PO Box 2, Ardmore, Oklahoma 73402
Email: butchbridges@oklahomahistory.net
Our Barred Rock rooster, Milo, now has a new home in eastern Carter county. The past few weeks he has been getting more and more feisty with Jill, so we decided it was best he move on. I put an ad on Craigslist and a lady near Dickson, Oklahoma with 400 hens bought him this week. He left for his new home Wednesday evening. Now we just have our 4 sweet hens to tend to, providing us with 2 to 4 eggs everyday (Milo never laid one egg lol). Here is a pic I took of Milo and his harem 3 days ago just before he moved out.
https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos10a/MiloTheRooster011110.jpg
Many of you wrote in last week to say the old car in the Soda Pops Cafe photo was the American Austin which later would become the American Bantam Company. American Bantam pioneered the Jeep.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Austin_Car_Company
From the March 21, 1998 T&T:
Making Lye Soap Like Great-Grandma by Dave Ross, Ranchman’s Lye Soap
First we start with the trimmings from our steaks and render out the tallow in big pots. Second we boil the fat with water to take out any impurities i.e. membranes, meat, smell and particles. Then we weigh out 30 pounds of purified tallow and heat it up to the right temperature. We mix lye with water and wait for it to cool down. When everything is at the right temperature we slowly drizzle the lye water into the fat, stirring it all the time. Stirring has to be at just the right speed. If it is stirred to fast it will curdle or too slow it will separate. Also the outside temperature affects how long we need to stir. Sometime I have had to stir for 4 hours or as little as 45 minutes. When the soap is thick enough to make the paddle stand up, it is poured into three large pans and leveled out. In fifteen to thirty minutes we cut it into bars while it is still soft. The next day the soap is put into racks to cure for two weeks. During curing it will shrink some and it will continue to shrink more after that . This is why some of the labels are loose even though we put them on tight.
Working with hot grease and lye is dangerous and we always keep vinegar on hand to splash on our skin in case of contact with lye. Rubber gloves are a must as well as safety glasses. Our manufacturing facility is improving all the time, and we can’t wait for the safety shower and eye wash stand to get here in the mail.
Long ago the settlers made their soap from lard when they killed a pig. Our soap, being made from beef fat, is a little harder but it works just as good. The settlers would make their own lye by saving up hardwood ash from their cookstove or fireplace and put it in a hollowed log angled down towards their soap kettle. The log had a drip hole on the bottom and when they needed lye they poured water on the ashes and seeping through lye water came out the drip hole into their kettle. Their soap was not as white and pretty as mine. Some old timers don’t think my soap is as good because it’s too white and doesn’t smell as bad. Grey and smelly aren’t a requirement for good lye soap.
I have been using Acronis Backup to back up my computer’s hard drive every week for several years. It works great but it’s not a free program (about $30). Last week I found a completely Free program that works just as good as Acronis. Its called ToDo Backup. ToDo Backup is so easy to use, end if you have external drive or second drive in your computer to back up to, just give the location and a file name, and click Backup. And you can click on the Tools Tab and make a emergency boot CD in case your computer won’t even boot up into Windows (which I’ve had happen to me before).
I read this week about a new cell phone service soon to be offered by Magic Jack. The box, when plugged into a USB port on your broadband internet computer, lets you make and receive free calls 24/7 throughout the U.S. and Canada through the cell phone. The cell phone companies are all in hysterics trying to figure out what to do about it (does not work with Verizon). Out south of Lone Grove where we are, and with a metal roof, our cell phones are kinda iffy sometimes as to a strong signal or not. If your in one of those ‘dead zones’ but have broadband internet, the Magic Jack cellphone box will really come in handy. Anyway, I can hardly wait until the new Magic Jack box for cell phones is available in about 4 months.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100108/ap_on_hi_te/us_tec_gadget_show_magicjack
Gas prices today in the Ardmore area……
https://oklahomahistory.net/gasprices.html
Q. What is the Oklahoma State Bird?
A. Scissor -tailed Flycatcher
Q. What native American tribe was attacked by Custer in Indian Territory?
A. (answer in next week’s issue)
Some mail from this week’s MAILBAG…..
