The Morning Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Okla.) 1919-1927, 1922-07-09
Army RemOM1t Station the
FOrey,u1ner of WeUOka, the
CAPITAL of Seminole Nation


. sp,ruI q, The World.
WEWOkA. July S--Onc of m"
historical towns Of the state is We
. woll Whllo one would not be i'm
/ pressed with thi. fact In looking
az the thriving, up-tu-datc village
ON tho Rock Island railway yet
. m, town itself was established In
. 1866. The first postofficc was cs-
/ t1blishcd as far back as 1874, and
a regular highway was established
and maintained between Old Fort
Gibson and WCwuka. Wewoka, in
those days, was on the Fort Sill
trait \ rcmount station was main
tanned here where the passing sol
dlors and army men changed their
mounts, Also an army barracks
. was established at WcWoka. and for
many years. long before white set
/ Elements began TO spring up in
/ either oklahoma or the Indian ter
ritOry. the call Of the bugle was
/ heard In this vicinity at morning
ana night.
Custer Visited Wcwoka.
Many OF the celebrities Of the old
days have soiourncd at the rcmount
. station Of Wcwuka. col George a.
/ Custer. later one Of the best known
generals OF the United states, en-
| Camped at WCwoka for a day and
/ a night. Many OF the old citizens
/ of tho Seminole remember him, and
still speak of him as yellow Hair"
! General Scott inspected the station,
and that occasion remains fresh in
/ the memory Of the old men of the
/ Seminole tribe.
During the civil war the Semioies
were divided almost equally between
| those who went with the Confed-
crHcy and those who remained loyal
10 the Union. Those who remained
loyal removed their families to near
| Fort Scott, in Kansas, and after
the war. when peace again reiEned
in the territory, the government del
egated a white man by the name
Of r.. J. Brown 70 come back into
tho Seminole with the refugees.
Brown came as q representative OF
the government, and also in the ca
paclty of missionary to the Ind
ians. but he remained to become n
citizen among them. lie was the
first and for many years the only
| white man ever adopted into the
tribe. on the present site of We
woka. II. J. Brown built a home
In tho early fall OF 1866. Soon aft
erwards he procured a stock OF
merchandise from old Fort Gibson
and established a trading post on
runs Just north OF the present town
of Wewoka.
This the Indians soon came TO
cali Wewoka, or Barking Waters,
because OF some little falls which
playe dover thhe rocks ON Wcwok1
creek Mt the point where Brown
established his little trading post,
Old Tree Stlll stands.
Strange TO say. the site selected
by Brown for his first residence,
when the townsite was later sur
veyed, proved to be the northeast
corner lots OF block SO IN the oriei-
nal townsite survey. The tall old
walnut trees planted by the Browns
in SO may still be seen casting their
shade over the present residence
Of Judge II. NJ. Tate Also the
old well dug by Mr.. Brown is still
Intact,
Later Brown sold ont his store
to Mr., Helm from Kansas and
soon thereafter Mr.. G. {, Long be-
came a partner with Mr.. Helm.
This was in the early '7Os, and from
that day until his death Mr.. Long
maintained his residence at We
~oka. Tho business of the partner
+. Brown OF the Seminoles, and
A. j. Brown, the national treasurer,
bought, out Mr.. Helm and became
Joint owners with Long. They es-
tahlished the Wewoka Trading COM
pany. and business was conducted
bv them which was well known
throughout the entire southwest.
Governor Brown and Mr.. Long were
recognized as able business men by
ST, Louis interests. long before the
state OF Oklahoma was thought Of,
started his booming for the lands
OF Oklahoma 10 be opened up for
the white farmers.
When the old c. O. & G.. Railway
Co.. later bought bv the Rock Island
lines. built through Wewoka, tho
little town was located on the south
bank OF Wewokn creek, where IL
had been originally established Rut
after the depot had been erected
and train service installed, the Trad
ing company built n block OF most
excellent stone and brick buildings
I'm what Is now the very business
ccnter OF the present town, The
company established gins and car
rlcd i'm their stock everything 10 he
had from needles to- farm machin-
cry The company paid the highest
prices for cotton TO he had any
where in this section of oklahoma,
and even after shawnee and Tecum-
sch had become excellent towns 10
the west 30 miles. thousands OF
loads OF cotton we're marketed at
the trading company's gins in We
woka. II ia related by old timers
that cotton wagons reaching for
more than a mile could he seen I'm
the fan waiting for their turn n
unload at the company gins. In
this manner the Wewoka Tradlnp
company rose 10 great wealth, and
At one time was rated in Bradstreets
at $1,000, 600.
The Browns and Mr., Long
through their influence at Washing
ton, long before any townsite had