for  two  years,  and  for  the  four 
subsequent  years  served  as  pre- 
siding elder  of  that  district,  where 
he  was  greatly  beloved  and  re- 


EEV.  JAMES  LISBON  KEENER. 

spected.  In  1889  he  was  moved 
to  Paul's  Valley,  where  he  is  now 
located.  In  1876  he  married 
Sabina  K.  Johnson,  and  in  two 
years  afterward  Louisa  C.  John- 
son, both  of  whom  died  in  child- 
birth. In  1881  he  married  his 
present  wife,  Ellen  Gertrude 
Mann,  of  Booneville,  Arkansas, 
by  whom  he  has  two  children, 
Louisa,  aged  seven  years,  and 
James  Oland  Coppidge,  aged 
two. 


-* 


FOREST  HOME. 


^- 


OF   THE   INDIAX   TERRITORY. 


201 


* 


G.  W.  CHOATE. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  October,  ISiO,  in  Ittahi 
county,  Mississippi,  and  attended 
neighborhood  schools  until  1854. 
In  the  following  year  he  moved 
to  the   Choctaw  Nation,  and  in 


M  "^^^l 


*- 


G.   W.  CHOATE. 

1860,  at  the  breaking  out  of  the 
war,  he  joined  General  Cooper's 
command.  In  1865  he  married 
Eliza  Wade,  daughter  of  Simon 
Wade,  by  whom  he  has  two  sur- 
viving children,  William  F.  and 
Allen  J.  At  the  close  of  the 
war  he  commenced  farming  and 
stock-raising,  and  in  1876  was 
elected  sheriff,  holding  that  office 
for  two  years.     In  1882  he  was 


re-elected,  and   in  1890  became 
representative  of  his  county. 

G.  W.  Choate  is  a  son  of  Jas. 
C.  Choate,  half  Choctaw,  his 
mother  being  of  the  Ward  fam- 
ily. On  his  father's  side  he  be- 
longs to  the  Ok-la-fa-lay-a  clan. 
He  has  four  hundred  acres  of 
land  under  cultivation  and  two 
hundred  and  fifty  head  of  stock 
cattle  and  one  hundred  horses. 
He  is  a  man  of  good  education, 
intelligent,  and  very  popular 
among  his  people. 


WILLIAM  G.GARLAND. 

[  CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  Towsen  county,  in  1865, 
and  attended  the  neighborhood 
school  until  1880,  after  which 
he  was  placed  at  Westminster 
College,  Fulton,  Mo.  Remaining 
there  until  the  following  Septem- 
ber, William  moved  to  Kemper 
Family  School,  Booneville,  Mo. , 
where  he  studied  until  June, 
1884.  In  August  of  that  year, 
on  his  return  home,  lie  was  ap- 
pointed circuit  clerk  of  the  first 
district.  This  office  he  held  un- 
til November,  1886,  when  he 
engaged  in  the  mercantile  busi- 
ness at  Cache,  Skullyville  coun- 
ty. In  June,  1887,  he  married 
Mary  Bellar,  daughter  of  James 
P.  Bellar,  of  Harrison,  Arkansas, 


-* 


-•i< 


2(12 


I.EADEIIS    AND    LEADING    MEN 


who  is  now  liviiiii;  in  Toniaha. 
By  this  marriage  he  has  one  child 
born  in  May,  1889,  named 
Joseph  G.  Mr,  Garland  sold  out 
his  interest  in  the  mercantile 
business  in  1887,  and  moved 
back  in  his  father's  neighbor- 
hood, where  he  was  appointed  as 
county  clerk  to  fill  an  unexpired 
term.  In  1889  he  was  elected 
member  of  the  lower  House,  and 
in  1890  was  re-elected  by  a  good 
majority. 

Mr,  Wm,  Garland  has  a  nice 
farm  and  a  small  herd  of  cattle 
and  hogs,  besides  eight  head  of 
horses. 

He  is  an  intelligent,  well  edu- 
cated young  man  of  good  moral 
character,  a  member  of  the  Ma- 
sonic order. 


A.M.  SURRELL. 
This  gentleman  was  born  in 
North  Carolina  in  1844,  and 
moved  to  North  Georgia  with 
his  father  and  mother  in  1850, 
w^here  he  received  private  tuition 
until  he  joined  the  army  in  1861 
under  Bragg,  with  whom  he  re- 
mained until  the  command  went 
to  Mobile,  Ala,,  after  which  he 
changed  into  the  heavy  artillery 
under  Manrey,  remaining  in  the 
army  until  1864,  and  frequently 
served  as  a  non-commissioned 
officer.      In     1873     he    married 


Miss  S.  F.  Curry,  of  Kentucky, 
by  whom  he  has  four  children — 
Bessie,  Hettie,  Cora  and  Albert, 
In  1875  he  commenced  farming 
in  Collin  county,  Texas,  which 
business  he  abandoned  in  1886, 


^- 


A,  M,   SURRELL. 

and  moved  to  Atoka,  Choctaw 
Nation,  where  his  brother  John 
w^as  residing.  Soon  afterward 
he  purchased  the  Atoka  livery 
stable  from  his  brother,  which  is 
now  one  of  the  best  equipped 
establishments  of  the  kind  in  the 
Indian  Territory. 

Mr.  Surrell  is  an  excellent 
angler,  and  few  men  can  surpass 
him  hunting  either  large  or  small 
game.  He  is  well  thought  of  in 
the  community. 


-* 


^- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


203 


-* 


HON.  CHAS.  K.  WINSTON. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  April,  1835,  near  Doaks- 
ville,  Texas,  and  educated  at  a 
neighborhood  school  until  1849, 
when  he  was  placed  at  the  Arm- 
strong Academy  for  three  years, 


*- 


HON.   C.  K.  WINSTON. 

completing  his  education  at  Spen- 
cer in  1852.  When  the  war 
broke  out  he  joined  the  Confed- 
erate army,  but  left  the  service 
in  twelve  months.  In  1881  he 
married  Mrs.  Levina  Loring, 
who  died  two  years  afterward. 
He  then  married  Selina  Annie 
Battise,  by  whom  he  had  six 
children,  two  of  whom  are 
living — Julia  and  Clarissa.   Mrs. 


Winston  passed  away  in  1881. 
Mr.  Winston  has  since  married 
Eliza  Peter,  by  whom  he  has  no 
family.  In  1869  he  was  appoint- 
ed county  judge,  and  in  1873 
was  elected  a  member  of  the 
lower  house,  and  in  1874  was 
elected  to  the  senate,  which  office 
he  has  occupied  by  re-election 
every  term  since  then  until  No- 
vember, 1889,  when  he  was  ap- 
pointed by  the  principal  chief  as 
district  trustee  of  the  public 
schools  to  fill  tiie  unexpired  term 
of  H.  C.  Harris. 

During  Mr.  Winston's  service 
in  the  senate  he  was  invariably 
voted  to  the  presidential  chair, 
fulfilling  the  duties  of  the  office 
with  a  quiet  dignity  that  never 
failed  to  have  its  influence.  He 
is  a  devout  christian  and  a  truly 
good  neighbor,  whose  example 
is  of  great  benefit  to  the  rising 
generation  of  the  Choctaws.  He 
is  also  a  man  of  considerable 
natural  talent,  which  he  rarely 
attempts  to  display;  is  an  excel- 
lent watch  and  clock-maker,  and 
a  good  all-round  mechanical 
craftsman.  But  Mr.  Winston's 
best  work  is  in  the  ministry,  he 
being  appointed  local  preacher 
of  the  M.  E.  Church  South  in 
1873.  Some  years  of  his  life  he 
also  devoted  to  school  teaching, 
for  which  he  is  well  adapted. 


-* 


>b- 


-^ 


204 


LEADEKS    AND   LEADING   MEN 


RKV.  J.  S.  MURROW. 
The  first  and  oldest  living  mis- 
sionary in  the  Clioctaw  Nation 
was  born  June  7,  1835,  in  Jef- 
ferson county,  Georgia.  His 
grandfather,    William     Murrow, 


*- 


REV  J.  S.  MUEROW. 

was  one  of  Marion's  daring  band 
in  the  Revolutionary  war. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
sent  to  the  Indian  Territory  by 
the  Home  Missionary  Board  of 
the  Baptist  Church  in  1857,  and 
since  that  time  has  been  working 
diligently,  faithfully  and  effectu- 
ally in  the  grand  cause.  The 
results  of  his  labor  are  percepti- 
ble all  over  the  Indian  country. 
In  1859  he  married  Clara,  the 
daughter  of   Hev.  W.  Burns,  of 


Stonewall,  an  excellent  lady. 
She  had  four  children,  two  of 
whom  survived  her  death,  which 
took  place  in  1868.  Mrs.  Wm. 
McBride,  however,  is  the  only 
living  child. 

Mr.  Murrow  established  the 
first  church  in  the  Seminole  Na- 
tion in  February,  1861.  When 
tiie  w^ar  broke  out  he  was  ap- 
pointed by  the  Seminotes  as  their 
agent  under  the  Confederate  gov- 
ernment, and  also  as  commissary 
to  provide  for  the  destitute  fam- 
ilies. The  fruits  of  his  work  are 
now  apparent  among  the  Semi- 
nole people,  several  hundred  of 
whom  are  members  of  the  Bap- 
tist church. 

In  1867  Mr.  Murrow  settled 
in  Atoka,  Choctaw  Nation,  from 
which  point  he  established  many 
churches  throughout  the  territo- 
ries of  the  Choctaws  and  Chick- 
asaws.  When,  at  his  call  in  1872 
the  churches  of  those  nations 
met  together  at  Atoka,  sixteen 
responded.  This  association  now 
contains  sixteen  hundred  mem- 
bers and  thirty-five  churches, 
most  of  which  have  good  Sunday 
schools. 

Mr.  Murrow  was  married  a 
few  years  ago  to  Miss  K,  R.  El- 
liott, a  missionary  lady,  who  ren- 
ders him  valuable  assistance  in 
his  arduous  work. 


-* 


i^- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERUITORY. 


205 


->Jl 


The  subject  of  our  sketch  is 
the  acknowledged  father  of  Ma- 
sonry in  the  Indian  Territory. 
He  was  for  some  years  Grand 
Master,  and  is  now  Secretary 
and  Grand  High  Priest  of  the 
Grand  High  Chapter. 

When  the  "Indian  Mission- 
ary," organ  of  the  Baptists  in 
the  Indian  Territory  was  on  its 
last  legs.  Brother  Murrow  took 
it  in  hand  at  the  sacrilice  of  time 
and  money,  and  has  since  suc- 
ceeded in  giving  it  a  large  circu- 
lation. He  is  a  most  excellent 
writer  upon  any  subject  which 
he  treats,  being  exceedingly  ver- 
satile, with  a  vast  experience 
gathered  in  his  contact  with  the 
various  races  of  mankind. 

Rev.  Mr.  Murrow  has  the  good 
will  of  all  ranks  and  classes. 


^- 


LORINGW  FRAZIER. 
The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  March,  1867,  being  the 
second  son  of  William  Frazier, 
of  Jackson  county.  He  was 
placed  at  a  neighborhood  school 
until  1884:,  and  from  there  went 
to  Spencer  Academy,  where  he 
remained  three  years.  In  the 
fall  of  1887  he  engaged  in  clerk- 
ing at  Baris,  Texas,  and  two 
years  afterward  attended  the 
council  meeting  at  Tuskahoma, 
where  he  was  appointed  journal- 


ist of  the  lower  house.  Moving 
to  Caddo  the  same  month,  he 
accepted  a  clerkship  in  the  dry 
goods  establishment  of  D.  Mc- 
Coy, which  position  he  held  till 
the  summer  of  1890.    In  the  fol- 


L.  W.  FRAZIER. 

lowing  October  be  was  appointed 
journalist  of  the  senate. 

Mr.  Frazier  will  probably 
move  to  Paris,  Texas,  and  there 
take  a  complete  commercial 
course,  with  a  view  of  engaging 
in  the  mercantile  business  in  the 
near  future.  He  is  a  bright,  in- 
telligent young  man,  full  ctf  en- 
ergy and  ambition,  and  looks 
forward  to  the  day  when  he  will 
be  fitted  to  make  a  mark  amons: 
his  people.  He  belongs  to  the 
Ok-la-fa-lay-a  clan, and  is  single. 


-* 


ti.- 


■^ 


206 


LEADKUS   AND    LEADING   MEX 


LA  FAYETTE  C.  HARKINS. 

[  CHOCTAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketcli  was 
born  in  Atoka  county  in  April, 
1864,  and  attended  the  neigh- 
borhood school  until  1880,  when 
he  engaged  in   stock-raising  and 


»^- 


farming,  which  business  he  still 
pursues. 

La  Fayette  is  the  third  son  of 
Henry  Clay  Harkins  and  nephew 
of  David  Harkins,  both  deceased, 
and  who  were  prominent  men  in 
their  time.  In  1890  La  Fayette 
was  appointed  national  inspec- 
tor, which  office  he  still  holds. 
In  October  of  the  same  year  he 
received  the  appointment  of  na- 
tional coal  weigher  at  Lehigh. 


Mr.  Harkins  is  a  pleasant  and 
popular  young  man,  intelligent 
and  well  educated.  He  is  one- 
fourth  Choctaw. 


SAMUEL  L.  OAKES. 

[CHOCTAW.] 

Judge  Oakesis  oneof  the  sons  of 
Thos.  W.  Oakes.  He  was  born 
at  Goodwater,  Choctaw  Nation, 
in  December,  1853,  and  was 
sent  to  the  neighborhood  schools 
until  1870,  after  which  he  was 
placed  at  Shilo,  west  of  Paris, 
Texas,  until  1872.  He  returned 
to  his  home  that  year  and  there 
remained  for  two  years,  after 
which  he  resumed  his  studies  at 
Shilo  until  1875.  In  1885  he 
was  appointed  clerk  of  the  su- 
preme court,  serving  creditably 
and  without  intermission  until 
August,  1890,  when  he  was  elect- 
ed county  judge  of  Kiamichi 
county  by  a  good  majority  over 
Nolan  Hensen,  John  Fowler  and 
A.  T.  Stephens. 

Mr.  Oakes  is  a  descendant 
from  the  Hyali  pah-tuk-kalo  clan 
through  his  mother,  Harriett 
Everidge.  His  father,  Thos.  W. 
Oakes,  was  a  white  man  from 
North  Carolina.  The  subject  of 
this  sketcli  has  a  farm  of  on 
hundred  and  sixty-six  acres  un- 
der cultivation  and  a  nice  herd 
of  cattle   and    horses. 


-* 


4<- 


LEADERS   AND   LEADING   MEN 


207 


-* 


JACOB  JACKSON. 

[OHOCTAW.] 

This  well-known  citizen  was  born 
in  1845,  most  probably  in  the 
state  of  Louisiana,  tliongh  this 
is  uncertain,  the  record  of  his 
birth  having  been  lost  when  his 
parents  moved  to  this  country  in 


JACOB  JACKSON. 


•i<- 


the  year  1850.  Jacob  was  the 
son  of  Holbot-tibe,  a  member  of 
the  Baptist  church,  and  a  very 
pious  man.  He  died  on  the  jour- 
ney from  the  old  state. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch,  af- 
ter several  years'  education  at  the 
neighborhood  schools,  spent  four 
years   at  Fort   Coffee  Academy, 


Skullyville,  and  in  18G2  joined 
the  Confederate  army,  remaining 
with  his  company  until  the  ter- 
mination of  the  war.  The  love 
of  learning  being  strong  within 
him,  Jacob  went  to  the  academy 
at  Little  Kock,  in  1867;  from 
thence,  in  1869,  to  King's  Col- 
lege, Bristol,  Tennessee,  and  in 
1870  to  Roanoke  College,  Salem, 
Virginia,  where  he  spent  four 
years,  and  finally  completed  his 
education.  In  1874  he  com- 
menced the  practice  of  law,  and 
in  two  years  afterward  was  elect- 
ed Semator  for  Skullyville  coun- 
ty, which  office  he  held  until 
1881.  In  1884  he  was  again 
called  to  theSenate;  in  1889  was 
elected  National  Secretary  of  the 
Choctaw  Nation,  which  office  he 
still  holds. 

In  1878  Mr.  Jackson  married  a 
full-blood  daughter  of  Thompson 
Westley,  a  lawyer  and  member 
of  the  council.  By  his  marriage 
with  Levisa  Westley  he  has  but 
one  surviving  child. 

Mrs.  Jackson,  whose  portrait 
is  here  produced,  was  born  in 
Kiamichi  county,  in  1866,  and 
completed  her  education,  a  very 
thorough  one,  at  New  Hope  Sem- 
inary after  seven  years'  tuition. 
She  is  a  very  devout  member  of 
the     Cumberland     Presbyterian 


-* 


*- 


208 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TEKIIITORY. 


-* 


cbnrch.  For  a  short  time  after 
her  marriage  she  taught  school, 
but  owing  to  household  resjDonsi- 
ty  was  obliged  to  discontinue  it. 
In  this  capacity,  as  well  as  oth- 
ers, she  was  greatly  beloved,  be- 
ing kind  and  charitable  to  all. 
She  died  September  20,  1886, 
her  death  being  universally  re- 
gretted. 

Florence  Lillie,  her  only  daugh- 
ter, whose  portrait  is  also  pro- 
duced, was  born  October  27, 
1879.  She  is  a  bright,  intelli- 
gent young  girl  and   bids  fair  to 


•Jt- 


MRS.  JACOB  JACKSON. 

become  an  attractive  and  accom- 
plished woman.  Miss  Florence 
is  at  present  attending  New  Hope 


Academy,  where  she  is  giving 
close  attention  to  the  more  re- 
fined branches  of  education. 


FLORENCE  LILLY  JACKSON. 

Jacob  Jackson  lost  his  mother, 
Elizabeth  Jackson,  in  1864. 
This  good  and  pious  woman  died 
in  Cedar  county,  Choctaw  Na- 
tion. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  is  a 
progressive  man  in  all  his  views. 
While  in  council  he  was  invaria- 
bly chosen  to  act  on  the  conmiittee 
on  education.  He  is  an  old  mem- 
ber of  the  Masonic  order,  and  a 
man  of  superior  intelligence 
and  education.  Mr.  Jackson 
has  a  good  comfortable  home 
near  Bennington.  His  address 
is  Poteau.  Choctaw  Nation. 


-* 


1^- 


-^ 


THE  CHICKASAWS. 


The  Chickasaws,  like  their  sister 
tribe,  tlie  Clioctaws,  were  locat- 
ed in  Mississippi  before  their 
emigration  to  the  Indian  Terri- 
tory, and  occupied  that  portion 
of  the  State  which  at  the  present 
time  bears  the  names  of  some  of 
their  illustrious  warriors — Pon- 
totoc, Fickins,  Tishomingo,  etc. 
This  territory  had  been  ceded  to 
them  at  an  early  date,  but  by 
and  by  the  onward  tide  of  civili- 
zation demanded  either  their 
subjection  to  the  laws  and  cus- 
toms of  the  white  man  or  their 
removal  to  a  point  further  west. 
Choosing  the  latter  and  lesser  of 
the  two  evils,  they  entered  into 
a  treaty  with  the  United  States, 
represented  by  Gen.  John  Coffee 
(October  20,  1832),  whereby 
they  agreed  to  dispose  of  their 
lands  in  Mississippi  and  move  to 
what  is  now  known  as  the  Indian 
Territory.  Accordingly  arrange- 
ments were  perfected,  and  the 
majority  of  the  Chickasaws  took 
their  departure  for  the  new  land, 
leaving  behind  many  of  the  old 
and    infirm,   who    were    neither 


^- 


willing  nor  able  to  depart  from 
their  ancient  homes.  But  the 
Chickasaws,  with  characteristic 
patriotism,  never  forgot  the  old 
remnant  that  remained  at  home. 
To  their  queen,  Puc-caiunla 
(Hanging  Grapes),  who  was  very 
old,  they  afterward  donated  fifty 
dollars  per  year  for  life,  and  to 
Tishomingo,  their  head  chief, 
one  hundred  dollars'  annuity. 
To  these  primitive  people  at  that 
period  these  sums  were  quite  a 
bonanza. 

The  government  of  the  Chick- 
asaws in  early  days  very  much 
resembled  that  of  the  Choc- 
taws,  though  we  have  no  refer- 
ence to  a  queen  in  our  informa- 
tion of  the  latter  race.  The 
Chickasaws,  instead  of  being 
divided  into  "iksas,"  or  clans,  as 
was  the  case  with  the  Choctaws, 
were  known  by  their  distinctive 
house  names,  the  descent  being 
traceable  backward  through  the 
mother's  ancestry.  Thus  the 
mother  and  grandmother  of  Gov- 
ernor Cyrus  Harris  being  of  the 
House  of  Inchus-sha-wah-ya,  his 


-^ 


•i<- 


LKADERS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


-* 


* 


name  in  olden  days  would  have 
been  simply  Cyrus  of  the  House 
of  Inchus-sha-wah-ya.  So  with 
Governor  William  Byrd,  whose 
name  would  have  been  In-cun- 
no-mar,  while  that  of  Montford 
Johnson  and  Hagen  Greenwood 
would  have  been,  respectively, 
Intel-i-hoo  and  Inchin-nook-cha- 
ha.  There  are  at  least  fifty 
well  known  home  names  among 
the  Chickasaws,  but  they  are 
gradually  failing  into  disuse. 

The  last  king  of  the  tribe  was 
named  Ish-te-ho-to-pah.  They 
had  also  a  queen,  whom  we 
have  already  referred  to,  but  we 
are  ignorant  as  to  the  extent  of 
her  authority.  There  were  also 
some  powerful  chiefs  who  con- 
trolled military  organizations, 
subject  to  the  orders  of  the  king. 
Among  the  latest  survivors  of 
these  were  Wmchester  Colbert, 
who  emigrated  to  this  country 
and  was  the  last  chief  who  held 
office  in  the  Chickasaw  Nation. 
His  son  is  now  living  in  the  per- 
son of  Humphrey  Colbert,  an 
influential  citizen,  who  has  been 
more  than  once  a  cabinet  officer. 

Among  the  old  chiefs  powerful 
in  his  day  was  Isaac  Alverson, 
who  also  emigrated  to  this  coun- 
try. His  wife,  Sallie  Alverson, 
known  by  the  name  of  "Aunt 
Sallie,"  is  now  residing  at  Col- 


bert Station,  and  is  100  years  of 
age.  She  was  present  at  the 
treaty  between  the  Chickasaws 
and  General  CoJffee,  and  is  in 
possession  of  a  ponderous  silver 
medal  presented  by  President 
Andrew  Jackson  to  old  chief 
"Isaac."  The  medal  bears  the 
treaty  date,  1829.  In  her  pos- 
session is '  also  the  peace  pipe 
which  was  passed  from  hand  to 
hand  and  mouth  to  mouth  on 
that  memorable  occasion. 

No  sooner  had  the  emigrants 
settled  among  their  more  power- 
ful brethren  in  the  Indian  Terri- 
tory than  they  became  aware  of 
the  fact  that  their  minority  would 
forever  exclude  them  from  rep- 
resentation in  the  General  Coun- 
cil. Accordingly,  they  entered 
into  a  treaty  with  the  Choctaws 
on  January  17,  1837,  whereby 
they  were  to  have  the  privilege 
of  forming  a  district  of  their 
own  within  the  limits  of*  the 
Choctaw  domain.  They  were 
also  to  be  entitled  to  all  the 
rights  and  privileges  of  the  Choc- 
taws with  the  exception  of  par- 
ticipating in  the  annuities.  They 
were  to  control  and  manage  the 
residue  of  their  funds  and  select 
such  officers  for  that  purpose  as 
they  thought  proper.  In  the  di- 
vision of  lands  which  ensued  the 
Chickasaws,  figuratively   speak 


* 


-1^ 


OF   THE  INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


*- 


ing,  "won  the  toss,"  otherwise 
became  possessors  of  the  fertile 
portion  of  the  country,  a  tract  of 
land  perhaps  unequaled,  and 
certainly  not  surpassed  by  any  in 
the  United  States.  Their  sagac- 
ity in  this  trade  is  worthy  of 
mention.  At  the  time  of  the 
treaty  more  than  one-half  of  the 
Choctaws  were  sojourning  in  the 
eastern  counties,  nor  did  they 
spend  much  time  in  penetrating 
the  wilderness  one  hundred  miles 
westward,  for  the  Comanches, 
Kiowas  and  other  wild  tribes 
were  constantly  raiding  the  coun- 
try. But  the  Chickasaws,  soon 
after  their  arrival,  had  visited 
the  western  valleys  and  followed 
the  water  courses  to  their  heads. 
They  had  seen  enough  and  were 
satisfied.  Accordingly,  when  the 
Choctaws  relegated  the  weaker 
tribe  to  a  tract  in  the  western 
portion  of  the  country,  where- 
by they  became  a  breastwork 
against  the  incursions  of  the  wild 
Indians,  they  little  dreamed  that 
they  were  giving  them  the  rich- 
est body  of  land  in  the  United 
States  for  the  paltry  sum  of 
$530,000,  to  be  paid  annually 
by  installments.  The  Chicka- 
saws, according  to  treaty  stipu- 
lations, receive  one-fourth  of  the 
immense  royalty  collected  from 
the  Choctaw  coal  companies,  as 


well  as  from  other  sources,  allow- 
ing in  lieu  three-fourths  of  their 
own  revenue  (which  is  merely 
nominal  so  far  as  coal  is  con- 
cerned). 

By  the  above  it  will  be  seen 
that  the  Chickasaws  are  decid- 
edly better  traders  than  their 
Choctaw  brethren. 

BOUNDARIES,    POPULATION,   ETC. 

The  Chickasaw  Nation  lies 
within  the  boundaries  of  the 
Canadian  and  Red  Rivers  on 
the  north  and  south  and  the 
Choctaw  Nation  and  Western 
Reservations  on  the  east  and 
west.  Its  area  in  square  miles  is 
7,267,  with  an  acreage  of  4,- 
640,935.  The  population  of  the 
Chickasaw  Nation  (including 
white  citizens  by  marriage)  up 
till  the  recent  enumeration  was 
estimated  at  six  thousand  souls. 
The  number  of  negroes  and 
United  States  citizens  who  have 
settled  throughout  since  the 
building  of  the  Gulf,  Colorado 
&  Santa  Fee  Railroad  will  almost 
quadruple  that  amount. 

Whether  taken  as  an  agricul- 
tural or  a  grazing  country,  the 
Chickasaw  Nation  cannot  be  sur- 
passed. The  valley  of  the  Wa- 
shita is  the  most  productive  body 
of  land  in  North  America,  yield- 
ing in  ordinary  seasons  from 
fifty  to  eighty-live  bushels  of  corn 


-* 


*- 


OF   THE   INDIAN  TERRITORY. 


-* 


*- 


to  the  acre,  with  an  equal  propor- 
tion of  small  grain.  Some  of 
the  farmers  in  this  valley  own 
from  2,000  to  10,000  acres  in 
cultivation.  Frank  Murray,  Esq., 
of  Erin  Springs,  holds  nearly 
25,000  acres  under  fence,  one- 
half  of  which  is  planted  in  corn, 
cotton  and  small  grain. 

Although  it  is  a  misdemeanor 
punishable  by  the  law  to  lease 
the  public  domain  to  white  men, 
yet  some  citizens  are  disposing 
of  leases  for  terms  of  from  five 
to  fifteen  years.  In  this  manner 
they  are  enabled  to  have  their 
lands  placed  in  a  state  of  culti- 
vation without  cash  investment. 

Of  a  population  of  6,000  citi- 
zens prior  to  the  census  enume- 
ration of  1890,  about  350  were 
whites  adopted  through  inter- 
marriage; 650  were  half-breeds, 
and  about  one  thousand  full- 
bloods  (or  apparently  so,  judging 
from  appearances).  Many  of  the 
latter  are  very  intelligent,  being 
educated  beyond  the  average  of 
white  men  raised  and  schooled 
in  the  farming  communities  of 
the  United  States. 

The  Ohickasaws  have  not, 
like  the  Choctaws,  adopted  the 
negro  freedmen  settled  upon 
their  public  domain;  and  in  this 
instance  it  appears  that  they  have 
demonstrated     superior     states- 


manship, as  the  rapidity  with 
which  the  negroes  increase  in 
population  would  place  them  in 
control  of  the  government  before 
twenty  years.  They  are  still, 
however,  permitted  to  cultivate 
the  public  domain  without  hind- 
rance until  some  practical  ar- 
rangement is  made  for  their  re- 
moval. The  white  laborers  in 
the  Chickasaw  Nation  are  re- 
quired to  pay  a  tax  or  permit  of 
five  dollars  per  head  per  annum, 
while  men  in  other  capacities 
pay  toll  in  accordance  with  the 
value  and  importance  of  their 
business,  so  that  if  the  permit 
law  was  properly  enforced  it 
would  of  itself  prove  a  large 
source  of  revenue.  The  cost  of 
a  license  authorizing  a  white 
man  to  marry  a  citizen  of  this 
Nation  is  fifty  dollars,  while  in 
the  Choctaw  Nation  it  has  been 
raised  within  the  last  four  or  five 
years  from  ten  dollars  up  to  one 
hundred  dollars.  Other  provis- 
ions must  also  be  complied  with, 
so  that  there  is  less  intermarriage 
than  before  and  less  likelihood 
of  adopting  useless  and  impecu- 
nious members  of  society. 

GOVERNMENT,  LAWS,   EDUCATION. 

The  government  of  the  Chick- 
asaw Nation  is  patterned  after 
that  of  the  Choctaws.    The  prin- 


* 


•i«- 


-* 


LEADERS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


cipal  executive  officer,  however, 
is  styled  '^Governor"  instead  of 
Principal  Chief.  This  change 
was  wrought  at  the  adoption  of 
the  Constitution  in  I806.  The 
Nation  is  divided  into  four  coun- 
ties— Panola,  Pickins,  Pontotoc 
and  Tishomingo,  each  of  which 
returns  three  Senators  and  eight 
Representatives.  The  legislature 
convenes  annually  at  Tishomin- 
go, the  capital,  on  the  first  Wed- 
nesday in  September,  and  usu- 
ally continues  for  one  month. 
Business  is  principally — or  has 
been  up  till  recently — conducted 
in  the  English  language  through 
the  aid  of  an  interpreter,  but  the 
disfranchisement  of  the  white 
citizens  has  materially  changed 
the  aspect  of  the  body  legisla- 
tive, which  during  the  years 
prior  to  this  revolution  had  risen 
to  a  higher  plane  than  any  body 
of  law-makers  in  the  Indian  Ter- 
ritory. The  House  and  Senate 
are  now  composed  of  full-bloods. 
The  judicial  powers  of  the  Na- 
tion are  vested  in  a  Supreme, 
District  and  County  Courts,  the 
same  as  in  the  Choctaw  Nation, 
while  the  laws  relating  to  crimi- 
nal and  civil  offenses  do  not  ma- 
terially differ. 

The  Governor's  cabinet  is 
composed  of  National  Secretary, 
National   Agent,  Treasurer  and 


Attorney  General,  which  ap- 
pointments (except  the  latter, 
which  is  elective,)  are  made  by 
the  Governor  and  ratified  by  the 
Senate. 

There  is  no  better  school  sys- 
tem in  any  State  than  that  adopt- 
ed by  the  Chickasaws.  A  su- 
perintendent of  public  instruc- 
tion is  appointed  by  both  houses, 
who  devotes  his  time  to  traveling 
from  institute  to  institute  in- 
specting the  establishments  and 
the  pupils,  as  well  as  the  meth- 
ods employed  in  their  education. 
There  are  five  of  these  institu- 
tutions,  viz. :  The  Male  Academy 
at  Tishomingo,  Bloomtield  Fe- 
male Institute,  Wahpanucka  In- 
stitute, Lebanon  Academy  and 
Collins  Institute,  and  a  number 
of  neighboring  schools,  contain- 
ing in  all  about  six  hundred  chil- 
dren. The  sum  of  fifty  thousand 
dollars  is  semi-annually  paid 
from  the  United  States  treasury 
to  maintain  these  schools.  This 
money  is  the  interest  accumulat- 
ing on  investments  in  United 
States  bonds,  and  is  an  unusually 
large  sum  to  devote  to  the  edu- 
cation of  a  tribe  or  community 
of  6,000  inhabitants. 

FACTS  IN  RECENT  HISTORY. 

The  first  Governor  of  the 
Chickasaw    Nation    was    Cyrus 


-* 


ii«- 


-* 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


Vll 


*- 


Harris,  who  was  born  close  to 
Pontotoc,  in  Mississippi,  on  the 
22d  of  August,  1817.  In  1837 
he  left  the  old  State,  and  arriv- 
ing at  Skullyville,  Choctaw  Na- 
tion, commenced  preparations 
with  some  three  or  four  other 
families  for  a  march  into  the 
Chickasaw  country.  After  a  jour- 
ney of  some  three  weeks,  cut- 
ting out  a  road  for  their  travel 
as  they  went,  Harris  and  a  few 
of  the  party  arrived  on  the  banks 
of  Blue  Creek.  The  young  man 
was  by  nature  a  pioneer  and  an 
organizer.  At  the  age  of  twenty- 
one,  during  the  first  year  of  res- 
idence in  the  Chickasaw  Nation, 
he  commenced  dabbling  in  poli- 
tics, and  in  1850  went  to  Wash- 
ington as  a  delegate  in  company 
with  old  Edmund  Pickins.  On 
the  adoption  of  the  constitution 
in  1856  he  was  elected  first  Gov- 
ernor of  the  Nation  by  a  major- 
ity of  one  vote.  Thrice  was  he 
re-elected  by  his  people,  serving 
four  terms,  during  which  peace 
and  harmony  prevailed  through- 
out his  entire  jurisdiction.  In 
1876  he  was  again  brought  for- 
ward, but  defeated  by  his  oppo- 
nent, B.  F.  Overton,  who  at  that 
time  and  for  some  years  after- 
ward was  exceedingly  popular 
with  the  full-blood  element.  In 
1880  ex-Governor  Harris,  repug- 


nant to  his  desire,  was  once  more 
brought  out  and  elected  by  a 
good  majority;  but  Overton, 
whose  influence  in  the  legislature 
was  very  powerful,  got  possession 
of  the  returns  before  the  installa- 
tion took  place,  and  "counted 
out "  or  canceled  just  votes 
enough  to  elect  B.  C.  Burney,  a 
member  of  his  own  party.  Mr.* 
Burney  made  a  good  governor, 
nor  was  he  held  blameable  for  the 
action  of  Overton  in  this  matter. 
After  these  occurrences.  Gov. 
Harris  determined  never  again 
to  serve  his  people  in  an  official 
capacity,  a  declaration  to  which 
he  has  strictly  adhered.  It  is 
worthy  of  remark  that  Colonel 
Lem  Reynolds,  who  was  at  that 
time  a  leading  partisan  of  the 
progressive  or  Harris  ticket,  was 
enraged  beyond  measure  at  the 
treatment  of  his  friend,  and 
would  have  placed  him  forcibly 
in  the  executive  chair  had  not 
this  noble-minded  man  refused 
to  contend  for  his  rights  where 
there  was  the  least  danger  of 
shedding  human  blood. 

It  was  during  the  Harris  ad- 
ministration of  1862  that  the 
Tonkaway  Indians,  a  tribe  of 
cannibals  located  close  to  Fort 
Cobb,  were  almost  totally  anni- 
hilated by  the  Shawnees  and 
their    confederates.    It    is    said 


-* 


*- 


-* 


LKADKKS   AXD    LEADIXG    MEV 


that  the  ''Tonks,"  before  the 
commencement  of  the  war,  made 
a  raid  into  the  Shawnee  country 
and  carried  off  a  number  of  chil- 
dren, whom  they  barbecued  and 
ate  with  great  relish.  The  Shaw- 
nees  awaited  their  opportunity, 
until  the  Tonkaway  braves  had 
departed  on  a  big  hunt,  and  left 
at  least  six  or  seven  hundred 
women  and  aged  men  in  the  vil- 
lage. During  a  moonlight  night 
in  the  early  fall  of  1862  the 
Shawnees,  assisted  by  volunteers 
from  other  tribes,  swooped  down 
upon  the  unsuspecting  cannibals 
and  butchered  the  entire  party 
without  regard  to  age  or  sex. 
On  the  return  of  the  warriors  to 
their  village  they  found  the  dogs, 
wolves  and  carrion  birds  com- 
peting for  the  decayed  remnants 
of  their  fathers,  mothers,  wives 
and  children.  Not  a  human  be- 
ing was  to  be  found  alive  upon 
the  spot.  The  grief  manifested 
by  the  wretched  Tonkaways  beg- 
gars all  description.  Their  little 
remnant  of  three  hundred,  in- 
cluding eighteen  or  twenty 
women,  fell  back  on  Rock 
Creek  and  abandoned  themselves 
to  the  most  abject  despair.  They 
wailed  aloud  and  cut  deep  incis- 
ions in  their  arms  and  legs  with 
their  hunting  knives.  Soon  af- 
terward  the  United  States  came 


to  the  rescue  and  moved  them  to 
Western  Texas,  beyond  the  reach 
of  other  Indians. 

The  administrative  terms  filled 
by  Governors  B.  C.  Burney  and 
Jonas  Wolf  were  scarcely  marked 
by  any  events  of  very  great  im- 
portance, and  it  was  not  till  1886, 
when  William  M.  Guy,  William 
Byrd,  C.  A.  Burris,  Jonas  Wolf 
and  Robert  Boyd  were  candi- 
dates for  the  gubernatorial  seat, 
that  unusual  interest  in  politics 
was  manifested.  But  when  the 
election  resolved  itself  into  a 
legislative  contest  between  Byrd 
and  Guy,  the  excitement  rose  to 
fever  heat.  The  seating  of  Gov- 
ernor Guy  was  so  dissatisfactory 
to  the  opposition  that  a  party 
war  was  declared  from  the  first, 
which  continues  till  the  present 
day.  The  subsequent  '•'counting 
out"  of  Guy  by  the  legislature 
in  1888  and  the  installation  of 
Mr.  Byrd  soon  resulted  in  polit- 
ical disturbances  M'hich  might 
have  proven  fatal  to  the  tribal 
government  had  not  Guy  relin- 
quished his  claim  at  the  instiga- 
tion of  the  United  States,  which 
pronounced  Byrd  to  be  elected. 
A  full  account  of  the  political 
troubles  of  the  times  will  be 
found  in  "A  Chapter  of  Chicka- 
saw History,"  included  in  the 
life  of  Governor  William  Guy. 


*- 


-* 


*- 


-* 


OF  THE  INDIAN  TERRITORY. 


IX 


*- 


The  most  remarkable  feature 
in  the  present  administration  is 
the  passage  of  that  act  which 
disfranchises  the  white  citizens 
of  the  Chickasaw  Nation,  who 
have  hitherto  not  only  been 
granted  the  full  privileges  of  cit- 
izenship, but  have  been  potent  in 
framing  the  laws  of  the  country 
for  many  years.  This  action  gave 
rise  to  the  organization  of  the 
"Progressive "  party,  which  took 
the  field  last  summer,  under  the 
leadership  of  Hon.  Sam  Paul,  to 
dispute  the  rights  of  government 
with  the  National  or  Full-blood 
element,  headed  by  Gov.  Byrd. 
Their  defeat,  however,  was  very 
signal,  the  absence  of  the  white 
voters  being  felt  to  the  amount  of 
150  or  200  votes. 

