Oakie's NW Corner...
This week as I sit staring at my computer screen searching for
unique little "Okie Tidbits" to feel your heads, minds
and souls for thought. There is a paragraph that keeps going through
my head that Joan Wagner Hodgden had written back in 1972 for an
article in the "Alva Review-Courier Progress Editon
(Alva, Oklahoma)."
It started out as this... "We know about the virtues that
a pioneer must have -- a love of adventure; courage in the face
of adversity; adaptability; perseverance and just plain grit. But
we sometimes leave out a characteristic many of them possessed in
a great degree -- namely sensitivity to the things around them.
This is often revealed to us by a line in a diary; a phrase in an
old letter; or a few words scrawled in a bible."
Joan was a special person with lots of energy, adventure, courage,
adaptability, perseverance and sensitivity to the things around
her. She had a love of history, genealogy and community. She was
also my husband's older sister. She is no longer with us, but every
once in awhile I find an article, a phrase, a letter or a few words
of Okie Legacies that she compiled and left behind for all of us
to enjoy. One of those articles was about O.
Scott Cummins (Pilgrim Bard of NW Oklahoma & Kansas).
I only wish that some day someone can say that about this writer.
While I was over at the Oklahoma
Historical Society this week, I looked up the author (Dyer,
Thomas) and found a Thomas Jefferson Dyer, 1857 -- who wrote
about the first white settlement in Oklahoma. A story of the first
white settlement in what is now state of Oklahoma, then known as
Indian Territory and other stories. Alva, Oklahoma c1930, 37pg.
Listed in the Oklahoma Historical Society catalog card file as --
N. Vault, F694, D9.
Has anyone ever read this book or any books written by Thomas Dyer?
Is this the same Thomas Dyer that was a son-in-law of the Pilgrim
Bard (Orange Scott Cummins)?
Old Lookout, NW Oklahoma... I was reading in the "History
of Northwest Oklahoma" about some interesting little tidbits
about "Old Lookout & Day Creek School District #24."
I found out that Mr. Kent built a store in 1902 and named the community
"Lookout" (1-mile east of the Day Creek school).
In 1905, the postoffice was established with Mr. Kent as postmaster.
Other postmasters were... McCue, Jackson, Wares, Patton, Marsel,
Sullen, Ferguson, Mitcul, Doty, Neckisch, Brate, Morrow.
Lookout had a blacksmith shop with Mr. Hayes as the smith. Old
Lookout was located 40 miles from Coldwater, Kansas and 18 miles
from Freedom in Northwest Oklahoma Territory. Some of the mail carriers
for that area around Lookout were... Sam Evert, A. M. Woodard, Ed
Jenkins, John Swartz, August Neckirch, James Wardrop, Almer Davison,
James Schroeder, and Herman Fuller.
Day Creek School Dist. 24... About a mile and a half west
of the community of Lookout was the Day Creek School (District
24). It was first held in a dugout with 1 window and door on
eastside and half mile northwest where the school is now. The school
was held three (3) months in the dougout until Hayes, Dick &
George Hackney built the new schoolhouse. It was one of the first
schools to be built in Woods County. It was named for the creek
that ran south of the schoolhouse. Do any of you former, residents
of northwest Oklahoma have any old pictures of the Day Creek School
or Old Lookout?
A Lonely Grave... written by Thelma Crouch for one of the
Woods County genealogy publications. Its about Felix Fief (Rief)
lonely grave on a hill in norhtwestern Woods County, on land once
owned by Lewis Kamas. Anyway, here is the rest of the story...
"On a lonely and windy hill in northwestern
Woods county, there is a small fenced enclosed grave. The grave
is of a cowboy named Felix Fief.
"One day he was breaking a colt and had the
colt teetered to a tree. Fief had a saddle on the colt and when
he had his wife, Clara, untie the rope, the colt reared back and
fell over backwards, running the saddle horn through Rief's chest.
"Anyone buying the land is asked to maintain
the fence around the grave. The land now belongs to Lewis Kamas.
"Each year in the Spring, there is a small
bunch of marigolds that creep up through the soil and bloom all
Summer if the water is plentiful."
Alva National Bank, January 11, 1904... This little tidbit
was found in the "History of Northwest Oklahoma"
book. It reads as follows... "washington, January 11, (1904)
-- The comptroller of the currency received a telegram stating that
the Alva National Bank of Alva, Oklahoma, did not open for
business Saturday morning."
