SW Colorado Winter 2008

The last few days this week, after the SW Colorado snow storms of last week, have been sunny with temperatures hanging in the 40's during the day and dipping down into the single digits in the evening.

Notice the snow path NW Okie shoveled for this poor pug, Duchess. That's me in front with Sadie (black pug) behind me -- facing the other direction!

I am very picky about going out in the snow, rain and stuff of that sorts. I hate getting my paws in all that wintery, wet, cold stuff!

NOW ... Sadie is another story ... She justs flips, romps around in a circle until she mats down a spot to take care of her outdoor business. She really gets energized with that winter mix of snow and tries to eat it.

Me ... I might just patiently linger on the porch while you scoop a place for me to walk so I do not sink in past my squat, little duchess ankles. LOL ...

That path, measured by standing next to it, came almost up to NW Okie's knees. We received more snow last Sunday and afterwards did some scrapping of snow off our roofs like many others were doing around this neck of the woods.

Even the horses were feeling energized after the temperatures reached the sunny, warmer degrees. They were spotted running, galloping out in the pasture one sunny afternoon.

Does any Northwest Oklahoman's out there remember "Old Grimes Road," northwest of Alva, Oklahoma, and the early day auto races held out there? Lohrding Harvesting? If so... we would love to hear, share your stories in The OkieLegacy Ezine. Thanks for the memories!
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Oklahoma Historical Society

According to the Oklahoma history book, A Standard History of Oklahoma, published in 1916 by Joseph B. Thoburn, The Oklahoma Historical Society was organized at Kingfisher, Oklahoma, May 27, 1893, during the course of the annual meeting of the Territorial Press Association.

Mr. William P. Campbell, of Kingfisher, a member of the Kansas Editorial Association, had assisted in organizing the Kansas State Historical Society, in April, 1875. Campbell discussed the advisability of organizing a similar society in Oklahoma and closed the meeting by moving that the editors assembled in their annual association meeting proceed to organize the Oklahoma Historical Society. The motion prevailed and Mr. Campbell was chosen as the first custodian of the society's collections. Two days later, the custodian of the newly organized historical society issued the following "Circular No. 1," which was widely disseminated over the territory:

• Kingfisher, Okla., May 29, 1893. -- "At their annual meeting in this city, May 27, the editors of Oklahoma created a department in connection with the association, to be called the Oklahoma Historical Society, of which the undersigned was elected as secretary and custodian to serve for the ensuing year.
  
  "The object in establishing this department is the collection of newspapers, books and periodicals, productions of art, science and literature, matters of historic interest, etc. It is especially desired that publishers send regularly two copies of their publications to be filed and bound at the end of each year.
  
  "While this is designed as an Oklahoma institution, anything of the nature suggested will be thankfully received from any source, and will be given a proper place among the exhibits.
  
  "For the present, headquarters will be at Kingfisher, where a suitable building has been secured for the storage, safe care and proper exhibition of contributions.
  
  "Those feeling an interest in laying the permanent foundation for one of the most important institutions of Oklahoma are requested to forward as early as possible and as often as they secure them, any articles that my seem of historic interest, beautiful, instructive or curious. Address, prepaid, W. P. Campbell, Historical custodian, Kingfisher, O. T.

Pioneer William Thomas Little

William Thomas Little was born at Newark Ohio, June 14, 1862. Four years later his parents migrated to Kansas, settling at Olathe, and, in 1873, they moved to Abilene, where William T. Little graduated from the high school in 1882.

William Little then entered the University of Kansas. In 1885, he had an attack of the pioneering fever and settled in Western Kansas, at Leoti, Wichita county, where helped to build the town, organize the county and pilot it through a county-seat war.

Subsequently, he attended the law school of Columbian University, at Washington, District of Columbia, but left on account of ill health without graduating. He was admitted to the bar, but never practiced.

He came to Guthrie on the opening day, April 22, 1889, where he published the Guthrie Get-Up, a small paper printed on a job press and the first to be actually printed in the Oklahoma country after it was opened to settlement.

Little secured a homestead claim in Noble county in the race at the opening of the Cherokee Strip. In 1894 he was elected as the representative of Noble county in the Territorial Legislative Assembly. He was custodian of the historical society from 1895 to 1899, when he resigned to enter the service of the Dawes Commission as a land appraiser in the reservations of the five civilized tribes.

In 1901 he was placed in charge of the appraisement of the school lands in the newly opened Comanche-Kiowa and Wichita-Caddo reservations. A few months later he was appointed postmaster at Perry, which position he held until he relinquished it on account of failing health shortly before his death, which occurred July 5, 1908. William Thomas Little will be remembered as the pioneer arborculturist of Oklahoma, for he was an enthusiast as a tree planter, the public square and parks of his home town attesting not only his love of trees, but also his skill in inducing them to grow when others were skeptical of the success of the experiment. -- [A Standard History of Okalhoma, Vol. 2, by Joseph B.Thoburn.]
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The Organic Act

The following is the text of the Organic Act, passed by congress and approved May 2, 1890, under the provisions of which the government of the Territory of Oklahoma was organized and conducted. Found in the 1916 history book, A Standard History of Oklahoma, pp. 888-911, Vol. 2, by Joseph B. Thoburn.

An act to provide a temporary government for the Territory of Oklahoma, to enlarge the jurisdiction of the United States Court in the Indian Territory, and for other purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in congress assembled,

Sec. 1. That all that portion of the United States now known as the Indian Territory, except so much of the same as is actually occupied by the five civilized tribes, and the Indian tribes within the Quapaw Indian Agency, and except the unoccupied part of the cherokee outlet, together with that portion of the United States known as the Public Land Strip, is hereby erected into a temporary government by the name of the Territory of Oklahoma. The portion of the Indian Territory included in said Territory of Oklahoma is bounded by a line drawn as follows: commencing at a point where the ninety-eighth meridian crosses the Red River, thence by said meridian to the point where it crosses the Canadian River, thence along said line to the north fork of the Canadian River, thence down said river to the west line of the creek country, thence along said line to the northwest corner of the Creek country, thence along the north line of the Creek country, to the ninety-sixth meridian, thence northward by said meridian to the southern boundary line of Kansas, thence west along said line to the Arkansas River, thence down said river to the north line of the land occupied by the Ponca tribe of Indians, from which point the line runs so as to include all the lands occupied by the Ponca, Tonkawa, Otoe and Missouria, and the pawnee tribes of Indians, until it strikes the south line of the Cherokee outlet, which it follows westward to the east line of the State of texas, thence by the boundary line of the State of Texas to the point of beginning the Public Land Strip which is included i said Territory of Oklahoma is bounded east by the one-hundredth meridian, south by Texas, west by new mexico, north by Colorado and Kansas. Whenever the interest of the Cherokee Indians in the land known as the Cherokee outlet shall have been extinguished and the President shall make proclamation thereof, said outlet shall thereupon and without further legislation, become a part of the Territory of Oklahoma. Any other lands within the Indian territory not embraced within these boundaries shall hereafter become a part of the Territory of Oklahoma whenever the Indian nation or tribe owning such lands shall signify to the President of the united States in legal manner its assent that such lands shall so become a part of said Territory of Oklahoma, and the president shall thereupon make proclamation to that effect.

