Adair
Oklahoma
Add an Article
Add an Event
Edit
Adair Area Chamber Of Commerce
History
The Missouri, Kansas, and Texas Railroad established the town of Adair, Indian Territory, in the year of 1872 and named it in honor of Dr. Walter Thompson Adair, regimental surgeon in General Stan Watie's Confederate Indian Army.
President Jefferson Davis promoted colonel Stan Watie to the rank of brigadier general on May 10, 1864, thus becoming the only Indian to serve as a general officer in the Confederacy. Historians seldom give proper credit to his brigade. His force was the last to surrender at Doaksville, capital of the Choctaw Nation, Indian Territory, on June 23, 1865.
W.E. McElree of the U.S. Dept. of the Interior made a survey of the town of Adair, September 10, 1902, and it was recorded in the County Clerk's office of Mayes County. Adair was incorporated in 1897. The first mayor was David S. Cumming, the second mayor J.F. Dunham. First city Marshall was Wm H. Goad, who was the marshal for many years.
The city jail house was a small building which contained the steel cage, which was escape proof, was equipped with two steel hanging cots, was capable of holding only two prisoners. I was more commonly referred to as the "cooler" and was not used too frequently. Powell Antiques of Adair are the present owners of the jail.
Artesian Well In 1910 the community of Adair contributed funds for drilling an artesian well. A location was secured at the corner of the Katy right-of-way on the north side of Main Street. A contract was let and as the drill stem approached 600 feet a roaring was heard and water came gushing forth. There was great excitement as if oil had been struck.
Casing was installed. A round cement tank for watering stock was built near the well and two public drinking fountains were installed. The well soon proved its worth as the year of 1911 was one of the driest on record. The water was said to possess medicinal qualities and was used daily by many. It was popular for the trainmen and while stopped for passengers and loading express, they would rush to the well for a drink and some would carry jugs to fill to take home. The steel casing eventually rusted away and the artesian well ceased to flow, though it lasted of many years.
Business District (south side) Brock Mercantile was the leading general store located on the corner a block west of the depot, now occupied by the Phillips Station and Arnold Hughes barber shop. P.L. Jones and Nola Adair Jones erected a sandstone building in 1903 and operated a general store. They sold the building to J.F. Dunham, who opened up a hardware store. building is now owned by Arizona Calvert. From this building west to the center of the block consisted of wooden frame buildings and some vacant lots. The early day merchants who used these buildings were Charley Collins and another was Clu Gulager, a relative of the Hollywood movie star, Clu Gulager. Board sidewalks furnished the walkway along these buildings. These buildings were poorly constructed.
The Missouri, Kansas, and Texas Railroad established the town of Adair, Indian Territory, in the year of 1872 and named it in honor of Dr. Walter Thompson Adair, regimental surgeon in General Stan Watie's Confederate Indian Army.
President Jefferson Davis promoted colonel Stan Watie to the rank of brigadier general on May 10, 1864, thus becoming the only Indian to serve as a general officer in the Confederacy. Historians seldom give proper credit to his brigade. His force was the last to surrender at Doaksville, capital of the Choctaw Nation, Indian Territory, on June 23, 1865.
W.E. McElree of the U.S. Dept. of the Interior made a survey of the town of Adair, September 10, 1902, and it was recorded in the County Clerk's office of Mayes County. Adair was incorporated in 1897. The first mayor was David S. Cumming, the second mayor J.F. Dunham. First city Marshall was Wm H. Goad, who was the marshal for many years.
The city jail house was a small building which contained the steel cage, which was escape proof, was equipped with two steel hanging cots, was capable of holding only two prisoners. I was more commonly referred to as the "cooler" and was not used too frequently. Powell Antiques of Adair are the present owners of the jail.
Artesian Well In 1910 the community of Adair contributed funds for drilling an artesian well. A location was secured at the corner of the Katy right-of-way on the north side of Main Street. A contract was let and as the drill stem approached 600 feet a roaring was heard and water came gushing forth. There was great excitement as if oil had been struck.
Casing was installed. A round cement tank for watering stock was built near the well and two public drinking fountains were installed. The well soon proved its worth as the year of 1911 was one of the driest on record. The water was said to possess medicinal qualities and was used daily by many. It was popular for the trainmen and while stopped for passengers and loading express, they would rush to the well for a drink and some would carry jugs to fill to take home. The steel casing eventually rusted away and the artesian well ceased to flow, though it lasted of many years.
Business District (south side) Brock Mercantile was the leading general store located on the corner a block west of the depot, now occupied by the Phillips Station and Arnold Hughes barber shop. P.L. Jones and Nola Adair Jones erected a sandstone building in 1903 and operated a general store. They sold the building to J.F. Dunham, who opened up a hardware store. building is now owned by Arizona Calvert. From this building west to the center of the block consisted of wooden frame buildings and some vacant lots. The early day merchants who used these buildings were Charley Collins and another was Clu Gulager, a relative of the Hollywood movie star, Clu Gulager. Board sidewalks furnished the walkway along these buildings. These buildings were poorly constructed.