98th Meridian - El Reno, OK
Posted by: 
hamquilter
N 35° 31.858 W 097° 57.504
14S E 594431 N 3932426
The 98th Meridian is a significant designation in the settlement of Oklahoma Indian Territory.
Waymark Code: WMP5CN
Location: Oklahoma, United States
Date Posted: 07/04/2015
Views: 10
This marker is a granite stone located on the grounds of the Canadian County Historical Museum. The marker reads:
Run of 1889
98th Meridian
______________
On This Site
Run of 1892
El Reno is the county seat of Canadian County, located due west of Oklahoma City on Historic Route 66 and U.S. Highways 81 and 270... "As El Reno is divided by the 98th Meridian, the eastern part opened to settlement in the Land Run of 1889, and the western section was included in the April 1892 run into Cheyenne and Arapaho lands. Additionally, the town was one of two sites selected for land district offices in anticipation of the 1901 land lottery drawings, and El Reno was the final selection. (Oklahoma Historical Society)
This marker commemorates the fact that the 98th Meridian which runs through El Reno was the point at which the Indian Territory was opened for white settlement - It divided the unassigned lands in central Oklahoma from the Cheyenne and Arapaho lands in western Oklahoma. To the East of this line, white settlement was opened in 1889, and to the west, in 1892.
The meridian runs through the site of old Fort Reno, 1.725 miles to the west.