“Butch, There are some of us who have a very vivid memory of an event that happened when we were so young that we can’t understand how we could remember it at such an early age. Well, a few weeks ago, one of your readers, Gene Womack, had an article in “This ‘n That” which not only reminded me of the event but, pin pointed the exact time of it, which I did not remember. His Father, Henry Womack, told the story of in 1929 & 1930 ” From December until February” you did not see the ground because of so much snow and ice. MY MEMORY.
We lived about a mile and a half south of ORR in Love County. I was (now I know) three years old at the time and it was Jan or Feb 1930. One night our house caught on fire and my Mother carried my baby sister and me away from the house and put us on a quilt “ON TOP OF THE DEEP SNOW & ICE” where I was in charge of taking care of my baby sister. The two points that I remember as vivid as if it were yesterday are: 1. Seeing my Mother and Father running in and out of the burning house carrying things out. 2. Trying to stop my sister from crying sitting on that deep snow and ice.
Thanks, Gene, for identifying a point in my life. One never knows what will come out of Butch Bridges’ “This ‘n That”. Thanks, Butch.” -Edgar Wallace edgarwallace@sbcglobal.net
“My dad, John W. Koons, worked at Chapman, Drennan and Jones and I think it may have been on that street. They sold and serviced Ferguson tractors before it became Ford/Ferguson or Massey/Ferguson. He loved those little tractors. He had sold Allis Chalmers for a man named Tom Mayers or Meyers and also the John Deere. There was another brand I cannot remember. I think it was red. There was one we called the Popping Johnny (because it popped all the time it was running – maybe John Deere?) He gave a demonstration of the Ferguson at the fair in Ardmore every year. He prepared the arena before the activity started – the rodeo I guess. I was about 7 – 9 years old when he worked there. That would’ve been in the early 50’s. Every year we would go to the fair and rodeo. We were very proud of him. Also, we had to spend a lot of weekends sitting around in the car in the heat of the Oklahoma summertime waiting for him to adjust and repair the New Holland hay bailers and Ferguson tractors. Back then most families had one vehicle and the breadwinner always drove it to work. Dad was both the salesman and the mechanic for the dealership so he spent a lot of time on the road and at work and sometimes Mom would get us all in the car and we would go with him on the weekends to the hay fields and sit in the boiling hot cars. No air conditioning in the car. One whole summer I went to work with him almost every day and met a lot of farm people who owned the Ferguson tractor. Almost every farm we went to the farmers wife would whip up a cake in a few minutes and give us a treat. That was my first sight of the electric mixer. Before long, Dad bought one for mom and we had a lot more dessert after that. We lived in Mannsville between Ardmore and Tishomingo and I remember when we used coal oil lamps because there was no electricity. Then I remember when the OG&E trucks came out and strung the wire to the farm communities around Mannsville. Particularly remember the family of my classmates Lucille and Mahota Hodges getting electricity. Their heritage was a large percentage of Indian blood. I don’t think they were Full Blood Native American; but a lot of Oklahoma families are of mixed blood. My maternal Grandmother had Choctaw from her Dad, Charley Columbus Nail, and Cherokee (we were told) from her mom Josephine Keith Nail. My maternal Grandfather, Sam Faulk, of the Marshall County Faulks (The Cliffs and Kingston) had Creek blood a few generations back; but he was blonde and blue-eyed because of all the German heritage and we found that out from a relative in Alabama in the last few years. The first Koons male to come from the USA from Germany married a Seminole woman in Florida. There was also a bottling plant in the back of the building and he worked there after the tractor dealership shut down. That building looks familiar; but I’m not positive. Maybe someone else will remember. I know it was close to the swimming pool.
