Historical Marker Program

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Fairfield Mission

Adair County
Location: at junction of OK-100 and US-59 on south edge of Stilwell
Coordinates: 35.800881, -94.625989
Material: Granite
Sponsor(s): Oklahoma Historical Society
Topics: American Indians; Education; Religion/Philosophy; Westward Expansion, 1803–1861

The mission building, completed in 1829 by Dr. Marcus Palmer, a missionary to the Cherokee, stood in a grove of large trees a few hundred feet east of the cemetery now known as McLemore Cemetery. Noted missionaries and teachers at the mission included Elizur Butler, Charles C. Torrey, Clarissa Palmer, Lucy Butler, and Esther Smith. A circulation library, possibly the state’s first, was established at the mission in 1832.

Note: This marker is missing.

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Fort Wayne

Adair County
Location: on US-59, two miles south of Grove
Coordinates: 36.105500, -94.574600
Material: Granite
Sponsor(s): Oklahoma Historical Society and the Oklahoma Department of Transportation
Topics: American Indians; Military; Westward Expansion, 1803–1861

Established in 1838 and known originally as Camp Illinois, Fort Wayne was originally located northeast of present Watts in Adair County on a hill overlooking the Illinois River. Considered a poor location due to many soldiers having died there, the fort was relocated to Beatie’s Prairie in present Delaware County in 1840. Fort Wayne was abandoned in 1842. At the onset of the Civil War, Stand Watie used the post to form his regiment of Cherokee Mounted Volunteers. Union forces defeated Confederate troops led by Col. Douglas H. Cooper in the Battle of Fort Wayne on October 22, 1862.

Note: Also see Fort Wayne marker in Delaware County.

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Starr Springs

Adair County
Location: at junction of OK-100 and US-59 on south edge of Stilwell
Coordinates: 35.800865, -94.625997
Material: Granite
Sponsor(s): Oklahoma Historical Society
Topics: American Indians; Environmental/Cultural Ecology; Settlement Patterns; Westward Expansion, 1803–1861

Starr Springs was the head of Sallisaw Creek, a source of water for Stilwell since 1910. The area was the site of the 1853 murder of Andrew Adair and his son, George W. Adair, because of their support for Cherokee removal. The spring was named for George Harlan Starr, a prominent Cherokee, who purchased the site in 1867. The marker is a tribute to D. M. “Mack” Starr, respected and knowledgeable Cherokee historian, who died in 1995.

Note: This marker is missing.