The authors, having located virtually all deeded lot and block ownership decided to retrace Sidney Parker’s path as he counted the 1900 census. Parker was 40 years old, an insurance agent by trade, married 16 years to wife Carrie. Two children both born in White Oaks, Edith born 1885 and Marshall (the author) born 1888. Parker was one of the original group of educated people coming to White Oaks pre- 1885 , not into gold mining or merchandising. Parker’s official count start date was Friday, June 1 1900. He did not count on Sundays. His final count consisted of 17 pages in precinct 8 (White Oaks Township) and three pages in precinct 7 which covered the surrounding homestead not in the township. His count ended on June 30 1900.
Kind reader, please take a look at the 1900 census document posted here for more details on the census. Immediately two things became apparent:
- (1) no real path of enumeration could be found.
- (2) the people holding deeds on a particular lot were not most of the people currently living there. (rentals)
Both cases were curious.
Please review the schedule Here to see matches of either next door or close known property owners indicating a partial path Parker took in his counting travels. The authors deduced since Parker knew many people he did random counting interviews in the course of his insurance business or other chance meetings. To get a head start so to speak, we see this in the first 7 or so pages of the count. Small patterns can be seen in City Lode and South side of original plot. The question becomes how did he know whom he had counted? And whom he needs to count.
In 1900 the census for new Mexico territory was very important due to an eye at statehood , so reputable counters were used and accuracy was back checked randomly, so Parker had to have some way to keep track of what he had done and what he needed to do. From an unexpected source came the solution, A family member of the authors had a scene in his minds eye, Parker in a white woven long sleeve shirt, sleeves rolled up, sitting at a flat top desk , sweating as it was hot. With a lot and block map on the wall behind him with push pins affixed. The authors give no credence to visions etc , this source knew nothing of white oaks and under scrutiny it became obvious, the city did have such a map to control taxes and lot sales. It is the answer to Parker’s census path. It answers how the list of current residents placed in the time capsule was completed and what source documents did Bufkin have to produce his pre internet lot and block map seen here The authors are on the trail of finding this map and will post it when we locate it. It is most likely that McDonald, the future first State Governor did the original survey if the town plat as he was the only surveyor having ads in the newspaper at that time fir these services.
There were 229 homes occupied by 239 families. This means almost HALF the towns homes sat abandoned, quickly deteriorating as most were of timber construction originally. Gone was any semblance of the tidy Ohio town which just 5 years ago was complete with all the trappings of civility most the townspeople were accustomed to back home. White oaks was sinking rapidly into a deserted , run down shanty town. Even the likes of Watson ,Hewitt had property foreclosed on.
Only 80 homes were listed as owned , 25 were identified by the authors through deed tracking The other 55 had no record of deeded ownership.
The authors research estimates the high water population occurred in 1896 and 1897. of around 1,700 citizens. This is stated in Donald Queen letter to the newspaper as well, and he lived there.
Between 1897 and 1900 the town had ghostified by 50 percent. More than 70 percent of the owned lots had been foreclosed on for non payment of taxes.
Plus the population not only had lost halve its numbers but a wave if over 200 people were now counted among the 800 that were counted in 1900
If you were there in say 1896 in four years over 1,000 of the people you knew then. Who owned their lots went to Church etc were gone. Replaced with 200 people you did not know and except for the census. No record of any if them exists for staying long. Almost like they came from other failed towns and just squatted in abandoned homes on the way to God knows where, just like the 1,000 that had abandoned White Oaks in 3 to 4 years. The merchants remained as there was a need for their goods , just not like the good old days if 3 years ago. And that dear readers was that. The railroad chugged merrily along 12 miles West and White Oaks twisted in the breeze. Hoping for a new strike that never came. So it came for White Oaks to crumble into history only to be resurrected to the best of the author’s ability here.