Chronicles of Oklahoma Volume 8, No. 4 December, 1930 Oklahoma Historical Society Building 359 Editorials 365 The Legend of the Battle of Claremore Mound Rachel Caroline Eaton 369 Some Remnants of Frontier Journalism M. A. Ranck 378 General John Nicks and his Wife, Sarah Perkins Nicks Carolyn Thomas Foreman 389 A History of the Cherokee Indians Hugh T. Cunningham 407 Meeting of Board of Directors 441 Book Reviews 444 Necrology 454 OKLAHOMA HISTORICAL SOCIETY Page 359 BOARD OF DIRECTORS CHAS. F. COLCORD, President THOS. H. DOYLE, Vice President PHIL D. BREWER, Vice President JASPER SIPES, Pres. Emeritus GOVERNOR W. J. HOLLOWAY THOS. A. EDWARDS Wm. P. THOMPSON MRS. EMMA ESTILL-HARBOUR MRS. JESSIE E. MOORE ROY M. JOHNSON CHAS. F. BARRETT MRS. FRANK KORN W. A. LEDBETTER Wm. S. KEY R. A. SNEED A. N. LEECRAFT MRS. W. A. ROBLIN R. L. WILLIAMS GRANT FOREMAN MRS. FRANK LUCAS BAXTER TAYLOR MRS. JOHN R. WILLIAMS MRS. T. B. FERGUSON E. E. DALE HARRY CAMPBELL MRS. EUGENE LAWSON DAN W. PEERY, Secretary BUILDING COMMITTEE JUDGE ROBERT L. WILLIAMS, Chairman JUDGE THOS. H. DOYLE, Vice Chairman JUDGE PHIL D. BREWER DAN W. PEERY JASPER SIPES W. A. LEDBETTER Wm. S. KEY Page 360 OKLAHOMA HISTORICAL SOCIETY BUILDING (Description) Building is built with a Georgia granite base & steps, Indiana limestone superstructure, plate glass in steel casements, Asphalt & gravel roof. Top floor has four galleries, two 35x80 & two 25x105 lighted entirely by sky & ceiling lights, day and night. Ground floor has auditorium to seat 400. Gallery for heavy museum pieces, newspaper stack-room, besides general toilets. 17x17 light courts to light upper halls and service rooms, also lower floors of the five stories of stacks, for library. 1st floor has large reading-room for library, reading room for newspapers, room for Patriotic Societies, Staff room, etc. 2nd floor has offices and work rooms for Historical Society Staff, room for each— Spanish American—World's-Civil War and Confederate War Veterans—Women's organizations, etc. 3rd floor and top floor mostly galleries for museum and pictures. The construction is fire proof, reinforced concrete construction. Public floors are marble, Gallery floors parketry work—oak and walnut. Trim is the finest of American walnut. Principal rooms and corridors, etc. beautifully decorated. Building has automatic passenger and freight elevators and automatic book lifts for library and newspaper stacks. Building has elaborate heating and ventilating system, steam coming from heating plant of Capitol. Each floor has electrically cooled drinking fountain. Two block site; part of State Capitol Grounds; has been graded and terraced and all approach work done within the appropriation of $500,000.00. Layton, Hicks and Forsyth—Architect. Holmboe Construction Co., Builders. Yours truly, (Signed) EDWARD P. BOYD, Supervising Architect. Page 361 SENATE BILL NO. 24 By Rice, Loofbourrow, Fidler, Kimerer, Rexroot, Austin, Ewing, Hill, Nesbitt and McDonald of the Senate; Leecraft, Snoddy, Graham, Moon, Campbell, Daniel, Cloyd, Stovall, Busey, Smith, Orner, Faulk, Skinner, Phillips, Strickland, Jones (Stephens), Wasson, Brown, Babb, Keenan, Roper, Mitchell, Hoover, Sears and Houston of the House. AN ACT providing for the construction of a building to be located on the State Capitol Grounds in Oklahoma City to be used by the Oklahoma Historical Society, all organizations of all veteran soldiers and sailors and patriotic societies of the State of Oklahoma, said building to provide rooms for meetings and headquarters for all organizations of service men and auxiliary societies and associations in this State and for the use and occupancy of said building by the Oklahoma Historical Society, its library, museum, and other effects and property and for public meetings therein and its use for other public purposes, the construction of said building to be under the supervision of the State Board of Affairs and the Board of Directors of the Oklahoma Historical Society, said building to be located on the State Capitol Grounds in accordance with the "Kessler Plan" and the architect's plans to be approved by the Board of Directors of the Oklahoma Historical Society, and making appropriation for said purposes, and declaring an emergency. The above is the title of the bill appropriating $500,000.00 from the Public Building Funds of the State for the construction of the Historical Building. Approved by Governor W. J. Holloway and became the law March 1, 1929. Page 362 PROGRAM DEDICATION NEW BUILDING OKLAHOMA HISTORICAL SOCIETY NOVEMBER 15, 1930, 1:30 P. M. HON. CHARLES F. COLCORD, President OKLAHOMA HISTORICAL SOCIETY JUDGE R. L. WILLIAMS, Presiding Music --------------- CENTRAL HIGH SCHOOL BAND Invocation --------------- REV. J. J. METHVIN Address --------------- HON. WM. J. HOLLOWAY, GOVERNOR Address --------------- HON. WM. H. MURRAY, INCOMING GOVERNOR Accordion Number --------------- HON. SIDNEY SUGGS Address --------------- HON. FRANK H. GREER Address --------------- MISS ALICE ROBERTSON Address --------------- HON. THOMAS H. DOYLE Introduction --------------- CHAIRMAN Of PATRIOTIC SOCIETIES Page 363 RESOLUTION It is hereby resolved that it is the sense of the Historical Society of Oklahoma as expressed herein through its Board of Directors: 1. That the Society thank the Building Committee for the discharge of its duties in the manifold phases of the erection of the Historical Building. They exercised an intelligence that shall ever be gratifying in their selection of the style and character of building that was constructed; they discharged, with the utmost diligence, their duties of supervision of the construction work. Every dollar appropriated was honestly and with commendable business judgment expended. This noble edifice in its stability and eternal beauty attests how well the Building Committee did its work. 2. That the Historical Society thank Mr. Edward P. Boyd, the supervising architect, for his good and faithful service. He wrought with an understanding and ever vigilant care, and, so to speak, was the eyes of the Building Committee. His inflexible honesty, his ripe experience and learning were here exemplified in the building of this temple. 3. That to the Holmboe Construction Company, who did the building work, we express our very keen appreciation and our thanks. This company did in very truth a work of excellence in every detail. It shall be an enduring testimonial of master craftsmanship. 4. The architects of the Historical Building were Layton, Hicks & Forsyth. This firm drew the plans and specifications and supervised all construction work. It was they who worked out the plans, both as to utility and to the general and detailed arrangements of each column and arch and balustrade and lintel. In its noble design, its gracefulness of proportions, its simple stateliness, it is a work of the beautiful. To its architects full credit is given for a work faithfully and gloriously executed. Committee on Resolutions: JUDGE BAXTER TAYLOR, Chairman, MRS. FRANK KORN, GEN. CHARLES F. BARRETT, MRS. FRANK LUCAS, JUDGE THOS. A. EDWARDS, CHARLES F. COLCORD. Page 364 EDITORIAL WHAT IS HISTORY? Page 365 From the address of William H. Murray at the dedication of the Historical Society Building, Nov. 15, 1930. "What is history? Napoleon said history was fables agreed upon. History is a record of acts and deeds and achievements of a people. Too often it is taken to mean a chronology of officers. The knowledge of the code of morals, of degree of intelligence is of greater value. The nearer history gets to the people, the greater is its benefits to the people. What is the purpose of knowing history? Of what value is it? None unless it can be used to indicate the future. Confucius once said: Learn the past and you will know the future. The purpose of the study of history is that we may extract the philosophy of history, to determine whither we are drifting. It is easy enough to know we are moving. There are three conditions of civilization. One moves upward. One downward, and one moves rapidly but goes nowhere. No civilization ever stood still. It rests in the minds and hearts of the people. A citizenship which stands erect, in short who thinks most of name and character is safe." AN EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTION The Oklahoma Historical Society is an educational institution, as much so as any state school, and its ambitions to serve the entire people, not alone the students who are enrolled in the schools. This institution is more especially intended for the students of history, archaeology and ethnology. We have collected here a library of books, pamphlets and rare manuscript for the use of those interested in the study of the history of Oklahoma, which includes also the history of the Five Civilized Tribes, as well as the traditions and the known history of the many other tribes of Indians Page 366 that now constitute a part of the citizenship of Oklahoma. This collection constitutes an historical library that is invaluable to the student, whether he be a writer, a student in the schools of the state or a private citizen in the search of historical knowledge. Our wonderful collection of Oklahoma Newspapers is another source of history of the state. The student will get a more comprehensive idea of any event of historical importance if he can read the contemporary newspaper accounts written by those who had first hand information. These newspaper stories give us the very atmosphere surrounding the subject written about, and the student of history can get a much clearer and fuller view of his subject than by reading the account written by the research historian. In fact every student can be his own research historian. We have in our newspaper archives more than 10,000 bound volumes of newspapers— including Cherokee papers published in Georgia before the treaty party of the Indians came west. Among other rare papers pertaining to Oklahoma and the Southwest are five volumes of the "Cheyenne Transporter," published at Old Darlington (Fort Reno) from 1880 to 1886—and hundreds of other papers of interest to the student of history.