Duchess & Oakie's NW Corner

Bayfield, Colorado - Labor Day weekend found it dropping over an inch of rain in some areas of SW Colorado while the motorcyclists were gathering for the "Rally in the Rockies!"

That ain't smoke rising from the ground last weekend! That is the misty steam caught in this photo while the camera lady is looking east towards the stone mountains in SW Colorado. I used the tree in the foreground to shade the brightness, glare from the early morning rising sun. This is just one of the many mountain splendors in God's SW Colorado mountain country.

Alva's First Jury... This is one of the old Alva photos that Jim Richey sent me concerning Alva's Runnymede project. This photo shows Alva's first jury posing on the south side of the square. You can see the Runnymede in the background on the east side of the square including the Bickel Drugstore and a grocery store in between the two. Which grocery store was that? What year do you suppose this picture of taken? Early 1900s?

All those old photos that Jim sent can be viewed at our NEW venture with e-blogs - OkieLegacy Soapbox. We want this part of OkieLegacy to be a place where Genealogists, Historians, Opinionated Men and Women and Others can share their inquiries, history, genealogy and debate their viewpoints. Hate and Destructive comments will be deleted or edited, though. JOIN US... at NW Okie's OkieLegacy Soapbox!

Hendrickson & Runnymede Hotels in Alva... Someone asked me if the Hendrickson Hotel and the Runnymede were the same hotel. I am not sure what the answer is there. I thought maybe some of you might fill us in on that question. Were they two different hotels... or the same?

Did You Know... that the Wrought Iron Range Co. (WIRC) closed it's doors in late '30's, in St. Louis largely in part due to the increased unionism -- the president Col. Cal Chambers used WIRC assets to build the Texas Foundry in Houston, Texas around 1939.

Remember McClain's Shoe Store... It was called McClains Shoe Store and run by two McClains brothers (Everett & Harold) until Harold left and Everett managed it. Did you know that there were six McClain brothers? Besides Harold and Everett, there was Ken who managed Ken's Motel on hwy 64. I believe that motel today is used as a storage building.

Couple of Questions... Does anyone out there remember the name of sheriff D. C. Oates daughter's name? They lived on Barnes Avenue. The other question concerns Alva's first nurse, Ada Eaton. Is that the same as Hildegard Ada / Hulda (Harris) Eaton?

Mantz's of Ingersoll, Oklahoma... We stand corrected by many of you that wrote in this week. Last week we mentioned Leonard & Nettie Mantz of Ingersoll. It was not Leonard Mantz but his brother Raymond that was married to Nettie. They had the Mantz 66 station on the north side of hwy 64, in Ingersoll. Just west of Mantz 66 station was "Tuck's" Surplus & Gas Store (also known as Tucker Supply and Army Surplus Store). Tucker Supply was owned and managed by Glen & Pauline Tucker, grandparents of Tony Fox of Cherokee. Thanks to Y'all for sharing your memories and helping us get things right! We really do appreciate you all!

To the Memory of... those who lost their lives and loved ones in the NYC, Pennsylvania and Pentagon disasters of 9/11/2001. Our thoughts & prayers are with you and we know this is one of the hardest times for you right now. Our thoughts & prayers go out to the Floridians who are again getting pounced with yet another hurricane, "Ivan" this weekend. Sounds like the Florida Keyes are in the line of fire this week.

Here's to making America Stronger at Home! Respected in the World! Believing In America Again! We Can Do Better!

See Y'all next weekend with more Okie Legacies! ~~ Linda "oaKie" & Duchess ~~ View/Write Comments (count 0)   |   Receive updates (0 subscribers)  |   Unsubscribe

Wrought Iron Range Company

Houston, Texas - "Greetings from Houston.  As I have been told the story, the Wrought Iron Range Company closed in the late 30's in St. Louis due largely to increased unionism (as the story has been told to me).

My dad worked there as a young clerk and was given the opportunity to come to Lufkin, Texas with a group of otherwise executives to start a new malleable iron foundry presumably with the assets of the Wrought Iron Range Co. Under the Presidency of a man named Col. Cal C. Chambers, the Texas Foundry was built and poured its first heat in 1939.  No longer making ranges, the Texas Foundry is today a jobbing foundry, producing no consumer products of its own, but making parts for others and for other industries.  A steel foundry was added in the mid 50's.

