Railroad dispute leads

Railroad dispute leads to the founding of Snyder

Charles G. Jones founded the town of Snyder in Oklahoma Territory in 1902. It was located two miles south of Mountain Park. Jones was the president of the Oklahoma City and Western Railroad. He had a By Kathleen Guill dispute with the town kathleen@press-leader.com of Mountain Park. Jones named the new town for Bryan Snyder, an employee of the St. Louis and San Francisco Railway (Frisco), which ran north and south through the townsite.

The town had its fair share of trouble during the early years, with a tornado killing 113 people in 1905, and fires destroying most of the buildings along Main Street in 1906 and 1909. Those buildings were replaced by brick buildings and the town continued to grow. By 1910, Snyder was a booming city of 1,122 residents.

The economy of Snyder and the surrounding area is largely dependent on farming and ranching. Important crops are cotton, corn, wheat and hay.

Snyder is home to Tom Steed Lake, which has 6,400 surface acres and 31 miles of shoreline and is a great spot for camping and fishing. Great Plains State Park is located on the shore of Lake Tom Steed and includes recreational activities like fishing, boating, skiing, swimming, picnicking, hiking and nature trails, as well as RV and tent camping. Facilities also include comfort stations, group picnic facilities, lighted boat ramps, a bait shop, playgrounds and a swimming beach.

Annual events held in Snyder include an Easter Egg Hunt, usually held the weekend of Easter, Carrie’s Salon and Boutique’s holiday open house called Sip ‘N Shop that takes place the first Thursday in December.

The Pussycat Salon and The Rose Cottage also participate in Sip ‘N Shop.

The Snyder Chamber of Commerce also hosts a Christmas parade and an annual fall festival in October. The Snyder public school and Mountain Park public schools take turns hosting their class reunions every other year.

NOTABLE PEOPLE FROM SNYDER

• James V. McClintic, who was a politician, attorney and farmer who moved from Texas to Snyder in 1902. He served in a number of elective local and state offices, finally serving for 10 terms in the U.S. House of Representatives. He returned to Oklahoma to practice private law. He died near Chicago aboard a train and was buried in Oklahoma City. • Jack L. Treadwell was a highly decorated career officer in the U.S. Army who was living in Snyder when he enlisted in 1941. He served in WWII and Vietnam and retired with the rank of colonel in 1974. He received the Congressional Medal of Honor in 1945 for his actions in Germany in April 1945.

The town of Snyder, OK. was founded in 1902.

Kathleen Guill | Frederick Press Leader