Stories from the past
147 YEARS AGO
Wednesday, May 1, 1878
Sugar George visited
Sugar George Esq., attorney and counsellor at law, practicing before the courts of the Creek Nation, visited Eufaula last Saturday looking after the ways and means to build the new school building for the colored students of the nation. $3,000 was appropriated by the Council for that purpose.
Feather Dance
The Creeks of Arbeka Town held a “feather dance” last week. This is one of the old customs that is now nearly obsolete and none but the old time Indians engage in it.
The modus operandi seems to be, one of the party sings while four of the young men each having eagle feathers bound on their arms, dance around in a circle, using their arms as wings and imitating the flying birds, the motions of animals, etc., whooping and howling with all the unearthly noises possible.
This is continued at intervals during the night. After closing the feather dance the women join in dancing, each with a string of a dozen or more terrapin shells strung around their limbs.
••••• 119 YEARS AGO
Friday, August 10, 1906
HEAVY RAINS DO MUCH DAMAGE
The incessant downpour of rant for about 48 hours preceding Wednesday noon,has bond great damage along he South Canadian river in the way of railroad losses and destruction of crops.
The Katy track is washed out in many places between Mill creek and the Canadian and it will be necessary to build a total of seven bridges and trestles between these points, a distance of about 1 ½ miles, before the road will be in shape to resume traffic.
TERRITORY’S POPULATION
Judge Joseph A. Gill, of Vinita, a member of the Indian Territory districting board, states that the population of the Northern district of the Indian Territory is at least 200,000. The territory that lies south of the Canadian river, which includes the Choctaw and Chickasaw nations, will probably run 400,000, although Judge Clayton considers the estimate too large. The Western district, in his opinion, will run close to 200,000.
This will give the Indian Territory a populatin of approximately 800,000 people. The 1900 population of the Western district was 51,000.
••••• 100 YEARS AGO
Thursday, May 7, 1925
WAR WAS NEW BIRTH FOR COUNTRY Merchants Aid in Raising Funds
Every community in this country has gone through a new birth as a result of the demands for service.
The war was the worker of this modern miracle. Young men responded to the call to cross the seas as fighters and the young women followed them as nurses; while their elders on accounting of their age or on account of obligations of dependence and other causes, remained behind to keep the home fires burning.
Major Grayson Buys Morhart Home
Major Washington Grayson this week purchased the W. G. Morhart residence on south Main street.
This is one of the very nicest homes in the city. It is at present occupied by Mr. and Mrs. H.B. Ernest.
Major Grayson will get possession of the home the first of November, when it is said Mr. Ernest will build a home for himself.
•••••
80 YEARS AGO
Thursday, April 5, 1945
EUFAULANS HEAR OF PROPOSED DAM Before a large crowd of landowners, businessmen and farmers of this county and eastern Oklahoma, Maj. H.P. Seavy, U.S. Army engineer, gave an authoritative outline Wednesday night on the proposed Eufaula dam and reservoir.
To a meeting sponsored by the Eufaula Lions club, flocked business leaders of Muskogee, McAlester, Checotah, Canadian, Crowder, Indianola, Hanna, Texanna, Onapa as well as Eufaula and nearby communities.
EDITORIAL: Some Sobering Thoughts Eufaula, through no fault of its own, is now at the “crossroads” of its existence. Through all its legendary history, the city had never faced a graver crisis than the one now confront it.
The geographical location of this settlement has placed it in the very heart of a region now being processed for a vast reservoir of water.
Eufaula is being proposed as a site or a $54,000,000 dam and reservoir as an integral part of a chain of dams over the Arkansas Valley.
The plans and surveys have been made by the United States Army Engineers. This body of highly technical men have recommended that the Eufaula dam be incorporated into the over-all picture, as a project while damaging a few will materially aid many.
For McIntosh County to bear the full impact of the program in this basin is asking for considerable sacrifice.
EUFAULA SOLDEIR SLIGHTLY WOUNDED Announcement was received in Eufaula this week that S/Sgt Loy Peterson, member of the 89th division, had been slightly wounded in action while fighting inside Germany.
The notice stated that the Eufaulan was wounded March 13, 1945. He is the son of Mr. and Mrs. W.C. Peterson of this city.
MAJOR JIM DOSS TO HOT SPRINGS
Major Jim R. Doss left Thursday morning for Hot Springs, Ark., for a several day’s visit.
••••• 75 YEARS AGO
Thursday, March 9, 1950
Mayor Proclaims Cleanup Week
After a three-month delay attributed to bad weather, Mayor Bill Cowling issued his cleanup proclamation for the city of Eufaula and appointed a new councilman from Ward 2, during a brief and harmonious council session Monday night.
Campaign Started To Buy Uniforms for Colored Band The Booker T. Washington Parent-Teacher association has started a campaign to raise $1,500 to buy uniforms for the school band.
Already the PTA has raised $300 toward this goal, L.W. Presly, principal, has announced.
••••• 65 YEARS AGO
Thursday, January 28, 1960
McGRIFF JR. AT FORT SAM HOUSTON Specialist 4 Roosevelt McGriff Jr., 25, whose parents live in Eufaula, recently was assigned to Headquarters Company of the Brook Army Medical Center at Fort Sam Houston, Texas Specialist McGriff, a driver in the company, entered the Army in November 1956. He is a graduate of Booker T. Washington High School.
Alvin Turner Speaker For Women’s Club
Electronic brains, guided missiles and man-made satellites will be demonstrated in a talk before the Eufaula Business and Professional Women’s club and their guests, Feb. 2 at 7:30 p.m. at the Jefferson Davis school cafeteria.
Alvin Turner, Demonstration Engineer for the Southwestern Bell Telephone Co., will speak on electronic systems which will provide a new type telephone service and are the nerves of today’s guided missiles.
••••• 55 YEARS AGO
Thursday, May 14, 1970
David Fisher, Boy Stater
David Fisher, son of Mr. and Mrs. Roy Fisher, will represent Eufaula at Boys State, June 6 through June 13 in Stillwater this year.
Boys State is under the sponsorship of the American Legion and David is co-sponsored by the Lions Club of Eufaula
Raiford Homecoming Scheduled June 14
The annual Raiford Homecoming has been set for Sunday, May 14 at the Oak Grove school building.
This will be an all-day festival and each family should bring its own lunch.
••••• 33 YEARS AGO
Thursday, June 11, 1992
Sales Tax Funds Divided, But Voters Must Approve
The McIntosh County Excise Board has approved a plan that would divide revenues form a proposed one-cent sales tax between 15 entities.
The sales tax, if passed, would give the county government just enough money to operate departments and several organizations.
The tax proposal will go to the voters for their approval on the general election ballot and is “sorely needed” to provide funding for county government, according to a member of the excise board.
Vernon Man Drowns
A 22-year-old Vernon man drowned in Mill Creek on Saturday, June 6.
The body of Ronnie Fields, 22, and the horse he was riding were found about a mile east from where he and his mount were last seen, according to Mc-Intosh County Sheriff Bobby Gray.
“He had gone riding with friends when, apparently, his horse slipped and fell in the creek. They both went under,” the sheriff said.
••••• 10 YEARS AGO
Thursday, June 4, 2015
Eufaula’s first city manager hired
The city council voted unanimously Monday night to hire Greg Buckley as Eufaula’s first city manager, launching a new era in the town’s form of government.
“I think we have the best city manager we could possibly have,” Mayor James Duty said in introducing Buckley. “He has a lot of great ideas, and he’s ready to get to work.”
Buckley will begin work on July 20.
