L. R. Kershaw
Encyclopedia
Leroy Kershaw was an American
attorney
, banker, businessman, cattleman and political candidate
.
He is considered one of the pioneers of the Muskogee, Oklahoma
, area and the founder of Morris, Oklahoma
, in 1904. Kershaw was a delegate to the Republican National Convention
in 1924, and was later a candidate for the Governor of Oklahoma
in 1930.
Kershaw was a founder of the Eastern Oklahoma Electric Traction Company, and a pure-bred Aberdeen Angus breeder, with over 500 head of cattle. His prize-winning herd of black angus cattle brought buyers from all over the country to his 4,000 acre (16 km²) farm south of Muskogee. His herd was the second largest herd in the country, and the largest herd in Oklahoma
.
, on December 6, 1880, to David R. Kershaw and Jennie M. (Cole) Kershaw. He was an outstanding athlete in high school
, as an accomplished running back
in football
and as a champion discus throw
er in track & field
events.
, also known as the Frisco railroad, selling land to farmers for farms along the wide railroad right-of way in Northeastern Oklahoma. He bought many farms along the way, and in 1904 moved to Oklahoma himself. He was one of the founders of the Farmer's State Bank in Morris (in 1905) and the First National Bank of Morris (in 1908), (Indian Territory) Oklahoma. In 1910 he purchased the controlling interest in the National Bank of Okmulgee, Oklahoma. With the connections he had established with the railroad, he platted the town site of Morris, Oklahoma
. The town of Morris was named after H. E. Morris, a railroad executive with the Frisco railroad. The railroad went through the center of town, between Ft. Smith, Arkansas, and Tulsa, Oklahoma
. The town of Morris was founded in 1904, before statehood. Oklahoma became a state in November 1907.
In Morris, Oklahoma, many of the street names were named after towns Kershaw was familiar with in Illinois, such as Elmwood, his place of birth, along with Pekin
and Peoria
. Hughes Street, the main street of Morris was named in honor of the General Immigration Agent for the Frisco Railroad, and President of the Frisco System Land & Immigration Association, Samuel A. Hughes. He also named a short street Frisco, after the railroad which brought him to Oklahoma, and streets were named after several Presidents, including Washington
, Adams
, Jefferson
, Madison
, Monroe
, Jackson
as well as one after Benjamin Franklin
, one of the early leaders of the United States.
Kershaw always maintained strong financial ties to Muskogee, including his appointment in 1910 as an agent for the Bartholomew Motor Company, of Peoria, Illinois, representing the Muskogee area. The Bartholomew Company produced the Glide (automobile company)
car, an entry-level 4 to 7-passenger touring car. Kershaw used one of these touring cars to transport potential buyers interested in buying farms in the area. His appointment as an automobile dealer was short-lived as he foresaw the future being more profitable in the real estate sales and development business than in the sale of automobiles.
Kershaw was a delegate representing the City of Muskogee at the Trans-Mississippi Commercial Congress held in Kansas City, Missouri, in November 1911. In December 1911, Kershaw was a delegate representing the State of Oklahoma at the Nineteenth National Irrigation Congress
in Chicago, IL. The Congress was influential in recommending conservation and reclamation of arid lands in the newly populated areas of the country. The Congress help draft legislation for the creation of water reservoirs for the future drinking water and hydro-electric power generation needs of the country. Over time, Oklahoma developed more man-made reservoirs of water than any other state and today has more lakeshore frontage than any other state in the country, with the exception of Minnesota.
, and the product would be a hornless breed of cattle. Angus bulls were popular with cattle breeders for their first cow because the calves would be small, and easy to deliver for the new cows. Kershaw was elected a Director of the New Oklahoma Free State Fair in Muskogee in 1913. It was the largest free State Fair and exposition in Oklahoma at the time. In 1917, one of Kershaw's prize bulls, winner of 19 championships, Ben Hur of Lone Dell, was featured on the cover of the Breeder's Gazette, the leading publication in the country at the time, advocating pedigreed cattle stock.
Kershaw showed the Grand Champion Steer, Muskogee Boy at the International Livestock Exposition in Chicago in 1917. In March, 1918, this prize steer was offered for sale in a public auction
held in the lobby of the Lee-Huckins Hotel in downtown Oklahoma City for the benefit of the American Red Cross
. (The Lee-Huckins Hotel served as the State Capitol from 1910 to 1917).
The auction brought $3.16 a pound for the steer, for a total of $5,890 for the Red Cross Fund. This sale price set a new world record for the sale of a champion steer. This was in the middle of World War I
and the funds were used to help American soldiers. The coat from the steer was made into an overcoat for President Woodrow Wilson
and the meat was processed for General "Blackjack" Pershing
's staff in France who shared it with wounded soldiers. Later that year, Kershaw was elected President of the Southwest American Livestock Show, one of the premier livestock shows in the Southwest.
