Historical Marker Program

New Springplace

Delaware County
Location: at junction of OK-412A and US-412A, three miles north of Oaks
Coordinates: 36.205322, -94.851555
Material: Granite
Sponsor(s): Oklahoma Historical Society and the Oklahoma Department of Transportation
Topics: American Indians; Religion/Philosophy; Westward Expansion, 1803–1861

Established as a Cherokee mission in 1842 by the Moravian Church, the institution was an outgrowth of a similar mission in Georgia, which was begun in 1802. Closed during the Civil War, the mission reopened afterward and continued to operate until 1902, when it was transferred to the Danish Lutheran Church. Prominent Cherokee families such as Adair, Fields, Ridge, Vann, and Watie attended the mission.