Craig County OK
Biographical Sketch of Mrs. Richard Lafayette Smith
Richard Lafayette Smith was born on September 7, 1899, to Frederick David and Charlotte Elizabeth Smith. He married Minnie Carrie Steigleder on May 31, 1919, in Big Cabin; she was born on March 11, 1900. The couple had two sons, Louis Richard and Milton Eldo. A dedicated farmer and breeder of Purebred Hereford cattle, Smith was also active in the I.O.O.F. fraternity. Minnie’s parents, Robert Louis and Caroline Emma Steigleder, were married in Booneville, Missouri, in 1888.
Biographical Sketch of Orville E. Thornton
Orville E. Thornton was born on December 29, 1876, in Iowa, to George Washington and Emily Jane Thornton. He married Drucilla A. Conley on April 2, 1898. The couple adopted Georgia Myrtle Martin, born on February 22, 1910, who has been with them since infancy. Thornton served as a Justice of the Peace in Centralia and was involved in farming, continuing the legacy of his family, which has roots in the area since George Washington Thornton’s birth on February 2, 1856.
Biographical Sketch of Mrs. J. W. Harris Jr.
Lydia Madison, born on April 6, 1894, in Craig County, was educated at Vinita High School, graduating in 1917. She married John Wesley Harris on May 10, 1919. John, born June 3, 1897, near Vinita, enlisted in World War I in August 1917, serving in Co. K of the 166th Regiment before being sent to France. Together, they welcomed their daughter, Grace Cornelia Harris, on March 19, 1920.
Biographical Sketch of Mrs. Samuel Hildebrand
Fannie Fritz, born October 8, 1879, in Cooweescoowee District, was educated at Carlyle and Haskell Institutes. She married Samuel Hildebrand on February 24, 1900, and they had eight children: Agnes, Lura, Edward, Aaron, Glenn, Floyd, Georgia, and Melvin. A Methodist and a member of the Rebekahs, Fannie supported her husband, a farmer and member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, in their agricultural life near Vinita.
Biographical Sketch of Landrum Crittenden Jennings
Caroline Agnew married Anderson Landrum Crittenden Jennings, and they had a son, Landrum Crittenden Jennings, born in 1876. He was educated at Worcester Academy and the Male Seminary. In 1899, he wed Jananna Benge, who hailed from Vinita. Their daughter, Clara May Jennings, born in 1900, graduated from Muskogee Central High School and currently works as a stenographer. The Jennings family is associated with the Methodist Church.
Biographical Sketch of Mrs. Thomas B. Archer
Anna Bell, born on November 20, 1878, in Vinita, was the daughter of Abram and Alta Meeks. After her education at Worcester Academy, she married Thomas B. Archer on April 22, 1897, in Vinita. Together, they had six children: Irra, Otto B., Fannie B., Thomas B., Abram, and Morrill. All three of the eldest attended Vinita High School. The Archers are active members of the Baptist Church, with Thomas B. working as a produce merchant in Vinita.
Biographical Sketch of Grace E. Whiteaker
Grace Elizabeth Barks, born January 17, 1900, in Vinita to Edward and Victoria Barks, received her education in Cherokee schools. On May 25, 1917, she married Robert Whiteaker, son of William and Dorothy Whiteaker. Grace has one sister, Hazel Willie, who resides in Roswell, New Mexico, with her husband Floyd Edward Smith and their three children: Levina, Nanetta, and Nedowa. She also has a brother, Miles Mathew Barks.
Biographical Sketch of Mrs.Thomas H. Owen
Louise Scott, born August 23, 1877, near Vinita, was the daughter of James Orval and Mary E. Hall. Educated at Vinita and Harrell Institute, she graduated from the latter. On November 2, 1898, she married Luman Franklin Parker, who passed away in 1912. Subsequently, she wed Thomas H. Owen on March 12, 1916, and they settled in Oklahoma City.
Biographical Sketch of Wright Dupree
Wright Dupree, born on August 8, 1890, in Texas, received his education in Oklahoma and Missouri. He married Rosa Wright on July 12, 1914, in Centralia, Oklahoma, and together they had two children, Louis and Francis. He is the son of William E. Dupree and Anna L. Wright, linked to the esteemed Bell and Adair families. A dedicated member of the Baptist Church, Wright serves as a rural mail carrier in Vinita, Oklahoma.
Biographical Sketch of Mrs. Claude W. Mitchell
Emma E. Daniel, born February 19, 1892, in Vinita, was the daughter of John Martin and Alice R. Smith Daniel and educated at the Female Seminary in Tahlequah. She married Claude W. Mitchell on July 31, 1911, and they had one daughter, Mary Nadine, before Mr. Mitchell’s death in 1918. Emma’s family included several siblings, with notable connections through marriages, such as Lula May Daniel and Martha J. Daniel, who maintained ties to the Oklahoma community.
