Pottawatomie County, Oklahoma Biographies

George W. Allen is counted among the veterans of the great Civil war, who found his way after the close of that struggle, into the wilds of the southwestern country, where he still resides, an honored citizen. He was a native of Sullivan county, Missouri, where he was born, March 3, 1847. His father, Major William Allen, (descended from the celebrated Ethan Allen) commanded a battalion in the Mexican war. His father (the grandfather of George W.) had been a slave owner in Kentucky, though William Allen was opposed to slavery and refused to accept any slaves from his father. Major Allen engaged as a farmer in northern Missouri, where he owned a considerable tract of land. He died there in 1S60, a highly respected citizen ; he was an intimate friend of General Sterling Price, of Missouri. Our subject's mother was Sarah Worley, born in Ohio, where her family were early settlers. The father, Major Allen, was a Baptist preacher, as well as a soldier and farmer, and they had a large family. Three of the sons were soldiers in the Union army and one son, Colonel Thomas Allen, raised a regiment of troops in California and march- ed them to Texas for the Confederate army. George W. Allen of this sketch, was reared on a farm in Missouri and at the age of six- teen years, enlisted in April, 1S63, as a member of Company A, Twenty-third Missouri Infantry. This regiment had met with heavy losses at Shiloh and had returned to recruit up its ranks once more, Colonel W. P. Robinson and acting captain, W. O. Seaman, having charge of the regiment. They went to the front and were with General McPherson at the time he was killed and took part in all the campaigns around to the Carolinas, and back to take part in the Grand Review at Washington, District of Columbia, in June, 1865. Mr. Allen was discharged at Benton Barracks, St. Louis, Missouri, escaping with a scalp and thigh wound. After his return from the service, he learned the cabinet makers' and the carriage and wagon makers' trades. He went to California and from there to Shawnee, Oklahoma Territory, in 1S96, when the place was but a small village built mostly of Cottonwood lumber.  Mr. Allen was united in marriage at the age of twenty years to Martha Matkins, who died at Leavenworth, Kansas, leaving four children, two of whom are now living: Arthur M.. of New Mexico and Alice Call, of Missouri. The deceased are William A., who died aged thirty-five years, in Oklahoma, and Lola M., who died when she was twenty-five years old. His present wife was before marriage Zeruiah  Schenck, a native of Indiana, daughter of Rev. John Schenck, a native of Ohio, but for many years a minister of the Baptist (old school) church, in Kansas. The family now occupy a good house, on a three-acre plot of ground, with a good orchard, the same being on South McKinley street. Originally, George W. Allen was a Douglas Democrat. He very naturally finds a place within the ranks of the Grand Army of the Republic and counts his friends, both within the veteran and civil ranks, by the legion.  Submitted by Janice Rice in part from Oklahoma History 1909

John Anderson, Jr., is prominently connected with the United States Government Indian Industrial School at Shawnee in the capacity of the agricultural teacher and as the manager of the farm. His family were among the first to locate in Pottawatomie county, they being of French and Indian blood, and he received his government appointment in August of 1902. The farm under his supervision has become very valuable, well improved and well stocked with a high grade of cattle, horses and Poland China hogs. In addition he owns a well improved farm of his own, and is a practical and progressive agriculturist. Mr. Anderson was born at St. Mary's, Pottawatomie county, Kansas, on the 10th of October, 1871. His father, also named John, was born in Peoria county, Illinois, descending from French and Pottawatomie Indian blood, and after the Black Hawk war his race left Illinois and went to Iowa on the Des Moines river, while later they continued on to Pottawatomie county, Kansas, where John Anderson, St., was married to Elizabeth Hardin, who was born near Chicago and was also of the Pottawatomie race of Indians. They continued to reside in Kansas until their removal to Oklahoma in 1871, making the journey with teams and wagons and located near the Mission Farm in Pottawatomie county, where Mr. Anderson still resides. For twenty-five years he was a government blacksmith, and his residence here antedates many years the advent of the railroad. His family numbered twelve children, all of whom received Indian allotments, and the ten now living are Charles E., Julia, Mary, John, Jr., Thomas, Elizabeth, Margaret, Rosetta, Elizabeth, and Irene. Two are deceased, as is also the wife and mother, who died here at the age of fifty-six years. Mr. Anderson is now living retired, after many years devoted to farming, the cattle business and the black- smith's trade. He is a member of the Masonic fraternity.Although a native born son of Kansas, John Anderson, Jr., was reared in the territory of Oklahoma, and attended in his youth' the early schools here, when the teacher "boarded around." At the age of twenty-one he was married to Sophie Miller, who was born in Germany, but when she was a girl of twelve she came to the United States and joined her brother, the Rev. Frederick Miller, a Presbyterian minister, at Kamrar, Iowa. Her parents, Matthew and Elizabeth Miller, are living in Germany. Mr. and Mrs. Anderson have three children  George Albert, Elizabeth and Ben Nathan. Mr. Anderson is both a Mason and a Republican, and he and his wife are members of the Quaker religion.  Submitted by Janice Rice in part from Oklahoma History 1909

Doctor Benjaman L. Applewhite was born July 27, 1841, in Holmes County, Mississippi. His parents were Doctor Eldridge Applewhite, and Eliza (Lee); Applewhite. His early education was in private schools, and he had begun the study of medicine when the war between the states began. On April 27, 1861, he enlisted in the 12th Mississippi Infantry, which afterwards became a part of the army of Northern Virginia. He took part in the battles of Bull Run, Antietam, Gettysburg, Frederickburg, Charlotteville, and at Fair Oaks where the commanding officer, Gen. James E. Johnston was wounded. He was later wounded, in the seven days battle before Richmond, and spent several months in prison, and in a hospital. After the war, he resumed the study of medicine, at the Ohio Medical College, at Cincinnati, and later at the medical department of the University of Louisville, Ky., from which school he was graduated in 1880. He was practicing medicine in Dexter, Texas, when he met and married Olive Rice. They moved to McAlester, Indian Territory, in 1884, where Doctor Applewhite was employed by the mining company, as physician. Although Doctor and Mrs. Applewhite made the run at the time of opening of the county, they did not secure a filing, at that time. Mrs. Applewhite said they really came for fun, and had it—which illustrates the character of their comradeship, which is still ideal after many years of wedded life. They still do things together "just for fun," and their greatest reason for discord is the fact that Mrs. Applewhite wants to make a trip in an air-plane, and the doctor will not consent to go with her. Doctor Applewhite did stake a lot in Tecumseh, on the day of the run, which he sold an hour or two later for ten dollars. He bought another man’s claim on a homestead two miles from town, on which they lived several years while he kept his office in town. Many, many nights Mrs. Applewhite stayed alone with her children, while her husband answered the call of his patients—but fear never lived in her heart. Doctor Applewhite was one of the charter members of the State Medical Association, which was organized in 1893, and has been an active member since, serving two terms as president of the county association. Mrs. Olive (Rice); Applewhite, was born near Springfield, Missouri, in 1857. She was educated for a teacher, being a graduate of Morrisville Institute. She was teaching in Dexter, Texas, at the time of her marriage. Doctor and Mrs. Applewhite have reared three children. Doctor Gardener H. Applewhite, of Shawnee, Oklahoma, Mrs. Margaret Chaney, a professor in the Teachers’ College at Ada, Oklahoma, and Mrs. E. J. Corn, of Tucumcari, New Mexico.

