The labor world., 1911-05-13
old INDIAN MAS|0N
STRIPPED BY |. vANDALS.
Rich Contents Taken From the
Major Murell Home at
~ Tahlequah.
from the st. Louis Republic:

From the st. Louis Republic:
For more than 60 years a Cherokee
mansion near Tahlequah, Okla, was
filled with mahogany and rosewood
furniture that would have been the
delight Of collectors of antiques Much
of this furniture remains in the Cher
okee country. The larger pieces,
such as beds, sideboards and cabinets,
were regal In their magnifcence.
Their value at this day would be
thousands of dollars. It was the priv
ilege of only few persons to see all
this furniture. At the close of the
Civil war the more valuable and cost
1y pieces were packed away in a
room of the mansion, and remained
under lock and key until about a
year ago.
Among the cultured and wealthy
white men that cast their fortunes
with the Cherokees was Major George
M. Murrell of Virginia. He won the
heart of the eldest daughter of Lewis
Ross, brother of John Ross, who was
chief of the Cherokees for 40 years.
Their marriage followed their elope-
ment Upon the death of his wife
Major Murrell married her youngest
sister. His marriage into the Ross
family established Major Murrell as
a member of the Cherokee aristoc-
racy.
The social and intellectual center
of Cherokee life in the old days was
at Park Hill, six or seven miles from
Tahlequah, the tribal capital. At
Park Hill was the beautiful home of
Chief Ross, Ross Cottage, and it was
there that Major Murrell built his
mansion, in Southern style. This
house, with its spacious rooms and
| relic of the happiest days known to
the Cherokee people. This was back
| in the '40s.
The Cherokees were Shareholders
| and both Major Murrell and Chief
Ross had many slaves. The humblest
Cherokee lived in comfort The tribal
! government maintained excellent ma
tional schools for the education of its
youths, both boys and girls, at the
expense of the nation. Frequently
the more promising boys and girls
! were permitted to finish their educa-
tion in the colleges and seminaries of
the Eastern states.
A Mansion Like Fortress.
| Major Murrell built his mansion OF
| fortress-like strength. The heaviest
tfmbers were used, and across the
massive doors leading to the central
hall were strong bars. The inner
| "a inn &c
thick. During the Civil war Confed-
crate soldiers entered the house. The
! door to the dining room was locked
They were unable to batter down the
| door with their muskets. With an al
they chopped a hole through the door
| removing the lock. The door stand:
today as it was left by the soldiers
Major Murrell, though chagrined al
| the indignity, let the marks of pillage
remain as memento of the stirring
| times.
The Virginia and Louisiana estate:
are still in possession Of his immedi-
ate family. The plantation at Bayou
Goula is occupied by his son, George
Rose Murrell, who has more than
a thousand persons employed in his
| sugar industry.
| Major Murrell furnished his man.
sfons in keeping with his wealth, and
his cultured state. The furniture
for his home at Park Hill was
brought from New Orleans by steam
boat about 1845 up the Mississippi
and Arkansas rivers to Fort Gibson
and thence hauled overland This
furniture is said to have been made
in England. It was of massive style
and of solid mahogany-before the
days of veneer-and all the inner
spaces were finished in rosewood.
The beds were establishments In