Congress may at any time hereafter change the boundaries of said territory, or attach any portion of the same to any other state or territory of the United States without the consent of the inhabitants of the territory hereby created: Provided, That nothing in this act shall be construed to impair any right now pertaining to any Indians or Indian tribe in said territory under the laws, agreements and treaties of the United States, or to impair the rights of person or property pertaining to said Indians, or to affect the authority of the Government of the United States to make any property, or to make any law respecting said Indians, their lands, make or enact if this act had not been passed.

Sec.2. That the executive power of the territory of Oklahoma shall be vested in a governor, who shall hold his office for four years, and until his successor shall be appointed and qualified, unless sooner removed by the President of the United States. The governor shall reside within said territory; shall be commander-9n-chief of the militia thereof; he may grant pardons for offenses against the laws of said territory, and reprieves for offenses against the laws of the United States, until the decision of the president can be made known thereon' he shall commission all officers who shall be appointed to office under the laws of said territory, and shall take care that the laws be faithfully executed.

Sec. 3. That there shall be a secretary of said territory, who shall reside therein and hold his office for four years unless sooner removed by the president of the United States; he shall record and preserve all the laws and the proceedings of the legislative assembly hereinafter constituted, and all acts and proceedings of the governor in his executive department; he shall transmit one copy of the laws and journals of the legislative assembly, within thirty days after the end of each session thereof, to the president of the united States and to the Secretary of the Interior, and, at the same time, two copies of the laws and journals of the legislative assembly to the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President of the senate for the use of Congress; and in case of the death, removal, resignation, or other necessary absence of the governor from the territory, the secretary shall execute all the owNers and perform all the duties of governor during such vacancy of absence, or until another governor is appointed and qualified.

Sec. 4. That the legislative power and authority of said territory shall be vested in the governor and legislative assembly. The legislative assembly shall consist of a council and a house of representatives. The council shall consist of thirteen members, having the qualification of voters as hereinafter prescribed, whose terms of service shall continue two years. The house of representatives shall consist of twenty-six members, possessing the same qualifications as prescribed for members of the council, and t=whose term of service shall continue two years, and the sessions of the legislative assembly shall be biennial and shall be limited to sixty days' duration: Provided, however, That the duration of the first session of said legislative assembly may continue one hundred and twenty days.

That for the purpose of facilitating the organization of a temporary government in the territory of Oklahoma, seven counties are hereby established therein, to be known, until after the first election in the territory, as the First County, the Second county, the Third County, the Fourth County, the Fifth County, and the Sixth County, the boundaries of which shall be fixed by the governor of the territory until otherwise provided by the legislative assembly thereof. The county seat of the First County shall be at Guthrie. The county seat of the Second County shall be at Oklahoma City. The county seat of the Third County shall be at Norman. The county seat of the Fourth County shall be at El Reno. The county seat of the Fifth County shall be at Kingfisher City. The county seat of the Sixth County shall be at Stillwater. The Seventh County shall embrace all that portion of the territory lying west of the one hundredth meridian, known as the Public Land Strip, the county seat of which shall be at Beaver: Provided, That the county seats located by this act may be changed in such manner as the territorial legislature may provide.

At the first election for members of the legislative assembly the people of each county may vote for a name for such county, and the name which receives the greatest number of votes shall be the name of such county. if two or more counties shall select the same name, the county which casts the greatest number of votes for such name shall be entitled to the same, and the names receiving the next highest number of votes in the other counties shall be the names of such counties. An apportionment shall be made by the governor as nearly equal as practicable among the several o=counties or districts for the election of the council and house of representatives, giving to each section of the territory representation in the ratio of its population (excepting Indians not taxed) as nearly as may be, and the members of the council and house of representatives shall reside in and be inhabitants of the district for which they maybe elected, respectively. Previous to the first election, the governor shall cause a census or enumeration of the inhabitants of the several counties or districts of the territory to be taken, unless the same shall have been taken and published by the untied States, in which case such census and enumeration shall be adopted, and the first election shall be held at such times and places and be conducted in such manner, both as to the persons who superintend such election and the returns thereof, as the governor shall appoint and direct, and he shall at the same time declare the number of the members of the council and house of representatives to which each of the counties for districts shall be entitled, as shown by the census herein provided for. The number of persons authorized to be elected, having the highest number of legal votes in each of said council districts for members of the council, shall be declared by the governor to be duly elected to the council, and the person or persons authorized to be elected, having the greatest number of votes for the house of representatives equal to the number to which each county or district shall be entitled, shall be declared by the governor to be elected members of the house of representatives: Provided, That in case two or more persons voted for have an equal number of votes, and in case a vacancy otherwise occurs in either branch of the legislative assembly, the governor shall order a new election, and the persons thus elected to the legislative assembly shall meet a such place and on such day as the governor shall appoint, but after such first election, however, the time, place, and manner of holding elections by the people, and the apportionment of representation, and the day of the commencement of the regular sessions of the legislative assembly shall be provided by law: provided, however, That the governor shall have power to call the legislative assembly together by proclamation, on an extraordinary occasion at any time.

Sec. 5. That all male citizens of the United States above the age of twenty-one years, and all male persons of foreign birth over said age who shall have twelve months prior thereto declared their intention to become citizens of the United States, as now required by law, who are actual residents at the time of the passage of this act of that portion of said territory, which was declared by the proclamation of the President to be open for settlement on the twenty-second day of April, anno Domini eighteen hundred and eighty-nine, and of that portion of said territory heretofore known as the Public Land Strip, shall be entitled to vote at the first elections of voters and of holding office shall be such as may be prescribed by the legislative assembly, subject, however, to the following restrictions on the power of the legislative assembly, namely: First, The right of suffrage and of holding office shall be exercised only by citizens of the united States above the age of twenty-one years, and by persons of foreign birth above that age who have declared, on oath, before a competent court of record, as required by the naturalization laws of the untied States their intention to become citizens, and have taken oath to support the Constitution of the United States, and who shall have been residents of the United States for the term of twelve months before the election at which they offer to vote. Second. There shall be no denial of the elective franchise or of holding office to a citizen on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude. Third. No officer, soldier, seaman, marine, or other person in the Army or Navy, or attached to troops in the service of the United States, shall be allowed to vote in said territory by reason of being on service therein. Fourth. No person belonging to the Army or Navy shall be elected to, or hold, any civil office or appointment in said territory.

Sec. 6. That the legislative power of the Territory shall extend to all rightful subjects of legislation not inconsistent with the constitution and laws of the United States, but no law shall be passed interfering with the primary disposal of the soil; no tax shall be passed interfering with the primary disposal of the soil; no tax shall be imposed upon the property of the United States, nor shall the lands or other property of non-residents be taxed higher than the lands or other property of residents, nor shall any law be passed impairing the right to private property, nor shall any unequal discrimination be made in taxing different kinds of property, but all property subject tot he taxation shall be taxed in proportion to its value: Provided, That nothing herein shall be held to prohibit the levying and collecting license or special taxes in the Territory from persons engaged in any business herein, if the legislative power shall consider such taxes necessary. Every bill which shall have passed the council and the house of representatives of said Territory shall, before it becomes a law, be presented to the governor of the Territory. If he approves he shall sign it, but if not, he shall return it with his objections to the house in which it originated, who shall enter the objections at large upon their journal and proceed to reconsider it. If, after such reconsideration two-thirds of that house shall agree to pass the bill, it shall be sent, together with the objections, to the other houses, by which it shall likewise be reconsidered, and if approved by two-thirds of that house it shall become a law. But in all such cases the vote of both houses shall be determined by yeas and nays to be entered on the journal of each house, respectively. If any bill shall not be returned by the governor within five days (Sunday excepted) after it shall have been presented to him, the same shall be a law in like manner as if he had signed it, unless the assembly by adjournment, prevent its return, in which case it shall not be a law.