J. M. Aydelotte was born in Princeton, Indiana, January 31, 1862, a son of Oscar N. and A. J. I Redburn.  Aydelotte the former a native of Covington, Kentucky, and the latter of Maryland. The public schools of Indiana and a commercial school at Lexington, Kentucky, supplied him with his educational equipment, and in 1S81 he moved to Clarkesville, Red River county, Texas, with a capital of one hundred dollars and clerked in one of the large stores advancing himself and where he gained his experience in merchandising and the cotton business which later proved of value when he came to Shawnee. Besides the many large interests with which he has been identified, Mr. Aydelotte is vice president of the Shawnee National Bank, and is president of the Cotton Oil Company at Ada. and president of the Commonwealth Oil Company at Cushing, Oklahoma. It is said that Mr. Aydelotte pays more taxes than any other resident of Pottawatomie county. One of the enterprises of public interest to which he has recently given attention is a new railroad line northeast from Shawnee to open up a new section of the state. He has made a survey and organized a company for carrying out this plan. In politics he is allied with the Democratic party, but is more concerned with practical, honest government than with the workings of party politics. He is a prominent member of the Masonic order, being connected with the Shriners Temple at Oklahoma City and with the Consistory at Guthrie. He is past district deputy of the Elks. He married in 1903 Miss Mabel D. Dennie of Mt. Vernon, Missouri.  Submitted by Janice Rice in part from Oklahoma History 1909

William S. Cade, who has practiced at the bar of Oklahoma since 1903, is a native son of Ohio, born on the 27th of January, 1849, and in the Southwestern Normal School at Lebanon, that state, he received his literary training. He then began the study of law at Ann Arbor, Michigan, and was admitted to the bar of the supreme court of Ohio in 1875. During the first three years of his professional life, from 1875 until 1879, Mr. Cade practiced in Pomeroy, Ohio, and at the close of that period removed to Anthony, Kansas, where he continued his practice for twenty-three years. It was in 1903 that he established his home in Shawnee and was admitted to the supreme court of Oklahoma. In 1907 he was appointed the postmaster of the city, for he has always been a stanch Republican, and from 1883 to 1885 served as the probate judge at Anthony, Kansas. For years he was a member of the state Republican committee.  In 1883 Mr. Cade was married to Lizzie Hagenbuch, born in Pennsylvania, and their two children are Boyd M. and Lavina. The son is the cashier of the State Bank at Meeker, Oklahoma, and the daughter is now Mrs. Templeton and a resident of Shawnee. Mr. Cade is a Mason, a past master of Anthony lodge of Kansas and also of Shawnee lodge, and his religious affiliations are with the Presbyterian church. He was a ''mighty hunter" during the early days of the south- west, spending three months of each year for many years hunting in Oklahoma and Indian Territory, and many an elk, antelope and other game fell before his trusty rifle. In those days the Indians inhabited this region of country, with a few cattlemen scattered here and there, and his retentive memory is replete with pleasant reminiscences of his hunting adventures, making him an interesting and entertaining conversationalist. Submitted by Janice Rice in part from Oklahoma History 1909

Cassius M. Cade, who is serving as cashier of the State National Bank of Shawnee, was born in Harriettsville, Ohio, August 4, 1856, and comes of French descent. His grand- father, William Cade, who was born in Alsace, France, emigrated with two brothers to America and settled in Virginia, where he became a wealthy planter and died at the advanced age of ninety-three years. His son, Samuel Cade, the father of Cassius M., was born on" the old homestead in Virginia and there learned the trades of cabinet making and building. In early manhood he went to Marietta, Ohio, where he worked at his trade for a time and later went to Noble county, that state. Subsequently he removed to Ironton, Ohio and was married to Emeline Rowe, a daughter of David Rowe, and a native of Maryland.  Cassius M. Cade was reared in his native place to the age of nine years, when he accompanied the family on their removal to Lawrence county, Ohio, where he completed his education in the common schools and later attended Lebanon Normal School. At the age of sixteen he engaged in teaching, in which he was engaged until he was twenty-three years of age. At that time he went "to the Black Hills, traveling with teams from Fort Laramie. After a time spent in the west he returned home and in 1879 went to Anthony, Kansas, where for four years he was engaged in the real estate business. He bought a large amount of land in Harper county, paying for this ten dollars per acre, which later increased in value and brought him a large financial return. In 1881 he went to Silverton, Colorado, where he prospected and mined in the Navajo mountains, this district at that time being invaded with Indians, so that the prospectors always traveled in parties and carried weapons of defense. While there he discovered oil and copper mines, which he later disposed of at excellent advantage. After three years spent in the mining regions of Colorado he returned to Anthony, Kansas, and once more engaged in the real estate business, until 1885, when he made a second trip to Colorado and later returned to Kansas. He acted as secretary and treasurer of the Southern Kansas Town Company and in this connection laid out the town of Coldwater. In 1886 he returned once more to Anthony, that state, where he remained until the opening of Oklahoma on the 22day of April, 1889, when he came here and located in Kingfisher. In the following year he became the first county clerk and register of deeds of Kingfisher county, through appointment of Governor Steele. He was then elected city clerk of Kingfisher, continuing in that position until the building of the Choctaw Railroad when he became corporation town site manage of that company at Shawnee. He also had charge of Earlsboro and Choctaw City Railroad until the railroad company made him commercial agent, which position he filled for a year, when he resigned and became connected with the First National Bank of Shawnee upon its organization, October 27, 1898. For the first year he acted as assistant cashier and as a director, but in 1899 was promoted to the office of vice president of the bank, which position he filled until the State National Bank was started. He is also interested in several other banks in Oklahoma. He has been identified with Shawnee Oil Mills since its organization and assisted in founding the Compress Ice Company and is active in many other enterprises. In 1884 occurred the marriage of Mr. Cade and Miss M. E. Kitchen, who died in 1885, leaving one son, Cassius Marcellus, Jr., who was the first white child born in Coldwater, Kansas. He was educated in the schools of Oklahoma and in a private naval academy at Annapolis. In February, 1900, he received appointment of cadet of United States Military Academy at West Point. For his second wife Mr. Cade chose Miss Lizzie Hartz, a native of Wisconsin, their marriage being celebrated in Enid, Oklahoma. Mr. Cade is prominent in the ranks of the Republican party, being chairman of the Republican national committee, and is identified with the Masons, belonging to the Knights of Pythias society. He is a prominent business man and well deserves mention in this volume.  Submitted by Janice Rice, excerpt from Oklahoma History 1909

Allen J. Cammack. One of the leading real estate firms of Shawnee is Cammack and Yerrick, the senior member of which is Allen J. Cammack, an enterprising business man who located in Shawnee in 1905. From the railroad train service he has transferred his attention with much success to a business in which there is great rivalry in this new state, and the firm has a large and profitable clientage in real estate, loans and insurance. Mr. Cammack was born in Clarkesville, Tennessee, August 3, 1866, a son of Albert and Florence (Johnson) Cammack, the former a native of Louisiana and the latter of Clarkesville. The father died in 1906 aged seventy-three, and the mother in 1903. The former was for many years a merchant, engaged in business in New Orleans, Louisiana. Allen J. Cammack spent his youth largely in New Orleans, where he obtained an education in the well known educational institution, Tulane University. When he left school his constitution was too delicate to engage in any of the professional activities or in confining business, and having been advised to seek outdoor employment, he found it in the railway train service, which he began in Alabama. His health improved so much in this work that he continued at it until 1905, being employed in running a passenger train on the Louisville & Nashville Railroad until he came to Shawnee. Mr. Cammack married Mrs. Muncie O. Porter, of Trenton, Tennessee. Fraternally he is connected with the Masonic order, being a Shriner, and is a member of the Episcopal church Sumitted by Janice Rice and in part from Oklahoma History 1909

