[WESTERN AMERICANA]. A group of 4 Oklahoma Land Rush photographs. Perry, Oklahoma Territory: Hughes, 28 September-3 October 1893.

7 x 5 in. silver gelatin photographs on cardstock mounts (minor toning, light chips to mount edges). Each captioned in negative. Hughes's embossed imprint on mount rectos.

In Line at the Land Office Perry Spt. 28th 93. 9.O clock. A.M. Wating [sic] to File. A mass of men are gathered outside a large building, labeled in-negative "U.S. Land Office." Behind the crowd is another series of building, one with a sign reading "West & Paschall Contesting Lawyers." -- Line at the Post Office. Perry Oct 1st. A large group of men stand in front of a building and a gathering of tents. Several advertising signs, including for a "Barber Shop" and "Photographer" are visible. -- North West Perry Gov't Acre Oct 3rd 1893. An aerial view of Perry, Oklahoma, with several storefronts and tents populate the treeless landscape. Many have signs including "Tom. Soward & [illeg.] Attorneys" and "Hotel Moran." Several horse-drawn carriages are visible in the foreground. -- Govt. Acre & C St. Perry Oct 3d. 93. An aerial view showing the many tents, one labeled "Saloon" and another advertising the Law Office of Thompson & Logan, and makeshift buildings. With much construction visible among those already standing.

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In 1893, Oklahoma Territory's fourth and largest land run marked the opening to the settlement of the Cherokee Outlet known as "the Strip." In 1890, President Harrison issued a Proclamation that forbade grazing leases in the Cherokee Outlet after 2 October 1890, effectively ending the Cherokee's tribal profits and forcing them into an agreement to sell these lands. Immense interest grew, exacerbated by droughts, declining agriculture prices, and the Panic of 1893, with thousands anticipating the release of land in camps on the Kansas border. Four land offices were set up in advance, one in Perry, and the others in Enid, Woodward, and Alva. The Run itself began at noon on 16 September 1893 with an estimated 100,000 participants hoping to stake a claim to the 6 million acres and 40,000 homesteads. In Perry, reports estimate that 90,000 people arrived in the rush and 40,000 had erected tents by nightfall, including over 100 saloons and gambling houses.