Whenever possible, Kershaw would use an International grand champion bull or a son of one in his breeding program. One such bull was Plowman (son of the 1911 International grand champion, Kloman). Kershaw purchased Plowman for $3,050 after he won his class at the 1917 International Livestock Exposition in Chicago, IL. In 1919, Kershaw won the Grand Champion Steer trophy, with Muskogee Boy II, the brother to Muskogee Boy at the Texas State Fair in Dallas. That same year, his prize bull, Plowman, won the Grand Champion Bull trophy at five of the nation's most prestigious livestock shows, including the American Royal
Livestock Show in Kansas City, MO; the Southwest American Livestock Show in Oklahoma City, OK; the National Western Stock Show
in Denver, CO; the Southwestern Exposition and Fat Stock Show, which was later named the Southwestern Exposition and Livestock Show
in Fort Worth, TX and also at the Kansas National Live Stock Show in Wichita, KS. After an extensive show career (Plowman claimed 57 grand championships as a 2,250-lb. 3-year old show bull) the bull was sold in Kershaw’s 1920 sale for $40,000 - a price unheard of at that time and a world record for many years. The dispersion sale of his herd at his ranch south of Muskogee in 1920 brought experienced buyers from all over the country to bid on some of Kershaw's prize stock. There has never been another herd of cattle that has shown over as wide an area of country and won so many premiums as that belonging to Kershaw. In this sale was included Plowman, one of the champion bulls in his herd, the champion of champions, with 57 championships to his credit, more than any other bull, living or dead; and Twin Burn Pride (V), crowned champion cow with 37 championships to her credit. The herd had won 266 grand championships, 685 first place rankings, 370 second-place, 186 third-place, 79 fourth-place and 43 fifth-place rankings, within a period of six years, bringing to the owner innumerable cups and silver trophies. He had intended to sell his complete herd at this sale, but instead held back one of his prize bulls and started all over with new cattle.
As President of the Southwest Livestock Show, he recognized the need for a new facility to show cattle in Oklahoma City, which was founded in 1889. He convinced officials with the Armour and Company
packing house in Chicago to contribute $200,000 charged to advertising to go towards the construction of a Livestock Pavilion at the Oklahoma City stockyards. The fund raising began in 1920 and the new facility, the largest of its kind in the Southwest, was completed in 1922. In its time, the Oklahoma City stockyards and its related suppliers became one of the largest industries in the city.
He continued to raise show and breeding cattle through 1948. From 1916 through 1948 he served in various leadership capacities within the Oklahoma Aberdeen Angus Breeder's Association and the American Aberdeen Angus Breeder's Association
, serving as President and Director, respectively. At one time his herd was the second-largest registered and accredited Aberdeen Angus herd in the country. During the many years he raised and sold cattle, a number of luminaries would travel to his farm to bid on his prized cattle. They included James Cash Penney, the founder of the J. C. Penney
stores; Tom Slick
, a world-renown oil man; C. R. Anthony, the founder of Anthony's stores; Armand Hammer
, the Chairman of Occidental Petroleum
and Robert S. Kerr
, U. S. Senator from Oklahoma, the "uncrowned King of the Senate" from Oklahoma, and co-founder of the Kerr-McGee
Company. In 1969, the same year he passed away, Kershaw's herd was formally recognized as one of the Pioneer Herds of North America by the American Angus Association
.
's visit to Oklahoma City, and was in the driver's seat during the tour of downtown Oklahoma City. Usually sporting a weathered cowboy (stockman's) hat, Kershaw (shown in the far right driver's seat, above) broke from tradition and wore a straw boater along with the rest of the welcoming party when they hosted the Vice President of the United States. The protective detail from the Secret Service and the Oklahoma City Police Department are wearing derby hats, police caps or dark cowboy hats. A year later, Sherman became the first sitting Vice President to fly in an airplane. Sherman was also the first Vice President to throw out the first ceremonial pitch at a professional baseball game, the first incumbent Vice President to be renominated by a National Convention, and the only Vice President whose marble bust in the U. S. Capitol is wearing eyeglasses.
As a public servant and as a business leader in his hometown of Muskogee, Oklahoma, Mr. Kershaw was a member of the Council of Defense during World War I. The Council responsibilities included the prevention of price gouging
or seed hoarding by farmers and merchants during commodities shortages, and to allow all consumers equal protection against profiteering or seed shortages. From 1924 through 1926, he was the Muskogee County Republican Party Chairman. In 1924, he was appointed as a delegate to the Republican National Convention held in the Public Auditorium
in Cleveland, Ohio
. He was instrumental in having the Puerto Rico
delegation recognized in a convention that nominated Calvin Coolidge
for the Presidency of the United States
. While it is notable that Oklahoma was one of the few southern states that did not carry the Republican ticket, this election was the last one in modern history that New York City
voted Republican, the first convention in history to be broadcast by nationwide radio and the first GOP convention to provide for equal representation by women.
That same year, he married Clara Amanda Harrison, of Princeton, Indiana
. Their first child, Patricia Ann was born the next year, in 1925. In 1927 they produced their first set of twins, Robert Eugene and Elizabeth "Betty" Kershaw and in 1933 they produced a second set of twins, Jean Mary and Joan Mary Kershaw. While Mr. Kershaw never served in the American military, his wife Clara could trace her ancestry back to the American Revolution, in which one of her ancestors, James Dowdle, served as a Revolutionary War soldier. She was a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution
, United Daughters of the Confederacy
and the Daughters of the American Colonists.
In 1930, Kershaw was a Republican candidate for the Governor of the state of Oklahoma. He withdrew early in the race when he observed that the populist Democratic candidate for governor, William "Alfalfa Bill" Murray
would easily be elected in the heavily-Democratic Oklahoma. He was mentioned as a potential appointee to a number of other offices during that period, including the US Congress for the 2nd District in Oklahoma, for the State of Oklahoma Highway Commission, for the State of Oklahoma Election Board and for the Agricultural Credit Corporation during the Great Depression
in the 1930s.
