Bryan Co., OK; Town of Achille & Paucaunla - History --------------------------------- Submitted by the Bryan County Heritage Library Located in Calera, OK Written by Sally Bell Typed for the archives by Trudy Marlow --------------------------------- USGENWEB NOTICE: These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or presentation by any other organization or persons. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material, must obtain the written consent of the contributor, or the legal representative of the submitter, and contact the listed USGenWeb archivist with proof of this consent. Files may be printed or copied for personal use only. ---------------------------------------------------- ACHILLE My name is Sally Chloe Grinslade Bell. I grew up in Achille. I hope to share with you some of the history of the area that has been passed down by word of mouth and also of my study of Oklahoma history. First I have talked with several people who remember a bit about Paucaunla, Indian Territory located about one miles west and one mile north of Achille. There was a post office there from Sept. 23, 1897 to July 15, 1910. The name is from the Chickasaw word pak-on-li, meaning blossom. The name of a prominent Indian woman, according to Chickasaw history. There was also a general store, a gin, and a school where Linnie Ann McPherson (my grandmother) was a teacher. Some prominent families in Paucaunla and area were: Grimes, Perkins, Grinslade, Holland, Lemon, Hopkins, Mead, McGuire, Kemp, Smith, Potts, Murray, Melton, Bowles, Turnbulls, Bauldwins. After 1907 to 1910 businesses and families moved to Achille. Achille is located in Bryan County twelve miles south of Durant, the post office was established June 30, 1910. The name was first Achilla the name was derived from a Cherokee word meaning "fire" (that being Atsila) the circumstances, a group of Cherokees settled here in this area during the Civil War and that was their name for the area. After that on Aug. 5, 1910 the name was changed to Achille and is the same today. Of course Achille is located in Oklahoma. The word is a combination of two words taken from the Choctaw language "Okla" meaning people and "homa" meaning red. "Oklahoma" "Peoplered". For more than fifty years the state was known as Indian Territory and in 1889, half of the state was opened to settlers. In 1902 the Dawes Commission divided the land that belonged to the tribes into plots for each enrollee and deeded them their land. The Chickasaw removed to Indian Territory and made a treaty with the United States and the Choctaws to form their own Sovereignty. This took place at Washington City, June 22, A.D. 1855. They proceeded to write a constitution that was ordained and established on April 28, A.D. 1866 with-in the following limits to- wit: Beginning the North Bank of Red River at mouth of Island Bayou where it empties into Red River, about 26 miles on a straight line below the mouth of False Washito, thence running a north- westerly course along the main channel of said bayou to the junction of the three prongs of said bayou nearest the dividing ridge between Wishita and low Blue River as laid down on Capt. R. L. Hunter's map, thence northerly along the eastern prong of said Island Bayou to its source, thence due north to the Canadian River thence west along the main Canadian to the ninety-eight degree of west longitude, thence south to Red River and thence down the river to the beginning. The land was not a gift of the Federal Government or the Choctaws, but was paid for by the Chickasaws from money the government paid them for their home land that included several eastern states or parts there of. James Logan Colbert came to the United States in 1729 and at that time settled with the Chickasaws and remained with the tribe the rest of his life. He married three Chickasaw women and had many children. His sons, William, George, Levi (my great-great- great-grandfather), Samuel, Joseph and Pittman (James) were the principal spokesmen of the tribe for over a century. The elder Colbert with his rich lodging and his one hundred fifty negro slaves had great influence on the social and economic growth of the Chickasaw nation. The mixed blood family was responsible for the changes in the settlement patterns of the nation. Levi was the tribe spokesman who was instrumental in giving the Indian children formal education. The system was provided by the Georgia and South Carolina Synod, they established a mission in 1820 in McIntoshville now on the Natchez Trace. The school was named Monroe for President Monroe. The Chickasaw then went through the process of many changes and one was the removal to Indian Territory over the Trail of Tears. They had money to finance their trip and paid it to the government who in turn led them down the "Primrose" path, sold them rotten grain and food and many of them died on the trail they did not wish to travel. They arrived in Indian Territory around 1834 after the death of Levi. When they arrived in Indian Territory they bought the land that was later allotted to the members of the Dawes Commission, but at first they were under the laws that were made by the Choctaws. They objected to this for the reason they were out- numbered by the Choctaw 3 to 1. In 1840 the Chickasaws gave up their government and came under the laws of the Choctaws, they were granted the same rights and were represented by a Chief elected by voters of Chickasaws. In 1850 the Chickasaw were given 4 counties Panola (Bryan county) southeast, Wichita (southwest), Caddo (northwest) and Perry (northeast). In 1842 Superintendent of Indian Affairs for Western territory, William Armstrong that the Chickasaws and Choctaws were one people, spoke the same language, intermarried and had a common government, while all the time the Chickasaws were very unhappy and were making plans to "escape" the 1837 Unification Gov. Agreement. The Chickasaws wished to preserve the way of life that they had "east" of the Mississippi and did not want