Thlopthlocco Tribal Town Sees Bright Future Ahead

Erik Sine · January 7, 2007

Thlopthlocco Tribal Town sees bright future ahead

WEST OF HENRYETTA ON I-40 OK

Liz Gray 1/6/2007

They have only 600 tribal members. Most people can’t even pronounce their name let alone know much about them. They are overshadowed by some big tribes in the central part of Oklahoma, but the Thlopthlocco Tribal Town is moving full steam ahead in one of the most promising spots for gaming left in Oklahoma.

Their newest edition is a 90-foot neon sign representing their Golden Pony Casino. It stands out in the night, beaming across the countryside on a stretch of Highway 40 that doesn’t have much else on it. They say you can see it from Henryetta, 10 miles to the East. There is no competition on Interstate 40 in that part of the state for the little casino until you almost reach the Arkansas border.

Elizabeth Trickey, Tribal Council Advisor said she was the one that named the casino, The Golden Pony. “The last five letters of Thlopthlocco means horse,” said Trickey. “Many people said we were sittin on a goldmine up here. I just put the two together.”

Charles Coleman, one of the two Warriors of the Tribal Town, said the night the sign was turned on they had over 500 people in the casino. “And we don’t have but 400 games,” said Coleman.

Even the governing structure of the tribal town is unique among tribal nations. Their tribal leader is called ‘Mekko’ or Town King. They have two warriors, a secretary and treasurer make up their elected officials. Those five appoint an advisory committee of five people. The 10 make up the governing body.

“My feeling is that in 2002 we had basically a sitdown dobber bingo operation and we were going in about 2 or 3 thousand dollars a week at that time. Then we went into a few games, then Brian McGert came in and we went in to a few more games and we shut down the bingo,” said Coleman.”We took a lot of hits from a lot of little-ole-ladies in the community because that was their thing to play the bingo. They really enjoyed it.”

Clarence Yahola, is the gaming commissioner with the tribe. According to Coleman, he has done a lot of comparisons with vendors and trying to get the best deals for their casino.

Already needing room for expansion Ron Barnett, tribal administrator foresees starting a new casino and having it completed in three years. “We’ve been fortunate that our forefathers had the foresight to continue building on the land base to expand it,” said Barnett. Their landbase is nothing to joke about. With 2,500 acres, mostly in trust, they own the largest amount of land than any other tribe in Oklahoma.

Their five-year plan includes a wellness center and the possibility of creating equestrian trails and camping. The North Canadian River runs through their property so Coleman believes there is a lot of possibility of using it for irrigation or creating a low-water dam.

They want to build a complete service center for visitors to come and spend the night in the countryside.

“I honestly can see nothing but good things for the tribe and the casino,” said Kenna Smith, Marketing Director. “And we are proud to be the largest employer of Okfuskee County.”

They also have a good relationship with the current Muscogee Creek administration and Coleman hopes that will continue.

“In 1998 we did not make enough money to be audited by the BIA, said Coleman. “Now we get compliments from visiting managers of the [Muscogee] Creek Nation casino. We are not going to take away too much from them but they like what it is that we are doing. We are quality.”

Their plan is to add on to their current gaming facility, expand another 100 games, then fund their own building projects of future endeavors without borrowing any money.