University of Oklahoma Libraries
Western History Collections
Transportation
Manuscript Collections
RAILROADS
Bell, Earl L.
Papers 1869-1966
.33 foot
Collector. Receipts (1869-1909) for business transactions between Thomas
J. Stephenson and merchants of Vicksburg, Mississippi; contracts (1881) with
the Northern Pacific Railroad Company for the sale of land in Washington and
Idaho territories; and letters (1876-1930) to the railroad from homesteaders
regarding their purchases of land from the railroad.
View the Earl L. Bell Collection Inventory
Boudinot, W. P. (d. 1898)
Printed materials 1870-1899
.25 foot
Editor. Typescripts of articles (1870-1899), by or about W. P. Boudinot,
from various Cherokee Indian newspapers and relating to the Indian policy of
the federal government, the Cherokee Orphan Asylum, land transfers, and
railroads in Indian Territory.
View the W. P. Boudinot Collection Inventory
Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad Collection
Records 1853-1984
487 feet
Railroad company. Corporate records arranged in the five functional
sub-groups of executive files; legal files; engineering records; property
accounting; and real estate and industrial development records. Record series
of the executive sub-group include minutes (1905-1915, 1947-1975); annual
reports (1884-1908, 1915-1932, 1941, 1948-1975); subject files (1900-1984);
Executive Committee minutes (1953-1955, 1971-1974); monthly letters to the
Board of Directors (1921-1972); correspondence (1913-1976); corporate files of
associated railroads (1910-1975); liquidation files (1968-1984); and stock
ledgers (1853-1864, 1906-1933). In the legal sub-group are subject files (ca.
1925-1979); correspondence (1969-1976); contracts (1900-1910, 1930, 1950-1960);
merger files-Union Pacific (1963-1975); merger files-other railroads
(1920-1980); litigation files (1930-1980); legislation files-state level
(1908-1920); and liquidation files (1975-1984). The engineering sub-group
consists of projects files (1890-1975); graphics, including maps, tables, station
blueprints, track layouts, bridges, engines and cars, total-system diagrams,
and statistical charts (ca. 1890-1980); structural notes (1916-1917); and
capital expenditures (1940-1941, 1947, 1966-1968). In the property accounting
sub-group are grand summaries (1942-1972); valuations (1915-1981); money
control files (1903-1904, 1935-1942); original cost data files (1934-1941);
general balance sheet statements (1959-1964); and revenues and expenditures
files (1902-1903, 1928-1944). The real estate and industrial development
sub-group includes real estate sales files (1937-1974); abstracts of title
(1859-1902, 1911-1931); industrial area files (1956-1977); lease records
(1902-1925); quit claim deeds and tax records (1890-1907); land contracts
(1941-1943); and station master files (1979).
Des Champs, John Lefeber
Papers 1905-1994
1 foot
Amateur historian. Typewritten and handwritten copies of manuscripts
(n.d.) entitled The Short Line Midland Valley: A Class I Railroad; Midland
Valley; Muskogee and the Midland Valley; The Railroads of Osage County; and
John William DesChamps and John Lefeber DesChamps, all by John Lefeber Des
Champs, along with a reminiscence entitled Midland Valley Railroad Company, A.
W. Lefeber's Kind Remembrances of 51 Years (1903-1954) of Association with Mr.
Charles Edward Ingersoll and Family. The collection also includes research
materials such as correspondence, notebooks, notecards, a photograph log, and
published materials relating to railroads in general and specifically to the Midland
Valley Railroad Company, the Kansas, Oklahoma, and Gulf Railway Company, and
the Oklahoma City, Ada, and Atoka Railway Company.
View the John Lefeber Des Champs Collection Inventory
Feuquay, Courtland Matson (1890-1949)
Papers 1885-1948
7 feet
Attorney and state senator. General correspondence (1915-1940) of
Feuquay; his personal correspondence (1923-1925) as a state senator; Works
Progress Administration work relief lists (1934-1935); case records (1917-1948)
of railroad litigation in which Feuquay served as counsel; Selective Service
directives (1941-1946); American Legion-related papers (1919-1924), including
"40 et 8" materials; a diary (1885) of Feuquay's grandfather, W. B.
Holland; and an account book (1905-1908) of Feuquay's father, J. W. Feuquay.