to lose their identity by taking on the ways of the Choctaws. The new Chickasaw Gov. arose in 1856 and wrote a new Chickasaw constitution for which I have enclosed a map of the Chickasaw Nation at that time. My great-great grandfather Jackson K. Kemp was elected Convention Chairman when the Chickasaws met in a mass convention at Good Springs, the emergent Tishomingo City on Pennington creek. After much discussion of Constitutional form Kemp recessed the meeting and a drafting committee went to work. On Aug. 30, the Convention reassembled at Tishomingo City and the Constitution was ratified. The Organic law defined the geographic boundary and the purpose to recognize and establish the "general great and essential principles of Liberty and Free Gov." All power is inherent in the people and all free Gov. are founded on their authority and instituted for their benefit. This constitution has been in effect since 1856 and can only be abolished by an Act of Congress. But with in the last four years the present Gov. of the Chickasaws put a new constitution to vote and did not tell the people that they had a constitution now that constitution was voted on and passed but some tribe members objected to that and filed a lawsuit to try and combine both to apply to the nation in 1983. Jackson Kemp has a daughter who is an enrollee on the Dawes Commission living in Achille at this time, she is Mrs. Ethel Kemp Roach. She is a great aunt. She has a daughter and a grandson and three great-grand children. The Chickasaw venture in constitution Gov. was a great success, but short lived with their involvement in the brutal and very destructive war between the states. The Confederacy wooded them because of the farmers where they could get food for the troops of grains, also horses and cattle for food. Jackson Kemp married Elizira Colbert granddaughter of Levi Colbert and they had two children. John Wilson Kemp and Sallie Kemp (my grandmother) Elzira Colbert came from Mississippi on the Trail of Tears to Indian Territory. She was married at that time to Levi Kemp who died some where along the march and did not know where he was buried. After she arrived here in Panola County she then married Jackson, cousin to Levi Kemp. Elizira and Levi had two boys, Wilson was killed rounding up cattle at the age of 17. The other son Wellington Martin who lived all his life in Achille. He passed away in 1938. The town site of Achille was Aunt Sue Kemp's allotment by the Dawes Act. The lots in the town of Achille are 150 by 25 ft. In the 30's the depot was still standing. The M.O.&G. was still in business and some of the things in Achille were the Post Office, Post Master was Alford Connelly. There was a grocery store that Mr. Qualls operated and May Grimes was the clerk. Later Raymond and Ethel Grimes took over and ran it until they moved to Durant. Another Grocery was operated by Hoyt and Pauline Holland also Hal and Maureene Cannon. The old Hotel became a boarding house. It is still standing owned by James Scoggins where he makes fishing lures for sale. Then in the 30's we had two doctors. Henry W. Klostermann (my grandfather) and in the mid 30's Dr. E.W. Bolinger moved her with his family from Yarnaby. The doctor and Mrs. Bolinger are with us today. I feel that they have contributed more to the welfare of our community than any other doctors. He is still very alert and is seeing patients daily. After Mr. Connelly left the post office his son, Eugene, became postmaster. He is now retired and Mrs. Marijo Taylor is the new postmistress. Things were very calm in Achille in the 30's. Everyone knew everyone else. We went to school and did all things they do now. We had Jr. and Sr. plays. We had basketball and a musical dept. then (not now) second to none. Mrs. W. A. (Alma) Lemon was responsible for that. We won all the events in comp. with other schools at that time. The school has improved each year and has many new buildings. We kept hearing rumors of war the end of the thirties and all the young men in our area joined the national guard. Most of the boys were in the 180 Inf. CE 45 the division. They also worked in the fields. Peanuts were harvested by shaking by hand and hay balers were stationary in the fields. Hay was hauled by wagon to the bailer, then the work day started at sun up and stopped at sunset. After work the boys walked to the Armory in Durant and did their drill and walked home in time to do the next days work. What did the girls do? Helped with the house work, in the garden and every afternoon had a bath sat on the front porch and did needle work, then at 4:00 o'clock P.M. everyone went to town to get the mail, including the dogs. Our dog could hear the "dinky" whistle about a mile north of town and would meet the train to greet my dad "home" from the "County seat". In 1941, the war was no longer a rumor and on Dec. 7th as everyone knows the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. Most of the "chaps" were home on leave in December and are called back to duty at once. I was walking around on that Sunday afternoon with Lois and Everma Payne, Billie Varner and Pauline Boyce. It was the most shocking, traumatic, saddest day I'd had, had at that time. The war years found us with ration stamps, sugar, coffee, "paper shoes". We had 2 coupons a year for shoes. Beef required coupons and my dad was a butcher and after rationing he refused to butcher again. The war changed everyone's life. The people in Achille all left, just about. Some to Army, Navy, and Marines, some to work in defense plants in Houston and Calif. The only things left in town were school, Post office, Harvey Rochell's barber shop, 2 service stations, and that's about it. The ladies still have the Home Demonstration Club. We still have three churches and things are picking up as far as the population and new homes go. There were many people who have been in Achille that I would like to mention but didn't have enough time. --------------------------------------------------- Written by Sally Bell