The  policy  of  the  present  ad- 
ministration is  apparently  to 
paralyze  the  influence  of  the 
white  citizen  by  the  passage  of 
such  laws  as  will  discourage  fur- 
ther intermarriage.  The  act  for- 
bidding any  more  fencing  of  the 
public  domain,  for  pasturage, 
and  the  threatened  destruction  of 
all  fences  outside  the  limit  al- 
lowed by  law,  is  unpromising 
for  white  settlers.  It  is  believed 
by  many  that  the  intention  of 
Gov,  Byrd  and  his  colleagues. 
Col.  Lem  Reynolds  and  Overton 
Love,  is  to  deprive  white  citizens 


of  their  land  tenure;  but  it  is 
hardly  probable  that  the  United 
States  would  permit  so  glaring  a 
breach  of  the  constitution  and 
treaties.  The  "paternal  gov- 
ernment," in  its  endorsement  of 
the  disfranchisement  act,  has 
already  provoked  enough  of  un- 
pleasant reproach  and  criticism 
without  implicating  itself  further 
in  the  matter. 

CHARACTERISTICS,    CUSTOMS    AND 
SUPERSTITIONS. 

The  recent  political  entangle- 
ments, which  might  have  resulted 
so  disastrously  to  the  tribal  gov- 
ernments had  serious  party  or 
personal  difiiculties  ensued,  is  an 
excellent  illustration  of  the  supe- 
rior wisdom  and  foresight  of  the 
Chickasaws.  Their  refusal  to 
risk  the  loss  of  their  country  to 
gratify  feelings  of  revenge  is 
commendable  in  the  highest  de- 
gree. 

The  Chickasaws  may  justly 
lay  claim  to  being  a  most  law- 
abiding  people.  Notwithstanding 
their  proximity  to  Texas,  there 
is  little  or  no  whisky  introduced 
to  their  capital  during  the  legis- 
lature— a  statement  which  can- 
not be  truthfully  uttered  when 
referring  to  some  other  legisla- 
tive bodies  in  the  Territory.  As 
a  people,  however,    the  Chicka- 


-* 


*- 


-<h 


LEAUKKS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


saws  are  not  as  susceptible  to  re- 
ligious training  as  the  Ohoctaws; 
but  if  deficient  in  this  respect, 
they  are  certainly  their  equals  in- 
tellectually. The  Chickasaw  full- 
bloods,  however,  are  more  su- 
perstitious than  their  neighbors. 
Witch  doctors  and  Pashofah 
dances  being  still  popular  in 
some  localities.  The  dance  of 
the  "Pashofah,''  which  is  be- 
lieved to  be  a  certain  cure  in 
many  stages  of  disease,  is  carried 
on  in  front  of  the  patient,  who  is 
placed  in  a  house  facing  the 
east,  and  only  accessible  to  the 
Medicine  Man,  who  performs  his 
craft  in  secret.  Meanwhile  the 
guests  dance  with  great  energy, 
a  young  woman  of  the  tribe  jing- 
ling a  few  pebbles  in  a  pair  of 
tarrapin  shells  suspended  from 
one  of  her  limbs.  A  huge  pot  of 
meat  and  corn  boiled  togetlier  is 
then  served  by  means  of  a  large 
wooden  ladle,  which  is  passed 
around  until  everybody  is  satis- 
fied. They  believe  that  each  vis- 
itor in  this  way  carries  off  a  por- 
tion of  the  disease.    During  the 


ceremony  the  greatest  import- 
ance is  attached  to  the  most  trifl- 
ing circumstances.  The  full- 
blood's  faith  in  witchcraft,  how- 
ever, has  considerably  declined 
within  the  last  five  years,  al- 
though as  recently  as  three  years 
ago,  close  to  Pennington,  an 
elderly  woman  suffered  a  violent 
death  under  the  charge. 

The  late  Ben  Cunnyatubby  is 
said  to  have  killed  an  old  Medi- 
cine Man  seven  years  ago.  Sev- 
eral of  Ben's  children  having 
died,  he  sent  to  the  Creek  Nation 
for  a  native  doctor,  who  on  his 
arrival  pronounced  the  deaths 
to  have  resulted  from  witchcraft. 
Becoming  furious  on  hearing  of 
this,  Cunnyatubby  immediately 
swooped  down  upon  the  old  doc- 
tor and  killed  him  and  his  little 
son.  The  above  is  derived  from 
the  most  reliable  authority.  In 
ancient  days  any  disastrous  oc- 
currence which  was  difficult  to 
account  for  was  at  once  attri- 
buted to  witchcraft,  and  some 
innocent,  unsuspecting  person  of 
either  sex  became  the  sufferer 


*- 


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OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


209 


-•B 


*- 


HUNTING  AND  FISHING. 
Since  railroads  have  begun  to 
penetrate  Western  Texas  and 
syndicates  have  fenced  in  the 
vast  area,  which  until  1880  was 
the  home  of  the  buffalo,  ante- 
lope, deer  and  other  game,  the 
only  consolation  now  left  to  the 
hunter,  apart  from  the  Rocky 
Mountains,  is  the  Indian  Terri- 
tory. The  Chickasaw  Nation, 
which  up  to  1885  was  a  good 
deer  and  turkey  range,  holds  out 
at  present  but  little  encourage- 
ment to  the  lover  of  the  rifle,  al- 
though small  game,  chickens, 
quails,  etc.,  are  verj  abundant. 
The  same  may  be  said  of  the 
Cherokee  and  Creek  Nations,  so 
that  the  hunter  of  large  game 
must  shoulder  his  Ballard  or 
Winchester  and  turn  his  face  to- 
ward the  rising  sun  if  he  wishes 
to  enjoy  a  pleasant  and  profit- 
able week  in  the  camp. 

The  entire  region  of  country 
in  the  Choctaw  Nation  northeast 
and  east  of  the  Missouri,  Kansas 
&  Texas  railroad  is  made  up  of 
mountain  ranges,  interspersed 
with  streams  of  various  sizes: 
Into  these  ranges  ( the  Kiamichi, 
Sans  Bois,  Sugar  Loaf  and  Persh- 
malein  )  the  large  game  has  grad- 
ually drifted  for  better  security, 
for  here  the  country  is  sparsely 
settled,  some  portions  of  it,  ow- 


ing to  its  rugged  surface,  being 
totally  uninhabited.  In  these 
parts  deer,  turkey  and  beaver  are 
plentiful;  while  bear,  panther 
and  cougar  may  be  met  with  at 
any  time.  The  former  are  very 
partial  to  the  white  acorn,  which 
grows  in  quantity  beside  the  Ki- 
amichi River.  One  morning  in 
October,  1885,  four  bears  were 
secured  by  one  gun  close  to  that 
stream,  and  within  four  miles  of 
the  Choctaw  capital.  A  year 
or  two  previous  a  bear  ran  past 
the  Council  house  and  was  pur- 
sued into  the  hills  and  dis- 
patched. 

After  a  few  nights,  or  perhaps 
the  first  night  in  the  mountains, 
the  hunter  is  usually  treated  to 
that  alarming  antesoporfic,  the 
scream  of  the  panther.  These 
animals  are  difficult  to  find  in  the 
day  time,  though  you  may  hear 
them  all  night  long  and  see  their 
trail  the  following  morning.  The 
"loafer,"  or  large  mountain 
wolf,  is  very  plentiful.  Until 
within  the  last  five  years  wild 
horses  were  numerous  in  portions 
of  the  Arbuckle  Mountains,  and 
some  small  herds  are  still  to  be 
found,  but  these  are  almost  im- 
possible to  approach. 

Unlike  the  Shawnees,  there 
are  but  few  hunters  among  the 
Choctaws    and    Chickasaws,    al- 


ib- 


-* 


:ilO 


LEADERS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


though  the  Choctaws  can  boast 
of  having  better  hunting  grounds 
than  any  otlier  Indians  at  the 
present  time.  But  we  should 
not  recommend  our  readers  to 
encroach  upon  their  premises 
without  taking  the  proper  pre- 
cautions against  losing  their 
hunting  equippage,  which  is  sub- 
ject to  seizure  should  a  stranger 
be  found  violating  a  certain  stat- 
ute, which  forbids  non-resident 
white  men  from  hunting  on  the 
public  domain.  To  guard  against 
this  danger  it  is  necessary  to 
make  the  acquaintance  of  some 
influential  Choctaw,  who  will  see 
that  you  are  unmolested,  and 
perhaps  accompany  you  or  fur- 
nish you  with  a  guide.  The  hos- 
pitality of  the  Choctaws  and 
Chickasaws  to  strangers  who 
come  to  hunt  in  their  country 
with  honorable  intentions  is  wor- 
thy of  comment.  It  must,  how- 
ever be  distinctly  understood 
that  no  game  be  killed  for  the 
markets  nor  for  shipment  out  of 
the  Nation;  nor  shall  there  be 
any  unnecessary  slaughter  of  the 
game,  the  hunters  being  only 
supposed  to  take  what  they  re- 
quire for  use  and  leave  the  rest. 
For  further  particulars,  names 
and  addresses  of  hunting  men 
and  guides  address  the  Messrs. 
O'Beirne,    Atoka,  I.  T. 


Probably  the  best  bass  fishing 
in  the  United  States  is  to  be  had 
in  the  numerous  streams  and 
small  lakes  of  the  mountainous 
districts  in  the  Choctaw  Nation. 
In  some  of  these  streams  the 
black  bass  grow  larger  than  those 
caught  in  the  northern  lakes. 
The  writer's  experience  at  the 
end  of  five  summers'  angling, 
fixes  the  average  of  fish  captured 
with  spoon  and  fly  in  the  Choc- 
taw Nation  at  2  1-i  pounds, 
his  largest  specimen  turning  the 
scale  at  seven.  Besides  the  black 
there  are  two  other  species  of 
this  fish,  the  calico,  or  striped, 
and  the  rock  bass,  the  former 
reaching  four  pounds,  while  the 
latter  gamey  little  fellow  seldom 
over-reaches  one  pound.  The 
editor  of  the  American  Angler, 
some  years  ago,  disputed  the 
presence  of  black  bass  in  the  wa- 
ters of  the  Indian  Territory,  but 
he  was  soon  convinced  of  his 
mistake.  Thirty  pounds'  weight 
of  these  fish  to  each  rod,  in  four 
or  five  hours,  is  a  fair  example 
of  the  sport,  and  such  can  easily 
be  caught  in  the  mountain  creeks, 
season  and  weather  permitting, 
provided  the  angler  is  supplied 
with  the  proper  flies  and  trolls, 
and  understands  how  to  use  them. 
If  he  be  ignorant  of  their  usage, 
however,  he  had  better  trust  to 


*- 


-»i< 


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OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


211 


-* 


*- 


live  bait,  plenty  of  which  can  be 
secured  at  the  expense  of  a  little 
time  and  trouble. 

The  usual  bass  flies  for  sale 
in  New  York  and  other  cities  are 
of  little  use  in  these  waters.  You 
may  "dabble"  with  a  "coach- 
man "  until  doomsday  without 
the  least  result.  The  killing  flies 
here  are  tied  on  Nos.  2  and  3 
Carlisle  hooks;  they  are  but  four 
in  number  and  are  well  furnished 
with  dubbing  and  hackle,  and 
fully  as  large  as  the  largest  sal- 
mon fly. 

The  Choctaws  and  Chickasaws 
seldom  if  ever  fish  with  rod  and 
line.  They  prefer  the  bow  and 
arrow,  with  which  weapon,  when 
the  water  is  low  and  clear,  they 
frequently  procure  the  largest 
fish.  At  certain  times  the  In- 
dians get  together  for  a  grand 
"  fry."  By  means  of  a  weed 
called  ''Devil's  Shoe  String," 
which  they  chop  or  beat  up  and 
throw  into  the  water,  they  stupify 
and  intoxicate  the  fish  in  such  a 
manner  as  to  be  able  to  secure 
all  that  they  require  for  present 
use.  The  weed,  however,  is  not 
deadly  poison,  its  eflfects  being 
but  temporary. 

The  rugged  beauty  of  the 
scenery  in  the  eastern  portion  of 
the  Choctaw  Nation  lends  addi- 
tional   charms    to  the    pastime 


of  angling.  The  streams  and 
lakes,  especially  the  latter,  are, 
however,  very  small.  A  body  of 
water  a  mile  long  by  three  hun- 
dred yards  wide  is  rarely  to  be 
met  with.  This  intelligence  will 
sound  strange  to  those  who  are 
accustomed  to  angling  in  north- 
ern waters.  A  few  of  the  lakes 
in  the  Choctaw  Nation  are  sit- 
uated on  the  summits  of  moun- 
tain ridges.  One  of  these  (in 
Sans  Bois  county)  is  at  a  great 
elevation;  the  water  is  sufficiently 
clear  to  distinguish  a  small  peb- 
ble on  the  bottom  at  a  depth  of 
from  thirty  to  forty  feet.  Here 
the  bass  are  in  great  numbers  and 
grow  to  an  immense  size. 


WILLIAM  L.  COCHRAN. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  in  La 
Grange  county,  Tennessee,  in 
1834,  and  reared  and  educated 
in  Marshall,  Mississippi.  When 
yet  a  youth  William  was  burn- 
ing with  the  wild  spirit  of  ro- 
mance and  adventure,  so  that  on 
hearing  of  Walker's  proposed 
expedition  to  Nicaragua  he  went 
and  joined  the  filibusters  at  Mem- 
phis, Tennessee,  in  1855.  In 
the  command  were  many  South- 
ern gentlemen,  as  well  as  volun- 
teers from  nearly  every  State  in 
the    Union.     But    probably  the 


-* 


* 


* 


21; 


LEADERS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


most  notable  individual  of  that 
brigade  now  living  is  Joaquin 
Miller,  the  poet  of  the  Sierras, 
who  joined  the  party  at  the  age 
of  sixteen  years. 

William    Cochran     fought    in 


*- 


WILLIAM  L.   COCHKAN. 

seven  or  eight  battles,  the  sur- 
render of  Grenada  being  perhaps 
the  most  important.  In  the  bat- 
tle of  Massaya  he  was  shot  in 
the  left  foot,  and  had  his  leg  am- 
putated; after  which  he  was  ob- 
liged to  retire  from  the  Held, 
where  he  distinguished  himself 
as  a  dashing  and  fearless  soldier. 
When  the  civil  war  broke  out 
the  subject  of  this  sketch  joined 
the  Ninth  Mississippi,  and  later 
the    Eighteenth    Mississippi,    in 


which  regiments  he  acted  as 
commissary,  experiencing  service 
at  BulFs  Run  and  elsewhere.  He 
was  in  charge  of  the  last  steamer 
that  ran  from  Mobile  to  Pensa- 
cola  before  the  port  was  closed 
against  the  South,  at  the  com- 
mencement of  the  war.  On  this 
occasion  the  Federal  guns  were 
manned  against  him,  and  he  liad 
a  narrow  escape  from  losing  the 
entire  command. 

Mr.  Cochran  was  appointed 
commissary  of  the  Chickasaw 
Militia  by  General  Albert  Pike. 
In  January,  1867,  after  a  long 
absence  from  his  home  at  Stone- 
wall, Chickasaw  Nation,  he  re- 
turned and  settled  down  to  a  life 
of  peace.  His  picturesque  resi- 
dence, produced  on  page  213, 
was  the  first  house  ever  built  in 
Stonewall.  He  is  the  owner  of 
one  thousand  acres  of  good  farm- 
ing lands  under  prime  cultiva- 
tion, besides  fifteen  hundred 
head  of  cattle.  For  some  six 
years,  off  and  on,  he  has  been  in 
the  mercantile  business,  but  sold 
out  in  1889.  In  1865  he  mar- 
ried Miss  Jinsey  Bohannon,  by 
whom  he  has  two  children  living 
— Eugenie,  the  wife  of  Dr.  Jas. 
Ray,  of  Denison,  Texas,  and 
Ella,  aged  seven  years. 

Mr.  Cochran  is  a  thorough 
gentleman  and  highly  respected, 


-* 


*- 


— * 


THE  CHICKASAWS. 


*- 


JAMES  HARRIS  GUY. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

There  is  scarcely  any  country 
without  its  poetic  genius,  and 
the  Chickasaws  are  represented 
in  the  person  of  James  Harris 
Guy,  the  late  lamented  brother 
of  ex-Gov.  William  Guy,  who 
might  well  have  immortalized 
himself  in  verse,  had  not  death, 
at  the  hands  of  a  body  of  armed 
desperadoes,  cut  short  his  career 
while  leading  the  Chickasaw 
Militia  against  a  fortified  build- 
ing. James  Harris  Guy  was  em- 
inently handsome,  the  noblest 
looking  representative  of  his 
race,  while  his  poetic  ability  will 
hardly  be  questioned  by  him  who 
Scans,  perhaps  the  briefest  of  his 
poetic  flights,  "Fort  Arbuckle," 
which  is  here  reproduced.  A 
short  time  before  the  death  of 
the  poet,  the  compiler  of  these 
sketches  had  entered  into  an  ar- 
rangement to  edit  a  volume  of 
Legends  and  original  poems 
from  his  versatile  pen,  but  the 
reaper  came    too  soon,  and   the 


products  of  his  genius  were  never 
stored  among  the  harvests  of  the 
immortals. 

FORT  ARBUCKLE. 
The  day  has  been  long-  and  dreary ; 

I  halt  with  the  sitting-  sun 
To  gaze  on  the  open  world, 

And  the  work  that  the  years  have  done; 
And  a  vision  rises  before  me. 

Of  the  past  as  it  hath  been. 
And  all  that  the  rolling-  hills  have  heard. 

And  the  bright-eyed  stars  have  seen. 

'Full  many  a  thrilling  story 

Could  the  echoing  rocks  repeat. 
And  methinks  I  hear  in  the  forest 

The  tramp  of  hurrying-  feet.^,,,„.-» 
The  yells  of  the  great  Commanche 

Ring  once  more  in  my  ear. 
And  flies  of  the  ghostly  warriors 

Appear  and  disappear. 

I  see  the  dusky  phantoms 

Rise  from  their  g-raves  to-day, 
With  the  war  paint  still  upon  them 

As  they  started  for  the  fray; 
They  scorned  the  white  man's  promise 

And  refused  to  be  his  slaves. 
But  their  ranks  were  few  and  feeble, 

And  the  sun  sets  on  their  graves. 

Once  more  from  the  hill  above  me 

The  painted  warriors  ride. 
And  fall  upon  Fort  Arbuckle 

r^Like  rocks  from  the  mountain  side; 
But  now  the  bow  and  the  quiver~A 

Give  place  to  the  plodding  plow, 
A  bible,  a  hut,  a  handful  of  corn 
And  a  Christian's  broken  vow. 

Oh,  mystical  Fort  Arbuckle, 

The  sun  is  falling  aslant. 
And  a  friend  stands  out  in  his  doorway; 

God  speed  thee,  Thomas  Grant; 
For  thou  hast  ever  a  seat  at  thy  board, 

And  in  thy  heart  a  place. 
For  him  who  would  sing  the  wide  world  o'er 

The  songs  of  a  ruined  race. 


-* 


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214 


-* 


LEADERS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


WILLIAM  PERRY  LEEPER. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  Noble  county,  Ohio, 
January,  1851;  educated  at  the 
high  school,Pana,  Illinois.  At  an 
early  age  Mr.  Leeper  entered  the 
mercantile  business  at  Owaneco, 


*- 


W^ILLIAM    PERRY    LEEPER. 

Illinois,  afterward  moving  to  St. 
Louis,  and  finally  settling  near 
Stringtown,  Choctaw  Nation,  in 
1873,  where  he  embarked  in  the 
cattle  business  on  a  moderate 
scale.  From  this  point  he  mov- 
ed to  Limestone  in  1879,  where 
he  married  Minerva  Ward,  a  sis- 


ter of  Henry  Ward  and  William 
Ward,  descendants  of  the  Hyah- 
pah-tuk-kalo.  In  1881  Mr. 
Leeper  purchased  the  old  prop- 
erty of  ex-Governor  Cole's,  near 
Atoka,  and  in  1883  moved  his 
cattle  to  the  Oklahoma  range, 
near  the  site  of  the  present  city 
of  that  name.  In  1885  he  loca- 
ted twenty  miles  northwest  of 
Purcell  at  Leeper,  where  a  post- 
office  has  since  been  established 
under  his  supervision.  Mr.  Leep- 
er's  property  consists  of  three 
thousand  acres  of  land  in  a 
state  of  improvement,  one  thou- 
sand of  which  is  planted  in  corn 
and  small  grain,  three  hundred 
head  of  cattle,  forty  horses  and 
a  large  herd  of  Berkshire  and 
mixed  breeds  of  hogs.  He  has 
a  fine  vineyard,  orchard  and  gar- 
den, and  gives  employment  to 
seventeen  men  annually.  Mr. 
Leeper  is  Master  of  the  Norman 
Lodge  (under  dispensation)  and 
is  also  Deputy  Grand  Master 
Mason  of  the  Grand  Lodge  of 
the  Indian  Territory.  In  1889 
he  originated  the  progressive  con- 
vention held  at  Ardmore,  for  the 
purpose  of  vindicating  the  rights 
of  the  disfranchised  citizens, 
w^iich  has  since  resulted  in  a 
general  organization. 

Mr.  Leeper  is  well  known  in 
the  Indian  Territory. 


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* 


OF   THE  INDIAN  TERRITORY. 


215 


* 


NEWTON  G.  FRAZIER. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
the  son  of  Jackson  Frazier,  prin- 
cipal chief  of  the  Chickasaws, 
but  many  years  dead.  His  moth- 
er, Hattie  Frazier,  whose  Indian 


*- 


NEWTON  GALLOWAY  FRAZIER. 

name  was  Hamalula-tubby,  was 
afterward  married  to  Cyrus  Har- 
ris, the  first  governor  of  the 
Chickasaw  Nation.  When  quite 
a  boy  Galloway  was  sent  to  the 
Robinson  National  Academy, 
where  he  remained  fifteen  years, 
after  which  he  went  to  Cane  Hill, 
Arkansas,and  in  eighteen  months 


completed  his  education.  In 
1877  he  married  Emily  McLish, 
aunt  of  Richard  McLish,  owner 
of  the  now  populous  town  of 
Ardmore.  Mr.  Frazier's  first  of- 
fice was  that  of  sheriff,  in  1876, 
and  two  years  later  was  elected 
representative,  taking  his  seat  at 
the  same  time  that  his  step-father, 
Governor  Harris,  was  counted 
out  by  the  Overton  faction.  The 
next  office  held  by  Galloway  was 
that  of  delegate  to  Washington 
on  the  negro  question,  in  com- 
pany with  Col.  George  Harkins, 
they  failing,  however,  to  get  a 
hearing  from  President  Cleve- 
land. In  the  Guy  administration 
he  was  again  elected  member  for 
Tishomingo,  and  soon  after  filled 
the  office  of  National  permit  col- 
lector. At  the  present  time  he 
is  again  in  the  field  for  the  legis- 
lature. Meanwhile  Mr.  Frazier 
is  busily  employed  looking  after 
his  stock  and  farming  interests. 
He  has  seven  hundred  acres  un- 
der cultivation  and  keeps  as 
many  as  fourteen  hands  in  em- 
ployment. He  is  an  intelligent 
and  hospitable  gentleman  in  high 
repute  with  men  of  all  grades, 
popular  with  rich  and  poor  alike, 
and  numbers  among  his  numer- 
ous friends  and  acquaintances 
the  most  prominent  men  of  the 
Indian  Territory. 


-* 


-* 


216 


LEADERS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


ABEL  DUSTIN  CHASE. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

A.  D.  Chase  was  born  in  the  city 
of  Baltimore,  Md.,  on  October 
19th,  1826.  In  1832  his  mother 
moved  to  Shenandoah  county, 
Ya.,  where  she  opened  a  female 
seminary  near   Mount  Jackson, 


*- 


ABEL  DDSTIN    CHASE. 

on  the  celebrated  Baron  Stean- 
bergen's  plantation.  From  there 
she  moved  to  Harrissonburg, 
Rockingham  county,  and  carried 
on  a  female  school  with  great 
success.  In  1846  the  war  came 
up  between  the  United  States 
and  Mexico,  and  Mr.  Chase  was 
one  of  the  first  to  volunteer  in 
the    first   Yirginian    Regiment, 


which  joined  Gen.  Z.  Taylor  at 
Walnut  Springs,  near  Monterey, 
Mexico;  continuing  in  the  ser- 
vice until  the  conclusion  of  the 
campaign.  In  1856  the  subject 
of  this  sketch  was  in  California 
riding  express  through  the  moun- 
tains, and  in  1859  arrived  at  Fort 
Washita,  Indian  Territory, where 
he  was  appointed  sutler's  clerk, 
and  remained  thereuntil  his  mar- 
riage with  Miss  N.  McCoy, 
daughter  of  Judge  James  McCoy, 
of  the  Chickasaw  Nation,  which 
took  place  in  April,  1860.  Since 
that  time  Mr.  Chase  has  been 
employed  in  farming  and  selling 
goods,  except  while  holding  the 
appointment  of  sutler  at  Fort 
Washita,  which  ofiice  he  was  ten- 
dered by  Gen.  Samuel  B.  Maxey, 
the  same  being  confirmed  by 
General  Kirby  Smith,  and  which 
he  held  until  the  termination  of 
the  war.  Mr.  Chase  lives  on 
excellent  terms  with  the  Indian 
people,  whom  he  says  have  always 
treated  him  well.  He  now  re- 
sides at  Ardmore. 


HON.  PALMER  S.  MOSELY. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

Mr.  Mosely  was  born  in  Sep- 
tember, 1851,  at  Tam-a-ho-shay, 
Choctaw  Nation,  and  was  edu- 
cated at   Nashville,  Tenn.     His 


-* 


*- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


217 


* 


« 


first  office  was  that  of  Interpre- 
ter to  the  Legislature,  to  which 
he  was  elected  in  1875.  Two 
years  afterward  he  was  elected  a 
member  of  the  same  body.  In 
1882  he  was  made  Judge  of  his 
county,  and  in  1884  became  Na- 
tional Interpreter,  which  office 
he  has  since  occupied  several 
times.  In  1885  he  was  elected 
School  Superintendent,  which  he 
held  till  1889. 

In  1876  the  subject  of  this 
sketch  married  Lizzie  Holloway, 
and  in  1888  was  united  to  his 
present  wife,  Amanda  Green- 
wood, daughter  of  Harris  Green- 
wood, of  the  house  of  Inchish- 
awaya  and  In-chin-nook-cha. 
In  1884  he  moved  to  his  present 
home,  where  he  has  one  hundred 
and  seventy-five  acres  under  cul- 
tivation, which  is  in  the  hands  of 
four  renters.  He  is  also  the 
owner  of  two  hundred  and  fifty 
or  three   hundred  head  of  cattle. 

Mr.  Mosely  is  deservedly  one 
of  the  most  popular  men  in  his 
Nation. 


MILTON  BROWN. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  in  Mis- 
sissippi; came  to  the  Choctaw 
Nation  at  the  time  the  Chicka- 
asaws  were  emigrating  from  the 


old  state.  His  father's  name 
was  A-tch-a  tubby.  Milton  first 
settled  at  Caney  Switch,  and  in 
1856  embarked  in  the  cattle  bus- 
iness, to  which  he  has  given  his 
complete  attention  to  the  present 
day.  In  1871  after,  the  death  of 
his  first  wife,  he  married  Yiney 


MILTON  BROWN. 

Killey,  who  died  without  issue 
in  1887.  In  1888  he  married 
Mrs.  Annie  Guy  Reemes,  widow 
of  the  late  Robert  Reemes,  whose 
sister  is  the  famous  Washington 
sculptress.  Mrs.  Annie  Reemes 
is  sister  of  ex-Governor  Guy,  and 
has  long  been  considered  the 
most  beautiful  woman  among 
the    Chickasaws.     Her  peer,  if 


-* 


*- 


218 


LKADEIIS   AND   LEADING   MEN 


-•i« 


she  lias  an  equal,  is  only  to  be 
met  with  in  the  members  of  her 
own  family,  who  are  alike  dis- 
tinguished for  their  rare  beauty  of 
form  and  face. 

During  the  war  Milton  Brown 
was  first  lieutenant  in  Colonel 
Sampson  Folsom's  regiment,  and 
proved  himself  a  dashing  young 
officer.  He  is  at  present  residing 
close  to  Wapanucka,  where  he 
owns  several  pine  houses,  and 
a  stock  ranch  and  a  range  which 
are  scarcely  equaled  in  that  por- 
tion of  the  country.  His  large 
herd  of  cattle  is  graded,  and  his 
annual   shipments  are  extensive. 


FREDERICK  T.  WAITE. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  at  Fort 
Ar buckle,  Indian  Territory,  in 
1853,  son  of  the  late  Thomas 
Waite,  by  his  wife  Catherine 
McClure,  sister  of  Hon.  Tecum seh 
McClure.  Fred  was  educated  at 
the  Illinois  Industrial  University, 
Champaign,  Illinois,  and  at  Ben- 
touville,  Arkansas,  and  gradua- 
ted at  Mound  City  Commercial 
College,  St.  Louis,  Mo.,  in  the 
spring  of  1874.  After  having 
completed  his  education  this 
young  man  served  for  two  years 
in  his  father's  business  house  on 
Eush  Creek,  after  which  he  went 
to  Colorado   and    New    Mexico, 


where  he  remained  until  about 
1879.  In  1881  he  married  Miss 
Mary  E.  Thompson,  by  whom 
he  has  one  daughter  named  Katie, 
aged  eight  years.  In  1886  he 
moved  to  the  Choctaw  Nation, 
but  returned  in   two    years,  and 


*- 


FEEDEKICK    T.    WAITE. 

was  appointed  by  Governor  Guy 
as  a  delegate  to  the  International 
Convention  at  Fort  Gibson. 

In  1889  he  was  elected  repre- 
sentative of  Pickins  county,  and 
became  speaker  of  the  House, 
which  chair  he  held  during  the 
three  call  meetings  that  followed. 
In  1887  he  became  a  member  of 
the  Indian  Police  force,  and  was 
a  candidate  for  the  Senate  on 
the  progressive  ticket  in  1890. 


-* 


*- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERKITOKY, 


219 


* 


Fred.  T.  Waite  is  a  good  speak- 
er and  an  excellent  writer,  con- 
tributing many  bright  and  inter- 
esting political  papers  to  the 
journals  of  the  day.  He  is  one 
of  the  handsomest  and  most  in- 
telligent of  his  race. 


A.  W.  SHELTON.M.  D. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  July  20,  1853,  in  Grayson 


*- 


A.  w.  shelton,  m.  d. 

county,  Texas,  close  to  the  Indian 
line.  In  1856  his  father  moved 
to  Western  Texas,  where  every 
full  moon  he  was  visited  by  the 
wild  Indians,  who  at  that  time 


were  exceedingly  hostile.  Fre- 
quently arrows  were  found  in  the 
yard  in  the  morning  which  dur- 
ing the  night  had  been  discharg- 
ed at  the  dogs. 

Dr.  Shelton  received  his  med- 
ical education  at  Cincinnati,  O., 
and  in  1879  married  a  Miss  Ada 
Colbert.  He  has  two  children, 
Edna  and  Myrtle. 

Dr.  Shelton  lived  at  Carriage 
Point,  Chickasaw  Nation,  from 
1875  to  1883.  While  there  he 
was  attacked  by  a  band  of  out- 
laws, whose  leader  was  named 
Frank  Long.  This  band  he  was 
the  means  of  dispersing.  He 
moved  to  Paul's  Valley  in  1888, 
and  has  since  then  been  employ- 
ed in  farming  and  practicing 
medicine.  He  is  a  man  of  prac- 
tical experience,  having  traveled 
through  nearly  every  State  and 
Territory  in  the  Union. 


JOHN  M.  WEBB. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  at  Prattville,  Alabama,  in 
August,  1850.  He  is  the  son  of 
the  late  Frank  Webb,  of  Rawley, 
South  Carolina.  Coming  to 
Panola  county,  Chickasaw  Na- 
tion, in  1872,  John  M.  rented 
a  farm  until  his  marriage  to  Abi- 
gail Kemp,    daughter    of    Joel 


'•it 


*- 


220 


-* 


LEADERS   AND   LEADING    JIEN 


Kemp,  after  which  he  purchased 
the  improvements  on  the  land 
where  he  now  resides.  Mr. 
Webb  was  elected  to  the  Hor.se 
of  Representatives  in  1881,  dur- 
ing Overton's  administration. and 
while  Hicky-ubbe  filled  Overton's 
unexpired  term.  In  1889  he  was 
re-elected  under  the  Bjrd  ad- 
ministration, which  office  he  still 
occupies,  though  under  the  law 
of  disfranchisement  by  the  Na- 
tional party.  In  1889  he  was  one 
of  the  committee  appointed  to 
contract  and  superintend  the 
building  of  Bloomfield  Academy. 
Mr.  Webb  has  four  sons,  Joel, 
George,  William  and  John,  the 
oldest  aged  twelve  years  and  the 
youngest  five. 


WALTON  JAMES 

[CHICKASAW.] 

Walton  was  born  at  New  Boggy, 
May  15,  1855,  and  was  the  only 
son  of  the  late  Booker  James. 

When  quite  a  boy  the  subject 
of  this  sketch  attended  the  neigh- 
borhood school  at  Boggy  Depot 
until  1867,  when  he  went  to 
Rock  Academy,  Wahpanucka, 
where  he  remained  about  twelve 
months.  In  1870  he  entered 
Crocker's  school,  near  Nashville, 
Tenn.,  and  there  devoted  himself 
to  his  studies  until  June,  1873; 
after  wdiich  lie  returned    home 


and  commenced  assisting  his 
father  in  the  stock  business. 
Ten  years  later,  in  1883,  he 
started  with  a  stock  of  his  own, 
and  his  present  home  place  is 
two  miles  from  Rock  Academy. 
In  the  meanwhile  he  had  mar- 
ried Miss  Susan   Frazier,  daugh- 


ter of  James  Frazier,  ex-SherifF 
and  ex'inember  of  the  Chickasaw 
Council.  This  marriage  took 
place  in  1881,  the  issue  being 
four  children — Minnie,  Turner, 
Felix  and  Abbie. 

Mr.  James  has  four  hundred 
head  of  cattle  and  has  charge  of 
his  mother  and  sister's  stock. 
He  owms    besides  one   hundred 


•i*- 


-* 


^- 


OK   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


221 


-<h 


and  twelve  acres  under  cultiva- 
tion and  a  number  of  hogs. 

A  prosperous  and  promising 
young  man,  of  industrious  habits 
and  a  good  education,  besides  a 
kindly  disposition,  it  is  reason- 
able to  conclude  that  before  many 
years  Walton  James  will  have 
acquired  a  large  share  of  this 
world's  goods.  Like  his  father, 
Mr.  James  has  no  ambition  to 
lead  in  politics. 


qi- 


EDWARD  SEHON  BURNEY, 

[CHICKASAW.] 

Mr.  Burnet  was  born  January 
20,  1861,  near*  old  Fort  Wash- 
ita, and  educated  at  the  Chicka- 
saw Male  Academy  by  Prof.  J. 
M.  Harley.  His  father  dying 
while  he  was  yet  young,  Edward 
was  obliged  to  succeed  his  elder 
brother  in  taking  charge  of  his 
mother's  affairs,  which  employed 
his  attention  till  he  was  twenty- 
one  years  of  age;  when  he  mar- 
ried Ada  Cross,  daughter  of  Joel 
Cross.  After  this  he  moved  to 
Jimtown  and  bought  the  Rector 
place;  after  which  he  moved  to 
Burneyville,  on  Mud  Creek, 
changing  back  and  forth  succes- 
sively till  he  finally  settled  on 
his  present  estate  at  Fred,  In- 
dian Territory,  in  1889.  Dur- 
ing the  past  years  he  has  had  as 
many    as    seven    thousand    five 


hundred  head  of  cattle  in  his 
possession,  all  of  which  he  has 
parted  with,  and  is  now  devoting 
his  attention  to  farming,  having 
seven  hundred  acres  under  culti- 
vation and  fifteen  renters.  He 
has   two    children,   Wessie   Ella 


E.  S.  BURNET. 


and  Joseph  Calvin,  aged  six  and 
three  years,  respectively. 

Although  his  brother,  ex-Gov. 
B.  C.  Burney,  has  been  a  prom- 
inent legislator,  Mr.  Burney  has 
always  avoided  political  contact 
until  the  present  time.  He  has, 
how^ever,  permitted  his  name  to 
be  brought  before  the  public  as 
a  candidate  for  Representative 
of  his  county  in  the  election  con- 
test of  1890. 


->B 


*- 


-* 


LEADKRS  AND  LEADING  MEX 


WM.  M.  M.  KEMP. 

[  CHICKASAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  July  7,  1860,  and  is  the  son 
of  Levi  Kemp,  of  Panola  coun- 
ty, Chickasaw  Nation,  and  a 
grandson  of  the  celebrated  Joel 
Kemp.     He  first  went  to  school 


at  Bloomfield  College,  but  his 
father  dying  shortly  afterward, 
he  was  obliged  to  work  hard  in 
order  to  provide  for  his  own  ed- 
ucation. With  this  end  in  view, 
he  went  on  a  ranch  close  to 
Washita,  where  he  remained  one 
year  (in  1881).  Returning  about 
twelve  months  afterward,  he  put 
his  "  shoulder  to  the  wheeP'  and 


engaged  in  stock-herding,  at- 
tending the  Methodist  school  at 
Whitehead  during  the  winters 
of  1884  and  1885.  In  1886  he 
attended  Professor  Halsell's 
academy,  at  Savoy,  Texas,  where 
he  remained  for  some  months, 
once  more  returning  to  Washita. 
In  the  fall  of  1888  he  commenced 
clerking  in  a  dry  goods  and  gro- 
cery store  at  Wynne  Wood.  In 
1889  he  entered  Professor  Bar- 
ley's Academy  at  Tishomingo, 
where  he  remained  until  the  fol- 
lowing spring.  Soon  afterward 
he  was  elected  Clerk  of  the 
Chickasaw  Senate  at  an  extra 
session  of  the  Legislature,  which 
position  he  maintained  until  the 
following  November,  when  at  a 
called  Council  the  disfranchise- 
ment question  was  first  raised. 
In  October,  1889,  he  was  ap- 
pointed County  Clerk  of  Panola, 
which  office  he  has  filled  in  a 
creditable  manner  till  the  pres- 
ent time. 

Much  credit  is  due  Mr.  Kemp 
for  the  manner  in  which  he  has 
worked  out  his  own  education, 
his  sole  capital  being  industry 
and  perseverance,  not  a  cent  be- 
ing contributed  toward  his  school- 
ing until  he  entered  the  National 
Academy  at  Tishomingo.  He  is 
at  present  residing  with  his 
mother  in  Panola  county. 


•±»- 


-.j. 


Wild  Horse,  Comanche. 


