{"id":33120,"date":"2020-07-30T05:38:27","date_gmt":"2020-07-30T10:38:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/?p=33120"},"modified":"2020-07-30T13:00:29","modified_gmt":"2020-07-30T18:00:29","slug":"oklahoma-state-university-took-his-name-off-a-building-but-alfalfa-bill-murray-can-still-be-found-across-the-state","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/2020\/07\/30\/oklahoma-state-university-took-his-name-off-a-building-but-alfalfa-bill-murray-can-still-be-found-across-the-state\/","title":{"rendered":"Oklahoma State University took his name off a building, but Alfalfa Bill Murray can still be found across the state"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/player.simplecast.com\/56bcb31d-e517-40b8-b2ed-312145569ab5?dark=false\" width=\"100%\" height=\"200px\" frameborder=\"no\" scrolling=\"no\" seamless=\"\"><\/iframe><br \/>\n<b><i>Editor&#8217;s note: This story contains outdated racial language that readers could find offensive.\u00a0<\/i><\/b><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When Oklahoma A&M officials told Alfalfa Bill Murray they wanted to put his name on a university building in 1935, he wasn\u2019t sure it was a good idea.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cI said don\u2019t do it,\u201d Murray said at a 1952 talk sponsored by the school\u2019s history department that was recorded and is today preserved by the Oklahoma Historical Society.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cIt\u2019ll look mighty bad when a politician, next governor comes along and wipes the name off.\u201c<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But those university officials were persistent.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">They needed to convince the then governor &#8211; <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.normantranscript.com\/community\/murray-sage-of-tishomingo-wasnt-as-popular-in-norman\/article_28e51ca0-2c1e-50b0-9134-9545cd744a4a.html\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">who famously wasn\u2019t a fan of higher learning<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> &#8211; to secure the funding for a new building. So he relented, helped them get the funding and by the time he was giving the 1952 talk in Stillwater, he was proud to have his name carved in stone.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But William H. \u201cAlfalfa Bill\u201d Murray was onto something in his prediction that his name &#8211; by then all over Oklahoma &#8211; wouldn\u2019t last.<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_33127\"  class=\"wp-caption module image aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px;\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-image-33127 size-thumbnail\" src=\"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2020\/07\/200619_murray_hall_denaming_002_50023558471_o-1920x1209.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1209\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2020\/07\/200619_murray_hall_denaming_002_50023558471_o-1920x1209.jpg 1920w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2020\/07\/200619_murray_hall_denaming_002_50023558471_o-672x423.jpg 672w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2020\/07\/200619_murray_hall_denaming_002_50023558471_o-768x484.jpg 768w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2020\/07\/200619_murray_hall_denaming_002_50023558471_o-150x94.jpg 150w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2020\/07\/200619_murray_hall_denaming_002_50023558471_o-300x189.jpg 300w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2020\/07\/200619_murray_hall_denaming_002_50023558471_o-620x390.jpg 620w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2020\/07\/200619_murray_hall_denaming_002_50023558471_o-1715x1080.jpg 1715w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-media-credit\">Courtesy Oklahoma State University<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">A worker removes the name of Murray Hall at Oklahoma State University in June.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h3><b>Murray\u2019s name stripped in Stillwater<\/b><\/h3><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In June 2020, 64 years after his death, his name was stripped from Murray and Murray North Halls as he predicted.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The name had been a source of controversy for two decades as student, faculty and community members lobbied Oklahoma State University officials to take Murray\u2019s name off.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Murray, they said, was a bigot. He was anti-semitic and a segregationist. And though it took them some time, those students and community members won out.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cOklahoma State is committed to eliminating systemic racism and embracing our responsibility as an institution of learning to find solutions to inequality and justice,\u201d OSU President Burns Hargis said after the building name was taken down. \u201cRemoving the Murray name is one such step.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And it was a big deal for the school\u2019s students, said Kaitlyn Kirksey, an OSU senior and former president of the Student Government Association.