As a little boy, I used to pour through the recruiting and fund raising brochures of the Culver Military Academy sent home to me from Col. Chambers--never knowing until I read your article today, that there was a family tie between Culver and the old Wrought Iron Range Co. Small world." -- Don Looser - Email: Dlooser@aol.com View/Write Comments (count 0)   |   Receive updates (0 subscribers)  |   Unsubscribe

Kingfisher County & The Big Run

Kingfisher County, Oklahoma - "You obviously have put a lot of work into this project and it shows. It is very interesting and I'm anxious to read more. I was born out on the plains in Kingfisher county -- just across the line from one of the counties you mentioned. My grandfather at age 11 drove a buckboard in the Big Run and settled in Kingfisher county... he was following his father who had gone ahead on their fastest horse. I'm glad that I'm old enough to have been able to visit with people such as my grandparents. My grandmother actually came from Chadron, Nebraska, in a covered wagon to make the run with her family. She lived from covered wagon days to super jets! That is amazing to me. Anyhow, thanks for bringing all this (and more) back to me!" -- Jimmy Goodhue - Email: izofaz33@msn.com View/Write Comments (count 0)   |   Receive updates (0 subscribers)  |   Unsubscribe

El Reno Photographers

El Reno, Oklahoma - "I called the library in El Reno and they looked in the 1910 city directory and found that there were five photo studios in El Reno at the time. I think that we have figured out by what lettering we could read that was embossed on the bottom of the photo that it was a W. Fimes. There was also a AJ Finn, EM Pennell, FR Shissart and JA Shuck. Thanks again for your help!" -- Charlotte View/Write Comments (count 0)   |   Receive updates (0 subscribers)  |   Unsubscribe

Mantz in Ingersol, Okla

Ingersoll, Oklahoma - "I remember the Mantz's very well, but I never heard Mr. Mantz called 'Leonard.' Their names were Raymond and Nettie Mantz and they opened that filling station around 1949 or 1950. Raymond was a fishing buddy of my dad's and we went on many outings (fishing, picnicking, sand plum and wild grape picking, etc.) with them when they lived in Alva in the late forties.

Raymond had a brother who sharpened one-way plows, but I can't remember his first name. Raymond was usually self-employed during that time, and took part in the annual broomcorn harvest in the southwest Kansas - southeast Colorado area. My older brother John went out there and worked for him for two years at harvest time. Raymond also had a commercial fishing license and dealt in live minnows, and my brother was his right-hand man in that operation, also.

As it was the twilight of the broomcorn era and Raymond was getting on in years, he invested in the small station at Ingersoll. At the time, Nettie's mother (whom I knew only as Mrs. McGee) was still living with them. Mrs. McGee was very thin and frail and was not very talkative. The station (Mantz' 66 Station) had three rooms: a small front room where they sold beer, candy, cigarettes, ice cream bars and a few non-perishable grocery items; a room immediately behind that contained a table and chairs, small stove, refrigerator and a day bed for Mrs. McGee; and there was a tiny bedroom in the west end where Raymond and Nettie slept.

Later they lived in a building across the street, but I was never in it. Along with the three people, they also had an indoor dog named 'Grumpy.' Grumpy was an old, short-haired, short-legged mongrel with a large wart on his head and pretty well lived up to his name.

Nettie and Raymond had no children of their own, but I think Raymond had at least one child by a previous marriage. I don't know much at all about his earlier life nor Nettie's. There were still quite a number of families living in Ingersoll at the time, and I remember going with Raymond once as he ran a milk route. I don't know what else he did, but he was a varied small entreprenuer in the years I knew him. The last time I talked to them was in 1978, and I think Raymond died not too long after that. Nettie lived for quite some time after that and I would see her occasionally near her home as I passed through town on the highway." -- Jim Barker View/Write Comments (count 0)   |   Receive updates (0 subscribers)  |   Unsubscribe

