Donis Casey has written a series of mysteries that take place in Oklahoma, shortly after Statehood. “The Sky Took Him” is an Alafair Tucker Mystery which takes place in Enid, Oklahoma. Alafair Tucker, mother of ten, lives in Boynton, a fictitious town near Muskogee. She has ridden the train to Enid to visit with her sister, whose husband is dying. She arrives just before Enid’s annual Founders’ Day Commemoration. This is a three-day event in honor of the Cherokee Strip Land Run in 1893, in which the town of Enid was settled. It is celebrated with a parade, a carnival in the town square, food vendors, ragtime bands and dances. The two-block town square bordered by Randolph, Grand, Maine and Independence is roped off for the three-day event.
The quaint use of English, and the way the characters interact with each other is fascinating and so different from today. Having lived in Enid in years past, it is interesting to hear the names of the streets in the downtown area, referred to casually by the characters.
It’s September 15, 1915, the 22nd anniversary of the celebration and the characters are gathering in the town square for the beginning of the parade.
“After the governor’s brief opening speech, the parade, led by a showy troop of mounted Cheyenne Indians, in the full regalia of their tribe, began the march from West Broadway. Following the Indians came the band from the town of Arnett, and then the lines of old settlers, each wearing a badge which read “I Made the Run.” The Brunswick band came next, just ahead of the Grand Army of the Republic, which made quite an impression on the crowd. The march of the schoolchildren was almost a whole parade by itself. Over two thousand pupils from Enid High School, St. Joseph Institute, and all the grade schools marched under the banner of their respective classes. The Boy Scouts followed, and floats representing Phillips University, headed by the university band, and the University Hospital. Practically every business in town had contributed a float, from the Union Motion Picture Operators to the Kennedy Mercantile Company to Enid Electric and Gas.”
Today, you can walk around the Town Square, with his Courthouse and library, its sculptures and ancient trees, and can almost hear the sounds of the crowds from so many years ago. Enid still celebrates this event, which is now called Cherokee Strip Days. This year (2011) the dates are September 15-17, with the parade at 10:30AM on September 17th. The coordinates shown are at the North entrance of the Garfield County Courthouse on the square.
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