The Okie Legacy

My mind & week were filled with lots of things going on this week -- not knowing where to begin.  BUT... It was a GREAT week of learning!  So... I will begin by letting Y'all know that I have updated my "Ghost Towns" site with a new influx of Oklahoma Ghost Towns.  I have also updated my "Oakie Photo Album" of 'Pictures' - 'Alva Oklahoma' - 'Normal School' - 'Ghost Towns'.

Things are HOT in Oklahoma!  This week I found myself in northwest Oklahoma helping a friend with a small, weekly newspaper and spending some super evening time with my horse & colt.  About my horses, Moon and Cindy... The other night I went out to feed them at my friend's ranch where they are being boarded. I had just filled up a bucket with oats in the barn and was walking towards the pasture.  About halfway from the barn to pasture the horses spotted me carrying the infamous white bucket.  They began walking towards the gate to greet me, but I beat them inside the gate before the six or seven mares, one stud and the mares offsprings crowded around this Oakie carrying gifts of oats.

There I am standing amongst the horses... talking softly to them as if they actually understood me.  I proceeded to pour small mounds of feed in various locations on the grass for this friendly bunch of horses.  After I emptied the bucket -- after the horses had managed to eat the mounds of feed  -- They still followed me around sniffing the bucket and sticking their nose in it (even Cindy & Moon)! I confidently stood my ground -- sometimes sitting on the bucket -- sometimes holding the bucket under my arm. It was as if Cindy was walking circles counter-clockwise around me sizing me up before she would allow me to pet her neck on the left side. During her sizing up, I softly talked and reached out my hand of friendship towards her and Moon.

Moon during all this sizing-up did a little sizing-up of his own, standing a few feet away taking it all in and watching his mamma (Cindy) check out the situation.  Each day brings many rewards!   Moon did let me touch his nose after he sniffs my hand and the bucket.  It is interesting watching him grow and the changes in his coat each week. Around the eyes he has this light tannish, beige coloring of his mother that moves on down the side of his face.  He has that same beige coloring beginning to show on his sides.  He still has the over-all dark brown coat, though.  Moon is a beautiful little colt, even if I am prejudice towards him.

That was only one of the highlights this week.  I had all the other horses coming up and sticking their noses in the empty bucket to check it out.  I felt like one of the new horses being checked and sniffed.  Is it really true that Horses have a kind of a calming effect?  It makes me wonder sometimes if you can determine the character of a person by the way he treats his horses and the horses he keeps. 

If you were in NW Oklahoma this week and happened to eat lunch at the Longbranch Cafe in Freedom, then you would have spotted this Oakie horse lover mingling with the locals in between breaks of helping a friend put out the weekly community paper.  Another highlight of that week was eating lunch with our Fairvalley neighbors to the south, Helen & Virgil Russell.  Helen (in her 80s) used to write some articles for "The Freedom Call" under the heading of "Yellin' Helen."  I really did have a great week in Freedom learning and hearing stories about my Grandma and my Dad. I'm looking forward to it this next week and Freedom's "Biggest Open Rodeo & Cowhand Reunion" that is August 17, 18th and 19th.  Am I going to see you there?

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o OAKIE'S MAILBAG/LINKS

Oakie's Photo Album Updated -- Normal School - Alva Oklahoma - Ghost Towns

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OAKIE'S POLLS -- Have you VOTED in Oakie's Presidential Poll?  If you have voted, you can still leave 'Comments' in that Polls.  I have a couple of other Polls that you can check out, also.

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Oakie's Ghost Towns Collections - Check out Oklahoma's ghost towns (south

central and northwest) for more names added to the list.

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"Linda, Thank you so much for including me and my new home state in your Oakie newsletter.  I went to the link and enjoyed it so much it made me cry.  You did such a beautiful job integrating the information.  Thank you for including the article in the weekly report, it really made me feel special.  You are special too.  Keep the good work coming and I really look forward to them each and every Friday.  From historic Vancouver"

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Pat Steed, Ph.D. (Associate Professor of English at NWOSU) would love for you to stop by and take a look at her personal web site that she has been working on.  Have a look and be sure to see "This N That" page.  It's now beginning to develop and take shape.

