Charles Walter Poole was born October 25, 1859, on the Neosho River, Indian Territory, eldest son of John Poole, who married Sarah Harlan, daughter of a prominent Cherokee, and who was killed on Lees Creek, Indian Territory, during the war, by bushwhackers. John Poole was a Missourian by birth. Charles attended public and high schools in the Cherokee Nation until his eighteenth year, when he accepted a clerkship from W. C. Patton & Co., at Vinita, with whom he continued until April, 1885, when he came to Chelsea to engage in the mercantile business, which he now carries on successfully. Mr. Poole married Miss Emma G. Musick, of St. Louis, daughter of William R. Musick, a manufacturer of steel ranges in that city. Mrs. Poole, prior to her marriage, was one of the first teachers at Worcester Academy, Vinita. While there she first met her husband, and was wooed and won. They have a bright, interesting little boy, born September 25, 1889. Mr. Poole is related to many of the most prominent Cherokee families, the Adairs, Starrs, Harnages, and others. He is an energetic, wide-awake young man, with a good knowledge of business, being a pioneer merchant of Chelsea, and a member of its council ever since the incorporation of the town. Mrs. Poole is a highly cultured, educated lady, and has identified herself with her husband’s interests in the Territory, where she is very well known and very popular.
