Moore's Muskogee Directory 1903
Muskogee came into existence slightly more than thirty years ago as a station and coaling point of the M.K. & T. railroad and as a division of that road as building progressed toward Texas. Indian Territory at that time probably had little more than a tenth of the present population, and the growth of town and country alike was excedingly slow. The Indian tribes had systems of laws which seemed to serve their purposes, but the white man was practically without law except that of his own will. Shortly afterwards the United States court at Fort Smith was given jurisdiction of the graver offenses between non-citizens and Indians. It was, however, as late as 1889 before a court of any kind for American citizens was established witing the Indian Territory, and then only for minor crimes, jurisdiction of capital crimes coming about ten years later.
The growth of population radiated from the trading points, usually along the railroads, and Muskogee, because of the railroad's interests as a starting point and because of the advent of a few reliable and more than ordinarily enterprising traders, made what appeared to be rapid growth for the country, yet the first twenty years of it existence gave the town little more than one-fourth of its present population. While fully 70 per cent of the present population has been secured in teh last ten years, very nearly or quite 40 per cent has been secured in little more than the last three years, and the rate of growth is larger now than ever before. This is readily explained by the more satisfactory laws, the adjustment of land titles and teh confidence of capital. A striking illustration of this latter feature is to be seen in the enlargement and steam-xxxx plants in the town, the construction of two new railroads and commencement of a third, the building of one railroad and one wagon bridge (all steel) across the Arkansas river just outside the town, and teh commencement of extensive and costly waterworks and sewer plants in the town, all within a year. Despite the wonderful growth of buildings and teh extensions of school properties withing the last three years, today the schools are taxed to meet the demands on them, and the crush for houses and rooms in the city is just as great as it has ever been. Despite this, the speculative inflation usually termed "booming" has never been able to secure a foothold here and the future seems brighter than ever before. And the moral, educational and social growth and development seems quite as satisfactory as that of population and commerce.
One feature in which we have not progressed as rapidly as we should like, seems likely to make better showing hereafter; that is, manufacturing and industrial occupations akin thereto. There is promise that with the coming of the waterworks and competition in transportation, as well as nearer coal supply, there will be great increases in the use of steam and thr production of many articles of consumption. The subject is one of such importance to the growth of the town and presents such fine opportunities for profitable investment that the compiler of this book cannot let the opportunity pass for calling the attention of outsiders as well as home people to the subject.
Muskogee is at the edge of a great coal deposit, if it is not actually upon it, and there is a vast mineral deposit within a very short distance, timber is abundant and within easy reach, while it is reasonably certain that oil and perhaps gas will be developed in a short time, and some of the finest agricultural lands of the west surround the town. These are the things which has given confidence to everyone who has come to increase the surprising population growth of the place and which is more and more attracting the attention of others who will come and are coming.
It is fortunate thing for Muskogee that its early settlers were men of great liberality and of sterling character. While these men helped secure and establish the greatest criminal court in the whole world, they gave freely of their labors and wealth in the building of churches and schools, and thus while helping repress the lawness on the one hand, they were encouraging the development of the moral and social elements, and today without a doubt, considering the surrounding conditions, Muskogee makes the best showing in churches and schools to be found in any city of equal size in the United States.
Not alone for the visitor who may chance to read these lines do we pen the above plain but modest statement of the conditions which have made this town, but for home people as well, who, if they will but remember what has been accomplished, will be the more ready and willing to help on even greater progress and development.
As nearly as types can, the two plans above show the street system of Muskogee; the lines of type running in the direction which the streets run, the tip of the page being a little east of north. Of course, the crooks in street and quite a number of places where streets have not been surveyed through cannot be shown, but the numbering of the houses has been done just as if the streets were all surveyed through and all opened to public travel. When all the streets are opened which have been so surveyed, and when others are surveyed through blocks where there is now no survey, there will be no change in the numbering scheme except the dropping of the the last numbers in the particular hundred to which their letter of the alphabet or numeral entities them; thus, Fifth Street (south) is not surveyed from Okmulgee to Elgin avenues, but the block on the south side of Okmulgee from Fourth to Sixth street is fiven 200 in the numbering scheme, so that at Sixth street the numbers of Okmulgee avenue are 601 and 602. Should Fifth street ever be opened, the dropping of the last number under 501 will be the only change to make in the scheme, all the other houses and lots on that block retaining their present numbers.
Short streets "Places," Boulevards and alleys have numbers to correspond with the parallel blocks, as for instance Mill street, which begins at Fon du Lac at 601, and runs to the city limits north; Altamont, which begins on Market with 530 and numbers northward to Tower Hill, and Market street which begins with 101 at Main and numbers westward in unison with the streets at north and south of it. In crossing these short streets, however, which have names out of the regular alphabetical order, they are ignored entirely and the block is numbered just as if the street did not exist, in order to keep the even hundreds uniform with the letters of the alphabet. In other words: In, some places where streets have not been made, it has been necessary to divide the block; Nd at other places where an extra street appears, it is necessary to consolidate two blocks into 100. By this plan, a 400 in the numbering scheme, and the first lot beyond it will be 401 or 402. The xxxxxx letter or number of the street tells exactly how far from the center of teh city it is located.
Much complaints confusion of the streets with names of cities. It will be seen that east and west streets north of Okmulgee avenue are STREETS, while those south of Okmulgee avenue are AVENUES. With this distinction borne in mind any person should memorize the four separate subdivisions of the city names withing a few minutes. The lettered and numeraled streets explain themselves.
Boulevards
Division Boulevard To that part of South Seventh street and North Seventh street from Hartford avenue to Tower Hill Boulevard East Side Boulevard From East Oklahoma avenue to Kankakee street, (northward) Park Drive From South D street eastward and northward around Spaulding Institute to East Oklahoma avenue, beginning of East Side Boulevard. South Side Boulevard Part of Hartford and Hamilton avenues between South Fifth street and South Seventh street and North Twelfth street from Elgin avenue to North Terrace Boulevard. Kendall Boulevard That part of South Twelfth street and North Twelfth street from Elgin avenue to North Terrace Boulevard. North Terrace Boulevard North of West Fon du Lac street, between Division Boulevard and Kendall Boulevard, (Twelfth street). Tower Hill Boulevard North of Howard street, between North Fourth and Division Boulevard; follows crest of the hill from water tower to Kendall Boulevard Places
Prospect Place From North Eleventh street to center of block west of Twelfth street; (really a continuation of Market stret). Terrace Place North of North Terrace Boulevard, between North Sixth and North Ninth streets. All the streets with names xxxxxxxx A B C scheme are n that part of the city west of the M K & T railway and north of West Oklahoma avenue, as follows:
East and West Streets
Lake Street A street from North Main to North Third, south of Fon du Lac and north of railroad pond. Market Street First street north of Emporia from Noth Main to North Tenth. North and South Streets
Altamont Street Between North Fourth and North Fifth, from Market to Tower Hill Boulevard Elm Street See Spruce Street Oak Street See Spruce Street Spruce Street Elm, Oak and Spruce streets are three short streets between North Third street and Water Tower Hill, the first two running from Joplin street to northern city limits and Spruce from Iola street to same limit.