The 14 Flags Museum in Sallisaw (population 8,510), Oklahoma, received its name from the 14 flags that have flown over the region under different governments, nations, and cultures that have claimed or influenced Oklahoma over the centuries, including Spain, France, Great Britain, Mexico, Republic of Texas, Confederate Sates, Choctaw Nation, United States, and other Oklahoma Territory and statehood eras. Located around the museum grounds are various historic structures.
Judge Franklin Faulkner, a "White Man," came to Indian Territory in the 1830's as a teamster over the "Trail of Tears" and married a Cherokee woman, which gave him rights as a Cherokee citizen. He became a leader of the Cherokee Indians and served as a Judge for the Cherokee Nation. Faulkner's cabin was built at some unknown time before the Civil War and now serves as the visitor center.
Sallisaw became a major railroad junction in Indian Territory in the 1880s when the Kansas & Arkansas Valley Railway and the Kansas City Southern Railway passed through the area. The Sallisaw train depot has exhibits on passenger travel, mile delivery, livestock shipments, cotton and lumber transportation, and supplies for local merchants. Although the station is located next to an active railroad track, passenger train service has not been available for years.
The old General Store was extremely important because it served as a grocery store, post office, hardware store, and supply center for farmers and ranchers. Supplies typically sold at the store included flour, coffee, sugar, canned goods, tools, nails, fabric, sewing supplies, kerosene lamp, fuel, tobacco, medicines, and farm supplies.
The Lattimore Cabin was built around 1835 by Cherokee settler Samuel Lattimore and is considered to be one of the oldest surviving log structures in Oklahoma. Located in the walls of the cabin are defensive gun ports where rifles could be fired from in the event of an Indian attack.
Stilwell (population 3,700) has an important connection to the Cherokee "Trail of Tears," which was the forced removal of the Cherokee people from their southeastern homelands to Indian Territory in 1838-9. The "Trail of Tears" was not a single road, but a network of routes stretching more than 5,000 miles across several states. Some Cherokee groups traveled overland, while others traveled partly by riverboat.
More than 15,000 Cherokee were relocated to "Indian Territory," and approximately 2,000 died during their journey. Another 4,000 died as a direct result of their forced migration. The Stilwell Kansas City Southern (KCS) depot was at the end of the line, so this was where many Indians arrived in the area.
Stilwell's depot served both passenger and freight operations for decades, especially agricultural products like strawberries, peaches, timber, and poultry. The famous KCS passenger train, the Southern Belle, stopped in Stilwell until passenger operations ended in 1969. Today, the depot is used by the Adair County Historical and Genealogical Association and the Stilwell Chamber of Commerce. The restored depot contains railroad artifacts, photographs, genealogical records, and exhibits about Cherokee history.
The Eagle Theater in downtown Stilwell is a historic landmark on Division Street and is one of the town's best-known commercial buildings. It was originally an opera house, but in the 1920s it was converted into the Eagle Theater to show movies. The theater closed in 2010 and was remodeled in 2017, but never reopened for movies afterward. It is currently closed, but sometimes used for community purposes or special events.
Also downtown is Fletcher Park, which was built on an empty lot to cover the unattractive space after a building burned down. The park's main feature is the brick memorial walkway, where families have purchased engraved bricks to honor people.
Located in Tahlequah (population 16,20) is the Cherokee National Prison Museum, formerly known as the Cherokee National Jail or Cherokee National Penitentiary. It was built in 1874 as part of a governmental complex for the Cherokee Nation and was the only penitentiary in Indian Territory until the early 1900s.
Today, the prison has been converted into a museum, allowing visitors to see the reconstructed jail cells and learn about the harsh punishments prisoners faced. On-site displays also explain the work of law enforcement and how prisoners had to work in various trades while incarcerated. Stories about the most famous prisoners were posted around the museum and in the courtyard by the gallows where frontier justice was carried out. An accurate account of how many men were hanged at the prison is not known, but it is believed to have been about 45.
The Cherokee National History Museum is located just down the street in the historic Cherokee National Capitol building, which was built in 1869 as the seat of Cherokee government before Oklahoma statehood.
Exhibits in the museum trace the Cherokee history from ancient origins, "The Trail of Tears," rebuilding the Indian Territory, and the Cherokee Nation today. To tell the Cherokee story, the museum contains interactive technology, artwork, photographs, and cultural artifacts presented in a variety of formats.
Jay (population 2,425), where almost 40% of the residents are Native Americans, is home to numerous Cherokee tribal offices and health clinics. It is located in Delaware County and was specifically designed to be the county seat.
When Oklahoma became a state in 1907, the county seat was in Grove, at the far northern edge of the county, and was hard to reach, so it was decided to build a new town in the center of the county. "Jay" Washbourne, a Cherokee landowner and nephew of Cherokee leader Stand Watie, donated land for the town and when the town organizers applied for a post office, they submitted three possible town names - Center, Jay, and Washbourne. The postal officials chose "Jay," mainly because it was short and simple.
The town of Jay was designed around a planned courthouse square, and a wooden courthouse was constructed quickly. But, in 1913, the courthouse burned, destroying most of the county records. A new stone courthouse was built as a replacement and is still in use today.
The city is also known as the Huckleberry Capital of the World and hosts an annual Huckleberry Festival on the July 4th weekend, featuring parades, arts & crafts, carnival rides, live entertainment, and children's turtle races.
Salina (population 1,085) has a rich recorded history dating back to 1541, when Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto and his expedition passed through the area, followed in 1721 by Bernard de la Harpe's expedition. In 1796, Jean-Pierre Chouteau, a French trader, established the first trading post at the junction of the Neosho River and Saline Creek, and it is credited as the first permanent "white" settlement in present-day Oklahoma. The United States took possession of the land with the Louisiana Purchase in 1803.
By 1817, keelboats were delivering goods at Salina, which at that time was part of "Indian Territory." About a mile south of Chouteau's trading post, the Indians were boiling water from limestone rock to get salt, and there were hot springs and geysers in the area that shot boiling water 8 to 10 feet into the air. Colonel A.P. Chouteau, Jean-Pierre's eldest son, eventually obtained title to the springs and then sold them to Sam Houston. Salt made at the site was later named "Grand Saline." By 1839, there were 115 operating salt kettles, but ownership of the salt works was lost to the Indians under a new law that designated them as Cherokee Property. During the Civil War, Union troops captured the salt works, took everything of value, and destroyed the rest. The salt works were never rebuilt.
After leaving Salina, I completed my Route 66 loop and headed for home, realizing I'd run out of time before I ran out of places to visit on my bucket list. On my next trip, I'll allow myself more time.
