By Michael L. Hogue Welcome back to The New Hogue Connection! I made my first post of the year back in January. We looked at the migration pattern during the life of my great-great Grandfather William M Hogue. I wanted to see how it compared to mine around 150 years later.
On this post, I’ll be looking at the migration pattern of my maternal great Grandfather, John Franklin “Frank” Depriest. Frank enrolled in the Creek Nation, Indian Territory as a citizen in 1890. He is a descendant of Hannah Hale and Hopoie Tustunnuggee. You can read about their story here.
Frank’s Life Journey Begins in Arkansas…
He was born in Short Mountain, Logan County, Arkansas on 24 Jan 1878 to John Hines Depriest and Elizabeth Corley. He was the youngest of three sons. You can read the best history of the area here. A lot of bushwhacking and lynching was going on back then. It was the township listed on the 1880 census. Here’s a map showing its approximate location:
It’s kind of unusual for my family, but three generations of Depriests were living in Short Mountain in 1880. John Hines and baby Frank, and nearby were John’s parent Alexander and Elizabeth. In fact, they would all make the move out to the Creek Nation in 1885 together. They settled in Artusse Town. There are not many records of this place. Many Muskogee families were counted here in the Creek Nation census of 1890. I think it’s known as a ghost town today. It was likely near the town of Checotah in the above map.
Patience Leads the Way…
Frank’s grandmother Patience Jane Strickland married Alexander Depriest in Wayne Co., Mississippi in 1844. She is the granddaughter of Hannah Hale, daughter of Jennie Hale Strickland. Remember that Indian Removal started officially with the Indian Removal Act of 1830. Removal was a slow process for many natives. The Hale/Strickland/Depriest families moved from central Alabama to Wayne Co., MS, then on to Jasper County, MS, where John Hines Depriest was born in 1849. Jasper County, created in 1833, basically grew out of the Indian Removal movement.
By 1885, the families were making their last move of their migration pattern, to the Creek Nation, Indian Territory. Here’s a map of how that looked, showing some of the townships:
Patience and her kin first settled in the south part of the Creek Nation, between the towns of Checotah and Eufaula. When Frank applied for acceptance into the Creek Nation and a potential land allotment in 1899, he lived near Checotah.
Frank Gets His Land Allotment and His Migration Pattern Heads West…
His Dawes registration card tells his story:
Frank’s allotment of 40 acres, was described as follows:
The land allotment system was full of greed and corruption; many white farmers squatted on the land and used their employed Indians and blacks to try to obtain allotments illegally. Muskogee Creeks, every man, woman, and child, who registered via the Dawes Commission were entitled to 160 acres of land. Depending on the quality of land, they could trade it back to the government for its cash value. The Creeks had 3,080,000 acres of land to divvy up amongst registered people.
Here is the location of Frank’s allotment:
To help prevent further fraud Congress declared that anyone allotted land could not sell it without permission of the Department of Interior. A law passed in 1908 that allowed anyone to sell their property without authorization. You can read about allotted land titles here.
Frank Depriest Settles in and Raises a Family…
Although the census townships changed over the decades, Frank stayed on the property for several years after receiving his allotment in 1902. The census of 1920 listed their location as Depew Township, Creek County, OK. The 1930 census had them at North Keokuk Township, Lincoln County, OK. The enumeration districts may have changed, but it was the same plot of land.
On 20 Sep 1908, Frank, age 30 married Beulah Mary Craig, age 19, in Okfuskee. They had eight children, including my Grandma Irene, who was number three in line, born 27 July 1912. All of the kids were born on this property. The acreage had a large grove of pecan trees on it, plus plenty of room for a vegetable garden and other crops and livestock. Beulah’s family of Craigs lived nearby. Her mother Fannie was having babies at the same time; one of Irene’s aunts was younger than she was!
Tragedy Changes Life Forever on the Depriest Farm…
Beaulah became pregnant again in the spring of 1928 with her ninth child. Things seemed normal until they weren’t. On a cold winter’s day, 2 Jan 1929, two days after Beulah’s 40th birthday, she went into labor. There were complications and Beulah died while giving birth to a stillborn daughter. My Grandma named her Janette and buried her with her mother. They rest in peace in the Hosey/Vanderslice Cemetery, here.
Irene was only 16 at the time, but she had to grow up fast. She had to raise her five younger siblings in addition to her duties on the farm helping Frank. The next six years would be difficult. Frank, now in his 50’s, was past the point of being interested in farming. Plus, when the Great Depression stuck, it made things even harder. They made the decision to sell the property and head west to Arizona for a new start.
Is Arizona the New Promised Land?
Let’s recap the migration pattern of Frank Depriest:
1878 – Born 24 January in Short Mountain, AR
1885 – Moved with family to Creek Nation, Indian Territory
1890 – Recorded on the Creek Nation Census in Artusse Town, Creek Nation, I.T.
1899 – Recorded on Dawes Rolls in Checotah, Creek Nation, I.T.
1902 – Receives land allotment in Section 32, Township 14N, Range 7E (see map above)
1920 – Recorded in the 1920 U.S. Census of Depew Township, Creek County, OK.
1930 – Recorded in the 1930 U.S. Census of North Keokuk Township, Lincoln, Co, OK
1935 – Moved to Mesa, Maricopa, AZ after April 1st
We know the family moved to Mesa between 1 April 1935 and 1936. I should say families. Irene married Roy Murray on 23 Nov 1933 in Chandler, OK. Both the Murrays and the Depriests headed west together. Roy got a job in Mesa as a mechanic and ended up eventually leasing his own garage for a while.
Unfortunately, John Franklin Depriest died from a stroke on 26 Jun 1936, just two months before the birth of his first grandchild, Shirley Jeane. Grandma said they were missing Frank for a while and finally found him slumped over in the outhouse. That’s the family legend anyway.
Frank’s Migration Pattern…
…was pretty contained at first. The move from his birthplace to the 40 acres he lived on for 33 years was only about 200 miles. The farm to Mesa, AZ was another 1020 miles, though, giving him a total migration pattern of a little more than 1200 miles. That almost matches mine of 1252 miles. You can read that article again here.
The Depriest family’s “Trail of Tears” was no doubt full of hardship. Once settled on his 40-acre farm, Frank’s life must have lived up to his expectations for the most part. It was difficult work, but everyone worked hard in those days. It was expected. His real Trail of Tears started with death of his wife and child in 1929, the subsequent sale of his land in 1935, and finally, his move to Arizona. Thanks for coming along on this trip with me. Thanks, too, for stopping by to visit The Hogue Connection! If you would like to return to the Home Page, click here. I’ll be back with another article soon!
The Depriest Family on the Farm, about 1925
Left to Right: Williby, Frank (Harold in Front), Ike Craig (Neil in Front), Loy, Unknown Neighbor (Geraldine in front).
The Depriest Family about 1925 (same day as above?)
Left to Right, Back Row: Frank, Beulah, Lorene, Irene, Loy, and Williby
Left to Right, Front Row: Geraldine, Leota, Harold, and Neil
