The Guthrie daily leader. [volume] (Guthrie, Okla.) 1893-1996, 1907-08-28
QUEER
"CREEPY"
'''''' FEELING
STRIKES IRA VELER
WHEN CROSSING SANDY
CREEK, NEAR ATOKA
p=uz-@a
MURDER MEMORIES
HAUNT THE PLACE
~---s.
Natives Go Miles Out Of Way
After Dark to Avoid
Dead Mans GuIcf''

Atoka. |. r.. Aug 2S-No man has
ever travelled from Atoka TO Boggy
Depot. twelve miles distant. without
getting that creepy feeling when he
crossed Sandy creek three miles out
from Atoka on the oil trail This lone
ly spot with It's death like stiffness by
day and the wierd call of the screech
owl and the yelpings of the coyote
at night will occupy place In the
history OF Indian Territory SO the
scene of probably more mysterious
murders than amy other spot in its
borders.
Atoka is one of the oldest towns In
the Choctaw Nation. and Boggy Depot
Is another. In the early DAYS the
trail between the two towns was much
frequented Long ago the crossing
AT Sandy creek took the name Dead
Mans Gulch, and to this day no ma
tive Of that section viii make that
crossing after nightfall unless forced
to do so. They will go miles out Of
the way TO avoid a.
Nearly forty years ago the bodies OF
| two men were found at this 81 T. NO
one ever identified them. and no one
ever found out VINO killed them or
why. II was then the name of Depd
! Mans Gulch" was first heard. A few
years later the stage driver who car
ried mail from Atoka over the trail to
| Boggy Depot was murdered and his
body was found IN the same spot
where the other two had been found.
| Quantrell passed this SPOT in the
/ civil war and left his mark upon it.
He found I'm the Choctaw Nation
| five men who were working among The
! Choctaws trying to get recruits for the
/ northern army These men had come
among the Indians as traders and
were not generally known to be repre-
| sentatiyes of the northern army They
! ingratiated themselves In the good
will of the neighboring Indians and
| then melted them to ioin the Union
army. When QuanTell found che
/ trail of these men he searched the
1 country for them They were chased
across the Choctaw Nation. took re-
/ fuge In the Winding Stair mountains,
were driven westward and tried TO
get into the Arbuckle mountains IN
] the Chickasaw Nation, but We're inter
cepted at Limestone Gap by a squad
/ OF Quanuelrs men led by a Choctaw
Indian These five men were taken
/ to the trail and hanged al the cross
ing al Sandy creek together with one
/ OF Quantreus own men who had dis
obeyed orders in the treatmeu, OF the
Indians. II was difficult for a lone
time to get any one 10 travel that way
even IN the day time.
Immediately after the civil war q
stage coach, with money designed 20
pay government troops then stationed
near Boggy Depot. Was robbed and
the government money az well as an
OF the money and yaluables OF the
passengers was taken, Twenty years
later three men. trayehnS Ia light
spring wagon and driving a fine team
stopped and camped for the night un'
der the old elm tree II was the FIRST
/ time since Ouanpell had hanged the
men that any one was ever known ia
have stopped over night there. The
next morning the party was gone, but
there had been strange proceedings
1 tiat night
The men had measured of l5O feet
from the tree and set circle OF
stakes around 1t in perfect circle. II
was evident that they had used tape
/ line for the measurement And
where they had set the stakes they
had dug into the ground At the end
of one Of the lines their search had
/ evidently been rewarded for IN The
bottom OF the hole was plainly seon
the imprint Of q large pot. with toes
o nthe bottom large enough 10 hold at
least FIVE gallons The pot had been
broken and whatever it contained had
been carried away There was no
r~ve DIGGING after be sDot was
nd and the remainder Of the stakes
were ;eft wnerethey had been driven
/ TherC ara meV living in Atoka today
who remember this incident The
men disappeared from The neighbor
hood as mysteriousiY as they had
come, and were never heard Of again