Not in Thorp's 1908 book. Lomax 1910 was its first appearance, 30 couplets and chorus, without any comments. Caldwell is the only town mentioned (on the present KS-OK border). 'Ar-kansas City" is east of there; the herds would have been spread at least that wide through that area (to make sure all of them found sufficient grass.

The plow story is fiction, I'm told. Why would he do it? The route Depended on water conditions and grass, no one was looking for a straight route. In the 1860s, the area was well-known. Not sure just when he established his stores (Chouteau, farther east, was another local entrepreneur.

Jesse Chisholm was not black- he was Scots-Cherokee- at the time, some Cherokee were slave holders, they took their slaves with them when they were kicked out of the South.