Historical Marker Program

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Harrah

Oklahoma County
Location: on East Main Street at Museum
Sponsor(s): Harrah Historical Society
Topics: Urban Development; American Indians; Settlement Patterns; Territorial Period, 1861–1907; Transportation; Westward Expansion, 1803–1861

The present site of Harrah was first settled in 1876 by French-Potawatomi Indian, Louis Navarre. In 1892, E. W. Sweeney built a bridge at a strategic ford across the North Canadian River, increasing the settlement's prospects. The railroad's arrival in 1896 assured success. Entrepreneur, Frank Harrah, purchased eighty acres from Navarre of which a portion was used for development. A forty-acre tract was surveyed, platted, and officially entered as the town of Harrah on February 18, 1899. This marker stands within the original tract in the heart of the town's early business district.