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cAs a Cowboy Family, we aspire to achieve inclusive excellence in our community, both personally and physically,\u201d she said in a written statement. \u201cAnd as we chart our course for the future, we will continue to fight for each other and for every member of our family to feel included, valued, and loved here at Oklahoma State. Removing Murray\u2019s name is just another step on our journey to make OSU the best it can be.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p>&nbsp;<\/p><p><iframe id=\"datawrapper-chart-pRdaE\" style=\"width: 0; min-width: 100% !important; border: none;\" title=\"Places named for &quot;Alfalfa&quot; Bill Murray\" src=\"https:\/\/datawrapper.dwcdn.net\/pRdaE\/1\/\" height=\"525\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" aria-label=\"chart\"><\/iframe><script type=\"text\/javascript\">!function(){\"use strict\";window.addEventListener(\"message\",(function(a){if(void 0!==a.data[\"datawrapper-height\"])for(var e in a.data[\"datawrapper-height\"]){var t=document.getElementById(\"datawrapper-chart-\"+e)||document.querySelector(\"iframe[src*='\"+e+\"']\");t&&(t.style.height=a.data[\"datawrapper-height\"][e]+\"px\")}}))}();\n<\/script><\/p>\n<h3><b>Murray\u2019s legacy<\/b><\/h3><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But the Murray name is still standing strong across the state, especially in south-central Oklahoma.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There\u2019s Murray County, 80 miles south of Oklahoma City. Murray Lake near Ardmore. Murray State College in the former governor\u2019s adopted hometown Tishomingo.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It isn\u2019t surprising that Murray\u2019s name is found throughout Oklahoma, said Bob Blackburn, Executive Director of the Oklahoma Historical Society.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cWe have never had another elected official who even comes close to Alfalfa Bill\u2019s influence on Oklahoma government,\u201d Blackburn said.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Murray was a governor, Congressman and presided over the state\u2019s constitutional convention.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">He was also a virulent racist. Murray was a segregationist and an anti-semite who called for Jewish people to be sent to a colony in Madagascar. During the constitutional convention he derided the \u201cthree C\u2019s,\u201d who he said would sabotage the document: that would be <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/books.google.com\/books?id=urfNCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA273&lpg=PA273&dq=alfalfa+bill+murray+the+negro%27s+place&source=bl&ots=ZWXNhvsNK9&sig=ACfU3U2hrmc9s_VVLmrNGyKaBEp0rFHyIg&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjWyYTAwonqAhUHWK0KHarqC0cQ6AEwAHoECAoQAQ#v=snippet&q=carpetbaggers&f=false\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Corporations, Carpetbaggers and C&#8211;ns<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But because of his eccentricities and impact on the state he\u2019s often lionized. In textbooks he\u2019s labeled the state\u2019s most colorful governor. And he\u2019s even a member of the Oklahoma Hall of Fame.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cA public official is one who is too honest to be bought; too wise to be deceived; too brave to be intimidated,\u201d is Murray\u2019s official quote listed on their website.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Murray has a particularly strong presence in the Tishomingo area, where he was heavily involved.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Novice Boyd, 86, of Tishomingo said she has vivid memories of Murray in the town while he was still alive and she was in high school.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cHe could be seen going to the post office usually,\u201d she said. \u201cSmoking his cigar and chewing tobacco. Everybody remembers the tobacco juice coming down the corner of his mouth.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">He was famous there and his presence was larger than life, she said. And she even remembers singing at his funeral in 1956.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cHe was a genius,\u201d Boyd said. \u201cBut he was also crude and uncouth. A crude, uncouth genius.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_2831\"  class=\"wp-caption module image aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 300px;\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-2831\" src=\"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2011\/12\/alfalfa-bill.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"492\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2011\/12\/alfalfa-bill.jpg 300w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2011\/12\/alfalfa-bill-91x150.jpg 91w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2011\/12\/alfalfa-bill-183x300.jpg 183w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-media-credit\">Painting by Kathryn Walker Richardson \/ Oklahoma State Senate Historical Preservation Fund<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">A portrait of Oklahoma&#8217;s ninth governor, &#8220;Alfalfa&#8221; Bill Murray<\/p>\n<\/div><p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/w.soundcloud.com\/player\/?url=https%3A\/\/api.soundcloud.com\/tracks\/867272800&color=%23ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true\" width=\"100%\" height=\"166\" frameborder=\"no\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<div style=\"font-size: 10px; color: #cccccc; line-break: anywhere; word-break: normal; overflow: hidden; white-space: nowrap; text-overflow: ellipsis; font-family: Interstate,Lucida Grande,Lucida Sans Unicode,Lucida Sans,Garuda,Verdana,Tahoma,sans-serif; font-weight: 100;\"><a style=\"color: #cccccc; text-decoration: none;\" title=\"StateImpact Oklahoma Report\" href=\"https:\/\/soundcloud.com\/stateimpactok\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">StateImpact Oklahoma Report<\/a> \u00b7 <a style=\"color: #cccccc; text-decoration: none;\" title=\"Alfalfa Bill Speaks\" href=\"https:\/\/soundcloud.com\/stateimpactok\/alfalfa-bill-speaks\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Alfalfa Bill Speaks<\/a><\/div>\n<h3><b>Tapes reveal Murray\u2019s thoughts and aspects of his character<\/b><\/h3><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">StateImpact combed through two hours of recordings preserved by the Oklahoma Historical Society. The recordings were from the 1952 talk Murray gave in Stillwater.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Murray, whose wife was a Chickasaw woman, said odd things about indigenous people that were not true. He said that Chickasaws revered the swastika &#8211; even in the wake of World War II &#8211; and that the people in the tribe were actually aryans because of their elongated skulls.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But one story the former governor told was particularly racist. Murray remembered an incident with dozens of Black men well.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In the recording, an unidentified interviewer at Oklahoma A&M University asks Oklahoma\u2019s ninth governor \u201cabout the incident with the negroes in the basement at the [Oklahoma Constitutional] Convention.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Murray quickly corrected the interviewer. The \u201cincident with the negroes,\u201d didn\u2019t happen at the convention. It happened at the state legislature, then in Guthrie. The first legislation passed by lawmakers there was Senate Bill One, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.okhistory.org\/publications\/enc\/entry.php?entry=SE017#:~:text=Approved%20on%20December%2018%2C%201907,car%20or%20railway%20company%20.%20.%20.\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">a Jim Crow segregation law<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> in the Sooner state.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Oklahoma\u2019s founding father recalled a group of Black men upset about the work of the state\u2019s early leaders. They were gathered in the basement and the Sergeant at Arms \u201cdidn\u2019t know anything about the black man,\u201d Murray said. And \u201cdidn\u2019t know how to handle them.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">So Murray took things into his own hands.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cSo I said what in the [indistinguishable] are you n&#8212;rs doing down here?&#8230; One of them knew me. He says \u2018that\u2019s Alfalfa Bill,\u2019 and he jumped to get out of there,\u201d Murray recalled with a chuckle. \u201cAnd every one of them run up the steps and outside.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-33128\" src=\"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2020\/07\/main-logo-672x302.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"672\" height=\"302\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2020\/07\/main-logo-672x302.png 672w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2020\/07\/main-logo-1920x862.png 1920w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2020\/07\/main-logo-768x345.png 768w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2020\/07\/main-logo-150x67.png 150w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2020\/07\/main-logo-300x135.png 300w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2020\/07\/main-logo-620x278.png 620w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 672px) 100vw, 672px\" \/><\/p>\n<h3><b>What\u2019s in a college\u2019s name?<\/b><\/h3><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Boyd isn\u2019t so sure about taking Murray out of Murray State College.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">She said in her mind, the college\u2019s name is so much more than the man.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">That\u2019s echoed by the college\u2019s President Joy McDaniel, who said the name transcends the namesake for students, faculty, staff and community members.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cI take pride in Murray State College as I know it,\u201d she said. \u201cThe name is only a name.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The COVID-19 pandemic means those people who make up the college\u2019s community haven\u2019t been on campus since OSU changed their building name. And McDaniel said that means she hasn\u2019t heard anything recently about the name.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cThis issue, as far as I am aware, has not been raised in our campus community,\u201d she said.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It\u2019s at least been a topic of casual conversation in the past, said Rebecca Jacobs-Pollez, a history professor at the college.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Jacobs-Pollez said she certainly isn\u2019t in favor of stripping names from buildings too readily and that sometimes people tend to \u201cthrow the baby out with the bathwater,\u201d when thinking about actions of people in the past.