CROCKET LADD
OF
ATOKA OKLAHOMA

Family tradition says that Crocket came to Oklahoma, Indian Territory, while tracking horse thieves. When this was asked of Jim Ladd, the grandson that grew up near his grandfather, he related the following story: "Grand-dad showed me the ruins of an old rock house and told me that he had danced all night there when he first came to the Territory. The next morning he went to where the two horse thieves were known to be. He approached them, in a public place, identified himself, and informed them that they were under arrest and that they could go back to Arkansas either sitting upright or slung across their saddles, that it did not matter to him which; they chose to go upright in their saddles."

In l952 or '53, Jim met an old man in Durant who had been a witness to the arrest. He told Jim his version of the arrest and ended his story with the comment that, "Crocket Ladd was the meanest little left handed man that he had ever known."

According to family stories, Crocket was very impressed with the country around Atoka and that he moved his family there not too long after the arrest of the horse thieves. He and his wife Mary had twelve children, four of which died as infants. Their youngest child, Lora, remembers her mother as "the best cook that ever set foot in a kitchen" and her father as a good man but one whose word was the law and gospel. In October l985, the youngest of these twelve children wrote: "Lora M. Ladd Winters, youngest child of David Crocket Ladd and Mary Carol Hankins Ladd. Dad birth date, Feb. 26, l860. Mother's, December 30, l859, both born in Arkansas. As far as I know; Jim, Walter, Ed and Roy all borned before they came to Oklahoma. I was born at Silo, Oklahoma. We were farmers, always had stock. Raised most of our living on the farm; went to town twice a year for things we didn't have on the farm. We butchered plenty of pork to do from one winter until time for hog killing time, had plenty of milk and butter from our cows and had lots of chickens. Canned and dried our fruit and vegetables. Always had plenty of good food and Molly as Papa called her was the best cook that ever went into a kitchen. No modern conveniences; did the work the hard way.

"We lived in Bryan County until I was about ten years old and then moved back to Atoka County. We still farmed on the big scale. Dad dealt in cattle, we family did most of the farming. When court was in session my dad was always on jury duty. We kids was like most, didn't keep the work up and Mama would say Crocket will be mad and if we don't have all the things done he had laid out for us. So, before he come in we would work real hard because Dad was very strict, his word was his hand, a good provider. When we quit farming he still had cattle. Larkin my brother leased a place in Bryan County and Papa and Mama moved down there, taking his cattle, and Larkin had cattle too, during the year. Their house and all their belongings burned there. They sold their cows and moved to where Ray lived, five miles east of Atoka. They used the money from the sale of the cows and built a house and there they lived for the rest of their lives. Mama lived for four months after Papa was gone. My sister Annie came and stayed with her."

Submitted by: Charles Ladd.

Feb 11, 1998