Sec. 7. That all township, district, and county officers, not herein otherwise provided for, shall be appointed or elected, as the case may be, in such manner as shall be provided by the governor and legislative assembly of the territory. The governor shall nominate and, a=by and with the advice and consent of the council, appoint all officers not herein otherwise provided for, and in the first instance the governor alone may appoint all such officers, who shall hold their offices until the end of the first session of the legislative assembly; and he shall b=lay off the necessary districts for members of the council and house of representatives, and all other officers, and whenever a vacancy happens from resignation or death, during the recess of the legislative council in any office which is filled by appointment of the governor, by and with the advice and consent of the council, the governor shall fill such vacancy by granting a commission, which shall expire at the end of the next session of the legislative council. It is further provided that the legislative assembly shall not authorize the issuing any bond, script, or evidence of debt by the territory, or any county, city, town, or township therein for the construction of any railroad.

Sec. 8. That no member of the legislative assembly shall hold or be appointed to any office which has been created for the salary or emoluments of which have been increased while he was a member, during the term for which he was elected and for one year after the expiration of such term, but this restriction shall not be applicable to members of the first legislative assembly provided for by this act; and no person holding a commission or appointment under the United States, except postmasters, shall be a member of the legislative assembly, or shall hold any office under the government of said Territory.

Sec. 9. That the judicial power of said Territory shall be vested in a supreme court, district courts, probate courts, and justices of the peace. The supreme court shall consist of a chief justice and two associate justices, any two of whom shall constitute a quorum. They shall hold their offices for four years, and until their successors are appointed and qualified, and they shall hold a term annually at the seat of government of said Territory. The jurisdiction of the several courts herein provided for, both appellate and original, and that of the probate courts and of the justices of the peace, shall be as limited by law: provided, That justices of the peace, who shall be elected in such manner as the legislative assembly may provide by law, shall not have jurisdiction of any matter in controversy when the title or boundaries of land may be in dispute, or where the debt or sum claimed shall exceed one hundred dollars; and the said supreme and district courts, respectively, shall possess chancery as well as common law jurisdiction and authority for redress of all wrongs committed against the Constitution or laws of the Untied States or of the Territory affecting persons or property. Said Territory shall be divided into three judicial districts, and a district court shall be held in each county in said district thereof by one of the justices of the supreme court, at such time and place as may be prescribed by law, and each judge after assignment shall reside in the district to which he is assigned. The supreme court shall define said judicial districts, and shall fix the times and places at each county seat in each district where the district court shall be held and designate the judge who shall preside therein. And the territory not embraced in organized counties shall shall be attached for judicial purposes to such organized county or counties as the supreme court may determine. The supreme court of said Territory shall appoint its own clerk, who shall hold his office at the pleasure of the court for which he is appointed. Each district court shall appoint its clerk, who shall also be the register in chancery and shall keep his office where the court may be held. Writs of error, bills of exception, and appeals shall be allowed in all cases from the final decisions of said district courts to the supreme court shall be allowed and may be taken to the Supreme Court of the Untied States in the same manner and under the same regulations as from the circuit courts of the Untied States, where the value of the property or the amount in controversy, to be ascertained by oath of affirmation of either party or other competent witness, shall exceed five thousand dollars; and each of the said district courts shall have and exercise, exclusive of any court heretofore established, the same jurisdiction in all cases arising under the Constitution and laws of the United States as is vested in the circuit and district courts of the United States. In addition to the jurisdiction otherwise conferred by this act, said district courts shall have and exercise exclusive original jurisdiction over all offenses against the laws of the United States committed within that portion of the Cherokee Outlet not embraced within the boundaries os said Territory of Oklahoma as herein defined, and in all civil cases between citizens of the United States residing in such portion of the Cherokee Outlet, or between citizens of the Untied States, or of any State or Territory, and any citizen of or person or persons residing or found therein, when the value of the thing in controversy or damages or money claimed shall exceed one hundred dollars; writs of error, bills of exceptions, and appeals shall in all such cases, civil and criminal, be allowed from the district courts to the supreme court in like manner, and be proceeded with in like manner as in cases arising within the limits of said Territory. For all judicial purposes as herein defined such portion of the Cherokee Outlet not embraced within the boundaries of the Territory of Oklahoma shall be attached to, and be a part of, one of the judicial districts of said Territory as may be designated by the Supreme Court. All acts and parts of acts heretofore enacted, conferring jurisdiction upon United States courts held beyond and outside the limits of the Territory of Oklahoma as herein defined, as to all causes of action or offenses in said Territory, and in that portion of the Cherokee Outlet hereinbefore referred to, are hereby repealed, and such jurisdiction is hereby given to the supreme and district courts in said Territory; but all actions commenced in such courts, and crimes committed in said Territory and in the Cherokee Outlet, prior to the passage of this act, shall be tried and prosecuted, and proceed with until finally disposed of, in the courts now having jurisdiction thereof, as if this act had not been passed. The said supreme and district courts of said Territory, and the respective judges thereof, shall and may grant writs of mandamus and habeas corpus in all cases authorized by law; and the first six days of every term of said courts, or so much thereof as shall be necessary, shall be appropriated to the trial of causes arising under said Constitution and laws; and writs of error and appeals in all such cases shall be made to the supreme court of said Territory, as in other cases.

Sec. 10. Persons charged with any offense or crime in the Territory of Oklahoma, and for whose arrest a warrant has been issued, may be arrested by the Untied States marshal or any of his deputies, wherever found in said Territory, but in all cases the accused shall be taken, for preliminary examination, before a United States commissioner, or a justice of the peace of the county, whose office is nearest to the place where the offense or crime was committed.

All offenses committed in said Territory, if committed within any organized county, shall be prosecuted and tried within said county, and if committed within territory not embraced in any organized county, shall be prosecuted and tried in the county to which such territory shall be attached for judicial purposes. And all civil actions shall be instituted in the county in which the defendant, or either of them, resides or may be found; and when such actions arise within any portion of said Territory not organized as a county, such actions shall be instituted in the county to which such territory is attached for judicial purposes; but any case, civil or criminal, may be removed, by change of venue, to another county.