*- 


LEADERS   AND   LEADING   MEN 


225 


JOHN  R.  SURRELL. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  near  Rolling,  Wake  countj, 
North  Carolina,  in  1848,  and 
was  sent  to  the  public  school  in 
boyhood,  but  left  at  the  break- 
ing out  of  the  war  to  join  the 


<^- 


J.  K.   SURRELL. 

Confederate  service.  He  enlist- 
ed in  the  Fourth  Kentucky  regi- 
ment under  Gen,  J.  C.  Breck- 
inridge, and  remained  in  that 
regiment  until  the  close  of  the 
war.  After  peace  was  established 
he  settled  in  the  Indian  Terri- 
tory, and  before  long  was  ap- 
pointed   Deputy   United    States 


Marshal,  which  office  he  held  for 
some  years.  In  the  meanwhile 
he  embarked  in  the  cattle  busi- 
ness, and  in  1868  married  a  Miss 
Cummins,  of  Warner  county, 
Tennessee,  by  whom  he  has  six 
children — Minnie,  MoUie,  Wil- 
lie, John,  Daisy  and  Nome. 
In  1888  he  opened  a  general 
mercantile  business  in  Atoka  un- 
der the  title  of  John  R.  Surreli 
&  Co.,  which  business  he  dis- 
posed of  in  the  following  year  to 
Messrs.  Perry  Bros.,  of  Denison, 
Texas. 

Mr.  Surreli  is  one  of  the  old- 
est white  settlers  in  the  Nation, 
and  is  known  through  the  length 
and  breadth  of  the  land,  having 
become  prominent  not  only  as  a 
shrewd  business  man,  but  as  a 
factor  in  shaping  the  destinies  of 
several  candidates  for  public 
preference.  His  family,  who 
live  in  Atoka,  Choctaw  Nation, 
are  very  popular,  especially  his 
daughter,  Miss  Minnie,  who  is 
among  the  prettiest  and  most  re- 
fined young  ladies  of  the 
county. 

John  R.  Surreli  has  become 
very  popular  throughout  the  In- 
dian Territory,  and  has  numerous 
friends  and  acquaintances  who 
speak  very  highly  of  this  gentle- 
man and  his  very  interesting 
family. 


-^ 


»i<- 


220 


LEADERS   AND   LEADING   3IEN 


GOV.  WM.  MALCOLM  GUY. 

[  CHICKASAW.] 


A  CHAl'TER  IN  CHICKASAW  HISTORY 
EXTENDING  FROM  1888  TO  1890. 

So  LONG  as  the  great  or  good  man 
breathes  the  breath  of  life,  so 
long  shall  malice  and  envy  strive 
to  feast  at  the  expense  of  his  rep- 
utation.     But  only  let  death  in- 


^- 


tervene  and  behold  the  halo 
gather  round  his  name.  Who 
is  there  among  the  Chickasaw 
people  at  the  present  day  ready 
or  willing  to  cast  a  slur  upon  the 
memory  of  Cyrus  Harris,  the 
great  and  good;  though  while 
yet  he  lived  see  him  surrounded 
by   traducers  and   political   ene- 


mies numberless.  Verily  does 
history  repeat  itself  in  his  nephew 
William  Malcolm  Guy,  who,  fol- 
lowing the  example  of  his  uncle, 
pirmitted  the  "  rule  or  ruin  '■  fac- 
tion to  seize  the  reins  of  govern- 
ment rather  than  plunge  his 
country  in  a  disastrous  war.  Yet, 
for  this  act  of  self-sacrilice,  laud- 
able in  his  uncle,  Guy  is  notun- 
frequently  branded  with  timidity. 
William  Malcolm  Guy  was  born 
at  Boggy  Depot,  Choctaw  Na- 
tion, February  4,  1845,  the  son 
of  Colonel  William  Richard  Guy, 
who  served  faithfully  in  the  Flor- 
ida war.  The  subject  of  this 
sketch  was  sent  to  a  neighbor- 
hood school  in  the  Chickasaw 
Nation,  but  being  of  a  rather 
wild,  adventurous  disposition, 
ran  off  to  Mississippi,  where  he 
went  to  school  until  the  breaking 
out  of  the  war  in  1861,  when  he 
joined  the  Seventeenth  Missis- 
sippi Regiment  under  Colonel 
Fetherstone.  In  the  campaign 
which  followed  from  the  light  at 
BulLs  Run  until  the  battle  of  Get- 
tysbiirgh,  July  2,  1863  (where 
the  gallant  young  soldier  was 
wounded  in  the  head,  and  had 
his  left  arm  shattered  by  a  mus- 
ket ball),  Guy  was  every  where 
in  the  front  ranks.  When  strick- 
en down,  he  lay  twelve  hours  on 
the  battle  field  before  removal  to 


-* 


^- 


OF   THE   INDIAN  TERRITOKY. 


227 


-* 


*- 


the  field  hospital,  audit  was  three 
days  before  his  wound  was 
operated  upon,  his  youth  and 
vigorous  health  alone  saving  his 
life.  Before  his  complete  re- 
covery he  was  taken  prisoner  and 
sent  to  Baltimore,  where  he  re- 
mained until  exchanged  to  City 
Point,  Virginia.  At  the  conclu- 
sion of  the  war,  instead  of  re- 
turning home  he  entered  college 
at  Marshall  Institute,  Mississippi, 
where  he  stayed  for  two  years, 
coming  back  to  Boggy  Depot  in 
1868,  where  he  found  his  three 
married  sisters  residing.  Soon 
afterward  he  moved  to  Mill  Creek 
and  aided  his  uncle,  Cyrus  Har- 
ris, in  the  stock  business.  In 
1870  he  entered  the  field  of  pol- 
itics, being  elected  Secretary  of 
the  Chickasaw  Senate,  in  which 
capacity  he  served  six  years,  off 
and  on.  In  1883  he  was  elected 
representative  of  his  county,  and 
in  1885  and  1886  distinguished 
himself  in  the  Upper  House, 
where  he  gained  the  reputation 
of  being  an  incorruptible,  as  well 
as  a  wise  legislator. 

Guy  was  first  brought  out  for 
Governor  by  his  uncle,  ex-Gov- 
ernor Harris,  in  the  summer  of 
1888,  against  William  Byrd,  C. 
E.  Burris  and  ex-Governor  Jonas 
Wolf;  but  nothwithstanding  a 
large   majority  accorded  him  at 


the  poles,  the  race  (as  is  usual 
when  there  are  more  than  two 
candidates)  resolved  itself  into  a 
legislative  contest  of  a  most  ex- 
citing nature,  which  resulted  in 
a  majority  of  one  for  Guy. 
The  new  executive  had  no  soon- 
er been  installed  than  he  proceed- 
ed to  select  oflicers.  This  he  did 
without  partiality,  and  with  due 
regard  to  their  fitness,  distribut- 
ing the  favors  equally  between 
his  own  political  friends  and 
those  of  the  opposite  faction; but 
he  had  no  sooner  done  so  than 
a  member  of  his  own  cabinet, 
hailing  from  the  opposite  ranks, 
and  on  whom  he  had  conferred 
the  office  because  of  his  poverty 
and  inability  for  hard  work, 
turned  upon  his  benefactor,  and 
falling  into  the  ranks  of  the  ene- 
my, lent  himself  to  every  scheme 
which  might  serve  to  damage 
or  confuse  the  new  administra- 
tion. Following  closely  on  this 
was  the  Governor's  treaty  with 
the  Santa  Fe  R.  R.,  whereby  he 
received,  upon  his  own  responsi- 
bility (and  in  accordance  with 
constitutional  provisions)  a  large 
sum  of  money  for  the  benefit  of 
the  Nation,  but  which  action  was 
used  with  great  efiiciency  to  pre- 
judice the  full-bloods  against 
him.  When  this  was  to  some 
extent   accomplished,  Hon.  Lem 


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228 


-1^ 


LEADEUS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


*- 


Reynolds,  a  statesman  of  unques- 
tionable ability,  and  the  recog- 
nized central  figure  of  the  oppo- 
sition group,  proceeded  to  shake 
the  foundation  of  ev'ery  institu- 
tion conducted  by  the  party  in 
power.  One  of  the  results  of 
this  move  was  the  appointment 
of  Prof.  Harley,  a  white  man,  as 
lessee  and  Superintendent  of  the 
Chickasaw  National  Male  Acad- 
emy, in  the  room  of  Judge  Ben 
Carter,  brother-in-law  of  Gov. 
Guy.  This  was  accomplished  by 
securing  a  majority  in  the  legis- 
lature. 

The  Byrd  party,  through  con- 
stant misrepresentations,  even- 
tually gained  a  decided  advan- 
tage in  both  houses,  so  tliat  when 
the  Governor's  term  of  two  years 
had  elapsed,  and  he  was  again 
elected  by  a  majority  of  fourteen 
of  the  public  vote,  the  legisla- 
ture called  for  a  count  and  ruled 
out  sufficient  names  to  seat  Wil- 
liam Byrd,  who  was  duly  sworn 
in  as  Governor  of  the  Chickasaw 
Nation. 

On  the  night  of  September  26, 
1S88,  the  deposed  chieftain  ar- 
rived in  Tishomingo  with  a  fol- 
lowing of  nearly  two  hundred 
men,  and  placing  himself  in  read- 
iness for  a  coup  d'etat,  entered 
the  capitol  next  morning,  con- 
cealing his    presence    until    the 


members  repaired  to  the  house 
and  proceeded  to  business.  Gov- 
ernor Guy  forced  the  honorable 
speaker  to  read  the  election  re- 
turns in  the  condition  they  were 
in  before  their  alteration,  and  to 
immediately  announce  the  result 
of  the  same,  which  he  did  after 
considerable  hesitation,  not  how- 
ever, until  the  Hon.  Sam  Paul 
had  delivered  a  speech  that  was 
too  logical  not  to  have  a  mighty 
influence  upon  the  argument. 
Judge  Duncan  was  then  called 
upon  to  ofiiciate  and  Guy  was 
inaugurated  Governor  of  the  Na- 
tion. A  few  minutes  later  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Byrd  faction,  under 
the  crafty  advice  of  Col.  Rej'- 
nolds,  made  amotion  to  adjourn 
sine  die,  which  was  seconded,  and 
the  members  rose  to  their  feet 
and  hurriedly  left  the  town.  The 
majority  of  the  Guy  men  remain- 
ed at  the  capitol  for  two  days, 
after  which  the  Governor  re- 
ceived orders  from  a  higher  pow- 
er to  disband  his  forces.  About 
this  time  while  the  turbulence  of 
party  spirit  was  at  its  height,  Guy 
was  waylaid  and  his  life  attempt- 
ed, but  having  the  prudence  to 
travel  with  a  body  guard,  he 
escaped  death  at  the  hands  of  his 
wood-be  assassin. 

Soon  after  these   occurrences 
Major    Heath    was     sent    from 


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OF, THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY, 


229 


*- 


Wasliington  to  report  the  condi- 
tion of  affairs  at  the  Chickasaw 
capitol.  On  first  arriving  he  met 
with  Governor  Byrd,  and  shortly 
afterward  invited  both  contes- 
tants to  meet  him.  They  did  so, 
and  came  to  an  understanding 
that  the  decision  should  rest  with 
the  authorities  at  Washington. 
Guy  was  without  the  shadow  of 
a  doubt  as  to  the  result;  why 
should  he  hesitate  to  have  it  set- 
tled by  arbitration.  The  U.  S. 
Indian  Agent  had  unhesitatingly 
pronounced  him  Governor  by  a 
majority  of  the  public  vote. 
Meanwhile  the  Byrd  faction  wore 
a  gloomy  aspect,  all  save  one 
(the  placid  leader  himself),  who 
could  ill  conceal  the  smile  of 
triumph  which  threatened  to  com- 
pletely over-run  his  countenance. 
At  length  the  decision  arrived, 
and  its  result  was  equally  aston- 
ishing to  both  parties.  Byrd  was 
Governor— not  by  the  unanimous 
wish  of  his  people,  but  by  ex- 
press desire  of  the  U.  S.  author- 
ities at  Washington.  Readers, 
place  whatever  construction  you 
will  upon  the  foregoing,  it  is  ca- 
pable of  but  one  rendition,  and 
"he  who  runs  can  read." 

There  are  still  some  members 
of  the  Guy  party  who  condemn 
their  late  leader  for  hesitating  to 
assert  his  own  and  his   people's 


rights;  but  when  we  consider  the 
loss  of  life  that  such  a  course 
would  necessitate,  as  well  as 
its  disastrous  result  to  the  tri- 
bal government,  we  are  bound 
in  all  justice  to  admit  that  Guy 
acted  with  a  moral  heroism  only 
to  be  met  with  in  men  of  a  su- 
perior stamp.  Upon  himself  per- 
sonally, it  was  a  great  hardship 
to  relinquish  the  leadership  of  his 
people  without  striking  a  blow, 
surrounded  as  he  was  by  nearly 
three-fourths  of  the  available 
fighting  men  of  his  country. 

The  deposed  Governor  made 
a  few  comments  about  the  state 
of  afi'airs,  but  viewing  the  situa- 
tion philosophically, and  pleased 
that  none  had  suffered  to  gratify 
his  ambition,  retired  to  his  bach- 
elor home,  and  there,  with  his 
usual  energy  and  industry,  spent 
the  two  years  which  followed  in 
the  extension  and  improvement 
of  his  farm.  On  June  26  last, 
however,  the  public  press  an- 
nounced to  a  numerous  circle  of 
relatives  and  acquaintances  that 
ex-Gov.  William  Malcolm  Guy, 
had  broken  the  bonds  of  celibacy 
on  the  previous  day,  by  marriage 
with  Miss  Maggie  Jane  Lindsay, 
daughter  of  the  late  JohnLindsay , 
Knoxville,  Tenn., a  pretty  and  re- 
fined young  lady  of  nineteen 
years  of  age.  The  ceremony  was 


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230 


LEADERS  AND  LEADING  HEN 


performed  within  the  limits  of 
the  home  circle  at  the  residence 
of  his  brother-in-law,  Judge  B. 
W.  Carter,  at  Ardmore,  only  the 
old  bachelors  of  his  acquaintance 
being  invited  to  be  present  on 
the  occasion. 

The  decision  in  favor  of  Bjrd 
by  the  United  States  Govern- 
ment in  1888  was  the  signal  for 
further  irregularities,  and  in  1889 
resulted  in  a  serious  rupture  of 
the  Chickasaw  Constitution  by 
the  disfranchisement  of  the  citi- 
izens  by  marriage,  who  had  en- 
joyed equal  rights  and  immuni- 
ties since  1866.  Col.  Lem  Rey- 
nolds and  Judge  Overton  Love 
are  accredited  with  the  parentage 
of  this  bill,  with  a  view  of  cutting 
down  the  opposition  and  main- 
taining themselves  and  party  in 
absolute  control. 


JOSEPH  SADDLER. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

Joseph  was  born  in  Iowa  in  1856; 
came  to  Pickins  county  in  1867, 
where  he  attended  a  neighbor- 
hood school  for  some  time.  In 
1878,  after  playing  the  role  of 
renter  during  a  period  of  eight 
or  nine  years,  he  married  Miss 
Jennie  Alexander,  daughter  of 
Chili  Alexander,  at  that  time  a 
wealthy  Chickasaw,  but  recently 
in  humble  circumstances.    After 


*- 


this  he  moved  to  Caddo  Creek, 
and  from  tlience  to  his  present 
residence  close  to  Erin  Springs, 
where  he  has  two  hundred  and 
fifty  acres  under  cultivation  and 
some  cattle.  Mr.  Saddler  was  at 
one  time  lieutenant  of  the  Chick- 
asaw Militia,  and  was  in  the 
massacre  on  Caddo  Creek,  where 
James  Harris  Guy,  Bill  Kirksey 
and  the  Rolf  brothers  were  shot 
down  by  the  Lee  gang  from  the 
shelter  of  a  fortified  building. 

During  about  ten  or  twelve 
years  the  subject  of  this  sketch 
was  present  at  the  deaths  of  many 
persons,  some  of  whom  were  the 
victims  of  malice  and  revenge. 
Among  these  were  Sam  Rail,  who 
was  killed  at  Berwyn  by  one 
Meeks,  over  a  disputed  race,  and 
Eastman  Burris,  who  was  shot 
dead  by  some  oflicers  on  the  daj^ 
of  B.  C.  Burney's  election,  in  the 
vicinity  of  the  voting  precinct. 
Mr.  Saddler  and  a  comrade  of 
his,  Charlie  Henderson,  com- 
posed two  of  the  party  who  dis- 
covered the  dead  bodies  of  Bud 
Stephens  and  wife  in  the  Ar- 
buncle  Mountains,  in  1883,  and 
for  which  July  (a  negro)  suffered 
capital  punishment.  Mr.  Sad- 
dler's family  consists  of  a  wife 
and  two  children,  Lavina  and 
James — the  former  aged  twelve 
years  and   the  latter  four  years, 


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OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


231 


* 


J.  H.  MASHBURN. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  1845,  being  the  son  of 
G.  W.  Mashburn,  of  McDowell 
county,  North  Carolina.  He 
came  to  the  Chickasaw  Nation 
in  October,  1871,  and  was  mar- 
ried two  years  later  to  Henrietta 
Eastman,  sister  of  Charles  East- 
man. In  1874  under  the  Overton 
administration  he  was  appointed 
constable  of  Panola,  which  office 
he  occupied  for  three  years.  For 
four  successive  years  he  filled 
the  office  of  sherifi',  after  which 
he  was  elected  county  judge.  In 
1886  Mr.  Mashburn  was  called 
by  the  public  vote  to  a  seat  in 
the  Senate,  which  he  filled  hon- 
orably and  intelligently  until  the 
end  of  his  term,  after  which  he 
retired  from  politics,  and  is  now 
devoting  his  attention  to  farm- 
ing and  general  mercantile  busi- 
ness, which  he  opened  at  Colbert 
in  1888.  Mr.  Mashburn,  though 
very  reticent  on  the  subject,  has 
a  very  interesting  war  record. 
When  the  war  broke  out  he  en- 
listed in  the  First  Confederate, 
Arkansas  Cavalry,  and  afterward 
joined  Brook's  First  Batallion, 
being  present  at  thirty-six  engage- 
ments without  having  received  a 
wound.  Equally  strange  is  the 
fact    that    he    has    never    been 


paroled  by  the  United  States 
government,  nor  ever  has  he 
taken  the  oath  of  allegiance. 


WILLIAM  TALLEY. 

[OHICKASAW.] 

William  was  born  in  Charleston, 
S.  C,  in  1850,  and  came  to 
Paul's  Valley,  Chickasaw  Nation, 
in  1872.  On  his  arrival  in  the 
Territory  Mr.  Talley  devoted  his 
first  few  years  to  the  business  of 
freighting,  at  that  time  very  prof- 
itable, and  was  employed  by  the 
U.  S.  government  carrying 
goods  from  Caddo,  Indian  Ter- 
ritory, to  the  Indian  Reservation 
at  Fort  Sill.  In  1877  he  drove 
cattle  from  Erin  Springs  to  Col- 
orado and  Wyoming,  remaining 
two  years  on  the  cattle  range  in 
the  former  Territory.  In  1879 
he  settled  down  on  the  Washita 
River,  Indian  Territory,  and  in 
1881  secured  his  Indian  right  by 
marrying  Agnes,  daughter  of 
Senator  Nelson  Chigley,  one  of 
the  most  progressive  of  the 
full-blood  Chickasaws.  By  this 
union  he  had  four  children, 
Fannie,  William  Nelson,  Tom 
Perry  and  Suda  Bell,  the  oldest 
aged  eight  years,  and  the  yougest 
three  years.  His  wife  died  Feb. 
16,  1888,  aged  twenty-six  years. 
Mr.  Talley  has  eight  hundred 
acres  under  fence. 


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232 


LEADERS  AND  LEADING  3IEN 


S.  W.  WALLACE. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  in  Char- 
lotte, N.  C,  educated  in  Texas, 
graduating  at  Commercial  Col- 
lege, New  Orleans.  In  1861  he 
enlisted  in  Roberts'  Regiment, 
Magruder's  Arm  J,  and  exchanged 
into  General  Terry's  Scouts.  He 
was  through  the  entire  Louisiana 
Campaign,  and  finally  came  out 
of  Missouri  with  Pap  Price  in 
1865.  In  1884  he  struck  out  for 
the  Chickasaw  Nation  and  open- 
ed a  mercantile  business  at  Erin 
Springs,  where  he  kept  on 
hand  a  good  stock  of  cattle  and 
horses.  It  was  soon  necessary, 
however,  that  he  should  prove 
his  right  in  the  country,  but  hav- 
ing plenty  of  witnesses  he  had 
little  difficulty  in  sustaining  his 
claim  to  citizenship.  Under  the 
act  of  March,  1889,  Mr.  Wallace 
was  appointed  U.  S.  Commis- 
sioner at  Erin  Springs,  and  un- 
der the  act  of  May  2,  1890,  be- 
came Notary  Public.  In  1876 
he  married  Mary  W.  Moore, 
daughter  of  W.  G.  Moore,  de- 
ceased, of  Kaufman  county, 
Texas,  by  whom  he  has  one  boy, 
eight  years  old.  His  wife  has 
been  teaching  school  at  the 
Springs  for  over  two  years.  Mr. 
Wallace  has  five  hundred  acres 
under  cultivation,    two   hundred 


head  of  stock  and  fifty  horses. 
He  gives  employment  to  fifteen 
hands  at  present. 


WILLIAM  THOS.  SHANNON. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

WiLLiAN  was  born  near  Denison, 
Texas,  in  1862,  and  educated  at 
the  seminary  of  that  city.  Mr. 
Shannon  came  to  Paul's  Valley, 
Indian  Territory,  in  1883,  and 
soon  afterward  entered  the  bus- 
iness house  of  Stone  and  Myers, 
Whitehead,  and  afterward  that 
of  James  Rennie,  remaining  in 
Whitehead  nearly  three  years. 
While  employed  in  the  business 
establishment  of  Calvin  Grant, 
at  Paul's  Valley,  in  1887,  he  mar- 
ried Laura  Mayes,  daughter  of 
David  Mayes,  of  Beef  Creek,  by 
whom  he  has  two  children,  The- 
resa and  Joseph  Scott.  In  1888 
he  came  to  Purcell  and  there  en- 
tered the  mercantile  business  in 
partnership  with  Mr.  Joe  Myers, 
the  twain  purchasing  the  interest 
owned  by  C.  F.  Wauntland  & 
Sons.  Messrs.  Shannon  and 
Myers  keep  a  stock  of  some 
twenty  thousand  dollars,  and 
have  an  excellent  trade.  The 
former  has  two  thousand  five 
hundred  acres  under  fence  and 
six  hundred  in  cultivation,  giv- 
ing labor  to  some  twelve  men 
annuallv. 


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OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


233 


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CHARLES  B.  CAMPBELL. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

As  WE  approach  the  north  west- 
ern border  of  the  Chickasaw  Na- 
tion, we  find  ourselves  among  the 
great  horse  breeders  and  racing 
men  of  the  Indian  Territory.  C. 
B.  Campell  (or  Young  Charlie  as 
he  is  called)  is  prominent  among 
this  community,  having  in  his 
stables  at  the  present  time  three 
notable  racers,  viz:  "Tom," 
"Barney"  and  "Betty,"  the  lat- 
ter known  by  her  fast  five-eighths 
of  a  mile  record  at  Muskogee  in 
1890.  Charlie  was  born  Jan- 
uary, 1861,  at  Fort  Arbuckle,and 
educated  at  Pawnee  City,  Neb. 
The  early  years  of  his  life  were 
spent  with  cattle,  having  a  small 
stock  of  his  own,  and  being  em- 
ployed to  take  charge  of  a  herd, 
the  property  of  his  uncle,  M.  T. 
Johnson.  In  July,  1890,  Mr. 
Campbell  opened  a  business 
house  at  Minco,  at  the  Junction 
of  the  Chicago  &  Rock  Island 
R.  R.,  which  place  is  now  in  a 
prosperous  condition.  Besides 
his  interest  in  the  mercantile  bus- 
iness, Mr.  Campbell  has  one 
thousand  five  hundred  head  of 
cattle  and  five  hundred  acres  of 
land  under  cultivation.  In  1884 
he  married  Maggie,  daughter  of 
the  well  known  stockman.  Bill 
Williams,  of  Anadarko. 


CHARLES  HOBART  HEALD. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

Charles  Hobart  Heald  was 
born  at  Skullyville,  Choctaw 
Nation,  March  17,  1843,  his  par- 
ents having  originally  removed 
from  Massachusetts  to  the  Indian 
Territory  some  time  previous  to 
his  birth.  In  1848  he  removed 
to  New  Orleans,  La.,  and  after 
completing  his  education  in  the 
east,  Charles  returned  to  the  Na- 
tion in  1860.  The  following  year 
he  was  married  to  Eliza  Guy, 
daughter  of  W.  R.  Guy,  and  sis- 
ter of  Gov.  W.  M.  Guy.  Mr. 
Heald's  wife  died  in  1887,  and 
of  a  family  of  ten  children  only 
five  are  living.  He  has  lived  at 
Boggy  Depot,  Mill  Creek  and  is 
now  located  at  Healdton,  I.  T. 

Mr.  Heald  was  a  personal 
friend  and  great  admirer  of 
Gov.  Cyrus  Harris,  and  also  of 
Gen.  D.  H.  Cooper.  The  sub- 
of  this  sketch  has  been  through 
the  war  with  the  Indians:  first 
with  the  Chickasaw  Battalion  and 
then  with  the  Second  Choctaws. 
He  has  held  the  office  of  county 
clerk  and  represented  his  county 
in  the  legislature. 

Mr.  Heald  is  now  engaged  in 
farming  in  order  to  be  at  home 
with  his  motherless  children.  No 
white  citizen  is  more  universally 
respected  than  C.  H.  Heald. 


* 


234 


-* 


LEADERS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


WILLIAM  FOX. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

William  Fox  was  born  in  Robin- 
son county,  Texas,  in  1853,  and 
came  to  the  Indian  Territory  in 
1870.  Soon  after  his  arrival  Mr. 
Fox  went  to  work  assisting  his 
fatlier  to  open  a  farm  east  of 
Stonewall,  on  what  is  known  as 
Deer  Creek.  After  eight  years 
of  diligent  labor  he  married  An- 
gelina Manning,  daughter  of  Dr. 
T.  J.  Manning,  of  Caddo,  where 
he  was  for  some  time  afterward 
employed  assisting  his  brother  in 
the  mercantile  business.  In  1881 
he  left  Caddo  accompanied  by 
his  wife  and  made  his  head- 
quarters at  Los  Yegas,  New  Mex- 
ico, for  twelve  months.  From 
thence  he  traveled  to  San  Fran- 
cisco. Victoria(British  Columbia), 
and  Seattle,  finally  "  checking 
up  "  at  Snowhannich  City,  Wash- 
ington Territory,  where  he  made 
his  home  for  nearly  four  years. 
In  1886  he  moved  back  to  Los 
Yegas,  and  after  a  stay  of  fifteen 
months  returned  to  the  Indian 
Territory  and  opened  a  confec- 
tionery establishment  at  Pur- 
cell  in  1887.  The  following 
year  we  find  him  in  the  agricul- 
tural business,  and  opening  a 
farm,  eight  hundred  acres  of  which 
he  now  has  in  a  state  of  cultiva- 
tion.     In   1890   he  moved  back 


to  town  and  established  a  billiard 
and  pool  hall,  which  now  engages 
his  attention.  Mr.  Fox  has  spent 
a  good  deal  of  time  and  money 
in  traveling,  but  does  not  ap- 
pear to  regret  it  in  the  least. 


W.  G.  KIMBERLAIN. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

W.  G.  KiMBERLAiN  was  bom  in 
Washington  county,  Kentucky, 
and  educated  in  Missouri.  He 
came  to  the  Indian  Territory  in 
1870  and  the  same  year  married 
Lizzie  Mitchell,  daughter  of  Ben 
Mitchell,  of  Pickins  county. 
During  the  war  Mr.  Kimberlain 
served  in  Shanks' Regiment,  Gen. 
Joe  Shelby's  Cavalry,  and  went 
through  the  entire  campaign 
without  a  wound,  notwithstand- 
ing seventeen  holes  having  been 
shot  through  his  clothes.  Having 
an  early  predilection  for  the  cattle 
business,  Mr.  K.  devoted  his  en- 
ergies to  it  both  in  Texas  and  the 
Territory;  so  that  besides  twelve 
hundred  head  in  the  neighbor- 
hood of  Whitehead,  he  owns  a 
goodly  stock  in  Grayson  coun- 
ty, Texas.  Besides  this  he  has 
fourteen  hundred  acres  of  land 
under  cultivation  at  home,  and 
is  a  large  stockholder  in  the  Mer- 
chant and  Planters'  Bank,  of 
Sherman,  Texas. 


-* 


•i<- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


235 


-* 


*- 


MR.  AND  MRS.  H.  F.  BAKER. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

The  son  of  Samuel  D.  Baker, 
of  Saratoga,  New  York,  was 
born  in  1839;  educated  at  India- 
napolis, Indiana,  and  came  to 
Caddo,  Indian  Territory,  in  1881, 
immediately  afterward  marrying 
Mary  Bonde,  widow  of  the  late 
Captain  Hightower.  His  wife, 
while  at  Wappa  Nucka  Academy, 
an  orphan  girl  of  five  years,  was 
adopted  by  Mrs.  Mary  Davis,  a 
missionary,  and  placed  at  school 
in  Oxford,  Ohio,  afterward  mov- 
ing to  Hamilton  county,  near 
Cincinnati,  until  her  education 
was  complete  at  twenty-two  years 
of  age.  Mrs.  Baker  owes  to  Mrs. 
Davis  all  that  she  is,  and  all  that 
she  has  accomplished,  which  is 
by  no  means  trifling,  as  she  has 
taught  with  the  greatest  success 
for  nearly  nine  years  at  Sandy, 
Tishomingo  andArmstrongAcad- 
emy.  In  1889  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Baker  moved  to  the  old  Fletcher 
place,  where  they  now  reside.  A 
y^ar  or  two  previously  they  had 
owned  a  large  stock  of  cattle 
close  to  Caddo,  but  the  Texas 
fever  robbed  them  of  their  ac- 
quired wealth,  and  they  depend 
principally  upon  farming  for  a 
subsistance.  They  are  kind  and 
hospitable,  and  much  beloved  by 
neighbors. 


GEORGE  R.  BEELER. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  at  Rock- 
port,Mo.,in  1854  and  educated  at 
Highland,  Kan.  Mr.  Beelercame 
to  the  Indian  Territory  in  1879, 
and  settled  close  to  Fort  Ar- 
buckle,  where  he  held  a  stock  of 
cattle  on  Caddo  Creek.  Later 
on  he  formed  a  partnership  in 
the  business  with  Calvin  Grant, 
and  between  them  they  had 
sixty  thousand  dollars  invested 
in  hoofs  and  horns.  In  1889  he 
sold  out,  and  the  same  year  es- 
tablished the  Bank  of  Purcell, 
Indian  Territory.  In  July,  1890, 
he  sold  his  interest  in  this  estab- 
lishment and  immediately  after- 
ward founded  the  Bank  of  Com- 
merce, of  which  he  is  now  vice- 
president,  F.  H.  Swain,  presi- 
dent (the  latter  gentleman  is 
president  of  the  American  Na- 
tional Bank,  Arkansas).  Mr. 
Beeler  has  some  fourteen  hun- 
dred acres  of  land  under  cultiva- 
tion, and  a  pasture  eight  miles  in 
circumference.  He  gives  labor 
annually  to  about  twenty  men. 
In  1881  Mr.  Beeler  married 
Mary, daughter  of  Thomas  Grant, 
of  Fort  Arbuckle,  by  whom  he 
had  three  children,  but  losing  his 
wife  in  1888  he  has  since  married 
Georgie  Collins,  daughter  of 
Hon.  Daniel  Collins,  of  Colbert 


-^ 


*■ 


236 


-•i" 


LEADERS   AND   LEADING   3MEN 


JOSEPH  H.  RILEY. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

Joseph  was  born  in  1863  in  the 
Choctaw  Nation;  is  the  son  of 
Col.  James  Rilej,  a  leading  man 
in  his  day,  but  who  died  when 
Joseph  was  but  a  child,  so  that 
he  was  raised  bv  his  father-in-law, 


*- 


JOSEPH    H.   RILEY. 

Milton  Brown,  of  Wah-pa-nucka. 
The  young  man  had  a  liberal  ed- 
ucation, having  gone  through 
a  thorough  literary  training  at 
Springfield,  Mo.,  Booneville, 
Mo.,  and  Albany,  N.  Y.  In 
1866  he  married  Susan  Cut-chub- 
by, who  died  two  years  after- 
ward. Mr.  Riley  has  since 
united  himself  to  Miss  Sallie 
Moore,  a  ISTorth  Carolina    lady. 


by  whom  he  has  one  child,  aged 
thirteen  months.  His  property 
consists  of  two  ranches  contain- 
ing one  thousand  head  of  cattle, 
and  nearly  one  hundred  horses, 
besides  a  farm  which  is  now  in 
course  of  cultivation. 


SIMON   KEMP. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

Simon  is  a  son  of  the  distin- 
guished Chickasaw,  Joel  Kemp, 
and  was  born  in  December,  18-12, 
on  Clear  Creek,  near  Fort  Tow- 
sen,  Choctaw  Nation;  after  which 
his  family  moved  close  to  Bloom- 
field  in  181:1:.  He  married  El- 
vira Colbert  in  1862,  and  two 
years  after  her  death  (which  hap- 
pened in  1869),  he  married  her 
younger  sister,  Eliza. 

Mr.  Kemp  was  first  elected  to 
office  in  the  second  Harris  ad- 
ministration, when  he  was  made 
Sergeant-at-Arras:  his  next  office 
being  that  of  Constable  of  Pan- 
ola county.  During  the  Overton 
administration  he  was  elected  to 
the  House  of  Representatives, 
and  was  re-elected  each  year  dur- 
ing the  administrations  of  Burney 
and  Wolfe.  During  Guy's  exec- 
utive term,  which  followed,  Mr. 
Kemp  was  elected  Speaker  of 
the  House,  in  which  office  he  ac- 
quitted himself  admirably.  At 
the  same  period  he  was  one  of 


* 


^ 


OK   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


237 


-* 


*- 


the  Committee  on  Citizenship. 
After  this,  in  1886,  he  ran  for 
County  Judge  against  Mr.  Frank- 
lin, and  was  beaten  by  two  votes; 
again,  in  1888  (when  Byrd  was 
forced  by  the  National  party  to 
usurp  the  Executive  seat),  Simon 
Kemp  became  a  candidate  for 
the  judgeship  of  his  county,  and 
was  elected  over  W.  Finch,  He 
still  holds  the  office  to  the  appa- 
rent satisfaction  of  all  parties. 

Mr.  Kemp  is  a  farmer  and  has 
two  hundred  acres  of  land  under 
fence  at  the  old  home  of  his 
father,  at  which  place  he  has  re- 
sided for  forty-six  years.  He  is 
also  owner  of  the  Joel  Kemp 
ferry,  on  Ked  River,  which 
brings  him  in  a  comfortable  rev- 
enue. He  has  no  heirs,  the  chil- 
dren of  his  first  wife,  two  in 
number,  having  died  at  an  early 
age.  ^^^^^^^ 

J.  F.  MYERS. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  January  16,  1855, in  Gray- 
son county,  Texas.  He  was  ed- 
ucated in  Sherman  and  Boiiham, 
Texas,  and  completed  his  educa- 
tion at  Carlton  College,  Bon- 
ham.  From  there  he  came  to 
White  Bead  Hill,  Indian  Terri- 
tory, securing  a  clerkship  from 
James  Rennie,  who  was  engaged 


in  the  mercantile  business,  and 
remained  with  him  nearly  live 
years,  when  he  and  Mr.  L.  L. 
Stowe  purchased  Mr.  Rennie's 
entire  interest  in  the  business. 
He  remained  in  this  capacity  for 
three  years,  when  he  sold  out 
and  went  into  the  cattle  or  stock 


J.    F.    M\  1  K^. 

business.  In  April,  ISST,  he 
married  Miss  Eula  Colbert,  the 
only  child  of  the  late  Holmes 
Colbert.  About  one  year  after 
their  marriage  he  and  his  nephew, 
W.  T.  Shannon,  came  to  Pur- 
cell,  Indian  Territory,  and  pur- 
chased the  entire  interest  of  C. 
F.  Wantland  &  Sons,  general 
merchants  at  tliat  place.  He 
has  since  then  been  engaged  in 
that  business. 


-* 


238 


-<b 


LEADKRS   AND    LEADING   MEX 


JOHN  FRANKLIN  GOODING. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

J.  F.  Gooding  was  born  in  Mem- 
phis, Tennessee,  in  November, 
1859.  He  is  the  son  of  the  late 
Rev.  Charles  Gooding,  of  Col- 
bert, a  sketch  of  whose  life  will 
be  found  elsewhere  in  this  vol- 
ume. John  Franklin  was  born 
while  his  father  resided  at  Siv- 
elTs  Bend,  on  Red  River,  where 
he  had  a  large  plantation  and  a 
number  of  negroes.  His  mother 
had  gone  back  to  the  old  State 
in  the  interest  of  some  property 
which  she  wished  to  dispose  of. 
This  accounts  for  his  alien  birth. 
Returning  from  Sherman, 
Texas,  where  he  received  his  ed- 
ucation, Franklin  went  to  work 
and  opened  a  large  farm  close  to 
Colbert.  In  October,  1880,  he 
married  Sarah  Stedman,  a  young 
lady  from  Illinois,  who  was  em- 
ployed as  National  teacher  at 
Colbert.  Under  the  Burney  ad- 
ministration he  was  soon  appoint- 
ed Constable  of  Panola  county, 
and  in  1885  was  appointed  Sher- 
iff, which  office  he  resigned  in 
favor  of  his  agricultural  pursuits, 
which  at  that  time  were  more  re- 
munerative. He  was  also  a 
member  of  the  United  States  In- 
dian Police  from  1883  to  1886. 
This  office  he  also  abandoned  for 


the  reason  above  stated.  Mr. 
Gooding  is  a  steady,  industrious 
gentleman,  devoted  to  domestic 
life  and  opposed  to  pushing  him- 
self forward  in  public  affairs. 
He  is,  however,  a  stanch  adher- 
ent to  the  progressive  party. 
He  has  no  children. 


WILEY  FRANKLIN  BROWN. 

[CHICKASAW,] 

Wiley  was  born  in  Floyd  coun- 
ty, Georgia,  in  1857,  and  came 
to  Savanna,  Choctaw  Nation,  in 
1881:,  where  he  opened  a  large 
dairy  for  the  supply  of  the  miners. 
In  the  year  following  he  married 
Eliza  Johnson,  daughter  of  Mar- 
tin Johnson,  a  Chickasaw,  who 
was  waylaid  and  killed  in  1878 
at  the  Double  Springs.  In  1887 
he  commenced  railroading  in  the 
Arbuckle  Mountains,  and  parted 
from  his  wife  twelve  months  later. 
Mr.  Brown  has  recently  turned 
his  attention  to  farming  and  has 
two  farms  (one  in  the  Choctaw 
and  the  other  in  the  Chickasaw 
Nation)  in  course  of  cultivation. 
The  subject  of  this  sketch  in  his 
earlier  days  was  reckless  and 
and  daring,  and  had  very  little 
veneration  for  Uncle  Sam  and 
his  laws.  As  a  proof  of  this 
statement  we  mention   the    fact 


*- 


-* 


1 

a 


I 

I 

OS 

I 


a 


u*- 


OF  THE  INDIAN  TERRITORY. 


