Happy New Year 2009

As we wound down the last week of 2008 by bringing in another New Year, we have been enjoying some much needed sunshine that helped compact and melt a few inches of the snow that fell in SW Colorado during Christmas week.

By this Saturday and into the early Sunday morning hours of January 4, 2009, we accumulated another 3 to 4 inches North of Bayfield. I am not quite sure what the higher elevations accumulations were, though. The New Mexico weathermen were predicting from 6 to a foot of snow in the mountains around 7500+.

It is still snowing slightly here as I sit working on the OkieLegacy Ezine, Vol. 11, Issue 1 for January 2009, Sunday afternoon.

Speaking of the OkieLegacy Ezine, my oldest son, Michael, has been busy giving it a NEW facelift for 2009. We hope it is more user friendly and interactive. Notice some new items added over at the left column. Such as... Classifieds (50 characters or less), Community Action board and the FamilyNet where you can register your family surnames and post messages.

Also... we have incorporated the old "Mailbag' section and included them with the features. There is NO "Mailbag" section anymore!

Posting Classifieds... The classifieds are moderated and are limited to 50 characters or less. It pertains to Jobs, For Sale, Wanted, For Rent. Do not forget to put in the "Run Until" box the date you want it to run to. Include your name and email (or phone number) before you click on the "send" button.

For those community activists that want to make a "Dynamite Difference" we have added a "DoRight-ers" community action board where you can share your injustice fact and tell us "What would you do?"

If you click on List Community Actions on the left column, it will take you to a list of community actions where you can add to that action.

Michael, have I left anything out? Did I tell our OkieLegacy Ezine readers everything they need to know? If I did leave something out, help me fill them in some more.

By the way... We have been told that Michael E. Wagner has made NWOSU's Fall 2008 President's Honor Roll. Congratulations, Michael! We are proud of you! Keep up the great work! Thanks for helping our OkieLegacy family with it's NEW facelift.
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Caves & Treasures In Oklahoma

"Oklahoma Treasures and Treasure Tales" by Steve Wilson mentions that the caverns are many in the Arbuckles in Southern Oklahoma. Any one of them might be the treasure cave.

One maze of underground rooms is known as "Dead Man's Cave." Another is "Wild Woman Cave." Then there are Crystal Cave and three bearing the name Jesse James, supposedly named for the occupant. Still more caves are unnamed.

This is a link to Dennis Muncrief's webpage where he tell's how "Wild Woman Cave" got its name, along with pics of the Wild Woman! His link is: Wild Woman Cave.

Part of the United States government payroll may yet molder in some dark, musty cavern near Mill Creek, not far from the deserted ruins that were once Fort Arbuckle. Has anyone ever exposed the gold-filled coffee cans?

Check out Google's books and especially Oklahoma Treasures and Treasure Tales by Steve Wilson for more history of Oklahoma's Caves and Treasure Tales.
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Fort Arbuckle's Lost Payroll

This little tidbit of history was found in the book, "Oklahoma Treasures and Treasure Tales," page 244, concerning Fort Arbuckle's Lost Payroll.

"Early one morning in 1869 a heavily guarded caravan of wagons rumbled out of fort Leavenworth, Kansas, bound for Fort Arbuckle. The iron-rimmed wheels of one wagon left broad, deep ruts in the dirt. it carried a United Sates government gold payroll."

"The caravan safely journeyed through the Indian country and was approaching the designated outpost. A few miles more and the journey would be completed. But as the wagons rounded a bend in the trail near Mill Creek, a barrage of shots from a dozen or more rifles caught the soldiers by surprise. The military detail promptly returned a volley, instantly killing five outlaws who had dared show themselves. All the soldiers were killed in the ambush."

"The outlaws removed the gold from the wagon, fearing that more troops would be dispatched from the nearby fort when the caravan failed to show."

Check out this link for Lost Treasures of Oklahoma.
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Red River Historian

The Red River Historian link was submitted by Homer Hawkins. It is about the history of "Where the South Meets the West."

Do you want to know more about the history of the Red River Valley and the Southwest? Then look at the articles, editorials, primary sources, and traveling histories at this website: Red River Historian Archives.

Visit, browse, learn, and love history! This site is devoted to discoveries in learning about the past - specifically, the history of where the South meets the West: Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Louisiana. Red River Historian.
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Kansas Photo Past

This pps file concerning photos of Kansas's Past was sent to OkieLegacy by Ellis Raymer. It is a 3mb file, but hope you can download and enjoy of Kansas's past. -- The Good Old Day In Kansas. Enjoy!
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The Red River War of 1874

It was during the summer of 1874, the US Army launched a campaign to remove the Comanche, Kiowa, Southern Cheyenne and Arapaho Indian tribes from the Southern Plains and enforce their relocation to reservations in Indian Territory.

