OCR Text |
Show Oklahoma Sets Sesquicentennial SesquicentennialNoting SesquicentennialNoting Noting First White SettlenientHistorical Settlement Settlenient SettlementHistorical Historical Paseant Pafeant ( Planned T ' - As Highlight Higlzliglll of State Fair FairBy By WNU Features reatures FeaturesMUSKOGEE MUSKOGEE OKLATo OKLA -To To - To the astronomer and the geolo geolo- geologIst geologist - gist 150 years is the merest fragment of time bme Even the thestudent thestudent student of recorded history stands in m no awe of such a penod penodBut periodBut But to the more finite fimte minded mmded people of Oklahoma it repre represents represents sents a considerable span of tune In fact it measures the thepenod theperiod penod that has elapsed since smce the first white spttlement m mtheIr intheir theIr state That is why they're theyre ' going gomg all out this year to tocelebrate tocelebrate celebrate the 150th anniversary anmversary of that eventIn event eventIn In accordance _ with a joint Jomt . A resolution resolubon of the state senate and repr sentatlves passea passein ' in 1939 Oklahoma will celebrate the the150th the150th 150th anniversary anmversary of the day when whenMaJ whenMaj MaJ Jean Pierre Chouteau a aFrench aFrench French fur trader led a peaceful peacefulinvasIOn peacefulinvasion invasIOn into the uncharted South Southwest Southwest west and set up a trad ng post at atthe atthe the site slte of the present day city of ofSalma ofSalma Salma in Mayes county of north northeastern northeastern eastern Oklahoma OklahomaIn In Muskogce Muskogee some 50 miles south south'Of southof 'Of Of ' the site of Chouteau s settlement settlementplans settlementplans plans are being bemg pushed for a cele cele- celebrahon celebration - bration brahon to carry out the leg slahe slahresolutIOn slati\ slati slah\ slah slatieresolution \ e eresolution eresolutionSeeks resolutIOn resolutIOnSeeks Seeks Trading Tradrng Post . . In tl e early spring sprmg of 1796 Chou Chouteau Chouteau teau left St Louis where he was wasa wasa a member of an influential Influentlal family farrnly of oftraders oftraders traders and merchants to find a asu asu su table location for a new tradmg tradmgpost tradingpost post among the Indians of the South Southwest Southwest SouthwestTraveling west westTravelmg Traveling Travelmg southward along the theGrand theGrand Grand river the Frenchman found foundI foundthe foundthe the site he be had dreamed of-a of a of - a place placewhere placewhere I where an abundant supply of game gamemostly gamemostly mostly deer and wild turkeys turkeysi turkeysabounded turkeysabounded i abounded among thick t mber mberwhich , \ blCh would provide a ready source sourcel.of sourceof l.of lof . building bulldmg material matenal By what Chou Chouteau Chouteau teau must have regarded a & : . provi proviI providentlal providential I dentlal good luck the site also stood stoodnear stoodnear near an inexhaustible rneJl.baustible rneJlbaustible . supply of salt salta salta a vital necessity to h s men and am ammals ammals mals To crown the good features featuresof featuresof of the location locatlon the river itself Itsel ! would wouldfurmsh wouldfurnish furmsh transportation facil tlesTbe ties tles tiesThe The Tbe pioneer lost no time in m con constructmg constructing structmg a large log trading tradmg post at atwhat atwhat what is now SalinaPost Salma Salina SalmaPost Post AbandonedEconomIc Abandoned Economic reverses however d s sappo sappo appo nted the French explorer who whodJsco whodiscovered dJsco\ dJsco dJscoered \ ered that the territory terntory v . was as not notthe notthe the permanent home of any Indian Indiantnbe Indiantribe tnbe and that prospects ofsupport of support support- supportI supportmg supporting - I ing mg a trad ng post however pro propitlOUS propitious pitlOUS the location in 10 other re respects respects spects v . were ere insufficient msufficlent to Justify justifymak : mak ng the venture a permanent permanentsettlement permanentsettlement settlement in m the areaChouteau area areaChouteau Chouteau returned to St LouIs LouIsand