241 


->& 


that  he  was  Captain  of  a  whiskey 
boat  called  the  "Tamarack," 
which  plied  the  waters  of  Red 
River  in  1880.  This  craft,  which 
was  flat-bottomed,  contained  a 
cabin  sufficiently  large  to  hold  a 
considerable  number  of  bibulous 
Indians  and  white  men,  and  dur- 
ing its  brief  career,  bore  upon  its 
deck  more  dead  and  bleeding 
bodies  than  many  a  ship  which 
had  sailed  the  ocean  for  ten  years. 
Captain  Brown,  as  he  was  called, 
was  witness  to  the  pistol  fight  on 
board  between  Ed  Lawrence  and 
Bailey  Tucker  in  1880,  in 
which  the  former  was  shot  dead 
instantly  and  the  latter  died 
from  the  effects  of  his  wound. 
The  "Tamarack""  was  shortly 
afterward  broken  into  stove  wood 
by  the  officers  of  the  law.  It  is 
with  the  consent  of  Mr.  Brown 
that  we  publish  this  matter. 


*- 


DANIEL  COLLINS. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

Son  of  George  Collins  was  born 
in  Caldwell  county,  Kentucky,  in 
March,  1839.  Came  to  Panola 
county,  Chickasaw  Nation,  in 
May,  1852,  in  company  with 
four  brothers,  three  of  whom  are 
living.  In  1866  he  married 
Sarah,  the  daughter  of  Joe  Potts, 


of  Colbert,  a  citizen  of  the  Na- 
tion and  uncle  of  Jim  Potts,  the 
founder  of  Pottsborough,  Texas. 
At  the  commencement  of  the  war 
Mr.  Collins  enlisted  under  Gen. 
Cooper,  where  he  was  for  some 
time  employed  guarding  the 
agency  at  Fort  Cobb.  Later  on 
he  joined  the  Choctaw  Brigade 
and  fought  at  Cabin  Creek  and 
elsewhere,  after  which  he  return- 
ed to  his  home  and  married.  At 
the  commencement  of  Governor 
Overton's  administration,  Daniel 
Collins  was  elected  to  the  Senate, 
which  office  he  filled  for  five 
consecutive  terms  in  a  highly 
creditable  manner.  In  the  elec- 
tion of  August,  1888,  he  tied 
with  Col.  Lem  Reynolds  for  the 
Senate,  but  rather  than  cause  ill- 
feeling  he  retired  from  the  field. 
Mr.  Collins  has  seven  children-, 
the  oldest,  Georgie,  is  married 
to  G.  R.  Beeler,  banker  at  Pur- 
cell;  Louie,  unmarried;  Mirtie, 
married  to  William  Kersey,  of 
Carriage  Point;  Ben  Carter, 
Maud,  Daniel  and  Charlie;  the 
oldest  being  twenty-three  and  the 
youngest  four  years.  Mrs.  Sallie 
Alverson,  the  oldest  living  Chick- 
asaw, aged  one  hundred  years, 
is  residing  with  Mr.  Collins,  and 
is  still  able  to  recall  the  treaty 
made  between  Andrew  Jackson 
and  her  people  in  1829. 


-* 


i^- 


-* 


2-12 


LEADEltS    AND   LEADING   MEN 


*- 


ROBERT  L.  REAM. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  at  Ream  Station,  Choctaw 
Nation,  in  1871,  the  son  of  the 
late  Robert  Ream,  deceased 
brother  of  the  eminent  sculp- 
tress— Yinnie  Ream  Hoxie,  of 
Washington,  D.  C.  Robert's 
mother  was  Anna  Guy,  sister  of 
ex-Gov.  Wm.  Guy,  of  the  Chick- 
asaw Nation,  and  otherwise  high- 
ly connected.  The  deceased 
Robert,  or  as  he  was  generally 
called  Bob  Ream,  was  a  talented 
gentleman,  but  somewhat  reck- 
less in  disposition,  and  spent  a 
great  portion  of  his  life  hunt- 
ing, fishing  and  otherwise 
ministering  to  his  pleasure,  for 
he  was  enabled,  through  the  in- 
come derived  from  his  wife's 
share  in  the  McAlester  and 
Savanna  coal  mines,  to  live  with- 
out any  greater  physical  or  men- 
tal labor  than  an  occasional  re- 
course to  the  profession  of  law, 
for  which  he  was  educated.  He 
died  after  three  days'  illness  in 
1887,  and  his  body  was  embalm- 
ed and  carried  to  the  capital  at 
Washita.  Young  Robert,  the 
subject  of  this  sketch,  first  went 
to  school  at  McAlester,  then  to 
Maryland  Avenue  School, Wash- 
ington, D.  C,  one  term.    From 


thence  to  the  Chickasaw  Male 
Academy,  after  which  he  return- 
ed to  Washington  and  entered 
the  Brent  building  public  school. 
From  there  he  was  transferred 
to  the  Military  School  at  Alex- 
andria, Yirginia,  where  partially 
losing  the  sight  of  both  eyes,  he 
was  obliged  to  desist  schooling 
for  a  considerable  period.  On 
his  return  home  he  went  to  work 
at  the  stock  ranch  of  J.  J.  McAl- 
ester, and  later  on  for  his  step- 
father, Milton  Brown,  who  in 
1888  had  married  Mrs.  Ream. 
Young  Robert,  who  is  now  nine- 
teen years  of  age,  is  a  member  of 
the  Panola  County  Militia.  He 
and  his  brother  and  sister  will 
be  left  in  good  circumstances,  as 
their  mother,  besides  her  mining 
property,  has  a  stock  of  cattle 
and  fourteen  hundred  acres  of 
good  farm  land  under  cultivation. 


FRANCIS  JOSEPH  FISHER. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  is  the 
only  son  of  Hon.  D.  O.  Fisher, 
of  Tishomingo.  He  was  born  in 
Panola  county,  Chickasaw  Na- 
tion, and  completed  his  educa- 
tion at  the  Jesuit  College,  Osage 
Mission,  Kansas.  He  spent  the 
earlier  part   of    his   life    taking 


* 


*- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


243 


-* 


charge  of  bis  father's  stock  inter- 
ests ;  after  which  he  entered  into 
partnership  with  his  father  in  the 
mercantile  business  till  1886, 
when  he  purchased  the  store  of 
Messrs.  Bjrd  &  Perry,  of  Tisho- 
mingo. His  health  becoming 
impaired  by  close  application  to 
business,  he  sold  out  the  follow- 
ing year  and  opened  a  large 
farm.  He  is  now  residing  seven 
miles  southeast  of  the  capital, 
where  he  owns  250  acres  of  good 
farming  land  on  the  Washita 
bottom,  and  on  which  he  makes 
three-quarters  of  a  bale  of  cotton 
and  fifty  bushels  of  corn  to  the 
acre.  In  September,  1884,  he 
was  appointed  National  Agent 
under  Gov.  Jonas  Wolf,  which 
office  he  held  till  1886.  During 
Guy's  administration  in  1887  he 
was  appointed  to  the  office  of 
Inspector  of  Permits,  and  is  now 
a  stanch  adherent  of  the  pro- 
gressive party,  while  his  father 
is  looked  upon  as  one  of  the  pil- 
lars of  the  National  or  Full-blood 
element. 


»i<- 


JAMES  DULIN. 

[  CHICKASAW.] 

Mr.  Dulin  was  born  in  Georgia 
in  1837,  and  went  fo  Texas  in 
1854,  settling  down  first  in  Push 


and  then  in  Parker  county.  In 
1858  he  took  a  pack  outfit  from 
Gainesville  to  Denver,  Colorado, 
in  search  of  gold,  and  returned 
after  an  unsuccessful  trip  of 
eighteen  months.  For  many 
years  after  this  Mr.  Dulin  scout- 
ed with  various  independent 
companies  in  pursuit  of  Coman- 
ches  and  other  hostiles  in  West- 
ern Texas,  and  in  1861  was  with 
Sul  Ross  when  he  captured  Cyn- 
thia Ann  Parker,  who  had  been 
for  years  in  the  custody  of  the  In- 
dians. At  the  breaking  out  of  the 
war  he  joined  Alexander's  regi- 
ment of  Texas  troops,  under  the 
command  of  General  Cooper, 
and  was  all  through  the  war. 
In  1871  he  married  Pocahuntas 
Walner,  daughter  of  the  late  Dr. 
W.  M.  Walner,  and  settled  on 
Blue  Creek,  where  he  remained 
till  1877,  when  he  moved  to  his 
present  home  at  Paoli. 

A  finely  cultivated  farm  of 
five  hundred  acres,  besides  five 
hundred  head  of  cattle  and  one 
hundred  head  of  horses,  now  oc- 
cupy the  attention  of  Mr.  Dulin, 
who  has  never  mingled  in  poli- 
tics nor  cast  a  vote  in  the  Indian 
Territory.  He  has  a  family  of 
four  children  and  a  cheerful 
home,  the  doors  of  which  are  al- 
ways open  to  entertain  the  weary 
traveler. 


-* 


*- 


244 


-* 


LEADERS   AND    LEADING   3IEN 


NEWTON  G.  WILSON. 

[CHEROKEE  AND  CHICKASAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  near  Tishomingo,  in  1871, 
and  is  the  only  son  of  the  late 
"William  Wilson,  and  only  sur- 
viving male  member  of  his  fam- 
ily residing  in  the  Chickasaw  Na- 
tion. He  was  educated  at  the 
National  Male  Academy,  where 
he  spent  five  years.  Was  mar- 
ried at  Ardmore  on  July  1-1, 
1890,  to  Ollie,  daughter  of  J.  K. 
Dawnard,  of  Gainesville,  Texas. 
Mr.  Wilson  spent  the  earlier 
part  of  his  life  attendingto  stock, 
and  is  at  present  in  partnership 
with  Mr.  Galloway  Frazier  in  the 
cattle  business,  at  whose  place 
he  resides  with  his  young  wife. 


*- 


EDWARD  Q.  FRANKLIN. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

Edward  was  born  in  Lynn 
county,  Missouri,  in  1859,  being 
a  son  of  Judge  J.  H.  Franklin, 
of  Buckhorn  Grove,  Panola 
county.  Edward  was  raised  by 
his  grandmother,  after  his  fath- 
er had  departed  for  the  Indian 
Territory  until  the  year  1873, 
when  the  young  man  came  to 
Panola  and  sought  the  home  of 
his  father.  In  1883  he  married 
Louisa  Calhoun,  daughter  of 
Johnson  Calhoun,  who  was  mur- 
dered in  18  81  by   unknown  par- 


ties. After  his  marriage  Edward 
Franklin  opened  a  farm  of  one 
hundred  acres,  where  he  is  at 
present  residing.  In  1888  he 
was  nominated  for  constable  of 
Panola  by  the  progressive  party, 
and  duly  elected,  serving  until 
the  supreme  court  decided  that 
none  but  citizens  by  blood  were 
qualified  to  hold  office.  To  this 
effect  he  received  a  notice  from 
Governor  Byrd  in  October,  '89. 
E.  Q.  Franklin's  wife  has  a  pair 
of  Chickasaw  scissors  which  be- 
longed to  her  great,  great,  grand- 
father, and  which  were  manufac- 
tured by  a  member  of  the  tribe  in 
1750,  140  years  ago. 


MR.  AND  MRS.  W^  S.  BURKS. 

[chickasaws.] 
Mk.  Burks  was  born  in  the  state 
of  Kentucky,  in  1826,  and  was 
educated  at  Lexington.  He  came 
to  the  Indian  Territory  in  1855, 
and  the  following  year  married 
Mrs.  Nancy  Wall,  widow  of 
David  Wall,  the  ceremony  taking 
place  at  old  Fort  Washita.  At 
the  breaking  out  of  the  war,  Dr. 
Burks  became  a  staff  surgeon  in 
General  Cooper's  command,  but 
returned  before  its  termination 
and  married  his  second  wife, 
Susan  Burney,  the  widow  of  John 
Duke,  a  Mississippian.  Susan 
Burney    was    the    daughter    of 


-* 


-* 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


245 


David  Calhoun  Burney,  and  sis- 
ter of  ex-Gov.  B.  C.  Biirnc}'. 
She  was  born  in  1836  and  emi- 
grated to  the  Indian  Territory  in 
18J:4.  After  their  marriage  Dr. 
Burks  and  his  wife  moved  to  the 
vicinity  of  the  old  Council  House, 
and  in   1872    made   their    home 


*- 


MRS.  BURKS. 

near  Caddo.  In  1882  Mrs. 
Burks,  being  a  lady  of  excellent 
business  capacity,  was  awarded 
the  contract  for  the  Chickasaw 
Academy  a  t  Wapanucka, 
which  she  fulfilled  most  creditab- 
ly during  the  term  of  five  years. 
On  its  expiration  they  moved 
once  more  to  Caddo,  and  in  the 
spring  of  1887  to  Paul's  Yalley, 
where   they    have    five  hundred 


acres   of  land   under  cultivation 
in  the  charge  of  five  families. 

Mrs.  Burks'  father,  David  Cal- 
houn Burney,  held  a  high  posi- 
tion among  his  people  back  in 
Mississippi,  and  was  beloved  and 
respected  by  both  Indian  and 
white.      He  died  in  1871. 


WILLIAM  W.  COOPER,  M.  D. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  in  Tus- 
cumbra.Ala.,  in  '48,  son  of Ladell 
Bacon  Cooper,  a  lawyer  of  the 
same  place.  In  1873  he  came 
to  Blue  Creek,  Chickasaw  Na- 
tion, where  he  resided  for  some 
time  with  Thomas  Johnson,  after- 
ward renting  a  farm  from  Mazep- 
pa  Turner.  In  1882  he  married 
Mattie  Wells,  and  purchased  a 
farm  from  her  father  at  Wapa- 
nucka, which  he  afterward  sold 
him  back  in  1886,  and  purchased 
his  present  holding  on  Rock 
Creek  close  to  Dougherty.  Soon 
afterward  four  of  the  tenant 
buildings  on  his  property  were 
accidently  destroyed  by  fire.  Dr. 
Cooper  has  never  practiced  his 
profession  in  this  country,  but 
devotes  his  extra  time  to  agricul- 
ture. He  is  a  member  of  the 
progressive  party,  but  is  not  a 
politician. 


-* 


•i^ 


-* 


246 


LEADERS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


* 


REV.  COLBKRT  E.  BURRIS. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

C.  E.  BuRRis  was  born  in  Pon- 
totoc county,  Mississippi,  in 
1827.  His  fatlier  died  when  he 
was  but  live  years  old.  In  1837 
he  moved  with  the  tribe  to  Push- 
ma-lein,  Choctaw  Nation,  and 
afterward  went  to  live  with  his 
mother  on  a  small  farm  near 
Tus-ka-ho-ma.  In  1849  he  went 
to  Doaksville  in  the  capacity  of 
a  cowboy.  In  1850  he  moved 
back  to  Jacks  Fork  county  and 
married  a  Miss  Hoyay.  In  1856 
he  came  to  Pon-to-toc  county, 
where  under  the  Harris  adminis- 
tration he  was  first  elected  as 
Representative,  and  as  Senator 
in  1859.  In  1861  he  was  elect- 
ed Chickasaw  Delegate  to  the 
meeting  of  the  five  tribes  at  Old 
Norfolk  Town  (Eufala),  and  sev- 
eral years  afterward  to  the.  Gen- 
eral Pike  treaty,  and  in  1865  to 
the  treaty  at  Fort  Smith.  In  la- 
ter years  he  was  elected  three 
times  as  a  delegate  to  confer 
with  the  Choctaws,  the  last  time 
in  1886.  During  thirty  years 
Mr.  Burris  served  as  Senator, 
and  was  Supreme  Judge  at  the 
time  that  Governor  Cyrus  Harris 
was  counted  out  by  B.  C.  Bur- 
ney.  During  the  Guy  adminis- 
tration   he   was    appointed    (in 


1886  and  1887)  to  meet  the 
united  tribes  at  Okmulgee  and 
Fort  Gibson ;  was  appointed 
during  the  Byrd  administration 
a  member  of  the  Chickasaw 
Commission,  which  office  he 
holds  at  present. 

Mr.  Burris  was  ordained  a 
minister  of  the  Methodist  church 
immediately  after  the  war,  and 
is  at  present  a  member  of  the 
Muskogee  Conference.  Soon  af- 
ter the  death  of  his  first  wife  he 
married  Miss  L.  E.  Bradley,  a 
native-born  Missourian,  by  whom 
he  had  seven  children,  two  alone 
surviving  from  the  family  of  his 
first  wife,  whose  names  are 
Hindeman  and  Isaac.  Mr.  Bur- 
ris is  a  candidate  for  Governor  in 
the  present  election  contest. 


FRANK  COLBERT. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

Of  the  many  great  names  that 
adorn  the  history  of  the  Chicka- 
saws  that  of  Frank  Colbert  is 
among  the  most  illustrious.  Mar- 
tin Colbert,  father  of  the  subject 
of  our  present  sketch,  as  well  as 
of  four  sons  besides,  all  of  whom 
emigrated  to  the  Indian  Terri- 
tory with  the  mass  of  their  tribe, 
was  born  in  Mississippi.  The 
home  of  his  people  was  then  in 
the  vicinity  of  Home  Lake,  where 


■* 


*- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITOKY. 


247 


-* 


•i^- 


the  family  of  Martin  Colbert  was 
brought  up.  At  the  age  of  about 
sixteen  years  Frank,  the  oldest 
son,  arrived  at  Colbert,  north  of 
Red  River,  vi'here  he  has  since 
resided.  During  a  period  of 
fifty  years  Mr.  Colbert  has  de- 
voted himself  exclusively  to  farm- 
ing and  stock-raising,  and  is  very 
wealthy.  Although  eminently 
fitted  to  occupy  the  highest  ofii- 
ces  within  the  gift  of  his  people, 
yet  he  has  never  permitted  his 
name  to  be  mentioned  in  connec- 
tion with  politics. 

Frank  Colbert  has  been  four 
times  married.  His  first  wife 
was  named  Martha  McKinney,  a 
Cherokee,  by  whom  he  had  two 
children,  Martin  and  Mary ;  by 
his  second  wife,  Malinda  Factor, 
a  Chickasaw,  he  had  one  daugh- 
ter, named  Sallie  ;  by  his  third 
wife,  George  Anne  McCarthy, 
he  had  three  children.  Holmes, 
Texana  and  Jennie;  and  by  his 
fourth  wife,  Lou  Goldsby,  a 
Cherokee,  he  had  nine  children, 
five  of  whom  are  living,  namely: 
Jim,  May,  Fannie,  Harley  and 
Richard. 

Mr.  Frank  Colbert  has  spared 
no  pains  in  the  education  of  his 
family,  all  of  whom  are  bright 
and  talented.  He  is  now  in  his 
sixty-ninth  year,  beloved  and  re- 
spected by  all  who  know  him. 


SANDFORD  MINOR  MEAD. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

The  son  of  Tyra  Landers  Mead, 
of  Carroll  county,  Georgia.  The 
subject  of  our  sketch  was  born 
in  1848,  and  came  to  Panola 
county,  Chickasaw  Nation,  with 
his  widowed  mother  in  1868, 
settling  within  six  miles  of  Col- 
bert Station.  Ih  1872  he  married 
a  Chickasaw  named  Eliza  Hote, 
who  survived  but  a  few  years, 
after  which,  in  1878,  he  married 
Rose,  daughter  of  Dick  Cobb,  of 
Panola,  by  whom  he  had  one 
son  named  Walter  Bradford,  who 
is  now  nine  years  of  age.  In 
1881,  after  the  death  of  his  wife, 
which  occurred  shortly  after  the 
birth  of  her  son,  Mr.  Mead  mar- 
ried Frances  Kemp,  daughter  of 
the  illustrious  Joel  Kemp,  by 
whom  he  has  three  children, 
Martha  Francis,  Minor  and  Lan- 
ders. The  subject  of  this  sketch 
opened  a  farm  on  Island  Bayou 
in  1873.  He  has  now  one  hun- 
dred acres  of  land  under  cultiva- 
tion, and  is  owner  of  what  is 
known  as  the  Carpenter  Blufi" 
Ferry,  on  Red  River.  Mr.  Mead 
has  kept  himself  completely 
aloof  from  politics,  never  having 
held  any  oftice  save  that  of  school 
trustee  forBloomfield  Academy. 
When  he  first  came  to   the  Ter- 


* 


*- 


!248 


LKADERS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


ritoi-y,  Panola  county  was  little 
more  than  a  wilderness,  tliere  be- 
ing few  farms  which  contained 
over  ten  acres  of  land,  the  full- 
bloods  at  tLat  time  contenting 
themselves  with  two  acres  of  corn 
and  nothing  more.  There  were 
but  four  plank  houses  in  the 
county,  and  the  settlers  were 
forced  to  cross  the  river  into 
Texas  to  have  their  corn  ground 
into  meal.  Corn  was  the  chief 
article  of  trade,  and  Mr.  Mead 
traded  grain  for  the  first  cast- 
iron  plow  that  was  ever  used 
in  the  Nation,  the  primitive  im- 
plement being  a  rude  iron  blade 
manufactured  by  the  blacksmith. 
Buggies  were  unknown  at  the 
time,  and  the  wagons  were  cast- 
off  iron  axle  government  schoon- 
ers fitted  only  for  four-horse 
teams.  During  the  early  days 
the  Indian  people  used  to  dry 
leaves  of  the  sumack  in  lieu  of 
tobacco,  and  invariably  inhaled 
the  smoke.  To  this  habit  Mr. 
Mead  traces  back  the  pulmonary 
diseases  which  are  yearly  carry- 
iner  off  the  aboris^ines. 


* 


CHARLES  E.  EASTMAN. 

[OHICKASAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  at  old  Fort  Washita  in  Feb- 
ruary, 18-i8.  Ee  is  the  only  son 
of  Charles  Franklin  Eastman,  of 


Old  Hollis,  New  Hampshire,who 
in  the  latter  years  of  his  life 
moved  to  the  Chickasaw  Nation, 
and  was  post  sutler  at  Fort 
Washita,  were  his  son,  Charlie, 
was  born.  In  1851  the  Eastman 
family  moved  close  to  Red  River, 
within  six  miles  of  Colbert,  where' 
the  old  gentleman  died  in  1874; 
and  shortly  afterward  Charlie  and 
his  only  sister,  Matilda,  were 
left  in  possession  of  the  family 
homestead.  Charlie  devoted 
much  of  his  time  to  the  raising 
and  breeding  of  horses,  besides 
cultivating  one  hundred  and  six- 
ty acres  of  farming  land.  In 
1880  he  was  elected  as  represen- 
tative of  his  county  during  the 
Overton  administration,  which 
office  he  held  for  three  successive 
terms.  He  was  re-elected  under 
Governor  Burney,  and  held  the 
office  one  term.  On  the  election 
of  Jonas  Wolf  to  the  guberna- 
torial seat,  Mr.  Eastman  was 
once  more  called  upon  to  take 
his  old  place  in  the  Senate,  his 
term  expiring  in  1886,  after 
which  this  gentleman  withdraw 
from  public  life  and  married 
Miss  Rita  S.  Wilkins,  daughter 
of  Dr.  A.  Wilkins  of  Chetam 
county,  Tennessee,  by  whom  he 
has  one  son,  Charles  David  East- 
man. Matilda  Eastman  is  married 
to  Joe  Perry,  of  Panola  county. 


-* 


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OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


249 


-•i< 


JUDGE  B.  W.  CARTER. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

Benjamin  W.  Carter  was  the 
fourth  son  of  David  and  Jane 
Carter,  half-breed  Cherokees,  of 
Scotch  and  Irish  descent.  He 
was  born  at  the  old  Eed  Hill,  in 
Marshal  county,  Alabama  (old 
Cherokee  Nation),  on  January  5, 


*- 


JUDGE  B.   W.  CARTER. 

1837,  and  the  following  year  his 
parents  came  west  with  the  large 
emigration  of  Cherokees  to  their 
new  country  west  of  the  Missis- 
sippi. They  settled  near  Tahle- 
quah,  Cherokee  Nation,  where 
they  lived  for  several  years  and 
raised  a  large  family  of  children, 
all  of  whom  are  dead  except  the 


subject  of  this  sketch  and  two 
other  brothers.  Benjamin  was 
educated  principally  at  the  Cher- 
okee Male  Seminary;  and  after 
he  graduated  there,  followed  va- 
rious avocations,  from  cowboy  to 
school  teacher,  until  the  war 
broke  out  in  1861,  when  he  was 
one  of  the  first  to  rally  to  the 
defense  of  Southern  rights,  and 
stood  the  brunt  of  battle,  with 
all  the  other  hardships  of  a  sol- 
dier's life,  to  the  close  of  the  war 
in  1865.  He  went  in  as  a  pri- 
vate and  was  captain  of  Com- 
pany C,  First  Cherokee  regi- 
ment, when  the  war  closed.  His 
regiment  was  then  in  the  Chick- 
asaw Nation,  and  was  disbanded 
at  Fort  Washita.  The  excite- 
ment of  the  war  being  over,  the 
country  being  devastated  and 
robbed  of  all  its  wealth,  confu- 
sion reigning  supreme  every- 
where, and  the  whole  world  ap- 
pearing to  frown  upon  a  poor, 
hungry,  half-clad,  defeated  sol- 
dier, it  was  then  that  Captain 
Carter's  finer  feelings  were 
aroused,  his  true  courage  and 
better  judgment  returned  to  the 
surface,  and  he  reluctantly  but 
manfully  laid  down  his  armor  of 
war  for  the  implements  of  indus- 
try and  peace,  to  begin  life  anew. 
Since  that  motley  day  he  mar- 
ried among  the  Chickasaw  peo- 


-* 


<b- 


-<b 


2-50 


LEADKKS  AND  LEADING  ME\ 


pie,  and  lias  been  a  useful  man, 
filling  many  high  and  responsible 
public  positions  in  their  govern- 
ment. His  wife  is  a  sister  of 
Gov.  Wm.  M.  Guy.  No  wiser 
or  more  learned  judge  has  ever 
sat  upon  the  bench  of  the  Chick- 
asaw Nation  than  Judge  Carter. 
His  versatility  is  remarkable, 
being:  an  excellent  writer  and  a 
ready  conversationalist.  The 
judge  has  always  been  looked 
wpon  as  one  of  the  leading  spir- 
its of  the  progressive  party. 

Judge  Carter  has  become  very 
popular  in  the  Indian  Territory 
and  has  a  host  of  friends  and 
admirers  wherever  he  is  become 
known. 


HUMPHREY  COLBERT. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  biography  is 
the  son  of  the  celebrated  chief, 
Winchester  Colbert.  Humphrey 
was  born  close  to  the  Canadian 
Kiver,  near  North  Fork,  in  1842. 
In  1860  he  married  Elmira  Park- 
er, a  Chickasaw,  and  in  1862 
enlisted  as  lieutenant  of  the 
Chickasaw  Battalion  under  Col. 
Lem  Reynolds,  in  which  service 
he  remained  for  two  years.  In 
1865  he  was  appointed  Sheriff 
and    in    1866    elected    County 


Judge  of  Pontotoc  county,  which 
office  he  held  ''off  and  on"  for 
a  term  of  three  years  and  a  half, 
finally  sending  in  his  resigna- 
tion. During  the  Harris  admin- 
istration he  was  first  elected  a 
member  of  the  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives (1873);  was  re-elect- 
ed in  1877,  and  again  in  1886. 
During  the  interim  Mr.  Colbert 
held  the  offices  of  Interpreter  for 
the  House,  County  and  District 
Clerk,  Commissioner  on  Incom- 
petent Funds  and  Attorney  Gen- 
eral of  the  Chickasaw  Nation,  so 
that  he  has  scarcely  been  out  of 
office  for  thirty  years.  At  one 
period  he  held  no  less  than  three 
offices  at  the  same  time.  At 
present  he  is  occupying  that  of 
County  Clerk,  and  was  nominat- 
ed March  25,  1890,  by  the  Na- 
tional party  for  Attorney  Gen- 
eral of  the  Nation.  By  his  first 
wife  Mr.  Colbert  has  five  chil- 
dren— Elizabeth,  "Walton,  Mar- 
tha, Doherty  and  Louisa,  the 
oldest  being  twenty-eight  and 
the  youngest  sixteen  years  of 
age.  His  first  wife  died  in  1884, 
after  which  he  married  Selina 
Hamilton,  daughter  of  Solomon 
Ano-la-tubby. 

Mr.  Humphrey  Colbert  is  a 
pleasant -mannered  gentleman, 
with  a  good  address,  and  is  quite 
popular  among  all  parties. 


*- 


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iif- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


251 


-* 


J.  H.  GODFREY. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

J.  H.  Godfrey  was  born  in  Illi- 
nois, November,  1848,  and  in  the 
spring  of  1857  moved  with  his 
parents  to  Lawrence,  Kansas,  at 
that  period  an  almost  uninhab- 
ited wilderness.  He  remained  in 
Kansas  until  the   year    1860,  at 


*- 


J.  H.  Godfrey. 

which  time  his  parents,  perceiv- 
ing the  storm-cloud  of  war, 
moved  back  to  Illinois,  where 
they  remained  until  1866.  After 
which,  taking  Horace  Greeley's 
advice,  they  returned  to  the 
west,  this  time  settling  in  south- 
ern Kansas,  on  what  was  known 
as  the  Osage  or  Cherokee  strip, 
his  mother  being  the  second  white 


woman  that  ever  settled  west  of 
the  Verdigris  River,  in  what  is 
known  as  Montgomery  county, 
then  the  home  of  the  Osages. 
His  father  established  a  trading 
post  near  Shunta  Sopa,  or  Black 
Dog  town,  two  miles  and  a  half 
south  of  where  Coffey  ville,  Kan- 
sas, now  stands.  Here  Young 
Godfrey  assisted  his  father  for 
two  years,  during  which  time  he 
acquired  such  a  knowledge  of 
the  Osage,  or  Washashe  tongue, 
as  to  enable  him  to  become  an 
interpreter  between  the  settlers 
and  the  aborigines.  At  this 
period  Pa-hu-ska,  orWhite  Hair, 
and  Shunta  Sapa,  or  Black  Dog, 
were  the  principal  chiefs  of  the 
Osages.  In  1882  he  left  Kansas 
and  arrived  in  Denison,  Texas, 
while  the  town  was  in  its  infancy, 
where  he  was  employed  in  various  i 
capacities.  In  1875  he  came  to  j 
Colbert,  Indian  Territory,  where 
he  entered  the  business  house  of 
Gooding  &'Maupin;  and  in  1877 
married  the  daughter  of  the  for- 
mer (C.  E.  Gooding),  and  by  so 
doing  became  a  citizen  of  the 
Chickasaw  Nation.  In  October, 
1877,  he  was  appointed  district, 
county  and  probate  clerk,  and 
was  kept  continuously  in  that  of- 
fice for  six  years;  and  being  a 
close  student  of  the  laws  of  the 
Chickasaw  Nation,  was  admitted 


-* 


25-; 


* 


LEADERS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


to  the  bar  by  the  Supreme  court 
in  1885.  Since  that  time  he  has 
held  various  offices  of  trust,  per- 
mit collector,  cattle  tax  collector, 
and  served  one  year  on  the  Na- 
tional school  board.  In  1886 
Mr.  Godfrey  was  appointed  by 
Governor  Guy  to  the  office  of  at- 
torney general  of  the  Chickasaw 
Nation,  which  office  he  filled  in 
a  highly  creditable  manner,  de- 
spite the  many  difficulties  against 
which  he  was  forced  to  contend. 
At  the  time  the  disfranchisement 
act  went  into  effect  in  1889,  he 
was  draftsman  of  the  law  com- 
mittee in  the  Legislature.  In  Sep- 
tember, 1889,  and  since  the  dis- 
franchisement of  the  white  citi- 
izens  (citizens  by  marriage)  he 
has,  both  with  tongue  and  pen, 
espoused  the  cause  of  justice, 
taking  a  firm  stand  in  favor  of 
the  progressive  party. 

Mr.  Godfrey  is  a  master  mason 
in  good  standing,  a  member  of 
the  Methodist  church,  and  a 
strong  advocate  of  temperance. 
He  is  exceedingly  versatile,  be- 
ing an  excellent  writer,  a  good 
speaker,  and  a  natural  musician. 
He  owns  a  large  farm  close  to 
Colbert,  to  which  he  personally 
attends.  He  has  three  children, 
two  boys  and  one  girl,  besides 
an  adopted  son,  who  is  a  full- 
blooded  Chickasaw. 


HON.  JOSlAll  BROWX-. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

'*Isa-to-ba"  (White  Deer),  as  he 
is  called  by  the  full-bloods,  is 
one  of  the  most  remarkable  mem- 
bers of  his  tribe.  Slightly  above 
the  medium  height,  with  long, 


qi- 


HON.  JOSIAH  BROWN. 

fair  hair  and  blue  eyes,  he  pre- 
sents a  striking  contrast  to  his 
swarthy-complexioned  brethren. 
Although  possessed  of  varied  tal- 
ents and  a  large  fund  of  gen- 
eral knowledge,  Mr.  Brown  is 
wholly  destitute  of  ambition,  and 
has  more  than  once  refused  the 
nomination  for  Chief  Executive, 
an  office  for  which  he  is  admir- 
ably fitted.  He  was  born  in 
1835  at  Memphis,  Tenn.  ;  is  the 
son   of  L.    L.    Brown,    a  North 


-* 


&- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


253 


-m 


Carolinian,  his  mother  being  a 
Chickasaw.  After  having  re- 
ceived a  thorough  education  at 
Arkansaw  College,  Fayetteville, 
he  moved  to  the  Chickasaw  Na- 
tion, settling  close  to  the  mouth 
of  the  Washita  River  in  Novem- 
ber, 1849.  In  1856  he  married 
Frances  Simpson,  a  white  woman, 
and  pursued  farming  till  the  war 
broke  out,  when  he  joined  Com- 
pany B  of  the  First  Chickasaw 
Battalion.  After  the  usual  vi- 
cissitudes of  the  war,  he  entered 
upon  his  official  and  political  ca- 
reer immediately  afterward,  be- 
ing appointed  as  National  Secre- 
tary by  Governor  Harris  in  1866. 
He  had,  however,  held  his  first 
office  as  early  as  1857,  when  he 
was  appointed  Clerk  of  the  Dis- 
trict and  County  Courts.  Mr. 
Brown  held  the  office  of  National 
Secretary  under  Gov.  W.  P. 
Brown  in  18T0,  and  during  parts 
of  two  terms  under  Governor 
Overton.  In  1874  he  was  ap- 
pointed by  Governor  Harris  as 
Chief  Justice  of  the  Supreme 
Court;  and  later,  during  the  Bur- 
ney  administration,  was  elected 
National  Auditor.  In  1873  he 
was  declared  a  member  of  the 
House  of  Representatives,  and 
in  1886  (during  the  Guy  admin- 
istration) was  called  to  the  Sen- 
ate.    Among  the  lesser  offices, 


never  sought  for  but  always  read- 
ily conceded  to  '^Isa-to-ba,"  was 
that  of  Secretary  of  the  Senate, 
District  Clerk,  Chairman  of  the 
Law  Revising  Committee  (two 
terms),  Secretary  of  the  Citizen- 
ship Committee,  Delegate  to 
Washington,  Delegate  to  the 
General  Convention  of  the  In- 
dian Tribes,  Captain  of  Militia, 
and  Sheriff  of  his  own  county. 
By  this  it  will  be  seen  that  Mr. 
Brown  held  every  office  within 
the  gift  of  the  people  save  that 
of  Attorney  General  and  Gov- 
ernor of  the  Nation,  both  of 
which  offices  he  refused — the  lat- 
ter because  it  was  productive  of 
almost  innumerable  responsibili- 
ties, which  did  not  tally  with  his 
ideas  of  a  pleasant  and  peace- 
able life,  and  the  former  because 
the  remuneration  was  not  pro- 
portionate to  the  labor. 

Although  fully  fifty-five  years 
of  age,  Josiah  Brown  appears  to 
be  but  a  little  over  thirty-five. 
His  long,  silky,  fair  hair,  fine 
as  that  of  a  girl,  together  with 
his  general  appearance,  attracts 
public  attention  wheresoever  he 
goes;  while  his  opinions  on  na- 
tional and  legal  questions  are 
respected  by  all  parties.  He 
has  two  children,  Mary  Kate, 
married  to  D.  S.  Norman:  and 
C.  H.  Brown,  aged  twenty-four. 


*- 


-* 


254 


-* 


LEADERS   AND    LEADING   MEN 


COL.  gp:orge.  w.  harkins. 

[CHICKASAW.  J 

About  the  middle  of  August, 
1890,  the  citizens  of  tlie  Choc- 
taw and  Chickasaw  Nations 
were  stricken  with  grief  and  sur- 
prise on  learning  of  the  sudden 
death  of  Col.  George  W.  Har- 
kins,   tlie  o;reat    Chickasaw  ora- 


*- 


COLONEL    GEdKGK   W.    HARKINS. 

tor  and  statesman.  He  had  but 
a  few  weeks  previous  been  in  the 
city  of  Washington,  transacting 
important  business  for  his  people, 
and  appeared  in  good  health  un- 
til a  few  days  before  his  death. 
It  is  believed  by  many  w4io  are 
conversant  with  his  family,  that 
he  died  of  heart  disease,  hastened 
by  over-taxation  of  the  mind,  for 


he  was  a  man  of  great  nervous 
energy  and  unflagging  strength 
of  purpose. 

To  pronounce  the  late  Colonel 
Harkins  a  man  of  remarkable 
ability  would  be  making  but  a 
mild  assertion.  Not  only  has  he 
established  a  lasting  reputation 
in  his  own  country,  but  at  the 
United  States  capitol,  where  he 
has  been  a  constant  delegate  for 
many  years.  His  speech  before 
thecommittee  against  the  opening 
of  Oklahoma  to  white  settlement 
was  copied  by  nearly  all  the  prin- 
cipal papers  in  the  union,  and 
secured  for  him  the  title  of  the 
•'Rawhide  Orator."  Through- 
out the  entire  contest  Colonel 
Harkins  was  faithful  to  his  mis- 
sion, and  fought  the  passage  of 
the  bill  with  unflagging  courage 
and  tenacity  long  after  delegates 
from  the  other  tribes  had  lost 
hope  or  ceased  to  exert  them- 
selves. At  the  National  capitol 
few  men  had  so  many  stanch 
friends  as  Col.  Harkins.  His 
popularity  was  unbounded  as  his 
generosity,  which  unfortunately 
for  himself,  had  no  limit  so  long 
as  the  large-hearted  delegate  had 
the  means  within  his  reach. 

Born  in  Mississippi,  the  sub- 
of  this  sketch  moved  to  Doaks- 
ville,  in  the  Choctaw  Nation, 
with     the    general     emigration. 