, the First National Bank of Barnsdall, OK; the Central National Bank of Bartlesville, OK; the First National Bank of Oktaha, OK; the Commercial National Bank of Independence, KS; the Security National Bank of Independence, KS (which were merged under his Receivership to form the Commercial-Security National Bank); the Montgomery County National Bank, in Cherryvale, KS; the Hutchin's First National Bank of Siloam Springs, AR and a number of others. At one time, he was receiver for 13 banks during the depression. It is notable that the Muskogee-Security National Bank (formerly known as the Iowa Building) was the first bank building in Muskogee, OK to have an electric elevator in the building and that the Exchange National Bank was the first bank building in Tulsa, OK to have an elevator, and was also the tallest building in Tulsa at the time. In 1930, he was appointed as Director of the Independent Petroleum Producer's Association.
As early as 1923, Kershaw began developing residential lots on the west side of town for new single-family homes. During World War II
he recognized the need to provide housing for the many returning veterans wishing to establish a home in Muskogee and he began platting residential subdivisions on the north and west side of Muskogee, to allow them to buy their first home a start raising a family. He financed many of these homes with his own capital, offering many first-time home buyers the opportunity to own their own home. Kershaw built homes in his subdivision using wood that came from disassembled Camp Gruber
structures, a nearby Army training base (and POW camp). Many returning soldiers after the war were able to purchase these buildings made into four-room homes by making a small down payment. Kershaw used both contracts for deed and mortgages to enable the ex-GIs to afford their purchases with small monthly payments. These additions included Kershaw Heights, Kershaw Circle, Kershaw Acres, East Park Place, Ridge Crest Addition, Home Acres 1st and 2nd Additions, Lincoln Park and Carver's First Addition. In East Park Place and in Ridge Crest Addition he named streets after Aberdeen, Avondale and Oxford after regions in England and Scotland where the Aberdeen Angus cattle originated, and named Elmwood and Illinois streets after his Illinois hometown.
stone quarried in Missouri. The home was built with a full basement with windows on 3 sides of the house, and had a complete finished attic. In later years, the home was equipped with an electric elevator which served passengers between the ground floor and the second floor of the home.
Built in 1906, (before Oklahoma statehood) at 1320 West Okmulgee, the former A. W. Patterson House in the City of Muskogee, Muskogee County, Oklahoma is one of the city’s most prominent homes. Located at the intersection of 14th Street and West Okmulgee, it is situated at the crest of a hill near the western edge of the downtown Muskogee neighborhood.
The home features several Richardsonian Romanesque qualities including the limestone rock coursed ashlar wall finish, the round arched entryway and round arched window surrounds, and the low-pitched red clay tile-covered hip roof with cross gables in front. The home was designed by McKibban & McKibban, an architectural firm which designed many of Muskogee's early commercial buildings. It was built with four covered porches, including the main south entry, the north side entry from the detached garage, and two interior covered porches, one which opened from a second-floor guest bedroom and the main porch one which spreads the entire width of the home on the east side, overlooking downtown Muskogee to the east. The open covered porch on the east side of the home had its own source of water supply and was large enough to accommodate a full-size hammock.
The home has a full walkout basement, with several separate rooms. The large foyer entry way inside the main entry door on the south side has dual sidelight clear lead-glass windows with beveled panes behind carved stone benches which straddle the front porch. This porch, with nearly a dozen steps up to the front door is the scene of many historical family photos and group photos for civic and social organizations within the city. Large and prominent stained glass windows were featured in this grand stately home, with the most prominent one, more than 9 feet high and more than 12 feet wide, at the mid-point stair landing visible only from the back yard and driveway on the north side of the home, away from the main street.
The residence was the home of two prominent Muskogee businessmen. A. W. Patterson was co-founder of the Bank of Muskogee in 1901 which later was re-named the Muskogee National Bank and he served as its president until 1918. Kershaw as acquainted with Patterson first as a tenant in his Iowa Building in 1904, then later as the National Bank Receiver for the Muskogee-Security National Bank, and finally as the subsequent owner of the Patterson home. Patterson was the driving force in promoting the Arkansas River as a navigable body of water and was the instrumental figure in the construction of Muskogee’s Convention Hall which was the site of the Trans-Mississippi Commercial Congress held in 1907. Patterson lived in the home his death in 1916, and the home was occupied by his widow until her death in 1934. Kershaw purchased the home from the Patterson daughters.
Kershaw lived in the family home until his death in 1969 at the age of 88. The home remained in the Kershaw family until 1973, or four years after the death of L. R. Kershaw. The home was listed on the National Register of Historic Places, by the National Park Service in 1984 as property #84003322.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
attorney
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
, banker, businessman, cattleman and political candidate
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
.
He is considered one of the pioneers of the Muskogee, Oklahoma
Muskogee, Oklahoma
Muskogee is a city in Muskogee County, Oklahoma, United States. It is the county seat of Muskogee County, and home to Bacone College. The population was 38,310 at the 2000 census, making it the eleventh-largest city in Oklahoma....
, area and the founder of Morris, Oklahoma
Morris, Oklahoma
Morris is a city in Okmulgee County, Oklahoma, United States. The townsite was platted in 1904 by L. R. Kershaw, who was an attorney and was also an Immigration Agent for the Frisco Railroad. He named the town after H. E. Morris, a Frisco Railroad executive...
, in 1904. Kershaw was a delegate to the Republican National Convention
Republican National Convention
The Republican National Convention is the presidential nominating convention of the Republican Party of the United States. Convened by the Republican National Committee, the stated purpose of the convocation is to nominate an official candidate in an upcoming U.S...
in 1924, and was later a candidate for the Governor of Oklahoma
Governor of Oklahoma
The governor of the state of Oklahoma is the head of state for the state of Oklahoma, United States. Under the Oklahoma Constitution, the governor is also the head of government, serving as the chief executive of the Oklahoma executive branch, of the government of Oklahoma...
in 1930.
