Lawton, OK news and local guide

In 1891 Congress appointed a commission to negotiate with tribal leaders to open the land to white settlement, and after years of controversy President William McKinley issued a proclamation on July 4, 1901, placing about 2 million acres of "surplus" Indian land under federal control, what remained after communal tribal lands had been allotted to individual households under the Dawes Act. Three 320-acre sites were chosen as seats of Kiowa, Caddo and Comanche counties, and Lawton became the seat of Comanche County. It was named for Major General Henry W. Lawton, a quartermaster at Fort Sill who had taken part in the pursuit and capture of the Apache leader Geronimo. The town was opened to settlement by an auction of lots that began on August 6, 1901. The extinguishing of tribal claims to communal land was a condition for Oklahoma's admission as a state in 1907. Sources Wikipedia: Lawton, Oklahoma