To John A. Clark belongs the distinction of filing the first claim in Pottawatomie county (which was county B. at that time);. Being a veteran of the Civil War, and taking advantage of the special privilege offered to the honorably discharged soldiers, his filing was made in Oklahoma City, ten seconds after noon on the day of the opening. Mr. Clark has vivid memories of the pushing crowded line that waited at the land office, as men from almost every state in the Union stood tense and determined, waiting their turn to file. As his homestead was a very desirable location, situated at the corner of the townsite, and had many natural advantages, such as a living spring of pure water, fine timber, and a rich fertile soil, his rights were bitterly contested. Upon it he proceeded to build an unusually good log house, and at its completion he moved his family from Vincennes, Indiana, and they lived on the homestead for many years, while Mr. Clark maintained a law office in Oklahoma City for a few months, and later in Tecumseh, until his retirement. This home was one of the social features of the community, its charming hospitality the pride of the town, and still stands, although Mr. and Mrs. Clark have removed to a beautiful modern home in town. Mr. Clark—whose family dates back to the tenth century in England—is a direct descendant of General Johnathan Clark, and Mary Bird (Rogers); Clark. They were the parents of George Rogers Clark, who was a noted general during the Revolution (he was never married, hence left no descendant); and William Edwin Clark the explorer, who was governor of Upper Louisiana, and of Jonas Clark, who was John A. Clark’s grandfather. John A. Clark was born in Blount County, Tennessee, Nov. 17, 1845. He was a student in the University of Indiana, but took his degree in law, in the University of Michigan. He helped to organize the first state bar association of Oklahoma, is a member of the Presbyterian Church, and is a Mason. He was married January 11, 1881, to Miss Ninna M. Coan, at Vincennes, Indiana. Mrs. Ninna (Coan); Clark, was born October 20, 1858, at Vincennes, the daughter of John Coan, and Margaret Badollot Coan, being of French and English ancestry. A great grandfather; William McClure was in the Revolutionary army, while another great grandfather, John Badollet, was a member of the convention that framed the constitution of Indiana. She was educated in the public schools of Vincennes, and at a private school, Maple Grove Academy, a religious institution, at Vincennes. Mrs. Clark has ever stood for the highest type of womanhood, was a member of the Presbyterian Church, and has been a teacher in the Sabbath school of that denomination for thirty-two years. She has been prominent in all the uplift movements of her community, an active member of the Red Cross, a charter member of the Order of Eastern Star, a member of the first federated woman’s club in Pottawatomie County, (and among the first in the state to federate);. Two children were born to this union; St. Clair Clark, an engineer of Oklahoma City, and the late Mrs. Max L. Cunningham of Oklahoma City. source: Chronicles of Oklahoma Volume 4, No. 3 September, 1926

Sidney Clarke, Jr., of Shawnee, of the firm of Clarke & Keller, seedmen (the oldest seed house in Oklahoma), was born at Lawrence, Kansas, January 15, 1860, a son of Hon. Sidney Clarke, of Oklahoma City, a pioneer of Kansas (whose sketch appears elsewhere in this work). The son was reared in Kansas, educated at Lawrence University and engaged in the milling business at Atchison, Nebraska. He drifted from that point to Ida Grove, Ida county, Iowa, and subsequently went to Holt county, Nebraska, locating for some time at O'Neill, the county seat. He went to Oklahoma in 1889. at the first opening of the reservation to actual settlers. He spent one season there and then went back to Iowa. In 1902 he established the seed house with which he is now connected. Here may be found the largest variety of garden and field seeds within the new state of Oklahoma. By fair dealing, the firm merited and gained a large and lucrative trade, covering a wide circle of territory. They occupy a large three-story business house.  Mr. Clarke is a progressive man, who favors all reasonable public improvement. He always favors the cause of religion and temperance, as well as education. Politically, he is a Republican and is associated with the members of the Masonic fraternity. He was happily united in marriage, in 1883, to Lou E. Iron, a woman of much intelligence and from a most excellent family in Iowa. She is the daughter of Thomas W. Iron and his wife, who was a Miss Butler, and who is now- deceased. Two children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Clarke: Ross and Louise. Both he and his faithful wife are members of the Presbyterian church. Sumitted by Janice Rice and in part from Oklahoma History 1909

Austin M. Coffin is a prominent factor in the business and political life of Oklahoma, and as an expert assayer is extensively associated with its mining interests. He is a representative of a family from the mother country of England, Tristram Coffin having been the first of the name to come to the United States. The family in time became owners of the Island of Nantucket, and to- day own a large portion of it. John Coffin, the grandfather of Austin M., was born on the island, and from North Carolina he went to Indiana and purchased land on which a part of Indianapolis now stands and also where the monument to the veterans of '61 stands. He afterward sold the land and the deed is now in the possession of his grand- son. His son. Z. W. Coffin, was born in Indiana, as was also his wife, Josephine New, and she was of German descent. They moved to Missouri in 1874. Austin M. Coffin was born in Greenfield, Indiana, August 14, 1871, and was therefore a boy of three years when his parents moved to Missouri, receiving his education in its public schools and the Missouri Wesleyan University, where he gave special attention to the study of English, surveying and chemistry and received the degree of A. B. With this excellent training to serve as the foundation for his life work he began as- saying and geological surveying in Kansas City, but a short time afterward was obliged to give up the work on account of the weak condition of his eyes. For two years he was engaged in railroad work with the Santa Fe and Rock Island companies, and in 1897 came to Shawnee, Oklahoma, to embark in the real estate business, but finally drifting into mining his excellent knowledge of assaying led to his selection as the secretary of the Shawnee & Kyhaco Copper Mining Company. He is also the vice-president of the Shawnee Wyoming Copper Mining Company, both of Wyoming. While actively associated with business life he has been equally as active in political matters, and while in Missouri he was a delegate in 1896 to the Prohibition National Convention from the Fourth district, and in the same year and from the same district was a delegate to the Democratic National Convention.  Mr. Coffin married, in 1906, Miss Florence Fay Roberts, born in Columbus, Georgia, a daughter of James E. and Mary (Tocson) Roberts. James E. Roberts was the vice- president of the Illinois Central Railroad Company. Mr. Coffin is a member of the Odd Fellows fraternity, and has filled all the offices and is the present great sachem of the Independent Order of Red Men. His religious connections are with the Methodist church. Sumitted by Janice Rice and in part from Oklahoma History 1909

Henry Thomas Douglas became president of the Shawnee National Bank in 1900. One of the ablest financiers of Oklahoma, he has directed the affairs of this well known institution in a way to win the confidence of all the depositors and the business interests of this vicinity. The banking business has been his life work since he was twenty- one years old. He was born in Windsor, Henry county, Missouri, March 6, 1867, belonging to one of the oldest families of that section of Missouri. His grandfather, Tames Douglas, moved to Henry county in 1833. The "father, H. T. Douglas, Sr., who was born in Howard county, Missouri, passed sixty years of his life in Henry county as a farmer, and died there November 17, 1905, in his eightieth year. He married, in 1842, in Henry county, Catherine Parks Painter, a native of Hopkinsville, Kentucky, and she is still living, aged seventy-four. Of the parents' family of five boys and five girls, seven are living.  As one of these children, Henry T. Douglas grew up at Windsor, attending the grade and high schools of that town, and at the age of twenty-one became a clerk in the Windsor Savings Bank. A year later he moved to St. Jo, Texas, and his energy and ability quickly promoted him to the presidency of the Bank of St. Jo, remaining at its head for eight years when, in 1900, he came to Shawnee. Besides his banking connections at Shawnee, he is also owner of much real estate, and is identified with the best civic and business interests of the city. Fraternally, he is a Mason, a member of the Shrine at Oklahoma City and the Consistory at Guthrie, and also affiliates with the Elks, the Knights of Pythias and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. In 1896 he married Mrs. Mary Frances Belcher, a native of Missouri. Her father has for many years been a prominent resident of Belcherville, Texas. Three children have been born of their marriage : Edward, August 17, 1900; Henry Thomas, Jr., July 2, 1902 ; Donald Aydelotte, June 10, 1906. Submitted by Janice Rice in part from Oklahoma History 1909

