Volume 13 , Issue 31

Organization of Old Woods (M) County

If you search back to our OkieLegacy Archives, Vol. 7, Iss. 46, you will find an article concerning the History of Alfalfa County - Goltry, OK. It was extracted from "A History of Alfalfa County," submitted in part fulfillment of requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts by David W. Pierce, 1926, University of Oklahoma. Chapter II of that thesis there is a history of the Organization of the County and the County Seat Fight of Alfalfa County.

As to the organization, old Woods county (M county) was the largest county in Oklahoma Territory (58 miles from north to south, 48 miles from east to west). The area of Old Woods county was 76 square miles more than twice the area of Rhode Island. It was referred to all over the territory as the "Empire of Woods."

In 1900, 34,975 people lived in Woods County. In 1903, there were 30 towns, 19 banks and 24 newspapers in old Woods county (also known as M county). The property valuation was $7,582,000. Kansas bounded Old M county on the north; Garfield and Grant counties on the east; Dewey, Blaine and Kingfisher counties on the south; and Woodward county on the west.

When the Strip was opened in 1893, Congress had advertised the Strip as an inferior country by fixing land at one dollar an acre, while further east the price was $2 dollars and fifty cents an acre. It was also dubbed by newspapers as "The Short Grass Country."

In August 1906, Woods County was divided into four districts, which were called districts six, seven, eight and nine. Each of these was to elect a delegate to the Constitutional Convention. The four delegates elected were Dr. Bilby of Alva, Rev. George Wood of Cherokee, J. C. Major of Fairview, and D. G. Harned of Helena. All four of these delegates were elected on an anti-division platform.

It was November 1906, when the Constitutional Convention met at Guthrie that there were two large counties in Oklahoma Territory that presented questions of county division. Woods county with her great area and political importance and Greer county with her picturesque history dating from the days of the Spanish occupation. The Committee on county boundaries proposed to make 75 counties in the State. Thirty-one in Oklahoma Territory and forty-four in Indian Territory.

J. C. Major and George Wood changed their views after they had been at Guthrie for a few days, and they began working for a division of the county. On arrival 19 November 1906, at Guthrie, Major found a lobby from Helena working for a division of the county. The next day Mr. Stine and Mr. Crowell of Alva were on the ground for the sole purpose of finding whether the Helena proposition was meeting with favor or not.

The Helena proposition wanted to be the county seat of a county that took the territory north and east of the Cimarron River unto and including Range 12 and as far north as Township 25, including the same. The balance north of the Cimarron river and extending to the northeast corner of the county, and that portion lying south and west of the Cimarron was desired to be thrown into a new county.

Major opposed this and continued his opposition until Jesse Dunn of Alva went before the Committee on Boundaries and outlined a county that Alva would be satisfied with, which was in line with the Helena plan. According toMajor, he signed an agreement to divide Woods County only when he was forced to do so by citizens of Alva.

It was either that or go back to the citizens of his district with a county composed of that part of old Woods county south of the Cimarron. Major charges that every vote in Alva, except three, were cast for the county High School at Helena. O. A. Brewer of Helena was county commissioner at that time from the south part of the county. Brewer helped Alva get the court house before the county was divided, and in return Alva helped Helena get the Woods County High School.

It was George Wood and J. C. Major who were responsible for the way the county was divided, according to Major's own statement. Wood and "Alfalfa Bill" Murray, President of the Constitutional Convention, were warm friends. Alfalfa Bill Murray visited Cherokee, 2 February 1907 as the guest of his friend. George Wood wanted to have the new county named "Murray" in honor of his friend, but Murray had already promised his home people at Sulphur that they might have his name for their county. So it was agreed to call the new county "Alfalfa" in honor of "Alfalfa Bill." J. C. Major favored county division because he lived in the southern part of old Woods county and Fairview wanted to be a county seat. Major was doubtless flattered by the proposal to name the county for him.

Dr. Bilby of Alva opposed county division all the way through. D. G. Harned stood by him and fought the proposition for many days. For several weeks the Woods county delegates stood for division (two for and two against). Charles Haskell called Mr. Harned into a room, locked the door, and told him that the county was going to be divided anyway and that he might as well state what he wanted in the way of boundaries. Harned then informed Haskell that he wanted the southern boundary of Alfalfa county to run six miles south of Aline. The Major county people found this proposed boundary objectionable as it would leave them only a very small county. It was agreed that the southern boundary of the new county of Alfalfa should be three miles south of Aline.

