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Monfort Drug Store

Burned - May 28, 1953, Thursday, early morning (1:30-1:45 A.M.)
Alva, Oklahoma, Woods County

Monfort Drugstore fire - 1953

These are shots sent to me of the Monfort Drugs fire scenes taken sometime during the early 1950s (May 28, 1953, Thursday, 1:30a.m.).

As to my recollection of the fire, it is really quite vague. All I remember is living on the corner of 7th & Church Street (a couple or three blocks south and west of the downtown square in Alva, Oklahoma.

My Uncle Bob McGill was married to Dr. Felecia Monfort., 21 June 1950 until his death 21 February 1954.

I remember heading downtown early one morning with my Dad and family - seeing lots of people lining Barnes Ave. in the 600 block to see the devastation of the burned, gutted building that once held this Northwest downtown landmark they called Monfort Drugs. Click the photo to view more scenes of the Monfort Drugs Fire in the early 1950s.

In one of the mid-1980s history books of Alva, Oklahoma it describes Alva as "The Pearl on the Nescatunga" in it's earlier days. On page 106 of "The First 100 Years of Alva, Oklahoma" there is a brief history of Monfort Drugs written by Dwight Anderson, but it doesn't say when the fire was. Monfort's sold drugs, medicines, paints, oils and glass, books, stationery, school supplies, toilet articles, choice confections and anything else imaginable. Their motto was "We've got it if we can find it." Monfort's soda fountain was twice as long as the average fountain in those days. It was a popular gathering place after an evening at the movies. Monfort's was opened at 6 o'clock a.m. daily and closed whenever the streets were empty of customers in the evening. The pharmacy was at the rear. Monfort's employed local people... including teenagers. It was a windy night in the early 1950s when it was gutted by a fire.

This picture was taken from the top of the Bell Hotel, looking west towards the southwest corner of the downtown square. It shows the westside of square along College Avenue (6th Street) and part of Barnes Avenue that runs west to east. The CR Anthony company occupies the corner of 6th Street and Barnes where Monfort Drugs once stood before it burned May 28, 1953. (Click photo to view larger scene.) This picture according to M. Henry was taken around 1956 and can be seen in the AHS yearbook or on Marvin's Website. On the SW corner of Barnes & Sixth Street is the CR Anthony store where Monfort Drugs and Pangburn's Cafe used to reside. Next to Anthony's is Tanner's Clothing and north of Tanner's is the old T. G. & Y store. A couple of doors north of T.G. & Y you will notice the Pix Theatre and Jett's Department store. Do you remember Jett's and how the entry way went in one side, curved around past the front doors, and then on out the other side? It's been remodeled into Cunningham's Law Offices today. Things do change, don't they?

Brief History of Monfort Drugstore...

1894 -- J. W. Monfort bought the corner drugstore from W. W. Murphy.

1901 -- Monfort's operated a branch store in Waynoka until July, 1928.

1907 -- Another Monfort drugstore opened in Ingersol, but was destroyed by fire 10 years later (1917).

1908 -- Monfort enlarged the building on the corner and it was operated as an up-to-sate drugstore.

20 May 1953 - City Counsel Abolishes Center Parking in downtown square.

28 May 1953 - (Articles form the Alva Review-Courier) Monfort building, Gordon's Cafe are Destroyed by roaring $400,000 Fire.

Other stores were established at Byron and Capron, but later sold and Monfort turned to his original store on the Norhtwest corner of Barnes & College in Alva, Oklahoma.

In "Pioneer Footprints across Woods County", pg. 16, We find where Dr. Howard Banks Ames located his office in the Monfort Building.

On pg. 17 of that same book we find that one Joseph W. Anderson at the beginning of WWI sold his Drug Store in Amorita (Oklahoma) and the family moved to Waynoka, Oklahoma, where Joe served as pharmacist for J. W. Monfort Drug Store branch in Waynoka. The family remained there until the close of the war when they moved to Alva and Joe became a pharmacist at the J. W. Monfort Drug Store in Alva.

In the Pioneer Footprints history book of Woods County, pg. 144, we read about one Dr. Holmes Crisp that moved to Alva in 1904 to manage the optical and jewelry department of J. W. Monfort Drug store. One year later Monfort backed Dr. Crisp in opening his own business in the location just west of the old J. C. Penney Co. store on the southside of the square.

In the Pioneer Footprints book, pg. 237, there is a picture of the J. W. Monfort Drug Store in Waynoka.

(Click photo to see larger view.)

On pg. 695, the Tanner Bros. had a clothing store located north, next door to Monfort Drug Store in Alva, Oklahoma. In 1953 when the drug store burned, Tanner's Store suffered great damage from smoke and water.