The Choctaw Lumber Company then built a large timber processing mill at the south edge of town, and, in the area just to the west, homes were constructed for its employees. A public auction was held in September of 1911 to auction off the prime lots in downtown Broken Bow. The original town, consisting of 230 acres, was platted in 1911.
The town of Broken Bow began as a private development of the Southern Land and Town site Company, a subsidiary of the Choctaw Lumber Company. These men from Broken Bow, Nebraska, purchased the land and named the community – Broken Bow – after their home in Nebraska. The beauty of the area as well as the abundance of harvestable forests also appealed to the pioneer lumbermen, Herman and Fred Dierks of the Choctaw Lumber Company. Con-Chito was an Indian Village located in what is now the downtown business section of Broken Bow. These Choctaws settled in the area and gave Broken Bow its first name, Con-Chito. The clean, clear streams and rivers of the area along with the luscious green forests certainly welcomed the Choctaw Indians who were weary from their journey along the “Trail of Tears”. Located at the foothills of the Kiamichi Mountains, the town of Broken Bow and its surrounding communities enjoy abundant natural resources, which have contributed to the development of the area.
