Harper Co. Digital Library

Contributed By: Michelle Wiggins
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Submitted by:  Michelle Wiggins
E-mail: okcoharper1@usgennet.org

From a sign at a marble historical site marker on Highway 3 just
West of the Harper / Beaver county line.  

This marker was erected by the Beaver County Historical Society,
Inc. & the Oklahoma Historical Society.  The entire text is in
capital letters.  For easy reading, it is reproduced here in mixed
case.

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You are now entering Old 
"No Man's Land"
Colorado | Kansas 37th Parallel
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Called "No Man's Land until 1890
Known then as
Beaver County
Became the Panhandle of Okla. Statehood 1907
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Texas State Line 36 deg. 30' Parallel
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The 37th Parallel was chosen as the southern
boundary of Colorado and Kansas.  New Mexico's
Eastern boundary was the 103rd meridian by the
Missouri Compromise.  Texas came into the Union
with 36 deg. 30' Parallel as their northern boundary.
This northern boundary of Texas is the only state
boundary in the Union set by the Missouri Com-
promise (Mason - Dixon).  The Cherokee Outlet
stopped at the 100th meridian.  This left a strip
of land 34 miles wide and 167 miles long without
any form of government.  Congress called it the Public
Land Strip, but it became known as "No Man's
Land" being outside any jurisdiction or any form
of government.  It became the home of Outlaws,
Cowboys and settlers.  Beaver City was the largest
town in the area.  By the Organic Act of 1890, Con-
gress attached this land to the newly
organized Oklahoma Territory with Beaver City
as the county seat.  It continued thus until Okla.
was admitted to the Union Sat. Nov 16, 1907.

Three counties were formed out of the panhandle - 
Beaver, Texas and Cimarron.

This area has the most unique history in all the
United States.

Beaver County Historical Society, Inc.
Oklahoma Historical Society






http://www.usgenweb.org  USGenWeb
http://www.okgenweb.net/okindex.htm   OKGenWeb



This page created on July 06, 1998 for the Harper County Digital
Library
Updated Mon Feb 18 20:29:23 CST 2002 to show new e-mail address