Sec. 11. That the following chapters and provisions of the Compiled Laws of the State of Nebraska, in force November first, eighteen hundred and eighty-nine, in so far as they are locally applicable, and not in conflict with the laws of the Untied States or with this act, are hereby extended to and put in force in the Territory of Oklahoma until after the adjournment of the first session of the legislative assembly of said Territory, namely: the provisions of articles two, three, and four of chapter two, entitled "Agriculture"; of chapter four, entitled "Decedents"; of chapter twenty-four, entitled "Deputies"; of chapter twenty-five, entitled "Divorce and alimony"; of chapter twenty-six, entitled "Elections"; of chapter twenty-eight, entitled "Fees"; of chapter thirty-two, entitled "Frauds"; of chapter thirty-four, entitled "Guardians and wards"; of chapter thirty-six, entitled "Homesteads"; of chapter forty-0ne, entitled "Instruments negotiable"l of chapter forty-four, entitled "Interests"; of chapter forty-six, entitled "Jails"; of chapter fifty, entitled "Liquors"; but no licenses shall be issued under this chapter; of chapter fifty-two, entitled "Marriage"; of chapter fifty-three, entitled "Married women"; of chapter fifty -four, entitled "Mechanics' and laborers' liens"; of chapter sixty-one, entitled "Notaries public"; of chapter sixty-two, entitled "Oaths and affirmations"; of chapter sixty-three, entitled "Occupying claimants"; of articles one of chapter seventy-two, entitled "Railroads"; of chapter seveny-three, entitled "Real estate"l and the provisions of part two of said laws, entitled "Code of civil procedure," and of apart three thereof, entitled "Criminal code."

The governor of said Territory is authorized to divide each county into election precincts and into such political sub-divisions other than school districts as maybe required by the laws of the State of Nebraska; and he is hereby authorized to appoint all officers of such counties and subdivisions thereof as he shall deem necessary, and all election officers until their election or appointment shall be provided for by the legislative assembly, but not more than two of the judges or inspectors of election in any election precinct shall be members of the same political party, and the candidates of each political party who may be voted for at such election may designate one person who shall be present at the counting and canvassing of the votes cast in each precinct.

The supreme and district courts of said territory shall have the same power to enforce the laws of the State of Nebraska hereby extended to and put in force in said Territory as courts of like jurisdiction have in said State; but county courts and justices of the peace shall have and exercise the jurisdiction which is authorized by said laws of Nebraska: Provided, That the jurisdiction of justices of the peace in said Territory shall not exceed the sum of one hundred dollars, and county courts shall have jurisdiction in all cases where the sum or matter in demand exceeds the sum of one hundred dollars.

Sec. 12. That jurisdiction is hereby conferred upon the district courts in the Territory of Oklahoma over all controversies arising between members or citizens of one tribe or nation of Indians and the members or citizens of other tribes or nations in the Territory of Oklahoma, and any citizen or member of one tribe or nation who may commit any offense or crime in said Territory against the person or property of a citizen or member of another tribe or nation shall be subject shall be subject to the same punishment in the Territory of Oklahoma as he would be if both parties were citizens of the United States; and any person residing in the Territory of Oklahoma, in whom there is Indian blood, shall have the right to invoke the aid of courts therein for the protection of his person or property, as though he were a citizen of the Untied States: provided, That nothing in this act contained shall be so construed as to give jurisdiction to the courts established in said Territory in controversies arising between Indians of the same tribe, while sustaining their tribal relation.

Sec. 13. That there shall be appointed for said Territory a person learned in the law, who shall act as attorney for the Untied States, and shall continue in office for four years, and until his successor is appointed and qualified, unless son=oner removed by the President. Said attorney shall receive a salary at the rate of two hundred and fifty dollars annually. There shall be appointed a marshal or said Territory, who shall hold his office for four years, and until his successor is appointed and qualified, unless sooner removed by the President, and who shall execute all process issuing from the said courts when exercising their jurisdiction as circuit and district courts of the United States; he shall have the power and perform the duties and be subject to the same regulations and penalties imposed by law on the marshal of the United States, and be entitled to a salary at the rate of two hundred dollars a year. There shall be allowed to the attorney, marshal, clerks of the supreme and district courts the same fees as are prescribed for similar services by such persons in chapter sixteen, title Judiciary, of the Revised Statutes of the Untied States.

Sec. 14. That the governor, secretary, chief-justice, and associate justices, attorney, and marshal shall be nominated and, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, appointed by the president of the United States. The governor and secretary to be appointed as aforesaid shall, before they act as such, respectively take an oath or affirmation before the district judge, or some justice of the peace, or other officer in limits of said Territory duly authorized to administer oaths and affirmations by the laws now in force therein, or before the Chief-Justice or some associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, to support the Constitution of the United States and faithfully to discharge the duties of their respective offices, which said oaths, when so taken, shall be certified by the person by whom the same shall have been taken; and such certificates shall be received and recorded by the secretary among the executive proceedings, and the chief-justice and associate justices, and all other civil officers in said Territory, before they act as such, shall take a like oath or affirmation before the said governor or secretary, or some judge or justice of the peace of the Territory, who may be duly commissioned and qualified, which said oath or affirmation shall be certified and transmitted by the person taking the same to the secretary, to be recorded by him as aforesaid, and afterwards the like oath or affirmation shall be taken, certified, and recorded in such manner and form as may be prescribed by law. The governor shall receive an annual salary of two thousand six hundred dollars as governor; the chief-justice and associate justices shall receive an annual salary of three thousand dollars, and the secretary shall receive an annual salary of one thousand eight hundred dollars. The said salaries shall be payable quarter-yearly at the Treasury of the United States. The members of the legislative assembly shall be entitled to receive four dollars each per day during their attendance at the sessions, and four dollars for each and every twenty miles traveled in going to and returning from said sessions, estimating the distance by the nearest traveled route. There shall be appropriated annually the sum of one thousand dollars, to be expended by the governor to defray the contingent expenses of the Territory. There shall also be appropriated annually a sufficient sum, to be expended by the secretary, and upon an estimate to be made by the Secretary of the TReasury of the United States, to defray the expenses of the legislative assembly, of the courts, the printing of the laws, and other incidental expenses; and the secretary of the Territory shall annually account to the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States for the manner in which the aforesaid sum shall have been expended.

Sec. 15. That the legislative assembly of the Territory of Oklahoma shall hold its first session at Guthrie, in said Territory, at such time as the governor thereof shall appoint and direct; and at said first session, or as soon thereafter as they shall deem expedient, the governor and legislative assembly shall proceed to locate and establish the seat of government for said territory at such place as they may deem eligible, which place, however, shall thereafter be subject to be changed by the said governor and legislative assembly.

Sec. 16. That a Delegate to the House of Representatives of the United States, to serve during each Congress of the United States, may be elected by the voters qualified to elect members of the legislative assembly, who shall be entitled to the same rights and privileges as are exercised and enjoyed by the Delegates from the several other Territories of the United States in the said House of Representatives. The first election shall be held at such time and place, and be conducted in such manner as the governor shall appoint and direct, after t least sixty days' notice, to be given by proclamation, and at all subsequent elections the time, place, and manner of holding elections shall be prescribed by law. The person having the greatest number of votes of the qualified electors, as hereinbefore provided, shall be declared by the governor elected, and a certificate thereof shall be accordingly given.

Sec. 17. That the provisions of title sixty-two of the Revised Statutes of the United States relating to national banks, and all amendments thereto, shall have the same force and effect in the amendments thereto, shall have the same force and effect in the Territory of Oklahoma as elsewhere in the United States: Provided, That persons otherwise qualified to act as directors shall not be required to have resided i said Territory for more than three months immediately preceding their election as such.

