McCurtain County’s history cannot be separated from Choctaw history. The county was created only in 1907; the Choctaw Nation’s political, educational, religious and family history in this landscape reaches much further back.
A landscape of Choctaw history
Oklahoma Historical Society markers across the county identify sites associated with Choctaw removal, government, chiefs, schools, cemeteries, transportation and family life.
Eagletown and Choctaw leadership
Eagletown is associated with several Choctaw principal chiefs, including George Hudson, Peter Pitchlynn and Jefferson Gardner. Nearby, the 1884 Gardner Mansion survives as a territorial-era residence.
Wheelock
Wheelock Mission and Wheelock Academy are major landmarks in Choctaw religious and educational history. The academy served Choctaw girls, and surviving buildings became part of later preservation efforts.
Henry C. Harris and Pleasant Hill
Judge Henry C. Harris built the Harris House, also known as Pleasant Hill, in 1867. The Oklahoma Historical Society identifies his service in Choctaw tribal government, including as a supreme judge of the Apukshunnubbe District.
Mattie Harris Whiteman
Henry’s daughter Mattie Josephine Harris married W. J. Whiteman in 1896. Dawes records identify Mattie as Choctaw by blood. Her life links the Harris family’s Choctaw history to the Whiteman Home at Goodwater.
Preserving distinctions
This project does not collapse Choctaw identity into a generic pioneer story. Mattie and her daughters were enrolled by blood; W. J. was listed as intermarried white. Preserving that distinction is part of preserving the history accurately.
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