From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The term Sooners was used to describe settlers who entered the Unassigned Lands, located in the current state of Oklahoma, before President Benjamin Harrison officially proclaimed them open to settlement with the Indian Appropriation Act of 1889 on March 2, 1889. The name derived from the "sooner clause" of the Indian Appropriation Act, which stated that no one should be allowed to enter and occupy the land prior to the opening time and that such people would be denied rights to illegally-claimed land.^[1]

Sooners were often deputy marshals, land surveyors, railroad employees, and others who were able to legally enter the territory early to mark out choice pieces of land for themselves or others.^[2] Some sooners crossed into the territory illegally at night and were originally called "moonshiners" because they entered "by the light of the moon." These sooners would hide in ditches at night and suddenly appear to stake their claim after the land run started, hours ahead of legal settlers.^[1]

The term Boomer relating to Oklahoma has two meanings. The first boomers were part of the "Boomer Movement," made up of white settlers who believed the Unassigned Lands were public property and open to anyone for settlement, not just Indian tribes. Their reasoning came from a clause in the Homestead Act of 1862, which said that any settler could claim 160 acres of public land.^[3] Some boomers entered and were removed more than once by the United States Army.

Those who observed the official start of the land run and began the race for free land at the sound of the starting boom were also called "boomers." These boomers, however, often found choice sections of land already occupied by sooners or, in some cases, by boomers. Problems with sooners continued with each successive land run, with as much as 50% of available land taken by sooners in an 1895 land run.

Litigation between boomers and sooners continued well into the 20th century, and eventually the United States Department of the Interior was given ultimate authority to settle the disputes.^[1]

In 1908 the University of Oklahoma adopted "Sooners" as the nickname of their football team (after having first tried "Rough Riders" and "Boomers"). Within about a decade, the word 'Sooner' mostly lost its association with those who had broken the law and it became a "badge of pride and progressivism".^[1] Eventually Oklahoma became known as "The Sooner State."

This even reflects in the motto of the Los Angeles class submarine USS Oklahoma City (SSN 723): "The Sooner, the Better"

• Oklahoma Historical Society

This Oklahoma-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.