Scott Glen. Throughout his entire life, Scott Glen has taken a deep interest in educational matters, and his scholarly attainments and broad intelligence have promoted the interests and advanced the intellectual status of Shawnee, which he is now serving as the superintendent of schools. Fie entered upon the duties of that office in 1905 when the schools were under the supervision of about forty teachers, while at the present time they number eighty, his administration showing an increase of forty instructors. Mr. Glen was born in Jasper county, Illinois, December 26, 1876, a son of Alfred and Mary (Scott) Glen, natives respectively of Indiana and Ohio. The father moved to Illinois before the opening of the Civil war and engaged in farming, and his death occurred in that state in 1888, aged forty-nine years. The public schools of Indiana and Illinois furnished Scott Glen with his elementary training, and his higher education was received in the Universities of Indiana and Chicago. He left the school room as a student only to enter it immediately as a teacher, following the profession in Kentucky, Illinois and Indiana, and in August, 1901, he came to Shawnee and resumed his educational labors here. In 1905 he was made the superintendent of the city schools of Shawnee. He is a member of the Modern Woodmen of America. Submitted by Janice Rice in part from Oklahoma History 1909

Robert H. Hagar. Everybody in Pottawatomie county knows "Uncle Bob" Hagar, who almost since the opening of the Oklahoma country has been a familiar and prominent figure in political and business affairs. Since 1903 he has been engaged in the real estate and insurance business with J. H. Robertson, as the firm of Hagar and Robertson. Mr. Hagar came to Oklahoma at the opening in 1889, and located land that is now comprised within the fair grounds at Guthrie. In 1891, having traded his Guthrie property, he took a claim seven miles north of the present city of Shawnee, and the following year removed to the little settlement that had started under the Indian name of Shawnee. Mr. Hagar testifies that at the time of his arrival not a fence post had been driven, nor a house built, nor a furrow turned in the region now contiguous to the prosperous city. He was one of the first to improve the acres of his claim, and from the first was actively identified with the civic and business life of his community. In 1893, by which time Shawnee had about two hundred people, he was elected a county com- missioner. In August of that year, Governor Renfrew appointed him sheriff of Grant county, in the northern part of the territory, and he served two years in that newly opened country. His term of service was marked by the troubles incident to the building of railroads through that portion of Oklahoma, when bridges were blown up and much property destroyed in the dissensions between residents and corporations. On the expiration of his term he returned to his farm in Pottawatomie county, and has since lived in this county without interruption. In 1903 the citizens showed their confidence in his substantial devotion to the public interests by electing him county commissioner, and in 1906 he was re-elected for another three-year term. In every phase of a busy career he has shown himself to be honest, loyal to friends and true to the people's interests, and is the type of man of which every community is proud. In the development of the real estate interests of Shawnee he has erected some fine houses, and has taken a public-spirited part in other movements for the improvement of the city. He is also proprietor of a livery business in Shawnee. Coming of a family of Irish extraction with an admixture of French and German blood, R. H. Hagar was born in Ralls county, Missouri, April 16, 1852, a son of Ignatius and Susan Hagar, both natives of Kentucky, whence they moved to Ralls county, Missouri, in 1852, and were there engaged in farming. Both parents reside in Shawnee, aged, respectively, eighty-four and seventy- eight years, both still hale and hearty. R. H. Hagar, after receiving his education in the schools of Missouri and at St. Mary's, Kansas, began farming in Missouri, and was then engaged in that occupation for thirteen years in Crawford county, Kansas, whence he came to Oklahoma. Mr. Hagar's political affiliations are with the Democratic party. By his first wife, Jennie B. Abel, a native of Missouri, who died in 1903, he is the father of three children : Minnie is the wife of Nicholas Ouinett, and Mattie the wife of Henry Ouinett; the son, Montell M., married Miss Nellie Gowan, whose father is one of the pioneers of Pottawatomie county. In 1905 Mr. Hagar married Maggie Ragan, a native of Kentucky. Mr. Hagar is a member of the Eagles, the Catholic Knights and the Knights of Columbus. Submitted by Janice Rice in part from Oklahoma History 1909

John A. Hebble is one of the prominent and well-to-do citizens, as well as a pioneer homesteader of Oklahoma City and of Pottawatomie county, Oklahoma, and also holds a large place in the general history of the new-made state. Mr. Hebble, unlike most of the early settlers who come into new countries but to remain a short time, and then move on to pastures greener, came to stay, and to accomplish something worthy a name in the young commonwealth, which he had a hand in developing from a wild, almost wilderness-land, into a fertile and busy commercial as well as a great agricultural kingdom, excelled by few, if any, in the great and ever changing west. He is a native of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, born in February, 1853, of a good and industrious family, within a community which has sent forth into the world so many illustrious men and women to make for themselves, and the world around them, a type of civilization of which America alone can boast. He was reared on a Pennsylvania farm, which was situated in one of the garden spots of the Keystone state. He had the advantages of the public schools of his native county and made the most of his early schooling. He is the son of David and Mary (Huxley) Hebble. The father was a farmer and was in his religious faith a believer in the creed of the Christian church. Twelve children were born to these parents, including John A. and his brother, Monroe, who lives in Bales township, Pottawatomie county.  John A. Hebble, of this memoir, came to Oklahoma in 18S4, when all was yet untamed and almost uninhabited. He occupied the great cattle range there before any of the openings were recorded. He remained at the government post a while, and then removed on the range, at the grand "opening," April 22, 1889. He made the race, but "sooners" were on his claim. He gave it up and located where Oklahoma City now stands, and was the first person to engage in business in that pioneer town. It was he who started the first brickyard and burnt the first building brick of the place. He had four teams and fourteen men in his employ at that date. He also erected the first brick house in the city, and built two brick houses for his own people to live in. Hence, he may truly be called a pioneer in Oklahoma City, now so well known throughout the world. Again, at the opening of the Cheyenne and Arapahoe Indian reservation, he made the race for land, but failed to get a homestead. Again, at the Kickapoo county opening, May 19, 1895, he tried and secured a fine homestead, six miles north of Shawnee, which he converted into a fine home farm, of rare beauty and much value. He resided on that place five years and moved to Shawnee, where he erected a large business block, three stories in height and is interested in other property and real estate. Mr. Hebble has been quite an extensive traveler, both in the West and in the South, including Texas, Colorado, and Old Mexico, living for a time in California.  He was happily married in 1879, in Wayne county, Indiana, to Alice Cornthwait, who has been of much service to her husband in his new country hardships, and has with him enjoyed the measure of success which has attended his efforts. Mrs. Hebble was born in Ohio and there reared and educated. She is the daughter of Robert and Mary (Good) Cornthwait, and was one of four children in her parents' family. Mr. and Mrs. Hebble have had one child, a daughter Dolly, who died when aged three and one-half months.  Submitted by Janice Rice in part from Oklahoma History 1909