Sec. 18. That sections numbered sixteen and thirty-six in each township in said Territory shall be, and the same are hereby, reserved for the purpose of being applied to public schools in the State or States hereafter to be erected out of the same. In all cases where sections sixteen and thirty-six, or either of them, are occupied by actual settlers prior to survey thereof, the county commissioners of the counties in which such sections are so occupied are authorized to locate other lands, to an equal amount, in sections or fractional sections, as the case may be, within their respective counties, in lieu of the sections so occupied.

All the lands embraced in that portion of the Territory of Oklahoma heretofore known as the Public Land Strip, shall be open to settlement under the provisions of the homestead laws of the United States, except section twenty-three hundred and one of the Revised Statutes, which shall not apply; but all actual and bona fide settlers upon the occupants of the lands in said Public Land Strip at the time of the passage of this act shall be entitled to have preference to and hold the lands upon which they have settled under the homestead laws of the United States, by virtue of their settlement and occupancy of said lands, and they shall be credited with the time they have actually occupied their homesteads, respectively, not exceeding two years, on the time required under said laws to perfect title as homestead settlers.

The lands within said Territory of Oklahoma, acquired by cession of the Muscogee (or Creek) Nation of Indians, confirmed by act of Congress approved March first, eighteen hundred and eighty-nine, and also the lands acquired in pursuance of an agreement with the SEminole Nation of Indians by re-lease and conveyance, dated march sixteenth, eighteen hundred and eighty-nine, which may hereafter be open to settlement, shall be disposed of under the provisions of sections twelve, thirteen, and fourteen o the "Act making appropriations for the current and contingent expenses of the Indian Department, and for fulfilling treaty stipulations with various Indian tribes, for the year ending June thirtieth, eighteen hundred and ninety, and for other purposes," approved March second, eighteen hundred and eighty-nine, and under section two of an "Act to ratify and confirm an agreement with the Muscogee (or Creek) nation of Indians in the Indian Territory, and for other purposes," approved March first, eighteen hundred and eighty-nine: Provided, however, That each settler under and in accordance with the provisions of said acts shall, before receiving a patent for his homestead on the land hereafter opened to settlement as aforesaid, pay to the United States for the land so taken by him, in addition to the fees provided by law, the sum of one dollar and twenty-five cents per acre.

Whenever any of the other lands within the Territory of Oklahoma, now occupied by any Indian tribe, shall by operation of law or proclamation of the President of the United States, be open to settlement, they shall be disposed of to actual settlers only, under the provisions of the homestead law, except section twenty-three hundred and one of the Revised Statutes of the United States, which shall not apply: Provided, however, That each settler, under and in accordance with the provisions of said homestead laws, shall before receiving a patent for his homestead pay to the United States for the land so taken by him, in addition to the fees provided by law, a sum per acre equal to the amount which has been or may be paid by the United States to obtain a relinquishment of the Indian title or interest therein, but in no case shall such payment be less than one dollar and twenty-five cents per acre. The rights of honorably discharged soldiers and sailors in the late Civil war, as defined and described in sections twenty-three hundred and four and twenty-three hundred and five of the Revised Statutes of the United States, shall not be abridged except as to such payment. All tracts of land in Oklahoma Territory which have been set apart for school purposes, to educational societies, or missionary boards at work among the Indians, shall not be open for settlement, but are hereby granted to the respective educational societies or missionary boards for whose use the same has been set apart. No part of the land embraced within the Territory hereby created shall inure to the use or benefit of any railroad corporation, except the rights of way and land for stations heretofore granted to certain railroad corporations. Nor shall any provision of this act or any act of any officer of the United States, done for performed under the provisions of this act or otherwise, invest any corporation owning or operating any railroad in the Indian Territory, or Territory created by this act, with any land or right to any land in either of said Territories, and this act shall not apply to or affect any land which, upon any condition on becoming a part of the public domain, would inure to the benefit of, or become the property of, any railroad corporation.

Sec. 20. That the procedure in applications, entries, contests, and adjudications in the Territory of Oklahoma shall be in form and manner prescribed under the homestead laws of the United States, and the general principles and provisions of the homestead laws, except as modified by the provisions of this act and the acts of Congress approved march first and second, eighteen hundred and eighty-nine, heretofore mentioned, shall be applicable to all entries made in said Territory, but no patent shall be issued to any person who is not a citizen of the United States at the time of making final proof.

All persons who shall settle on land in said Territory, under the provisions of the homestead laws of the United States, and of this act, shall be required to select the same in square form as nearly as may be; and no person who shall at the time be seized in fee simple of a hundred and sixty acres of land in any state or territory, shall hereafter be entitled to enter land in said territory of Oklahoma. The provisions of sections twenty-three hundred and four and twenty-three hundred and five of the Revised Statutes of the United States shall, except so far as modified by this act, apply to all homestead settlements in said territory.

[We are still in the process of transcribing the Organic Act, so stay tuned in the next few days, weeks as we finish the transcribing process. We are still in the process of transcribing the entire "Organic Act." -- NW Okie]
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State Flag of Oklahoma

The banners of no less than six different nations have waved in dominion over Oklahoma, in part at least, at various periods since the nations of white men established their sovereignties in America, namely, France (kingdom), Spain, France (republic), Mexico, Texas (independent republic), and the United States of America.

During the civil war, the Indian Territory saw much of the confederate flag. Stand Watie's Cherokee regiment carried a banner bearing as its device the seven-pointed star of the Cherokee Nation and it is possible that other tribal flags may have been in use at that time but definite information is lacking in that regard.

The 3rd State Legislature of Oklahoma enacted a law, in 1911, adopting a design for an official state flag for Oklahoma. The device is as follows: A white star, edged with blue, in a red field, with the figures 46 in blue in the center of the star. It was designed by Mrs. W. R. Clement, of Oklahoma City, who brought the matter to the attention of the Legislature. -- pg. 912, A Standard History of Oklahoma, vol. 2, by Joseph B. Thoburn
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OkieLegacy Guestbook

2/8/2008 - Janette - Email: jpayne@kearney.net - "I have a student with the last name of Ingersoll. She lives in Kearney, Nebraska. I was telling her about the town and "googled" the website."

2/3/2008 - Sara Trotter - Email: SoTrotter@panola.com - "I found the information about the German POW camps in Arizona and Oklahoma most interesting. I grew up in Como, MS, where a near-by POW Camp was located. In fact, Werner Lobback, one of the prisoners there, is a good friend of mine. I have visited him and his family in Germany once and will be going back in October. Werner and his family have visted me and the Camp Como area twice. Werner is now 87 or 88."
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HURT Researcher

"Hi Linda, I'm still among the living. I answered the Hurt inquiry. I couldn't find any Hurt connection. Minnesota has been COLD. Last week the wind chill's were in the -40's. It took one's breath away to be outside. It's back up to the 20's and we have a lot of snow. Enjoy all of the Okie news. Keep up the good work." -- Jeanine
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February Snow - Vallecito

Feb. 2, 2008 -- Nine to ten inches of new snow since about 4:30 yesterday afternoon. We totaled about 10.5 inches of snow yesterday.