I dug out one of my other northwest history books of Oklahoma to
find out more about Alva National Bank -- to see where exactly
it was located in downtown Alva. Its location was on the northwest
corner of College Ave. (6th St.) & Flynn Ave. Alva
National Bank was established and built in 1899 with the front
corner part of the bank building measuring 75-feet by 20-feet. The
bank was bought between 1907 and 1913 by the Alva Security Bank
with George A. Harbaugh, President.
It was during the first week of September, 1913, that a deal was
consummated with the Alva Security Bank, G. A. Harbaugh,
E. Anderson, T. F. Fennessey, and H. E. Noble had purchased the
Alva Security Bank and organizing a new banking institution
known as "Central State Bank" conducting business
in the same establishment as occupied by the Alva Security Bank.
It stands on that same corner today taking up maybe a half block
square on the northwest corner of Flynn & College Ave.
On October 31, 1917, the bank absorbed the Woods County Union
Bank with Mr. Harbaugh and Mr. George S. Meade controlling the
interests of stock in the Union bank at that time.
In January 1919 Mr. W. D. Myers purchased a large interest in the
bank and by March 1922 he was president when the bank was converted
to a national bank. April 9, 1932, it was announced that the Dacoma
Bank merged with the Central National Bank and the Bank
of Dacoma was in good financial condition.
Osage Nation, I. T. (Osage County, Oklahoma)... What I really
went to the Historical Society searching out was something on the
Beginning of Osage Oil
in the Osage Nation in north central Oklahoma. I have updated my
Oklahoma Counties and added Osage
County histories that I have found to date. If anyone out there
has any "Old Photos" or legacies they would like to share,
send (Email Linda)
them this way.
There is one last little tidbit that I would like to fill you in
on while I have you stunned, captive and.... It concerns a blackman
named Jess Howard who lived around Cleo Springs and was into Rodeos
in that area. Someone earlier ask me if there was a black community
north and west of Cleo (Cleo Springs, Okla.). Maybe this
is another lead to that connection and finding out where, what and
When it was established in northwest Oklahoma. Does Jess Howard
ring a bell with anyone out there.
As I leave you here... I would like to think that we haven't
forgotten about what our pioneers went through and that we shall
continue on with that adventurism, courage, adaptability, perseverance,
sensitivity and grit it takes to conquer the world, universe that
we haven't explored yet as the next generation of pioneers that
will be known to some extent as the next Pilgrims, Bards.
Take Care and I shall see you next weekend for St. Patrick's Day.
Wear your green, orange so no one will reach out and pinch you.
Where, Why did we start the wearing of the green so as NOT to be
pinched?
~~ Linda "OaKie" ~~
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How many
of your friends have 3 deer looking in the window? I am told,
"If you walk up into that flat field around sundown you might
see Elk."
We did not walk up to the flat field at
sundown, but we drove the pickup because it was chilly. Anyway,
what I saw were over a couple dozen deer grazing in this flat
mountain pasture. If there were Elk among them, they were so far
away I couldn't see. AND... I did not take my binoculars along
on the trip.
At the Alva Depot
OK! Who Is This Young Couple in the
early days of Alva, Oklahoma Territory?
I know it is in Alva (Okla.) at the Train Depot. (BTW -- The Alva
Depot no longer exists! They tore it down awhile back.)
BUT... Anyway, there were no names written on this photo. I am
not sure but I think this might be Bill McGill & Constance
Warwick in their courtin' days. If it isn't Constance, then it
is another girlfriend of Bill's.
Maybe someone out there will recognize this couple and give me
some assurance of who they are and when it might have been taken.
Why didn't people write names, dates on back of old photos for
the other generation like myself. I am really playing a guessing
game here guys. HELP!
Home Comfort Cookbook (c1934)
Coming Soon in a PDF format
Menu:
Linda K McGill Wagner
c/o WWW Publishing Co
PO Box 619, Bayfield, CO 81122
Thanks! You can also view The OkieLegacy online. Copyrighted © 2008 by WWWPubCo & OkieLegacy.
All Rights Reserved.
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"Visionary
Philosopher? ? Like Plato, your mind's strengths allow you to
think ahead of the game -- to imagine or anticipate what should come
next in just about any situation. Because you're equally skilled in
the numerical and verbal universes of the brain, you can draw from
multiple sources of information to come up with great ideas. The timelessness
of your vision and the balance between your various skills are what
make you a..... (they stopped right there and said I could order
results for $14.95 to view the rest of the story.) Most people's
IQs are between 70 and 130. In fact, 95% of all people have IQs within
that range. 68% of people score between 80 and 120." 