Wealaka was a community established in 1880 in the

Creek Nation The Muscogee Nation, or Muscogee (Creek) Nation, is a List of federally recognized tribes, federally recognized Native American tribe based in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The nation descends from the historic Muscogee Confederacy, a large grou ...

, Indian Territory. It is notable as the site of Wealaka Mission, which operated a school from 1882-1907. This school was primarily for Muscogee Creek children, but European Americans could attend for a fee. After statehood in 1907, the site was sold to private owners. The community was the last home of Creek Principal Chief

Pleasant Porter Pleasant Porter (September 26, 1840 – September 3, 1907, Creek) was an American Indian statesman and the last elected Principal Chief of the Creek Nation, serving from 1899 until his death. He had served with the Confederacy in the 1st C ...

(1840-1907). He had called the area "Fairview".Bixby Historical Society."Settlers Claim Land." Retrieved April 29, 201

/ref> While classified today by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) as a populated place in southern

Tulsa County, Oklahoma Tulsa County is a county located in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. As of the 2020 census, the population was 669,279, making it the second-most populous county in the state, behind only Oklahoma County. Its county seat and largest city is Tulsa ...

, the population of Wealaka is not separately tabulated in the U.S. census.

Town founding to mid-20th century

Wealaka was established about 1880 on a tributary of the

Arkansas River The Arkansas River is a major tributary of the Mississippi River. It generally flows to the east and southeast as it traverses the U.S. states of Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas. The river's source basin lies in Colorado, specifically ...

, within the territory of the Creek Nation. It was about northwest of present-day Leonard, Oklahoma. The name is a Muskogee language word meaning "Rising Water."Anderson, Dan. ''One Hundred Oklahoma Outlaws, Gangsters, and Lawmen, 1839-1939'' p. 12. 2007. Retrieved April 24, 2013. Available on Google Books. W. L. Gilcrease was a European-American merchant who platted the town and chose the name Wealaka. He was also co-owner of a cotton gin. One of his sons was

Thomas Gilcrease William Thomas Gilcrease (February 8, 1890 – May 6, 1962) was an Muscogee-American oilman, art collector, and philanthropist. During his lifetime, Gilcrease collected more than 10,000 artworks, 250,000 Native American artifacts and 100,000 ...

, who became an oilman in Oklahoma after it was admitted as a state. The Wealaka post office was founded here and operated in W. T. Davis's store from 1880 to 1892. It was the second post office in the

Tulsa Tulsa ( ) is the second-most-populous city in the state of Oklahoma, after Oklahoma City, and the 48th-most-populous city in the United States. The population was 413,066 as of the 2020 census. It is the principal municipality of the Tul ...

vicinity. The Davis store building was razed in 1942 to make way for a landing field for Spartan School of Aeronautics.

Wealaka Mission

Wealaka Creek Mission was founded here in 1882 by Robert McGill Loughridge, a

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a historically Reformed Protestant tradition named for its form of church government by representative assemblies of elders, known as "presbyters". Though other Reformed churches are structurally similar, the word ''Pr ...

minister who had been serving as a missionary in the Creek Nation since 1873. That year he had founded Koweta Mission in Coweta, Creek Nation. Wealaka Mission also operated a school for

Muscogee The Muscogee, also known as the Mvskoke, Muscogee Creek or just Creek, and the Muscogee Creek Confederacy ( in the Muscogee language; English: ), are a group of related Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands Here they waged war again ...

children in the area, who attended for free. Their costs were covered by the federal government. Area European-American children were allowed to study here, for a fee of $1.00 per month.

Lilah Denton Lindsey Lilah Denton Lindsey (October 21, 1860 – December 22, 1943) was a Native Americans in the United States, Native American philanthropist, civic leader, women's community organizer, Temperance movement, temperance worker, and teacher. She was the ...

Creek was one of the early teachers at the mission and later known as a philanthropist. According to a 1937 interview, she said the mission was located on top of a hill about northwest of Muskogee and south of the

. The first building was brick, three stories high, and was by . The principal and teachers were housed on the first floor, the chapel and school classrooms were on the second floor, and the third floor was divided into separate dormitories for boys and girls. Many children came to the school from a distance and needed to board here.

(1840-1907), the last elected principal chief of the Creek Nation before statehood, had his home near the mission. He was buried in the mission cemetery. After Oklahoma gained statehood in 1907, the mission property was sold to private owners. The school building burned down in 1935. Only the basement and cemetery remain.

References

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External links

University of Oklahoma Libraries Western History Collections. Volume 54. Interview ID 1235. An Interview with Lilah D. Lindsay by Effie S. Jackson. December 7, 1937.
History of Indian Territory Former populated places in Tulsa County, Oklahoma