I am very proud of my Choctaw Indian background and I thought perhaps you might be interested.
My great grandfather, and his family, emigrated to Indian Territory, around 1838, on the "Trail of Tears," from Mississippi as part of the Choctaw Removal. He established a trading post on the Kiamichi River and also ran cattle and horses. He had several slaves. My grandfather, a Texas cowboy, traveled to Indian Territory in 1875 to seek his fortune. He met and married my grandmother and they lived in several small towns such as Boggy Depot and Lone Star before settling down in Centrahoma, Indian Territory, later to become Oklahoma. My grandparents had two sons and seven daughters.
My grandfather ran cattle and horses on several thousand acres, a combination of open range and family land. He was also a Federal Deputy Marshal, working out of Ft. Smith, Arkansas. He arrested and/or killed numerous outlaws in the Territory before Oklahoma became a state.
Each member of the family received 320 acres, valued at at \\$.25 per acre ($1,041.28) of land under the Atoka Agreement and my grandfather, at a later date filed homesteads for all members of his family, accumulating by grant, homestead, or purchase, over 7,000 acres of land. When he died each child received 900 acres of land.
The family lived in a large two story home in Centrahoma, OK, but there were numerous log cabins on the ranch for hired hands, including slaves.My grandmother died at the age of 36. My aunts reported that my grandfather was a loving father and that all of the children had great affection for him. The farm, in Coal County, OK, was the original homestead and the family lived in a log cabin while the home in Centrahoma was being constructed. The existing McGee farm is part of the 900 acres inherited by my Mother.
The Choctaw headright rolls reflect my grandmother as being 50% Choctaw, my mother as 25% Choctaw, myself 1/8% Choctaw, my children 1/16% Choctaw, and my grandchildren 1/32% Choctaw.
The Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma conferred the following Indian names on myself and members of my family. My wife Ruth had her feelings hurt because she did not have an Indian name. I wrote the Choctaw Nation and advised them that I had captured a white woman over fifty years ago and that, under tribal custom, she should be given an Indian name. The Choctaw Nation was kind enough to confer an Indian name, as listed below. (grin)