-»i» 


*- 


-* 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


255 


His  father's  name  was  Willis  J. 
Harkins,  a  well-known  man 
among  his  people.  For  some 
reason  or  another  Colonel  Har- 
kins preferred  living  among  the 
Chickasaws,  and  so  left  the  Choc- 
taw Nation,  where  the  members 
of  his  family  were  so  prominent. 
At  the  commencement  of  the 
war  he  entered  the  confederate 
service  as  a  captain.  In  1873 
he  was  appointed  superintendent 
of  the  Chickasaw  board  of  edu- 
cation, and  in  1876  became  Na- 
tional delegate  to  Washington, 
which  office  he  held,  off  and  on, 
until  the  day  of  his  death.  Col. 
Harkins  was  also  elected  mem- 
ber of  the  Council  on  several  oc- 
casions, and  held  minor  offices 
from  time  to  time,  but  was  emi- 
nently adapted  to  that  of  dele- 
gate, his  diplomacy  and  states- 
manship being  of  vital  impor- 
tance to  the  Chickasaws. 

Colonel  Harkins  left  a  wife, 
several  daughters  and  two  sons: 
G.W.  Harkins,  Jr.  and  William, 
both  promising  young  men. 


«<- 


W.  F.  LANEY. 

(PROPRIETOR   CHICKASAW  ENTERPRISE.) 

The  above-named  weekly  jour- 
nal is  one  of  the  permanent  in- 
stitutions of  the  Chickasaw  Na- 
tion, and  is  the  first  newspaper 
ever  established  in  that  country. 


It  dates  from  January,  1887, 
when  Messrs.  Fields  &  Martin, 
with  the  assistance  of  Col.  W. 
F.  Laney,  undertook  the  respon- 
sibility of  its  columns.  The  for- 
mer gentlemen,  however,  sold 
their  interest  to  Hon.  Sam  Paul, 
and  in  February,  189U,  it  fell 
into  the  handsof  Col.  Laney, who 
had  been  absent  for  some  time 
in  Mississippi  but  returned  in 
time  to  purchase  the  plant,  res- 
uri-ect  the  publication,  and  pay 
off  the  debts  incurred  by  the  pre- 
vious owners.  The  paper  is  now 
on  a  good  paying  basis. 

Col.  W.  F.  Laney  was  born  in 
Russell  county,  Alabama,  in 
1845.  At  the  breaking  out  of 
the  war  he  entered  the  First  Ala- 
bama Artillery  and  served  till 
his  discharge  at  Macon,  Georgia, 
in  1865.  He  was  very  severely 
wounded  at  the  battle  of  Jack- 
son, Mississippi. 

At  an  early  day  Mr.  Laney 
learned  the  printing  business 
with  his  brother-in-law,  B.  F. 
Owen,  proprietor  of  the  Union 
Springs  (Ala.)  Gazette.  Since 
then  he  has  worked  on  the  Mont- 
gomery Ledger,  Mobile  Regis- 
ter, Flack's  Bulletin,  Houston 
Times  and  Austin  Journal,  be- 
sides being  connected  with  sev- 
eral papers  in  Fort  Worth  as 
foreman  and  city  circulator. 


>* 


2.56 


LEADKRS  AND  LEADING  MEX 


GOV.  WM.  L.  BYRD. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

The  life  of  this  notable  Execu- 
tive has  undergone  a  wondrous 
transition  witliin  the  past  three 
years.  His  early  career  of  un- 
eventful peace  has  given  place 
to  one  of  excessive  turbulence. 
The    placid,    plodding    business 


*- 


GOV.  WILLIAM  L.  BYRD, 

man  of  bygone  years  is  now 
metamorphosed  into  a  ruler 
whose  every  action  is  looked  for- 
ward to  with  something  very 
much  akin  to  dread.  His  recent 
action  in  the  disfranchisement  of 
the  white  citizens  was  alone  suffi- 
cient to  gain  him  notoriety.  But 
let  us  commence  at  the  begin- 
ning.    William    L.    Byrd,    from 


the  most  reliable  information, 
was  born  in  Pontotoc,  Missis- 
sippi, being  the  son  of  John  Byrd, 
a  white  man,  and  Mary  Moore, 
of  Chickasaw  and  Irish  descent. 
Some  of  Mr.  Byrd's  political  op- 
ponents declare  him  to  have 
been  a  white  child  in  infancy, 
adopted  by  the  family;  but  we 
do  not  see  any  grounds  for  this 
supposition.  In  youth  William 
was  sent  to  school  at  Pine  Ridge, 
Choctaw  Nation,  and  later  to  the 
Chickasaw  Male  Academy.  The 
first  office  he  held  in  the  service 
of  his  country  was  that  of  Rep- 
resentative, in  1867,  and  after- 
ward Draughtsman  of  the  House 
for  two  sessions.  At  this  time 
he  was  residing  in  the  Choctaw 
Nation.  Moving  to  Stonewall 
in  1875,  he  was  elected  one  of 
three  in  1877  to  revise  the  Chick- 
asaw laws.  In  1881  he  was  ap- 
pointed School  Superintendent, 
and  in  1882  was  elected  Dele- 
gate to  Washington ;  was  Na- 
tional Agent  until  1885,  and  the 
following  year  was  a  candidate 
for  the  Governorship  against 
William  Guy,  ex-Governor  Wolf, 
B.  C.  Burris,  Palmer  Moseley 
and  R.  L.  Boyd.  The  result 
was  considerably  in  Guy's  favor; 
but.  as  usual,  when  the  candidate 
fails  to  secure  a  majority  of  the 
total  votes  cast,   the   matter  was 


iB- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


257 


->B 


referred  to  the  Legislature,  and 
Guy  was  elected  by  only  one  ma- 
jority over  Bvrd.  In  1888  the 
race  between  Byrd  and  Guy  was 
again  run,  resulting  as  before; 
but  Byrd's  party  being  a  major- 
ity in  the  legislative  body,  they 
resolved  to  contest  the  election, 
and  so  doing,  cast  out  a  score  of 
devils  in  the  shape  of  illegal 
votes,  electing  Byrd  by  a  major- 
ity of  forty-eight.  Here  was  a 
repetition  of  the  Overton-Harris 
affair,  and  which  was  followed 
by  disagreeable  results,  the  Uni- 
ted States  being  called  upon  to 
decide  the  quarrel.  Here,  again, 
Byrd  was  victorious.  Uncle  Sam 
being  partial  to  the  man  of  sober 
aspect  and  business  parts.  In 
1890,  when  Sam  Paul  was  in  the 
arena  as  a  Representative  candi- 
date of  the  Progressive  party. 
Governor  Byrd  met  him  in  the 
lists  and  defeated  him  by  an  im- 
mense majority.  The  disfran- 
chisement of  the  white  voters 
accounts  for  this  majority,  for 
had  the  latter  been  permitted  to 
vote,  Paul  must  undoubtedly 
have  been  the  victor.  Before 
a  week  after  the  election  had 
passed  the  report  was  spread  far 
and  wide  that  Byrd  had  been  as- 
sassinated; but  no  attempt  of  the 
kind  has  ever  come  to  light. 
The  Governor  declares  his  in- 


tention of  looking  after  the  in- 
terests of  all  his  people,  without 
respect  to  their  political  creed, 
nor  will  he  interfere  with  the 
landed  rights  of  the  white  citi- 
zens. This  he  has  declared  to 
the  writer  of  the  present  biog- 
raphy. 

Governor  Byrd  entered  the 
mercantile  business  in  1873  at 
Doaksville,  and  moved  to  Stone- 
wall, where  he  has  been  doing: 
an  immense  business.  He  has 
three  hundred  acres  under  culti- 
vation and  one  thousand  head  of 
graded  cattle.  In  1862  he  mar- 
ried Susan  Folsom,  daughter  of 
David  Folsom,  ex-Chief  of  the 
Choctaws,  but  has  no  family. 
The  children  of  his  neighbors,,  of 
whom  he  is  extremely  fond,  re- 
joice in  climbing  to  the  knees  of 
the  big,  good-natured  man  while 
he  is  reading  what  the  press  has 
to  say  about  his  barbarous  treat- 
ment of  the  white  man. 

Governor  Byrd,  on  his  moth- 
er's side,  is  of  the  House  of  In- 
cun-no-mar. 


•5- 


PURCELL  REGISTER. 
Tins  popular  weekly  paper  was 
founded  by  E.  P.  Ingle  in  1888, 
and  purchased  from  that  gentle- 
man in  the  summer  of  1889  by 
R.  Y.  Mangum,  a  native  of  Mis^ 
sissippi,  whose  name  is  now  at  its 


* 


^ 


-•i< 


258 


LEADKllS   AND   LEADING   >IE\ 


masthead.  Mr.  Maugum  was  ap- 
pointed postmaster  at  Purcell  in 
October  of  the  same  year,  but 
manages  to  devote  sufficient 
time  to  the  editorial  and  local 
columns  to  make  the  paper  in- 
teresting. This  gentleman  was 
a  democrat  until  the  nomination 
of  Horace  Greeley  by  his  party, 
when  he  immediately  became  a 
republican.  At  the  age  of  twen- 
ty years  he  married  Miss  Mary 
E.  Guffin  and  lived  many  years 
in  Texas,  moving  to  Purcell  in 
1888,  where  he  engaged  in  the 
mercantile  business. 

The  Purcell  Register  is  devoted 
to  the  interests  of  progression 
and  final  absorption  of  tlie  In- 
dians by  the  U.  S.  government. 


J.  T.  HENEGAR  &  CO. 
The  above-named  business  firm, 
established  in  Stonewall,  Chicka- 
saw Nation,  in  October,  1889, 
is  the  result  of  a  consolidation 
between  the  mercantile  houses 
of  Mrs.  J.  James  and  that  of 
Henegar  &  Co.  The  present 
firm  keeps  a  general  assortment 
of  goods  to  the  amount  of  about 
eight  thousand  dollars,  and  does 
an  extensive  business  in  and  out 
of  the  county. 

J.  T.  Henegar  was  born  in 
Warren  county,  Tennessee,  in 
1847,  and  during  the  war  served 


in  the  Home  Guard — Federal 
service.  In  1869  he  emigrated 
to  the  Chickasaw  Nation  and  set- 
tled on  the  Canadian  River. 
Moving  to  Stonewall  the  follow- 
ing year  he  commenced  his  ex- 
perience on  a  farm,  but  soon  af- 
terward became  a  clerk  in  the 
mercantile  establishment  of  C. 
C.  Rooks.  Later  on  he  was  em- 
ployed in  the  same  capacity  by 
Byrd  &  Perry  until  he  resolved 
to  devote  himself  entirely  to  ag- 
riculture, and  once  more  became 
a  tiller  of  the  soil.  In  1889, 
however,  we  find  him  behind  the 
counter  in  the  business  house  of 
Messrs.  Hodges  and  Surrell,  in 
Atoka;  and  in  1890,  we  again 
meet  him  in  Stonewall,  a  partner 
in  one  of  the  prominent  firm  sof 
the  Chickasaw  Nation.  After 
the  death  of  his  first  wife,  Parlee 
Cummins,  Mr.  Henegan  married 
Ada  Lillard  in  1889.  His  part- 
ners in  the  firm  are  B.  F.  Byrd 
and  Mrs.  J.  James.  Of  the  for- 
mer it  may  well  be  said  that  he 
is  the  most  popular  citizen  in  the 
Chickasaw  Nation.  Frank  is 
a  brother  of  Gov.  W.  L.  Byrd, 
and  at  present  holds  the  office 
of  National  treasurer.  He  is  the 
owner  of  a  large  stock  of  cattle; 
a  corn,  wheat  and  saw  mill;  and 
1,500  acres  of  land.  Elsewhere 
we  furnish  a  sketch  of  his  career. 


*- 


-^ 


9- 


OF  THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


259 


-ii< 


*- 


H.  T.  MILLER. 

PROPRIETOR    "TERRITORIAL  TOPIC." 

This  sparkling  little  six-quarto 
sheet,  the  mouth-piece  of  the  Pro- 
gressive party  in  the  Chickasaw 
Nation,  was  established  August 
1,  1889,  by  Henry  Turner  Mil- 
ler, of  Glasgow,  Missouri.  No 
sooner  had  it  made  its  first  trip 
to  the  hearths  and  homes  of  the 
leading  and  more  enlightened 
of  the  citizens,  than  they  recog- 
nized in  their  midst  a  publication 
of  no  ordinary  merit,  and  under 
the  guidance  of  a  man  of  unde- 
niable ability,  with  courage  to 
maintain  his  convictions,  such 
institutions  being  rare  at  that 
time,  the  Territorial  Topic  was 
successful  from  its  birth,  so  that 
after  the  first  few  months  its  cir- 
culation never  fell  short  of  one 
thousand  copies.  On  August  6, 
1890,  the  day  following  the  con- 
solidation of  the  Agricultural 
Wheel  and  Farmers'  Alliance, 
the  Territorial  Topic  was  declared 
the  official  organ  of  the  great 
body,  which  has  no  doubt  added 
considerably  to  its  list  of  readers. 
After  the  disfranchisement  was 
effected,  and  during  the  political 
disorder  that  followed,  Mr. Miller 
spared  no  pains  in  championing 
the  cause  of  the  outraged  citi- 
zens, whose  rights  had  been 
unjustly  wrested  from   them    by 


the  administration.  The  able 
young  editor,  before  settling  in 
this  country,  spent  three  years  in 
Stockton,  Kansas,  where  he  edi- 
ted the  Rooks  County  Democrat 
during  the  last  campaign.  His 
arrival  in  this  quarter  was  Quite 
opportune,  as  the  majority  of 
the  papers  printed  in  the  Chicka- 
saw Nation  find  it  more  to  their 
advantage  to  be  passive  in  poli- 
tics, than  to  take  issue  in  legisla- 
tive questions.  Not  so,  how- 
ever, with  the  Territorial  Topic, 
which  appears  to  succeed  best 
when  armed  and  ready  for  the 
war  path.  Mr.  Miller  has  made 
a  host  of  friends  during  his  resi- 
dence in  this  country. 


W.  A. NORMAN 
This  gentleman  was  born  in  1858 
at  Bloomfield,  Mo.,  and  is  the 
son  of  W.  W.  Norman.  Wil- 
liam's two  brothers,  D.  S.  and 
Nelson  H.,  came  to  the  Chicka- 
saw Nation  some  twenty  years 
ago,  and  marrying  members  of 
the  tribe,  settled  down  to  a  pros- 
perous citizenship. 

In  1882  William  resolved  to 
find  his  brothers,  and  landing  at 
McAlester,  heard  of  their  where- 
abouts, and  finally  settled  at  the 
Chickasaw  capital,  where  he 
opened  a  blacksmith  shop,  at 
which  trade  he  has  since  labored. 


>b- 


200 


LEADEltS    AND   LEADING   MEN 


*- 


JOURDAX  A.  SMITH. 
The  above-nainod  citizen  of  the 
Chickasaw  Nation  was  born  in 
Carroll  count}-,  Tennessee,  in 
November,  1830.  In  the  year 
1859,  seized  with  a  desire  to 
travel,  he  left  his  home  in  the 
old  states  and  came  to  the  Indian 
Territory,  settling  near  Tisho- 
mingo. In  1802  he  opened  a 
large  farm  and  married  Mrs. 
Nancy  McLish,  a  Chickasaw.  In 
the  year  1863  Mr.  Smith  joined 
the  Chickasaw  Battalion  under 
Col.  Lem  Reynolds,  but  was  soon 
called  from  the  ranks  and  sent 
on  detached  service  for  the 
quarter-master's  department.  In 
1806,  when  peace  was  restored, 
the  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
elected  sheriff  of  Tishomingo 
county,  in  which  office  he  con- 
tinued until  two  years  had  elapsed, 
when  under  the  administration 
of  Governor  Cyrus  Harris  he 
w^as  elected  as  representative  of 
his  county  two  successive  terms. 
In  1870,  moving  to  Panola  coun- 
ty, Mr.  Smith  purchased  a  large 
farm  close  to  Colbert,  where  he 
now  resides.  The  following  year, 
under  the  administration  of  Gov- 
ernor Overton,  he  was  again 
elected  to  the  legislature,  which 
office  he  tilled  in  a  highly  credi- 
table manner.  At  the  expiration 
of  his    term,   however,  he    aban- 


doned politics  and  has  since  con- 
fined himself  exclusively  to  farm- 
ing. Mr.  Smith  has  suffered  con- 
siderably during  the  past  four 
years  from  the  loss  of  one  of  his 
eyes,  which  deprives  him  from 
the  pleasure  of  reading,  a  pas- 
time to  which  he  was  greatly  de- 
voted. His  family,  which  con- 
sists of  two  daughters  and  one 
son — Mary  Ellen,  Josephine  and 
Jourdan  Couchatubbie — are  all 
married,  with  the  exception  of 
the  latter,  a  boy  of  nine  years  of 
age.  The  former,  Mary  Ellen, 
is  the  wife  of  W.  E.  Washington 
of  Marietta,  L  T.,  while  Jose- 
phine has  recently  wed  William 
Stone,  of  Sivell's  Bend,  Texas. 
To  comment  upon  the  character 
and  reputation  of  Mr.  Smith 
would  be  waste  of  time.  Enough 
that  he  is  both  loved  and  respected 
by  all  men,  white  and  Indian 
alike.  Would  that  all  men  of  his 
age  were  as  highly  revered. 


JAMES  DAVISON.  ' 
James  was  born  in  1837  in  Upper 
Canada;  emigrated  to  Cincinnati, 
Ohio,  in  1856,  after  which  he 
came  to  Fort  Washita,  Indian 
Territory,  with  a  Mr.  Humes,  en- 
tering the  mercantile  establish- 
ment of  Humes  &  Hamilton  at 
that  point  in  I860.  On  the  out- 
break of  the  war  he   enlisted  in 


-^ 


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OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


261 


* 


^ 


the  Eleventh  Texas  regiment  in 
Grayson  county,  under  Colonel 
Young,  and  for  a  period  of  twelve 
months  raided  the  Cherokee 
country  and  Neutral  strip,  de- 
priving the  Kansas  troops  of  one 
of  their  most  valuable  sources  of 
supply.  Shortly  afterward  he 
marched  under  Colonel  Mcintosh 
to  the  assistance  of  General  Coop- 
er, who  was  leading  a  campaign 
against  the  Pin  Indians,  or  North- 
ern Cherokees,  but  meeting  the 
main  army  of  the  Pins,  Mcin- 
tosh attacked  and  routed  them 
with  great  loss.  Cooper  is  said 
to  have  never  forgiven  his  broth- 
er officer  for  that  premature  at- 
tack and  signal  victory.  His 
jealousy  was  short-lived  how- 
ever, for  Mcintosh  was  killed 
sometime  after  at  the  battle  of 
Pea  Ridge,  or  Elk  Horn,  Mo. 
The  subject  of  this  sketch  served 
gallantly  at  the  latter  engagement 
as  well  as  those  of  Richmond, 
Ky.,  Murphy  sborough,  Chica- 
amaugua,  Missionary  Ridge,  and 
the  Georgia  campaign  with  its 
numberless  encounters  of  lesser 
note.  After  the  war  Mr.  Davison 
settled  close  to  Blue,  where  he 
remained  until  1872,  when  he 
moved  to  Mill  Creek  and  there 
opened  a  large  general  mer- 
cantile business,  which  he  is  op- 
erating at  the  present  time.     On 


his  arrival  at  that  point  the  coun- 
try was  very  sparsely  settled, 
there  being  no  postoffice  south 
closer  than  Burneyville,  nor  west 
nearer  than  Paul's  Yalloy,  The 
country  was  in  a  lawless  condi- 
tion, death  being  the  only  method 
of  solving  the  social  or  political 
problem.  Mr.  Davison  never 
married,  but  has  been  so  long  in 
the  country  as  to  be  looked  upon 
almost  as  a  native. 


GEORGE  J.  WILSOX.M.D. 
This  gentleman  was  born  in  the 
month  of  April,  1853,  in  Hen- 
derson county,  Texas,  and  is  the 
son  of  W.  H.  Wilson,  M.  D.,  of 
Gainesville,  Texas.  He  com- 
pleted his  education  and  gradu- 
ated in  medicine  at  Louisville, 
Kentucky,  in  1874;  after  which 
he  settled  in  Panola  county, 
Texas,  and  moved  to  Milam, 
where  he  practiced  his  profession 
for  seven  years.  Thence  he 
came  to  Grayson  county,  where 
he  remained  till  the  opening  of 
the  Gulf,  Colorado  and  Santa  Fe 
Railroad  through  the  Chickasaw 
Nation  ;  after  which  he  moved 
to  Washita  Station  in  1887.  Be- 
sides his  practice.  Dr.  Wilson  is 
postmaster  at  Washita,  which  is 
a  distributing  point  for  four  offi- 
ces. He  is  a  pleasant  gentleman 
and  a  popular  physician. 


-* 


262 


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LIOADERS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


CHARLIE  E.  BETTS. 

[CHICKASAW  AND  CHEROKEE,] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  near  Armstrong  Academy 
in  1846,  and  attended  a  neigh- 
borhood school  until  fourteen 
years    of     age.     Afterward    he 


*- 


went  to  Armstrong  Academy, 
where  he  remained  for  two  terms. 
At  the  close  of  the  war  he  mar- 
ried Katie  Robins,  a  Cherokee, 
the  eldest  daughter  of  Joshua 
Robins.  In  1867  he  moved  to 
the  Cherokee  Nation  close  to 
Webber's  Falls,  where  he  en- 
gaged in  the  stock  business,  and 
in  1878,  after  attentively  read- 
ing law  for  some  years,  obtained 
a  license   and    commenced  prac- 


tice, pursuing  the  legal  profession 
for  fourteen  years  at  Webber's 
Falls.  In  1881  he  returned  to 
the  Choctaw  Nation,  and  there 
took  charge  of  J.  J.  McAlesters 
ranch  for  two  years.  Thence  he 
moved  to  Caddo  in  1889,  and 
commenced  farming,  at  the  same 
time  resuming  his  legal  practice. 
His  wife  dying  in  1882,  left  him 
two  children,  Nancy  E.  and 
Amanda  A.,  so  he  married  again 
in  1889. 

Mr.  Betts  has  one  hundred 
and  seventy-eight  acres  of  farm 
land  and  between  six  and  seven 
hundred  cattle,  twenty  head 
of  horses,  and  three  hundred 
head  of  hogs,  besides  owning  the 
constitutional  right  of  the  Kully- 
chaha  coal  claim.  He  is  a  very 
bright,  intelligent  man,  with  a 
thorough  knowledge  of  men  and 
capable  of  getting  along  in  any 
part  of  the  world  under  all 
circumstances. 


WILLIAM  MCBRIDE. 
This  popular  merchant  was  born 
in  Prairie  county,  Arkansas,  in 
1853,  and  was  educated  princi- 
pally under  private  tuition  until 
he  came  to  the  Choctaw  Nation, 
when  he  received  instructions 
from  Prof.  O.  C.  Hall,  under 
whose  charge  he  remained  over 
two  years.     After  this  he  entered 


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OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


263 


-* 


the  establishment  of  J.  J.  Phil- 
lips, Atoka,  where  he  remained 
for  five  years.  In  1879  he  built 
a  bridge  across  Boggy,  which  he 
took  charge  of  for  two  years.  In 
1881   he  moved    to    Stonewall, 


WILLIAM  M'BEIDE. 

Indian  Territory,  and  clerked  for 
C.  C.  Rooks,  a  leading  merchant 
at  that  point.  Returning  to  Atoka 
in  1883,  he  entered  business  with 
his  brother,  Hiram  and  Joseph 
Lindsay,  and  purchased  the  build- 
ing and  stock  of  A.  B.  Cass, and  in 
a  very  short  time  built  up  the 
largest  trade  in  the  country.  The 
McBride  brothers  then  purchased 
Joseph  Lindsay's  interest;  mean- 
while Lehigh  became  a  promis- 
ing point  for  trade,  and  the  Mc- 
Brides  moved  their  stock  to  that 


place  and  sold  the  building  to 
the  Lankford  Bros.  The  Lehigh 
firm  was  known  by  the  title  of 
Hodges,  McBride  &  Co.  They 
continued  in  business  about  four 
months,  and  sold  to  J.  J.  McAl- 
ester,  who  formed  a  stock  com- 
pany, in  which  he  took  stock. 

In  1878  Mr.  McBride  married 
Miss  Clara  A.  Murrow,  only 
daughter  of  Rev.  J.  S.  Murrow, 
the  oldest  missionary  now  in  the 
Indian  Territory.  Mrs.  McBride 
is  a  lady  of  great  refinement  and 
highly  educated.  She  is  the 
mother  of  six  children:  Joseph 
M.,  William  A.,  JolmH.,  Hiram 
Y.,  Clara  A.,  and  a  baby. 

William  McBride  is  a  business 
man  of  great  ability;  his  success 
in  the  mercantile  line  is  remark- 
able, and  may  be  attributed 
much  to  his  popularity,  for  he  is 
a  young  man  of  excellent  ad- 
dress and  kindness  of  disposi- 
tion. He  belongs  to  the  Baptist 
church,  and  has  been  secretary 
of  Sunday  School  for  a  number 
of  years.  He  is  one  of  the  oldest 
Masons  here,  having  been  secre- 
tary, senior  deacon,  senior  war- 
den and  worshipful  master,  which 
ofiice  he  now  holds.  He  is  past 
grand  secretary  of  the  Grand 
Lodge  of  the  Indian  Territory, 
and  present  junior  grand  warden 
of  the  same. 


*- 


-* 


-^ 


264 


LEADHHS  AND  LEADING  MEX 


JUDGE  THOS.  B.  JOHNSTON. 
This  gentleman  was  born  in  1819 
near  the  Tom  Bigbee  River,  in 
Alabama,  and  came  to  Skully- 
ville,  Ghoctaw  Nation,  in  1850. 
lie  was  for  a  long  time  in  the 
employment  of  his  uncle,  John 
Johnston,  Sr.,  who  was  claim 
agent  for  the  Choctaws.  In  1852 
he  married  Eliza  Strickland, 
daughter  of  John  Strickland,  and 
during  the  war  was  a  scout  for 
General  Cooper.  In  1874  he 
moved  to  Johnsonville,  where 
he  now  resides,  has  a  fine  farm, 
fifteen  hundred  head  of  stock 
and  three  hundred  horses.  In 
1868  he  was  appointed  County 
Judge,  and  District  Judge  ten 
years  afterward. 

Judge  Johnston  has  eight  chil- 
dren— Florence,  Lester,  Joe  E., 
Isaac  W.,  Albert  Sydney,  Lem- 
uel; Laura,  wife  of  Ambrose 
Barr;  Catherine,  wife  of  N.  H. 
Byers;  and  Emma,  wife  of  Jos- 
eph Bunch. 

Judge  Johnston  was  among 
the  first  white  men  who  settled 
in  the  Indian  country,  and  was 
a  brave  and  sturdy  pioneer.  He 
is  a  highly  esteemed  member  of 
the  Methodist  church. 

Col.  Isaac  W.  Johnston,  who 
resides  with  his  brother,  is  one 
of  the  oldest  teachers  in  the 
Chickasaw  Nation,  having  been 


in  charge  of  National  schools  in 
various  districts  for  a  term  of 
sixteen  years.  The  Colonel,  who 
is  also  a  citizen  of  the  Indian 
Territory,  is  intimate  with  the 
affairs  and  political  history  of  the 
Chickasaws.  During  the  war  he 
was  Colonel  of  the  Harrison 
county  (Texas)  militia,  and  has 
since  held  offices  of  honor  and 
trust  in  the  Lone  Star  State. 
His  oldest  daughter  is  married  to 
Col.  J.  C.  Degress,  of  Austin, 
and  his  second  girl  married  Capt. 
J.  P.  Rodney  of  the  same  city. 


W.  H.  BACON. 
This  gentleman  was  born  July, 
1845,  and  is  the  son  of  Rev.  H. 
Bacon,  of  Pigeon  Roost,  Missis- 
sippi, a  Cherokee  by  blood,  who 
emigrated  to  Boggy  Depot,  Choc- 
taw Nation,  in  1816,  where  he 
lived  four  years  ;  after  which  he 
moved  to  Panola  county,  Chick- 
asaw Nation,  and  died  in  1876. 
In  1861  W.  H.  Bacon  enlisted 
in  "Stan"'  Waite's  Cherokee  reg- 
iment, fighting  in  the  battles  of 
Cabin  Creek,  both  battles  at 
Honey  Springs,  and  at  Illinois 
Creek  on  December  25,  1864, 
where  during  a  heavy  snow  storm 
both  armies  retired,  making  it  a 
draw  fight.  He  retired  from  the 
service  in  August,  1865;  after 
which  he  began   tending  stock. 


-* 


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OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


265 


-•i* 


In  1872  he  was  elected  Consta- 
ble of  Panola  county,  and  was 
elected  Judge  of  Panola  in  1881. 
In  1866  he  married  Frances  Liz- 
enby,  daughter  of  Charles  Liz- 
enby,  a  Kentuckian,  by  whom 
he  has  six  children — Samuel  J., 
Edward  S.,  William  J.,  Frank- 
lin, Martha  and  Gertrude.  After 
the  death  of  his  first  wife  he  wed- 
ded Sammie,  daughter  of  Mitch- 
ell Hancock,  living  near  Paris, 
Texas. 

Mr.  Bacon  is  a  farmer  and 
stock-raiser  and  a  stanch  mem- 
ber of  the  progressive  party. 


DR.  WILLIAM  POYNER. 
Dr.  Poyner  was  born  in  1855  at 
Weston,  Graves  county,  Ken- 
tucky ;  came  to  Pickins  county, 
Chickasaw  ]S^ation,  in  1883,  and 
the  following  year  to  Tishomin- 
go, where  he  commenced  the 
practice  of  medicine,  and  opened 
a  hotel  in  1885.  His  medical 
education  commenced  in  Cincin- 
nati, Ohio,  and  was  completed  at 
Nashville,  Tennessee.  He  mar- 
ried Louisa  Corbett,  the  widow 
of  Ben  Boyd,  by  whom  he  has 
one  child,  Willie  Boyd  Poyner, 
aged  twelve  months. 

Dr.  Poyner  believes  in  and  is 
beloved  by  the  people,  who  look 
upon  him  rather  as  a  citizen  and 
member  of  the  tribe  than   as  a 


licensed  trader.  He  is  a  first 
cousin  of  Alexander,  John  and 
James  Rennie,  three  among  the 
wealthiest  and  most  influential 
business  men  in  the  country,  and 
who  are  also  Canadians  by  birth 
and  education. 


EVERETT  P.  BAKER. 
Mr.  Baker  was  born  in  1853  in 
Washington  county,  Arkansas, 
and  was  educated  at  Fayette- 
ville,  Arkansas,  and  La  Porte, 
Indiana.  Everett  married  Miss 
Mattie  Starke,  of  Fayetteville,  in 
1878,  and  soon  afterward  settled 
in  the  Indian  Territory  at  Ato- 
ko  in  1884,  where  he  devoted 
himself  to  the  hotel  and  livery 
business  till  1886,  when  he 
moved  to  Paul's  Valley,  where 
he  is  now  conducting  a  first-class 
livery  stable. 

Some  six  years  before  his  mar- 
riage Mr.  Baker  was  engaged 
freighting  for  the  government 
between  Caddo  and  Fort  Sill, 
and  later  was  employed  filling  a 
hay  contract  for  Uncle  Sam. 
During  these  years  he  had  several 
hair-breadth  escapes  from  the 
Comanche  and  Kiowa   Indians. 

Though  not  a  citizen  of  the 
Indian  Territory,  Mr.  Baker  is 
looked  upon  as  a  permanent  set- 
tler and  is  highly  respected  in 
the  Chickasaw  Nation. 


*- 


>B 


*- 


-fb 


266 


LEADKRS  AND  LEADING  HEX 


*- 


A.  H.  NUTTALL. 
Mr.  Nuttall,  president  of  the 
Industrial  Union  of  the  Indian 
Territory,  was  born  in  Warren 
county,  North  Carolina,  March 
18,  1845.  His  father  was  A.  PI. 
Nuttall  and  his  mother  Matilda 
C.  Hawkins,  daughter  of  ex- 
Gov.  William  B.  Hawkins,  of 
North  Carolina.  When  the  war 
broke  out  the  subject  of  this 
sketch,  at  the  age  of  sixteen 
years,  volunteered  in  Company 
A,  Ninth  Mississippi  regiment, 
and  was  afterward  promoted  to  a 
captaincy  in  Col.  Davis'  battal- 
ion. Daring  his  service  he  fre- 
quently risked  himself  across  the 
enemy's  lines,  and  was  twice 
taken  prisoner  when  acting  as  a 
scout,  but  on  each  occasion  he 
made  good  his  escape.  He  was 
a  dashing  soldier  and  a  daring 
scout. 

In  1879  Mr.  Nuttall  moved  to 
the  Indian  Territory  and  settled 
close  to  Armstrong,  Choctaw 
Nation.  In  1886  he  went  to 
work  and  procured  sufficient  men 
among  the  whites  and  Indians  to 
organize  the  first  Subordinate 
Wheel  in  the  Indian  Territory 
which  when  organized  was  called 
Bennington  Wheel  No.  1.  This 
was  accomplished  August  2, 
1886.  After  organizing  twelve 
other  lodges,    he  established-  a 


Territorial  Wheel  at  Caddo,  and 
was  honored  by  being  chosen 
president  by  the  entire  voice  of 
the  body.  Since  then  the  Wheel 
has  rolled  on  rapidly,  spreading 
its  influence  all  over  the  Indian 
Territory.  In  the  meanwhile 
President  Nuttall  was  re-elected 
at  every  annual  meeting.  On 
August  5,  1890,  when  the  Farm- 
ers' Alliance  and  the  Wheel  con- 
solidated under  the  name  of  the 
Industrial  Union  of  the  Indian 
Territory,  Mr.  Nuttall  was  elect- 
ed as  their  president,  with  H.  C. 
Randolph  as  vice-president  and 
Mr.Ivins  secretary  and  treasurer. 


CHAS.  M.  MAXFIELD. 
Mr.  Maxfield  was  born  in  Yer- 
mont.  New  Hampshire,  in  1846, 
and  educated  in  the  Cheshire 
High  School.  From  boyhood 
he  followed  the  business  of  jew- 
eler, and  at  twenty-one  years  of 
age  was  appointed  postmaster  at 
Chester,  Vermont.  After  leav- 
ing that  point  he  made  many 
moves,  coming  in  contact  with 
every  class  of  people  and  expe- 
riencing every  climate  between 
Exanwaba,  Michigan,  and  the 
Gulf  of  Mexico.  Inl887hecame 
to  Atoka,  moving  to  the  Valley  in 
1890,  where  he  is  permanently  lo- 
cated, to  be  henceforth  a  fixture 
among  the  Chickasaw  people 


-* 


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OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


267 


-* 


HON.  JAMES  M.  STOVALL. 
This  gentleman  was  born  in 
Franklin  county,  Tennessee,  in 
1831,  and  educated  "on  the 
wing"  (as  he  says  himself).  He 
is  a  good  illustration  of  the  self- 
made  man  of  this  generation. 
It  was  not  till  April,  1882,  that  he 
came  to  the  Indian  Territory  and 
settled  at  Johnsonville,  where  he 
farmed  for  some  three  years  and 
held  stock  across  the  line  in  the 
Pottawatomie  country.  In  1885 
he  moved  within  five  miles  of 
Purcell,  and  on  the  eventful  22d 
of  April,  1889,  crossed  the  Cana- 
dian and  established  his  claim  in 
the  promised  land  of  Oklahoma, 
a  few  miles  north  of  Purcell.  In 
the  new  country  he  soon  became 
a  marked  man,  and  on  August  5, 
1890,  was  elected  Representa- 
tive of  Cleveland  county. 

During  the  war  Mr.  Stovall 
was  a  lieutenant  in  Company  E, 
Colonel  Hughes'  regiment,  of 
Price's  army,  and  while  absent 
in  the  field  his  house  and  prem- 
ises were  destroyed.  In  1857 
he  married  Mary  E.  Grow,  by 
whom  he  has  five  children,  four 
sons  and  one  daughter. 

Though  not  a  citizen  of  the 
Chickasaw  Nation,  Mr.  Stovall 
is  most  popular  among  the  peo- 
ple, and  feels  most  at  home  when 
south  of  the  Canadian  River. 


GEORGE  W.  ADAMS. 

Mr.  Adams  was  born  in  Andrew 
county,  Missouri,  in  1857,  and 
educated  in  Dallas,  Texas.  He 
came  to  Tishomingo,  Chickasaw 
Nation,  in  1875,  and  in  1880  ac- 
cepted the  position  of  school 
teacher  at  Sealey  school,  which 
he  held  for  two  .years ;  soon  af- 
terward purchasing  Mr.  W.  W. 
Cooper's  mercantile  business  at 
Wapanucka.  He  did  not,  how- 
ever, remain  long  in  the  busi- 
ness, but  moved  to  Blue,  in  the 
Cheadle  neighborhood,  where  he 
commenced  dealing  in  cattle  till 
selling  out  in  1887;  he  then  settled 
in  Tishomingo,  and  in  partner- 
sliip  with  Dr.  Walter  W.Vannoy 
opened  a  general  mercantile  bus- 
iness, which  is  now  in  in  a  pros- 
perous condition.  He  is  also 
postmaster,  distributing  mail  to 
some  150  persons. 

Tishomingo,  which  is  the  capi- 
tal of  the  Chickasaw  Nation,  is 
looked  upon  as  the  best  trading 
point  off  the  lines  of  railroad  in 
the  southern  portion  of  the  In- 
dian Territory. 

Mr.  Adams  was  married  in 
1883  to  Norah,  daughter  of  M. 
S.  McSwain,  of  Denison,  Texas, 
by  whom  he  has  one  child,  a 
boy,  named  George  M.,  eighteen 
months  of  age. 


*- 


*- 


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LKADEKS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


*- 


JAMES  ALLEN  COLBERT. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  Mississippi,  February, 
5,  1832,  and  moved  with  his 
people  to  the  Chickasaw  Nation. 
He  went  to  school  at  Freston, 
Texas,  for  a  short  time,  and  while 
yet  a  young  man  married  Miss 
Athenius  M.  Fulso'ra,  fourth 
daughter  of  Hon.  Israel  Fulsom 
illustrious  Choctaw,  descended 
from  the  royal  "iksa."  The 
alliance  of  these  two  young  peo- 
ple brought  into  matrimonial  re- 
lationship one  of  the  most  pow- 
erful representative  families  of 
each  Nation;  the  Colberts  being 
as  prominent  among  the  Chick- 
asawsas  the  Fulaomswere  among 
the  Choctaws.  The  issue  of 
this  marriage  was  ten  children, 
of  whom  six  are  living:  Hen- 
rietta, Charles,  Walter,  Lavisa, 
Czarina  and  Benjamin. 

