A.A. (Jack) Drummond Collection

About the Collection

The Drummond papers are a rich resource of information on early cattle ranching and the development of the oil industry in Oklahoma. Alfred Alexander Drummond (1896-1989) was a rancher and entrepreneurial oil landsman in Osage County and the Madill area. Born in the Osage Nation when it was a part of Indian Territory, he grew up in Hominy where his father was a trader for the Osage Nation.

Drummond began as a cattle rancher but eventually amassed huge land holdings and widened his business interests to include oil and gas exploration and production. Drummond applied most of the income from grazing contracts to the purchase or lease of more land in the Osage. Drummond came to own several thousand head of cattle which he grazed on his scattered ranches, generally in partnership. While in the early years he concentrated his land holdings in the Osage, eventually he obtained ranges in Texas and Kansas, and he relied on partners to watch over scattered herds.

A summary of Drummond's land acquisitions in Osage County illustrates fulfillment of his dream - by 1924 he had 4,000 acres in fee simple, four years later his home ranch had increased to 40,000 acres, 12,500 of it deeded, and in 1931 he held 17,000 deeded acres and controlled another 70,000 acres.

Scope and Content

The materials in this collection document the history of A.A. Jack Drummond and his businesses. The collection consists of Drummond’s papers including records of early cattle ranching in Osage County and oil inundation suits of Lake Texoma. The typed, printed, and handwritten materials in this collection include business and personal correspondence, legal and financial documents, newspapers, maps, photographs, audio tapes, and personal memorabilia. The memorabilia include scrapbooks from his naval service in the Pacific aboard the USS Stewart when he visited India, Japan, and several pacific Islands. The cassette tapes are interviews conducted by Terry Hammons from 1978-1980 in preparation for his book on Drummond.

Provenance

The materials were given to the UCO Archives & Special Collections in 1982 by A.A. (Jack) Drummond.