According to the Medicine Lodge Treaty of 1867, the government would provide the tribes with a variety of basic services and training, housing, food and supplies, including guns and ammunition for hunting. They would receive these allotments each year for 30 years and would be allowed to hunt on any lands south of the Arkansas River so long as the buffalo may range thereon. In exchange, the Indians agreed to stop their attacks and raids on the settlers. Ten chiefs endorsed the treaty and many tribal members moved voluntarily to reservations.

BUT... the treaty was destined for failure when commercial buffalo hunters ignored the terms of the treaty and the southern herd of American bison was exterminated in just four years -- from 1874 to 1878. The hunters slaughtered the bison and sent the hides back east and left the carcasses to rot on the plains. The US government did nothing to stop it.

Check out the Red River War at this web link.
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Barnett Family Info & Photos

Ronald Lee Barnett Jr. says, "My famly Tree is ( me Ronald Lee Barnett Jr., Father: Ronald Lee Barnett, Father: Jimmie or "James" Barnett, Father: David Barnett, Father: Siah Barnett. I'm looking for Photos on my Family and more info." -- Ronald Lee Barnett Jr. - Email: randbpainting@yahoo.com
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Memories of Downtown Alva, OK

Jerry Crenshaw of the Class of Alva High 1954 mentions memories of, "Hillcrest Dairy; Golden Crust Bakery; Smitty’s Shoe Shop.

The Palace Barber Shop; Lynn’s Restaurant; Warrick’s Shoe Store; Bell Hotel Ballroom for Birthday parties.

Loell Redfern and the Coca Cola Bottling Plant on Flynn. The Sportsmans’ Post; Strickland and Horner Flying School and Rental planes east of Alva. (Piper Cub)

Dr. Pepper and 7-Up bottling on College Ave.; Tanners; Jelly Johnson at Rice Clothes for men and boys. The 3-R’s of entertainment of Homer Jones; Ranger, Ritz and Rialto and the Pix was on the West side of the square.

Monfort’s Drug store where some of us had a lunch of chicken salad san on toast and a bowl of cream of chicken soup most every school day during open lunch.

Also, originator of the "frozen malt soft icecream.

Goldbug Inn across the street to the south of the old AHS.

Mr. Stith the science teacher. Mrs Ewalt, my favorite English teacher. The Home Ec teacher who told all the girls that prolonged kissing would cause pregnancy. (Oh woe were we boys!)

Mr. Gallon taught us how to drive and coached the drivers-ed team.

Mr. Korn. Mr. Geis. May God bless all their souls.

Mr. Harold Shirley, principal. One of the nicest men I had ever known. Bernard Ballard; Horace Mann School; Jack Ging; Tom Dean; Betty Geis; Evelyn Ensor; and ALL the student heros we kids looked up to so much.

Lee Denner; Tom Denner; Coach Johnny Walker and Starbuck Roberts. Those were the days. Those were the days." -- Jerry Crenshaw in Russell, KS
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The Moon & Venice

Our youngest son, Robert L. Wagner, took this great shot around the the first of January, 2009 up in the San Juan mountains of Southwest Colorado.

It shows the moon shining in the Rocky mountains with the planet Venice below it. There were other planets showing nearby, but he couldn't get them into the picture.

Thanks, Robert, for an outstanding shot of the moon and venice!
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Restroom memories of the 1940s

"In the 40s a favorite restroom for me was the one in the basement of the courthouse. I used it frequently when delivering the 'square route' of the Alva Review Courier. One point of interest was that the jail was down there. I approached a prisoner once and asked him what he was in there for? "He replied, I pushed an old lady''s ducks in the pond". There was also interesting graffiti posted on the walls of the stalls. Some educational, some just plain nasty." -- Bill Barker
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Sam Bradford Is The Face Of A Nation

According to this article written By JOEY JOHNSTON The Tampa Tribune Published: January 4, 2009, Sam Bradford is "The pride of Oklahoma, a humble, hard-working and incredibly accurate quarterback who has brought his Sooners to the brink of a national championship."

Sam Bradford, Heisman Trophy winner. Sam Bradford, American hero. Bradford has become the ultimate inspiration as he prepares to face the Florida Gators in Thursday night's BCS Championship Game. Bradford's Native American heritage - he is one-sixteenth Cherokee and five generations removed from his last full-blooded relative - has not been a major part of his life.

Go Oklahoma Sooners! Go Bradford! Go Stoops! Beat Florida January 8, 2009 for the BCS Championship! -- article submitted by Dale Talkington
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