The evening herald. [volume] (Shenandoah, Pa.) 1891-1966, 1895-05-24
THE RUSH NOR HOMES.
Exciting Scenes at the Settlement
of the Kiokapoo Country,
THE SPEEDY GROWTH OF A TOWN.

THE SPEEDY GROWTH OF A TOWN
How McLoud, o. T., Sprang Into Exist
ence in Few Minutcs-From Ten to a
Dozen Claimants on Each Farm in the
New Country.
OKLAHOMA CITY, o. T., May 24.-Sharp
at noon yesterday at least 1900 men, with
n large number of women, made the grand
rush from all sides of the Kickapoo reser-
walton for the 400 odd claims open to white
settlement In less than an hour after
ward there were scores of contestants on
each of these claims, in addition to the
"sooners, who had already taken posses
sion of the lands long coveted by them
The scenes at the opening were pre-
cisely similar to those at previous open
ings. There were the mad rush, the wild
yells and the mishaps more or less seri-
GUS So far as is known, no lives were
lost in the race, but it is too early yet to
hear from the interior of the new coun-
try.
Sweeney's Ridge, on the north ford of
the Canadian river, in township II, was
one of the principal points of entrance to
the new land. Here there were 300 men
gathered, and just before noon there was
suppressed excitement as the minutes
licked nearer and nearer the hour.
Watches were held in one hand and the
lines tightly grasped in the other. The
scene that followed the shout "go" was
| intensely exciting The first man to dash
| across the bridge was in little buggy
| drawn by pair of bays. The horses
were tense with excitement. The driver
brought his whip down, shouting at them,
and the horses bounded across the bridge
and off up the roadway wit. a good start,
running away.
| Following him came eight horsemen
| iostling one another on the narrow bridge,
trying to pass each other. They whipped
their horses and struck at them and at
each other, and at last got across and
scattered, racing like mad.
The recklessness of the drivers in whip
| ping their horses down the bank and
across has seldom been equaled, Horses
would fall, only to be dragged to their
| feet again. Men were hatless and their
| faces and foreheads wrinkled and strained.
| Wagons and horsemen came rushing pell
nell, and in five minutes the last wagon
had passed over The air was full of dust
and the sound of the shouting men and
rumbling wheels grew fainter and fainter
up the road.
About half a mile northeast from
| Sweeney's the road crosses through a mar
| row lane of trees. Here an awful jam oc-
CURED, lasting ten minutes Men behind
| saw their chances for a claim pass away
right there, and cursed like mad. The
jam was finally Strengthened out, how
ever, and they were off again.
Wednesday night it was made evident
l 10 Nf ha fhaf oil mr.
get claims, so it was resolved to organize
towns. About midnight a big crowd left
Sweeneys, and as the procession went
along large additions were made to its
ranks. Two towns had already been pro-
jected-Olney and Aurora, A council was
held between the projectors of both towns,
and it resulted in a consolidation of inter
ests the new town to be called McLoud,
in honor of the general solicitor of the
Choctaw road.
The procession, 5000 strong, then took
up the march to Douglas Mills, at the
section on which McLoud was to be situ-
ated At the head of the enterprise is DR..
j, w. Gillett of Perry, who was chosen
mayor Green b. Rnum, Jr., of Wash
ington, son of the reconnaissance of
pensions, is leading member of the town
organization. The site is bank covered
with cactus and underbrush.
A noon the crowd passed over the ford
in very quiet way and drew lots for po-
sitions on the town plat A corps of sur
veyors was on hand, and at once laid out
the town. Wagons with liquors, groceries
and cots came in, tents were erected, and
J soon stores, restaurants and "a hotel were
opened and IA new town had been born.
The Kickapoo opening was much in the
nature of huge farce. AT 1910 nearly all
claims had from ten to twenty claimants
on Them and those furthest from the line
were reached from the border in twenty
= minutes
In one section hundred claimants who
: had run in from both borders and those
who were 'sooners" were congregated
The honest runners combined to drive the
, ''sooners' OFF Several fights occurred
and a number of shots wese fired. A col
ored man named Blackford, from Okla
, homa county, is reported badly wounded
At Sawnee, when the noon hour ap
preached the crowd became restless. A
three minutes to II by some watches ant
precisely noon by others there was breal
+ here and there in the line, a awavering, ant
then all broke into run. The race acros
the level plateau was very pretty sight