From "Craig County"
F576: Sam LeForce
John Samuel LeForce was born in 1864, the son of John Bradley & Amanda Blankenship LeForce. He moved to the Cherokee Nation in 1866, & located near Vinita, where he began what was to be a lifelong partnership with his brother E. E. (Ras) LeForce. On 10/26/1887 he married Sarah Keys, the daughter of Monroe & Lucy Hoyt Keys. Mrs. LeForce was known affectionately to her family as Sid, Mr. LeForce's pet name for her. Her parents, being opposed to her marriage sent her to Springfield, MO, to enter Drury College. The story is that on the first or second day of her college career, Sam went to Springfield, got her & they eloped. Mr. & Mrs. Children did not have children of their own, but generously opened their home on West Clyde to many of their nieces & nephews & gave them the opportunity to get an education. Had it not been for this generosity, many of these young people would have had no chance to go to school. For a period of time in the 30's & early 40's they gave a Christmas Party, hosted by all the family members, to which the entire area was invited. It was not unusual for hundreds of people to come to the house on that one night in early December, & no one left without a sack of candy. Many members of the LeForce family can still remember the nights spent sacking candy & decorating the house in preparation for these parties.
In 1892, on the day the First National Bank of Vinita opened, Sam rode into town & said "heard you boys were opening a new bank. I came to be your first depositor". With a cattle check he had received just hours before the bank officially opened its doors, he did indeed become the first depositor. His name was on a bank records as a depositor, stockholder & director from 1892 until his death 63 years later.
Mr. Sam & Mr. Ras had as their headquarters the U Ranch northwest of Vinita on PawPaw Creek. They also owned property west of Pyramid Corners, where John D. LeForce, a nephew still raises cattle. Another property was the Shipping Trap, near the old stockyards at White Oak, where another nephew, Dwight Hunt, makes his home. The U Ranch maintained a reputation for hospitality, & was a regular stop for many people on their trips through the countryside. They would time their trips to make sure they arrived at the U Ranch for the night, being sure of a welcome.
Mr. Sam was always something of an optimist. Somewhere around his 90th year, he went to the sale ground in Vinita, to buy some hedge posts. Finding that they were costing more than he wanted to pay he said he would just go home & plant his own.
Mrs. LeForce died in 1942 & Mr. LeForce died in 1955. They are buried in the LeForce lot at Fairview Cemetery north of Vinita.
F576: Sam LeForce
John Samuel LeForce was born in 1864, the son of John Bradley & Amanda Blankenship LeForce. He moved to the Cherokee Nation in 1866, & located near Vinita, where he began what was to be a lifelong partnership with his brother E. E. (Ras) LeForce. On 10/26/1887 he married Sarah Keys, the daughter of Monroe & Lucy Hoyt Keys. Mrs. LeForce was known affectionately to her family as Sid, Mr. LeForce's pet name for her. Her parents, being opposed to her marriage sent her to Springfield, MO, to enter Drury College. The story is that on the first or second day of her college career, Sam went to Springfield, got her & they eloped. Mr. & Mrs. Children did not have children of their own, but generously opened their home on West Clyde to many of their nieces & nephews & gave them the opportunity to get an education. Had it not been for this generosity, many of these young people would have had no chance to go to school. For a period of time in the 30's & early 40's they gave a Christmas Party, hosted by all the family members, to which the entire area was invited. It was not unusual for hundreds of people to come to the house on that one night in early December, & no one left without a sack of candy. Many members of the LeForce family can still remember the nights spent sacking candy & decorating the house in preparation for these parties.
In 1892, on the day the First National Bank of Vinita opened, Sam rode into town & said "heard you boys were opening a new bank. I came to be your first depositor". With a cattle check he had received just hours before the bank officially opened its doors, he did indeed become the first depositor. His name was on a bank records as a depositor, stockholder & director from 1892 until his death 63 years later.
Mr. Sam & Mr. Ras had as their headquarters the U Ranch northwest of Vinita on PawPaw Creek. They also owned property west of Pyramid Corners, where John D. LeForce, a nephew still raises cattle. Another property was the Shipping Trap, near the old stockyards at White Oak, where another nephew, Dwight Hunt, makes his home. The U Ranch maintained a reputation for hospitality, & was a regular stop for many people on their trips through the countryside. They would time their trips to make sure they arrived at the U Ranch for the night, being sure of a welcome.
Mr. Sam was always something of an optimist. Somewhere around his 90th year, he went to the sale ground in Vinita, to buy some hedge posts. Finding that they were costing more than he wanted to pay he said he would just go home & plant his own.
Mrs. LeForce died in 1942 & Mr. LeForce died in 1955. They are buried in the LeForce lot at Fairview Cemetery north of Vinita.
