National Register of Historic Places - Perryville Is this chimney, which was photograph in 1972, still standing? The following is from the Nomination Form: Today Perryville has been pretty well reduced to a single stone chimney, exact age unknown. But the persistent historian can, by following what sketchy records that exist (most are latter-day recollections, so necessarily imprecise), locate to his satisfaction some of the towns now vanished buildings, determine the course of the trails, and recreate in his minds eye the battle fought on the east edge of the town. The old cemetery remains, of course, as do some filled-in wells and cisterns. Perryville is one of countless settlements on the frontier brought into being by wagon roads, allowed to flourish for a time, then administered the coup de grace by the railroads/ Unlike many of them, however, its relatively brief role in history was significant enough to rate something more than footnote status in an obscure reference book. XA Civil War battle that threatened to wipe it off the map of Indian Territory was fought on its doorstep. But previous to that conflict it had parlayed its strategic position at the junction of two well-traveled trails to become one of the most important commercial centers in the Choctaw Nation. The Perry family was prominent in Choctaw-Chickasaw history, Perryville the town (about four miles south of present McAlester) was probably named for James Perry, who arrived in Indian Territory, from Mississippi, in 1838. His wife was of Chickasaw descent and he more or less identified himself with the interests of that tribe. He was one of the four delegates who signed the Treaty of Doaksville in 1837 on behalf of the Chickasaws. James Perry opened a trading post here on the Texas Road (from Fort Gibson southwesterly into Texas Road) around 1838 or 1839. By February 24, 1841, the settlement had a post office, with one John F. Houston as postmaster; though all evidence tends to show that the office itself was in the Perry store and remained there until it was eventually closed. Perry was relatively well to do by the time he died, shortly before the outbreak of the Civil War. He is buried in the old Perryville cemetery, but his grave is unmarked today, Establishment of Fort Arbuckle in 1352 further emphasized Perryvilles importance as a transportation center. A military road from Fort Smith to the new outpost crossed the already well traveled Texas Road at this point. Emigrants bound for Texas and/or California became familiar with the goods and services available at Perryville and a stage stand was maintained there until the Missouri, Kansas and Texas Railroad (the first to cross Indian Territory) arrived in 1872. It wasnt until 1875 that William Chunn, latest successor to the Perry general merchandise business, finally closed his store and moved away. The town by then was well on its way to oblivion.
Posted on: Tue, 11 Nov 2014 02:06:12 +0000
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