The Cherokee Nation is searching for five-foot tall, iron boundary markers put in by the U.S. General Land Office in the mid-19th century. The survey monuments were used to designate the boundary between the Cherokee and Creek Nation territories after both tribes were pushed into what is now Oklahoma. The markers are just as important now as they were then since they trump later land surveys.
Cherokee Nation Searches for Mid-19th Century Boundary Markers
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Cherokee Nation citizen, Russell Karnes (right), led Kevin Daughtery, a GIS specialist with the Cherokee Nation, to this boundary marker in a remote part of Wagoner County.
Courtesy / Cherokee Nation
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Another Cherokee Nation marker near Lake Fort Gibson outside Wagoner.
Z. Sitek / KUAF
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The survey monuments are marked with the letter 'M,' which could stand for meridian.
Z. Sitek / KUAF
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The markers are round and tapered with a pointed cap at the top that was likely pressed in after the post was set in the ground.
Z. Sitek / KUAF