LINA P. HELM, of Earlsboro township, is one of the best known men of his community, public spirited, and an active worker in the cause of temperance, education and the church. He was born in Fauquier county, Virginia, March 3, 1854, of Scotch ancestry his parents were Richard and Ellen (Smith) Helm, both of whom were also born in the Old Dominion state. They moved to Carroll county, Missouri, in 1859, near Dewitt, where his mother died in December, 1864, and his father at the age of fifty-three. They were members of the Methodist Episcopal church and in their family were twelve children, six sons and six daughters.  It was in 1893 that Lina Helm joined the tide of emigration to Oklahoma, and choosing Pottawatomie county as the place of his abode he purchased a farm in Section 28 and was active in its improvement and cultivation. At the same time he took an active interest in the public life of the community, serving with credit and honor as a member of the school board. The cause of education and religion found in him an especially good friend, working faithfully and earnestly in their upbuilding, and in the Methodist church, of which he was a member, he is a trustee and the superintendent of the Sunday-school.  In 1876 Mr. Helm was united in marriage to Julia Standley, who was born on the 16th of February, 1860, a daughter of Bartlett and Nancy (Mahoney) Standley, who were born in Kentucky. Her mother died at the early age of thirty-five years, the mother of but one child, who grew to maturity, Mrs. Helm, and her father has now reached the advanced age of seventy-eight years and is a resident of Missouri in Carroll County.. He served in the Confederate army during the civil war, under the command of General Sterling Price, and was wounded in battle in his leg. He is both a farmer and a Democrat. Four sons and four daughters have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Helm—Edna Dyer, Violet Gibson, Douglass, Charlie, Myrtle (Vanlandingham), Forest (later became a Represenative from Wewoka in the State House of Represenatives), Standey and Lottie. Mr. Helm votes with the Democratic party.  He and his family were one of the founding families of Pottawatomie in the Earlsboro area. Source: History of Oklahoma 1908 from pages 518-519 and writings of Violet (Helm) Gibson.

Tony Hillerman was born at Sacred Heart, Oklahoma on May 27, 1925.  He was the youngest of three children, having an older brother and sister. His father, August A. Hillerman, was a storekeeper and farmer. His mother was Lucy Grove Hillerman.  He attended school from 1930-38 at St. Mary's Academy, a boarding school for Native American girls at Sacred Heart. He was one of several farm boys enrolled there. Sacred Heart was near a Benedictine mission to the Citizen Band Potowatomie Tribe. For high school, he was bused to Konawa High School. He graduated in 1942. He returned to farming after a brief sojourn to college and after his father's death.   In 1943, he joined the U. S. Army.  He is a decorated combat veteran from World War II serving as a mortarman in the 103rd Infantry Division and earning the Silver Star, the Bronze Star and a Purple Heart.  These injuries included broken legs, foot, ankle, facial burns, and temporary blindness. He was discharged in 1945.  Later, he worked as a journalist from 1948 to 1962. Then he earned a Masters degree and taught journalism from 1966 to 1987 at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque, where he still resides with his wife. Hillerman, a consistently bestselling author, was ranked as New Mexico's 22nd wealthiest man in 1996. Hillerman's writing is noted for the cultural details he provides for the people he writes about: Hopi, Zuni, European-American, federal agents, and especially Navajo. His works in non-fiction and in fiction reflect his appreciation of the natural wonders of the American Southwest and his appreciation of its people, particularly the Navajo.  His mystery novels are set in the Four Corners area of New Mexico and Arizona.  The protagonists are Joe Leaphorn and Jim Chee of the Navajo tribal police. Lt. Leaphorn was introduced in Hillerman's first novel, The Blessing Way (1970). The second book in the series, Dance Hall of the Dead (1973), won a 1974 Edgar Award  from the Mystery Writers of America  for Best Novel. In 1991, Hillerman received the MWA's Grand Master Award.   Hillerman has also received the Nero Award (for Coyote Waits) and the Navajo Tribe's Special Friends of the Diné Award.  He  is an award-winning American author of detective novels and non-fiction works.

Noah P. Keene, M. D. The medical profession of Shawnee numbers among its most talented members Noah P. Keene, who has practiced in Indian Territory and Oklahoma throughout his entire professional career, and his connection with the professional life of Shawnee dates from 1901. He has specialized his work and has become proficient and well known in the treatment of chronic diseases. He is also at the head of a private sanitarium, one of the leading institutions of the community, splendidly equipped with electric appliances, hot air mediators, electric baths, etc., and where a specialty is made of the cure of rheumatism, paralysis, lumbago and chronic diseases.  Dr. Keene is a native son of the Lone Star state of Texas, born on the 5th of January, 1860. His father, Samuel L. Keene, a native of Missouri, went to Texas when a young man and in time became a prominent factor in its public life. For eighteen years he served as a justice of the peace, and for many years was a prominent and well known minister in the Missionary Baptist church. He married Miss H. E. Hawkins, born in the same state as her husband.  After completing his education in the public schools of Texas, Dr. Noah P. Keene became a contractor, and continued as such for ten years. Desiring to change his activities from a business to a professional life he at the close of that period became a student in the medical department of the University of Kentucky at Louisville, and in 1901 graduated from the Barnes Medical College of St. Louis. Previous to entering that institution, however, he had practiced in Indian Territory, and after his graduation he came to Shawnee, where he has followed a general practice, but at the same time has specialized and has become particularly proficient in the cure of chronic diseases.  In 1879 Dr. Keene married Miss Cornelia C. Walford, who died in 1899, after becoming the mother of the following children : Oliver H., born February 15, 1885 ; Laura D., December 20, 1889; Hampton L., February 27, 1891 ; Nora B., September 11, 1893; and Ethel P., September 25, 1896. Cluster D., born December 19, 1901, and Hazel M., August 9, 1905, are the children of his second marriage, to Mattie Iola Adams, September 24, 1900. Dr. Keene is a member of the Missionary Baptist church. Submitted by Janice Rice and in part from Oklahoma History 1909

Henry Knappenberger was born 7 June 1837 in Westmoreland County, PA and died 8 November 1914 in Oklahoma.  He married Anna M. Shaw on August 29, 1869 in Andrew County, Missouri.  Anna was born 14 April 1839 in Illinois and died 9 November 1878 in High Prairie, Andrew County, Missouri at the age of 39. She is buried in Whitesville Cemetery, Andrew County, Missouri.  Henry and Anna had one son who lived to adulthood:  George L. Knappenberger.  Henry then married Martha Elvira Dean on February 15, 1880 in Whitesville, Andrew County, Missouri.   Martha was born December 26,1860 in Missouri and died September 2, 1948 in Shawnee, Pottawatomie County, Oklahoma.  Henry and Martha and a number of their children are buried in Resthaven Memorial Park, Shawnee, Oklahoma.  Henry and Martha had five children:  Frank, Agnes, Alma, Homer, and Clarence Source:  HENRY A. KNAPPENBERGER FAMILY  (1837-1914) OF OKLAHOMA

