In 1871, the Atlantic & Pacific Railroad crossed the Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railway and the Indian Territory was never the same. First called The Junction, then Downingville, and finally Vinita, the city of culture and commerce soon became the Queen of the Prairie. Compiled from the first year of articles published in The Grand Laker, "Pushin' Up Daisies - When Vinita Was Young," tells the stories of the people, places, and events in and around early day Vinita, Oklahoma. A melting pot of immigrants, Indians and entrepreneurs, Vinita witnessed outlaws, socialites, soiled doves and gruesome murders. "Pushin' Up Daisies" takes you on a journey to simpler days gone by and the people who called it home.