Bryan Co., OK; Origins of Town Names of Bryan County - History --------------------------------- Submitted by the Bryan County Heritage Library Located in Calera, OK Written by Lynda Stout Massey 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. ------------------------------------------------------- SOME TOWN NAMES OF BRYAN COUNTY Holding the same name wasn't easy back in the good old days. For instance, Calera was established in the 1880's and was originally named Cale after George W. Cale, a railroad official. The first post office was called Cale and was established Nov. 30, 1889. On 1889 the name of the town was changed to Sterrett and remained with that name until Nov. 21, 1910 when the name was changed to Calera. The first post office in Achille was established on June 30, 1910 and was named Achilla. There are several opinions as to how Achille got it's name, one of them being that it was derived from the Cherokee word "Atsila" meaning "fire". The name arose from the fact that a group of Cherokees settled in the locality as refugees during the Civil War. On Aug. 5, 1910, however, the post office adopted the name of Achille, which the town still carries. The community of Pirtle still exists five miles east of Durant, although it hasn't had a post office since 1915, being served out of the Blue post office today. The town was first named Hunter at the turn of the century, later changed to Elliott, but in recent years has carried the name of Pirtle. When Yuba was created 12 miles southeast of Achille in 1898 residents sought to have it called Eagle Lake. However, the post office went along with Karma. A second post office had been established a mile south of Yuba and named Karma. When the post office was discontinued in 1950, it was shifted to Yuba, and the name of Yuba was adopted. The town of Yarnaby is located eight miles southeast of Achille. This town was named from the Choctaw word meaning "to go and kill". The town had a post office from 1883 until 1957. There was an oxbow lake along the Red River before the turn of the century and the combination of the lake and river resulted in the name Redlake for this community. Redlake had a post office established in 1895, but it lasted only a couple of years. Robbers Roost could have fit many small Bryan county communities in the early days when the James and Dalton boys ran wild in the southwest. Robbers Roost was located three miles north of Mead and had a post office for more than a decade. The post office was established in 1897 and ran through 1909. Back in 1894, a post office was established and the first post master, James Roberts, filed his own named for the new community. However, the post office department changed the last letter to an "a" and it came out Roberta, the name the community still has. Few people remember the community of Romia, 15 miles southeast of Durant. Yet from 1915 through 1934, the town had a post office and was the center of a thriving agriculture area. The town was named for Romia Lewis, a daughter of Ollie E. Lewis, first postmaster. The name of Alfred B. Gates, an early day resident, gave this community its name. Gates was known far and wide as "Silo". When a post office was established in 1893, the town folks sent in the nickname. The area is on the rebound thanks to consolidated school with Mead and Cobb. The town of Cartwright was established about 1939, and was named after a former U. S. Congressman, Wilburn Cartwright, who was an ardent dry and was head of dry forces for years in Oklahoma. Post office was established Apr. 25, 1940. The rural school of Mount Allison, seven miles south of Durant, gave the community of Allison its name. It still is in existence, although it lost its post office Dec. 15, 1921 after 20 years. The tiny Bryan County town of Blue has had a post office since July 1, 1874. It was named for the Blue River, although it is not right on the river as is Armstrong. It is located on U.S. 70, nine miles east of Durant. Bokchito was founded in the late 1890's and had its post office on Aug. 11, 1894. The town was named for the Choctaw word meaning "Bigg Creek". It is fourteen miles east of Durant. The town of Bennington got its name from Dr. Thomas H. Stark, a descendant of General John Stark. Gen. Stark was in command of the battle of Bennington, VT, and the Bryan County town 21 miles east of Durant was named for Bennington, VT. The Vermont town incidentally was named for Gov. Bennington Wentworth of New Hampshire. Tuklo, a town no longer in existence was located 12 miles east of Achille. It had a post office from May 14, 1892 to April 25, 1893. The name is the Choctaw word meaning "two". The town of Utica is located 11 miles southeast of Durant. Its name comes from Utica, New York. The post office was established Feb. 14, 1894. Adams, a town that was innundated by Lake Texoma, was located eight miles northwest of Colbert, in the western part of the county. It had a post office from Aug. 2, 1901 to Aug. 10, 1910. The town was named for Nelson F. Adams, an early resident. The community of Mulberry had a school that prior to 1909 was know as Bethel. When a new building was known as Bethel. When a new building was erected, the name changed to Mulberry. A huge Mulberry tree had to be removed from the new building site, thus the name of Mulberry. The community of Jackson was located six miles southeast of Bennington. It had a post office and was named for President Andrew Jackson. Located eleven miles south of Bokchito is the community of Wade. It had a post office established in 1890 and was named for Alfred Wade, a prominent Choctaw. Robert H. Brown was the first postmaster of the community of Brown, located thirteen miles northwest of Durant. The town was named after him. The post office was opened in 1913 and closed in 1927. The community of Cade was named for Cassius M. Cade, who was a territoral Political leader. It had a post office from 1903 to 1915. Most of this information was taken from the Denison Herald Newspaper. Minor Mead was a Chickasaw allottee, but he was the person for whom the town of Mead was named. It had its first post office in 1894 and at one time was a growing, prosperous town. But the coming of the highway wiped out its business district and the town became a bedroom community for adjoining larger towns. It still has its post office. The community of Banty, five miles north of Bennington, had a post office from 1901 until 1949. The Bryan county community of Alleppo probably had the shortest life of any Bryan County town. It was created Feb. 6, 1902 and went out of existence Sept. 30, 1903. It was located six miles north of Durant. The distance from Albany, N.Y. and Alabany, Okla. Is considerable, yet the Bryan County town that was established in 1894 was named for the New York city. The southeastern Bryan County prairie town of Poucaunla got its name from the Chickasaw word "Pankanli" meaning blossom. This was the name of a woman prominent in Chickasaw history. Located six miles east of Colbert, it had a post office from Sept. 23, 1897 until July 15, 1910. That's when the railroad by-passed Paucaunla and the town of Achille was born. Few Bryan County people recall the community of Barwick, that was located five miles southwest of Durant. It had a post office from 1904 until 1911. When it lost its post office, it eventually dried up and today is no longer in existence. Indians gave many Bryan County towns names. Kemp was no exception. It was named for Jackson C. Kemp, a prominent Choctaw. Kemp, 15 miles south of Durant, had its first post office in 1890. Hendrix, a small Bryan County town, 15 miles southeast of Durant, was named for James A. Hendrix, the town's first postmaster. Hendrix pushed his first stamp across the counter on June 13, 1909. There are several versions of how the town of Matoy got its name, one of them being that it was named after an early day school teacher named Mary Matoy. It is located 10 miles north of Bennington and had a post office from 1901 until 1921. Burse is another Bryan County community that had a post office for a decade from 1902 until 1912. It is located in the extreme northeast part of the county, actually only seven miles northwest of Boswell. In 1808 history records a fierce Indian battle being fought in the near by Caddo hills. And it was from those hills that this Bryan County town got its name. It is also said that Caddo is a contraction of Kadohadacho (ka do hada' cho) means Real Chief. Caddo has had a post office since it was established on Dec. 19, 1872. The town of Platter was named for a prominent businessman from across the Red River at Denison, A.F. Platter. The town at one time was one of the county's more thriving areas, but today has only tow stores, although it still retains its post office that it has had since 1901. The town was formerly known as Finch with a post office that was established June 16, 1889. Named for Ode Finch, a Chickasaw. ----------------------------------------------------- Written by Lynda Stout Massey