Okemah, now a community of 3,500 population in east central Oklahoma, was
officially opened for settlement April 22, 1902, exactly five years to the day
before Oklahoma achieved statehood.
That day was one of bustling activity
for Okemah. A historian of the community, the late W. H. Dill, wrote in the late
1930s that the crowd on the day the lots were sold "was perhaps larger than on
any other occasion since the beginning of the town, except possibly the
homecoming of Leon C. Phillips, our townsman, who has been elected governor of
the state of Oklahoma.
Dill was one of the founders of the community, having
previously aided in the platting of the townsite for Shawnee. This gentleman was
drawn to this area by colorful newspaper accounts regarding the fabulous wealth
of Oklahoma ranchers.
The founders planned the Town Site where they
understood two proposed railroads would later intersect. One, the Fort Smith and
Western, did build through town but the other, the Frisco, was routed several
miles south. This factor was a source of discouragement to the planners. The
FS&W failed in 1930, leaving Okemah without a railroad.
Named for a Kickapoo
Indian chieftain, Okemah did not immediately attain the dignity of a chief.
Early day newspapers indicate the community had a good deal of the flavor of the
wild and woolly West. Headlines reported such events as a chase for runaway
couples, apprehension of cattle rustlers, shooting scrapes and the like.
King Cotton began an early reign in the Okemah area. The area was primarily
agricultural and cotton was the chief crop. Cotton gins sprung up all over
Okfuskee County. Today only two remain. Cotton production is only a fraction of
what it once was.
In the mid-1920s Okemah became a boom town. Located on the
edge of the great Cromwell field, the town mushroomed to a population
conservatively estimated at 7,000 persons. Oil gushed from the ground and oil
money flowed. The history of oil booms is not new to Oklahoma. The prosperity
they produce is impermanent.
Weathering the Depression, the community was on
the receiving end of a serious of make-work projects of the Roosevelt
administration. New library and school buildings were constructed and a sports
stadium was built. A lake also was a public works project. A new post office was
dedicated in 1936.
About this time Okemah began a series of birthday
celebrations, staging a big event on each April 22. Screen stars were brought in
for the festivities. A parade, rodeo and other activities were scheduled each
year. Crowds came to Okemah each year to attend. This practice was discontinued
during the war years and not resumed with any consistency since. The last
celebration was in 1952, the golden anniversary.
Recent progress in Okemah
is indicated by the approval of a $200,000 bond issue for water development.
Okemah has a new swimming pool and recreation building, as well as a new
gymnasium auditorium.
Okemahns are active in trying to attract industry in
an effort to balance the sagging drought-stricken agricultural economy. They
look to the future with hope.