Roy Cashion (March 19, 1881 - July 1, 1898)
Roy Cashion, born in Medina, Michigan, moved to Hennessey with his family where he graduated at the top of the first graduating class of Hennessey High School. He had a strong passion for the freedom of the Cuban people, and his graduation speech was entitled "Liberty for Cuba." On May 2, 1898, just a few days after graduation, the seventeen-year-old rode his horse to Guthrie to sign up with Teddy Roosevelt's "Rough Riders." After training in San Antonio, Texas, the company went to Tampa, Florida from where they embarked to Cuba. Cashion participated in the Battle of Santiago on June 24th and was part of the charge up San Juan Hill, where he was killed by a bullet to the head. The Americans were forced to retreat and his body was not recovered for three days. He is believed to be the first Oklahoman to die in a foreign war.
Roy's father worked for three and a half years, with one trip to Washington and another to Cuba, to arrange the transfer of his son's body back to Oklahoma. Roy Cashion was returned to Oklahoma on January 27, 1902, and buried with full honors in Hennessey Cemetery a few days later.
In 1899 the Oklahoma Territorial Assembly appropropriated the princely sum of $1200 to establish a monument to Roy Cashion. The citizens of Hennessey raised an additional $800. The sculptor was S. H. Miller of Oklahoma City. In 1903 the monument was dedicated by Territorial Governor Tom Ferguson and is believed to be the oldest outdoor statue in the state.
Some years later, several Hennessey families established a new town to the southeast and gave it the name Cashion in honor of their home town hero.
To establish your visit to this Virtual Reward, message the CO and identify the three items shown on the back of the monument. Spoiler-free photos of you and your group at the statue are also appreciated.
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