Albert L. Anderson Interview #10231

My name is Albert L. ANDERSON. I was born December 1, 1882, in the Indian Territory, Pickins County, now called Grady County, fifty-six years ago.

When I first began to remember real well we lived on what was called the Old Trail Crossing on the Big Washita River a little northwest of what is now called Lucile. There was nothing there except our ranch house on the south and Charley CAMPBELL’s ranch house on the north side of the Washita River.

The man water supply came from dug wells and from the Washita River; there was very little farming as most of the country was open with no fences, and most of this open country was ranch land with many cattle and much blue stem grass.

I remember very distinctly when there wasn’t such a place as Chickasha, and the closest railroad was at Caldwell, Kansas. We got our supplies at Bowie, Texas, and Caldwell, Kansas.

There was plenty of wild game such as deer, turkey and prairie chickens: you did not have to hunt them, they would hunt you. I have seen turkey roosts where limbs of trees as large as a big man’s leg would be broken because of so many turkeys roosting on them. There were more wild turkeys then than there are tame turkeys now.

Camp Fred, about which there is so much talk, is about two and a half miles straight east of Chickasha, on the south side of the highway: the place was named after a man named Fred who lived in Anadarko. Camp Fred had a general merchandise store put up by Dave and Scott COOK and this place was used for a stage depot or a relay station.

The Swinging Ring Ranch was established by Tom GRANT and his ranch house was located on the first corner west of the Chickasha Hospital. I am satisfied that I could show some of the old markings.

Frank FRED, Mr. Fred’s boy, was killed here at this ranch house by George BEELER. They got into a row; I think over cattle but I would not be positive.

I have seen Chief Geronimo any number of times; one time that I saw him was in 1897, when the Government had him captured for killing some Negro soldiers. I never did see him with the coat made out of scalps but I have seen him with the scalp of a red headed woman which he had tied to a string and which he wore around his neck.

I am one-sixteenth Choctaw Indian: my allotment was 215 acres. I have drawn several payments from the Government, my largest one was $300.00 under Cleveland’s Administration, in 1893. I have been a cow-puncher all my life up until 1911 and since then I have farmed a little and worked at common labor.

Submitted by Sandi CARTER
MONCRIEF relative
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