Kershaw was a founder of the Eastern Oklahoma Electric Traction Company, and a pure-bred Aberdeen Angus breeder, with over 500 head of cattle. His prize-winning herd of black angus cattle brought buyers from all over the country to his 4,000 acre (16 km²) farm south of Muskogee. His herd was the second largest herd in the country, and the largest herd in Oklahoma
Oklahoma
Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
.
Personal
L.R. Kershaw, also known as Leroy Kershaw, was born in Elmwood, IllinoisElmwood, Illinois
Elmwood is a city in Peoria County, Illinois, United States. The population was 1,945 at the 2000 census. Elmwood is part of the Peoria, Illinois Metropolitan Statistical Area...
, on December 6, 1880, to David R. Kershaw and Jennie M. (Cole) Kershaw. He was an outstanding athlete in high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
, as an accomplished running back
Running back
A running back is a gridiron football position, who is typically lined up in the offensive backfield. The primary roles of a running back are to receive handoffs from the quarterback for a rushing play, to catch passes from out of the backfield, and to block.There are usually one or two running...
in football
High school football
High school football, in North America, refers to the game of football as it is played in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both of these nations....
and as a champion discus throw
Discus throw
The discus throw is an event in track and field athletics competition, in which an athlete throws a heavy disc—called a discus—in an attempt to mark a farther distance than his or her competitors. It is an ancient sport, as evidenced by the 5th century BC Myron statue, Discobolus...
er in track & field
Track and field
Track and field is a sport comprising various competitive athletic contests based around the activities of running, jumping and throwing. The name of the sport derives from the venue for the competitions: a stadium which features an oval running track surrounding a grassy area...
events.
Early Indian Territory and Oklahoma land development
Kershaw graduated from Elmwood, Illinois, High School and worked his way through college waiting tables, selling nursery stock and selling real estate. Kershaw graduated from the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana, Illinois, where he was a charter member of the honorary law fraternity, the Benjamin D. Magruder Chapter of Phi Alpha Delta in 1904. Professionally, he first became an Immigrant Agent for the St. Louis-San Francisco RailwaySt. Louis-San Francisco Railway
The St. Louis – San Francisco Railway , also known as the Frisco, was a railroad that operated in the Midwest and South Central U.S. from 1876 to 1980.-History:...
, also known as the Frisco railroad, selling land to farmers for farms along the wide railroad right-of way in Northeastern Oklahoma. He bought many farms along the way, and in 1904 moved to Oklahoma himself. He was one of the founders of the Farmer's State Bank in Morris (in 1905) and the First National Bank of Morris (in 1908), (Indian Territory) Oklahoma. In 1910 he purchased the controlling interest in the National Bank of Okmulgee, Oklahoma. With the connections he had established with the railroad, he platted the town site of Morris, Oklahoma
Morris, Oklahoma
Morris is a city in Okmulgee County, Oklahoma, United States. The townsite was platted in 1904 by L. R. Kershaw, who was an attorney and was also an Immigration Agent for the Frisco Railroad. He named the town after H. E. Morris, a Frisco Railroad executive...
. The town of Morris was named after H. E. Morris, a railroad executive with the Frisco railroad. The railroad went through the center of town, between Ft. Smith, Arkansas, and Tulsa, Oklahoma
Tulsa, Oklahoma
Tulsa is the second-largest city in the state of Oklahoma and 46th-largest city in the United States. With a population of 391,906 as of the 2010 census, it is the principal municipality of the Tulsa Metropolitan Area, a region with 937,478 residents in the MSA and 988,454 in the CSA. Tulsa's...
. The town of Morris was founded in 1904, before statehood. Oklahoma became a state in November 1907.
In Morris, Oklahoma, many of the street names were named after towns Kershaw was familiar with in Illinois, such as Elmwood, his place of birth, along with Pekin
Pekin, Illinois
Pekin is a the county seat of Tazewell County in the U.S. state of Illinois. Located on the Illinois River, Pekin is also the largest city of Tazewell County, and a key part of the Peoria metropolitan area. As of the 2010 census, its population is 34,094. A small portion of the city limits extends...
and Peoria
Peoria, Illinois
Peoria is the largest city on the Illinois River and the county seat of Peoria County, Illinois, in the United States. It is named after the Peoria tribe. As of the 2010 census, the city was the seventh-most populated in Illinois, with a population of 115,007, and is the third-most populated...
. Hughes Street, the main street of Morris was named in honor of the General Immigration Agent for the Frisco Railroad, and President of the Frisco System Land & Immigration Association, Samuel A. Hughes. He also named a short street Frisco, after the railroad which brought him to Oklahoma, and streets were named after several Presidents, including Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
, Adams
John Adams
John Adams was an American lawyer, statesman, diplomat and political theorist. A leading champion of independence in 1776, he was the second President of the United States...
, Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom , the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia...
, Madison
James Madison
James Madison, Jr. was an American statesman and political theorist. He was the fourth President of the United States and is hailed as the “Father of the Constitution” for being the primary author of the United States Constitution and at first an opponent of, and then a key author of the United...
, Monroe
James Monroe
James Monroe was the fifth President of the United States . Monroe was the last president who was a Founding Father of the United States, and the last president from the Virginia dynasty and the Republican Generation...
