The Seminole Burnings

Deputy U.S. Marshal Bill Tilghman's Courageous Work was the Greatest of His Legendary Career. The largest and most sensational criminal trial that involved both the Oklahoma and Indian Territories prior to statehood in 1907, was known as the “Seminole Burnings.” Bill Tilghman, one of the most famous lawmen of the era, played a major role in the investigation and prosecution of the crime. The trial was held in Muskogee, and photos show the jury was racially integrated with Whites, Blacks and