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">She said Murray\u2019s views are certainly problematic in comparison to today\u2019s thinking on race. Additional context would be helpful for students, faculty and staff at the school, she said.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It\u2019s difficult to imagine any other moniker for Murray State.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cI don\u2019t know what you\u2019d call the school,\u201d Jacobs-Pollez said.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Nobody has really given it much thought. McDaniel said lately she\u2019s spent most of her time thinking about how to handle the COVID-19 pandemic as the college preps for in-person instruction.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But if it\u2019s necessary, college leaders will look at the name.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cWe are interested in providing an environment that is conducive to learning,\u201d McDaniel said. \u201cIf something like a name or anything is viewed as detrimental to our beliefs or a disservice to the opportunities that we provide, that is certainly a subject that we would be willing to address.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p><iframe id=\"datawrapper-chart-G9mo3\" style=\"width: 0; min-width: 100% !important; border: none;\" title=\"Where places have new names\" src=\"https:\/\/datawrapper.dwcdn.net\/G9mo3\/1\/\" height=\"525\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" aria-label=\"chart\"><\/iframe><script type=\"text\/javascript\">!function(){\"use strict\";window.addEventListener(\"message\",(function(a){if(void 0!==a.data[\"datawrapper-height\"])for(var e in a.data[\"datawrapper-height\"]){var t=document.getElementById(\"datawrapper-chart-\"+e)||document.querySelector(\"iframe[src*='\"+e+\"']\");t&&(t.style.height=a.data[\"datawrapper-height\"][e]+\"px\")}}))}();\n<\/script><\/p>\n<h3><b>Changing a name is no easy task<\/b><\/h3><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">State statute makes it clear: \u201cThe state educational institution located at Tishomingo shall continue at the same location and its official name shall be Murray State College.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In order for that to change, lawmakers must pass bills through both houses, have it signed by the governor or override his or her veto to change the name. That wouldn\u2019t be easy and there\u2019s little appetite for it. Multiple south-central Oklahoma elected officials did not return StateImpact\u2019s messages seeking comment on Murray\u2019s legacy for this story.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It took decades to change Murray Hall\u2019s name in Stillwater. It would likely take years to change his name elsewhere.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A name change at popular tourist spot Murray Lake would take action from the US Board of Geographic Names. That\u2019s a winding process that can also take years to complete.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The board takes name change requests from anyone. In Oklahoma, that would include the state authority the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ou.edu\/ogs\/generalinterest\/okbgn\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Oklahoma Board on Geographic Names<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, Native American tribes or local governments.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">An agency spokeswoman said nobody has raised the issue of the lake or anything else named for Murray with the federal board.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In the last two decades, seven places in Oklahoma have had a name change. Their names were obviously racist, and include phrases like \u201cDead Indian,\u201d \u201cNegro,\u201d and \u201cSquaw,\u201d for streams around the state.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And even if the lake name was changed, there are a multitude of things named for Murray around it. There\u2019s a state park and dam that the state has named. A spokeswoman for the state\u2019s tourism agency said there hasn\u2019t been any conversation about the Lake Murray name there either and a change would likely require legislative action.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Editor&#8217;s note: This story contains outdated racial language that readers could find offensive.\u00a0When Oklahoma A&#038;M officials told Alfalfa Bill Murray they wanted to put his name on a university building in 1935, he wasn\u2019t sure it was a good idea.\u201cI said don\u2019t do it,\u201d Murray said at a 1952 talk sponsored by the school\u2019s history [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":209,"featured_media":33131,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[17],"tags":[],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33120"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/209"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=33120"}],"version-history":[{"count":15,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33120\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":33141,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33120\/revisions\/33141"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/33131"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=33120"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=33120"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=33120"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}