Feb. 3, 2008 -- 7" of new snow between 1:15 pm and 5:00 pm and its still coming down." -- SBW View/Write Comments (count 0)   |   Receive updates (0 subscribers)  |   Unsubscribe

Cherokee Outlet & Cherokee Live Stock Assoc.

"James Bradley sent this information he found at the "Chronicles of Oklahoma" 
Volume 11, No. 4, December, 1933:

BOOK REVIEW -- The Cherokee Strip, by George Rainey, Enid, Oklahoma, 504 pp., with many illustrations-Cooperative Publishing Company, Guthrie, Oklahoma, $3.00.

George Rainey, Enid, Oklahoma, added another interesting chapter to Oklahoma history when he wrote, "The Cherokee Strip." We have had stories written of the Cherokee Live Stock Association, stories about old trails, concerning the cattle industry and the cow punchers and many sensational stories about bad men, who are usually called outlaws.

We have had, more recently, some interesting and authentic articles written of the opening of the Cherokee Outlet; but this book by the historian of the Cherokee Strip, George Rainey, is the most comprehensive, all embracing history of this great kingdom of seven million acres of land, known as the Cherokee Strip, that was opened to white settlement September 16, 1893, ever written.

Like most historians, he takes us back to the days when the Cherokee Strip was the hunting ground of the wild Indians, and also, tells all that is to be known about some of the earlier explorers, who crossed over this wide expanse of grass land and salt plains in the long ago. He tells the reader of Coronado, La Salle, Capt. Boone, Sibley and other early explorers. Of course, he has not forgotten the Louisiana Purchase, and of the treaties made with the Cherokees giving that tribe the use of this strip as a perpetual outlet to the hunting grounds of the unexplored west, and also, providing that the salt beds should be reserved for the use of all tribes.

While the title of the book is, "The Cherokee Strip," it explains the difference between the name, "Outlet" and the name, "Strip".

While it is usually called the Cherokee Strip, however, it would have been more in accord with historical facts to refer to this vast territory, that now comprises all of ten counties in the northern half of Oklahoma, as the "Cherokee Outlet".

Page 1119 ... The "Strip" proper, was only a narrow strip of land along the northern boundary of the Cherokee Nation, as well as, that of the "Outlet". This strip was about two and a half miles wide and ran west to the 100th meridian; this being the cause of a controversy that lasted several years. This book of Mr. Rainey''s tells all about it, and settles the matter for keeps.

The author devotes a chapter or two to the subject of Indian raids and Indian wars, that has made the Strip historic ground. He tells of the heroic deeds of the old scouts, and the soldiers, who once rode over these vast prairies with General Geo. Custer and Phil Sheridan. He tells of the massacre of that freighter, Pat Hennessey, by the Indians when they were on the war path.

He writes of the outlaws who once infested that part of the territory. He mentions Dick Yeager, Zip Wyatt, Ben Cravens and the Dalton boys. Of course, he speaks of that old line of deputy United States marshals, including Luke Short and Heck Thomas, et al. In this chapter he puts enough "blood and thunder", to satisfy most any "wild west" fan. -- OkieLegacy Comment
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Cantonment Indian School

"My great grandfather was a teacher at Cantonment in the early 1900's. They had twin daughters born about 1900 who would have attended school there also. Their names were Badgley." -- Kevin Kirkpatrick - Email: kevinkirk51@gmail.com - OieLegacy Comment
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Growing Up In Oklahoma

We are in the process of taking down Kenneth Updike's stories and ramblings of "Growing Up In Oklahoma" because Kenneth asked us, "To remove all of my previous writings to you about my Ramblins. Personal stories that I told you and your readers. My Son has had all of my writings, and notes copyrighted so that we can put them in a book or booklet. His idea. I really have no objections to this, but he insists we can be viewed by more people. I leave it up to him. Thanks for your help in the past, and I still read your Okie Legacy nearly every week."

If you find some of Kenneth's Ramblings that I have missed, Please email me the link with Vol. and Iss. numbers so that this NW Okie can remove them. Thanks for your help!
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Our Ancestors Cross Paths - WV & VA

"We corresponded some time ago. I have "stuff" on gencircles.com. Our families cross paths in Pocahontas Co., WV (Bath Co. - Highland and Pendleton Counties, VA). I am amazed at the work you did with this site. So many personal interests stories. I can't seem to find any one that has any mementos, pictures, etc on the Gum line. Or maybe I don't know how or where to get it. Your ancestors would be proud of the work you've dedicated to their memories. Take care and God Bless.' -- Julia Gum Ozie - Email: jozie@fairmontstate.edu
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Old Grimes Road Racer - NW Alva, OK

I am attaching a photo which belonged to my husband's grandfather, Ed Mercer, who was raised near Farry, Oklahoma, and later lived in Alva. On the back Ed has written: "Paul G. Mercer in his racer in front of Dora's house on Church Street Alva, Okla. We were getting ready to go back to Henry Lohrding's ranch near Coldwater, Kans. This car took part in a racing event out along the Old Grimes Road northwest of Alva. When Joe Reed owned it, it had Bauch magneto(?, perhaps magnets?) and carbine gas lights."

Tracking down the possible address has led me to revise the Dora who is mentioned. She is the brother's sister, but her name is Dora Belle Mercer. Her aunt is Dora Snyder. The street address of the race car picture seems to be the 900 block of Church Street.

Dora Mercer, age 30, is listed as a boarder in the home of Elizabeth and Edith Norris in the Woods County census of 1910 who lived at 927 Church Street.

On the back of another photo is reference to Henry Lohrding (Fred Henry Lohrding) where Ed writes that he and his brother Paul worked for Lohrding through 2 or 3 harvests as mule skinners.

Ed was the son of Stephen Franklin and Nancy Mercer. I have several interesting pictures of Alva and Farry and of the Mercer family and neighbors. As I scan the pictures, if you are interested in using them on your Okie Legacy page, I would be glad to send them to you.

I have subscribed to your webzine for a while now and am amazed at the collection of Alva lore you have. It is truly a tribute to all the generations before us. You have a unique and wonderful site." -- Onecia Mercer, Topeka, Kansas View/Write Comments (count 1)   |   Receive updates (0 subscribers)  |   Unsubscribe

Britton, Oklahoma Reunion

"I've marked my calendar and will pass the word to my (former Britton folks) friends.

To Britton Bears... The die is cast and we now have a divine appointment to meet at Johnnie's at 2652 W. Britton Rd., OKC. OK, on Saturday, June 28th at 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. This was the agreement when we last met in 2007. Spread the word to all you know." -- Roy K.
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Organization of Territorial Government

After the approval of the Organic Act, President Harrison selected and appointed the first territorial officers: George W. Steele, of Indiana, was appointed governor of the territory; Judge Robert Martin, of El Reno, Oklahoma, was named as secretary of the territory; Horace Speed, of Guthrie, was chosen as United States Marshal; The members of the Territorial Supreme Court were: Edward B. Green of Illinois, Chief Justice; Abraham J. Seay, of Missouri, and John G. Clark, of Wisconsin.

Five of the seven appointees chosen were selected from outside the territory. This was a disappointment to the people of Oklahoma in general as well as to many of the aspiring politicians of the new territory.

Governor Steele arrived in the territory May 23, 1890, where he met with an ovation and, on the following day, a public reception was tendered to him and to the other newly appointed territorial officers who had arrived.

