Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, is a brief but significant setting in the account of the deaths of George Bigheart and W. W. Vaughan. It is where Bigheart died in a hospital after suspected poisoning, and where Burt joined Vaughan’s train journey shortly before Vaughan disappeared from his berth. The city thus marks two points in an investigation whose connections emerged through later scrutiny of records and testimony.

Bigheart’s Death

Before his death, Bigheart had disclosed critical information about the murders to Vaughan. He had also sought a certificate of competency that would end his status as a government ward and let him spend his headright payments as he pleased. Vaughan helped him file the application. Bigheart died of suspected poisoning at a hospital in Oklahoma City; the account gives no further detail about the hospital or the circumstances of his death there.

Vaughan’s Train Journey

A newspaper account of Vaughan’s funeral supplied a crucial detail about his last journey: Burt boarded the train with Vaughan in Oklahoma City. Vaughan later disappeared from his berth, and another newspaper story reported that Burt himself had reported the disappearance. The city is therefore identified as their point of departure, not as the place where Vaughan vanished.

Significance in the Investigation

The two references connect Oklahoma City to the sequence surrounding both deaths, but they do not by themselves establish what happened to either man. Bigheart’s death was described as suspected poisoning, while the evidence concerning Vaughan’s disappearance placed Burt on the train with him and identified Burt as the person who reported it. These details helped give a more concrete shape to suspicions that had initially rested on circumstantial evidence.