The Red River Bridge War was a boundary conflict between the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

s of

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

and

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

over an existing

toll bridge A toll bridge is a bridge where a monetary charge (or '' toll'') is required to pass over. Generally the private or public owner, builder and maintainer of the bridge uses the toll to recoup their investment, in much the same way as a toll road ...

and a new free bridge crossing the Red River. The Red River Bridge Company, a private firm owned by Benjamin Colbert, had been operating a toll bridge that carried U.S. Route 69 and

U.S. Route 75 U.S. Route 75 is a north–south U.S. Highway that runs in the central United States. The highway's northern terminus is located at the Canadian border near Noyes, Minnesota, at a now-closed border crossing. From this point, the highway ...

between

Colbert, Oklahoma Colbert is a town in Bryan County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 1,140 at the 2010 census, a 7 percent increase over the figure of 1,065 recorded in 2000. It was incorporated in 1939. History Colbert men became prominent leaders a ...

, and

Denison, Texas Denison is a city in Grayson County, Texas, United States, south of the Texas–Oklahoma border. Its population was 24,479 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, up from 22,682 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. Denison is pa ...

. In 1931, Texas and Oklahoma jointly built a new, free span northwest of the existing toll bridge. On July 10, 1931, the Red River Bridge Company obtained an injunction against the Texas Highway Commission (now

Texas Department of Transportation The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT ) is a Texas state government agency responsible for construction and maintenance of the state's immense Texas state highway system, state highway system and the support of the state's maritime trans ...

), keeping it from opening the new bridge. The company said that the highway commission had promised in July 1930 to buy the old toll bridge for $60,000 (equal to $ today). In reaction to the injunction, the

Governor of Texas The governor of Texas is the head of state of the U.S. state of Texas. The governor is the head of the executive branch of the government of Texas and is the commander-in-chief of the Texas Military Forces. Established in the Constit ...

, Ross S. Sterling, ordered that the new free bridge be barricaded at the Texas end. On July 17, Oklahoma Governor "Alfalfa Bill" Murray ordered the new bridge open, by executive order. Murray issued this order on the grounds that the land on both sides of the river belonged to Oklahoma, per the

Adams–Onís Treaty The Adams–Onís Treaty () of 1819, also known as the Transcontinental Treaty, the Spanish Cession, the Florida Purchase Treaty, or the Florida Treaty,Weeks, p. 168. was a treaty between the United States and Spain in 1819 that ceded Florida to ...

of 1819. Murray sent highway crews across the new bridge to destroy the barricades. Governor Sterling sent Adjutant General William Warren Sterling and three Texas Rangers to the new bridge to defend the Texas Highway Commission workers enforcing the injunction, and rebuilt the barricade that night. The next day, Oklahoma crews under Governor Murray's order demolished the Oklahoma approach to the toll bridge, rendering that bridge impassable. The Texas State Legislature called a special session on July 23 to pass a bill allowing the Red River Bridge Company to sue the state over the issue, partially in response to meetings in Sherman and Denison, Texas, demanding the free bridge be opened. The next day, Governor Murray declared

martial law Martial law is the replacement of civilian government by military rule and the suspension of civilian legal processes for military powers. Martial law can continue for a specified amount of time, or indefinitely, and standard civil liberties ...

at the site, enforced by

Oklahoma National Guard The Oklahoma National Guard, a division of the Oklahoma Military Department, is the component of the United States National Guard in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. It comprises both Army (OKARNG) and Air (OKANG) National Guard components. The Governo ...

smen, and personally appeared at the site, armed with a

revolver A revolver is a repeating handgun with at least one barrel and a revolving cylinder containing multiple chambers (each holding a single cartridge) for firing. Because most revolver models hold six cartridges before needing to be reloaded, ...

, hours before a

Muskogee, Oklahoma Muskogee () is the 13th-largest city in Oklahoma and is the county seat of Muskogee County, Oklahoma, Muskogee County. Home to Bacone College, it lies approximately southeast of Tulsa, Oklahoma, Tulsa. The population of the city was 36,878 as of ...

, court issued an injunction prohibiting him from blocking the northern toll bridge approach. Murray directed the guardsmen to allow anyone to cross either bridge. Murray discovered on July 27 that the free bridge was in danger of being closed permanently. He expanded the martial-law zone across the river, stationing guardsmen on both free bridge approaches. The injunction against the bridge opening was dissolved and the martial law order rescinded on August 6. News of the dispute made national and international headlines.

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his suicide in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the lea ...

may have believed that the events were evidence of in-fighting between the American states, weakening the union. The free bridge that was the cause of the dispute was opened on Labor Day, September 7, 1931. It was replaced in 1995, though a portion of the bridge was saved as a historical attraction and relocated to the Colbert City park in

References

External links

Red River Bridge Controversy – Handbook of Texas Online
* Toll Bridge coordinates:
Oklahoma Digital Maps: Digital Collections of Oklahoma and Indian Territory
{{Authority control Political history of Oklahoma Battles and conflicts without fatalities History of Texas Internal territorial disputes of the United States Bridges in Oklahoma Bridges in Texas 1931 in Oklahoma 1931 in Texas Former toll bridges in Oklahoma Former toll bridges in Texas Red River of the South Borders of Oklahoma Borders of Texas Toll (fee) Transport controversies

References

Further reading

External links