The  deceased  (the  subject  of 
this  sketch)  was,  like  his  brother 
Frank,  greatly  beloved  and  re- 
spected among  his  people;  but 
unlike  him,  was  a  leading  legis- 
hitorand  wielded  strong  influence 
in  National  affairs.  Besides  his 
connection  with  ^he  judiciary, 
Mr.  Colbert  was  repeatedly  elect- 
ed member  of  the  council.  Dur- 
ing the  war  he  was  second    lieu- 


tenant of  Genei-al  Cooper's  body 
guard,  which  post  he  held  until 
the  end  of  the  struggle.  After 
the  war  he  and  his  brother,  with 
a  third  party,  embarked  in  the 
mercantile  business,  after  which 
he  drifted  into  stock  raising  and 
finally  went  to  improving  farms. 

Mr.  Colbert  was  a  progressive, 
intelligent  citizen,  and  one  of  the 
most  charitable  of  men.  Many  a 
widow  and  orphan  has  had  reason 
to  offer  prayers  for  the  eternal 
welfare  of  one  whose  generous 
actions  were  almost  numberless. 
For  years  he  took  care  of  and 
gave  homes  to  his  brother  Henry's 
orphan  children  as  well  as  to 
three  of  his  sister's  children.  His 
sons,  AValter  and  Charlie,  are 
young  men  of  great  popularity 
and  excellent  business  qualities. 
The  former  is  doing  business  in 
Denison,  while  the  latter  looks 
after  his  stock  ranch  at  old  Fort 
Washita.  James  A.  Colbert  died 
January  26,  1874,  aged  -11  years 
and  11  months,  deservedly  and 
sincerely  regretted.  His  widow 
is  now  residing  among  her  rela- 
tives in  Atoka,  I.  T. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
well  and  favorably  kil%)wn  every 
where  throughout  the  Indian 
Territory,  and  had  a  host  of 
stanch  friends  and  ardent  ad- 
mirers. 


-* 


Comanche  Medicine  Man. 


•i<- 


-fb 


272 


LEADKRS  AND   LEADING  ME^ 


THOMAS  J.  PHILLIPS. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

Tins  prosperous  merchant  was 
born  in  Tishomingo  county,  Mis- 
sissippi, in  1839,  attended  school 
until  1852,  and  came  to  Boggy 
Depot,  Choctaw  Nation,  in  1858, 
where  he  entered  the  employment 
of  Messrs.  Mitchell  and  Wright, 
general  merchants.  Remaining 
with  them  until  1859  he  went  to 
Tishomingo,  Chickasaw  Nation, 
where  he  clerked  for  Aaron  Har- 
land,  in  whose  employment  he 
continued  until  the  commence- 
ment of  the  war.  When  the  war 
broke  out  Tom  joined  General 
Cooper's  command  in  the  Indian 
Territory,  but  in  the  same  year 
went  to  his  native  state  and 
joined  Forrest's  Cavalry.  At  the 
battle  of  Athens  the  subject  of 
this  sketch  was  shot  in  the  right 
hip  and  obliged  to  remain  in 
the  hospital  until  discharged, 
when,  being  unfit  for  further  ser- 
vice, he  returned  to  the  Choctaw 
Nation  and  went  to  work  for  his 
old  employers.  After  eighteen 
months  thus  passed  he  moved 
to  Stonewall  to  take  charge  of 
a  branch  store  for  his  brother, 
J.  J.  Phillips.  He  remained  in 
charge  of  this  place  for  about 
three  years,  after  which  he  pur- 
chased the  concern,  continuing 
tlie  business  in   that  place  until 


1879,  when  he  sold  to  Rooksand 
Byrd,  and  moved  to  McAlester, 
where  he  opened  a  large  stock 
of  general  merchandise.  In  1884 
he  established  a  branch  house  at 
Krebs,  and  two  years  afterward 
one  at  South  Canadian.  J.  W. 
Phillips  owns  alarge  stock  of  cat- 
tle, and  some  thirty-six  square 
miles  of  pasture,  besides  one 
thousand  acres  under  cultivation. 
He  is  one  of  ilie  wealthiest  men 
in  his  county.  In  1873  he  mar- 
ried Miss  Mary  Bourland,  oldest 
daughter  of  Judge  R.  R.  Bour- 
land, a  Chickasaw,  by  whom  he 
has  had  eight  children:  Joseph 
R.,  Mattie,  William  T.,  Charles 
R.,  Rollie  H.,  John  Everett, 
Ellie  L.  and  George  Randolph. 
T.  J.  Phillips  is  a  man  of  great 
executive  ability  and  unimpeach- 
able integrity,  who,  by  his  own 
perseverance  and  energy,  has 
well  nigh  reached  the  summit  of 
the  ladder  of  success. 


JUDGE  REUBEN  BOURLAND. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  Hopkins  county.  Ivy., 
March,  1820.  Reuben  was  chief- 
ly educated  in  the  neighborhood 
schools,  coming  to  Texas  in 
1837,  wdiere  in  company  with 
his  brother  he  practiced  survey- 
ing and  alternately  farmed.     In 


*- 


-^ 


^- 


->h 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


!73 


1842  he  came  to  the  Indian  Ter- 
ritory and  improved  a  farm,  after 
which  he  returned  to  Kentucky 
and  Mississippi.  Here  in  a  short 
time  he  married  Eliza  Moore, 
a  Chickasaw.  In  July,  1843,  he 
moved  back  to  the  Territory  and 
continued  farming  for  many 
years.  By  his  marriage  he  had 
eight  children,  four  of  whom  are 
living;  William,  John,  Mary  and 
Martha.  Two  of  his  deceased 
sons,  James  and  George,  were 
killed  by  the  accidental  discharge 
of  a  gun.  George  was  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Chickasaw  Legislature 
at  the  time  of  his  fatal  accident. 
Mr.  Bourland  has  been  judge  of 
Tishomingo  county,  Chickasaw 
Nation,  and  William,  his  eldest 
son,  was  National  secretary  of 
the  same  Nation;  while  John, 
his  second  son,  was  National 
jailor.  Mrs.  Bourland  died  Oct. 
8,  1851;  since  that  time  Mr. 
Bourland  has  made  his  home 
with  Mrs.  T.  J.  Phillips,  his 
oldest  daughter.  Mr.  Bourland 
is  one  of  the  old  landmarks  of 
the  Choctaw  and  Chickasaw  Na- 
tions, and  is  a  gentleman  of  su- 
perior intelligence. 


*- 


J.  C.  WORLEY. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  in  July, 
1849,  in  Mississippi.    His  father. 


Charles  Worley,  a  white  man, 
dying  while  the  subject  of  this 
sketch  was  but  a  child.  His 
mother  emigrated  with  him  in 
1853  to  the  Chickasaw  Nation, 
and  settled  close  to  Carriage 
Point.  In  1869  Mr.  Worley 
married  Melissa  Francis:  by 
whom  he  hasten  children: Charlie, 
aged  nineteen  years,  Minnie, 
Jesse,  Kobert,  Oscar,  Scott, 
Gertrude,  Mattie,  John  and  An- 
drew. Mr.  Worley  lived  for 
some  years  at  Pond  Creek,  and 
in  1886  moved  to  Whitehead. 
He  has  six  hundred  acres  of  land 
under  cultivation,  and  five  hun- 
dred head  of  stock  cattle  at  Erin 
Springs, where  he  now  resides. 


HENRY  T.WALKER. 

Among  the  white  men  who  are 
looked  upon  as  fixtures  in  the 
Chickasaw  Nation  we  may  here 
mention  H.  T.  Walker,  the  re- 
doubtable dentist,  born  in  Stewart, 
Co. ,  Georgia,  in  1860.  This  ener- 
getic professional  man  graduated 
in  dentistry  at  the  Philadelphia 
Dental  College  in  1886,  and 
has  been  practicing  ever  since 
in  the  Indian  Territory.  His 
headquarters  are  at  Paul's  Val- 
ley, while  he  has  the  exclusive 
practice  at  the  government  quar- 
ters at  Fort  Sill.     Dr.  Walker  is 


-* 


274 


-* 


LEADERS   AND   LEADING   3IEN 


iio\  only  looked  upon  as  a  first 
class  operator,  professionally 
speaking,  but  as  one  of  the  best 
gunners  and  anglers  in  the  Terri- 
tory. He  is  a  pleasant  companion 
and  always  ready  for  a  joke. 


HON.  NELSON  CHIGLEY. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

This  gentleman  was    born    near 
Memphis,  Tenn.,  in  1835.    When 


NELSON   CHIGLEY. 

two  years  old  he  moved  with  a 
portion  of  his  tribe  to  Fort  Coffe, 
and  from  thence  to  Blue  Creek, 
Chickasaw  Nation,  but  did  not 
commence  his  useful  career  until 


he  came  to  Washita  "Valley,  where 
he  opened  a  small  farm  in  1854, 
and  was  married  live  years  later 
to  Julia  Push  shuk-ka.  Chig- 
ley  has  ever  since  labored  with 
energy  and  perseverance,  not 
only  to  cultivate  the  rich  lands 
that  lie  around  him,  but  to  en- 
courage the  less  ambitious  full- 
bloods  by  word  and  example  to 
industry  and  economy.  As  a 
proof  of  his  activity  and  business 
acquirements,  he  has  now  nearly 
two  thousand  acres  of  land  in 
corn  and  cotton,  and  pays  per- 
mits for  fifty-three  farmers  in  all. 
In  1870  he  was  elected  to  the 
Senate,  and  held  the  office  six 
years.  In  1888  he  was  again 
elected,  and  is  now  a  candidate 
for  the  same  office,  having  been, 
strange  to  say,  nominated  by  both 
factions — Progressive  and  Na- 
tional. In  1889  he,  in  company 
with  Silas  Wolf,  Joe  Kemp  and 
Sam  Paul,  made  a  hard  fight  in 
the  Senate  against  the  disfran- 
chisement of  the  white  citizens. 
He  has  three  children,  Moses, 
Wyattand  Eliza,  the  oldest  being 
eighteen  years.  He  has  also  an 
adopted  son  named  Nelson  Lewis, 
aged  twelve  years,  who  six  years 
ago  was  cast  aside  by  his  pa- 
rents, but  who  is  now  cared  for 
with  a  father's  tenderness  and 
love. 


*- 


-* 


*- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERKITORY. 


275 


-* 


GILES  W.  HARKINS,  M.  D. 


George 


[CHICKASAW.] 

The  eldest  son  of  Col 
W.  Harkins,  the  Chickasaw  ora- 
tor, was  born  at  Boggy  Depot, 
April  2,  1861.  He  was  educated 
at  Whitesborough,  Texas,  high 
school,  ^lineohi    acadcniv:    Tiu- 


GILES  WELLINGTON  HARKINS. 

versity  of  North  Carolina,  Chapel 
Hill,  and  graduated  at  the  New 
Orleans  Medical  College,  in 
March,  1887.  Receiving  his 
diploma,  young  Dr.  Harkins  com- 
menced practice  at  Lehigh,  Choc- 
taw Nation,  where  he  was  soon 
appointed  by  the  medical  board 
of  the  Indian  Territory  as  medi- 
cal  examiner    for    the   Choctaw 


Nation.  In  the  fall  of  the  same 
year  he  was  appointed  physician 
and  surgeon  for  the  Atoka  Coal 
Mining  Co.  He  was  also  hon- 
ored in  the  same  year  by  the 
position  of  Internal  Revenue 
Collector  on  the  Gulf  of  Colorado 
and  Santa  Fe  railroad.  In  1890 
he  married  Miss  Mollie  Sharp, 
of  Marion,  Kentucky,  whose 
father  is  a  merchant  in  Dyers- 
burgh,  Dyer  county,  Tennessee. 
Recently  Dr.  Harkins  has  been 
appointed  physician  for  the  South 
Western  Coal  Co.,  and  is  located 
at  Coalgate,  where  he  is  about 
to  open  a  drug  store  in  connec- 
tion with  his  practice.  Dr.  Har- 
kins, besides  his  company  work, 
has  a  number  of  patients  from 
time  to  time  scattered  broadcast 
through  the  county,  which  makes 
his  practice  very  extensive.  He 
is  a  most  promising  young  phy- 
sician and  is  extremely  popular 
among  the  mining  community, 
as  well  as  among  the  Choctaw 
and  Chickasaw  people.  His 
father.  Col.  G.  W.  Harkins,  who 
recently  died,  was  one  of  the 
ablest  men,  and  perhaps  the 
greatest  orator  the  Chickasaw 
Nation  has  ever  produced. 

Dr.  Harkins  is  becoming  very 
popular  in  the  Indian  Territory, 
and  has  a  host  of  friends  and 
adn)irers. 


*- 


-* 


>b- 


->^ 


276 


LEADERS  AND  LEADING  SIEN 


JUDGE  ROBERT  L   BOYD. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

The  present  District  Judge  of 
the  Chickasaw  Nation  was  born 
in  Martha  county,  Mississippi,  in 
January,  1844.  His  father,  Mr. 
James  M.  Boyd,  who  was  of 
Scotch    descent,  married  Nancy 


V' 


fh 


JUDGE  K.  L.  BOYD. 

Love,  a  Chickasaw  of  the  house 
of  In-quin-no-ma.  He  and  his 
family  emigrated  to  Fort  Smith, 
Arkansas, iii  1855,  and  thence  to 
Pickins  county,  Chickasaw  Na- 
tion, in  1860.  Kobert  was  edu- 
cated at  the  Skullyville  National 
School,  and  at  the  opening  of 
the  war  joined  the  Bell  Point 
Guards,  under  Captain  Hurtzig. 
During  the  years  which  followed 


he  became  a  member  of  Cooper's 
command  and  the  Wells  Batal- 
lion,  and  was  afterward  transfer- 
red to  the  Chickasaw  Batallion. 
During  his  war  experience  he 
served  at  Pea  Eidge,  Cabin 
Creek,  Prairie  Grove  and  Maz- 
zard  Prairie.  After  the  surren- 
der he  married  Emily  Allen, 
who  died  within  twelve  months; 
after  which  he  married  Mollie 
McSweeney,  a  full  sister  of  the 
wife  of  David  Osborne  Fisher. 
In  1868  he  came  to  Pickins  coun- 
ty, where  he  was  elected  to  the 
office  of  Sheriff,  which  position 
he  held  until  1870,  resigning  on 
account  of  bad  health.  In  1872 
he  was  appointed  by  Governor 
Cyrus  Harris  to  fill  the  unexpired 
term  of  C.  P.  H.  Percy,  Attor- 
ney General,  to  which  office  he 
was  re-elected  in  the  following 
year  and  held  for  a  period  of 
seven  years,  off  and  on.  In  1878 
he  was  elected  National  Secre- 
tary, and  filled  the  same  office 
under  Governor  Jonas  Wolf  in 
1884.  In  1888  he  received  the 
appointment  of  District  Judge, 
which  office  he  is  at  present  fill- 
ing to  the  public  satisfaction. 
Among  the  minor  positions  of 
trust  occupied  by  Judge  Boyd 
we  may  mention  that  of  Secre- 
tary of  the  Senate,  Committee- 
man on   Revision   of  the   Laws, 


->B 


*- 


OK   THK    INDIAN    TERRITORY. 


Draftsman  of  the  Law  Commit- 
tee of  the  Legislature,  Constable 
of  Pickins  County,  etc.,  etc.  He 
was  more  than  once  solicited  to 
become  a  candidate  for  Gover- 
nor, but  invariably  refused  to 
make  the  race,  although  he  has 
held  every  other  office  except 
Superintendent  of  Education  and 
National  Treasurer. 

Judge  Bojd  is  a  pleasant  gen^ 
tleman,  and  his  decisions  prove 
him  to  have  superior  legal  ability. 


*- 


HON.  LEWIS  KEEL. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  is  ig- 
norant of  the  precise  year  of  his 
birth,  but  believes  that  he  was 
born  the  year  of  the  paj^raent  of 
the  first  Chickasaw  annuity.  His 
father's  name  was  Cus-sap-po-li, 
which  means  divide,  or  distri- 
bute. He  was  schooled  at  Far- 
son  Robertson's  old  academy, 
Tishomingo,  and  in  1863  mar- 
ried Malsey  Ok-sha-tub-by,  by 
whom  he  has  three  children — 
Manda,  Johnson  and  Esau,  the 
oldest  aged  twenty-seven  and  the 
youngest  eleven  years. 

Before  the  war  Mr,  Keel  was 
wealthy,  having  over  three  thou- 
sand head  of  beeves,  but  at  the 
end  of  the  struggle  he  was  left 
comparatively  poor.  After  the 
disbanding  of  the  Chickasaw  Ba- 


tallion,  in  which  he  served  as 
sergeant,  he  was  elected  a  mem- 
ber of  the  House  of  Eepresenta- 
tives,  which  office  he  held  by  re- 
election, off  and  on,  for  nearly 
tvv'enty  years.  During  Governor 
Guy's  administration  he  was 
called    to  the     Senate,    and    re- 


HON.   LEWIS  KEEL. 

elected  in  1888,  his  term  having 
just  expired.  Mr.  Keel  was  also 
Public  School  Trustee  and  a 
member  of  the  Committee  for 
the  Distribution  of  the  Chicka- 
saw Net  Proceeds  Claims  in 
company  with  J.  T.  Collins  and 
Humphrey  Colbert. 

Mr.  Keel  is  a  peaceable  citi- 
zen and  greatly  devoted  to  his 
home  and  family. 


->B 


278 


LEADERS   AND    LEADING   IMEN 


JOSEPH  B.  WILSON. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

Joseph  was  born  at  Sherman, 
Tex,,  in  1859;  is  the  son  of  Philip 
Wilson,  a  white  man,  and  Susan, 
whose  maiden  name  was  Mitchell, 
and  who  was  one-fourth  Chicka- 
saw, After  the  death  of  his 
father  his  mother  married  David 
JVlaj' es,  of  Beef  Creek.  The  sub- 
ject of  this  sketch  completed  his 
education  at  the  Chickasaw 
Academy,  Tishomingo,  after 
which  he  went  into  the  stock  busi- 
ness on  Beef  Creek,  and  also  de- 
voted his  attention  to  farming. 
In  1880  he  married  Emma  Wor- 
ley,  daughter  of  C.  R.  Worley, 
of  Erin  Springs,  and  moved  to 
Purcell  in  1888,  where  for  some 
time  he  was  engaged  in  the  livery 
business,  but  sold  out  in  1890. 
At  present  he  has  eight  hundred 
acres  under  cultivation  and  six- 
hundred  head  of  cattle,  and  gives 
employment  to  some  twenty  men 
annually.  Mr.  Wilson  has  three 
children,  Alta  Pearl,  nine  years 
old,  Susan  Ellen  and  Claude, 


* 


JOHN  H.  WALNER. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

John  was  born  near  Colbert,  In- 
dian Territory,  in  1862;  is  the 
son  of  William  AValner,  of  Cum- 
berland county,  Virginia,  John 
was  educated  at  the  Baptist  Ac- 


ademy, at  Fort  Smith,  Arkansas, 
but  owing  to  ill  health  was 
obliged  to  leave  school  at  an 
early  age.  In  1878  he  embark- 
ed in  the  mercantile  business  in 
Cherokee  Town  and  sold  out  four 
years  later.  The  following  year 
he  married  Luld  B.,  daughter  of 
Wiley  Stewart,  of  Caddo;  and 
soon  afterward  invested  in  live 
stock,  continuing  in  that  business 
until  1890,  when  he  sold  his  en- 
tire herd.  Mr.  Walner  has  been 
living  in  Wynne  Wood  since 
1883,  and  has  a  farm  of  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  acres  in  the  neigh- 
borhood. He  is  also  an  ofiicer  in 
the  United  States  Indian  Police. 


HON.  HOGAN  KEEL. 

[CHICKASAW\] 

HoGAN  Keel  was  born  in  Atoka 
county,  Choctaw  Nation,  in  1852. 
His  father's  name  was  Ka-shap- 
lay,  and  his  mother's  was  Shoh- 
king,  of  the  house  of  In-cho-ka- 
pa-ta.  His  education  was  com- 
pleted at  Nashville,  Tennessee, 
and  Bonham,  Texas.  He  com- 
menced his  career  as  a  teacher, 
and  was  afterward  elected  Sar- 
gent at  Arms  to  the  Legislature 
during  the  Overton  administra- 
tion. During  the  years  which 
followed  to  the  present  time, 
Hogan  served  as  interpreter  for 
the  Legislature,  member  of   the 


*- 


OF   THE   INDIAX   TERRITORY. 


279 


-* 


House  of  Representatives  two 
terms;  constable  of  Pontotoc 
county;  sheriff,  interpreter  of  the 
Senate  and  member  of  the  Senate 
twice.  He  married  Annie  Mc- 
Carthy, and  later  Nellie  Westley, 
both  Chickasaws.  By  his  second 
wife  he  has  one  child,  Minnie, 
three  years  old.  Mr.  Keel  has 
one  hundred  acres  under  culti- 
vation and  about  one  hundred 
head  of  stock.  In  1889  he  took 
out  his  papers  as  a  legal  practi- 
tioner at  the  Chickasaw  courts. 


*- 


CHARLES  COLLINS. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

Charles  was  born  in  August, 
1851,  son  of  George  W.  Collins,  a 
native  of  Kentucky.  In  1851 
Charles  emigrated  with  his  father 
and  brothers  to  Panola  county, 
Chickasaw  Nation,  and  went  to 
school  across  the  river  in  Grayson 
county,  Texas.  In  1880  he  mar- 
ried Widow  McCoy,  daughter  of 
Captain  Joseph  Harris,  deceased, 
and  sister  of  Hon.  Robert  Harris, 
National  agent.  She  died  in 
1885,  leaving  one  girl,  Maggie, 
seven  years  of  age.  In  1887  he 
married  Miss  Tennie  Trentham, 
daughter  of  Joe  Trentham,  of 
Tennessee,  by  whom  he  has  an 
infant  daughter  named  Allen. 
Charles  Collins  resides  close  to 
old  Fort  Washita,  in  the    neigh- 


borhood of  his  brothei-s,  Tom 
and  Edward,  He  has  three  hun- 
dred acres  under  cultivation,  the 
greater  part  of  which  he 
rents  on  the  usual  terms.  He 
is  not  a  politician,  nor  has  he 
ever  run  for  office,  much  pre- 
ferring his  home  occupations,  and 
an  occasional  dead  shot  at  a 
deer,  in  the  dense  woods  of  the 
Washita,  than  political  rivalry. 


PERRY  FROMAN. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

Perry  was  born  in  Vermillion 
county,  Illinois, September,  1836; 
educated  at  Danville,  Illinois; 
came  to  Missouri  in  1855,  and 
from  thence  to  Cook  county, 
Texas,  in  1876.  Two  years  af- 
terward Mr.  Froman  penetrated 
the  fastness  of  the  Arbuckle 
Mountains,  and  there  opened  a 
stock  ranch,  stock  raising  having 
been  the  occupation  which  he  had 
followed  ever  since  his  arrival  in 
Texas  in  1876.  In  1881  he  mar- 
ried Lavina  Colbert,  and  shortly 
afterward  moved  to  his  present 
home  near  Wynne  Wood,  where 
he  built  a  residence  and  improved 
fourteen  hundred  acres  of  land, 
giving  employment  to  some 
twenty-eight  families.  LTp  to 
1890,  when  he  disposed  of  his 
entire  stock,  Mr.  Froman  usually 
handled  as  many  as  6,000  cattle 


-* 


^ 


-•!• 


280 


LEADKRS   AND   LEADING   3IEX 


CICERO  A.SKEEX. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  Rcindolph  county,  North 
Carolina,  in  1853,  and  was  edu- 
ucated  at  Edinburgh  Academy, 
North  Carolina,  which  was  under 
the  charge  of  Prof.  R.  H.  Skeen 
(^his  uncle).     In  1872  he  left  home 


J^    ^ 

s 

#xf 

"iU 

ii,w^mBi 

L 

_jteiSfflk-«:. 

^^ 

fc  .^^B 

CICERO  A.    SKEEN. 

and  went  west,  landing  at  Atoka 
in  1873,  and  moving  to  Pontotoc 
county,  where  he  taught  school 
for  some  years.  During  this 
period  he  married  Cleopatra, 
daughter  of  J.  B.  Herrell,  who 
lived  but  two  months.  In  De- 
cember, 1877,  he  married  Emma, 
daughter  of  Col.  Samson  Fol- 
som  of  the  1st  Choctaw  regiment, 


by  Avhom  he  had  seven  children, 
only  three  of  whom  survived. 
The  oldest  is  named  Walter  and 
the  younger  ones,  Fannie  and 
Cora.  Professor  Skeen  taught 
at  the  Yellow  Springs  and  Sandy 
Creek,  after  which  he  located  a 
farm  and  ranch  on  the  head- 
waters of  Blue  Creek.  He  has 
six  hundred  head  of  cattle,  forty 
head  of  horses  and  one  hundred 
and  fifty  acres  under  cultivation. 
In  1886  Mr.  Skeen  was  elected 
representative  on  the  Byrd  ticket, 
and  one  year  later  went  to  the 
upper  house,  which  office  he  re- 
signed when  appointed  to  the 
lesseeship  of  the  Wahpanucka 
Institute  for  five  years,  which  ap- 
pointment he  is  now  filling  with 
two  years  of  unexpired  term  be- 
fore him. 

Wahpanucka  Institute,  a  pic- 
ture of  which  is  published  in 
this  volume,  is  the  longest  rock 
building  in  the  Indian  Territory 
and  contains  thirty-six  doors  and 
eighty-nine  windows,  three  feet 
by  five.  It  is  three  and  one-half 
stories  high  and  one  hundred 
and  fifty  feet  long,  with  a  capac- 
ity for  one  hundred  and  fifty  pu- 
pils. This  solid  structure  was 
built  in  1851  by  the  Chickasaw 
government  and  placed  in  the 
hands  of  the  Missionary  board 
for  many  years.    During  the  war 


*- 


-* 


^- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


281 


-* 


it  was  used  as  a  barracks  by  the 
Confederate  soldiers.  The  scen- 
ery in  the  vicinity  of  the  academy 
is  remarkably  picturesque,  situ- 
ated as  the  building  is — on  a 
lofty  and  mountainous  ridge  over- 
lookino;  the  waters  of  the  Cliick- 


>i- 


MES.    SKEEN. 

asaw  Delaware.  At  present  the 
faculty  has  charge  of  sixty  pu- 
pils, for  which  Mr.  Skeen  as  con- 
tractor, is  allowed  ten  thousand 
doTlars  per  annum.  This  money, 
as  well  as  that  which  is  expended 
on  the  other  National  academies 
is  derived  from  interest  accumu- 
lating on  United  States  bonds, 
fifty  thousand  of  which  is  paid 
semi-annually  into  the  Chicka- 
saw Treasury.     The  faculty  con- 


sists of  Prof.  Skeen,  Prof.  J.  J. 
Scarborough,  who  has  charge  of 
the  male  department.  Miss  Cora 
Fuller,  of  the  female  literary  de- 
partment and  Miss  Mary  Turner, 
who  is  a  most  accomplished  music 
teacher.  The  Indian  pupils  in 
this  institute  are  the  equals  of 
white  pupils  in  point  of  intellect- 
uality, while  morally  they  are  su- 
perior to  their  pale  brethren,  be- 
ing more  obedient  and  evincing 
a  greater  amount  of  industry  and 
perseverance. 

AMOS  R.  WAITE. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  at 
Paul's  Valley,  February,  1858, 
the  son  of  the  late  Thos.  Waite, 
and  nephew  of  Hon.  Tecumseh 
McClure.  Amos  was  educated 
at  Ann  Arbor,  Michigan,  and 
graduated  at  Oberlin,  Ohio.  In 
1886  he  opened  a  mercantile 
business  at  Whitehead,  which  he 
sold  out  in  two  years,  but  once 
more  embarked  in  the  same  line 
in  Paul's  Valley,  closing  out  in 
1889.  Mr.  Waite  has  recently 
turned  his  attention  to  farmintr 
and  has  125  acres  under  cultiva- 
tion. In  1886  he  married  Mary 
E.  Spear,  daughter  of  E.  R. 
Spear,  of  Devonshire,  England, 
by  whom  he  has  two  children, 
Verdi  V.  Waite,  aged  eighteen 
months, and  Catherine,an  infant. 


* 


^- 


-*B 


282 


LEADERS   AND   LEADING    3IEN 


HON.  SAM  PAUL. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

During  the  past  few  years  no 
name  among  the  Chickasaws  has 
figured  more  conspicuously  than 
tliat  of  Sam  Paul.  Indeed,  from 
manhood  until  the  present  time 
it  has  i"i(n-('r  fallen  into  obscnritr. 


'^- 


HON.    SAM  PAUL. 

although  from  no  intentional  ef- 
fort of  his  own  does  it  appear 
that  he  has  sought  notoriety. 
His  father,  Smith  Paul,  is  a  white 
man,  one  of  the  few  survivors  of 
his  race  who  emigrated  with  the 
tribe  from  Mississippi.  The  cel- 
ebrated Paul's  Yalley  was  settled 
by  him  at  an  early  date,  and  this 
fertile  tract  sliows  evidence  of 
his  agricultural  skill  in  the  shape 


of  line  orchards  and  vineyards 
planted  many  years  ago.  Smith 
Paul,  though  a  very  old  man,  is 
enabled  to  enjoy  the  wealth 
which  he  acquired  by  his  superior 
energy.  He  is  now  residing  in 
California  close  to  the  Pacific 
coast,  and  occasionally  visits  the 
Yalley. 

Hon.  Sam  Paul  is  about  forty- 
two  years  of  age,  and  slightly 
below  medium  height,  quick  in 
motion  and  of  the  nervous  tem- 
perament. Fallingheir  to  a  large 
property  early  in  life,  and  being 
generous  and  liberal,  like  many 
of  his  race,  he  acquired  habits  of 
extravagance,  but  the  most  pro- 
nounced traits  in  the  character 
of  Sam  Paul  is  his  ntter  contempt 
for  danger;  fear  to  him  being  an 
element  unknown  and  unappre- 
ciated. As  a  Legislator  he  has 
always  figured  in  the  front  ranks; 
the  Senatorial  seat  for  Pickins 
county  being  ever  at  his  com- 
mand. 

It  was  not,  however,  until 
1888,  when  Guy  was  "counted 
out"  for  the  governorship,  that 
Paul  displayed  his  fearless  and 
relentless  spirit  of  partisanship. 
"Though  we  have  to  wade  waist 
deep  in  blood  to  accomplish  it," 
said  he  addressing  the  assembled 
council,  "Guy  shall  this  day 
take  his  seat  as  governor."    Guy 


-* 


ti<- 


-* 


OF   THE   INDIAN  TERRITORY. 


283 


*- 


was  inaugurated,  but  fearing 
bloodshed,  failed  to  urge  liis 
claims  any  further.  Had  Paul 
been  in  his  place  nothing  short 
of  extermination  would  have  pre- 
vented his  taking  his  seat.  In 
1890,  after  the  disfranchisement 
of  the  white  citizens,  they  unan- 
imously fixed  upon  the  Hon. 
Sam  to  represent  them  in  Wash- 
ington, and  later  nominated  him 
as  gubernatorial  candidate  for 
the  progressive  party.  As  a  mat- 
ter of  course  he  was  defeated, the 
majority  of  his  adherents  being 
deprived  of  their  franchise. 

Mr.  Paul  has  ever  been  a 
stanch  friend  to  the  white  man. 
His  father  was  a  white  man,  and 
for  no  motives  of  self-interest 
to  gain  the  favor  of  his  people 
could  he  be  induced  to  be-little 
the  blood  inherited  through  his 
father.  This  of  itself  is  a  noble 
quality,  and  will  cover  many  im- 
perfections, for  Sam  Paul, 
through  hisimpetuousity  of  dispo- 
sition, has  committed  some  errors 
which  set  the  wagging  tongue 
of  scandal  in  motion  more  than 
once.  Few  public  men,  who  pos- 
sess strong  individuality  and 
much  aggressiveness  are  lucky 
enough  to  escape  public  criti- 
cism, when  they  lay  themselves 
liable  to  censure,  and  Sam  Paul 
is  not  an  exception.   As  the  lead- 


er of  the  progressive  party  in  the 
Chickasaw  Nation,  all  eyes  are 
now  turned  in  his  direction, 
while  he,  himself,  bent  on  restor- 
ing the  white  citizens  to  their 
original  status,  is  at  the  time  of 
this  writing  making  preparations 
for  a  trip  to  the  United  States 
Capitol. 

Much  depends  on  the  result  of 
his  mission. 


ISAAC  S,  WRIGHT. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  Jackson  county,  Georgia, 
and  educated  in  Forsythe  county 
at  a  public  school.  He  came  to 
the  Chickasaw  Nation  in  1878, 
and  renting  some  land  from 
Robert  McGehee  close  to  Tisho- 
mingo, commenced  farming.  Af- 
ter a  few  years  he  moved  on  D. 
B.  Cotton's  place,  where  he  re- 
mained until  1888,  marrying 
Lizzie  B.  Turner,  daughter  of 
Mazeppa  Turner,  in  February  of 
the  following  year.  Mr.  Wright 
is  half  owner  of  the  Dougherty 
Mill  and  Gin,  and  devotes  much 
of  his  time  to  the  milling  busi- 
ness. Besides thishe  has  a  farm 
of  land  which  occupies  a  portion 
of  his  attention.  He  is  a  member 
of  the  progressive  party. 


-* 


^ 


-* 


.'84 


LEADERS   AND   LEADING   3IEN 


13^ 


MONTFORD  P.  JOFINSON. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

This  popular  and  wealthy  citizen 
was  born  in  November,  1843,  at 
Boggy  Depot,  Choctaw  Nation, 
the  son  of  Cliarles  Johnson,  an 
Englishman,  now  residing  at 
38  Murray  St.,  New  York,  and 
Rebecca  Courtney,  of  the  house 
of  Intel-le-bo.  After  five  years' 
schooling  at  the  Tishomingo 
Academy,  young  Johnson  com- 
menced farming  on  the  Washita, 
and  in  1862  married  Mary  Eliza- 
beth Campbell,  sister  of  Charles 
Campbell,  of  Purcell.  In  1868 
he  moved  his  stock  to  Johnson- 
ville,  which  takes  its  name  from 
liim;and  after  a  residence  of  ten 
years  located  permanently  at  Sil- 
ver City. 

During  the  war  Mr  Johnson 
served  for  a  while  in  Frachier 
McLish's  Militia,  and  for  tliree 
months  rode  express  between  the 
quarters  of  the  Chickasaw  batal- 
lion  at  Fort  Arbuckle,  and  the 
Texas  Troops  stationed  at  the 
mouth  of  Mud  Creek.  This  was 
a  perilous  undertaking  and  one 
which  few  men  could  have  been 
found  daring  enough -to  volun- 
teer. 

Mr.  Johnson  has  one  thousand 
acres  under  cultivation,  and  five 
hundred  head  of  cattle,  many  of 


which  are  thoroughbred  Here- 
fords.  Durham  and  Polled  Angus. 
Among  his  stud  horses  is  one 
named  Barak,  sired  by  the  cele- 
brated King  Ban,  who  won  forty 
thousand  dollars  in  1887.  This 
thoroughbred  animal  is  worthy 
of  mention. 

Mr.  Johnson  established  the 
Bank  of  Minco,  with  sixty  thou- 
sand dollars  capital,  in  July, 
1890,  and  which  is  entirely  man- 
aged by  members  of  his  own  fam- 
ily, H.  B.  Johnson,  his  second 
son,  being  cashier.  Mr.  John- 
son's family  consists  of  seven 
boys  and  three  girls,  namely:  Ed- 
ward, aged  twenty-seven  years; 
Henry,  Robert,  Clifford,  Benja- 
min, Ira,  James,  Stella,  Fanny 
and  Gertrude. 


REAGAX  W.  JENNINGS. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  in 
Sherman,  Texas,  in  1857,  and 
was  educated  at  a  neighborhood 
school.  During  his  earlier  days 
young  Reagan  devoted  himself 
to  the  raising  of  stock,  and  in 
1878  married  Miss  Henrietta 
Colbert,  the  eldest  daughter  of 
Hon.  Jim  Colbert,  one  of  the 
most  prominent  among  the 
Chickasaws.  The  young  mar- 
ried couple  first  settled  on  Rush 
Creek,   near  Erin    Springs,   and 


* 


*- 


OK   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


285 


* 


thence  moved  to  Alexander, 
Paul's  Yalley  and  South  Cana- 
dian, successively,  finally  locat- 
ing at  Wynne  Wood,  where  they 
now  reside,  in  March,  1882. 

Mr.  Jennings  owns  nearly 
half  of  the  site  upon  which  the 
little  town  is  built,  besides  twelve 
hundred  acres  of  land,  one  fourth 
of  which  is  under  good  cultiva- 
tion. He  has  five  children — 
Daisy,  eleven  years  old;  Thenie, 
Cutcheon-tubby,  Lavisa  and  Al- 
vers.  Mrs.  Jennings  is  a  ladj^ 
of  refinement  and  culture,  both 
natural  and  acquired. 


EDMUND  TURNBULL. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  1854,  the  son  of  Robert 
TurnbuU  once  the  wealthiest  of 
his  tribe.  Edmund  was  educated 
at  the  Chickasaw  Academy,  and 
in  1878  married  Laura  Buckley, 
of  Bennington.  During  the  first 
four  years  of  his  married  life  he 
was  reckless  and  desperate  until 
1882,  when  he  became  a  convert; 
was  baptised  the  same  year,  and 
ordained  deacon  of  the  church, 
which  position  he  held  until  his 
death,  which  resulted  from  con- 
sumption on  February  8,  1886, 
aged  thirty-one  years.  After  the 
loss   of  her  first    husband    Mrs. 


*- 


Turnbull  sent  her  children  to  the 
Chickasaw  Academies,  and  had 
them  educated.  They  are  named: 
Lena  Eliza,  Robert  Rosella  and 
Susan,  the  oldest  aged  twelve 
years,  and  the  youngest  four 
years.  In  1890  Mrs.  Turnbull 
married  Robert  Kelly,  a  white 
man,  at  Bonham,  Texas,  and 
they  are  now  residing  in  the 
neighborhood  of  Armstrong 
Academy. 

THOMx\S  B.THOMPSON. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  May,  1865,  the  son  of 
Thomas  Jefierson  Thompson,  de- 
ceased, who  was  a  brother  of  the 
well-known  Green  Thompson, 
of  the  Choctaw  Second  Cavalry 
Regiment.  Thomas  Jefferson 
was  educated  in  youth  by  Pro- 
fessor Hall,  of  Atoka,  and  after- 
ward went  to  Lebanon  and  final- 
ly completed  his  education  at 
the  Chickasaw  Male  Academy 
under  Professor Harley.  In  1888 
he  was  elected  permit  collector, 
and  the  year  following  was  ap- 
pointed to  the  office  of  supreme 
clerk  under  Judge  Samuel  Love, 
which  position  he  occupies  at 
present.  Mr.  Thompson  has  a 
farm  of  seventy-five  acres  under 
good  cultivation  close  to  Emet, 
Indian  Territory. 


