Oklahoma Wins The Official Red River War

[FaninAma]

In July 1931, a long standing border dispute between Oklahoma and Texas (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas) came to a head (though it was not officially settled until 2000.) Sometimes called the Red River War, the incident saw the deployment of Oklahoma National Guardsmen and Texas Rangers (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_Ranger_Division). A free bridge had been constructed jointly by the two states which ran parallel to an older toll-bridge. The company running the toll-bridge sought an injunction (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Injunction) in the U.S. District Court (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/District_Court) at Houston (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Houston) to stop the opening of the bridge.
The matter became heated, with Texas barricading the new free bridge (in accordance with the injunction), and Oklahoma highway (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Highway) employees tearing down those barricades (citing the fact that the injunction didn't mention Oklahoma, and that the border had been settled as early as the Louisiana Purchase (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louisiana_Purchase)). Eventually, a unit of the Oklahoma National Guard (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_National_Guard) was deployed to both the northern and southern approaches of the free bridge to ensure it was held open.
On August 6, 1931 the dispute was settled when the first injunction was permanently dissolved
Source:Winkepedia

Funny how it wasn't official until Texas' 2000 63-14 *** kicking in the Cotton Bowl. I guess those Texas Rangers aren't so tough after all.

[Jimminy Crimson]

Good ol' Alfalfa Bill Murray! :texan:

[yermom]

i just heard this story the other day, someone was telling me that the actual border is the high water mark on the south side of the river

[BigRedJed]

I've been fascinated by that story for a long time.

A side note: I ran across a similar private toll bridge last fall when I went to the OU-Nebraska game. Since I was staying in the Rainman Suite at Harrahs in KC after the game with some of my boys, I flew into KC and rented a car before the game, driving to Lincoln. Most of the way is through Iowa. Just as you cross over into Nebraska, the road chokes down to a little two lane out of the 1950s. Suddenly, you're going, like, 15 MPH and then approach a one lane toll bridge. It's privately operated, and some guy steps out and charges you a few bucks to go across. It's weird.

[yermom]

i must have missed that... although we weren't in Iowa long, so it could have been a different route

[BigRedJed]

Yeah, I took the "whoops, I missed my turn -- oh well, I can still get there this way" route.

[Jimminy Crimson]

I've been fascinated by that story for a long time.

A side note: I ran across a similar private toll bridge last fall when I went to the OU-Nebraska game. Since I was staying in the Rainman Suite at Harrahs in KC after the game with some of my boys, I flew into KC and rented a car before the game, driving to Lincoln. Most of the way is through Iowa. Just as you cross over into Nebraska, the road chokes down to a little two lane out of the 1950s. Suddenly, you're going, like, 15 MPH and then approach a one lane toll bridge. It's privately operated, and some guy steps out and charges you a few bucks to go across. It's weird.

So it was like the real life version of the Oregon Trail computer game? :D

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v338/LongJohn81/ford.jpg

[dolemitesooner]

I've been fascinated by that story for a long time.

A side note: I ran across a similar private toll bridge last fall when I went to the OU-Nebraska game. Since I was staying in the Rainman Suite at Harrahs in KC after the game with some of my boys, I flew into KC and rented a car before the game, driving to Lincoln. Most of the way is through Iowa. Just as you cross over into Nebraska, the road chokes down to a little two lane out of the 1950s. Suddenly, you're going, like, 15 MPH and then approach a one lane toll bridge. It's privately operated, and some guy steps out and charges you a few bucks to go across. It's weird.
Thats ****ing random. I would have laughed at the ****er

[Chuck Bao]

Wasn't that south of Durant?

My grandfather told me about them shooting off old cannons knowing full well that the cannon shot wouldn't make it across the river. Or, maybe that was just proud Okie talk.

Anyway, wasn't Denison dam and Lake Texoma built during the Great Depression. That wouldn't have been too much later.

Going a bit off track, but my brother told me last year that the Army Corp of Engineers originally thought that Lake Texoma would silt up in about 50 years and obviously that hasn't happened. The lake turned out to be a pretty good deal for the local people.

[OUinFLA]

Denison Dam was built in the late 40's

The bridge in question where Alfalfa Bill made his stand is the bridge south of Durant near Colbert. (original home of Po Sam's Bar-b-q. And if you remember eating there, you are really old.

[Chuck Bao]

I must be really old then. Heh! ;)