, Jackson
Andrew Jackson
Andrew Jackson was the seventh President of the United States . Based in frontier Tennessee, Jackson was a politician and army general who defeated the Creek Indians at the Battle of Horseshoe Bend , and the British at the Battle of New Orleans...
as well as one after Benjamin Franklin
Benjamin Franklin
Dr. Benjamin Franklin was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. A noted polymath, Franklin was a leading author, printer, political theorist, politician, postmaster, scientist, musician, inventor, satirist, civic activist, statesman, and diplomat...
, one of the early leaders of the United States.
Kershaw always maintained strong financial ties to Muskogee, including his appointment in 1910 as an agent for the Bartholomew Motor Company, of Peoria, Illinois, representing the Muskogee area. The Bartholomew Company produced the Glide (automobile company)
Glide (automobile company)
The Glide automobile was an American automobile manufactured by the Bartholomew Company in Peoria Heights, Illinois beginning in 1902. Founded by John B. Bartholomew, the company continued to produce automobiles until 1920, when the company began manufacturing trucks for the Avery Company, of which...
car, an entry-level 4 to 7-passenger touring car. Kershaw used one of these touring cars to transport potential buyers interested in buying farms in the area. His appointment as an automobile dealer was short-lived as he foresaw the future being more profitable in the real estate sales and development business than in the sale of automobiles.
Kershaw was a delegate representing the City of Muskogee at the Trans-Mississippi Commercial Congress held in Kansas City, Missouri, in November 1911. In December 1911, Kershaw was a delegate representing the State of Oklahoma at the Nineteenth National Irrigation Congress
National Irrigation Congress
The National Irrigation Congress was held periodically in the Western United States beginning in 1891 and ending in 1916, by which time the organization had changed its name to International Irrigation Congress. It was a "powerful pressure group."...
in Chicago, IL. The Congress was influential in recommending conservation and reclamation of arid lands in the newly populated areas of the country. The Congress help draft legislation for the creation of water reservoirs for the future drinking water and hydro-electric power generation needs of the country. Over time, Oklahoma developed more man-made reservoirs of water than any other state and today has more lakeshore frontage than any other state in the country, with the exception of Minnesota.
Career in registered Aberdeen Angus exhibition and breeding
In 1912, Kershaw began a long career as a cattleman, with the initial purchase of a herd of registered Aberdeen Angus cattle from the Gatewood herd of Texas and the Nicholas herd in Iowa. He recognized the potential of raising high-quality show and breeding stock of a breed of cattle which were well-suited for the short grass of Oklahoma and the long, dry summers. Angus cattle could be cross-bred with the Texas longhornTexas longhorn (cattle)
The Texas Longhorn is a breed of cattle known for its characteristic horns, which can extend to tip to tip for steers and exceptional cows, and tip to tip for bulls. Horns can have a slight upward turn at their tips or even triple twist. Texas Longhorns are known for their diverse coloring...
, and the product would be a hornless breed of cattle. Angus bulls were popular with cattle breeders for their first cow because the calves would be small, and easy to deliver for the new cows. Kershaw was elected a Director of the New Oklahoma Free State Fair in Muskogee in 1913. It was the largest free State Fair and exposition in Oklahoma at the time. In 1917, one of Kershaw's prize bulls, winner of 19 championships, Ben Hur of Lone Dell, was featured on the cover of the Breeder's Gazette, the leading publication in the country at the time, advocating pedigreed cattle stock.
Kershaw showed the Grand Champion Steer, Muskogee Boy at the International Livestock Exposition in Chicago in 1917. In March, 1918, this prize steer was offered for sale in a public auction
Public auction
A public auction is an auction held on behalf of a government in which the property to be auctioned is either property owned by the government, or property which is sold under the authority of a court of law or a government agency with similar authority....
held in the lobby of the Lee-Huckins Hotel in downtown Oklahoma City for the benefit of the American Red Cross
American Red Cross
The American Red Cross , also known as the American National Red Cross, is a volunteer-led, humanitarian organization that provides emergency assistance, disaster relief and education inside the United States. It is the designated U.S...
. (The Lee-Huckins Hotel served as the State Capitol from 1910 to 1917).
The auction brought $3.16 a pound for the steer, for a total of $5,890 for the Red Cross Fund. This sale price set a new world record for the sale of a champion steer. This was in the middle of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
and the funds were used to help American soldiers. The coat from the steer was made into an overcoat for President Woodrow Wilson
Woodrow Wilson
Thomas Woodrow Wilson was the 28th President of the United States, from 1913 to 1921. A leader of the Progressive Movement, he served as President of Princeton University from 1902 to 1910, and then as the Governor of New Jersey from 1911 to 1913...
and the meat was processed for General "Blackjack" Pershing
John J. Pershing
John Joseph "Black Jack" Pershing, GCB , was a general officer in the United States Army who led the American Expeditionary Forces in World War I...
's staff in France who shared it with wounded soldiers. Later that year, Kershaw was elected President of the Southwest American Livestock Show, one of the premier livestock shows in the Southwest.
Whenever possible, Kershaw would use an International grand champion bull or a son of one in his breeding program. One such bull was Plowman (son of the 1911 International grand champion, Kloman). Kershaw purchased Plowman for $3,050 after he won his class at the 1917 International Livestock Exposition in Chicago, IL. In 1919, Kershaw won the Grand Champion Steer trophy, with Muskogee Boy II, the brother to Muskogee Boy at the Texas State Fair in Dallas. That same year, his prize bull, Plowman, won the Grand Champion Bull trophy at five of the nation's most prestigious livestock shows, including the American Royal
American Royal
The American Royal in Kansas City, Missouri is a livestock show, horse show and rodeo held each year in October and November at Kemper Arena. The Future Farmers of America was founded during the Royal and Kansas City's professional baseball team the Kansas City Royals derive their name from the...
