Sawokla, Miss Alice Robertson's Home

In 1910, Miss Alice Robertson built her famed home, Sawokla, on Agency Hill west of downtown Muskogee. It looked out over the Arkansas River toward the old Tullahassee Mission. Her farm abutted the park on Agency Hill. All visitors found themselves welcomed with warm wit and conversation.

Oklahoma's future congressional representative was able to build Sawokla after obtaining the postmaster's job for Muskogee in 1905. This steady income, and money from the sale of other real estate, enabled Miss Alice to build her home.

Her house included one hundred linear feet of porches wrapping around three sides. This suggests her home covered about 1200 square feet in area. Since it was a two-story structure, her actual available floor space was double that area.

She named her home after the Sawokli Indians. The Sawokli were a small tribe from the Barbour County, Alabama, area. In 1832, there were only two chiefs and fifty-six families in the tribe.

The Sawokli were one of the thirty-one "white" Creek towns. White Creeks wore white beads that were symbols for peace, friendship, happiness, etc. The tribal name means "Raccoon Town."

The tribe migrated with the other Creeks and settled in the Concharty Mountain area. The last members of this tribe are buried on the old N. B. Moore ranch near the former Midland Valley railway tracks. Moore was Miss Alice's brother-in-law.

After leaving office, Miss Alice would drive her team up to Mrs. Lucy Ballou's residence in Muskogee and call out "Mrs. Bert, I'm here." Lucy's husband was Albert Ballou. Mrs. Bert and Miss Alice then rode out to Sawokla where they settled into comfortable chairs for a Sunday afternoon discussion. Miss Alice always served buttermilk and cornbread as refreshments because she never cooked on Sundays.

Miss Alice's beloved home burned down in August of 1925. Lucy Ballou's daughter, Bettye Ashwood, reported the fire started when the gardener placed a kerosene lantern too near window curtains.

At first, Miss Alice thought the location where the fire began indicated revenge. In her grief, she feared her home's loss was part of political repercussions of her failed bid for re-election less than a year earlier. She regretted feeling that way five years later.

Regardless of the cause, the fire destroyed many of Miss Alice's keepsakes and heirlooms. Destroyed treasures included the trousseaus belonging to both her mother and to her grandmother. A hand towel once belonging to Daniel Webster's mother also burned up.

The embers were still glowing when Miss Alice surveyed the ruins. Firefighters and neighbors were able to drag outside much of the furniture from the first floor before the fire caused the collapse of the roof and upper floor. Fortunately, someone saved her mother's portrait.

Salvaged furniture surrounded her and the surviving walls. Facing the future with strength, Miss Alice said, "I shall never live in Sawokla again. It belongs to the memories of the past." Despite statewide offers to assist her in rebuilding her home, Miss Alice never did.

Bettye Ashwood and Charles Wallis, state historical archaeologist, provided assistance for this article.