California Road

Nine years after Marcy's company passed the Antelope Hills, the country beyond them saw a raid that broke federal law. In spring 1858 Captain John S. Ford led 102 Texas Rangers and 113 Indian allies, mostly Tonkawa, Anadarko and Caddo, north against the Comanche. On May 12 they attacked a large Comanche village northwest of the hills near the mouth of Little Robe Creek, in present Ellis County, and the chief Iron Jacket, wearing an old Spanish mail shirt, was killed. Texas hailed a victory, but the incursion violated the sovereignty of Indian Territory.

What the plaque says

California Road In April 1849 Capt. Randolph Marcy, commander of Fort Towson, received orders to escort the Fort Smith and California Emigrating Company through Indian Territory. The expedition departed from Fort Smith, Arkansas, and generally followed the Canadian River, past towns and trading centers as well as geographic features such as the Antelope Hills located northwest of this marker. Capt. Marcy employed Black Beaver (Suck-tum-mah-kway), a Delaware guide and interpreter, to assist in navigating terrain and communicating with Native American tribes. Although the company asked for a military escort to California, Marcy's detachment accompanied them as far as Santa Fe, New Mexico, before returning to Fort Smith via a southern route through Texas and Indian Territory that was later utilized by the Butterfield Overland Mail. Emigrants to California's gold fields used numerous land and sea routes. Of the over 70,000 emigrants who traveled overland to California in 1849-50, approximately 20,000 traveled along this southern California Road, also known as the Marcy Trail. In addition to accompanying gold seekers, Marcy's expedition represented an attempt by the United States to exert control over the American West by establishing military roads and outposts. Oklahoma Historical Society

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Washita Battlefield National Historic Site — 13 mi
  The bend of the Washita where the 7th Cavalry attacked Black Kettle's Cheyenne village at dawn on November 27, 1868, kept by the Park Service with a trail to the village site.

More markers nearby

• Battle of the Washita — 13 mi
• Sandstone Creek Area — 23 mi
• Great Western Trail — 31 mi