He was married to Louisa NEWMAN, who was
born in 1817, in Tennessee, and died February 15, 1898, and was buried in the
Carselowey Cemetery, Sec. 25, T. 24, R. 20, Craig County, Oklahoma, being on
the place where my first wife’s parents settled in 1870, after moving here
from Goingsnake District, near Westville, I.T. To this union there were born,
four sons and four daughters, all deceased except Thomas M. Buffington, who
will be 82 years old on October 19, 1937.
I received my education at the Old Baptist
Mission School, located four miles north of Westville and I believe this was
one of the first schools to be established, after the removal of the Cherokees
to this country. On May 10, 1878, I was married to Susie Woodall, daughter of
Isaac M. and Mary Jane WOODALL, at Westville, Oklahoma. I remember I had come
to the Woodall residence in a right new wagon to take the family to Sunday
School. I had spoken to the Mother about our marriage, which was to take place
after Sunday School but had not said anything to her father. Mrs. Woodall
said, "Tom, have you said anything to Isaac about your marriage?" I
said, "No." "Well, you had better see him before you go any
further," she said. Then with trembling legs, (I was 6 feet 6 inches
tall) I made my way out to where he was standing and proceeded to tell the old
fellow my troubles. He just smiled and said, "All right, Tom, if you
think you can support a woman, it’s all right with me." In that same
year Isaac Woodall and his family, my wife and I all moved from Goingsnake
District to Delaware District and settled on a farm which we improved from the
ground up, ten miles southeast of Vinita, where we lived until I moved to
Vinita, I believe, in 1900. Susan Buffington was born July 30, 1847 and died
November 11, 1891 and was buried in the Carselowey Cemetery Section 25-24-20,
Craig County, Oklahoma.
I was married the second time to Miss Emma
GRAY, a teacher in the Cherokee Schools, on December 28, 1895. She was born in
North Carolina and came to the I.T. with her parents when still a small child.
To this union five daughters were born, namely: Lucille, Sue Nell, Maxine,
Marie and Marguerite, all of whom are married.
In Cherokee politics, we had two parties,
a Downing party and a National party. I was a Downing man and had always taken
an active part in politics, from my youth up, always helping the other fellow
but never asking for anything for myself. Finally, one day one of the old
politicians said to me, "Tom, you are getting old, your hair is beginning
to turn. Why don’t you run for something yourself?" I had never thought
of politics for myself but upon his suggestion, I went down to Tahlequah at
the next session of the National council and they appointed me on a Senate
Committee called "Committee on Claims" for which I received $5.00
per day.
At the next general election held in
Delaware District, where I lived, some one put my name before the convention
for the office of District Judge. I easily defeated John DANIELS and Bob
LUNDAY in the convention and was the regular nominee on the Downing ticket for
District Judge. I was elected and held the office for two years. That office
was similar to our County Judge of today and my jurisdiction was only in the
bounds of Delaware District. That was in 1891 and 1892.
Then came the climax of my life in office
seeking. They put me up for Senate against Hooley BELL, a man who up to that
time had never been defeated. He had held the office of Senator from Delaware
so long then that even the school children would swear by him. A teacher in
the public school one day asked her class, "Who is president of the
United States?" One little boy threw up his hand and said, "I know,
Hooley Bell." It made Hooley so mad when I came out against him that he
told some of the neighbors that he had put Tom’s first white shirt on him
and now he was going to take it off of me. But he did not. I was elected and
made president of the Senate but not until after Joel MAYES, then principal
chief of the Cherokee Nation, had appeared before the senate and said,
"Gentlemen of the Senate, it hasn’t been long since our principal
chief, Louis DOWNING, and our second chief, Robert DANIEL, both died during
the same term of office. Therefore, I advise you to elect a man as president
of the senate who is also capable of acting as principal chief of this great
Nation."
It was a queer incident, but that very
term both Joel Mayes, principal chief and Henry CHAMBERS, assistant chief, of
Claremore, I.T. both died, leaving me as president of the senate, to succeed
as principal chief. It was the duty of the senate and council then to elect or
appoint a man to succeed me and they urged me to accept the appointment but at
that time I did not want it and urged them to appoint Colonel C. J. HARRIS,
then executive secretary, under Chief Joel Mayes. Harris was appointed and
finished out the unexpired term.
Chief Harris then appointed Cornelius
BOUDINOT and myself as delegates to Washington to represent the Cherokee
Nation. As a territory we were allowed delegates in Congress to look after our
interest but were not allowed a vote. Benjamin Harrison was President at the
time we were in Washington and we held several conferences with him about
Tribal affairs. We stayed in Washington one year.