Well, I got way off track there and ran a lot of paragraphs together; but think I’ll share my trip down memory lane with everyone anyway.” -Loretta Koons
“Butch as I recall, the long building that you have identified as Hudson-Houston Lumber actually was Lumberman’s Millwork and Supply warehouse. Lumberman’s and Hudson Houston were owned by the same people and both businesses used the same property. The east side and center of that yard were used by Hudson-Houston and identified as Yard #2. The unidentified business on the north side, across the street from Ardmore Plumbing also belonged to Hudson-Houston and I’m not real sure but I think it was called Yard #3. They made specialty items there such as window sashes cabinet doors odd size doors etc. When the railroad decided to add more tracks through this area, Ardmore Plumbing moved to its current location and Yard #3 was incorporated into Lumberman’s current location on Refinery Road. I also remember that the house on the north side across from Fiber Reduction was a boarding house and the home north of the swimming pool was where Floyd Vanderburg lived. One last note, we noticed that the photo must have been taken around 3:30-4:00 in the afternoon because students are walking in the street.” -Joe Baker
https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos9a/3rdNE_Aerial.jpg
“Hey Butch, hope you and Jill had a blessed Christmas. Do you remember when the Joe Brown Company ON 3rd NE) was the Royal Crown Bottling Company and the OK Iron and Metal (on 3rd) was Jake’s Junk Yard? That was a day or two ago. Enjoy your news/history letter.” -David Willingham
https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos9a/3rdNE_Aerial.jpg
“The building to the north of Ardmore Plumbing belonged to us and was a yard for plastic pipe, sheet metal and our company trucks were parked there. We purchased the land from Hudson Houston.” -Phil McAnally, Ardmore Plumbing
https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos9a/3rdNE_Aerial.jpg
Wilson, Oklahoma Korean War Veterans Book
http://koreanwarvets.homestead.com/
“Butch the building just north of Ardmore Plumbing was a sign company at one time. It was a very tall building and they had several large cranes on the North side of the building. I don’t know when it opened, but when I was a young boy 6,7,8 I used to ride around with my dad’s delivery boys from the drug stores. I remember that one day we stopped by the place where one of the delivery boys had a friend that worked there. Inside they had all types and sizes of signs.” -Larry M. in South Florida
https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos9a/3rdNE_Aerial.jpg
“Hi Butch and Jill, I enjoyed your pictures of Soda Pops in Okc. I live right around the corner from there and we eat there a lot. Next time you are here, you might want to try their steak sandwich. The meat is so big that you have to eat a lot of it before you get to the bun. Happy trails.” -Roy Miller
https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos10a/SodaPopsOKC_entrance.jpg
“Just a note of thanks for your great newsletter, Butch. I’m not a lifer in Ardmore like a lot of you are, but I have loved living here the last 10 yrs and I appreciate all the information I get from your website and newsletters. There’s no way I can remember everything I read but enjoy it none the less. Keep on keeping on.” -John Moore
From Arizona Highways magazine Nov 94.
Ardmoreite Bombs Naco, Arizona throwing Washington D.C. into a “Tizzy”, President sends in troops.
-By Tom Kuhn
I am closing in on Patrick Murphy, the pilot who dropped bombs on Naco, Arizona for Mexican rebels during the 1929 Revolution. Murphy needs to be found so history can be set straight.
The attacks made the front page of the “New York Times” three days running, and threw Washington D.C. into a tizzy. They marked the first time the contiguous United States was bombed by the air by a foreign power. The rebels meant to bombard Naco, in Sonora, Mexico and missed. Murphy apologized, but the bombing of the Arizona town continued.
When the revolution collapsed a month later, Murphy avoided a Mexican firing squad by crossing into the U.S. at Nogales, AZ where he was jailed briefly. After his release, he ducked out of sight. He hasn’t been reported since.
He appears in an undated photo to be in his late 30’s. He lived in ARDMORE, OKLAHOMA where he may have learned to fly. 3 more pages of info describing the battle and damage are in the magazine.
-Magazine article found by Larry O’Gwin, Sun City, AZ / Sulphur, OK
“This was a sign made and printed by Coke and put on a store in New Mexico. Can anybody tell me what None perishable means? I have heard about NON perishable but never NONE, ha ha.” -Doug Williams
https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos10a/CokeSign2010.jpg
“Butch this was a scene on our trip to Ruidoso, New Mexico last week, this was what they call “frozen fog”. And from the little town of Tatum, NM a greeting from your column. It means Welcome. And here were two mountain goats right on the highway in the Hondo Valley.” -Doug
https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos10a/FrozenFogNM2010.jpg
https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos10a/T&TsignNM2010.jpg
https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos10a/MtGoatNM.jpg
“Butch. Several years ago you had information on Cole Cemetery. Who owned the land and how Cole bought the property in 40 acre sections. I had the info saved that on my computer. But my computer crashed and I was not able to recover that info. Maybe someone can help me out on this?” jdr1933@aol.com
From 2002 T&T: “Where exactly is the Cole Cemetery located? I know it is located north of Ardmore but that covers quite a territory. Les Segler, Ardmore Police Chief 1919, is buried at the Cole Cemetery (formally Yates cemetery).”