George Washington Steele was born in Fayette County, Indiana, December 13, 1839. Most of his early life was spent at Marion, Indiana, where he attended the public schools. He attended the Ohio Wesleyan University, at Delaware, Ohio, and, at the age of twenty, began the study of law in his father's office. He was admitted to the bar just at the beginning of the Civil war. He entered the volunteer military service as a private, in April, 1861, he received a commission in the regular army, in the service of which successively in farming, pork packing and banking. He represented his district in Congress from 1881 to 1889. In 1895, he re-entered Congress, where he served three more terms. In recent years he had been governor of the National Soldiers' Home, in Indiana.

Federal census, taken in June, 1890, showed the population of Oklahoma (exclusive of the Indian reservations) to be 60,417, of which number, 3,300 were negroes, most of the latter being located in Kingfisher County. During the spring and summer of 1890 there was a determined effort made to colonize the new territory with negroes, the effort being inspired parly by partisan political zeal and partly by speculation in the interest of the promoters of the townsite of a proposed negro town (Langston) in Logan County.

July 8, 1890, Governor Steele issued a proclamation calling for the election of members of the Territorial Legislative Assembly to be held four weeks from that date (August 5th), and the Assembly was to be convened and organized two weeks later (August 19th). Three political parties placed legislative candidates in the field, namely, Republican, Democratic and Alliance. In the election, the farmers' alliance party secured four members of the House and one member of the Council; the democratic party elected eight members of the House and five members of the Council, and the republican party elected fourteen members of the House and six members of the council. There was also one member of the council who was classed as an independent.

Three days after the election (August 8th), representative elect, C. M. Burke, of Edmond, died, and the next day representative elect, Milton W. Reynolds died.

Milton W. Reynolds was born in Chemung, County, New York, May 23, 1833. Most of his earlier life was spent in Michigan, with his parents and moved when he was but three years old. He was educated at the University of Michigan. In 1857 he moved farther, west, settling at Omaha, Nebraska. He farmed, edited a newspaper and took an active part in politics, serving two terms in the Nebraska Legislative Assembly. He frequently had occasion to do special correspondence for eastern newspapers and it was on such a mission that he had occasion to visit the peace council at Fort Smith, Arkansas, in September, 1865, and also the peace councils with the wild tribes which were held on the Medicine Lodge River in the autumn of 1867.

His interest in the Oklahoma country thus dated from a comparatively early period. In 1865 he moved from Nebraska to Kansas, settling at Lawrence and, six years later, at Parsons, at both of which places he was engaged in the newspaper business. He represented Labette county in the Kansas Legislature and also served one term as a regent of the University of Kansas. His interest in the Indian Territory was always active; as early as 1872, in a magazine article entitled "The Indian State," he outlined the future development of what is now the State of Oklahoma with remarkably prophetic vision.

He was said to have written more on the Oklahoma question prior to its final opening to homestead settlement than any other one writer, especially in his work as a member of the staff of the Kansas City Times, much of his writing appearing over the nom-de-plume of "Kicking Bird." (He assumed that pen name out of compliment to his friend, the Kiowa Chieftain of that name, with whom he became acquainted during the council at Medicine Lodge.) He came to Guthrie, April 22, 1889, where he aided in the publication of the Daily State Herald for a few weeks. In July following, he established the Edmond Sun and, a few weeks later, he selected a homestead near Edmond. He took an active part in the affairs of the new territory, was elected a representative August 5, 1890, and died four days later. He was buried at Edmond.

In the Organic Act, Guthrie was named as the temporary seat of the territorial government. Although both towns (Oklahoma City & Guthrie) were on the same line of railway, it was evident that, as between the two, Guthrie had the advantage of moral and political support and backing of the railway company (Santa Fe) which was reputed to be a power in such matters. Railroad influence may have been potent in the choice of a location for the land office and also in the determination of the location of the temporary seat of the territorial government.
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Earlier Agitation For Statehood

After the Oklahoma Territorial Government had scarcely completed its organization, there began to appear in the press of Oklahoma, expressions in favor of an early movement for the admission of Oklahoma into the Union as a state.

The holding of a statehood convention was mooted, even while the first Territorial Legislative Assembly was in session. This scattered and independent agitation finally culminated in the calling of a statehood convention to be held in Oklahoma City, December 15, 1891. This convention was well attended, every county in Oklahoma being represented and a number of delegates being present from various parts of the Indian Territory. As a result of its deliberations, the following memorial to Congress was adopted:

• "To the Congress of the United States: "The people of Oklahoma Territory, without distinction of party, assembled in convention at Oklahoma City, on December 15, 1891, hereby submit to the Congress of the United States the following statement of facts relating to the condition of the Territory and the section of country occupied by the five civilized tribes, and in behalf of the passage of an enabling act providing for the admission of Oklahoma as a state:
  
  "That area of the old Indian Territory comprises 68,991 square miles or 44,154,240 acres of land:
  
  "That this area is exceeded by only fourteen States of the Union, and that, in fertility of soil and in its capacity for agricultural and mineral production, is not excelled by any other section of the United States:
  
  "That the committee on Territories of the House of Representatives of the Fifty-first congress reported that 'excluding the fullblood Indians there are in the Indian Territory and Oklahoma about 247,200 people, who are either white or of mixed blood, but who in personal appearance and in their habits and customs and in their intelligence do not differ materially from the people who inhabit other parts of the United States;"
  
  "That since said report was made the Indian title to more than 5,000,000 acres of land in Oklahoma Territory has been extinguished, and has been opened and is about to be opened to settlement, adding, with the increase of other sections, not less than 50,000 to our population, and increasing the sum total to about 300,000;
  
  "That the opening to settlement of other lands in the near future will only be, in rapidity of settlement, a repetition of settlements already made, and that, before the expiration f the present Congress, there will be in Oklahoma and the Indian Territory a population of half a million people;
  
  "That the population of Oklahoma Territory proper by the Federal census of 1890, before the opening of the new lands, was 61,934, which exceeds the population of either of the states of Illinois, Ohio, Nevada, Oregon, and Wyoming at the time they were admitted as States, and that not a single Territory, with the exception of Washington and South Dakota, has had a population equal to Oklahoma, with the five Tribes included, when admitted to the rights and privileges of statehood:
  
  "That the rapid settlement and development of Oklahoma has been exceptional. Cities have been born in a day, and vast areas in the public domain have been as speedily occupied by an industrious and thriving population. A single year has witnessed more development in Oklahoma than has taken place in any other territory in a whole decade:
  
  "That, in the interest of good government, all of the old Indian Territory should be included in the future State of Oklahoma, and that by so doing there will be no conflict with treaty stipulations and no infringement upon the rights or property of the Indian tribes;
  
  "That following the uniform precedents established by congress in the admission of States, we favor the protection of the Indians in all their legal and equitable rights under the treaties and agreements. We believe, in the language of president Harrison in his recent message that 'The relation of the five civilized tribes now occupying the Indian Territory to the United States is not best calculated to promote the highest advancement of these Indians. That there should be within our borders five independent states, having no relations except those growing out of treaties with the government of the United States, no representation in the nation's legislation, its people not citizens, is a startling anomally.' And we further agree with the President that 'it seems to be inevitable that there shall be before long some organic changes in relation to these people.' We believe these changes should come through statehood, citizenship, equitable laws, home courts, prompt suppression of crime, and equal representation;
  
