Bond, established the El Meta Bond College, one of the first of its kind in the area. In September 1894 Meta Chestnutt, a teacher from North Carolina who was determined to bring education to the frontier (specifically Native Americans), along with the services of J.H.

The remains of some of the hotels that were used by the many temporary residents also still stand along its Main Street. In fact, the hardware store and tin shop originally opened by Kirk Woodworth in 1891 is still in existence. It is the oldest town in the western part of Oklahoma, so its many businesses served residents for many miles around. The town was originally composed mainly of merchants who provided supplies for the many travelers that used the railroad infrastructure of the town. It was known as the Minco Townsite and Investment Company. On October 14, 1901, local citizens formed a company for the purpose of selling vacant lots in the town to encourage settlement. On August 4, 1901, the Chickasaw Nation's land was opened to white settlement, in turn making Minco a railroad hub for the entire region. The Rock Island Railroad Co.'s original purpose in extending the railroad to Minco was to provide a gateway for the shipping of cattle from the grazing lands of the Chickasaw Nation, just to the south of the town. Whipple continued westward, leaving Oklahoma just west of the Antelope Hills in present-day Roger Mills County.

At that point the expedition moved westward, whereas Marcy had turned north to join the Fort Smith to the Santa Fe Trail, not far north of Hydro. Whipple's survey followed Marcy's route from Fort Smith until they reached the Caddo County Buttes. This road had been laid out by Josiah Gregg, a Santa Fe merchant who had connections with merchants in Fort Smith, Arkansas.ĭuring the summer of 1853, the first railroad survey was conducted from Fort Smith to Los Angeles by Lt. There was a road established in 1839-1840 on the north side of the Canadian River that was also named the Fort Smith to Santa Fe Trail. Marcy named his route the Fort Smith to Santa Fe Trail. When the expedition approached the Minco area they kept to the south side of Buggy Creek, which Marcy named 'Deer Creek'. Marcy was ordered to escort 1,500 individuals headed to the California gold fields. The first expedition was conducted by Captain Randolph B. īefore the establishment of Minco as a town, three major expeditions passed through the area. (Caddo Bill) Williams, owner of the Half Moon Ranch, who started Silver City in 1872 by building a trading store for those cattlemen driving their herds of cattle up the Chisholm Trail. His wife was Miss Maggie (Margaret) Williams, a daughter of W. Campbell owned the occupancy rights of the land that the town was built on. In its early stages, Minco was a very busy town because of its location at the end of the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific Railroad until the railroad was extended further south two years later. Minco was officially settled sometime circa 1890, several years before Oklahoma achieved statehood. The town was originally included in the Chickasaw Nation, and is believed to be named after the great Chickasaw chief and warrior, Itawamba Minco, who later acquired the name of Levi Colbert, and who resided on Chickasaw land in Mississippi, near Cotton Gin Port. After the Rock Island extended its railroad track to the Chisholm Trail, the town physically moved to the end of the rail line and renamed itself Minco. It was approximately 7 miles (11 km) east of the present-day location. The community was initially a collection of tents housing Caddo, Wichita, Kiowa, and Comanche tribesmen. Present-day Minco began as a settlement named Silver City on the Chisholm Trail. The population was 1,500 at the 2020 census, a 8.1% decrease from 2010. Minco is a city in Grady County, Oklahoma, United States.

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