Livestock Show in Kansas City, MO; the Southwest American Livestock Show in Oklahoma City, OK; the National Western Stock Show
National Western Stock Show
The National Western Stock Show is held every January at the National Western Complex in Denver, Colorado. First held in 1906, it is the world's largest stock show by number of animals and offers the world’s only carload and pen cattle show in the historic Denver Union Stockyards.The stock show is...
in Denver, CO; the Southwestern Exposition and Fat Stock Show, which was later named the Southwestern Exposition and Livestock Show
Southwestern Exposition and Livestock Show
The Southwestern Exposition and Livestock Show, known commonly as the Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo is the oldest continual running livestock show and rodeo. It has been held annually in Fort Worth, Texas since 1896. In 1918, the Stock Show held the world's first indoor rodeo, and in subsequent...
in Fort Worth, TX and also at the Kansas National Live Stock Show in Wichita, KS. After an extensive show career (Plowman claimed 57 grand championships as a 2,250-lb. 3-year old show bull) the bull was sold in Kershaw’s 1920 sale for $40,000 - a price unheard of at that time and a world record for many years. The dispersion sale of his herd at his ranch south of Muskogee in 1920 brought experienced buyers from all over the country to bid on some of Kershaw's prize stock. There has never been another herd of cattle that has shown over as wide an area of country and won so many premiums as that belonging to Kershaw. In this sale was included Plowman, one of the champion bulls in his herd, the champion of champions, with 57 championships to his credit, more than any other bull, living or dead; and Twin Burn Pride (V), crowned champion cow with 37 championships to her credit. The herd had won 266 grand championships, 685 first place rankings, 370 second-place, 186 third-place, 79 fourth-place and 43 fifth-place rankings, within a period of six years, bringing to the owner innumerable cups and silver trophies. He had intended to sell his complete herd at this sale, but instead held back one of his prize bulls and started all over with new cattle.
As President of the Southwest Livestock Show, he recognized the need for a new facility to show cattle in Oklahoma City, which was founded in 1889. He convinced officials with the Armour and Company
Armour and Company
Armour & Company was an American slaughterhouse and meatpacking company founded in Chicago, Illinois, in 1867 by the Armour brothers, led by Philip Danforth Armour. By 1880, the company was Chicago's most important business and helped make the city and its Union Stock Yards the center of the...
packing house in Chicago to contribute $200,000 charged to advertising to go towards the construction of a Livestock Pavilion at the Oklahoma City stockyards. The fund raising began in 1920 and the new facility, the largest of its kind in the Southwest, was completed in 1922. In its time, the Oklahoma City stockyards and its related suppliers became one of the largest industries in the city.
He continued to raise show and breeding cattle through 1948. From 1916 through 1948 he served in various leadership capacities within the Oklahoma Aberdeen Angus Breeder's Association and the American Aberdeen Angus Breeder's Association
American Angus Association
The American Angus Association was founded in Chicago, Illinois, in 1883, with 60 members. Its original name was shortened in the 1950s from the American Aberdeen-Angus Breeders' Association...
, serving as President and Director, respectively. At one time his herd was the second-largest registered and accredited Aberdeen Angus herd in the country. During the many years he raised and sold cattle, a number of luminaries would travel to his farm to bid on his prized cattle. They included James Cash Penney, the founder of the J. C. Penney
J. C. Penney
-External links:*...
stores; Tom Slick
Tom Slick
Thomas Baker "Tom" Slick, Jr. was a San Antonio, Texas based inventor, businessman, adventurer, and heir to an oil business. Slick's father, Thomas Baker Slick, Sr., a.k.a. "The King of the Wildcatters", had made a fortune during the Texas oil boom of the 1920s.-Career:During the 1950s, Slick was...
, a world-renown oil man; C. R. Anthony, the founder of Anthony's stores; Armand Hammer
Armand Hammer
Armand Hammer was an American business tycoon most closely associated with Occidental Petroleum, a company he ran for decades, though he was known as well as for his art collection, his philanthropy, and for his close ties to the Soviet Union.Thanks to business interests around the world and his...
, the Chairman of Occidental Petroleum
Occidental Petroleum
Occidental Petroleum Corporation is a California-based oil and gas exploration and production company with operations in the United States, the Middle East, North Africa, and South America...
and Robert S. Kerr
Robert S. Kerr
Robert Samuel Kerr was an American businessman from Oklahoma. Kerr formed a petroleum company before turning to politics. He served as the 12th Governor of Oklahoma and was elected three times to the United States Senate...
, U. S. Senator from Oklahoma, the "uncrowned King of the Senate" from Oklahoma, and co-founder of the Kerr-McGee
Kerr-McGee
The Kerr-McGee Corporation, founded in 1929, was an energy company involved in the exploration and production of oil and gas. On June 23, 2006, Houston-based Anadarko Petroleum Corporation agreed to acquire Kerr-McGee in an all-cash transaction totaling $16.5 billion plus the assumption of $2.6...
Company. In 1969, the same year he passed away, Kershaw's herd was formally recognized as one of the Pioneer Herds of North America by the American Angus Association
American Angus Association
The American Angus Association was founded in Chicago, Illinois, in 1883, with 60 members. Its original name was shortened in the 1950s from the American Aberdeen-Angus Breeders' Association...