  "That, while we are at all times loyal to the Federal Government, and fully recognize the constitutional power of congress to enact all laws for the government of the Territories, we seek self-government and home rule as a necessity for our full measure of prosperity, and as a part of the pride and glory of all patriotic citizens;
  
  "That here as in the other Territories, the divided jurisdiction between Congress and the Territorial Legislature is an impediment to the investment of capital, to the permanency of manufacturing and business enterprises, and inefficient and unsatisfactory in the protection of life and property;
  
  "That we have more than 1,000 miles of railway now in operation, other lines in progress of construction, and with the confidence that would be assured by the passage of an enabling act by Congress providing for the formation of a State government, many more lines would be projected;
  
  "We therefore declare that, in view of the extent of territory we ask to be included within the geographical limits of the State of Oklahoma, the number of the population, the variety and magnificence of our material resources, the business, educational, religious, and social conditions which exist here, and the aggressive and enterprising character of our people, the time has come for congress to pass an enabling act as herein indicated, and that at an early day we should be permitted to throw off our Territorial pupilage and assume the dignity and responsibility of a sovereign State.
  "J. P. Lane, President of the Convention.
  "T. M. Upshaw, Secretary of the Convention."

• "Resolved, That an executive committee, to be composed of one member from each county, be appointed by the chair, whose duty it shall be to prepare an enabling act providing for the admission of Oklahoma as a State, to include all of the old Indian Territory within its geographical boundaries, to collect the necessary statistics and information in support of said act, and to present the same, together with the proceedings of this convention, to the congress of the United States.
  

Oklahoma Territorial Officers

Governors:
George W. Steele - 1890-1891
Abraham J. Seay - 1891-1893
William C. Renfrow - 1893-1897
Cassius M. Barnes - 1897-1901
William M. Jenkins - 1901
Thompson B. Ferguson - 1901-1906
Frank Frantz - 1906-1907

Delegates To Congress:
David A. Harvey - 1890-1893
Dennis T. Flynn - 1893-1897
James Y. Callahan - 1897-1899
Dennis T. Flynn - 1899-1903
Bird S. McGuire - 1903-1907

Secretaries of the Territory:
Robert Martin - 1890-1893
Thomas J. Lowe - 1893-1897
William M. Jenkins - 1897-1901
William Grimes - 1901-1906
Charles H. Filson - 1906-1907

Attorneys General:
Charles Brown - 1890-1893
Clinton A. Galbraith - 1893-1897
Harper S. Cunningham - 1897-1901
J. C. Strang - 1901-1902
J. C. Roberts - 1902-1904
Percy C. Simons - 1904-1906
W. Oliver Cromwell - 1906-1907

Treasurers:
Samuel Murphy - 1890-1893
M. L. Turner - 1893-1897
Frank M. Thompson - 1897-1901
C. W. Rambo - 1901-1907

Superintendents of Public Instruction:
J. H. Lawhead - 1890-1892
J. H. Parker - 1892-1893
E. D. Cameron - 1893-1897
S. N. Hopkins - 1897-1901
L. W. Baxter - 1901-1906
J. E. Dyche - 1906-1907

Justice of the Supreme Court:
Edward B. Green, Chief Justice
Abraham J. Seay, Associate Justice - 1890-1892
John G. Clark, Associate Justice - 1890-1893
John H. Burford, Associate Justice - 1892-1895
Frank Dale, Chief Justice - 1893-1898
A. G. C. Bierer, Associate Justice - 1894-1898
John L. McAtee, Associate Justice - 1894-1898
Henry W. Scott - Associate Justice - 1893-1896
John C. Tarsney, Assoicate Justice (appointed from Missouri) - 1896-1899
James R. Keaton, Associate Justice - 1896-1898
John H. Burford, chief Justice - 1898-1907
B. F. Burwell, Associate Justice - 1898-1907
Clinton F. Irwin, Associate Justice (appointed from Illinois) - 1899-1907
Bayard T. Hainer, Associate Justice - 1898-1907
J. K. Beauchamp, Associate Justice - 1902-1907
J. L. Pancoast, Associate Justice - 1902-1907
Frank E. Gillette, Associate Justice - 1902-1907
Summers Hardy, Associate Justice - 1915-
Charles F. Thacker, Associate Justice - 1916-

Judges of Federal Courts In Indian Territory:
James M. Shackleford - 1889-1893
Charles B. Stuart - 1893-1897
C. B. Kilgore - 1895-1897
William M. Springer - 1895-1899
Yancey Lewis - 1895-1898
William H. H. Clayton - 1897-1907
John R. Thomas - 1897-1899
Hosea Townsend - 1898-1907
Joseph A. Gill - 1899-1907
Charles W. Raymond - 1901-1905
William R. Lawrence - 1904-1907
Joseph T. Dickerson - 1904-1907
Louis Sulzbacher - 1904-1907
Thomas C. Humphry - 1904-1907
Luman F. Parker, Jr. - 1906-1907
John H. Cotteral - 1907-
Ralph E. Campbell - 1907-

United States Senators:
Robert L. Owen - 1907-
Thomas P. Gore - 1907-

Representatives In Congress:
Bird S. McGuire - 1907-1915
Elmer Fulton - 1907-1909
C. D. Carter - 1907-
James Davenport - 1907-1911
Scott Ferris - 1907
Dick T. Morgan - 1909
C. E. Creager - 1911-1913
James Davenport - 1913
William H. Murray - 1913
J. B. Thompson - 1913
Claud Weaver - 1913-1915
W. W. Hastings - 1915
James McClintic - 1915
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The First Statehood Bill

Territorial Delegate David A. Harvey presented the Memorial to congress and introduced a bill in the House of Representatives (H.R. 46290), January 25, 1892, authorizing the people of Oklahoma and Indian Territories to formulate and adopt a constitution and apply for admission into the Union as a state on an equality with the other states.

On April 14, 1892, delegate Harvey introduced another bill (HR 8154) providing for the allotment of all the lands in the several Indian reservations attached to the Quapaw Agency, the organization of the same into the county of Cayuga and the attachment of the same to the territory of Oklahoma.

During the last session of the 52nd Congress, on December 22, 1892, Senator Bishop W. Perkins, of Kansas, introduced a bill to provide for the admission of Oklahoma and the Indian Territory as a single state.

Beginning February 11, 1892, and continuing at frequent intervals for nearly a month, the house committee on territories held a series of hearings on the question of the proposed state to be composed by a union of the Indian Territory with Oklahoma. The principal arguments for the Harvey statehood bill were made by Sidney Clarke, of Oklahoma City, and by W. P. Hackney and Horace Speed, both of Guthrie, representing the single statehood executive committee.

The arguments in opposition were mostly advanced by Elias C. Boudinot (Cherokee), Roley McIntosh and A. P. McKellop (Creek) and Capt. J. S. Standley (Choctaw). E. C. Boudinot was a nephew of Col. E. C. Boudinot who was a long, prominent figure in Cherokee affairs and had died a year and a half before. -- Vol. 2, pg. 675, A Standard History of Oklahoma, by Joseph B. Thoburn
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