Ingersoll Station

Ingersoll, Oklahoma - quot;You have really struck a responsive chord. The Mantz's were dear friends of my family and all of us kids looked forward to a cold drink (bottle of pop) and a candy bar at the station when we were on a fishing trip. My father, E.M. Barker, considered Raymond (not Leonard) to be a prime source of fishing information for his Sports Spasms column in the Alva Review Courier . He also went on many of our trips and was an accomplished fisherman. He had a splendid wry sense of humor and you always left him chuckling at some witticism that he uttered usually about the foibles of the local populace.    Nettie was a mother confessor and was always ready to lend a sympathetic ear to any problems we had at the time. Both of them were the best friends that a person could have." -- Bill Barker View/Write Comments (count 0)   |   Receive updates (0 subscribers)  |   Unsubscribe

Warwick's & Kentucky Coal Mines

Louisville, Kentucky - "My name is Don Warwick. I discovered your site while attempting some research on my family name. I have always been very interested in my roots. Here in Louisville, Kentucky the Warwick name is rare indeed. I was born in 1957. My father was George Warwick, his father was Ross Warwick, and his father, Joseph Warwick, then his father, Emanuel Warwick who was born in the 1870's and was married to Mary Nelson. Emanuel's brothers were, Frasier and Harvey Warwick. I know that Joseph was born in Tennessee. But am not sure about Emanuel. He may have been born in Virginia as I know his father was born there but do not know his name. I am told that Joseph was a very tall man for his time, probably about 6'-6". Regardless, my understanding is that my Warwick clan by earliest accounts was in Virginia but am not sure of any previous individuals or their pathway to Virginia . I know that my grandfather Ross Warwick left Tennessee for the work in the coal mines of east Kentucky and his father and brothers also worked some in the coal mines of Kentucky. I was always told that originally the Warwick's hailed from England. I would enjoy any information you can share with me and would be glad to answer any questions you may have." -- Don Warwick - Email: iceis@insightbb.com View/Write Comments (count 0)   |   Receive updates (0 subscribers)  |   Unsubscribe

1938 Quakers

Friends University, Kansas - "I was curious if you had any information concerning my grandfather.   He played baseball for the 1938 Quakers, Friends University.  I have a December, 1938 line-up, The Quakers Vs. McPherson Bulldogs. There is a McGill on the Bulldogs. Not sure if any relation to prior clippings. Thank you!" -- Tim - Email: shannon.houser@sbcglobal.net View/Write Comments (count 0)   |   Receive updates (0 subscribers)  |   Unsubscribe

Runnymede Photos

Alva, Oklahoma - "Thanks for stirring up interest in the Runnymede Project in your e-zine. Your history is quite accurate. I have several pictures of the Runnymede -- both before and after the move from Kansas to Oklahoma. I also have pictures of the Runnymede colonists who enjoyed having their pictures made with guns, knives and  big western hats. I suppose these wild west pictures were meant to impress the folks back in England. I'll attach a few lo-res pictures (I have several more, mostly of settlers). Any pictures with a file name beginning with KSHS should be credited to the Kansas State Historical Society. We would love to have a picture of the building being moved. If someone has such a picture we will carefully make a copy and return the original to its owner." -- Jim Richey - Email: j.richey@sbcglobal.net View/Write Comments (count 0)   |   Receive updates (0 subscribers)  |   Unsubscribe

Paris Family From Michigan

Menominee, Michigan - "Hello, I just found your site. I am trying to find my history also. My father is Gerald D. Paris. His grandfather was Orville born 1921 in Menominee, Michigan. I just wanted to know if we were related somehow. Thanks!" -- Joe Paris (a.k.a Gerald J. Paris 'Joe') - Email: jparis3@yahoo.com View/Write Comments (count 0)   |   Receive updates (0 subscribers)  |   Unsubscribe

Ingersoll Stores

Ingersoll, Oklahoma - "Somebody gave you a bum steer about the Ingersoll store! The business on the east side (north side of the highway) was owned by Raymond (not Leonard) and Nettie Mantz.

The old structure is located directly across the street from the Smok Shak. It is true that Nettie liked to visit, but she didn't drive so was sort of stuck in a tiny little building all day. They both liked animals and there were assorted dogs and cats which had to be moved to retrieve milk, beer or bologna out of the cooler.

