Oklahoma Journeys
Week of November 3, 2007
This Week 100 Years Ago
In this week of November 1907, statehood was just days away. The new incoming county commissioners met in Oklahoma City to buy office supplies. Territorial Governor Frank Franz announced that he would run for a seat in Congress in the next elections, and Governor-elect Charles Haskell denied that he favored moving the Capitol from Guthrie to Shawnee. Those were the stories making headlines in the territory 100 years ago this week on Oklahoma Journeys from the Oklahoma Historical Society.
From the Oklahoma Historical Society, this is Oklahoma Journeys: Celebrating Our Centennial. I’m Michael Dean.
One hundred years ago this week, the two territories were on the brink of being united and becoming the 46th state. A lot was happening as the territorial government entered its twilight time. Newly elected county commissioners from 60 of the 75 counties met at the territorial capitol in Guthrie with the topic of buying supplies on their minds. Following that meeting, they adjourned to Oklahoma City where they met with various suppliers interested in selling office equipment to the county commissioners. Now this was not being done without some oversight. Governor-elect Haskell, State Auditor Martin Trapp, and State Examiner Charles Taylor were invited to meet with those purchasing agents. The Oklahoman weighed in on that meeting, editorializing that they were encouraged that the county commissioners were starting off on a cash basis, and that they were buying supplies at home so far as was possible. The editorial added “the cash basis policy is undoubtedly the proper one for the new counties to adopt.”
On the political front, Territorial Governor Frank Franz, who ran for governor of the new state as a Republican and lost to Charles N. Haskell, returned from a Washington meeting with President Roosevelt with word that he would run for the District 1 congressional seat held by Bird S. McGuire of Pawnee. McGuire was the only Republican elected to Congress in the first elections that had been held in September 1907. Roosevelt also told John Abernathy of Guthrie and “Grosvenor Porter of Ardmore” to fire all the Democrats in their employ as Deputy U.S. Marshals.
U.S. Senator-elect Thomas P. Gore took exception to newspaper articles misquoting him when he spoke before the Farmers National Congress that met in Oklahoma City in October 1907. Gore said I hardly know whether to be more amused or amazed at the current report in certain papers said I never have formed the habit of correcting newspaper misrepresentations, and I shall not form that habit now.” He said he just wanted to correct the record.
In this week a hundred years ago, Governor-elect Haskell denied that he was considering moving the capitol from Guthrie to Shawnee. He said “no thought has ever been given to the subject of removal of the capitol so far as I know,” and added “the arrangements under consideration for quarters for the legislative, judicial, and executive departments of the State in Guthrie are very satisfactory, providing the rent is not too high.”
Those were some of the stories making news in the two territories in this week of November 1907, just two weeks before Oklahoma became the 46th state. You can learn more about these events and events leading to statehood by visiting The Territorial Museum and The Territorial Capital Publishing Museum, both in Guthrie, and make plans now to attend the Centennial of Statehood on Friday, November 16, in Guthrie. Oklahoma Journeys: Celebration Our Centennial is a production of the Oklahoma Historical Society, dedicated to collecting, preserving, and sharing our state’s past. From the Oklahoma Historical Society, I’m Michael Dean.