.
Public and political service
Active in state politics since 1905, L. R. Kershaw was a delegate to Oklahoma State and Muskogee County conventions. In 1906 he was nominated to the Oklahoma Constitutional Convention for the 74th District of Indian Territory, which became the new state of Oklahoma in 1907. In 1910, a young L. R. Kershaw played host to James S. ShermanJames S. Sherman
James Schoolcraft Sherman was a United States Representative from New York and the 27th Vice President of the United States . He was a member of the Baldwin, Hoar, and Sherman families.-Early life:...
's visit to Oklahoma City, and was in the driver's seat during the tour of downtown Oklahoma City. Usually sporting a weathered cowboy (stockman's) hat, Kershaw (shown in the far right driver's seat, above) broke from tradition and wore a straw boater along with the rest of the welcoming party when they hosted the Vice President of the United States. The protective detail from the Secret Service and the Oklahoma City Police Department are wearing derby hats, police caps or dark cowboy hats. A year later, Sherman became the first sitting Vice President to fly in an airplane. Sherman was also the first Vice President to throw out the first ceremonial pitch at a professional baseball game, the first incumbent Vice President to be renominated by a National Convention, and the only Vice President whose marble bust in the U. S. Capitol is wearing eyeglasses.
As a public servant and as a business leader in his hometown of Muskogee, Oklahoma, Mr. Kershaw was a member of the Council of Defense during World War I. The Council responsibilities included the prevention of price gouging
Price gouging
Price gouging is a pejorative term referring to a situation in which a seller prices goods or commodities much higher than is considered reasonable or fair. In precise, legal usage, it is the name of a crime that applies in some of the United States during civil emergencies...
or seed hoarding by farmers and merchants during commodities shortages, and to allow all consumers equal protection against profiteering or seed shortages. From 1924 through 1926, he was the Muskogee County Republican Party Chairman. In 1924, he was appointed as a delegate to the Republican National Convention held in the Public Auditorium
Public Auditorium
Public Auditorium is located in the central business district of downtown Cleveland, Ohio. Since it was opened in 1922, it has served as a concert hall, sports arena and convention center. Although it was planned and funded prior to World War I, construction did not begin until 1920. Designed by...
in Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...
. He was instrumental in having the Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
delegation recognized in a convention that nominated Calvin Coolidge
Calvin Coolidge
John Calvin Coolidge, Jr. was the 30th President of the United States . A Republican lawyer from Vermont, Coolidge worked his way up the ladder of Massachusetts state politics, eventually becoming governor of that state...
for the Presidency of the United States
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
. While it is notable that Oklahoma was one of the few southern states that did not carry the Republican ticket, this election was the last one in modern history that New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
voted Republican, the first convention in history to be broadcast by nationwide radio and the first GOP convention to provide for equal representation by women.
That same year, he married Clara Amanda Harrison, of Princeton, Indiana
Princeton, Indiana
The median income for a household in the city was $26,689, and the median income for a family was $37,308. Males had a median income of $28,076 versus $19,825 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,049...
. Their first child, Patricia Ann was born the next year, in 1925. In 1927 they produced their first set of twins, Robert Eugene and Elizabeth "Betty" Kershaw and in 1933 they produced a second set of twins, Jean Mary and Joan Mary Kershaw. While Mr. Kershaw never served in the American military, his wife Clara could trace her ancestry back to the American Revolution, in which one of her ancestors, James Dowdle, served as a Revolutionary War soldier. She was a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution
Daughters of the American Revolution
The Daughters of the American Revolution is a lineage-based membership organization for women who are descended from a person involved in United States' independence....
, United Daughters of the Confederacy
United Daughters of the Confederacy
The United Daughters of the Confederacy is a women's heritage association dedicated to honoring the memory of those who served in the military and died in service to the Confederate States of America . UDC began as the National Association of the Daughters of the Confederacy, organized in 1894 by...
and the Daughters of the American Colonists.
In 1930, Kershaw was a Republican candidate for the Governor of the state of Oklahoma. He withdrew early in the race when he observed that the populist Democratic candidate for governor, William "Alfalfa Bill" Murray
William H. Murray
William Henry Davis "Alfalfa Bill" Murray was an American teacher, lawyer, and politician who became active in Oklahoma before statehood as legal adviser to Governor Douglas H. Johnston of the Chickasaw Nation...
would easily be elected in the heavily-Democratic Oklahoma. He was mentioned as a potential appointee to a number of other offices during that period, including the US Congress for the 2nd District in Oklahoma, for the State of Oklahoma Highway Commission, for the State of Oklahoma Election Board and for the Agricultural Credit Corporation during the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
in the 1930s.
Bank receiver for OCC, homebuilding and development
Kershaw served as a Director of the American Aberdeen-Angus Breeder's Association from 1916 through 1920. Starting in 1926, and through the Great Depression he was appointed by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, (the OCC) the lead regulator for National Banks at the time, as the receiver for a number of national and state banks, located in three states. These banks included the Security National Bank of Muskogee,OK; the Muskogee National Bank, Muskogee, OK (these two banks were merged under his receivership to form the Muskogee-Security National Bank); Central State Bank of Muskogee, OK; the Guaranty Trust Company, Muskogee, OK; Producer's National Bank in Tulsa, OK, Exchange National Bank of Tulsa, OKBOK Financial Corporation
BOK Financial Corporation , based in Tulsa, Oklahoma, is a financial services company in the West South Central States region of the United States. The corporate headquarters is located in the BOK Tower in downtown Tulsa. BOK Financial's holdings include BOKF, NA, BOSC, Inc, Cavanal Hill Investment...