https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos/lesliesegler.jpg
https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos8a/LeslieSeglerGrave.jpg
https://oklahomahistory.net/ttphotos8a/ColeCemeteryMap.jpg
“Butch, where I work in Ardmore we had the boss to bring us in some wild persimmons, cause we had heard the old Indian tale. Knife was bad and rainy, fork was going the be icy and rainy, the spoon was for lots of snow and ice for the winter. When we opened them they were all spoons. I have talked to alot of my Indian friends and they all go by this. I thought it was kinda neat that we have had all this snow since we have opened the seed. We did this in Oct. or Nov. Happy New Year to you and Jill.” -Pat Evans
Immediately after WWI, 10 ships were built and named for 10 cities in the U. S.
3 of those cities were located in OK…..
The Daily Ardmoreite December 13, 1918
Oklahoma Has Three of Ten Cities That Won Naming of Ships
Kansas City, MO., Dec. 12 – When the ship “City of Lincoln” slips from her ways, Miss Mae Pershing, sister of Gen. John J. Pershing, will be her sponsor, according to an announcement made by the publicity department of the Tenth Federal Reserve District.
The announcement accompanied that of the choice of names and sponsors made by the ten cities in the Tenth Federal Reserve District which won the honor of naming ten ships to be built under the direction of the United Sates Shipping Board, by being the first ten cities in the district to report subscriptions to the Fourth Liberty Loan from twenty percent of their population.
Following is the list of the honor cities, the names chosen, and the sponsors who will christen them and it will be observed that three of the ten cities are in Oklahoma;
Vinita, Okla., “Vinita,” Miss Clyde Thompson
Las Vegas, N. M., “Las Vegas,’ Miss Helen V. Kelly
Salina, Kans., “Salina,” Mrs. Robert J. Laubengayer
Sapulpa, Okla., “Sapulpa,” Mrs. J. W. Hoover
Hutchinson, Kans., “City of Hutchinson,” Miss Vera Gano
Colorado Springs, “City of Colorado,” Miss Anne Shober
Lincoln, Neb., “City of Lincolne,” Miss Mae Pershing
Oklahoma City, Okla., “Oklahoma City,” Miss Elizabeth Ames
Kansas City, Kans., “Wyandotte,” women war workers to name sponsor
Denver, Colo., “City of Denver,” Mrs. James H. Baker
The Wilson Post Democrat
October 16, 1969
Okie Pride by Peggy Rankin
They say when something’s really meant it will be believed
So we tell a tale of greatness that has rarely been achieved
By a state called Oklahoma we’re proud of our fine name
And its rise from barren country to a state now rich in fame.
Men came in prairie schooners across this land so vast
They called themselves the “Sooners” and the name was meant to last.
They were men of courage and they were men so bold
And they build a mighty empire out of land so bleak and cold.
You could watch with pride the progress from the ‘run’ in which they ran –
Like the pride you watch from childhood when a boy becomes a man.
We wear an “Okie” pin of gold just to help us say –
That we’re proud of Oklahoma and we’re proud in every way!
I am enough of an artist to draw freely upon my imagination. Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world. -Albert Einstein
See everyone next week!
Butch and Jill Bridges
Ardmore Oklahoma
PO Box 2
Lone Grove, Oklahoma 73443
Save on long distance calls, just a couple cents a minute!
http://www.CheapLongDistance.org
Oklahoma Bells: https://oklahomahistory.net/bellpage.html
American Flyers Memorial Fund – Administration Webpage
https://oklahomahistory.net/crash66.html
Official American Flyers Memorial Website
http://www.brightok.net/~wwwafm
Ardmore Army Air Field/Ardmore Air Force Base Website
http://www.brightok.net/~gsimmons
Mirror Site of the Ardmore Army Air Field/Ardmore Air Force Website
https://oklahomahistory.net/airbase/
Carter county schools, past and present
http://community.webshots.com/user/oklahomahistory
Carter County Government Website
http://www.brightok.net/cartercounty/
Ardmore School Criterions
http://www.ArdmoreCriterion.com
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