NWOSU Web Page

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"Linda - A little bit of additional information, after my first visit to the Alfalfa County Museum and Historical Society in Cherokee. The info below is accurate (Augusta's location), but somewhat incomplete.  The complete description of Augusta's location is Alfalfa County, Section 5, Township 24N, Range 12W (and FYI, ZULA is Woods County, Section 11, Township 27N, Range 13E; EAGLE CHIEF is Alfalfa County, Section 5, Township 24N, Range 12W; CLYMER is Woods County, Section 18, Township 24N, Range 13W; and DACOMA is Woods County, Section 11, Township 25N, Range 13W).  All of this (and many other towns current and past) came from a little publication TOWN AND PLACE LOCATIONS published by the Oklahoma Department of Highways, revised 1-31-1975.  Finally, in an article in the Enid Morning News, Sunday, Sept. 25, 1988 (page A-4) under the heading "Windows on the Past," is an article by Bill Edson mentioning the origins of towns in Alfalfa County, which might lead you to some new ghost town names as well... Augusta - located a mile west of Carmen, had a post office from 1895 to 1912. & Eagle Chief - established in 1894, it lasted a year and then merged with nearby Augusta."

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If you navigate to Oakies Photo Links - 'PICTURES' -- 'ALVA OKLAHOMA' - You can view the scanned Postcard PICS that Scott submitted.  Or Go to woods/ and scroll down the page for the Links to these photos...

"I love your page on Woods County and Alva.  I have some pictures I thought you might like to see, or possibly use.  They are:

1)  Alva Depot (Old Santa Fe RR Depot)

2)  Alva College Ave (view down College Avenue from the Normal Bldg)

3)  Alva Science Hall State Normal School (Science Hall Normal School bldg.)

Number One is my favorite.  In the '60's, if I took a nap at 3PM like I was supposed to, my mother would reward me with a trip to the depot to see the 4pm (?) train come through... I scanned these from postcards I recently purchased... hope you enjoy them!  Born and Raised in Alva, Oklahoma and Proud of It!" -- Scott Downs

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"This is the URL for the Woods County Map from an US Atlas, 1895.  The Woods County originally included Alfalfa County as well, because the next eastern boundary shows Waukomis and Enid. This clearly shows it as 'Woods' and not 'M.'"

(1895 Woods County Oklahoma US Atlas)

(1895 US Atlas Oklahoma)

(1895 County Maps)

(1895 Indian Nations & O.T. Maps)

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"Hello Linda! I didn't have any pictures of old Frisco, so I drove over a few minutes ago and took a couple. I took one of the main road through town, country road 163 (east/west) with the cemetery sign, then a couple in the cemetery itself. It is still being used, but there are no churches or organized groups to maintain it. I believe the county takes responsibility for it now.  I also went into Stonewall and took a couple downtown shots and one of the old bank. We have a new bank building, about 15 years old, but the old one is now the city hall and still has the old safe, tellers windows and all still inside. We use it for a voting place for the town and attached on the west side is the Stonewall Volunteer Fire department garage and office. I have been told the bank was robbed by Pretty Boy Floyd, but I haven't been able to confirm that with research on the internet.  I did find the following: www.geocities.com/~jdillinger/outlaws1.html,
Apr 21, 1932, George Birdwell and C.C. Patterson rob the First State Bank of Stonewall, Oklahoma, of $600. 
June 7, 1932, Pretty Boy Floyd and George Birdwell meet at a farmhouse near Stonewall, Oklahoma. A police posse arrives and after a gunfight, the outlaws escape. No one is injured." J. Lashbrook, Stonewall, OK

View the ghost towns photos of Frisco cemetery and sign, taken Aug 6 2000 & the Stonewall Downtown and old bank building in Oakie's Photo Album - Pictures - Ghost Towns - Aug06... Frisco & Stonewall photos.

