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History · Yale

Yale’s history is
mostly unwritten

The public archives hold no old photos of Yale. The rest are in attics, shoeboxes and the historical society. Help start the collection.

1895established
0old images & papers
6recent photos

The story

from WikipediaRead it all ↗

Yale's founding in 1895 is attributed to a local farmer, Sterling F. Underwood, who established a post office by that name in his general store, about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) east of the present town. When the Eastern Oklahoma Railway built its line across Payne County, a group led by George W. Canfield began a different townsite also within Eagle Township that would be closer to the railroad, at its planned junction with the Missouri–Kansas–Texas Railroad. Underwood moved his store to the new site in 1902, making the new site the permanent location for the town of Yale. A 1907 map shows the town contained 230 acres surrounding the railroad junction, and to its east southeast the Underwood farm of 158 acres. By 1910, Yale had a population of 685, supported mostly by agricultural services and cotton processing.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

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Start Yale’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Yale’s history is told.

0 of 10 decades since 1900 have photos 📦Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Famous people from Yale

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Chet BakerChet BakerMusicGrace ThorpeGrace ThorpePolitics & LawJNJason NelsonPolitics & LawGMGail Thorpe McShaneWriting & Arts
By decade

Yale, decade by decade

Before
2000
No old photos in the archives yetWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
📷 Add from your album
Today6 photos
The restored, 1876 Rice-Payne cabin, thought to be the oldest standing houseLOCThe restored, 1876 Rice-Payne cabin, thought to be the olde…2020The metal sunroof over the Dairy Hut in the town of Yale, Oklahoma, is no doubt appreciated at this ice-cream stand on …LOCThe metal sunroof over the Dairy Hut in the town of Yale, O…2020An otherwise-ordinary commercial building in the small Oklahoma city of Yale that's famous locally for being, shockingl…LOCAn otherwise-ordinary commercial building in the small Okla…2020The modest Jim Thorpe HomeLOCThe modest Jim Thorpe Home2020Rural scene near the small Payne County, Oklahoma, city of YaleLOCRural scene near the small Payne County, Oklahoma, city of …2020Yale main 1909CommonsYale main 19092014
National Register of Historic Places

Nothing in Yale is on the National Register yet

That’s true of most small towns. It doesn’t mean Yale has no history, only that no one has written up a nomination. The closest listed place is Jim Thorpe House in Ingalls, 6.1 miles away.

Yale and the nearest listed places

Dashed line = Yale. Tap a dot.
Jim Thorpe HouseMarkham School and TeacherageMeacham BuildingFirst State Bank of MaramecUsher, Christian K., Lustron HouseWheeler No. 1 Oil Well

Closest to Yale

Jim Thorpe HouseIngalls · Building6.1miMarkham School and TeacherageOilton · Building6.4miMeacham BuildingOilton · Built 19166.7miFirst State Bank of MaramecMaramec · Building8.8miUsher, Christian K., Lustron HouseCushing · Building9.6mi

How a place gets listed

1Talk to the stateEvery nomination goes through the State Historic Preservation Office. Owners, towns and historical societies can start one.
2Try a local or state list firstMany states keep their own register with a shorter form, a common first step for old barns, halls and schoolhouses.
3Write it upA nomination covers the history, photos and a map. Jim Thorpe House’s page links to a real one.
Know an old place in Yale?A mill, a schoolhouse, a cellar hole, a church: add a photo of it to Yale’s story, or a memory of it.
📷 Add a photo of an old place
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places · photos from Wikimedia Commons

Then & now

When neighbors add old photos, retakes from the same spot appear here side by side.

Stories next door

nearby towns’ history
📜 Oilton📜 Jennings📜 Maramec📜 Lone Chimney

From Wikimedia Commons (1) and the Library of Congress (5). Images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.

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Boundary source: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer/18 · 2025-01-01
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