From "Craig County"
F576: Sam LeForce
John Samuel LeForce was born in 1864, the son of John Bradley & Amanda Blankenship LeForce. He moved to the Cherokee Nation in 1866, & located near Vinita, where he began what was to be a lifelong partnership with his brother E. E. (Ras) LeForce. On 10/26/1887 he married Sarah Keys, the daughter of Monroe & Lucy Hoyt Keys. Mrs. LeForce was known affectionately to her family as Sid, Mr. LeForce's pet name for her. Her parents, being opposed to her marriage sent her to Springfield, MO, to enter Drury College. The story is that on the first or second day of her college career, Sam went to Springfield, got her & they eloped. Mr. & Mrs. Children did not have children of their own, but generously opened their home on West Clyde to many of their nieces & nephews & gave them the opportunity to get an education. Had it not been for this generosity, many of these young people would have had no chance to go to school. For a period of time in the 30's & early 40's they gave a Christmas Party, hosted by all the family members, to which the entire area was invited. It was not unusual for hundreds of people to come to the house on that one night in early December, & no one left without a sack of candy. Many members of the LeForce family can still remember the nights spent sacking candy & decorating the house in preparation for these parties.
In 1892, on the day the First National Bank of Vinita opened, Sam rode into town & said "heard you boys were opening a new bank. I came to be your first depositor". With a cattle check he had received just hours before the bank officially opened its doors, he did indeed become the first depositor. His name was on a bank records as a depositor, stockholder & director from 1892 until his death 63 years later.
Mr. Sam & Mr. Ras had as their headquarters the U Ranch northwest of Vinita on PawPaw Creek. They also owned property west of Pyramid Corners, where John D. LeForce, a nephew still raises cattle. Another property was the Shipping Trap, near the old stockyards at White Oak, where another nephew, Dwight Hunt, makes his home. The U Ranch maintained a reputation for hospitality, & was a regular stop for many people on their trips through the countryside. They would time their trips to make sure they arrived at the U Ranch for the night, being sure of a welcome.
Mr. Sam was always something of an optimist. Somewhere around his 90th year, he went to the sale ground in Vinita, to buy some hedge posts. Finding that they were costing more than he wanted to pay he said he would just go home & plant his own.
Mrs. LeForce died in 1942 & Mr. LeForce died in 1955. They are buried in the LeForce lot at Fairview Cemetery north of Vinita.
F576: Sam LeForce
John Samuel LeForce was born in 1864, the son of John Bradley & Amanda Blankenship LeForce. He moved to the Cherokee Nation in 1866, & located near Vinita, where he began what was to be a lifelong partnership with his brother E. E. (Ras) LeForce. On 10/26/1887 he married Sarah Keys, the daughter of Monroe & Lucy Hoyt Keys. Mrs. LeForce was known affectionately to her family as Sid, Mr. LeForce's pet name for her. Her parents, being opposed to her marriage sent her to Springfield, MO, to enter Drury College. The story is that on the first or second day of her college career, Sam went to Springfield, got her & they eloped. Mr. & Mrs. Children did not have children of their own, but generously opened their home on West Clyde to many of their nieces & nephews & gave them the opportunity to get an education. Had it not been for this generosity, many of these young people would have had no chance to go to school. For a period of time in the 30's & early 40's they gave a Christmas Party, hosted by all the family members, to which the entire area was invited. It was not unusual for hundreds of people to come to the house on that one night in early December, & no one left without a sack of candy. Many members of the LeForce family can still remember the nights spent sacking candy & decorating the house in preparation for these parties.
In 1892, on the day the First National Bank of Vinita opened, Sam rode into town & said "heard you boys were opening a new bank. I came to be your first depositor". With a cattle check he had received just hours before the bank officially opened its doors, he did indeed become the first depositor. His name was on a bank records as a depositor, stockholder & director from 1892 until his death 63 years later.
Mr. Sam & Mr. Ras had as their headquarters the U Ranch northwest of Vinita on PawPaw Creek. They also owned property west of Pyramid Corners, where John D. LeForce, a nephew still raises cattle. Another property was the Shipping Trap, near the old stockyards at White Oak, where another nephew, Dwight Hunt, makes his home. The U Ranch maintained a reputation for hospitality, & was a regular stop for many people on their trips through the countryside. They would time their trips to make sure they arrived at the U Ranch for the night, being sure of a welcome.
Mr. Sam was always something of an optimist. Somewhere around his 90th year, he went to the sale ground in Vinita, to buy some hedge posts. Finding that they were costing more than he wanted to pay he said he would just go home & plant his own.
Mrs. LeForce died in 1942 & Mr. LeForce died in 1955. They are buried in the LeForce lot at Fairview Cemetery north of Vinita.
Gravesite Details
He & his wife never had kids.
Family Members
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