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Sod house is one of a kind
By Doug Rich
When the description of something begins with the words "the only" or "one of a kind" it gets my attention. Just such a description prompted me to stop recently at the only sod house still standing in Oklahoma that was built by a homesteader.
The sod house, now owned by the Oklahoma Historical Society, is just south of Aline and north of Cleo Springs. If that does not get you there it is 21 miles south of Cherokee on State Highway 8.
The soddy was built by Marshall McCully in August 1894, according to information provided to me by Cory Smith, curator at the museum. Mr. McCully made "the Run" in 1893 to stake out his claim in Oklahoma Territory. His first home was a dugout on a hill near the center of his claim.
The Run got off to a rough start for McCully. He had hired a guide but when it was time to go his guide was too drunk to guide anyone anywhere.
In August 1894 he started building his two-room sod house. He used sod from a spring fed draw one mile north of his claim. A huge cedar tree provided the ridge pole and blackjack trees provided roof poles. Originally the roof was covered with sod and later improved with corrugated metal.
Dirt floors were eventually replaced with wood and he plastered the 36-inch thick walls with lime from a neighbor's farm.
The McCully family used the sod house as their primary residence from 1894 to 1909. In 1909 McCully built a large frame house and used the soddy to store fruits and vegetables. The sod house outlasted the frame house which burned down in the 1950s.
The Oklahoma Historical Society said the sod houses were cool in summer and easy to heat in winter. No one expected them to last very long since the sod was susceptible to damage from wind, rain and temperature extremes. The Historical Society purchased the sod house in 1963.
Cory Smith said the Sod House Museum is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 2 to 5 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. It is closed Mondays and all state holidays.
Stop in and let Cory tell you more about the story of Marshall McCully and his sod house. It is just around the corner.
Doug Rich can be reached by phone at 785-749-5304 or e-mail at richhpj@aol.com.
Date: 10/31/06
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