-* 


*- 


-* 


28fi 


I.EADEIIS   AND    LEADING   MEN 


C.  L.  CAMPBELL. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  in  1843 
in  London,  England,  of  Scotch 
and  Irish  parents,  his  father  be- 
ing of  the  former  and  his  mother 
of  the  latter  race.  At  fifteen 
years  of  age  he  came  with  his 
father  to  Arbuckle,  Indian  Terri- 
tory, where  he  served  his  time  in 
the  stock  business  at  various 
points,  and  married  Miss  Sallie 
Humphreys,  daughter  of  Major 
Dick  Humphreys,  in  1865.  Im- 
mediately afterward  he  began 
teaching  school  at  Tishomingo, 
but  finding  himself  "at  sea"  in 
this  capacity,  left  for   the  Cana- 


C.   L.   CAMPBELL. 


dian  River,    and    again    took  to 
herding     cattle.     In     1881     Mr. 


Campbell  moved  to  Silver  City, 
where    he     remained    till  1888, 


MRS.   C.   L.   CAMPBELL. 

when  he  located  on  the  Washita. 
At  this  point  he  has  eight  hun- 
dred acres  under  cultivation, 
three  hundred  and  fifty  of  which 
he  attends  to  personally.  He 
also  holds  from  two  to  four  thou- 
sand head  of  graded  stock,  many 
of  which  he  fattens  and  ships  to 
Northern  markets. 

Mr.  Campbell's  wife  is  a  de- 
scendant of  the  house  of  Wild 
Cats.  She  has  seven  in  family 
— Adelaide,  Carrie,  Montford, 
Holmes,  Lawrence,  John  and 
Rose.  Mr.  Campbell  has  never 
mixed  in  politics  to  any  great 
extent. 


*- 


-* 


Kiowa  Papoose. 


5<- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TEIllllTORY. 


289 


-* 


FELIX  R.  PHILLIPS. 

This  popular  and  highly  es- 
teemed young  business  man  was 
born  at  Corinth,  Mississippi,  in 
1860,  and  educated  at  Mound 
City  Commercial  College,  St. 
Louis.    In  1877  he  came  to  Mc- 


F.   R.  PHILLIPS, 

Alester,  Choctaw  Nation,  where 
he  was  employed  by  his  uncle, 
J.  J.  Phillips,  as  clerk  in  his 
mercantile  establishment.  Re- 
maining about  twelve  months  at 
that  point,  he  moved  to  Atoka 
and  went  to  work  in  his  uncle's 
branch  house  in  the  same  capac- 
ity. After  three  years'  steady 
attention  to  business,  he  became 


*- 


a  partner  in  the  profits  of  the  es- 
tablishment, and  continued  .for 
five  years  in  that  position,  until 
18.82,  when  he  went  to  Lehio-h, 
and  in  conjunction  with  A.  N. 
Garland  and  his  uncle  became  a 
member  of  the  Atoka  Coal  Min- 
ing Company's  mercantile  house, 
which  has  the  sole  privilege,  in 
consideration  of  a  contract,  of 
providing  the  miners  with  mer- 
chandise, etc.,  etc.  The  "Com- 
pany Store,"  as  it  is  generally 
called,  carries  as  large,  if  not 
the  largest,  stock  of  goods  in 
Lehigh,  amounting  to  from  forty- 
eight  to  fifty  thousand  dollars. 

Mr.  Phillips  is  a  young  man 
of  unsurpassed  business  qualifi- 
cations, and  is  also  extremely 
popular,  M-ithout  which  no  man 
need  hope  to  succeed  in  business 
among  the  mining  fraternity, 
especially  where  the  competition 
is  so  warm. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  is  a 
nephew  of  J.  J.  Phillips,  recently 
of  Atoka,  and  T.  J.  Phillips,  of 
McAlester,  who  is  a  citizen  of 
the  Choctaw  Nation  by  marriage, 
and  has  a  large  stock  ranch  and 
many  farms  close  to  the  Canadian 
River. 

Mr  Phillips  has  become  verj' 
popular  and  has  numerous  friends 
and  acquaintances. 


■* 


*- 


->h 


290 


LEADKKS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


ALEXANDER  MCKINNEY. 

[CHEROKEE  AND  CHICKASAW.] 

The  deceased  subject  of  this 
sketch  was  born  in  Mississippi, 
May,  1830.  His  father  was  a 
white  man,  and  his  mother  a 
Clierokee,  who,  drifting  into  the 


*- 


ALEXANDER  M  KINNEY. 

Chickasaw  country  at  an  early 
age,  was  adopted  by  that  tribe. 
In  ISii  Alexander  moved  to 
the  present  Choctaw  Nation  and 
attended  the  neighborhood  school 
at  Boggy  Depot.  In  the  year 
1857  he  married  Miss  Mattie 
Collins,  of  Grayson  county, 
Texas,  and  originally  from  Ken- 
tucky. Miss  Mattie  was  a  bright, 
animated  and  adventurous  young 


woman,  fearlessly  following  her 
husband  whethersoever  he  went 
in  pursuits  of  game  or  adventure. 
After  settling  on  their  present 
home  two  miles  from  Stringtown, 
this  lady  was  alone  one  morning 
when  a  deer  trotted  up  to  the 
gate  in  front  of  the  house;  hither- 
to she  had  never  attempted  to 
discharge  a  gun,  but  her  eager- 
ness to  secure  the  animal  was 
such  that  she  risked  everything 
and  succeeded  in  killing  the  deer 
after  firing  the  first  barrel  pretty 
wide  of  the  mark.  During  the 
squally  years  of  the  revolution 
Mrs.  McKinney  more  than  once 
kept  the  invaders  from  entering 
her  premises,  and  on  one  occa- 
sion disarmed  a  drunken  Indian 
who  was  forcing  his  way  into  the 
house.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  McKin- 
ney had  but  one  child,  a  boy, 
who  died  early.  Their  love  for 
children  was  such  that  they  were 
constantly  adopting,  educating 
and  starting  them  in  life.  No 
less  than  sixteen  in  this  manner, 
at  various  periods  became  the  re- 
cipients of  their  parental  care. 
Four  children  of  the  late  Henry 
McKinney,  and  four  of  William 
McKinney's  family  were  thus 
brought  up. 

They  also  raised  a  niece  named 
Maggie  Pursley,  and  at  the  same 
time   an  orphan  boy  whom  they 


-* 


•i<- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TliKUIToKY. 


291 


-* 


uamecl  Ben.  At  the  ages  of  six- 
teen and  thirteen  years  this  young 
couple  married  and  are  now  liv- 
ing in  the  Chickasaw  Nation, 
where  they  have  an  extensive 
farm  under  cultivation  and  a 
good  stock  of  cattle.  The  above 
named  were  perhaps  theyoungest 


*- 


MKS.    ALEX.    M  KINNEY. 

couple  ever  married  in  the  Choc- 
taw Nation. 

The  deceased  subject  of  this 
sketch  was  a  most  popular  man, 
off-handed,  generous  and  strictly 
honorable.  Appreciating  the 
fact  that  he  had  no  offspring  to 
hoard  money  for,  he  spent  much 
of  his  means  in  educating,  cloth- 
ing and  feeding  the  destitute  chil- 


dren of  others,  so  that  when 
Alex.  McKinney  died  at  the  age 
of  lifty-three,  he  was  sincerely- 
regretted  abroad  and  at  home. 
At  the  time  of  his  death,  in  1S83, 
he  left  a  comfortable  home,  one 
thousand  head  of  cattle,  two 
hundred  and  lifty  head  of  horses 
and  mules,  and  about  three  hun- 
dred acres  of  excellent  farm  land. 
His  widow,  Mrs.  McKinney, 
still  resides  at  the  old  homestead 
and  is  not  the  less  remarkable 
for  hospitality,  benevolence  and 
love  of  children.  Indeed,  her 
doors  are  ever  open  to  those  in 
need  of  a  home  or  a  shelter. 
She  is  exceedingly  fond  of  fishing 
and  hunting,  and  their  being 
plenty  of  game  and  several  small 
hikes  well  stocked  with  fish  on  her 
property,  she  is  seldom,  if  ever, 
without  a  house  full  of  visitors, 
whom  it  is  her  greatest  pleasure 
to  entertain. 


J.WESLEY  PARKER. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  near 
Tishomingo  in  1850,  and  is  a 
full-blood  Chickasaw.  He  first 
entered  on  his  edncational career 
at  Shilo,  Lamar  county,  Texas; 
from  thence  he  went  to  Bonham, 
under  Professor  Harley,  com- 
pleting his  education  at  Drury 
College,  Springfield.  Mo.,  hebe- 


-^ 


*- 


292 


-* 


LKADERS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


ing  one  of  the  first  pupils  edu- 
cated at  that  institution.  On 
quitting  college  lie  devoted  his 
services  to  Dr.  W.  S.  Burks  in 
the  mercantile  business  at  Cad- 
do, and  afterward  to  J.  J.  Mc- 
Alester  in  the  town  of  the  same 
name.    Here  he  defended  thein- 


»it- 


terests  of  this  wealthy  man,  and 
during  a  crisis,  when  the  busi- 
ness establishment  was  on  the 
verge  of  being  sacrificed  to  in- 
cendiary, interposed  his  influence 
and  saved  the  building  with  its 
large  stock  of  goods.  The  man- 
ner in  which  he  was  requited 
for  this  action  caused  grievous 
disappointment    to    Mr   Parker. 


Shortly  after  this  occurrence  the 
young  njan  went  to  work  for  Mr. 
Goldshall,  of  Denison,  and  af- 
terward for  Messrs.  Sam  Starr  & 
Co.,  of  the  same  city,  by  which 
firm,  during  a  residence  of  over 
twelve  months,  he  was  treated 
with  the  greatest  consideration. 
During  the  four  years  which  fol- 
lowed he  traveled  on  the  various 
lines  of  railroad  for  R.  G.  Hall 
&  Son.,  SneiderBro's.  and  Chat- 
man,  Bridal  &  Co., Sherman,  his 
business  relations  with  these 
firms  being  most  satisfactory. 
In  1876  lie  came  to  Atoka,  Choc- 
taw Kation,  and  from  thence  to 
Perry  Froman's,  at  Mill  Creek, 
where  he  was  employed  in  the 
cattle  business.  But  it  was  not 
until  the  dawning  of  the  Guy  ad- 
ministration that  Wesley  Parker 
entered  the  political  arena  as  a 
candidate  for  the  legislature. 
Finding,  however,  that  one  of  his 
friends  wanted  the  office  he  re- 
signed his  nomination,  and  was 
soon  after  appointed  National  in- 
terpreter in  1886.  Atthe  general 
Council  of  the  five  tribes,  which 
met  the  same  year  at  Eufala, 
Mr.  Parker  was  delegated  to  in- 
terpret by  the  Chickasaws.  In 
1887  he  engaged  in  the  stock 
commission  business  at  Mill 
Creek,  where  he  is  now  head- 
quartered at  the  business  house 


-* 


*■ 


OF  THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY, 


293 


-« 


of  James  Davison.  From  the 
death  of  his  parents  at  an  early 
age,  Wesley  was  brought  up  by 
his  aunt,  Hettie  Frazier,  after- 
ward the  wife  of  the  great  gov- 
ernor, Cyrus  Harris,  both  of 
whom  treated  the  young  man 
with  the  care  and  affection  of  a 
son.  His  Aunt  Hettie  was  the 
widow  of  Jackson  Frazier,  prin- 
cipal chief,  a  man  honored  and 
beloved  by  his  people;  so  that 
John  Wesley  has  examples  be- 
fore him  that  should  inspire  the 
noblest  actions.  He  is  now  a 
candidate  for  representative  of 
Tishomingo  county,  and  a  man 
of  excellent  promise. 


*- 


MR.  AND  MRS.  A.RENNIE. 

[CHICKASAWS.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  at  Kingston,  Canada,  in 
October,  1828;  is  the  son  of 
Alex.  Rennie,  of  Aberdeen,  Scot- 
land, one  of  the  first  settlers  in 
Toronto,  Canada.  Mr.  Rennie 
came  to  Fort  Washita  i.n  1856, 
and  joined  the  Chickasaw  Bat- 
allion  as  adjutant  at  the  break- 
ing out  of  the  war.  Soon,  how- 
ever, he  was  relieved  from  duty 
to  serve  Governor  Harris  in  the 
capacity  of  National  secretary, 
which  post  he  occupied  for  four 
years,  at  the  expiration  of  which 


he  filled  the  office  of  National 
auditor  for  the  four  following 
years.  In  1882  he  went  to  Den- 
ison,  Texas,  where  he  purchased 
property  and  erected  some  fine 
buildings,  filling  the  offices  of 
school  superintendent  and  mem- 
ber of  the  city  council    between 


ALEXANDER  KENNIE. 

the  years  1882  and  '86.  Mr. 
Rennie  is  now  vice-president  of 
the  State  National  Bank,  the 
safest  institution  of  the  kind  in 
Texas,  while  his  taxable  proper- 
ty in  Denison  exceeds  seventy- 
five  thousand  dollars.  Add  to 
this  his  home  property  at  Wolf 
Springs,  the  house  and  improve- 
ments alone  which  cost  ten  thou- 


-* 


*- 


294 


-fb 


LEADERS   AND   LEADING   SIEX 


sand  dollars,  together  with  live 
stock,  and  Mr.  Kennie  will  show 
uj)  among  the  wealthiest  men  of 
the  Chickasaw  Kation.  During 
the  administration  of  Gov.  Wm. 
Gnj  he  vvas  appointed  Kational 
Treasurer,  but  transferred  liis 
responsibility    to   D.    O.   Fisher 


^- 


MES.    ALEXANDEK  KENNIE. 

when  the  Byrd  party  assumed 
the  reins  of  government.  Alex- 
ander Renuie  was  married  in 
1861  to  Mary  Humphrey,  daugh- 
ter of  Richard  Humphrey,  her 
mother's  maiden  name  being  Sal- 
lie  McClish,  who  was  also  mother 
of  the  late  Holmes  Colbert,  Na- 
tional Delegate  to  Washington. 
Mrs.  Rennie.  a  lady  of  refinement 
and  remarkable  spirit,  was  edu- 


cated at  Wapanucka  Academy 
and  Colbert's  Institute.  She 
spent  much  of  the  eai'ly  part  of 
her  life  with  her  mother  on  Cad- 
do Creek  until  her  marriage. 
Recently  a  rich  discovery  of 
asphaltura  has  been  made  upon 
her  property  in  that  vicinity, 
which  will  soon  be  in  a  fine  way 
of  development. 


JUDGE  J.  H.  FRANKLIN. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  in  Jar- 
uary,  1835,  in  Boyle  county. 
Kentucky,  close  to  Perryville, 
In  1858  he  married  Martha  A. 
Quick,  of  Laclede,  Missouri,  who 
died  in  August  of  the  following 
yeai\  In  1859  he  went  to  the 
United  States  Fair  at  St.  Louis 
and  purchased  a  large  stock  of 
jewelry,  which  he  sold  afterward 
at  a  large  profit  in  Sherman, 
Texas,  in  1860.  He  left  Sher- 
man with  W.  H.  Russell,  Major 
Timmons  and  Captain  Chapman 
to  inspect  the  land  that  was  sold 
in  behalf  of  Texas  in  the  Pan- 
handle country,  and  put  in  the 
season  with  the  Comanches  and 
Apaches,  who  at  that  time  were 
friendly.  Besides  Albuqurque, 
El  Paso  and  San  Antonio,  he 
wintered  at  Whitesboro,  and  in 
the  spring  of  1861  taught  school 
at  Denton.     He  joined  General 


-* 


s*- 


* 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


295 


-« 


Cooper's  command  at  Webber's 
Falls;  was  taken  sick,  and  got  a 
pass  to  Burnet  county;  after 
which  he  joined  Dorban's  Fron- 
tier Reserve.  He  married  An- 
nie Crawford  while  in  Burnet 
county,  and  moved  four  miles 
west  of  Denison  ;  then  moved  to 


-„^^^ 

Wk 

m  i^i^ 

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V 

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^I^^^^^^^^KE    iHQK| 

1 

1 

JUDGE  J.  H.  FRANKLIN. 

the  Coffee  farm,  near  Preston 
Bend,  where  he  buried  his  wife 
and  child  in  January,  1872.  In 
1873  he  married  Martha  A. 
Love,  widow  of  Frank  Love  and 
sister  of  Col.  Lem  Reynolds, 
leader  of  the  Chickasaw  Batal- 
lion. 

Mr.  Franklin   states  that  there 
had    never   been   any  trouble  at 


any  time  in  the  Chickasaw  Na- 
tion until  Governor  Overton  cre- 
ated it  by  raising  the  permit 
money  from  twenty-live  cents  to 
twenty-five  dollars.  In  1884  he 
was  elected  County  Judge,  but 
since  the  expiration  of  his  term 
has  not  been  a  candidate.  He 
has  about  two  hundred  and  fifty 
acres  under  cultivation  and  em- 
ploys about  twelve  work  hands 
annually. 

Throughout  his  life  Judge 
Franklin  has  been  a  great  sports- 
man, and  at  present  keeps  a  pack 
of  fox-hounds  and  a  complete 
equippage  of  the  chase.  In  1872 
he  entered  Masonry,  and  holds 
the  diploma  of  the  Palm  and 
Shell.  He  has  had  six  children, 
only  two  of  whom  are  living,  a 
son  and  daughter. 


JOHN  HENRY  KENNEY. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  in  May, 
1850,  the  son  of  Patrick Kenney, 
of  Philadelphia,  came  to  Atoka 
in  1870,  but  not  to  live  perman- 
ently until  1872,  when  he  settled 
in  Tishomingo  county,  devoting 
his  time  to  driving  stage  between 
Caddo  and  Mill  Creek.  This  he 
followed  for  four  years,,  after 
which  he  opened  a  farm  of  four 
hundred    acres  which    he    now 


-* 


^ 


-* 


296 


LEADERS   AND   LEADING   JIEN 


rents  out,  giving  labor  to  some 
ten  or  twelve  liiinds.  In  1876  he 
married  Minnie  S.  Harris,  daugh- 
ter of  Gov.  Cyrus  Hai-ris  by  his 
tirst  wife,  by  whom  he  has  eight 
children,  Maggie,  James,  Nan- 
nie, Mandy,  Levi,  Lillie,  Jesse 
and   Osceola,  the    oldest    being 


fourteen  years  of  age.  Mr. 
Kenney  has  never  dabbled  in 
politics.  In  the  earlier  portion  of 
his  life,  while  on  the  frontiers  of 
Texas  and  Colorado,  he  exper- 
ienced many  thrilling  adventures, 
some  of  which  are  well  worthy 
of  recording. 


*- 


HON.  HOLMES  COLBERT. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

Of  this  illustrious  law-maker, 
who  passed  away  on  March  24, 
1872,  there  has  been  so  much 
said,  so  many  conflicting  asser- 
tions concerning  his  actions  and 
the  motives  thereof,  that  we  shall 
avoid  further  criticism  of  the 
dead  by  simply  furnishing  a 
rough  outline  of  his  life.  Born 
in  1829  of  one  of  the  most  dis- 
tinguished families  among  the 
Chickasaws,  Holmes  had  from 
his  childhood  every  advantage 
that  wealth  and  refinement  could 
bestow.  At  the  age  of  twenty- 
three  he  passed  a  brilliant  exam- 
ination at  Union  College,  Sche- 
nectady, New  York,  in  the  gradu- 
ating class  of  1852,  and  three 
years  afterward,  in  1855,  draft- 
ed the  Chickasaw  Constitution, 
adopted  soon  afterward  by  his 
people — such  an  extraordinary 
feat  that,  if  we  consider  the  age 
of  the  young  man  and  his  lack 
of  legislative  experience,  the 
work  would  reflect  credit  on  the 
skill  and  wisdom  of  the  most 
matured  mind.  This  lasting  ser- 
vice on  the  part  of  Mr.  Colbert 
was  the  starting  point  in  a  life 
of  energy  and  usefulness,  his 
heart  being  centered  in  the  wel- 
fare ot  his  people  till  the  hour  of 


-* 


ib- 


OK   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


297 


-*< 


his  death.  When  the  summons 
came  he  was  at  Washington, 
whither  he  had  repaired  to  rep- 
resent his  people,  for  he  was  fre- 
quently chosen  to  act  as  Dele- 
gate when  important  issues  were 
at  stake.  His  remains  were  fol- 
lowed to  Glen  wood  Cemetery  by 
his  old  friends.  Col.  E.  C.  Bou- 
dinot,  Judge  Paschal,  Hon.  D. 
W.  Yoorhees,  Governor  Stone, 
of  Iowa,  and  others,  while  Dr. 
Byron  Sutherland  delivered  the 
funeral  oration.  The  force  and 
eloquence  of  this  oration  cannot 


^ 


HON.  HOLMES  COLBERT. 

easily  be  forgotten  by  those  who 
gathered  around  the  grave  of  the 


illustrious  author  of  the  Chicka- 
saw  Constitution,  and  who  was 


MRS.    COLBERT. 


forty- 


snatched     away    in    the 
third  year  of  his  age. 

Holmes  Colbert  was  a  noble, 
generous,  large-hearted  man,  be- 
loved by  all  who  knew  him.  His 
widow,  whose  portrait  is  here 
produced,  is  now  residing  at 
Purcell,  Indian  Territory.  She 
is  a  sister  of  the  Hon.  Sabe 
Love,  lately  delegated  to  Wash- 
ington by  the  National  party  to 
settle  the  question  of  disfran- 
chised citizens.  He  is  one  of 
the  two  men  who  guide  the  helm 
of  the  Full  Blood-party. 


-lit 


*b- 


-* 


298 


LKADEUS  AXD  LEADING  MEN 


DR.  H.F.  MURRAY. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

Dr.  Murray  is  the  son  of  the 
hite  Robert  Murray,  of  Franklin, 
Williamson  county,  Tenn.  He 
was  born  in  March,  1819;  came 
south  in  181:9;  was  married  at 
Clarksville,  Texas,  to  Margaret 


^- 


H.,  daughter  of  Lovett  M.James, 
a  Chickasaw,  after  which  he 
moved  to  Red  River  county, 
Choctaw  Nation,  from  thence  to 
Bloomtield,  Panola  county,  in 
1870,  and  from  thence  to  Colbert 
in  the  same  county  four  years  af- 
terw^ard,  where  he  now  resides. 
He  practiced  medicine  success- 
fully for  a  period  of  thirty  years, 


and  abandoned  the  profession  for 
that  of  law,  which  he  took  up  in 
1881.  In  1875  he  was  elected 
judge  of  Panola  county,  which 
office  he  held  for  five  years. 
Shortly  afterward  he  was  ap- 
pointed district  judge,  and  in 
1883  was  elected  district  attor- 
ney. In  1886  Dr.  Murray  was 
chosen  as  delegate  to  Washing- 
ton, where  in  company  with  Col- 
onel George  Harkins,  he  repre 
sented  his  constituency  in  the 
protest  against  district  courts, 
Territorial  form  of  government 
and  new  railroad  charters.  Of 
late  years  the  subject  of  this 
sketch  has  been  a  strong  factor 
in  politics,  invariably  regulating 
the  progressive  ticket  of  his  own 
county.  The  Doctor's  war  re- 
cord is  not  less  interesting  than 
his  political  career.  In  1846, 
when  the  Mexican  war  broke  out, 
he  was  appointed  Captain  in 
the  Second  Tennessee,  under 
Brigadier  General  Gideon  Ril- 
lar.  He  was  at  the  siege  of  Vera 
Cruz,  and  the  battle  of  Sera 
Gorda.  While  in  the  foremost 
ranks  of  the  last  victorious  en- 
gagement the  plucky  Captain 
was  struck  by  the  fragment  of  a 
shell,  which  carried  away  part 
of  his  ear,  and  wounded  him.  in 
the  head  so  as  to  render  him  in- 
sensible.    He  was   carried  on  a 


-* 


*- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


299 


* 


litter  to  Jalappa,  where  he  re- 
mained for  six  months,  after 
which  he  received  his  discharge 
in  June,  1847.  For  the  past 
twelve  months  he  has  been  draw- 
ing a  pension  from  the  United 
States  government. 

At  the  opening  of  the  revolu- 
tionary war  Dr.  Murray  was 
elected  Colonel  of  the  Militia  of 
Red  Kiver  county,  Texas,  but 
not  being  called  out,  was  made 
district  commissioner  of  the  same 
section  of  country,  to  provide 
for  the  wants  of  the  wives  and 
widows  of  the  soldiers  that  were 
in  active  campaign.  The  Doctor 
has  always  been  a  man  of  great 
energy  and  enterprise,  and  even 
now  in  his  seventy-first  year  is 
quite  as  sanguine  of  tempera- 
ment and  physically  active  as 
the  majority  of  men  at  forty-five 
or  fifty  years  of  age.  His  wife 
died  in  March,  1874.  By  lier 
he  had  eight  sons,  six  of  whom 
are  living,  viz:  James  Alfred, 
Robert  (sherifi'of  Panola  county) 
George,  Meiggs,  Colbert  and 
Hinton.  The  eldest  of  these  is 
tliirty-four  and  the  youngest 
seventeen  years  of  age. 


*- 


TIPTON  SHIRLEY  HARRIS. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  is  the 
youngest  son  of  the  late  govern- 


or Harris;  was  born  in  August, 
1869,  at  Mill  Creek,  and  was  ed- 
ucated at  the  Chickasaw  Male 
Academy.  His  earlier  years 
were  spent  in  looking  after  his 
father's  property,  until  1888, 
when  he  opened  a  farm  close  to 


TIPTON  SHIRLEY  HAKKIS. 

Buckhorn,  and  in  1889  married 
Birdie  Hele,  daughter  of  the  late 
W.  Hele,  superintendent  of  the 
National  Cemetary,  Louisville, 
Ky.  The  young  couple  are  re- 
siding: at  the  old  homestead,  at 
Mill  Creek,  where  Tipton  looks 
after  the  interests  of  his  widowed 
mother.  Mr.  Harris  lias  recent- 
ly entered  the  political  arena, 
being  a  candidate  for  National 
permit  collector.  He  intends  to 
apply  himself  to   the  law. 


-•i* 


-•$» 


Hf»0 


LEADERS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


JOHN  RENNIE. 

[CHICKASAAV.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  in  To- 
ronto, Canada,  in  1838.  He  at- 
tended public  school  till  1852, 
and  in  the  same  year  went  into 
the  dry  goods  business  with  his 
brother,  Alexander  Rennie.    Af- 


JOHN  RENNIE. 

ter  three  years  he  moved  to 
Hamilton,  Canada,  pursuing  the 
same  line  of  business  until  1861:, 
when  he  changed  his  location  to 
Stratford,  and  there  transacted 
a  good  business  until  1868. 
In  the  fall  of  that  year  he  moved 
to  the  Chickasaw  Nation  and  en- 
tered the  employment  of  his 
brother    Alexander,     who     had 


<^- 


married  a  citizen  of  that  coun- 
try. AVith  him  he  remained  un- 
til 1881,  when  be  opened  busi- 
ness on  his  own  account  at  Sa- 
vannah, Choctaw  Nation.  Here 
he  remained  until  the  great  ex- 
plosion in  1887,  when  the  entire 
raining  town  moved  to  Lehigh, 
and  he  among  the  rest.  He  also 
moved  his  capacious  building 
and  opened  out  tlie  largest  stock 
of  goods  at  that  time  exposed  for 
sale  in  the  Lehigh  camp.  Since 
then  he  has  been  doing  an  ex- 
tensive business  both  in  the  coun- 
try and  mining  trade,  carrying  a 
well-selected  stock  of  about  thir- 
teen thousand  dollars,  and  is  one 
of  the  most  popular  merchants 
of  the  county. 

Alexander  Rennie,  Sr.,  father 
of  the  subject  of  this  sketch,  was 
born  in  Aberdeenshire,  Scotland, 
coming  to  Canada  when  a  boy 
of  fifteen  years.  He  was  well 
known  in  after  life  throughout 
the  Dominion  as  a  man  of  ex«ten- 
sive  capital. 

John  Rennie  has  never  been 
married.  In  1861  he  was  initi- 
ated into  Masonry,  and  during 
that  year  received  the  first  seven 
degrees.  In  the  subordinate 
lodge  he  filled  all  the  offices  up 
to  that  of  Worshipful  Master;  in 
the  Royal  Arch  Chapter  all  up 
to  and  including  E  King.      On 


* 


•i*- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


301 


-^ 


moving  to  the  Indian  country 
lie  became  a  member  of  the  Ok- 
lahoma Lodge,  No.  4,  then  lo- 
cated at  Boggy  Depot,  but  since 
moved  to  Atoka.  In  1885  he 
withdrew  from  that  lodge,  and  is 
now  a  charter  member  of  No. 
20,  located  at  Lehigh.  In  1888 
he  became  Grand  Master. 

In  1876  Mr.  Rennie  joined 
the  Odd  Fellows,  Caddo  Lodge, 
No.  1,  and  became  a  charter 
member  of  Tishomingo  Lodge, 
No.  2,  in  which  he  filled  all  the 
offices,  including  that  of  Noble 
Grand.  He  is  now  a  member  of 
Thos.  Wiley  Lodge,  No.  6,  of 
Lehigh. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  is  a 
brother  of  Hon.  Alex.  Rennie, 
who  has  filled  nearly  every  im- 
portant office  in  the  Chickasaw 
Nation  except  Governor,  and 
who  is  looked  upon  as  one  of  the 
wealthiest  men  to  be  found  in  the 
Indian  Territory. 


-i<- 


JOHN  WILLIAM  BURKS. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  in  the 
month  of  May,  1858,  at  Gaines- 
ville, Texas,  and  is  the  son  of 
Dr.  W.  S.  Burks,  of  PauLs  Yal- 
ley.  He  was  educated  at  Bryan, 
Texas,  and  Paris,  Texas,  at  which 
places  he  remained  for  five  years. 


In  1881  he  married  Hannah 
Waite,  sister  of  Hon.  Fred.  T. 
Waite,  of  Paul's  Valley,  and 
moved  to  his  present  home  in  the 
valley  twelve  months  afterward. 
In  1886    he   was  elected  Repre- 


JOHN  W.   BURKS. 

sentative  of  Pickins  county,  and 
was  the  first  white  man  ever  ap- 
pointed by  the  Speaker  of  the 
House  to  escort  the  Governor  to 
his  inauguration.  In  1887  he 
held  the  post  of  Permit  Inspec- 
tor, and  was  Deputy  Collector 
the  year  following.  In  1888  he 
was  again  elected  to  the  House, 
but  like  other  white  citizens,  suf- 
fered disfranchisement  at  the 
hands  of  the  Byrd  party. 


5'- 


-* 


302 


LEADERS   AND    LEADING   ^NIEN 


Mr.  Burks  has  twelve  hundred 
acres  under  cultivation  and  gives 
work  to  some  forty  renters.  He 
has  recently  opened  a  law  office 
and  is  practicing  at  the  bar  of 
the  Chickasaw  courts. 

Mr.  Burks  has  five  children — 
Tuleika,  Vera,  Royden,  Willie 
and  Rowena,  the  oldest  eight 
years  and  the  youngest  eigiit 
months  old. 


FRANK  M.  FOX. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  near  Terre  Haute,  Indiana, 
and  educated  at  Weatherford  and 
Bryan,  Texas.  He  came  to  the 
Indian  Territory  in  1870,  and 
commenced  farming  in  the  vicin- 
ity of  Atoka.  Two  years  after- 
ward he  married  Miss  S.  G. 
Priddy,  daughter  of  Col.  James 
Priddy,  of  Stringtown,  and  went 
into  the  stock  business  at  Stone- 
wall; after  which  he  returned  to 
Atoka  and  embarked  in  the  mer- 
cantile line.  Moving  from  that 
point  after  twelve  months,  he  re- 
opened in  Caddo  and  remained 
there  for  ten  years.  Thence  he 
moved  to  Gainesville,  Texas,  and 
in  1887  settled  in  Purcell,  where 
he  now  resides. 

Mr.    Fox   has  seventeen   hun- 
dred acres  under  cultivation  close 


to  Ardmore,  and  gives  employ- 
ment to  forty  men.  He  is  one 
of  the  owners  and  procured  the 
charter  for  the  Ardmore  Coal 
Co.  mines,  which  cover  an  area 
of  four  thousand  acres  of  coal 
lands.    He  has  also  one  hundred 


-i-ra 

1 

m 

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* 

1 

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^ 

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--^ 

{  * 

Ik 

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m 

lu 

F.  M.  FOX. 

and  fifty  head  of  stock  cattle  and 
is  agent  for  two  large  tobacco 
factories — the  Robarts  factory, 
of  Henderson,  Ky.,  and  the 
Wellsville  factory,  of  Wellsville, 
Mo.  He  also  represents  the 
Wherry  Manufacturing  Co.,  of 
St.  Louis. 

Mr.  Fox  was  chairman  of  the 
National  Progressive  Conven- 
tion, held  at  Purcell  in  the  sum- 
mer of  1890. 


*- 


-* 


5<- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY, 


305 


-* 


GEORGE  A.  YARBOROUGH. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  is  the 
son  of  Jas.  J.  Yarborough,  of 
Alabama,  who  came  to  Panola 
county,  Chickasaw  Nation,  in 
1871,  and  died  three  years  after- 
ward on  what  is  now  called  the 


*- 


G.  A.  YARBOROUGH, 

Randolph  farm,  where  his  widow 
still  resides.  George  was  born 
in  Panola  county,  Texas,  in  Sep- 
tember, 1849,  where  he  went  to 
school,  his  education  being  com- 
pleted at  Alvarado,  Johnson 
county,  Texas.  In  October,  1872, 
he  married  Battle  S.  Love,  the 
daughter  of  Hon.  Samuel  Love, 
Supreme  Judge  of  the  Chicka- 
saw   Nation,    and     residing    in 


Panola  county,  Indian  Territory, 
since  1844. 

George  Yarborough  was  elect- 
ed to  the  Senate  in  1885,  and 
held  the  office  one  term.  In 
1886  he  was  appointed  Clerk  of 
the  Supreme  Court.  In  1889 
his  wife  died,  leaving  seven  chil- 
dren— Francis,  Emmet,  Ida  Vir- 
ginia, William  Henry,  Ella  Ger- 
trude, Minnie  May,  George  Au- 
gustus and  James  Hercules,  the 
oldest  being  seventeen  years  and 
the  youngest  one  and  a  half 
years. 

The  residence  at  present  occu- 
pied by  Mr.  Yarborough  is  situ- 
ated on  the  Double  Springs  and 
Tishomingo  road,  near  the  head 
of  Rock  Creek,  and  is  one  of  the 
finest  sites  for  a  ranch  in  the 
Nation.  He  has  a  number  of 
stock  cattle  and  one  hundred 
acres  under  cultivation. 

Mr.  Yarborough  is  a  strong 
member  of  the  pa'ogressive  party, 
and  would  favor  the  equal  allot- 
ment of  land  in  severalty. 


BOOKER  JAMES. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch,  now 
deceased,  was  born  in  Mississi]ipi 
in  1822,  and  emigrated  with  the 
rest  of  his  people  to  the  Chicka- 
saw Nation.  He  commenced 
his  career  as  a  farmer  and  stock- 


^ 


->i< 


306 


LEADKllS   AND    LEADING   3IEX 


raiser  close  to  Boggy  Depot,  and 
in  1858  moved  to  what  is  now 
known  as  the  Booker  James 
phice,  some  ten  miles  from  Le- 
high. He  married  in  1857,  the 
issue   of    this   union    beins:    five 


^- 


children.  three  of  whom  are  liv- 
ing—  Walton,  Margaret,  now 
Mrs.  Allen,  and  Alice. 

Mr.  James  was  a  wealthy  and 
influential  Chickasaw,  although 
he  kept  aloof  from  public  life  as 
much  as  he  could,  being  wholly 
devoted  to  stock-raising  and  ag- 
riculture. As  good  men  were 
scarce,  however,  his  people  elect- 
ed him  three  or  four  times  as 
Representative    of    his    county. 


which  office  he  filled   with  credit 
and  honor. 

Upright,  liberal  and  benevo- 
lent, Mr.  James  was  greatly  es- 
teemed by  the  white  race,  as 
well  as  his  own  people,  and  his 
death  caused  universal  sorrow 
throughout  both  nations.  He 
departed  this  life  February  7. 
1890,  leaving  behind  him  a  rec- 
ord that  his  children  should  never 
cease  to  be  proud  of. 


WM.  X.  PRICE, 

[CHICKASAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  in 
Henry  county,  Tennessee,  and 
came  to  Tishomingo  the  year 
succeeding  the  war,  after  having 
served  in  Walker's  Division, 
Eleventh  Texas  infantry. 

Mr.  Price,  now  one  of  the 
most  extensive  and  most  practical 
farmers  in  the  Indian  Territory, 
commenced  his  career  by  freight- 
ing from  Tishomingo  and  Boggy 
Depot  to  Fort  Smith.  In  1872 
he  married,  and  the  following 
year  purchased  a  small  holding 
on  the  now  celebrated  "Sor- 
ghum Flat,"  the  most  fertile  as 
well  as  the  most  picturesque  val- 
ley in  the  Chickasaw  country, 
and  which  contains  a  basin  of 
cultivated  land  comprising  one 
thousand  acres,  through  which 
the   Gulf,   Colorado  &  Santa  Fe 


-* 


^- 


OF   THE   INDIAN  TERRITORY. 


307 


-* 


railroad  shapes  its  course.  The 
valley  is  enclosed  by  the  lofty 
Arbuckle  range,  a  semi-circle  of 


W.  N.  PRICE. 

green-clad  summits,  belted  with 
dense  timbers,  whose  dark  foli- 
age forms  a  splendid  contrast  to 
the  lighter  verdure  above  and 
the  swaying  yellow  corn  in  the 
vale  beneath.  Mr.  Price  has 
nearly  fourteen  hundred  acres 
under  cultivation,  besides  a  gin 
and  supply  store,  which,  together 
with  a  United  States  postoffice, 
are  situated  close  to  the  railroad 
on  his  property.  He  was  mar- 
ried to  Tobothia  Humes  in  1886, 
and  has  two  sons,  Nelson,  aged 
seventeen  years,  and  Ellis,  eight 
years. 


MRS.  EULA  MYERS. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  is  the 
daughter  of  Hon.  Holmes  Col- 
bert, one  of  the  leading  Chicka- 
saws,  and  Elizabeth  Lare,  whose 
family  is  also  highly  distin- 
guished. Miss  Eula  was  born  in 
July,  1869,  in  Panola  county, 
and  was  educated  at  Bloomfield 
Academy,  Chickasaw  Nation. 
She  married  J.  F.  Myers  April 
1-1,  1887,  and  is  now  living  with 


MRS.    EULA   MYERS. 

her  husband,  a  leading  business 
man.  She  is  pretty,  vivacious 
and  intelligent,  possessing  many 
accomplishments  and  social  vir- 
tues. Her  portrait  as  above  is 
taken  in  native-  Indian  costume. 