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"Comanche Indian Language -- Hi, my name is Kelli.  I am looking for a Comanche language dictionary.  Specifically, I am looking for the word or symbol meaning "loyalty".  Can you help me or push me in the right direction toward finding that word or symbol.  Thank you!" Kelli Crouch, mailto:cofc@desupernet.net

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"Greetings, family historians - I'm sending this to my "kin" who are searching amongst the same forests that I am, and who have shared information with me lately.  If this is of interest to anyone on your own mailing lists, by all means pass it along.  I have just uploaded a new index of the "Pleasant View Cemetery", located in Woods County, OK, southwest of Dacoma, to my website.  The link is at the very top of my index page.  Sometimes xoom.com gets pretty overwhelmed -- if the "error" message comes up, wait awhile and try again.  I will also be adding this file to the "Cemetery Records Online" in the immediate future.    Thanks for your help - my hope is that this new index will be of help to others." Rod Murrow - mailto:rod@murrow.com

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"Linda, The book 'Oklahoma Place Names' by George H. Shirk page 263 states the following: 'ZULA'.  In Woods County, 12 miles southwest of Alva, Post office established June 8, 1894, site and name changed to Dacoma, October 31, 1904."

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"As usual, I enjoyed reading your weekly Heart to Heart & I was glad to get the beautiful picture of the Grand Lodge Masonic Temple. (I have been a 32nd degree Mason since 1963). Have a safe trip & I see that the NW part of Okla. is extremely hot, be careful up there."

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"Thank you for your reply.  I am so excited to have finally found a connection with the Booth's.  My Great Grandmother Henrietta Anna Booth Krieger was a sister to Louisa and Rachel.  Henrietta was born June 23, 1853 and died May 2, 1898.  She is buried in the Millport Cemetery here in Knox County, Missouri in northeast Missouri.  According to my info, there were 8 children born to Henry and Henrietta Evertson Booth:

1. Lovena Booth Boltz--Denver, Col.

2. Henrietta Anna Booth Krieger--Knox County, MO

3.Louisa Burkhart--Woodward, OK

4. Rachael Booth--Lived with the Burkharts--died as a teen.

5. Emma Booth--married a Morman against parent's wishes. Married name unknown.

6. Henry Booth--RichHill, MO

7. Melissa Belle Booth Roush--Gillette, Wyo. b.-1866 d.-1958

8. Joel Booth--died at 17

My Great Grandmother Henrietta Anna Booth Krieger was a sister to Louisa Booth Burkhart and Rachel Booth. Henrietta Anna and her husband, William M. Krieger and their children lived in Knox County, Missouri. They are buried in the Millport Cemetery here. According to my information, there were 5 other children besides Henrietta Anna, Louisa and Rachel. They were:

Lovena Booth Boltz Bird--Denver, CO;
Emma Booth--married a Morman whose name we don't know;
Henry Booth--Rich Hill, MO;
Melissa Belle Booth Roush--Gillette, Wyo.;
Joel Booth--died at age 17.
Rachel, who lived with William and Louisa Burkhart, died in her teens. 
Let me know if you have more information than this.  Please keep in touch!", Lois Hunziker mailto:sweetoak@marktwain.net"

QUOTE/POEM of the WEEK

"Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet.  Only through experience  of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, vision cleared, ambition inspired, and success achieved." -- Helen Keller, 'Helen Keller's Journal (1938)

o "Drawing Contest" - Alabaster/Silver Clock

"What is the Legacy of the Ghost Towns in your area?"...

Open to Everyone --- Starting Friday (28th July 2000) --- Drawing Each Friday, beginning August 4th, 11:00PM, CDT... Help US keep the memory of the Ghost Towns alive!  If I didn't draw your name this week, Do NOT fret!  There is always next week!  Keep sending me your Ghost Town Legacies!

 

Send in those Okie Legacies & Ghost Town memories w/photos!  I'm off for the Horse sale/show at Shawnee this weekend. 

See Y'all Next weekend!

Linda 'Oakie'

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