Boggy Depot State Park

By America's State Parks Editorial TeamFebruary 5, 2026 · Updated May 14, 2026

🏴 Where “Oklahoma” Got Its Name — Trail of Tears Depot, Butterfield Mail Stop, Ghost Town Turned Park — A Chickasaw Nation-managed park on the National Register of Historic Places with Trail of Tears history, Butterfield Overland Mail Route, Civil War depot, camping, fishing lake, disc golf, and nature trails — Atoka County, Oklahoma

Boggy Depot Park, formerly Boggy Depot State Park, sits on one of the most historically layered sites in Oklahoma — a place where Choctaw and Chickasaw people arrived during the Trail of Tears (1837), where the Butterfield Overland Mail carried dispatches between St. Louis and San Francisco (1858–1861), where Confederate forces stored supplies during the Civil War, and where Choctaw Chief Allen Wright, who coined the word “Oklahoma” (meaning “Red People”) in 1866, lived and is buried.

Boggy Depot was the site of the first Chickasaw agency in the West and at times served as the capital of the Choctaw Nation (1858–1860) — until the Missouri, Kansas and Texas Railway bypassed it in 1872 and residents moved to Atoka. Today it’s managed by the Chickasaw Nation and listed on the National Register of Historic Places, offering camping, fishing, disc golf, and peaceful trails through land that shaped Oklahoma’s identity.

What to Do

Best Time to Visit

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Frequently Asked Questions

Is this where “Oklahoma” got its name?

It is linked to the name. Choctaw Chief Allen Wright, who lived at Boggy Depot and is buried in its cemetery, coined the word “Oklahoma” (meaning “Red People” in Choctaw) in 1866 to describe Indian Territory.

Is this a state park or tribal park?

It is no longer a state park. Boggy Depot was an Oklahoma state park. Today it is managed by the Chickasaw Nation, not by Oklahoma’s state park system. The old townsite is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

What happened to the town?

It became a ghost town. After the Civil War, the MKT Railroad bypassed Boggy Depot, and residents gradually left. Today nothing remains of Old Boggy Depot except its cemetery, where Chief Allen Wright and Rev. Cyrus Kingsbury are buried.

Make it a road trip: Pair a visit with McGee Creek State Park (within about an hour’s drive) or Lake Texoma State Park (elsewhere in the state).

Wildlife & Nature

Boggy Depot Park — on the site of a historic Choctaw Nation town established after the Trail of Tears removal. The park’s cross timbers, prairie, and creek support white-tailed deer, wild turkeys, and armadillos. Historic cemetery with Choctaw and Confederate graves.

Nearby Attractions

Atoka — nearby. Atoka County — surrounding.

About the Author

America's State Parks Editorial Team

America's State Parks is an independent online guide to state parks and other public lands in the United States. Our editorial team compiles park profiles from official agency and operator sources and other identified references, and follows our published editorial policy and review methodology. Where a profile shows a source-check date, that date applies to the detail it names. We correct errors when we find them or when readers report them.

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