Transportation Crossroads

The stone's last traveler is Ben Milam, cut here as Milan. Born in Frankfort, Kentucky in 1788, he first went to the upper Red River in 1818 to trade with the Comanche, and the OHS encyclopedia counts him among those who may have passed Fort Towson. He joined the Long Expedition, was jailed in Mexico more than once and became a Mexican citizen and colonel. On December 4, 1835, during the siege of San Antonio, he called for volunteers to storm the town; he was killed there on December 7. Milam County, Texas is named for him.

What the plaque says

Transportation Crossroads During the early 1800s, present southeastern Oklahoma was a major transportation crossroads. Roads connected Fort Towson in the Choctaw Nation to military installations to the north, south and west. On the Texas side of the Red River, Jonesboro was a major entry point for thousands headed for Austin's Colony and other settle- ments in Texas. Along these routes traveled such notable persons as General Zachary Taylor, Sam Houston, David Crockett, Jefferson Davis, and Benjamin Milan.

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Fort Towson Historic Site — steps away
  The 1824 Red River post where arriving Choctaw and Chickasaw families were dispersed after removal, beside the site of Doaksville, the Choctaw capital where Stand Watie surrendered in 1865.

More markers nearby

• Fort Towson Landing — 0.7 mi
• Fort Towson — 0.7 mi
• Doaksville — 0.9 mi
• Stand Watie's Surrender — 0.9 mi