Oklahoma Family Tree Stories
This beautiful sculpture of three redbud trees is located just outside the Eleanor and John Kirkpatrick Research Center in the Oklahoma History Center. Each leaf of the Oklahoma Family Tree memorializes an Oklahoma family with the family surname, first name(s), and the town or county where they lived. In addition, a short family history is preserved in the digital family history book at the base of the tree. Sponsoring a leaf is a special way to recognize your family history and benefit future generations at the same time. To find out how to honor your own family with a leaf visit the Oklahoma Family Tree Project page.
Bond, James H. Family
Family Tree Leaf
Bond, Son - Myron Humphrey Bond
Grady County
(Family information provided by donor)
James H. Bond was born to John and Jennie (Underwood) Bond in Somersetshire, England, in 1842 and immigrated with his parents to the US in 1847. They settled in Chicago, where John Bond was engaged in the dairy business and James received his early education. In 1861 the family moved to Kansas, where John became a farmer and prominent horse breeder. John died in Kansas in 1882.
During the Civil War period, James was employed as a wagon master and was paid $1.25 per month. After the war, he entered the livery business in Pine Bluff, Arkansas. He also carried mail from Little Rock to Monticello, Arkansas.
James arrived at Fort Arbuckle, Indian Territory, in 1869 and was engaged in the stock business until 1872. He met and married Adelaide (Johnson) Campbell, and established a home in Johnsonville, Indian Territory (later, Garvin County). Adelaide Johnson was born on the Blue River north of Tishomingo in 1841.
In 1878 James and Adelaide relocated to a ranch near Minco and went into business with Campbell & Williams. As one of the wealthiest men in Indian Territory, James owned 2,000 acres and bred Thoroughbred trotting horses. He complimented farming, real estate, and breeding interests with part ownership of Minco Elevator Company. He also held stock in the Bank of Minco.
Adelaide Bond was widely known and respected in Grady County for her hospitality and philanthropy. She cofounded and was a benefactor of El Meta Bond College in Minco.
James's and Adelaide's great-grandson, Jay R. Bond, became an attorney in Oklahoma City, and he told the story of how the two first met. James was driving cattle and stopped at Adelaide Campbell's house. Later, on a return trip from Kansas, he stopped and proposed to her, but she declined. The following year, he stopped in and proposed for the second time, and once again, she declined his proposal. On his third visit, he proposed for the last time and insisted that he would not return if she refused to marry him. This time, she said yes.
James and Adelaide Bond had three children; Reford, who became a prominent and successful lawyer; Edward; and Nora. Nora married James H. Tuttle of Minco, Indian Territory, and died of unknown causes. Reford, who was born on August 10, 1877, practiced law in Chickasha. He went to school in Boonville, Missouri, and attended Roanoke College in Virginia and Columbia University. He enrolled in law school at the University of Missouri and graduated in 1897. Reford complimented his law practice by investing in real estate and joining the board of directors of the First National Bank of Chickasha. He was appointed as the Chickasaw Nation's representative to the US government. In 1934 Governor E. W. Marland appointed him to the Oklahoma Corporation Commission. He served until his death in 1954.
Reford Bond Jr. was born in 1903 and attended Woodbury Prep School in Virginia. He attended the University of Virginia and was employed as a banker in New York City before returning to Oklahoma to attend law school. He practiced law in Chickasha until his death in 1963.
Reford Bond III was born in 1930 and attended Oklahoma University. He attended law school and practiced law until his death in 1990.
Jane Bond Hughey was born in 1937. She received her B.A. from the University of Oklahoma and Ph.D. from Texas A&M University, where she chaired the Department of English as a Second Language. She died in 2009. Other members of this generation include Jay R. Bond, Myron H. Bond, and Catherine Bond Wootton.
The Bonds' ancestral home was located on the Canadian River west of Silver City (near present-day Tuttle) on what became known as Happy Hollow or Bond Crossing. The area was a popular resting place on the Chisholm Trail.
