UGANDA MARTYRS PARISH - Henry L. Harder - Bog

Oklahoma railroads date back to 1871 (36 years before Oklahoma officially became a state) when the Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad, long known in late years as The Katy, entered Indian Territory (as it was then known) heading south to connect to New Orleans. The railroads became a factor not just in commerce, such as getting cattle to market but also by migrants hoping to settle when land within the territories became available. Following the Land Run of 1889 and passage of the Organic Act in 1890, migration of European Americans to Oklahoma Territory increased dramatically, raising the territory's status on the national scene.