While we know our northern friends may not feel it, in the South, Spring is
here. So we thought we'd share a few of our gardening sites appropriate
for this time of the year. Along with gardening, there's grilling, and getting
ready to diet so that you can fit back into that bathing suit this summer!
"Agriculture is the most healthful, most
useful and most noble employment of man."
George Washington.
The first meeting, conducted by the
Choctaw Freedmen, it was the privilege of
the author to attend was their annual
Farmers Institute, held in Forest
Presbyterian Church on Monday, Jan. 1, 1905.
Others had been held in other places during
previous years but this was the second
annual meeting in the Forest Church, and it
was called the county institute of Fort
Towson county. It was their own original
method of endeavoring to make a pleasant and
profitable observance of Emancipation Day.
On this the first historic occasion the
meeting was conducted by Johnson W. Shoals,
president, in a very dignified manner. An
interesting annual report was read by the
secretary, James G. Shoals, Fidelia
Murchison read an essay on gardening and
Elsie Shoals-Arnold, one on making and
marketing butter. The author indulged in a
short address and other addresses were
delivered by Simon Folsom, Lee V. Bibbs,
Charles Bashears and Mitchell Stewart. The
principal address however, was by Isaac
Johnson, one of their number living along
the north bank of Red river, who had learned
the teacher's and speaker's art in Texas.
He seemed to be at his best and discussed
good morals, agriculture and the destiny of
the Choctaw Freedmen, with so much native
wit and humor, we felt well repaid for the
long, wearisome journey to the place of
meeting.
The meeting consisted of one long session,
called a forenoon meeting, and at its close,
it fell to our lot to accept an unexpected
invitation to enjoy an old-time picnic
dinner, which was soon spread on the
backless benches in the Church. Isaac
Johnson was chosen as the new president and
he has continued to serve in that capacity.
The meeting the next year was held in this
same place and commencing Jan. 1, 1907, they
began to be held at Oak Hill Academy.
The meeting held at Oak
Hill on Jan. 1, 1907, had some features
worthy of special mention. It was the first
occasion, when the meeting included the
sessions of two days, or any effort was made
to have an exhibit of the products of the
garden and field. McCurtain county, though
not yet organized had been established, and
the officers took more pains than usual, to
invite the farmers in all parts of the new
county to participate in its discussions. It
was the first time, that an effort was made
to have a special lecturer from the
Agricultural College and the young people at
Oak Hill, trained to supply the needs of the
occasion with vocal and instrumental music.
It was very gratifying to note the increased
attendance and interest.
For this occasion, Miss Eaton prepared an
artistic design, with grains of corn of
different colors, for the center of the
decoration over the speaker's stand, that
attracted the attention and called forth the
admiration of all. It consisted of a large
tablet having a representation of a large
broadly branching oak tree on the summit of
a little hill, having a canopy of bright
stars over it and the words "Oak Hill" in
the form of an arch near its lower branches.
Over the tablet was the word "Welcome" and
over the ends of it "Happy New Year."
The entire program had been previously
arranged, so that all the addresses and
discussions might form a part of the course
of instruction, in agriculture and animal
husbandry to the students. All the
proceedings proved interesting and
instructive to them. In furnishing the vocal
and instrumental music, which formed a very
pleasing feature of each session, they were
enabled to participate in a way that was
very profitable to them, and entertaining to
others.
Among those who participated by addresses,
on topics previously assigned, were Isaac
Johnson, James G. Shoals, Rev. W. H. Carroll
of Garvin, Rev. R. E. Flickinger, Adelia
Eaton, Malinda A. Hall, Bertha L. Ahrens,
who also served as organist, Solomon
Buchanan, who also served as pianist, John
Richards of Lukfata, Noah Alverson of
Lehigh, whose lectures on raising corn and
cotton were worthy of special commendation,
Rev. Samuel Gladman of Parsons, Martha
Folsom of Grant, R. H. Butler of Bokchito
and Charles Bibbs.
Illness prevented the attendance of W. S.
English, director of the state college.
One of the resolutions adopted was as
follows:
"That we note with great pleasure the
manifest increase of interest in this
session of the Farmer's Institute, on the
part of the superintendent, teachers and
students of Oak Hill Academy and of the
people generally, there being a good local
attendance and a larger representation than
ever before of interested farmers and
speakers from other parts of the surrounding
country."
At this meeting it was decided the annual
membership fee shall be for men, twenty-five
cents; and for women, ten cents.
Second Oak Hill
Institute
The closing day of the second observance of
Emancipation day by a two-day Farmer's
institute at Oak Hill Academy occurred
January 1, 1908. Among the new speakers were
Rev. Wiley Homer of Grant, Rev. William
Butler of Eagletown and Jack A. Thomas.
Isaac Johnson and James G. Shoals served as
president and secretary and were again
re-elected. Prof. C. A. McNabb of Guthrie,
Secretary of the State Board of Agriculture,
promised two addresses, but failed to
arrive. The resolutions included a memorial
to congress for the establishment of postal
savings banks and a parcels post, both of
which were established a few years (1912)
later. They also included the following one
in regard to the Mexican boll-weevil that
during the previous four years had nearly
ruined the cotton crop.
