Colbert's Ferry was an important Red River crossing between

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

and

Indian Territory The Indian Territory and the Indian Territories are terms that generally described an evolving land area set aside by the United States Government for the relocation of Native Americans who held aboriginal title to their land as a sovereign ...

from about 1853 to 1899. Both the

Texas Road The Texas Road, also known as the Shawnee Trail, Sedalia Trail, or Kansas Trail, was a major trade and emigrant route to Texas across Indian Territory (later Oklahoma, Kansas, and Missouri). Established during the Mexican War by emigrants rushin ...

and the

Butterfield Overland Mail Butterfield Overland Mail (officially the Overland Mail Company)Waterman L. Ormsby, edited by Lyle H. Wright and Josephine M. Bynum, "The Butterfield Overland Mail", The Huntington Library, San Marino, California, 1991. was a stagecoach service i ...

route crossed here. It was located on the

about southeast of present–day Colbert,

Bryan County, Oklahoma Bryan County is a county in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. As of the 2010 census, the population was 42,416. Its county seat is Durant. It is the only county in the United States named for Democratic politician William Jennings Bryan. Bryan Co ...

. The nearest town on the Texas side of the river is Denison. The Missouri, Kansas and Texas Railway (MK&T) built a railroad bridge nearby across the Red River in 1872, which caused Colbert's Ferry to lose a significant amount of traffic. Frank Colbert, the ferry owner, responded by building his own toll bridge, which replaced the ferry. A flood soon washed away both bridges. Meanwhile, he resumed operating the ferry.

Pre-Civil War

According to the Texas State Historical Association (TSHA), Joseph Mitchell, a Chickasaw farmer began operating a ferry service across the Red River about 1842. The service continued until Mitchell died in 1847."Colbert's Ferry." The Handbook of Texas.
Accessed January 17, 2017. In 1849, Benjamin F. "Frank" Colbert, also a Chickasaw citizen, had moved to this area in the late 1840s, built a house and began to raise cotton and cattle, employing slave labor. In 1853, he got permission from the

Chickasaw Nation The Chickasaw Nation (Chickasaw: Chikashsha I̠yaakni) is a federally recognized Native American tribe, with its headquarters located in Ada, Oklahoma in the United States. They are an Indigenous people of the Southeastern Woodlands, original ...

to establish a

ferry A ferry is a ship, watercraft or amphibious vehicle used to carry passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A passenger ferry with many stops, such as in Venice, Italy, is sometimes called a water bus or water ta ...

across the Red River. Later, he operated Colbert's Station in his house at the same location when the Butterfield Overland Mail company established its stage route. Colbert transported Butterfield's passengers across the river at no charge. The Colbert post office was opened November 17, 1853, with Walter D. Collins as postmaster.O'Dell, Larry. "Colbert's Ferry" ''Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture''.
Accessed January 15, 2017.

Post Civil War

The Butterfield Stage ceased operating in this area during the Civil War, but Confederate troops frequently crossed the ferry when moving between Texas and Indian Territory. After the war ended, Colbert's operations became profitable again because of the cattle drives from Texas to northern markets. The town of Colbert began growing around the station. Travelers had to pay to cross the river in either direction, regardless of whether they used the ferry. According to the ''Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture,'' the rate schedule in 1872 was: "one dollar for a two-horse wagon, one dollar and twenty-five cents for a four-horse wagon, one dollar and fifty cents for six-horse wagon, twenty-five cents for a man and a horse, and ten cents a head for cattle or horses." The Missouri, Kansas and Texas Railway (MK&T) built its own railroad bridge across the Red River in 1872 and began drawing traffic at the expense of Colbert's ferry. Colbert got federal permission to build his own bridge in 1874. A major flood destroyed both bridges about a year later, so Colbert quickly put his old ferry back in service. He then sold his bridge charter to the Red River Bridge Company, which completed a new one in 1892. This bridge was also destroyed by a flood in 1908, but the bridge company quickly replaced it. This structure was replaced in 1931 by a new free bridge, after it had triggered a conflict between Oklahoma and Texas known as the

Red River Bridge War The Red River Bridge War was a boundary conflict between the U.S. states of Oklahoma and Texas over an existing toll bridge and a new free bridge crossing the Red River. The Red River Bridge Company, a private firm owned by Benjamin Colbert, had ...

. After the conflict was resolved, Colbert's old bridge was dismantled. Colbert's Ferry was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

(#72001057) in 1972. Only the footings of B.F. Colbert's house are still visible.

Notes

References

Sources

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External links

''Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture'' - "Colbert's Ferry"

Oklahoma Digital Maps: Digital Collections of Oklahoma and Indian Territory
{{Butterfield7 Pre-statehood history of Oklahoma Buildings and structures in Bryan County, Oklahoma Butterfield Overland Mail in Indian Territory Native American history of Texas Indian Territory Water transportation in Oklahoma National Register of Historic Places in Bryan County, Oklahoma Water transportation on the National Register of Historic Places Stagecoach stops in the United States