John W. Lewis—a nephew, once removed of Merriwether Lewis—was the son of Robert A. Lewis, and Elizabeth (McKelvey); Lewis, was born in St. Louis County, Missouri, January 28, 1854. His education was gained at the district schools, of that county. In 1882 he located in West Plaines, Mo., where he lived until he came to Oklahoma. Mr. Lewis came to Tecumseh on the day of the opening, but failed to secure a claim. Later he bought the rights of a homestead, six miles from the city, where he lived with his family for eighteen months, going back and forth each day to his business in Tecumseh. One year after the opening of the town, he opened the Bank of Tecumseh, which he managed unaided, except for the help of his wife, for more than three years—which fact illustrates the indomitable courage and force of the man’s character, for the country was ful of rough and unscrupulous men, and fourteen saloons flourished in the town. This bank was later nationalized, and became the First National Bank of Tecumseh. Mr. Lewis was largely instrumental in securing a railroad for the town, and materially helped with the building of the courthouse, which was no small feat, in those days of "tight money." Besides the material help that Mr. Lewis gave to the town, he stood always for the highest moral, and religious principles. He was at the head of every charitable, and benevolent movement; he was untiring in his efforts for the betterment of his fellow man, and of the community. He was a member of the Presbyterian Church, a Mason, having received the Royal Arch, and Knight Templar degrees. Mr. Lewis passed away in 1918, and unfortunately his only son, Austin, followed him, after a few weeks, but his wife, Mrs. Ida M. Lewis, still takes an active interest in the affairs of the county and state. Mrs. Ida Mae (Poppleton); Lewis was born at Delaware, Ohio. Her step-father, John H. Brown, and her mother moved to Missouri when she was a child, and there she grew to womanhood. At Ohio Weslyan College, Delaware, was laid the foundation of her education, which was completed at the Young Ladies’ Seminary, Kansas City, Missouri. In 1877 she was married to John W. Lewis. Only one child was born to this union. It would be impossible to estimate the value of the work that Mrs. Lewis has done in this community. She is a valued member of the Presbyterian Church, has been its treasurer since the reorganization here, in 1902. She has been actively identified with the work of the Eastern Star, since she became a member in 1899, when she was elected to office of Associate Matron. Since then she has held the highest offices in the gift of her chapter, and of the State, and has held an office in the General Grand Chapter. Her preferment in the order has come as "honor justly gained." In 1905 she was appointed, by the Most Worthy Grand Matron of the General Grand Chapter, as official hostess, for the month of September, at the Masonic, and Eastern Star headquarters at the Lewis and Clark Exposition, held at Portland, Oregon. This honor was conferred upon her, in recognition of Mr. Lewis’ relation to Merriwether Lewis, and her own splendid qualifications. Source: Chronicles of Oklahoma Volume 4, No. 3 Sept 1926

ISAAC BENJAMIN LITTLETON  (1843-1925) Born on a plantation in Wilkes County, Georgia, in 1843, he was descended from an old Southern Scotch family. Enlisted in the army of the Confederacy in the early days of the Civil War, in 30th Mississippi Infantry, serving under Generals Bragg, and Hood, he participated in the battles of Franklin and Nashville. Captured by Federals he served six weeks in City Point Prison. He was with General Joe Johnson at the time of surrender to Sherman. Returning home he was married to Mary Edwards, September 14th, 1865. To this union the following children were born.  Anna Littleton, Mack Littleton, Irvin Littleton, John Wesley Littleton, Cornelia Littleton, Benjamin Littleton, Pugh Littleton, Ada Littleton. Only three are now living: Anne, Benjamin and Ada.  Isaac B. Littleton with his family moved to Hayes County, Texas, in 1882, to Raines County, Texas, in 1884, to Chickasaw Nation, Indian Territory in 1886, to Pottawatomie County, Oklahoma Territory, in 1891, At the opening of the Pottawatomie Reservation he filed on claim near Earlsboro where he resided for twenty-five years, then moved to Tecumseh, where he resided until his death. Was a member of the Freewill Baptist Church, the Masonic Lodge and the Democratic Party. He was a member of the Constitutional Convention of Oklahoma from District 32.  A constitutional convention assembled in Guthrie, Oklahoma on November 20, 1906 and worked until July 6, 1907 developing the Constitution of the State of Oklahoma. It was approved by Oklahoma voters on September 17,1907 and went into effect on November 16, 1907 when Oklahoma became the 46th state to be admitted to the Union.  This convention actually wrote the State of Oklahoma Constitution and  to change this constitution he must be amended by the current senate and house of represenatives.   He died February 7th, 1925, at the age of Eighty-two, and is buried in Tecumseh Cemetery between Tecumseh and Shawnee, Oklahoma. Mary Edwards Littleton his wife survives and will be eighty-eight years of age on the 4th day of August, 1932.  An exemplary citizen and good man, he was affectionately referred to by his neighbors and fellow citizens as Uncle Ike Littleton. Source: Chronicles of Oklahoma Volume 10, No. 2  June, 1932 NECROLOGY     Page 301 and  the following Oklahoma Government Link. http://www.netstate.com/states/government/ok_government.htm (Personal note:  his son John Wesley Littleton was my grandmothers first husband)

A. D. Martin. The city clerk of Shawnee, elected in 1907, is Mr. A. D. Martin, one of the younger business men of the city, who has won his popularity in public life by straightforward and diligent conduct in the various relations by which he has been identified with this city during the last few years. He came to Oklahoma in 1903, and for several years was connected with the Shawnee Ice Company as bookkeeper. When he entered the political field as candidate for city clerk it was discovered that he was the strongest man on the ticket, being elected to the office by the largest majority ever given in Shawnee for that office, and al- though the youngest of the candidates for the various city offices, he led his ticket by two hundred votes. His recognition in this manner was merited, and he is conducting the affairs of his office in a faultless fashion   Mr. Martin was born in Paris, Texas, July 25, 1881, son of Robert D. and Eliza D. (Geron) Martin, the former a native of Missouri and the latter of Arkansas. His father moved to Texas during the Civil war, and lived there until his death, in April, 1907, aged fifty-five years. After receiving his education in the public schools of Paris, A. D. Martin became bookkeeper for a mercantile firm of that town, and was thus employed until his removal to Oklahoma. In April, 1904, he married Miss Josie Spiers, of Paris, a daughter of S. S. Spiers of that place. They have one daughter, Agnes, born February 27, 1905. Mr. Martin affiliates with the Maccabees and Home Fraternity, and is record keeper of his lodge.  Submitted by Janice Rice, in part from Oklahoma History 1909

James H. Odle. Numbered among the efficient educators of Oklahoma is Professor Odle, in charge of the United States government school at Shawnee, more commonly known as the Old Mission school. He assumed this professorship in February of 1907, and has brought the school to a high grade of excellence.  Professor Odle was born at Excelsior Springs, Clay county, Missouri, in 1873, a son of one of the early settlers there, Henry Odle, who was born in Indiana and is of German ancestry. With his wife, nee Anna McCullough, he is now living in Kansas, a retired farmer. Mrs. Odle was born in South Carolina, and they are members respectively of the Masonic order and of the Methodist Episcopal church. Of their seven children, four sons an 1 three daughters, J. H. Odle was the sixth born, and on the old family homestead in Kansas he developed his fine physique and attained to mature years. He attended the first county high school organized in Kansas or even in the United States, located in Dickinson county, and after his graduation there he became a teacher and taught for several years. But leaving the school room he began work in the railroad shops at Chapman, Kansas, where lie remained for a year, and later, in 1904, he was the candidate on the Democratic ticket for the office of clerk of the district court of Dickinson county. Al- though he was unsuccessful in the race he polled more votes than any man on his tick- et. A short time after this he successfully passed the civil service examination, and on the 11th of January, 1907, accepted the professorship of the United States government school in Shawnee. He is a scholar of more than ordinary ability, and is an enthusiastic believer in education for the people. At the age of twenty-four, in Hutchinson, Kansas, Professor Odle was married to Nelly Anderson, who also taught before her marriage, and she is a daughter of B. and Irene Anderson. The two children of this union are Alpha E. and Alta M. Professor Odle is a popular member of the Knights of Pythias order here, and in addition to filling all of the offices in his local lodge he has represented the order in the Grand Lodge. In 1908 he joined the Masonic lodge of Shawnee. His religious affiliations are with the Baptist church.  Submitted by Janice Rice, in part from Oklahoma History 1909

