Miller Brothers 101 Ranch
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The Miller Brothers 101 Ranch was a ranch in Oklahoma/Indian Territory near Ponca City, Oklahoma. The site includes Bill Pickett's Grave, and White Eagle Monument, and is a National Historic Landmark of the United States.
The 101 Ranch was founded in 1879 by Colonel George Washington Miller, a former confederate soldier.
In 1903, when Colonel George Miller died, his three sons, Joseph, George Junior, and Zack took over operation of the 110,000-acre (450 km²) working ranch. By 1932, much of the land was owned by the Miller family, they leased other land from the Ponca, Pawnee, and Otoe Indians in Kay, Noble, Osage and Pawnee Counties. [1] The ranch remained in the family for almost 60 years.
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[edit] The 101 Ranch Wild West Show
The Millers' neighbor Major Gordon W. Lillie, who performed as Pawnee Bill, motivated the Millers to produce a Wild West Show of their own. The Millers made their transition from putting on local shows to the national scene in 1907, when they performed at the Jamestown Exposition in Virginia. In 1908, the Miller Brothers 101 Ranch Wild West Show began the tour circuit in Brighton Beach, New York. Joe Miller, the eldest, was an exceptional equestrian and star performer. Over the course of the show, it boasted famous performers such as Bill Picket, Bessie Herberg, Bee Ho Gray, Tom Mix, Jack Hoxie, Mexican Joe, and eventually Buffalo Bill.
The Miller brothers came late into Wild West Show business and suffered financially along with the other shows after the invention of motion pictures. However, the Miller Brothers’ show had more problems than most, in a business that was harsh at the best of times. Their first year on the circuit they had a serious railroad accident. Later, several members of their cast contracted typhoid.
In 1908, when Buffalo Bill and Pawnee Bill combined their shows into an extravaganza that broke records at Madison Square Gardens, the Miller Brothers also took their show abroad. In England, the British military confiscated most of the 101’s horses, stagecoaches, and automobiles for use in World War I. When they toured in Germany, authorities there arrested some of their Oglala Sioux cast members for being Serbian spies. A frantic Zack Miller managed to get the rest of his American Indian cast out of Germany via Norway, and then to England. Once in London, however, he had difficulty finding a steamship that would sell passage to Indians. Finally, he obtained passage for his cast on an American ship. Once the cast returned to Oklahoma, eldest brother Joe Miller refused to pay the Indian cast overtime. As a result the entire Indian cast quit the show.
By 1916, the two younger Miller brothers abandoned trying to work with their volatile oldest brother. George Jr. and Zack worked at the ranch, while Joe schemed to make the Wild West Show a financial success. Joe Miller hired an out-of-work, aging, and ill Buffalo Bill to star in a World War I recruitment show called the Pageant of Preparedness. Soon Cody quit the show; he died within a year. Still unwilling to let the show close, Joe continued to operate on a smaller scale. In 1927, Joe was unsuccessful in his attempts to sell his show to American Circus Corporation.
[edit] Oil
In 1908 the Millers entered into a leasing arrangement with E. W. Marland, who formed the 101 Ranch Oil Company. Oil was struck in 1911 at the "Willie-Cries-for-War" well. Marland would become a millionaire and later a U.S congressman and eventually the governor of Oklahoma. [2]
[edit] Miller brothers' final years
On October 21, 1927 a neighbor found Joe Miller dead in the 101 Ranch garage with his car running. The family physician ruled Joe's death accidental.
In 1929, George Miller, Jr., died in a car accident. Zack Miller tried to carry on alone, but in 1932 he filed bankruptcy and the US government seized the show's remaining assets and bought 8,000 acres (32 km²) of the 101 Ranch. The 101 Ranch show closed, completely broke, after the New York World’s Fair in 1939. Zack Miller died of cancer in 1952.
[edit] More recent times
| 101 Ranch Historic District | |
|---|---|
| (U.S. National Historic Landmark) | |
| Nearest city: | Ponca City, Oklahoma |
| Built/Founded: | 1892 |
| Designated as NHL: | May 15, 1975[3][4] |
| Added to NRHP: | April 11, 1973[5] |
| NRHP Reference#: | 73001560 |
| Governing body: | Private |
The ranch was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1975.[3][4][6]
After the Miller’s bankruptcy the Federal Farm Security Administration divided the remaining ranch lands and sold off parcels to individuals. The 101 Ranch store and house were torn down. There are no longer any 101 Ranch buildings or stables left standing.[7] In 1990, the Oklahoma Legislature designated State Highway 156 as the 101 Ranch Memorial Road.[8] A historical marker is located on the highway about 13 miles southwest of Ponca City.[6]
[edit] References
- ^ "The 101 Ranch", Ellsworth Collings, University of Oklahoma Press; Reprint edition (March 1986) ISBN 0806110473.
- ^ "E. W. Marland: Life and Death of an Oil Man", John Joseph Mathews, Pg. 80. (Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, (1985): ISBN 0806112387.
- ^ a b National Park Service (April 2007), National Historic Landmarks Survey: List of National Historic Landmarks by State, <http://www.cr.nps.gov/nhl/designations/Lists/LIST07.pdf>. Retrieved on 20 January 2008
- ^ a b 101 Ranch Historic District. National Historic Landmark summary listing. National Park Service. Retrieved on 2008-01-20.
- ^ National Register Information System. National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service (2007-01-23).
- ^ a b Marcia M. Greenlee (September 27, 1974), National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination: 101 Ranch Historic District, Bill Pickett's Grave, and White Eagle MonumentPDF (477 KiB), National Park Service and Accompanying 14 photos from 1974.PDF (3.12 MiB)
- ^ Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History & Culture.
- ^ Oklahoma Department of Transportation, Planning & Research Division. Memorial Dedication & Revision History - SH 156. Retrieved on 2008-03-11.
- Collings, Ellsworth, and Alma Miller England. The 101 Ranch (Norman: University of Oklahoma Press) 1937.
- Everett, Dianna. Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History & Culture (Oklahoma Historical Society) 2002.
- Tintle, Rhonda. "Oklahoma and the True Story of the Wild West Show” (Conference research paper. University of Oklahoma) 2007.
- Wallis, Michael. The Real Wild West: the 101 Ranch and the Creation of the American West (New York: St. Martin's Press) 1999.
- Western History Collection. Miller Brothers 101 Ranch and Wild West Show Collection; Miller Brothers 101 Ranch Collection.
[edit] External links
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