Before adjourning for the holidays, the Constitutional Convention adopted the report of the Committee on county Boundaries whereby counties in Oklahoma were divided and new ones established in the Indian Territory. The report was carried by a strong majority. Dr. Bilby of Alva opposed the adoption while the other three delegates from Woods County favored it. The naming of county seats was left until after the holidays.

The Committee's county boundaries division of old Woods County was divided as follows: "The new Woods county shall be the territory of the original county in the northwest corner, twenty-four miles from east to west and thirty-four miles from north to south, also the portion of Woodward county cut off by the Cimarron River in the northeast part of that county. The strip taken from Woodward county was triangular with a length of twenty-seven miles and a width of sixteen miles.

Alfalfa county would be the northeast corner of the original county, twenty-four miles from east to west and thirty-four miles from north to south, taking in the towns of Amorita, Byron, Burlington, Carmen, Cherokee, Driftwood, Goltry, Helena, Ingersoll, Jet, and Lambert. Major county is to be that part of the old county lying south of the other two, with a length of twenty-four miles and a width of forty-eight miles."

The tax payers of Woods county were dissatisfied with the action of the Constitutional Convention in the matter of dividing old Woods county. They employed H. A. Noah, attorney of Alva, to file a petition in District court at Guthrie, asking an injunction restraining the Supreme Election Board, President Murray of the Constitutional Convention, and Governor Frank Frantz as the head of the rightful territorial election board, from submitting the Constitution to the people of the new state while it contains clauses which the plaintiff alleges are objectionable.

It was contended that if it were left to a vote of the people of the original Woods County, ninety per cnet would vote against county division. The petition held that it takes from the pope of Woods County a local right when division was forced upon them by the State in adopting a Constitution.

Judge Pancoast of Alva granted a permanent injunction against the constitution, denying the authority of the constitutional convention to divide Woods county and to call an election. It was on 25 June 1907, the Supreme Court decided by a vote of 5 to 2 that it had no jurisdiction in matters of county boundaries fixed by the constitutional convention, and that the courts of the territory had no jurisdiction in such cases.

The election was held on 17 September 1907. There were 1927 votes for the Constitution and 1209 against it. 1931 voted for prohibition and 1027 against it. 16 November 1907 was a great day in Cherokee. When the news was received at 9:20 am that President Roosevelt had sighed the constitution, guns were fired, bells were rung, and every whistle in the city blew for an hour. At 1:30 pm there was a parade of old soldiers, county officers, and about 500 school children. The new Alfalfa county officers were sworn in by Harry Moore, Notary. George Wood delivered an address to 3,000 people.

An injunction order was served on the treasurer and commissioners of this county in January 1908, to prevent either Alfalfa or Major counties from getting a transcript of the tax rolls from Woods county, as provided for in an act of the legislature. The suit was brought by the county commissioners of Woods County, and the evident intent was to force the people of the new counties to pay their taxes at Alva regardless of the law.

Henry France was Treasurer of Woods County at that time and refused to give up the office to Thomas J. Dyer, treasurer-elect. Fred Winslow of Carmen, who had $12,000 of Woods County money in his bank, applied to Probate Judge Wilson for an injunction to prevent the county treasurer from withdrawing the public funds from the bank by representing that he did so to protect the tax payers of Alfalfa county, who had an interest in the funds belonging to old Woods county. When the judge learned that instead of tying up the $12,000 only, the injunction actually tied up the treasurer's office indefinitely and he was furious.

Mr. Kincheloe, county clerk of Alfalfa county, received a report in November, 1908, of the settlement between Alfalfa and Woods counties. In the settlement the total valuation placed on Alfalfa county was 44%, as against 29% of new Woods county, and 26% on Major county. This meant that Alfalfa county had to assume 44% of old Woods County's indebtedness. This indebtedness amounted to $38,200; Alfalfa county's share would therefore be $17,067; Major county's would be $9,943.46; and New Woods county's $11,188.78. Alfalfa county was to get the old Woods County High School at Helena. Major county was to receive the bridges across the Cimarron. New Woods coutny was to keep the court house at Alva.   |  View or Add Comments (0 Comments)   |   Receive updates ( subscribers)  |   Unsubscribe

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