Judge William S. Pendleton, a prominent attorney of Shawnee and well known at the bar of Oklahoma, was born in Warren county, Tennessee, a son of Edmund and Sarah (Smartt) Pendleton, natives respectively of North Carolina and Tennessee. Edmund Pendleton was a member of a prominent old family of Virginia, of English descent, and they established their home in the Old Dominion state before the period of the Revolutionary war. During the boyhood days of his son William, Mr. Pendleton moved to Texas, but after his death the mother returned with her family to Tennessee and the lad, William, attended the public schools there and also graduated from the Manchester College, where he was a student under W. D. Carnes, a noted educator of the South. For a short time after leaving college he taught school, but obeying a desire to become a member of the legal profession he studied law and was admitted to the bar in Tennessee. But shortly after this event he moved to Texas and practiced in Ft. Worth for a number of years, finally coming to Tecumseh and has since been in continuous practice in Pottawatomie county. It was in 1894 that he first came to Oklahoma, and in 1898 he became a resident of Shawnee. While in Tecumseh he was in partnership with W, M. Melton and later with D. B. Madden. In 1900 he was elected the probate judge and served for one term, and then resuming private practice he in 1905 became associated with W. N. Maben and remained with him until Mr. Maben's election to the office of district judge. Pie is now the senior member of the firm of Pendleton, Abernethy & Howell, one of the foremost legal firms of the count}'. Mr. Pendleton is a Democrat politically, but has never been a seeker after official honors. His first marriage was to Miss L. Belle Shelton, of Ft. Worth, Texas, from whom he was divorced in 1890. There are four children by this marriage. His second wife, nee Adelaide Cullen, died in 1906, and on the 30th of October, 1907, he married Miss Rosa C. Prather, a daughter of Samuel Prather, who was born in Iowa. Submitted by Janice Rice, in part from Oklahoma History 1909

Edward J. Peters. One of the prominent architects of the state, and a member of the Oklahoma Association of Architects, is Edward J. Peters, of Shawnee. The proof of an architect's success usually lies close at hand, and it does not require an expert to know that his professional results have awakened appreciation and demand. A list of representative buildings in Oklahoma would suffice to indicate the prominent activity of Mr. Peters as an architect in the new state of Oklahoma. Coming to the territory and locating at Shawnee in 1903, he has since designed and built many business, religious and private edifices both in his own city and in other towns of the state. In Shawnee he acted as associate architect for the beautiful Carnegie Library, and was designer and builder of the Pottawatomie building, the Brown building, and the elegant residence of A. E. Nelson; also was architect of the new Christian church building. Probably it is in the line of bank architecture that he has done his most extensive and important work. The banks at Konawa, Wanette, Prague, Tecumseh, Lehigh and McComb are representative of his work, and also the bank at Mena, Arkansas, and numerous school building's throughout Oklahoma. Until 1906, Air. Peters was associated in his profession with William A. Nethercott, but since then has practiced alone. He is a native of Selma, Alabama, born February 23, 1878. His father, Thomas Peters, a native of Baltimore, moved to Selma after the war and was engaged in the insurance business there until 1879, when he moved to Atlanta, Georgia, where he now resides. Mr. Peters received his higher literary training at the University of the South at Sewanee, and prepared for his profession in the Georgia School of Technology, also studying practically in Atlanta. Nearly all of his practice has been done in Oklahoma, where his ability and business leadership have brought him rapidly into successful prominence. In Shawnee he is a member of the Episcopal church. In June, 1907, he married Miss Carter, daughter of Mr. Sam Carter, a well known citizen of Bonham, Texas  Submitted by Janice Rice, in part from Oklahoma History 1909

Judge Leander G. Pitman. For a number of years Leander G. Pitman has been prominent in local and state affairs giving his best talents and powers to his country and his fellow men. He was born in Wabash county, Illinois, August 17, 1853, a son of William and Sarah (Crosson) Pitman, both of whom were born in Ohio. The father was numbered among the early pioneers of Illinois, where he located in 1830, and he died many years afterward in 1875. The mother passed away in death in 1876. Leander G. Pitman received his education in the public schools of Lawrence county and the University of Lebanon in Ohio, and after leaving school served as the clerk of the circuit court of Lawrence county, Illinois, for four years. He then began the study of law and was admitted to the bar in 1889, after which he practiced in Lawrence county until the 22nd of April, 1889, the date of his arrival in Oklahoma City. He practiced law there for a time and also took up a claim of one hundred and sixty acres four miles northwest of the city, but sold the land in 1891. In 1890 he had been elected to the upper house in the Oklahoma legislature, to which he was returned in 1892, and during his term he was selected as one of a committee of three to compile the first statutes of Oklahoma. He was also appointed a member and the secretary of the board of regents of Oklahoma University at Norman. He was the only Democrat on the board at that time, and was appointed by a Republican governor. About this time the university was without adequate buildings and without funds, but the vigorous action of the board of regents brought it to its present high state of excellence. In 1893 he was elected by members of the upper house of the legislature to preside over the session as president pro tem. It was in 1895 that Mr. Pitman came to Shawnee, and has since been engaged in the general practice of law. During this time he has been connected with some very important murder cases, and was the prosecuting attorney when Jester was arrested in Shawnee for the murder of Gates. It was through the efforts of Mr. Pitman that he was sent out of the county without requisition. In 1898 he was elected the prosecuting attorney of Pottawatomie county and was returned to the office in 1900.  In 1871 Mr. Pitman was married to Oceana Peachee, a native of Davis county, Indiana, and a daughter of Rev. James Peachee, a minister of the United Brethren church, and now living in Richland county, Illinois, aged eighty-eight years. The six children of Mr. and Mrs. Pitman are: James H, Charles O, Lillian, Clyde, Samuel Randall and Leander Horace. Clyde G. Pitman is new practicing law in Tecumseh. Mr. Pitman, Sr., is a chapter and Commandery Mason and a member of Allendale Lodge, No. 753, A. F. & A. M., of Wabash county. Illinois; of Tecumseh Lodge, No. 24. I. O. O. F., and of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks.  Submitted by Janice Rice, in part from Oklahoma History 1909

Silas Marion Ramsey was born December 5, 1845 in Lewis County, Missouri to Silas Marion Ramsey and Henrietta Baker Swartz.  He was married to Mary E. Barkelew on September 13, 1871 at Williamstown, Lewis Co, Missouri.  He sired four children: Francis M. Ramsey, Archie B. Ramsey, Florence L. Ramsey and Zetie Ramsey.  He moved his family to the Indian Territory prior to statehood and settled in Pottawatomie County.  He served as the Register of Deeds for Pottawatomie County from January 1, 1897 to January 1, 1901.  He represented District 30 at the Constitutional Convention.  He was also under-sheriff for Pottawatomie County from January 1, 1921 to January 1, 1925.  He died in Tecumseh, Pottawatomie, Oklahoma on November 27, 1935.