, the First National Bank of Barnsdall, OK; the Central National Bank of Bartlesville, OK; the First National Bank of Oktaha, OK; the Commercial National Bank of Independence, KS; the Security National Bank of Independence, KS (which were merged under his Receivership to form the Commercial-Security National Bank); the Montgomery County National Bank, in Cherryvale, KS; the Hutchin's First National Bank of Siloam Springs, AR and a number of others. At one time, he was receiver for 13 banks during the depression. It is notable that the Muskogee-Security National Bank (formerly known as the Iowa Building) was the first bank building in Muskogee, OK to have an electric elevator in the building and that the Exchange National Bank was the first bank building in Tulsa, OK to have an elevator, and was also the tallest building in Tulsa at the time. In 1930, he was appointed as Director of the Independent Petroleum Producer's Association.
As early as 1923, Kershaw began developing residential lots on the west side of town for new single-family homes. During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
he recognized the need to provide housing for the many returning veterans wishing to establish a home in Muskogee and he began platting residential subdivisions on the north and west side of Muskogee, to allow them to buy their first home a start raising a family. He financed many of these homes with his own capital, offering many first-time home buyers the opportunity to own their own home. Kershaw built homes in his subdivision using wood that came from disassembled Camp Gruber
Camp Gruber
Camp Gruber Maneuver Training Center is an Oklahoma Army National Guard training facility used for Summer field training exercises and for monthly drills. It covers a total of .The base is named after General Edmund L...
structures, a nearby Army training base (and POW camp). Many returning soldiers after the war were able to purchase these buildings made into four-room homes by making a small down payment. Kershaw used both contracts for deed and mortgages to enable the ex-GIs to afford their purchases with small monthly payments. These additions included Kershaw Heights, Kershaw Circle, Kershaw Acres, East Park Place, Ridge Crest Addition, Home Acres 1st and 2nd Additions, Lincoln Park and Carver's First Addition. In East Park Place and in Ridge Crest Addition he named streets after Aberdeen, Avondale and Oxford after regions in England and Scotland where the Aberdeen Angus cattle originated, and named Elmwood and Illinois streets after his Illinois hometown.
Historic home
In 1943 he bought the former home of banker A. W. Patterson, and he continued to live there as his 5 children and many grandchildren grew up around a huge lot in the middle of town. The home had 5 bedrooms on the second floor and a large outdoor deck surrounded with rough-hewn CarthageCarthage, Missouri
Carthage is a city in Jasper County, Missouri, United States. The population was 14,378 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Jasper County and is nicknamed "America's Maple Leaf City."...
stone quarried in Missouri. The home was built with a full basement with windows on 3 sides of the house, and had a complete finished attic. In later years, the home was equipped with an electric elevator which served passengers between the ground floor and the second floor of the home.
Built in 1906, (before Oklahoma statehood) at 1320 West Okmulgee, the former A. W. Patterson House in the City of Muskogee, Muskogee County, Oklahoma is one of the city’s most prominent homes. Located at the intersection of 14th Street and West Okmulgee, it is situated at the crest of a hill near the western edge of the downtown Muskogee neighborhood.
The home features several Richardsonian Romanesque qualities including the limestone rock coursed ashlar wall finish, the round arched entryway and round arched window surrounds, and the low-pitched red clay tile-covered hip roof with cross gables in front. The home was designed by McKibban & McKibban, an architectural firm which designed many of Muskogee's early commercial buildings. It was built with four covered porches, including the main south entry, the north side entry from the detached garage, and two interior covered porches, one which opened from a second-floor guest bedroom and the main porch one which spreads the entire width of the home on the east side, overlooking downtown Muskogee to the east. The open covered porch on the east side of the home had its own source of water supply and was large enough to accommodate a full-size hammock.
The home has a full walkout basement, with several separate rooms. The large foyer entry way inside the main entry door on the south side has dual sidelight clear lead-glass windows with beveled panes behind carved stone benches which straddle the front porch. This porch, with nearly a dozen steps up to the front door is the scene of many historical family photos and group photos for civic and social organizations within the city. Large and prominent stained glass windows were featured in this grand stately home, with the most prominent one, more than 9 feet high and more than 12 feet wide, at the mid-point stair landing visible only from the back yard and driveway on the north side of the home, away from the main street.
The residence was the home of two prominent Muskogee businessmen. A. W. Patterson was co-founder of the Bank of Muskogee in 1901 which later was re-named the Muskogee National Bank and he served as its president until 1918. Kershaw as acquainted with Patterson first as a tenant in his Iowa Building in 1904, then later as the National Bank Receiver for the Muskogee-Security National Bank, and finally as the subsequent owner of the Patterson home. Patterson was the driving force in promoting the Arkansas River as a navigable body of water and was the instrumental figure in the construction of Muskogee’s Convention Hall which was the site of the Trans-Mississippi Commercial Congress held in 1907. Patterson lived in the home his death in 1916, and the home was occupied by his widow until her death in 1934. Kershaw purchased the home from the Patterson daughters.
Kershaw lived in the family home until his death in 1969 at the age of 88. The home remained in the Kershaw family until 1973, or four years after the death of L. R. Kershaw. The home was listed on the National Register of Historic Places, by the National Park Service in 1984 as property #84003322.