The 101 Ranch

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The 101 Ranch

It is said that you can hear cowboys singing over the hills and plains while the crickets croon in the night. Sometimes it is a pleasant melody, other times it's a ballad. There is more than one voice as well and the sound of clapping and laughter.

The sounds from the hoedown have been heard for half a century. Many a picnicker has heard these mysterious sounds along the 177 through Kay County, Oklahoma.

Locals have no doubt of the source of the mysterious singing. Most like living in ignorance of it however, due to the fact that they believe they are ghosts. The music and revelry always seems to come from the same place along the 177 in the exact place of where the 101 ranch once stood.

Today, it is a picnic area and Historic landmark because of the wild west shows that were held there in the early twentieth century. At its peaks it had a fully staffed school, general store, hotel, magazine and newspapers, cafe, meat-packing plant, and oil refinery and was the home to 3000 people.

In 1900, Wild West shows were very popular. By 1905, the 101 ranch had set up their own. The Miller brothers were on top. Their first show was a huge success and considered to be the most popular in the country. They were regulars at the White House. In the twenties they added silent films to their ranch. It managed to keep its popularity for about twenty years.

In 1927, the eldest Miller brother died of carbon monoxide. In 1929, The middle brother died in a car accident. The youngest brother tried to maintain the ranch, but two years later, the ranch was in financial ruin. In 1932, the ranch was torn apart and auctioned off.

As time went on, the shows lost their popularity. In 1952, the stories of the 101 ranch began.

Many people driving alone were some of the first to report the sounds of partying in the wind. Word got around about the strange sounds. People began going out on the 177 to attempt to hear the sounds. Eventually it became known as the phantom hoedown of Kay County. The sounds continue to this day, coming from where the stage once stood.

The party that began 82 years ago still coninues to this day, mourning the loss of their earthly years.