William D. Welge - Oklahoma City Rediscovered

Oklahoma City quite literally was created in one day. On Monday at high noon April 22, 1889, with the roar of cannon and pistol fire, home seekers from all over the United States and beyond made a mad dash to stake a claim in the hard packed virgin prairie soil that would become home. They made the Run of 1889 by foot, speedy horse, by buggy or bicycle, if you can imagine, and by railroad, all for the chance for a new life in what would one day become Oklahoma.

Oklahoma City is located on what is known as the Osage Plains, which is an extension of the central lowlands region of the United States. The topography of the area can be described as level, fertile land with sufficient rainfall to aid in crop production, and at an elevation of 1,214 feet above sea level it was considered by the Santa Fe railroad as suitable for town site development.

Almost in the center of the unassigned lands was a rail stop known as Oklahoma Station. There the Santa Fe railroad had built a station along with water tank and a few outbuildings in 1887. Within minutes after the signal had created this surge of humanity, workers from the Santa Fe, most notably William L. Couch, stepped off the station platform and staked a claim, a claim that would be contested for several years.

By nightfall, some 5,000 to 7,000 persons occupied land near the Santa Fe depot. A tent city stretching as far as the eye could see. Within days of the opening, wooden structures were replacing canvas and all manner of business enterprise began to take root as well as houses of worship. Another aspect of the new town was the lack of authorization to organize a municipal government. These enterprising pioneers did not let that hinder their efforts, so a provisional government was formed with Couch elected as the first mayor.

Within its first year as a town, brick structures were appearing. The rival city of Guthrie, the territorial capital, was losing citizens to the more progressive Oklahoma City, and according to the Daily Times-Journal published in Oklahoma City, brick frontage was double that of Guthrie. By 1894, Guthrie had a slight edge in population, but Oklahoma City had far more business structures and material wealth. By the mid-1890s, Oklahoma City was becoming a metropolitan wholesale and manufacturing center. With the addition of the Choctaw, Oklahoma and Gulf Railroad (later the Rock Island) in 1895, the city now had an eastwest route to the Santa Fes northsouth system. Although initially the additional railway caused a recession, certain city leaders pushed forward to the point that within a decade the city would have six railroads bisecting the community, making it the distribution center of Oklahoma Territory.

Two sectors of the growing city would trace their roots to the end of the 19th century, first the manufacturing district (later to be dubbed Bricktown) and second the suburb of Capitol Hill would be founded a mile south of the main business district of Oklahoma City.

Deep Deuce would come of age with the rise of blues and jazz music during the 1920s, developing a central business district east of downtown for the growing African American population of Oklahoma City.

With the advent of the horseless carriage a new mode of transportation was created. By 1910, several commercial automobile dealers set up business along Broadway, north of Fifth Street. Broadway, with a 100-foot right-of-way, was platted as the widest northsouth street in the original 1889 town site plat.

Each of these sectors of the vibrant community has had a unique development and positive contribution to the history of Oklahoma City.