The Langston City Herald was founded in 1890. It was a black newspaper based in the Oklahoma Territory and circulated throughout the South. Edwin and Sarah McCabe found a need for the paper after arriving in the Oklahoma Territory from Kansas. The paper became a vital way to help spread the news throughout the black communities.

During 1891 and 1893, the paper ran a column which called men and women to settle the farmland around Langston City. Men and women were warned that they should be ready for tough times and be prepared to stick it out.

African Americans were encouraged to put a claim to land for it was their last chance for free homes. One editorial proclaimed: “Wherever you can find it to get 40, 80, or 100 acres of land and claim it as your homestead.” As evidence that the land was claimed, people were told to make visible improvements. Drive a stake with their name on it, cut timber to lay the foundation of a house, and do some plowing or other act that will show to others that the land was occupied.

The Langston City Herald urged that everyone interested in making a homestead should bring “a Winchester, a frying pan, and a fifteen dollar filing fee.” Thousands of African Americans responded to the call.

sources:

https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83025050/