. 9155
'. Form A-(S-149) BIOGRAPHY K)RM ' '' "' \ A~c, WORKS PROGRESS Am t INIS'IRATiON. ' ' ** A Indian-Pioneer History Project for Oklahoma ROBERTS, FRANK INTERVIEW 9X65 Field Worker's name This report made on (date) Augusta B* Ouster NoYember 10, 193 7, 1. 2. 3. \ 5. Name Fraak ItoberW \ Post Office Address Oeary. Oiiah,oEia Rejidence address (or location) y«9 inj&eo DATS OF BIRTH: Month February Place of birth Hi&oia > * south and one mile east Day 1 Year 1564. 6. Name of Father ' R^Ohard Roberts * Other information about father Faimor 7, Na^ne of iviotherttary JaBB-lRoberts 1 ' * Other information about mother! Place Place of birthkentuoky of birthluinoii # [Notes or complete narrative by the field worker dealin^^with the life and [story of the person interviewed. Refer to kanual for suggested Subjects?d questions. Continue on blank sheets if necessary and attach fimly to this form. Number of sheets attached
" '" ' i ' < i $ IDBER3S, FRfiHK INTSR7IEW 91S5 %. > ' 4 7 3 Augusts. H* 'Coster,, Kbt«nber \% 1937», ' interview with Two miles south and Frank Roberts made tae_r*ai when the Cheyenne and Arapaho country opsssd^ dot. a claim and proved «p 9 Has lived here ever sinoe* He took one trip to the Rio Grand Valley and on into Old Mexico* He also went to Illinois one trip but with exception of theae two trips he has been right hers tax the faim for forty-five years. He has been quite a successful farmer, and they are quite comfortable in their aii-room frame house, good barn for the cow as they do not keep a team at this time. This is his story j t left Brorai County, Kansas, on the train going to Okardie f Tt cost me $10*00 to get on down to SI Reno, where X stayed about a month* Then when it was tine for the opening X «ent «ith sons other men to where Bridgeport is tc$$r«we were accompanied by G«vernment men and were scattered, out in grcups along the border line«at the f is> of the pistol we all started and sons were is buggies, sou on steers, sane on horseback end soae en fost like
.474 myself. A. man. named I^yiMta,«3id I Bteyod togetlier* We * ' ' ' - *. walked and walked./ Finally we -foiind the two ' : -. ' : ; -. -. ' *. tbat TO latnpr pi»ved up oiu % linalsm^ip tii.o stones end placed a stake on the land Tfttb' our nemoo "on the atake. There were iitene, earner atones,, that told us tihere the Infliona al Dtme&t8 were* The Government also furnished us maps 6t the I thought that I wanted a claim vti'th timber cn 9 as X had lived in that section of Kansas where there wore no trees and timber looked good to me* I suppose that X could have had one of these "fanoa dam near the river $f I had gone on* ' \ We built a cs&pfis and stayed all night in the canyon just out there in the pasture* We stayed around here all the day to show anyone coming \>y thattiehad decided to locate on these two places* We were getting out of food and decided to 55 to Darlington. We just headed across the country is that direction. We got as far as Dutch Jeke f s dugout and here we got something to eat* X want to El Eeno and found that % «ould 80$ file at that time as tier* wars so masy contesting ej&a&oa and too
475 il HDBERIS, FBABK IKMNTIEW 9155 M ; ;, * 3 - ' ' ' '*' many ahead Df me*.1 went back to Kansas and loaded some farm implements # household goods, chickens* and. lumber to make a shack and brought these on an emigrant ear to Okarohe* There I loaded my lumber on the wagon and with my mules hitched to it went to the claim and built a small room*' 2$r neighbor Layman did this also* After the-survey of the section lines I found that I had placed my pne*room in the middle of the section line* With some help of neighbors I hitched a team of horses on to it and moved it over west on my own land* This was after my wife and baby had come do«m from Kansas m September* The next year we decided to dig a dugout and move the frams room again nearer the dugout and 30 we did* This same year we dug a well forty feet deep* It was only sheet water but was aoft. We had a rope asd bucket to draw the water from the well. Tha first year I broke fifteen acres of sod with a sod plow and nsy team of mules, planted kafflr corn and corn* I raised some f esd and conu
BDBEKIB, FitAKK TNTEKVIEW :,9165 * 4 - V -. wa first dome ana, located here there was only ne nouso between, h^e and Si Reno ond an Indian,. family l<ve< in that* Bill Cash was one of the early settlers and he went with me when I went to Okarehe to meet my wife* By the next Fall there were plenty of. settlers and their families* The Huffs were in the valley where Geary is today at the edge of town and the Glllroys* Sust on the east of this house where the County line Is now wag an eld fence that was a drift fence for the cattlemen* rode -long the trail by the fence* tal'l blue stem grass* This fence was. a landmark and many Along this fence was This was so- coarse that stock wo?-id cot eat it except in the spring when it was tender* The Indians were always setting out prairie fires\in the spring and we were afraid of these fires* 7 '" r, I plowed furrows around all of ray feed and around the bars lot and house* It did not take much of a strip of plowed ground to tuns a proine fire, One night we went to bed and the next morning we awoke &sd a fire ha'd burned
" '4:77- BOBERife, PBAiC '. IHTE^TIEW 9X65 t off all the grass \1ust to ther-eaet of the fenoe or trail sfcich rein ao near our house* - We had o^^t through ; "the night and 'never": smelled the smoke or been airakcncd by the light of the fire* Xt was rather a shock to see the black line of the prairie fire so near our house* I have gone out many a time in those early days and shot wild turkey* Thoy used to come to the field to eat kaffir corn* I have seen some vhite tail deer but never killed but one* I went hunting with a party of men one time and one man kept telling how he was going to kill the first dder he saw* We left him just outside/-he timber end walked slewsy through the blackjacks* After awhile W8 heard aooe deer going through the, treeti and thought th«y would probably appear about where he was located* Soon we heard him, calling, " Shoot hin t shoot the darned *hi&g*" Ho had thrown his gun down and was standing there calling for someone else to sheoi* You never can tell how the sight of a deer is going to eff,eot any of these new hunters* There was one bliszard here a few years after we
478-6 - * - f * *» ' caaie, the cattle drifted up from Oillroy's' place and found protection from the snow and wind in the little canyon just to the west of our house and some of them drifted down on Thunder»fl place* That is the Indian allotment MSQlning me^mi the south* 1,- in there three days before they were taken out by the o^ner* We did not haire a milch cot? for a year after we cemo here, then I bought a little blue and white br-f.ndle * longhorned co«# Ify wife would shake the cream in a fruit jar to churn when there was not much cream* The Government furnished seed to some of the fanners' if they would go to the county seat and make affidavit that they were unable to buy and not able to work* These seeds were wheat, cotton, corn, seed potatoes, mid garden seed* I never felt that I was entitled to any of these as I have always been able to work, We have seen the time when our supplies were short and there were many things which we call necessities that we got along without*