When we returned from Washington another
election was due in our Nation and I ran for Circuit Judge of the Northern
District, comprising, Delaware, Cooweescoowee and Saline. I held court in each
one of the districts alternately. Each district had its own court house. The
Delaware and Saline court houses were built right out in the woods. The
Delaware court house was on Honey Creek, a few miles south of Grove, near
Grandma SNELL’s place. She was a full blood Cherokee woman and kept a
boarding house where all attending court would eat and sleep and I remember we
were well fed.
The Saline court house was located one
mile east and one mile south of the present town of Locust Grove, right out in
the timber and I remember on one trip to the place that Jim DAVENPORT,
attorney from Vinita, was with me and as it was getting late, I told Davenport
we had better leave yet tonight as it looked like they might have trouble
there that night. There had been trouble brewing for some little time between
two factions of Indians and we drove on down the road a few miles to a little
store and stopped to eat supper when a messenger came up and announced that a
shooting scrape had taken place at the court house, one man killed and one or
two others were wounded.
At the same time I was elected circuit
judge, Hooley Bell came out again and was elected to the senate. We were
neighbors, both of us living on Cabin Creek, where we had settled since coming
to Delaware and Hooley soon forgot his bitterness toward me and we were again
the best of friends. I held the office of circuit judge four years and then
entered the race for principal chief, to which I was elected in 1900 and held
the office for four years. At the time I was elected as principal chief I was
serving my third term as mayor of Vinita having defeated J. B. BURCKHALTER for
the place. Felix COWAN, president of the council filled out my unexpired term
as mayor and was succeeded by Guy PATTON, an attorney. I served as mayor of
Vinita three terms, prior to 1900 and again from May 5, 1913 until May 5,
1917.
I was a delegate from the Third
Congressional District to the National Democratic Convention that convened at
Denver, Colorado, and which nominated William J. BRYAN for the presidency. I
have always been a staunch Democrat in National politics and in my early life
took an active interest in fraternal affairs. I am a 32nd Degree
Mason, a member of Vinita Lodge No. 5 A.F. & A.M. Indian Consistory,
McAlester and Akdar Temple, A.A.O.N.M.S. at Tulsa and am a member of Vinita
Lodge No. 1162, Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks.
While serving my last term as mayor in
1917, on attempting to alight from a passenger train, I dislocated my hip and
have been a cripple ever since. I managed to come down town in an automobile
and attended public gatherings in the same way until the spring of 1936. Since
that time I have not been able to leave the house. I read a lot and enjoy my
old time friends and new ones as well, calling on me to talk over things, both
present and future. I have seen my people strive to make a living ever since
the last bunch of Cherokees arrived over the trail of tears to the present
time. I have seen many of our tribe deed away their land to satisfy a mortgage
of which they were not able to cope.
I have had many ask me the difference in
an "Old Settler Cherokee" and an "Eastern Emigrant." An
old settler is a Cherokee who came with the first bunch from Georgia without
being forced by the government. An eastern emigrant is one that remained
behind and was forced by the government to remove to the new country, west of
the Mississippi and this movement was known as "The Trail of Tears."
LAST BUT NOT LEAST
I was delighted in January 1937 when I
picked up the little home paper and found that they were again preparing to
honor me and I desire here to extend my thanks to my many friends everywhere
for their kind thoughts and deeds. The article follows:
"Recognition by the state will be
give to Thomas M. Buffington, last living Chief of the Cherokees, as a result
of a movement launched by Pryor and Vinita citizens to give honor to the only
living head of the once proud nation, within a nation.
"A committed will meet Monday night
with District Judge, N.B. Johnson, at Claremore to discuss plans for the
proper recognition of Chief Buffington. Members of the committee are: Richard
Wheatley, H.R. Warner, Sam Parks, W.F. Reynolds, Jess Ballard and Carey
Caldwell. "This committee was appointed for Vinita at a meeting held at
Pryor Wednesday night, when a small group of interested friends of the
Cherokee Nation and its last chief met and appointed Johnson as general
chairman of the Buffington Memorial Committee. The other members of the
committee from Pryor are: Judge R.A. Wilkerson, Harve Langley and Jake
Proctor. It is planned to hold a public meeting in Vinita when the honor is
given, Johnson told the committee.
"The Committee will have hung in the
Hall of Fame in the Oklahoma Historical Society at Oklahoma City, a large
portrait of Chief Buffington.
"So popular with his people was he
that he held almost every office in their power to give him. He opposed and
defeated Hooley Bell, who before had been regarded as unbeatable, for a
position in the Cherokee Senate.
"Chief Buffington resides, at the
present time, with his family at 147 South Brown Street, Vinita,
Oklahoma."
Submitted to OKGenWeb by Wanda Morris
Elliott <jwdre@intellex.com>
10-2000.