W. J. Riggs. On October 10, 1899, just four years after the beginning of Shawnee's development from a hamlet toward metropolitan proportions, and while it yet counted its population by two or three thousand, there was added to its list of business men Mr. W. J. Riggs. He began the farm loan business, and soon after added a real estate department and abstracts. His success has been steadily increasing from that first year, and as a public spirited citizen he has been identified with all the movements which have made Shawnee one of the most thriving cities of the new state. His activity in forwarding the interests of Shawnee have generally been directed through that excellent organization, the Shawnee Chamber of Commerce. It is a matter of interest as showing the rapid growth of this city that he built the first house on North Broadway, right in the midst of the woods, although the site is now regarded as the best and most attractive residence section of the city. Mr. Riggs owns personally a considerable amount of city real estate.  Mr. Riggs has been an active resident of Oklahoma since 1893. He was born on a farm in Missouri, January 20, 186L His father, B. H. Riggs, was a native of Iowa, and during the Civil war served with the Third and Seventh Missouri Regiments. His father moving to Kansas, W. J. Riggs was brought up on a farm in that state from childhood. Though a well educated man, he gained his education from limited advantages. He attended school awhile at Ottawa, Kansas, working hard by day and studying at night, and as a result of this self-denial and arduous application was licensed to teach school, an occupation which engaged his time for four years. On coming to Oklahoma in 1893 he settled on a claim in Lincoln county, and after improving it and selling it for an advanced figure, moved to Chandler, where he was engaged in the real estate business up to the time of his locating in Shaw- nee. Mr. Riggs affiliates with the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows ; he is a Republican but never would accept office.  Submitted by Janice Rice, in part from Oklahoma History 1909

Wilver Dornell "Willie" Stargell (March 6, 1940 – April 9, 2001), nicknamed "Pops" in the later years of his career, was a professional baseball player who played his entire Major League career (1962-1982) with the Pittsburg Pirates as an outfielder and first baseman.  Willie was born in Earlsboro, Pottawatomie County, Oklahoma  but later moved to Alameda, California graduating from Encinal High School.  He died in Wilmington, North Carolina.

Frank P. Stearns, the efficient mayor of Shawnee, Oklahoma, is in his present position giving the utmost satisfaction to the general public. He was born in Paris, Maine, and comes of English ancestry, the family having been founded in America in 1630 by Isaac Stearns, who came from England with Governor Winthrop and settled in Waltham, Massachusetts. William Stearns, the great-grandfather, settled in Paris, Maine, in 1791, and was a pioneer farmer and lumberman of that district. The grand- father, who also bore the name of William. and the father, S. P. Stearns, and Frank P. were also born in Paris, Maine, and 'William Stearns, a brother of Frank P., occupies the old Stearns homestead in Paris, which was located by the great-grandfather one hundred and thirty years ago. The father, S. P. Stearns, was a prominent farmer and stock-raiser in the Pine Tree state and took an active part in the work of the Baptist church, of which he was a member, while fraternally he was connected with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. Ex- Governor Stearns of Florida was an own cousin of S. P. Stearns. His wife bore the maiden name of Isabel Partridge, and was also a native of Maine. As above stated, Frank P. Stearns was born in Paris, Maine, the date of his birth being October 5, 1862. He was engaged in farm work during his youth and also taught school at the early age of sixteen years. He later pursued a course of study for two years in Colby University at Waterville, Maine. In 1883 he left the east and removed to Kansas, being for two years engaged in the cattle and grain business in Chapman, that state. He then took up his abode in Dighton, Kansas, where he was engaged in the grain and real estate business, while for one year he was editor of the Dighton Herald. It was during his residence there that he was also 'elected county superintendent of schools, to which office he was re-elected. He was an ardent Republican and served as chairman of the county central committee, while in 18S8 he was candidate for state auditor but met defeat. In 1893 Mr. Stearns re- moved to Oklahoma, settling in Kingfisher, where he engaged in the grain trade for a time but in September of that year located a claim near Enid, and while at Enid was a member of the first board of education and instrumental in starting the first school. He remained on his claim until November, 1894, when he came to Shawnee and established a general mercantile enterprise, building the first store in the new town, a substantial structure fifty by sixty feet on Main street, which is still owned by him. He also engaged in the building and contracting business here, employing fifty men. In 1896. however, he disposed of his mercantile interests as his other business interests claimed his full time and attention, as he was city treasurer at that time. He also engaged in the real estate business and built many houses in Shawnee, doing also an insurance business. In 1898 he was appointed by President McKinley to the position of postmaster and in this office he discharged his duties with fidelity and capability, thereby winning the good will and confidence of those with whom he came in contact. In 1905 he was elected a member of the board of education and served there three years. In 1907 he was elected mayor of the city and is the present incumbent of the office. In this connection he has advocated many improvements and reforms and the entire community has none other than the highest praise for him as the chief executive of the city. The city is now putting in 150,000 square yards of paving and spending $160,000 in sewers, expending about a half million dollars. Mr. Stearns was married to Miss Winifred Arnold a native of Indiana, and two children were born to the union : Helen and William Arnold. Mr. Stearns is a member of the Masonic body, being identified with the Knights of Pythias ; also with the Elks.  Submitted by Janice Rice, in part from Oklahoma History 1909

Thomas Jefferson Steed (1904-1983)  U.S. Representative Thomas J. Steed once commented that he came from "tenant farmers, poor white trash," but he went on to serve longer than any other Oklahoman in the U.S. Congress. He was born on a farm near Rising Star, Eastland County, Texas, on March 2, 1904, and when four, his family moved to near Konawa, Oklahoma. There he attended public schools, finishing his formal education after only one semester of high school. While still a teenager, he began work for the Ada Evening News. He later worked for a number of other Oklahoma newspapers, including the Daily Oklahoman. Beginning in 1935 he served as an assistant to three of Oklahoma's U.S. congressmen, Percy L. Gassaway, Robert Potter Hill, and Gomer Smith. In 1938 he returned to Oklahoma and became managing editor of the Shawnee News-Star. The newspaperman married Hazel Bennett in 1923. The couple had two children, Roger and Richard. The former became a Marine second lieutenant and fighter pilot and was killed in China in 1947. On October 29, 1942, Tom Steed enlisted as a private in the U.S. Army Anti-aircraft Artillery. The military released him from active duty in May 1944 with the rank of second lieutenant. He then joined the Office of War Information on July 1, 1944. He eventually served with the information division in the India-Burma-China Theater until December 1945. When he returned to Oklahoma, he operated a car agency. In 1948 Steed, a Democrat, was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from Oklahoma's Fourth District, and he served in office from January 3, 1949, to January 3, 1981. While in Congress, he sat on the Education and Labor, Public Works, Appropriations, and Small Business committees. He briefly chaired this last committee during the Ninety-fourth Congress. He was also chair of the Subcommittee on the Treasury, Postal Service, and General Government and of the Subcommittee on Taxation and Oil Imports. Steed's legislative interests were in education and library services, soil conservation, rural electrification, and federal paperwork reduction. While on the Small Business Committee, he conducted hearings on price wars affecting the dairy and retail petroleum industries. In 1954 he cosponsored the Upstream Conservation Act, and through this bill, Oklahoma eventually ranked second with the amount of land protected by upstream conservation. He also worked on legislation for numerous water projects, and he joined with Sen. Robert S. Kerr to bring about the Arkansas River Navigation System. He cosponsored the 1956 Library Services Act, which established the bookmobile system. That same year he also authored an amendment to the Interstate Highway Act. In 1968 he helped bring the Postal Service Institute to Norman, and he later assisted in appropriating money to create the education center at Rose State College and the Gordon Cooper Vocational Education School in Shawnee. In the 1970s he served on the Federal Paperwork Commission, which sought to develop methods for reducing the amount of paperwork in the federal government. Steed was not a candidate for reelection in 1980, and with retirement from Congress he returned to Shawnee. In early 1983 he suffered injuries in a car accident. In May he was diagnosed with cancer, and he died on June 8, 1983, in Shawnee. He was interred at Resthaven Cemetery in Shawnee. Source:  The Chronicles of Oklahoma and Wakipedia

T. Charles Wyatt was born on June 10, 1850 at Humphrey County, Tennessee.  He moved to the Indian Territory in 1900.  He was a member of the Constitutional Convention from District 33, Wanette.  He was also a member of the Board of Arbitration and Consiliation under Governors Haskell, Cruce, and Williams.  He died in Shawnee, Oklahoma on September 28, 1922.

 

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