"In order that we may do something
practical in the way of checking the ravages
of the boll-weevil, we encourage every one
raising cotton in this section, to plow up
and burn as early as possible each fall, all
the old cotton stalks, which principally
furnish their fall and spring food supply;
and as far as possible to avoid planting
cotton in the same ground two years in
succession."
The record of these two Farmer's institutes
at Oak Hill Academy, and of three preceding
ones at Forest Church, by the Choctaw
Freedmen during the period of the
Territorial government, is of historic
interest, since these annual institutes
preceded any similar meetings, by the other
folks, in that section of the country. This
observation is true also of the three summer
normals held at the Academy, during the
months of October in 1905, 1906 and 1907;
and of the first Oak Hill Chautauqua, held
July 4, 1907.
Short Course In 1912
For 1912 the institute was held on the last
half day of a three day short course in
agriculture and animal husbandry conducted
by Prof. E. A. Porter and Mr. R. L. Scott,
expert farmers at Hugo; assisted by Prof. J.
W. Reynolds of Muskogee, the superintendent
and Rev. W. H. Carroll.
In 1913, when the first opportunity was
afforded ministers in California to attend a
short course in agriculture, lasting one
week, at the state university farm, it was
attended by five hundred pastors of
Churches, representing twenty denominations.
This fact, as an expression of the trend of
public sentiment, is noted with a good deal
of interest.
Isaac Johnson
Isaac Johnson, (B. 1859) organizer and
president of the Farmer's institute, 1905 to
1912, is a native of Hopkins County, Texas,
and in 1865 located near Clarksville. In
1876 he married Anna Wilson of the Choctaw
Nation, who died in 1880. He then went to
school in Texas and, receiving a certificate
in 1889, taught school there four years. In
1893, '94 and '95 he taught successively at
Forest, Lukfata and Eagletown, I. T. In 1894
he married Winnie Durant and again located
along Red river, south of Valliant, where he
is widely known as one of the leading
farmers and stock raisers.
The people of the community in which he
lives, under his leadership, on January 1,
1897, began to observe Emancipation Day by
holding a Farmer's institute, a kind of
social meeting, that afforded an opportunity
for a number of them to make short
addresses, on any topic of public or general
interest, and all to participate in the
enjoyment of a picnic dinner. He enjoys the
distinction of having served as president of
this organization a number of years before
any similar organization was effected in
McCurtain County.
Emancipation Day
The reasons for the general observance of
New Year's day as a legal holiday seem
eminently appropriate, for the attention of
the people is seldom directed to them. There
are several good reasons worthy to be
remembered.
It was on January 1, 1863, that President
Lincoln issued the memorable proclamation
that emancipated the slaves in all the
states, then at war against the general
government. The number of the persons
accorded freedom was about four millions.
This event, considered from the
standpoint of the number of people affected,
was even greater than the Declaration of
Independence, for the latter resulted in the
freedom of only a part of the people, and
their number was one million less than the
number set free in 1863. In 1790, when the
first census was taken, fourteen years after
the Declaration, the entire population was
not quite four millions and of that number
697,624 were left in a state of slavery.
That "all men are created free and equal,"
is a fundamental principle of the
Declaration, but, for more than four-score
years, it was regarded as true of only a
part of the people. It was not realized by
the other part of the people that was
gradually increasing from one to four
millions. For them there was but one law and
it was, "Servants obey your masters." This
was the only rule of conduct for the Negro.
Under it he became socially "a curiosity."
He had no laws or ceremonies regulating
marriage; and if such ties were formed, they
were liable to be broken at any time, by
their sale to other and different owners.
This rule did not regulate his moral,
economic or political life, for he was not
recognized as a person or citizen,
possessing these faculties and functions. It
did not prevent him from worshipping his
Creator, but this was done in an ignorant
way, that served more for entertainment and
amusement, than the development of morality
and piety.
After the lapse of a half century, he has
not yet been wholly emancipated from these
illiterate and low social conditions; but he
is approving and pursuing the better way, as
he learns from the Bible, "what man is to
believe concerning God and what duty God
requires of man."
The Emancipation proclamation thus affected
the destiny of more persons than the
Declaration of Independence, and it marks
the beginning of the era of universal
freedom; when all the people could unite in
saying, America is the "land of the free,"
as well as the "home of the brave." It also
effected national unity, by completely
removing the one great cause of previous
political dissension. It prepared the way
for America to be the home of a happy and
united people, knowing no north or south,
east or west. In these great facts of
national importance there are found good
reasons for the annual observance of
Emancipation day, as a legal holiday, as
well as the anniversary of the Declaration
of Independence.
This site
includes some historical materials that may imply negative stereotypes
reflecting the culture or language of a particular period or place. These
items are presented as part of the historical record and should not be
interpreted to mean that the WebMasters in any way endorse the stereotypes
implied .
Choctaw Freedmen and Oak Hill Industrial
Academy, 1914, Robert Elliott Flickinger