View the Courtland Matson Feuquay Collection Inventory
Fink, John Berlin (1886-1960)
Papers 1834-1957
6 feet
Collector. Correspondence (1933-1955); books (1833-1959) about railroads;
printed material (1935-1960) also about railroads and including travel brochures
and timetables; maps (1834-1883, ca. 1955), relating to early military posts in
Oklahoma Territory and surrounding states; and notebooks (1934) kept by Fink.
View the John Berlin Fink Collection Inventory
Fisk, Charles W. (ca. 1860-1939)
Papers 1902-1939
.10 foot
Physician. Official transactions (1906) of the joint session of the
Oklahoma state and Indian Territory medical associations; official publications
(1906-1935) of the Oklahoma State Medical Association; correspondence
(1926-1939) regarding Fisk's appointment as consulting surgeon to the Chicago,
Rock Island, and Pacific Railroad, and certificates of election (1902-1908) to
the position of city councilman in Kingfisher, Oklahoma Territory, and Oklahoma.
View the Charles W. Fisk Collection Inventory
Fort Smith, Subiaco, and Eastern Railway Company Collection
Records 1908-1916
.25 foot
Railroad company. A ledger (1908-1916) in which the finances of the Fort
Smith, Subiaco, and Eastern Railway Company were recorded. The records show
profits, losses, and business relations with other area railroads, including
the Arkansas Central Railroad.
View the Fort Smith, Subiaco, and Eastern Railway Company
Collection Inventory
Gallaher, William M. (1877-1955)
Papers 1925-1954
1.66 feet
Physician. Correspondence (1925-1950); manuscripts (n.d.) on medical
topics; and account ledgers and daybooks (1925-1950) from Gallaher's general
practice in Shawnee, Oklahoma, along with publications (1950-1954) concerning
Oklahoma medical laws and the health and pension plans of the Chicago, Rock
Island, and Pacific Railroad.
View the William M. Gallaher Collection Inventory
Garrity, Richard M.
Printed materials 1986
4.33 feet
Collector. Newsletters of the Model Railroad Interest Group (1960-1985)
for which Garrity served as editor, plus his notes and typescripts for the same.
Also included are correspondence (1950-1988); published and unpublished
articles by Garrity, and others, regarding railroad development around Ripley,
Oklahoma, and Eureka Springs, Arkansas; Oklahoma natural history; Oklahoma
local history; and solar energy. The collection also contains numerous sound
recordings on cassette tapes.
View the Richard M. Garrity Collection Inventory
Hargrett, Lester (1902-1962)
Papers 1951
.50 foot
Writer and bibliographer. The manuscript, galley sheets, and page prints
(1951) of Oklahoma Imprints; photocopies of manuscripts (1836, 1881) relating
to the extension of the western boundary of Arkansas and the granting of
rights-of-way to the Chicago, Texas, and Mexican Central Railway Company and to
the St. Louis and San Francisco Railway Company.
Kuyrkendall, Louis C. (d. 1956)
Records 1853-1955
12 feet
Physician. General correspondence (1906-1955); examination reports
(1924-1944) of injured Missouri, Kansas, and Texas Railroad Company employees;
examination reports (1943-1950) prepared for the Oklahoma Department of Public
Welfare; correspondence (1929-1950) regarding workers compensation cases;
examination reports (1940-1949) for the Civil Aeronautics Administration; and
daybooks and account ledgers (1920-1948) from Kuyrkendall's medical practice in
McAlester, Oklahoma. Also included in the collection are reprints of articles
authored by Kuyrkendall and a prescription book (1853) belonging to Kuyrkendall's
grandfather.
View the Louis C. Kuyrkendall Collection Inventory
Ledbetter, Eugene P.
Papers 1892-1952
2.33 feet
Attorney. Case files (1892-1952) of Ledbetter, an Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, attorney, concerning oil, gas, and railroad leases and stock; the
payment of Oklahoma supreme court justices salaries (1933-1935); and the
payment of a reward offered for the arrest of George "Machine Gun"
Kelly (1934).
View the Eugene P. Ledbetter Collection Inventory
McCurtain, Edmond (1842-1890)
Printed materials 1875-1901
.10 foot
Indian chief. Typescripts of McCurtain's annual messages (1884-1886) to
the Choctaw Nation general council; letters (1875-1877) by McCurtain to
newspapers regarding various issues, including railroad right-of-way and
citizenship disputes, and an obituary (1890) of McCurtain.
