I've read accounts of people that were 18-20 years old filing claims, writing the number 21 in their shoes, and swearing under oath that they "were over 21".
One of my great-grandfathers worked for the 101 Ranch right before the Land Run while the rest of the family waited in Kansas. Before the Run, the 101 ran cattle in that part of Oklahoma Territory so working as a cowboy, he was supposedly able to scout out some of the better places to file a claim, but since he was only 18 or 19 years old, the claim was filed in his father's name.
It always seemed to me that people like him should have somehow been allowed to file a claim, especially when you consider that an 18-year old in 1889 was pretty close to being a man.
The way age was regarded in earlier eras, and in our era, is interesting.
You are quite correct that on a day to day level, in earlier eras teens tended to be regarded as adults. Indeed, my grandfather left home at age 13, in 1914, and moved across the country to work. Now that'd get people arrested. At the time, he had his parents permission. He never returned home to live again, but he wasn't a runaway.
In contrast, for much of the 19th Century and even the early 20th you weren't supposed to join the Army until you were 21. That age fluctuated depending upon the circumstances, but for many things dealing withe law, that's how it was. Voting provides another example. Interesting how that worked. We had a fair number of responsible teenagers in adult rolls, but they weren't always legally treated that way. Now we have a lot of young adults we tend to treat as children, in contrast.
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I'm pretty sure that it was over 21.
I've read accounts of people that were 18-20 years old filing claims, writing the number 21 in their shoes, and swearing under oath that they "were over 21".
One of my great-grandfathers worked for the 101 Ranch right before the Land Run while the rest of the family waited in Kansas. Before the Run, the 101 ran cattle in that part of Oklahoma Territory so working as a cowboy, he was supposedly able to scout out some of the better places to file a claim, but since he was only 18 or 19 years old, the claim was filed in his father's name.
It always seemed to me that people like him should have somehow been allowed to file a claim, especially when you consider that an 18-year old in 1889 was pretty close to being a man.
The way age was regarded in earlier eras, and in our era, is interesting.
You are quite correct that on a day to day level, in earlier eras teens tended to be regarded as adults. Indeed, my grandfather left home at age 13, in 1914, and moved across the country to work. Now that'd get people arrested. At the time, he had his parents permission. He never returned home to live again, but he wasn't a runaway.
In contrast, for much of the 19th Century and even the early 20th you weren't supposed to join the Army until you were 21. That age fluctuated depending upon the circumstances, but for many things dealing withe law, that's how it was. Voting provides another example. Interesting how that worked. We had a fair number of responsible teenagers in adult rolls, but they weren't always legally treated that way. Now we have a lot of young adults we tend to treat as children, in contrast.
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