Rush Springs

History

The Wichita people established a village about 1850 near some springs on Rush Creek. (The present-day town of Rush Springs later developed about northwest of here.) Cattlemen watered their herds of cattle they were driving north from Texas to Kansas on the Chisholm Trail, which passed east of here. On October 1, 1858, an event known as the Battle of the Wichita Village occurred near here, with spillover to the Wichita when the US Army destroyed their crops. That year, Brigadier General David S. Briggs had ordered Brevet Major Earl Van Dorn to take command of the Second Cavalry at Fort Belknap, Texas. He was directed to proceed north of the Red River into Indian Territory and forcibly restrain belligerent Comanche warriors who were raiding settlements. Van Dorn and his men stopped at Camp Radziminski in Indian Territory. Van Dorn and his men advanced on the Comanche, who were camped on Rush Creek near a Wichita village.{{efn|The Comanche campsite was about south east of present-day Rush Springs. Van Dorn and his men attacked the Comanche camp about dawn on October 1, 1858, catching the warriors completely off guard. In the aftermath of the attack, the troops found that the Comanche had lost seventy people, mostly men but also some tribeswomen who had accompanied them. Any survivors had fled. The army casualties were four men dead and one missing, who was presumed killed. Major Van Dorn was seriously wounded, but survived to fight again. The army was reported to have set fire to the Wichita fields nearby, destroying their food crop and endangering their survival. The Wichita fled to Fort Arbuckle to seek assistance from the U.S. government. By 1900 the community had 518 residents and 588 by 1907, when Oklahoma became a state.

Geography

Rush Springs is located in southern Grady County. U.S. Route 81 passes through the town, leading north to Chickasha, the county seat, and south to Duncan. According to the United States Census Bureau, Rush Springs has a total area of , all land.

Race & ethnicity

Largest nearby schools

• RUSH SPRINGS ES
  Elementary · Rush Springs · 244 students · 14.4:1 ratio
• RUSH SPRINGS HS
  High · Rush Springs · 130 students · 10.8:1 ratio
• RUSH SPRINGS MS
  Middle · Rush Springs · 108 students · 13.5:1 ratio