Louisand and for six years the little httle tradlng tradlngpost tradingpost post stood silent and abandoned m mthe mthe the wild loveliness lovelmess of a pnmltlve pnmltlvecountry primitivecountry country But in ID 1802 events trans transplred transpired plred that gave nev new ; life hfe to the set settlement settiement tlement Through the traders e ! etforts forts the Osage Indians IndJans of the Mis souri sourl valley removed their thelr homes homesto homesto to eastern Oklahoma OklahomaIt It was a double victory tor for the theFrenchman theFrenchman Frenchman He had sought re revenge revenge venge on the Spanish government governmentwhich governmentwhich which had taken taJ.en taJen . his trading tradmg monop monopoly monopoly oly and given it to one ot of its subjects subjectsBy subjectsBy By the migrat mlgrat on of the Indian Indianfrom Indianfrom from the Spaniard s trade territory territoryhis territoryhis his business busmess was virtually ruined ruinedIn ruinedIn In addition It created a markat mar market ket kat for Chouteau Chouteao s abandonedtradmg abandoned abandonedtrading trading tradmg post to which he returned re returned turned to start the 150 year ycar parade pa parade rade of progress which hasmade has hasmade made a great modern statefrom state statefrom from a wilderness wildernessA A celebration celebratlon to be held m con connect conncct nect ( pn ID with the annual Free State Statefair Statefair fair at Muskogee scheduled for the theweek theweek week of September 29 through Oc October October tober 6 w 11 bear Gov Robert S SKerr SKerr Kerr s stamp as the official Ok Oklahoma Oklahoma lahoma commemoration of her ses sesqwcentennial sesquicentennial sesquicentennialPioneers qwcentennial qwcentennialPIoneers Pioneers to ParhClpateDurmg Participate ParhClpate ParticipateDuring During Durmg three days of the fair a acolor acolorful color ul pageant w U 11 be presented presentedSeveral presentedSeveral Several hundred eastern Oklaho Oklahomans Oklahomans mans many of them direct de descendants descendants scendants of early day pioneers will willappear willappear appear in m the pageant wh ch will willportray willportray portray the arrival arnval of Chouteau m mthe mthe the state and the story of the 1 We Wetrad ttletrad trad ng postC post postC C E Chouteau an official of the theIndian theIndian Indian agency at Muskogee will fill fillthe fillthe the role of his illustrious Jllustnous ancestor ancestorThe ' The fair a gala panorama ancestorI of mid midway midway I way gaiety and agriculturaland agricultural and ed educatlonal educational ucatlonal exhibits eJl.blblts eJlblblts . yearly draws drawsthousands drawsthousands thousands of visitors from eastern easternOklahoma I IOklahoma Oklahoma and adjacent Arkansas ArkansasIn In addition addltlon to the sesqwcenten sesqwcentenDIal sesquicentennial DIal pageant fair visitors will be beable beable able to view a comprehensive d s splay splay play of the state s agricultural agncultural and andindustrial andindustrial industrial outputs The fertile fertlle farms farmswhich farmswhich which dot Oklahoma w 11 II contnb contnbute contnbute ute their animal and vegetable vegetableproduce vegetableproduce produce to the fair fau and the modern moderneducational moderneducational educational institutions mstltutlOns of the sec secbon section bon will present exh b tsFaugoers ts tsFairgoers Fairgoers Faugoers may see the orlgmal orlgmalsite originalsite site of Chouteau s land ng by a short shortdnve shortdrive dnve from Muskogee MusJ.ogee MusJogee . and may VISit VISitother visitother other interesting interestmg historical spots spotsnear spotsnear near this city the ong nal capital capitalof capitalof of the Five Civilized Clvlhzecl : tribes tnbes rlRST \ lUTE SETTLL'IE\T SETTLL'IE SETTLLIE T ' ! \ An artist s conception of the old oldChouteau Chouteau J1eadquarters post near Sal na tbe erst erstllte \\llte llte \ \ settlement settlementID ID Oklahoma ORIGINAL SETTLER Found Founder er of the first willte settlement In InOklahoma Oklahoma was Maj Jean Pierre PierreChoteau Choteau rrench fur trader |