View the Edmond McCurtain Collection Inventory
Oklahoma Transportation Company Collection
Records 1902-1972
13 feet
Railroad company. Financial reports (1908-1972); executive and operating
records (1902-1948), including annual reports, corporate by-laws, and minutes
of the meetings of the governing board; and employee records (1931-1949)
regarding the labor unions representing the Oklahoma Transportation Company
work force, and wages paid.
View the Oklahoma Transportation Company Collection Inventory
Rock Island Technical Society Collection
Records 1879-1987
160 feet
Historical society. Records of the Chicago, Rock Island, and Pacific
Railroad Company including dismantling files (1981-1987); contract and easement
listings (1981-1987); inventory records by sub-division (1980-1985); highway
crossings by state and county (1973-1987); tract estimates (1972-1985); review
committee reports of land sales by city (1981-1984); motor vehicle reports
(1972-1987); purchasing and sales files (1971-1986); engineering files
(1930-1986); law department files (1906-1984); VPO contracts (1879-1984); tax
and stock reports to states (1910-1984); card files containing information on
locations of gas, water, and sewer pipe lines (1914-1984); daily reports
concerning the thirty-five day strike by the clerks' union (1979); inspection
trip reports concerning the southern division of the railroad (1969-1976);
files concerning railroad operations at El Reno, Oklahoma (1977-1979); and
company general orders-southern division (1972-1977).
Rogers-Neill Collection
Papers 1871-1943
1 foot
Collectors. Business correspondence and papers (1871-1935) of Fritz
Sittell relating to the Choctaw Coal and Railway Company, the Choctaw Trading
Company, Sittell's other business interests, and the development of the town of
McAlester, Oklahoma; personal correspondence (1871-1943) including letters from
Tams Bixby, Peter Pitchlynn, the Pitchlynn family, Green McCurtain, Robert L.
Owen, Moritz Lippman, and others; and certificates (1890-1900) of Sittell's
appointment as U.S. marshall and special deputy sheriff of Tobucksy County,
Choctaw Nation, along with clippings, business cards, a sketch of house floor
plans, government documents, and biographical materials relating to Sittell's
family.
View the Rogers-Neill Collection Inventory
Seay, Edgar W., Jr.
Papers 1915-1950
2 feet
Collector. Nineteen engineering drawings, primarily by the Chicago, Rock
Island, and Pacific Railroad Company, showing rights-of-way for areas in
Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Texas.
Stevens, Robert S.
Papers 1870-1875
.25 foot
Railroad manager. Typescripts of letters to and from Robert S. Stevens
regarding Stevens's management of the Missouri, Kansas, and Texas Railroad of
which he was general manager. Included in the collection is a letter to Stevens
from President U. S. Grant regarding a trip Grant made from St. Louis,
Missouri, to Springfield, Missouri, and Indian Territory. The Western History
Collections also holds a more complete set of the Stevens papers on microfilm.
The original Stevens Family Papers are in the Division of Rare Books and
Manuscripts, Cornell University Library, Ithaca, New York.
Treat, Guy Bradford (d. 1980)
Records 1903-1955
4 feet
Railroad official. Correspondence (1925-1947); reports (1906-1955);
minutes (1945); financial records (1918-1946); maps (1904-1955); and publications
(1909-1955) regarding the operations, financial status, and policies of railway
companies in central and southeastern Oklahoma. The companies included are the
Oklahoma Railway, the Oklahoma City Railway, the Metropolitan Railway, and the
El Reno Interurban and the Norman Interurban railroads. The collection also
contains correspondence (1947) regarding the liquidation of the Oklahoma City
streetcar system, and the development of the Diamond Dishwasher Company (1925).
Wheatley, Thomas W.
Papers 1905-1939
.50 foot
Coal mine operator. Correspondence (1928-1937); labor contracts
(1933-1939); wage notices (1917-1936); machine contracts (1921-1939);
advertising brochures (1926-1936); and orders (1937-1939) issued by the
National Bituminous Coal Commission of the U.S. Department of the Interior, all
in regard to the coal mining industry in southeastern Oklahoma. Included is
information regarding wages, mine safety and accidents, organized labor,
industry standards, coal production, mine railroads, and a 1930 mine explosion
in Pittsburg County, Oklahoma, in which thirty miners were killed. This
collection also contains survey reports (1905-1906) submitted to the Samples
Coal Mining Company regarding the potential coal wealth of the Choctaw Nation,
Indian Territory, which the Samples Company later mined.