They had no children of their own but often babysat some of the neighbor children. Nettie's elderly mother, Mrs. Percintina lived there also. Toni Hawkins Fox's maternal grandparents were Glen and Pauline Tucker. Glen was a brother to the Tuckers living in Kiowa and Pauline was originally from Boston. They had the War Surplus and Gas Store also on the north side of the highway, but one block west. The business was unique and customers gasped at the amount of STUFF in that store.

Tuck (as everyone called him) advertised having anything anybody needed, if he could just find it.  Pauline told me one time that shoes were sometimes bought by the truckload, tied together in pairs but there would always be a bunch for just one foot! There were literally tons of tools in that store.

The old adobe building has collapsed but part of it remains. A cactus still blooms there in the spring. Since both proprietors sold gas competitively, folks in the community often referred to them as Nip and Tuck.
When Glen retired the Tuckers moved to a new home in Cherokee. Glen died not long after they moved but Pauline lived there several years before she passed away." -- Bonnie View/Write Comments (count 0)   |   Receive updates (0 subscribers)  |   Unsubscribe

Ingersoll - Corrected Information About Mantz

Cherokke, Oklahoma - "I believe the owners of the gas station on the north side of the highway in Ingersoll was Raymond (not Leonard) & Nettie Mantz. Don't believe they had any children. Glenn & Pauline Tucker owned "Tucker Supply" just down highway 64 just west of Mantz's and they (Tucker's) were Tony Fox's grandparents. Raymond and Nettie were friends to everyone! Leonard was Raymond's brother. He sharpened disks for farm implements." -- Kay - Cherokee View/Write Comments (count 0)   |   Receive updates (0 subscribers)  |   Unsubscribe

Typo Correction - Howard Berry, Sr.'s

St. Louis, Missouri - "The author of the book about Moman Pruiett is Howard Berry, Sr. Not Howard Baker, Sr. as indicated in mailbag notes of Vol.6, Iss. 36. Thought you'd like to know. Having known Mr. Berry and his family personally, I'm sure he'd like to have his proper attribution. Keep up the great work with Okie Legacy!!!!" -- Jeff - Proud Sooner in St. Louis View/Write Comments (count 0)   |   Receive updates (0 subscribers)  |   Unsubscribe

Pine Valley Sawmill

Pine Valley, Oklahoma - "Thanks for some very good reading. I have read a book about the Pine Valley Sawmill. I've been looking for a copy of the book to buy for a few years now. Do you have any idea where I might buy a copy. It was written by Kenneth Smith. Thank you." -- Tommy Lewis - Email: tlewis@idabelps.org
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McClain Brothers - Alva, OK

Salem, Virginia - "Have read with interest many of your fine articles. I noted that you live on Maple St., which is where I lived until 1960.  We were at 1120 Maple, which doesn't look much like it did back in those days.

My folks Harold & Ruby McClain built that house in 1945. I remember we had a basketball court in the back yard, as my dad was a player on the Alva HS team in the late 1920's that did quite well.  He later played for the Phillips 66ers semi-pro team.

We spent many hours playing out there. The floor of the court was not concrete or asphalt as it would be today, but the hard red clay soil that was smooth and completely bare of grass from our use. One of my earliest memories which would have been in the late '40s was seeing the trash collector coming up the alley to pick up our garbage.

He had an open wagon and team of mules.  The trash was in a big metal barrel, and they would pick it up with one hand on the lip and one on the bottom and dump it into the wagon.

We were just up the hill from Pettit's house. I remember when they built that house. It was really 'modern' at that time, unlike the other houses on the street some of which were pretty old even back them. The Mann's lived in that house later. They were good friends of ours as they used to live right across the alley from us on Locust St.

I don't specifically remember your grandmother, but I do recall that name and I'm sure my folks knew her. My dad (Harold) was once partner in McClain's shoe store, but later only his brother Everett was running it. Dad had gone into the insurance business. A third brother, Ken, owned the old Ken Motel on the highway (it's now a storage facility or something).

There were three other brothers, but they all moved away. The six boys were born and raised in Alva in the little house at 303 2nd St. which is still there, and looks about like it did in the old days down to the old lilac bush that was already old when I was a little kid.

Their grandparents lived on Choctaw after retiring from a farm. There are three generations of McClains buried at Alva Cemetery.