-* 


* 


-* 


808 


LEADERS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


HON.  T,  A.  MCCLURE. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

This  highly  es-teemed  representa- 
tive of  his  race  was  born  in  Mis- 


TECUMSEH  A.  M  CLTJEE. 

sissippi  about  the  year  1830,  be- 
ing of  the  house  of  Mo-suck-cha. 
He  emigrated  with  the  lirst  group 
that  left  the  old  State.  His 
mother  being  left  a  widow,  mar- 
ried Smith  Paul  soon  after  their 
settlement  on  Blue  Creek  (Smith 
Paul  is  the  only  white  man  now 
living  who  emigrated  with  the 
Chickasaws).  Tecumseh  was 
therefore  taken  in  charge  by  his 
step-father  and  placed  at  school 
at  Boggy  Depot,  boarding  the 
while  at  the  residence  of  Colonel 


Guy.  Later  he  was  transferred 
to  the  school  at  Post  Oak  Grove, 
now  known  by  the  name  of  Em- 
met. In  1862  he  married  Mary, 
daughter  of  Aho-che-tubbe,  of 
the  house  of  Metapo.  Her  moth- 
er's name  was  Suth-a-hacha  and 
her  grandfather  was  Captain 
Ala-pam-bay. 

In  1865,  after  having  spent 
the  years  of  the  war  in  the  Sax 
and  Fox  country,  Mr.  McClure 
and  his  family  settled  in  Paul's 
Yalley  close  to  Smith  Paul,  who 
had  been  there  since  1859.  In 
those  days  game  was  very  plen- 


*- 


MRS.  M  CLUEE. 

tiful,  and  Tecumseh  being  a 
great  hunter,  killed  numbers  of 
deer,  antelope  and  buffalo.     But 


-* 


^- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


309 


-* 


civilization  has  wrought  a  vast 
change,  and  the  hunting  ground 
is  now  metamorphosed  into  a 
field  of  corn  and  cotton,  of  which 
the  subject  of  our  sketch  owns  at 
least  one  thousand  acres  and 
pays  permits  for  about  thirty 
hands. 

In  recollection  of  the  olden 
days  Mr.  McClure  is  about  build- 
ing a  deer  park,  and  has  already 
commenced  collecting  a  small 
stock  of  those  animals. 

The  subject  of  our  sketch  has 
never  voted  but  three  times,  hav- 
ing kept  out  of  politics  till  1886, 
when  he  was  elected  to  the  Sen- 
ate and  became  its  President  the 
first  year.  In  1890  he  was  called 
upon  to  be  a  candidate  for  Gov- 
ernor, but  refused  the  nomina- 
tion. 

Mr.  McClure  has  six  children, 
all  of  whom  are  well  educated. 
They  are  named  Janeson,  Se- 
lina,  Melinda,  Im<m,  Edward 
and  Abbie,  the  oldest  being 
twenty-six  and  the  youngest  ten. 

Tecum  sell  McClure  is  beloved 
and  respected  by  all — his  record 
is  without  a  blur  or  blemish. 


*- 


WILLIS  B.  LOWRANCE. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

This   gentleman    was    born    in 
August,     1830,     the    son    John 


Lowrance,  of  Rowan  county, 
North  Carolina.  The  subject 
of  this  sketch  spent  many 
years  of  his  earlier  manhood  in 
Tarrant  county,  Texas,  where  at 
the  conclusion  of  the  war,  being 
opposed  to  secession,  he  was  ap- 


pointed district  clerk,  justice  of 
the  peace  and  treasurer  of  the 
board  of  public  schools.  In  1876 
he  came  to  the  Indian  Territory, 
•and  one  yeai  afterward  pur- 
chased the  Boiling  Springs  place 
from  James  Harris  Guy.  The 
springs  are  located  close  to 
Buckhorn  Creek,  and  the  location 
is  one  of  the  best  in  the  Nation, 
being  remarkably  healthy,  while 
the  soil  is  most  productive.     Mr. 


-* 


•i<- 


-* 


310 


LEADERS   AND    LEADING   JIEX 


Lowraiice  has  five  hundred  acres 
under  cultivation. 

In  1863  he  married  Adelaide 
Lowrance,  and  in  1877  became 
a  citizen  by  marrying  Mary, 
daughter  of  Peter  Fletcher,  a 
half-breed  Chickasaw,  by  wliom 
he  has  three  children,  viz:  Rob- 
ert Haines,  aged  twelve  years, 
Oscar  and  Bertie.  At  the  age  of 
fourteen  Mr.  Lowrance  joined 
the  Cumberland  Presbyterians, 
but  has  since  become  a  worker 
in  the  Methodist  church;  is  su- 
perintendent of  Sabbath  Schools 
(there  being  a  membership  of 
fifty  at  the  Boiling  Springs)  and 
is  ever  zealous  in  the  service  of 
Christ.  Since  his  arrival  in  this 
country  Mr.  Lowrance  says  that 
the  falling-ofi"  in  the  full-blood 
population    is  almost  incredible. 


*- 


JOSEPH  M.FRANKLIN. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  at  Milam,  Mo. ,  in  Decem- 
ber, 1854.  Joseph  was  the  son 
of  Edmond  Franklin,  one  of  the 
earliest  settlers  of  Missouri,  and 
who  came  to  that  country  with  a 
little  colony  from  Kentucky. 
Early  in  1865  Joseph  emigrated 
to  Burnett  county,  Texas,  and 
in  1874  to  Panola  county,  In- 
dian Territory,  where  in  the  year 
following     he    married     Tinnie 


Colbert,  daughter  of  Sam  Col- 
bert, and  by  this  union  became 
a  citizen  of  the  Chickasaw  Na- 
tion. After  marriage  Mr.  Frank- 
lin started  farming  in  Pickins 
county,  close  to  Berwyn,  which 
place  he  parted  with  on  the  death 


HON,    JOSEPH  M.   FRANKLIN. 

of  his  wife  in  1877.  Moving  to 
Panola  he  soon  located  at  Pleas- 
ant A^ alley,  where  he  now  re- 
sides. In  1880  he  married 
Eliza  R.  Shelton,  daughter  of  J. 
J.  Shelton  (one  of  the  earliest  of 
Texas  pioneers)  and  in  1884  was 
elected  member  of  the  House  of 
Representatives,  where  he  served 
honorably  and  intelligently  for 
three  terms  and  was  again  re- 
elected in  1889.      On  this    occa- 


-* 


*- 


OK   THE   INDIAX   TERRITORY. 


311 


* 


sion,  however,  he  served  but 
eleven  days,  until  he  was  expelled 
from  the  House  as  a  disfran- 
chised citizen.  In  1889  Mr. 
Franklin  was  a  candidate  for  at- 
torney general,  and  received  the 
popular  vote,  but  was  counted 
out  by  the  opposite  faction,  and 
his  place  filled  by  Ben  Kemp. 
On  July  21  last,  at  the  pro- 
gressive convention  held  at  Tis- 
homingo, Joseph  Franklin  was 
once  more  nominated  as  attor- 
ney general,  and  it  may  be  added 
that  no  man  in  the  Nation  is  bet- 
ter adopted  to  this  responsible 
ofhce  than  the  present  nominee 
of  the  progressive  party. 


*- 


GEORGE  H.TRUAX.M.  D. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

This  gentleman  is  the  son  of  Dr. 
J.  B.  Truax,  who  was  surgeon  in 
the  British  army  in  the  Crimean 
war.  George  was  born  in  March, 
1855,  at  Whitley,  Ontario,  Can- 
ada, and  educated  at  McManus 
University.  He  graduated  in 
medicine  in  1875  at  Cincinnati 
in  Florida  University;  practiced 
in  Minnesota,  Arkansas,  Texas 
the  Indian  Territory,  and  came 
to  Stringtown,  Indian  Territory, 
in  1879.  After  the  death  of  his 
first  wife.  Dr.  Truax  married 
Mary  C.  Colbert,  daughter  of 
George  W.   Colbert,   of  Nelson; 


after  which  he  moved  to  Stone- 
wall and  devoted  some  of  his 
time  to  farming  and  stock-raising. 
The  Doctor  has  five  hundred 
and  fifty  acres  of  land  under 
fence,  and  gives  work  to  four 
hands    annually.     He     has     re- 


G.  H.  TRUAX,  M.  D. 

cently  opened  a  large  drug  store 
in  Stonewall,  where  he  now 
keeps  the  U.  S.  postoflice.  He 
has  three  children,  one  by  his 
first  wife,  named  Maggie  A., 
aged  eight  years,  and  by  his  sec- 
ond wife,  Arthur  Cleveland,  aged 
three  years,  and  Pearl, one  year. 
Dr.  Truax  has  the  chief  prac- 
tice in  the  Stonewall  district, 
which  he  attends  to  with   unflagr- 


gmg  energy. 


-^ 


*- 


812 


-* 


LEADERS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


MAZEPPA  TURNER. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  JVlaj  8,  IS-iO,  in  Greens- 
ville county,  Virginia,  and  came 
of  Scotch  origin.  He  was  edu- 
cated in  De  Sota  county,  Missis- 
sippi, and  came  to  the  Choctaw 
Nation,  settling  close  to  String- 
town  in  1870.  While  in  Shelby 
county,  Tennessee,  ten  years  pre- 
viously, he  had  married  Laura 
J.  Johnson,  whose  mother  was  a 
Chickasaw,  and  whose  brother, 
up  until  his  death  a  few  years 
ago,  was  a  member  of  the  Chick- 


MAZEPPA  TURNER. 

asaw  Cabinet,  and  always  a  lead- 
ing citizen. 

Mr.     Turner    moved    to    the 


Washita  country  in  1878,  since 
which  time  he  has  been  diligent- 
ly increasing  his  landed    rights 


^ 


MRS.  MAZEPPA  TURNER. 

until  he  can  now  boast  of  pos- 
sessing at  least  seven  hundred 
acres  of  first  class  soil  under 
good  cultivation.  He  pays  an- 
nual permit  for  twenty-five  rent- 
ers. Besides  this  he  owns  some 
seventy-five  head  of  horses  and 
cattle,  and  has  at  least  threehun- 
dred  hogs.  Mr.  Turner  has  al- 
ways avoided  politics,  though  he 
never  failed  to  support  the  prin- 
ciples of  administration  laid 
down  by  Governor  Cyrus  Harris, 
whom  he  looks  upon  with  good 
reason  as  the  greatest  man  and 
the  best  ruler  that  ever  governed 


-•i 


*- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


313 


-* 


the  Cliickasaws.  During  the  war 
the  subject  of  this  sketch  served 
in  the  Second  Tennessee  Cavah-y, 
under  General  Forrest,  and 
fought  at  Shilo,  Chickamauga, 
Sehna  and  numerous  other  en- 
gagements, being  twice  slightly 
wounded. 

In  1889  he  joined  the  Masonic 
order,  Dougherty  Lodge,  and  is 
now  Pilgrim  Chief  of  the  Orien- 
tal Order  of  the  Palm  and  Shell. 
He  is  a  good  christian,  and  a  de- 
vout student  of  nature. 

Mrs.  Turner,  whose  portrait 
is  here  produced,  belongs  to  one 
of  the  leading  families  of  the 
Nation,  being  a  cousin  of  the 
late  Holmes  Colbert  and  niece 
of  Frazier  McLish. 


*- 


JAMES  M.  HARRIS. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  is  the 
second  surviving  son  of  the  late 
and  much  lamented  Cyrus  Har- 
ris, first  governor  of  the  Chicka- 
saw Nation.  When  quite  a  boy, 
James  went  to  school  at  Boggy 
Depot,  and  from  thence  to  Prof. 
O.  P.  Starks,  of  Paris,  where  he 
remained  but  one  session,  after 
which  he  was  sent  to  the  Chick- 
asaw Male  Academy  (then  under 
the  charge  of  Professor  Harley) 
for  six  years,  where  his  educa- 
tion was  completed.     In  1882  he 


was  appointed  Supreme  Clerk 
under  Judge  Samuel  Love,  and 
in  1884  became  permit  collector 
during  the  Wolf  administration. 
In  1886  he  was  appointed  Na- 
tional Auditor  by  Gov.  William 


JAMES  M.    HARRIS. 

Guy,  which    office  he  held    with 
credit  until  its  expiration. 

He  married  Tennie  Brown, 
daughter  of  Governor  Brown,  in 
1884,  and  resided  with  his  father 
for  over  a  year.  His  residence 
is  now  at  Mill  Creek,  while  he 
owns  a  fine  farm  at  Buckhorn, 
but  spends  the  greater  portion 
of  his  time  attending  to  stock. 
Mr.  Harris  is  gifted  with  refined 
tastes,  and  like  his  father,  a  nat- 
ural musician. 


-* 


.SI  4 


l-EADEUS    AND    LEADING    :M EN- 


WILLIAM    HULL. 
[CHICKASAW.] 

This  gentleman  was  born  in 
Liverpool,  England,  in  1S44, 
came  to  Fort  Sill,  Indian  Terri- 
tory, in  18(50,  where  he  was  soon 
])lac'ed  in  charge  of  the  Indian 
Agency  Work  Shops,  and  retain- 
ed the  position  of  govern- 
ment blacksmith  until  1873. 
Three  years  afterward  Kr.  Hull 
obtained  a  right  in  the  Chickasaw 
Nation,  through  his  marriage 
with  Tippie  Paul,  daughter  of 
Smith  Paul,  the  wealthiest  and 
most  influential  of  his  people  at 
that  period.      Mrs.   Hull,  whose 


*- 


MRS.    WILLIAM  HULL. 

portrait  is  here  given,  when  quite 
a  girl,  was  more  than  once  forced 


to  fly  from  Paul's  Valley  with 
her  parents  to  seek  shelter  at 
PV>rt  Arbuckle,  from  the    Chev- 


WILLIAM  HULL. 

ennes  and  Kiowas.  In  those  days 
many  white  men  were  killed  by 
the  hostiles,  and  the  massacre  of 
nearly  three  fourths  of  the  Ton- 
kaway  Nation,  not  far  distant 
from  the  Valley,  by  the  Indians, 
is  fresh  in  the  memories  of  sev- 
eral of  the  Paul  family.  Mr. 
Hull,  since  his  marriage,  has  de 
voted  himself  almost  wholly  to 
farming,  and  has  now  thirteen 
hundred  acres  of  good  land  under 
cultivation,  upon  which  he  has 
ten  families  located.  He  is  an 
energetic  farmer  and  takes  pride 


-* 


*- 


OF   THE   INDIAN  TERRITORY. 


li) 


315 


in     having    one    of    the    finest 
orchards  in  the  Nation. 

Mrs.  Hull  is  a  descendant  from 
the  house  of  Im-mo-suck-cha,  her 
mother's  name  being  Allata- 
teche.  With  a  view  to  perfect- 
ing the  education  of  her  eldest 
daughter,  Tamsey,  Mrs.  Hull 
sent  her  to  England,  where  she 
remained  five  years  at  a  Liver- 
pool seminary,  and  there  acquir- 
ed a  thorough  knowledge  of  sev- 
eral of  the  arts  and  sciences. 
Miss  Tamsey  Hull  is  the  only 
young  lady  among  the  Chicka- 
saws  who  has  been  educated  in 
the  old  continent. 


qi- 


EDWARD  COLLINS. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  Caldwell  county,  Ken- 
tucky, in  1849,  and  came  to 
Panola  county,  Chickasaw  Na- 
tion, in  1854.  He  went  to  school 
in  Grayson  county,  Texas,  and 
after  the  death  of  his  father,  in 
1866,  he  entered  the  employment 
of  Dr.  Burks,  tending  the  stock 
at  his  ranch  on  Glass'  Creek. 
Afterward  he  lent  his  services  to 
Captain  Watkins  in  the  same  ca- 
pacity for  two  years,  and  in  1874 
married  Elsie  McKinney,  niece 
of  Mrs.  Alex.  McKinney,  of 
Stringtown.     In  1879  he  moved 


to  his  present  farin,  near  Fort 
Washita,  where  he  has  two  hun- 
dred acres  of  good  land  under 
cultivation. 

During  Guy's  administration 
(1886  to  1888)  he  served  as 
member  of  the  House  of  Repre- 


EDWAED  COLLINS. 

sentatives,  but  is  averse  to  push- 
ing himself  forward  for  political 
aggrandisement.  He  has  five 
children  —  Mattie,  Louisiana, 
Tom,  Charlie  and  Edward,  the 
oldest  being  eleven  years  of  age, 
a  young  girl  of  great  promise. 

Mr.  Collins  had  three  broth- 
ers, all  of  whom  were  citizens  of 
the  Nation,  but  John  was  unfor- 
tunately accidentally  shot  two 
years  ago. 


-^ 


31(1 


LEADKKS   AND    l.EADIXG    MEN 


TANDY  C.  WALKER. 

[CHICKASAW   AND  CHOCTAW.] 

This  gcntleiiuin  was  born  in  July, 
1840,  in  Sans  Bois  county,  and 
is  a  son  of  Louis  Walker,  a  Choc- 
taw, and  Mary  Cheadle,  a  half- 
breed  Chickasaw.  He  was  edu- 
cated at  Skullyville,  and  moved 
to  South  Canadian  in  1858.  At 
the  opening  of  the  war  he  joined 
Colonel  Carroll's  regiment  in 
Arkansas  and  fought  at  Wilson's 
Creek  and  other  engagements; 
after  which  he  acted  as  a  scout 
for  Colonel  Cooper.  In  1863 
he  was  elected  Captain  and  Pro- 
vost   Marshal  for  General  Hine- 


*- 


TANDY  C.  WALKER. 


man,  and    toward    the    close    of 
the  war  fell  back  among  the  ref- 


ugees on  Red  River.  In  1^05 
he  married  Isabella  Cochran,  the 
daughter  of  Robert  L.  Cochran, 


was  delegated  to  the  Treaty  of 
Amnesty  at  Fort  Smith.  While 
at  Canadian  in  1874  he  was 
elected  Sheriff  to  fill  an  unex- 
pired term.  In  1877  he  was 
elected  Representative  of  his 
county  in  the  Choctaw  Council, 
and  shortly  afterward,  in  com- 
pany with  Robert  Reams,  J.  J. 
McAlester,  Bill  Pursley  and  oth- 
ers, got  into  trouble  with  Gov- 
ernor Cole,  but  finally  carried 
Esq.;  after  which,  in  company 
with  Sabe  Love  and  others,  he 
the  point  at  issue.  In  1879, 
owing   to    a    personal    difficulty 


-* 


*- 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


317 


-* 


with  John  Morrison,  which  end- 
ed in  a  tragedy,  Tandy  left  Ca- 
nadian and  settled  close  to  Stone- 
wall, where  in  1881  he  was  ap- 
pointed Captain  of  Militia  by 
Governor  Overton.  In  1886  he 
was  elected  to  the  Chickasaw 
Senate,  and  after  the  expiration 
of  his  terra  acted  as  National 
Permit  Collector  till  1890. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
a  strong  supporter  of  Gov.  Wm. 
Byrd  till  his  party  disfranchised 
the  white  man,  after  which,  not 
seeing  his  way  clearly  to  the 
final  result  of  this  action,  he  rose 
boldly  and  walked  out  of  the 
ring.  Whether  he  was  right  or 
wrong  remains  to  be  proven. 

Mr.  Walker  has  a  fine  farm 
and  a  large  stock  of  cattle.  His 
family  is  nine  in  number — Rob- 
ert, Theodore,  Annie,  Jack,  Cen- 
tennial, Cornelius,  Ida,  Grover 
and  Minnie. 


►i- 


J.  H.  EASTON. 

[CHICKASAW.] 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  Albemarle,  Virginia, 
and  came  to  the  Chickasaw  Na- 
tion in  I860.  At  the  opening  of 
the  war  he  was  elected  Captain 
of  Company  H,  Chickasaw  cav- 
alry, under  Col.  Lem  Reynolds, 
and  was  in  action  at  Elkhorn, 
Newton i a,  Mazzard  Praire,  Bird 
Creek    and    Round  Mound,  dis- 


banding his  company  at  Fort 
Washita  in  1865.  In  1867  he 
married  Margaret  Taylor,  a 
widow,  by  whom  he  has  four 
children — Josephine,  Gracie, 
Henry  and  Franklin,  the  oldest 
being  eighteen  and  the  youngest 


J.  H.  EASTON, 

ten  years  of  age.  In  1887  he 
moved  from  Tishomingo,  where 
he  had  been  doing  business,  to 
his  present  home  at  Emmet.  He 
is  now  engaged  in  a  small  mer- 
cantile business,  and  has  besides 
some  fifty  acres  of  land  under 
cultivation. 

Mr.  Easton  has  never  run  for 
office  nor  interfered  in  politics  in 
the  slightest  degree,  and  though 
he  has  been  a  juror  for  many 
years,  he  has  never  been  a  witness. 


-* 


318 


I.EADEUS   AND    LEADING   MEN 


C.  E.GOODING. 

[CHICKASAW,] 

The  subject  ot  this  sketch  was 
the  only  son  of  Lem  Goodinoj, 
of  Portland,  Maine,  whose  latter 
years  wore  spent  in  the  capacity 
of  Ijulian  Trader  at  Doaksville, 
Choctaw  Nation,  and  afterward 


* 


C.  E.  GOODING. 

at  old  Fort  Washita,  Chickasaw 
Kation.  He  was  born  in  1833 
and  came  to  the  Territory  when 
only  twelve  years  old.  At  an 
early  age  the  enterprising  young 
man  commenced  trading  on  his 
own  account,  and  in  February, 
lb58,  married  Mrs.  M.  T.  Fra- 
zier,  daughter  of  James  Allen,  of 
Tockpulla,  Mississippi.  Soon  af- 
terward he  opened  a  large  farm 


at  Sivell's  Bend,  where  he  hired 
a  number  of  negroes.  On  the 
termination  of  the  war  he  estab- 
lished a  trading  post,  or  business 
house,  at  carriage  Point,  but  soon 
afterward  moved  to  Panola  coun- 
ty, wherein  18G5  he  was  elected 
County  Judge;  the  following 
term  Clerk  of  the  Supreme  Court; 
and  later  on,  during  the  adminis- 
tration of  Governor  Overton,  he 
was  called  to  the  Cabinet,  where 
he  occupied  the  position  of  Na- 
tional Secretary.  During  the 
Burney  administration  he  again 
came  to  the  front,  this  time  as 
National  Treasurer,  and  at  the 
expiration  of  his  term  bade  fare- 
well to  politics.  In  1867  he  be- 
came a  Free  Mason,  and  at  the 
time  of  his  death  was  Past  Grand 
Master  and  had  taken  every  de- 
gree but  the  thirty-third.  In 
1880  he  began  studying  for  the 
ministry,  and  in  1884  was  or- 
dained in  the  Methodist  church. 
He  died  in  June,  1888,  after  a 
lingering  illness  which  baffled  all 
medical  skill. 

Mr.  Gooding  was  beloved  by 
all  and  respected  by  everybody, 
and  his  influence  was  wide- 
spread. He  left  four  children  — 
Frank,  aged  thirty;  Mollie  God- 
frey, aged  twenty-eight;  Emma 
Watkins,  aged  twenty,  and  Lem- 
uel, aged  seventeen. 


-* 


^- 


-* 


THE  WILD  TRIBES  OF  THE  SOUTH  WEST. 


SOME  LEADING  MEN  AND  WOMEN  OF  THE 

KIOWA,  COMANCHE,  WICHITA,  CADDO 

AND  THE  OTOE  TKIBES. 


*- 


GRANNY  HOUSTON. 
The  portrait  given  on  page  63  is 
taken  from  a  photograph  of 
Granny  Houston,  the  squaw  of 
Gen.  Sam  Houston.  She  is  now 
with  the  Kiowa  Indians  near 
Anadarko,  and  claims  to  belong 
to  that  race,  though  this  is  hardly 
probable,  from  the  fact  that  Gen. 
Houston  became  associated  with 
her  in  the  vicinity  of  the  Canadian 
river  in  the  eastern  portion  of 
the  Choctaw  Nation,  while  the 
Kiowas  at  that  period  w^ere  in- 
habiting Southern  Colorado, New- 
Mexico  and  Western  Texas,  and 
not  at  all  disposed  to  intermar- 
riage or  cohabitation  with  white 
men  settled  so  far  east  of  their 
hunting  grounds. 

Granny  Houston  is  probably  a 
Cherokee  from  her  own  evidence 
and  that  of  some  of  the  an- 
cient aborigines  of  the  western 
reservations,  she  was  born  about 


the  year  1781,  which  makes  her 
109  years  of  age,  at  least  eight 
years  older  than  Aunt  Sally  Al- 
berson,  of  Colbert,  Chickasaw 
Nation.  Granny  Houston  states 
that  she  lived  with  the  great 
Texas  patriot  both  on  the  Cana- 
dian and  close  to  Caddo,  now  on 
the  M.,  K.  &  T.  Kailroad,  and 
that  he  was  a  kind  and  gentle 
husband,  and  a  good  hunter,  al- 
ways keeping  the  wigwam  well 
supplied  with  game  and  fish.  She 
is  in  good  health,  able  to  converse 
when  she  will,  and  is  much  es- 
teemed by  the  Wichitas  and  other 
wild  tribes. 


QUANAH  PARKER. 

[COMANCHE  CHIEF.] 

The  portrait  cut  of  Quanah  Park- 
er, given  on  page  95,  taken 
from  a  photograph  by  Wm.  L. 
Sawyers,  is  admirably  true  to 
life.     Quanah    is   the    son  of   a 


-* 


* 


-* 


LEADERS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


Comanche  chiefjiis  mother  being 
u  captive  white  woman  named 
Parker,  carried  by  the  Indians 
from  the  Texas  county  which  now 
hears  her  name. 

Though  the  subject  of  this 
sketch  is  dark  in  complexion,  yet 
it  will  be  observed  by  his  portrait 
that  he  possesses  the  retrousse 
nose,  that  is  seldom  if  ever  met 
with  among  the  aborigines,  thus 
proclaiming  him  to  be  the  pos- 
sessor of  a  certain  portion  of 
white  blood.  Qnanah,  within 
the  past  tw^elve  or  fifteen  years, 
has  been  on  peaceable  terms  with 
the  government,  and  is  now  a 
wealthy  Indian.  In  1877hewas 
sent  out  by  tlie  United  States  of- 
ficials to  bring  in  the  hostiles 
from  Western  Texas,  which  coun- 
try they  had  been  devastating  for 
several  years.  Buffalo  hunters 
were  then  numerous  on  the  bor- 
der, and  to  these  he  exhibited 
a  letter  from  the  post  commander 
at  Fort  Sill  representing  his  mis- 
sion, and  requesting  them  to 
treat  him  with  courtesy.  Armed 
with  these  credentials,  he  suc- 
ceeded in  bringing  in  the  hostiles, 
not,  however,  until  they  had  suc- 
ceeded in  capturing  and  driving 
out  of  Western  Texas  every  re- 
spectable piece  of  horseflesh 
witliin  their  observation.  Mr. 
Parker  is  now  a  wealthy  and  high- 


ly respected  citizen,  his  influence 
extending  to  no  less  than  five 
living  wives,  distributed  among 
his  various  "tepees"  throughout 
the  reservation.  The  town  of 
Quanah  in  North  Western  Texas 
takes  its  name  from  the  subject 
of  this  sketch. 


COMANCHE  MEDICINE  MAN. 
The  Indian  name  of  this  great 
medicine  man,  whose  portrait 
will  be  found  on  page  271,  has 
escaped  the  memory  of  the  com- 
piler. He  is,  however,  a  great 
official  in  his  tribe,  being  endow- 
ed, they  believe,  with  a  superhu- 
man skill  in  the  construction  of 
certain  compounds,  and  the  con- 
sultation with  Oracles  and  Omens 
that  enable  him  to  either  bring 
about  events,  or  prophecy  con- 
cerning their  fulfillment.  In 
cases  of  sickness  he  works  rather 
on  the  credulity  of  the  patient 
than  on  his  vital  organs;  wizard- 
like employing  spells  and  incan- 
tations in  preference  to  herbs  and 
decoctions.  The  latter,  however, 
are  used  on  some  occasions.  In 
past  years  the  comanche  medi- 
cine man  consulted  his  oracles 
before  any  serious  enterprise  was 
undertaken.  If  the  medicine 
worked  satisfactorily  the  council 
plans  would  result  in  success  and 
were  therefore  adopted.     On  the 


* 


•i<- 


-* 


OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


other  hand  if  the  great  Esculapius 
announced  "bad  medicine"  the 
project  wasinvariably  abandoned 
or  postponed  until  a  more  ad- 
ventitious period.  Should  the 
medicine  man  fail  in  his  prog- 
nostications, he  not  only  lost 
prestige  in  his  tribe,  but  ran  the 
risk  of  death-sentence  as  a  false 
prophet.  Before  the  battle  of 
Dobey  Walls,  a  short  time  after 
the  war,  the  Coraanche  medicine 
men  bespoke  a  great  victory  for 
the  three  hundred  warriors  who 
undertook  the  siege  of  that  strong- 
hold, which  was  then  defended 
by  Billy  Dixon  (a  U.  S.  scout) 
and  about  ten  hunters.  The  en- 
terprise resulted  in  the  repulse  of 
the  warriors  with  great  loss  in  kill- 
ed and  wounded,  while  the  besieg- 
ed lost  but  one  man,  who  was  out- 
side tlie  defense  when  the  attack 
was  made.  Since  that  event  the 
medicine  men,  heretofore  infal- 
lible, have  never  quite  regained 
their  supremac3^  The  crosses 
and  religious  ornaments  worn  by 
the  subject  of  this  sketch  are  sup- 
posed by  the  wearer  to  exert  a 
potency  in  the  achievement  of 
certain  ends. 


qi- 


KO-MUL-TAH. 

[KIOWA  CHIEF.] 

The  gorgeous  head-dress  of  eagle 
feathers   worn     by    Ko-mul-tah, 


(whose  portrait  appears  on  page 
159),proclaimshis  superior  rank. 
His  bow  in  readiness  for  imme- 
diate action  illustrates  the  love  of 
warfare  which  is  a  leading  char- 
acteristic in  this  chieftain.  His 
countenance  is  a  strong  indica- 
tion of  that  warlike  disposition 
which  belongs  to  his  race,  and  no 
Indian  on  the  reservation  feels 
more  acutely  his  position  of  de- 
pendence. Let  Ko-mul-tah  loose 
in  Western  Texas  with  a  hundred 
braves  well  mounted  and  well 
armed,  as  in  days  gone  by,  and 
you  will  gratify  the  very  height 
of  his  ambition,  for  in  him  are 
concentrated  the  fires  and  pas- 
sions of  an  unconquered  race. 


THE  DANCING  CHIEFS  OF 
CADDO  NATION. 
John  Wilson  and  his  companion 
on  the  left,  a  half-breed,  whose 
portraits  appear  on  page  191, 
represent  the  dancing  chiefs  of 
the  Caddo  Nation.  "  Dancing 
Chief  "  is  a  very  important  ottice 
in  this  tribe,  and  one  which  ap- 
pears to  command  respect  as  well 
as  admiration.  Apart  from  the 
war  dance,  which  is  now  seldom 
resorted  to,  it  is  customary  for 
two  or  more  tribes  to  meet,  one 
tribe  exhibiting  its  skill  for  the 
amusement    of    the    other.       A 


i* 


>i* 


-* 


l.KADt:US   AND   LEADING   MEN' 


* 


graceful  athletic  dancer  is  there- 
fore much  esteemed  by  the  In- 
dians, and  supremacy  in  the  art 
gives  rise  to  much  good-humor- 
ed competition. 

John  Wilson's  costume, though 
fantastic,  is  quite  picturesque. 
Around  his  ankles  are  fastened 
a  band  of  bells  various  in  symph- 
ony, which  announce  his  ap- 
proach from  a  considerable  dis- 
tance. He  is  a  pleasant,  intelli- 
gent fellow. 

WILD  HORSE. 

[COMANCHE.] 

The  portrait  of  Wild  Horse,  which 
appears  on  page  223,  will  be  easi- 
ly recognized  by  a  few  of  the 
old  Texas  rangers  who  have 
come  in  contact  with  that  very 
ferocious  gentleman  between 
the  years  of  1865  and  1880. 
Wild  Horse  had  a  peculiar  at- 
traction for  Wise,  Jack,  Young 
and  other  counties  in  that  section, 
and  frequently^raided  Fort  Eicli- 
ardson,  stealing  the  stock  within 
pistol  shot  of  the  post.  The  last 
raid  into  Wise  county,  marked 
by  the  massacre  of  three  women, 
a  mother  and  two  daughters  in 
Sandy  Creek,  in  1874,  was  at- 
tributed to  Wild  Horse,  who 
knew  every  secret  path  in  the 
wilderness  between  Fort  Sill  and 
Bridgeport  on  the  Trinity.   From 


the  years  1876  to  1880  this  chief 
was  forced  to  confine  his  hostili- 
ties to  the  hunters  who  guarded 
the  frontier  line  from  Ked  River 
in  Greer  county  to  Fort  Concho. 


WHITE  HORSE. 
[chief  of  the  otoes.] 
The  portait  of  White  Horse, 
which  appears  on  page  111,  is  a 
true  representation  of  the  Otoe 
Chief,  clad  in  his  costume  of 
cloth,  dashed  with  silver,  and 
wearing  around  his  neck  treaty 
medals  which  mark  him  to  be  an 
Indian  of  much  distinction  in  his 
tribe,  w^hich  is  now  reduced  to  a 
mere  remnant.  White  Horse  is 
a  man  of  great  intelligence,  with 
a  knowledge  of  human  nature 
which  is  rarely  equaled,  even 
among  people  who  are  noted  for 
their  sagacity  in  this  respect.  He 
is  also  benevolent  and  peace-lov- 
ing, ever  foremost  to  settle  dis- 
putes, which  are  wont  to  spring 
up  among  the  Indians  in  his 
neighborhood. 


CORA  CARUTH. 
This  lady,  whose  portrait  appears 
on  page  143,  is  fairer  than  oth- 
ers of  her  tribe,  yet  withal  she  is 
a  full-blood  of  the  Wichita  race. 
At  an  early  age  she  was  sent 
east,  where   she  received  an    ex- 


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OF   THE   INDIAN   TERRITORY. 


cellent  education.  Being  natur- 
ally bright  and  ambitious,  Miss 
Cora  immediately  fell  in  with 
the  customs  and  society  obser- 
vances of  her  white  sisters.  She 
is  looked  upon  with  something 
akin  to  pride  by  the  older  mem- 
bers of  the  tribe,while  the  young 
warriors  are  her  devoted  slaves. 
Cora  Carnth  is  now  acting  inter- 
preter for  the  Wichitas  at  Ana- 
adarko. 


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[COMANCHES  BUTCHERING 

CATTLE. 

The  scene,  on  page  240,  repre- 
sents the  Comanches  butchering 
the  cattle  supplied  them  by  the 
government  on  ration  day,  one 
beast  being  allowed  to  so  many 
Indians,  according  to  the  size  of 
their  families.  The  Comanches 
are  great  lovers  of  flesh,  having 
not  as  yet  become  accustomed  to 
the  use  of  vegetable  or  farina- 
ceous diet,  so  that  on  ration  day 
they  are  usually  in  a  voracious 
state,  their  stomachs  being  suffi- 
ciently empty  to  render  un- 
cooked meat  a  very  palatable 
morsel.  One  of  the  delicacies  of 
the  Comanche  bill  of  fare  is  a 
"slunk"  (unborn)  calf  or  colt, 
the  mother  being  very  frequently 
killed  to  furnish  them  with  this 
revolting  feast.    The  Comanches, 


however,  are  not  by  any  means 
as  repulsive  in  their  habits  as 
some  of  the  other  tribes,  whose 
methods  of  living  are  often  de- 
cidedly obnoxious  to  the  more 
relined  and  less  barbarous  of  the 
aborigines. 


BIG  TREE. 


[KIOWA  CHIEF.] 

The  portrait  of  this  chief,  given 
on  page  175,  is  taken  from  a  pho- 
tograph of  Big  Tree,  at  one  time 
a  great  chief  of  the  Kiowas. 
Many  a  heart  and  home  in  Texas 
were  devastated  by  the  ruthless 
hand  of  this  relentless  desperado, 
whose  only  peace  was  in  war- 
fare, at  which  he  excelled  above 
all  others  of  his  tribe.  In  1871, 
in  company  with  Satanta,  a  Co- 
manche chief,  he  brought  his  ca- 
reer to  a  climax  by  attacking  a 
government  train  on  the  military 
road  between  Jacksborough  and 
Fort  Belknap  and  massacreing 
the  entire  party  save  one,  who  is 
said  to  have  escaped  by  flight. 
The  writer  of  this  sketch  passed 
there  a  short  time  after  the 
bloody  event  and  found  the  spot 
strewn  with  the  carcasses  of  men 
and  horses  and  the  debris  of 
burned  wagons.  This  act  so  ex- 
asperated the  government  that 
every   possible    step  was   taken 


« 


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LKADKKS  AND  LEADING  MEN 


for  the  capture  of  tlie  hostile 
leaders,  which  resulted  in  their 
arrest  in  IS 73.  Big  Tree  and 
Satanta  were  thereupon  sent  to 
the  Texas  State  Prison  at  Hunts 
ville  on  a  life  sentence.  Satanta 
refused  to  work  and  committed 
suicide,  while  Big  Tree,  by  good 
hfliavior  and  a  display  of  indus- 
try and  some  energy  in  the  man- 
ufacture of  elm  chairs,  was  lib- 
erated from  durance  vile  and 
permitted  to  return  to  his  reser- 
vation. Big  Tree,  however,  is 
under  a  cloud  and  is  looked  upon 
as  a  disgraced  chief.  If  he  had 
killed  himself  as  did  his  compan- 
ion, his  name  would  have  still 
been  dear  to  his  old  comrades  in 
arms;  but  to  have  borne  the  yoke 
of  the  white  man  and  accepted 
his  humiliating  terms  of  freedom 
appears  to  have  rendered  him 
singularly  unpopular.  Being  re- 
leased on  good  behavior,  he  is 
liable  to  re-arrest  should  he  in 
the  future  render  himself  obnox- 
ious by  the  violation  of  law. 


LAURA. 

[KIOWA.] 

The  portrait  o^^  Laura,  given  on 
page  79,  one  of  the  Indian 
woincu  that  you  constantly  no- 
tice in  the  Kiowa  camp,  is  Laura. 
She  lias  an  honest,  pleasant 
countenance     and     eves    which 


meet  yours  with  less  timidity 
than  m.ost  of  her  sisters.  The 
combination  of  moccasin  and 
parasol  indicates  the  wavering 
between  barbarism  and  civiliza- 
tion, which  is  apparent  in  the 
costumes  of  many  Indians  accus- 
tomed to  contact  with  the  whites. 
Laura  is  pretty  and  will  converse 
with  the  white  man  within  the 
limit  of  her  vocabulary,  if  he 
knows  how  to  approach  her 
properly.      

KIOWA  PAPOOSE. 
This  picture,  given  on  page  287, 
illustrates  the  method  adopted 
by  the  wild  tribes  for  carrying 
their  infants,  or  papooses.  The 
box  or  cradle  is  strapped  on  the 
woman's  back,  who  bears  the 
burden  without  any  apparent  in- 
convenience. The  papoose  cradle 
is  of  superior  and  expensive 
workmanship,  being  closely  and 
handsomely  beaded,  which  de- 
notes tiie  superior  rank  of  its 
owner. 


•i^ 


APACHE  CAMP. 
The  portrait  found  on  page  303 
illustrates  an  Apache  hunting 
camp  visited  by  the  photogra- 
pher during  the  absence  of  most 
of  the  braves,  who  are  abroad 
hunting  for  venison  and  other 
game. 


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