Biographical Sketch of Mrs. Benoni H. Durall
Ada Bertha Dobkins, born on August 6, 1879, in Chetopa, Kansas, married Benona H. Durall on August 25, 1897. They had five children: Harold Robert, Hugh Allen, George Marvin, Ada Leah, and Charles Ivan. Harold served in the navy during World War I. A member of the Methodist Church and various orders, Mrs. Durall’s husband engaged in the insurance and loan business in Welch. Their family reflects a rich heritage of service and community involvement.
Biographical Sketch of Mrs. Albert P. Goforth
Elizabeth Taylor, born in the Cherokee Nation, was the daughter of Andrew and Jennie Taylor. She married William Ghormley, and they had a daughter, Isabel Jane, who married Felix Nelson Witt. Their daughter, Rachel Matilda, was born in Going Snake District and married Albert Perry Goforth. Together, they had eight children, including Eulelma Pearl and Euletia Catherine. Albert Goforth worked as a farmer near Vinita, contributing to the agricultural community in the region.
Biographical Sketch of Peter J. Coyne
Peter Joseph Coyne, born October 19, 1869, in England to Irish parents, married Margaret Shanahan in 1893. Their family includes eight children, with notable service from son Patrick in World War I. Established as a successful farmer near Estella, Peter is an active community member and dedicated Catholic, who has represented Craig and Rogers Counties in various political roles since 1908, including state senator from the twenty-ninth district starting in 1916. His lineage traces back to Patrick Shanahan from Tipperary, Ireland.
Biographical Sketch of William P. Goddard
Catherine England, born November 11, 1855, was the daughter of William and Elizabeth England. She married Larkin Goddard on December 23, 1869, but he passed away in 1873. Catherine died on February 21, 1921. They had one son, William Penn Goddard, born November 3, 1870, who married Nora Endicott in April 1894. Their son, Fleming Larkin Goddard, born in June 1896, later married Ethel Pennington, and they welcomed a daughter, Erma Gine Goddard, on July 14, 1920.
Biographical Sketch of Felix G. Cowan
Richard Cowan, born in 1839 in Georgia, married Elzada Allen in 1865, and they had two children, including Felix G. Cowan, born in 1866. Felix, educated in the Cherokee Nation, had two marriages, first to Lulu Murry in 1886 and later to Rebecca Blair in 1909. A successful businessman in Vinita for 27 years, he served as County Commissioner and later as steward of the State Hospital. A community figure active in multiple fraternal organizations, he was also a long-serving member of the Vinita City Council and briefly its mayor.
Biographical Sketch of Samuel T. Elliott
Samuel Talbert Elliott was born on July 5, 1894, in Delaware District to Hiram and Collie Elliott. He married Geneva Blackford on September 25, 1916, and they had two children, Magdelene and Garth Dalmond. A farmer residing near Big Cabin, Elliott’s familial roots trace back to Elizabeth Foreman and John Elliott, leading to Hiram Thomas Elliott, Samuel’s grandfather. His lineage reflects a rich heritage connected through marriage and ancestry in the region.
Biographical Sketch of Mrs. Fred L. Jackson
Rosa A. Morris Jackson, born February 24, 1893, near Welch, is the daughter of John H. and Mary Malisson Morris. She attended Cherokee National schools and married Fred L. Jackson on June 2, 1912. They have two children, Carwel Lee and Norma Jennie. Active in her community, Mrs. Jackson is a Methodist and an Eastern Star member. Notably, she is the great-great granddaughter of Pathkiller, a former Principal Chief of the Cherokees, linking her to a rich family heritage.
Biographical Sketch of Mrs. Sarah Calvert
Sarah A. Crittenden, born March 25, 1868, in the Cherokee Nation, received her education in local Cherokee schools. On January 1, 1889, she married Samuel N. Calvert. Together, they had several children: Amanda Alice, Charles Elmer, Lela Delvia, Mildred Loree, and Clara Myrtle. The family, engaged in farming near Estella, also saw the marriages of their children, continuing their legacy. Charles Elmer’s descendants include five children, while Lela Delvia has two daughters.
Biographical Sketch of Ethel Ray Green Grimes
Ethel Ray Green, born on November 25, 1892, near Vinita, was the daughter of Joseph and Margarette A. Green. She received her education at the Female Seminary in Tahlequah. On December 23, 1917, she married Grady L. Grimes in McAlester, Oklahoma. They are active members of the Methodist Church, with Grady being a Mason and working as an automobile mechanic.