The Phillips 66ers basketball team was sponsored by Phillips Petroleum. In the pre-NBA days, the best basketball players in the country played on various teams that were sponsored by athletic clubs, corporations, military units, and the like. They participated in some league play, tours, and national championships (which the 66ers won several times). This was under the auspices of the AAU (Amateur Athletic Union). I referred to them as 'semi-pro' because the players were on the payroll of Phillips, but their primary job was to play basketball.

I believe the Alva High School team that my dad was on, which I think was 1929, won the state championship, but I couldn't find any details about that. I was born in 1945, so when I was old enough to remember, that was pretty much ancient history for everyone, but I do recall people talking about what a great team they had. " -- Mark McClain - Email: Mmcbs@aol.com - Salem, Virginia, USA View/Write Comments (count 0)   |   Receive updates (0 subscribers)  |   Unsubscribe

Sheriff D. C. Oates Daughter's Name?

Alva, Oklahoma - "Hello, I visited the house I lived in on Barnes just recently. After talking to the people that now live there. I was told that a woman came to them several years ago and said that she was born in that house. She said that her father was sheriff of Alva and was later killed in McAlester during a prison riot. That man according to history was D.C. Oates. Does anyone know of his daughter? Name? Did she live and die in Alva?" -- Mark Seevers - Email: markssurgicalasst@yahoo.com View/Write Comments (count 0)   |   Receive updates (0 subscribers)  |   Unsubscribe

Ada Eaton - Alva's Nurse

Tulsa, Oklahoma - "I have no idea if this is the same Miss Ada EATON mentioned in this article but I have a Hildegard Ada / Hulda (Harris) EATON indirectly part of in my line. Here's the lineup: Ada Harris married Harrison Bascomb EATON in Kansas in 1906; Harrison Eaton died in Alva, OK in 1961.
The only other information I have about them is: Harrison Eaton was the son of Absalom (Ab) Eaton and the grandson of James Miller EATON.   James Miller EATON married (as 1 of 3 wives) Ethalinda BOWER who was my great, great, grandmother.

Now Anton 'Tony' Shafer (actually, it was originally spelled SCHAEFFER ) was married to Mary N. NICOLA - who was my grandfather, Charles Henry NICOLA's, sister (both children of Anthony 'Andy' NICOLA and Martha BAKER)." -- Karel View/Write Comments (count 0)   |   Receive updates (0 subscribers)  |   Unsubscribe

Kansas Goldbugs

Kensington, Kansas - "Hi there Goldbugs! I graduated in 1970 from Kensington High school, Kensington, Kansas as Janis Barnhill. I know there are other Goldbug schools out there, so I was curious to see who had signed this book. I drew the Goldbug logo in 1970 for our graduating class and they have used that design ever since. We never thought the Goldbug was an unusual mascot, that's what we grew up with! Yeah Goldbugs!" -- Jan Knight - Email: ssnova7452@hotmail.com View/Write Comments (count 0)   |   Receive updates (0 subscribers)  |   Unsubscribe

Hendrickson Hotel - Alva

Alva, Oklahoma - "Was the Runnymede Hotel in Alva, Oklahoma first called the Hendrickson Hotel? -- Posted by Anonymous to OkieLegacy Soapbox at 9/10/2004 11:18:11 AM View/Write Comments (count 0)   |   Receive updates (0 subscribers)  |   Unsubscribe

Runnymede Hotel History - OkieLegacy Soapbox

Alva, Oklahoma - "That is a neat history of the Runnymede.  I added a question to the last picture of the hotel.  From what I was told, that hotel was first named the Hendrickson hotel.  If it was the Hendrickson hotel (which it sure doesn't sound like it when reading the history included on the blog), Mark NEEDS, Sr. and his wife, Mary Jane RITCHIE supposedly owned and operated the Hendrickson hotel. His son, 'Doc' Needs, operated the 'Needs Bus Llines' running from the depot to the hotel.   'Doc Needs' is the father of Daisy 'Betty' Needs.  Betty married Harold McDOWELL who was my grandmother's brother.  Small world, isn't it?" View/Write Comments (count 0)   |   Receive updates (0 subscribers)  |   Unsubscribe