The Topeka state journal., 1901-07-29
Ell RENO RECORD.
Reports OF Railroads on the
Rush to Indian Lands.
$4,000 People Hauled IN Fif-
teen Days.
ROCK ISLANDS SHARE
It's Trains Carried More Than
Half Of Total.
Santa Fe Traffic Went Over the
ChOctaK Route
lock ISLANDS SHARE

The Rock Island road and the Choc-
taw route have made a record in haul
ing the crowd Of homeseekers that will
stand as a marvel in American rail-
roading. During a period of Is days,
beginning July 10, these two roads have
hauled in and out of FL Reno 800, 1000.
With all this immense travel not a
single passenger has been killed nor
has one received a scratch. With the
facilities for hauling the crowds this is
a phenomenal record.
From July 10 to 26. the Rock Island
ran 1S7 trains in and out of Ell Reno.
Each train averaged ten cars making
in all 1870 cars. Each train would car
~ 1000 people The Rock Island off,
cials declare that 10000 passengers is
a conservative estimate of the number
handled during that period
The ChoctaW road handled 210 trains
during the same period and each train
carried from ten to seventeen coaches.
General Passenger Agent Lee estimates
that his road handled 100000 people.
The two roads were caught unprepar-
ed for such heavy traffic. In the first
place no one ever dreamed that SO
many homeseekers would come to Ell
Reno to take a chance in the lottery
for homes. When Governor Richards
estimated that $4,000 people would reg
lister he was jeered at on every hand.
Most people placed the number not to
exceed $4,000. The railroads didn't
know that the big show was to be pull
ed off at El Reno until four days be-
fore registration began Had they been
given longer notice they would have
extended their yards and provided ad-
ditiona1 facilities for handling tickets
and baggage. They would also have
routed their freight which is extreme
" heavy just now, so as to evade that
business here But they didn't get the
notice in time and We're compelled to
handle the crowds and their regular
business, already heavy, with the same
old facilities.
The Rock Island worked twenty-five
clerks in a room that ordinarily accom-
modates four men, Its baggage came
In on freight trains and the baggage
room was a string of freight cars.
1t could not buy, beg, rent or borrow
enough passenger coaches to handle the
crowds a couple Of days and brought
the people in and sent them out in stock
cars Plank seats We're provided Some
people used the feed troughs as upper
berths So big was the rush that many
people even crawled on the engines
They would sit on the pilot and on top
of the cabs, and stand on the foot
boards and hold to the bell ropes. The
tops OF the cars were covered and the
tralnmen We're only allowed to run at
the rate of sixteen miles an hour. 1t
only took about five minutes to load a
train. The people would go through
the windows and any other way to get
in Hundreds of women crawled
through the windows. A big 240-pound
woman got balanced in a window and
stuck. 1t took several men to dislodge
her.
The Choctaw experienced about the
same thing. 1t handled all of the Santa
Fe traffic from Oklahoma City to FL
Reno This was enormous. Several
times a day the Choctaw would simply
hitch an engine onto Santa F'e train
at Oklahoma City and pun it right over
here The Choctaw ran trains during
the day about three hours apart Aside
from the Santa F'e traffic, it also han
died the Frisco and Missouri. Kansas
& Texas passengers, besides its own.
Freight cars were used as baggage
rooms on the Choctaw. The depot was
entirely too small to accommodate the
clerks necessary to handle the tickets,
and temporary ticket Office was fit
ted up in baggage car.
With the limited facilities for han
ding the trains here. the two roads
made a record that challenges the ad-
Of railroad officials the world
over.